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THE
FARMER'S GUIDE
TO
SCIENTIFIC AND PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE.
DETAILING
THE LABORS OF THE FARMER,
IN ALL THEIR VARIETY, AND
ADAPTING THEM TO THE SEASONS OF THE YEAR
AS THEY SUCCESSIVELY OCCUR.
BY HENRY STEPHENS, F.R.S.E.,
AUTHOR OF "THE BOOK OF THE FARM," ETC., ETC., ETC.,
ASSISTED BY
JOHN P. NORTON. M.A,,
PROFESSOR OF SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE IN YALE COLLEGE, NEW HAVEN.
IN TWO VOLUMES— WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS.
VOL. I.
NEW YORK:
LEONARD SCOTT & Co.,
79 FULTON STREET AND 54 GOLD STREET.
1850.
CONTENTS OF VOLUME I.
124
129
INITIATION.
Pag?
On the best of the existing methods for acquiring a thorough knowledge
of practical husbandry, -------1
On the DIFFICULTIES THE PUPIL HAS TO ENCOUNTER IN LEARNING PRACTICAL
HUSBANDRY, AND ON THE MEANS OF OVERCOMING THEM, - - - 3
On THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF FARMING, AND ON SELECTING THE BEST, - - 9
On THE PERSONS REQUIRED TO CONDUCT AND EXECUTE THE LABOUR OF THE
FARM, _.------- 13
On the BRANCHES OF SCIENCE MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE, - - 18
On the INSTITUTIONS OF EDUCATION BEST SUITED TO AGRICULTURAL STUDENTS, 117
On the EVILS ATTENDING THE NEGLECT OF LANDOWNERS AND OTHERS TO LEARN
PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE, -------
On OBSERVING THE DETAILS AND RECORDING THE FACTS OF FARMING BY THE AGRI
CULTURAL STUDENT, -------
PR ACTI CE— WINTER.
Summary of the field operations, and of the weather in winter, - 134
On THE PLOUGH, SWING-TREES, AND PLOUGH-HARNESS, - - - 149
On PLOUGHING AND PLOUGHING-MATCHES, - - - " ■ " 160
On PLOUGHING DIFFERENT FORMS OF RIDGES, ----- 171
On PLOUGHING STUBBLE AND LEA GROUND, ----- 183
On THE OCCUPATION OF THE STEADING IN WINTER, ... - 187
On pulling and storing turnips, MANGOLD-WURTZEL, carrots, PARSNIPS,
AND CABBAGE, FOR CONSUMPTION IN WINTER, . . . .
On THE VARIETIES OF TURNIPS CULTIVATED, - - - . - 197
On THE FEEDING OF SHEEP ON TURNIPS IN WINTER, - - . . 208
On THE ACCOMMODATION AFFORDED TO CATTLE IN WINTER BY THE STEADING, - 242
On the REARING AND FATTENING OF CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER, - - 256
On THE CONSTRUCTION OF STABLES FOR FARM HORSES, - - - - 298
On the TREATMENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER, - - - - 307
On the TREATMENT OF THE FARMER'S SADDLE AND HARNESS-HORSE IN WINTER, 331
On THE FATTENING OF SWINE IN WINTER, . - - . . 343
On the treatment of fowls in winter, ..... 351
On. the rationale of the feeding of animals, - . _ - 362
On the accommodation of the grain crops in the steading, - - 374
On the thrashing and winnowing of grain, - . . - 400
189
4'4^'64
iv CONTENTS.
Page
On the forming of dunghills in winter, ... - - 459
On the fouming of composts in winter, . . - - - 470
On the constriction of liquid-manure tanks and carts, - . - 474
On liquid manure, .--..--- 481
On sea- weed as manure, -....-- 488
On gaulting or claying the soil, ...-.- 490
PRACTICE— SPRING.
Summary of the field operations and of the weather in spring, - 492
On the advantages of having field work always in a state of for-
wardness, --------- 503
On the calving of cows, ..-..-- 505
On the milking of cows, ....--- 521
On the rearing of calves, ..--.-- 527
On the sowing of spring w^heat, ....-- 534
On the drilling up of land, ------- 558
On the sowing of beans, ..----- 565
On the sowing of pease, ....... 575
On the sowing of takes, ...---- 576
On the rolling of land, .._..-- 578
On the transpl-^jnting of turnip bui.bs for producing seed, - - 579
On the sowing of oats, ..,-.-- 580
On lucerne, - - - - - - - - -_ 585
0»s' sainfoin, .--...--- 587
On the lambing oe ewes, ....--- 589
On cross ploughing land, ..__.-- 606
On RIBBING LAND FOR the seed FURROW% - - - - -611
On the sowing of grass-seeds, -...-- 612
On the sowing of barley, ..----- 621
On the turning of dunghills, ...--- 624
On the planting of potatoes, ------- G2U
On paring and burning the surface, . _ - - - 646
On the farroa^ng of sows, ...--.- 652
On the hatching of fowls, ------- 659
LIST OF THE ILLUSTRATIONS IN VOL. L
ENGRAVINGS ON STEEL.
PLATE
I. ISOMETRICAL ELEVATION OF THE STEADING.
II. Ground Plan of the Steading.
III. DOUBLE-HOESE CaKT IN YOKE.
IV. Draught Stallion.
PLATR
v. Brood-Sow.
"VI. Short-Horn Cows.
VII. Leicester Ewe and Lamb.
VIII. Draught Mare.
ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD.
Fig.
Page
Fig.
1.
Sections of Soils and Subsoils,
91
23.
2.
Furrow-side of a Plough,
150
24.
3.
Land-side of a Plough,
ib.
4.
Plan of a Plough,
151
25.
5.
Plough-Staff,
ib.
6.
Swing-Trees for Two Horses,
152
26
7.
Trussed Iron Swing-Trees,
ib.
27.
8.
Swing-Trees for Three Horses,
153
9.
Swing-Trees for Four Horses,
154
28.
10.
Swing-Trees also for Four Horses,
156
11.
Lothian Draught- Horse Collar and
29
Haims, - . . .
ib.
30
12.
Forfarshire Draught-Horse CoUar,
157
31
13.
English Draught-Horse Collar,
ib.
14.
Scotch Plough at Work, -
159
32
15.
Rectangular Furrow-Slice,
161
33
16.
Trapezoidal or Crested Furrow-
Shce, - . - .
ib.
34
17.
Movement of the Furrow-Slice,
165
18.
A Peering Pole, • -
172
35.
19.
Mode of Peering Ridges, -
ib.
36
20.
Gathering-up Ridges from the
37.
Flat, - . - .
174
38.
21.
An Open Furrow with Mould or
Hint-End Furrow-Slices,
ib.
22.
Casting, Yoking, or Coupling Ridges,
176
Making a Gore-Furrow,
Peering for Ploughing Ridges, Two-
out and Two-in, -
Ploughing Ridges Two-out and
Two-in, - - - .
Twice-gathering-up Ridges,
Cleaving - down Ridges without
Gore-Furrows,
Cleaving down Ridges with Gore-
Furrows,
Ridge ill-ploughed,
Rib-Ploughing Stubble-Land,
Stripping the Ground of Turnips
m any given Proportions,
Pulling Turnips for stoiing.
Instrument for topping and tailing
Turnips,
Another Instrument for the same
purpose,
Turnip Trimming-knife,
Topping and tailing Turnips,
Ti-iangular Turnip-Store, -
White Globe Turnip.— The Purple
Top Swedish Turnip. — The
Aberdeenshire Yellow Bullock
Turnip, ....
Page
176.
178
ib.
179
180
ib.
181
182
190
191
192
ib.
ib.
ib.
195
198
Tl
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Fig.
39. An ill-shaped Turnip.— The Tank-
ard Turnip,
40. Hurdles or Flakes set for confining
Sheep on Turnips,
41. The Shepherds Wood Mallet,
42. The Driver,
43. The Shepherd's Knot,
44. The Net set for Sheep,
45. The Sheep Straw or Hay Rack, -
46. The Best Form of Turnip-Picker, -
47. Objectionable Form of Turnip-
Picker, . - - -
48. The Lever Tuniip-Slicer, -
49. The Wheel-Barrow Turnip-Slicer, -
50. The Turnip-Trough for Sheep-
Feeding, - - - -
5L Occupying Turnip- Land for Sheep,
52. TheUil-Cake or Corn Box forSheep,
63. The Oil-Cake Breaker,
54. A Moveable Shed for Sheep on
Turnips, - - - -
55. Steading for the Arable Part of a
Sheei^Farm,
56. The Outside Stell, -
57. Outside Stell without Plantation,
58. Ancient Stells,
59. An Inside Stell, -
60. The Circular Stell,
61. A Bratted Sheep, -
62. Englisli Hurdle, -
63. The Fold-Pitcher in Hui-dle Setting,
64. The Corn-Box for Sheep on Tur-
nips, ....
65. Vertical Section of the Interior of
the Com- Box,
66. Turnip-Trough for Courts,
67. Covered .Straw-Rack for Courts,
68. Wooden Straw-Rack,
69. Iron Straw-Rack, -
70. Water-Troughs, -
71. Drain-Grating for Courts, -
72. Liquid-Manure Drain,
73. Door through which to supply
Mangei-s with Turnips, -
74. Byre-Travis, Manger, and Stake, -
75. A Baikie, - - . -
76. Cattle-Seal or Binder,
77. Byre- Window,
78. The Elevation of an Improved
Window,
79. The Vertical Section of an Improved
Window,
80. The Plan of an Improved Window,
81. A Ventilator,
82. The Graip,
83. Tlie Square-Mouthed Shovel,
84. The Hand Turnip-Chopper, with
Cross Blades,
85. The Hand Turnip-Chopper, with
Parallel Blades, -
86. The Lever Turnip-Slicer for Cattle,
87. Wlieol-Barrow,
88. The Wire Turnip-Basket, -
89. A Safe Lantera,
90. The Cooler for a Byre,
91. 'J'he Cyhnder Straw-Cutter with
Straight Kiiives, •
Page
Fig.
92.
204
93.
94.
209
95.
ib.
210
96.
ib.
211
97.
214
98.
ib.
99.
100.
ib.
215
101.
216
102.
103.
217
ib.
104.
218
105.
219
106.
222
107.
108.
229
231
109.
232
ib.
110.
234
111.
ib.
112.
236
113.
237
238
114.
115.
239
116.
240
117.
243
244
118.
ib.
ib.
245
119.
247
il.
120.
250
251
121.
252
ib.
122.
ib.
123.
253
124.
ib.
ib.
125.
254
126.
258
ib.
127.
ib.
128.
259
129.
ib.
130.
261
ib.
131.
264
268
132.
133.
ib.
The Canadian Straw-Cutter,
Byre for a large Dairy- Farm,
Stone Trough for a Byre, -
Steading for the Cattle of a Pastoral
Fann, . . - -
Steading for the Cattle of a Carse
Farm, - . - -
The Linseed Bruiser,
The Hand Corn-Bruiser, -
The Power Cora-Bruiser, -
The Ox-Louse, Hcematopinus Eury-
stemics, - - - -
The Ox-Louse, TrichodecteiScalaris,
The Cattle Probang,
The Mouth-Piece for the Cattle
Probang,
The Trochar,
A Stall for a Work-Horse Stable,
A Stall with Cast-iron Hind-
Posts, - . . -
A Stable Window,
The Corn-Chest for the Work-
Hoi-ses, - - - -
The Curry-Comb, Brush, Foot
Picker, and JIane-Comb,
The Common Straw Fork,
The Lincolnshire Steel Straw Fork,
The Whin- Bruiser,
The Closed-Boiler Steaming Ap-
paratus, . - - -
Boiler and Furnace,
The Horse Louse, Trichodectes
Equi, . . . .
The Water Brush,
The Horse's Foot in the Natural
State, . - - -
The Transparent Shoe, showing
the close fitting of the Shoe to
the Fore Foot,
The Transparent Shoe, showing the
Usual Seat given to the Shoe
upon the Fore-Foot,
Shoeing the Fore-Foot with Five
Nails, . - - -
Shoeing the Fore-Foot with Seven
Nails, . . - -
Plan of Loose Boxes for Saddle
Horses, - - - -
The Horse Muzzle for Saddle
Horses, - - - -
The Ring Pigs'-Trough, to stand in
a Court, - - - -
, Door for a Pig-Sty,
The Pigs' Troughs, with subdivi-
sions, to stand in an opening of
the outer wall of the Sty,
, The Sow Louse, J/wmatopinua
Suis, . . - -
, The Corn-Barn Door,
. Section of the Com-Bara Floor, -
, Plan of Upper Bam, Granaries,
and Wool- Room,
, Granary Window, and Section of
Shutters,
, A Wooden Stathel for Stacks,
, The Arrangement of the Ground-
Floor of the Bams,
Pag«
270
ib.
271
273
ib.
276
282
283
295
ib.
296
ib.
297
301
302
304
306
310
ib.
ib.
318
320
323
326
333
336
838
ib.
339
ib.
340
ib.
345
346
ib.
350
376
377
378
379
380
382
LIST OP ILLUSTRATIONS.
Vll
Fig.
Page
Fig.
134.
The Arrangement of the Upper
178.
Floor of the Barns,
383
135.
The Elevation of a Thrashing
179
Machine,
384
136.
The Longitudinal Section of a
180
Thrashing Machine,
385
137.
The Crank High-Pressiire Steam
181.
Engine, - - - -
387
182
138.
The Horse Wheel for a Thrashing
183
Machine,
393
184
139.
The Lever for Equalising Draught
185
in the Thrashing Machine,
394
186
140.
The Section and Elevation of a
187.
Bucket Water Wheel,
397
188
141.
Casting down a Stack to be
189.
Thrashed,
401
190.
142.
The Corn-Barrow, -
402
191
143.
The Ladder,
403
192
144.
The Oil-Can,
404
193
145.
Feeding in Com into the Thrash-
194
ing Machine in the Upper Bam,
406
195
146.
The Elevation of the Dressing
Fanner, - - - -
410
196.
147.
The Longitudinal Section of the
197
Dressing Fanner, with Riddles
198.
and Sieves,
ib.
199.
148.
The Transverse Section of the
200.
Dressing Fanner,
411
201.
149.
The Elevation of the Finishing
202.
Fanner or Duster,
412
150.
The Longitudinal Section of the
Finishing Fanner or Duster,
413
203.
151.
The Transverse Section of the
204.
Finishing Fanner or Duster,
ib.
205.
152.
The Wooden Wheat Riddle,
414
153.
The Wooden Barley Riddle,
ib.
206
154.
The Wooden Oat Riddle,
ib.
155.
The Wooden Bean Riddle,
ib.
207.
156.
The Wooden Riddle for the Roughs
of ^Vheat and Oats,
415
157.
The Iron Wire Wheat Riddle,
ib.
208.
158.
The Iron Wire Barley Riddle,
ib.
159.
The Iron Wh-e Oat Riddle,
ib.
209
160.
The Iron Wire Riddle for Roughs,
ib.
210.
161.
The Wooden Sieve,
ib.
211.
162.
The Iron Wire Sieve,
416
212.
163.
The Corn-Basket of Wicker- Work,
ib.
164.
The Barn Stool, -
ib.
213
165.
The Barn Wooden Hoe, -
ib.
166.
The Com Scoop, -
ib.
214.
167.
The Measuring up of Grain in the
Com Barn,
419
215.
168.
The Imperial Bushel of a conve-
216.
nient Form, ...
419
217.
169.
The Flat and Cylinder Corn-Strikes,
421
218.
170.
The Elevation of the Cylinder Hum-
219
meller, ....
422
220
171.
The Hand Hummeller,
ib.
221
172.
Filled Sacks as they should be
222.
placed on the Bam Floor,
423
223
173.
The Sack-Barrow.
425
174.
The Balance Weighing Machine,
426
175.
The Single Horse Tilt Cart,
429
224
176.
Classification of Wheat by the
225
Ear, ....
433
177
Short, Roimd, Plump Form, and
226
Small Size of Wheat,
ib.
227
Rather Long, Medium-Sized Form
of Wheat,
Large Size and Long Form of
Wheat, ... -
Foui'-Rowed Bere or Bigg, Sis-
Rowed Barley, Two-Rowed,
Scotch Bere or Bigg,
English Barley,
The Potato Oat, -
The White Siberian Early Oat,
The Potato Oat, -
The Tartarian Oat,
Ear of Rye,
Grains of Rye, ...
The Horse Bean, ...
The Partridge Field Pea, -
The Dung Spade, ...
A Dung-Pit for Four Fields,
The Mud Hoe or Harle, -
The Liquid Manure Cart, -
The Apparatus for Regulating the
discharge of Liquid Manure,
The Claying of the Soil, -
The Milk Pail,
The Milking Stool,
A Calf's Crib Door,
The Pickling of Wheat, -
The Seed Corn Rusky,
The Method of putting on the
Sowing Sheet, and of Hand Sow-
ing, - - - -
The English Sowing Basket,
The Broadcast Sowing Machine, -
The East Lothian Grain DrUl
Machine, ...
Slight's new Lever-Drill Sowing
Machine,
The Wooden Rhomboidal Har-
rows, with then- Yoke of Swing
Trees, ....
The Iron Rhomboidal Harrows,
with their Yoke of Swing Trees,
The Double Mould-Board Plough,
The Sowing of Corn by Hand,
The Presser-Rollei',
Action of the edge of the Pressing
Wheels, - - - -
The Mode of Ploughing Single
Drills, - - - -
The Double Mould-Board Plough
for forming Drills,
Kirkwood's Gi-ubber,
The Ducie Cultivator,
The Dung Drag, - - -
The Three-Pronged Dimg Graip, -
The Bean-Drill or Barrow,
The Drill Harrow,
The Section of the Drill Harrow,
The Land-Roller, -
The large Insect which produces
the Grub m Oat Fields — The
Wheat Fly,
The Shepherd's Crook,
The Mode of holding Lambs for
Castration, ...
The Ewe House, ...
The Mountain Snow Harrow,
434
ib.
445
446
ib.
448
449
ib.
ib.
451
ib.
452
454
464
467
470
478
479
491
523
ib.
528
536
637
538
ib.
541
544
546
547
548
552
553
554
655
660
565
567
568
570
ib.
571
573
574
579
683
598
599
605
ib.
Vlll
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Fig.
228. The Mountain Tum-Wrist Suow
Plough, - - - -
229. A Field Peered for being Cross-
Ploughed,
230. The Small or Ribbing Plough,
231. The Kibbmg Coultx;rs,
232. The Gi-ass-Seed Iron Harrows, w-ith
Wings and Swing Trees,
233. The Frying Pan or Lime Shovel, -
Page
Fig.
34. How a Potato may be cut into
606 Sets,
235. A Potato Hand Basket, -
608 236. Potato Planting, -
611 237. The Common No. 5 Spade,
612 238. The Flauchter Spade at Work,
239. The Paring Sock or Share,
616 I 240. The Leicester Paring Plough,
627 I 241. Sties, for Brood Sows under Cover,
Page
630
632
633
647
a.
648
ib.
652
PREFACE.
BY HENRY STEPHENS.
The call for another Edition of the Booh of the Farm, so soon after
the issue of the former one, and the gratifying reception of the work
by agriculturists of the highest repute, both at home and abroad, justify
me in believing that the object for which it was undertaken has been
attained, and that the plan upon which it is arranged has met with
general approval.
My chief object, in preparing the work, was to construct such a hand-
book as should be of service in instructing young men who might desire
to become farmers, in practical husbandry. Not that I ever supposed
the mere perusal of a book could make any young man a practical
farmer ; but my own experience as an agricultural pupil, for some years,
having convinced me that it is most difficult to acquire a knowledge of
husbandry even on a farm, unless through an expenditure of time which
few young men can afford to spare, I became assured that, with a work at
hand containing clear explanations of the details of each farm-operation,
and of its relation to that which preceded and followed it in the re-
volution of the agricultural year, a young man, residing on a farm in
the capacity of pupil to an intelligent farmer, would much sooner
and much better become acquainted with rural aifairs than he possibly
could do without the advantages of such reference. The farmer, who
unquestionably is the proper agricultural instructor, cannot always be
on the spot to answer inquiries, nor can a pupil always put his ques-
tions distinctly, or be aware of the proper time to put them, so as to
elicit the information wanted. But the pupil can, in the intervals
when direct information is impossible, peruse his hand-book, wherein
he will find not only every detail of the particular operation proceeding in
the field fully explained, but its relative position correctly indicated in
JVote by the American Publishers.— Thai portion of the Farmer's Guide written by Mr. Stephens is a reprint of
the second edition of the Book of the Farm. The reader « ill see by Mr. Stephens's Preface, that this second edition
is virliiiilly a new liook, eiiibracin;; the more important (features of the first edition and all the later discoveries in
Agricultural Science. This improvement in the character of Ihe work, tocether with the additions of Professor
Norton, has induced the American Publishers to adopt a new title. The change is sanctioned by the British
Publishers, who have an interest in the sale of the American Edition, and it meets the approbation of the American
Public.
Ti PREFACE.
reference to the operations preceding and following it. To explain still
more explicitly the nature of field-operations, I have first arranged each
in the agricultural season in N?hich it should be begun, and then con-
tinued it through those in which it should be carried on, down to that
in which it ought to be brought to a conclusion ; and I have, moreover,
carefully preserved its relation to those operations which precede and
follow it through all the seasons. I am satisfied that no better mode
exists of teaching farming successfully, to pupils in agriculture, from
books. Systematic works on agriculture, as hitherto written, are couched
m too general terms to be practically useful, and the narrative is rarely
so' arranged as to give an adequate idea of the method which is really
adopted in the fields. A work in the cyclopaediac form, besides
this objection, presents a greater, by placing the operation in the midst
of subjects which, as a matter of necessity, bear no relation whatsoever
to its peculiar antecedents or progress.
The aim and plan of the former edition of the Book of the Farm,
which the pubhc approval has sanctioned in the most unequivocal
manner, it is not my intention to disturb in the present edition. Still,
with the view of conveying more instruction to the agricultural pupil,
considerable alterations have been made in the arrangement of the sub-
jects ; and these have been so emended, enlarged, and in some instances
curtailed — a large proportion having been also rewritten, to suit the
altered influences under which husbandry, as an art, is now placed —
as, I am persuaded, to make the Mork more useful to the agriculturist
and the student.
The subjects treated of I have airanged under three prominent divi-
sions, M'ith the view of bringing them successively under the notice of
the agricultural student. The First Division directs him to avail him-
self of the experience of some farmer who practises the species of
husbandry he desires to acquire ; it makes him acquainted with
the various sorts of farming practised in this country ; and it
indicates the peculiar form of the ground, and the locality, which
determine the adoption of each of those sorts of farming. He is
then warned of the difficulties which he will have to encounter at
the outset of his agricultural career, and apprised of the means by
which he may overcome these, if he chooses to adopt them. The ne-
cessity of a good general education to agriculturists is dwelt on with
peculiar earnestness, because every farm-operation clearly indicates its
dependence for its right performance on some branch of physical science
PREFACE. vH
The work, I trust, may be consulted with as much advantage by the
country gentleman, unacquainted with practical agriculture, as by the
pupil ; and I have endeavoured to explain my reasons for thinking so,
by pointing out the particular evils which inevitably arise from inac-
quaintance with rural affairs by the proprietors of the soil. This First
portion I have designated Initiation, because it indicates the sort of
discipline which the agricultural pupil should voluntarily undergo, before
his mind can become fitted to master the details of practical agriculture.
The Second Division explains the details, even to the most minute
particular, of every farm-operation, from one end of the year to the
other ; and as the treatment of each is materially affected by the parti-
cular season in which it is undertaken, great care has been taken to
treat of each in the manner peculiar to the season in which it is con-
ducted. The seasons having a predominating influence over farm-
operations, all the operations are necessarily classed under their re-
spective seasons. The Winter commences the operations of the farm,
when most of the preparations for the succeeding busy seasons are made.
Upon the foundation laid in Winter, the Spring consigns every variety
of seed used in husbandry to the ground, and witnesses the reproduction
of every species of live stock. The Summer fosters the growth both of
plants and animals. The Autumn reaps the fruits of all the labour that
has been bestowed in the preceding seasons. To render the explanations
of the operations more particular and explicit throughout the seasons, I
have found it necessary, by way of practical example, to assume the work-
ing of one of the sorts of farming for twelve months ; and have selected
that which embraces the greatest variety of particulars — the Mixed Hus-
bandry, which has for its subjects not only the cultivation of the plants
raised in the field, but also the breeding, rearing, and fattening of live
stock. This part necessarily occupies a large portion of the work, and
is appropriately designated Practice.
In the Third Division, the agricultural pupil is regarded no longer
as a mere student, but as a young farmer on the look-out for a farm.
To assist him in this object, he is made acquainted with the best and
worst physical conditions in which a farm can be placed, in the dif-
ferent sorts of farming, as regards variety of ground and locality. He is
next shown the manner of judging of land ; of computing its rent ; of
negotiating the covenants of a lease ; of stocking the farm which was
chosen as an example for his guidance ; and of arbitrating on minor
subjects with his predecessor before he leaves the farm.
viH PREFACE.
This extent of instruction is quite sufficient for the young fanner
in ordinary cases, where the farm is complete, and its farming has been
long settled. Where the farm is incomplete, he may further require
information on subjects that might never have been presented to his notice
in tlie course of his stay on the educational farm, but which it is incum-
bent on him to know before he can become a thoroughly good farmer.
The farm he is about to enter may require a new steading — the young
tenant should become acquainted with plans, specifications, and expenses
of buildings. To assist him, I have given these, based upon such principles
as are applicable to all sizes of steadings, and all modes of farming.
The ground may require enclosure : — he should know the principles upon
which fields should be planned for convenience of work, and the method
of constructing fences, whether of thorn or of stone. The land may
require draining : — he ought to become acquainted with the principles
upon which drainage depends, so far as these have been ascertained,
and the method of applying them practically. There may be waste
land to bring in : — its treatment, whether by trenching with the spade, or
trenching and subsoiling after drainage with the plough, should be
familiarised to him. The embankment of land against, and irrigating
it with water may be requisite in some localities : — he ought to know
the best method of effecting both. On all these subjects I have
endeavoured to afford the young farmer the best intrinsic information in
an easy shape for reference, and not clouded with unnecessary techni-
calities.
After the treatment of those important and fundamental topics, which
have reference alone to the soil, the principles upon which the purity
of blood and the symmetrical form of animals are secured and main-
tained, are then explained. The points of animals which illustrate those
principles are fully indicated, and the portraits of some which possessed
these in an eminent degree embellish the work. No fanner can under-
stand the position of his affairs without keeping accurate accounts, so
that a system of book-keeping must be of service to him, and the simple
one I have given possesses the advantage of having been found practi-
cally useful. With a few precepts for the guidance of the young farmer,
at the outset of life, in his conduct toM'ards his dependents and equals,
as M'cll as his superiors, I conclude my task. These, I trust, will be
accepted, or at least perused, in the same good spirit with which they
are offered ; my object being to inculcate that unity of feeling among
agriculturists of every class, without which no pursuit can prosper, and
PREFACE. iSt
which is not only a social but a sacred duty, seeing that our dependence-
lies with Him who holds the elements in His hands. Because the wishes
of the young farmer are realised, more or less, by one and all of
these means, I have designated this part Realisation.
It may be proper for me to state, in a few words, the opportunities I
have had of acquiring such an extent of knowledge in the various depart-
ments of practical agriculture, and the other subjects enumerated above,
as to warrant me in assuming the part of monitor to the agricultural
student. The following short narrative, I trust, may be sufficient to
satisfy the reasonable inquirer.
After receiving what is commonly called a liberal education at the
Parochial and Grammar Schools of Dundee, at the Academy there, under
Mr Duncan, the Rector, now Professor of mathematics in St Salvador's
College, St Andrews, and at the College of Edinburgh, I boarded myself
■with Mr George Brown, of Whitsome Hill, a farm in Berwickshire, of
about 600 acres, with the view of learning agriculture. Mr Brown was
universally esteemed one of the best farmers of that well-farmed county ;
and so high an opinion did the late Mr Robertson of Ladykirk, the
most celebrated breeder of short-horns in Scotland of his day, enter-
tain of his farming, both in stock and crop, that he gave him per-
mission to send his cows to the bulls at Ladykirk — a singular favour
"which he extended, I believe, to no one else, with the exception
of his old tenant and intimate friend, Mr Heriot of Fellowhills. I
remained three years at Whitsome Hill, during the first two of which
I laboured with my own hands at every species of work which tlie plough-
man, the field-worker, and the shepherd must perform in tlie field, or
the steward and the cattle-man at the steading : and even in the dairy
and poultry house part of my time was spent. All tliis labour I under-
took, not of necessity, but voluntarily and with cheeifulness, in the
determination of acquiring a thoroughly practical knowledge of my
profession. In my tliird year, when there happened to be no steward,
Mr Brown permitted me to manage the farm under his own immediate
superintendance.
I then travelled for nearly a twelvemonth, soon after peace was
restored, through most of the countries of Europe, and in many places
I happened to be the first Briton who had visited them since tlie out-
break of the Revolutionary war. This excursion gave me considerable
insight into the methods of Continental farming.
Shortly after my return home, I took possession of a small farm on
IT PREFACE.
Balmadies in Forfarshire, consisting of 300 acres. It was in such a
state of dilapidation as to present an excellent subject for improvement.
It had no farm-house — only the remains of a steading ; the fields
were nine-and-twenty in number, very irregular in shape, and fenced
with broken down stone djkes and clumsy layers of boulders and turf; a
rivulet every year inundated parts of the best land; the farm-roads were
in a wretched condition ; and above forty acres of waste land were covered
with whins and broom. The heaviest description of soil was hazel loam,
some of it deep, some shallow, and all resting on retentive clay ; and the
lightest kind was gravelly, resting on gravel. The farm contained a
remarkable feature, not uncommon, however, in that part of the country
— an isolated peat-bog, very deep, containing thick beds of shell marl, and
enclosing a small lake, around whose margin grew aquatic plants in the
utmost luxuriance. In a few years the farm possessed a mansion-house,
oflBces, and steading, (an isometrical view and ground-plan of the last
were figured in Plates I. and II. of the first edition, though enlarged
to suit a larger farm ;) the surface was laid off" in twelve fields of equal
size and rectangular shape, to suit the six-course shift with three years'
grass ; some of those fields were fenced with thorn hedges, and some
with stone dykes ; the impetuous rivulet, the Vinny, was embanked
out ; the land upon the retentive bottom was drained in the old mode
with stones, but a few acres were tried with furrow-drains filled with
small stones, several years before the Deanston plan was made public by
the late lamented James Smith ; after the draining, the soil was trench-
ploughed with four horses ; the farm-roads were extended and made
serviceable, and all the waste land was brought into cultivation. I
made the plans of the buildings myself, and also set off" the form of
the fields, and the Hues of the fences and roads — not because I imaiiined
that a professional man could not have done them better, but that my
mind and hands might be familiarised with every variety of labour
appertaining to rural affairs. The results each year were twenty-five
acres of good turnips, instead of ten or twelve of bad, and fifty stacks
of corn in the stackyard, instead of seventeen. The rent offei-ed for
the farm before I took possession of it was £l50, and after I relin-
quished farming it was let for nearly £400. The fee-simple arising
from this increase of rent represents a sum larger than what was
expended in producing those results. I believe I was the first person
to introduce into Forfarshire the feeding of cattle in small numbers in
hammels, instead of large numbers in large courts ; to show the advan-
PREFACE.^ xi
tage of building troughs around the walls of the courts to hold topped
turnips, instead of spreading uutopped ones upon the dung ; to confine
sheep upon turnips in winter with nets instead of hurdles — a plan which
the late Mr Andrew Dalgairns of Ingliston readily adopted, at my sug-
gestion, even with Black-faced sheep ; and to grow the Swedish turnip
in a larger proportion than the other sorts.
It will, I think, be admitted that the farmer who had the opportuni-
ties of learning the varieties of rural labour thus particularised, and
who has bestowed all the powers of his faculties for years in acquiring
them thoroughly, may, without presumption, consider himself sufficiently
qualified to impart the results of his experience and observation to agri-
cultural students. It is in the belief that a work of this comprehensive
nature, compiled after the author exchanged the actual practice of
farming for the onerous duties of conducting a portion of the agricul-
tural press, may not only be of service to the rising generation, but also
no small assistance to the numerous farmers who now receive young
men into their houses for tuition in agriculture, that these volumes are
oflfered to the public. So long as I was a pupil, no such book was in
existence for me to consult, and having therefore personally experienced
the inconvenience of being left to acquire what knowledge I could,
chiefly by my own industry and perseverance, sympathy for the young
pupil, placed in similar circumstances, has prompted me to endeavour to
make his path smoother than I found my own.
It will be observed that the work is printed alternately in small and
in large type. The information imparted by the large type has been
chiefly derived from my own experience and observation ; and where-
ever that has coincided with the dicta of previous writers, I have quoted
them, for the double purpose of corroborating what I had to say by the
experience of others, and of giving competent authorities, to direct the
agricultural pupil to works descriptive of diSerent branches of husbandry.
The small type contains descriptions by myself, and quotations from
writers of professional eminence, of the other kinds of farming beside
the one adopted as the leading example ; and also illustrations of
each particular operation under discussion, derived from various works
and documents, agricultural and scientific. As I had not space to
raise discussions on the particular views broached on each subject,
I have deemed it sufficient to direct the agricultural student to the
sources where he would find the subjects more fully stated and discussed.
Most of the illustrative passages alluded to have been derived from
xU PREFACE.
the pages of the Journal of Afiriculture, and the Transactions of the
Highland and Agricidtural Society of Scotland.
I have alM'ays believed tliat a work on practical husbandry loses half
its value, unless it be copiously illustrated with figures of the various
subjects treated of ; because it seems to me as impossible to convey in
words every particular connected with any important farm-operation,
without the assistance of figures, as to explain by words alone the
component parts of a complicated machine. After much reflection, and
different preliminary experiments, I arrived at the conclusion that a
group of figures would best show the method of executing each principal
operation.
Holding the opinion I have just expressed as to the manner in wliich
an agi'icultural work ought to be illustrated, in order to make it really
useful, the first edition of the Booh of the Farm was necessarily an
expensive undertaking. It was unquestionably desirable, and consonant
with the wishes both of the author and publishers, that any subsequent
edition which might appear should be offered at a lower price. But
notwithstanding the rapid sale, the practicability of such a reduction was
attended with unforeseen difficulty, because, since the first appearance
of the work, agriculture had attracted so much public attention, and so
many changes in its practice had been suggested by scientific men, who
proffered their aid to the farmer by means of chemistry, and, besides
this, so many experiments had been conducted by farmers, in conse-
quence of those suggestions, that the large additions required to record the
results obtained would tend rather to increase than to diminish the cost.
To have left those results unnoticed, and issued a mere reprint, without
commentary on what had taken place, would not only have detracted
from the usefulness of tlie work by rendering it behind its time, but
would have justly withdrawn from myself that confidence which many
young agriculturists, at home and abroad, had been pleased to place in
me, in consequence of their perusal of the first edition. No alternative,
then, was left me but to render the work more complete by engrossing
as many of the results of those experiments, and explaining so much of
the views of the men of science, as seemed to affect particular portions
of ordinary practice. The execution of this task, so as to bring it within
moderate bounds, was attended with no small diflSculty and labour on
account of the large mass of materials with which it was necessary to
deal.
I soon found that in the chemical branch I should have to confine
FBEFACE. idK
mjself to giving, from the ascertained results, the largest returns from the
use of the special manures recommended bj chemists, and the analyses
of the mineral ingredients contained in the plants that had been examined
for that purpose. From theory and science, I have selected the views
of the most eminent physical writers as to the action of plants upon
ordinary manures in general, and upon special manures in particular;
because this subject of manures and their effects is of all others the
most important for explaining the phenomena of the rotation of crops,
the development of plants, and the fertility of soils ; and a subject more
interesting or more valuable cannot occupy the attention of the farmer
in reference to the cultivation of the soil. Besides these contributions
of science, the recent theory of the assimilation of the component parts
of the food, by the different functions of the animal economy, has thrown
a flood of light on the feeding of stock, and, as a consequence, on the
treatment of manure heaps, which no farmer could have discovered by
practice alone, and which is yet in all probability destined to effect a
great change in the distribution of food to the domesticated animals.
Chemistry, in my estimation, has done much more for the farmer in this
than in any point relating to the cultivation of the cereal grains.
These tasks T have endeavoured to perform, with a view to abate the
over-sanguine expectations of the ardent pupil, and remove the reason-
able doubts of the experienced farmer ; as also to caution both parties
against the adoption of many of the conclusions arrived at and pro-
mulgated by scientific and non-practical writers, until these shall have
been sanctioned by experience. The labour necessary for comprehending
these subjects in an abridged form, which is as much as should be
expected in an essentially practical work, has occupied more time
than I expected, and to that circumstance must be referred the other-
wise inexcusable delay in the issue of the concluding part of this work.
To make room for so much additional matter, the work has been
printed in a rather smaller type, and the lengthened details of the
descriptions of the implements and machines have been omitted. Still
it was necessary to retain all the implements, in a completed form,
used in mixed husbandry, which has been done by giving their figures
engraved on wood instead of retaining the copper-plates, and as much
of Mr Slight's description of their general construction and use has
been adopted as might enable the agricultural pupil to recognise and
appreciate them, wherever he might meet with them, because I could
not so well describe them as in Mr Slight's own appropriate words.
xlr PREFACE.
Some delineations of machinery, liowever, will be found not described
bj him, but specially referred to by myself
Were I to close these general observations, and omit to mention my
obligations to the eminent Publishers, who offered without hesitation
to incur the entire responsibility and risk connected with the publica-
tion of this work, I would do much violence to my own feelings ;
and their offer seemed the more generous to me, as it was the more
timely, because I am sure that the work would never have been pub-
lished unless it had been undertaken on those terms. My idea was,
that the necessarily high price of the work Mould render its publication
a hazardous undertaking ; and, although convinced that such a work
was a desideratum in the agricultural literature of this country, I M'ill
own that my knowledge of the loss which must be sustained, should the
work not receive the public approval, weighed somewhat heavily upon
my mind. Fortunately these fears were soon dissipated. The Booh
of the Farm at its first appearance received, and has since uninter-
ruptedly enjoyed, the public favour beyond the expectations both of
Author and Publishers.
The groups illustrative of the principal field-operations have been
much increased in number. They have been drawn, in the most graphic
manner, by Gourlay Steell of Edinburgh, Associate of the Royal Scot-
tish Academy, with a beauty in composition, accuracy of detail, and
power of expression, which it would be diificult to excel. The figures of
the implements, both those in the former edition and the additional ones
in this, have been drawn from the best-constructed machines in the pos-
session of farmers and implement-makers, by George Henry Slight of
Abernethy, whose mechanical designs conjoin the correctness of the
skilful mechanician with the accuracy in perspective of the experienced
draughtsman. His drawings, indeed, are not easily distinguishable
from plate engravings.
As, in this country, the attention and interest of the fanner is more
engrossed by the rearing of animals than by the cultivation of plants, it
was necessary, for illustration, to procure correct portraits of those animals
which had attained pre-eminence in the various classes of the domesti-
cated breeds. To have given portraits, however, of the males and females
in all their varieties, of every breed reared in this country, would have
very much increased the cost of the work ; and it was therefore deemed
sufficient to confine the selection to good examples from the most
esteemed and favourite breeds. The portraits of these animals were
PREFACE. XT
painted in oil, partly bj the late John Sheriff of Edinburgh, Associate
to the Rojal Scottish Academy, and partly by Gourlay Steell, the
most eminent artist in that line in Scotland. None of them are fancy
pictures, got up for artistic effect only, but faithful likenesses of the
several individuals, exhibiting the points -which characterise their parti-
cular breeds ; and they were painted in different parts of the country
under my own superintendence. I felt myself much indebted to their
respective owners, not only for leave to take the likenesses, but also for
the accommodation so much required in undertakings of that nature.
Skilful engravers have done justice to the paintings. The name
of Thomas Landseer alone would give eclat to any work professing to
contain the portraits of the domesticated animals. The numerous and
varied subjects engraved on wood were executed by R. E. Branston
of London, whose name is a sufficient guarantee for excellence in
that graphic and delightful branch of the fine arts. I am persuaded
that, by the originality, quality, and number of its illustrations — it
may be even to profusion — this work has been rendered the more use-
ful to the agricultural pupil ; and, in this respect, I may be allowed
to say, without any charge of egotism, that I know no work on practical
agriculture, foreign or domestic, that possesses the same advantage, at
least in the same degree.
BSOBRAE COTTAOE, EdINBCBOB,
February 1851.
THE FARMER'S GUIDE
TO
SCIENTIFIC AND PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE.
PART L— INITIATION.
ON THE BEST OF THE EXISTING METHODS
FOR ACQUIRING A THOROUGH KNOW-
LEDGE OF PRACTICAL HUSBANDRY.
1. No doubt exists, I believe, that the
best way, among existing ones, for a young
man to acquire a thorough knowledge of
farming, is to become a pupil in the house
of a good practical farmer. On a fine farm,
and with a competent tutor, the pupil will
not only live comfortably, but may tho-
roughly learn any system of husbandry he
chooses. The choice of locality is so far
limited, that he must take up his residence
in a district in which the particular system
he has chosen is practised in a superior
manner.
2. Many farmers are to be found
who accept pupils, amongst whom a
proper selection should be made, as it would
be injudicious to engage with one who is
notoriously deficient iu the requisite quali-
fications— and those qualifications are
numerous. A tutor-farmer should possess
a general reputation of being a good
farmer — that is, a skilful cultivator of land,
a successful breeder, and an excellent judge
of stock. He should possess agreeable
manners, and have the power of commuui-
cating his ideas with ease. He should
occupy a good farm, consisting, if possible,
of a variety of soils, and situate in a
tolerably good climate, — neither on the top
of a high hill nor on the confines of a large
moor or bog, nor in a warm sheltered nook,
VOL. I.
but in the midst of a well cultivated
country. Such circumstances of soil and
locality should be requisites in a farm in-
tended for the residence of pupils. The
top of a hill, exposed to every wind that
blows, or the vicinage of a bog overspread
with damp vapour, would place the farm
in a climate in which no kind of crop or
stock could arrive at a state of perfection;
while a very sheltered spot and a warm
situation, would give the pupil no idea of
the disappointments experienced in a pre-
carious climate.
3. The inexperienceof the pupil renders
him unfit to select these requisites for him-
self in either a qualified farmer or a suit-
able farm : but monitors are never awanting
to render assistance to their young friends
in every emergency ; and as their opinion
should be formed on a knowledge of farm-
ing, and especially on an acquaintance
with the farm, and the personal qualifica-
tions of the farmer they recommend, some
confidence may be placed in their recom-
mendations. For the pupil's personal com-
fort, I would advise him to choose a
residence where dixe no young children.
4, A residence of one year must pass
ere the pupil can witness the course of the
annual operations of the farm. His first
engagement should, therefore, be made for
a period of not less than one year ; and at
the expiry of that period he will not be
qualified to manage a farm. The t^mo he
Library
INITIATION.
would require to spend on a farm must be
determined by the conipcteucyof the know-
ledge acquired of his profession.
5. The pupil may enter on his pupilage
at any time of the year ; but since farming
operations iiave a regular period forbegin-
nin<r and ending every year, it is evident
tliat the most proper time to beginio view
them is at the openivp of the agricultural
year — that is, in the beginning of winter.
It may be incongenial to his feelings who
has been accustomed to pass the winter in
town, even to contemplate, and far more
to participate, for the first time, in the
labours of a farm on the eve of winter. He
would naturally prefer the sunny days of
summer. But the commencement of winter
being the time at which all the great
operations are begun, it is requisite to their
being understood to *•<?<? t/ie)n begun; and to
endeavour to become acquainted with
complicated operaticms after the pri7icipal
arrangements for their prosecution have
been formed, is purposely to invite wrong
impressions of them.
6. There is really nothing disagreeable
to personal comfort in the business of a
farm in winter. On the contrary, it is
full of interest, inasmuch as the welfare of
living animals is juesented to the attention
more forcibly than the cultivation of the
soil. Tiie well-marked individual charac
ters of different animals engage the sym-
pathy ; and the more so, that animals seem
more domesticated under confinement than
when at liberty to roam in quest of food and
shelter. In the eveninsx, in winter, the
hospitality of the social board awaits the
pupil at home, after the labours of the day
are over. Neighbours interchange visits
in tliat social season, when topics of con-
versation common to society are varied
by remarks on jirofessional management,
elicited by modified practice, and from
which the attentivepujiil may derive much
useful information. Should society jire-
sent no charms, the quieter companionship
of books, or the severer task of study, is at
his command. In a short time, however,
the various objects peculiar to the season
of winter cannot fail to interest him.
7. The first thing thepupil should become
well acquainted v.ith is \.\\q jihgsical geo-
graphy of the farm, — that is, its position,
exposure, extent ; — its fences, whether of
wall or hedge; — its shelter, in relation to
rising grounds and plantations ; — its roads,
public or private, whether conveniently
directed to the difl'erent fields, or other-
wise;— its fields, their number, names,
sizes, relative positions, and supi)ly of
water; — the position of the farm-house
and farm-offices. Familiar acquaintance
with all these particulars will enable him
to understan<l more readily the orders
given by the farmer for the work to be
performed in any field. It is like possess-
ing a map of the ground on which certain
operations are about to be undertaken. A
plan of the farm would much facilitate its
familiar acquaintance. The <«//wr-farmer
should be j)rovided with such a plan to
give to each of his pupils ; but if lie has
none, the pupil can construct one for him-
self, which will answer the purpose.
8. The usual fee for pupils is about
£l20 per annum for bed, board, and wash-
ing, with the use of a horse to occasional
markets and shows. If the pupil desire a
horse of his own, about i^.3U a-year more
are demanded. On these moderate terms
pupils are yery comfortably situated.
9. I think it bad policy to allow the
pupil a horse of his own at first. Constant
attention to field-labour is not unattended
with irksomeness, while exercise fm horse-
back is a tempting recreation to young
minds. The desire to possess a horse
of one's own is so very natural in a
young person living in the country, that,
were the pupil's inclinations aloue con-
sulted, the horse would soon be in his pos-
session ; and when the choice is given to
an indifferent pupil, he will certainly j)re-
fer pleasure to duty. The risk is, that
the indulgence will confirm r^ habit that
will lead him astray from at.L jding to his
business ; such as following the hounds,
forming acquaintances at a distance from
home, and loitering about towns on mar-
ket-days,— aad the evil of this roving life
is its being an easy introduction to one of
dissipation and extravagance. This con-
sideration should have its weight with
]ic rents and guard'ans, when they accede
to the request of the pupil for the luxury of
a horse, on j)lacing him under the roof of
a farmer. It is enough for a young man
to feel a release from parental restraint,
DIFFICULTIES TO BE ENCOUNTERED AND OVERCOME.
•without having the dangerous incentive of
an idle life placed at his disposal. They
should consider that upon young men
arrived at the years when they become
farming pujnls, it is not in the power, and
is certainly not the inclination, of the
tutor-farmer to impose ungracious re-
straints. It is the duty of their parents
and guardians to impose these ; and the
most eftectual way I know of, in the cir-
cumstances, to avoid temptations, is the
denial of a riding-horse. Attention to
business in the first year will, most pro-
bably, excite a desire to pursue it with
pleasure in the second, and then the in-
dulgence of a horse may be granted to the
pupil with impunity, as the reward of
diligence. Until then, the conveyance
occasionally afforded by the farmer to
attend particular markets, or pay friendly
visits to neighbours, should suffice; and then
it is quite in the farmer's power to curb
in his pupils any propensity to wander
abroad too frequently, aud thereby to
support his own character as an exem-
plary tutor. Such precautions are, of
course, only necessary against pupils who
show lukewarmness in acquiring their pro-
fession. The diligent pupil, who desires to
learn his profession in as short a time as
practicable, will daily discover new sources
of enjoyment at home, far more exhilarat-
ing, both to body and mind, than in jogging
along the dirty or dusty highways, until
the jaded brute he bestrides is ready to
sink under its burden.
10. The pupil should provide himself
with an ample stock of stout clothing and
shoes, capable of repelling cold and rain,
and so made as to answer at once for
walking and ridin<j.
11. Three years, in my opinion, are
requisite to give a pupil an adequate know-
ledge of farming, — such as would impress
him with the confidence of being able to
manage a farm ; and no young man should
undertakeits management until hefeels suf-
ficient confidence in hnnself Three 3'ears
may be considered as too long time to spend
in learn'mg farmin(/ ; hnt it is much less
time than is given to many other profes-
sions, whose period of apprenticeship ex-
tends to five or seven years; and however
highly esteemed those professions may be,
none should excite a deeper interest, in a
national point of view, than that of agri-
culture. There is one condition attendant
on the art of farming, which is common to
it and gardening, but inapplicable to most
other arts, — that a year must elapse before
the same work is again performed. This
circumstance, of itself, will cause the pupil
to spend a year in merely observing cur-
rent operations. This is the first year.
As the operations of farming are all anti-
cipatory, the second year will be fully
employed in studying the progress of work
in preparation of anticipated results. In
the third year, when his mind has been
stored with every mode of doing work,
and the purposes for which it is performed,
the pupil may put his knowledge into
practice, under the correcting guiilance
of his tutor. Whatever may be the ability
of the pupil to acquire farming, time must
thus necessarily elapse before he can have
the opportunity of again witnessing a by-
gone operation. No doubt, by natural
capacity he might acquire in two years
the art to manage a farm; but, the whole
operations necessarily occupying a year
in their performance, he is prevented ac-
quiring the art in less time than three.
ON THE DIFFICULTIES THE PUPIL HAS
TO ENCOUNTER IN LEARNING PRACTI-
CAL HUSBANDRY, AND ON TUE MEANS
OF OVERCOMING THEM.
12. The pupil, if left to his own guid-
ance, when beginning to learn his profes-
sion, would encoimter many j^erplexing
difficulties. The difficulty which at first
most prominently obtrudes itself on his
notice, consists in the distribution of the
labour of the farm ; anvl it presents itself,
in this way: — He observes the teams
employed one day in one field, at one kind
of work ; and perhaps the next day in an-
other field at another work. He observes
the persons employed as field-workers
asbistingtheteanis one day; aud in the next
perhaps working by themselves in another
field, or elf-ewhere. He observes those
changes with attention, considers their
utility, but cannot discover the reasons
for making so varied arrangements — nut
because he entertains the least doubt of
their propriety, but, being as yet unini-
tiated in the art of farming, he cannot
foresee the purpose for which those labours
INITIATION.
are performed. Tlie reason why lie can-
not lit once foresee tliis is, tliat in all cases,
excepting the Hnishing operations, the
object of the work is uuattuineJ at the
time of his observation.
13. The next difficulty the pupil encoun-
ters is in the variety of the labours per-
formed. He not only sees arrangements
made to execute tiie same sort, but various
kinds of work. He discovers this diffe-
rence on examining more closely into the
nature of the work he sees performing. He
observes one day the horses at work in the
plough in one field, moving in a direction
quite opposite, in regard to the ridges, to
what they were in the plough in another
field. On another day he observes the
horses at work with quite a different
implement from the plough. The field-
workers, he perceives, have laid aside the
implement with which they were working,
and are performing the labour engaged in
with the hand. He cannot comprehend
why one sort of work should be prosecuted
one day, and quite a different sort the next.
This difficulty is inexplicable for the same
reason as the former — because he cannot
foresee the object for which those varieties
of work are performed. No doubt he is
aware that every kind and variety of work
performed on a farm are preparatives to
the attainment of certain crops; but what
portion of any work is intended as a cer-
tain part of the preparation of a particular
crop, is a knowledge which he cannot
acquire by intuition. Every preparatory
M'ork is thus perplexing to a puj^il
14. Field-work being thus chiefly OM^i-
dpaton/, is the circumstance which renders
its object so perplexing to the learner. It
is in the exercise of the faculty of antici-
pation that the experienced and careful
farmer is contradistinguished from the
ignorant and careless. Indeed, let the
experience of farming be ever so extensive
— or, in other words, let the knowledge of
niinutia) be ever so intimate — unless the
farmer guide his experience by foresight,
he will never be enabled to conduct a farm
aright. Both foresight and experience are
acquired by observation, and though ob-
servation is open to all farmers, all do not
profit by it. Every farmer may acquire,
in time, sufficient experience to conduct a
farm in a passable manner; but many
farmers never acquire foresight^ because
theyneverreflect, and therefore never derive
the greatest advantage from their expe-
rience. Conducting a farm by foresight
is thus a higher acquirement than the most
intimate knowledge of the minutia) of
labour. Nevertheless, as the elements of
every art must first be acquired by obser-
vation, a knowledge of the niinutiaj of
labour should be first acquired by the pupil;
and, by carefully tracing the connexion
between combined operations and their
ultimate ends, he will acquire foresight.
15. The necessity of possessing fore-
sight in arranging the minutiae of labour,
before the pupil can with confidence under-
take the direction of a farm, renders /a^vn-
ing more difficult of acquirement, and a
longer time of being acquired, than most
other arts. This statement may seem
incredible4;o those who are accustomed to
hear of farming being easily and soon
learned by the meanest capacity. No
doubt it may be acquired in time, to a
certain degree, by all who are capable of
imj>rovement by observation and experi-
ence ; but, nevertheless, the ultimate ends
for which the various kinds of field-work
are prosecuted are involved in obscurity
to every learner. In most other arts, no
great time usually elapses between the
commencement and completion of a piece
of work, and every piece of work is con-
tinued in hand until finished. The be-
ginner can thus soon perceive the connexion
between the minutest portion of the work
in which he is engaged, and the < bject for
wlrich the work is prosecuted. He is thus
led, by degrees, from the simplest to the
most complicated parts of his art, so that
his mind is not bewildered at the outset
by observing a multii)licity of operations
at one time. He thus begins to acquire
true experience, and even foresight, if ho
reflects, from the outset.
16. The pupil-farmer has no such ad-
vantages in his apprenticeship. There is
no simple easy work, or one object only to
engage his attention at first. On the con-
trary, many niinutiie connected with dif-
ferent operations in progress claim his
attention at one and the same time, and if
the requisite attention to any one of them
be neglected for the time, no 0})p()rtunity
for observing it occurs for a twelvemonth.
DIFFICULTIES TO BE ENCOUNTERED AND OVERCOME.
It is a misfortune to a pupil, in such circum-
stances, to be retarded in Ins progress by
a trifling neglect; for he cannot make up
his leeway until after the revolution of a
year ; and though ever so attentive,
he cannot possibly learn to anticipate
operations in a shorter time, and therefore
cannot possibly understand the object of a
single operation in the first year of his
pupilage. The first year is spent almost
unprofitably, and certainly unsatisfactorily
to an inquisitive mind. But attentive ob-
servation during the first year in storing
up facts, will enable him, in the second,
to anticipate the successive operations ere
they arrive, and identify every minutia
of labour as it is performed.
1 7. Let it not be supposed by those who
have never passed through the perplexing
ordeals incident to the first year of farm-
ing, that I have described them in too
strong colours, in order to induce to the
belief that farming is an art more difficult
of attainment than it really is. So far is
this from being the case, I may safely
appeal to the experience of every person
who had attained manhood before begin-
ning to learn farming, whether I have not
truly depicted his own condition at the
outset of his professional career; so that
every pupil must expect to meet with
those difficulties.
18. But, formidable as they may seem,
I encourage him with the assurance, that
it is in his power to overcome them all.
The most satisfactory way of overcoming
them is to resolve to learn his business in
a truly practical manner — that is, by
attending to every operation personally.
Merely being domiciled on a farm is not,
of itself, a sufficient means of overcoming
them ; for the advantages of residence may
be squandered away in idleness, by frequent
absence, by spending the busy hours of
work in the house on light reading, or by
casual and capricious attendance on field
operations. Such habits must be eschewed,
before there can arise a true desire to become
a practical farmer.
19. Much assistance in promoting at-
tention should not be expected from the
farmer. No doubt it is his duty to com-
municate all he knows to his pupils, and
I believe most are willing to do so ; but
as efficient tuition implies constant atten-
dance on work, the farmer himself cannot
constantly attend to every operation, or
even explain any, unless his attention is
directed to it; and much less will he de-
liver extempore lectures at appointed
times. Eeservedness in him does not
necessarily imply unicxllmgness to com-
municate his skill ; because, being himself
familiar with every operation that can
arrest the attention of his pupils, any ex-
planation by him of minutia? at any other
time than when the work is in the act of
being performed, and when only it could be
understood by them, would only serve
to render the subject more perplexing. In
these circumstances, the best plan for the
pupil to follow is to attend constantly and
piersonally observe every change that takes
place in every piece of work. Should the
farmer happen to be present, and be ap-
pealed to, he will, as a matter of course,
immediately remove every difficulty in the
most satisfactory way ; but should he be
absent, being otherwise engaged, then the
steward, or ploughmen, or shepherd, as the
nature of the work may be, will afford as
much information on the spot as will serve
to enlighten his mind until he associates
with the farmer at the fireside.
20. To be enabled to discover that par-
ticular point in every operation, which,
when explained, renders the whole intelli-
gible, the pupil should put his hand to
every kind of work, be it easy or difficult,
irksome or pleasant. Experience acquired
by himself, however slightly affecting the
mind, — if desirous of becoming acquainted
with every professional incident, — will
solve difficulties much more satisfactorily
than the most elaborate explanations given
by others ; and the larger the stock of per-
sonal experience he can accumulate, the
sooner will the pupil understand the pur-
port of everything that occurs in his sight.
Daily opportunities occur on a farm for
joining in work, and acquiring such expe-
rience. For example, when the phiughs
are employed, the pupil should walk from
the one to the other, and observe which
ploughman or pair of horses perform the
work with the greatest apparent difficulty
or ease. He should also mark tlie dif-
ferent styles of work executed by each
plough. A considerate con)parison of par-
ticulars will enable him to ascertain the
6
INITIATION.
best and worst specimens of work. He
should tlicM endeavour to discover tlie cause
■why (lifleront styles of work arc produced
by apparently similar means, in order to
rectify the worst and practise the best.
The surest way of detecting error, and dis-
covering the best metliod, is to take hold
of each plough successively, an<l he will
find in the endeavour to maintain each in
a steady position, and perform the work
evenly, that all require considerable labour
— every muscle being awakened into ener-
getic action, and the brow most probably
moistened. As these symptoms of fatigue
subside with repetitions of the exercise, he
will eventually find one of the ploughs
more easily guideil than the rest. The
reasons for this difference he must endea-
vour to discover by comparison, for its
holder cannot inform him, as he professes
to have, indeed can have, no knowledge of
any other plough but his own. In prose-
cuting this system of comparative trials
with the ploughs, he will find himself be-
coming a ploughman, as the difliculties of
the art divulge themselves to his appre-
hension ; but ihe reason why the plough
of one of the men moves more easily, d«)es
better work, and oppresses the horses less
than the rest, is not so obvious ; for the
laud is in the same state to ihem all — there
cannot be much difference in the strength
of the pairs of horses, as each pair are gene-
rally pretty well matched — and in all pro-
bability the construction of the ploughs is
the same, if they have been made by the
same plough-wright. The inevitable con-
clusion is, that one ploughman understands
bis business better than the others. He
shows this by trimming the irons of his
plough to the state of the land, and the
nature of the work he is about to begin,
and by guiding his horses in accordance
with their natural temperament. Having
the shrewdness to acquire tliese accom-
plishments in a superior degree, the execu-
tion of superior work is an easier task to
him than inferior work to the other plough-
men. The case I have thus selected for
an example, is not altogether a supposi-
tious one.
21. Having advanced thus fiir in the
knowledge, practice, and capability of
judging of work, the pupil begins to' feel
the importance of his acquisition, which
fans the flame of his enthusiasm, and
prompts him to greater acquirements.
But even in regard to the plough, the
pupil has much to learn. Though he has
selected the best j)louglimaii, and knows
why he is so, he is himself still ignorant of
how to trim a plough practically, and
to drive the horses with judgment. The
ploughman will be able to afford him
ocular proof /loic be tempers all the irons
of the plough to the state of the land, and
ichi/ he yokes and drives the horses as he
does in preference to any other plan. Illi-
terate and unniechanical as he is, and his
language full of technicalities, his explana-
tions will nevertheless give the pupil a
clearer insight into the minuticeoi plough-
ing, than he could acquire by himself as a
spectator in an indefinite length of time.
22. I have selected the plough, as being
the most useful implement to illustrate the
method which the pupil should follow, in
all cases, to learn a practical knowledge
of every operation in farming. In like
manner, he may become acquainted with
the particular mode of managing all the
larger implements, which require the com-
bined agency of man and horse to put into
action ; as well as become accustomed to
use the simpler implements adapted to the
hand, easily and ambidextrously — a large
proportion of farm work being executed
with simple tools. Frequent personal at-
tendance at the farm-stead, during the
winter months, to feed the corn in the
sheaf into the thrashing-machine, and
afterwards to work the winnowing-ma-
chine, in cleaning the thrashed grain for
the market, will be amply repaid by the
acquisition of the knowledge of the quality
and value of the cereal and leguminous
grains. There is no better method of ac-
quiring knowledge of all the minor opera-
tions of the farm, than to superintend the
labours of the field-workers, their work
being methodical, almost always in requisi-
tion, anil mostly consisting of minutiae;
and its general utility is shown, not only
in its intrinsic worth, but in i-elation to
the work performed by the teams.
23. The general introduction of sowing-
machines, particularly those which sow
broadcast, has nearly superseded the beau-
tiful art of sowing corn by the haml. Still
corn is sown by the hand, especially on
small farms, on which large and expensive
DIFFICULTIES TO BE ENC0UNT5:RED AND OVERCOME.
machines are not found. In the art of
hand-sowing, the pupil should excel ; for,
being difficult to pertorm in an easy and
neat manner, its superior execution is re-
garded as an accomplishment, and in con-
tributing to a manly and healthful exercise,
establishes a robust frame and sound con-
stitution.
24. The feeding of cattle in the farm-
stead, or of sheep in the fields, does not
admit of much participation of labour with
the cattleman or shepherd ; but either
practice forms an interesting subject of
study to the pupil, and without strict at-
tention to both he will never acquire a
knowledge of fattening and computing the
value of live stock.
25. By steadily pursuing toe course of
observation I have indicated, and particu-
larly in the first year, the pupil will soon
acquire a considerable knowledge of the
minutiae of labour ; and it is only in this
way that the groundwork of a familiar ac-
quaintance with them can be laid, and which
requires years of experience. Indeed, ob-
servant farmers are learning new, or modi-
fications of old, practices every day, and
such new occurrences serve to sustain a
regard for the most trivial incident that
happens on a farm.
26. In urging upon the pupil the neces-
sity of putting his hand to every kind of
labour, I do not intend to say he should
become a first-rate workman ; for to be-
come so would require a much longer time
than he has in a period of pupilage. His
acquaintance with every implement and
operation should enable him to decide
quickly, whether work is well or ill exe-
cuted, and in a reasonable time. No
doubt a knowledge of this kind may be
acquired, j'n time, without the actual labour
of the hands ; but as it is the interest of
the pupil to learn his profession in the
shortest time, and in the best manner, and
as that can be acquired sooner by the joint
co-operation of the head and hands than
by either member singly, it would seem
an imperative duty on him to acquire his
profession by labour.
27. Other considerations as regards the
acquisition of practical knowledge deserve
attention from the pupil. It is most con-
ducive to his interest to learn his profes-
sion in youth, before the meridian of life
has arrived, when labour of every kind be-
comes irksome. It is also much better to
have a thorough knowledge of farming
be/ore engaging in it, than to acquire it in
the course of a lease, when losses may be
incurred by the commission of compara-
tively trivial errors at the early period of
its tenure, when farms in all cases are
most difficult to conduct. It is an undeni-
able fact, that the work of a farm never
proceeds so smoothly and satisfactorily to
all parties engaged in it, as when the farmer
is thoroughly conversant with his business.
His orders are then implicitly obeyed, not
because pronounced more authoritatively,
but because a skilful master's plans and
directions inspire such a degree of confi-
dence in the labourers as to be regarded as
the best in the circumstances. Shame is
acutely felt by servants on being detected
in error, whether of the head or heart, by
the discriminating judgment of a skilful
master ; and a rebuke from him irre-
sistibly imjilies ignorance or negligence in
those who receive it. The fear of igno-
rance or idleness being imputed to them,
by a farmer acquainted with the capabili-
ties of work-people by his own experience,
and who can estimate their services as they
deserve, powerfully urges labourers to per-
form a fair day's work in a workmanlike
style.
28. Let the converse of this state of
things be imagined ; let the losses to which
the ignorant farmer is a daily prey, by
many ways — by the hypocrisy, negligence,
idleness, and dishonesty of servants — be
calculated, and it must be admitted that it
is much safer for a farmer to trust to his
own skill than to depend on that of his
servants. No doubt a trustworthy steward
may be found to manage for him ; but, in
such a position, the steward himself is in a
state of temptation, in which he should
never be placed ; and as the inferior ser-
vants never regard him as a master,
Avhere the master himself is resident, his
orders are never so punctually obeyed. I
would, therefore, advise every young farmer
to acquire acompeieijtkxwwleilgeoi his pro-
fession bef'ire undertaking to cor.duct a
farm. I only say a competent knowledge;
for the gift to excel is not imparted to all
who select farming as their prolession.
8
INITIATION.
29. Experience will undoubtedly dis-
sipate doubt, and remove perplexity ; but
though a sure and a safe, it is a slow teacher.
A whole year, as I have already observed,
must revolve ere the entire labours of a
farm are completed in the field, and the
pupil understand what he is about ; and
a whole year is too long time for him to
be kept in a state of uncertainty. Could
the pupil find a monitor to explain to him,
during the first year of his pupilage, the
purpose for which every operation is per-
formed,— fortell him the resultswhich every
operation is intended to produce, — and
indicate the relative progress which all the
operations should make, from time to time,
towards the attainment of their various
ends, he would acquire far more professional
information, and have greater confidence
in its accuracy, than he could obtain for
himself in that perplexing period of his
novitiate. Such a monitor would certainly
best be an experienced and intelligent
farmer, were his whole time devoted to his
pupil. A farmer, however, cannot be-
stow as much attention at all times as would
be desired by a pupil ; and lapses of time
are occasioned by necessary engagements,
which oblige the farmer to leave home ;
and thus inattention and absence combined
constitute sad interruptions to tuition.
30. But a hook might be made an efficient
assistant-monitor. If expressly written
for the purpose, it might not only corrobo-
rate what the farmer inculcated, but serve
as a substitute in his temporary absence.
In this way the tuition of the pupil might
proceed uninterruptedly. The usual depre-
cations against the acquirement of practical
farming from books, would not apply to
such a one. I would give no such coun-
sel to any pupil. Books on farming, to be
really serviceable to the learner, ought not
to constitute his sole study : the field being
the best place for perceiving the fitness of
labour to the purposes it is designed to
attain, the book should only present itself
as a monitor for indicating the best modes
of farming, and showing the way of learn-
ing those modes most easil}'. B^ it the
practice of experienced fanners might he
commun icated to the pupil. By consulting
that ichich had been purposrlj/ irritten for
his guidance, while carefully observing the
import of daily operations, — ichich are
often intricate, alu:ays protracted over
considerable portions of time, and neces-
sarily separated from each other, — hewould
acquire that import in a much shorter lime
than if left to be discovcnd by his own
sagacity.
3 1 . Such a book would be useful to every
class of pupils — to him who, having finished
his scholastic and academical education,
directs his attention, for the first time, to
the acquirement of practical farming ; or
who, though born on a farm, having spent
the greater part of his life at school, de-
termines, at length, on following his father's
profession. For the latter class of pupils,
tuition in farming, and infurmalion from
books, are as requisite as for the former.
Those, on the other hand, who have con-
stantly resided on a farm from infancy, can
never be said to have been pupils, as, by
the time they are fit to act for themselves,
they are proficients in farming. Having
myself, for a time, been placed precisely in
the position of the first description of pupils,
I can bear sincere testimony to the truth of
the difficulties to be encountered in the first
year of pupilage. I felt that a guide-book
would have been an invaluable monitor to
me, but none such existed at the time. Xo
doubt the farmer ought to possess the ability
to instruct every pupil he receives under his
charge. This is his bounden duty, which,
if rightly performed, no guide-bouk would
be required ; but very few farmers under-
take tiie onerous task of instruction. Prac-
tical farming they leave the pupils to
acquire for themselves in the fields, —
theoretical knowledge, very few, if any,
are competent to impart. The pujiils, being
thus very much left to their own industry,
can scarcely avoid being beset with diffi-
culties, and losing much time. It must be
acknowledged, however, that the practice
gained by slow experience is, in the end,
the most valuable and enduring. Still a
book, expressly written to suit the circum-
stances of his case, might be a valuable
instructor to the pupil, in imparting sound
professional information.
32. Such a book, to be a useful instructor
and correct guide, should, in my estimation,
possess these qualifications. Its principal
matter slmuld consist of a clear narrative
of all the labours of the farm as they occur
in succession, including the reasons why
each piece of work is undertaken. While
DIFFERENT KINDS OF FARLDNG.
the principal operations are thus being
narrated, the precise method of executing
every kind of work, whether manual or
implemental, should be minutely described.
Such a narrative will show the pupil, that
farming is really a systematic business,
having a definite object in view, and pos-
sessing the means of attaining it ; and the
reasons for performing every piece of work
in one way, rather than another, will con-
vince him that it is an art founded on
rational and known principles. By the
perusal of such a narrative, with its reasons
having a common object, will impart a
more comprehensive and clear view of the
management of a farm in a given time,
than he could acquire by himself by wit-
nessing ever so many isolated operations.
The influence of the seasons on all the
labours of the field is another consideration
which should be attended to in such a book.
In preparing the ground, and during the
growth of the crops, the labour appropriated
to each kind of crop terminates for a time,
and is not resumed until a fit season
arrives. These periodical cessations from
labour form natural epochs in the progress
of the crops towards maturity, and afi'ord
convenient opportunities for performing the
work peculiarly adapted to each epoch ;
and, since every operation must conform
with its season, these epochs correspond
exactly with the natural seasons of the
year. I say with the natural seasons, in
contradistinction to the common annual
seasons, which are entirely conventional.
Such a necessary and opportune agreement
between labour and the natural seasons,
induces a corresponding division of labour
into four great seasons^ bearing the same
names as the annual seasons. Each opera-
tion should therefore be described with par-
ticular reference to its appropriate season.
33. If, by a course of tuition from such
a book, the pupil could be brought to anti-
cipate results whilst watching the progress
of passing operations, his pupilage might
be shortened by one year ; that is, could a
hook enable hiui to acquire the experience
of the second year in the course of the first,
a year of probationary trial would be saved
him, and he would then learn in two years
what at present requires three ; and it
shall be my endeavour to make The Far-
mer's Guide accomplish this.
ON THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF FARMING,
AND ON SELECTING THE BEST.
34. Perhaps the pupil will be astonished
to learn that there are many systems of
farming, and that they all possess distinc-
tive characteristics. There are no fewer
than six kinds practised in Scotland, which
though practised with some particulars com-
mon to all, and each is perhaps best adapted
to the soil and situation in which it is
practised ; yet it is probable that one kind
might apply, and be profitably followed,
in all places of nearly similar soil and
locality. Locality has apparently deter-
mined the kind of farming fully more
than the soil, though the soil has no doubt
determined it in peculiar situations. The
comparative influence of locality and soil
in determining the kind of fai'uiing will
best be understood after shortly consider-
ing each kind.
3.5. One kind is wholly confined to pas-
toral districts, which are chiefly situated
in the Highlands and Western Isles of
Scotland, — in the Cheviot and Cumberland
hills of England, — and very generally in
Wales. In all these districts, farming is
almost confined to the breeding of cattle
and sheep ; and, as natural pasture and
hay form the principal food of live-stock in
a pastoral country, A^ery little arable culture
is there practised for their behoof. Cattle
and sheep are not always reared on the
same farm. Cattle are reared in very large
numbers in the Western Isles, and in the
/>as?oraZ?5aZZ^^* among the mountain-ranges
of England, Wales, and Scotland. Sheep
are reared in still greater numbers in the
upper parts of the mountain-ranges of
Wales and of the Highlands of Scotland,
and on the green round-backed mountains
of the south of Scotland and the north of
England. The cattle reared in pastoral
districts are small-sized, chiefly black col-
oured, and horned. Those in the Western
Isles, called " West Highlanders," or
" Kyloes," are esteemed a beautifully sym-
metrical and valuable breed. Those in the
valleys of the Highland mountains, called
" North Highlanders," are considerably
inferior in quality, and smaller in size.
The Black-faced, mountain, or heath, horn-
ed sheep, are also bred and reared on these
upper mountain-ranges, and fattened in the
low country. The round -backed green
10
INITIATION.
hills of the south are mostly stocked with
the white-faced, hornless, Ciieviot breed ;
thou^'h the best kind of the r>lack-face<l is
also reared in tlie same locality, but both
breeds are seldom reared on tlie same
farm. Tims cattle, sheep, and wool, are
the staple products of pastoral farming.
36. PaatoraJ farms are chiefly a7)propri-
ated to the rearinij of one kind of slieep,
or one kind of cattle ; though both classes
of stock are reared where valleys and
mountain-tops meet on the same farm. The
arable culture practised on them is confined
to the raising of provisions for the support
of the shepherds and cattle-herds, and of
a few turnips, for the support of the stock
during the severest weather in winter; but
the principal winter food of the stock is
hay, which is obtained by enclosing and
mowing pieces of natural grass on spots of
good land, which are generally found on
the banks of a rivulet. All pastoral farms
are large, some containing many thousands
of acres. — nay, miles in extent ; but from
150U to 3000 acres is perhaps an ordinary
size. Locality entirely determines this
kind of farming.
37. The stocking of a pastoral farm con-
sists of a breeding or flying stock of sheep,
or a breeding stock of cattle, and a propor-
tion of barren stock are reared, which,
sold at a proper age, are fattened in the
low country. A large capital is thus re-
quired to stock at first, and afterwards
maintain, such a farm ; for, although the
quality of the land may support few heads
of st<^)ck per acre, yet, as the farms are
large, the number required to stock them
is very considerable. The rent, when con-
sisting of a fixed sum of money, would be
of small amount per acre, but its amount
must of course be fixed by the number of
stock the land will maintain, and it is not
unfrequently calculated at so much per
head the land is expected to maintain.
38. A pastoral farmer should be well
acquainted with the rearing and manage-
ment of cattle or sheep, whichever his farm
is best suited for. A knowledge of general
field culture is of little use to him, though
he should know how to raise turnips and
make hay.
39. Another kind of farming is practised
on car$e land. A carse is a district of
country consisting of deep horizontal de-
positions of alluvial or diluvial clay, on one
or both sides of a considerable river, and
generally comprehends a large tract of
country. In almost all respects, a carse is
quite the opposite to a pastoral district.
Carse land iniplies a flat, rich, clay 8<»il,
capable of raising all sorts of grain to great
perfection, and unsuited to the cultivation
of the pasture grasses, and, of course, to the
rearing of live-stock. A pastoral district,
on the other hand, is always hilly, the soil
generally thin, poor, various, and commonly
of a light texture, much more suited to the
growth of natural pasture grasses than of
grain, and, of course, to the rearing of live-
stock. Soil entirely decide ^ ^ arse farming.
40. Being all arable, a carse farm is
mostly stocked with animals and imple-
ments of labour ; and these, with seed-corn
for the large proportion of the land under
the plough, require a considerable outlay
of capital. Carse land always maintains a
high rent per acre, whether consisting solely
of money or of money and corn valued at
the fiars prices. A carse farm, requiring
a large capital and much labour, is never
of great extent, seldom exceeding 200
acres.
41. A carse farmer requires to be well
acquainted with the cultivation of grain,
and almost nothing else, as he can rear no
live-stock ; and all he requires of them are
a few cows, to supply milk to his own
household and farm-servants, and a number
of cattle in the straw-yard in winter, to
trample down the large quantity of straw
into manure, and they are purchased when
wanted. There are no sheep.
42. A third sort of farming is what is
practised in the nciphlourhood of large
toicns. In the immediate vicinity of Lon-
don, farms are appropriated to the growth
of garden vegetables for Covent- Garden
market, and, of course, such culture can
have nothing in common with either pas-
toral or carse farms. In the neighbour-
hood of most towns, garden vegt^tables,
with the exception of potatoes, are not so
much cultivated as green crops, such as
turnips and grass, and dry fodder, such as
straw and hay, for the use of cowfeeders
and stable-keepers. In this kind of farm-
DIFFERENT KINDS OF FARMING.
11
ing all the produce is disposed of, and
manure received in return ; and it consti-
tutes a retail trade, in wliich articles are
bought and sold in small quantities, mostly
for ready money. When tlie town is not
large enough to consume all tlie disposable
produce, tlie farmer purchases cattle and
sheep to eat the turnips and trample the
straw into manure, in winter. Any pas-
ture grass is mostly in paddocks for the
accommodation of stock sent to the weekly
market. Locality entirely decides this
kind of farming.
43. The chief qualification of an occu-
pant of this kind of farm, is a thorough
acquaintance with tlie raising of green
crops, — potatoes, clover, and turnips ; and
Lis particular study is raising the most
prolific varieties, to have large quantities
to dispose of, and most suitable to the
wants of his customers.
44. The capital required for a farm of
this kind, which is all arable, is as large
as that for a carse one. The rent is
always high per acre, and the extent of
land not large, seldom exceeding 300
acres.
45. A fourth kind of farming is the
dairy. It directs its attention to the
making of butter and cheese, and the
sale of milk, and the farms are laid out
for this express purpose ; but the sale of
milk is frequently conjoined with the rais-
ing of green crops, in the neighbourhood
of large towns, as in the preceding class of
farms, (42,) and the cows are fed on cut
grass in summer, and on boiled turnips and
hay in winter. A true dairy-farm requires
old pasture. Its chief business is the
management of cows, and their produce ;
and whatever arable culture is practised,
is made subservient to the maintenance
and comfort of the dairy stock. The milk,
where practicable, is sold ; where beyond
the reach of sale, it is partly churned into
butter, which is sold either fresh or salted,
and partly made into cheese, either sweet
or skimmed. Stock are reared (m dairy-
farms only to a small extent, such as a few
quey (heifer) calves^ yearly to replenish
the cow stock ; no aged stock are fatten-
ed in winter, as on farms in the vicinity
of towns ; and the bull calves are fre-
quently fed for veal, or sold to be reared.
The principal stock reared are pigs, which
are fattened on dairy refuse. Young horses
are also successfully reared. Horse labour
being comparatively little required — mares
can rear their young, and work at the same
time, while old pasture, spare milk, and
whey, afford great facilities for nourishing
young horses in a superior manner. Lo-
cality has established this kind of farming
on the large scale, and large districts, both
in England and Scotland, have long been
appropriated to it.
46. The purchase of cows is the princi-
pal expense of stocking a dairy-farm ;
and as the purchase of live-stock in every
state, especially breeding-stock, is always
expensive, and cows are liable to many
casualties, a dairy-farm requires a consi-
derable capital. It is, however, seldom of
large extent, seldom exceeding 150 acres.
The arable portion of the farm, supplying
the green crop for winter fcjod and litter,
does not incur much outlay, as hay —
obtained chiefly from old grass — forms the
principal food of the cows in winter. The
rent of dairy-farms is high.
47. A dairy-farmer should be well
acquainted with the properties and man-
agement of milk cows, the making of
butter and cheese, the feeding of veal
and pork, and the rearing of horses ; and
he should also possess as much knowledge
of arable culture as to raise green crops
and make good hay.
48. A fifth method of farming is that
which is practised in most arable districtSy
consisting of every kind of soil not strictly
carse land. This method consists of a
regular system of cultivating grains and
sown grasses, with partial rearing and pur-
chasing, or wholly purchasing of cattle.
No sheep are reared in this system, being
purchased in autumn, to be fed on turnips
in winter, and sold fat in spring. This
system may be said to combine the profes-
sions of the farmer, the cattle-dealer, and
the sheep-dealer.
49. A decided improvement on this
system long ago originated, and has since
been practised, in the counties of Berwick
and Roxburgh, in Scotland; and of Nor-
thumberland in England. The farmer of
this improved system combines all the
12
INITIATION".
qualifications of the various kinds of farm-
ing eiiumeiateJ. Ixearing cattle and
slieep, and having wool to disipose of, he is
a stock-fanner. Cultivating grains and tlio
sown grasses, he possesses the knowledge
of the carse farmer. Converting milk into
butter and chee.se, after the calves are
weanod, he passes the autumnal months as
a dairy farmer. Feedmg cattle and sheep
in winter on turnips, he attends the mar-
kets of fat-stock as well the ordinary
fanner in arable districts ; and breeding
and rearing all his stock, he avoids the
precarious trade of the dealer in stock.
Thus combining all the kinds of farming
within the limits of his farm, he supplies
the j)articidar demand of each market,
and thereby enlarges the sphere of his
profits, which are every year more uniform
and certain than any of his co-farmers.
50. This is called the mixed husbandry,
because it embraces all the sorts of farming
practised in the country. It is prosecuted
in a dilierent manner from that in locali-
ties where a particular branch is pursued
as the only system of farming; because
each branch must be conducted so as to con-
tribute to the welfare of the rest, and in
upholding a mutual dependence of parts,
a harmonious whole is produced. Such
a multi[)licity of objects demand more
than ordinary attention and skill. Doubt-
less the farmers of the other modes of
farming are skilful in the practice of
the locality in which they are placed, but
the more varied practice of the mixed
husbandry incites versatility of talent and
quickness of judgment ; and, accordingly,
it lias made its farmers the most skilful
and. intelligent in the country.
51. The Border counties are not only the
most highly cultivated porti(m of the king-
dom, but contain the most valuable breeds
of live-stock ; and as the mixed, husban-
dry cannot be conducted within narrow
limits, {\\Q farms are large, not less than
500 acres in extent. The capital reijuired
to furnish the live-stock and the means
of aralile culture is considerable, though
perhai>s less than for the last-named system,
(48,) in which the entire stock are pur-
chased and sold every year ; and hence
they are termed njlj/inff-stock. The rents
of both systems are about the same.
Neither is determined by any peculiarity
of soil and locality, like the other methods,
but the mixed has a haj>py form of con-
stitution in adapting itself to most circum-
stances.
52. Now, one of these systems the
pupil must adopt for his profession ; and
which he should choose, depends on cir-
cumstances. If he succeed to a family
inheritance, the kind of farming he will
follow will depend on that pursued by his
predecessor, which he will learn accord-
ingly ; but should he be free to choose for
himself, I would advise him to adopt the
mixed husbandry, as containing within
itself all the varieties of farming requisite
for a farmer to know.
53. My reason for recommending the
mixed husbandry is that it practically pos-
sesses advantages over every other. Thus :
In pastoral farming, the stock undergo mi-
nute examination, fi>r certain purposes, only
at distantly stated j>eriods ; and owing to
the wide space over which they have to
roam for food, comimratively little atten-
tion is bestowed on them by shepherds
and cattle-herds. The pastoral larmer
has thus no particular object to attract his
attention at home between those long
intervals ; and in the mean while time is
apt to become irksome in cultivating a
limited space of arable land. — The carse
farmer, after the spring work is finished,
before the cows begin to calve, has nothing
but hay-malving and bare-fallowing in
summer, to occupy his mind until the har-
vest.— Dairy-farming affords little occupa-
tion to the farmer. — The farmer near large
towns has little to do in summer, from
turnip-seed to harvest. — The farmer of
mixed husbandry has abundant and regu-
lar employment at all seasons. Cattle
and sheep feeding, and marketing grain,
pleasantly occupy the short days of winter.
(Seed-sowing of all kinds afl'ords abundant
employment in spring. The rearing of
young stock, sale of wool, and culture of
green crops, fill up the time in summer
until harvest ; and autumn, in all circum-
stances, brings its own busy avocations in
gathering the fruits of the earth. Strictly
speaking, mixed husbandry does not ati'ord
one week of real leisure, — if the short
I)eriod from assorting the lambs in the
beginning of August, to putting the sickle
to the corn be excepted, — and that period
THE PERSONS WHO LABOUR THE FARM.
13
is contracted or prolonged, according as the
harvest is early or late.
54. There is another view to he taken
of the mixed hushandry ; it will not in any
year entirely disappoint the hopes of the
farmer. He will never have to hewail the
almost total destruction of his stock hy the
rot, or the severe storms of winter, as the
pastoral farmer sometimes has. He can-
not suffer so serious a loss as the carse
farmer, when his graiu is blighted or burnt
up with drought, or its price depressed
for a succession of years. [Should his stock
be greatly injured, or much deteriorated in
value by such casualties, be has the grain
to rely on ; and should the grain fail to a
serious extent, the stock may still insure
him a profitable return. It is scarcely
within the bounds of probability that a
total destruction of live-stock, wool, and
grain, would occur in any year. One may
fail, it is true, and the prices of all may
continue depressed for years ; but, on the
other hand, reasonable profits have been
realised from them all in the same year.
Thus, safeguards exist against a total loss,
and there is a greater certainty of a profit-
able return from capital invested in the
mixed than in any other kind of husban-
dry known.
ON THE PERSONS REQUIRED TO CONDUCT
AND EXECUTE THE LABOUR OF THE
FARM.
55. The persons who labour a farm
constitute the most important part of its
staff". Their duties should therefore be
well understood. They are the farmer
himself, the steward or grieve, the plough-
man, the hedger or labourer, the shepherd,
the cattle-man, the field-worker, and the
dairy-maid. These have each duties to
perform which, in their respective spheres,
should harmonise and never interfere with
one another. Should any occurrence hap-
pen to disturb the harmony of their joint
labour, it must arise from the misapprehen-
sion or ignorance of the interfering party,
whose derelictions should be corrected by
the presiding power. I shall enumerate
the duties incumbent on these respective
functionaries.
5Q. Farmer. — And first, those of the
farmer. It is his province to originate
the entire system of management,— to de-
termine the period fur commencing and
pursuing every operation, — to issue general
orders of management to the steward,
Avhen there is one, and when none, to
give minute instructions to the ploughmen
for the performance of every separate field
operation,— to exercise a general superin-
tendence 0 ver the field-workers, — to observe
the general behaviour of all, — to see if the
cattle are cared for, — to ascertain the con-
dition of all the crops, — to guide the shep-
herd,— to direct the hedger or labourer, —
to effect tlie sales of the surplus produce,
— to conduct the purchases required for
the progressive improvement of the farm,
— to disburse the expenses of management,
— to pay the rent to the landlord, — and to
fulfil the obligations incumbent on him as a
residenter of the parish. All these duties
are common to the farmer and the indepen-
dent steward who manages a farm. Such
a steward and a farmer are thus far on a
similar footing: but the farmer occupies
a loftier station. He is his own master,
—makes bargains to suit his own interests,
— stands on an equal footing with the
landlord on the lease,— has entire control
over the servants, hiring and discharging
them at any term he pleases,— and can
grant favours to servants and friends. The
farmer does not perform all those duties in
any one day, but in the fulfilment of them
in due order, so large a portion of his time
is occupied, that he finds little leisure to go
from home, and seldom does so to a dis-
tance, except in the season when few
operations are performed on a farm,
viz., the end of svmimer. Besides
these professional duties, the farmer has
to perform those of a domestic and social
nature, like every other good member of
society
57. Steward or Grieve.— "Ihe duty of
the steward, or grieve, as he is called in
some parts of Scotland, and bailiff in
England, consists in receiving general in-
structions from his master the farmer,
which he sees executed by the people
under his charge. He exercises a direct
control over the ploughmen and field-
workers; and unreasonable disobedience
to his commands, on their part, is repre-
hended as strongly by the farmer as if
the affront had been oflfered to himself :
u
INITIATION.
I say unreasonable disobedience, because
the "fanner is the sole jiuige of whether
the steward has been reasonable in
his orders. It is the duty of the steward
to enforce the commands of his master,
and to check every deviation from rec-
titude and tendency against his master's
intere.^fs he may observe in the conduct
of the servants. Although he shuuld thus
protect the interests of iiis master from
the aggressicms of any servant, it is not
generally understood that he has control
over the slie])herd or hedger. The farmer
reveals to the steward alone the plans of
his management ; intrusts him with the
keys of the corn-barn, granaries, and pro-
vision-stores; delegates to him. the pnwer
to act in his absence as his representative
on the farm ; and confides in his integrity,
truth, and good behaviour. When a
steward conducts himself with propriety
in his master's absence, and exhibits at
all times discretioji, activity, and honesty,
he is justly regarded as a valuable ser-
vant.
58. Personally, the farm-steward does
not always labour with liis own hands ;
verifying, by judicious superintendence,
the truth of the adage, that "one head
is better than two pair of hands." He
should, however, never be idle. He should
deliver the daily allowance of corn to the
horses. He should be the first person out
of bed in the morning, and the last in it
at night. He should sow the seed-corn in
spring, superintend the field-workers in
summer, tend the harvest field and build
the stacks in autumn, and thrash the
corn with the mill, and clean it with the
Avinnowing machine in winter. On very
large farms he cannot perform all these
duties, and selects one or another as suits
the exigency of the case. On some farms
he even works a jtair of horses like a
common ploughman; in which case ho
cann(.t personally sow the corn, superin-
tend the workers, build the stacks, or
thrash the corn, unless another person
take the charge of his horses for the time.
This is an ol))ecti<)nable mode of employ-
ing a steward ; because the nicer opera-
tions,— such as sowing corn, &c., must be
intrusted to another, an<l, mostiikely, in-
ferior person. But in by far the greatest
number of cases, the steward does not
work horses : on the contrary, when a
ploughman qualifies himself to become a
steward, it is chiefly with the view of
enjoying immunity from that species of
drudgery. In any event, the steward
should be able to keep an account of the
work-peo])le's time, and of the quantity of
grain thrashed, consumed on the farm, and
delivered to purchasers.
59. Stewards are not required on every
sort of farm On pastoral farms, his ser-
vice is of no use, so that it is on arable
farms alone that they are required. His
services are the most valuable where the
greatest multi|)licity of subjects demand
attention. Thus, he is a more useful ser-
vant on a farm of mixed husl)andry than
on one in the neighbourhood of a town, or
on a carse farm. But even on some farms
of mixed culture, the services of a steward
are dispensed with altogether ; in which
case thefarmer himself givesordcrsdirectly
to the ploughmen, or indirectly through
the hedger or cattle-man, as he may choose
to appoint to receive his instructions. In
such a case, the same person is also in-
trusted to corn the horses ; for the plough-
men are never intrusted to do it, except
in certain circumstances, as they are apt
to abuse such a trust by giving too much
Corn, to the probable injury of the horses.
The same person jjerforms other jiarts of a
steward's duty; such as sowing corn, super-
intending field-workers, and tiirashing
corn : or those duties may be divided be-
twixt the cattle-man and hedger. On the
large farm in Berwickshire on which I
learned farniing, there was no steward, the
cattle- man delivering the master's orders
and corning the horses, and the hedger
sowing the corn, building the stacks, and
thrashing the corn. The object of this
arrangement was to save the wages of a
steward, since the farmer himself was
able to undertake the general superinten-
dence. I conilucted my own farm for
several years without a steward, the
hedger acting as such.
QQ. Ploughman. — Thedutiesof a plough-
man are clearlv defined. The principal
duty is to take charge of a pair of horses,
and work them at every kind of labour for
which horses are employed on a farm.
Horse-labour on a farm is various. It is
connected with the plough, the cart, the
sowing-machines, the roller,and the thrash-
THE PERSONS WHO LABOUR THE FARM.
15
ing-mill, when horse-power is employed.
In the fulfilment of his duties, the plough-
man has a long day's work to perform ; for,
besides expending the appointed hours in
the fields with the horses, he must groom
them before he goes to the field in the
morning, and after he returns from it in
the evening, as well as attend to them at
4iiid-day. Notwithstanding this constant
toil, he must do his work with alacrity
and good-will ; and when, from any cause,
his horses are laid idle, he must not only
groom them, but must himself work at any
farm- work he is desired. There is seldom
any exaction of labour from the ploughman
beyond the usual daily hours of work, these
occupying at least 1 2 hours a-day for 7
months of the year, which is sufficient
work for any man's strength to endure.
But occasions do arise which justify a
greater sacrifice of his time, such as seed-
time, hay-time, and harvest. For such
encroachments upon his time at one season,
many opportunities occur of repaying him
with indulgence at another, sucli as a ces-
sation from labour in bad weather. It is
the duty of the ploughman to work his
horses with discernment and good temper,
not only fur the sake of the horses, but of
the work he executes. It is also his duty
to keep his horses comfortably clean.
Ploughmen are never placed in situations
of trust ; and having no responsibility be-
yond the care of tlieir horses, there is no
class of servants more independent. There
should no partiality be shown by the
master or steward to one ploughman over
another, when all do their work alike well.
An invidious and reprehensible practice
exists, however, in some parts of the coun-
try, of setting ploughmen to work in an
order of precedency, and which is main-
tained so strictly as to cause the men to
go and return from work in the same order,
one being appointed foreman or leader,
whose movements guide those of the rest.
Should the foreman prove a slow man, the
rest must go not a single bout more than
he does ; and if active, they may follow as
best they can. Thus, whilst his activity
confers no superiority of work beyond his
own, his dulness discourages the activity
of the other ploughmen. This is sufficient
ground for farmers to abolish the practice
at once, and place the whole of their
ploughmen on the same footing. I soon
felt the evils attending the system, and
put an end to it on my own farm. When
one ploughman displays more skill than
the rest, he is sufficiently honoured by
being intrusted to execute the most diffi-
cult species of work, such as diilling ; and
such a preference gives no umbrage to the
others, because they are as conscious of his
superiority in work as the farmer himself.
The services of ploughmen are required on
all sorts of arable farms, from thecarse- farm
to the pastoral, on which the greatest and the
least extent of arable land is cultivated.
61. Heclger^ Spade-hind, ov Spadesman.
— The hedger, the spade-hind, the spades-
man, as he is indifferently called, is a
useful servant on a farm. He is strictly a
labourer, but of a high grade. His principal
duty is to take charge of the hedge-fences
and ditches of the farm, and cut and clean
them as they require in the course of the
season. He also renews old fences, and
makes new ones. He cuts channels across
ridges with the spade, for the surface-water
to find its way to the ditclies. He is the
drainer of the farm. He is dexterous in
the use of the spade, the shovel, and the
pick, and lie handles the small cutting-axe
and switching-knife with a force and
neatness which a dragoon might envy-
As the principal business of a hedger is
performed in winter, he has leisure in the
other seasons to assist at any work. He
can sow corn and grass-seeds in spring;
shear sheep and mow the hay in summer ;
and build and thatch stacks in autumn.
He can also superintend the field-workers
in summer, and especially in the weeding
of the hedges. The hedger is a very
proper person to superintend the making
of drains, which, when done on a large
scale, is generally executed by hired la-
bourers on piece-work. It is thus obvious,
that tlie hedger is an accomplished i'aini-
servant.
62. Hedgers are not required on all
sorts of farms. They would be of little
use on pastoral farms, where fences are
few^, and most of tliem elevated beyond
the growth of thorns; nor on farms whose
fences are formed of stone-walls; nor on
carse-farms, which are seldom fenced at
all. On the last class of farms, tliey
might be usefully employed as ditchei'S
and makers of channels fur surface-water;
but on these, ploughmen are usually em-
16
INITIATION.
ployed for those purposes wlien the land is too
wet. Tlie coimiiou practice on carse-farms
of transforming ploughmen into spades-
men, and laying horses idle, I would say is
one "more honoured in tlie breach than
the observance," in;ismuch as the labour of
horses siiould always be more valuable
than that of man. On this subject, Sir
Jol)n Sinclair has a few just remarks.
" In a considerable farm,'' he says, " it is
of the utmost consequence to have servants
specially aj)propriated for each of the
most important departments of labour;
for there is often a great loss of time,
where persons are frequently changing
their employments. Besides, where the
division of labour is introduced, work is
executed not only more expeditiously, but
also much better, in consequence of the
same hands being constantly employed in
one particular department. For that
purpose, the ploughmen ought never to be
emj)loved in manual labour, but regularly
kept at work with their horses, when the
weather will admit of it."* In the com-
bination of arable with stock culture, the
services of the hedger are indisj>ensable.
Still, the farm that would give him full
employment must necessarily be of large
extent. A small farm cannot maintain
either a steward or a hedger. In selecting
from the^e two classes of servants, for a
small farm, I would recommend the hedger
as the more useful servant of the two,
provi'led the farmer himself understands
his bu^^iuess thoroughly. I make this ex-
cept ictn, because the hedger may not un-
derstand every department of husbandry,
although he generally does, having most
proI)ably worked a pair of horses in his
youth ; while a steward must of necessity
understand farming, otherwise he can
have no pretension to the appellation;
but he can in no case act as a substitute
for a hedger.
63. Shepherd. — The services of a shep-
herd, properly so called, are only required
where a flock of sheep are constantly kept.
On carse-farms, and those in the neigh-
bourhood of lar^^e towns, he is of no use ;
nor is he required on those farms where
the only slieep kept are bought in to be
fed oft' turnijis in winter. On pastoral
farms, on the other hand, as also those of
the mixed husbandry, bis services are eo
indispensable tiiat thev could not be con-
ducted without him. His duty is to under-
take the entire management of the sheep,
and when he bestows the requisite pains
on the flock, he has little leisure for any
other work. His time is occupied from
early dawn, when he should see the fl(»ck
before they rise from their lair, during the
whole day, to the evening, when they
again lie down for the night. To inspect
a large flock three times a-day over ex-
tensive bounds, implies the exercise of
walking to fatigue. Together with this
daily exercise, he has to attend to the
feeding of the young sheep on turnips in
winter, the lambing of the ewes in spring,
the washing and shearing of the fleece in
summer, and the bathing or smearing of
the flock in autumn. And besides these
major operations, he has the minor ones
of weaning the lambs, milking the ewes,
drafting the aged sheep, and marking
the whole, at appointed times ; not to omit
the attention to be bestowed on the whole
flock in summer, to keep them clean from
the scour, and to repel the attacks of
insects in autumn. It may thus be seen
that the shepherd has little time to bestow
beyond the care of his flock.
64. As no one but a shepherd, thoroughly
bred, can at tend to sheep in aproper manner,
there must be one where a standing sheep-
flock is kept, whatever may be the extent
of the farm. On a small fitrm, his whole
time may not beoccupietl in his profession,
when he may be profitably engaged in
mending and making nets, preparing
stakes for them, and assisting the hedger
(if there be one) to keep the fences in
repair ; or in acting as groimi, and taking
charge of a horse and gig, and going
errands to the post-town ; or in under-
taking the duties of a steward. On larpe
pastoral or mixed husbandry farms, more
than one shepherd is required. The estab-
lishment then consists of a head shepherd,
and one or more young men training to be
shepherds, who are placed entirely under
his control. The oflBce of head sliej)herd
is one of great trust. Sheep being indi-
vidually Valuable, and in most instances
reared in large flocks, a misfortune hap-
pening to a number, from whatever cause,
• Siuclair's Cod4 of Agriculture,^. 71.
THE PERSONS WHO LABOtlR THE FARM.
17
must incur a great loss to the farmer. On
the other hand, a careful and skilful shep-
herd conducts his flock in good health and
full number throughout the year, and
secures an extra return niucli beyond the
value of his wages. Tlie shepherd acts the
part of butcher in slaughtering the animals
used on the farm ; and he also performs the
part of the drover when any portion of the
flock is taken to a market for sale. The
only assistance he depends upon in person-
ally managing his flock, is from his faithful
dog, whose sagacity in many respects is
little inferior to his own
65. Cattle-man. — The services of the
cattle-man are most wanted at the stead-
ing in winter, when the cattle are all
housed in it. He has the sole charge of
them. It is his duty to clean out the cattle-
houses, and supply the cattle with food,
fodder, and litter, at appointed hours every
day, and to make the food ready, when
prepared food is given them. The business
of tending cattle being chiefly matter of
routine, the qualifications of a cattle-man
are not of a high order. In summer and
autumn, when the cows are at grass, it is
his duty to bring them into the byre or to
the gate of the field, as the custom maybe,
to be milked at their appointed times ; and
it is also his duty to ascertain that the
cattle in the fields are plentifully supplied
with water; the shepherd taking the charge
of the state of the pastures. The cattle-
man also sees the cows served by the bull
in due time, and keeps an account of the
reckonings of the time of the cows'
calving. He should assist the shepherd
at the important event of calving. As
his time is thus only occasionally enijiloyed
in summer, he is a suitable. j^erson to under-
take the superintendence of the field-
workers. In harvest, he is usefully em-
ployed in assisting to make and carry the
food to the reapers, and lends a hand at
the taking in of the corn. As cattle occupy
the steading in winter on all kinds of farms,
the services of the cattle-man appear gene-
rally indispensable ; but all hits duties
may be performed by the sbejiherd, where
only a small flock of sheep are kept. The
oflice of the cattle-man is not one of trust,
nor of much labour. An elderly person
answers the purpose well, the labour being
neither constant nor heavy, though well-
timed and methodical. The cattle-man
VOL. I.
ought to exercise much patience and gool
temper towards the cattle under his charge,
and a person in the decline of life is most
likely to possess those virtues. He is gene-
rally under the control of the shepherd,
wdiere the latter has leisure to attend at
all to the cattle, or under that of the dairy-
maid in a large dairy-farm, and in other
circumstances he is directly under the
command of the farmer or steward.
66. Field-worker. — Field-workers are
indispensable servants on every farm de-
voted to arable culture, and it is only on
them they are employed. They mostly
consist of young women in Scotland, but
more frequently of men and boys in Eng-
land ; but most of the manual operations
are better performed by women than men.
In hand-picking stones and weeds, in hoe-
ing turnips, and in barn-work, they are
more expert and neat than men. The
duties of field-workers, as their name
implies, are to perform all the manual
operations of the fields, as well as those
with the smaller implements, which are
not worked by horses. The mamial
operations consist chiefly of cutting and
planting the sets of potatoes, gathering
weeds, picking stones, collecting the potato
crop, and filling drains with stones. The
operations with the smaller implements
are, pulling turnips and preparing them for
storing, and for feeding stock in winter,
performing barn-work, carrying seed-corn,
spreading manure upon the land, hoeing
potatoes and turnips, and weeding and
reaping corn-crops. A considerable num-
ber of field-workers are required on a
farm, and they are generally set to work
in a band. They work most steadily under
superintendence. The steward, the liedger,
or cattle-man, superintends them when the
band is large ; but wdien small, one of
themselves, a steady person, capable of
taking the lead in work, may superintend
them, provided she has a watch to mark
the time of work and rest. But field-
workers do not always work by themselves;
being at times associated with the fieW-
work of the horses, when they require no
particular superintendence. Some farmers
consider it economical to set the horses
idle, and employ the ploughmen rather
than engage field-workers. This may be
a mode of avoiding a small outlay of
money, but it is not true economy; and
18
INITIATION.
ploughmen, besides, cannot perform light
■work so well as field-workers. In manu-
facturing districts field- workers are scarce ;
but were fanners generally to adopt the
plan of employing a few constantly, and
engage them for the purpose by the half
year,"instead of hiring them in large num-
bers at a time, young women would be in-
duced to adopt field-labour as a profession,
and of course would become very expert
in it. In the neighbourhood of large
towns, where labourers of every descrip-
tion are plentiful, there exists, it must be
confessed, a great temptation to the farmer
to engage a large number of workers at
any time, to execute a given piece of work
in the shortest space of time, though their
work will certainly not be so well executed
as if it had been done by field-workers con-
stantly accustomed to the task. It is such
steadiness of service, however, that has
made the field-workers of the south of
Scotland so superior to the same class in
every other part of the country.
67. Doiry-maid. — The duties of the
dairy-maid are well defined. She is a
domestic servant, domiciliated in the farm-
house. Her principal duty is, as her name
implies, to milk the c^ws, to manage the
milk in all its stages, bring up the calves,
and make into butter and cheese the milk
obtained from the cows after the weaning
of the calves. The other domestics gene-
rally assist her in milking the cows and
feeding the calves, when there is a large
number of both. Should any lambs lose
their mothers, the dairy-maid brings them
up with cow's milk until the time of wean-
ing, when they are returned to the flock.
At the lumbing season, should an}' of the
ewes be scant of milk, the shepherd has his
bottles replenished by the dairy-maid with
warm new milk to give to tlie hungered
lambs. The dairy-maid also milks the
ewes after the weaning of the lambs, and
makes cheese of the ewe-milk. She at-
tends to the poultry, feeds them, sets the
brooders, gathers the eggs daily, takes
charge of the broods until able to provide
for themselves, and sees them safely lodged
in their respective apartments every even-
ing, and sets them abroad every morning.
It is generally the dairy-maid, where there
is no housekce[K?r, who gives out the food
for the reapers, and takes charge of their
articles of bedding. The dairy-maid
should therefore be an active, attentive,
intelligent, and skilful person.
68. These are the duties of the respec-
tive classes of servants found on farms.
They are not all required on the same
farm. A pastoral- farm has no need of a
steward, but a shepherd ; a carse-farm no
need of a shepherd, but a steward ; a farm
in the neighbourhood of a town no need of
a liedger, but a cattle-man ; and a dairy-
farm no need of a shepherd, but a dairy-
maid ; but on a farm of mixed husbandry
there is need for all these.
69. Now that the duties of all these
servants are seen to be so multifarious,
mixed husbandry will be perceived to be a
very intricate system ; and, being so, a
farmer who undertakes it should be a well-
informed man. This will appear the more
evident, if we first conceive the quality
and variety of the labour that passes
through the hands of these different classes
of work-people in the course of a vear, and
then imagine the clear-headedness of
arrangement recpiired by tlie farmer to
make all these various labours coincide in
every season, and under ever}' circumstance,
so as to produce the greatest results. It
is in its greatest variety that labour is best
acquired; and it is in the apportionment of
varied labour that the greatest talent is dis-
played by the master, and the greatest skill
acquired by the labourers. Vain would
be the skill of any fanner to produce the
results he does on an}' class of farni, were
he not ably seconded by the general intel-
ligence and admirable efiicicncy of his
labourers; and in both these acquirements
Scotland has cause to be proud of her
farm-servants.
ON THE BRANCHES OF SCIENCE MOST APPLI-
CABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
70. I believe I have said enough on the
best means, in existing circumstances, of ac-
quiring a thorough knowledge of practical
agriculture : it is now incumbent on me to
indicate those branches of science which
will most enlighten the mind of the pupil
for the most ready appreciation of agricul-
tural practice ; and I may, perhaps, excite
general surprise, when I state that no art
bears so close a relation to so many
branches of science as agriculture.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTtJRE.
19
71. Indeed agriculture may perhaps be
considered one of the experimental sciences,
as its principles are no doubt demonstrable
by the test of experiment, although far-
mers have not yet attempted to deduce
principles from practice. The necessity for
such a deduction is, no doubt, the less ur-
gent, that husbandry is usually pursued as
a purely practical art ; and the facility of
thus pursuing it successfully, of course
renders practical men indifferent to science,
as they consider it unnecessary to burden
their minds with scientific results, whilst
practice is sufficient for their purpose.
Could the man of practice, however, sup-
ply the man of science with a series of
accurate observations on the leading opera-
tions of the farm, the principles of these
might be truly evolved ; but I conceive the
greatest obstacle to the advancement of
scientific agriculture is to be sought for
in the unacquaintance of men of science
with practical agriculture. Would the
man of science become acquainted w4th
practice, much greater advancement in
scientific agriculture might be expected
than if the practical man were to become
a man of science ; because men of science
are best capable of conducting scientific
research, and, being so qualified, could
best understand the relation which their
investigations bear to practice ; and, until
the relation betwixt principles and practice
is well understood, scientific investigation,
though important in itself, and interesting
in its results, would tend to no practical
utility in agriculture. In short, until the
facts of husbandry are acquired by men
of science, these will in vain endeavour to
construct a satisfactory theory of agricul-
ture on the principles of the inductive
philosophy.
72. If the science of agriculture in its
present position be thus correctly repre-
sented, it may be expected to remain in an
incipient state until men of science become
practical agriculturalists, or, what would
still prolong such a state of lethargy, until
farmers acquire scientific knowledge. It
is certainly remarkable that so few scien-
tific men were for a very long period in-
duced to subject agricultural practice to
scientific investigation ; though of late
many, both at home and abroad, have
devoted a portion of their time to such a
study, and which has already aflorded
abundant proof, that extensive as the field
of research is, it has only to be occupied by
numerous observers to produce results inte-
resting alike to the man of science and the
man of practice. The long neglect of agri-
culture by scientific men may perhaps have
arisen from the circumstance of its having
so intimate a relation to almost every phy-
sical science, so that until all its relations
were first investigated, no sufficient data
could be obtained for a satisfactory expla-
nation of its practice. A short review of
the actual relation which the physical
sciences bear to agriculture will render this
suggestion the more probable.
73. The sciences which agriculture most
immediately aflects are mathematics, na-
tural philosophy, chemistry, natural his-
tory, comparative anatomy, and veterinary
science. Of mathematics, the most useful
parts are geometry and trigonometry, and
tlie application of these to the measure-
ment of surfaces and solids. Without a
knowledge of mathematics no one can un-
derstand natural j)hil()Sophy ; because it is
they alone which can demonsti-ate the
powers of those laws which determine the
motion of matter. Of natural philosophy,
the most useful branches to the agricultu-
ralist are mechanics — " the science of the
laws of matter and motion, so far as it is
accessary to the construction of niacliines
which, acting under those laws, answer
some purposes in the business of life," such
as thfe' culture and manufacture of crops;
jrneumatu's, " that branch of physics which
treats of air, and the laws according to
whicli it is condensed, rarefied, or gravi-
tates ;" hydraidics, tliat branch of hydro-
dynamics which treats of fluids in motion,
and in particular of the conveyance of
water thi'ough pipes and channels ; elec-
tricity, which endeavours to determine
" the o[)erations of a principle of very
wide influence through nature ; a cause
which is, and perhajis can be no otherwise
conceived, than as a highly attenuated form
of matter existing in difi'erent substances,
and passing from one to another with'
various effects, among such bodies as can
be excited to give or to receive it ;" optics,
by which the laws of light, as affecting
vegetation by the influence of colour, are
investigated; ^.wilheat^ which, by diffusing
itself throtigh neighbouring substances,
gives to every object its existing form. By
20
INITIATION.
the aid of chemistry, " Ihe manufacture of
Manures may be exj)ec(ed to continue to
improve, tlie suj»ply of manure further
augmented and cheapened, and the devel-
opment of the resources of the soil
therel>y hastened and increased.'' Of the
branches of natural history, the most use-
ful to agriculturalists are meteorology,
"the science of the atmosphere and its
phenomena;" hotany, "which treats of
the structure, functions, proi)erties, habits,
and arrangement of plants ;" and zoolugy^
as restricted to the natural history of
quadrupeds and insects. The branches of
the medical science useful to agricultu-
ralists are comparat'tve anatomy, which
treats of the structure of the bodies of
animals as compared with that of the body
of man ; and zootomy, which treats of the
structure, and explains the principles of the
art of healing the diseases of the domesti-
cated animals.
74. Viewing the general aspect of these
sciences as presented to the agricultural
pupil, in the definitions just given of them,
he must at once observe the advantages he
would derive by studying them. It is well
observed by Sir John Herschell that,
" between the physical sciences and the
arts of life there subsists a constant mutual
interchange of good offices, and no consi-
derable progress can be made in the one,
without of necessity giving rise to corre-
sponding steps in the other. On the one
hand, every art is in some measure, and
many entirely, dependent on those very
powers and qualities of the material world
■which it is the object of physical inquiry
to investigate and explain." It is evident
that most farming ojicrations are much
affected by external inlluences. The state
of the weather,for example, regidates every
field operation, local iutluences modify tlie
climate very materially, and the nature
of the soil generally determines the kind
of crop that should be cultivated. Now
the ])ui)il should desire to become ac-
quainted with the causes which give rise to
those influences, by understanding the laws
of nature which govern every natural
phenomenon. The science which investi-
gates those laws, is called Natural Philo-
sophy, which is divided into as many
branches as there are classes of phenomena
occurring in the earth, air, water, and
heavens. Those laws, being unerring in
their operation, admit of absolute demon-
stration ; and the science which affords
the demonstration is called Mathematics,
Again, every object, animate or inanimate,
possesses an individual character, so that
it can be identified, and the science which
makes us acquainted with its characteris-
tics, is termed Natural History. Farther,
every object, animate or inanimate, is a
compound body made up of certain ele-
ments, of which Chemistry makes us ac-
quainted with their nature and condjina-
tions. The pupil thus sees how suitable
those sciences are to the ex[)lication of the
phenomena around him, and their utility
will be the more apparent to him, the more
minutely each science is investigated.
75. Mathematics. — These are both ab-
stract and demonstrative. Abstract ma-
thematics " treat of propositions which are <
immutable, absolute truth,'' not liable to
be afl'ected by subsequent discoveries,
" but remain the unchangeable property
of the mind in all its acquirements." De-
monstrative mathematics arc also strict,
but are " interwoven with physical consi-
derations ;" that is, with subjects that exist
independently of the mind's concej^tions of
them or of the human will; or, in otiier
words still, with considerations in accor-
dance with nature. Mathematics thus con-
stitute the essential means of demonstrating
the strictness of those laws which govern
natural phenomena. They must, there-
fore, befirst studied before those laws can
be understood. Their study tends to ex-
pand the mind, — to enlarge its cai)acity
for general principles, — and to improve its
reasoning powers.
76. Natural Philosophy may be
divided into five great parts. l^\\e Jirst
contains the fundamental truths which
explain the constitution of the material
masses which compose the universe, and
the motions going on among them. This
last is a department commonly called
Dynamics, which relate to force or power.
The two great forces of nature, attraction
and repulsion, acting upon inert matter,
produce the equable, accelerated, retarded,
and curved motions which constitute the
great phenomena of the universe. The
second ])art explains the iieculiarities of
state and motion among solid bodies, — a
department called Mechanics. The third
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
21
explains the pe^juliarities of state anJ
motion among Jiuid bodies, — a department
called Hydrodynamics, which embraces
Hydrostatics or water at rest — Hydraulics,
water in motion — Pneumatics, air pheno-
mena— and Acoustics, phenomena of sound
or hearing. The /owri^A part explains the
more recondite phenomena of imponderable
substances — such as Heat, Light, Electri-
city, Magnetism, and Galvanism. And
t\\Q fifth part explains the phencmiena of
the heavens, — a department named Astro-
nomy.
77. Mecijanics — Of all the branches
into which Natural Philosophy is divided,
mechanics have proved the most useful to
agriculture. No doubt any labourer may
work any machine that answers the purpose
/it is constructed for ; but without a know-
ledge of this science he cannot understand
the principles upon which any machine is
constructed, nor can any machine be pro-
perly constructed but in accordance with
those principles. As implements may be
characterised as the right hand of agricul-
ture, mechanical science, in improving their
form and construction, may be said to have
given cunning to that right hand ; for,
testing the strength of materials, both re-
latively and absolutely, it employs no more
material in implements than is sufficient to
overcome the force of resistance, and it
induces to the discovery of that form ^'hich
overcomes resistance with the least power.
Simplicity of construction, beauty of form
of the constituent parts, mathematical ad-
justment, and symmetrical proportion of the
whole machine, are now the characteristics
of our implements; and it is the fault of
the hand that guides them, if field-work is
not now dexterously, neatly, and quickly
performed. In saying thus much for the
science that has improved our implements to
the state they now are, when compare<l with
their state some years ago, I do not aver
that they are yet perfect ; but they are so
perfect as to be correct in mechanical prin-
ciple, and light in operation, though some
are not yet simple enough in construction.
Many indeed may yet be much simplified
in construction ; and I consider the machi-
nist who simplifies the action of any useful
implement, thereby rendering it less liable
to de.rangement, does as good service to
agriculture as the inventor of a new one.
Such a result may at all times be expected;
for mathematical demonstration is strictly
applicable to mechanics, whether to the
principles on which every machine operates,
or the form of which it is constructed.
78. Were mechanists to pay more at-
tention to principles, and less to empirical
art than they commonly do in several
districts, implements would soon assume
the form most consonant with the demon-
strations of science. As it is, modifications
of construction and unusual combinations
of parts are frequently attempted by me-
chanists ; and though many such attempts
issue in failure, they nevertheless tend to
divulge new combinations of mechanical
action. It is desirable that every mecha-
nist of implements should understand
j)ractical agriculture, and every farmer
study the principles of mechanics and the
construction of machines, so that tlieir con-
joined judgment and skill might be exer-
cised in testing the practical utility of
implements. When unacquainted with
farming, mechanists are apt to construct
implements obviously unsuited to the work
they are intended to execute ; so that hav-
ing been put together after repeated altera-
tions, and probably at considerable ex-
pense, the makers endeavour to induce
those farmers who are no adepts at me-
chanics to purchase them, and after some
unsatisfactory attempts they are put aside.
Were farmers acquainted with the prin-
ciples of mechanics, their discrimination
would form a barrier against the spread of
implements of questionable utility, and
only those find circulation which were
obviously simple, strong, and efficient.
It is not easy to invent implements pos-
sessing all those desirable qualities ; but,
as they are always exposed to the weather,
and the soil is ponderous and uncouth, it
is necessary they should be of simj)le con-
struction. Simplicity of construction,
however, has its useful limits. Most farm
operations being of themselves simple, they
should be performed with simple imple-
ments ; and all the primary operations,
which are simple, requiring considerable
power, the simple implements should also
be strong ; but complicated operations,
though stationary, require to be performed
with comparatively complicated machinery.
Operations that are both complicated and
locomotive should be performed with im-
plements producing complicated action by
^2
INITIATION.
simple means, in order to avoid derange-
ment of their constituent parts. The
solution of this last is a difficult, if not
impossible problem, in practical mechanics.
The common pl('Ui:h approaches more
nearly to its practical solution than any
other implement ; yet tliat wonderful im-
plement, executing difficult work by simple
means, should yet be so modified in con-
struction, as to give the ploughman a
greater command over its motions. These
considerations tend to show, that the form
and construction of implements, and the
circumstances in which they may be used,
are still subjects affording scope for me-
chanical contrivance.
79. In viewing the construction of all
machines, an important circumstance to be
considered by the pupil is, the resistance
among moving parts which arises from
friction ; and in 8<ilid structures, generally,
the forms and positions of parts have to be
adjusted to the strength of matin-ials. and
the strain which the parts have to bear.
This consideration should lead the pupil to
become acquainted with the stp-ength of
materials ; and, as a farmer, he will have
much need to put such knowledge in
practice when he comes to receive the work
executed, by the carpenter and 'smith.
80. On considering machines, he should
also avoid the common error of supposing
that any combination of machinery ever can
increase the quantity of power applied.
" What an infinity of vain schemes — yet
some of them displaying great ingenuity —
for perpetual motion, and new mechanical
engines of power, &c.," exclaims Dr Arnott
with reason, in his Elements of Physics,
" would have been checked at once, had
the great truth been generally understood,
that no form or combination of machinery
ever did, or ever can increase, in the
slightest degree, the quaniit^' of power
applied. Ignorance of this is the hinge
on which most of the dreams of mechanical
projectors have turned. No year passes,
even now, in which many patents are not
taken out for such sup[iosed discoveries,
and the deluded individuals, after selling
^►erhaps their household necessaries to ob-
tain the means of securing the expected
advantages, often sink into despair, when
their attempts, instead of briniring riches
and happiness to their families, end in
disappointment and ruin. The frequency,
eagerness, and obstinacy, with which even
talented individuals, owing to their imper-
fect knowledge of the fundamental truths
of mechanics, have engaged in such under-
takings, is a remarkable phenomenon in
human nature."
81. Pneumatics. — Next to mechanics,
pneumatics is the branch of natural phi-
losophy most useful to the farmer. It
" treats of air, and the laws according to
which it is condensed, rarifieJ, and gravi-
tates."
82. The atmospheric air surrounds the
entire surface of our globe to a height not
exceeding 50 miles. Dr Wollaston has
shown that, at this elevation, the attrac-
tion of the earth upon any air particle is
equal to the resistance of the repulsive
power of the medium. This height, great
as it may seem, only bears the same rela-
tion to the globe as dust of one-tenth of an
inch in thickness upon a ball one foot in
diameter.
83. The atmosphere presses with con-
siderable force upon the surface of the
earth, as well as on every object immersed
in it. The weight of 100 cubic inches of
air, at GO"* Fahrenheit, and the barometer
at 30 inches, has been computed, by vari-
ous authorities, at fr mi 30-199 to 31-10
grains, the average being 30-679. With
this weight, and a heigiit of 50 miles, the
air exerts a pressure on ever}' square inch
of 1 5 lbs. At this rate its entire weight has
been computed at .5,307,214,285,714,285
tons, or equal to that of a globe of lead 60
miles in diameter. The surface of an ordi-
nary-sized man contains 2000 square inches,
so that siich a person sustains a pressure
of 30,0U0 lbs., which, of course, would be
sufficient to crush him to atoms in an in-
stant, were it not that, in obedience to the
laws of equal and contrary pressure, this
effect is i>revented.
84. The air consists in 100 parts of
By Weight. By Measure.
Nitrogen 77"50 or 7755
Oxygen '21- „ 23-.V2
Aqueous vapour... \'A1 ^ 103
Carbonic acid '08 ^ -10
These constituents are not chemically
combined, but only mechanically mixed,
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
23
and yet their proportions never vary.
The powerful agency of the sun's heat
and light evolve an abundant supply
of oxygen from the luxuriant vegetation in
the tropics, whilst the predominant exis-
tence of animals in the colder regions
affords a large quantity of carbonic acid.
85. Barometer, — The gravity of the
atmosphere is measured by the well-known
instrument, the barometer. Its short
column of mercury of 30 inches is as heavy
as a column of air of the same diameter of
about 50 miles, and of water of about 33
feet. This instrument is placed either in a
fixed position or is portable. As the por-
table barometer is only used to measure
altitudes, it need not be here described.
The fixed one is made either upright or
with a wheel. Whether it is that the
long index of the wheel-barometer, being
more easily observed than the variations
of the column of mercury, makes it more
popular among farmers, I know not ; but
were they to consider of the hindrance
occasioned by the machinery required to
put the long index in motion, the upright
form would always be preferred for accu-
racy of indication. It is true that the tube
of the upright is generally too small, per-
haps to save mercury and make the instru-
ment cheaper, to the disadvantage of in-
creasing the friction of the mercury in its
oscillations in the tube, which supports it
above its proper level when falling, and
depresses it below it when rising. To
obviate this inconvenience, a tap of the
hand against the instrument is required
to bring the mercury to its proper posi-
tion. But the objection also applies to the
wheel-barometer.
86. The barometer has proved itself a
useful instrument. It has proved that the
density of the atmosphere decreases rapidly
as we ascend. At 3 miles the density is only
one-half of the air on the earth's surface,
at 6 miles one-fourth, at 9 miles one-
eighth, and at 15 miles one-thirtieth. So
that the half of the atmosphere is confined
to a height of 3 miles, and much the great-
est part is always within 20 miles. The
depression of the barometer has been
found, by experiment, to be one-tenth of
an inch for about every 88 feet of eleva-
tion ; or, more correctly, as given in the
table below, by which it will be seen that
the density decreases in a geometrical while
we ascend tlie air in an arithmetical pro-
gression. Thus, with the barometer, at
the level of the sea, standing at 30
inches,
A depression of "1 of an inch gives an altitude of 87 feet above the surface of the earth.
•2
^^
^
,^
175
•3
-^
^
^
2G2
•4
^
_^
^
350
•5
**.
^
^
439
•6
^
^
^
527
•7
^
^
^
616
•8
^
^
^
705
•9
V*
^
**
795
1 inch =
= 29 inch
^
^
885
2 inches =
= 28
^
_
^
1802
3 „ =
:-27
^
^
*»
2752
4 ^ =
=26
^
«
3738
This instrument is thus a correct mea-
surer of the altitudes of places ; and on
whatever farm observations of the mean
height of the mercury are taken, its height
above the level of the sea maybe correctly
ascertained by reference to the above
table.
87. No attention should be paid to the
■words fair, change, rain, commonly en-
graved on barometers, since the mean
elevation of the mercury, in any place,
indicates the usual state of the weather
at that place, w^hafever be its relative
elevation or depression to other places,
so that the indications of the weather, as
given by the barometer, are to be looked
for in its changes and not in its actual
height.
88. The cost of an upright barometer, of
good workmaushii?, is from £1, 1 Is. 6d. to
^2, 1 2s. 6d. ; and that of a wheel-barome-
ter from £2, 2s. to £'5, 5s. The barome-
ter was invented in Italy by Torricelli, a
pupil of Galileo, in 1643.
S4
INITIATION.
89. Sympiesometer. — The sympiesome-
ter was invented by Mr Adie, oi)tician in
Edinburgh, andanswers asiniilarpiiriiose to
the barometer. Its cfl'ects are more deli-
cate, being indicated on a longer scale.
For the measurement of lieiglits tliis instru-
ment is convenient, its small size admitting.
its being carried in tiie coat-pocket, and
not being subject to tiie same chances of
accident as the portable barometer. The
height is given in fathoms on the instru-
ment, requiring only one correction, wiiich
is performed by a small table engraA'ed on
the case. It is stated to be delicately sen-
sible of changes at sea, particularly of gales.
Not being brought into general use, though
Professor Forbes is of opinion it might be, I
need not allude to it farther here.*
90. Siiching-Pump. — The pressure of
the atmosphere explains the action of the
common sucking-pump. The plunger, by
its upward movement, withdraws the air
from the chamber of the pump, and the air,
pressing on the water in the well, causes it
to rise and fill the chamber vacated by the
air. The air cannot force the water higher
than 33*87 feet. The force-pump acts
both by the elasticity and pressure of the
air. The pressure causes the water to be
lifted to a height not exceeding 33 feet, but
the elastic force of the air in the condenser
of the force pump causes tlie water to rise
from it to a very considerable height. It is
on this jirinciple that the fire-engine causes
the water to rise to the roofs of houses.
91. Stomach- Pump. — The stomach-
pump acts as a common pump in with-
drawing any liquid from the stomach, and
as a condensing syringe in injecting any
liquid into it. This is a useful instnuncnt
in relieving some of the complaints of live
stock.
92. Siphon. — The siphon o])erates by
the pressure of the air, and is useful in
withdrawing liquids in a quiescent state
from one vessel into another. Water from
a quarry may sometimes be removed
better by the siphon than any other means.
The efficiency of this instrument depends
on the greater dilierence of length of its
two limbs.
93. Whul. — Wind is occasioned by a
change in the density of the atmosphere;
tlie denser portion moving to occupy the
space left by the rarefied. The density
of the atmosphere is chiefly afiected by
the sun's heat raising the temperature of
the earth in the tropics to a great degree,
and the heated earth, in its turn, rarefies
the air above it by radiation. Tiie air, on
being rarefied, rises, and is replaced by
cold currents from either pole, and these
currents being constant constitute the well-
known and useful trade-tcinds. The great
continent of Asia is heated in summer, and
the cool air of the Indian seas moves north
to occupy the disj^laced air abo^•e the conti-
nent. In winter, on the other hand, the water
of this ocean, together with the land in the
same latitude, are heated in like manner,
and the cool currents from the great conti-
nent move south to replace the air rarefied
by them, and these two currents constitute
the half-yearly monsoons.
94. The air over the entire coasts and
islands of the ocean is rarefied during the
day, and condensed in the night, and these
two dillerent states of the air give rise to
the daily land and sea breezes.
95. Weather-cock. — The direction of the
wind is best indicated by the wind-vane or
weather-cock, a very useful instrument to
the farmer. It should be erected on a
conspicuous part of the steading, that
it may be readily observed from one of
the windows of the farm-house. Its posi-
tion on the steading may be seen in the
isometrical elevation of that structure.
The cardinal points of the compass should
be marked with the letters N. E. S. W.
The vane should be provided with a ball
or box containing oil, which may be re-
newed when reipiired. There is no neater
or more approj)riate form for a vane than
an arrow, whose dart is alwavs ready to
]>iercc the wind, and whose butt serves as
a governor to direct it into the wind's eye.
The whole apiniratus should be gilt, to pre-
vent rusting.
96. Mr Forster had such a vane erected
at his place of residence, whicli had a
small bell suspended from the dart which
• See Edinburgh Journal of Science, vol. x. p. 334, for a description of this ingenious instrument ;
and New Series, vol. iv. pp. 91 and 329.
Lilsrary
N. C. State Collep^n
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
25
struck upon the arms bearing the letters
of the compass, announcing every change
of wind.* Such a. contrivance may be
considered a conceit, but it has the advan-
tage of letting you know when the wind
shifts much about; and when it does,
there is as little chance of settled weather
as in frequent changes of the barometer.
A better contrivance would be to have a
hammer suspended from the dart by a
supple spring, and a bell of a different
tone attached to each of the arms, indi-
cating the cardinal points ; and when diffe-
rent bells were struck, their tone would
announce the direction in which the wind
most prevailed. There is an ingenious
contrivance for indicating the directions of
the wind by an index on a vertical disc,
like the dial-plate of a clock; a public
example of which may be seen in the west-
ern tower of the Register-House in Edin-
burgh, and a private one in the entrance
ball of Cassiobary House in Hertfordshire,
belonging to the Earl of Essex. This
latter method is a very convenient one of
fitting up a weather-cock.
97. With regard to the origin of the
name of weather-cock, Beckmann says,
that vanes were originally cut out in the
form of a cock, and placed on the tops of
church spires, during the holy ages, as an
emblem of clerical vigilance.t The Ger-
mans use the same term as we do, wetter-
halm ; and the French have a somewhat
analogous term in coq de docker. As the
vane turns round with every wind, so, in
amoral sense, every man who is " unstable
in his ways" is termed a weather-cock.
98. A nemometer.—The force of the wind
is measured by an instrument called the
anemometer, or measurer of the wind's in-
tensity. Such an instrument is of little
value to the farmer, who is more interested
in knowing the direction than the intensity
of the wind, as it has great eftect on the
weather. The intensity of the wind has,
however, a material effect in modifying the
climate of any locality, such as that of a farm
elevated upon the gorge of a mountain pass.
Still, even there ils direction has more to
do in fixing the character of the climate
than the intensity ; besides, the anemome-
ter indicates no aj^proach of wind, but
only measures its force when it blows, and
its strength can be sufficiently well appre-
ciated by the senses. The mean force of
the wind for the whole year at 9 a.m. is
0-855, at 3 p.m. 1-107, and 9 p.m. 0-605;
so that the wind is most active in tlie day,
when the temperature is highest, an effect
which might be anticipated on knowing the
cause of the air being moved in currents.
99. The best instrument of this class is
Lind's anemometer, which, although con-
sidered an imperfect one, is not so imper-
fect, according to the opinion of Sir William
Snow Harris^of Plymouth, who has paid
more attention to the movements of the
wind than any one else in this country, aa
is generally supposed ; but as it is an in-
strument of no use to the farmer, I need
not describe it. J
100. Ventilation.— -The principle of
A-entilation, whether natural or artificial,
lies in a change of the density of the air.
" We may be filled with admiration,"
says Dr Arnott, " on discovering how per-
fectly the simple fact of a lighter fluid
rising in a heavier, provides a constantly
renewed supply of fresh air to our fires,
which su])ply we should else have to fur-
nish by tiie unremitted action of some
expensive blowing apparatus ; but the
operation of the law is still more admirable
as respects the supply of the same vital
fluid to breathing creatures. The air
which a man has once respired becomes
poison to him ; but because the temperature
of his body is generally higher than that of
the atmosphere around him, as soon as he
has discharged any air from the lungs, it
ascends away from him into the great
purifying laboratory of the atmosphere,
and new takes its place. No act or labour
of his, as by using fans and punkas, could
have done half so well what this simple
law unceasingly and invisiblyaccomplishes,
without eflortor attention on his part, and
in his sleeping as well as in his waking
hours."§ This process of natural ventila-
tion necessarily goes on in every stable
and byre; and were the simple law allowed
* Forster's Researches into Atmospherical Phenomena, p. 203.
+ Beckmann's i?is«o)-i/ o/ /«mif Jons, vol. i. , t. , j- . ^
^ A .'ood account of it may be seen in the Edinburgh Encyclopsedia, art. Anemometer.
§ Aruott's Elements of Physics, vol. i. p. 412— Pneumatics.
INITIATION.
to take its course, by ginng the heated and
vitiated air an opportunity to escape by
the roof, and the fresh air to enter by a
lower jioint, the animals inhabiting those
dwellings would be much more comfort-
ably situated than they usually are.
101. ''In proportion as air is higher
removed above the surface of the earth,"
observes Mr Hugo Reid, " its temperature
sinks. This is owing to the following
peculiar relation which aeroids, in their de-
grees of density, bear to heat — namely, that
more heat is required to warm an aeroid in
proportion as it is rare. Hence, equal por-
tions of heat produce more heating effect
on air the denser it is, and the lower strata
are therefore warm ; while the temperature
sinks as the elevation is greater, and at a
certain height, — higher in [troportion as
we approach the equator, — perpetual frost
reigns. It is said that the temperature
sinks 1 degree Fahrenheit for every eleva-
tion of 352 feet. But this varies a little
with the season, and very considerably
with the latitude ; it is near the proportion
in the temperate zones." Hence elevation
affects the local climate of every farm.
In connexion with this subject, it is found
that all liquids boil at a lower temperature
according as the pressure upon them is less.
*' Water boils about 1 degree Fahrenheit
lower for every 530 feet of ascent, or lower
by r76 degree for every inch of the baro-
meter."* Since it gives more trouble to
carry fuel to a high farm, it thus appears
it may bo more economically used in cook-
ing our food than at a lower one.
102. Hydrostatics. — These treat of the
laws which govern the we\(fht of fluids.
The application of the physical [)ressure of
fluids to the purposes of domestic economy
and the wants of civilised life are extremely
important, and afford some valuable objects
of study to the mechanic and engineer, and
wi^h many of these it would be the inte-
rest of farmers to become acquainted.
103. Fluids arc subject to the operation
of gravity. A cubic foot of pure water
weighs 1000 ounces, or 62| lbs., and an
English pint about 1 lb.
104. Water in a vessel exerts a twofold
pressure, on the base and on the sides of
the vessel. The pressure on the base is in
the direction of gravity. Suppose that
the height of water is measured by 100
drops arranged one above the other, the
lowest drop will exert on the base a pres-
sure equal to the weight of the 100 drops.
Of two vessels having the same base and
height, the pressure of water on tlie base
will be the same whatever ouantitv of
water either may contain.
105. Every drop touching the iuU of a
vessel presses laterally on the point of
contact with a force equal to the weight
of all the drops above it to the surface of
the fluid. The lateral pressure of water
thus varies as its depth.
106. Bodies immersed in water are
pressed by it in all directions with a force
increasing as the depth.
107. Water being almost incompressible,
any pressure exerted against its upper sur-
face isimmediatelycommunicated through-
out the entire mass. Bramah's hydraulic
press, for comi)ressing hay and other elastic
substances, and for uprooting trees, is a
practical application of this [irinciple. If
the cylinder of the force-pump is half an
inch in diameter, and that of the press 20
inches, the water will exert a pressure on
the piston of the ram 40 times that on the
force-pump. If the arms of the lever ai'e
as 1 to 50, and that of the force-pump is
worked by a man with a force of 50 lbs.,
the piston of the punij) will descend with a
force of 2500 lbs., and the ram will rise
wuth one of 100,000 lbs.
108. Hydraulics. — Hydraulics treat
of the laws which govern the motion of
fluids. If two vessels communicate with
each other, and the height at which the
water stands in the one exceeds the height
of the other, then the water will overflow
the second vessel until there remains as
much water in the first as its height shall
be equal to the height of the second. It is
on this principle that water is supplied
from reservoirs and cisterns to towns and
villages, and farm-steads, and that it rises
from springs ;it a higher level into wells,
whether of the common or Artesian form.
Reid's Pneumatics, p. 1 1 !) and p. 82.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
27
109. The velocity of water issuing from
an orifice is as the square root of its alti-
tude. Thus, calling the velocity issuing
1 foot below the surface 1 ; that escaping
from a similar orifice 4 feet below the
level, will be 2 ; at 9 feet, 3 ; at 16 feet,
4 ; and so on. From this we learn, that of
water issuing from two similar vessels, it
will issue, from similar orifices, from the
one kept constantly full, twice as fast as
from the other. A short tube will assist
the issue of water from an orifice to the
extent of half as much more.
110. "The friction or resistance which
fluids suffer in passing along />i/'es," says
Dr Arnott, " is much greater than might
be expected. It depends chiefly upon the
particles near the outside being constantly
driven from their true course by the ir-
regularities in the surface of the pipe. An
inch tube of 200 feet in length, placed
horizontally, is found to discharge only a
fourth part of the water which escapes by
a simple aperture of an inch ; and air pass-
ing along tubes is so much retarded, that a
person who erected a great bellovvs at a
waterfall, to blow a furnace two miles oflf,
found that his apparatus was totally use-
less. Higher temperature in a liquid
increases remarkably the quantity dis-
charged by an orifice or pipe, apparently
by diminishing that cohesion of the par-
ticles which exists in certain degrees in all
liquids, and aflects so much their internal
movements." * The simplest way of ascer-
taining the discharge of water from an
orifice, such as a pipe or duct of a drain, is
to measure the quantity discharged in a
given time.
111. Water-ram.— li has been long
observed that, when a cock at the end of a
pipe is suddenly stopped when water is issu-
ing out of it, that a shock and noise are
produced. A leaden pipe, even of great
length, is often widened or burst in this
way. Lately, the forward pressure of an
arrested stream has been used as a force
for raising water, and the a]>paratus has
been called a water-ram. The ram may
be described as a sloping-pipe in which
the stream runs, having a valve at its lower
end, to be shut at intervals, and a small
tube risin;; from near that end towards a
reservoir above, to receive a portion of the
water at each interruption of the stream.
Water allowed to run for one second in a
pipe 10 yards long, 2 inches wide, and
sloping 6 feet, acquires momentum enough
to drive about half-a-pint, on the shutting
of the cock, into a tube leading to a reser-
voir 40 feet high. Such an apparatus,
therefore, with the valve shutting every
second, raises about 60 half-pints or 4
gallons in a minute. The valve is ingeni-
ously contrived so that the stream works
it as desired. The action of the ram may
be compared to the beating of an animal's
pulse. The upright tube is usually made
wider at the bottom, where it first receives
the water, so as to constitute there an air-
vessel, which,bytheair's elasticity, converts
the interrupted jetsfirst received into nearly
a uniform current towards the reservoir.
The supply of air to this vessel ismaintained
by the contrivance called a snijing valve.
112. The efiect produced by moving
water depends on the quantity of water
that strikes in one minute of time against
the surface of the opposing body, and on
the velocity with which the collision takes
place. If the collision happens in a direc-
tion vertical to the surface of the body, its
efiect is equal to the pressure of a column
of water, having for its base the surface
impinged on, and an altitude equal to that
of the column which generates the velocity
of the stream. If the water impinges
obliquely on the surface, the force may be
resolved into two others— one parallel to
the side of the body, and the other per-
pendicular to it. The latter alone is eflec-
tive, and is proportional to the square of the
sine of the angle of incidence. From this
law we learn to calculate the amount ol
resistance required in an embankment
atrainst the force of a stream.
113. Water-wheels. — The motive power
of water is usefully applied to drive ma-
chinery by means of water-wheels. When
water-power can be obtained to drive the
thrashing machine, or other fixedmachinery
of a farm, an immense advantage is gained
over the employment of horses. It is
found that water-power, in the thrashing
of grain alone, saves the work of one pair
of horses out of every five pairs. Any form
* Arnott's Elements of Physics, vol. i. p. i33— Hydraulics.
28
INITIATION.
of water-wheel, therefore, is more econo-
mical than horses. When a wheel with
float-hoards merely di|>s its lower part into
the stream of water, and is driven by its
momentum — that is, both by the bulk and
velocity of the water — it is called an uuder-
s/iot wheel. Tiiis wheel is emjiloyed in
low falls with large quantities of water.
AVhen the water reaches the wheel near
the middle of its height, and turns it by
falling on the float-boards of one side
as they sweep downwards in a curved
trough fitting them, the modification is
called a i/r«A'^ -wheel. This form is em-
ployed in moderate falls commanding a
large supply of water. When the float-
boards are shut in by flat sides, so as to
become the bottoms of a circle of cavities or
buckets surrounding the wheel, into which
the water is allowed to fall at the top of
the wheel, and to act by its weight instead
of its momentum ; the modification is called
the orershot wheel. This form requires
a high fall, but comparatively a small sup-
ply of water, and is most desired when
circumstances will permit its adoption.
To have a maximum of eflect from under-
shot wheels,they are generally made to turn
with a velocity about one-third as great as
that of the water ; and overshot-wheels
usually have their circumference turning
with a velocity of about 3 feet per second.
114. The resistance between a meeting
solid and fluid is nearly proportioned to the
extent of surface opposed by it to the fluid ;
hence large bodies, because containing
more matter in proportion to their surface,
are less resisted, in jiroportion to their
weight, than small bodies of similar form.
This law explains how, by means of air
or water, bodies of different specific gra-
vities, although mixed ever so intimately,
may be easily separated. Thus, when a
mixture of corn and chaff", as it comes
from the thrashing-machine, is showered
down from the sieves in a current of air,
the chaft', in being longer of falling, is
carried further by the wind, while the
heavier corn falls almost j>erpendicularly.
The farmer, therefore, by icinuoiciiiij in
either a natural or artificial current of air,
readily separates the chaff" from the grain,
and even divides the grain itself into
portions of different quality,
115. Friction oficatcr. — Friction afi(ects
the motion of streams of water very sen-
sibly. The velocity of a stream is greater
at the surface than at the bottom, in the
middle than at the sides ; and the water is
higher along the middle than at the sides.
But for the retarding power of friction, the
water in open channels and ditches would
acquire so great a momentum as to destroy
their sides, and to overflow them at every
bending, llivers issuing from a high source,
but for friction, and the eflect of bending,
"Would pour down their waters with irresis-
tible velocity at the rate of ma»y miles per
hour. As it is, the ordinary flow of rivers
is about 3 miles per hour, and their chan-
nels slope 3 or 4 feet per mile.
116. Velocity of streams. — To measure
the velocity of a stream at the surface,
hollow floating bodies are used, and the
space they pass over in a given time — one
minute — is observed by the watch. It is
very difficult to ascertain the true velocity
of an irregular stream. To learn what
quantity of water flows in a stream, its
breadth and depth are first measured at
various places to obtain a mean of "both ;
and the sum of these constituting the
section of the stream is then multiplied by
the velocity, and the product gives the
number of cubic feet per minute.
117. Horse-povrer of wafer. — It may
be useful to know the rule for calculating
the number of horse-power any stream
may exert if employed as a motive power.
It is this: — multiply the specific gravity
of a cubic foot of water, 62,'; lbs., by the
number of cubic feet flowing in the stream
per minute, as ascertained by the preced-
ing process, and this product by the
number of feet in the fall, and, cutting oEf
the three figures on the right hand, divide
by 44, and the product is the answer.
Tim?, — Multiply the number of cubic
feet flowing: per luiiiute in the
stre.im, suppose — .... 350
Bv the weight of a cubic foot of-
water, 62i lbs. - - - - 62^
175
700
210Q_
21,b75
And then multiply the product by the
number of feet of fall, available,
suppose, ..... - 12
262,500
Strike off the three figures on the
right band, ....
500
Divide the remainder by - - 44)2';2(6 ■}
And the quotient 6, gives the number of horse-power.
hone-
power.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO aGKICULTURE.
29
118. Spccijic Gravity. — The specific
gravity of bodies is the proportion sub-
sisting between their absolute weights
in air having equal bulks, and their
weights in water. It is consequently
fouud by dividing the body's absolute
weight by the weight it loses in water.
lU*. It may be useful to mention the
specific gravities of a few common and
useful things ; distilled water being con-
sidered as 1-000 : —
1.0013
1.0-27
1.656
1.48
1.92
2.0-2
2.05
2.07
2.15
2.48
2.542
2.741
1.842
to 3.1
2.66
<, 2.72
2.6
2.75
2.5
2.62
1.86
7.788
Of Rain-water
Sea-water
Beef bones
Common earth
Rough sand
Earth and gravel
Moist sand
Gravelly sand
Clay
Clay and gravel
Flint, dark
Do. white
Lime, unslaked .
BasaJt, whinstone
Granite
Limestone
Porphyry
Quartz
Sandstones, (mean)
Stones for building
Brick
Iron, wrought
Lead, flattened
Zinc, rolled
Rock salt
Alder .
Ash
Aspen .
Birch .
Elm
Horse-chestnut
Larch
Lime
Oak .
Spruce
Scots fir
Poplar, Italian
Willow
2.8
2.5
2.64
2.4
2.56
2.2
1.66
1.41
7.-207
11.388
7.191
2.257
Fresh-felled.
0.8571
0.9036
0.7654
0.9012
0.9476
0.8614
0.9-206
0.8170
1.0754
1.0494
0.8699
0.9121
0.7634
0.7155
Drv.
0.5001
0.6440
0.4302
0.6274
0.5474
0.5749
0.4736
0.4390
0.7075
0.6777
0.4716
0.5502
0.3931
0.5289 '
120. Electricity,
agency, or power, or,
-The electric fluid,
in one word, elec-
tricity, having so obvious an influence on
external nature, necessarily arrests the
attention of those whose occupation engages
them chiefly in the open air. This mys-
terious because subtle agent is commonly
spoTcen of as a fluid ; but, as Dr Bird re-
marks, though frequently called so, it has
little claim to the designation. In using it,
therefore, let it be always understood in
a conventional sense, not as expressing
any theoretical view of the physical state
of electric matter.
121. Electric matter is universally
present in nature. This is proved not
only by its being set free by friction, but
by almost every form of mechanical change
to which any substance can be submitted,
mere pressure being quite sufticientfor the
purpose. It is in a latent state, in a state
of quiescence and equilibrium ; but this
equilibrium is very easily disturbed, and
then a series of actions supervenes, which
continues until the equilibrium is restored.
122. It has been found that certain
bodies possess the property of conducting
electricity, whilst others are incapable of
conducting this form of matter however
subtle. 'On this account, bodies have been
divided into two great groups — conductors
and non-conductors of electricity ; the
former, such as metals, being termed
analectrics., because they cannot produce
sensible electricity ; and the latter, such as
wax or glass, are termed idio-electric, be-
cause they can.
123. Electricity, in its natural and com-
pound state of positive and negative com-
bined, appears to be difiused equally
throughout any given mass of matter; but
when decomposed and separated into its
component elements, each of the fluids is
confined to the surface of the substance in
which it has been set free, in the form of an
exceedingly thin layer, not penetrating
sensibly into the substance of the mass.f
124. The atmospliere is the part in
which the electricity, liberated by various
processes, accumulates ; it constitutes, in
fact, the great reservoir of sensible elec-
tricity, our solid earth being rather the
field in which this mighty power is again
collected and neutralised. Sensibly, elec-
tricity is found in the atmosphere at all
times and in every state, but varies both
in kind and intensity. It owes its origin
* Peschel's Elements of Physics, vol.i. p. 151-187.
"I" Bird's Elements of Natural Philosophy, p. 16-2-177.
so
INITIATION.
to many different causes, no perfect satis-
factory exj)lanati(>n of which has yet been
offered. The principal causes of electrical
excitement with which we are acquainted
are the friction and contact of hetero-
geneous substances, change of temperature,
the vital process, tlie functions of the atmo-
sphere, the pressure and rupture of bodies,
niai^netism — and philosopiiers are not
unanimous as to whether chemical action,
♦ and a change in the aggregate form of
matter, are capable of exciting electricity.
The ordinary means of excitation employed
SLTG/riction, contact, heat, and magnetism.
125. Two of the most natural sources
of electricity seem to be vegetation and
evaporation. Let us inquire how vei/etation
produces such a result. M. Pouillct has
proved, by direct ex[>eriment, that the com-
bination of oxygen with the materials of
living plants is a constant source of elec-
tricity ; and the amount thus disengaged
may be learned from the fact that a surface
of lUO square metres, (or rather more than
100 square yards,) in full vegetation, dis-
engages, in the course of one day, as much
vitreous electricity as would charge a
powerful battery.
1 26. That some idea may be formed of
the Sort of action which takes place be-
tween the oxygen of the air and the
materials of living plants, it is necessary
to attend, in the first place, to the change
produced on the air by the respiration of
plants. Many conflicting opinions still
prevail on this subject ; but " there is no
doubt, however, from the experiments of
various philosophers," as Mr Hugo lleid
observes, " that at times the leaves of
plants prcxluce the same effect on the at-
mospliere as the lungs of animals — namely,
cause an increase in the quantity of car-
bonic acid, by giving out carbon in union
with the oxygen of the air, which is thus
converted into this gas ; and it has been
also ostaI)lislie<l that at certain times the
leaves of plants produce a very opposite
effect — namely, that they decompose the
carbonic acid of the air, retain the carbon,
and give out the oxygen, thus adding to
the quantity of the oxygen in the air. It
has not yet been precisely ascertained
which of these goes on to the greater ex-
tent ; but the general opinion at present
is, that the gross result of the action of
plants on the atmosphere is the depriving
it of carbonic acid, retaining the carbon,
and giving out the oxygen, thus increasing
the quantity of free oxygen in the air."*
127. It being thus admitted that both
carbonic gas and oxygen are exhaled by
plants during certain times of the day, it
is important to ascertain, in the next
place, whether electricity of the one kind or
the other acconij>anies the disengagement
of either gas. Towards this inquiry M.
Pouillet instituted experiments with the
gold-leaf electroscope, whilst the seeds of
various plants were germinating in the
soil ; and he found it sensibly affected by
the 7iegat'ice state of the ground. This
result might have been anticipated during
the evolution of carbonic gas ; for it is
known by experiment that carbonic gas,
obtained from the combustion of charcoal,
is, in its nascent state, electrified /)os(^/Pt'/y,
and, of course, when carbonic gas is
evolved from the plant, the ground should
be in a state of negative electricity. M.
Pouillet presumed, therefore, that when
plants evolve oxygen, the ground should
be in a ])ositive state of electricity. He
was thus led to the imj)ortant conclusion,
that vegetation is an abundant source of
electricity ; t but Peschel observes, that
" the correctness of this assumption, on
which the counter experiments of Pfaff
have thrown a degree of doubt, requires a
fuller investigation before it can be ad-
mitted to have been proved;" but else-
where he considers that " Pouillet has
rendered essential service to this branch of
science, by discovering that positive elec-
tricity is given out from plants when ger-
minating."
128. Another source of electricity is
evaporation. The fact of a chemical change
in water by heat inducing the disengage-
ment of electricity, may be proved by
simple experiment. It is well known that
ini'c/ianical action will produce electricity
sensibly from almost any substance. If
any one of the most extensive series of
resinous and siliceous substances, and of
dry vegetable, animal, and mineral mat-
ters, is rubbed, electricity will be excited,
Reid's Chemistry of Nature, p. 100.
+ 'Leithea.i on Electricity, p. 150.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE,
31
and the extent of excitation "will be shown
by the effect on the gold-leaf electroscope.
Chemical action, in like manner, produces
similar effects. If sulphur is fused and
poured into a conical wine-glass, it will
become electrical on cooling, and affect the
electroscope in a manner similar to the
other bodies mechanically excited. Cho-
colate on congealing after cooling, glacial
phosphoric acid on congealing, and calomel
when it fixes by sublimation to the upper
part of a glass vessel, all give out elec-
tricity; so, in like manner, the condensa-
tion as well as the evaporation of water,
though opposite processes, give out elec-
tricity. Some writers attribute these elec-
trical effects to what they term a change
of form or state ; but it is obvious that
they may, with propriety, be included
under chemical action. This view is sup-
ported by the fact of the presence of
oxygen being necessary to the develop-
ment of electricity. De la Eive, in bring-
ing zinc and copper in contact through
moisture, found that the zinc became
oxidised, and electricity was evolved.
When he prevented the oxidation, by
operating in an atmosphere of nitrogen, no
electric excitement followed. When,
again, he increased the chemical action by
exposing zinc to acid, or by substituting a
more oxidable metal, such as potassium,
the electric effects were greatly increased.
In fact, electrical excitation and chemical
action were observed to be strictly propor-
tional to each other. And this result is
quite consistent with, and is corroborated
by, the necessary agency of oxygen in
evolving electricity from vegetation.* But
more than all this, "electricity," as Dr'
Bird intimates, "is not only evolved dur-
ing chemical decomposition, but during
chemical combination ; a fact first an-
nounced by Becquerel. The truth of this
statement has been by many either alto-
gether denied, or limited to the case of the
combination of nitric acid with alkalies.
But after repeating the experiments of
Becquerel, as well as those of Pfaff, Mohr,
Dalk, and Jacobi, I am convinced that an
electric current, certainly of low tension,
is really evolved during the combination
of sulphuric, hydrochloric, nitric, phos-
phoric, and acetic acids, with the fixed
alkalies, and even with ammonia." t On
this subject Peschel observes, that "the
indubitable evidences of sensible electricity
which attend the different atmospheric
deposits, are in favour of the aggregate
conversion of aqueous vapours exerting
a considerable influence on the generation
of atmospheric electricity. Clarke has
even tried to show tliat a connexion sub-
sists between the variations in the quantity
of vapours and electricity in the air." J
Evaporation being a process continually
going on from the surface of the ocean,
land, lakes, and rivers, at all degrees of
temperature, the result of its action must
be very extensive. But /loic the disen-
gagement of electricity is produced — either
by the action of oxygen on the structure
of living plants, or by the action of heat
on water — is unknown, and will perhaps
ever remain a secret of nature. It is ^asy,
however, to conceive how the electricity
produced by these and other sources must
vary in different climates, reasons, and
localities, and at different heights of the
atmosphere. §
129. The force of the electrical agency
seems to be somewhat in proportion to the
energy with which it is roused into action.
Dr Faraday states, that one grain of
water " will require an electric current to
be continued for 3f minutes of time to
eflect its decomposition ; which current
must be strong enough to retain a platiua
wire T54 of an inch in thickness red-hot
in the air during the whole time. . . .
It will not be too much to say, that this
necessary quantity of electricity is equal
to a very powerful flash of lightning."
When it is remembered that the fermenta-
tion and putrefaction of bodies on the sur-
face of the earth is attended with the de-
composition of water, and to eflect tliis, so
large an amount of electric action must be
excited, we can easily imagine that a
very large amount of electric rtiatter is
required to support the constant wants of
nature.
130. The brilliant discoveries of Fara-
day and Forbes have identified tlie gal-
vanic and magnetic forces with that of
electricity, by the extraction of the spark.
Leithead on Electricity, p. 9 and 10.
Peschel's Elements of Physics, ill. 173-5.
+ Bird's Elements of Natural Philosophy, p. 241.
§ Forbes' Report on Meteorology, vi. 252.
82
INITIATION.
It is extremely probable that one or all of
these agencies are at work at once, or by
turns, to produce the changes continually
taking place in the atniosijhere. It is
hardly possible that the atmosphere sur-
rounding the globe like a thin envelope,
and carried ruund with it in its diurnal
and annual revolutions, should exhibit so
varied a series of pheuouieua every year,
without a constantly operating disturbing
cause; and none are so likely to produce a
variety of ])henomeua as the subtle influ-
ences of all tliose agencies, whose nature
and origin liave hitherto baffled the closest
scrutiny. It is quite possible that they all
operate together, and contribute to main-
tain the atmosphere in a state of positive
electricity, and the earth's surface in a
state of negative electricity. As the air is
a very bad conductor, Kamtz compares
the atmosphere to a large electrical battery,
whose negative coating is the earth's sur-
face, and whose positive coating is formed
by the upper stratum of the atmosphere.
131. "Wlieatstone announced his impor-
tant discovery of measuring the velocity
of the electric force, to the Koyal Institu-
tion of Londcjn in 1835, and that it is
288,000 miles per second.
132. Electrometer. — The electrometer is
an instrument of considerable utility to
farmers ; since it indicates, with a great
degree of delicacy, the existence of free
electricity in the air; and as electricity
cannot exist in that state without produc-
ing some sort of action, it is satisfactory to
have notice of its presence, that its effects,
if possible, may be anticipated. The best
eort of electrometer is the ^'■condensing
electroscope : " it consists of a hollow glass
sphere on a stand, inclosing through its
top a wide glass tube, on the top of which
is affixed a flat brass caj), and from the
under side of which are suspended two
slips of gold-leaf. At the edge of the flat
braids cap is screwed a circular brass plate ;
and another circular brass plate, so as to
be parallel to the first, is inserted in a sup-
port fixed in a piece of wood moving in a
groove of the stand which contains the
whole apparatus. This is a very delicate
instrument, and, to koep it in order, should
be kept free of nioisturo and dust.
133. The very general distribution of
the electric matter through eery substance,
the ease with which it can be excited into
activity, and the state of activity it dis-
plays around plants in a state of healthy
vegetation, have led to the belief that were
means devised to direct a more than usual
quantity of electric matter through plants
when growing, their growth might be
much promoted. It was conceived that
metallic wires might be so placed as to
convey this increased quantity ; and ac-
cordingly experiments were made so as ^o
direct it through given spaces of ground
into the plants growing upon them ; and
this process has been named electro-culture.
The results hitherto have been contradic-
tory, and on the whole discouraging to
future experiment.
134. " Electricity seems to play an im-
portant part in the various stages of the
development of plants," says Peschel.
" Thus flashes of light have been seen to
be omitted from many plants in full flower
soon after sunset in sultry days. It has
further been ascertained, by means of gal-
vanometric experiments, that electric cur-
rents are generated in the interior of their
substance, although their activity is but
small ; and that an uninterrupted develop-
ment of electricity is maintained by the
exhalation of carbonic acid in the atmo-
sphere, especially during the germination of
the bud ; and, indeed, through the entire
process of vegetation. The luminous phe-
nomena in plants have been most diligently
noticed by Zawadski, who observe<l them
to happen principally in orange-coloured
fiovrers,{Culenilulaoj/7ci nails, Tropa'alum,
Liliiun huUii/crum, Toffetes patiila and
erectile) that they occurred most fre-
quently in the months of July and August,
and tiiat the same flower discharged a
number of flashes in succession. Dr
Donne has performed a number of experi-
ments in the course of his investigations
into this subject. He has found that in
many fruits the current runs from the stem
to the eye, while in others it flows in an
opposite direction. Blake, who has esta-
blished the existence of these currents by
similar experiments, thinks ho has dis-
covered that they run from the stem to the
surface of the leaves ; that he has verified
their course to be as has been just said, by
the chemical decomposition they eflfect;
that lastly, the leaf itself is rendered posi-
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
83
tive, and the ambient air negative." * It
thus appears undoubted that a connexion
exists between a certain state of electricity
and vegetation, but how best to promote
the results of the connexion seems doubt-
ful.
135. Electric theory of vegetation. —
An anonymous author has recently pro-
mulgated a theory of vegetable physio-
logy, based on electricity ; and as that
mysterious agent, without doubt, exercises
a great influence in the phenomena of
nature, it may be proper to state this
theory shortly, to let the pupil reflect upon
it, whether or not it is capable of explain-
ing most of the phenomena connected with
agriculture, and which the author is san-
guine enough to believe that it does.
136. " Electricity," says this author,
" has always been considered either as one
or two fluids; but whether the former or the
latter, great difference of opinion has always
existed. Dr Franklin was the author of
the former theory, and Dufay and Symmer,
conjointly, the founders of the latter. I
have adopted the two-fluid theory — not
on account of its being, in any case, more
simple; but, in my opinion, it is not only
more in accordance with the laws and
principles of the science, but also more
consonant with established agricultural
facts. Taking, therefore, the theory of
two fluids called the positive and ne-
gative, they are found to pervade all
matter ; but, being generally in equal
quantities, they are inactive, and therefore
not recognised. They are, however, sepa-
rated by various means, and then become
sensible." The means of disturbing their
equilibrium is by the presentation of points,
vegetation, fermentation, putrefaction,
combustion, &c., and, in short, by any case
of simple decomposition.
137. " One undeviating law of free elec-
tric fluid," he goes on to say, " is its pro-
perty of residing only on the surface of
all matter. Each fluid is also self-repul-
sive, but attracts the other ; therefore
when a sphere, or other nearly round body,
possesses either, of the fluids, it is equally
difi"used over its surface, and if it con-
tain an equal quantity of both, it is the
same ; but then they combine, and are
latent or insensible. Some kinds of matter
are also conductors of the fluid, and other
kinds non-conductors — that is, it will move
on the surface of some, and remain sta-
tionary on others ; but with respect to this
quality, much depends on the intensity of
the fluid as well as peculiarity of matter.
The earth is called a conductor, and also
the great reservoir of the fluid ; and, con-
sequently, it is supposed to be the source
whence it is all drawn. The atmosphere,
or air which surrounds the earth, is of an
opposite nature — it is a non-conductor of
the fluids ; but as it always holds moisture,
which is a conductor, it changes its pro-
perties with its variation. Now it is
evident, that when the air is positively
electrified, and always contains more or
less moisture, the fluid will be equally
diff'used among the particles of each ;
and therefore, when moisture descends
to the earth, either in rain, dew, &c.,
it will carry the fluid along with it.
The atmosphere and earth being in contact
at all times, there will be a frequent inter-
change of moisture and fluid ; it will be
communicated from the former to the latter
by induction, and the contrary, by vegeta-
tion and evaporation If the
earth be positive, the water it contains
will be so likewise ; and, when this is the
case, I presume it will pass into the air by
evaporation, and will thereby exhaust
the soil at all times when the process of
induction is not in operation ; and it must
be understood that this can only exist
under certain favourable conditions, —
viz., if the soil be so porous as to permit
the air sufficiently to penetrate it, and
when the weather is calm, and the air in
a positive state : yet it is obvious that
these requisites only sometimes exist, and
then at others it is indisputable that posi-
tive ffuid will escape, as evaporation goes
on, perhaps, at all temperatures. But the
most probable cause of the air being posi-
tive is vegetation — as it must receive,
if correct, an amazing quantity by this
means ; and what makes the assumption
still stronger, is its production of vegeta-
tion in its transit ; as it is, therefore, not
lost by the earth without being beneficial
in its passage. There is a fact also which
strengthens this view — viz., it is found that
VOL. I.
Peschel's Elements of Physic, vol, iii. p. 185 — Electricity.
84
INITIATION.
the air is more positive in winter than in
summer; and this is the result we might
expect, because it will have received all
the fluid that has esca])ed through all the
vegetables on tlie surface of the globe,
and will only have returned the quantity
that descended with dew and rain, and
the latter in summer is sometimes not
large. But during winter, again, the
earth will receive abundant quantities, so
that it will, to a great degree, be prepared
to commence vegetation in the ensuing'
spring. There will be no obstacle, from
crops, to the almost perpetual operation
of induction ; and therefore, as rapidly as
the negative on the surface is saturated
with the positive in the air, it will in-
stantly be repelled, and again as quickly
replaced; and thus it will goon without
intermission, except when there is both a
dry and a settled state of the atmosphere ;
so that the neutral air on the surface
(which is known to be three or four feet)
is neither circulated by the winds, to be
replaced by the positive, nor will be a
conductor from the air above it, if it be in a
dry state. However, it is evident that in
our climate this condition of the air seldom
occurs ; for in the night a fall of moisture,
in one form or another, is almost invari-
able, and it is also very generally the case
in the day."
138. After describing the structnre of
vegetables in a few words, the author
proceeds to consider the electric condition
of the organic and inorganic elements
which compose plants.
139. Oxygen is in a negative state of
electricity; and when it combines with
alkalies and earths, it converts them into
non-conductors, and is thereby of great
service in retaining the fluid for vegeta-
tion ; and the excitation of electricity is
found to result from its union with ail
substances.
140. Hydrogen is in a positive state,
^n«e it unites with oxygen.
141. Nitrogen being an indiflferent sub-
stance, ite electric state is neutral, holding
equal qu9,tttities of the two fluids.
142. Carbon readily unites with oxygen,
and may, therefore, be regarded as in a
positive state of electricity, and it is a
non-conductor.
143. Ammonia, according to the expe-
riments of Faraday, returns to either pole
of the galvanic battery, and is therefore
neutral like nitrogen.
144. IJumus is valuable by its union
with oxygen in supplying carbonic acid
and the electric fluid to vegetables in all
their stages. During the time it is in the
soil, it is a great attractor and retainer
of moisture, and therewith the electric
fluid, being also a non-conductor.
•145. All the inorganic substances of
plants are non-conductors, and therefore
valuable as retaining the electric fluid for
the use of vegetation.
146. The author's views, in considering
the utility of the inorganic materials, in so
far as they may be regarded as ingredients
for constructing the plant, are these: — " I
assume that vegetables are a crystalline
structure, and that their elements combine
in a similarmanner to other crystals. The
grain, fruit, &c. are composed of different
compounds of different proportions of the
organic elements, with a small portion of
the inorganic. The organic are gum,
starch, sugar, Sec. These are some of the
proximate principles of vegetables ; but they
have again to be united in various manners
and proportions before we can obtain
grain, roots, Sec; and these may be called
the Hnal production.
147. " Now the organic elements cannot
be united by art to form any of these
compouuils; but it is effected in the plant,
and we conceive as follows : — Water is a
compound of oxygen and hydrogen ; car-
bonic acid is composed of oxygen and
carbon ; and ammonia is composed of
hydrogen and nitrogen. Now these con-
tain all- the organic elements of vegetables,
and they are all to be found in the air and
t\\e soil, and therefore within their reach.
It is also known that water and ammonia
can be decomposed by electricity; and we
have no doubt but that these and carbonic
acid can also be decomposed by the elec-
tricity of tl)e plant : I therefore conclude,
that the electric fluid issues from the earth
through tlie vegetables during the day, and
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
35
decomposes those substances into their ele-
ments when in the extremity of the leaf, it
being most intense when it escapes from the
points. The elements then descend throngh
the bark into the cells, where much of the
water will be evaporated in the day ; they
will there remain until the cool of the
night, and then, owing to the escape of
the heat, and consequent contraction of
the cells, together with the return of the
electric fluid with the dew, their union is
accomplished. It is here, I imagine, that
a great benefit is derived from the inor-
ganic ingredients; they unite with the
acids formed in the plant, producing salts,
and it is known that these are among the
substances most prone to crystallisation.
148. "We have shown that the veget-
able possesses all the requisites that con-
tribute to effect crystallisation when
attempted artificially: these are, the
evaporation of the water of solution, the
absence of motion, the absence of light,
and frequently, in addition to these, a grain
of sand is required before the process will
commence. Thus, we see that the veget-
able, at least in fine weather, has all that
is necessary to enable its inorganic ele-
ments to crystallise, and thereby assist the
organic to unite, besides the advantage of
the fluid returning to the earth in a sort
of current with the dew, and which is
known to be able of itself to efiect the
process of crystallisation — being called
slow electric action."
149. The author adduces a number of
comparative results produced by vegetation
and electricity, some of which bear a close
resemblance to one another, and others
analogically so. I shall content myself
with one instance of comparison between
the eflfects of electricity and vegetation : —
" Most compounds," he says, "• have been
discovered to be decomposable by the
electric fluid. Sir H. Davy immortalised
his name by the decomjiosition of the
alkalies and many of the earths ; but the
manner in which this is effected is diff"er-
ently explained by many eminent philo-
sophers. Mr Faraday's I think the most
plausible. He says that there is an in-
ternal corpuscular action in the decom-
posing mass, exerted according to the
direction of the electric current ; and that
the elements, when liberated, pass to either
pole, according to the aflanity existing
between them.
150. "The fact is now decidedly estab-
lished that vegetables decompose com-
pounds ; — that water, carbonic acid, and
ammonia, are all separated into their
elements before being assimilated by the
plant. What, then, can decompose them, if
we reject electricity, except the vital prin-
ciple ? and this we have surely no right to
call to our aid, when we are acquainted
with an agent that can do its work."*
151. Galvanism. — The state of electri-
cal quiescence in two diff"erent kinds of
bodies which are good conductors of elec-
tricity, is destroyed by bringing them into
contact with each other. It was V^olta
who first discovered this peculiar excitation
of electricity in the metals. Before this,
" Professor Galvani of Bologna observed,
in 1797, that when he touched a nerve and
muscle in the leg of a dead frog with two
different metals, on bringing them into
contact the leg moved convulsively. The
author of this discovery considered this as
the effect of a peculiar power exerted on
the animal organisation ; he therefore gave
it the name of animal electricity ; and
even to the present day, out of respect to
the discoverer, it is frequently called gal-
vanic electricity or galvanism. Volta
soon after proved, by means of the con-
denser he had lately invented, that this
electricity by no means resided as an ex-
traordinary agent in the animal organisa-
tion, but that it was the consequence of two
metals being brought into contact; and that
the nerves and muscles merely exliibiled
the sensible electricity, as any other deli-
cate electroscope would. This theory led
him to the most important discoveries and,
in the year 1800, to the construction of that
valuable piece of apparatus known by the
name of the Voltaic jnle."
152. With this apparatus Faraday ad-
duced a variety of proofs, to establish the
identity between electricity exciteii by
contact and by friction. The important
distinction between them is, that in a vol-
taic battery the exciting cause is perma-
A New Theory of Vegetable Physiology, based on Electricity, p. 16,22,27, 35, 42.
36
IXITIATION.
uently at work — hence, after connexion is
established with the ground, its electrical
tension is excited and maintained ; and,
when the circuit is completed, the stream
is emitted uninterruptedly so long as the
circuit is not broken, and no change takes
place — whereas in an electrical machine,
when its conductor or a battery is charged,
it loses its electrical tension immediately
on a connexion being established by a good
conductor between it and the ground.
153. Magnetism. — Magnetism is a
force which exerts no immediate influence
on any part of the nervous system. Sub-
stances endowed with it attract certain
metals ; display towards one another a
force partly attractive and partly repul-
sive; and they exhibit a tendency toarrange
their mass in a certain direction. " How-
ever simple these isolated fundamental
effects may appear," observes Peschel, "yet
the ultimate causes which jtroduce them
must remain shrouded in obscurity, unless
we can discover the laws which regulate
the mutual operations of this and the
other physical agents on each other. Our
knowledge of this subject has been greatly
increased of late by the discovery of elec-
tro-magnetism and magneto-electricity ;
and the fact has been established beyond
dispute thatmagneticinfluences are aftected
by, and that they in their turn affect, light,
heat, and electricity. We may, therefore,
well hazard a conjecture, that magnetism
has a far wider sphere of operation than
the exertion of its attractive and repulsive
forces would indicate ; and that, probably,
many a phenomenon is ultimately owing to
magnetic influence, although the mode of its
connexion with that force is unknown tons."
154. The spark obtained from the vol-
taic pile and from the magnet, evince a
simultaneous exhibition of the electrical
action with the voltaic and with the mag-
netic ; and the insulated pile presents a
striking analogy to the polarity of a bar
magnet, in one half of which positive electri-
city resides, and negative electricity in the
other ; and its assuming, when suspended,
the magnetic direction, also evinces a corre-
sponding identity between voltaism and
magnetism. Of the three forces, electricity
seems to be most easily excited ; for neither
voltaic nor magneticaction are ever excited
without an exhibition of the electrical. '
155. The ground has been compared to
a voltaic pile; — the particlesof the different
kinds of earths, which are just oxides
of metals, being separated, and at the
same time united together, by the moisture
derived from the rain, and which httlds in
solution the alkalies amJ acids which may
be present in the ground. The voltaic
action amoiigst these materials is excited
by the same circumstances as excite the
action of the voltaic i)ilc ; and that action
will be the greater the nearer the mate-
rials happen to be proportioned, and in a
similar condition to those in the voltaic pile.
150. Terrestrial magnetism is supposed
to arise from two fluids which are never
singly combined with the particles of mat-
ter, but alwaj'S both together ; and if the
relative proportions of which existing in
any body be such that they mutually neu-
tralise each other in the individual mole-
cules composing it, that body would be
said to be not magnetised. But if this
condition of equilibrium be disturbed, then
the magnetic state is induced ; and the
magnetism is invariably exhibited from
both poles, and never from one only Every
body that has acquired this state of polarity
is in its turn capable of disturbing the
magnetic equilibrium of other similar bodies
within certain limits. The derangement
thus efiected in the magnetic fluids is not
sutficient to cause their passage from one
particle of the body to another, still less
from one body to another. " Hansbein is
of opinion, that all bodies whatever on the
earth's surface have a certain degree of
magnetic polarity ; he thought he had ob-
served, that a needle held near to the
ground on the north side of a tree, post,
column, &c., made a greater number of
vibrations in a given time than when held
on the south side ; but that the same needle,
when presented to the upper end of the
object, vibrated more rapidly on the south
side than on the north side ; whence he
inferred, that all bodies had a less degree
of polarity imparted to them by the earth's
magnetism ; that their lower end in the
ground was a north pole, and their upper
end a south pole."*
* Peschel's Elements of Pht/sic$, vol. ii. p. 265 and 316, and vol. iii. p. 70.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
37
157. The subjects of voltaism and mag-
netism may not seem to be at all connected
with the culture of the ground ; but it is
chiefly in the principles of these sciences
that electro-culture has been recommended
of late years to the notice of the farmer.
The method of erecting the electrical
apparatus for attaining the object of tlie
recommendation, I shall have particularly
to describe at the proper season. In the
mean time, I would remark on the prin-
ciple of the particular construction, that
no doubt an electrical current may be
established by the system of wires set up
in the air, and continued under ground,
around the space of ground included
within the wires — and that such a current
is put in motion is clearly shown by the
active state of the magnetic needle. These
electrical currents, to s])eak more pro-
perly, as a current will diverge in a con-
trary direction from each upright arm,
will be accompanied by spiral magnetic
currents revolving along with them, and
the intensity of which will probably be in
proportion to that of the electrical. The
electrical currents will also give rise to a
certain degree of voltaic excitation in the
ground, but the action of these will be feeble
and almost momentary. It seems to me
improbable that any benefit can be derived
from such an arrangement by any object
placed within the space circumscribed by
the wires ; as the ele'ctricity, brought down
the upright wires, has just as great a
chance to be diffused into the ground from
the horizontal wires in a downward or a
lateral direction, away from the enclosure,
as towards the interior of the enclosure.
ISTay, I should suppose (hat the wires
under ground would be apt to convey away
aquantity of the electricity that is naturally
in the ground. If any sensible result is
to be expected from such an experiment,
every stem of a plant should be surrounded
by a wire ; and if the diffusion of the elec-
tricity is to do any good, it would then
have a chance of being placed within the
immediate reach of each plant. A better
plan, in my opinion, would be to excite the
ground itself to a A^oltaic action, which,
although feeble at any given moment of
time, might nevertheless produce sensible
effects by its constancy during a lengthened
period.
158. Heat. — Heat was ranked amongst
chemical re-agents, until philosophers
divided all the substances of nature into
ponderable and imponderable, when it was
classed among the latter, in common with
electricity, magnetism, galvanism, andlight.
159. Heat, as a general principle, may
be regarded as the antagonistic force to
gravity. Were gravity to act alone, every
object would become a confirmed solid, and
there would be no such existence as life.
160. It is the property of heat to part
asunder the atoms of all bodies, and these
remain or change into solids, liquids, and
gases, as their atoms are more nearly or
remotely placed from each other; the
further they are separated, the weaker the
attraction being between them. Thus
bodies in these different states represent
conditions which differ in regard to the
quantity of heat in them.
Ib'l. Heat cannot be seen, and it has
neither weight nor inertia, though it per-
vades all nature. It is only sensible when
it displays a tendency to establish equi-
librium, by diffusing itself equally in all
surrounding bodies; and it is then in in-
cessant motion, passing from one to another.
The quantity of it at any moment in a
particular body is said to be the tempera-
ture of that body. When its movement
ceases, and it is in a temporary state of
repose, intimately uniting itself with the
atoms of matter, and not causing any
change of aggregation, it is then said to
be latent. With the same temperature,
the latent heat of bodies increases as they
change from solid to liquid, and from
liquid to aeriform.
162. Whenever heat becomes sensible
or free, it alters their form by dilation;
and the measure of this increase has given
rise to a class of useful instruments called
thermometers.
163. Thermometer. — The common
mercurial thermometer is nearly a perfect
instrument, and has been the means of
establishing important facts to science;
but being a mere measurer of temperature,
it is incapable of indicating changes of the
atmosphere so clearly as the barometer,
and is therefore a less useful instrument to
the farmer. Indeed, it does not predict
38
INITIATION.
boiling water unfler tbe mean pressure of
tbe atmospbcre, wbicb is given on his
scale at 212'; the melting point of ice at
32'. This scale of ilivision has almost
universally been adopted in Britain, but
not at all generally on the Continent. The
zero of this scale, though an arbitrary
point adopted by P'ahrenheit, from the
erroneous idea that the greatest possible
cold was produced by a mixture of com-
mon salt and snow, has particular advan-
tages for a climate like ours : besides being
generally known, the zero is so placed that
any cold which occurs very rarely causes
the mercury to fall below that point, so
that no mistake can take place with regard
to noting minus quantities. The only
other divisions of the thermometer between
the two fixed points in general use, are
those of Reaumur and the centesimal ; J
the former divides the spacfe into 80 equal
parts ; the division of the latter, as indi-
cated by its name, is into 100 part«. la
both these scales the zero is placed at the
melting point of ice, or 32° Fahrenheit."
1 65. The self-registering thermometers
were the invention of the late Dr John
Rutherfurd, and his are yet the best. The
tube of the one for ascertaining the greatest
deirree of heat is inclined nearly in a hori-
zontal position, and filled with mercury,
upon the top of the column of which stands
an index, which, on being pushed upwards,
does not return until made to descend to
the top of the mercury by elevating the
upper end of the thermometer. This index
was first matle of metal, which became
oxydised in the tube, and uncertain in its
motions. Mr Adie, optician in Edinburgh,
im])roved the instrument, by introducing
a fluid above the mercury, in which is
floated a glass index, M-hich is free from
any action, and is retained in its place by
the fluid. " The other thermometer, for
registering the lowest degree," says Mr
John A<lie, " is filled with alcohol, having
an index of black glass immersed in the
* Peschel says that " Reaumur retained the use of the spirit of wine, and finding that its expan-
sion between the points of boiling and freezing water equalled 008 of its volume, he divided the
scale into eighty equal parts, on the supposition that the expansion of the spirit would be propor-
tioned to the increase of the temperature. De Luc discovered and corrected this error, and substi-
tuted mercury for the spirit of wine, though he still retained his predecessor's system of graduation.
Notwithstanding this important alteration, the thermometer still retained the name of Recnmur." —
Elfments of Pkys'icf, vol. ii. p. 151.
+ A Danish philosopher who experimented in Iceland.
X Instituted by Celsius, a Swedish philosopher, whose system of graduation is rapidly supplanting
Reaumur's on the Continent.
changes at all, like the barometer. Re-
garding the ordinary temperature of the
atmosphere, the feelings can judge suf-
ficiently well ; and as the state of the pro-
ductions of the farm indicates pretty well
whether the climate of the particular
locality can bring them to perfection, the
farmer seems independent of the use of the
thermometer. Still, it is useful to know
the lowest degree of temperature in winter
to put him on his guard, as certain kinds
of farm produce are injured by the etFects
of extreme cold, which the feelings are
incapable, from want of habit, of esti-
mating. For this purpose, a thermometer
self-registering the lowest degree of cold
will be found a useful instrument on a
farm ; and as great heat does no hann, a
self-registering thermometer of the greatest
degree of heat seems not so useful an in-
strument as the other.
164. "The thermometer, by which the
temperature of our atmosphere is deter-
mined," says Mr John Adie of Edinburgh,
"was invented by Sanctario in 1590.
The instrument, in its first construction,
was very imperfect, having no fixed scale,
and air being the medium of expansion.
It was soon shown, fmm the discovery of
the barometer, that this instrument was
acted upon by pressure as well as tempera-
ture. To separate these effects, alcohol was
em[)loyed as the best fluid, from its great
expansion by heat, but was afterwards
found to expand unequally. Reaumur first
proposed the use of mercury as the expan-
sive medium for the thermometer.* This
liquid metal has great advantages over
every other medium ; it has the jiower of
indicating a great range of temperature,
and expands very equally. After its in-
troduction, the melting point of ice was
taken as a fixed point, and the divisions
of the scale were made to correspoml to
1555th parts of the capacity of the bulb.
It was left for the ingenious Fahrenheit t
to fix another standard point — that of
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
39
liquid. This index is always carried down
to the lowest point to which the tempera-
ture falls ; the spirit passes freely upwards
without changing the place of the index,
so that it remains at the lowest point.
This instrument, like the other, turns upon
a centre, to depress the upper end, and
allow the index, by its own weight, to
come into contact with the surface of the
spirit, after the greatest cold has been ob-
served, which is indicated by the upper
end of the index, or that farthest from the
bulb. In both cases, the instruments are
to be left nearly horizontal, the bulb end
being lowest. This angle is most easily
fixed by placing the bulb about |ths of an
inch under the horizontal line."*'
166. Thermometers of all kinds, when
fixed up for observation, should be placed
out of the reaph of the direct rays of the
sun, or of any reflected heat. If at a win-
dow or against a wall, the thermometer
should have a northern aspect, and be
kept at a little distance from either ; for
it is surprising through what a space a
sensible portion of heat is conveyed from
soil and walls, or even from grass illumi-
nated by the sun. The maxima of tem-
perature, as indicated by thermometers,
are thus generally too great; and from the
near contact in which they are usually
placed with large ill-conducting masses,
such as walls, the temperature of the night
is kept up, and the minima of temperature
are also too high.
167. The price of a common thermometer
is from 5s. 6d. to ] 4s. ; and of Dr Rulher-
furd's minimum self- registering, 10s. 6d.
168. Thermometers afford but limited
information in regard to the state of heat
in bodies. " It is evident," says Dr
Arnott, " that the thermometer gives very
. limited information with respect to heat :
it merely indicates, in fact, what may be
called the tension of heat in bodies, or the
strength of its tendency to spread from
them. Thus, it does not discover that a
pound of water takes thirty times as much
heat to raise its temperature one degree
as a pound of mercury ; nor does it dis-
cover the caloric of fluidity absorbed
when bodies change their form, and which
* Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 5-7-
t Arnott's Elements of Physics, vol. ii. part 1st, p. 114 — Heat.
indeed is called latent heat only because it is
hidden from the thermometer ; nor does it
tell that there is more heat in a gallon of
water than in a pint ; and if an observer did
not make allowance for the increasing rate
of expansion in the substance used as a
thermometer, as the temperature increases,
he would believe the increase of heat to be
greater than it is; and, lastly, when a
fluid is used as a thermometer, the expan-
sion observed is only the excess of the ex-
pansion in the fluid over that in the con-
taining solid, and subject to all the irre-
gularities of expansion in both instances :
— all proving that the indications of the
thermometer, unless interpreted by our
knowledge of the general laws of heat, no
more discloses the true relation of heat to
bodies than the money accidentally in a
man's pocket tells his rank and riches." t
169. Bodies, on receiving heat, expand
generally more rapidly than the tempera-
ture increases; and the expansion is greater
as the cohesion in the particles becomes
weaker from increased distance — being
considerably greater in liquids than in
solids, and in airs than in liquids. Thus
solids gain in bulk 1 part in from 100 to
400; liquids, in from 9 to 55; and all
gases and vapours gain 1 part in 3,
It is this dilating property of air which
lias prompted some persons to employ the
force of expanding air as a motive power;
the same quantity of heat that would pro-
duce one cubic foot of common steam
would double the volume of five cubic feet
of atmospheric air. Though the air-engine
has hitherto not succeeded, by reason of the
destructive effects of the heated air in the
valves, yet the time may come when this
inconvenience will be remedied; and it has
already been proved that this power may
be much more economically employed than
steam.
170. Steam-engine.— In expanding on
the reception of heat, bodies receive it
in difterent quantities ere they exhibit
a given increase of temperature; and this
difference marks their different capacities
for heat. It is this property which ren-
ders steam so powerful and economical a
force to be employed in moving machinery ;
and, as a motive power, the steam-engine,
40
INITIATION.
at present, stands unrivalled. As it came
from the bands of Watt, the steam-en<rine
may almost be said to be endowed with
human intelligence. I cannot resist quot-
ing' at length Dr Arnott's well-exjjressed
encomium on this wonderfully simple
machine. "It regulates with perfect accu-
racy and uniformity," he observes, "the
number of its .^trol-es in a given time —
counting/ or recording them, moreover, to
tell how much work it has done, as a
clock records the beats of its pendulum ;
— it regulates the quantity of' strain ad-
mitted to work — the briskness of the Jire —
the supply of icat^r to the boiler — the
supply of coals to the fire; — it opens and
shuts its valces with absolute precision as
to time and manner; — it oils its joints; —
it takes out any air which may acciden-
tally enter into parts which should be
vacuous ; — and when any thing goes
wrong which it cannot of itself rectify, it
warns its attendants by ringing a bell :
— yet with all these talents and qualities,
and even when exerting the powers of
six hundred horses, it is obedient to the
band of a child ; — its aliment is coal, wood,
charcoal, or other combustible; — it con-
sumes none while idle; — it nevftr tires,
and wants no sleep ; — it is not subject to
malady, when originally well made ; and
only refuses to \vork when worn out
with age; — it is equally active in all cli-
mates, and will do work of any kind ; — it
is a water-pumper, a miner, a saihjr, a
eotton-spinner, a weaver, a blacksmith, a
miller, &c.: and a steam-engine in the
character of a steam-pony may be seen
dragging after it, on a railroad, a hundred
tons of merchandise, or a regiment of
soldiers, with greater speed than that of our
fleetest coaches. It is the king of machines,
and a permanent realisation of t\\G genii i)i
eastern fable, wliose supernatural powers
were occasionallyattliecommand of man."*
171. The steam-engine is becoming
daily more useful to the farmer in work-
ing his stationary machines. Winduiills,
and even water-wheels, but scantily sup-
plied with surface-water only, are being
laid aside when worn out, and the steam-
engine substituted in their stead. This
power, at command at all times and in all
seasons, to any extent, is also employed
to cut straw and hay, and bruise corta, now
that it is found better to support the horses
on prepared food. The steam-engine has
been suggested as a befitting motive power
for the plough in the ordinary cultivation
of the soil ; and its powers were tested
some years ago by ^Ir Heathcote, before
the Highland and Agricultural Society, at
Lochar Moss, near Dumfries ; but the
locomotive is yet too expensive a machine
to be employed in all the varieties of
ploughing in the various states of the
ground incidental to a farm.
172. Vapour. — Though water remain ever
so tranquil, a jwrtion of it is constantly re-
ceiving heat from the air, and passing into
it in the form of invisible vapour or steam.
The weight of 1 cubic inch of distilled
water (with the barometer at 30 inches,
and the thermometer at 62° Fahrenheit) is
252"4 08 grains ; that of 1 cubic inch of air
is 0-304!f of a grain ; and of steam at 212"
0'G325, taking atmospheric air as 1"000.
Heatthusrendering water, in thoform of va-
pour, lighter than the air, we sec howreadily
vapour ascends in the atmosphere ; and it
is not improbable that it is electricity
that maintains its elasticity after it has
been carried beyond the influence of its
generating heat, and keeps it in mixture
with the air. The presence of vapour in
the air is of essential service to the func-
tions of ])lants and animals, as without it
both would languish and die. Its quan-
tity in the atmosphere is variable.
173. This table gives the weight in grains
of a cubic foot of vapour, at diflerent
"temperatures of 10°, from 0° to 00° Fahren-
heit; and clearly shows that the higher the
temperature of the air, the greater is the
quantity of vapour held in solution in it.
Tempera-
ture in
Weiglit in
Tempera-
ture in
Weight in
degrees.
grains.
degrees.
grains.
0
0-856
50
4-535
1(1
1-208
60
6"3-2-2
20
1-688
70
8-;U)2
30
2-361
80
11-333
40
3-239
1 90
15005
174. Clouds. — "When by any cause the
temperature of the air is reduced, its par-
Amott's Elements of Fhynks, vol. i. p. 383— P/if«ma(ic*.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
41
tides approach nearer each other, and so
do those of the vapour hekl suspended in
the air; and as steam becomes visible
when mixed with atmospheric air, so tlie
vapour becomes visible when it occupies a
lower position in condensation by a reduc-
tion of temperature. When vapour thus
becomes visible in the atmospliere, it be-
comes cloiids. These differ much in alti-
tude, density, and extent. Their altitude
is best observed in ascending mountains,
when the traveller frequently passes one
zone of clouds after another. Mountains
thus form a scale by which to estimate the
altitude of clouds. Mr Crossthwaite made
these observations on the altitude and
number of clouds in the course of five
years : —
AtTrruDE OF Clouds.
KOMBER OF OLOUDS.
From 0 to
100 yards,
10
100 to
200 ...
42
200 to
300 ...
62
300 to
400 ...
. 179
400 to
500 ...
. 374
500 to
600 ...
. 486
600 to
700 ...
. 416
700 to
800 ...
. 367
800 to
POO ...
, 410
900 to 1000 ...
. 518
1000 to
1050 ...
), . .
. 419
3283
Above 105(
. 2098
Hence the number of clouds above 1050
yards was to that below as 2098 : 3283, or
10: 16 nearly.
175. Dew. — Invisible evaporation sends
a large quantity of vapour into the lower
stratum of the atmosphere, which never
ascends so high as to form clouds, but is
deposited in dew, in drops, upon the points
of objects having a rough surface, such as
the blades of grass, and other suchlike
plants.
1 76. Theories of the formation of dew have
been proffered by many philosophers, from
the days of Aristotle to the time of Dr
Wells. " Dew, according to Aristotle,"
remarks Dr Wells, " is a species of rain
formed in the lower atmosphere, in conse-
quence of its moisture being condensed by
the cold of the night into minute drops.
Opinions of this kind, respecting the cause
of dew, are still entertained by many per-
sons, among whom is the very ingenious
Mr Leslie of Edinburgh." This view is
erroneous, because " bodies a little elevated
in the air become moist with dew, while
similar bodies lying on the ground remain
dry, though necessarily, from their position,
they are as liable to be wetted by whatever
falls from the heavens as the former." Dufay
concluded that dew is an electric pheno-
menon; but it leaves untouched bodies
which conduct electricity, while it appears
upon those which cannot transmit that in-
fluence. All the theories on dew, to the
time of Dr Wells, omitted the important
part, that the production of dew is attended
with cold ; and this is a very important
omission, since no exjdanation of a natural
phenomenon can be well founded .which
has been built without a knowledge of one
of its principal circumstances. " It may
seem strange to many," continues Dr Wells,
" that neither Mr Wilson nor Mr Six ap-
plied the fact of the existence of cold to its
production, to the improvement of the
theory of dew. . But, according to their
view of the subject, no such use could have
been made of it by them, as they held the
formation of that Jiaid to be the cause of
the cold observed with it. I had many
years held the same opinion ; but I began
to see reason, not long after the regular
course of my experiments commenced, to
doubt its truth, as I found that bodies
would sometimes become colder than the
air without being dewed ; and that, when
dew was found, if diti'erent times were com-
pared, its quantity, and the degree of cold
which appeared with it, were very far
from bearing always in the same proportion
to each other. The frequent recurrence of
such observations at length corrected the
doubt of the justness of my ancient opinion
into a conviction of its error; and at the
same time occasioned me to conclude, that
dew is the production oi a precedivg cold
in the substance upon which it appears."
Dr Wells' theory, therefore, is, " that the
cold observed with dew is the previous
occurrence, and, consequently, that the
formation of this fluid has precisely the
same immediate cause as the presence of
moisture upon the outside of a glass or
metallic vessel, where a liquid considerably
colder than the air has been poured into it
shortly before." As an obvious applica-
tion of this theory, the experiments of Dr
Wells, which led to its establishment,
evince, that of all natural substances, grass
42
INITIATION.
is peculiarly adapted to the exhibition of
dew, inasmuch as it becomes, under ordi-
nary circumstances, colder than the air
above it, by the radiation of more heat to-
wards tlie heavens tliau it receives in any
way, and, accordingly, whenever the air is
calm and serene, dew may be seen on
grass when it may not be observed on
other substances.
177. But it has been alleged by Dufay
that dew is the condensation of vapour
ris'mg out of the earth upon the gniss on it,
because objects removed higher from the
surface of the earth, as trees, are exempt
from dew ; and this is a very popular
opinion, but it is an erroneous one, and
the phenomenon can be explained on other
principles — because the lower air in a clear
and calm evening is colder than the uj)per,
it is less liable to agitation than the upper,
and it contains more moisture than the
upper ; and hence, on all these considera-
tions, it will sooner deposit a part of its
moisture. At the same time, it is true
that vapour does rise from the earth, and
it may be condensed as dew ; for we find
the grass first becoming moist with dew,
then the substances raised above it, while
both indicate an equal degree of cold; but
all the quantity of dew from this cause
can never be great, because, until the air
be cooled by the substances, attractive of
dew, with which it comes in contact below
its poiutof repletion with moisture, it will
alfl\ays be in a condition to take up that
which has been deposited upon grass* or
other low bodies by warm vapour emitted
by the earth, just as the moisture formed
on a mirror by our breath is, in temperate
weather, almost immediately carried away
by the surrounding air. Agreeably to
another opinion, the dew found on grow-
ing vegetables is the condensed vapour of
the very plants on whicii it api)ears ; but
this also is erroneous, because dew forms
as copiously upon dead as upon living
vegetable substances ; and " if a plant," as
Dr Wells observes, " has become, by
radiating its heat to the heavens, so cold
as to be enabled to bring the air in contact
with it below the point of repletion with
moisture, that which forms upon it from
its own transpiration will not then indeed
evaporate. But although moisture will at
the same time be communicated to it bj
the atmosphere, and when the difference
in the copiousness of these two sources is
considered, it may, I think, be safely con-
cluded, that almost the whole of the dew
which will afterwards form upon the plant
must be derived from the air ; more
especially when the coldness of a clear
night, and the general inactivity of plants
in the absence of light, both lessening their
transpiration, are taken into account."
" Hoar-frost is just frozen dew ; but as it
only appears when the surface of the earth
is sealed with frost, the vapour of whicli it
is formed cannot, of course, at the time
perspire from the earth."*
1 78. Hygrometers. — Instruments in-
tended to show the quantity and condition
of the vapours contained in the atmo-
sphere are called A_j/yrom«<er» ; when they
merely indicate the presence of aqueous
vapour, without measuring its amount,
they are called hygroscopes.
179. The measurement of the humidity
of the atmosphere is a subject of greater
importance to science than to practice ; for
however excellent the instrument may be
for determining the degree of humidity,
the atmosphere has assumed the humid
state before an indication of its change is
intimated by the instrument : and in this
respect it is no better than the thermo-
meter, which only tells the existing heat;
and both are less useful on a farm than
the barometer, which certainly indicates
approaching changes.
180. Professor Leslie was the first to
construct a useful instrument of this kind.
It is of the form of the differential ther-
mometer, having a little sulphuric acid in
it ; and the cold is produced by evapora-
tion of water from one of the bulbs covered
with black silk, which is kept wetted, and
the degree of evaporation of the moisture
from that bulbiudicatesthedi^nessof the air.
181. Another instrument is the dew-
point hygrometer of Professor Daniells,
which is considered rather difficult of
management, except in expert hands.
182. The hygrometer of Dr Mason is
Wells On DeK, p. 1-116, second edition, 1815.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICAM.E TO AGRICULTURE.
43
an excellent one. It consists of two ther-
mometers fastened upright to a stand, hav-
ing a fountain of water in a glass tube
placed betwixt them, and out of which the
water is taken up to one of the bulbs by
means of black floss silk. When the air
is very dry, the difference between the two
thermometers will be great ; if moist, less
in proportion ; and when fully saturated,
both will be alike. The silk that covers
the wet bulb, and thread which conveys
the water to it, require renewal about
every month ; and the fountain is filled
when requisite with distilled water, or
water that has been boiled and allowed to
cool, by immersing it in a basin of the
water till the aperture only is just upon the
surface, and tiie water will flow into it.
For ordinary purposes of observation, it is
only necessary to place the instrument in
a retired part of the room, away from the
fire, and not exposed to weather, open
doors, or passages; but for nice experi-
ments, the observations should always be
made in the open air and in the shade,
taking especial care that the instrument
be not influenced by the radiation of any
heated bodies, or any currents of air.
When the hygrometer is placed out of
doors in frosty weather, the fountain had
better be removed, as the freezing of the
water within may cause it to break ; in
this case, a thin coating of ice may soon
be formed on the wet bulb, which will
last a considerable time wet, and be re-
wetted when required.
1 83. This instrument seems very similar
to August's />s^c^rome/er, as described by
Peschel. He says that " it consists of two
very delicate mercurial thermometers,
which exactly correspond, divided into
fifths and even tenths of degrees, the scales
ranging from — 13° to 104° Fahrenheit;
they are both fixed in a frame in a similar
position, about three inches apart. One
ball is surrounded with muslin, which is
continually moistened by means of a thread
of cotton attached to it, the other end hang-
ing in a cup filled with distilled water;
the other bulb is kept dry." The indica-
tions of this instrument are exactly similar
to those of Mason's hygrometer.*
184. Simple hygrometers may be made
of various substances — mostly of ani-
mal or vegetable origin — such as hair,
fish-bone, ivory, animal membranes and
intestines, the beard of wild oats, wood, &c.
— to show whether the air is more or
less humid at any given time. The awn
of the Tartarian or wild oat, when fixed in a
perpendicular position to a card, indicates,
by its spiked inclined beard, the degree of
humidity. A light hog's bristle split in
the middle, and riding by the split upon
the stem of the awn, forms a better index
than the spike of the awn itself. To ad-
just this instrument, you have only to wet
the awn and observe how far it carries
round the index, and mark that as the
lowest point of humidity; and then subject
the awn to the heat of the fire for the
highest point of dryness, which, when
marked, will give betwixt the two points
an arc of a circle, which may be divided
into its degrees. I have used such an in-
strument for some time. When two or
more are compared together, the mean
humidity may be obtained. The awns can
be renewed at pleasure. With regard to
confiding in the truth of this simple hygro-
meter, the precaution of Dr Wells is worth
attention. " Hygrometers formed of ani-
mal and vegetable substances," he remarks,
" when exposed to a clear sky at night,
will become colder than the atmosphere;
and hence, by attracting dew, or, accord-
ing to an observation of Saussure, by merely
cooling the air contiguous to them, mark a
degree of moisture beyond what the atmo-
sphere actually contains. This serves to
explain an observation made by M. de Luc,
that in serene and calm weather, the humi-
dity of the air, as determined by a hygro-
meter, increases about and after sunset
with a greater rapidity than can be attri-
buted to a diminution of the general heat
of the atmosphere." t
185. Boiling. — It is the influence of
external pressure that keeps the particles
of water from being evaporated rapidly
into the atmospliere. Even at 32°, the
freezing point, if placed in a vacuum, water
will assume the form of vapour, unless con-
strained by a pressure of H ounce on each
square inch of surface, and at higher tem-
peratures the restraining force must be
greater: at 100° it must be 13 ounces; at
Peschel's Elements of Physics, vol. ii. p. 232 — Heat.
t Wells On Dew, p. 64.
44
INITIATION.
150° 4 lbs.; at 212' 15 lbs.; at 250° 30
lbs. ■\Vlicnevcr the restraining force is
much weaker than the expansive tendency,
the formation of steam takes place so
rapidly as to jiroduce the bubbling and
agitation called boilhiij. An atmosphere
less heavy than our present one would
have allowed water to burst into vapour
at a lower temperature than 212% and one
more heavy would have had a contrary
effect. Thus, the ebullition of water takes
place at a lower temperature the higher
we ascend mountains, and at a higher tem-
perature the deeper we descend into mines.
The boiling ])oint may thus be made the
measure of altitude of any place above the
sea, or of one place above another. Dr
Lardner has given a table of the medium
temperature at which water boils at dif-
ferent places at various heights above the
sea.* It appears that, at such an eleva-
tion as to cause the barometer to indicate
15 inches of atmospheric pressure, or at
half the ordinary pressure of the atmo-
sphere, water will boil at 180°. As a gene-
ral rule, every tenth of an inch which
the barometric colunm varies between the
limits of 2G and 31 inches, the boiling tem-
perature changes by oue-sixth, of a de-
gree.
186. Fuel. — A few remarks on feul
from Dr Arnott's valuable writings may
not be out of j)lace here, when we arc con-
sidering the physical properties of various
substances. The comparative value as
fuel of different kinds of carbonaceous
substances has been found by experiment
to be thus : —
1 lb. of charcoal of wood melts 95 lb. of ice.
— good coal 90 —
— coke 84 —
— wood 32 —
— peat 19 —
We thus see how valuable good coal, and
how very inferior peat is, as a generator of
heat — the latter not being much above half
the value of wood. Good coal is thus the
cheapest kind of fuel where it is abundant.
187. "A pound of coke," says Dr
Arnott, " produces nearly as much heat
as a pound of coal ; but we must remem-
ber that a pound of coal gives only three
quarters of a pound of coke, although the
latter is more bulky than the former. It
is wa-steful to wet fuel, because the mois-
ture, in being evaporated, carries off with
it as latent, and therefore useless heat, a
considerable ])roportion of what the com-
bustion produces. It is a very common
prejudice, that the wetting of coal, by
making it last longer, is effecting a great
saving ; but while, in truth, it restrains
the combustion, and, for a time, makes a
bad fire, it also wastes the heat. Coal
containing much hydrogen, as all flaming
coal does, is used wastefuUy when any of
the hydrogen escapes without burning ;
for, first, the great heat wdiich the com-
bustion of such hydrogen would produce
is not obtained ; and, secondly, the hydro-
gen, while becoming gas, absorbs still
more heat into the latent state than au
equal weight of water would. Now, the
smoke of a fire is the hydrogen of the coal
rising in combination with a portion of
carbon. We see, therefore, that by de-
stroying or burning smoke, we not only
prevent a nuisance, but effect a great
saving. The reason that common fires
give out so much smoke is, either that the
smoke, or what we shall call the vajiorised
pitch, is not sufficiently heated to burn, or
that the air mixed with it, as it ascends
in the chinmey, has already, while passing
through the fire, been deitrived of its free
oxygen. If the pitch be very much
heated, its ingredients assume a new ar-
rangement, becoming transparent, and
constituting the common coal-gas of our
lamps; but at lower temperature, the
l)itcli is seen jetting as a dense smoke from
cracks or openings in the coal — a smoke,
however, which immediately becomes a
brilliant flame if lighted by a piece of
burning ]iaper, or the ajtproximation of
the combustion. The alternate bursting
out and extinction of these burning jets of
pitchy vapour, contribute to render a com-
mon fire an object so lively and of such
agreeable contemplation in the winter
evenings. When coal is first thrown upon
a fire, a great quantity of vaporised ])itch
escapes as a dense cold smoke, too cold to
burn, «iul for a time the flame is smothered,
or there is none ; but as the fresh coal is
heated, its vapour reproduces the flame as
before. In close fire-places — viz. those of
Lardner On Ileat, p. 413.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
45
great boilers, as of steam-engines, &c., all
the air vvhicli enters after the furnace-door
is shut, must pass through the grate and
the burning fuel lying on it, and there its
oxygen is consumed by the red-hot coal
before it ascends to where the smoke is.
The smoke, therefore, however hot, passes
away unburnt, unless sometimes, as in iron
fouudery furnaces, where the heat is very
great indeed; and it burns as a flame of a
great lamp at the chimney-top, on reach-
ing the oxygen of the open atmosphere.
A smoke-consuming fire
would be constructed on a perfect prin-
ciple, in which the fuel was made to burn
only at the upper surface of its mass, and
so that the pitch and gas disengaged from
it, as the heat spread downward, might
Lave to pass through the burning coals
where fresh air was mixing with them ;
thus the gas and smoke, being the most
inflammable parts, would burn first and
be all consumed Coal in a
deep narrow trough, if lighted at its sur-
face, burns with a lofty flame as if it were
the wick of a large lamj:) ; for all the gas
given out from the coal below, as that is
gradually heated, passes through the burn-
ing fuel and becomes a flame. Now, if
we suppose many such troughs placed
together, with intervals between them, in
place of the fire-bars of a comnum grate
or furnace, there would be a perfect no-
smoking fire-place The
reason of the vast saving of fuel by such
a grate is, that the smoke, instead of steal-
ing away latent heat — being yet itself the
most combustible and precious part of the
fuel, gives all its powers and worth to the
purpose of the combustion." *
188. Light. — The science which treats
of the properties and phenomena of light
and vision is termed Optics.
189. The properties of light are, that " it
is an emanation from the sun and other
luminous bodies, becoming less intense as
it spreads, and which, by falling on other
bodies, and being reflected from them to
the eye, renders them visible. It moves
with great velocity, and in straight lines,
where there is no obstacle,' leaving shadows
where it cannot fall. It passes readily
through some bodies, which are therefore
called transparent, but when it enters or
leaves the surface obliquely, it suffers at
times a degree of bending or refraction
proportioned to the obliquity. And a
beam of white light thus refracted or
bent, under certain circumstances, is re-
solved into beams of all the elementary
colours, which, however, in being again
blended, become the white light as be-
fore."
190. "There have been two opinions
respecting the nature of light : one, that
it consists of extremely minute jiarticles,
darting all around from the luminous
body ; the other, that the phenomenon is
altogether dependent on an undulation
among the particles of a very subtile
elastic fluid diffused through sjjace — as
sound is dependent on an undulation
among air-particles. Now, if light be
particles darting around, their minuteness
must be wonderful, as a taper can fill with
them for hours a space of four miles in
diameter; and with the extreme velocity
of light, if its particles possessed at all the
property of matter called inertia, their
momentum should be very remarkable; it
being found, however, that even a large
sunbeam collected by a burning-glass, and
thrown upon the scale of a most delicate
balance, has not the slightest effect upon
the equilibrium. Such and many other
facts lead to the opinion, that there is an
undulation of an elastic fluid concerned
in producing the phenomena of light."
191. There is no immediate relation
between agriculture and the general
propositions of optics; still the influ-
ence of light has so very powerful an
effect upon vegetation, that to a mind de-
sirous of tracing the causes and connexion
of natural phenomena, the origin of colours
must prove interesting. For an explana-
tion of this remarkable phenomenon, I
may quote the words of Dr Arnott :— " The
most extraordinary fact connected with
the bending of light is, that a pure ray of
white light from the sun admitted into a
darkened room by a hole in a window-
shutter, and made to bend by passing
through transparent surfaces which it
meets obliquely, instead of bending alto-
gether, and appearing still as the same
* Arnott's Elements of Physics, vol.ii. part 1,'p. 149-153 — Heat.
46
IXITIATIOX.
white ray, is divided into several raye,
which, falling on the white wall, are seen
to be of different most vivid colours. The
ori<:inal white ray is said thus to be ana-
IvsetL, or divided into elements. The
solar s|)ectrum, as it is called, formed upon
the wall, consists, when the light is ad-
mitted bv a narrow horizontal slit, of four
coloured jtatches corresponding to the slit,
and ap|K?aring in the order, from the bot-
tom, of red, green, blue, and violet. If
the slit be then made a little wider, the
patches at their edges overlap each other,
and, its a painter would say, produce by
the mixture of their elementary colours
various new tints. Then the 6|tectrum
consists of the seven colours commonly
enumerated and seen in the rainbow, viz.
red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo,
and violet. Had red, yellow, blue, and
violet been the four colours obtained in
the first experiinent, the occurrence of the
others, viz. — of the orange, from the mix-
ing of the edges of the red and yellow ; of
the green, from the mixture of the yellow
and blue ; and of the indigo, from the
mixture of the blue and violet — would have
been anticipated. But the true facts of
the ca^e not being such, proves that they
are not yet well understood.
192. "When Xewton first made known
the phenomenon of the many-coloured
spectrum, and the extraordinary conclu-
sion to which it led, he excited universal
astonishment ; for the common idea of
purity- the most unmixed was that of
white light. In farther corroboration of
the notion of the compound nature of light,
he maintained that if the colours which
appear on the spectrum be painted sepa-
rately round the rim of a wheel, and the
wheel be then turned rapidly, the indivi-
dual Colours cease to be distinguished, and
a white beam only appears where they are
whirling; also, that if the rays of the
spectrum produced by a prism bo again
gathered together by a lens, they repro-
duce white light. The red is the kind of
light which is least bent in refraction, and
the violet that which is most bent. It
was at one time said, as an explanation,
that the dilTerently coloured particles in
light had difTereut degrees of gravity or
inertia, and were therefore not all equally
bent. It is farther remarkable, with re-
spect to the solar spectrum, that much of
the heat in the ray is still less refracted
than even the red light ; for a thermometer
held below the red light rises higher than
in any part of the visible spectrum ; and
that there is an influence more refrangible
than even the violet nys, producing
powerful chemical and magnetical efTecta.
The (lifTerent spf)ts of colour are not all of
the same size, and there is a difference
in this respect according to the refracting
substance."*
103. The recent experiments on the in-
fluence of light in its various colours on
vegetation, by Mr Hunt of the Museum of
Economic Geology in London, have much
increased the sphere of our knowledge ;
and as the results obtained by Mr Hunt
are highly probable, I shall jiresent thera
in the popular form they apj^eared in the
Gardeners' Chronicle. "Yellow light
(lum'inositi/) impedes germination, and
accelerates that decomposition of carbonic
acid which produces wood and woody
tissues. Under its influence leaves are
small and wood short-jointe<l. Red light
(heat) carries heat and is favourable to
germinati<.n, if abundance of water is pre-
sent, increases evaporation, (or persj)ira-
tion.) su])ports the flowering quality and
improves fruit. Under its influence colour
is diminished and leaves are scorched.
Blue light (chemical action or actinism)
accelerates germination and causes rapid
growth. Under its influence plants be-
come weak and long-jointed."
194. In a lecture delivered by Mr Hunt
to the Society of Arts, on the 16th Feb-
ruary 1848, he stated that "experiments
had proved that although light was inju-
rious to the germinating seed, and actin-
ism a most powerful accelerating agent in
that process, when the first leaves were
developed, the actinic principle as sepa-
rated from light became too stimulating,
and that the luminous principle was then
demanded to effect in the plant the de-
composition of the carbonic acid inhaled
by the leaves and absorbed by the bark,
and the secretion of carbon to form woody
structure. The influence of heat and ita
necessity to vegetable life were well
• Amott's EUnenU o/Pktfsiei, p. 162 and 190.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTLTIE.
47
known ; but it had also been proved that
as the calorific rays increased towards the
autumnal season, the luminous and actinic
relatively diminished. The scorching
effects to be prevented were of course the
result of some of the heat rays ; and he
had discovered to which class they be-
longed by spreading the expressed juice of
Pahn leaves over paper, and exposing it
to the action of the spectrum. This class
of ray had the power of acting partly by
calorific force and partly by chemical
agency — a phenomenon which had been
previously detected by Sir John Herschell,
and classed by him with others, to which
he gave the name of Paratherniic rays.
It was important in adopting any tinted
medium that no light should be intersected,
no actinism extracted, and that the ordi-
nary heat rays should not be interfered
with. The experiments of Melloni had
shown that a peculiar green glass, made
in Italy, when washed with a solution of
alum, would admit the free passage of
light, but abstract a very large quantity
of heat. The desideratum, therefore, to
be obtained was a green glass which should
of itself intercept the scorching rays with-
out obstructing the others. Mr Hunt,
with the assistance of Mr Turner, the con-
tractor, procured from all parts of the
kingdom green glasses of every variety of
shade; but which, on examination, were
all found to be objectionable. Mr Hunt
then experimented with fluid media,
diluting the colours to any degree, and
examining the absorbing power of a great
variety of chemical bodies. By this means
he arrived at last at the discovery of a
colour produced by oxide of copper in a
very diluted state, which would effectually
obstruct the scorching rays ; and Messrs
Chance, after many trials, succeeded in
producing a glass which neither obstructed
any light nor interfered with the colour of
the most delicate white flowers, nor ex-
cluded the passage of the chemical rays,
■while it would completely prevent the
permeation of the heat rays, which were
found to have so remarkable a scorching
property. In the manufacture of this
glass the entire absence of manganese,
though used in the ordinary construction
of glass, had been insisted on ; because that
mineral, when used in the slightest excess,
had the curious property, when under the
influence of light, of imparting a pink
tinge ; and the slightest approach to red-
ness would allow the free passage of
those rays it was so important to obstruct.
195. " From the facility with which we
were enabled," continued ^Ir Hunt, " to re-
gulate by the use of coloured media the
quantity of either light, heat, or actinism,
which may be admitted to growing plants,
we had at command the means of supplying
the increased action of any of these forces.
Germination might be quickened by the
action of the actinic power, independently
of light, and the full action of chemical
rays was secured by the use of glasses
stained blue by cobalt. In all cases the
germination of seeds may be quickened
by covering them with such blue glass as
was used in making many fin<;er-glasses;
and since the striking of cuttings was de-
pendent upon the exercising of an ana-
logous force to that which quickened ger-
mination, similar glass shades would be
found advantageous to eflect this object.
It must, however, be remembered that the
excitement of that chemical agent must
be withdrawn after germination had been
eftected, and the roots were formed, and
an independent existence was given to the
plant. When there was any tendency in
23lants to form too much stalk or leaves,
and it was desired to produce more wood,
it was done by admitting as much light as
possible with the smallest possible quan-
tity of actinic power. That might be
efiected by interposing glasses of a yellow
tint, which obstructed the passage of the
chemical rays, but would intercept very
little light. It frequently occurred that-,
owing to some peculiar atmospheric con-
dition, the flowers of plants did not de-
velop themselves in a natural or healthy
manner; the vegetative functions being
too active, and interfering with the repro-
ductive powers of the plant, often giving
rise to leaves in the centre of the flower.
All his experiments proved that the calo-
rific radiations were the most active dur-
ing the period in which the plant produced
flowers, fruits, or seeds. The absence of
the luminous rays in considerable quan-
tities, and a diminished quantity of the
chemical or actinic radiation, might be
secured at will, without interfering with
the heat-giving principle, by the use of
glasses coloured red by the oxide of gold.
Mr Hunt suggested, therefore, to horti-
48
INITIATION.
culturists the occasional use of glasses
coloured so as to secure the perfect for-
mation of the flower."
1 f»G. " Experiments, however, are much
wanted on this subject," as Dr Liudley
properly observes ; "for it is obvious, un<l
.bv uo means inipnibable, that unexpected
difficulties may occur in applying the facts
above mentioned to practice ; and that
although the luminous, heating, and che-
mical rays may be si'jiaruted, there may be
no means of blendini/ them in such pro-
jiortious as will render the artificial light
thus created adapted to the purposes of
vegetation. It is indeed improbable, to
say the least of it, that any artificial light
should be so well suited to plants as that
which has been jirovided fur them by the
great Author of the universe." *
1 97. Chemistry. — Chemistry isabranch
of natural science useful to agriculture.
Chemical action effects great and impor-
tant changes in the structure of natural
objects without the aid of motion, so that
its operations are not cognisable by the
senses ; whereas the laws of natural ])hilo-
sophy operate in all cases by moans of
motion, and therefore present themselves
directly to the notice of our senses. So
universal is the extent of chemical ac-
tion that, whenever dilierent substances
having affinity for eacli other are placed
in contact, a sensible change takes place
in the touching .surfaces; and the eflegt
of the change will continue unaltered as
long as the separated surfaces remain
in a siniilar condition ; but the interfe-
rence of certain agencies — such as heat,
cold, moisture, drought,clectricity,vitality,
motion — will cause additional chemical
changes to be eH'ected in those surfaces as
long as they arc in contact. Thus the
motion occasionetl by the action of the
agricultural implements amongst the par-
ticles of so complicateil a material a.s the
arable soil, causes a chemical change to take
place in the varied substances composing
the soil. A fall of rain causes another sort
of change auiongst the components of the
same soil. Tiie abstraction of substances
in a state ai solution by living plants
from the soil and air, produces in the soil
and air, as well as in the vegetable eco-
nomy, great chemical changes. The
removal of vegetable substances from the
soil by animals, and the return of the
same in their dung, also produce great
changes in the soil and air, as well as in
the animal economy. That electricity, or
magnetism, or the voltaic action, has an
intimate connexion with chemical changes
there can bo no doubt, since it has been
well ascertained that no chemical action
takes place without the evolution of elec-
tricity. Since one or more of these agen-
cies are constantly in action, we nmst
believe that chemical changes are as con-
tinually occurring in the earth, the air, or
in the animal and vegetable kingdoms ;
and the importance of those changes is
implied in the certainty of their results —
changes in the same substances producing
similar results under siiujlar conditions.
198. Organic matter. — It is impossible
to notice every minute change conti-
nually occurring in the chemical state of
the numerous substances presented in na-
ture ; yet, in investigating the constituents
of material objects, chemistry has dis-
covered that plants consist of elements
which may be classified under two heads :
one in which the structure may be almost
entirely dissipated by the action of heat
in simple combustion; and another in
which the parts resist combustion, and
lii'oduce solid matter having very different
properties. Tlio class of substances en-
tirely dissipated by combustion are called
organic, because they "generally exhi-
bit," observes Professor .Johnston, "a kind
of sti'ucturc readily visible to the e^'e — as
in the pores of wood and in the fibres of
hemp, or of the lean of beef — and are
thus readily distinguished from inorganic
matters in which no such structure is ob-
servable ; but, in many substances of
organic origin also, no structure can be ob-
served. Thus sugar, starch, and gum, are
found in plants in great abundance, and
yet do not present any pores or fibres;
they have never been endowed with organs,
yet, being produced by the agcnci/ of living
organs, they arc included under the general
name of organic matter. So, when animals
and plants die, their bodies undergo decay;
but the substances of which they are com-
posed, or which are formed during their
Gardeners' Chronicle, for the 26th February and 4th March, 1848.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTUEE.
49
decay, are considered as of organic origin,
not only as long as any traces of structure
are observable, but even after all such
traces have disappeared. Thus, coal is a
substance of organic origin, though almost
all traces of the vegetable matter from
which it has been derived have been long
ago obliterated. Again, heat chars and
destroys wood, starch, and gum, forming
black substances totally unlike the original
matter acted upon. By distillation, wood
yields tar and vinegar; and by fermenta-
tion, sugar is converted first into alcohol,
and theu into vinegar. All substances de-
rived from vegetable or animal products,
by these and similar processes, are included
under the general designation of organic
bodies."
199. The second class of substances are
called inorganic, because they neither are,
nor have been, the seat of life. " The
solid rocks, the incombustible part of soils,
the atmosphere, the waters of the seas and
oceans, every thing which neither is nor
has been the seat of life, may generally
be included under the head of inorganic
matter." *
200. Inorganic matter. — The existence
of inorganic matter iu plants has long been
known to chemists, even prior to 1698 ;
for in that year a list of the mineral in-
gredients of plants, by Redi, was published
in the Philosophical Transactions. ■ From
that period until the publication of the
researches of the younger Saussure, in 1804,
the subject does not seem to have attracted
the particular attention of chemists as one
of paramount importance; and it was
reserved for Professor Liebig of Giessen,
so lately as 1840, to make the general
impression that it is to their mineral in-
gredients alone that plants owe their
peculiarities. The nutrition of plants was,
before his time, a subject of much diffi-
culty and doubt; but, by the adoption
of his idea, — that plants find new nutritive
materials only in inorganic substances — a
clear view has been obtained of the great
end of vegetable life being to generate
matter adapted for the nutrition of animals,
which are not otherwise fitted for the pur-
pose ; and the purport of his researches
has been to elucidate the chemical pro-
cesses engaged in the nutrition of vege-
tables.
20 1 . During those researches Liebig has
solved some chemical problems, which can-
not fail to place the culture of plants and
the fattening of animals on a more rational
system of practice than has hitherto been
pursued. Some of the most important of
his demonstrations are these: — If cer-
tain " acids constantly exist in vege-
tables, and are necessary to their life,
which is incontestable, it is equally
certain that some alkaline base is also
indispensable, in order to enter into com-
bination with the acids ; for these are al-
ways found in the state of neutral or acid
salts. All plants yield by incineration ashes
containing carbonic acid ; all, therefore,
must contain salts of an organic acid.
Now, as we knov? the capacity of satu-
ration of organic acids to be unchanging,
it follows that the quantity of the bases
united with them cannot vary; and, for
this reason, the latter substances ought to
be considered with the strictest attention,
both by the agriculturist and physiologist.
We have no reason to believe that a plant
in a condition of free and unimpeded
growth produces more of its peculiar
acids than it requires for its own existence;
hence a plant, in whatever soil it grows,
must contain an invariable quantity of
alkaline bases. Culture alone will be able
to cause a deviation. In order to under-
stand the subject clearly, it will be neces-
sary to bear in mind that any one of
many of the alkaline bases may be substi-
tuted for another, the action of all being
the same. Our conclusion is, therefore,
by no means endangered by the existence
in one plant of a particular alkali, which
may be absent in others of the same spe-
cies. If this inference be correct, the
absent alkali or earth must be supplied by
one similar in its mode of action, or, in
other words, by an equivalent of another
base. The number of equivalents of these
various bases, which may be combined with
a certain portion of acid, must consequently
be the same, and therefore the amount of
oxygen contained in them must remain
unchanged under all circumstances, and
in whatever soil they grow." — " It has
been distinctly shown by the analyses of
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, second edition, p. 22.
VOL. I.
60
INITIATION.
Do Saussure and Berthier, that the nature
of a soil exercises a decided influence on the
quality of the different metallic oxides
contained in the plants which grow on it.
Hence it has been concluded (erroneously,!
believe) tiiat the [iresence of bases exercises
no particular influence upon the growth of
plants : but even were this view correct, it
must be considered as a most remarkable
accident that these same analyses furnish
.proof for the very opposite opinion. For
although the composition of the ashes of
the pine-trees at Mont Breven and from
Mont La Salle was so very different, they
contained, according to the analyses of De
Saussure, an equal number of equivalents
of metallic oxides, or what is the same
thing, the quantity of oxygen contained in
all the bases was in both cases the same."
202. " It is not known in what form
manganese and oxide of iron are contained
in plants; but we are certain that potash,
soda, and magnesia can be extracted by
means of w^ater from all parts of their
structure, in the form of salts of organic
acids. The same is the case with lime,
when not present as insoluble oxalate of
linie. The potash in grapes is always
found as an acid salt, viz., cream of tartar,
(bitartarate of potash,) and never in the
form of a neuti-al compound. As these
acids and bases are never absent from
plants, and as even the form in which they
present themselves is not subject to change,
it may be affirmed that they exercise an
important influence on the development of
the fruits and seeds, and also in many
other functions, of the nature of which we
are at present ignorant." — "The existence
of vegetable alkalies, in combination with
organic acids, gives great weight to the
opinion that alkaline bases in general are
connected with the development of plants."
— " If it be found, as apj)ears to be the
caKC in the juice of j)oj)pies, that an
organic acid may be replaced by an inor-
ganic, without impelling the growth of a
plant, we must admit the j)robability of
this substitution taking place in a much
higher degree in the case of the inorganic
bases. When roots find their more appro-
priate base in sufficient quantity, they will
take up less of another. These pheno-
mena do not show themselves so fre-
quently in cultivated plants, because they
are subjected to special external con-
ditions, for the purpose of the produc-
tion of particular constituents or of parti-
cular organs." — " Plants have the power of
returning to the soil all substances unneces-
sary to their existence ; and the conclu-
sion to which all the foregoing facts lead
us, when their real value and bearing are
apprehended, is, that the alkaline baees,
assisting in the action of plants, must be
necessary to their growth, since, if this
were not the case, they would not be re-
tained. The perfect devclopnient of a
plant, according to this view, is dependent
on the presence of alkalies or alkaline
matter ; for when these substances are
totally wanting its growth will be arrested,
and when they are only deficient it must
be impeded. In order to aj)ply these
remarks, let us compare two kinds of
trees, the wood of which contains unequal
quantities of alkaline bases, and we shall
find that one of these may grow luxuri-
antly in several soils upon which the other
is scarcely able to vegetate. For example,
10,000 parts of oak-wood yield 2.'J0 parts
of ashes, the same quantity of fir-wood
only 83, of linden-wood 500, of rye 440,
and of the herb of the tobacco plant 1 500
parts. Firs and pines find a sufficient
quantity of alkalies in granitic and barren
sandy soils, in which oaks will not grow,
and which thrive in soils favourable for
the linden tree, because the bases necessary
to bring it to complete maturity exist there
in sufficient quantity. The accuracy of
these conclusions, so highly important
to agriculture and to the cultivation of
forests, can be proved by the most evident
facts." — ''The ashes of the tobacco plant,
of the vine, of pease, and of clover, contain
a large (jiiantity of lime. Such plants do
not flourish in soild devoid of lime. By
the addition of the salts of lime to such
soils, they become fitted for the growth of
these plants; for we have e\cry reason to
believe that their development essentially
depends upon the presence of lime. Tho
j)resence of magnesia is equally essential,
there being many ]ihnits, such as the difi'e-
rent varieties of beet and potatoes, from
which it is never absent. The supposition
that alkalies, metallic oxides, or inttr*
ganic matter in general, may he produced
by plants, is entirely refuted by these
well-authenticated facts." The general
conclusion of the value of these proposi-
tions, as regards the culture of plants
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
51
and trees, is expressed in these terms : —
"From these considerations we must per-
ceive that exact and trustworthy exami-
nations of the ashes of plants of the same
kind, growing upon different soils, would be
of the greatest importance to vegetable
physiology, and would decide whether the
facts above mentioned are the results of an
unchanging law for each family of plants,
and Avhether an invariable number can be
found to express the quantity of oxygen
which each species of plants contains in
the bases united with organic acids. In
all probability such inquiries will lead to
most important results ; for it is clear that
if the production of a certain unchanging
quantity of an organic acid is required by
the 2'cculiar nature of the organs of a
j)lant, and is necessary to its existence,
then potash or lime must be taken up by
it in order to form salts with this acid ; and
if these do not exist in sufficient quantity
in the soil, other alkaline bases, of equal
value, must supply their place ; and that
the progress of a plant must be wholly
arrested when none are present."*
203. The mineral ingredients of a plant
bear but a small proportion to its entire
weight. The extreme quantities,of these in-
gredients in cultivated plants may perhaps
be stated at from sho to i of the weight,
and the average may perhaps be stated near
the truth at sV or 5 per cent of the weight.
Saussure, who devoted so much of his at-
tention to the analysis of the mineral ingre-
dients of plants, would seem to fear that
the smallness of their proportions might
render them unimportant in the estima-
tion of agriculturists and others. " Many
authors," he says, as quoted by Liebig,
" consider that the mineral ingredients of
plants are merely accidentally present, and
are not at all necessary to their existence,
because the quantity of such substances
is exceedingly small. This opinion may be
true as far as regards those matters which
are not always found in plants of the same
kind ; but there is certainly no evidence
of its truth with those invariably present.
Their small quantity does not indicate
their inutility. The phosi)hate of lime
existing in the animal body does not
amount to a fifth part of its weight, yet it
cannot be affirmed that this salt is unne-
cessary to the formation of its bones. I
have detected the same compound in the
ashes of all plants submitted to examina-
tion, and we have no right to suppose that
they could exist without it." To show the
important effects of the most minute pro-
portion of ingredients, Liebig has given a
lev.' interesting illustrations. " In a com-
prehensive view of the phenomena of
nature," he remarks, " we have no scale
for that which we are accustomed to name,
small or great— all our ideas are propor-
tioned to what we see around us ; but liow
insignificant are they in comparison with
the whole mass of the globe ! that which
is scarcely observable in a confined district,
appears inconceivably large when regarded
in its extension through unlimited space.
The atmosphere contains only a thousandth
part of its weight of carbonic acid ; and yet,
small as this projiortion appears, it is quite
sufficient to supply the whole of tiie pre-
sent generation of living beings with car-
bon for a thousand years, even if it were
not renewed. Sea- water contains i sioo of
its weight of carbonate of lime ; and this
quantity, although scarcely appreciable in
a pound, is the source from which nij'riads
of marine mollusca and corals are supplied
with materials for their habitations." —
" The air hanging over the sea always
contains enough of common salt to render
turbid a solution of nitrate of silver, and
every breeze must cany this away. Now,
as thousands of tons of sea-water annually
evaporate into the atUK sphere, a corre-
sponding quantity of the salts dissolved iu
it, — viz., of common salt, chloride of po-
tassium, magnesia, and the remaining con-
stituents of sea-water — will be conveyed by
wind to the land." — " The roots of plants
are constantly engaged in collecting from
the rain those alkalies which formed part
of the sea- water, and also those of the
water of the springs penetrating the soil.
Witliout alkalies and alkaline bases most
plants could not exist, and without plants
the alkalies would dibapj)ear gradually
from the surface of the earth. When it is
considered that sea-water contains less
than one-millionth of its own weight of
iodine, and that all combinations of iodine
with the metallic bases of alkalies are
highly soluble in water, some provision
must necessarily be supposed to exist in
Liebig's Chemistry of Agriculture and Physiology, 3d edition, p. 67-78.
52
INITIATION.
the organisation of sea-weeJ and the diffe-
rent kinds of fuci, by which they are
enabled, during tlieir life, to extract iodine
in the form of a soluble salt from sea-
water, and to assimilate it in such a man-
ner that it is not again restored to the
surrounding mediuni. These plants are
collet-tors of iodine just as land plants are
of alkalies ; and they yield us this ele-
ment in quantities such as we could not
otherwise obtain from the water, without
the evajioration of whole seas. We take
it for granted that the sea plants require
metallic iodines for their growth, and that
their existence is deiJendent on the pre-
sence of these substances. With equal
justice, then, we conclude that the alkalies
and alkaline earths, always found in the
ashes of land plants, are likewise necessary
for their development."*
204. Specijic manures. — On the de-
monstration of such propositions as these,
and many of a similar character. Professor
Liebig arrived at the conclusion that, to
promote the healthy growth of plants, it
was not only necessary to supply them
with such food as would support their
general structure, as indicated by the com-
position of their organic parts, but also
food of such a specific nature as would
support tlieir peculiar properties, as indi-
cated by their inorganic ingredients ; and
as regards the rearing and fattening of
animals, such food should be provided them
as to supply the materials of flesh and
bones to young animals, and of flesh and
fat to those which are to be fattened.
Hence the use of specific manures and of
specific food, for the rearing of plants and
animals to the best advantage to the far-
mer. Could all the operations of agricul-
ture be thus conducted so as to ensure
certain results, experience in the art would
be abandoned, and science alone guide the
M'ay. This is a consummation as yet to
be desiderated, and will be only attainable,
if attainable at all, after the pompositiun
of all the plants in cultivation, of all the
manures in use, and of all the soils bearing
plants and animals, shall be made known by
the researches of chemistry. Until that
knowledge shall have been acquired, che-
mists will have a wide and extensive field to
explore ; and then, after all the labour
has been accomplished, it will remain to
be determined by practice how to use the
vast fund of knowledge to the best advan-
tage.
205. While Liebig, a foreigner, has ob-
tained the credit of being the first to pre-
sent the subjects of specific manures, and the
mineral ingredients of plants, before the
British farmers in a practicable shape, and
which he did so lately as 1840, there
were persons in our own country whose
attentiim had been devoted to those ]>arti-
cular subjects. Mr Grisenthwaite of Not-
tingham, in 1818, published the doctrine
of specific manures, and of the existence of
saline ingredients in plants, at one of the
annual meetings at Holkham under the late
Mr Coke ; and in 1830, in the second edi-
tion of his New Theory/ of Agriculture^
he devotes an entire chapter to the expo-
sition of his views on specific manures.
In describing the particular ingredients
of some ])lants, he says, " Let us recur
once more to the grain of wheat. In
that grain there always exists, as has been
stated, a portion of phosphate of lime.
It is the constancy of its presence that
proves, beyond reasonable doubt, that it
answers some important purpose in the
economy of the seed. It is never found in
the straw of the plant : it does not exist
in barley, or oats, or peas, although grown
upon the same land and under the same
circumstances, but, as has just been ob-
served, alicays in wheat. Now, to regard
this unvarying discrimination as acciden-
tal, or to consider it as useless, is to set at
defiance the soundest principles of re;ison-
ing that philosophy ever bruited. If
phosphate of lime had sometimes only been
found in wheat, or if it had been discovered
in barley or clover, then we might have
concluded that the whole was a<:cidental,
that it in no way whatever assisted the
formation of the perfect grain, nor contri-
buted to promote the general design of it.
They who can oppose these conclusions,
will depart from a method of reasoning
long established in every department of
human knowledge, — a method to which the
Baconian philosophy directs us, and to
M'hich we must have recourse whenever
we are desirous to explain the causes of
physical effects. As little attention," he
Liebig's Chemistry of Agriculture and Physiology, 3d edition, p. 82.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
53
continues, " has hitherto been paid to
these saline bodies, at least as they regard
the subject of vegetation, and much as they
respect the operations of husbandry, I have,
for the sake of distinction, called them
spedjic manures. Hereafter, when a more
complete analysis of vegetables shall be
made, it is probable that a nomenclature,
founded on their specific substances, may
at least classify, if not particularise, every
kind of plant. Already we know that
there are several vegetables which exercise
the power of selection ; and it is reasonable
to infer, that when investigation shall have
more fully laid open the secrets of physio-
logy, that then the uses and design of this
selection will be rendered apparent, and
the propriety of regarding it in practical
husbandry completely established." This
reasoning was sound then, is sound at the
present day, and could not be better
expressed by even Liebig himself.
206. On the beneficial effects of the era-
ploymentof specific manures toagriculture,
Liebig himself does not in any of his
works express himself more clearly and
firmly than did Mr Grisenthwaite in 1830 ;
and it should be borne in mind that it was
he so long ago that applied the term
spec\jic to this class of manures. "The
subject of specific manures," he observes,
"has never been regarded by practical
men, nor ever been considered by writers
on the theory of agriculture, though
some practices have been recommended,
and some opinions formed, even from
the earliest ages, which are only expli-
cable upon the principle here laid down.
And yet, when viewed in its relation to the
whole economy of agriculture, it forms,
perhaps, one of the most important, as it
is certainly one of the most interesting,
objects connected with it. L^pon the clear
understanding of it depends the successful
business of the farmer. It is calculated to
raise the operations of the agriculturist to
a level with those of the manufacturer;
and instead of committing the cultivation
of the soil to accident, as if nothing were
understood respecting it more than the
mechanical preparations of it for the seed,
it will serve to explain upon wdiat causes
growth and production, and, consequently,
theiropposites, abortion and nonproduction,
fundamentally depend ; and of course will
enable him to provide against both.
Agriculture, may be considered a system
of operations designed to convert manure
into certain vegetable matters ; and the
land or soil performs the office of an
instrument in the process; that all the
care employed in its preparation is only
intended to render the conversion more
certain and complete ; that it accomplishes
these desirable ends by facilitating the
action of air, heat, light, &c., upon the sub-
stances committed to it, and by giving to
water a freedom of motion through it.
This view of the business of agriculture
will open to us many objects which have
hitherto escaped observation, and which
have never excited reflection ; perhaps be-
cause the whole operation has been thought
beyond the reach of the human mind.
What is done spontaneously, and without
any co-operation of man, is called natural;
what is done by his exertions is called
artificial — as if the same laws did not
govern the result in both; whereas man,
under any circumstances, can only bring
the laws of nature into action ; he cannot
create new laws, nor modify those which
already exist. But to distinguish between
those which are in action without his care,
and those which he calls into play by his
own labour, has placed a great impediment
in the path of science, and stopped for a
long time the career of discovery. It has
repressed inquiry by pronouncing it to be
vain, and called off" exertion by declaring
it to be unavailing."
207. Upon these general principles our
author endeavours to test the correct-
ness of ordinary practice. " It is only
within the last few years," he continues,
" that the elements of bodies have been
discovered. Before that time, the nature
of compounds was but little understood,
and the transmutation of matter, if not
openly acknowledged, was only tacitly
denied. The sun of chemistry has at
length risen above our horizon, and dis-
persed much of the darkness of ignorance
which covered former ages, and shed an
illummating ray over the various pheno-
mena of nature. Elements, as the very
term implies, are now known to be incap-
able of being changed into each other.
They aduiit, when considered per se, of no
alteration but as regards magnitude and
figure ; and all the variety of matter dis-
coverable in the world is produced by
w
M
INITIATION.
combinations of these elements in different
proportions. From this fact we are led to
deduce the followitig important conclusion,
— that when out of one substance another
is to be formed, as alcohol or acetic acid
by fermentation out of sugar — ot, to confine
our views to agriculture, grain out of
manure, it is obvious that the elements of
the first must be contained in the second ;
as, if they be not, that conversion cannot
possibly take place. This is a truth which
applies with peculiar force to the doctrine
of manures, and renders it imperatively
incumbent upon the agriculturist to inves-
tigate the constituents both of the crops
he grows, and of the manures he employs
to make that growth successful. It is
very reasonably to be feared, that many
failures, quite inexplicable to the farmer,
may be explained upon these principles.
He has very frequently, perliap.s, sown
grain upon land which has not contained
the elements necessary to the production
of the crop, and therefore the crop has
failed ; and he continues to sutler a recur-
rence of the same loss, year after year, be-
cause he is unacquainted with the causes
upon which it depends. If all crops were
composed of the same elements, this reixson-
ing, this discrimination among manures,
could not apply, nor be necessary to be
regarded by the agriculturist ; and it -is
upon such a supposition that the practices
of husbandry have been uniformly con-
ducted, and are at tlie present day con-
ducted with disadvantage."
208. To descend to particulars, our
author shows that of the various kinds of
plants cultivated in the field, each con-
tains its peculiar base. Thus, the grain
of wheat, besides its characteristic gluten,
contains the phos2)hate of lime. " In
barley there is no pliosjihate of lime, but
a small portion of nitrate of soda or
potash. " — " The straw of the bean
ahvays yields, after maceration, a con-
siderable quantity of sub-carbonate of
potash." — " In the pea crop has been dis-
covered a considerable (juuntity of super-
oxalate of lime, a salt also known to ekist
in the root of rhubarb." — "Sainfoin,
clover, and lucerne have long been known
to contain a notable quantity of gypsum
(sulphate of lime.)" — "If we examine
a turnip chemically, we shall always find
iu it a considerable quantity of a hydro-
sulphuret or a hydroguretted sulpbnret^
compounds nut discernible in any of the
crops heretofore considered, and therefore
constituting the specific saline substance
of the turnip. The existence of this sub-
stance is manifested also by the tarnish
which boiled turnips impart to silver,
and by the fetid effluvium attendant oa
a turnip field, where they are undergoing
decomposition." Iu enumerating these
particular substances, Mr Grisenthwaite
indicates the different manures which will
yield them to their respective crops ; and
as some stress may be laid on the minute-
ness of the quantities of these salts to
perform so important purposes in the
economy of plants, he points to the ana-
logy between plants and animals, as
organised bodies governed by a vital
principle, as affording a satisfactory ex-
planation of the results. " Thus, in the
animal system, there are many salts and
minute quantities of matter indispensably
necessary for the production or the healthy
action of various solids and fluids, the
absence of.which occasions disease, and, if
long continued, death also. The bile tnust
have soda, or the secretion of the largest
and one of the most important glands in
the animal system could not produce those
effects required for the conservation of
health. This soda does not amount to the
one - hundred - thousandth part of the
whole animal mass. The blood, according
to those physiologists who explain its
redness by the sub - oxy - phosphate of
iron, must somehow acquire that salt, or
the business of this vital fluid will, pro-
bably, be interrupted. All the cartilages,
fibrine, nails, hair, &c., contain sulphur,
as well as the albumen of the blood ; and
shall we venture to say that all this regu-
lar discrimination, these undeviating laws,
contribute nothing to the vigorous exis-
teuce and healthy action of the several
parts over which they exercise so constant
a control, because the quantities are
minute ? Would not such a suppositicm
ascribe to nature, who is ever frugal of
her means, never in excess, a work of
supererogation ? And if tliese one-hun-
dred-thousandth parts be absolutely re-
quired for animal existence, would it not
be presumptuous and quite unphilosophi-
cal to suppose that their presence iu vege-
tables is accidental and useless? Would
it not oppose the soundest reasoning ? "
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
55
Our author pursues the subject of specific
manures as affording a satisfactory ex-
planation of the rotation of crops ; the
maintenance of the fertility of the soil;
the improved growth of forest-trees ; the
selection of fruit-trees for particular soils;
the admixture of soils ; and, finally, the
extermination of weeds. On all these
subjects the observations of even Liebig
himself seem but amplifications of our
author's sentiments; and, so satisfied is he
of their correctness, that he expresses his
belief, " in another generation all this will
be well understood." — " It is true that
this is not the day when such a system
can be acted upon, " as he regrettingly
remarks ; " but to-morrow may, if suf-
cient encouragement shall be offered to
stimulate inquiry, and practice should
adopt its results." *
209. In a former work I spoke some-
what disparagingly of the power of che-
mistry to benefit agriculture. In the cir-
cumstances in which I wrote, the opinions
I expressed were not altogether irrelevant ;
for no movement had been jmblicly made,
to my knowledge, by a single chemist, from
1809, when Sir Humphry Davy pub-
lished the celebrated lectures he had
delivered before the Board of Agriculture,
to the time my strictures were written
and even printed; and, during this long
blank period of nearly thirty years, no
one seemed to me to be sanguine enough
to expect any beneficial aid to be afforded
to agriculture by chemistry, until Dr
Henry Madden, when a medical student
at the university of Edinburgh, intro-
duced the subject of agricultural chemis-
try to the notice of the landed interest of
the kingdom, in the pages of the Journal
of Agriculture^ for June 1838. Until that
time I had not had the good fortune to
see Mr Grisenthwaite's Neic Theory of
Agriculture^ and not until its author
kindly sent me a copy, after the appearance
of Dr Madden's early papers. Knowing
■what has since been done by chemists in
analysing plants and manures employed
in agriculture, as also the suggestions in
improved practice which they since have
made, and observing the results of the
numerous experiments which have in con-
sequence been conducted by farmers in
all parts of the kingdom, my sentiments
in regard to the assistance chemistry
may afford to agriculture have beeu
considerably modified, and cannot be
better expressed than in the following
M'ords of a report issued by the Chemistry
Association of Scotland^ in 1846. Under
the head of the '•'• Benefits which the Asso-
ciation is capable of rendering," the
report observes — ""Chemical analyses of
soils and plants throw much light upon the
arcana of nature in the departments of her
kingdom to which they respectively be-
long ; they illustrate the relation which
subsists between them, as regards the pro-
cesses of vegetation; and they aflTord essen-
tial aid in ascertaining the kind and quality
of substances that are required by given
soils for the production of specific crops.
The known principles, too, of chemical
action, in resolution and composition,
serve to explain facts which experience
establishes in practical husbandry ; while
they elucidate the causes of the diver-
■ sitied, and more rarely opposite, effects
which sometimes follow similar applica-
tions, and which, without the explanation
that chemistry furnishes, would be likely
to issue in discouragement and perplexity.
The advantages of chemical analyses have
been extensively experienced in the pre-
vention of imposition, and in the right
appreciation to which analytical investi-
gations have led, with respect to diffe-
rent articles offered for ^ale as potent
manures; and they have likewise been
co'nspicuous in showing the absolute and
comparative value of divers descriptions
of food for use in rearing and fattening
cattle. It ought, however, never to be
forgotten, that the researches of the labo-
ratory alone Avill not yield sufficient data
for the formation of a sound theory, either
of agricultural management or of feeding
stock. There must, in addition, be an
accumulation of carefully observed and
accurately recorded facts, derived from
experience, of the actual occurrences which
take place in the conduct of the farm, and
of the feeding house. It is from the com-
bined results of practical observation and
scientific research that just systems of
practice may eventually be deduced; and
the realisation of this desirable consum-
mation will largely depend upon the assis-
* Grisenthwaite's New Theory of Agriculture, 2d edition, 1830, p. 159-210.
56
INITIATION.
tance which able and scientific men shall
receive from intelligent men of practice."*
210. Now, the spirit of these observa-
tions accords verj much with what I have
always held of the ability of chemists to
instruct farmers. I have always main-
taine«l that farmers ought to know some-
thing of ciiemistry, and chemists some-
thing of agriculture. All the knowledge
of chemistry required by farmers is of the
affinity of bodies of different natures for
one another, and a more particular know-
ledge of the properties of those bodies
which are most frequently met with in
the i)lants, animals, and earths, with which
farmers have most to do, and these do not
amoimt to above thirteen in number. The
chemist ought to know all the common
rules which have long been established by
experience, in the culture of the soil and
the treatment of live stock. With a
proper understanding on the common
ground which both chemist and farmer
should occupy, it may reasoual)ly be ex-
pected that a higher tone would be given
to agriculture, and certainly an extended
usefulness to chemistry would be thereby
promoted. Let chemistry not attempt to
take the lead of agriculture, but only re-
recommend suggestions for experiment
which may reasonably be expected to end
in favourable results. Let chemists beware
of drawing conclusions until practice has
first established their soundness ; and let
farmers at all times be ready to undertake
every experiment, how troublesome soevCr
they may be, and there cannot be a doubt
that, in the course of a few years, so large
a stock of valuable facts will have been
obtained, as to enable farmers to pursue a
much more eminently enlightened system
of husbandry than has yet been seen.
211. Besides the information afforded
of the chemical composition of the sub-
jects of nature, with which agriculture
has ])articularly to do, the study of che-
mistry is useful to the farmer in affording
him interesting information on the pro-
perties of all the natural objects around
him, and on those numerous phemmiena
occurring on the surface of the earth, by
which the general system of nature is
daily sustained. In acquiring this know-
ledge, chemistry ascertains the chemical
properties of the air, water, minerals, and
of vegetable and animal bodies.
212. Air. — As regards its chemical
properties — "The air," Mr Hugo Reid
observes, " is of a blue colour, but very
faint, so that the colour is perceptible
only when a very large body of air is
presented to the eye. The air is a com-
pound body, consisting, in 1000 parts by
weight, of 756 parts of nitrogen, a gaa
which cannot support combustion or re-
spiration, 233 parts of oxvgen, a gas
which causes these processes to go on
with too great activity, 10 parts of watery
vapour, and 1 part of carbonic acidgas. The
air is continually undergoing various
changes, which more or less alter its
chemical composition. By the breathing
of aninftils, carbonic acid gas and watery
vapour are added to the atnK)Sphere, and
oxygen removed. Plants, during germi-
nation, remove oxygen and replace it with
carbonic acid ; at times they produce the
same effect by their leaves, while these
same organs at other times remove car-
bonic acid from the air, and replace it
with oxygen ; they also add wateiy
vapour to the atmosphere. Fermentation
adds carbonic acid and watery vapour to
the air, frequently diminishing the pro-
portion of oxygen. Combustion, or burn-
ing, in general, converts the oxygen into
carbonic acid and watery vapour. The
air is essential to the existence of the
animal and vegetable creation in a great
number of ways. The oxygen serves to
remove carbon from the bidy, by con-
verting it into carbonic acid gas in the
lungs, combines with combustible bndies,
thus producing heat and light, and plays
an important part in many other opera-
tions, as fermentation, germination, &c.
The nitrogen dilutes and weakens the
action of the oxygen. The carbonic acid
and watery vapour, though not so directly
essential to animal life as the oxygen and
nitrogen, the removal of either of which,
for a very short time, would be attended
with fatal consequences, have still impc-r-
tant offices allotted to them in the general
economy of nature. The total mass of
air being so immense, and all its diffe-
rent parts being so thoroughly raised by
• Report of the Chemistry Association of Scotland, for 1846, p. 9.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
57
the winds, as well as by the diffusive
process, the changes effected on the air by
the various processes just mentioned, would
not make a percejytible difference in many
hundred years, and it would even be thou-
sands of years before the air would be at
all unfitted for any of the purposes for
which it has been formed, this being still
further (if not altogether) retarded by the
action of vegetables, which seem to coun-
teract the effects of the various processes
wliich would unfit it for the support of
combustion, respiration, &c. The various
ingredients of the air, being each required
for so many different operations in which
the others are not concerned, are not
bound to each other by chemical attrac-
tion, which would prevent each being
readily supplied separately to that body
which requires it: they- are in a state of
mere meclianical mixture, so that they
are easily separated from each other by
substances which have any attraction for
them — being, nevertheless, diffused through
each other in the same proportions every
where, according to the law pointed out
by Dr Dalton."
213. Water. — The chemical properties
of water are thus described by Mr Reid.
*' Water exists every where, and is capable
of assuming a great variety of forms. As
commonly met with, water is a very com-
pound substance, but consists chiefly of
two ingredients, the others existing in it
in a very small proportion. Water is com-
posed chiefly of two substances, which
assume the gaseous form when separated
from each other — hi/droyen^im inflammable
body, but which cannot support the com-
bustion of other bodies; and oxygen^ which
has the latter property, but cannot itself
be made to burn, as discovered by Caven-
dish. Estimated by weight, these ele-
ments exist in water in the proportion of
8 of oxygen to 1 of hydrogen ; estimated
by measure of the exact quantities of the
gases required to produce a certain quan-
tity of watery vapour, without either gas
being in excess and remaining in the un-
embodied state, 2 of hydrogen with 1 of
oxygen ; and, in becoming watery vapour,
these become condensed into, two-thirds
of the bulk they occupy separately — the
bulk of the hydrogen. Water is a true
chemical compound, not a mere mixture
of its elements. Water is turned into
vapour by heat, and into a solid (ice)
when nmcli heat is removed from it.
Water can combine with a vast number
of bodies, solids or gases, and make them
pass to the liquid state. By its dissolviijg
power, it separates the particles of bodies
from each other, reduces them to a minute
state of division ; and, by bringing these
jjarticles in close contact with each other,
enables them to exert their chemical
affinities for other bodies. Water also
unites with solid bodies, itself becoming
solid; and it enters into the composition
of crystals, and of animals and vegetables.
All the water on the earth arises, in the
first instance, from the ocean, in the form
of vapour, which becomes deposited on
the land as snow, rain, or dew ; and, ac-
cording to the nature of the ground on
which it falls, gives rise to springs, rivers,
or lakes. In different situations, water
has different properties, from the various
matters which it meets and dissolves being
different in different places. The leading
varieties are — sea-water, containing com-
mon salt, &c., rain and snow water, spring
and well water, hard water, (this property
arising from the presence of sulphate or
carbonate of lime,) rain water, water of
pools and marshes. Pure water is ob-
tained by boiling common water to expel
the gases, and distilling it, to separate
the pure watery part from the earthy
matters, the former arising in vapour, and
being collected in a receiver. From the
absence of the gases and earthy matters,
pure or distilled water is insipid and
mawkish, mifit to be used as drink.
Waters become in some places so strongly
impregnated with various matters which
they dissolve, that their taste, colour, and
chemical properties are affected in a
marked degree, and they acquire at the
same time medicinal properties. Of these
there are four kinds— the carbonated,
which contains carbonic acid as their most
characteristic ingredient, as the waters of
Selter, >S2)a, Pyrmont, and Carlsbad ; the
sulphureous, which contain sulphuretted
hydrogen, as the waters of Aix-la-Cba-
pelle, Harrogate, and Moffat ; the chaly-
beate, which are distinguished by con-
taining iron, such as the waters at Tun-
bridge, Brighton, and Cheltenham ; and
the saline, which are characterised chiefly
by the presence of common salt, Epsom
salt, glauber salt, muriate of lime — the
58
INITIATI0N.
most noted of these are the waters of Bath,
Bristol, Buxton, Epsom, Cheltenham,
Pitcaithly, Dunblane, Seidlitz, Wiesbaden,
Honibourg."
214. Earths. — The chemical composi-
tion of minerals is thus recapitulated by
Mr Reid. "The mineral kingdom con-
sists of rocks and stones., which are hard,
heavy, and brittle, incombustible, and in-
soluble in water, exemplified by sand-
stone, wliinstone, slate, flint : sand, earth,
which are loose and powdery : native
metals, mineral bodies which are rarely
met with, and are characterised by being
heavy, tough, or tenacious, malleable, and
ductile, opaque, and perfectly insoluble
in water : native salts, of a regular or
crystalline form, not nearly so hard as
rocks and stones, soluble in water, and
consisting of some acid in union with a
compound of a metal with oxygen : and
comhustible minerals. These six divisions
include all the various kinds of mineral
bodies ; but rocks and stones are not to be
considered as essentially difl'erent from
earth, sand and earth being merely pul-
verised rocks ; and then, rocks, stones,
sand, earth, (^earthy matters) form the
main bulk of the mineral constituents of
the earth, the quantity of metallic ores,
metal^;, salts, and combustible minerals,
is trifling when compared with these.
Earthy matter consists, in general, of
some substance of a metallic nature in
chemical combination with oxygen, form-
ing an oxide ; this oxide being in some
cases in chemical union with some body of
an acid nature, first discovered by Sir
Humphry Davy, with potassa and after-
wards wiih lime, clay, &c., these being
analogous to the common metallic oxides
(as red lead) in their general comjjosition.
The leading earths are — silica, the mineral
ingredient of sand and flint, and tiie most
abundant of the earths, distinguished by
its hardness, durability, and^ insolubility
in water and all acids, except the fluoric:
— alumina, or earth of clays, distinguished
by the softness and plasticity which it
possesses when mixed with water; this
earth is next to silica in abundance : —
lime, slightly soluble in water, caustic, and
always found in nature in union with an
acid (chiefly the carbonic,) with some
other earthy matter : — and ma^nena,
liart/ta, struntian, &c. Earthy matter
also contains considerable quantities of
the oxide of iron and of potass, and the
oxide of manganese and soda are also
occasionally found among rocks and earth.
The rocky masses in the crust of the earth
are arranged in two great divisions, strati-
fied and unstratified, and are composed of
certain simple minerals, which are chiefly
composed of silica and alumina, with
smaller quantities of oxide of iron, lime,
and magnesia, and minute portions of
other ingredients. The chemical composi-
tion of earth and soils is similar to that of
rocks, the former being composed of the
latter broken down and reduced to frag-
ments or to powder, by the chemical and
mechanical action of air and water in the
materials of the rock. The principal in-
gredients in the rock which are acted on,
are the potash, lime, and okide of iron.
These, which to a certain extent act the
part of cements to the various parts of
the mineral in which they exist, when
they enter into new states of combination,
or are renewed, no longer perform their
oftice for the renewal, and it speedily
crumbles to pieces ; hence the decay of
monuments and buildings, and the forma-
tion of loose earthy soils from firm hard
rocks. These soils soon give support to
various kinds of plants, and become mixed
with decayed vegetable matter, and thus
form the common soil of the agriculturist."*
215. Natural History. — But the me-
chanical and chemical properties of matter
do not aflord us all the information that
may be obtained of the objects of nature.
These have external forms which undergo
changes that have to be described, and the
science that undertakes their description is
called Natural History. If every object in
nature admits of a description of its origin,
growth, maturity, uses, and habits, it is
evident that natural history must be more
extensive than any of the other sciences,
since it occupies itself with all the objects
scrutinised by both mechanical and chemi-
cal philosophy. The treatment of the
same subjects by these various sciences
produces no tautology, and no object can
be said to be perfectly known until its pro-
perties have been ascertained and described
Reid's Chemistry of Nature, p. 1 39, 21 3, 282.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
59
in every particular. The kingdoms of
nature which form the subjects of natural
history are the air, — the description of the
apparent visible phenomena of which con-
stitutes the science of Meteorology ; — the
water, the description of tiie nature and
origin of which, in its different forms of
eea, rivers, lakes, and springs, constitutes
the science of Hydrography ; — the earth,
the description of the component parts
forming the crust of our globe, consti-
tutes the science oi Geology ; — the forms
and functions of plants are described to
us by Botany; — and the structure and
habits of animals are made kno-f n to us
by the descriptive science of Zoology.
216. Meteorology. — The changes
which the atmosphere daily undergoes
being occurrences of necessary observation
to the farmer, — and these changes in fact
constitute the weather, upon w^ hose charac-
ter the results of his labour so much de-
pend,— renders meteorology one of the most
important studies that can occupy his atten-
tion. " Indeed, the germ of meteorology is,
as it were, innate in the mind of an English-
man ; the weather is proverbially his first
thought after any salutation ; it comes
to hitn instinctively ; and is so a part of
him that we can scarcely imagine him to
meet his friend without giving utterance
to the usual truism of 'fine day,' 'rainy
weather,' ' very cold ! ' And who of us
does not pride himself on the possession of
a few weather axioms, by which we think
to foresee the coming changes? Some of
these axioms are sound ; others are essen-
tially true, but are often misapplied ;
while a large portion are false. That the
latter should be a large class is obvious;
because the casual observer is too apt to
draw general rules from particular cases,
without taking into account, or, perhaps,
without being able to take into account,
all the accidental circumstances that may
be present. The only means we possess
of eliminating these sources of error, and
arriving at the general laws which govern
atmospheric phenomena, is a course of
faithful and unwearied observation, fol-
lowed by sound and accurate deduction.
The scientific world have, within the
last few years, been awakened to the
importance of this course ; and very effi-
cient means are in progress, and very plain
instructions have been published, toward
the attainment of the object in view. la
the meantime, we must be reminded that
many stumbling stones have been already
removed ; and that the path of meteorology
has been trodden A'ery effectually to a con-
siderable extent." Such are the observa-
tions on this subject by Mr C. V. Walker, in
the preface to his translation of Kaemtz's
Meteorology, a work which had not come
under my notice nniilmj Book of the Farm
had appeared, but which contains so com-
plete a course of that interesting science,
as to render it well suited for the study
of the agricultural student.
217. In treating the subject of meteor-
ology, on the present occasion, I wish to
arrange its various departments in a dif-
ferent manner from what I did in the
Book of the Farm. There, the whc/le subject
of meteorology is embraced in one chapter,
under the head of Weather; and although
the weather is that part of the natural
history of the atmosphere which most
aflects the operations, and comes nearest
home to the feelings of the farmer, yet the
subject, I now conceive, would be more
clearly treated, because more naturally so,
were the observations applicable to that
part of the subject which treats of general
principles, kept separate from those
which are more immediately connected
with the seasons ; and when the operations
of each season come to be explained in
their natural order, the atmospherical
phenomena prevalent in each would be
most appropriately explained. Follow-
ing this arrangement, I shall here describe
only those phenomena of the atmosphere
having no peculiarity in any particular sea-
son, confining my observations, of course,
to those phenomena most cognisant to the
farmer; reserving the relation of peculiar
phenomena until we come to treat of those
of each season in succession.
218. Weather. — As the weather, at all
seasons, has undeniably a sensible power
to expedite or retard the field operations
of the farm, it becomes an incumbent duty
on pupils of agriculture, to ascertain the
principles which regulate its phenomena,
in order to be enabled to anticipate their
changes and avoid their injurious effects.
It is, no doubt, difficult to acquire an accu-
rate knowledge of the laws which govern
the subtile elements of nature ; and it is
GO
INITIATION.
especially <liflficult to trace those which
ail'.Lt the phenomena of the atmosphere;
but experience has proved that accurate
observation vf atmofphcrkal phenomena
is the chief means we po&ess of becoming
acquaintei with the laws which govern
them.
211). In saying that the weather has
power to alter the operations of the farm,
I do not assert that it can entirely
chanse anv great plan of operations that
mavhave been determined on, for that
maV be jtrosecuted even in spite of the
weather ; but the weather, no doubt, can
obliire the farmer to pursue a ditferent
and much less efficient treatment of the
land than he desires, and the amount and
quality of its produce may very seriously
be affected by a change in its treatment.
For example, the heavy and continued
rain in autumn 1839 made the land so
Tcrv wet, that not only that under the
summer-fallow, but the potato-land, could
not be seed-furrowed; and the inevitable
consequence was, the postponement of
sowing of the wheat until the spring of
J 840; and in many cases the farmers were
obliged to sow barley instead of wheat.
The immediate effect of this remarkable
interference of the weather was the re-
striction of the breadth of the land appro-
priate<l to autumnal wheat, and the con-
sequent extension of that for barley and
spring wheat, — a change that caused so
much additional work in spring 1840 as to
have the effect of prolonging the harvest of
that Year beyond the wished- fur period,
and of otherwise deranging the calculations
of farmers.
220. Xow, when such a change is, and
mav in anv season be, imposed upon the
farmer, it is a matter of prudence to be
as much acquainted with ordinary atmo-
spherical jihenomena as to be able to anti-
cipate the nature of the ensuing weather.
If he could anticipate particular changes of
"weatherby observation of particular pheno-
mena, he might arrange his operations
accordingly. But is anticipation in regard
to weather attainable ? Doubtless it is ;
for, although it is not asj'et to be expected
that minute changes of the atmosphere
can be anticipated, yet the kindof weather
which is to follow — whether rainy or
frosty, snowy or fresh — may be predicted.
We all know the prescience actually
attained by people whose occupations
oblige them to be much in the open air and
to observe the weather. Shepherds and
sailors, in their respective situations, have
long been famed for such a knowledge of
atmospherical phenomena as to be able
to predict the advent of important
changes in the atmosphere; but although
the knowledge acquired by these two
classes of observers is in accordance with
the phenomena observed, great difference of
acuteness exist^s amongst the same class in
foretelling the true cause from the observed
effect. For example. A friend of mine,
a commander of one of the ships of the
East India Company, became so noted, by
observation alone — for his education was
not of a high order — for anticipating the
probable effects of atmosjiherical pheno-
mena in the Indian seas, that his vessel
often rode out the storm, under bare
poles, unscathed, while most of the ships in
the same convoy were more or less
damaged. As an instance of superior
sagacity in a shepherd, I remember in the
wet sea.s<m of 1817, when rain was pre-
dicted as inevitable, by every one engiiged
in the afternoon of a very busy day of
leading in the corn, the shepherd inter-
preted the apprehended phenomena — those
of the sun — as indicative of wind and not
of rain, and the event justified his pre-
diction.
221. I conceive that greater accuracy
of knowledge in regard to the changes of
the weather may be attainedon land than
at sea, because the effects of weather upon
the sea itself imposes another element into
the question. It is generally believed,
however, that seamen are more proficient
than landsmen in foretelling the weather;
and, no doubt, when the imminent danger
to which the lives of seamen are jeopar-
dised is considered, that circumstance alone
may reasonably be supposed to render them
peculiarly alive to certain atmospherical
changes. To men under constant com-
mand, as seamen are, it is, I conceive,
questionable whether the ordinary changes
of the atmosphere are matters of much
interest. In every thing that affects the
safety of the ship, — the weather among
the rest — every confidence is j>laced by the
crew in the commanding officer, and it is
he alone that has the power to exercise his
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
61
weather wisdom. On the other hand,
fevery shepherd has to exercise his own
skill in regard to the weather, to save
himself, perhaps, much unnecessary per-
sonal trouble, especially on a hill-farm.
Even the young apprentice-shepherd soon
learns to look out for himself. The great
difference between the sea-cajjtain and the
farmer, in regard to a knowledge of the
weather, consists in the captain having to
look out for himself, whereas the farmer
has his shepherd to look out for him : the
captain himself, knowing the weather, di-
rects his men accordingly ; whilst the
farmer does not know it nearly so well
as his shepherd, and probably even as
his ploughmen. And the effects of such
difference of acquirement is easily told.
The captain causes the approaching change
to be met by prompt and proper appliances;
whereas the farmer is frequently overtaken
in his operations from a want, perhaps, of
a knowledge most px'obably possessed by
his shepherd or ploughmen. The necessity
of farmers acquiring a knotcledge of the
v:eather is thus evident.
222, It being admitted that prescience
of the state of the weather is essential to
the farmer, the question is, how the pupil
of agriculture is to acquire it ? Doubtless
it can best be attained by observation in
the field ; but as that method implies the
institution of a series of observations ex-
tending over a period of time, the greater
part of the engagement of the pupil may
pass away ere he could acquire a sufficiency
of knowledge from his own experience.
This being the case, he should become
acquainted with the experience of others.
This I shall endeavour to communicate to
him, premising that he must confirm every
thing, by observation, for himself, when-
ever opportunity occurs.
223. Atmospherical jyhenomena being
the great signs hy which to judge of the
weather^ instruments are used to detect
certain changes which cannot be detected
by the senses. Some of these instruments
I have already described, and they all pos-
sess great ingenuity of construction, and
indicate pretty accurately the effects they
are intended to recognise ; and although
they tell us nothing but the truth, such is
the minute diversity of atmospherical phe-
nomena, they do not tell us all the truth.
Other means for discovering the truth must
be used; and the most available within our
reach is the converting of the phenomena
themselves into indicators of subsequent
changes. In adopting this rule, we may
use the transient states of the atmosphere,
in regard to clearness and obscurity, damp-
ness or dryness, as they affect our senses of
sight and feeling, the shapes and evolutions
of the clouds, and the peculiar state of the
wind, to predicate the changes of the
weather. But such knowledge can only
be acquired by long observation of natural
phenomena.
224. Barometer. — The general indica-
tions of the barometer are few, and may
easily be remembered. A high and sta-
tionary mercury indicates steady good
weather. A slow and regular fall indi-
cates rain ; and if during an E. wind, the
rain will be abundant. A sudden fall in-
dicates a gale of wind in the course of 24
hours, especially if the wind is in the W.
Good steady weather must not be expected
in sudden depressions and elevations of
the mercury : a fine day may intervene,
but the general state of the weather may
be expected to be unsteady. An E. or
NE. wind keeps up the mercury against
all other indications of a change : a
W. or SW. one causes a fall when it
changes from E. or NE. ; but should no
fall take place, the maintenance of the
elevation is equivalent to a rise, and the
reverse is equivalent to a fall. The quan-
tity of range efiected by these particular
causes may be estimated at i"o of an inch.*
The barometer, at sea, is a good indicator
of wind but not of rain. The actual height
of the mercury is not so much a nuitter of
importance as its oscillations. A convex
form of the top of the column of mercury
indicates a rise, and a concave one a fall.
225. Among the variable causes which
affect the barometer is the direction of the
wind. The maximum of pressure is w heu
the wind is NE., decreasing in both direc-
tions of the azimuth till it reaches the
minimum between S. and SW. This dif-
ference amounts to above t5 of an inch at
London. The rise occasioned by this wind
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 2.
INITIATION.
may be owing to the coM, wliicli, always
accompanying tiio E. winds in .spring— con-
necteil as tiiese jtroltably are with the melt-
ing of the snow in Norway — causes a con-
densation ; but it is not unlikely to be
owing, as Mr Meikic suggests, to its oppo-
rature that these two are connected. More
lately, M. Kaemtz has pointed out the con-
nexion of the winds with such changes,
and he has ilhistratcd the influence of the
prevalent aerial currents which traverse
Europe, though not with apparent regula-
eition to the dirocliou of the rotation of the rity, yet, at least, in subjection to some
earth causing atmnsplieriial accumulation general laws.t
and ))ressiire, bv diiniiiisiiing the centri-
227. Thermometfr. — !Many interesting
results have been obtained by the use of
the thermometer, and among the most in-
teresting are those regarding the mean
temperature of different localities. In
fugal force of the aerial particles.
22(). The accidental variations of baro-
metric pressure are greatly influenced by
latitude. At the equator it may be said
to be nothing, hurricanes alone causing any ascertaining these, it was found that a
exception. Tlie variability increases to- diurnal oscillation took place in the tem-
wards the poles, owing probably to the perature as well as the pressure of the
irregularity of the winds beyond the tro- atmosphere, and that this again varies with
pics. The mean variation at the equator the seasons. Nothing but frequent obser-
is 2 lines — a line being the twelfth part rations during the day could ascertain the
of an inch — in France 10 lines, and in mean temperature of different places ; and
Scotland 15 lines throughout the year, in so prosecuting the subject, it was dis-
the quantity having its monthly oscilla- covered that there were hours of the day,
tions. These do not appear to follow the the mean temperature of which, for the
parallels of latitude, but, like the isother- whole year, was equal to the mean of the
mal lines, undergo inflections, which are whole 24 hours, which, when established,
said to have a striking similarity to the renders all future observations less difficult,
isoclinal magnetic lines of Hansteen. 11 The results exhibit an extraordinary coin-
so, it is probably by the medium of tempe- cidence in different years.
Thus the mean temperature of 1(V24 gave 13 minutes past 9 a.m. and 26 minutes past 8 p.m.
l«-25 ... 13 ... 9 28 ... 8 ...
Giving the mean of the 2 years 13
These results were obtained from a series
of observations made at Leith Fort in the
years 1824 and 1825 by the Royal Society
of Edinburgh. I Some of the other conse-
quences deducible from these observations
are, " that the mean hour of the day of
minimum temperature for the year is 5
A.M., and that of the maximum temperature
40' past 2 P.M. : that the deviation of any
pair of hours of the same name from the
mean of the day is less than half a degree
of Fahrenheit, and of all pairs of hours,
4 A.M. and p.m., are the most accurate:
that the mean annual temperature of any
hour never differs more than 3°*2 from the
mean of the day for the whole year : that
the mean daily range is a minimum at the
■winter solstice, and a maximum in April :
and that the mean daily range in this cli-
mate is G°"G65."§ The mean temperature
at Leith Fort for the mean of two years,
at an elevation of 25 feet above the mean
level of the sea, was found to be 48°"3G.
The mean, taken near Edinburgh, at an
altitude of o90 feet above the mean level
of the :?ea, at 10 a.m. and p.m., with a
common thermonieter, and with the maxi-
mum and minimum results of self- register-
ing thermometers, gave these results when
reduced to the mean level of the sea : —
with the self-registering thermometers,
48°-4iy, and with two observations a-day
Avitli the common thermometer, 48°'352,
which correspond remarkably with the
observations at Leith Fort. These obser-
vations were taken at 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.,
which were found to be the particular
hours which gave a near approximation to
the mean temperature of the day ; but
had they been made at the more correct
* Edinburgh New Phil. Jour. vol. iv. p. 108.
t Edinburgh Phil. Trans, vol. x.
+ Forbes's Report on Meteorology, vol. i. p. 235-6.
§ Forbes's Report on Meteorology, vol. i. p. 212.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
63
periods of 13' past 9 a.m. and 27' past 8
P.M., it is probable that the results with
those at Leith Fort would have corre-
sponded exactly.* The mean temperature
of any place may be ascertained pretty
nearly by observing the mean temperature
of deep-seated springs, or that of deep w-ells.
Thus the Crawley Springs, in the Pentland
Hills, which supply Edinburgh with abun-
dance of water, situated at an elevation
of 564 feet above the level of the sea, give
a mean temperature of 46°'3, according to
observations made in 1811 by Mr Jardine,
civil-engineer, Edinburgh ; and the Black
Spring, which is 882 feet above the level
of the sea, gave a mean temperature of
44°'9, by observations made in the course
of 1810-11-15-18-19. A well in the
Cowgate of Edinburgh gave a mean tem-
perature of 49°-3, by observations made
every month in the year 1794, of which
the temperature of the month of June ap-
proached nearest to the mean temperature
of the year, being 49°'5.+
228. Vapour. — At all temperatures, at
all seasons, water is converted into vapour
and carried up into the atmosphere ; and
when the air has acquired as much vapour
as it can unite with at the temperature it
then possesses, it is then said to be satu-
rated with vapour. The quantity of
vapour attains its minimum throughout
the year, in the morning before sunrise.
At the same time, on account of the low
degree of temperature, the humidity is at
its maximum. In proportion as the sun
rises above the horizon, the evaporation
increases, and the air receives every mo-
ment a greater quantity of vapour. But
as the air increases in its capacity for
vapour as the temperature rises, it be-
comes farther and farther removed from
the point of saturation, and the relative
humidity becomes more and more feeble.
The rate continues without interruption
until the moment when the temperature
attains its maximum.
229. When evaporation commences in
the morning with the increase of tempera-
ture, the vapour, by virtue of the resist-
ance of the air, accumulates at the surface
of the soil. This stratum of vapour does
not attain a great thickness ; but as soon
as the ascending current commences, the
vapour is drawn away to the upper part
of the atmosphere, with a force that con-
tinues increasing until mid-day. The
evaporation from the soil is then more
active on account of the increase of tem-
perature ; nevertheless the ascending cur-
rent carries away the greater portion, and
there is a diminution in the quantity of
vapour. Towards evening, when the
temperature begins to fall, the ascending
current diminishes in force, or even ceases
altogether; then, not only does the vapour
accumulate in the lower parts, but it even
descends from the higher regions; and on
this account, we observe towards evening
a second maximum^ which is not sustained,
because, during the night, the vapour
precipitating in the form of dew or
white frost, the air necessarily becomes
drier.
230. Vapour, being thus the result of
the action of heat on water, it is evident
that its quantity must vary at different
hours of the day, in different seasons, in
different parts of the globe, and at different
heights of the atmosphere.
231. Daily experience has long taught
us, that the air is not equally moist with
every wind. When the farmer wishes to
dry his corn or his hay, or the housewife
sjjreads out her wet linen, tlieir wishes
are soon satisfied if the wind blows con-
tinuously, but a much longer time is re-
quired with a W. wind. Certain opera-
tions in dyeing do not succeed unless during
E. winds.J
232. Dr Dalton found that the force of
vapour in the torrid zone varies from 0"6
of an inch to 1 inch of mercury. In
Britain, it seldom amounts to 0*5 of an
inch, but is sometimes as great as 0*5 of
an inch in sunmier; whereas, in winter,
it is often as low as O'l of an inch of
mercury. These facts would enable us to
ascertain the absolute quantity of vapour
contained in the atmosphere at any given
time, provided we were certain that the
density and elasticity of vapours follow
precisely the same law as that of gases, as
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 9. + Ibid.
X Kaemtz's Complete Course of Meteorology, p. 88-97.
10-11.
M
INITIATION.
ia extremely probable to be the case. If
80, the vajtour will vary from I's to lis
part of the atmosphere. Dalton supposes
that the medium quantity of vai»our in
the atmosphere may amount to ^'a of its
bulk.*
233. The height to which the great
body of vapour daily carried into the at-
mosphere attains, must depend on the
degree of temperature. When it attains
but a moderate height, its upper stratum
may be easily discerned by the lower
portion of the atmosphere appearing more
dense than that above it. This upper
stratum of vapour is called the vapour-
plane, and a cloud often descends and is
attracted by it, and rests upon it, the lower
stratum of the cloud seeming straight and
horizontal.
234. Hygrometen. — Damp air, and
indeed any thing that feels damp, is un-
pleasant to our feelings. " Hygrometers
•were made of quills by Chimiuello, which
renders it probable that birds are enabled to
judge of approaching rain or fair weather.
For it is easy to conceive that an animal
having a thousand hygrometers intimately
connected with its body, must be liable to
be powerfully aflfected, with regard to the
tone of its organs, by very slight changes
in the drjness or humidity of the air;
particularly when it is considered that
many of the feathers contain a large
quantity of blood, which must be alter-
nately propelled into the system, or with-
drawn from it, according to their contrac-
tion or dilation by dryness or moisture." t
It is from some such hygrometric feeling as
this in birds, that the crane is represented
by Virgil as foreseeing the coming storm: —
Wet weather seldom hurts the most unwise.
So plain the signs, such prophets are the skies ;
The wary crane foresees it first, and sails
Above the storm, and leaves the lowly vales. X
235. The vapour issuing from the funnel
of a locomotive steam-engine may be re-
garded as a sort of hygrometer. When
the air is saturated with vapour, it cannot
dissolve the spare steam as it is ejected from
the locomotive, and hence a long stream of
white steam is seen attached to the train ;
when the air is dry, the steam is dissolved
and taken up as it issues from the funnel.
In like manner the moist air cannot at
times dissolve the vapour issuing from the
crater of Stromboli, which thus remains aa
a cloud over the volcano ; and the inhabi-
tants of the Lipari islands regard the
phenomenon as a sign of rain.
236. Clouds. — Among the objects of
nature, there are few more certain pre-
monitors of change in the weather than the
clouds, and as such they are worthy of the
attentive study of the farmer. In a casual
glance at the clouds, exhibiting, as they
generally do, so great a variety of forms,
it can scarcely be believed that these are
all produced by the operation of any posi-
tive law. But such unbelief is unreason-
able, because no phenomenon in nature
can possibly occur but as the effect of
some physical law, although its mode of
action may have hitherto eluded the acutest
search of philosophical observation. In-
deed it would be unphilosophical to believe
otherwise. AVe may, therefore, depend
upon it, that every variety of cloud is an
eifect of a de6nite cause ; and if we cannot
predict what form of cloud a mass of va-
pour will assume, it is because we are un-
acquainted with the precise method by
which their law of formation operates.
But observation has enabled meteorologists
to classify every variety of cloud under
only tliree primary forms, and all others
are only combinations of two or more of
these. The three primary forms are the
Cirrus or curl-cloud, the Cumulus or heap-
cloml, and the Stratus, or lay-cloud.
The combinations of these three forms are
the cirro-cumulus, the heaped curl ; the
cirro-stratus, the lay curl; the cumu-
lus-stratus, the heaped layer ; and the
cumulo-cirro-stratus, the heaped-curl-lay-
cloud or nimbus, a rain cloud.
237. The suspension of clouds in the air
is a phenomenon that has not yet been
satisfactorily explained ; and when we see
a cloud pour out thousands of tons of water
upon the ground, we cannot comprehend
how it can float in the atmosphere. If
we consider the constitution of a cloud,
we may arrive at a probable solution of the
• Ph'ilcaopkUal Magazine, vol. xxiii. p. 353. +' Edinburgh Eneydopadia; art. " Hygrometry.'
+ Dry den's Virgil, Georgia, 514.
\
\
fT
X
i
/
4
I
.' '-■w. 5_
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
65
problem. When the vapour of water is
precipitated in the atmosphere, the trans-
parency of the air is disturbed ; and this
aqueous precipitation takes the name of
fog when it is on the surface of the eai'th,
and of cloud when it remains suspended
at a certain height in the atmosphere. So
the traveller, who journeys to the summit
of a high mountain, complains that the
fog intercepts his view, whilst the inhabi-
tant of the plain says, the summit of the
' said mountain is enveloped in clouds. Now
the cloud is composed of small vescicles of
water, which, in obedience to the laws of
universal gravitation, are grouped into the
form of spherules ; and it is highly probable
Ifc that these spherules as^ hollow or contain
PP air, for, according to S"ssure, these spher-
fules, which readily rise in the air, differ
so much in appearance from those that
fall, that no doubt remains of their being
hollow ; they present, besides, no scintilla-
tions when exposed to a strong light, like
drops of water, nor is a rainbow ever seen
projected in the face of a cloud. When
left to themselves, these vescicles would
fall to the ground, like any other body
that is heavier than air ; but there are in-
fluences constantly in action in the atmo-
sphere, which prevent their fall to an inde-
finite period. There is the upper current
of air, daily occasioned by the action of
heat ; there are the horizontal currents,
which are propelled at times with great
force ; and there is, moreover, the mo-
mentum impelled in the vescicles by these
causes, together with the elasticity imparted
to them directly by the action of heat.
Besides these physical causes, chemical
ones may be in operation between them
and the air, or the gases forming the com-
ponent parts of the air ; and, above all, the
mysterious agency of electricity may have
an influence beyond the power of gravita-
tion, to keep them afloat at given heights.
238. Cirrus. — The first form of clouds
which demands attention is the cin^us or
curl-cloud. This is the least dense of all
clouds. It is composed of streaks of va-
pour of a whitish colour, arranged in a
fibrousform,and occurring at a great height
in the atmosphere. These fibi'ous streaks
assume modified shapes. Sometimes they
are like long narrow rods, lying quiescent,
or floating gently along the upper region
of the atmosphere, their motion being from
VOL. I.
S. to N., but chiefly from S.W. to N.E.
At other times one end of the rod is curled
up, and spread out like a feather ; and, in
this shape, the cloud moves more quickly
along than in the other, being evidently
afi"ected by the wind. The rod shape is
supposed to be caused by the cirrus cloud
being the means of the trqiUsit of electricity
from one cloud to another or from one part
of space to another. Another form is that
familiarly known by the "gray mare's
tail" or "goat's beard." This is more
afi"ected by the wind than even the former.
Another form is in thin fibrous sheets, ex-
panded at times to a considerable breadth,
like the gleams of the aurora borealis.
There are many other forms — such as that
of network, bunches of feathers, hair, or
thread — which may respectively be desig-
nated reticulated, plumose, coraoid, and
filiform cirri. The cirrus is called by the
Swiss peasants the S.W. cloud, because it
is invariably preceded by the south wind.
From its uniformly bright white colour,
Kaemtz supposes that it is composed of
snow and not of vapour, its great elevation
placing it in the region of perpetual snow.
That elevation, he says, cannot be less than
13,700 feet, according to observations he
made relatively with the summit of a
mountain.
239. In regard to the relative heights
at which these difierent forms of cirri
appear, the fibrous rod assumes the highest
position in the air, the rod with the fea-
thered end the next highest, the bunch of
feathers is approaching the earth, the
mare's tail is descending still farther, and
the sheet-like form is not much above the
denser clouds.
240. As to their relative periods of
duration, the fibrous rod may be seen high
in the air for a whole day in fine weather :
or it vanishes in a short time ; or it de-
scends into a denser form ; when its end
is feathered, its existence is hastening to
a close ; the plumose form soon melts
away ; the gray mare's tail bears only a
few hours of pretty strong wind ; but the
broad sheet may be blown about for some
time.
241 . The sky is generally of a gray-blue
when the fibrous rod and feathered-end rod
appear; and it is of the deepest blue, with
E
66
INITIATION.
tbepluniose watery cirrus. It is an observa-
tion of Sir Isaac Newton, that the deepest
blue hai»j>ens just at the changea from a
dry to a moist atmosphere.
242. When cirri appear in a clear
8ettle<i dry t-ky, a change in the weather
is taking place. When they appear like
goat's hair or gray mare's tails, wind will
ensue, and it will blow from the quarter to
which the tufts point, which is generally
to the S.AV. When cirri unite and form
cirro-strati at a comparatively low eleva-
tion, rain is indicated. When seen through
a broken cloud, in deep blue sky, during
rain, the rain will continue. Cirri extend-
ing on both sides of the zenith forebode a
storm of wind of some days' duration. In
whatever direction cirri are observed to
move, and whatever may be the direction
of the wind at the surface of the earth at
the same time, the wind will in a few
hours be felt as the cirri indicate.
243. Cumuhis. — The cumulus may be
likened in shape to a heap of natural mea-
dow hay. It never alters much from that
shape, nor is it ever otherwise than massive
in its structure ; but it varies in size and
colour according to the temperature and
light of the day, becoming larger and
whiter as the heat and light increase ;
hence it generally appears at sunrise, as-
sumes a larger form by noon, often screen-
ing tlie sun from the earth, and then melts
away towards night. On this account it
has received the designation of the " cloud
of day." It5 density will not allow it to
mount very high in the air ; but it is,
nevertheless, easily buoyed up for a whole
day bv the vapour-plane above the reach
of the earth. When it so rests it is ter-
minated below bv a straight line. It is a
prevailing cloud in the daytime at all sea-
sons, and is exceedingly beautiful when
it presents its silvery tops tinted with sober
colonrs, against the bright blue sky. Cu-
muli sometimes join together and as sud-
denly separate again, though in every case
they retain their peculiar form. They may
often be seen floating in the air in calm
weather, not far above the horizon ; and
they may also be seen driving along with
the gale at a greater height, casting their
fleeting shadows upon the ground. When
in motion, their bases are not so straight as
when at rest. Cumuli at times disperse,
mount into the air, and form cirri, or they
descend into strati along the horizon ; at
others, a single cumulus may be seen
at a distance in the horizcm, and then in-
creasing rai)idly into the storm-cloud, or
(dse overspreading a large portion of the
sky with a dense veil. Does not the poet
in these beautiful words refer to the cu-
mulus, as seen in a summer afternoon ?
And now the mibts from earth are cloads in
heaven,
Clonds slowly castellating in a calm
Sublimer than a storm ; which brighter breathes
O'er the whole firmament the breadth of blue,
Because of that excfl^ive purity
Of all those hanging^ow-white palaces,
A gentle contrast, but with power divine.*
244. "Cumuli are formed," observes
Kaemtz, " when ascending currents draw
the vapours into thehigherregions of the at-
mosphere, where the air, being very cold, is
rapidly saturated. If the current increases
in force, the vapours and clouds become
more elevated ; but there they increase in
greater ratio, on account of the reduction
of the temperature. Hence it happens
that the sky, though fine in the morning,
is entirely clouded at mid-day. When
the ascending current relaxes towards
evening, the clouds descend ; and on ar-
riving into strata of air which are less
heated, they again pass into the state of
invisible vapour. According to Saussure,
the rounded form of clouds is due to this
mode of formation. Indeed, when one
liquid traverses another in virtue of the
resistance of the ambient medium, and the
mutual resistance of its parts, the former
takes a cylindrical form with a circular
section, or one composed of the arcs of a
circle. Thus the masses of ascending air
are great columns, the shape of which is de-
fined by the clouds. Add to this, the little
whirlwinds on the border of the clouds,
which also contribute to give to the whole,
rounded forms analogous to those whirls
of smoke escaping from a chimney." A
figure of the cumulus floating in air, as well
as resting on the vapour-plane, is repre-
sented in the plate along with the Leices-
ter tup.
245. Bound well-formed cumuli indicate
* Profeaaor Wilson.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
67
settled weather ; when ragged on the
edges, rain may be looked for; if their
edges curl inwards, a storm is brewing ;
when blown outwards, wind will follow.
When cumuli remain during the evening,
and increase in size, they indicate rain ;
but when they form in the morning and
disappear at night, they indicate steady
weather. Cumuli are most characteristic
of the fine days of summer.
24fi. " While the true cumuli are formed
by day and disappear during the night,"
observes Kaemtz, "another variety of these
clouds is seen under very different cir-
cumstances. It is common to observe, in
the afternoon, dense cloudy masses, round-
' ed or extended, with borders badly de-
fined, the number of which increases to-
wards evening, until, during the night, the
sky is completely overcast. The next
day is still overcast, but some hours after
sunrise all disappear; the true cumuli then
occupy the sky, when they float at a more
considerable height. I have determined
this by direct measurements. At evening,
clouds of the former class again replace
the true cumuli. These clouds are com-
posed of very dense vescicular vapour,
like the cumulus and the cumulo-stratus.
They differ in their dependence in the
hours of the day ; they have also an ana-
logy with the stratus, on account of their
extent, and are distinguished from tliem
by their greater height. However, they
approach nearer to them than to the
cumulus, and I propose designating them
under the name of strato-cumulus.
247. " The influence of the sun on the
clouds gives rise to atmospheric variations,
which are well known to husbandmen. In
the morning the sky is clouded, and it rains
abundantly; but towards nine o'clock the
clouds separate, the sun shines through,
and the weather is fine for the rest of the
day. At other times, during the morning,
the sky is clear, but the air moist. The
clouds soon appear ; toward mid-day the
sky is covered, the rain falls, but it ceases
toward evening. In tlie former case they
^evQ strato-ciiimdus ; in the latter c«mM/o-
stratus. The former are dissipated by the
rays of the sun, the latter are formed under
their influence. If the temperature and
hygrometric conditions of the air at two
or three thousand yards above the earth
were as well known as at its surface, these
apparent anomalies, which astonish us,
might be more easily explained."*
248. Stratus. — The stratus is that bed
of vapour which is frequently seen in the
valleys in a summer evening, permitting
the tops of the trees and church spires to
protrude through it in bold relief ; and it is
that horizontal bank of dark cloud seen
to rest for a whole night along the horizon.
It also forms the thin dry white fogs which
come over the land from the sea with an
E. wind in spring and summer, wetting
nothing that it touches. When this dry
fog hangs over towns in winter, which it
often does for days, it appears of a deep
yellow hue, in consequence, most probably,
of a mixture with smoke ; and such con-
stitutes the November fog in London.
The stratus is frequently elevated by
means of the vapour-plane, and then it
passes into the cunmlus. On its appear-
ing frequently in the evening, and its
usual disappearance during the day, it has
been termed the *'• cloud of night." Having
a livid gray colour when the moon shiues
upon it, the stratus is probably the origin
of those supposed spectral appearances
seen at night through the influence of
superstition by people in days of yore.
The light or dry stratus is most prevalent
in spring and summer, and the dense or
wet kind in autunm and winter. A
figure of stratus fringed on the upper edge
with cirri, is given in the plate along with
the three short-horn cows.
249. If stratus evaporates before the
mounting sun, there will be a fine day ; but
if it makes its way to the mountain-tops,
and lingers about them, rain will come in
the afternoon. If it creeps down moun-
tain sides into the valley during the day,
rain will certainly fall ; and if it continues
stationary for a tiiue at a slight elevation,
it will resolve itself into a steady rain.
250. Cirro-cu7mdus. — The cirrus, in
losing the fibrous, assumes the more even-
grained texture of the cumulus, which,
when subdivided into spherical fragments,
constitute small cumuli of little density.
Ka?mtz's Complete Course of Meteorology, p. 120-2.
68
INITIATION.
anJ of white colour, arranged in the form
of a cirrus or in clustcns. They are high
in the air, and heautiful ohjects in tlie
sky. In Cicriiiany this form of cloud is
caik'.l "the little sheep "—an idea which
has hcen emhodied hy a rustic bard of
England : —
Far yet above these wafted clouds are seen
(III a remoter sky, still more serene,)
Others, detach'd in ranges through tho air,
Spotless as snow, and countless as they're fair ;
Scatter'd iminensely wide from cast to west,
The beauteous semblance of a flock at rest.*
Cirro-cumuli are most fretjuently to be seen
in summer.
251. "When the S.W. wind prevails,
and extends to the lower regions of the
atmosphere," observes Kaeintz, " the
cirri also become more and more dense,
because the air is nioister, and they then
pass into the condition of light cirro-
cumuli, which are entirely composed of
vescicular vapour. Tiiey do not weaken
the light of the sun, for it passes through
them ; and Humboldt has often been able
to see through these clouds stars of the
fourth magnitude, and even to recognise
the spots on the moon. When they pass
before the sun and the moon, these bodies
are surrounded with an admirable corona.
The cirro-cumuli foretell heat ; it seems
that the hot S. winds, which prevail in
the lower regions, do not convey a suffi-
cient quantity of vapour to cover the sky
entirely with clouds, and they only act by
their elevated temperature."
252. Dense and com])act cirro-cumuli
forebode storm ; small round lumps
foreshow thunder; the ribbed, windy and
rainy weather. Cirro-cumuli frequently
surmount the nimbus without rain. If
gray-coloured ones prevail in tho morning,
there will be fair weather; but if red, rain
will ensue. They evince "thea])proach of
an electrical discharge. Such a phenome-
non, indeed, will occur within tweiity-fuur
hours of tho time when these clouds fnrm
themselves into iheir consjsicuous groups."t
253. Cirro-stratus. — While cirri de-
scend and assume the form of cirro-cumuli,
they may still farther descend and take
the shape of cirro-stratus, whose fibres be-
come dense and decidedly horizontal. Ita
characteristic form is shallowness, longi-
tude, and density. It consists at times of
dense longitudinal streaks, and the density
is increased when a great breadth of cloud
is vieweil horizontally along its edge. At
other times, it is like shoals of small fish,
when it is called a "herring sky;" at
others mottled, M'hen it is named a
" mackerel -back sky." Sometimes it
is like veins of wood, and at other times
like the ripples of sand left by a re-
tiring tide on a sandy shore. The more
mottled the cirro-stratus the higher in
the air, and the more dense and stratified
the nearer the earth. In the last posi-
tion it maybe seen cutting off a mountain
top, or stretching behind it, or cutting
acroos the tops of large cumuli. Sometimes
its striated lines, not \ery dense, run
parallel over the zenith, whose ojiposite
ends ajjparcntly converge at opj)osite
points of the horizon, and then they form
that peculiar phenomenon named the
"boat," or "Noah's ark." At times
cirro-strati cut across the field of the set-
ting sun, where they ajjpear in well-defined
dense stria?, whose u])per or lower edges,
in reference to their position with the sun,
are burnished with the most brilliant hues
of gold, crimson, or vermilion. Some-
times the cirro-stratus extends across the
heavens in a broad sheet, obscuring more
or less the light of the sun or moon for
days together ; and in this case a halo or
corona is frecjuently seen to surround these
orbs, or a parhelion may be exjiected to
accompany the sun. In a more dense
form, it assumes the shapes of some small
long-bodied animals, and even like archi-
tectural ornaments ; and in all its muta-
tions it is more varied than any otiicr
form of cloud. The streaked cirro-strati
are of frequent occurrence in winter and
autumn, whereas the more dolicatc kinds
are mostly seen in summer.
254. " Wiien the S.W. wind jirovails,"
says Kaemtz, "and extends to the lower
regions of the atmosphere, the cirri also
become more and more dense, because the
air is moister. They then pass into the
condition of cirro-^stratus, which first ap-
pear under the form of a mass like carded
cotton, the filaments of which are closely
* Bloomfield'a Farmer'i Boy.
t Whistlecraft's Clxmate of England, p. 27.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
69
interlaced, and tbey gradually take a
grayish tint ; at the same time, the cloud
seems to get lower, and vescicular vapour
is formed, which fails not to be precipitated
in the form of rain." When cirro-strati
are white, and have a positive outline on
a deep blue sky, a storm is sure to ensue.
255. Cumulo-stratus. — This is always
a dense cloud. It spreads out its base to
the stratus form, and, in its upper part,
frequently inosculates with cirri, cirro-
cumuli, or cirro-strati. In this particular
form it is represented in the plate of the
three short-horn cows. With all or either
of these it forms a large massive series of
cumulative clouds which hang on the
horizon, displaying great mountain shapes,
raising their brilliantly illuminated silvery
crests towards the sun, and presenting
numerous dusky valleys between them.
Or it appears in formidable white masses
of variously defined shapes, towering up-
wards from the horizon, ready to meet any
other form of cloud, and to conjoin with
them in making the dense dark-coloured
storm-cloud. In either case, nothing can
exceed the picturesque grandeur of its
dazzling towers, or the sublimity of its
masses when surcharged with lightnings,
wind, and rain, hastening with scowling
front to meet the gentle breeze, hurling it
along before it in its determined course,
as if impatient of restraint ; and all the
while casting a portentous gloom over the
earth, until, bursting with terrific rage, it
scorches with lightning some devoted ob-
ject more prominent than the rest, and del-
uges tlie plain with devastating floods. A
tempest soon exhausts its force in the tem-
perate regions ; but in the tropics it rages
at times for weeks, and then woe to the
poor mariner who is overtaken by it at sea
unprepared. Of the cumulo-stratus the
variety called " Bishop's wigs," as repre-
sented near the horizon in the plate of the
draught-mare, may be seen at all seasons
along the horizon ; but the other and more
imposing form of mountain scenery is only
to be seen in perfection in summer, when
storms are rifo. It also assumes the shapes
of the largeranimals,andof the more gigan-
tic forms of nature and art. Is the cumulo-
stratus in all its varieties the form of cloud
thus described by Shakespere ? .
Sometime we see a cloud that's dragonish ;
A vapour, sometime, like a bear or lion,
A tower'd citadel, a pendent rock,
A forked mountain or blue promontory
^\'ith trees upon't, that nod unto the world,
And mock our e5'eswith air:
Tliat, which is now a horse, even with a thought,
The rack dislimus, and makes it indistinct,
As water is in water.*
256. " The cumuli do not always disap-
pear toward evening," remarks Kaemtz ;
" on the contrary, they often become more
numerous, their borders are less brilliant,
their tint deeper, and they pass into the
state of cumulo-stratus, especially if a
stratum of cirri exists below them. We
then expect rains or storms, for in the
higher and mean regions the air is near
the point of saturation. The S. wind
and the ascending currents give rise to
changes of temperature, which determine
the precipitation of aqueous vapour in the
form of rain. The cumuli that are heaped
up in the horizon in the fine days of sum-
mer, are those which are the most fertile
for the plays of the imagination. . . . As
they are often of the same height, an ap-
pearance results which I should mention.
When I was living at the Faalhorn, the
sky was frequently perfectly clear over my
head; but a little above the horizon, a belt
of clouds, the width of which did not exceed
double or treble that of the moon, extended
like a pearl necklace along the West Alps,
from France to the Tyrol. My station at
8794 feet above the sea was a little more
elevated than the clouds, and their projec-
tion on the sky formed a narrow belt, al-
though they were spread over a A-ast ex-
tent of the sky. From this projection it
follows, that it is often very difhcult to
distinguish the cumulus from the cumulo-
stratus."
257. When cumuli change rock-like
into cumiflo-sfrati, rain will follow, and
the exception is when it continues fair.
258. C'lrro-cianulo-stratus^ ov N'nr-hiis.
— A showery form of this cloud may be
seen in the plate of the draught-horse.
For my part, I cannot see that the mere
resolution of a cloud into rain is of suffi-
cient importance to constitute the form
into a separate and distinct cloud ; for rain
is not so much a form as a condition of a
cloud, in the final state in which it reaches
. * Anthony and Cleopatra, Activ. scene xii.
70
INITIATION.
the earth. Any of the three compound
forms of clouds just described may form a
rain-cloud, witliout tlie intervention of any
other. Cirro-strati are often seen to drop
down in rain, without giving any symp-
toms of forming tlie more dense structure
of the nimbus; and even liglit showers fall
without any visible appearance of a cloud
at all. The nimbus is most freipiently
seen in summer and autumn. The nimbus
is uniformly distinguished by its gray tint
and fringed edges, and is of very compli-
cated form.
259. Scud. — There is a kind of cloud,
not unlike cumuli, called the scud, which
is described usually by itself as broken
nimbus. It is of dark or light colour, ac-
cording as the sun shines upon it, of varied
form, floating or scudding before the wind,
and generally in front of a sombre cumulo-
stratus stretching as a backgnmnd across
that portion of the sky, often accompanied
with a bright streak of sky along the hori-
zon. Tlie ominous scud is the usual har-
binger of the rain-cloud, and is therefore
commonly called "messengers," "carriers,"
or " water-waggons," which are sure pre-
cursors of rain.
260. On concluding the very important
subject of the forms and aspect of clouds
to farmers as prognostics of the changes of
the weather, I may remark as a general
prognostic that when clouds attach them-
selves to others or to mountain-tops they
give indications of rain. When they form
and soon disappear, fair weather ensues.
The ragged edges of clouds indicate a
moist state of air ; when much ragged,
wind may be expected. When the edges
are well defined, the air is in a dry state ;
when they are much ndled or tucked
in, a discharge of electrical matter may be
looked for. It is always unwholesome
weather when clouds of all denominations
have undefined edges. When cirrus,
cumulus, or stratus appears alone, an<l in
its own appropriate region, none of these
clouds can be regarded as 'an innnediate
indication of rain, or other foul weather.
The cirrus is at first visible in a dry state
of the air, and being situated in the highest
portion of the atmos[)liere, it can only be
observed fronj the earth when the air is
clear. But its non-observance from the
earth during the obscuration of low clouds,
is no proof that it does not exist. Cirrus
is an indication of the positive state of
electricity in the air; and it is conceived
that its great office it? the diffusion of elec-
tric matter throughout the air, so that it
cannot be seen when the air is surcharged
with thunder-clouds. Its pointed form is
favourable to transmitting electricity from
one cloud to another, and it sometimes
appears to perform this office betwixt
cunmli. " When two or more of these
simple species of cloud meet upon the con-
fines of their respective regions, or other-
wise mingle in the sky, a greater extent of
atmospheric derangement is indicated, and
foul weather may usually be expected,
unless the disturbed atmosphere shall be
carried away by a general seasonal cur-
rent ; and this is the case in great part of
the British islands, after the dry coun-
tries to the S. and E. of the Baltic have
reached the maximum of their summer
heat. This removal of disturbed air by the
general current, is the cause which has
given rise to the popular maxim, 'that all
signs of rain fail in fine weather,' and
certainly it much depends on the general
character of the season, whether a mode-
rate degree of atmospheric disturbance,
and formation and blending of clouds of
ditlerent species, shall or shall not be fol-
lowed by rain." The most icholesome icea-
ther is when W. winds and day cumuli
prevail — when a stratus evaporates as the
sun rises — during the formation of well-
defined cumuli throughout the day, most
abundant in the afternoon, and disapj)ear-
ing again in the evening — to be succeeded
by strong dew and the stratus — and accom-
panied with westerly breezes, which die
away towards evening. In these circum-
stances the barometer is always steady, and
tlie thermometer high. When other points
of wind accompany this weather, they are
attended either with frost or heat, according
to the season of the year.
261. Heights of clouds. — There exist a
groat many meai^urenicnts of the heights of
clouds. According to the best authorities
it would appear that their extreme range
of height extends from 1300 to 21,300 feet
above the sea. That clouds exist at diffe-
rent heights is easily proveil while ascend-
ing mountains; and another proof consists
in their being seen to move in opposite
directions at the same time : one set may
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICUI^TURE.
71
be seen moving in one direction near the
earth, whilst another may be seen unmoved
through their openings. Clouds may be
seen moving in different directions, at
apparently great heights in the air, whilst
those near the ground may be quite still.
The whole clouds seen may be moving
in the same direction with different velo-
cities. It is natural to suppose that the
lighter clouds — those containing vapour in
the most elastic state — should occupy a
higher position in the air than the less
elastic. On this account, it is only fleecy
clouds that are seen over the tops of the
highest Andes. Clouds, in heavy wea-
ther, are seldom above ^ mile high, but in
clear weather from 2 to 4 miles, and per-
haps the cirri are 5 or 6 miles.
262. Size of clouds. — Clouds are often of
enormous size, lOmileseachwayand 2miles
thick, containing 200 cubic miles of vapour ;
but sometimes they are even 1 0 times
that size. The size of small clouds may be
easily estimated by observing their shadows
on the ground in clear breezy weather in
summer. These are usually cumuli scud-
ding before a W. wind. The shadows
of larger clouds may be seen resting on
the sides of mountain ranges, or spread
out upon the ocean. Messrs Peytier and
Hossard had favourable opportunities of
ascertaining the heights and sizes of clouds
while prosecuting the triangulation that
was executed in the Pyrenees in 1826.
On the 29th September the two observers
were so placed as to see at the same mo-
ment the two opposite surfaces of the same
cloud, and its thickness was 1458 feet:
next day it had increased to 2786 feet.
263. Fog or Mist.— The phenomenon of
fog or mist occurs at all seasons, and it
appears always under the peculiar circum-
stances explained by Sir Humphry Davy.
His theory is, that radiation of heat from
land and water sends up vapour until it
meets with a cold stratum of air, which
condenses it in the form of mist, — that
naturally gravitates towards the surface.
When the radiation is Aveak, the mist
seems to lie upon the ground, but when
more powerful, the stratum of mist may be
seen elevated a few feet above the ground.
Mist, too, may be seen to continue longer
over the water than the land, owing to the
slower radiation of vapour from water; and
it is generally seen in the hollowest por-
tions of ground, on account of the cold air,
as it descends from the surrounding rising
ground, mixing with the air in the hollow,
and diminishing its capacity for moisture.
264. Mist also varies in its character
according to its electric state ; if negatively
affected, it deposits its vapour morequickly,
forming a heavy sort of dew, and wetting
every thing like rain ; but if positively, it
continues to exist as fog, and retains the
vapour in the state in which it has not the
property of wetting like the other. Thin
hazy fogs frequently occur in winter even-
ings after clear cold weather, and they
often become so permanently electric, as to
resist for days the action of the sun to
disperse them. Thick heavy fogs occur
also in the early part of summer and
autumn, and are sometimes very wetting.
265. The formation of fog is often ac-
companied with circumstances which it is
at first difficult to explain. For example,
when the sky is cloudy, a local fog is often
observed on the declivity of mountains,
occupying only a small surface ; and is
soon dissipated, but again appears imme-
diately. In such a case of fog, it is formed
over ground covered with long grass,
compared with that around it ; and the
explanation is, that the long grass pre-
venting the heating of the ground so
quickly as the barer ground near it, a
less active evaporation takes place over it.
266. In countries where the soil is moist
and hot, thick and frequent fogs may be
expected. This is the case in England,
the coasts of which are washed by the sea
at an elevated temperature. The same is
more constantly the case with the polar
seas of Newfoundland, where the gulf-
stream, which comes from the S., has a
higher temperature than that of the air.
267. But fogs are not always formed
from the vapour derived from the ground
over which they are observed to exist.
Vapour may be transported by winds to
cold countries, and be there converted into
fog at a notable distance from the place of
its origin. The S.W. winds generally bring
abundance of vapour into Germany, whilst
the N.E. instantly precipitates the vapour
radiated from the soil below.
72
INITIATION.
268. The prognostic regarding fog is,
that if it creep towards the hills it will be
rain, but if it goes to the sea it will be fine
weather.
2G9. Fog has the effect of both conceal-
ing and magnifying distant objects ; it can
clearly exhibit the shadows of near objects,
and is an excellent conductor of sound :
all which phenomena can easily be ex-
plained on optical and acoustical principles.
270. Rain. — The life of plants and ani-
mals depending as much on moisture as on
temperature, and their development being
greatly modified by the dryness or humi-
dity of the atmosphere, the cause and
effects of rain become important objects of
study to the agricultural student.
271. Rain-gauge. — Although the actual
quantity of rain that falls in a given part
of a country is not an exact measure of
the dryness or humidity of its climate, that
being chiefly determined by the frequency
and not the quantity of rain that falls;
still it is interesting to know the quantity
of rain that falls in any given locality. The
rain that falls is measured by a rain-gauge.
This instrument is of no use to the farmer
as an indicator of rain, and, like some of the
rest which have been described, only pro-
fesses to tell tiie result after it has occurred ;
and even for the purpose of indicating the
quantity of rain that has actually fallen in
a given space, it is an imperfect instrument.
" The simplest form of this instrument,"
says Mr John Adie, " is a funnel, with a
cylindrical mouth, 3 or 4 inches high, and
having an area of 100 square inches, made
of tinned iron or thin copper. It may be
placed in the mouth of a large bottle for
receiving the water, and, after each fall,
the quantity is measured by a glass jar,
divided into inches and parts. A more
elegant arrangement of the instrument is
formed by placing the funnel at the top
of a brass cylindrical tube, having at one
side a glass tube, communicating with it
at the under part, with a divided scale
placed alongside of it. The area of the
mouth is to that of the under tubes as
10:1; consequently 1 inch deep of rain
falling into the mouth will measure 10
inches in the tubes, and 1 inch upon tne
scale will be equal to a fall of 15 of an inch,
which quantities arc marked upon the
scale, and the water is let off by a stop-
cock below. The instrument should be
placed in an exposed situation, ata dis-
tance from all buildings and trees, and as
near the surface of the ground as possible.
• . . In cases of snow-storms, the rain-
gauge may not give a correct quantity, as
a part may be blown out, or a greater
quantity have fallen than the mouth will
contain. In such cases, the method of know-
ing the quantity of water is, to take any
cylindrical vessel — such asa case for contain-
ing maps, which will answer the purpose
very well, and, pressing it perpendicularly
into the snow, bring out a cylinder of snow
with it equal to the depth ; and this, when
melted, will give the quantity of water by
measurement. The proportion of snow to
water is about 17:1, aiid hail to water
8:1. These quantities, however, are not
constant, but depend upon tlie circumstances
under which the snow or hail has fallen,
and the time they have been upon the
ground." *
272. The cost of a rain-gauge, according
as it is fitted up, is £\, 5s., £2, 12s. 6d.,
and i^4, 4s.
273. Udometer. — "M. Flaugergues, pro-
fessor at the school of naval artillery at
T<iulon. presented to the Society of Science
of that city, in the course of 1841, a new
gyratory udometer, arranged not only for
measuring the quantity of rain that falls,
but also to make known, by mere inspec-
tion, the portions of this quantity wliich
have fallen for each determinate wind. This
instrument is com|X)sed, 1st, Of a funnel
movable round a vertical axis, covered at
its up])er part, and carrying at its lower ex-
tremity an escape-tube, the axis of which is
in the same vertical plane with the axis of
rotation, and with a vane placed in the very
body of the funnel, so that the escape of
water, accumulated there, takes place in a
direction constantly parallel with tliat of
the wind ; 2d, Of a cylindrical receptacle
divided by eight vertical j)artitions, radi-
ating into eight chambers, and corresj)ond-
ing to the eight principal points of the
compass. This receptacle is, in tlie outset,
duly adjusted, and solidly fixed on a base
Quarterly Journal 0/ .Agriculture, iii. p. 13.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
73
at the bottom of each of the divisions, by
a tube which ascends vertically outside the
receptacle, and in which the height of the
water in the correspondent cell is observed.
An udometer of this kind has been used
since the commencement of 1841, at the
naval battery at Toulon, and it leaves no-
thing to be desired." *
274. The ^Al?ory proposed by Dr Hutton,
that rain occurs from the mingling to-
gether of great beds of air of unequal tem-
peratures differently stored with moisture,
is that which was adopted by Dalton,
Leslie, and others, and is the current one,
having been illustrated and strengthened
by the clearer views of the nature of depo-
sition which we now possess ; and which
teach that as the S. to S.W. wiuds bring
the vapour, so the upward current of the
atmosphere carries it to a lower tempera-
ture, when an immediate precipitate takes
place of the vapour in the form of rain.
275. On the connexion of rain with the
fall of the harometer, Mr Meikle has shown
that the change of pressure may be a cause
as well as an effect ; for the expansion of
air accompanying diminished pressure,
being productive of cold, diminishes the
elasticity of the existing vapour, and
causes a deposition. t
276. Taking a general view of the rain
that falls over the face of the globe, it is
found that the tropical region is subject
chiefly to periodical rains, that is, large
quantities falling at one time of the year,
while at other times none falls for months.
In portions of the globe no rain falls at
all, and they are, in consequence, called
the " rainless districts ;" these comprehend
part of the desert of Sahara and Egypt
in Africa, part of Arabia, Persia, the
desert of Gobi, Thibet and Mongolia in
Asia, and the W. coasts of Mexico and
Peru in America.
277. On each side of the tropical zone,
towards the poles, is the zone of " constant
precipitation," not that rain constantly falls,
but that it may fall in any day of the year ;
while, in a stripe of the same zone, at a
short distance from, and parallel with, the
equator, rain is frequent, almost constant,
and always accompanied with electrical
explosions.
278. The annual amount of rain that falls
in the Old and New World, distinguish-
ing the annual amounts in the tropics,
within the zone of periodical rains, from
those in the zones of constant precipitation,
is as follows : —
The annual amount of rain
Under the tropics of the New World, 115 inches.
Old World, 76 ...
Within the tropics generally, . 95 1 ...
In the temperate zone of the New
World, (United States,) . . 37 ...
Of the Old World, (Europe,) . 31 f ...
Generally, 34| ...
279. Confining our general view of the
fall of rain to Eui-ope, that quarter may
be divided into three portions; 1st, The
province of icinter rains, comprehending
part of the southern portion of Europe;
2d, The province of autumn rains, com-
prising the remainder of the southern and
the western portions ; and, 3d, The pro-
vince of the summer rains, embracing the
whole of the interior o£ the continent.
280. There are general laws which affect
the distribution of rain over the globe ; and
these are : — " The amount of rain decreases
as we recede from the equator to the poles;
thus, while under the tropics the yearly
average amount of rain is 95 inches, in
Italy it is less than a half, or 4.5 inches; in
England about one-third, or 30 inches;
in the north of Germany, about one-fourth,
or 22;! inches ; and at St Petersburg, only
one-fifth, or 17 inches."
281 . Though this be the case, the num-
ber of rainy days increases from the equa-
tor to the poles ; so that, where the most
rain falls, there are the fewest rainy days.
According to the observation of M. Cotte,
the numbers stand thus : —
From N. Lat. 12° to 43° there are 78 rainy days.
43° to 46° ... 103
46° to 50° ... 134
50° to 60° ... 161
282. " The quantity of rain decreases, in
general, in ascending low plains to ele-
vated table-lands ; but this law is reversed
Kaemtz's Complete Course of Meteorology, p. 125-6. Note. + Royal Institution Journal.
74
INITIATION.
in ascending steep and rugged mountain-
chains. The former case is illustrated by
the Iberian peninsula; for while on the
coast of Spain and Portugal the annual
fall of rain amounts to from 2.5 to 35 inches,
on the plateau or table-land of Castile, which
is surrounded with mountains, it is only
10 inches. In the latter case, the effect
of the Alps is so great, that while the
annual amount of rain in the valley of
the middle Rhine and on the plateau of
Bavaria is only 21 inches, in Berne and
Tegernsee, at the foot of the Alps, it is
nearly double, or 43 inches. In England
the amount of rain which falls in the
mountainous districts, is more than double
that of the less elevated portions of the
country; thus, while the meteorological
reports for Essex give only an annual
average of 19"5 inches, those for Keswick
in Cumberland show no less than 67*5
inches ; and at Kinfauns, in »Scotland, the
amount shown, on an average of five years,
is 2.5'66, whilst that in the vicinity, placed
on a hill 600 feet above the level of the
sea, amounts to 41*49 inches.
283. " The amount of rain decreases in
the direction from the coasts to the interior
of continents ; and this is exemplified by
the difference between the coasts of the
Atlantic Ocean and the countries of Eastern
Russia. The western coasts of Great Bri-
tain, France, and Portugal, have an annual
average of from 30 to 35 inches. Bergen,
in Norway, has 80, and Coimbra, in
Portugal, 111 inches of rain; while in
central and eastern Europe, in Bavaria,
and through Poland and Russia, it falls to
15 inches. At lekatrinburg, in the Ural
mountains, it is only 13 inches, and in the
interior of Siberia it is still less.
284. " In both hemispheres, within the
temperate zone, the W. coasts are projior-
tionally more moist than the E. In this
quarter of the globe, it is explained by the
prevalence of the W. winds, which, before
arriving in Europe, become charged with
vapour in j)assing over the Atlantic (3cean ;
whilst those which blow from the E. pa.s3
over the interiorof the continent.^ of Europe
and Asia, where the dryness of the air in-
creases so rajndly from W. to E. that a
mean of seven years' observation gives
to Moscow 205, to Karau 90, and to Ir-
koutzk only 57 days of rain ; and the rains
which accompany the W. M'inds have been
observed at Penzance to exceed those
caused by the E. winds in the ratio of 3 : 1.
The determining causes of the distribution
of rain in Europe are thus seen to be the
predominance of W. winds with the ex-
istence of a vast ocean on one side, and a
great continent on the other. The former
of these causes is thus explained by A. von
Humboldt : ' The predominating winds of
Europe are E., which for the W. and
central portions of it are sea-winds — cur-
rents which have been in contact with a
mass of waters, the teiuperature of which,
at the surface, even in the month of
January, does not, at 45'' and 50^ of lati-
tude, fall below 5P and 48^ Fahrenheit.' "*
285. Mr Howard remarks, that, on an
average of years, it rains every other day;
and, by a mean of 40 years at ^Iviers, M.
Flaugergues found 98 days of rain through-
out the year.
286. He also states, that of 21*94 inches
— a mean of 31 lunar months — rain fell in
the day to the amount of 8'67 inches, and
in the night to 13' 27 inches. Dr Dalton
also states, that more rain falls when the
sun is under the horizon than when it is
above it. ,
287. Mr Howard further remarks, that 1
year in every 5 in this country may be
expected to be extremely dry, and 1 in 10
extremely wet.t
288. Notwithstanding the enormous
annual fall of rain at the equator, parti-
cular instances of a great depth of rain in
a short time have occasionally occurred in
Europe, which probably have seldom been
equalled in any other part of the globe.
At Geneva, on the 25th October 1822,
there fell 30 inches of rain in one day.
At Joyeuse, according to M. Arago, on the
9th October 1827, there fell 31 inches of
rain in 22 hours. With regard to re-
markable variations in the quantity of rain
in different places, among the Andes it is
said to rain perpetually ; whereas in Peru,
* Johnston's Physical Atlas — Mtteorology ; a new work of great accuracy, beauty, and interest.
+ Encydopcedia Metropolitana ; art. Mettorolojy.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
75
as Ulloa affirms, it never rains, but that
for a part of the year the atmosphere is
obscured by thick fogs caWed ffaritas. In
Egypt it hardly ever rains at all, and in
some parts of Arabia it seldom rains more
than two or three times in as many years ;
but the dews are heavy, and refresh the
soil, and supply with moisture the few
plants which grow in those sunny regions.*
289. The influence of i/ie lunar periods
on the amount of rain deserves attention.
Professor Forbes believes that there is
some real connexion between the lunar
phases and the weather. M. Flaugergues,
who has observed the weather at Viviers
with the greatest assiduity for a quarter
of a century, marked the number of rainy
days corresponding with the lunar phases,
and found them at a maximum at tiie first
quarter, and a minimum at the last.
290. It almost always happens that rain
brings down foreign matter fro^n the air.
It is known that the farina of plants has
been carried as far as 30 or 40 miles, and the
ashes of volcaaoes have been carried more
than 200 miles. We can conceive that
when the magnitude of the particles of
dry substances is so reduced as to render
them incapable of falling in any given
velocity, that their descent may be over-
come by a very slight current of the air ;
but even in still air a sphere of water of
only the almost inconceivable size of
gooooo part of an inch in diameter falls 1
inch in a second, and yet particles of mist
must be much larger than this, otherwise
they could not be visible as separate drops;
the least drop of water that is discover-
able by the naked eye falls with a velocity
of 1 foot in the second, when the air is
still. Although it is probable that the
resistance opposed to the descent of small
bodies in air, may be considerably greater
than would be expected from calculation,
still the wonder is how they are supported
for any length of time. In this diffi-
culty there is much inclination to call in
the aid of electricity to account for the
phenomenon. Mr Leithead accounts for
it in this way: "When the earth is posi-
tive and the atmosphere negative, the
electric fluid, in endeavouring to restore
its equilibrium, would cause a motion
amongst the particles of the air in a
direction from the earth towards the
higher region of the atmosphere ; fur the
air being a very imperfect conductor, the
particles near the earth's surface can only
convey electricity to the more remote
particles by such a motion. This would,
in efiect, partly diminish the downward
pressure of the air, which is due to its
actual density;" and, in doing this, might
it not, at the same time, counteract in
some degree the gravity of any substance
in the air by surrounding it with an elec-
trical atmosphere ? "When, on the con-
trary," continues Mr Leithead, "the earth
is negative and the air positive, this
motion of the particles will be rever^sed ;
thus increasing the pressure towards the
earth, and producing the same effect as if
the air had actually increased in den-
sity;" t and would it not thereby be more
capable of supporting any foreign body
in it ?
291. Gaseous as well as vegetable and
mineral matters are brought by rain from
the atmosphere. Nitrogen and hydrogen,
in the form of ammonia and carbc)nic acid
— the two last forming the most essential
elements in the food of plants — are brought
down by rain.
292. "The nitrogen of putrefied ani-
mals," says Liebig, "is contained in the
atmosphere as ammonia, in the state of a
gas, which is capable of entering into com-
bination with carbonic acid, and of form-
ing a volatile salt. Ammonia, in its gaseous
form, as well as all its volatile compounds,
is of extreme solubility in water. Ammo-
nia, therefore, cannot remain long in the
atmosphere, as every shower of rain must
eftect its condensation, and convey it to
the surface of the earth. Hence, also,
rain-water must at all times contain am-
monia, though not always in equal (juan-
tity. It must contain more in summer
than in spring or in winter, because the
intervals of time between the showers are
in summer greater ; and when several wet
days occur, the rain of the first must con-
tain more of it than that of the second.
The rain of a thunder-storm, after a long
* Forbes's Report on Meteorology, vol. i. p. 251-252.
+ Leithead On Electricity, p. 373. This explanation Mr Leithead also gives to account for the
changes ia the density of the atmosphere, as indicated by the oscillations of the barometer.
76
INITIATION.
protracted drought, ought for this reason
to contain the greatest quantity conveyed
to tiic earth at one time."
293. As regards the quantity of ammo-
nia thus hrouglit down by the rain, — as
1132 cubic feet of air, saturated with
aqueous vapour at 59° Fahrenheit, should
yiehl 1 lb. of rain-water, if the pound con-
tain only one-fourth of a grain of ammo-
nia,ai)ieceofgroundof 26,910 squarefeet —
43,."<60 square feet being in an acre — must
receive annually upwards of 80 lbs. of am-
monia, or 65 lbs. of nitrogen, which is
much more nitrogen than is contained in
the form of vegetable albumen and gluten
in 26.50 lbs. of wood, 2oOO lbs. of hay, or
200 cwt. of beetroot, which are the yearly
produce of Such a piece of ground ; but it
is less than the straw, roots, and grain of
corn, which might grow on thosame surface,
would contain.
294. Snow-water yields ammonia as
well as rain-water, and the snow which is
next the ground, and which fell first, yields
more than what lies above it. The ammo-
nia contained in snow and rain-water pos-
sesses a smell of perspiration and putrefying
matter — a fact which leaves no doubt of
its origin; for "the ammonia received
from the atmosphere by rain and other
causes, is as constantly replaced by putre-
faction of animal and vegetable matters.
A certain portion of that which falls with
the rain evaporates again with the water;
but another portion is, wc suppose, taken
up by the roots of plants, and, entering
into new combinations in the difl'erenfc
organs of assimilation, produces, by the
action of these and of certain other condi-
tions, albumen, gluten, &c. The chemi-
cal characters of ammonia render it cap-
able of entering into such combinations, and
of undergoing numerous transformations."*
295. These are general prognostics of
rain: — When cattle suutf tbe air and
gather together in a corner of the field
with their heads to leeward, or take
shelter in the sheds — when sheep leave
their pastures with reluctance — when
goats go to sheltered spots — when asses
bray frequently and shake their ears —
when dogs lie much about the fireside and
appear drowsy; — when cats turn their
backs to the fire and wa.'^h their faces —
when pigs cover themselves more than
usual in litter — when cocks crow at un-
usual hours and flap their wings much —
when hens chaunt — when ducks and
geese are unusually clamorous — • when
pigeons wash themselves — when pea-
cocks s(|uall loudly from trees — when the
guinea-fowl «iakes an incessant grating
clamour — when sparrows chirp loudly,
and clamorously congregate on the ground
or in the hedge — when swallows fly low,
and skim tlieir wings on water, on ac-
count of the flies upon which they feed
having descended towards the ground
— when the carrion-crow croaks solitarily
— when water wild-fowl dip and wash
unusually — when moles throw up hills
more industriously than usual — when
toads creep out in numbers — when frogs
croak — when bats squeak, and enter
houses — when the singing birds take
shelter — when the robin approaches near-
est the dwellings of man — when tame
swans fly against the wind — wlien bees
leave their hives with caution, and fly only
short distances — when ants carry their
eggs busily — when flies bite severely,
and become troublesome in numbers —
"when earthworms appear on the surface
of the ground and crawl about — and when
the larger sorts of snails appear.
29<). Wi7id. The variations in the in-
tensity and direction of the winds are the
best indices to the change of w eatber that
the agricultural student can study. In
the temperate zone, and particularly ih
this island, flanked as it is with one great
ocean, and not fur removed from an ex-
tensive continent, tlie variations of the
wind are so great, and apparently so
capricious, as to bafile minute and correct
inquiry; whereas in the trojiics, the
periodic winds correspond exactly with
the uniform course of the seasons, and
the limited range of the barometer — phe"
nomena characteristic of that portion of
the globe.
297. The disparity of phenomena be-
tween these zones may be accounted for.
In the tropics, the direct influence of the
•solar rays upon so considerable a portion
Liebig's Clicmistry of Agricultute and Physiology, 3d edition, p. 43-47.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
77
of the surface of the globe as is conipre-
hended in the breadth of the ecliptic,
23° 18' on each side of the equatorial line,
at once circumscribes and guides the
aerial current within certain limits, which
is effected by the rarefaction of the air, as
the earth presents a portion of its surface to
that influence in the diurnal rotation round
its axis. This influence being in constant
^.jtion, and exercised on a pretty uniform
surface, the current generated to suj^ply
so regular and constant a rarefaction must
be also constant and regular. In the
temperate zones, on the other hand, the
solar action is always oblique, and in con-
sequence comparatively weak; and the
aerial current becomes subject besides to
secondary influences, which, operating on
it in diflJerent degrees at different times,
cause irregularities in its course. It is
probable, too, that the electric agency may
have a more powerful influence on the
atmosphere in the temperate than the
torrid zone, by reason, perhaps, of the
diminished power of the solar influence ;
and as the electric action is more varied
and unequal than that of the sun, the cur-
rents of the atmosphere may thereby be
rendered as varied and unequal.
298. This not yet well understood sub-
ject may perhaps be made clearer by re-
flecting on the origin of the regular winds
of the torrid zone. In the zone of greatest
heat, in the tropics, the air is more rare-
fied than any where else. " In conse-
quence of this," says Mr Mudie, " the
rarefied air ascends into the upper part of
the atmosphere, and its place is supplied
by cooler and less I'arefied air from the
N. and S. at the same time ; and it
is rarefied in its turn, and ascends in the .
air. Hence there is a constant ascent of
the atmosphere from the point where the
sun's heat is greatest, and this travels
W. round the globe, every 24 hours,
at a rate from 900 to 1000 miles an hour
in the tropical zone, having, of course,
no definite boundary, but extending on
each side of the zone. In this way, all
along this zone, the general motion of the
atmosphere is upward away from the sur-
face of the earth ; and little or no wind
or current blows in any direction icitkiti
it, unless from disturbance produced by
terrestrial causes, such as the land, islands,
and mountains. Without the indefinite
boundaries of this zone, however, there is
a motion of the surface atmosphere, both
from the N. and from the S., which ex-
tends farther into either hemisphere, in
proportion as the sun has more declination
in it. But as the atmospheric air, when
undisturbed by currents on the surface of
the earth, is carried E. with the same
velocity as the surface itself, that is, less
than 1000 miles an hour, in the propor-
tion of the cosines of the latitude as we
recede from the equator, this real motion
of the air E. along the earth's surface, is
the counterpart of the apparent motion
W. as indicated by the progress of the
sun in the zone of highest temperature ;
and though these motions are exactly
equal on the same parallel,' the rate of
motion in the hour, the day, or any
fraction of it, is less and less as the
latitude increases. Therefore, when the
current from the N. and from the S.
from the high latitudes, besides the time
it takes to travel, has less real motion
E. or apparent motion W. than the
tropical zone into which it arrives, the
consequence is, that it is deflected W.
in both hemispheres, and becomes a
wind from the SE. on the S. side of the
parallel of greatest heat, and from the
NE. from the N. of the same. This
is what is usually termed the trade-
wind^ and would be perfectly palpable
all round the globe were its surface uni-
form ; but, like all other phenomena of the
earth, this wind is so nmch modified by
surface-action, that the actual result ac-
cords but little with what might be inferred
from principles alone. Still this is the
grand cause which puts the currents of the
atmosphere in motion ; and, notwithstand-
ing all its modifications, it has great
influence in determining the climate and
productiveness of the different rei;ions of
the earth." This cause of the trade-winds
was first assigned by Hadley in 1734.
299. The influence of the tropical zone
on the currents of the atiuosphere else-
where will become more apparent, when
we trace the courses of those currents in
the higher latitudes. " This surface-cwT-
rent from the N. and from the S. towards
the equator," continues Mr Mudie, " neces-
sarily requires, and therefore produces, a
counter-current in the higher atmosjyhere.
The air, which is continually drawn to-
78
INITIATION.
wards the parallel of greatest heat, either
in a p:il{>able trade-wind, or a silent cur-
rent, cannot accumulate over the equator,
because as it ascends it gets into a cold
region, and is there condensed. After
tins it descends towards the poles along
the upper part of the atmosphere, and
ultimately replaces that which finds its
way to the troi)ical zone, producing a
general motion in each hemisphere to-
wards the tropical zone near the surface
of the earth, and a counter-current from
the equator at a higher elevation. This
cotinter-current is the reverse of that from
the poles, and therefore the different rate
of motion in the different parallels of
latitude has a contrary effect upon it.
As it gets into higher latitudes, it has
more E. motion than the surface there ;
and thus it is converted into a current
from the SW. in the N. hemisphere, and
a current from the NW. in the S. In
latitudes near the equator, this counter-
current in the atmospliere is not observed
on the surface of the ground, because both
the S. and N. currents occupy the sur-
face, and indee<l the whole atmosphere to
a considerable altitude. When, however,
we come to the middle latitudes, the SW.
wind, at least in countries to the E. of
the Atlantic, descends so low, that it is not
•nly felt on the moimtain-tops throughout
great part of the year, but the effects of
it, and the rain which this wind often
brings along with it, are seen in the
bleaching or wearing away of the W.
sides of mountains of bold escarpment;
for it is to be understood, that though, in
many such countries, the E. wind is the
surface-wind, which precedes or ushers in
the rain, the SW. wind being the warmer
one, and as such holding the greater quan-
tity of moisture in a state of vapour, is
really the one out of which the rain is
elaborated by the friction of the E. wind
against it." *
300. The course of the wind, caused by
the diurnal action of the sun's rays in the
tropics, is still farther affected by another
circumstance. Since the attraction of the
sun and moon produces the remarkable
effect of an oceanic wave, we cannot but
suppose that an efl'ect eijually great at
least is produced upon the atmosphere by
forming an atmospheric wave. Indeed,
as the atmosphere is nearer both those
attractive objects than the ocean, the
effect upon it should be even greater.
When we add to this the elasticity of the
air, or that disposition which it has to
dilate itself when freed from any of the
pressure affecting it, we must conclude
that .the atmospheric tides are consider-
able. Now, since the apparent diurnal
motion of the sun and moon is from E. to
W,, the atmospheric tides must follow it,
and consequently produce a constant
motion in the atmosphere from E. to W.
This cause was first assigned by D' Alembert.
301. The currents of air toward the
tropical zone are affected in their direc-
tion by the change of the sun's position
in the ecliptic, and the winds thereby gene-
rated are also regular, and are called the
monsoons^ — a word said to be derived
from the Malay word moos'in^ signifying
a season. Tlie SW. monsoon blows from
April to October ; and its cause is the
rarefaction of the air over the land as the
sun proceeds N. to the tropic of Cancer,
while its supply of cold air is from the
Indian Ocean. The other blows from
the NE. from October to April, and is
caused by the cold air of the Indian
Ocean flowing towards the land of New
Holland, when the sun travels S. to
the tropic of .Capricorn. Great storms
prevail at what is called the breaking up
of the monsoons, that is, at the equinoxes,
when the sun is in the parallel of the
equator, as may be expected to be the "case
when any system of atmosj)heric pheno-
mena, which has continued for six months
together, is undergoing a great and oppo-
site change. There are many more and
greatly modified monsoons besides these
regular ones, along all the southern coasts
of land bounded by the Indian Ocean
w-ithin the limits of the tropics.
302. A regular form of wind in the
tropics is the land and sea-breeze. In all
maritime countries of any extent between
the tropics, the wind blows during a cer-
tain number of hours every day from the
sea, and a certain number of hours from
the land. The sea-hreeze generally sets
in about .10 a.m., and blows till 6 P.M. ;
• Mudie's World,^. 101-104.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
79
when it lulls into a calm. At 7 p.m. tlie
land-hreeze begins, and continues till 8
A.M., when it subsides into a calm. These
winds are thus accounted for: — During
the day, the cool air of the sea, loaded
with vapour, moves over the land, and
takes the place of the rarefied land-air ;
but as the sun declines, the rarefaction of
the land-air diminishes, the equilibrium is
restored, and a calm ensues. The sea is
not so much heated during the day as the
land, neither is it so much cooled during
the night, because it is constantly expos-
ing a new surface to the atmosphere. As
the night approaches, therefore, the cooler
and denser air of the hills (for where there
are no hills there can be no land and sea
breezes) falls down upon the plains, and,
pressing upon the now comparatively
lighter air of the sea, in a state of calm,
causes it to return towards the sea in th^
character of a laud-breeze.
303. Whenever we pass from the tropi-
cal to the temperate zones, we always
meet with variable winds, and it is these
which stamp the nature of ever}' climate ;
for although most apparent in their
effects in the temperate regions, they
nevertheless also exist in the tropics, as
may be experienced along every coast and
large island in the Indian Ocean. Their
course, therefore, depends on causes which
act uniformly, notwithstanding their ap-
parent irregularities. They may be all
intimately connected with one another,
and may probably succeed each otiier in a
certain order, though that connexion and
that order have not hitherto been ascer-
tained. When both have been discovered,
then the course and intensity of the vari-
able winds may be reduced to calculation
as certainly as the regular winds are al-
ready. This brings us at once to the con-
sFderation and elucidation of the variable
winds of Europe.*
304. I have already alluded to the
division of Europe by meteorologists into
three rainy provinces; and as certain
winds are believed to produce these
seasonal rains, their action, which has
been observed for a number of years to be
of so regular an order, may be traced with
interest, and this M. Kaemtz has done in
a satisfactory manner. " On collecting
all that is known in the different climates
of E-urope," observes M. Kaemtz, in re-
counting tlie rainy winds of Europe, " we
are led to establish three hyetographic
regions: 1st, that of England and the
west of France, which extends in a modi-
fied form even into the interior of the con-
tinent; 2d, that of Sweden and Finland ;
and 3d, that of the coasts of the Mediter.'
ranean. The limits of these regions are
not always rigorously defined ; they are
not clearly recognised, except in points
where they are marked by great chains o£
mountains. Every where else the transi-
tions are found to be very orderly. The
difi'erences of these three groups, consist
in the different direction of the rainy
winds, and of the distribution of the quan-
tity of water which falls each year. Let
us consider that part of Europe N. of
the Alps and the Pyrenees ; the predomi-
nance of W. winds, a vast ocean on one
side, a great continent on the other, are
the determining circumstances of the
distribution of rains. If the NE. wind
always prevailed, even at a considerable
height, it would never rain, for it passes
over lands, before arriving at the two lati-
tudes, where the elevation of temperature
removes the vapours from their point of
condensation. If the SW. wind, on the
contrary, blew without ceasing, it would
always rain, for as soon as the moist air gets
cool, the vapour of water is precipitated.
In spite of their alternations, these winds
always preserve their relative characters.
If we imagine, with M. de Buch, how
many times each wind brings rain, these
results become evident. In 100 showers
which fell at Berlin, the different winds
blew in the following proportions : —
N. NE. E. SE. S. SW. W. NW.
4-1 4-0 4-9 4-9 10-2 32-8 248 14-4.
Thus scarcely any rain falls with the NE.
wind, whilst at least half are brought by
the W. and SW. winds. But the winds
do not all blow an equal number of times
in the, course of the year. The number of
times that each wind has blown must,
therefore, be de(^ded by the number corre-
spond ing to each win d in the preceding table.
We then obtain the following numbers : —
N. NE. E. SE. S. SW. W. NW.
5-8 8-1 8-8 6-fl 3-8 2-8 4-2 45
* See Polehampton's Gallery of Nature and Art, vol. iv. p. 185-205 ; in which an interesting col-
lection of accounts of varieties in the phenomena of the winds is given.
80
INITIATION.
The law is always the same ; out of nine
times which theE. wind blows, it only
rains once ; whilst it rains once in three
times during the SW. wind. The influ-
ence of seasons is also recognised. Whilst
it frecjuently rains in winter during E. or
N. winds, these same winds are almost al-
ways dry in summer. This fact accords
very well with what we have said on tlie
relative humidity of the diflerent winds,
for with E. winds the air is very dry in
summer, but very moist in winter. Rains
brought by NE. winds are even very dif-
ferent from those brought by the SW.
When the NE. wind suddenly begins to
blow, the temperature falls ; large drops
of rain fall in abundance for several mo-
ments ; the sky then again becomes serene.
In SW. winds, the rain is fine, and
lasts a long time. So the rains are in
general due to a cooling, and to the pre-
cipitation of the vapours brought by the
SW. wind. In high latitudes, oii the
contrary, the NE. wind suddenly cools
masses of air, which can then no longer
contain vapours in the elastic state. As
these winds succeed each other with a
certain regularity, there must foUow a
very regular succession of changes of
weather; on this we will now make a few
observations.
305. " When the weather has been fair
for a long time, and a SW, wind begins
to blow in the higher regions of the'
atmosphere, cirri make their appearance,
and soon cover the sky. Beneath them is
formed a stratum of cumulus, which
allows a ligirt rain to escape. The wind
turns to the W., the clouds become
thicker, the rain falls more abundantly,
and the air becomes colder. With the N,
or NW. wind the rain continues, al-
though the thermometer falls. In winter,
the rain passes into tlie state of snow. If
the wind does not entirely cease with the
N. wind, it is not, however, continuous;
the blue of the sky is seen in the intervate
which separate the clouds. Showers alter-
nate with sunshine, especially with the NE.
wind ; but if the wind pagfees to the E. or
the S., the sky is then covered with small
rounded CM wim/?, or else it becomes perfectly
serene. These phenomena succeed each
other in an almost uniform manner, over
large surfaces. Mountain-chains alone
have the power of sligiitly modifying the
succession of phenomena. If they extend
from N. to S., they arrest the SW. wind,
andSt will rain more on their AY* than on
their E. side. Thus the. SW. is not the
rainy wind in the S. of Germany, but
the NW. ; because the SW. winds lose
the water with which they are charged
when they arrive on the other side of the
Alps. The same thing happens in the
Scandinavian peninsula. On the W.
side of Norway, rain falls for entire
days during SW. winds, the summits of
the Scandinavian Alps are covered with,
hoar-frost; and on the other side of the
chain only a few drops disturb the
serenity of the sky of Sweden. The
sea-winds lose the moisture with which
they were charged in traversing the
large table -land that separates the two
countries; so that it rains more frequently
in Sweden with E. than with W. winds.
The proof that this is not connected with
the vapours which rise from the Baltic is,
that a similar relation is found in Finland.
AVherever the region of rainy E. winds
comes into contact with that of the rainy
W. winds, it rains indifferently with all
winds; this is remarked at St Petersburg.
We are still in want of a sufficient number
of observations in order to follow out these
laws into their details.
306."TheAtlantic isthegreatreservoirof
rains for the European regions that we have
hitherto been considering,butit has littlein-
fluenceover theclimate of countriessituated
on the north of the Mediterranean."*
307. The comparative prevalence of the
E. and W. winds in Great Britain is
shown in this table : —
W/ND.
rt 5;
Places.
o
Westerly.
Easterly.
10
London,
233-
132-
7
Lancaster,
216-
149-
51
Liverpool,
LOO-
175-
.9
Dumfries,
27-'-5
137-5
10
Branxholm, near Hawick,
23-J-
133-
7
Camhuslang,
214-
151-
8
Hawkhill, near Edinburgh,
Mean,
229-5 135-5
220-3 ! 144-7
* Kaemtz's CompUu Course of Metwrology,-^. 137-139.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
81
308. In London, by a mean of 10
years of the register kept by the Eoyal
Society, these results were obtained : —
Of SW. winds,
112 (lays
NE. —
58
NW. —
50
W. —
53
SE. —
32
E. —
26
S. —
18
N. —
16
309. By registers of the winds kept by
the late Admiral Sir David Milne, at In-
veresk, near Edinburgh, in the years 1840
and 1841 ; and by Mr Atkinson, at
Harraby, near Carlisle, in 1840, these
results were obtained : —
Inveresk.
Harraby.
1840.
1841.
1840.
Of N. winds,
86
77
12i days
NNE. —
20
12
144
NE. —
41
49
144
ENE. —
15
14
20i
E. —
28
38
20J
ESE. —
13
7
7
SE. —
32
29
204
SSE. —
19
20
224
S. —
39
79
194
SSW. —
38
62
24|
SW. —
127
113
394
WSW.—
38
45
704
W. —
138
105
42
WNW.—
33
29
16
NW. —
45
37
114
NNW.—
13*
13t
lOf
31 0. The direction of the winds in any
given locality is greatly affected by the
configuration of the country, their general
direction being modified so as to coincide
with the local lines of elevation and de-
pression of the surface. It is probably on
this account that the winds in Egypt are
generally either jST. or S. ; the former pre-
vailing nine months of the year. When
the climate is tolerably regular, as in the
S. of Europe, the direction of the wind
makes all possible difference in its charac-
ter. The transition from a sirocco to a
tramontana at Rome and Naples is as
great in temperature as 10° of lati-
tude. J A remarkable effect of local con-
figuration is thus stated : "When the
wind is NW. at Manchester, it is N.
at Liverpool ; when N. at Manchester, it
is NE. at Liverpool ; when NE. at Man-
chester, it is E. at Liverpool ; and when
E. at Manchester, it is SE. at Liverpool.
Of course the SW. wind comes the same to
both towns, as there are no hills to the S.
such as are to the N. and E. of them." §
311. ^\\Q force and velocity of winds are
instructive subjects of observation. They
have been attempted to be calculated with
great care and ingenuity by Mr Rouse,
who constructed tables of the results. His
tables were much improved and consider-
ably augmented by Dr Young, who, in
comparing Mr Rouse's observations with
the results of Dr Lind's scale, constructed
the following table :: —
Telocity of the
Wind, computed
Force of the
from Ro
iise'3 Ex-
Wind on the
periments.
square foot
lb. oz. dr.
Denominations of Winds.
Feet in 1
Miles in
second.
1 hour.
Hardly perceptible.
0 0 1.2
1.43
1.
Rouse.
0 0 5.1
2.93
2.
Just perceptible. Rouse.
0 0 11.2
4.40
3.
0 1 4.2
5.87
4.
Gentle winds. Lind.
0 1 15.4
7.33
5
0 2 1.2
10.67
5.14
A gentle -wind. Lind.
0 4 2.5
14.67
7.27
Pleasant wind. Lind.
Pleasant brisk gale.
0 7 13.9
15.19
10.
Rouse.
0 8 5.3
22.0
10.35
Fresli breeze. Lind.
1 1 11.3
29.34
15.
Brisk gale. Lind.
1 15 7.8
33.74
20.
Very brisk. Rouse.
2 9 10.6
36.67
23.
3 1 3.2
44.01
25.
4 6 13.8
47.73
30.
High wind. Rouse.
5 3 5.2
51.34
32.54
High wind. Lind.
6 0 6.9
58.68
35.
7 13 10.6
66.01
40.
Very high. Rouse.
9 15 6.5
67.5
45.
Great storm. Derham.
10 6 10.4
73.35
46.02
Very high. Lind.
12 4 12.8
82.67
50.
Storm or tempest. Rouse.
15 10 0.
88.02
56.37
Storm. Lind.
17 11 7.
95.46
60.
Great storm. Rouse.
29 13 5.2
96.82
65.08
Great storm. Lind.
Great storm. Condu-
21 6 15.3
106.72
66.
mine.
26 0 10.4
117.36
72.76
Very great storm. Lind.
31 7 13.4
116.91
80.
Hurricane. Rouse.
31 4 0.
126.43
79.7
Hurricane. Lind.
36 8 12.2
135.
86.21
Great hurricane. Lind.
Very great hurricane.
41 10 10.7
143.11
92.04
Lind.
46 14 0.
146.7
97.57
Most violent hurricane.
A hurricane that tears
49 3 3.2
1.50.93
100.
up trees.
52 1 5.2
15S.29
102.9
57 4 11.
160.
107.92
58 7, 3.2
165.34
109.
62 8 0.
112.73
I have doubts of the accuracy of some of
the contents of this table, as in many
particulars they do not correspond with
* Jameson's Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal, vol. xxx. p. 423.
+ Edinburgh Evening Post, January 1842. J Forbes's Report on Meteorology, vol. i. p. 247.
§ Morning Herald, 19th June 1839.
VOL. I. F
82
INITIATION.
my own obserrations on this subject.
Whatever may be the accuracy of the
higher ratfes of velocity I cannot say, for no
ordinary means of judging of them exists,
except by seeing the shadows of clouds
passing along the ground; but the accuracy
of the smaller velocities may very easily
be judged of. It is said that wind mov-
inf^ 2 miles. an hour is "just perceptible ;"
and at 3 and 4 miles it constitutes what
are called "gentle winds." Let us test
these. Suppose the air to be perfectly
calm when one is walking at the rate of 3
miles an hour, is there felt any thing like
a "gentle wind" upon the face? I think
not. Were it therefore moving at the rate
of 3 miles an hour, it would be as little
felt. Before wind is felt at all, one may
safely conclude that the air is moving at
a greater velocity than 3 or 4 miles an
hour, whatever indication anemometers
may give — for the human skin is a much
more delicate indicator of the gentle
motions of the air than any instrument.
On this view of the subject Sir Richard
Phillips makes these pertinent remarks :
" If wind blows 100 miles an hour — that
is, 528,000 feet — then, as air is 833 times
rarer than water, this moving at the rate
of 660 feet, or 1 furlong per hour, would
be equal to it, which is absurd. There
must be some mistake. A West India
hurricane has blown heavy cannon out of
a battery, and water at 5 miles an hour
■would scarcely beud a twig. Balloons
have travelled GO miles an hour, when the
anemometer showed but 8 miles." * When
I have observed the shadows of clouds
flying over the land in a windy day in
spring or summer, I was convinced that
the wind may move hundreds of miles per
hour ; and in this country the highest
wind has a small velocity compared to
that at times in the tropics. It is recorded
that such was the noise occasioned by the
hurricane that took place at Pondicherry
on the 2!>th October 1768, that when the
signal guns were fired to warn the shijis
oflf the coast, their reports were not heard
by even the inhabitants within the fort.t
312. The subject of Storms, in their
origin and direction, after a long period of
neglect, has of late again attracted the
attention of philosophers. So long ago as
1801, Colonel Capper, of the East India
Company's service," in his work on winds
and monsoons, gave it as his opinion that
hurricanes would be found to be great
ichlrlicinds. This idea was adopted and
confirmed by Mr W. C. Redfield of New
York, in a memoir on the prevailing storms
of the Atlantic coast of North America,
which appeared in Silliman's Journal in
1831. Colonel Reid, of the Royal
Engineers, has since then treated the sub-
ject in a philosophical manner in a recent
dissertation. His attention was first
directed to it in 1831. His military service
at Barbadoes, immediately after the de-
solating hurricane of that year, which in
the short space of seven hours destroyed
1477 houses in that island alone, naturally
led him to the consideration of the pheno-
mena of hurricanes. After much con-
sideration and investigation, he was im-
pressed with the regularity with which
storms appear to pass toward the north
pole, always revolving in the same direc-
tion, that is, oi)posite to the hands of a
watch, or from the E. round by the N.
W. S. to E. From this circumstance he
w\'vs anxious to ascertain whether the re-
volution would not be in an opposite direc-
tion in the southern hemisphere ; and this
point was well illustrated by the disastrous
storm, in the Indian Sea, of 1809, in which
nine sail of Indiaraen foundered. He
found the general phenomena of these
storms to be as a great whirlwind, repre-
sented by the revolution of a circle, whose
centre is made to progress along a curve
or part of a curve, which is, in most cases,
of a form approaching the parabolic, the
rotatory circle expanding as it advances
from the point at which the storm began
to be felt, — its rotatory motion in the
northern hemisphere being in a contrary
direction to that in which the hands of a
watch go round, while in the southern
hemisphere the rotation is in the same
direction as the hands ; the diameter of
the circle, over which the whirl of the storra
is spread, often extending from lUOO to
1800 miles. In the centre of the whirl is a
comparative calm, while in its circumfer-
ence the storm rages, and the wind blows
from every conceivable (j[uarter. %
Phillips' FacUf p. 455. + Capper On Winds and Momoont.
X Edinburgh Nev Philosophical Journal, vol. xxv. p. 342.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
83
313. There are concomitant circum-
stances attendant on storms worth relating.
Major Sabine found the magnetic intensity-
least at St Helena, where there are no
violent storms. The line of least intensity
passes through the Pacific Ocean ; the lines
of greatest magnetic intensity, on the con-
trary, seemed to correspond with the
localities of hurricanes and typhoons ; for
the meridian of the American magnetic
pole is found to pass not far from the
Caribbean Sea, and that of the Asiatic
pole through the China Sea. He found
two instances of water-spouts, one in the
northern, the other in the southern hemi-
sphere, in which the revolutions moved in
opposite directions, and both in contrary
directions to great storms. He explains
the variable high winds of our latitudes,
by storms expanding in size, and dimi-
nishing in force, as they approach the
poles, their meridians at the same time
Hearing each other, and occasioning a
huddling together of the gales.
314. Sir Snow Harris of Plymouth has
discovered that there is a connexiori be-
twixt the force of the wind, and the horo-
vary oscillations of the baronn'ter. Thus
the mean force of the wind for the whole
year, at 9 a.m. was 0*855, and at 9 p.m.
0-605; but at 3 p.m. it was 1-107 of Lind's
anemometer.*
815. M. Scliiibler has shown ih^i winds
huve a characteristic electric power. The
precipitations during the wind from the N.
half of the circle of azimuth, have a ratio
of positive to negative electricity, which
is a maximum, and in the other half it is
a mininmin ; the negative precipitations
when the wind is S. being more than
double the positive ones. The mean in-
tensity of electricity, independent of its
sign, is greatest in N. winds.t
316. There being an atmospherical
wave as well as a tidal one, and as any
elevation of the atmosphere cannot fail to
produce a change in parts immediately
below the point of disturbance, there seems
no reason to doubt that an analogy exists
betwixt the tides and the tcinds, and also
with rain. If high tides at London Bridge
happen at 1 2 or 1 noon, rain falls more
frequently than at other periods, if the
wind is in the E. So it seems probable
that, when the changes of the wind can be
calculated more perfectly, we shall have
more correct tide tables. It thus appears
that the nearer the high tide is to noon the
greater is the probability of rain, because
the breeze from the sea is then strongest.
317. The approach of high wind may
be anticipated from these general prog-
nostics : — when cattle appear frisky, and
toss their heads and jump — when sheep
leap and play, boxing each other — when
pigs squeal, and carry straw in their
mouths — when the cat scratches a tree or
a post — when geese attempt to fly, or dis-
tend and flap their wings — when pigeons
clap their wings smartly behind their
backs in flying — when crows mount in the
air and perform somersets, making at the
time a garrulous noise — when swallows
fly on one side of trees, because the flies
take the leeward side for safety against
the wind — when magpies collect in small
companies, and set ujj a chattering noise.
318. These are general indications of
Q. storm: — When the missel i\\rvis\\ (^Tard us
viscivorus) sings hmd and long, on which
account this bird has received the name of
the storm-cock — when sea-gulls come in
flocks on land, and make a noise about
the coast, — and when the porpoise (^Pho-
ccena communis) comes near the shore in
large numbers.
319. Every one is aware of the un-
certainty of foretelling the state of the
weather, but every one who has attempted
to foretell it, and has not succeeded, is not
aware of the nature of the mnny parti-
culars which render bis success doubtful.
These particulars are thus well enumerated
and arranged by Mr Mudie : — " Though
one of the most intei'esting subjects con-
nected with the economy of our globe,
and its use and comfort to man, this is
one of the mo:<t difficult subjects that can
engage his inquiry. One reason of this
is, the vast number of elements that have
to be studied and taken into account ; the
diff'erent laws which each of these obey;
the indeterminable nature of many of
them ; and the modifying influences which
Forbes's Report on Meteorology, vol. i. p. 248. f Ihid.
84
INITIATION.
they liave upon each otlier in their joint
working. Thud, tlic daily and seast)nal
motions of the earth, and tlie action of the
sun and moon ; the reciprocatin;^' influences
of tlie iienii.-plieres — those of sea and hind,
of phiin, or valley and mountain, and of
surfaces covered with ve<^etatiou of differ-
ent cliaracters — are , all causes of the
weather; hut in most instances, particu-
larly in such variahle climates as present
themselves ahout the middle latitudes of
the quadrant, and near the shores of the
sea — more especially in small countries
surrounded hy it — these causes are so
blended with each other, that it is impos-
sible so to analyse tlie result as to assign
to each of them its due state in bringing
about the particular weather of any day,
any week, or any peiiud, longer or
shorter." *
320. Botany. — The student of agri-
culture should become accpiainted with
systematic botany and botanical physi-
ology. Tlie former will enable him to
recognise any plant he may meet with in
the fields and pastures, and the latter will
make him acquainted with the internal
structure and functions of the plants he
is about to cultivate in agriculture.
321. Systematic botany may be ac-
quired by two methods, tlie artificial or
Linnyean, which was the only method
known for many years, and the natural
method, which was later discovered and
establislied by Jussien. It has become the
practice of some botanists to decry, of late
years, the Linmeau method of acquiring
a knowledge of the particular parts of
plants, and to extol the excellences of the
natural method. For my jiart, I should
be sorry to see the Linntean method
entirely abandoned, because I am per-
suaded that a beginner will much sooner
be able to recognise any plant he finds
by it than by the natural method ; and
after all, the Linntean is a natural method
of studying the construction of jdants, in-
asmuch as the conijionent parts of a flower,
upon which the system is founded, as
much belongs to the making up of ajdant,
as its aspect, form, and habits ; and besides,
the Linna?au method does not neglect the
form of the leaf, the character of the stem,
or the structure of the root, any more
than the natural or Jussien method.
No doubt, when plants are grouped in
relation to their general structure, form,
habits and uses, they become objects of
much greater interest and beauty, than
when examined with a view to be placed
in any artificial arrangement; and on this
account the natural method possesses a
charm which the longest and most inti-
mate study of tlie Linnajan method could
never present; still it is only when the
botanical student has far advanced into
the study of plants, and has become ac-
quainted with their properties and uses,
that he can appreciate the beauties and
advantages of the natural method. Such
being the case, it appears to me the most
rational method of acquiring a kn<jwledge
of botany is to become acquainted with
individual plants as well as possible ; and
which may be done by theLinnajan method,
and then to contemplate them in groups ac-
cording to the natural method of Jussien.
322. Botanical physiology, which makes
us acquainted with the internal structure
and functions of the several i)arts of plants,
and the circumstances by which the exer-
cise of these functions is observed to be
modified, can only be successfully acquired
after the study of systematic botany, and,
I should say, after it had been studied in
the manner recommelided above. This is a
science which has been but recently deve-
loped, and its development has been
maiuly brought about by the pei'severiug
researches /)f the chemist, and the use of
the microscope. We have only to look
into the works of Professor Johnston and
of M. Uaspail, to be convinced of the vast
amount of labour which has been bestowed
by chemists in analysing in the laboratory,
and observing with the microscope the
minutest details of the structure of plants,
most of which had eluded human research.
In the absence of a sufficient knowledge
of their structure, the functions of plants
were misunderstood, and in consequence
tlie wildest conjectures were advanced to
account for the phenomena they exliibited;
but now the functions of jjlants are daily
becoming more and more understood ; we
now know that jilants only receive their
food from the soil in a state of solution,
Mudie's World, p. 243.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
85
that the leaves perform the important
function of elaborating the sap taken up
by the stem, and, at the same time, they
act upon the air in such a manner as to
withdraw from it materials necessary to
increase the sti'ucture, and are influenced
by the light of the sun, so .as to preserve
those materials in the best condition, to
support the good health of the plant.
323. The relation of the study of plants
with agriculture will be well understood
by the following extract from Professor
Johnston's lectures : — '■' It is a fact fami-
liarly known to all of you, in addition to
those circumstances by which we can per-
ceive the special functions of any one
organ to be modified, there are nmny by
which the entire economy of the plant is
materially and simultaneously affected.
On this fact the practice of agriculture is
founded, and the various processes adopted
by the practical farmer are only so many
modes by which he hopes to influence and
promote the growth of the whole plant,
and the discliarge of the functions of all its
parts. Though the manures in the soil act
immediately through the roots, they sti-
mulate the growth of the entire jjlant ; and
though the application of a top-dressing to
a crop of young corn or grass maybe sup-
posed first to affect the leaf, yet the bene-
ficial result of the experiment depends upon
the influence which the application may
exercise on any part of the vegetable tis-
sue. In connexion with this part of the
subject," he adds, " I shall only farther
advert to a very remarkable fact mentioned
by Sprengel, which seems, if correct, to be
susceptible of important practical apjjlica-
tions. He states that it has frequently
been observed in Holstein, that if, on an
extent of level ground sown with corn,
spme fields be marled, and others left un-
marled, the corn on the latter portions
will grow less luxuriantly^ and will yield
a poorer crop than if the tchole had been
unmarled. Hence," he adds, " if the
occupier of the unmarled field would not
have a succession of poor croj^s, he must
marl his land also. Can it really be that
the Deity thus rewards the diligent and the
improver? Do the plants which grow in
a soil in higher condition take from the
air more than their due share of the car-
bonic acid, or other vegetable food it may
contain, and leave to the tenants of the
poorer soil a less proportion than they
might otherwise draw from it ? How
many interesting reflections does such a
fact as this suggest! What new views
does it disclose of the fostering care of the
great Contriver — of his kind encourage-
ment of every species of virtuous labour !
Can it fail to read us a new and special
lesson on the benefits to be derived from
the application of skill and knowledge to
the cultivation of the soil ? " *
324. A knowledge of the geographical
distribution of plants is a subject of inte-
rest, not only to the general reader, but
also to the farmer, and may be useful to
him by aftordiug him the means of judg-
ing whether or not plants, recommended
for cultivation in this country, will be
suitable to the soil of his own farm situate in
acertainlatitudeand elevation above the sea.
325. "Every country, as has been ob-
served by writers, and frequen'tly difl'erent .
parts of the same country, possesses a vege-
tation peculiar to itself; and the limits
assigned to each region .Ie]iend on various
causes, since the variously modified or-
ganisation of different vegetables imposes
upon them different conditions of existence,
and they can live and flourish only where
these conditions are complied with. The
geography of plants, or an inquiry into
their distribution, according to soil and
climate, is intimately connected with the
general physics of the globe, and is quite
distinct from the science of descriptive
botany. The importance of the former can-
not be doubted, when we consider that the
character of a country and the whole face
of nature are dependent on the predomi-
nance of certain families of plants in par-
ticular districts, and that the abundance
of yraminea;, grasses, forming vast sa-
vannahs, or of palms or pani/crce, produce
the most important effects on the social
state of a people, their manners, and the
progress of the economical arts.
326. " It is the influence of temperature
which is the chief cause of the distribution
of plants, and on this account the face of
the globe has been divided into eight zones.
* Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry and Geology, 2d edition, p. 159.
86
INITIATION.
caWeA the isothermal zones, each of wliich
is distinguidheil by a peculiar vegetation,
and they are tlie^.e : — 1st, Tlie equatorial
zone, on both sides of the equator, to about
15° of latitude, with a temperature ex-
tending from the maximum heat to 78'.
2d, Tlie tropical zone, from latitude 1 5° to
the tropics, having a mean temperature
of 78° down to 73' — summer temi>erature
86° to 80° — winter temperature in the
eastern coast countries 59'. 3d, The sub-
tropical zone, from the tropics to latitude
34' — mean temperature of the year 71° to
62° ; of the summer 82° to 73°. 4th, The
•warmer temperate zone, from latitude 34°
to 45° — mean temperature of the year 62°
to 53°; summer temperature in North
America 77°, in Europe 75° to 68°, in
eastern Asia 82° ; temperature of winter
in the New World 44° to 32°, in Europe
50° to 34°, in eastern Asia 26°. 5th, The
colder temperate zone, between the parallels
of 45° and 58° — temperature of the year
53° to 42 ; minimum summer temperature
on the west coast 56°, in the interior of
the c(mtinent 68°; minimum winter tem-
perature in the interior of Europe 14°.
6th, The sub-arctic zone, from latitude 58°
to the polar circle — mean temperature of
the year between 42° and 39° ; of the
summer months in the New World 66°., in
the Old World 60° to 68° ; of the winter
months of the former 1 4°, of the latter 28° —
namely, in western Europe ; in the interior
of Kussia 14' to 10°. 7th, The arctic zone
from the polar circle to latitude 72° — mean
annual temperature 32° to 28°, or towards
the eastern and continental positions, far
under the freezing point. 8th, The polar
zone, beyond latitude 72°: this parallel is
near the mean temjierature >jf 1° in the
New World, and 16° in the Old World ;
the summer of the former 37°, and of the
latter 38° ; winter,— 28° in tlie New, and
—2' in the Old World.
327. " As the physiognomy of the vege-
table kingdom is characterised by certain
plants in the different latitudinal zones
from the equator to the poles, sp also, in a
perj)endicular direction, in the mountain
regions which correspond with the zones.
Proceeding with the vegetation of the
equatorial zone, we follow the series of
vegetable regions in ascending lines, one
after the other, and may compare them
with the different zones as follows : —
1st, The region of palms and bananas— equatorial lone.
2.1, ~ — treej, ferns, and tiifs — tropical tone.
M, ~ — njNrUes :in<l hiiirel')— siili-tru|iic;ilzone.
4tli, _ _ evereriena — w,-irm tiMiiiierntezone.
5tli, _ _ European trees -col(^ temperate xone.
t>th, _ _ pines — sub-arctic zone.
7th, _ _ rhododendrons — arctic zone.
8cli, _ _ alpine plants — polar zone.
328. "Observers who, in a short period of
time, have passed through extensive dis-
tricts of country, and also have ascended
mountain ranges, in which climates are
j)laced in layers one abo\*e the other, must
soon have become aware of tlie regular
distribution of vegetable forms. They
gathered new materials for a science, the
name of which iiad not yet been pro-
nounced. The same regions of plants
which, as a youth. Cardinal Bembo de-
scribed on the declivity of Etna, in the
sixteenth century, were again found by
Toumefort on Ararat, who accurately
compared the alpine flora with that of
the plain under different latitudes, and
was the first to remark that the elevation
of the soil above the level of the sea affects
the distribution of plants in the same
manner as distance frum the poles in level
countries. Marsel, in an iue<lited flora
of Japan, ca-sually makes use of the geo-
graphy of plants. This phrase is again
fomid in the fantastic though charming
"Studies of Nature," by Bernardin de St
Pierre. But the scientific treatment of
the subject only commenced when tha
geography of plants was considered in
intimate connexion with the doctrine of
the distribution of heat over the surface of
the globe; when plants Mere arranged in
natural families, so as to admit of the
numerical computation of the forms wliich
decrease or increase towards the poles,
and what proportion, in different parts of
the earth, each family bears to the whole
mass of the indigenous phanerogamoe.
Jussieu remarks that, notwithstanding
several essays before his time, A. Yon
Humboldt deserves to be pronounced the
founder of the system of the geography of
plants, on which he has thrown so much
light by his labours in meteorology a,s well
as botany.
329. "The relative proportion of the most
important families of j'lants in the different
Zones have been determined by Humboldt in
the following order: — 1. The group of
glumace», which unites in itself theplants of
the three families of the juncese, cyperacese,
THE. SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
87
and graminese, increases from the equator
towards the poles, forming, under the
tropics t't, in the temperate zone g, and in
the frigid zone i of the entire phanerogams.
The increase towards the pole is owing to
the rushes and sedges, which are more
in proportion to the other phanerogamae
in the temperate zone and within the
tropics. The junceae alone almost disappear
within the tropics, forming only jbo of the
whole phanerogamic plants, while in the
temperate zone they form a'o, and in the
frigid zone 25. The cyperaceae alone under
the tropics in the New World h, in the Old
World 55, in the temperate zone 2'iJ , and in the
frigid zone 5. The numerous family of the
graminese is pretty equally distrihuted over
the whole earth ; it increases, in a small
degree, towards the })oles : between the
tropics the grains form ti, in the temperate
zone 12, and in the frigid zone I'o of all the
phanerogamaB. Besides, these families in-
crease in the number of species from the
equator towards the poles. The ericeae
under the tropics in America form t^o ;
in the temperate zone of the Old World tbo,
of the New World a'g, in the frigid zone s's :
so also, the families the flowers of which
form a catkin, or the amentacea?, which
in the torrid zone form only soo, are in
the temperate zone in Europe sS, in
America 35, and in the frigid zone 20 of
the entire phanerogamae. 2. Four other
families — naijiely the leguminosae, the
rubiaceae, euphorbiaceae, and malvaceje —
bear the maximum of their species in the
torrid zone. The leguminosae form under
the tropics to, in the temperate zone is,
and in the frigid zone 5*5 of all phanero-
gams. The rubiacea; under the tropics of
the Old World I'j, in the New World s's, in
the temperate zone bV, in the frigid zone
g'o. The euphorbiaceae, in the torrid zone 55,
in the temperate sV, and in the frigid zone
550. The malvaceae, in the torrid zone s's,
in the temperate 2^0, and in the frigid zone
the plants of this family entirely disappear.
In the great family of rubiaceae, one of its
seven groups, that of the cofteie, form 5 of
all the rubiaceie of tropical America, whilst
the groups of the stellatae principally be-
long to the temperate zone. 3. The four
families of compositae, cruciferae, labiatae,
and umbeiliferae have the maxlnmm of
their species in the temperate zone, and
decrease as well towards the equator as
towards the poles. The compositfe form
under the tropics of the Old World I'g, in
the "New World ij, in the temperate zone
of Europe §, in America s, and in the
frigid zone I'g of all phanerogamae. The
cruciferae are almost unknown in the torrid
zone, if we consider the mountain regions
between 7670 and 10,870 feet in height,
where these plants scarcely fcrm 500 of all
phanerogamae. In the temperate zone their
quotient in Europe is t's, in America, on
the contrary, only g'o, in the frigid zone
55. The labiatai form under the tropics
j'o, in the temperate zone in Europe I's ;
in America, as within the tropics, in the
frigid zone to. Thescarcity of this family,
as well as the cruciferae in the temperate
zone of the New World, is a remarkable
circumstance. The umbeiliferae are seldom
found, within the tropics, at a height un-
der 7b'73 feet. Above this elevation they
form (with the exception of a very few in
the plain) only 535 of all phanerogamae.
They form in the temperate zone s'o, and
are more numerous in Europe than in
North America ; in the frigid zone they
form g'o. 4. Among the acotyledones the fa-
mily of ferns claim our attention. Con-
trary to tlie general law affecting the cryp-
togamaj, this family decreases towards the
poles, which is accounted for by the cir-
cumstance, that it requires a moist soil
and the shelter of warm woods. Under
the tropics it forms s's, and in the temperate
zone yo of all phanerogama^. In arctic
America the Alices are entirely awanting."*
830. Geology. — No farmer who derives
the entire produce which supports himself
and his stock, and enables him to supply
the market, directly from the soil, but
must see the connexion between geology
and agriculture as an inseparable one ;
but, indispensable as the connexion un-
doubtedly is, geologists have not afforded
the assistance to agriculture which they
perhaps might have done by this time.
They have ascertained the relative posi-
ti(m of the harder rocks which C(m)pose
the crust of the globe, but have paid com-
paratively little attention to the explana-
tion and classification of the more recent
deposites, which, in reality, constitute the
soil and subsoils with which the farmer
Johnston's Physical Atlas — " Botanical Geography."
88
INITIATION.
has alone to do— for a knowledge of the
structure and position of the harder rocks
would ratlier confer benefit on the land-
owner tliau on him, inai-uinch as hi.s pro-
perty niay contain numerous and different
mineral products of value to the arts, and
of benefit to his plantations. Much yet
remains to be known of the origin of the
surfuce-soil, and of the position and struc-
ture of subsuils, in which we form our
drains, and whetlier or not those depositee
have such a determinate position as to
cause them to be best drained by drains
running parallel with or at an angle with
the line of valleys and rivers ; and tiiere
cannot be a doubt but that a perfect know-
ledge of those recent deposites would supply
useful hints for the planting of trees in
soils and over subsoils best suited to their
natural habits — a branch of rural economy
that will probably be but little understood
and judiciously practised until this know-
ledge is aff"orded by geology. The opera-
tions of the farmer, then, are most closely
connected with the most recent deposites
of earthy matter on the surface of the globe;
and witii these he should become as inti-
mately acquainted a^> the works of geology,
and personal observation, will enable him.
331. Soils. — The term soil does not con-
vey the same meaning to all persons. The
geologist does not recognise the term at
all — except, perhaps, in common with tlie
botanist and planter, as the mould which
supports ordinary vegetation and trees ;
for " the term rock," says Sir Henry de
la Beclie, "is applied by geologists not
only to the hard substances to which the
name is commonly given, but also to those
various sands, gravels, shales, marls, or
clays, which form beds, strat-a, or masses.''*
The common observer considers the ground
he treads on as the soil. The farmer
strictly and distinctly confirms his defini-
tion of a soil to the portion of the ground
turned over by the plough.
332. The external characters of minerals
established by Werner of Freyberg, and
recognised by mineralogists, has never
been used to describe agricultural Soils ;
and it might serve no practical purpose to
do so, since the minute shades in the va-
rieties of soils, which are constantly under-
going changes in the course of good and
bad modes of cultivation, would soon ren-
der the characteristics inapplicable : but
practically a knowleelge of the external
characters of soils is a matter of no diffi-
culty ; for however complex the composi-
tion of any soil may seem, it possesses a
character belonging to its kind which can-
not be confounded with any other. The
leading characters of all soils are derived
from only two earths, clai/ and sand, the
greater or less admixture of which stamps
tiieir peculiar character — for the properties
of these earths are also found to exist in
purely calcareous and purely vegetable soils.
333. C'lai/ soil. — A pure cla^/ soil has so
distinctive external characters, that it may
easily be recognised. When fully wetted,
it feels greasy to the foot, which slips upon
it backward;-, forwards, and sideways. It
has an unctuous feel in the hand, by which
it can be kneaded into a smooth homogene-
ous mass," wl)ich retains the shape given
to it. It glistens in the sunshine. It re-
tains the water upon its surface, and makes
water very muddy when mixed with it or
runs over it, and tlie mud is long of settling,
to the bottom. It feels cold to the touch,
and easily soils the hand and every thing
tliat touclies it. It cuts like soft cheese
with the sjiade. It parts with its moisture
slowly. When dry, clay-soil cracks into
numerous fissures, becomes hard to the
foot, and collects into lumps, large and
small, very difficult to be broken, and in-
deed cannot be pulverised by the imple-
ments in ordinary use. It soils the hand
and clothes with a dry, light-coloured, soft
dust, which has no lustre. It is heavy and
dffHcidt to labour. It absorbs moisture
readily, and adheres to the tongue. When
neither wet nor dry it is tough, and soon
becomes hard with a little di-ought, or soft
with a little rain. On these accounts, it
is the most obdurate of all soils to manage,
being, even in its best state, heavy to turn
over with the plough, and difficult to pul-
verise with the other implements ; and
when wet, is in an unfit state to be wrought
with any of the implements. A large
number of hori^ses is thus required to work
a clay-land farm ; and its workable state
continues only for a short time, even in the
best weather. But it is a powerful soil in
De la Beche's Manual of Geology, p. 35.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
89
its capability, bearing luxuriant crops, and
producing them of an excellent quality.
It generally occurs in deep masses, on a
considerable extent of flat surface, exhibit-
ing few undulations, along the margin of
a large river, or its estuary, and evidently
being a deposition from water. Examples
of this kind of soil may be seen in Scotland,
in the Carses of Gowrie, Stirling, and Fal-
kirk. It may be characterised a naturally
fertile soil, containing little vegetable mat-
ter, and of a yellowish-grey colour.
334. Sandy soil. — A pure sandy soil is
as easily recognised as one of pure clay.
When wet it feels firm under foot, and
then admits of being turned over by the
plough with a pretty entire furrow. It
feels harsh and grating to the touch, and
■will not compress into a ball with the
hand. When dry it feels soft, and is so
yielding that every object of the least
weight sinks in it, and is very apt to blow
away with the wind. Sandy soil generally
occurs in deep masses, near the termination
of the estuaries of large rivers, or along the
sea-shore ; and in some countries in the
interior of Europe, and over a large pro-
portion of Africa, it covers immense tracts
of flat land, and has evidently been de-
posited from water.
335. Tilly soil. — When clay is mixed
with a little- sa72(^/, its texture as a soil is
very materially altered, but its productive
powers are not improved. AVhen such a
clay is in a wet state, it still slips a little
nnder the foot, but feels harsh rather than
greasy. It does not easily ball in the
hand. It retains water on its surface for
a time, but is soon partially absorbed. It
renders water very muddy, and soils every
thing touching it ; and on that account
never comes clean off the spade, except
when wetted with water. It has no lustre.
When dry it feels hard, but is not difiicult
to be wrought with any of the implements
of tillage ; and when betwixt the states of
wet and dry, it is easily reduced to a fine
tilth or mould. This kind of soil never
occurs in deep masses, is rather shallow,
in many instances is not far from the
hard rock, is not naturally favourable to
vegetation, nor is it naturally prolific. It
occupies by far the larger portion of the
surface of Scotland, much of the wheat
being grown upon it, and may be charac-
terised as a naturally poor soil, with but
little vegetable matter, and of a yellowish-
brown colour.
336. Loam. — When clay or sand is
mixed with a considerable proportion of
decomposed vegetable matter, naturally or
artificially, the soil becomes a loam., the dis-
tinguishing character of which is derived
from the predominating earth. Thus there
are clay loams and sandy loams. Loam,
in the sense now given, does not convey
the idea intended by many writers, who
express themselves as if it must necessarily
be like clay. Thus, Johnson, in defining
the verb '' to loam," gives as a synonyme
the verb "to clay;" and Bacon observes
in one of his Essays, that "the mellow
earth is the best, between the two ex-
tremities of clay and sand, if it be not
loamy and binding ;" evidently referring
to the binding property of clay. Sir
Humphry Davy defines loam as " the im-
palpable part of the soil, which is usually
called clay or Idam."* And Mr Hugo
Eeid defines the same substance in these
words: "The term 'loam' is applied to
soils which consist of, about one-third of
finely divided earthy matter, containing
much carbonate of lime."+ Thus a great
diversity of opinion exists as to wliat loam
is. Loam, iu my opinion, has changed its
meaning since the days of Johnson, and
consists of any kind of earth containing a
sensible admi.vture of decomposed r^'getable
matter., — I say a sensible admixture, since
no soil under cultivation, whether comjjosed
chiefly of clay or of sand, but what con-
tains sortie decomposed vegetable matter.
Unless, therefore, the decomposed vegetable
matter of the soil so preponderates as to
greatly modify the usual properties of the
constituent earths, the soil cannot in truth
be called by any other name than a claj'ey
or sandy soil ; but when it does so prevail,
a clay loam or a sandy loam is formed — a
distinction well known to the farmer. But
if loam is almost synonymous with clav,
then a sandy \o^m. must be a contradiction
in terms. Again, a soil of purely vege-
table origin — such as crude peat or leaf-
mould — cannot becalled loam, as admixture
of an earth of some sort with vegetable
Davy's Agricultural Chemistry, 6th edit. p. 150.
t Reid's Chemistry of Nature, p. 276.
90
INITIATION.
matter is required to make loam under
every recorded definition of th.it term.
Thus, tlien, all soils have the properties of
clay or sand, and a considerable admix-
ture of decomposed vegetable matter con-
verts them into loam. Hence it is possible
for husbandry to convert any earthy soil
into a loam, as is clearly exemplified in
the vicinity of large towns.
337. Clny-loam. — A clay-loam consti-
tutes a useful and valuable soil. It yields
the largest proportion of the finest wheat
raised in this country, occupying a larger
surface of the country than the carse-clay.
It forms a lump by a s<jueeze of the hand,
but S!>on crumbles down again. It is
easily wetted on the surface with rain, and
then feels soft and greasy ; but the water
is soon absorbed, and the surface again
becomes dry. It is easily wrought, and
may be so at any time after a day or two
of dry weather. It becomes finely pul-
verised : is generally of some deptii, form-
ing an excellent soil for wheat, beans,
Swedish turnips, and red clover : and is of a
deep brown colour, oftenapproaching to red.
3-38. All clay-soils are better adapted to
fibrous-rooted plants than to bulbs and
tubers ; and to that sort of fibrous root
which has also a tap-root, such as is pos-
sessed by wheat, the bean, red clover, and
the oak. Its crops bearing abundance of
straw, require a deep bold of the soil.
Clay-soils are generally slow of bringing
their crops to maturity, and which in wet
seasons they never attain ; but in dry
seasons they are always strong, and yield
both superior quantity and quality.
33.9. Gravelly -soils. — Sandy soils are
divided ijito two varieties, which do not
vary in kind but only in degree. Sand is a
powder, consisting of small round particles
of siliceous matter ; but when these are of
the size of abazel-nut and larger, — that is,
gravel, — they give their distinctive name
to the Soil, oi a gravelly soil, which, when
mixed with a sensible proportion of veire-
table matter, beconjes gravelly loam. The
small fragments of a gravelly soil liave
been derived from all the rock formations :
whilst the large boulders, imbedded prin-
cipally under tlie surface, have been chiefly
supplied by the older formations. Gravelly
deposites sometimes occupy a large extent
of surface, and are of considerable depth.
Such a soil never becomes wet, absorbing
the rain as fast as it falls ; and after rain,
feels somewhat firm under the foot. It
can be easily wrought in any state of
weather, and is not unplea-sant to work,
though the numerous small stones, which
are seen in countless numbers upon the
surface, render the bedding of the plough
in it rather unsteady. This soil is admirably
adapted to plants with bulbs and tubers;
and no kind of soil affords so dry and cora-
fqrtable a lair to sheep on turnips, and on
this account it is distinguished aa " turnip-
soil."
340. Sandy and gravelly loams. — Sandy
and gravelly loams, if not the most valu-
able, are the most useful of all soils. They
become neither too wet nor too dry in
ordinary seasons, and are capable of grow-
ing every species of crop, in evefy variety
of season, to considerable perfection. On
this account, they are esteemed " kindly
soils." They never occur in deep masses,
nor do they extend over large tracts of
land, being chiefly confined to the margins
of small rivers, forming haughs or holms,
through which the rivers direct their course
from amongst the mountains towards the
larger ones, or even to the sea ; and, in
their progress, are apt at times to become
so enlarged with rain, both in summer and
winter, as to overflow their banks to a
limited extent on either side, and carry off
the valuable soil of the haughs.
341. Chalk soils. — Besides these, there
are soils which have for their basis another
kind of earth — lime, of which the chalky
soils of the south of England are examples.
But these differ in agricultural character in
nothing from either the clay or sandy soils,
according to the particular formation in
which the chalk is situated. If the chalky
soil is derived from flinty chalk, then its
character is like that of a sandy soil ; but
if from the under chalk-formation, it« cha-
racter is like that of clay.
342. Peat soils. — Writers on agriculture
also enumerate a peat soil, derived from
I)eat ; but peat, as crude peat, does not
promote vegetation, and when decomposed
assumes the properties of mould, and
should be regarded as such. So that, for
all practical purposes, soils are most con-
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
91
veniently divided into those having clayey
and sandy properties, with their respective
loams.
343. Mould. — Any of the loams which
have been long under cultivation, and en-
riched bv putrescent manures, is con verted
into mould, and forms a most valuable soil
for every species of crop, as well the field
as in the garden.
344;. Subsoils. — As the soil consists of
that portion of the earth's surface which fe
turned over by the plough, so the ground
left immediately beneath the plough-furrow
Fig,
is the subsoil ; and it may consist of the
same earthy substance as the soil itself;
or it may be of similar character, differing
only in degree and not in kind ; or it
may be of quite au opposite character, or
may cousist of hard rock. The subsoil,
whatever it may be composed of, exercising
a great influence on the agriculture of the
soil, is a subject of great interest to the
farmer, and should be carefully studied by
the agricultural student ; and for this pur-
pose I shall endeavour to illustrate its varie-
ties by this figure. Let a, fig. 1, be the sur-
face of the ground, the earthy mould derived
from the growth and decay of natural
^^^^^^^^^^
SECTIONS OF SOILS AND SUBSOItS.
plants ; b, a dotted line, the depth of the it also is impervious to water
plough-sole
plough-furrow. Now, the ^
may either just pass through the mould,
as at b, when the mould Avill be the soil,
and the earth below it the subsoil ; or it
may not pass entirely through the mould,
as at c, when the soil and subsoil will be
similar, that is, both of mould ; or it may
pass through the earth below the mould,
as at d, when the soil and subsoil will again
be similar, while neither will be mould,
but earth; or it may move along the sur-
face of e, when the soil will be of one kind
of earth, though not entirely of mould, and
the subsoil of another, that is, one of sand,
gravel, or clay ; or it may penetrate to the
surface of/, when the soil will be of earth,
though again not entirely of mould, but a
mixture perhaps of clay, sand, and mould,
and the subsoil of hard rock. These
different cases of soil and subsoils, thus
represented in the figure as each forming
a distinct sectional division, may so occur
in nature, though probably not all in the
same locality.
345. The subsoil uniouhtedly produces
a sensible effect on the condition of the soil
above it. If the soil is clay, it is impervi-
ous to water, and if the subsoil is clay also,
The imme-
diate effect of this juxtaposition of reten-
tiveness is to render both soil and subsoil
habitually wet, until evaporation dries first
the one and then the other. A retentive
subsoil, in like manner, renders even a
sandy or gravelly, that is a porous, soil
above it habitually wet. On the other
hand, a gravelly subsoil, which is always
porous, greatly assists to keep a retentive
clay soil dry. When a porous soil rests
upon a porous subsoil, scarcely any degree
of humidity can injure either. Eock may
be either a retentive or a porous subsoil,
according to its structure — a massive struc-
ture keeping the soil above it habitually
wet; while a stratified one, if the lines of stra-
tification dip downwards from the soil, (as
at/, fig. 1,) will preserve even a retentive
soil above it in a comparatively dry state.
346. Condition of soils and subsoils.
— These are the different conditions of
soils and subsoils, con.^idered practically.
Tliev have terms expressive of their state,
which you should keep in remembrance.
A soil is said to be stiff' ov heavi/, when it
is difficult to be wrought with the ordi-
nary implements of the farm ; and all clay-
soils are so, and clay-loams more or less so.
93
INITIATION.
347. Light.— On the other hand, soil is
light or free, when it is easy to work ; and
all sandy and gravelly soils and loams
are so.
34S. Wet and dry. — A soil is said to be
vet, when it is habitually wet ; and to he
rf/-y, when habitually dry ; and all soils,
especially clays, on retentive "subsoils, are
habitually wet; and on porous subsoils,
especially gravel and gravelly loams, are
habitually dry.
349. Poor and rich. — Any soil that
cannot bring to maturity a fair crop, with-
out an inordinate quantity of manure, is
considered />oor; and any one that does so
naturally, or yields a large return with a
moderate quantity of manure, is said to
be rich. As examples, — thin hard clays,
and ordinary sands are poor soils ; and
soft clays and deep loams are ricL
350. Deep and thin. — A soil is deep,
when it descends to some depth below the
reach of the plough ; and in that case the
plough may be made to take a deeper
furrow than usual, and yet continue in the
same soil; and a soil is thin, when the
plough usually reaches beyond it : but
good husbandry can, in time, render a thin
soil deep, and shallow j^loughing may
cause a deep soil to assume the character
of a thin one. A deep soil conveys the
idea of a good one, and a thin that of a
bad* Carse clays and sandy loams are
instances of deep soils, and poor clays and
poor gravel those of thin.
351. Hungry. — A soil is called a hun-
gry one, when it requires frequent apj)li-
cations of manure to bear ordinary crops.
A thin poor gravel is an instance of a
hungry soil.
352. Grateful. — A soil is grateful, wl)en
it returns a larger i)roduce than might be
expected from what was done for it. All
loams, whether clayey, gravelly, or sandy,
— especiallythetwolast,— aregratefulsoils.
353. Kindly. — A soil is kindly, when
every operation performed upon ii can be
done without doubt, and in the way, and
at the time desired. A sandy loam and
even a clay-loam, when on porous subsoil,
are examples of kindly soils.
354. Sick. — A soil becomes sick, when the
same crop is made to gro^v too frequently
upon it, and it then becomes deteriorated;
thus, soils become eick of growing red
clover and turnips.
355. Sharp. — A sharp soil is that which
contains such a number of small gritty
stones as to clear iip the plough- irons
quickly. Such a soil never fails to be an
open one, and is admirably adapted for
turnips. A fine gravelly loam is an in-
stance of a sharp soil. Some say that a
sharp soil means a ready one — that is,
quick or prepared to do any thing required
of it ; but I am not of this opinion, because
a sandy loam isA ready enough soil for any
crop, and it cannot be called a sharp one.
356. Deaf. — A deaf soil is the contrary
ofasliarp one ; that is, it contains too much
inert vegetable matter, in a soft spongy
state, apt to be carried forward on the
bosom of the plough. A deep black
mould, whether derived from peat or not,
i^ften an example of a deaf soil.
SoT. Porous or open. — A porous or open
soil and subsoil, are those which allow
water to pass through them freely and
quickly, of which a gravelly loam and
gravelly siibsoil are examples.
358. Retentive or close. — A retentive
or close soil and subsoil retain water on
them; and a clay soil upon a clay subsoil is
a double instance of retentiveness.
359. Hard. — Some soils are always
hanl when dry, let them be ever so well
wrought as in the case of thin retentive
clays.
360. Soft. — Other %oils are soft, as fine
sandy loams, which are very apt to become
too soft when too often ploughed, or too
much marled.
361. Fine. — Some soils are always fine,
as is the case with deep easy sandy loams.
362. Coarse and harsh. — Other soils
are always coarse and harsh, as thin poor
clays and gravel.
363. Smooth. — A fine clay becomes
smooth when in a wet state.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
93
364. Rough. — A'thin clayey gravel is
rough when dry.
365. Fine skin. — A soil has ajine shin
■when it can be finished off with a beauti-
fully granulated surface. Good culture
■will bring a fine skin on many soils, and
rich sandy and clay loams have naturally
one ; but no art can give a fine skin to
some soils, such as thin hard clay, and
rough gravel.
366. Colours of soils. — Black.-^T\\Q
colours of soils and subsoils though various,
are limited in their range. Black soils
are found on crude peat, and in deep deaf
vegetable mould, vegetable matter evi-
dently giving origin to the colour. Soils
of other colours may be made blacker by
the addition of soot, charcoal, and of com-
|)osts of peat, when this vegetable abounds
in the locality. Very black soils are deaf
and inert.
367. White. — Whitish coloured soil is
met with in some of the chalky districts
of the south of England. Many sandy
soils forming tracts of country as well as
near the sea shore, are of a yellow-white
colour ; and so are calcareous sands formed
in a great measure of the comminuted
shells of crustaceous animals. White
soils assume a tinge of brown by the
addition of vegetable matter in cultivation.
Greyish white stones and sand indicate
the moory origin of the soil in which they
occur. Some strong clays are light yel-
lowish brown.
368. Blue. — Fine clay, originating in
the bottom of basins of still wafer, have
frequently a bluish colour, which changes
to dark brown or brownish-black on culti-
vation and exposure to the air, and forms a
useful soil for wheat and Swedish turnips.
369. Red. — Soils are not unfrequently
of a red colour ; dull brownish red, de-
rived most probably from an oxide of iron ;
and this colour is a favouralile indication
of the good quality of the soil or subsoil,
whether of a heavy or light texture.
370. Brown. — But the most common
colour presented by soils is brown, and
the tint most desired is the brown of the
hazel nut, and on that account is named
hazel-brown. This colour is most probably
derived from oxide of iron existing in the
soil, which is rendered darker by the addi-
tion ofvegetable manure, used in cultivation,
to hair and dark chestnut brown. Sharp,
grateful, and kindly soils are always of a
brown colour. Sand and gravel loams are
usually of this colour.
371. Colour of suhsoils. — The colour of
subsoils is less uniform than that of soils,
owing, no doubt, to their exclusion from
direct culture and air. Some subsoils are
very particoloured, and the more they
are so, and the brighter the colours they
sport, are the more injurious to the soils
resting upon them ; such as light blue,
green, bright red, .and bright yellow.
Dull red and chestnut brown subsoils are
good ; but the nearer they approach to
hazel brown the better. Tlie dull browns,
reds, and 3'ellowish grays are permanent
colours, and are little altered by cultiva-
tion ; but the blues, greens, bright reds,
and yellows, become darker and duller by
exposure to the air, and admixture with
manures and the surface soil.
372. The colours of soil have a consi-
derable influence in regulating the quantities
of heat absorbed by soils from the sun's
rays : the darker coloured, such as the
black and brown and dark reds, absorb
more heat than the greys and yellows,
and all dark-coloured soils reflect the
least, whilst ligiit coloured ones reflect the
most calorific rays. According to SchiJbler,
while the thermometer was 77° in the
shade in August, sand of a natural colour
indicated a temperature of 11275°, black
sand 123^°, and white sand 110°, exhi-
biting a difference of 13° in favour of the
black colour. The highest temperature
attained by the soil was observed by
Schiibler on 16th June 1828, in a fine
day, calm, with the air from the west,
at 153^°, that in the shade being 78°.
373. It is a fact well known to farmers,
that the soil becoiues much more heated
when exposed to the rays of the sun in a
perpendicular than in a sloping direction.
" If the actual increase of temperature,"
says Schiibler, " produced by the perj^en-
dicular rays of the sun be^'ond the tem-
perature in the shade be between 45° and
63°, as is often the case in clear summer
94
INITIATION.
days, tliis increase would only be lialf as
great, if tlie t-ame ligiit spread itself in
a more slanting direction, over a surface
twice as largo. Hence it is sutiiciently
explained why, even in our own climate,
the heat so frequently increases on the
el(ii)es of mountains and rocks which have
an inclination towards the south. Whe^i
the sun is at an elevation of 60° above the
horizon, as is more or less the case toward
noon in tiie middle of summer, the sun's
rays fall on the slopes of mountains, which
are raised to an inclination of 30° to tlie
horizon, at a right angle ; but even in the
latter months of summer, the sun's rays
frequently fall on them under a right
angle, in cases where the slopes are yet
sharper." Where the exposure and aspect
of the soil is most favourably situated
ior absorbing the sun's rays, the light
coloured ones will derive more benelit
than dark ones in a less favourable
position.
374. Rptentioii of heat. — Colour has
also an influence in retaining the heat
acquired by soils from the sun ; the dark
coloured radiating their beat more quickly
in the absence of the sun's rays than the
light coloured ; and colour, together with
dryness, has a greater influence in warm-
ing the soil than that of the different
materials comjjosing it. Thus sand will
cool more slowly than clay, and the
latter than a soil containing much humus.
According to Schiibler, a peat soil will
cool as much in 1 hour 43 minutes, as a
pure clay in 2 hours 10 minutes, and as a
sand in 3 hours 30 minute:^). Tlie practical
effect of this difference is, that while the
sand will retain its heat for three hours
after the sun has gone down, and the clay
two hours, the vegetable soil Avill only
retain it fur one hour ; but then the vege-
table soil will all the sooner begin to
absorb the dew that falls, and in a dry
season, it may in consecpience sustain its
crops in a healthy state of vegetation,
while those in the sandy soil may be lan-
guishing for want of moisture. If we
comj)are in the earths their })ower of re-
taining heat with their other ])hysical
properties, we shall find it to be nearly in
proportion to their specific gravities. We
may therefore conclude from this, with a
tolerable degree of i)robability, as to the
greater or less power of retaining heat.
The specific gravity of some of the soils
is the following : —
Of Siliceous sand
Sandy clay
Loamy clay
Brick clay .
Pure grey clay
Pipe clay
Arable soil .
Garden mould
Humus
2-653
2-601
2-51(1
2-560
2533
2-440
2-401
2-3:{2
1-370
375. Shrinking hy heat. — Heat renders
all sorts of soil dry, by evaporating the
moisture out of them ; and so great an
effect has heat on peat and strong clay in
a course of dry weather, that they shrink
one fifth of their bulk. Thus, according
to Schiibler, in 100 parts the following
soils shrunk in these proportions : —
Siliceous sand
Sandy clay
Loamy clay
Brick clay
Grey pure clay
Garden mould
Arable soil
Humus
DO change.
6 0 parts.
8-9 ^
11-4 ^
18-3 _
14-9 <.
1-20 _
'200 ^
37G. Warmth hy heat. — The influence
of a damp or dry stu^e of soils on their
acquisition of warmth, «5also considerable.
As long as they remain moist, the depres-
sion of temperature, arising fiom the eva-
poration of the water, amounts to ll^° to
18g° Fahrenheit; and in this state they ex-
hibit but little difference in the power of
acquiring heat, as they give off to the air,
in this state of saturation with water,
nearly equal quantities of vapour in the
same time. ^VMlen they have become a
little dried, it is found that the light-
ccdoured euths, with great powers of con-
taining water, acquire heat the most slowly,
while daik-ctdoured ones, with less power
of containing water, become warm in a
quicker and more powerful manner.
377. Absorption of moisture. — I'jxcept-
ing siliceous sand, all kinds of soil have
the pro[)crty of absorbing moisture from
the atmosphere ; and the absorption is
the greatest in clay soils, especially
when they contain humus. Humus shows
the greatest power of absorption. The
absorption by all soils is greatest at first,
and they absorb the less the more gradually
they become saturated with moisture, and
they attain that point in a few days. If
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
95
exposed to the sunlight, a portion of the
absorbed moisture becomes again vaporised,
and this is again absorbed during the night.
These daily periodic changes in respect to
moisture must have a beneficial efi'ect on
vegetation. Schiibler has given the follow-
ing table of the relative absorbing powers
of soils; —
1000 grains of earth on a surface of
50 square inches absorbed in
Kinds of earth.
12 hours.
24 hours.
48 hours.
72 hours.
Grains.
Grains.
Grains.
Grains.
Siliceous sand
0
0
0
0
Sandy clay
21
26
28
28
Loamy clay .
25
30
34
32
Brick clay
30
36
40
41
Grey pure clay
37
42
48
49
Garden mould
35
45
50
52
Arable soil
16
22
23
23
Humus . .
80
97
110
120
378. Saturation hy icater. — Different
soils have different capacities for contain-
ing water dtp- saturation. Schiibler gives
this table of differences : —
Siliceous sand
. 27-3
tt) per
cubic foot
Sandy clay .
, 38-8
„
V- -.
Loamy clay .
. 41-4
_
^ ~
Brick clay
. 45-4
^
^ «.
Pure grey clay
. 48-3
^
~ -v.
Pipe clay
. 47-4
„
-, ...
Garden mould
. 48-4
„
^ —
Arable soil .
. 40-8
^
^ <.
Humus .
. 50-1
„
— ~
The sands have the smallest power o''
containing water, whether thev are com-
pared in weight or in volume with the
otherearths; and siliceous sand lias the least
power of all. These differ according to
the different fineness of their grains ; the
power of the large grained becomes dimi-
nished down to 20 per cent, while jt
amounts to 40 per cent when the particles
are very fine. Humus has usually the
greatest power of containing water to satu-
ration of all the ingredients of the soil, and
€S]:ecially when tiie humic acid is still
mixed with a large proportion of half de-
composed organic matters, as remains of
wood, leaves, roots, &c. Where we meet
■with a great water-holding power exceed-
ing 90, we may reckon, with great pro-
bability, on an abundant admixture of
organic matter.
379. Retention of moisture. — So, in
like manner, different soils have different
powers of retaining the moisture they have
absorbed to saturation until they become
dry, and this power increases with the
depth of soils. Schiibler has given this
table on the subject : —
Water evapo-
Containing
Kmds of earth.
rated in 4
power of water
days.
of the earths.
Grains.
Per cent.
Calcareous sand
146
29
Light garden mould .
143
89
Very light turf soil .
132
366
Arable soil
131
60
Black turf soil not so
light .
128
179
White fine clay
123
70
Grey fine clay .
123
87
•
Hence the difference in the decree of
looseness of consistency of the ground
has a considerable influence on the more
or less easy drying of deep soil.s. The
garden mould, notwithstandiug its great
power of containing water, in which it
stands near to pure clay, gave oft' to the
air far more moisture, in the same time,
than the clays. The turf soils, though high
in containing water, also became dry
again at a quicker rate tlian the clays.
The fine grey clays, aft.er 14 daj's, exhi-
bited still « damp surface,, while the sur-
faces of the turf soils were perfectly dry
many days earlier. The consistency of a
soil, and its tendency to become contracted
into a narrower space, exerts a greater in-
fluence in a deep than a shallow soil.
S80. Absorpt.io7i of oxygen. — Another
important physical property of soils is
their power to absorb oxygen from the
atmospheric air. Schiibler's experiments
on this subject afforded these results : —
1000 Siliceous sand, in a wet state,
absorbed ^ ^ ^
„ Sandy clay ^ ^ ^
^ Loamy clay ^ ^ ^
„ Brick clay ^ ^ ^
„ Grey pure clay ^ ^
^ Garden jnould ^ ...
„ Arable soil .. _ .,
.. Humus „ .. ..
Cubic inches.
0-24 S
1-65 I ■;;
204 \a
2-29 I ^
2-60 S
2-43 I I
3-04 J £
•5 o
■S to
a .3
All the earths lose, in drying, the pro-
perty of absorbing oxygen from the air,
96
INITIATION.
but regain it in the same proportion as be-
fore on being int)i:«tene.l. If covered with
water, the absorption takes place in the
same manner. A\'ater alone, however, in the
same uuantitv, absorbs only a small portion
pgi.(.(>,]t — a clear proof that it is the earths
themselves which induce this process in a
greater jtroportion. Humus, of all tlie
earths, exhibits the greatest degree of
absorption of oxygen ; the clays a])pr()ach
nearly to it, the sands the least. The in-
cluded air standing over them becomes at
last so poor in oxygen that lights Mould
become extinguished, and animals die in it.
In this mode of absorption, there is an essen-
tial difference between humus and the in-
organic earths. Humus combiner partly
with tlie oxygen, in a strictly chemical
sense, and assumes a state of higher
oxygenation, in consequence of which
there is formed also more carbonic acid.
The inorganic earths, on the other hand,
absorb the oxygen without intimate com-
bination. In the case of eartlis which are
frozen or covei;ed with a surface of ice, no
absorption of oxygen takes place, any more
than in the case of dry earths. In a mode-
rately warm- temperature, between 59°
and 66° Fahrenheit, the earths absorb, in
a given time, more oxygen than in a tem-
perature only a few degrees above the
freezing point.
381. Phi/sical properties of soil. — M.
Schiibler thus rocajtitulates th^ results of
these experiments of his on the physical pro-
perties of soils : — " In the examination of
soils, the determination of their power of
containing water, and of their weight, con-
sistency, and colours, in connexion with
their chemical analyses, will, in the majo-
rity of cases, be sufficient to enable us to
conclude, with great probability, as to
their remaining physical properties. The
more an earth weighs, the greater also is
its power of retaining heat : the darker its
colour and the smaller its power of con-
taining water,- the more quickly and
strongly will it be heated by the sun's
rays: the greater its power of containing
water, the more has it in general the jtower
also of absorbing moisture when in a dry,
and oxygen when in a damp state, from
tlie atmosphere ; and the slower it usually
is to become dry, especially when endued
with a high degree of consistency : lastly,
the greater the power of containing water,
and the greater the consistency of a soil,
the colder and wetter, of course, will that
soil be, as well as thestiffcr to work, either
in a wet or dry state." *
382. Discriminating soils hj the plants
groxcing on them. — There is another
method by which the physical characters
of soils and subsoils, such as I have endea-
voured to explain, may be discriminated,
namely, by the plants which grow ni)on
them. This test cannot be relied on so
confidently as the chemical composition,
or the external characters, given above
for distinguisliing soils. The chemical
and physical properties of soils are open
to observation, and may, therefore, be
acquired with correctness; but in judging
of soils by their vegetation, which neces-
sarily excludes them from observation, the
judgment is liable to err. Such a mode
of estimating the comparative properties of
soils might be correct enough were their
products constant ; but when these change
with the circumstances in which the soil
is placed, the test scarcely admits of gene-
ral aj)plication. The same rock and the
same diluvium or alluvium possess the
same external characters throughout the
globe, but the plants which grow u])on
them differ not only by the change of the
latitude, but at diflerent heights above
the sea in the same latitude. The sands
of the tropics, for example, yield very
different ])lants to those of the temperate
and frigid zones. Climate is thus the
great agent which determines the exis-
tence of plants. But, besides climate, a
great variety of plants are found on the
same soil ; so that an extensive knowledge
of plants is requisite to enable any one to
detect a sj>ecitic soil. Moreover, natural
])lants alone indicate the natural state of
the soil ; for the cultivated soil produces
plants very diflerent from what it did when
in a state of nature.
383. Still, notwithstanding the diffi-
culties attending the discrimination of
soils by plants, it is an undoubted fact
that plants do affect certain soils, as also
certain conditions of the same soil. Such
plants are limited in number, and may
* Journal of the Royal Agricultural Socitty of England, Tol. i. p. 177-212.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGEICULTURE.
97
therefore be easily remembered. I shall
only enumerate those which have fallen
under my own observation; and separate
those which grow upon the soil, in a state
of nature, from those which make their
appearance after the land is in a state of
cultivation. Every plant found among the
cultivated corn and green crops, and sown
grasses, is a weed.
383. On good clay soils, in a state of
nature, in the low country, th6se herbaceous
plants will be found —
Spircea ulmaria
Angelica sylvestris -
Ranunculus Hngua -
Bumex acetosa
Queen of the meadow.
Wild angelica.
Great spear- wort.
Common sorrel.
384. After such soils are brought into
cultivation, these plants make their appear-
ance as tceeds, some of which have been
sown with the corn, others with the grass
seeds, whilst the rest have been carried
by the wind, or brought on amongst the
duner.
Rumex oMti.nfoUus -
Senecio vulgaris
Lapsana communis
Agroskmma githago
Matricaria chamomilla
Sonchus oleraceus -
Common broad-leaved dock.
Groundsel.
Nipple-wort.
Corn cockle or popple.
Wild chamomile.
Common sow-thistle.
385. Thin clays, in their natural state
in the low country, yield the following
plants —
Ranunculus acris
Aira ccespitosa
Equisetum arvcnse
SUtchys palustris
( Upright meadow or bitter
\ crowfoot.
- Tufted hair-grass.
- Corn horse-tail.
- Marsh woundwort.
386. These become clay loams under
cultivation, and then yield those plants as
tceeds —
Tussilagofarfara -
Sinapis arvensis
Polygonum aviculare
- Common colt's-foot.
- Wild mustard.
- Knot-grass.
387. On deep strong clayey loam, on a
porous subsoil, in a state of nature, in the
low country, these plants are found —
Silene infata -
Antirrhinum linaria
Scabiosa arvensis, -
Ccntaurea scabiosa -
Polygonum amphibium
DactyHs glomerata -
Bladder campion.
Toad-Hax.
Field scabious.
Great knapweed.
Redshank.
Rough cock's-foot grass.
388. On thin, strong, clay loam, on a
porous subsoil, in a state of nature, in the
low country, these plants are found — ■
Ononis arvensis
Tri/olium arvense -
Trifolium procumbem
Common rest-harrow.
Hare's-foot trefoil.
IIop trefoil.
389. After cultivation, both deep and
VOL. I.
thin clay loams, on a porous subsoil, in the
low country, yield these plants as iceeds —
Anagallis arvensis -
Veronica hcderifolia
Sinapis nigra -
Ervuin hirsutum
- Scarlet, pimpernel.
- Ivy-leaved speedwell.
- Jilack mustard.
- Hairy tare, or fetter.
390. The herbaceous plants peculiar to
sandy soils, in a state of nature, in the low
country, are — •
Lotus corniculatus •
Campanula rotundi/olia -
Euphrasia officinalis -
Anthoxanthum odoratum
Bird's- foot trefoil.
Common bluebell.
Eyebriglit.
Sweet-scented vernal grass.
391. After cultivation^ these plants ap-
pear as weeds —
Spergula arvensis -
Lamium purpureum
Fumaria officinalis -
Thlaspi bursa -pastoris
ScUranthus annuus
Gnaphaliiim gcmuinicunh
Triticum repens
Common spurry.
Purple dead-nettle.
Common fumitory.
Shepherd's purse.
Common knawel.
Common cud-weed.
Common couch-grass.
392. Upon sandy loam on clay subsoil,
in a state of nature, in the low country,
these are the characteristic plants —
Juncus effusus ■
Achillea ptarmica -
Pctentilla anserina •
Artemisia vulgaris •
- Common or soft rush.
- Sneeze-wort.
- AVild tansy or silver-weed.
- Mugwort.
393. After cultivation, these plants ap-
pear on this soil as weeds —
Raphanus raphanistrum Charlock,
Rumex acetoseUa - - Slieep's sorrel.
Chrysanthemum segetum - Corn marigold.
Juncus bu/onius - - Toad-rush.
394. Sandy loam upon a porous subsoil,
in a state of nature, in the low country,
yields these plants most abundantly —
Genista scoparia
Centaurea nigra
Galium vcrum
Senecio jacobea
- Common broom.
- Black knapweed.
- Hollow bed-straw.
- Common rag- weed.
395. When cultivated, this soil yields
these plants most conspicuously as
weeds —
Mentha arvensis
Centaurea cyanus -
Sherardia arvensis -
Lithospermum arvense
Alchemilla arvensis
Avenaelatior •
Cnicus arvensis
- Common corn-mint.
- Blue-wort.
- Corn madder.
- Corn gromwell.
- Parsley-pest.
- Tall oat-grass.
- Corn-thistle.
396. Alluvial deposites, in a state of
nature, in the low country, yield a vegeta-
tion indicative of a wet and strong soil
and subsoil —
Arundo phragmitrs -
Juncus conglomcratug
Agrostis alba -
Poa aquatica -
Poajluitans -
- Common reed.
- Round-headed rush.
- White bent-grass.
. Reed meadow-grass.
- Floating meadow-grass.
G
98
INITIATION.
307. All tliese plants disappear on cul-
tivation, except tLe common reed, which
keeps possession <>f the suil for an indefi-
nite f>eriod amidst the best cultivation.
^Vherc such soil is indifferently cultivated,
the corn thistle, Cnicus arrensis, is a very
troublesome tceed. In other resi^ects, the
weeds are the same as in the cultivated
clays.
398. Besides these soils, there are others
in the low country which cannot be ren-
dered arable, but form the sites of nume-
rous plants peculiar to them, which occa-
sionally find their way into the adjoining
arable soils. From the sea-beach, gravel-
pits, and sandy downs, for example, plants
stray by the assistance of the wind into
any kind of arable soil in their resj>ective
neighbourhoods.
399. Beaches^ consisting chiefly of
pebbles, are maritinie, lacustrine, and flu-
viatile. The plants gf maritime beaches
are —
Sileru marilima
Plantap<i maritima -
Glai/jr maritima
PuJmonarin marilima
Enmaium maritimum
Salnlakaii
• Seaside campioB.
- Sea plantain.
- hiack saltwort.
- Sea liipjAvort.
- Sea liplly.
- Gla^wurt.
400. Those on lacustrine beaches are —
PrunelUt iiiJ^iarU
Rubiii /"hUicofus
Bellit perennit
PlaiUago media
• Self-heal.
- . C'lianion bramble.
- Common daisy.
- Uoar>' plantain.
401. And on fluviatilebeache.?, these —
Anthvllir vxilneraria
Bilem mar it ma
Polygonum ariculare
AehilUa miJU/olium
AlchfmilUi vulgaris
Galium virum -
Teftdaliu nudicauii$
Linum ctOiarticiim -
SaX'/ra;ia aiznidft -
Apargia aulumnalil
• Common kidney-vetcli.
- Seaside campion.
- Knot-gra.«.
- Commim yarrow.
- Common lady's man tie.
- Hollow bei!-5trav.
- Naked-stalked teesdalia.
- I'urge tlax.
- Yellow saxifr.ijre.
- Autumnal apargia.
402. In all such soils the vegetation is
generally thin and scanty. In wet seasons
it becomes luxuriant, but in dry weather
is very liable to be burnt up by the heat
of the sun.
terior of the low country these plants are
found —
Polygonum avituJare
Rutnfx acftoteUa
Airrvttii tiil'))iris
A i ra ca ryo/ih yiUa -
Fet'uca duriuMCula •
Armaria S'rpyHi/iilia
llirracium miirorum
Papamrdubium
Papatvr rhtfat
Puij/rjotium cunvoliitliu
C/uwijuidium nrticum
L- Hum prrrrme
lirimtiu moUit
Knot-Rran.
Sheep's sorrel.
Common bent-gtmM.
Silver} hair-gmjt.
Hard fe*cMigniia.
Thyme-leaved sandwort.
^^ all hawkweed.
Long smuuUilieaded poppy.
Coratiion scarlet p<>ppy.
I limbing buckwheat,
fpriglil goose-fo-it.
Perennial ryegraas.
Suft brume-graas.
404. Gravel on the sea-shore produces
these maritime plants —
CakiU maritima - - Sea-rocket
Ou-nopodium maritimum Seaside gooae-fonL
Atriplejc laciniala - • Frosted sea-arache.
SiUiu maritima - - Seaside campion.
405. Gravel on the sides of rivers pro-
duces these plants, which indicate a wet
subsoil —
JuHCUt bufonius
acutiforus -
LitlortUa lacustrit -
- To-id-rusli,
- Sharp-flowered ru«h.
- Plantain shore-weed.
406. And grit on the mountain-sides
produces the alpine plants of the district.
407. Drifting sands, links, or dotcns,
have a peculiar vegetation —
Arundo arenaria
Triticum iinceum -
ptttKca duriuscula -
Canx armaria
Galium verum
Sea-bent.
Sand wheat-grass.
Hard feseue-grasa.
Sand carcx.
Hollow bed-straw.
408. This vegetation is mixed and modi-
fied towards the sea-side, to a maritime
one, and on the land side to that of arable
light loam.
409. The vegetation of moory ground
only a little elevated, varies according to
the wetness or dryness of the subsoil. The
wetness of the subsoil arises from retentive
clay. Wet moors are characterised by
the.^^e plants —
SalLrreperu
Pinnuicula mVmris
Cares piluli/rra
Juiicut tquarronu -
•Scirjitit c-rxpitnsus -
Parnattia paiuitris
Pwarf silky willow.
Hutterwort
Itound-fniited carez.
Mo.-ws-hUNh.
ScalystaHifd rUih-rush.
Grass of ^ania:>sus.
403. On gravel, whether water-worn,
as usually found in the deposites of the
low country, or in the shape of grit, that
is, angular gravel, as found in the debris
on the sides of mountains, occasioned by
the disintegration of indurated rocks, the
vegetation is somewhat different from that
of the beaches. In gravel pits in the in-
410. On dry moors, which usually con-
tain a considerable proportion of peat-
earth, when resting on a porous subsoil of
sand or gravel, these plants are founds
Genista anglica
yardvt ttricta
f'iiila luli-a
TormttUilla officinalis
Gnaphalium dioicvm
Needle green-weed or petty
whin.
Mat-grass,
Vell'iw monnLiin-violet.
Common tormentil.
Mountain cud-weed
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
99
411. Marshes in the interior of the
country produce these plants —
Lychnis Jloscuculi
Mcnyanthi's Iri/oliata
CalUia palustris
Venntica bi:ccabiinga
Comarum paltutre -
ijoituin uliginosutn
- Ragged robin.
- Fringed buclv-bean.
- Marsli marigold.
- BrooU-lime.
- Marsh cinquefoil.
- Marsli bed-straw.
412. And in marshes near the sea these
plants are found —
Triglochin maritimum
Poa procumiK'ns
Carcj; pallesans
riparia
Sea arrow-grass.
Sea marsh-grass.
Pale carex.
Great common carex.
413. After marshy ground has been
dried and cultivated, these plants retain a
pretty strong hold of their respective
positions as tceeds —
Txtssilartofarfara
Pelasites hybrida
Galium apariiw
Common colt's foot.
Common butter-bur.
Goose-griiss.
414. On peat or moss the vegetation
differs according to its state of wetness or
dryness. On dry spots of peat these plants
are found —
Erica ktralix
Ca.luna vttiaaris
Agrostis canina
- Cross- leaved heath.
- Common ling.
- Dog bent-grass.
415. In wet hollow parts of peat these
plants establish themselves —
Eriophorum polystachion Cotton grass.
Vaccinium oxycoccus • Orange-berry.
416. When peat is dried and cultivated,
these plants infest it as weeds —
- Bromus mollis
Myosotis arvefisit
Aviuafatua
Galium aparine
- Soft brome-grass.
- Field scorpion-grass.
- Wild oats.
- Goose-grass.
417. On mountaiii pastures the plants
are numerous, though a *iQ\y only serve to
show the peculiarities of the range of ele-
A'ation. At moderate heights these plants
prevail —
Calluna vulgaris • - Common ling.
Astragalus uralensis - Hairy milk-vetch.
Dryas oclopetala - - Mountain avens.
Salix r.'ticulata - - Keticulated willow.
Gnaphalium alfrinum - Mountain. cud-weed.
Jitdius chaiiurmarus - Cloud-berry.
Arbutus uva-ursi . -- - Common bear-bcrrj-.*
418. In very elevated mountain pastures
these plants are found on a mossy soil,
according to the observations of the late
Mr William Hogg, shepherd in Peebles-
shire, brother to the famed Ettrick Shep-
herd—
Calluna vulgaris - - Common ling.
EinjKtrum nigrum - - Crow-berry.
Erica titralix - - Cross-leaved heath.
Lycopodium claratum^ ciub-moss.
• >^ atpuium )
Juncus squarrosus - Stool bent.
Equis. turn palustre - Paddock-pipe.
Scirpus ciespitosus - Deer-hair.
NartJu-cium ossi/ragum - Yellow grass.
Miiica ca^ruUa \
Scsltria ca-rulea (
Nardus striata
- Fly-bent or rot-grass.
- Wire-bent or mat-grass.
419. Iu\7et places in mountain pastures
these plants are found to thrive —
Juncus effnsuf - - Soft rush.
Holcut mollis • - Soft meadow-grass or York-
shire fog.
Carex cwspitosa - - Risp.
Ju7icus acutiftorus • - Sprat.
Carex pan icia - - Pry.
Scabiiisa succisa - • Devil's bit scabious.
Hypnum palustre - - Marsh-fog.f
420. Professor Macgillivray has truly
remax'ked, tiiat '' No soil that we have exa-
mined has been found to produce plants
peculiar to itself, excepting s^wt/ and jo^a^y
and these two soils, so different from each
other in their mechanical and chemical
nature, also form a striking contrast in
respect to the plants growing upon them,
each being characterised by a vegetation
differing in aspect and qualities from each
other, and scarcely agreeing in any one
circumstance.":}: The existence of peat is
invariably indicated by Calluna vulgaris,
common ling, — Erica cinerea, fine-leaved
heath, — and Erica tetralix, cross-leaved
heath ; and loose sand is as invariably
covered with Arundo arenaria, sand-reed,
most frequently accompanied by Triticum
junceiim, sand wheat grass, and Galium
veriim, hollow bed-straw.
421. In so far, then, as the arable soils
are concerned, the information imparted
by their icecds possesses greater interest to
the farmer than their natural vegetation ;
and these give a truer account of the con-
dition of the soils at the time, than of their
nature, though the latter pn perty is by
no means overlooked. For example,
clayey soils are indicated by the existence
of the grass' s^ and of these the genera of
Poa, Agrostis, and Festuca prevail.
422. Gravelly soils by A ira caryophyl-
lea, silvery hair-grass ; Aira prcccox,
early hair-grass ; and Rumex acetdsella,
sheep sorrel. When iiiterniixed with a
little clay, the grasses prevail.
* Prize Essaysofthe Highland and Agricultural Societi/, vol. vii. p. 123-135.
+ Ibid., vol. vii. p. 281-2'82. t Ibid., vol. vii. p. 102.
100
INITIATION.
423. Good regctallc soil is indicate J by
Tri/olia, Vicicv, and Laf/ij/rus pnitiusis.
Thi/muii serjii/lluin, wild thyme, indicates
a vo_'etable lUijuM of ^'reat tliinness; and
ragwee<l, SVnecio jacobcca, one of depth ;
and when the ragweed prevails, it indicates
the absence of sheep, which are very fond
of, and eat down its young leaves.
424. Purge flax, Linum catkart'tcum ;
Autumn apargia, Apargia mtlinnnalls ;
and mouse-eared hawk-weed, llicrac'ium
piloiflla, indicate a dry soil ; — the Galium
verum^ hollow bed-straw, a very dry
one.
425. Yellow iris. Iris pseud-acorus ;
the sharp-flowered rush, J uncus' acutijlo-
rus ; lady's smock, CardnvLuie pratensis ;
and ragged robbiu, Lj/c/inis Jlus-cuculi,
assure us of a supply of moisture below.
426. The purple dead-nettle, Lanpium
vurpureum ; and smooth naked horse-
tail, Equ'isetum limosum, indicate a re-
tentive subsoil.
427. The broom. Genista scoparin, in-
dicates a pernicious, and the whin, LUex
Europcuus, a more favourable subsoil.
428. The common nettle, Urtica dioicn;
common dock, Jiumex oilusi/ulius ; mug-
wort, Artemisia vulgaris; annual jji-a,
Poa annua; field poa, Poa prutensis ;
and common tansy, Tanacetum vulgarp,
grow near the dwellings of man, on the
bare soil, irrespective of its kind; wliile
in the same locality the white clover, Tri-
folium repens ; red clover, Trifoliuni
pratense ; annual poa; hoary plantain,
Plantago mediu ; ribwort, Plantago lan-
ceolata; purple meadow vetch, ViciucrdC-
ca ; and common dixiay, Bcllis perennls,
are found in the pasture around his
Louse.
429. Common chick weed, Stellana me-
dia ; and common fumitory, Fnmaria
officinalis, indicate a rich condition of
soil.
430. The grcaC ox-eye, Chrgsanthemum
lcucanthemum,\Knnis out a soil in a state
of poverty ; and its poverty from want of
manure is indicated by the parsley-pest,
Alc/wnillla arcensis.
431. Wild mustard, Sinapis arrensia,
tells of the a{»jdication of manure derived
from towns. •
432. The common corn thistle, Cnicut
arvetisis, indicates that tL« land is not
well farmed.
433. "Wherever the least admixture of
peat is found in the soil, the Erica or Cal-
luna and spotted-bearded orchis, Orchis
maculata, are sure to be there.
434. Taking a more extended view of
the indications of the condition of soils by
plants, these observations of Dr Singer
seem well founded : — " Green mountains,
like those of Cheviot and Ettrick Forest,
abounding in grass without heath, indicate
a strong soil, which is rendered productive,
though freipiently steep and elevated, by
a retentive subsoil. Tliis (juality, and the
frequent mists and showers that visit
rather elevated sheep-walks, render them
productive in strong grasses (Agrosfis.)
. Dark mountains, clothetl with a
mixture of heath and grass, indicate a
drier soil on a less retentive bottom. Such
are many of the Highland mountains, and
such also are some of those which appear
occasionally among the green mountains
of the southern pastoral district, in which
the light Soil is incumbent commonly on
gravel or porous rock. On these dark-
coloured mountains, a green and gj'assy
part often apjiears where there is no heath,
and the subsoil is retentive ; and if the
upper edge of such a spot apjjcars well
dotincd, tliis is occasioned by the regular
approach of a stratum of clay or other sub-
stance imj)ervious to water to^rards the
surface, and the green hue disappears be-
low, when the subsoil again becomes ojten.
. . On any of the mountains, whether
dark or green, when the fern or bracken,
Ptrris aquiUna, appears in quantities, it
indicates a deep soil and a dry subsoil."*
A stunted growth of heath indicates a j>art
having been bared by the paring-spade;
and when vegetation becomes of a brown
colour in summer, the subjacent rock is
only a little way under the surface.
* Prize Essays of Hie Highland and Agricultural Societt/, vol. vii. p. 264.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
101
435. Viewing the connexion of plants
to the soil on tlie great scale, we cannot
but be forcibly impressed with the convic-
tion, that " the grand principle of vegeta-
tion is simple in its design ; but view it in
detail, and its complication astonishes and
bewilders." And yet, as Professor Mac-
gillivray justly observes, "it is the same
sun that calls forth, and, thus elicited, gives
vigour to the vegetation, the same earth
that suj)ports it, the same moisture that
swells its vessels, the same air that furnishes
the medium in which it lives ; but amid all
these systems of general, how multiple the
variations of particular constituent causes,
andhow infinitely diversified their results!"*
436. Mechanical structure of soils. — It
is now time to take a closer view of soils,
their structure and composition ; their
structure is mechanical, and their composi-
tion chemical. We shall first considel*
their mechanical structure ; and I sliall de-
scribe these in the words of Dr Henry
!Madden of Brighton. " Soil, considered
scientifically," he observes, "maybe de-
scribed to be essentially a mixture of an
impalpable powder with a greater or
smaller quantity of visible particles of all
sizes and shapes. Careful examination
will prove to us, that although fhe visible
particles have several indirect effects, of so
great importance that they are absolutely
necessary to soil, still the impalpable pow-
der is the only portion which directly
exerts any influence upon vegetation.
This impalpable powder consists of two
distinct classes of substances, viz., inor-
ganic or mineral matters, and animal dinA
vegetable substances, in all the various
stages of decomposition.
437., " A very simple method may be
employed to separate these two classes of
particles from each other, viz., the ini|)al-
pable powder and the visible particles ;
and, in so doing, we obtain a very useful
index to the real value of the soil. In-
deed all soils, except stiff clays, can be
discriminated in this manner. The greater
the proportion of the impalpable matter,
the greater, cceteris paribus^ will be the
fertility of the soil.
following easy experiment may be per-
formed. Take a glass-tube about 2 feet
long, closed at one end ; fill it about half
full of water, and shake into it a sufficient
quantity of the soil to be examined, to fill
the tube about 2 inches from the bottom ;
then put in a cork, and having shaken the
tube well to mix the earth and water
thoroughly, set the tube in an upright posi-
tion, for the soil to settle down. Now, as
the larger particles are of course the
heavier, they fall first, and form the
undermost layer of the deposite, and so on
in regular gradation, the impalpable pow-
der being the last to subside, and hence
occupying the uppermost portion. Then
by examining the relatiAe thickness of the
various layers, and calculating their pro-
portions, a very accurate mechanical ana-
lysis of the soil may be made.
439. "The stones which we' meet with
in soil have in general the same composi-
tion as the soil itself, and hence, by gradu-
ally crumbling down under the action of
air and moisture, they are contiaually
adding new impalpable matter to the soil,
and as a large quantity of this impalpable
mineral matter is annuall}'^ removed by the
crops, it will at once be jjcrceived that this
constant addition must be of great value
to the soil. This, therefore, is one impor-
tant function performed by the stones of
soil, — viz., their aftording a continually re-
newed supply of impalpable mineral mat-
ter.
440. " On considering the nourishment
of plants, we find that their food undergoes
various preliminary changes in the soil
previous to its being maue use of by the
plants, and the aid of chemistry will prove
to us that the effect is produced by the
joint action of air and water ; it follows,
therefore, that soil must be porous. Now,
this jjorosity of the soil is in part produced
by the presence of the larger jtarticles of
matter, which, being of all varieties of
shape, can never fit closely together, but
always leave a multitude of pores between
them ; and in this manner permit of the
free circulation of air and water through
the soil.
438. "To effect this separation, the 441. " As the porous nature of soil may,
Prize Essays of the Highland and Agricultural Society, vol. vii. p. 117.
102
INITIATION.
to a certain extent, be taken as an index
of its power of retaining' moisture, it is
advisable to determine its amount. Tliis
is effected in the following way : — Instead
of putting tlie water first into the tube, as
directed above, (438,) and sliaking the
soil into it, take a portion of soil dried by
a heat of about 200° Falir., and shake it
into the dry tube, and by tu]>ping the
closed end frequently on the table, make,
the soil lie compactly at the bottom ; when
this has been fully effected, that is, when
further tapping produces no reduction of
bulk, measure accurately the column of
soil, cork the tube, shake it till the soil
becomes again quite loose, and then pour
in the water as directed above (438.)
After the soil has fully subsided, tap the
tube as before, and re-measure the column
of soil, and the increase of bulk is depen-
dent upon the swelling of each particle by
the absorption of water, and hence shows
the amount of porosity. In very fertile
soil, I have seen tliis amount to one-sixth
of the whole bulk.
442. " The functinos of the impalpable
matter are far more complicated, and will
require a somewhat detailed description.
In this portion of the soil, the mineral and
organic matter are so completely uniteil,
that it is quite impossible to separate them
from each other ; indeed, there are weighty
reasons for believing that they are chemi-
cally combined. It is from this portion of
the soil that plants obtain all their minei'ul
ingredients, and likewise all their organic
portions, in so far as these are obtained
by the roots ; in fact, plants receive no-
thing from the soil except water, which
has been associated with that portion
which is at present engaging our attention.
443. " The particles forming the impal-
pable matter are in such cU)se ai)p()sition,
that the whole acts in tlie same way as a
sponge, and is hence capable of absorbing
liquids and retaining them. It is in this
way that soil remains moist so near the
surface, even after a long continued
drought ; and I need not say how valuable
this pro])erty nmst be to the jilants, since
by this means they are su])plieil with mois-
ture from below, induced by the ca])illary
action of the soil durin": the heat of sum-
mer, when otherwise, unless artificially
watered, they would very soon wither."
444. On the important results arising
from the action of the mechanical property
of the soil, of the capillary power, and
of its mode of action, Professor Joluiston
has these observations: — "When w^arm
weather comes, and tiie surface soil dries
rapidly, then by capillary action the water
rises from beneath, bringing with it the
soluble substances that exist in the subsoil
through which it ivscenjs, for water is never
pure. Successive portions of the water
evaporate from the surface, leaving their
saline matter behind them. And as the
ascent and evaporation go on as long as the
dry weather continues, the saline matter
accumulates about the roots of plants, so
as to put within their reach an ample sup-?,
ply of any soluble substance which is really
not defective in the soil. I believe that
in sandy soils, and generally in all light
soils, of which the particles are very fine,
this capillary action is of great importance,
and is intimately connected with their
power df producing remunerating crops.
Thoy absorb the falling rains with great
rapidity, and these carry down the soluble
matters as they descend, so that when the
soil becomes soaked, and the water begins
to flow over its surface, the saline matter
being already deep, is in little danger of
being washed away. On the return of dry
weather, the water reascends trom beneath,
and again diffuses the soluble ingredients
through the upper soil."*
44;5. " Am)ther most useful function of
this impaljmble portion," continues Dr
Madden, "• is its jwwer of separating or-
ganic matter from water in which it has
been dissolvetl. Thus, for example, If the
dark brown liquid which flows from i^
dunghill is taken and poured on the sur-
face of some earth in a flower-pot, and a
sutficient quantity adtled to soak the whole
eartii, so tiiat a portion flows out through
the bottom of the jxit, this latter liquid will
be found much lighter in colour than before
it was poured \x\H.m the earth, and this
eflect will be increased the nearer the soil
approaches in its nature to subsoil. Now,
as the colour was entirely owing to the
oriranic matter dissolved in it, it follows
• Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry and Geology, '2d edit. p. £35.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
103
that the loss of colour is dependent upon
an equivalent loss of organic matter, or, iu
other words, a portion of the organic matter
has entered into chemical coinJnnation
with the inipali)able mineral matter, and
has thus become insoluble in water. The
advantage of this is, that when soluble
organic matter is applied to soil, it does
not all soak through with the water, and
escape beyond the reach of the roots of the
plants, but is retained by the impalpable
portions in a condition not liable to injury
from rain, but still capable of becoming
food for plants when it is required.
446. " Hitherto I have pointed out
merely the mechanical relations of the
various constituents of soil, with but little
reference to their chemical constitution ;
this branch of the subject, although by far
the most important and interesting, is
nevertheless so difficult and complex, that
I cannot hope for the practical farmer doing
much more than making himself familiar
with the names of the various chemical
ingredients, learning their relative value
as respects the fertility of the soil, and
acquiring a knowledge of the quantities of
each requisite to be applied to particular
crops; for, as to his attempting to prove
their existence in his own soil by analysis,
I fear that is far too difficult a subject for
him to grapple with, unless regularly edu-
cated as an analytical chemist."
447. Chemical composition of soils. —
" Soil, to be useful to the British agricul-
turalist, must contain no less than 12 dif-
ferent chemical substances, viz., silica,
alumina, oxide of iron, oxide of manganese,
lime, magnesia, potass, soda, phosphoric
acid, sulphuric acid, chlorine, and organic
matter. I shall confine my observations
almost solely to their relative iuiportance
to plants, and their amount in the soil.
448. "Silica. — This is the pure matter
of sand, and also constitutes on an avenige
about 60 per cent of the various clays ;
so that in soil it generally amounts to from
75 to 95 per cent. In its uncombijied
state, it has no ^//rcc^ influence upon plants,
beyond its mechanical action, in supporting
the roots, &c. ; but, as it possesses the
properties of an acid, it unites with various
alkaline matters in the soil, and produces
compounds which are required in greater
or less quantity by every plant. The chief
of these are the silicates of potass and
soda, by which expression is meant the
conipounds of silica, or, more properly,
silicic acid with the alkalies potass and
soda.
449. '■'^ Alumina. — This substance never
exists pure in soil. It is the characteristic
ingredient of clay, although it exists in
that compound to the extent of only 30 or
40 per cent. It exerts no direct chemical
influence on vegetation, and is scarcely
ever found in the ashes of plants. Its
chief value in soil, therefore, is owing to
its efi'ects in rendering soil more retentive
of moisture. Its amount varies from ^ per
cent to 13 per cent.
450. '"'•Oxide of Iron. — There are two
oxides of iron found in soils — namely, the
protoxide and peroxide ; one of which, the
protoxide, is frequently very injurious to
vegetation : indeed, so much so, that \ per
cent of a soluble salt of this oxide is suffi-
cient to render soil almost barren. The
peroxide, however, is often found iu small
quantities in the ashes of plants. Tiie two
oxides together constitute from ^ to 10
per, cent of soil. The blue, yellow, red,
and brown colours of soil, are more or less
dependent upon the presence of iron.
451. " Oxide of Manganese. — This oxide
exists in nearly all soils, and is occasionally
found iu plants. It does not, however,
ap]>ear to exert any important influence
either mechanically or chemically. . Its
amount -varies from a mere trace to about
1^ per cent. It assists iu giving the black
colour to soil.
45:2. " These four substances constitute
by far the greatest bulk of every soil, ex-
cept the chalkv and peaty varieties, but,
nevertheless, cheniically speaking., are oi
trifling imjiortauce to plants; whereas the
remaining eight are so absolutely essential
that no soil can be- cultivated with any
success, unless provided with them, either
naturally or artificially. And yet, when
it is considered that scarcely any of them
constitute 1 per cent of the soil, their value
will no doubt excite surprise. The sole
cause of their utility lies in the fact, that
they constitute the ashes of the plants ;
and as no plant cau, by possibility, thrive
104
INITIATION.
without its inorganic constituents, (its
athes,) lienco no soil can be fertile which
does not contain the in;i,'reilieuts of which
these are nia.le up. Tlie very small per-
centage of these ingredients in any soil
necessitates a minute analysisitf every soil
before it can be ascertained wliether ornot
it contains any, or what proportion of these
ingredients. But the reason for such
minuteness in auah'sis becomes obvious
when we consider the immense weights
which have to be dealt with in practical
agriculture ; for exanijde, every imperial
acre of soil, considered as only 8 inches
deep, will weigh 1884 tons, so that 0-002
per cent, that is, only a two-thousandth
per ceut — the amount of sulphuric acid in
a barren soil — amounts to S0-G4 lbs. in the
imi>erial acre !
4. 53. " Potass and soda exist in variable
quantities in many of the more abundant
niinerals, and hence it follows that their
proportion in soil will vary according to
the mineral whicli produced it. For the
sake of reference, I have subjoined the
following table, which shows the amount
per cent of alkalies in some of these
minerals, and likewise a rough calculation
of the whole amount per imjierial acre, on
the supposition of a soil composed solely
of these rocks, and of a depth of 10 inches ;
and the amount is abundant beyond con-
jecture : —
Name of Mineral
Amount per cent
of Alkali.
Name of Alkali.
Amount per Tmperial Acre in a 80il
10 inches deep.
Felspar . .
Clinkstone
Clav-slate
Basalt . .
17-75.
3-31 to 6-6-2
2-75 to 3-31
5-75 to 10
Potass
. Potass and soda-
Potass
Potass and soda
Tons. oYt qr. lb. Tons, cwt qr. lb.
422 18 2 8
71 17 2 Oto 143 15 0 0 .
35 16 3 Oto 71 17 2 0
,17 0 0 7 to 25 7 3 7
4.54. " One acquainted with chemistry
will naturally ask the question, How is it
that these alkalies have not been long ago
washed away by the rain, since tliey are
both so very soluble in water? The rea-
son of tJieir not having been dissolved is
the following — and it may in justice be
taken as an example of those wise provi-
sions of nature, whereby -what is useful is
never wasted, and yet is at all titnes ready
to be abundantly supplied. : —
455. "These alkalies exist in combination
with the various other ingj-edientsof the rock
in which they occur, and in thiis way have
such a powerful attraction for these ingre-
dients, that they are capal>le of completely
resisting the solvent action of water as
long as the integrity of the mass is retained.
When, however, it is reduced to a per-
fectly iinpal})ablepowd(n-, this atti-action
isdiininislied to a considerable extent, and
then the alkali is much more easily dis-
solved. Now this is the ca.se in soil, and,
consequently, while the stony portions of
soil contain a vast supply of these valuable
ingredients in a condition in which water
can do them no injury, the impalpable
powder is supplied witli them in a soluble
state, and hence in a condition available
to the wants of vegetation.
456. " In the rocks which we have
mentioned, the alkalies are always asso-
ciated with clay, and it is to this
substance that they have the greatest
attraction ; it follows, therefore, tliat the
more clay a soil contain.*, the more
alkalies will it have, but at the same time
it will yield them less easily to water, and
through its medium to plants."
457. Anab/sis of soils. — I shall give
only a single instance of the minute ana-
lysis of a soil, without reference to its
barrenness or fertility, in order to show
the great variety of substances found in
it. The soil was fr(mi a tract in North
Holland, gained by embankment from the
sesv, and its analyses were made by Baura-
hauer iu Miilder's laboratory at Utrecht.
Soil.
Subsoil.
Subsoil.
Surface. 1
5 in. deep.
atlin.deep.
Organic matter and
COm-
billed water
8-324
7-700
9-348
Iluiuic acid
2-798
3- 911
3-428
t'renic acid
0-771
0-731
0037
Apocrenic acid
0107
0-160
0152
Potash
1-0-26
1-4. -50
1-521
Soda
\-9T2
2-069
1-9.37
Ammonia
0060
0-078
0075
Lime
4092
.)-o;»6
2-480
Magnesia
0130
0-140
0-1-28
Pero.xide of iron
9039
10-305
11-864
Protoxide of iron .
0-350
0-563
0-200
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
105
Soil. Subsoil. Subsoi!,
' Surface. 15 in. deep. 30 in. deep.
Protoxide of manganese 0 -iSS" 0-354 0 284
Alumina . . 1-364 2-576 2-410
Phosphoric acid . 0466 0-324 0-478
Sulphuric acid . 0-896 M04 0-576
Carbonic acid . 6-085 6940 4.775
Chlorine . . 1-240 1-382 1-418
Soluble silica . 2-340 2-4!16 2-286
Insoluble silicates . 57646 51-706 55-372
Loss . . . 1-006 0-935 1"231
100-
100-
100-*
4.58. On comparing the constituents of
such a soil as the above, witli the mineral
ingredients obtained by incineration from
the ashes of plants, it is found that
plants withdraw from the soil chiefly its
alkaline, mineral acid, and earthy ingre-
dients ; and if all these were not essen-
tial to the very existence of the plants,
they would not, of course, be taken up by
them ; and as the plants constituting our
cultivated crops withdraw those ingre-
dients in a varied amount, it follows that,
unless the soils we cultivate contain them
in ample amount and variety, it will be
impossible for the plants placed upon them
to arrive at a perfect state of development
of all their parts; for, chemically speaking,
and rationally speaking too, soils cannot
be expected to produce crops abundantly,
unless they contain a sufficient supply
of every ingredient which all the crops we
■wish to raise require from them.
4.59. The practical purpose of all ana-
lyses of plants and soils should, therefore,
be to make us acquainted with the con-
stituents of every variety of cultivated
crop at their different stages of growth ;
and to ascertain whether or not each soil
in use contains a sufficient supply of such
ingredients. The analyses of plants should
Lave thus a twofold object — namely, to
guide the cultivator in the treatment of the
plantis at the various stages of their growth,-
and to instruct him as to what quantity
the ripe plant in its healthy state finally'
carries off of those ingredients from the soil.
460. " The latter only of these two ap-
plications of such knowleilge," observes
Professor Johnston on this subject, " has
hitherto been kept in view by chemists ;
and so little has been done in reference to
it, that we scarcely know as yet what any
one entire plant, when fully ripe, carries
off from the soil. In reference to the
former application, the few imperfect re-
searches detailed in the preceding sec-
tions," (of the second edition of his Lec-
tures on Agricultural Chemistry,) " con-
tain all that we yet know. We may well
say, therefore," he concludes, " that our
knowledge of the inorganic constituents of
plants is yet in its infancy, and that our
present opinion upon the subject ought,
therefore, to be permitted to hang very
loosely about us."
461. Here, then, the agricultural stu-
dent will observe, is an extensive and
interesting field for exercising the re-
searches of the analytical chemist for years
to come, and a most useful subject
upon which to expend a proportion of
the funds of agricultural societies, until
every variety of soil, whether under culti^
vation or in a state of nature, and every
A'ariety of plant, whether under cultivation
or in a state of natural pasture, shall have
been minutely and rigorously analysed.
4G2. Per-centage of mineral ingredi-
dients ta/cm from the soiL^As an ex-
ample merely of the quantity of the
mineral ingredients taken from the culti-
vated soilby some of the cultivated' plants,
I sliall enumerate these instances : — •
Bt/ grain crops : —
100 lbs. of
Grain.
Husk.
Straw^
Wheat, -,
1-2 to 2-0
_
3-5 to 18-5
Barley,
2-.-?to 3-8
—
5-2 to 8-5
Oats,
2-6 to 3-9
5 to 8
4-1 to 9'2
Rve,
10 to 2-4
5 to 8
2-4 to 5-6
Rice,
0-9 to 0-7
14 25
—
Indian com.
1-3
—
2-3 to 65
Buck-wheat, -
213
—
—
Millet seed.
3-9
—
—
Field beans.
2-1 to 4-0 :
?
31 to 7-0
Field pease.
2-5 to 30 Pod 7-1
4-3 to 6-2
Vetches, -
2-4
—
—
Lentils, -
2-U6
—
— Flax.
Linseed, -
3-8 to 4-63
—
4-5 1-2S
Hemp.
Hemp seed,
5-6
—
1-78
Mustard seed, -
4-2 to 4-3
—
—
Coffee,
819
—
—
463. Bg root and leaf crops-: —
Root or tuber. LeaTCS.
100 lbs. of Undried. Dried. Undried. Dried.
Potato, - 0-8 to I -I 3-2 to 4-6 1-8 to 2-5 IS to 25
'J urnip, - 0-G to O'S (>0 to 8-0 1-5 to 2-9 14 to 20
Beet, - — 6-3 _ _
Jerusalem arti-
clinke, - — 6-0 — —
Carrot, - 07 5-1 — 16-42
Parsnip, - 0-8 4-3 — 15-76
Mangold-wurt-
zpl, - 11 7-0 0-53 7-55
Cabbage, — — — 18 to 26
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry and Geology, 2d edition, p. 528.
106
INITIATION.
4fi4. By g rat get i
■
100 Ita. ol
GrMO.
Ihy.
Lucvriie ...
2(5
86
Ke-I ili.vpr,
1-6
7-6
White clover,
■ 17
9-1
Ilyegni«,
1-7
(i-0
Knot ^'ni.u.
—
23
llulcii^ l.iimtiis,
—
6(J to 6-8
P<ia pr»U'iisU,
—
(i-2
Bcirpiu,
—
2-3
465. Bi/ trees : —
lOOIU. of Wood. Seed. I/«a<rc«, driol.
Larcli, - - 0-;i3 5-0 6-0
ScDtdi fir, - 0-14 to 0-19 4!l8 2-0 to 3-0
Piicli p.ne, - 0-2.) 4-47 3 15
Beech, - - 0-14 to 0-60 — 4-2 to 6 7
Willow, - • 0-45 — 8-2
Birch, - - 0-34 — 50
Elm, - - 1-88 — 11-8
Ash, - - 0-4 to 0-6 — —
Oak. - - 0-21 — 4-5
Poplar, - - \i)7 — 9-2
Commou furze, l>-82 flower. 3-1
Hop,
5-0
10-90 163
4GG. On the results exhibited in these
tables, Professor Johnston makes these ob-
servations. "That the quantity of inor-
ganic matter contained in the same weight
of the different crops we raise, or of the
different kinds of vegetable food we eat,
or with ■which our cattle are fed, is very
unlike; and the quantity contained in dif-
fereiu parts of the same plant is equally
unlike. These results caniiotbe the re-
sult of accident. They are constant on
every soil, and in every climate; they
must, therefore, have their oriijin in some
natural law. Plants of ditferent species
must draw from the soil that proportion of
inorganic matter which is ad;tj>ted to the
constitution, and is fitted to supply the
wants of each ; while of that which has
been admitted by the roots into the gene-
ral circulation of the plant, so much must
proceed to, and be appropriated by, each
part, as is suited to the functions it is
destined to discharge. And as from the
same soil different plants select dilferent
quantities of saline and earthy matter, so
from the same common sap do the bark,
the leaf, the wood, and the seed, select and
retain that y)roportion which the healthy
growth and development of each requires.
It is with the inorganic as with the organic
food of plants: some draw moVe from the
6oil, some less; and of that which circu-
lates in the sap, only a small portion is
expended in the ])rodiiction of the flower,
though much is employed in forming the
stem and leaves.
4G7. " On tliis subject I shall add two
other observations," continues the Profes-
sor: "from the constant presence of this
inorganic matter in plants, given under all
circumstances, a doubt can hardly remain
that it is an essential part of their sub-
stance, and that they cannot live and
thrive without it. But that it really is so,
is beyonil a doubt, by the farther experi-
mental fact, that if a healthy young plant
be placo<l in circumstances where it can-
not obtain this inorganic matter, it droops,
pines, and dies. But if it be really essen-
tial tt) their growth, this inorganic matter
must be considered as part of the /ou<I of
j)lants ; and we may as correctly speak of
feeding or supplying food to plants, when
we add earthy and mineral substances to
the soil, as when we mix it with a supply
of rich compost, or of well fermented farm-
yard manure.
468. " I introduce this observation for
the purpose of correcting an erroneous
impression entertained by practical men
in regard to the way in which mineral
Substances act when applied to the soil.
By the term manure, they generally de-
signate such substances as they believe to
be capable ai feeding the plant, and hence
reject mineral substances, such as gypsum,
nitrate of soda, and generally lime, from
the list of manures properly so called.
And as the influence of these substances
on vegetation is undisputed, they are not
un frequently considered as stimulants
only. Yet if, as I believe, the use of a
wrong term is often connected with the
prevalence of a wrong opinion, and may
lead to grave errors in practice, I may be
permitteil to press ujwn your con-i<lera-
tion the facts above stated — I may almost
say demonstrated — rthat plants do feed
uj)on dead un(»rganised mineral matter,
ami that you, therefore, really manure
your soil, as well as permanently improve
it, when you add to it such substances of
this kind as are found by exi)erience to
I)romote the growth of your crops."
4G!). The discovery of the constant ex-
istence of inorganic matter in plants, which
could have been discovered by che-
mistry alone, must have, in future, a very
imj)ortant influence in modifying the
notions, and regulating the ))ractice of
cultivating all our plants. "It establishes a
clear relation between the kind ami qua-
lity of the crop, and the nature and che-
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
107
niical composition of the soil in which it
grows; — it demonstrates what soils ought
to contain, and tlierefore how tliey are
to be improved ; — it explains the effect of
some manures in permanently fertilising,
and of some crops in permanently impo-
verishing the soil; it illustrates the action
of mineral substances upon the plant, and
shows how it may be, and really is, in a
certain measure, fed by the dead earth :
— over nearly all the operations of agri-
culture, indeed, it throws a new and unex-
pected light." *
470. The great importance to agricul-
ture of ascertaining the constituents of
plants by analysis, is thus estimated by
Liebig : — "By an exact examination of
the quantity of ashes in cultivated plants,"
he observes, "growing on various kinds of
soils, and by their analysis, we learn those
constituents of the plants which are vari-
able, and those wliich remain constant.
Thus, also, we will attain a knowledge of
the quantities of all the constituents re-
moved from the soil by difiereut crops.
The farmer will then be enabled, like a
systematic manufacturer, to have a book
attached to each field, in which he will
note the amount of the various ingredients
removed from the land in the form of
crops, and therefore how much he must
restore to bring it to its original state of
fertility. He will also be able to express,
in pounds weight, how much of one or of
another ingredient of soils he must add to
his own land, in order to increase its fer-
telity for certain kinds of plants. These
investigations are a necessity of the times
in which we live ; but in a few years, by
the united diligence of chemists of all
countries, we may expect to see the rea-
lisation of these views ; and, by the aid of
intelligent farmers, we may confidently
expect to see established, ou an immove-
able foundation, a rational system of farm-
ing for all countries and for all soils." t
471. Classification of soils. — A correct
and intelligible classification of soils would
much facilitate their description by writers
on agriculture, and would render their
characters more easily understood by the
readers of airricultural works. For want
of any systematic classification, farmers
have established a classification amongst
themselves, which seems to answer all prac-
tical purposes. Thus, when a soil isdescrib-
ed as being clayey or sandy as its fundamen-
tal characteristic, it is understood to be
strong or light, and wlieu it is said to be
sharp or heavy, the kind of crop each is
best suited to grow — namely, turnips on
the former, and wheat on the latter — is
easily understood ; but, of course, these
conventional terms are only understood
by practical men, and convey no definite
meaning to others.
472. "Were soils as definite in their cha-
racters as minerals are, there would be no
difficulty in applying to them the external
characters employed to describe minerals,
and these are quite sufficient to identify
them to mineralogists ; but as soils are so
varied in aspect and texture, definite rules
are quite inapplicable to them.
473. And if the external characters
cannot be employed to describe soils cor-
rectly, much less can their cheniical com-
position be adopted as a basis of classifica-
tion suited to the wants of practical men.
Chemical tests can only be employed when
the soil is about to be analysed ; and to
require an analysis before a soil can be de-
scribed or understood, is to place a direct
barrier against acquiring a scientific
knowledge of its characters by practical
men.
474. All I can present on this subject
is a sketch of a classification of soils, pro-
posed by M. De Gasparin, who, though
employing some chemical tests to ascertain
the nature of soils, had previously en-
deavoured to ascertain it by studying their
agricultural characters. The result was,
that he was led to adopt the following
conclusions in regard to the relative values
of the characters of soils. " It is," he says,
" only after having destined a particular
soil to an appropriate culture, that we can
begin to consider the labour and improve-
ment it requires. Those labours and im-
provements will be without an object and
a bearing, if we are still ignorant of the
plant to which they would be useful. And,
* Johnston's Lectures on AgriculUiral Chemistry and GeA>lo()y, 2d edition, p. 303-7.
t Liebig's Chemistry of Agriculture and Fhysiology, 3d edition, p. 213.
108
INITIATION.
moreover, this investigation of tlie appro-
priation of soils to particular kinds of cul-
ture, is connected with tbe most natural
classification in a niineralogical point of
view ; it breaks the smallest number of
affinities, and consequently renders the
determination of soils more easy and more
satisfactory^" 1 cannot help thinking that
M. De < ra.'jparin has here hit upon the
princ'tpl' ujxm which a correct and useful
classifica'ion of soils may be founded.
475. In his endeavour to reduce tliis
principle to practice, be has placed soils
in two gi^eat divisions ; tl»e ^first includes
those having a tnineral or inorganic basis,
tbe second those having an organic one. '
476. The first great division, cobsistmg
of ^oils having a mineral or inorganic basis,
be divides into four classes, comprehend-
ing' saliferous soils, siliceous soils, clai/s,
and cal-careous and Diagnesian soils.
477- The character of ^a/Z/iro?/* soilsis,
that they have "a salt or styptic taste,'
containing at least 0*005 parts of hydro-
chlorate of soda, or suljihate of iron ; " and
they consist 1st, of saline soils; and, 2J,
of vitriolic soils.
478. The character o{ siliceous soils is,
that they produce "no effervescence with
acids, aft'ording by levigation at lea^t O'TO
of large particles, which are deposited
when the water in which the earth isdis-
solved is strongly shaken."
470. Clays are characterised by " not
yielding eflervescence with acids, and by
affording by levigation less than 0*70 of
the first portion."
480. And the characters of calcareous
and magnesian soils are, that they " pro-
duce effervescence with acids; lime or
magnesia, or both, being found in the solu-
tion." This clai-s is subdivided into five
suborders, namely, chalks, sands, dags,
marls, and loams. The marls, again, arc
farther subdivided into two sections,naniely,
calcareous marls and argillaceous marls.
481. The second great divison, consist-
ing of soils having an organic basis, he
divides into two classes, comprehending
fresh mould and acid mould.
482. The charpoter oi fresh mould is,
that " the water in which this mould is
digested or boiled does not redden litmus
I)aper."
483. That of acid mould being, that, un-
der the same circumstances, it " reddens
litmus paper." >
484. It is intimated that M. De Gas-
parin has laid"xlown rules for the descrip-
tion of species, and with txanijdes of all
the methods of description. In reading
these, we at once perceive how precise
an idea of soils is conveyed in a manner
that cannot l>e niisunderstootl by any agri-
culturist. The possibility of transmitting
these clear and pointed descriptions to a
distance, follows as a matter of course; and
we shall in this manner be freed from all
that Vtigueness which has been so long a
just canse of complaint." This is all that
can be desiderated on the subject ; but,
useful as all M. De Gasparin's services to
agriculture have been in the right direc-
tion, he has not yet succeeded in establish-
ing a faultless description of soils, for, let
me apply some of the rules he has offered
above, and test his own apjdicatidn of
them. For example, he says, that clag
soils are characterised by ■" not yielding
effervescence with acids, and' affording by
levigation 4e?s than 0'70 of the first por-
tion;" and the character of siliceous t-oils
he gives in these wtirds, " producing no
effervescence with acids, affording by
levigation at lejist 0*70 of large j>articles."
Surely the mere difference of affording
'*at lea?t" and "less" than 070 of any
ingredient, is not sufficient to account for
the great difference existing in agriculture
betwixt clay and sandy soils. He does
not, however, confound loams with clays,
as some Avriters have done, the loams
containing clay only a little "more than
O'lO of the weight of tlie «oil ;" whereas
clays afford only a little " less than 0-70
of the first portion" of the matter sej'a-
rated by levigation, thereby establishing
a great difference of character betwixt
them.
385. There is no doubt, however, of the
truth of the opinion expressed by M. De
Gasparin, were a correct nomenclature
and classification of soils established, when
he says, " that the study of agricultural
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
109
treatises would be greatly facilitated ; the
different nietliods of culture which are fol-
lowed in distant countries will no longer
appear so marvellous, and will become
more intelligible; we shall comprehend
better the considerations which limit or
extend the several cultures ; and a neces-
sary link beirtg established between the
science of agriculture and the other natu-
ral sciences, it will become more intelli-
gible to all, and will more readily profit
by the progress of all the other branches
of human knowledge." *
48G. Origin of soils. — On endeavouring
to establish- a relationship between geology
and agriculture, it seems incumbent to give
the agricultural student some idea of the
origin of the soil upon the cultivation of
which he is about to exercise his skill, and
from which he is to extract his future sub-
sistence; and, in cous;ulting geological and
other writers on this subject, some seem
to regard the existing soils as not only ex-
ceedingly simple in their origin, but
certainly indicative of the rock on
which they rest. Thus, Mr Morton says,
that "the surface of the earth partakes of
the nature and colour of the subsoil or
rock on which it rests. The principal mi-
neral t)f the soil of any district is that of
the geological formation under it; hence
we find argillaceous soil resting on the
various clay formations — calcareous soil
over the chalk — and oolitic rocks and sili-
ceous soils over the various sandstones.
On the chalk the soil is white ; on the
red sandstone it is red ; and on the sands
and clays the surface has nearly the same
shade of colour as the subsoil. The lime,
potash, and iron, existing in A'arious pro-
portions in the rock, are acted on by the
atmosphere, and the rock is decomposed ;
some of it will form impalpable matter,
some into sand, and some into coarse gravel
or rubble. The surface is composed of the
same materials as the subsoil, with the
addition of vegetable and animal matter,
in every state of decay, intimately mixed
with it ; and we perceive a change in the
external appearance of the surface Avhen-
ever there is achanjrein the subsoil below."t
Here the direct derivation of the soil from
the subjacent rock is fully stated.
48Y. A subsequent author, Mr Whitley,
gives his view of the formation of soils in
these words: — "The ordinary effect of
atmospheric influence does not appear suf-
ficient to produce such changes, (those
observable on the surface of the globe;)
for, if we examine the granitic tors, we
shall find that mosses and lichens grow
around their bases, and creep up their
sides, forming, by their decay, a light ve-
getable mould on which the weather pro-
duces little effect. Much less would
atmospheric influence be able to produce
such extensive changes as those we have
described. We are therefore led to the
conclusion that some more powerful and
effective agent has been at work; and the
phenomena connected with the facts we
have reviewed, are only consistent with
the theory of a vast body of water having,
by its violent action, broken and com-
minuted the earth's surface to a consi--
derable depth — thus holding in mechanical
suspension the materials of which the soil
and subsoil are composed — the coarser
and heavier', pai'ts of which fii'st subsided,
then the clays, and lastly, the fine earthy
matter In endeavouring to
establish this view of the formation of soil,
the decomposition of rocks by atmospheric
and chemical agencies must not be over-
looked. These causes had probably pro-
duced extensive changes before that catas-
tn>phe whose effects we have just been
describing ; and to the present tii.ue their
operation tends to improve and deepen
the soil. The crumbling down of rocks by
decomposition may be regarded as conseiiT
vative of the soil, by supplying fresh por-
tions to replace those which are con-
stantly being washed away." Yet after a
review of ".the violent action of a body of
water" having swept away " large por-
tions -of the earth's surface from their
original position, and deposited them at
lower levels," INIr Whitley arrives, rat her un-
expected!}', at a conclusion of the origin of
the present soil, which is much in unison
with, and even in the same words as, the
* Comptes Rendues de I'Academie des Sciences, tome viii., No. 8, p. 285, 1839, as translated in
Jameson's Edinburgh Neic Philosophical Journal, vol. xxvii., p. 84. 1 may here mention tliat M.
De Gaspariu is engaged iu a voluminous work on Agronomy, volumes of which have already appeared
in France.
t Morton On Soils, p. 1. 1838. I have not seen the subsequent editions of this work.
110
INITIATION.
opinion of Mr Morton, that, "from the fore-
going statement, we conclude that the soil
wenowcultivate has heen derived generally
from the reck on which it rests, and ten-
dered fertile by the addition of decayed
animal and vegetable matter. It will
follnw that the same mineral constituents
■which enter into the composition of the
rock, will be found also in the soil ; and
any marked colour peculiar to the one will
be coTumunicated to the other: thus, in
the chalk, the soil is white ; in the red
sandstone, red; and in the clay-slate,
yellow." *
488. Mr Anstcd professes to follow the
views of Mr Whitley on this subject, though
he expresses himself, in some jiarticulars,
in modifie<l language. " It must not be
supposed," he observes, " that a violent
rush of water isnecessary for the formation
of a soil. Rain, penetrating into the cre-
vices of an exposed rock, and succeeded
by frost, crumbles down the hardest ma-
terials ; and if these crumbled portions are
washed away, they are rapidly succeeded
by others, so that a soil is formed, which
at length, under favourable circumstances,
becoiues covered by mosses an<l lichens,
and from their decay is obtained that su})-
ply of carbon and other materials which,
in process of time, renders the soil fit for
the growth of other vegetables which are
useful to man. In either case, however,
the result to the agriculturist is the same ;
for there is a superficial coating of mould.,
and a subsoil chiefly or entirely mineral
between the mould and the parent rock.
An examination of the soil, and a chemical
analysis of it, will, in most cases, imme-
diately show that the soil, as well as tlie
subsoil, are derived from the underlying
rock ; and it seems that this exten<ls even
to the colour, which is white in chalky
soils, red in the new red sandstone, and
the ochniceous beds of the green-sand, and
yellow in the clays and clay-slate, &c.
But it will not be expected that these con-
ditions should hold when there is a thick
bed of superficial detritus, such as gravel ;
for the gravel must then be looked upon
as the parent rock, and the condition of
the soil will be little inllucuccd by the
actual underlying bed."t
489. As it appears to me, the origin of
the soil is not so ea-sily explained as the
matter seems to be assumed by the authors
I have just quoted ; and that ditticulty
attends the explanation of their origin may
be inferred from the fact of most geologists
having hitherto paid little attention to the
relations of tlie loose materials composing
the surface of the globe. They are well
acquainted, and coincide in opinion, with
the relations of the indurated rocks which
form the crust of the earth, but are far from
being agreed as to the causes which have
placed the enormous masses of incoherent
matter, met with in every quarter of the
globe, in their present positions. These
massed of clay, sand, and gravel, bear no
fixed relation to one another, like the in-
durated rocks; and therefore have not been
placed by the operation of any law of
order, but simj)ly that of gravity ; and it
is this want of order in their jiosition
which bafHes the ability of the geologist
to ascribe the origin correctly.
40O. The incoherent rocks, when com-
plete in all tjieir members, consist of three
parts. The oldest or lowest ' part, not
uu frequently termed diluvium, but which
is an objectionable term, innsmuch as it
convevs the idea of its having been forn}ed
by the Noachiau deluge, which it may not
have been, but may have existed at a much
older period of the globe. This cannot be
called aUurnini, according to the definition
of that deposite given by Mr Lyell, who
considers it to consist of "such transported
niattor as has been thrown down, whether
by rivers, floods, or other causes, upcn land
not permanenthi submerged beneath the
waters of lakes or seas, — T ^ny prrnianeutli/
suhme'iyril, in order to distinguish botween
aUuciunis and regular subaqueous depo-
sites. These regular strata," he continues,
" arc accumulated in lakes or great sub-
marine receptacles ; but the alluvium is in
the channels of rivers or currents, where
the UTaterials mav be regarded as still in
transitu,, or on their way to a ]>lace of
rest."J Diluvium, therefore, should rather
be termed subaqueous deposites, and may
consist of clay, or gravel, or sand, in deep
masses and of large extent. It may, in
fact, be transported materials, which, if
* Whitley's Application of Geology to Agriculture, p. 10-17. 1843.
t Ansted's Geology, toI. ii. p. 485. X Lylle's Principles of Geology, vol. iii. p. 218.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
Ill
they had been allowed to remain in their
original site, would have formed indurated
aluminous and siliceous rocks. When such
subaqueous deposites are exposed to at-
mospherical influences, an arable soil is
easily formed upon them.
419. True alluc'ial deposites may raise
themselves by accumulation above their
depositing waters, and art can assist the
natural process by the erection of embank-
ments against the waters of rivers and
lakes, and by forming large ditches for
carrying the waters away, as has been
done in several places in the rivers and
lakes of our country. Atmospherical in-
fluences soon raise an arable soil on alluvium.
492. The third member of soils is the
upper mould, which is directly derived
from vegetation, and can only come into
existence after either of the other soils has
been placed in a situation favourable for
the support of plants — that is, in the at-
mosphere. Mould, being the production
of vegetation, always exists on the surface,
but wlien either the subaqueous deposite
or the alluvium is awanting, it rests
upon the one present ; and when both are
awanting, it is formed upon the indurated
rock still by the atmosphere.
493. When the last case happens, if the
rocky stratum is porous, by means of nu-
merous fissures, or is in inclined beds, the
mould is of good quality fur agricultural
purposes, — sucli as are the moulds upon
sandstones, limestones, and trap, and the
upper chalk formation ; but if it rest on a
massive rock, then it is converted into a
spongy wet pabulum for subaquatic plants,
forming a marsh, if its site is low, but if
high, is converted into thin peat ; and both
are worthless soils for agriculture. ^Yhen
the mould rests immediately upon clay
suba<jueous deposite, a coarse and rank
vcireiation appears upon it; and if the
water which supports this has no oppor-
tunity of passing away, in time a bog is
formed by the cumulative growth of the
subaquatic mosses.* On the other hand,
■when it is formed on gravelly deposite, the
vegetation is short, and dry, and sweet,
and particulai'ly m ell adapted to promote
the sound feeding and health of sheep.
On such deposites water is never seen to
remain after the heaviest fall of rain.
Mould resting on alluvial deposite of
whatever nature, is a rich soil in conse-
quence, and it will be dry when the de-
posite is gravelly or sandy ; but not if
clayey.
494. Notwithstanding the possibility of
the formation of mould upon the surface
of hard rocks by means of atmospheric
influences, there cannot, I think, a doubt
exist that by far the largest proportion of
tlie agricultural soil is based upon the in-
coherent, and not the indurated rocks.
And that there may be no mistake in the
use of terms, I here use the term rock as
gcol()gists use it, tiiat is, according to the
definition of Sir Henry De la Beclie. " The
term rock is applied by geologists, not only
to the hard substances to which this name
is commonly given, but also to those vari-
ous sands, gravels, shales, marls, or clays,
which form beds, strata, or masses."t I
do not profess to be a geologist, -in the
legitimate sense of the term, but I hfeve paid
some attention tothe^cieucefor many j^ears
past, and never have had an op[)ortunity
of observing the position of rocks without
availing myself of it in order to become
acquainted with the loose deposites on the
surface, because they evidently have an
immediate connexion with agriculture ;
and I must say that all my observations
in this country, as well as on the Continent,
have convinced me that the agricultural
soils of the low part of a country are gene-
rally not derived from the hard mcks upon
which they may happen to be placed, but
have been brought to their present position
from a distance by means of water.
495. Many instances occur to my know-
ledge of great tracts of soils, including sub-
soils, having no relation to the "geotogical
formation under them." The fine strong
deep clay of the Carse of Gowrie rests on
the old red sandstone — a rock having no-
thing in common, eitlier in consistence or
colour, with the clay above it. The large
extent of the grey sands of Barrie, and the
great gre\' gravellv deposites of the valley
of the Lunan, in Forfarshire, both rest on
* For an account of the origin of Bogs, see Aiton On Moss, p. 1-120.
+ De la Beclie's Manual of Geology, p. 35.
112
INITIATION.
the same fonnation as tlie carse clay —
namely, the ulJ red gandstone, and so of
numerous other examples in Scotland,^ In
fact. Soils are freijuently found of infinitely
diversified diameter, over extensive dis-
tricts of roCk, wliose structure is nearly
uniform ; and, on the other hand, soils of
uniform character occur in districts wiiere
the underl^'ing rocks differ as well in
their chemical as th6ir geological pro-
perties. Thus a uniform integument of
clav rests upon the grey sandstone to the
westward of the Carse of Gowrie, in
Perthshire, and the same clay covers the
Ochil Hills in that county and Fifeshire
with a uniform mantle — over hills which
are entirely composed of trap. On the
other hand, a diversified clay and gravel
are found to cover a uniform track of
grevwacke in Perthshire. " We have
grey sandstone," says Mr Buist aptly,
when treating of the gedogy of the north-
east portion of Perthshire, " red sandstone,
and rock-marl, as it is called, cut by vari-
ous massy veins of trap or beds of conglo-
merate and lime ; yet I defy any man to
form the smallest guess of the racks below
from the soils al)ov€ them, though the
ground is sufficiently uniform to give fair
scope for all to manifest the influence pos-
sessed by them. There are lands whose
agricultural value has been so greatly
modified by the presence or withdrawal of
a bed of gravel between the arable soil and
tilly subsoil, tliat, when present, it aftords
a universal drain — when absent, it leaves
the land almost unarable. But if we must
show a relation betwixt the sandstone and
any of these beds, which of the three,"
very properly asks Mr Buist, " are we to
select as having affinity with the rock ?"*
490. What are we to say of the vast
quantity of solid matter held for a time in
mechanical suspension in the water of
rivers, and brought down to be deposited at
the mouth of the stream, or spread over the
bed of the ocean ? The matter brought down
the lUiine, and deposited in Holland before
the Avator reaches the sea, to the extent
that, in 2U00 years, it may have brought
down materials to form a soil one yard
thick, and covering an extent of 3G square
miles — the gigantic delta of the Ganges,
whose head commences at a distance of
220 miles in a direct line from the so;i,and
whose base is 200 miles along the coast,
comprises a triangular space of 20,000
square miles of new made soil — the immense
tract of swamp forming along the coast of
Guiana, in South America, by thedeposite
of the mud brought down by the Amazons
river, and the shallow sea along that coa^t
is rapidly being converted into land.t
Many other instances of a similar character
could be referred to. Are we to say tliat
these great deposites of soil rest upon the
indurated rocks upon which they rest ?
497. It is not denied that the chemical
action of the air, and the physical force of
rain, frost, and wind, produce visible
elFects upon the most indurated rocks,
but, of course, they must have much
greater effects upon incoherent t»nes.
Combined in their action, they could only
originate a mere coating of soil over the
surface of induratetl rock, if the rock were
situated witliin the region of phanarogam-
ous vegetation, because then it would be
constantly covered with plants. But the
plants, in their tmn, would protect the
rocks against the action of external agen-
cies; and although they could not entirely
prevent, they would at least retard, the ac-
cumulation of soil beyond what the decay
of vegetation supplied. Even in the
tropics, where vegetation displays its
greatest luxuriance on the globe, the mould
does not increase, though the decay of
vegetables every year is enormous. " The
quantity of timber and vegetable matter
which grows in a tropical forest in the
course of a century," says Mr LycU, " is
enormons, and multitudes of animal ske-
letons are scattered there during the same
period, besides innumerable land shells
and other organic substances. The aggre-
gate of these materials, therefore, might
constitute a mass greater in volume than
that which is produced in any coral reef
during the same lapse of years; but al-
though this process should continue on the
laud for ever, no mountains of wood or
bone would be seen stretching far and
wide over the country, or pushing out
bold promontories into the sea. The whole
solid mass is either devoured by animals,
Prizt Essays of the Highland and Agricultural Society, Tol. xiiL p. 44-9.
t Auated's Geology, vol, i. p. 6-9.
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTURE.
113
or decomposies into their gaseous con-
stituents, as does a portion of the rock
on which the animals and plants are sup-
ported." These are the causes of the
prevention of the accumuLit.ion of soils in
the tropics. In colder regions a similar
result is thus brought about. "It is well
known," continues Mr Lyell, " that a
covering of herbage and shrubs may pro-
tect a loose soil from being carried away
by rain, or even by the ordinary action of
a river, and may prevent hills of loose
sand from being blown away by the wind ;
for the roots bind together the separate
particles into a firm mass, and the leaves
intercept tlie rain-water, so that it dries
up gradually, instead of flowing off in a
mass and with great velocity."*
498. Some other agent, therefore, more
powerful than the ordinary atmospherical
elements, must be brought to bear upon in-
durated rocks, before a satisfactory solution
of the formation of soils can be accepted.
That other agent is water; but the mo-
ment we assent to the agency of water
being able by its abrasive power and
buoyant property, when in motion, to
transport the abraded parts of rocks to a
distance, and let them fall on coming in
contact with some opposing barrier, that
moment we must abandon the idea of the
soils formed from abraded matter having
been derived from the indurated rock upon
which they rest. Mr Buist draws these
conclusions after describing the relative
positions of the deposites to the rocks upon
which they rest in a large and important
districtof Perthshire, where he says, " that
the alluvial matters of these districts, in
general, belong to periodsmuch more remote
than those ordinarily assigned to them, and
came into existence under circumstances
prodigiously different from those which
presently obtain : that the present causes —
that is, the action of our modern rivers,
brooks, and torrents, and of the air. and
water on the surfaces now ex})osed to
them — have had but little share in modify-
ing our alluvial formations, or bringing
them into their present form. The doctrine
seems to me most distinctly demonstrable,
that wherever gravel or clay beds alternate
with each other, and wherever boulder
stones prevail remote from the parent
Lyell's Principles of Gealogy, vol. iii. p.
rock, or cut off from it by high interven-
ing ridges, that, at the time when the
surface of the solid rock became covered
with such alluvium, much the greater part
of it was hundreds of feet beneath the
waves. The supposition of the prevalence
of enormous lakes, requiring barriers only
less stupendous than our highest secondary
mountaiu-ranges, whose outbursts must
have swept every movable thing before
them, seems far more untenable than the
assumption that the present dry land, at
the era of boulders being transported,, was
beneath the level of the ocean, from which,
by slow elevations, it subsequently
emerged. Our newer alluvia, again,
which ai'e destitute of erratic boulders in
general — such as our Carse of Gowrie and
other clays — must hav(5 originated when
the sea occasionally invaded the land to
such moderate extent, that the transporta-
tion of rocky masses from great distances
from our mountain-land had been rendered
impossible, by the intervention of elevated
ridges, or of secondary mountain-ranges."t
499. More than this, is it not p.obable
that, when the sedimentary rocks were
being deposited in water, the upper por-
tions of the matter of which they were
about to be formed, were never indurated at
all, probably from want of.superincumbent
pressure, and were afterwards carried
away by currents, and deposited at a dis-
tance in eddies in a mechanical instead
of the crystalline form of indurated rock?
May not all diluvium have thus origi-
nated, instead of being abraded from
solid strata ? It is quite conceivable that
where indurated rock — such as chalk, and
sandstone, and limestone — were left bare
by the subsiding waters, and exposed to
atmospherical influences, the upper surface
may have- been converted into thin soil ;
but we can allow no greater power to the
atmosphere.
.500. Since we have ventured on the
field of speculation, why may we not
go a little farther, and imagine that, since
the structure and appearance of the
beds of clay and sand existing at present
are so very similar to those of the existing
sedimentary indurated rocks, that after
these beds had all been deposited in the
177 and 184. Fourth edition.
+ Prize Essays of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, vol. xiii. p. 49.
VOL. I. H
114
INITIATION.
bottom of the ocean, they had never been
indurated, either for want of pressure
above, or the indurating effect of the lieat
below, or fntiii tlie want of both causes,
and that in consequence of tlie subsequent
and general upheaving of the indurated
part of the se<liinentary rocks by the rising
of the igneous rocks below them, suppose
of granite, which is universally distributed
over the globe as a fundamental rock, the
upper unindurated parts had been re-
moved from their site in superposition upon
the indurated, by the currents created in
the ocean in consequence of the general
upheaving, and been deposited in those
places which presented the greatest calm-
ness in the water, and have covered
other loose or indurated rocks as the
case might have happened. The sub-
sequent and partial upheavings of the trap
rocks would produce somewhat similar
though partial results. This conjecture
would explain the existence of the enor-
mous masses of diluvial deposites found in
the globe more satisfactorily than from the
disintegration of indurated rock by ordi-
nary existing causes ; for as to the great
changes occasioned by the action of rivers,
alluded to above, it should be borne in
remembrance, that their visible effects are
produced chiefly by the action of water
on existing disintegrated masses, and not
to any sensible effect on indurated rock.
501. Keeping in mind these conjec-
tures, and employing them as modifying
strictures, I think the agricultural student
will find a satisfactory accomit of the
origin of soils in these wMjrds of Pro-
fessor Johnston : — " On many parts of the
earth's surface, the naked rocks apjjcar
over considerable tracts of country, with-
out any covering of loose materials from
■which a soil can be formed. This is
especially the case in mountainous and
granitic districts, and in the neiglibourliood
of active and extinct volcanoes, where, as
in Sicily, streams of naked lava stretch in
long black lines amid the surrounding
verdure. But over the greater jjortion of
our islands and continents, the rocks are
covered by accumulations, more or less
deep, of loose materials — sands, gravels,
and clays chieily, — the upper layer of
which is more or less susceptible of cul-
tivation, and is found to reward the exer-
tions of human industry with crops of com
of greater or less abundance. This super-
ficial covering of loose materials varies
from a few inches to one or two hundred
in depth, and is occasionally observed
to consist of different layers or beds,
placed one over another, — such as a bed
of clay over one of gravel or sand, and a
loamy bed under or over both. In such
cases, the characters and capabilities of
the soil must depend upon which of these
layers may chance to be uppermost ; and
its qualities may often be beneficially
altered by a judicious admixture with
portions of the subjacent layer. It is
often observe<l, where naked rocks present
themselves, either in cliffs or on more level
parts of the earth, that the action of the
rains and frosts causes their surfaces
gradually to shiver off, crumble down, or
wear away. Hence, at the base of cliffs,
looi^e matter collects, — on comjiaratively
level surfaces, the crumbling of the rocks
gradually forms a soil, — while from those
which are suflicicntly inclined, the rains
wash away the loo^e materials as soon as
they are separated, and carry them down
to form tleep deposites in the valleys.
The suj)erticial accumulation of which we
have spoken, as covering rocks in many
places to a depth of one or two hundred
feet, consist of materials washed down or
otherwise transported — by water, by
winds, or by other geological agents.
Much of these heaps of transported matter
is in the state of too fine a powder to per-
mit us to say, upon examining it, from
whence it has been derived. Fragments
of greater or less size, however, are always
to be found, even among the chiys and
fine sands, which are sufficient to point
out to the skilful geologist the direction
from which the whole has been brought,
ami often the very rocks from which the
entire accumulations have been derived.
.502. " Thus, the general conclusion is
fairly drawn, that the earthy matter of nil
soils has been ]>ro(luccd by the gradual
decay, degradation, or crumbling down of
previously existing rocks. It is evident,
therefore, that whenever a soil rests im-
mediately upon the rock from which it has
been derived, it may be expwted to i)ar-
take more or less of the composition and
character of that rock ; and that where the
soil forms only the surface la^'cr of a con-
siderable depth of trausported materials,
THE SCIENCES MOST APPLICABLE TO AGRICULTUKE.
115
it may have no relation whatever, either
in mineralogical character or in chemical
constitution, to the immediately suhjacent
rocks. The soils of Great Britain are
divisible into two such classes. In some
counties, an acquaintances with the pre-
vailing rock of the district enables us to
predict the general character and quality
of the soil ; in others — and nearly all our
coal-fields are in this case — the general
character and capabilities of tl)e soil have
no relation whatever to the rocks on which
the loose materials immediately rest." *
503. I have hitherto purposely abstained
from even mentioning the fertility/ oi soils,
whether natural or artificial, as the subject
will more appropriately engage our atten-
tion when we come to treat of manures.
On viewing, then, the chemical composition
of soils of known natural fertility, a stand-
ard will be aflbrded us by which we may,
perhaps, be enabled to render other soils
equally fertile by artificial means ; but all
our exertions may soon find a limit in this
direction, inasmuch as without a certain
amount of impalpable matter, soils cannot
possibly be fertile, and how can we produce
this impalpable matter? Yet, while the
existence of this material proves the soil to
be mechanical y well suited for cultivation,
chemical analysis alone can prove its "ab-
solute value to the farmer. The subject
of soils is thus full of interest to the
agricultural student.
504. Zoology. — Zoology treats of the
classification and habits of all animals, from
the lowest or simplest to the highest or
most complicated structure — man. It is
thus a comprehensive branch of natural
history, embracing within its range the
study of beasts, birds, reptiles, fishes, and
insects. The history and habits of the
quadrupeds and birds that form the domes-
ticated live stock of the farm, cannot fail
to engage the interest of the agricultural
student; and though such a study may not
afford him much information in the prac-
tical treatment of stock, it will certainly
present him with a comprehensive view of
the animal economy, and of the relaticuis
which one class of animals bear to every
other. The geographical distribution, too,
of animated beings over the surface of the
* Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemist
well's Geology, p. 192-202.
globe is a subject which at once finds ac-
ceptance in any intelligent mind ; and this
delightful and instructive study is now
placed in every one's power by the really
beautiful maps published by Johnston in
his Physical Atlas, a work which may be
studied and consulted in all its details
with profit by every dweller in the country.
505. Many of the animals indigenous
to this country, whether quadruped, bird,
or insect, are found in their habits at one
season to be injurious, and at another bene-
ficial to the interests of the farmer. No
method is more effectual of knowing how
to ascertain their injurious practices, or
how tf) encourage tlieir beneficial ones,
than to acquire an intimate knowledge
of their habits at all seasons. The weasel
destroys tiie eggs and young birds of the
poultry yard, but it also overcomes the
rats and mice, whether in granary or stack,
and these do no good at all to the farmer.
The rook and hedge-birds devour grain at
the ripening of the crops, but they destroy
myriads of the insect tribe in the season of
rearing tlieir young. All insects are not
injurious to the farmer; on the contrary,
many are positively beneficial. Tiie lady-
bird destroys multitudes of the aj)liides,
which injure many useful plants and trees,
while itself does no injury at any time.
The song-birds cheer our hearts in siiring;
and the only way for the farmer of re-
paying them for their song, is to feed them
generously during the severity of winter,
and which if he do, he is quite entitled to
protect his fruit from their depredations in
autumn by the use of simple safeguards.
506. Entomology ^ or the study of in-
sects, might be made to serve agriculture
to a considerable extent. In this depart-
ment of science, farmers might greatly
assist the entomohigist, by observing the
minute, but varied and interesting, habits
of insects. The dithculty of comprehend-
ing the true im])uls(>s of insects, as well as
of identifying species in the tlifferent states
of transformation, render the observations
of faruiers less exact than those of entomo-
logists who have successful, y studied the
technioalties of the science. The field of
observation in the insect cieation being
very wide, and there being comparatively
•y and Geology, 2d edition, p. 449-50, and Bake-
116
INITIATION.
blit few cxj)lorers in it, a large portion of
a man's life would be occujiied in merely
observing t;j)ecies and their habits, and a
much larger in forming general ileductiona
from rej)eated observations. The result
would be, were farmers to study entomo-
lojsy, that a long period must elapse ere
the habits of even the most common de-
structive insects, and the marks of their
identity, would become familiarised to
them. In conseijuence of this obstacle to
the stufly of entomolog}', the obligations
of the fawner ought to be the greater to
those entoni(dogists wbo daily observe the
habits of insects in the fields and woods,
and simplify their individual character-
istics ; and at the same time devise plans
to evade their extensive ravages, and re^
commend easy and effective means for
their destriiction. The English farmer,
living in a climate congenial to the de-
velopment of insect life, painfully expe-
riences their destructive powers cm croj^s
and woods ; and though the entomologists
of England are ever vigilant and active,
yet their efforts to overcome tlie tenacity
of insect life, with a due regard to the
safety of tiie plant, have hitherto proved
but partially availing.
507. Veterinary Science.-^A more
general diffusion of veterinary science has
tended much to improve tlic treatment of
live stock in the hands of farmers. For-
merly stock used to be exposed to the
changes of weather, and made to subsist
on the smallest quandty of food ; and the
consequence was, that they were overtaken
with fatal diseases, which annually swept
them away in numbers. Veterinary science
has exjdained to the farmer, that to expose
any living animal to a depressing tcmj»era-
ture, is to derange the functions of its
vital organs ; and to stint it at the same
time of a due proportion of food, is to de-
prive it of the power to generate heat
within itself, and to protect its body with
a covering of flesh and fat against the cold-
ness of the tem2)erature. Veterinary
science may now vie with the medical
sciences in importance and refinement, and
alargenun)berof skilful veterinarians are
now qualified to practise the art in every
part of the empire.
508. In recommending farmers to accjuire
a competent knowledge of veterinary
science, it is not to be imagined tbat tbej
should become vetcrinar3' surgeons. Let
every class of persons adhere to their own
profession. Dut doubtless a knowledge of-
veterinary science is of great use to the
farmer, not in enabling him to a<lminister
to the diseased necessities of his live stock
— for that requires nujre i)rofessionaI skill
and experience than any farmer can attain,
and is the proper ])rovince of the regu-
larly bred veterinarian — but to enable liim
readily to detect a disease by its symptoms,
in order to apply immediate checks against
its pntgress, until he can communicate with
and inform the veterinary surgeon of the
nature of the complaint, whereupon to
briqg with him materials for treating it
correctly on his arrival. The death of a
single animal may be a serious 1 iss to the
farmer, and if, by his knowledge of the
jirinciples of the veterinary art, he can
.stay the progress of every disease, he may
not only avert the loss, but prevent the
animal being much atl'ected by disease ;
and disease, though not proving fatal to
animals, leaves injurious eflects on the
constitution for a long .time thereafter
509. Epidemical diseases, such as the
murrain and pleuro-pneumonia, have of
late years ravaged the flocks and herds of
many farmers; but the mode of evading
or warding off their attacks in no respect
differs from that of other diseases. Shelter
aifd abundance of focnl at all tinies, and
attention to premonitory SAMiiptoms of
disease, are infalliablc means of evasion
and cure.
.")10. Comparatice Anatomp. — Com-
parative anatomy cx{)lain3 the internal
structure, and the functions of the bodies,
of vertebrated animals — that is, of those
animals provided with the high organisa-
tion of a back-bone, or spinal column.
This science is best acquired along with
the veterinary art, which particularly has
regard to the or^ranisation of all the infe-
rior animals, and especially of the domesti-
cated ones. At the same time, this species
of anatomy is only clearly understood
after the acquisition of a familiar acquain-
tance of the human frame. So many
opportunities of learning human anatomy
exist, that no difficulty need be experienced
by any one who passes a little time in any
town that forms the seat of a university;
BEST INSTITUTIONS FOR AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION.
117
and possessing a general acquaintance of
the human frame, a knowledge of the struc-
ture of the inferior animals, in all its
varieties, will . be easily acquired. A
knowledge of anatomy may prove useful
to the practical farmer, inasmuch as it ex-
plains to him the structure of the carcasses
of the animals upon which he bestows so
mu^h cai'e in rearing. Acquainted with .
the structure, functions, and seats of the
most common diseases of the several parts
which constitute the corporeal body, he
will be the better able to apportion the
food to the peculiar constitution of the
animal ; and also to anticipate any ten-
dency to disease, by a previously acepired
knowledge of premonitory symtoms.
511. These are the physical sciences
whose principles seem most applicable to
agriculture; and being so, they should be
studied by every farmer who wishes to
be considered an enlightened member of
his profession. Tliat farmers are quite
competent to attain these sciences, may
be gathered from the observations of Sir
John Hers'ehel: — "There is scarcely any
well informed person who, if he has but
the will, has not the power to add some-
thing essential to the general stock of
knowledge, if he will only observe regu-
larly and methodically some particular class
of facts which may most excite liis atten-
tion, or which his situation may best enable
him to study with effect. To instance one
subject which can only be eflectually im-
proved by the united observations of great
numbers widely dispersed — ^Meteorology,
one of the most complicated but important
branches of science, is at the same time
one in which any person who will attend
to plain rules, and bestow the necessary
degree of attention, may do effectual
service." ' But in drawing conelusious,
great caution is requisite, for, " In form-
ing inductions, it will most commonly
happen that we are led to our conclusions
by the especial force of some two or three
strongly impressive facts, rather than by
affording the whole mass of cases a regu-
lar consideration ; and hence the need of
cautious verification. Indeed, so strong
is this propensity of the human mind, that
there is hardly a more (;ommon thing' than
to find persons ready to assign a cause for
every thing they see, and in so doing, to
join things the most incongruous, by ana-
logies the most fanciful. This being the
case. It is evidently of great importance
that these first ready impulses of the mind
should be made on the cotitemidation of
the cases most likely to lead to good in-
ductions. The misfortune, however, is, in
natural philosophy, that the choice does
not rest with us. We must taj^e the in-
stances as nature presents them. Even if
we are furnished with a list of them in
tabular order, we must understand and
comi)are them with each other, before we
can tell which ai-e the instances thus de-
servedly entitled to the highest considera-
tion. And, after all, after much labour in
vain, and groping in the dark, accident or
casual observation will present a case
which strikes us at once with a full in-
sight into the subject, before we can even
have time to determine to what class its
2)rerogative belongs." *.
ON THE IJSrSTITUTIOlirS OP EDUCATION BEST
SUITED TO AGRICULTURAL STUDENTS.
512. No course of elementary education
is better taught than at the excellent paro-
chial schools of Scotland. The sons of far-
mers andof peasants of Scotland have thus a
favourable opportunity of acquiring the
elementsof a sound education, and they do
not fail to avail themselves of it. There,
also, a classical education, sufficiently ex-
tensive and profound for persons in ordi-
nary life, may be obtained. But as to
the acquirement of all the sciences enume-
rated above, it must be sought for in the
universities, and some of them are taught
in academies.
513. Four universities exist in Scotland,
two in England, and one in Ireland, in
any one of which is taught all, and more
than all, the sciences I have enumer-
ate<l.
514. There exist, besides, a great num-
ber of academies in many of the provincial
towns in the kingdom, in which mathe-
matics and natural philosophy are chiefly
taught, together with practical mathe-
matics, grammar, and book-keeping.
Herschel's Di'yfour^e on the Study of Natural Philosophy, p. 133 and 182.
118
INITIATION.
515. For the study of mathematics and
natural philosophy, I'prefer the academies
to the colleges, because their course occu-
pies twenty mouths, aud two hours are
devote<l each day to each subject; whereas
the college session extenrls only to six
montlis, and devotes only one hour for five
days in the week to one subject. The longer
session, and the fuller teaching on each
subject, and a smaller fee, are great advan-
tages to students — great inducements for
them to attend the academies ; while the
more fully mathematics and natural phi-
losophy are taught, the more heartily are
they appreciated by the student. Two
sessions of twenty months, with a vacation
of two months intervening between the
sessions, might thus be profitably employed
at an academy in learning mathematics,
natural philosophy, geography, English
grammar, and the theory of book-keeping.
516. Natural history and chemistry are
best acquired at college, as they are not
always taught, and never fully so, at the
academies; and without the most ample ex-
periments and illustrations, which cannot
be expected to be afforded in provincial
towns, these sciences cannot be profitably
studied.
517. Many farmers, I dare say, will
consider it beyond the reach of their means,
and others beyond their station, to bestow
on their sons so learned an education as
that implied in the acquirement of the
sciences enumerated. ISuch an idea is ill-
founded; because no farmer who can afford
to support his sons at home, without work-
ing for their bare subsistence, but possesses
the means of giving them such an educa-
tion ; and no farmer, who confessedly has
wealth, should grudge to give his sons
an education such as will fit them to adorn
the profession they are to follow.
518. It cannotbe denied tliatmathematics
and natural j)hilosophy are sciences which
tend greatly to elevate the mind. Tlmse
farmers who have acquired them must be
sensible of this tendency ; and they must
naturally desire their sons to j)artake in
what they themselves enjoy. Those who
are not acquainted with these sciences, on
being made aware of their tendency, should
feel it their duty to put it in the power of
their sons to raise themselves in society,
and shed a lustre on their profession. The
.same sort of reasoning applies to a know-
ledge of natural history and chemistry.
Neither the time n(»r expense of acquiring
such an education should deter any farmer's
son from attempting it, whti desires tooccupy
a position above that of a farm steward; for
without the education, his knowledge of
farming is not superior to that of a steward.
Besides these considerations, since a good
education is the best legacy a parent can
leave his child, it is actually better for
the young farmer himself to bestow on
him a superior education with part of the
patrimony destined by his father to stock
him a farm, than to plenish for him a
larger farm, and stint his education. The
lar<;er farm would, probably, enable the
half educated son to earn a livelihood more
easily; but the well-educated one would
be more than compensated by the posses-
sion of a cultivated intelligence, which
would enable him to draw forth the capa-
bilities of the soil, and make himself an
infinitely superior member of society.
Were industrious farmers as desirous to
improve their sons' minds by superior
education, as they too often are to amass
fortunes for them, — a boon nuprofitably
used by uncultivated minds, — they would
be regarded as wiser men. No really
sensible farmer should hesitate to decide
which cour.-e to take, when the intellec-
tual improvement of his family is con-
cerned. He should never permit conside-
rations of mere pelf to overcome a sense
of right and of duty. Rather than prevent
his son raising himself in society, he should
economise his own expenditure.
510. I shall show that the time occu-
pied in ao<|uiring these sciences is not lost
M'hen compared with the advantages they
bestow. Part of three years will suffice ;
but three years are no doubt reganled as
an iuHHonse time for a young man to lose .'
So it would be were it really lost ; and if it
be lust, the blame should be imputed to
the negligence of the student. But is the
young fanner's time, who is for years
constantly following his father's footsteps
over the farm, aud only engaged in super-
intending in his fatlier's absence, not as
much lost as it could possibly be in acquir-
ing a scientific education at a little distance
from home ? Insomuch as the young
man's time is of use to the/awvH, the two
BEST INSTITUTIONS TOR AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION.
119
cases are nearly on a par ; and in as far as
g they affect himself, there is no question
that science would benefit him the more,
— no question that a superior education
would enable him to learn the practice of
his profession with much greater ease to
himself. The question of education is thus
narrowed to the consideration of the cost
of keeping the son at home, following his
father as idly as a shadow, or of sending
him to college. In a pecuniary point of
view, the difference is between mainte-
nance at home, and that in a town, with
the addition of fees ; and that this diffe-
rence is not great, I shall now show.
520. Part of three years, as I have said,
would suffice ; — the first year to be devoted
to mathematics, the second to natural philo-
sophy, and the third to natural history
and chemistry; and along with these prin-
cipal subjects, in the first two years practi-
cal mathematics, as surveying, &c., English
granmiar and composition, book-keeping,
and a knowledge of cash transactions.
The vacations would be spent at home, and
not unprofitably in revising studies.
521. The cost of acquiring all these
subjects at the several colleges and acade-
mies is not insurmountable, even to the
limited purse of a small farmer. In any
of the towns possessing an academy, the
two sessions of twenty months would not
exceed in board a guinea a-week, and in
fees twelve guineas — say £100; and the
short session of six months at college, at
a guinea a-week, and fifteen guineas for
fees, other £45 — making in all, in twenty-
six mcmths, say £150. This is a small
sum compared with the advantages derived
from it; and from this falls io he deducted
the cost of keeping the son at home in
idleness^ which, even at ploughmen's
usual wages of 10s. a-week, would amount
to £54, so that his education would only
cost about £100, which economy might re-
duce to a smaller sum ; and, on the other
hand, a larger should be given to make
the student, if diligent, comfortable. I
am quite aware it may be remarked on
this subject, that it applies only to the
case of one son, whereas the farmer may
have more to educate and maintain. But
as I am only advocating the cause of the
young farmer, by desiring his elevatitm in
society ; and as only one son can succeed
his father as a farmer, I hold I have made
good the proposition I made.
522. Besides the sciences, the agricul-
tural student has the opportunity in Edin-
burgh of attending the class of agriculture
in the university, in which the professor
explains the principles and describes the
practice of the most approved systems of
husbandry. This chair was endowed iu
1790 by Sir William Pulteney, with a
small salary, and placed under the joint
patronage of the Judges of the Court of
Session, the Senatns Academicus of the
University, and the Magistrates and Town-
Council of the City of Edinburgh. The
first professor, elected by the patrons to
this chair in 1791, was the late Dr Co-
ventry, whose name, at one time, in con-
nexion with the agriculture of this
country, stood prominent. He occupied
the chair until his death in 1831. The
present Professor Low succeeded Dr
Coventry. He has rekindled the dying
embers of the agricultural class, by lectures
suited to the improved state of British
agriculture, and by forming a museum of
models of agricultural implements, and
portraits of live stock, of the most exten-
sive and valuable description. The funds
which attained this object, were derived
from the revenues under the management
of the Board of Trustees for the encour-
agement of Arts and Manufactures in
Scotland, which was instituted by the
15th Article of the Treaty of Union be-
tween Scotland and England. Professor
Low, during his incumbency, has contri-
buted, in his several publications, much
valuable matter to the agricultural litera-
ture of the country.
523. Classes for the tuition of practical
chemistry exist in the University of Edin-
burgh under Professor Gregory, and in
that of Glasgow under Dr Robert D.
Thomson; and, until the end of 1«48, in
the laboratory of the Agricultural Chem-
istry Association of Scotland in Edin-
burgh under the care of Professor John-
ston.
524. The Agricultural Chemistry Asso-
ciation of Scotland was established in 1843
for five years certain, and now that that
period is about to expire, it will cease to
exist in a separate form in November 1848;
120
I>riTIATION.
the Highland and Agricultural Society of
Scothin.l having undortiiken, by the sanc-
tion of a spocial general nieeting on the
12th April 1840, to conduct the chemical
department of agriculture under its own
direction and control.
t2.5. During its existence, the Agricul-
tural Chemistry Association has laboured
very assidously in its vocation. I-t has
made elaborate analyses of i)lants, espe-
cially of tbe oat and potato, — of numerous
sorts of grasses — of clays — of manures — of
the refuse of manufactories, and of many
other substances, consisting altitgethcr of
considerably above 2001) analyses ; and
all these have been ably and correctly
conducted by Professor Johnston.
52G. Besides undertaking the chemical
department, the Highland and Agricul-
tural iSociety propose to issue dij)lomas
or degrees to young men whose aim it
is to become the managers of farms and
estates, and who have acquired a know-
ledge of practical agriculture, and have
also followed such a course of educatiini
at any institution ■ or institutions which
teach the branches of science having more
immediate relation to agriculture, and who
have undergone a searching examination
by a competent board of persons appointed
for the purpose.
527. This will form a new feature,
and give a fresh stimulus to the agricul-
tural education of Scotland, and cannot fail
to imbue the young agriculturists of Scot-
land witli enlightened ideas, and elevate
their character much more than any course
of education they can just now pursue.
528. In enumerating the means of
obtaining knowledge befitting the agri-
cultural student, I must mention the
Veterinary Colleges. Their great oljject
is to teach the veterinary science, in which
the anatomical structure of all the domes--
ticated quadrupeds — horses, rattle, slieep,
pigs, dogs, and poultry — the diseases to
which they are subject, and the remedies
proper to be applied for their removal, are
investigated and demonstrated; in order
that, by iheir means, enlightened practi-
tioners of liberal etliicati(jn, whose wliole
study has been devoted to the veterinary
art in all its branches, may be gradually
dispersed over all the kingdom. The
Veterinary College of Edinburgh had its ^
origin in 1818, in the personal exertions
of the present Professor Dick, who, after
five years of unrequited labour, obtained
the patronage of, and a small endowment
from the Highland and Agricultural
Society of Scotland in 1823. Since then
his exertions and success have been equally
extraordinary, not fewer than from seventy
to onehundredjiupils attending the college
every session, of whom fully twenty every
year, after two years' study of practical
anatomy, pharmacy, and chemistry be-
come candiilates for dij>lomas to practise as
veterinary surgeons. Their qualifications
are judged of by examination by eminent
medical and zootric practitioners. At the
request of the Highland and Agricultural
Society, permission has been obtained for
the graduates to enter as veterinary
surgeons into her Majesty's cavalry regi-
ments, as well as those of the Honourable
East India Company.
529. Some suspicious attempts have
lately been made by the Veterinary College
of London to obtain an uncalled-for control
over the veterinary' college in Edinburgh ;
but I hope the Highland and Agricultural
Society will retain the management of their
own school in their own hands. Of all
institutions this college has given less cause
for interference than any other; and there
is no man who has elevated the character
of a profession, by dint of professional
ability, in so short a time and to so high a
position, as Professor Dick has done that
of veterinary science in Scotland. By his
prelections and demonstrations, a number
of young men from every quarter of the
globe are annually qualified to ]>ractise the
veterinary art. He is assisted by comjie-
tent lecturers in chemistry, pharmacy, and
the practice of physic.
580. The Veterinary College of London
was instituted in 1791, according to the
plan of Mr Sain Bel, who was appointed
llie first professor. Parliamentary grants
have been afforded at times to aid this
instituti(m, when its finances rendered
such assistance necessary. It is supported
bv subscription. Every subscriber of the
sum of £2\ is aniember of the society for
life. Subscribers of two guineas annually
are members for one year, and arc equally
«^
BEST INSTITUTIONS FOR AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION.
121
entitled to the benefits of the institution.
A subscriber has the privilege of having
his horses admitted into the infirmary, to
be treated, under all cii-cunistances of
disease, at 3s. 6d. per night,, including
keep, medicines, or operations of whatever
nature that may be necessary: likewise of
bringing his horses to the college for the
advice of the professor gratis^ in cases
where he may prefer the treatment of them
at home.*
531. In regard to attending lectures on
agriculture and veterinary science, I should
say, from my own experience, that more
benefit will be derived from attending
them after having acquired a practical
knowledge of husbandry, and the treatment
of live stock, than before ; because most of
the operations of farming cannot be un-
derstood unless described where they are
performed.
532. Other means of obtaining a
scientific education in connexion with
agriculture exist in the kingdom. The
Royal Agricultural College at Cirencester,
founded in 1845, admits both in and out
students on the nomination of proprietors.
The college fee is £50 a-year for resident,
and £30 a-year for non-resident students,
and the college course extends over two
years. The college is situate in the middle
of a farm of 400 acres, where an im-
proved system of tillage, consistent with
the purposes of the college, is carried out.
In addition to practical agriculture, the
various sciences connected with it — chem-
istry, botany, geology, natural history, na-
tural philosophy, surveying, &c., are taught
by resident professors. A well appointed
laboratory, conducted upon the Giessen
system, gives every facility for chemical
manipulation.
533. The Agricultural Training School
for agriculture and civil engineering was
established at Hoddesden, Hertfordshire, a
few years ago. An extensive philoso-
phical apparatus, library, museum, labo-
ratory, and a f;;rni, are attached to the
school ; and the charge for board, lodging,
lectures, laboratory, &c., is so arranged
by the committee of management as to
include every expense, except for washing
and books, at 25 guineas the term, the
school session being divided into two
terms. The course of education embraces
the V classics, mathematics, mechanics,
physics, chemistry, botany, mineralogy,
geology, practical land-surveying and
levelling, drawing, book-keeping, the
French and German languages, practical
agriculture, and lectures on the breeds,
management, and diseases of cattle.
534. Dr Daubeny hohls the agricultural
chair in one of the colleges of Oxford
University.
535. An agricultural seminary has
existed at Templemoyle, in the county of
Londonderry, for some years. It originated
with the members of the North-west of
Ireland Farming Society, and in it the
sons of farmers and tradesmen are taught
agriculture. " The formation of this
establishment has caused its founders an
expenditure of above £4000, of which
about £3000 were raised at its commence-
ment by shares of £25 each, taken by the
noblemen, gentlemen, and members of the
North-west Society. The Grocers' Com-
pany of London, on whose estate it is
situated, have been most liberal in their
assistance, and have earned a just reward
in the improvement of their property, by
the valuable example the farm of Temple-
moyle presents to their tenantry. In
sending a pupil to Templemoyle, it is
necessary to have a nomination from one
of the shareholders, or from a subscriber
of £2 annually. The annual payment
for pupils is £l0, and for this trifling
sum they are found in board, lodging,
and washing, and are educated so as to
fit them for land-stewards, directing
agents, practical farmers, schoolmasters,
and clerks. From fifteen to seventeen is
the age best suited to entrance at Temple-
moyle, as three years are quite suflicient
to qualify a student possessed of ordinary
talents, and a knowledge of tlie rudiments
of reading and writing, to occupy any of
the above situations." +
536. On the Continent are several insti-
tutions for the instruction of young men
in agriculture, among which is the far-
famed one at Hofvvyl, canton of Berne,
Beauties of England and Wales, vol. x. part iv. p. 181. + Irish Farmers' Magazine, No. 51
132
.INITIATION.
Switzerland, founded by the late Fellen- labour of the field, their varioua sports,
berg. " This establiisbinent is not intended their lessons, their choral songs, and n©-
Bo much for a school of agricultui^, as that cessary rest, fiH the whole circle of the
of education and moral Wiscipline. All the iwenty-four hours ; and. judging from their
pupils are obliged to remain nine years, open, cheerful, contented countenances,
at least until they attain the age of twenty- nothing seems wanting to their happiness,
one, during which time they undergo a Hofwyl, in short, is a great whole, where
strict moral discifjline, such as the incul- one hundred and twenty, or one hundred
cation of habits of industry, frugality, and thirty pupils, more than fifty masters
veracity, docility, and mutual kindness, and professors, aa many servants, and a
by means of good example rather than pre- number of day-labourers, six or eight
cepLs, and chiefly by the absence of all bad families of artificers and tradesmen — alto-
example. The pupils are divided into the gether about three hundred persons — find
hic^her and lower orders, among the former a plentiful, and in many respects a luxu-
of whom may be found members of the rious subsistence, exclusive of education,
richest families in Germany, Russia, and out of a produce of one hundred and
Italy. For these the course of study is seventy* acres ; and a money income of
divided into three periods of three years i.'6000 or £7U00, reduced more than half
each. In the first, they study Greek, by salaries, alTords a very considerable
Grecian history, and the knowledge of surplus to lay out io additional buildings.''
animals, plants, and minerals ; in the
second, Latin, Roman history, and the 537. It seems that, since 1807, two
geography of the Roman world ; and in convents — one in the canton of Fribourg,
the third, modern languages and literature, and the other in that of Thurgovie — have
modern history to tlie last century, geo-
graphy, the physical sciences, and chemi-
stry. During the whole nine years they
apply themselves to mathematics, drawing,
music, and g^incastic exercises. The
pupils of the canton of Berne only pay on the Oder, under the direction of the
formed establishments analogous to those
of M. de Fellenberg.t
538. An institution for teaching agri-
culture exists at Mdeglin, near Frankfort
45 louis each, and do not cost their parents
above 100 louis or 120 louis a-year.
Strangers pay 125 louis, including board,
clothing, washing, and masters.
" The pupils of the lower orders are
divided into three classes, according to their
age and strength. The first get a lesson
of half an hour in the morning, then break-
fast, and afterwards go to the farm to
work. They return at noon. Dinner
takes them half an hour, and after another
lesson of one hour, they go again to work
on the farm until six in the evening. This
is their summer occupation ; and in winter
they plait straw for chairs, make baskets,
saw logs and sj)lit them, thrash ancl winnow
com, grind colours, knit stockings : for all
of which different sorts of labour an ade-
celebrated M. Yon Thaer. There are
three professors besides himself — one
for mathematics, chemistry, and geology;
one for veterinary knowledge; and a third
for botany, and the use of the different
vegetable productions in the materia me-
dica, as well as for entomology. Besides
these, an experienced agriculturist is en-
gaged, whose office it is to point out to the
pu})ils the mode of applying the sciences
to the practical business of husbandry
— a person difficult to be found in this
country. The course commences in Sep-
tember, riie best season in my opinion for
commencing the leaniing of agricult'ure.
During the winter months the time is
occupied in mathematics, and in summer
the geometrical knowledge is practically
quate salary is credited to each boy's class, applied to the measurement of lan<l, tim-
until they are ready to leave the establish- ber, buildings, and other objects. Much
ment. Such as have a turn for any of the attention is paid to the analysaticm of soils,
trades in demand at Hofwyl — wheelwright, There is a large botanic garden, with a
carpenter, smith, tailor, or shoemaker —are museum containing models of inij)lements
allowed to apply to them. Thus the of husbandry. The various implements
• This is the number of acres in the farm as stated in the Edinburgh Periev for October 1819,
No. 64 ; but a corresponrlent in Hull's Ph'tlatithrofilc Jifpertor i/ for IS32, m&kes it 250 acres.
+ Ebel, Manuel du Voyageur en Huune, tome u. p. 1&5.
BEST INSTITUTIONS FOR AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION.
123
used on the farm are made by the smiths,
wheelwrights, and carpenters residing
round the institution — their workshops
being open to the pupils. As the sum
paid by each pupil is 400 rix-doUars
annually, nearly £60 sterling, and they
provide their own beds and breakfasts,
none but youths of good fortune can at-
tend at Mdeglin. Each has a sejiarate
apartment. They are from twenty to
twenty-four years of age, generally well
behaved young men ; and their conduct to
ea*h other, and to the professors, is polite
even to punctilio. The estate of Moeglin
consists of twelve hundred English acres.
539. " A number of men distinguished
for their learning, and zeal for the pros-
perity of France, and convinced of the
utility of teaching agriculture, formed an
association of the nature of a joint-stock
company, with 500 shares of 1200 francs
each, forming a capital of 600,000 francs
(£25,000.) The first half of this sum
was devoted to the advancement of supe-
rior culture, and the second half to tlie
establishment of two schools — one for pupils
who, having received a good education,
wish to learn the theory and the applica-
tion of agriculture, and of the various
arts to which it is applicable ; and the
other for children withoiit fortune, des-
tined to become labourers, instructed as
good ploughmen, gardeners, and shepherds,
worthy of having confidence placed in
them."* This society began its labours
in 1826 by purchasing the domain of Gri-
gnon, near Versailles, in the valley of Gaily,
in the commune of Thiverval, and ap-
pointed manager M.Bella, amilitary officer
who had gained much agricultural informa-
tion from M. Thaer, during two years'
sojourn with his corps at Celle. Grignon
was bought in the name of Charles X.,
who attached it to his domain, and gave
the society the title of the Royal Agri-
cultural Society, for a period of forty
years. The statutes of the society were
approved of by royal ordinance on the
2.3d May 1827, and a council of adminis-
tration was named from the list of share-
holders, consisting of a president, two
vice-presidents, a secretary, a treasurer,
and directors. The domain, which occu-
pies the bottom and the two sides of the
valley, is divided into two principal parts:
the one is composed of a park of 2t)0 hec-
tares (387 acres,) enclosed with a stone
wall, containing the mansion-house and
its dependencies, the piece of water, the
trees, the gardens, and the land appropri-
ated to the farm ; the other, called the
outer farm, is composed of 176 hectares
(234 acres,) of unenclosed land, to the
south of the park. The course of edu-
cation at Grignon is divided into theo-
retical . and practical — the course to
continue for two years. In the first year
to be taught mathematics, topography,
physics, chemistry, botany and botanical
physiology, veterinary science, the princi-
ples of culture, the principles of rural
economy applied to the employment
of capital, and the interior adminis-
tration of farms. The second year to
comprehend the principles of culture in
the special application to the art of pro-
ducing and using products; the mathema-
tics applied to mechanics, hydraulics, and
astronomy; physics and chemistry applied
to the analysis of various objects; mine-
raloiryand geology applied to agriculture ;
gardening, rural architecture, legislation
in reference to rural properties, and the
principles of health as applicable both to
man and beast. There are two classes of
pupils, free and internal. Any one may
be admitted a free puj)il that has not
attained twenty years of age, and every
free pupil to have a private chamber. The
pupils of the interior must be at least
fifteen years of age. The fee of the free
pupils is 1500 francs, about £60 a-year;
that of the pupils of the interior 1300
francs. They are lodged in the dormitories
in box-beds; those who desire private apart-
ments pay 300 francs more, exclusive of fur-
niture, which is at the cost of the pupils.t
540. It appears to me, from the best
consideration I have given to the manner
in which asrriculture is taught at all these
schools, that as means of nnparting prac-
tical knowledge to pupils, they are inferior
to the mode usually adopted in this country,
of boarding with farmers. In reference
to the results of the education obtained at
Moeglin, Mr Jacob says — " It appeared to
* Rapport General sur la ferme de Grignon, Juin 1828, p. 3.
f Annates de Grignon, 3e liyraison, 1830, p. 108.
124
INITIATION.
me that tlicre was an attempt to crowd
too mucli instruction into too short a com-
pass, for many of the pupils spend but
one year in the institution ; and thus only
the foundation, and that a very slight one,
can be laiil in so short a space of time.
It is however to be presumed, that the
young men come here prepared with con-
siderable previous knowledge, as they are
mostly between the ages of twenty and
twenty-four, and some tew appeared to be
etill older.'*
5-41. It seems to be a favourite notion
with some writers on agriculture, that one
of the best institutions in which for young
men to learn farming is an experimental
farm ; and they go the length of recom-
mending all the field operations and ex-
periments to be conducted by the i)upils.
They are nearly unanimous in conceiving
that 200 acres, or less, would be a large
enough extent for an experimental farm ;
and that on such a farm 100 pujjils could
be trained to become fanners, stewards,
and jiloughmen. A very slight acfiuain-
tance with an experimental farm will serve
to show how unsuitable a place it is fur
learning farming. The sole object of an ex-
perimental farm is, to become acquainted
with the best properties of plants and
animals by experiment, and to ascertain
whether or not those objects are worthy of
being introduced into an ordinary farm. It
is, therefore, obviously needless to f(dlow
the ordinari/ modes of cultivating the ordi-
nary plants, and of rearing the ordinary
animals on an experimental farm. Either
neic plants, and otiier modes than the
ordinary ones, should be tried on an ex-
perimental farm, or, if ordinary nu>des are
adopted, it is no experimental farm at all.
In witnessing new or unusual modes of
culture, the pupil would learn nothing of
orJinory farming. Extraordinary modes
of cultivation, which are necessarily
attended with the risk of failure, only
serve to impress the mind of a, pupil with
experimental schemes, instead of instruct-
ing him with the most ai)i)roved mode of
cultivation. To confound the juind of a
beginner thus, would do it a lasting injury.
Were a pupil, trained on an ordinary farm,
to have opportunities of witnessing varie-
ties of experiments on an experimental
one, he might benefit by the numerous
hints and suggestions he would receive ;
and, on the other hand, •were an experi-
mental farm wrought by inexjierienced
pupils it would be injured. »So far from
pupils being able to conduct experiments,
the most experienced cultivators are
balfled by unforeseen diHiculties ; and
were it known that the experiments on
such a farm were conducted by ])upils,
their results would inspire no contidence
in farmers.
542. Model farms. — Model farms have
been recommeuded to be established with
a view to promote the teaching of practi-
cal agriculture. I do not comprehend
what such a model farm is — for a farm,
which is laboured by pupils can show a
model of farming to no one ; and any
farming practised by a body of men hav-
ing the management of a school, will he
greatly eclipsed by that of many a sinu'le
farmer, and it, therefore, in justice to far-
mers, cannot be recommended as a model.
Schools established for teaching agriculture
to young men, or boys and girls, should
have attached to them what may be termed
instriictire, not model farms. There is
much meaning in an appropriate name.
Thoruutjh draining, for example, indicates
any systeni of draining which renders the
land ihoroio/hh/ dry in all circumstances;
whereas the term furrow, frequent, j^arallel,
shallow, or deep draining, though intended
to convey the same idea, only conveys the
idea of the specific mode of draining im-
plied in the term.
ON THE EVILS ATTENDING THE NEGLECT
OF LANDOWNERS AND OTHERS TO LEARN
PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE.
.543. There would be no want of pupils
of the highest class for such institutions as
we have been considering, did landowners
learn practical agriculture. The usual suc-
cession of young farmers to fill the places
of those who retire, would afl'ord the
largest proportion of the pupils ; but were
every son of a landowner, who has the
jirospect of bein;; an owner himself, to
become an agricultural puj)il, the number
of pupils would not only be increased, but
• Jacob's Trarels in Germany, &c. p. 185.
EVILS OF LANDOT^T^ERS NEGLECTING AGRICULTURE.
125
the character of landowners as agricultur-
ists would be much elevated.
544. TLe expectant landlord should
undergo tuition in liis profession as well as
the youth of any other. But instead of
the fann- field, the camp and tlie bar seem
to be the favourite arenas for the young
scions of the gentry to pursue their youth-
ful career. These are highly honourable
professions, and conduce to form the char-
acter of the gentleman, but are seldom
followed out by the young squire. The
moment he obtains the command of acom-
j)any, or walks the Parliament House for
a session or two, he quits the public
service, and assumes the fashion of an
incipient country gentleman. In rural
life he becomes enamoured of field sports ;
but should these prove too rough for his
taste, he leaves the country — travels abroad,
peradventure in search of sights — and re-
turns home with new ideas of men and
manners. Now, this course of life is quite
unexceptionable in itself, but in pursuing
it to the neglect of the most important part
of his duty, — that of learning to become a
good and efficient landlord — it is repre-
hensible.
545. Even though he devote himself to
the profession of arms or the law, and
thereby confer distinction on himself, if he
prefer either to the neglect of agriculture,
he is rendering himself unfit to undertake
the duties of a landlord. To become a
soldier or a lawyer, he willingly under-
goes initiatory drillings and examinations;
but to acquire the duties of a landlord
before he becomes one, he considers quite
unnecessary to undergo initiatory tuition.
These, he conceives, can be learned at any
time, and seems to forget that the con-
ducting of a landed estate is a profession, as
difficult of thorough attainment as ordinary
soldiership or legal lore. The army is an
excellent school for confirming in the
young, princijjles of honour and habits of
discipline ; and the bar for giving a clear
insight into the principles upon which the
rights of property are based, and of the
relation betwixt landlord and tenant ; but
a knowledge of practical agriculture is a
weightier matter than either for a landlord,
and should, not be neglected.
546. One evil arising from studying
those exciting professions before agriculture
is, that however short may have been the
time^ in acquiring them, it is sufficiently
long to create a distaste to learn agricul-
ture afterwardspnictically — for such a task
can only be undertaken, after the turn of
life, by enthusiastic minds. But as farm-
ing is necessarily the profession of the
landowner, it should be learned, theoreti-
cally and practically, before his education
is finished. If he so incline, he can after-
wards enter the army or go to the bar,
and the exercise of those professions will
not efface the knowledge of agriculture
previously acquired. This is the proper
course, in my opinion, for every young
man destined to become a landowner to
pursue, and who is desirous of finding em-
ployment as long as he has not to exercise
the functions of a landlord. Were this
course invariably pursued, the numerous
engaging ties of a country life would tend
in many to extinguish the kindling desire
for any other profession. Such a result
would be most advantageous for the
country ; for only consider the efl'ects of
the course pursued at present by land-
owners. It strikes every one as an in-
congruity for a country gentleman to be
unacquainted with country afiairs. Is it
not strange that he should recjuirc induce-
ments to learn his hereditary profession, —
to become familiar Avith tlie only business
which can enable him to enhance the value
of his estate, and increase his incon.e ?
Does it not infer infatuatinn to neglect
becoming well acquainted with the con-
dition of his tenants, by whose exertions
his income is raised, and by which know-
ledge he might confer happiness on many
families, and in ignorance of which he
may entail lasting misery on many more?
It is in this way too numy country gen-
tlemen neglect their moral obligations.
547. It is a manifest inconvenience to
country gentlemen, when taking a pro-
minent part in county matters without a
competent knowledge of agriculture, to be
obliged to aj)ol(igise for not having suffi-
ciently attended to agricultural afiairs.
Such an avowal is certainly candid, but
is any thing but creditable to those who
have to make it. When elected mem-
bers of the legislature, it is deplorable
to find so many of them so little ac-
quainted with the questions which bear
126
INITIATION.
directly or indirectly on afrricnlture. On
these accounts, the tenantry are left to
fi;;ht their own battles on public (juestions.
Were landowners practically acquainted
with a;,'ricultiire, such painful avowals
would be unnecessary, and a familiar
acquaintance with agriculture would enable
the man of cultivated mind at once to per-
ceive its practical bearing on most public
questions.
548. A still greater evil, because less
personal, arises on consigning the manage-
ment of valuable estates to the care of men
as little acquainted as the landowners
themselves with practical agriculture. A
fiictor or agent, in tiiat condition, always
affects much zeal for the interest of his
employer. Fired by it, and possessing no
knowledge to form a sound judgment, he
soon discovers something he considers
wrong among the poorer tenants. Some
rent perhaps is in arrcar — the strict terms
of the lease have been deviated from — the
condition of the tenant seems declining.
These are favourable symptoms for a suc-
cessful contention witli him. Instead of
interpreting the terms of the lease in a
generous spirit, the factor hints that the
rent would be better secured tlirough
another tenant. Exjilanation of circum-
stances affecting the actual condition of
the farm, over which he has, perhai)3, no
control, — the inapplicability, periiaps, of
peculiar covenants in the lease to the par-
ticular circumstances of the farm — the
lease having perhaps been drawn uj) by a
person ignorant of agriculture, — are ex-
cuses unavailingly offered to a factor con-
fessedly unacquainted with country affairs,
and the result ensues in dis])utes betwixt
him and the tenant. To exj)lanations, the
landlord is unwilling to listen, in order to
preserve intact the authority of the factor;
or, what is still worse, is unahle to inter-
fere, because of his own inability to judge
of the actual state of the case betwixt him-
self and the tenant, and, of course, the dis-
putes are left to be settled by the originator
of them. Thus commence actions at
law, — criminations and recriminations, —
much alienation of feeling ; and at length
a proposal for the settlement of matters,
at (irst i)erhaps unimportant, by the arbi-
tration of practical men. The tenant is
glad to submit to an arbitration to save
his money ; and in all such disputes, being
the weaker party, he suffers most in purse
and character. The landlord, who ought
to have been the protector, is thus con-
vertefl into the unconscious oppressor of bis
tenant.
549. A factor acquainted with ]iractical
agriculture would conduct himself very
differently in the same circumstances. He
would endeavour to prevent legitimate
differences of opinion on points of manage-
ment from terminating in disputes, by
skilful investigation and well-timed com-
promise. He would study to uphold the
honour of both landlord and tenant. He
would at once see whether the terms of
the lease were strictly applicable to the
circumstances of the farm, and judging
accordingly, would check improper devia-
tions from proper covenants, whilst he
would make allowances for ina})propriate
ones. He wotdd soon discover whether the
condition of the tenant was caused more by
his own mismanagement than by the nature
of the farm he occupies, and he would con-
form hiscon<luct towards him accordingly —
enci)uragiiig industry and skill, admonish-
ing indolence, and amending the objection-
able circumstances of the farm. .Such a
factor is always highly respected, and his
opinion and judgment entirely confided
ill by the tenantry. Mutual kindliness of
intercourse, therefore, always subsists be-
twixt such factors and the tenants. No
landlord, whether acquainted or unac-
quainted with farming, especially in the
latter case, should cotiHde the management
of his estate to any person less qualified.
550. Another evil affecting the landed
proprietor's own comfort and interest, may
arise in the selection of a steward or grieve
for con<lucting the home-farm. In all cases
it is necessary, for personal comfort and
convenience,fora lamlowner to ha vea home-
farm, and a steward to conduct it. But the
steward of a s({uire acquainted, and of one
unac(|uaiiited witli farming, is placed in
verydissimilar circumstances. The former,
enj<yiiig good wages, and holding a
resjiectable and resjjonsible situation, trill
conduct himself as an honest and skilful
manager, as he knows he is overlooked by
one who can criticise his management
])ractically : the latter must necessarily
have, and will soon take care to have,
every thing his own way ; and will soon
EVILS OF LANDOWNERS NEGLECTING AGRICULTURE.
127
become haughty to the labourers, regard-
ing himself as their master, and will act
towards them as if he dispensed their
wages from his own cash. Thus advan-
cing in authority step by step, finding the
most implicit reliance placed in him by
his master, and regarding his own services
indispensable, the temptations of office
prove too powerful for his virtue — he ag-
grandises himself by peculation, and con-
ceals his mal-practices by deception. At
length both are detected by, perhaps, some
trivial event, the unimportance of which
had escaped his watchfulness. Loss of
character and loss of place then overtake
him at the same time, and his master
ever afterwards suspects every one who
fills the situation. I could specify in-
stances of both factor and steward, whose
mismanagement has come under my own
observ^ation ; but it should be borne in
mind that both species of pests are engen-
dered from the same cause, — the ignorance
of landowners in country affairs.
551. An injurious effect is produced
by absenteeism. When farming pos-
sesses no charms to the country gentle-
man, and field-sports become irksome by
monotonous repetition, his desire for a
country life diminishes, and, to escape
from it, undergoes A'oluntary banishment.
Were lukewarm landowners, when they
go abroad, always to confide the manage-
ment of their estates to experienced fac-
tors, their absence would have little bad
effect on the tenants, who would go on
with the cultivation of their farms with
more zest under a sensible factor, than
a landlord who contemns agriculture.
But doubtless they farm with much greater
confidence under a landlord acquainted
with farming, who remains always at
home, than under the most unexception-
able factor. The disadvantages of ab-
senteeism are chiefly felt by day-labourers,
tradesmen, and shopkeepers in villages
and small country towns.
552. Now, every one of these evils, and
many more I have not alluded to, would be
averted, if landowners would make it a
point to acquire a knowledge of practical
agri' .ilture. This should be done in youth,
when it ought to be studied as a necessary
branch of education, and learned as the
most useful business country gentlemen
can acquire. It would qualify them to
appoint competent factors, — to determine
the terms of the lease best suited to the
nature of each farm, and to select the
fittest tenant for each ; and such qualifica-
tions would ensure landlords their tenants*
confidence, which would support them
in cultivating their farms in the best man-
ner ; and without which no estate, in
otherwise the most favourable circum-
stances, will ever be cultivated with spirit.
It would enable them to judge whether
the onerous and multifarious duties of a
factor are properly fulfilled, and to con-
verse freely, in even technical phraseology,
with their tenants on every particular of
practice, to criticise work, and to predi-
cate the probability of success or failure
of any proposed course of culture. The
approbation or disapprobaticm of such
landlords operates beneficially on tenants.
How many useful hints may not a land-
lord suggest to his tenants on skilfulness,
economy, and neatness of work ; and
how many salutary precejits may he not
inculcate to cottagers, on the necessity of
parental discipline and domestic cleanli-
ness! The amount of good which the
direct moral influence of such a landlord
effects among the tenantry can scarcely
be over-estimated; it is certain to secure
respect, and create regard. His good
opinion will go nmch farther in inducing
tenants to maintain their farms in the
highest order, and in cherishing a desire
to remain upon them, than that of the most
judicious factor. Were all landlords so
qualified, they could command the services
of superior factors and skilful tenants.
They would find there is not a more pleas-
ing, rational, and interesting study than
practical agriculture ; and would soon de-
sire to follow every minute portion of
every operation to its ultimate results.
In practising every minutia, they would
find their estates, every year, presenting a
fresher and fairer aspect, by the removal
of objects that ollend the eye or taste, and
the introduction of others that aftord shel-
ter, produce abundance, and contribute to
the beauty of the landscape around. Nor
would such rural pursuits interfere with
the exercise of manly field-sports, in which
it is the pride and boast of our country
gentlemen to excel, especially as hunting
is prosecuted with the greatest ardour in
the season in which field operations are
"^
128
INITIATION.
least practised, and tbe crops can sustain
the least injury.
553. Agricultural shows afford excellent
opportunities for landlords and tenants to
meet togetlier. They are the most inte-
resting and the nmst social meetings held
in the country; and are now conducted on
such well regulated principles, that, in the
mixing of all ranks of persons, the respect
due to high station is never lost sight
of.
554. A personal acquaintance with
tenants of all classes presents landlords
a wide field for the ohservation of
human nature under different aspects.
Landowners who couple the facts thus
derived with their own experience of prac-
tical agriculture, possess favourable oppor-
tunities of collecting a store of truths, ever
ready to supply them with the strongest
arguments and the best illustrations, in
every department of rural economy, and
which, when put to the right use, cause
their sentiments to command attention in
every public assembly in which they choose
to give them utterance.
555. It appears extraordinary to those
who have experienced difficulty in ac-
quiring a competent knowledge of country
affairs, to observe landowners, who have
spent their lives in learning every thing
else, coolly undertaking to jierform all the
functions of country gentlemen, without
previous preparation. They are entitled,
it is true, to the privilege by hereditary
birth ; but what would be thought of a
subaltern who presumed to command an
army, or a student of law, to conduct an
imjiortant cause before the highest tribu-
nal ? To command an army, or to plead
a great cause, ]»erhap3 requires a higher
degree of intellect tiian to perform the
functions of a country gentleman in the
most perfect manner. Yet, taking the
most from this admission, it cannot be
maintained that the duties of landowner-
ship may be actiuired by intuition, anymore
than commanding or pleading. No doubt,
incomes may be enjoyed without a know-
ledge of agricidture ; but surely the privi-
leges of laudownership were bestowed by
law for far higher ])uri)oses than merely
expending an income. Surely they were
granted on the condition of performing
certain onerous duties. Of those, there-
fore, who reside on their estates — profess
to exercise a hereditary and paternal su-
perintendence over them, — claim a seat
on the magisterial bench, — take a share in
ail public affairs cimnected with agricul-
ture, in and out of the legislature, — it can-
not be unreasonable to expect them to be
qualified for tiie character they have as-
sumed, by possessing a knowledge of
agriculture.
556. There is another class of persons
connected with agriculture who should
become practically acquainted with it ere
they embark in it with an outlay of capi-
tal. I allude especially to emigrants to
our colonies, in Canada and Australia.
The plea not unfrequently urged by such
persons, of having plenty of time to learn
farming in the colony, with the old
settlers, or abundance of cash to purchase
the services of experienced men in colo-
nial agriculture, is one befitting only the
thoughtless and procrastinating; nor should
the somewhat correct assumption, that the
agriculture of the old country is not
exactly suited to the colonies, serve as an
excuse ; because, however differently field
operations may be performed there and
here, the nature of land, of vegetables, and
of animals, is the same in every country ;
and if these particulars are well understood
here, there is little doubt but the know-
ledge may be apjdied with advantage in
the colonies. Such are only plausible ex-
cuses ; for though colonial farming may be
learnt from old and experienced settlers,
it sliould be borne in mind, that few young
emigrants will have the patience to remain
with settlers to acquire a competent
knowledge of farming, when they con-
ceive that they themselves may be enjoy-
ing the advantages they witness ; and be-
sides, should they so determine to learn
farming, thev cannot take out farm-ser-
vants and implements of husbandry with
them. — a plan well-suiteil to emigrants
wIk) take capital to the colonies.
557. But Cfdonial agriculture, in the
temperate zones, differs little from our
own. Wherever the same Ir'uuh uf crops
are raised, the same practice must be
ado]ite<l ; and wherever the same sorts of
stoci- are reared for the sarne purposes, the
same mode of treatment must be pur-
OBSERVING AND RECORDING FACTS.
129
sued. Superior fertility of soil, amenity
of climate, nourishment in the foo J of ani-
mals, but slightly affect principles, and
only modify practice. Want of efficient
beasts of labour and implements may at
first induce settlers to try extraordinary
expedients to accomplish their end, but
as those means improve, and the ground is
brought into tillage, the peculiar colonial
practices will gradually yield to the more
matured ones of the old country. Even-
tually the colonies will, most probably,
exhibit splendid examples of British agri-
culture, under the fostering encouragement
of a fine climate. The sooner they attain
that perfection, the sooner will the pros-
perity of the settlers be secured ; and
nothing will delay that consummation so
effectually as emigrants quitting this coun-
try in breathless haste, in total ignorance
of husbandry.
558. Let every intending settler, there-
fore, learn agriculture thoroughly before
he emigrates ; and, if it suits his taste, time,
and arrangements, let him study in the
colony the necessarily imperfect system
pursued by the settlers, before he embarks
in it himself; and the fuller knowledge
acquired here, will enable him not only to
understand the colonial scheme in a short
time, but to select the part of the country
best suited to his purpose. But, in truth,
he has much higher motives for learning
agriculture here ; for a thorough acquain-
tance will enable hira to make the best
use of inadequate means, — to know to ap-
ply cheap animal instead of dear mauual
labour, — to suit the crop to the soil, and
the labour to the weather; — to construct
appropriate dwellings for himself and
family, live stock, and provisions;— to su-
perintend every kind of work, and to
show a familiar acquaintance with them
all. These are qualifications which every
emigrant may acquire here, but not in the
colonies without a large sacrifice of time —
and time to a settler thus spent, is equal
to a sacrifice of capital, whilst eminent
qualifications are equivalent to capital
itself. This statement may be stigma-
tised by agricultural settlers who may
have succeeded in amassing fortunes
without more knowledge of agriculture
than what was picked up by degrees on the
spot; but such persons are incompetent
judges of a statement like this, never hav-
VOL. I.
ing become properly acquainted with agri-
culture; and however successful their exer-
tions may have proved, they might have
realised larger incomes in the time, or as
large i-n a shorter time, had they brought an
intimate acquaintance of the most perfect
system of husbandry known, to bear upon
the favourable position they occupied.
ON OBSERVING THE DETAILS, AND RE-
CORDING THE FACTS, OP FARMING BY
THE AGRICULTURAL STUDENT.
559. The only object I have in view in
entering into all these particulars, is the
preparation of the mind of the agricultural
student, to enable him, when he becomes a
pupil on a farm,to anticipate what would ap-
pear to him insuperable difficulties in farm-
ing operations, and which, with an unpre-
pared mind, he could not know existed at
all, far less to overcome ; but on being
thus informed of them at the very outset of
his career, he might employ himself in
meeting and overcoming them. The diffi-
culties I have alluded to, arise from the
pupil not understanding the import of any
farm operation, because he always sees
it in an incomiilete state, and uncon-
nected with the operations of a future
period, of which it for the present con-
stitutes only a progressive operation. The
only way for the pupil to satisfy his mind is
to ascertain by inquiry the ultimate purport
of every operation he sees performing;
and although he may not easily compre-
hend what he does not see, still the infor-
mation will warn him of a result which,
on that account, will not take him by sur-
prise when it actually arrives. I see no
better mode of rendering all farming ope-
rations intelligible to his mind.
560. Believing that the foregoing obser-
vations are competent to give such a di-
rection to the mind of the pupil, as, when he
goes to a farm, he will appi'eciate t«.e im-
portance of his profession, and feel an
earnest desire for its attainment, I shall
proceed to describe the details of every
farm operation as it should come in course
through the year. The details, being
multifarious, and somewhat intricate to
describe, will occupy the largest portion
of this work, and constitute the most
valuable and interesting one to the pupil.
X
130
IXITIATION.
In the descriptions, I have resolved to go
very minutely into detail, that no particular
may be omitted in any operation, to give
it the appearance of an inip>erfect work.
The resolution may render the descriptions
so prolix, as to fatigue the general reader,
but, on that very account, thete ought to
determine the pupil to follow them into
their most minute particulars ; and to
appreciate the value of a series of detailed
instructions, which will give him such an
insight into the nature of field labour, as
will ever after enable him easily to recog-
nise similar work whenever and wherever
begun to be executed. Unless, however, he
bestow considerable attention on all the
details of the descriptions, he will be apt
to pass what may appear to him an unim-
portant particular, but which may form
the very keystone of the whole operation
to which it relates. With a tolerable
memory, I feel pretty sure that an atten-
tive perusal of the descriptions will enable
the pupil to identify ever}' piece of work he
may afterwards see performing in the field.
This result is as much as any book on agri-
culture can be expected to accomplish.
561. Constant attention to the minutise
of labour evinces in the pupil an acuteness
to perceive the quickest mode of acquir-
ing his profession. He will soon per-
ceive that the larger pieces of work are
easily undertaken by the ordinary work-
people ; but the minuter ones are lest ad-
justed by the master or steward. The
difference arises from the larger operations
being left in a coarse state, when the
cmaller do not follow and finish them
neatly. There are many minor operations,
unconnected with the greater, which require
the greatest skill to perform ; and which are
BO arranged as to be performed with neat-
ness and despatch. Many of these are
frequently performed concurrently with
the larger operations ; and to avoid confu-
sion both should harmonise. Many of the
minuter operations are confined to the
tending of live-stock, and the various
works performed about the farmstead.
Attention to minutiae, constituting the
chief difference between the neat and care-
less farmer, it is necessary that I bestow
due consideration on them. They form a
particular which has been too much over-
looked by systematic writers on agricul-
ture.
562. In describing the details of farming,
it is necessary to adhere to a determinate
method ; and the method which appears
to me most instructive to the pupil is, to
fellow the usual routine of operations as
performed on a farm. To follow that
routine implicitly, it will be necessary to
describe every operation from the f.uyin-
nin(/ ; audit should be remembered by the
pupil that farm operations are not con-
ducted at random, but on a tried and
approved system, which commences with
preparatory labours, and then carries them
on, with a determinate object in view,
throughout the seasons, until they termi-
nate at the end of the agricultural year.
The preparatory operations commence im-
mediately after harvest, whenever that
may happen, and it will be earlier or later
in the year, according as the season is
early or late ; and as the harvest is the
consummation of the labours of the year,
and terminates the autumnal season, so
the preparatory operations commence the
winter season. Thus the winter season
takes the precedence in the arrangements
of farming, and, doing so, should be the
period for the pupil to begin his career
as an agriculturist. He will then have
the advantage of witnessing every p7-e-
paration as it is made for each crop, —
an advantage he cannot enjoy if he enter
at an}' other season, — and it is a great
advantage, inasmuch as every piece of
work is much better understood when
viewed from it5 commencement, than when
seen for the first time in a state of pro-
gression.
563. Let me inform the pupil regarding
the length of the agricultural seasons. In
the year of the calendar, each season ex-
tends over a period of three calendar
months; so that every season is of the
same length. The seasons of the agricul-
tural year, though bearing the same names
as those of the calendar, vary in length
every year according to the state of the
weather. The agricultural seasons are
thus characterised : The spring revives
the dormant powers of vegetables; the
summer enlarges their growth ; the autumn
develops their reproduction ; and the winter
returns them to the state of dormancy.
In the calendar thei=e characteristics are
assumed to last three months each, but in
the agricultural year they extend as long
OBSERVIXG AND RECORDIXG FACTS.
131
as each season continues to exhibit its
function. The spring, for example, may
be contracted within its three months,
either by the protraction of winter on the
one hand, or the earliness of summer on
the other, or by both combined ; a case in
which results both a late and short spring,
— a state of season which creates very
bustling spring work to the farmer. And
so with the other seasons. It is this elas-
ticity of the agricultural seasons which
contradistinguishes them from those of the
calendar. The commencement, continu-
ance, and termination of field-work being
thus dependent on the seasons of the agri-
cultural year, and the seasons, in their
turn, being dependent upon the weather, it
follows that all field operations are de-
pendent upon the weather, and not upon
such conventional terms as the seasons of
the calendar. But whether an agricultural
season be long or short, the work that pro-
perly belongs to it must be finished in it.
If it be of sufficient length, the work is
well finished, but if uot, the crop runs the
risk of failure. If it be shortened by the
preceding season encroaching upon it,
its work should have been advanced in
the prolonged season ; and should it be
curtailed by the earliness of the succeeding
one, and the weather improve, as in the
case of summer appearing before its time,
no apprehension need be entertained of
finishing the work in a satisfactory man-
ner ; but if the weather become worse, as
in the premature approach of winter upon
autumn, extraordinary exertions are re-
quired to avert the disastrous consequences
of winter weather upon the crops. The
unusual protraction of a season is attended
with no risk to its work, but nia}'^ be to a
crop ; and during a protracted season, much
time is often wasted in waiting for the
arrival of the succeeding one, in which the
particular work in hand is most properly
finished ; but in a contracted season, a
great part of the work, though attended with
much labour, is hurriedly gone through,
and even slovenly performed. The most
perfect field-work is performed when the
seasons are each of proper duration.
5Q4i. The entire business of a farm
necessarily occupies a year; which em-
braces sometimes more, and sometimes
less, than twelvemonths. The agricultural
year, both in its commencement and termi-
nation, not corresponding with that of the
calendar, its length is determined by the
duration of the life of the cultivated vege-
tables which constitute the chief product
of thfe farm. In the temperate zones,
vegetable life becomes dormant, or extinct,
according as the vegetable is perennial or
annual, at the beginning of winter; and
when the dormant state of vegetation
occurs again, the labours of the field have
gone their annual revolution. The same
kind of work is performed year after year
upon the same kind of farm.
565. Two modes of describing farm-
business maybe adopted. One, to arrange
it under different heads, and describe all
similar operations under the same head,
as has hitherto been done in systematic
works on agriculture. The other is to
describe the operations as they actually
occur, singly, and in succession, on the
farm ; as is to be done in this work.
Both methods describe the general farm
operations, and may be consulted for any
2)articular work. But the relative position
any particular work stands in regard to,
and influences every other, can only be
shown by the latter method, and it does
so at a glance ; and as one farm-work
commences and another terminates at
different periods of the year, the latter
method only can clearly indicate the period
in which every particular work commences,
is continued, or terminated, and give the
details of it minutely.
560. The agricultural year, like the com-
mon, is conveniently divided under the four
seasons, and the entire farm business is also
conveniently divided into four parts, each
bearing the name of the season that influ-
ences the operations performed in it. It
is by such an arrangement only that every
operation, whether requiring longer or
shorter time for completion, is described
as it takes its turn in the fields. The
work that occupies only a short time to
finish, in any of the seasons, may be de-
scribed in a single narrative. Very few
of the ojierations, however, are completed
in one of the seasons, some extending over
the whole four, and most into two or three.
Any work that extends over most of the
seasons, can nevertheless be described with
accuracy ; for although it may occupy a
long time to reach its completion, every
132
INITIATION
season imposes its peculiar work, and
termiDates it so far ; an J tliese ce^j^utions
of labour are not mere conveniences, but
necessary and temporary finishings of
work, wiiich would be improperly resumed
but at the appropriate season. In this
way the extensive works are advanced,
in progressive steps, season after season,
until tlieir completion ; while the smaller
ones are concurrently brought onwards
and completed in their proper season.
5G7. Besides observing the details of
farm work, the pupil should observe every
phenomenon that occurs within the field
of his observation. Creation, both animate
and inanimate, lies before him, and, being
necessarily much out of doors, observation
becomes a subject of interest to him rather
than otherwise. It is at all times useful
to observe facts, and become faraiiiarised
with those more immediately connected
with his profession ; and the relation I have
so largely traced as existing between agri-
culture and the sciences, may show the
immense extent of the field of observa-
tion in which the student may occupy
himself. Xor let him suppose that auv
fact is too trivial for observation, as the
minutest may form a connecting link be-
tween greater ones, which may exhibit no
relationship to one another, but through
the minute one. In course of time, obser-
vation will enable him to discriminate
between phenomena that influence one
another, and that stand in isolation ; and
the discrimination will only be learned in
time, for every fact will appear to hira at
first as alike valuable and valueless.
568. It should be kept in remembrance
that it is no easy matter to observe phe-
nomena with accuracy. There is a tide
in their existence, as in the aflairs of men,
which, when taken at the proper time, may
lead to sound conviction ; but if not, to erro-
neous deduction. How many systems of
belief have arisen from improper observa-
tion ! With some persons, if observation con-
firm not preconceived notions, the pheno-
menon is neglected or perverted ; but the
agricultm-al student should have no pre-
judiced notions, ami regard every occur-
rence with calmness, ami a determination
to arrive at the truth. It is only in such a
state of mind he can hope to make the
results of actual observation in the field
subservient to acquiring a practical know-
ledge of agriculture.
.569. The facts to which he should first
direct his attention, are the ejects of the
tceather for the time on the operations of
the fields and their products, and on the
condition of the live stock. He should
notice every remarkable occurrence of
heat or cold, raiu or drought, unpleasant
or agreeable feeling in the air; the effects
following any peculiar state of the clouds,
or other meteors in the air — as storms,
aurora-boreal is, haloes, and the like ; the
particular effect of rain or drought, heat
or cold, in retarding or materially altering
the labours of the field, and the length
of time and quantity of rain required to
produce such an effect ; a.s well as the
influence of these on the health or growth
of plants, and the comfort and condition of
animals.
.'>70. He should mark the time each kind
of crop is committed to the ground — how
long it takes to appear above it, when it
comes into ear, and the juried of harvest :
also try to ascertain the quantity of every
kind of crop on the ground before it is cut
down, and observe whether the event cor-
roborates previous judgment : estimate the
weight of cattle by the eye at different
periods of their growth, and check the
trials by measurements; the handling of
the beasts for this purpose will convey
much information regarding their progres-
sive state of improvement : attend to sheep
when slaughtered, weigh the carcass, and
endeavour to discover the sources of error
committed in estimating their weights.
.'/71. He should keep a register of each
field of the fiirm : note the quantity of labotir
it has received, the quantity of manure
applied, the kind of crop sown, with the
circumstances attending these operations
— whether done quickly and in good style,
or interruptedly, from the hinderanco
of weather or other circumstances. He
should ascertain in each field the number
of ridges required to make an acre, and
whether the ridges be of equal length or
not. By this he will the more easily as-
certain how much dung the field receives
per acre, the time taken to perform the
same quantity of work on ridges of different
length, and the comparative value of the
OBSERVING AND RECORDING FACTS.
133
crop produced on an acre in different parts
of the field. The subdivision of the field
into acres will enable a comparison to be
made of the relative values of the crops
produced on varieties of soil in the same
field, under the same treatment.
572. The easiest way of preserving facts
is in the tabular form, which admits of
every one being put down under its
proper head. A table not only exhibits
all the facts at a glance, but records every
one with the least trouble in writing. The
advantage of writing them down is to im-
press them more strongly on the memory.
The tables should consist of ruled columns,
in a book of sufficient size of leaf to contain
columns for every subject.
573. There should be a plan of the
farm, with every field, having its figure,
dimensions, name, and direction of the
ridges, with the number of ridges required
to make an acre marked upon it.
574. There should be apian of the stack-
yard made every year, with each stack
represented by a circle, the area of which
should contain the name of the field upon
which the crop was grown, the quantity
of corn yielded by the stack, how the pro-
duce was disposed of, and the cash (if any)
which the produce realised.
575. To render the whole system of
recording facts complete, a summary of
tlie weather, together with the produce
and value of the crop and stock, should
be made every year to the end of autumn,
— the end of the agricultural year. In all
these ways a mass of useful facts would
be recorded within the narrow compass
of a single book ; comparisons could be
made between the results of diflerent sea-
sons ; and deductions drawn which could
not be ascertained by any other meaud.
576. The only objection that can possi-
bly be urged against this plan, is the time
required to record the facts. Were the
records to be made twice or thrice a-day,
like the observations of a meteorological
register, the objection might be well-
founded ; for it is irksome to be obliged to
note down frequently dry and (in them-
selves) unmeaning details. But the changes
of the weather possess a very different
interest when they are known to influence
the growth of the crops. The records of
such, however, are only required occa-
sionally at, perhaps, an interval of days.
The only toil would be the drawing up
of the abstract of the year ; but, when
the task is for permanent benefit, the
time devoted to it should be cheerfully
bestowed.
577. These preliminary remarks I trust
will enable tlie agricultunil student to fol-
low the details of fanning, as they usually
occur, and the kind of farming I shall
select as the most perfect system of hus-
bandry known, is the mixed, (53;) whilst,
at the same time, I shall make liim
acquainted with the differences in the cor-
responding operations iu the otlier modes
of farming, adopted on account of pecu-
liarities in the localities in which they
are practised. Narrating the operations iu
the order they arc performed, I .shall begin
with Winter, and proceed in the natural
order tlirough Spring, Summer, and
Autumn, until we reach the winter season
again.
1S4
PRACTICE.
WINTER.
8UMMARY OF THE WEATUKU, AND FIELD-
OPERATIONS IN WINTER.
578. The subjects which court attention
in winter are of the most interesting de-
scription to the farmer. Finding little in-
ducement to spend much time in the fields
at this torpid season of the year, he directs
bis attention to the more animated work
conducted iu the steading, where all the
cattle and horses are collected, and the
preparation of the grain fur market affords
pleasant employment within doors. The
progress of live-stock to maturity is always
a prominent object of the farmer's solici-
tude, and especially so in winter, when
tbey are comfortably housed in the farm-
stead, plentifully supplied with wholesome
food, and so arranged in various classes,
according to age and sex, as to be easily
inspected at any time.
579. The labours of the field in winter
are confined to a few great operations.
These are ploughing the soil in prepara-
tion of future crops, and supplying food to
the live stock. The ploughing partly con-
sists of turning over the ground which had
borne a part of the grain crops, and the
method of ploughing this stubble land — so
called because it bears the straw left un-
cut of the previous crop — is determined by
the nature of the soil. That part of the
stubble land which was first ploughed is first
brought into crop in spring, and the rest is
ploughed in succession as the different crops
follow each other in the ensuing seasons.
580. The whole land thus ploughed in the
early part of winter in each field, where
the farm is subdivided into fields, or in
each division where are no fences, is then
provided with channels, cut with the spade,
in places that permit the water that falls
from the heavens to run most quickly ofl'
into the ditches, and to maintain the soil
in a dry state until spring.
581. Towards the latter part of winter,
the newest grass land, or tea, as grass land
is generally termed, intended to bear a crop
in spring is then ploughed ; the oldest
grass land being earliest ploughed, that
its toughness may have time to be melio-
rated before spring by exposure to the
atmosphere.
582. "When the soil is naturally damp
underneath, winter is selected for remov-
ing the damp by draining. It is ques-
tioned by some farmers whether winter is
the best season for draining, as the usually
rainy and otherwise unsettled state of the
weather renders the carriage of the re-
quisite materials on the land too laborious.
By others, it is maintained that, as the
quantity of water to be drained from the
soil, determines both the number and size
of the drains, these are best ascertained in
winter ; and as the fields are then entirely
free of crop, that season is the most con-
venient for draining. Truth may perhaps
be found not to acquiesce in either of these
reasons, but rather in the opinion that
draining may be successfully pursued at all
seasons.
583. Where fields are unenclosed, and
are to be fenced with the thorn-hedge,
winter is the season for commencing the
planting of it. Hard frost, a fall of snow,
or heavy rain, may put a stop to the work
for a time, but in all other states of the
Aveather it may bo proceeded with in
safety.
584. When water-meadows exist on a
farm, winter is the season for carrying on
the irrigation with water, that the grass
may be ready to be mown in the early
part of the ensuing summer. It is a fact
worth keeping in remembrance as to
irinter irrigation, that it produces whole-
some, while summer irrigation produces
unwholesome, herbage for stock. On the
SUMMARY OF FIELD OPERATIONS IN WINTER.
135
other hand, summer is the most proper
season for forming water-meadows,
585. Almost the entire live stock of an
arable farm is dependent on the hand of
man for food in winter. Thus bringing
the stock into the immediate presence of
their owner, they excite a stronger inter-
est than at any other season. The farmer
then classifies them in the farmstead by
their age and sex, and observes their com-
parative progress towards maturity. He
desires to see them provided with a com-
fortable bed and sufficient clean food, at
appointed hours, in their respective apart-
ments.
586. The feeding of stock is so impor-
tant a brunch of farm business in winter,
that it regulates the time for prosecuting
several other operations. It determines
the quantity of turnips that should be car-
ried from the field in a given time, and
causes the farmer to consider whether it
would not be prudent to take advantage
of the first few dry fresh days to store up
a quantity of them to be in reserve for the
use of the stock during the storm that may
be portending.
587. It also determines the quantity of
straw that should be provided from the
stack-yard for the use of the animals ; and
upon this, again, depends the quantity of
grain that may be sent to the market in
any given time. For, although it is cer-
tainly in the farmer's power to thrash as
many stacks as he pleases at one time —
provided the machinery for the purpose is
competent for the task — and he may be
tempted to do so when prices are high ;
yet as new thrashed straw is superior to
old, both as litter and fodder, its thrashing
depends mainly on the use made of it by
stock ; and as its use as litter is greater in
wet than in dry weather, and wet weather
prevails in winter, the quantity used in
that season is most considerable ; and so
must be the grain sent to market. All the
cattle in the farmstead in winter are
placed under the care of the cattle-man.
588. The feeding of sheep on turnips, in
the field, is practised in winter ; and it
forms fully a more interesting object to
the farmer than the feeding of cattle, in-
asmuch as the behaviour of sheep, under
every circumstance, is always attractive.
When put on turnips early in winter,
sheep consuming only a proportion of the
crop, a favourable opportunity is aflforded
to store the remaining portion for the
cattle, iu case of an emergency in the
weather, such as rain, snow, or frost. The
turnips to be used by the cattle determine
the quantity that should be taken from the
field.
589. The ewes roaming at large over the
pastures require attention in winter, espe-
cially in frosty weather, or when snow is
on the ground, when they should be sup-
plied with clover-hay, or with turnips
when the former is not abundant. The
shepherd is the person who has the charge
of the sheep flock.
590. The preparation of grain for sale
is an important branch of winter farm
business, and should be strictly superin-
tended. A considerable proportion of the
labour of horses and men is occupied in
carrying the grain to the market-town,
and delivering it to the purchasers, — a
species of work which jades farm-horses
very much in bad weather ; but the rail-
way now presents itself to the assistance
of the horse in this laborious work.
591. In hard frost, when the plough is
laid to rest, of the ground is covered with
snow, and as soon as
■ by frequent hoof and wheel, the roads
A beaten path afford,
the farm-yard manure is cariied from the
courts, and placed in large heaps on con-
venient spots near the gate of the fields
which are to be manured in the ensuing
spring or summer. This work is continued
as long as there is manure to carry away,
or the weather proves severe.
592. Of the implements of husbandry,
only a few are used in winter ; — the
plough is constantly so when the weather
will permit, — the thrashing-machine en-
joys no sinecure, — and the cart finds fre-
quent and periodic employment.
593. The winter is the season for visit-
ing the market toicn regularly, where the
surplus produce of the farm is disposed of,
— articles purchased or bespoke for the use
1S6
PRACTICE— AVINTER.
of tlie farm, when the busy seasons arrive,
— where intermixture with the world af-
fords the farmer an insiglit into the actions
of mankind,— and where he sees selfish-
ness and cupidity heighten as a foil the
brilliancy of honest dealing.
594. I'^ield sports have their full sway
in winter, when the fields, hared of crop
and stock, su.<tain little injury hy heing
traversed. Altliough farmers bestow but a
small i)ortion of their time on field sports, —
and many have no inclination for them at
all, — they should harmlessly enjoy the re-
creation at times. When duly qualified,
why should not farmers join in a run with
the fox-hounds? — or lake a cast over the
fields with a pointer ? — or sound a whoop
with the greyhounds ? Either sport forms
a pleasing contrast to the week's business,
gives a fillip to the mind, and a stimulus
to the circulation. The dweller in the
country, possessing leisure and a good
nag, who can remain insensible to the
"joys of a tally-ho," must have a soul
" dull as night.'' These sports arc only
pursued in fresh weather, and when the
ground is not very heavy with wet ; but
should frost and snow prevent their pursuit,
curling and skating afford healthful exer-
cise both to body and mind.
595. Winter is the season for those in
the country reciprocating the kindnesses
of hospitality, and participating in the
amusements of society. The farmer de-
lights to send the best produce of his
poultry-yard as Christmas presents to his
friends in town, and in return to be invited
into town to partake of its amusements.
But there is no want of hospitality nearer
home. Country people maintain inter-
course with each other ; while the annual
county ball in the market town, or an
occasional charity one, to assist the wants
of the labouring ])oor, affords a seasonable
treat; and the winter is often wound up
by a meeting given by the Hunt to those
who had shared in the sport during the
hunting season.
596. Winter is the season of domestic
enjoyment. The fatigues of the long
summer day leave little leisure, ami
less inclination, to tax the mind with
study ; but the long winter evening, after
a day of bracing exercise, affords a favour-
able ojiportunity of partaking in conver-
sation, quietly reading, or listening to
music. In short, 1 know of no chi^s of
peoj)le more capable of enjoying a winter's
evening in a rational manner, than the
family of the country gentlcmau or the
farmer.
5!)7. AHewing winter in a higher and
more serious light, — in the repose of
nature, as etnblematical of the mortality
of man, — in the exquisite pleasures which
man in winter, as a being of sen.-ation,
enjoys over the lower creation, — and in
the eminence in which man, in the tempe-
rate regions, stands, with respect to the
development of his mental faculties,
above his fellow-creatures in the trr)pics;
— in the^'C respects, winter must be hailed
by the dweller in the country as the
purifier of the mental as well as of the
physical atmosphere.
598. The reflections of a modern writer
on the wholesome effects of winter on the
mind of man, coincide with my own senti-
ments and feelings: — '-Winter," says he,
" is the season of nature's annual repose, —
the time when the working structures are
reduced to the minimum of their extent,
and the energies of growth and life to the
minimum of their activity, and when the
phenomena of nature are fewer, and
address themselves less pleasingly to our
senses, than they do in any other of the
three seasons. There is hope in the bud
of Spring, jilcasure in the bloojn of Sum-
mer, and enjoyment in the fruit of
Autumn; but, if we make our senses our
chief resource, there is something both
blank and gloomy in the aspect of Winter.
And if we were of and for this world
alone, there is no doubt that this would
be the correct view of the winter, as com-
pared with the other seasons; and the
partial death of the year would point as a
most mournful index to the death and final
close of our existence. But we are beings
otherwise destined and endowed, — the
world is to us only what the lodge is to
the wayfaring man ; and while we enjoy its
rest, our thoughts can be directed back to
the past ])art of our journey, and our hopes
forward to its end, when we shall reach
our jtrojier home, and dwell there securely
and for ever. This is our sure consohition,
— the anchor of hope to our minds during
SUMMARY OF THE WEATHER IN WINTER.
137
all storms, whether they be of physical proof of the identity of the magnetic and
nature, or of social adversity." * electric agencies.
599. The weather in Tpinter being very
precarious, is a subject of intense interest,
and puts the farmer's skill to anticipate
its changes severely to the test. Seeing
that every operation of the farm is so
dependent on the weather, a familiar
acquaintance with the local prognostics
which indicate a change for the better or
worse becomes incumbent on the farmer.
In actual rain, snow, or hard frost, none
but in-door occupations can be executed ;
but, if the farmer have wisely " discerned
the face of the sky," he may arrange them
to continue for a length of time, if the
storm threaten to endure, — or be left with-
out detriment, should the strife of the ele-
ments quicklycease. Certain atmospherical
phenomena only occurring in winter, they
should be noticed here ; and these are —
aurora borealis, frost, ice, snow, and the
like.
600. Aurora Borealis. — The only elec-
trical excitation witnessed in winter is
the aurora borealis, or northern lights, or
"merry dancers," as they are vulgarly
called. It mostly occurs in the northern
extremity of the northern hemisphere of
the globe, where it gives forth almost con-
stant light during the absence of the sun.
So intense is this radiance, that a book
may be read by it ; and it confers a
great blessing on the inhabitants of the
Arctic regions, at a time they are be-
nighted. The aurora borealis seems to
consist of two varieties ; one a luminous
quiet light in the northern horizon, gleam-
ing most frequently behind a dense stratum
of cloud ; and the other of vivid corrusca-
tions of almost white light, of a sufficient
transparency to alloAV the transmission of
the light of the fixed stars. The corrusca-
tions are sometimes coloured yellow, green,
red, andof adusky hue : they are generally
short, and confined to the proximity of
the northern horizon; but occasionally
they reach the zenith, and even extend to
the opposite horizon, their direction being
from NW. to SE. It seems now undeni-
able, that the aurora borealis frequently
exercises a most marked action on the
magnetic needle ; thus affording another
* Mudie's Winter, preface, p. iii.
X Encyclopedia Britannica, 7th
601. It is not yet a settled point
amongst philosophers, whether the aurora
borealis occurs at the highest part of the
atmosphere, or near the earth. Mr Caven-
dish considered it probable, that it usually
occurs at an elevation of 71 miles above
the earth's surface, at which elevation the
air must be but tih'jct time the density
of that at the surface of the earth — a degree
of rarefaction far above that afforded by
our best constructed air-pumps. Dr Dalton
conceives, from trigonometrical measure-
ments made by him of auroral arches,
that their height is 100 miles above the
earth's surface. His most satisfactory
measurement was made from the arch of
29th March 1826. As the peculiar appear-
ance of the aurora, and its corruscations,
precisely resemble the phenomena which
we are enabled to produce artificially by
discharges of electricity between two
bodies in a receiver through a medium of
highly rarefied air, Lieut. Morrison, R. N.,
of Cheltenham conceives, " that these
(fleecy) clouds are formed by the discharges
and currents of electricity, which, when
they are more decided, produce aurora."
Mr Leithead conjectures that the aurora
becomes " visible to the inhabitants of the
earth upon their entering our atmo-
sphere."t If these conjectures be at all
correct, the aurora cannot he seen bei/ond
our atmosphere, and therefore cannot ex-
hibit itself at the height of 100 miles, as
supposed by Dr Dalton, since the height
of the atmosphere is only acknowledged to
be from 40 to 50 miles. This view of the
height of the aurora somewhat corroborates
that held by the Eev. Dr Farquharson,
Alford, Aberdeenshire, and which was
supported by Professor Jameson.;}:
602. The prognostics connected with
the appearance of the aurora borealis are
these : — When exhibiting itself in a gleam
of light in the north, it is indicative of
good steady weather ; when it corruscates
a little, the weather may be changeable ;
and when the corruscations reach the
zenith, and beyond, they augur cold stormy
wind and rain. It has been long alleged,
that the aurora borealis has the efl'ect of
+ Leithead On Electricity, p. 263-4.
editiou ; art. Aurora Borealis.
138
PRACTICE— WINTER.
producing a certain direction of wind.
Mr Wiun stated, as lung ago as 1774, that
the aurora, in the south of England, was
constantly followed by a SW. wind and
rain, and that the gale always began three
hours after the phenomenon ;* and in 1833,
Captain "Winn observed in the English
Channel, that the aurora shifted the wind
to SW. and S., and that the gale began 24
hours after the phenomenon, accompanied
with hazy weather and small rain. The
apparent discrepancy in the two accounts,
in the same locality, of the time when the
gale commenced, may perhaps have arisen
from calculating the time from different
periods of the phenomenon. Captain Winn
further remarks, that the intensity of the
storm, and the time it appears, may perhaps
depend on the intensity of the aurora.t
During long observation of the effects of the
aurora borealis in one of the midland
counties of Scotland, I never saw any
change of the wind effected by it, except
in frost, when the aurora seldom occurs,
and then a SW. wind followed with gales.
Coloured aurora borealis is always indi-
cative of a change of the existing weather,
whether from good to bad, or bad to good.
603. Thunder. — Thunder-storms are
of rare occurrence in winter, owing, pro-
bably, to the generally humid state of the
atmosphere at that season carrying off the
superfluous electric matter silently, and
not allowing it to accumulate in any one
place. Sometimes, however, they do
occur, and then are always violent and
dangerous ; at times setting fire to dwell-
ings, rending trees, and destroying ele-
vated buildings, such as the storm which
occurred on the 3d January 1841. Such
storms are almost always succeeded by in-
tense frost, and a heavy fall of snow in
the line of their march. Flashes of white
lightning near the horizon are sometimes
seen in clear fresh nights, when stars are
numerous and twinkling, and falling stars
plentiful, and they always indicate a com-
inir storm.
between the spectator and the sun or moon.
This cloud is generally the denser kind of
cirro-stratus, the refraction and reflection
of the rays of the sim or moon at definite
angles through and upon which cause the
luminous phenomenon. The breadth of
the ring of a halo is caused by a number
of rays being refracted at somewhat
different angles, otherwise the breadth of
the ring would equal only the breadth of
one ray. Mr Forster has demonstrated
mathematically the angle of refraction,
which is equal to the angle subtended by
the semidiameter of the halo. Haloa
may be double and triple ; and there is
one which Mr Forster denominates a
discoid halo, which constitutes the bound-
ary of a large corona, and is generally of
less diameter than usual, and often coloured
with the tints of the rainbow. "A beau-
tiful one appeared at Clapton on the 22d
December 1809, about midnight, during
the passage of a ciri'o-stratus cloud before
the moon.":^ Halos are usually j)retty
correct circles, though they have been
observed of a somewhat oval shape ; and
are generally colourless, though snmetimes
they display the faint colours of the rain-
bow. They are most frequently seen
around the moon, and acquire the appel-
lation of lunar or solar halos, as they
happen to accompany the particular lumi-
nary.
605. Corona. — The corona or Irough
occurs when the sun or moon is seen
through a thin cirro-stratus cloud, the
portion of the cloud more immediately
around the sun or moon appearing much
lighter than the rest. Corona) are double,
triple, and even quadruple, according to
the state of the intervening vajiours.
They are caused by a similar refractive
power in vapour as the halo, and are
generally faintly coloured at their edges.
Their diameter seldom exceeds 10°. A
halo frequently encircles the moon, when
a small corona is more immediately around
the moon's disc.
604. Halo. — A halo is an extensive
luminous ring, including a circular area,
in the centre of which the sun or moon
appears, and is only seen in winter. It is
formed by the intervention of a cloud
• Thomson's Ilittory of the lioi/al Societif, p. 513
606. The prognostics indicated by a
few of the appearances of the ol)jects in the
air and sky may be usefully remarked in
winter: — Sharp horns of anew tnooti^ and
a clear moon at any time, arc character-
t The Field NaturntUt, vol. i. ].. 108.
Forster's Researches into Atmotpherical Phenomena, p. 101-
SUMMARY OF THE WEATHER IN WINTER,
139
istics of coming frost. la frost, the siai's
appear small, clear, and twinkling, and
not very numerous ; but when few in
number in fresh weather, it is probable
that much vapour exists in the upper por-
tion of the atmosphere ; and if very
numerous, having a lively twinkle, rain is
indicated — the transparent vapour, in the
act of subsiding into clouds, causing the
twinkling. Falling stars are meteors which
occur pretty frequently in winter, appear-
ing in greatest number when stars are
numerous, and .are therefore indicative of
a deposition of vapour, accompanied with
wind from the point towards which they
fall. Dull sun, moon, and stars, — occa-
sioned by a thin cirro-stratus, almost
invisible, are indicativ^e of a change to
rain in fresh, and to snow in frosty weather.
Coro«(C always indicate the fall of vapour,
whether in rain, snow, or hail, according
to the warmer or colder state of the air
at the time. Coloured coronce and halos
are sure indications of an approaching
fall of rain in fre^h, and snow in frosty,
weather.
607. Clouds. — The most common cloud
in winter is the cirro-stratus, whether in
the state of a shrouding veil, more or less
dense, across the whole sky for days, or
in heavy banked clouds in the horizon
before and after sunset. Whenever this
form of cloud is present, there must be a
large amount of vapour in the air, coming
nearer to the ground as the power that
suspends it is by any means weakened.
Rain mostly falls direct from the cirro-
stratus ; but ere snow fall in any quantity,
the cirro-stratus descends to the horizon
into cumulo-stratus, from whence it
stretches over the zenith in a dense bluish-
black cloud. Cirri in winter are a sure
indication of a change of wind in a ievr
hours from the quarter to which their
turned up ends point.
608. Rain. — The variation in the
amount of rain in any season follows, in a
great measure, the same law as that ex-
pounded by Dalton in reference to the
heights of mountains. Of all the seasons
the least quantity of rain falls in winter.
According to M. Flaugergues, taking the
mean amount as 1, the quantity that
falls in the winter quarter of December,
January, and February, is 0'1937 inches.
The'proportional results of each month of
the winter quarter, as I have divided the
agricultural year, are for —
November
December
Jauuary
0-1 250
00693
00716
0-2659
This division transfers the minimum of
rain from the winter to spring, which
is more in accordance with experience in
Scotland, than the observations of M.
Flaugergues, which refer to France. The
number of rainy days in the same winter
quarter is thus enumerated, in —
November . . 150 days.
December . . 17"7 —
January . . 14 4 —
In all
471
G09. The character of winter-rain has
more of cold and discomfort than of quan-
tity. When frost suddenly gives way in
the morning about sunriae, it is said to
have " leapt,'' and rain may be looked for
during the day. If it do not actually fall,
a heavy cloudiness will continue all day,
unless the wind change, when the sky
may clear np. If a few drops of rain
fall before mid-day after the frost has
leapt, and then it fairs, a fair, and most
likely a fine day will ensue, with a plea-
sant breeze from the N. or W., or even E.
When the moon shines brightly on very
wet ground, it may be remarked how very
black the shadows of objects become;
and this is a sign of continuance of rain,
and of an unsettled state of the wind.
Rain sometimes falls with a rising baro-
meter ; and when this happens, it is
usually followed by fine healthy weather,
which is attended with circumstances that
indicate a strong positive state of the
electricity of the air. This often occurs
in winter. " We have," says Mr Forster,
" usually a warm and agreeable sensation
of the atmosphere with such rain, which
is strikingly contrasted to tl:e cold and
raw sensation occasioned by the fall of
thick wet mists or rain, which happen
when, even with a N. or E. wind, the
barometer and thermometer sink together,
and when the air has previously been
EncyclopoEdia Metropolitana ; art. Meteorology.
140
PRACTICE— WINTER.
example — and placing them beyond the
reach of evaporation ; hut its chief utility in
winter is supplying < 'f thrashing machinery,
or irrigation, with abundance of water.
fil3. Frost. — Frost has been represented
to exist only in the absence of heat ; but it
is more, fur it also implies an absence of
moisture. Sir Richard Phillips defines
cold to be " the mere absence of the mo-
tion of the atoms called heat, or the
abstraction of it by eva})()ration of atoms,
so as to convey away the motion, or by
the juxtaposition of bodies susceptible of
motion. Cold and heat are mere rela-
tions of fixity and motion in the atoms of
bodies. "t This definition of heat implies
that it is a mere property of matter, a
point not yet settled by j)hilosophers j but
there is no doubt that, by motion, heat is
evolved, and cold is generally attended by
stillness or cessation of motion.
614. Frost generally originates in the
upper portions of the atmosphere, it is
supposed, by the expansion of the air
carrying off the existing heat, and making
it susceptible of acquiring more. What
the cause of the expansion may be, when
no visible change has taken place in the
mean time in the ordinary action of the
solar rays, may not be obvious to a spec-
tator on the ground ; but it is known,
from the experiments of Lenz, that elec-
tricity is as capable of producing cold as
heat, to the degree of freezing whter
rapidly.;}: The poles of cold and the mag-
netic poles probably coincide. §
615. The most intense frosts in this
country never penetrate more than one
foot into the ground, on account of the
excessive dryness occasioned in it by the
frost itself withdrawing the moisture for
it to act upon. Frost cannot penetrate
through a thick covering of snow, or be-
low a sheet of ice, or through a covering
of grass on pasture, or the fine tilth on
the ploughed land, all which act as non-
conductors against its descent.
616. Frost is always present in winter,
though seasons do occur in which very
little occurs. The winters of 1834-5-6
Forster's Researches into Atmospherical Phenomena, p. 247 and 342. t Phillips' FacU, p. 395.
t Bird's Elements of Natural Philosophy, p. 232.
§ Kaemtr's Complete Course of Meteorology, p. 462.
found to be either negatively or non-
electrified ; and the cause of this is most
probably occasiont'cl by a supervening cur-
rent of colder or suj)ersaturated air; and
the rise of the thermometer, which accom-
panies the fall of the barometer in this
case, may be owing to the increase of
temjierature produced by the condensation
of the vapour in the case of rain." " Gusts
of wind, in some high windy weather,"
says Mr Forster, " seem to fluctuate in a
manner somewhat analogous to the undu-
Jatory motion of waves. This fact may
easily be seen by a pendulous anemome-
ter. When the wind is accompanied by
the rain, the periods of the gusts may be
counted by the intervals of the more or
less violent impulses of the water on the
windows opposed to the wind, or the leaves
of any tree twined across them."*
610. The mean annual fall of rain on
the surface of the globe has been taken at
34 inches. On estimating the area of the
globe, the quantity of rain that annually
falls at this rate will be found to be almost
incredible. The mean diameter of the
earth is 7913g miles, its mean circum-
ference of course 24,871 miles, and the
area of its surface 106,816,6.18 square
miles, or 5,486,033,518,387,200, square
feet, which, at 34 inches of rain, give
15,546,200,603,173,652 cubic feet of
water, at 1000 ounces per cubic foot,
amount to 431,033,808,059,644 tons 6
cwt. of rain per annum !
611. According to the estimate of Pro-
fessor Kigaud of Cambridge, the sea bears
to the land a ratio of 36 : 13, so the land
has an area of 52,353,231 square miles,
which will receive 15.3,684.431,013,2041
tons of rain per annum. Wiiat renders
this result the more surprising is, that all
this enormous quantity of rain could not
have fallen unless it had at first been eva-
porated from the ocean, seas, lakes, rivers,
and the land by the heat of the sun, and
sustained in the air until precipitated.
612. Kain is usefulinhusbandry by con-
solidating light soils, and dissolving and
carrying down solutions of manure into the
soil — when sheep are feeding on turnips, for
SOIMAEY OF THE WEATHER IN WINTER.
141
may be remembered as seasons remarkably
free from frost. It is a useful assistant to
the farmer in pulverising the ground, and
rendering the upper portion uf the ploughed
soil congenial to the vegetation of seeds.
It is obvious that it acts in a mechanical
manner on the soil, by freezing tlie mois-
ture in it into ice, which, on expanding at
the moment of its formation, disintegrates
the indurated clods into fine tilth. Frost
always produces a powerful evaporation
of the pulverised soil, and renders it very
dry on the surface ; by the affinity of the
soil for moisture putting its capillary
attraction into action, the moisture from
the lower part of the arable soil, or even
from the subsoil, is drawn up to the sur-
face and evaporated, and the whole soil is
thus rendered dry. Hence, after a frosty
winter, it is possible to have the ground
in so fine and dry a state as to permit the
sowing of spring wheat and beans, in the
finest order, early in spring, as witnessed
in 1847. Frost being favourable to the
exhibition of the electric agency, may also
prove useful to husbandry, by stimulating
the electric influence, not only in the soil
itself, but in vegetation, in the manner
formerly described in M. Pouillel's experi-
ments (127.)
616. Show. — Eain falls at all seasons,
but snow only in winter, which is just frozen
rain ; whenever, therefore, there are symp-
toms of rain, snow may be expected if the
temperature of the air is sufficiently low
to freeze vapour. Vapour is supposed to
be frozen into snow at the moment it is
collapsing into drops to form rain, for we
cannot suppose that clouds of snow can
float about the atmosphere any more than
clouds of rain. Snow is a beautifully
crystallised substance when it falls to the
ground ; and it is probable that it never
falls from a great height, otherwise its
fine crystalline configurations could not be
preserved.
618. " If flakes of snow," obserA'es
Kaenitz, " are received on objects of a
dark colour, and at a temperature below
the freezing point, a great regularity
is observed in their forms : this has for a
long time struck attentive observers. The
crystals of ice are never so regular as when
snow falls without being driven by the
wind ; but temperature, moisture, the
agitntiou of the air, and other circum-
stances, have a great influence over the
forms of the crystals. Notwithstanding
their variety, they may be all associated
under a single law. We see that isolated
crystals unite under angles of 30, 60, and
120 degrees. Flakes which fall at the
same time have generally the same form ;
but if there is an interval between two
consecutive falls of snow, the forms of the
second are observed to diflfer from those of
the first, although always alike among
themselves. Kepler speaks of their struc-
ture with admiration — and other philoso-
phers have endeavoured to determine the
cause of their regularity — but it is only
within the period in which we have
learned to know the laws of crystallisa-
tion in general, that it has been possible
to throw any light on the subject."*
619. The forms of snotc have been
arranged by Scoresby into 5 orders. 1 .
The lamellar, which is again divided into
the stelliform, regular hexagojis, apgre-
gation of hexagons., and coinbinatioii of
hexagons with radii, or spines and project-
ing angles. 2. Another form is the lamellar
or spherical niiclciis with spinous rami-
fications in diflereut places. 3. Fine spi-
culcB or 6-sided prisms. 4. Pryamids
with six faces. .5. Spiculw., having one
or both extremities affixed to the centre
of a lamellar crystal. There are nume-
rous varieties of forms of each class. t All
the forms of crystals of snow aflord most
interesting objects for the microscope, and
when jjerfect no objects in nature are more
beautiful and delicately formed. The la-
raellated crystals fall in calm weather, and
in heavy flakes, and are evidently pre-
cipitated from a low elevation. The
spiculaj of 6-sided prisms occur in heavy
drifts of snow, accompanied with wind and
intense cold. Tiiey are formed at a consi-
derable elevation; and they are so fine as to
pass through the minutest chinks in houses,
and so hard and firm that they may be pour-
ed like sand from one hand into another,
with a jingling sound, and without the
risk of being melted. In this country
these are most frequently accompanied
by one of the varieties of the lamellar
Kaemtz's Compete Course of Meteorology, p. 127.
t Scoresby 's Polar Eegions.
142
PRACTICE— WINTER.
crystals, whicli meet tlieir full at a lower
elevation; but in luountaiiious countries,
and especially above tlie line of perpetual
enow, tliey constitute tlie greatest bulk of
the snow, where they are ready at the
surface to be blown about with the least
agitation of the air, and lifted up in dense
clouds by gusts of wind, and precipitated
suddenly on the unwary traveller like a
sand-drift of the torrid zone. These spiculie
feel exceedingly sharp when driven by the
wind against the face, as I have expe-
rienced on the Al])s. How powerless is
man when
down he sinks
Beneath the shelter of the shapeless drift,
Thinking o'er all the bitterness of death ! *
And how helpless is a flock of sheep when
overwhelmed under a cloud of snow-drift!
Other forms of snow are more rare, yet the
total number seen by Scoresby amounted
to 96. " Yet I have met," remarks
Kaemtz, " with at least 20 lie has not
figured ; but I never found a single one
in which the crystals were in planes per-
pendicular to each other. The varieties
probably amount to several hundreds.
Who would not admire the infinite power
of Nature, which has known how to create
so many different forms in bodies of so
small a bulk ! "
620. All other things being equal. Pro-
fessor Leslie supposes that a flake of snow,
taken at 9 times more expanded than
water, descends 3 times as slow.
621. From the moment snow alights on the
ground it begins to undergo certain changes,
which usually end in a more solid crystal-
lisation than it originally possessed. The
adhesive property of snow arises from its
needly crystalline texture, aided by a de-
gree of attendant moisture which after-
wards freezes in the mass. Sometimes,
when a strong wind sweeps over a surface
of snow, portions of it are raised by its
power, and, passing on with the breeze under
a diminished temperature, become cry-
stallised, and by attrition assume globular
forms. Mr Howard describes having seen
these snow-balls, as they may be termed, in
January 1 8 14,andMrPatrickShirre8", when
at Mungoswells in p]ast Lothian, observed
the like phenomenon in February 1830.t
I observed the same phenomenon in For-
farshire in the great snow-storm of Feb-
ruary 1823.
622. During the descent of enow, the
thermometer sometimes rises, and the
harometi'r usualli/ falls. Snow has the
effect of retaining the temperature of the
ground at what it was when the snow fell.
It is this property which maintains the
warmer temjierature of the ground, and
sustains the life of plants during the severe
rigours of winter in the Arctic regions,
where the snow falls suddenly, after the
warmth of summer; and it is the same i)ro-
perty which supplies water to rivers in
winter, from under the perpetual snows
of the Alpine mountains. "• While air,
above snow, may be 70° below the freez-
ing point, the ground below the snow ia
only at 32°.| Hence the fine healthy
green colour of young wheat and young
grass, after the snow has melted off them
in spring.
623. In melting, 27 inches of snow
give 3 inches of water. Rain and snow-
water are the so/test natural waters for
domestic purposes ; and are also the purest
that can be obtained from natural sources,
provided they are procured either before
reaching the ground, or from newly fallen
snow. Nevertheless, they are impreg-
nated with oxygen, nitrogen, and carbonic
acid, especially with a considerable quan-
tity of oxygen ; and rain-water and dew
contain nearly as much air as they can
absorb. § Liebig says that both rain and
snow-water contain ammonia ; and it is
the probable cause of their great softness.
624. Snow reflects beautifully blue and
pink tints at sunset, as I have often ob-
served, with admiration, on the Alps of
Switzerland. It also reflects so much
light from its surface, as to render tra-
velling at night a cheerful occupation ;
and in some countries, as in Russia and
Canada, when frozen, it forms a delightful
highway for man and horse and rein-deer.
625. A heavy fall of snow generally com-
mences in the evening, continues through-
Thomson's /Sm-'ows, — Winter. t Enciiclopcfdia 'MetropoVitana ; art. Mettorology.
Phillips' Facts, p. 440. § Heia's Chemiflry of Nature, p. 192.
II Liebig'fi Organic Chemistry, p. 45.
SUMMARY OF THE WEATHER IN WINTER.
143
out the next day, and at intervals in suc-
ceeding days. Snow-showers may fall
heavily for the time ; and when they fall,
and the sky clears up quickly but is again
overcome with another shower, it is said
to be a '■'•feeding storm." In such a case, the
air always feels cold. In moonlight, masses
of cumulo-strati may be seen to shower
down snow at times, and then roll across
the face of the moon with the most beauti-
ful fleecy and rounded forms imaginable.
The forms of the flakes of snow are pretty
correct indications of the amount of fall to
be ; as, when large and broad, and falling
slowly, there will not be much, and the
probability is that a thaw will soon follow;
but when they fall thick and fast, and of
medium size, there may be a fall of some
inches before it fairs, and may lie some
time. When the flakes are spicular and
fall very thick and fast, a heavy fall, or a
"• li/inrf storm," as it is called, may be
expected ; and this last sort of fall is al-
ways accompanied with a firm breeze of
wind, varying from NE. to SE., and con-
stitutes the minute drift, which penetrates
into every crevice that is open in doors,
windows, or sheds. Neither frost nor snow
will last long, if either come when the
ground is in a very wet state, in conse-
quence of rain.
626. Snow renders important services
to husbandry. If it fall shortly after a
confirmed frost, it acts as a protective
covering against its farther cooling effects
on soil ; and, in this way, protects the
young wheat and clover from destruction
by intense frosts. On tlie other hand, frost,
and rain, and snow, may all retard the
operations of the fields in winter very ma-
terially, by rendering ploughing and the
carriage of turnips impracticable.
627. Hoar-frost. — Hoar-frost is defined
to be frozen dew. This it not quite a cor-
rect definition ; for dew is sometimes
frozen, especially in spring, into globules
of ice which do not at all resemble hoar-
frost,— this latter substance being beauti-
fully and as regularly crystallised as snow.
The formation of hoar-frost is always at-
tended with a considerable degree of cold,
because it is preceded by a great radiation
of heat and vapour from the earth, and
the phenomenon is the more perfect the
wai'mer the day and the clearer the night
havd been. In tlie country, hoar-frost is
of most frequent occurrence in the autum-
nal months and in winter, in such places
as have little snow or continued frost on
the average of seasons ; and this chiefly
from great radiation of heat and vapour at
those seasons, occasioned by a suspension
of vegetable action, which admits of little
absorption of moisture for vegetable pur-
poses.*
628. The late Dr Farquharson, Alford,
Aberdeenshire, j)aid great attention to the
subject of hoar-frost or rime, which fre-
quently injures the crops in the northern
portion of our island long before they are
ripe. The results of his observations are
very instructive. He observed, that the
mean temperature of the day and night
at which injurious hoar-frosts may occur,
may be, relatively to the freezing-point, very
high. Thus, on the nights of the 2!jth and
31 stAugustl 840, theleaves of potatoes were
injured, while the lowest temperatures of
those nights, as indicated by a self-regis-
tering thermometer, were as high as 41°
and .39° respectively.
629. Hoar-frost, at the time of a high
daily mean temperature, takes place only
during calm. A very slight steady breeze
will quickly melt away frosty rime.
630. The air is always unclouded, or
nearly all of it so, at the time of hoar-
frost. So incompatible is hoar-frost with
a clouded state of the atmosphere, that on
many occasions when a white frosty rime
has been formed in the earlier part of the
night, on tlie formation of a close cloud at
a later part, it has melted ofi" before the
rising of the sun.
631. Hoar-frosts most frequently hap-
pen with the mercury in the barometer at
a high point and rising, and with the hy-
grometer at comparative dryness for the
temperature and season; but there are
striking exceptions to these rules. On the
morning of the 15th September 1840, a
very injurious frost occurred, with a low
and falling barometer column, and with
a damp atmosphere.
Mudie's World, p. 254.
144
PRACTICE— ^TNTER.
632. In general, low and flat lands in
the bottoms of valleys, and grounds that
are land-locked hollows, suflTer njost from
hoar-frost, while all sloping lands, and
open uplands, escape injury. But it is not
their relative elevation above the sea, in-
dependently of the freedom of their expo-
sure, that is the source of safety to the
uplands ; for provided they are enclosed
by higher lands, without any wide open
descent from them ou some side or other,
they suffer more, under other equal circum-
stances, than similar lands of less altitude.
G33. A very slight inclination of the
surface of the ground is generally <juite
protective of the crops on it from injury
by hoar-frost, frum which flat and hollow
places suffer at the time great injury. Luta
similar slope downward in the bottom of a
narrow descending hollow does uot save the
crop in the bottom of it, although those
ou its side-banks higher up may be safe.
634. An impediment of no great height
on the surface of the slope, such as a stone-
wall fence, causes damage immediately
above it, extending upwards proportion-
ally to the height of the impediment. A
still loftier impediment, like a closely-
planted and tall wood or belt of trees,
across the descent, or at the b()ttom of
sloping land, causes the damage to extend
on it much more.
635. Rivers have a bad repute as the
cause of hoar-frosts in their neiglil)ourhood;
but the general opinion regarding their
evil influence is altogether erroneous: the
protective effect of ;-«/(/<(«_f/ water, such as
waterfalls from mill-sluices, on pieces of
potatoes, when others in like low situa-
tions are blackened by frost, is an illustra-
tio" which can be referred to.
63G. The severity of the injury by hoar-
frost is much influenced by the wetness or
dryness of the soil at the place; and this
is exemplifled in potatoes growing on
haugh-lands by the sides of rivers. These
lands arc generally dry, but bars of clay
sometimes intersect the dry portions, over
which the land is comparatively damp.
Hoar-frost will affect the crop growing
upon these bars of clay, Mhile that on the
dry soil will e8caj»e injury ; and the expla-
nation of this is (juite easy. The mean
temperature of the damp lands is lower
than that of the dry, and on a diminution
of the temperature during frost, it sooner
gets down to the freezing point, as it haa
less to diminish before reaching it.
637. Hoar-frost produces peculiar cur-
rents in the atmosphere. On flat lands,
and in land-locked hollows, there are no
currents that are at all sensible to the feel-
ings ; but on the eloping lands, during hoar-
frost, there is rarely absent a very sensible
and steady, although generally only feeble,
current towards the most direct descent of
the slope. The current is produced in this
way : The cold first takes place on the
surface of the ground, and the lower stra-
tum of air becoming cooled, descends to a
lower temperature than that of the air im-
mediately above, in contact ■with it. Bv
its cooling, the lower stratum acquires a
greater density, and cannot rest on an
inclined plane, but descends to the valley;
its place at the summit of the slope being
supplied by warmer air from above, which
prevents it from getting so low as the
freezing temperature. On the flat ground
below, the cool air accumulates, and com-
mits injury, while the warmer current
down the slope does none ; but should
the mean temperature of the day and night
be already very low before the calm of the
evening sets in, the whole air is so cooled
down as to jtrevent any current down the
slope. Injury is then effected both on the
slope and the low ground ; and hence the
capricious nature of hoar-frost may be
accounted for.*
638. " In hoar-frost," observes Kaemtz,
"the crystals are generally irregular and
opa(jue ; and it seems that great numbers
of vesicles are solidified at their surface
without having had time to unite inti-
mately with the crystalline molecules.
During wind the crystals are broken and
irregular; rounded grains are then found
com])osed of unequal rays. In the Alps,
and in Germany, I have often seen per-
fectly symmetrical crystals fall. (Should
the wind rise, they become grains of the
size of millet, or small peas, whose struc-
ture is any thing but compact; or even
• Priw Eisar/M of the IligUand and Aijrlcultural Society, Tol. xiv. p. 250.
SUI^IARY OF THE WEATHER IN WINTER.
145
bodies having the form of a pyramid, the
base of which is a spherical cup. These
])odies may be compared to sleet ; yet they
are found under the influence of the same
meteorological circumstances as the flakes
which fall before gales of wind." *
639. Frost-smoke. — Clear calm air, ad-
mitting much sunshine at the middle of
the day, is very bracing, healthy, and
agreeable ; but in the evening of such a
day, the sun usually sets in red, and a
heavy dew falls, which is frozen into rime
or hoar-frost, incrusting every twig and
sprig of trees and shrubs into the semblance
of white coral. When the cold is intense,
the dew is frozen before it reaches the
objects on which it is deposited, and it then
appears like smoke or mist, and is called
'"'' frost-smoke" which, when deposited on
the naked branches of trees and shrubs,
converts them into a resemblance of the
most beautiful filagree-work of silver.
This mist may last some days, during the
day as well as night, and then new depo-
sitions of incrusted dew take place on the
trees and walls every night, until they
seem overloaded with it. The smallest
puff of winter wind dispels the enchanting
scene, as described by Phillips in his Letter
from Copenhagen : —
When, if a sudden gust of wind arise,
The brittle forest into atoms flies ;
The crackling wood beneath the tempest bends,
And in a spangled shower the prospect ends.
Winter-fog, as long as it hovers about the
plains, is indicative of dry weather; but
when it betakes itself to the hills, a thaw
may be expected soon to follow ; and no-
thing can be more true than '' He that
would have a bad day, may go out in a
fog after frost ; " for no state of the air
can be more disagreeable to the feelings
than a raw rotten fog after frost, with
the wind from the SE.
640. Hail. — Hail, consisting of soft,
snowy, round spongy masses, frequently
falls in winter after snow, and may lie
for some time unmelted.
641. Ice. — Though a solid, ice is not a
compact substance, but contains large in-
terstices filled with air, or other substances
that may have been floating on the surface
of the water. Ice is an aggregation of
crystals, subtending with one another the
angles of 60° and 120°. It is quickly
formed in shallovv^, but takes a long time
to form in deep water ; and it cannot be-
come very thick in the lower latitudes of
the globe, from want of time and intensity
of the frost. By 1 1 years' observations at
the observatory at Paris, there were only
58 days of frost throughout the year, which
is too short and too desultory a period to
freeze deep water in that latitude.
642. The freezing of water is effected
by frost in this manner. The upper film
of water in contact with the air becomes
cooled down, and when it reaches 39°'39
it is at its densest state, and of course sinks
to the bottom through the less dense body
of water below it. The next film of
water, which is now uppennost, undergoes
the same condensation ; and in this way
does film after film in contact with the air
descend towards the bottom, until the
whole body of water becomes equally
dense at the temperature of 39°*39. When
this vertical circulation of the water stops,
the upper fihu becomes frozen. If there is
no wind to agitate the surface of the
water, its temperature will descend as low
as 28° before it freezes, and on freezing
will start up to 32° ; but should there be
any wind, then the ice will form at once at
32°, expanding at the same time one-ninth
larger than in its former state of water.
643. It is worth while to trace the pro-
gress of this curious property — the expan-
sion of ice. In the first place, the water
contracts in bulk by the frost, until it
reaches the temperature of 39°'39, when it
is in its state of greatest density and least
bulk, and then sinks. After this the
water resists frost in calm air, until it
reaches 28°, without decreasing more in
hulk, and it remains floating on the
xcarmer water below it, v-hich continue*
at 29°-39. So placed, and at 28°, it then
freezes, and suddenly starts up to 32°, and
in the form of ice as suddenly expands
one-ninth more in bulk than in its ordi-
nary temperature., and of course more than
that when in its most condensed state at
39°'39. After the water has undergone
* Kaemtz's Complete Course of Meteorology, p. ]31.
VOL. I.
146
PRACTICE— WINTER.
all these mutations, it retains its enlarged
state us ice until tliat is melted.
644. So great is the force of water on
bcinir sudJcnlv expanded into ice, that,
according to the experiments of the Flo-
rentine Academy, every cubic inch of it
exerts a power of 27,000 lbs. This re-
markable power of ice is of use in agricul-
tnre, as I have noticed when speaking of
the effects of frost on ploughed land. (620.)
645. It is obvious that no large body of
fresh water, such as a deep lake or river,
can be reduced in temperature below
39°*39, when water is in it5 densest state, as
what becomes colder floats upon and covers
the denser, which is also the warmer, por-
tion ; and as ice is of larger bulk, weight
for weight, than water, it must float above
all, and, in retaining its form and position,
prevent the farther cooling of the water
below it to a lower temperature than
3y°-39. On the other hand, jrca-water
freezes at once on the surface, and that
below the ice retains the temperature it
had when the ice was formed. Frost in
the polar regions becomes suddenly in-
tense, and the polar sea becomes as sud-
denly covered with ice, without regard to
the temperature of the water below. The
ice of the polar sea, like the snow upon the
polar land, thus becomes a protective
mantle against the intense cold of the
atmosphere, which is sometimes as great as
37° below zero. In this way sea animals,
as well as land vegetables, in those regions
are protected at once, and securely, against
the effects of the intensest frosts.
646. "Water presents a phenomenon
analogous to sulphur," observes Kaemtz ;
" it crystallises under the influence of
cold alone. However, on examining the
ice of rivers, we do not discover the small-
est trace of crystals ; it is a confused mass
like that of the rolls of brimstone. But ii
the progress of crystallisation is followed
on the banks of a river, needles are seen to
dart from the bank, or rather from the ice
already formed, and to advance parallel to
each other, or making angles with each
other from 30 to 60 degrees. Other
needles dart from these at the above
angles, and so on until a compact uniform
mass is the effect of their interlacing. If
a sheet of ice thus formed is raised, very
irregular crystals are often discovered in
its lower surface. Similar phenomena are
observed in winter on panes of glass. The
secondary crystals are seen to make a con-
stant angle with the crystals which serve
as a common axis ; and if the glass were a
perfect jilane, very regular figures would
be seen. They occur sometimes when the
pane of glass is very thin. The air of the
room is moist, then each scratch, each
grain of dust, becomes a centre of crystal-
line formation ; and by radiating in all
directions, these crystals form a net-work,
which excites admiration by its astonishing
complication." *
647. Ice evaporates moisture as largely
as tcater, which property preserves it
from being easily melted by any unusual
occurrence of a high temperature of the
air, because the rapid evaporation, occa-
sioned by the small increase of heat, super-
induces a greater coldness in the body of
ice.
648. The great cooling potcert of ics
may be witnessed by the simple experi-
ment of mixing 1 lb. of water at 32° with
1 lb. at 172° — the mean temperature of the
mixture will be as high as 102°; whereas
1 lb. of ice at 32°, on being put into 1 lb.
of water at 172°, will reduce the mixture
to the temperature of ice, namely 32°. This
perhaps unexpected result arises from the
greater capacity of ice for caloric tltsn
water at the temperature of 32° ; that is,
more heat is required to break up the crys-
tallisation of ice than to heat wat»,'r.
649. It may be worth while to notice,
that pomis and lakes are generally frozen
trith different thicknesses of ice, owing
either to irregularities in the bottom,
which constitute different depths of water,
or to the existence of deep springs, the
water of which seldom falls below the
mean temperature of the place, 40°.
Hence the unknown thickness of ice on
lakes and ponds until its strength has been
ascertained ; and hence also the origin of
most of the accidents on ice.
650. Wind. — The true character of all
• Kaemta's ConpleU Couth of MeUorology, p. 128.
SUMMARY OF THE WEATHER IN WINTER.
147
the phenomena of rain and snow is much
modified by the directio7i of the tcind. In
winter, it may be generally stated as a fact,
that when the wind blows from the NW. to
SE. bv the N. and E., cold and frost may
be looked for as certain, and if there are
symptoms of a deposition from the air,
snow will fall ; but if the wind blows
from the SE. to NW. by the S. and W.,
fresh weather and rain will ensue. Heavy
falls of snow occur, however, with the
wind direct from the S. ; but they are
always accompanied with cold, and such
are usually termed " Flanders' stoni^s."
In this case, the wind veers suddenly from
the N. or NE. to the S., which causes the
lower stratum of vapour to give way by
the introduction of warm air, and the cold
vapour above then suddenly descends in
quantity,
(Jol. The characters of the winds in
winter are very well described by old
Tusser in these lines : —
N. winds send hail, S. winds bring rain,
E. winds we bewail, W. winds blow amain ;
NE. is too cold, SE. not too warm,
NW. is too bold, SW. dotli no harm.*
In winter, the N. wind is firm, powerful,
cold, and bracing; the NE. howling, de-
ceitful, cold, disagreeable, and may bring
either a heavy fall of snow or rain ; the
E. wind is cold, piercing, and drying,
causing a quick evaporation ; the SE. feels
cold, damp, and thin, and causes a shiver;
the S. wind is soft and undecided, and
sometimes causes shivering ; the SW.
generally blows a loud and steady gale
for hours, frequently accompanied with
heavy battering showers ; the W. wind
is bluffy and buoyant; and the NW.
pouring and steady, and often cold.
Any wind that blows fur a considerable
length of time, such as two or three days,
always brings down the temperature of
the air. When any wind blows a good
way over-head, it will be fair weather for
some time, or until a change of the wind
takes place ; but when it blows low and
very near the ground, and feels raw, cold,
and thin to the feelings, — which is fre-
quently the case in winter with the SW.,
S., and SE. winds, — rain will follow in
fresh weather, and thaw in frost. Mostly
all winds begin to blow in the upper por-
tion of the atmosphere ; and whether they
will descend to the earth or not depends on
the quantity, first, of the cirri, and then of
the cirro-strati, in the air. Very frequently
different currents of air, at different eleva-
tions, may be seen in winter at the same
time by means of the clouds. When this
is observed, it may be relied upon that the
uppermost current will ultimately prevail.
It is characteristic of winds in winter to
sliift much about, — sometimes to all points
of the azimuth in the course of twenty-four
hours, and seldom remaining more than
three days in one quarter. Winter winds
are heavy, overpowering, stormy (242.)
6.52. A set of rules was published about a
hundred years ago, to judge of the changes
of the weather, by John Claridge, shepherd,
many of which are much akin to those given
above ; but a.s a few are expressed in so
definite terms in regard to the wind, they
must have been the result of observation, and
therefore deserve attention. He says : —
" When the wind turns to NE. and it con-
tinues two days without rain, and does not
turn S.the third day,nor rains the third day,
it is likely to continue NE. for 8 or 9 days,
all fair, and then to come to the S. again.
If it turn again out of the S. to the NE. with
rain, and continue in the NE. two days
without rain, and neither turn S. nor rain
the third day, it is likely to continue NE. for
two or three months. The wind will finish
these turns in 3 weeks. After a N. wind,
for the most jjart two months or more, and
then coming S., there are usually 3 or 4
fair days at first, and then, on the fourth
or fifth day, comes rain, or else the wind
turns N. again, and continues dry. If it
return to the S. in a day or two without
rain, and turn N. with rain, and return to
the S. in one or two days as before, two or
three turns together after this sort, then it
is like to be in the S. or SW. two or three
months together, as it was in the N. before.
The wind will finish these turns in a fort-
night. Fair weather for a week, with a
S. wind, is like to produce a great drought,
if there has been much rain out of the S.
before. The wind usually turns from N.
to S, with a quiet wind without rain, but
returns to the N, with a strong wind and
rain. The strongest winds are when it
• Tusser's Five Hundred Points of Goad Husbandry, Introduction, p. xxxviii.
148
PRACTICE— WINTER.
turns from S. to N. by W. "When the N.
wind first clears the air, (which is usually
once a-week,) be euro of a fair day or
two."*
653. <S7.;v. — A difference in the blue tint
of the sky in winter indicates a fall of
different states of moisture ; for if of a deep
blue, in fresh weather, rain will fall ; of a
yellowish or greenish colour near the
horizon in frost, snow will certainly come;
and on a clear watery blue opening in the
clouds, occurring in fresh weather near the
horizon in the S., a heavy rain may soon
be expected.
654. Mean of the atmospherical pheno-
mena occurring in winter is as follows : —
Mean of barometer in England, in —
November . . , 29P.1 inches.
December . . . 29-SO
January . . 29'97
Mean of Winter
29-89
Mean of thermometer in England, in —
November . . . 42°-6 FaLr.
December . . . 37 °0
January . . Z4'-o
Mean of Winter
38°
Tension of vapour for 33°-3="-04.
Mean fall of rain in November, December, and
January, is 192 inches.
Prevailing wind in November, December, and
January, is the SW.
Number of storms in winter is j's of those of
the year.
Hail and sleet fall mo-^t in winter in the pro-
portion of 45o in 100.
Aurora-borealis has been seen in —
November . . . 285 times.
December . , 225
January . . . 229
Number of fire-balls have been eeen in —
November ... 89
December . . . 71
January ... 69
0>- PREPARING FOR, AND COM.MKNCING
THE WINTER OPERATIONS.
655. We shall now direct onr atten-
tion to the practice of farming. I have
said, that the agricultural year commences
immediately after the completion of har-
Test, and the sowing of the autumnal
•wheat ; and as these operations may be
finished sooner or later, according to the
nature of the season, so the agricultural
year may commence sooner or later in
different years. It seldom, however,
commences before the middle of October,
which it does when the harvest has been
very early, and it is less seldom postponed
until the end of November, which it only
is when the harvest has been a very late
one. Jhe last week of October may be
regarded as the average time for com-
mencing winter operations.
65G. To join consistency to practice, it
is necessary to adopt some regular method
of good farming, and as I have recom-
mended the jnixcd husbandry (52,) we
shall take that as our model ; and it
is eminently adapted for such a purpose,
since it embraces the raising of grain, as
in the farming of heavy carse clays — the
raising of green crops, as does the farming
in the neighbourhood of large towns, — the
rearing of stock, as in pastoral farming, —
tlie making of cheese and butter, as in
dairy farming, — and the fattening of cattle
and sheep, by grazing in summer, and on
turnips in winter, as is practised in ordi-
nary farming in many of the rural districts.
Thus the mixed husbandry affords full
scope for every species of farming practised
in this country, and if there is any pecu-
liarity of farming in any remarkablo
district, the mixed may be introduced into
it if desired ; and as a large farm affords a
greater scope for displaying the capabilities
of management in the arrangement of
labour than a small one, I shall suppose
that we are about to commence one year's
operations on a farm of 500 acres in extent,
— a size of farm within reach of most
intelligent farmer-capitalists.
657. The winter work does not every
year begin with the same operation, this
matter being determined by the nature of
the preceding season of autumn. When
the harvest has been completed early, and
the after season so mild as that the live
stock may occupy the fields with advan-
tage to themselves, that is to say, have
still a full bite of grass, the first winter
work IS ploughing ; but when the han-est
work is not completed until after the grass
• The Shfpherd o/JBanlmrft Ohtertatiotu, p. 15-23.
THE PLOUGH.
149
has failed to support the stock, and which
is always the case in a late season, the
stock must be put upou turnips, and
occupy their respective apartments in
the steading, before the land is begun to
be ploughed. But as the usual occurrence
of seasons allows the finisliing of harvest
before the entire failure of the grass, the
common practice is to commence winter
operations with ploughing ; and I sliall
therefc.re adopt this alternative, and de-
scribe the manner of ploughing land into
the different sorts of ridges, and point
out first how the plough itself is harnessed
and managed.
ON THE
PLOUGH, SWING-TREES, AND
PLOUGH-nAF.NESS.
658. The plough. — The plough serves
the same purpose to the farmer as the
spade to the gardener, both being used to
turn over the soil ; and the object of doing
this is, to obtain such a command over the
soil as to render it friable, and to enclose
the manure within it, so that the seeds
sown upon it may grow a crop to the
greatest perfection.
659. The spade is an implement so
simple in construction, that there seems but
one way of using it, namely, that of push-
ing its blade into the ground with the foot,
lifting it up with both hands with as much
earth upon it as it can carry, and invert-
ing the earth so as to place its upper part
undermost. This operation, cvlWq A dunging,
may be done in the most perfect manner ;
and every attempt at impro\ing it has
failed, and, indeed, seems unnecessary.
Hitherto the spade has only been used by
the hand, and is thus an instrument en-
tirely under man's personal control,
though means have been devised to apply
horse-power to wield it ; but no locomo-
tive machine can compete with tlie human
body in executing work within the sphere
of its strength and dexterity.
6fi0. The effect intended to be produced
on the soil by the plough, is to imitate the
work of the spade ; bat .*'ie plough being
too large and licavy an implement to be
wielded by the hand, it is not so entirely
under man's control as the spade. He
is obliged to call in the aid of horses to
wield it, and through the means of ap-
propriate appliances, such as harness, he
can command its motions pretty effectively.
It is thus not so much man himself, as the
horses he employs, that turn over the
ground with the plough ; and he is there-
by a gainer in the end, inasmuch as they
can turn over a much greater quantity
of soil with the plough, in a given time,
than he can Avitli the spade. Turning
over the soil with so very simple an in-
strument as the spade, seems a very
simple operation ; but, nevertheless, the
act of digging is not a simple operation,
requiring every muscle of the body to
be put into action, so that any machine
to imitate it must have a A'ery complex
structure. This would be the case even
were such a machine always fixed to
the same spot ; but it is a difficult
problem in practical mechanics, to con-
struct a light, strong, durable, convenient
instrument, and easily moved about, which
shall produce a complicated effect, with
a complex structure, by a simple action ;
and yet the modem plough is an instru-
ment possessing all these properties in an
eminent degree.
661. The common plough used in Scot-
land is made either wholly of iron, or
partly of wood and partly of iron. Until
a few years ago it was universally made
of wood and iron, but is now generally
entirely of iron. A wooden plough seems
a clumsier instrument than an iron one,
though it is lighter. The plough is now
made wholly of iron, because iron with-
stands the vicissitudes of weather better
than wood — and this is a desirable property
in any implement that must necessarily be
much exposed to the weather — and when
it becomes old the iron is always worth
something ; and because good ash timber,
of Avhich ploughs were usually made, is
now so scarce in many parts of the coun-
tr}', that it fetches the large price of 3s.
per cubic foot, whereas iron is daily be-
coming more abundant. A wooden plough
with iron mountings usually weighs 13
stones imperial, and an iron one for the
same work 15 stones. The cost of a
Avooden jdough is £8, 16s., that of an iron
one £4, 4s., both capable of being service-
able, with repairs, for a lease of 19 years.
Some farmers, however, still prefer the
wooden one, alleging that it goes more
150
PRACTICE— WINTER.
steadily than tlie iron. Whatever may be
the cause for the pro<lilection, the iron
plou^'h executes its wurk in a very satis-
factory manner. In point of economy,
both are much alike.
662. There are three different varieties
of ploughs used in Scotlaml, all nearly of
the same construction, and I do not know
how many in England ; and of the three
varieties, I give the ]»ref(.rence to the one
called the Ea^^t Lothian, or Small's, plough.
Kfurroicsiie elevation of this plough is
represented in fig 2, m liere the member to
which the horses or oxen are yoked, marked
a in the figure, is the beam. Those parts by
A VIEW OF THE FTRROW-SIDE OF A. PLOLGH.
which the ploughman holds and guides the
implement are called the stilts or handler,
b Xic'vagihc greatest still or left handle^ and
c the little stilt or rir^ht handle ; d is the
muzzle or bridle by which the horses are
attached to the beam ; c, the coulter, is the
cutting instrument that severs the slice
from the firm land ; / the sock or share
which cuts the slice below from the subsoil ;
y the icrcst or mould-board, which re-
ceives the slice from the share, turns it
gradually over, and deposits it continu-
ously at the proper angle, 45°; h is the
sole-shoe upon which the plough has its
principal support, and on which it moves ;
and i is the heel.
663. Fig. 3 shows the land-side of the
plough, in which m is the land-side plate,
only serving to complete the sheathing of
A VIEW OF THE LAND-SIDE OF A PLOUGH.
the land-side, presenting a uniform smooth
surface to the firm land, and preventing
the crumbled earth from falling within the
body of the plough. These last parts
cover the body -frame from view ; but all
the parts described in fig. 2 may be seen
in different perspective in this.
664. The plough as seen in fig. 2 is
supposed to stand upon a level plane, the
heel i and point of the share/ touching that
I)lane — these being actually the points on
which the plough is supported when in
motion, and this plane k k, is called the base-
line. The dotted line / 1 above the base-line
is the surface-line, which represents the
depth of the furrow taken by the plough,
and which is seen to intersect the mould-
board and coulter at certain points.
665. Fig. 4 represents the plan o£ the
same plough, in which all the parts de-
scribed will be easily i<lentified, with the
additional advantage of showing that the
proper lines of the body on the land-side
lie all in one jdane as froTii a to b, which,
in working, should be held in the vertical
position, or very slightly inclining to the
SWING-TREES.
151
left The coulter c slightly oblique to the vertical sectional lines approximate to
land-side plane, the point standing towards straight lines, giving the character of ap-
the left : the rake of the coulter varies from ^ parent concavity, and it is truncated lor-
55° to 65°. In the mould-board i the ward. The share is pointed, with a feather
Fig. 4.
A VIEW OF THE PLAN OP A PLOUGH.
or cutter e standing to the right, having a
breadth of at least two-thirds the breadth of
the furrow, the cutting edge of the feather
lying nearly as low as the plane of the
sole. The neck of the share/ is prolonged
backward, joining and coinciding with the
curve of the mould-board, which curva-
ture is also carried forward on
the back of the feather of the Fig. 5.
share. The character of this
plough is to cut a furrow-slice of (N.
10 inches in breadth, by 7 inches iTL^v,
in depth, a rectangle, leaving
the sole of the open furrow level
and clean. It is for this pro-
perty, which I consider of para-
mount importance in ploughing
laud well and thoroughly, that
I give it the preference to all
others, inasmuch as others cut
the slice more or less of a tra-
pezoidal form, and leave the
bottom of the open furrow in an
inclined, instead of a level posi-
tion. The resistance to the
draught is generally below the
average of ploughs, and this
plough is employed for every
kind of soil.
666. A necessary accompani-
ment of every plough is the
plough-staff, or plough-spade, as
it is called in some places, fig. 5.
Its use consists in shovelling off
the mould that may happen to plqugh-
adhere to the front of the mould- staff.
board, between d and/, fig. 4;
in pushing away any stubble or weeds that
may accumulate in the angle formed by
the coulter e and beam a, fig. 2 ; and in
striking out the stones that may become
fixed between the points of the coulter
and share. It rests on the plough, when
not in use, by its spade being inserted into
a staple on the inside of the land-side of
the body, and its shank lying on the cross
bar, g, fig. 4, of the stilts, with its handle
quite convenient to the ploughman.
667. Stclng-trecs. — Horses are yoked
to the plougli by means of a set of levers
named swing-trees, arranged as to cause
the united strength of the horses employed
to be exerted in one point, namely, that
formed by linking the ring e, fig. 6 of the
main lever of the swing-trees h b, to the
hook of tlie bridle of the plough «, fig. 3.
By this contrivance the horses draw the
plough from one puint only. The swing-
trees have various other names in different
parts of the country. Such as sicingle-
trees, tchipple-trees, draught-bars, or sim-
ply bars. The swing-trees are used for
attaching horses to other implements be-
sides the plough, such as liarrows, small
ploughs, &c. In the plough yoke a set of
swing-trees consist of 3, as represented in
fig. 6, where a points out the bridle of the
plough, b b the main swing-tree attached
immediately to die bridle, c c the furrow or
off-sidesmall swing-tree,and d d tlie land or
nigh-side small tree, arranged in the posi-
tion in which they arc employed in working:
h is a section of a swing-tree at the centre
of attachment, with clasp and eye mount-
in"-; the scale of which is double the size
of the principal figure in the cut. Swing-
trees are for the most part made of wood,
oak or ash being most generally used ; but
the former, if sound English oak, is by
much the most durable — thougli good
Scotch ash is the strongest, so long as it
remains sound, but it is liable, by long
exposure, to a species of .decay resem-
bling dry-rot. The small treesare furnished
152
PRACTICE— WINTER.
with S books, by wbicb they are appended to tbe ends of the main tree ; and end
Fig. 6.
THE SWING-TRKKS FOR TWO HORSES.
clasps are adapted to receive the hooks of
the trace chains,//, ff ff, a. small part only
of which are shown in the figure.
66)^. Though wood has hitherto been
tbe material chiefly used for swing-trees,
there have been some successful trials of
malleable iron for the purpose. These
have been variously constructed, in some
cases entirely of sheet iron turned round
into a form somewhat resembling the
wooden trees ; but in this form, either the
iron must be thiii, or the bar must be iu-
conveuiently heavy ; if tbe former, dura-
bility becomes limited, by reason of the
oxidation of the iron acting over a large
surface, and soon destroying the fabric.
Another method has been to form a
diamond-shaped truss of solid iron rods,
the diamond being very much elongated,
with a stretcher between the obtuse angles.
A third has been tried, consisting of a
straight welded tube of malleable iron, as
in fig. 7. In this tube, acting as a strut, a
tension rod, also of malleable iron, is
aj)})lied with a deflection, the extremities
of the tension-rod being brought into con-
tact by welding or riveting with the ends
of the tubular strut, and eyes formed at the
ends and middle, for the attachment of the
Fig. 7.
TRUSSED IRON SWING-TREK.
hooks and chains. A tree thus formed is
sufficiently strong for every purpose to
which it is applied, while its weight does
not exceed 7 lb., and the weight of a
wooden tree, with its mounting, frequently
weighs 8 lb. The price of a set of com-
mon wooden trees, with the iron mounting,
is 12s., and of the iron trees 16s.
SWmG-TREES.
153
669. This form of swing-trees is adapted
for the use of two horses, but ploughing is
sometimes performed by three horses, such
as in cross-furrowing, or in breaking up
stubble in autumn, when the land is clean,
or in ploughing old rough lea ground ;
and sometimes four horses are employed
at one time in tlie plough, when the sub-
soil or trench plough is used. There are
various ways of yoking three horses to
the plough, the simplest of which is a pair
working in the common trees, fig 6 ; and
for the third horse, a light chain is attached
by a shackle to the middle of the main
bar h b. To this chain a third horse is
yoked, taking his place ia front of the
other two, in unicorn fashion. This yoke
is' defective, inasmuch as there are no
means of ec^ualising the draught of the
third horse.
670. Perhaps the most perfect method
of yoking a 3-horse team, whether abreast
or unicorn-fashion, is that by the com-
pensation levers, fig. 8 — a statical
combination, which is at once correct in
its equalisation, scientific in principles,
and elegant in arrangement. The appa-
ratus in the figure is represented as applied
to the subsoil plough ; a being the bridle
Fig. 8.
THE SWING-TREES FOR THREE HORSES.
of that plough ; 5 is a main swing-tree,
of strength proportioned to the draught of 3
horses ; and c d e axe three small common
trees, one for each horse. The trace-chains
are here broken off at/, g, respectively.
Between the main swing-tree and the three
small ones the compensating apparatus is
placed, consisting of three levers, usually
constructed of iron. Two of these, h i and
h i, are levers of the first order, but with
unequal arms, the fulcrum k being fixed
at J of the entire length from the outward
end of each ; the arms of these levers are
therefore in the proportion of 2 to 1, and
the entire length of each between the
points of attachment is 27 inches. _ A
connecting lever I, of equal arms, is jointed
to the longer arras i i of the former, by
means of the double short links m, n.
The two levers hi, hi, are hooked by
means of their shackles at k to the main
swing-tree b ; and the three small swing-
trees c, d, e, are hooked to the compensa-
tion lever at h, h and /.
671. The judicious farmer will fre-
quently see the propriety of lightening
the labour of some individual horse; and
this is easily accomplished by the com-
pensation apparatus. For this purpose,
one or more holes are perforated in the
levers h i, on each side of the true ful-
crum k, to receive the bolt of the small
shackle k. By shifting the shackle and
bolt, the relation of the forces h and i are
changed, and that in any proportion that
may be desired; but it is necessary to
observe that the distance of the additional
holes, on either side of the central i)ole or
fulcrum of equilibrium in tlie system,
154
PRACTICE— WINTER.
sliould be in the panic proportion as the
length of the amis in which tlic holco arc
perforatcil. Thus, if llie distance between
those in the short arm is half an inch,
those in the longer arm should be an inch.
By such arrangement, every increase to
the exertion of the power, whether on the
long or the short arm, would be equal.
672. The same principle of compensa-
tion has been applied to various ways of
yoking, one of which is a complicated
form of that ju.st described. The main
swing-tree and the compensation levers
are tlie same, except that they may be
a few inches shorter in all the anns, and
the middle one of the three small swing-
trees also shorter. The yoking is per-
formed in this manner : The nigh trace-
Fig,
chain of the nigh horse is hooked to the end
0 of the swing-tree f, fig. 8, and his off-side
trace-chain to the end o of the swing-tree d.
The middle horse has his nigh-aide chain
hooked to the end ^ of the swing-tree c ;
while his off-side chain goes to the end p
of the swing-tree e, and the off-side horse
has his nigh-side chain attached to the end
q of the middle swing-tree d, and his off-
side to <7 of the swing-tree e. This system
of yoking is complicated, and though in
principle it equalises the forces so long as
all the horses keep equally a-hcail, yet it
is in some degree faulty. Whenever the
middle horse gets either behind or before
his proper station, — or out of that position
which keeps all the swing-trees parallel
to each other, — the outside horses have a
larger share of the draught upon one
9.
THE SWING-TREES TOR FOUR HORSE&
SWING-TREES.
155
shoulder than upon the other; and as this
produces an unnecessary fatigue to the
animal, it should be avoided. Such irre-
gularity cannot occur with the simple mode
of giving each horse his own swing-tree.
There are still other modifications in the
yoking of three horses, but these may
suffice for every practical purpose.
673. In the yoking of 4 horses, various
modes are also adopted. The old and
simple method is for the plough horses to
draw by a set of common swing-trees, fig.
6 ; and to the centre of the main swing-
tree at e a soam-chain is hooked by means
of a shackle or otherwise. The leading
horses are thus yoked by a second set of
common swing-trees to the end of the
soam. This is now seldom employed; but
an improved method of applying the soam
has been adopted in its place, which is
represented by fig. 9, where a is the bridle
of the plough, with its swivel hook. A
pully b of cast-iron mounted in an iron
frame, of which an edge-view is given at /n,
is attached to the hook of the bridle. A
link chain c is rove through the frame of
the pulley : and to one end of it, the short
end, is hooked the main swing-tree (i of a set
of common trees. The other endof the chain
passes forward to a sufficient distance to
allow the leading horses room to work ; and
to it is hooked the second set of common
swing-trees at e for the leaders. In the
figure, a part of the chain, from/ to^<7, is
broken off; but the full length is about
11 feet. In this yoke, the trace-chains of
the nigh-side hind horse are hooked to the
swing-trees at h A, and those of the off-
side horse at i i, the leaders being yoked
at k k and 1 1 respectively. In this arrange-
ment, the balance of forces is perfectly
preserved ; for the hind horses and the
leaders, as they pull at opposing ends of
the chain passing round a pulley, which
must inevitably be always in equilibrium,
each pair of horses has an equal share of
the draught; and from the principles of
the common swing-trees through which
each pair acts, the individual horses must
have an equally perfect division of the
labour. In order to prevent either the
hind horses or the leaders from slipping
too much ahead, it is common to apply a
light check-chain o, of about 15 inches
long, connecting the two parts of the
main-chain, so as to allow only a short
oscillation round the pulley, which is
limited by the check-chain. When this
is adopted, care should be taken never to
allow the check-chain to remain upon the
stretch ; for if it do so, the advantage of
equalisation in the yoke is lost, and it
becomes no better than the simple soam.
In all cases of using a chain, that part of
it which passes forward between the hind
horses must be borne up by means of
attachment to their back bands, or sus-
pended from their collars.
674. The late Mr Stirling of Gleubervie,
Stirlingshire, recommended a method of
yoking four horses in pairs, the arrange-
ments of which are represented in fig. 10 ;
rtis part of a main swing-tree of the com-
mon length, i, a small swing-tree, a little
longer than the usual length, but both
mounted in the usual form, except that, at
each end of the small swing-trees, cast-
iron pulleys, c c, and set in an iron frame,
are hooked on to the eyes of the swing-
tree. The common trace-chains are rove
through the frames of these pulleys, as in
the figure, the ends, d d, of the chains are
prolonged forward to the collar of the nigh-
hind horse, and the ends, ee, are extended to
thai of the nigh leader. At the opposite end
of the main swing-tree, which in this figure
is cut off, the same arrangement is repeated
for the oflf-side horses. The principle of
action in this yoke is simple and effective,
though different in efiect from the former.
There the two hind horses are equalised
through the medium of their set of common
swing-trees. The leading horses are alike
equalised by their set, and thus the two
pairs balance each other through the
medium of the soam. Here, on the other
hand, the two nigh-side horses have their
forces equalised through the trace-chains
which are common to both bypassing over
the pulleys, cc, and the same holds in
respect to the two off-sides. The couple
of nigh-side and of off-side horses, again,
are equalised through the medium of the
one set of swing-trees. In both, there-
fore, the principle of equalisation is com-
plete, but there is a trifling difference in
their economy. In the yoke, fig. 9, the
soam-chain and pulley are the only articles
required in addition to the every- day gear.
In that of fig. 10, there is, first, the set of
swing-trees, which, as they have to resist
the force of 4 horses, must in all their
156
PRACTICE— WINTER.
parts be made stronger than the common all of which are applicable only to thia
set; then the 4 pulleys have to be added, yoke; and lastly, the trace-chain, though
Fig. 10.
THB SWING- TRESS ALSO FOR POtTR H0B8B&
not necessarily stronger than those for
common use, is required about three times
longer than single horse-chains, that is to
say, 4 horses will require the chains of 6;
but, on the other hand, the chains of the
leaders are more conveniently supported
when they pass along the sides of the hind
horses, and it is free of the annoyance of
the swing-trees which dangle behind the
leaders, of the method fig. 9.
675. Tn cases where 6, 8, and even 12
horses are required, such as for trenching,
subsoil-ploughing, and especially draining
with the plough, the yoking is accomplished
by modifications and extension of the forms
here laid down. For example, a team of 6
can be very conveniently applied with
equalised efi"ect by employing the compen-
sation levers of fig. 8, along with 3 single
swing-trees with pulleys at each end, and
running trace-chains, as in fig. 10 ; but in
all cases where more than 4 horses are
yoked together, their strength can seldom
be managed to have it simultaneously ap-
plied. It is therefore much better to work
2 sets of 4 horses than 1 set of 8.
676. Plough harness. — Besides swing-
trees, horses require harness to enable them
to apply their strength to the plough. The
harness, as used in Scotland, is exceed-
ngly simple, and perfectly eflBcient. It
consists of a collar, fig. 11, which surrounds
the neck of the horse,
and serves as a pad-
ding to protect the
skin of the neck, and
the points of the
shoulder, while the
horse exerts his
strength in the
draught. This form
of collar is used in
the Lothians, and its
covering consists of
one piece of leather
stiS'ened in its upper
part with stripes of
whalebone to form
the cape. The body
of the collar is stuffed
with wheat-straw, or
what is better, rye-
straw, and covered
with stout woollen
cloth. It will be ob-
served that tlie under part of the collar is
broader than the upper, because the under
partof the neck of ahorse is thickcrthan the
upper or mane, upon which the collar rests;
but as the crown of the head of the horse
THK LOTHIAN
DRAl'GHT HORSE
CULLAR AND HAIMS.
PLOUGH-HARXESS.
157
is broader than the muzzle, the collar is
slipped over the head in the inverted posi-
tion, and turned round upon the neck.
G77. Another form of cape is seen iu
fig. 12, which is in use in Forfarshire and
the midland dis-
Fig. 12.
tricts. Iftheuseof
the cape is to prevent
rain falling upon the
top of the shoulder,
and getting between
the collar and the
shoulder, and heat-
ing and blistering
the skin there, this
cape, which lies flat-
ter and reaches far-
ther back than that
of fig. 11, should be
preferable to it. It
certainly forms a
complete protection
from rain, but makes
the collar rather
heavy, and the
weight of the cape,
from its much inclined position, ia apt to
cause the sewing to become loose.
678. Fig. 13 is a form of cape common
in England, which answers no purpose of
Fix. 13.
THE FORFARSHIRE
DRAUGHT-HORSE
COLLAR.
THE ENGLISH DRAUGHT-HORSE COLLAR.
protection from rain, but rather to catch
the wind, and thereby obstruct the progress
of the horse. Such a cape is frequently
ornamented with flaring red worsted fringes
round the edge, or with large tassels from
the cofner and middle, and even with bells.
679. The haims are placed immediately
behind the outer rim of the collar at a,
fig. 11. They consist of two pieces fixed
below the throat of the horse with hooks
and a link, and at the upper part at a
with a leather strap. The pieces are
formed entirely of iron, or of wood covered
with thin sheet-iron, as in the Lothians,
or of wood alone, as in the greater part of
Scotland. On each piece above the point
of the shoulder of the horse is attached a
staple with hook h, to which is fastened
the trace-chains of the plough, or the
draught-chains of the other implements,
such as the cart. Tlie haims are never
removed from the collar.
680. Another part of the harness is the
bridle, which serves to guide the horse's
head. It is commonly of as simple a form
as possible, consisting of a head-stall, nose-
band, blinders, bit, throat-lash, and bear-
ing-reins. In some parts of the country,
the blinders or blinkers are omitted. The
plea for the use of the blinders is, that they
prevent the horse looking around and being
frightened hy distant objects he cannot
distinctly see, and they keep his attention
steady to his work. Horses accustomed
to blinders are easily scared when they
are taken ofi". I knew a horse that be-
came so timid when his bridle was taken
off, while in the yoke, that he always at-
tempted to run away from the draught,
and to avoid such an accident, the bit was
removed from his mouth by means of a
buckle and strap, when a feed of corn was
given him in the nose-bag while in the
yoke ; but horses broke in without the
bridle, are less likely to be scared by any
occurrence in the read, than those accus-
tomed to it, as they see every object near
them distinctly ; and the want of it keeps
the head cooler in summer, and saves the
eyes from injury by its pressure.
681. The bearing re'ijis are now gene-
rally dispensed with in all carriages moved
at a fast speed ; and the change is a great
relief to the horses, for truly it was a painful
sight to witness the excessive tiglitness in
which the horses' heads were kept by them.
They were used with the view of making
the horses look smart, and of preventing
158
PRACTICE— WINTER.
their stumMing on the road ; bat the
notion was a mistaken one, for a horse
never looks better tlian with the head in
its natitral position, and as to his being
prevented stumbling by any form of rein,
when he makes the slightest trip he cannot
recover himself with his head bound up,
and his fall becomes the more inevitable
and severe. But in the case of the draught-
horse the bearing reins cannot be dispensed
with, as they are the only means of keeping
his head steady in the draught, while they
are never at all tight braced up, the horse
having full liberty to use his head in any
direction, though not to the most unli-
mited extent of turning it round alto-
gether. The complete bridle may be seen
in use in fig. 14 in the plough, and still
better in the cart in Plate III.
682. Another piece of harness required
for the plough-gear is the back-band, which
consists of a broad piece of leather passing
over the horse's back, having a small pad
where it rests on the top of the back, and
both ends are fastened to the trace-chains of
the plough by means of small iron hooks,
its office being to support them just below
the exact line of their draught ; if above
that line, the force of the draught would
be thrown as a strain upon the groins of
the horse, by means of the back-band.
683. A necessary portion of the equip-
ment ol" a draught horse in harness is the
l>\ou^\\-7'eins, which are made of cord, on
purpose light and strong, being fabricated
of the best hemp. In some parts of the
country, as the midland and northern dis-
tricts, one rein attached to the nigh-horse
only is used in driving a pair of horses in
the plough, and the consecjuence is that
most of their motions are performed by the
command of the voice of the ploughman —
the only use of the rein, in such a case,
being to pull the horses to the nigh-side.
To give the ploughman a perfect command
of his hor-es, double reins should be used —
one passing from the left-hand stilt of the
plough by the nigh-side of the nigh-horse,
through one ring on the nigh-side of the
back-band, then through another ring on
the nigh-side of the haims, to the ring of
the bridle-bit, to which it is fastened : the
other rein goes from the right hand stilt of
the plough i)y the off-side of the off-horse,
through rings in the back-band and haims
to the bridle-bit on the off-side of the off-
horse. The ends of the reins are looped
upon the handles of the stilts of the plough.
684. With regard to ornamenting farm
harness, it never appears, in my estima-
tion, to greater advantage than when <piite
plain, and of the best materials and work-
manship. Brass or plated buckles and
brow-bands, worsted rosettes, and broad
bands of leather tattooed with filigree sew-
ing, serve only to load and cover the horses
when at work, to create trouble, collect
dirt, and at best display a wasteful and
vulgar ta.ste in the owner. Whatever
temptation there may be in towns to show
off the grandeur of the teams of rival
establishments, such displays of vanity are
incompatible with the country.
68'). Thus harnessed, each horse has not
much weight to bear, nor is its harness
costly, though made of the strongest har-
ness leather, as this statement will show : —
Weiglit Value.
Collar, .... 15 lbs. £100
Haims, when cover-
ed vvitii plate-iron,
and witli a strap, 7 0 5 6
Bridle, . . . 4i 0 10 0
Back-band, . . .3^ 0 8 0
Chains, ... 8 at 7d. per lb. 0 4 8
flaking a total
weight for ^ 38 lbs., and of cost, £2 8
each horse of
When compared with the weight of Eng-
lish harness, these constitute little more
than feather- w'eight.
686. The English farmer is not unfre-
quently recommended by writers on agri-
culture to adopt thetwo-horse plan of work-
ing the plough ; but the recommendation is
never accompanied with such a descrip-
tion of the plough as any farmer may
understand, who had never seen a plough
with two horses at work ; and it is not
enough to tell people to adopt any new
plan, without putting it in their power to
undcrstan<l what is recommended. To
enable the English farmer, who may never
have chanced to see a two- horse plough at
work, and to fncilitafe the understanding
of its arrangements by tliosc who may
have seen, but not have paid suflicient
attention to it, fig 14 is here given, of a
Scotch plough with swing-trees, horses and
LANGUAGE TO HORSES.
159
harness complete, and of a ploughman
holding it. The extreme simplicity of the
whole arrangement of the horses, harness,
plou^^li, and man, ciiunot fail to impress
a conviction that no part of it can go
wrong. On examining the particulars, the
Fig. 14.
A SCOTCH PLOUGH AT WORK.
collar will bo found round the horses'
necks, serving as a padding to preserve the
shoulders from injury while pressing for-
ward in the draught. Embracing a groove
in the anterior part of the collar, are the
habns. The horses are yoked to the swing-
trees, by light trace-c/iai7is, linked on one
end to the hooks of the haims, and hooked
at the other into the eyes of the swing-
trees. Back-bands of leather across the
back, near the groins of the horses, support
the trace-chains by means of simple hooks.
The bridles have blinders, and the hearing-
reins are supported on the top of the
haims. H\\e sicing-trees sa'& hooked to the
draught-swivel of the bridle of the plough,
enabling both horses to exercise their
united strength on that single point ; and
being yoked abreast, they are enabled to
exert their united strength much more
effectually than if yoked a-trip — that is,
one- before the other. The two horses are
kept together either by a leather-strap,
buckled at each end to the bridle-ring, or
by short VQWi-ropes or tugs, passed from the
bridle-ring to the shoulder of each horse,
where they are fastened to the trace-chains
by a knot. The strap only prevents the
horses separating beyond its length, and
allows their heads to move about loosely ;
but the short reins not only prevent them
separating, but keep their heads steady ;
and on this latter account, horses fastened
with them can be turned round more
quickly and simultaneously than with the
strap. The ?ri??5 proceed from the plough-
man's hands to the horses' heads. The
off-side horse — that is, the one nearest to the
spectator of the above tigure — is seen to
walk in the last made open furrow — the
nigh-horse walking on the Jirm land.
The plough is iu the act of turning over a
slice of land, and the ploughman is walk-
ing in the K^Mr-made open furrow.
687. Language to horses. — Besides the
use of the reins, it is always customary
to desire the horses to go through their
accustomed motions when yoked to the
draught, with the voice. It would be quite
possible to cause the horses to perform all
their motions by means of the double reins
alone, but the A-oice enlivens the monotony
of a day's work both to the men and the
horses. It is not practicable to make
horses at the plough go through the proper
motions with a single rein, unassisted by
the voice ; nor is the single rein at all com-
mendable, inasmuch as ploughmen accus-
tomed to it, fall into the practice of inces-
santly bawling to their horses, which at
length become regardless of the noise,
and make the turns at their own leisure.
688. The language addressed to horses
varies as much as do the dialects in diffe-
rent parts of the country. One word,
Wo, to stop, seems, however, to be in
general use. The motions required to be
performed by the horse at work, are, to go
forward, to go backward, to go from you,
to come towards you, and to turn round,
and the cessation from all these, namely, to
stop or stand still.
689. To lessen or cease motion. — The
word Wo is the common one for a cessa-
tion of motion ; and it is also used to the
making any sort of motion slower ; and
it also means to be careful, or cautious,
or not be afraid, when pronounced with
a protracted tone, such as Wo-o-o. In
some parts, as in Forfarshire, Stand has a
similar signification ; but there, when it is
160
PRACTICE— WINTER.
desircil of the horse to stand without any
movement at all, tlie wonl«SV»7/ is added —
standy still. In En^dand, Wo is to stop.
GOO. To go forward. — Tlie name of the
nigh-horse is usually pronounced, as also the
well-known Chuck., Chuck., made with the
side of the tongue at one side of the mouth,
while inhaling the breath in impulses.
691. To step backward. — Back is the
only word I can remember to have heard
for this motion.
692. To come towards you. — Hie is used
in all the border counties of England and
Scotland ; Hie here., Come other., are com-
mon in the midland counties of Scotland.
In towns one hears frequently Wynd and
Vane. In the west of England Wo-e is
used.
693. Togo from i/ou. — Hup is the coun-
terpart to hie in the southern counties,
whilst Haud off" is the language of the
midland counties ; and in towns, Haap is
used where wynd is heard, and Hip bears
a similar relation to vane. ' ^n the west of
England Gee agen is used.
694. In all these cases, the speaker is
supposed to be on what is called the nigh
or nearside of the horse — that is, on the
horse's left side. As a single word is
more convenient to use than a sentence, I
shall employ the simple and easily pro-
nounced words hup and hie when having
occasion to describe any piece of work, in
which horses are employed.
695. The plough, as it is now made, con •
sists of a number of parts; but, how well
soever these different parts may be put
together, if not tempered., as it is termed,
to one another, that is, if any part has
more to do than its own share of the work,
the entire implement will go unsteadily.
It is easy to ascertain whether or not a
plough will go steadily.
ON PLOUGHING, AND I'LOUGIIING MATCHES.
696. Ploughing. — On holding a ydough
by the handles with both hands, while the
horses are drawing it through the land,
if it have a constant tendency to go deeper
into the soil than the depth of the furrow-
slice previously determined on, it is not
going steadily. The remedy is twofold,'
either to press harder upon the stilts with
the hands, and, by their power as levers,
bring the share nearer the surface of the
gro\ind, or to put the draught-bolt of the
bridle a little nearer the ground, and
thus give the plough less '■'•earth." The
pressure upon the stilts should first he
tried, as being the most ready at com-
mand; but should it fail of effecting the
purpose, and holding the stilts be then too
severe upon the arms, the draught-holt
should be lowered ; and should both these
expedients fail, there must be some error
in another part of the plough. On exa-
mining the share, its point may possibly
be found to dip too nmch below the base
line, which will cause, it to go deej)er
than it should. This error in the share
can only be rectified at the smithy.
697. Again, the plough may have a
tendency to come out of the ground. This
cannot be remedied by supporting the
stilts upwards with tiic arms, because the
body having no supj)ort cannot walk
steadily in the furrow. Hence, a very
short man can scarcely hold a plough
steady at any time ; and does not make
a desirable ploughman. The draught-
bolt should, in the first instance, be placed
farther from tiie ground, and give the
plough more '•'•earth." Should this not
effect the purpose, the point of the share
will probably be above the base-line, and
must therefore be brought down to its
proper level by the smith.
698. It may be difficult to make the
plough turn over a furrow-slice of the
breadth desired. This tendency is obviated
by moving the draught-bolt a little to the
right, which gives the plough more '•Hand;"
but in case it arises from some casual
obstruction under-ground, such as direct
collision against a small stone, or apiece of
unusually hard earth, it may be overcome
by leaning the plough a little over to tlio
right.
699. The tendency, liowever, may in-
cline to take a slice broader than is wanted ;
in which case, for permanent work, the
draught-bolt should be put a little to the
left, which gives the plough loss '•'•land;"
PLOUGHING.
161
and for a temporary purpose tbe plough
may be leaned a little over to the left.
700. These are the ordinary causes of
unsteadiness in i\\Q going of ploughs; and
though narrated singly, any two of tliem
may couibine to produce the same result,
such as the going deeper or coming out
along with a narrow or broad furrow-slice.
The most obvious remedy should first be
tried; but both may be adopted at the
same time if a compound error is appre-
hended.
701. Some ploughmen habitually make
the plough lean a little over to the left,
thus giving it less land than it would
naturally have, and to counteract the con-
sequent tendency to a narrow furrow-slice,
they move the draught-bolt a little to the
right. This ploughing with a lean to the
left is a bad custom, because it makes the
lowest side of the furrow-slice thinner than
the upper, which is exposed to view when
turned over, and gives the appearance
to the land of being ploughed equally
deep; and it gives the horses a lighter
draught than those which have turned
over a deeper furi"ow-slice. Old plough-
men, becoming infirm, are very apt to
practise this deceptive mode of plough-
ing. The plough should always move
level upon its sole, and turn over a rec-
tangular furrow-slice.
702. The difference in the incliuation
of the bottom of the farrow, here referred
to, is made by ploughs of diftereut con-
struction, as well as practised by cunning
ploughmen in the raanuer just described.
The East Lothian or Small's plough, fig. 2,
makes a rectangular furrow; the Lanark-
shire orWilkie plough makes a trapezoidal
or crested furrow, and, as we are consider-
Fig. 15.
ing the subject, it may be well to illustrate
it at once. Fig. 15 is an example of the
rectangular slice of 10 by 7 inches -.abed
may be taken as a transverse section of
the body of the plough, the line a c being
the terminal outline of the mould-board,
a/ a section of the slice which is just being
laid up, and^ h a slice previously depf)site<i.
In the triangle i g k the base i ^ ia 10
inches, being always equal to the breadth
of the slice, the angle at ^ a right angle,
and the sides i<7, (7 X; each equal to 7'07i
inches, the perpendicular height ^ ^ being
5 inches.
703. Fig. 16 is a similar representation
of a cresting plough, with its effects on
THE EFFECTS OF A BRCTANGULAR F jniRO W-SLICH,
VOL. I.
thj: effects of a trapezotdaj, or crested
fl'rkow-slick.
the slice and the subsoil ; Ic n p o \& ^
section of the plough, h m a section of a
slice in the act of being deposited on the
preceding slice I c. Here the slices are
trapezoidal, as they are always cut by thia
species of plough ; and from this configu-
ration of the slice, the broader sides ar«
not parallel, nor do the conterminous sidea
of the adjacent slices lie parallel to each
other in the transverse direction ; the
side b c lying at an angle of 48° with tli»
base a b, while the side b m makes tho
opposite angle at /> only 41'', the angle at
c being 84°, and the triangle ahc isosceles.
The base a i of the triangle ab c is now
supposed to be 8^ inches, and the side a o
6| inches, the opposite side I h being 4^
or 5 inches. The base, a b when bisected
in d, gives a (7=4"25 inches, and sine©
a <? — aop^c f?-, c d will be 4'918 inches;
but cases occur still more extreme, a h
being only 7^ inches, but the angle at o
becomes as acute as 75°, yet with these
dimensions c d is still under 5 inches;
hence, in all practical cases, with a furrow
less than 9 inches in breadth, the result
162
PRACTICE— WINTER.
will be a redaction in the quantity of the
land as a cover for seed.
704. Another point remains to be noticed
in reference to these two forms of slice.
We have seen that the rectangular slice
necessarily implies that the bottom of the
farrow shall be cut upon a level in its
transverse section, fig. 1 5, while the slice
that is cut by the cresting plough leaves
the bottom of the furrow with a sloiting
rise from the land-side towards the furrow-
side at every slice, and this rise may range
from 1 to J 5 inch or more. Returning to
fig. 16, the serrated line /A o, exhibits a
transverse section of the surface of the
subsoil, from which the soil has been
turned up by the cresting plough. The
triangular spaces e/ff, g h i represent the
quantity of soil left by such ploughs at the
lifting of each slice. Each quantity may
amount to one-seventh of what the slice
ought to be, and is robbed from it, and left
adhering to the subsoil, except in so far as
it may be rubbed down by the abrading
action of the lower edge of the mould-
board, as at / and A, and the portion of
soil so rubbed off is thrust into the space
nnder the edge of the slice as it is
successively laid up. This last process
may be readily observed at any time when
the plough is vrorking in tough land or in
lea. With a cresting plough, the spaces
/, A, 0 will be seen more or less filled up
with crumbled soil ; while, with the rectan-
gular plough, the corresponding spaces
will be left nearly void. Whether or not
the filling in of these voids is beneficial to
the land in a greater degree than if the
seventh here left below had been turned up
with the slice, I should say it was not ;
but it is certain, that it is more frequently
left adhering to the subsoil than to be
found stuffed under the edge of the slice.
Under any view, the system of the crested
furrow ploughing is not equal in value to
the rectangular.
705. In considering this question, there
are two points deserving attention. 1st,
The immediate effects upon the labour of
men and horses. It may be asserted
generally, that all ploughs adapted to form
a crested furrow are heavier in drauglit
than those tliat produce the rectangular
furrow. This seems a natural inference
from the manner in which they work ; the
tendency that they all have to under-cut
by the coulter ; the narrow feather of the
share leaving more resistance to the body
in raising and turning the slice; and, not
least, the small ridge left adhering to the
bottom of the furrow, if rubbed down and
stuffed under the slice, is performed by an
unnecessary waste of power, seeing that
the mould-board is not adapted for remov-
ing such adhering obstructions. 2d, The
loss of time and labour arising from the
breadth of furrow, compared with those
j)loughs that take a 10-inch furrow. Thus,
in ploughing an imperial acre with a 10-
inch furrow, — leaving out of view the
taking up of closings, turnings, &c, — the
distance walked over by the man and
horses will amount to U'9 miles nearly;
with a 9-inch furrow the distance will be
11 miles; with 8|-inch furrow, it will be
11^ miles or thereby; and with a T|-inch
furrow \3\ miles nearly.
706. But to resume ourraore immediate
subject, no ploughman assumes the habit
of leaning the plough over to the right,
because it is not so easy to hold it in that
position.
707. Other ploughmen, especially tall
men, are in the habit of constantly leaning
hard upon the stilts; and as this has the
tendency to lift the plough out of the
ground, tliey are obliged to put the draught-
bolt higher up to keep it in the ground.
A slight leaning of the hands upon the
stilts is requisite at all times, to retain a
firm hold of them, and give a quick
guidance to the plough.
708. A good ploughman will use none
of these expedients to make his plough
go steadily ; for, he will temper the irons
so, as there shall be no tendency in the
plough to go too deep or too shallow into
the ground, or make too wide or too
narrow a furrow-slice, or cause less or
more draught to the horses, or less or more
trouble to himself, than the work requires
to be jierforined in the best manner ; and ho
will also temper tliem so, as to hold the
plough with ease to himself, have plenty
of leisure to guide the hor.fos aright, and
execute tlie work in a creditable manner.
I have known such ploughmen, and they
invariably did their work the best; but
I never yet saw a ploughman do so, who
PLOUGHING.
163
had not acquired the art of tempering the
irons. Until this art is acquired, the best-
made plougli will be comparatively worth-
less in the hands of any ploughman,
709. In the attempt to temper the irons,
many ploughmen place the coulter in a
position which increases the draught of the
plough. When its point is brought down as
far as that of the share, and much asunder
from it, to the left or land side, (fig. 4) a
stone in light land is very apt to be caught
between the points of the coulter and
share, which will have the eflectof throw-
ing the plough out of the ground. Such
an accident is of little consequence in
ploughing land to be ploughed again ; but
it disfigures the land in ploughing lea, and
must be rectified instantly; but in doing
this, time is lost in backing the horses to
the spot where the plough was thrown
out. To avoid such an accident on lea-
ploughing, on such land^ the point of the
coulter should be put immediately above,
and almost close upon, that of the share.
In smooth soils, free of small stones, the
relative positions of the points of the
coulter and share are not of much impoi*-
tance as regards the steadiness of the
plough ; but the best practice is always to
cut the soil clean.
710. The state of the irons themselves
has a material effect on the temper of the
plough. If the cutting edge of the coulter,
and the point and cutting edge of the share,
are steeled, the irons will cut clean, and
go long in smooth soil. This is an eco-
nomical treatment of plough-irons for clay-
soils. But in gravelly, and all sharp
soils, (3.t5) the irons wear down so very
quickly, that farmers prefer thejn of cold
iron, and have them laid anew every day,
rather than incur the expense of steeling
them, which perhaps would not endure the
work much longer. Irons are now seldom
if ever steeled ; but whether steeled or not,
they are always in the best state when
sharp, and of the requisite dimensions.
711. An imperfect state of the mould-
board is another interruption to a perfect
temper of the plough. When new and
rough, the soil adheres to it, and, pressing
against the turning furrow-slice, causes the
plough to deviate from its right course.
On the other hand, when the mould-board
is worn away much below, it leaves too
much of the crumbled soil on the bottom
of the furrow, especially in loose soils.
Broken side-plates, or worn into holes,
easily admit the soil through them into
the body of the plough, and cause a rough
and unequal edge to the firm land ; and
when soil accumulates in the body, it affects
the plough, both in temper and draught.
These remarks are made on the supposi-
tion that all the ploughs are equally well
made, and may, therefore, bo tempered
equally well ; but ploughs are sometimes
so ill constructed, that the best tempering
the irons are capable of receiving will
never make them do good work.
712. When all the particulars which
ploughmen should attend to in execut-
ing their work — in having their plough-
irons in a proper state of repair, in tem-
pering them according to the kind of
ploughing to be executed, in guiding their
horses, and in ploughing the land in a me-
thodical way — are considered, it ceases to
surprise one that so few ploughmen be-
come first-rate workmen. Good plough-
manship requires greater powers of obser-
vation than most young ploughmen possess,
— greater judgment than most will take
time to exercise, — more patience than
most will bestow to become familiarised
with all these particulars. — audgreater skill
than most can acquire to use them all to
the best advantage. To be so accomplished,
implies the possession of talent of no mean
order. The ship has been aptly compared
to the plough, and the i)hrase " ploughing
the deep," is as familiar to us islanders as
ploughing the land : to be able to put the
ship in '' proper trim," is the perfection
aimed at by every seaman — so, in like man-
ner, to " temper a plough " is the great
aim of the good ploughman ; and to be
able to do it with judgment, to guide
horses with discretion, and to execute
ploughing correctly, imply a discrimina-
tion akin to sailing a ship.
713. But want of attention is the great
bar to young men becoming good plough-
men ; and if they do not acquire the art
when comparatively young, they will
never do so in an advanced period of life.
It is want of attention at first that makes
some ploughmen bunglers all their days,
and the great majority exhibit bul medi-
IM
PRACTICE— WINTER.
ocre attainments. Tlie latter class no
doubt is preferable to the former, because
the injurious effects of lad ploughing are
obvious ; but the effects of mediocre com-
pared with first-rate ploughing not being
so easily a-scertained, must nevertheless bo
considerable. " It is well known," says Sir
John Sinclair, " that the horses of a good
ploughman suffer less from the work than
those intrusted to an awkward and unskil-
ful hand ; and that a material difference
will be found in the crops of those ridges
tilled by a bad i)loughman, when compared
to any part of the field where the opera-
tion has been judiciously performed."*
Marshall contends that " one-fourth (»f the
produce of the arable lands of the king-
dom is lost through a wo7)t of tilhipe" f
which may have been an approximation
to the truth in his day; but ploughing is
certainly now better performed in Scotland
than it was then, though it must be
owned that by far the greatest part of that
work is yet of a mediocre description ; and
other reasons than I have given for its
mediocrity are not difficult to adduce.
Thus —
714. Plottghmen cannot learn their pro-
fession at a very early age, and every
profession ought to be acquired then, to
reach a high attainment in it ; because
ploughing requires a considerable degree
of strength, even from grown-up men, and
it bears much harder on the learner ; but
even after young men |>ossess sufficient
strength to hold the plough, they are left
to acquire a knowledge of ploughing more
through sheer experience than by tuition
from those better actjuainted with the art.
Experience cannot be transmitted from
father to son more in this than in any
other art ; and in this, as in other arts,
improvement is more generally effected
by imitation of a better ^tyle of work than
by individual ingenuity.
715. To teach a young beginner to
plough, it has been recommended, " to put
a cross-bar between the cheeks of the bridle,
so as to keep the horses precisely at the
same distance from each other, and then,
setting up a pole at the end of a furrow,
exactly measured to the same line as that
from which he starts, fixes his eye steadily
npou it, and carries the plough in a direc-
tion precisely to that point." | To do all
this implies that the beginner has suffi-
cient strength to hold a plough, which, if
he have, he must be a stout lad ; and to
" fix the eye steadily " upon a pole at a
distance, while holding the plough with a
staggering gait, and unable for want of
breath to speak even a word to the horses,
far less to guide them with the reins, is
much beyond the power of any lad, and
far more of a boy. In fact, it would
require a very good ploughman to do all
this, for it is nothing short of feering, and
none but the expertestof the ploughmen is
intrusted to feer land on a farm. No single
j)ole, besides, can possibly guide any
ploughman in a straight line : he may
imagine he is moving to it in a straight
line, while all the while he may be forming
a very devious route. The truth is, the
young man, desirous of becoming a plough-
man in a short time, ought to be taught
day by day by an experienced ploughman
to temper the irons, and guide the plough
according to his strength. Very ievr
young men have, or are permitted to have,
such opportunities of learning; and the
consequence is, and my observation con-
firms it, the best jdoughmen are generally
those who have been taught directly by
their fathers, and work constantly upon
their fathers' farms; and they make, be-
side-', the best stewards, because they have
been accustomed to command servants,
and have not associated freely with them.
A steward promoted from the rank of
common ploughmen is aj>t to continue on
too familiar a footing with them to sobtain
the authority due to his situation.
TIG. In England boys are not unfre-
quently sent to tend the plough, for they
cannot be said to hold it, which is so
constructed with wheels and apj)aratus
as to turn over the soil without the aid of
man, and his aid is only required for the
turnings at the ends of the ridges. The
work performed by such implements is a
mere skimming of the ground, not plough-
ing it.
717. As I have adverted to the English.
• Sinclair's Code of Agriculture, p. 290, fifth edition, t Marshall's Gloucester fhire, vol. i. p. 72.
^ British Ilusbandrn, Tol. ii. p. 39.
PLOUGIIIXG.
165
mode of ploughing, it may be worth while
to show the great difference in the weight
of soil turned over in a deep and shallow
furrow. If 10 inches are taken as a fair
width for a furrow-slice, there will be 18
such slices across a ridge of 15 feet in
breadth ; and taking 7 inches as a proper
depth for such a furrow-slice, a cross sec-
tion of the slice will have 70 square inches.
A cubic foot of earth is thus turned over
in every 24*7 inches of length of such a
slice; and taking 1"48 as the specific gra-
rity of common earth, (119) the 24-7
inches of slice will weigh 6 stones 8 lb.
imperial. If a furrow of only 4 inches in
depth is taken, and its breadth should only
be 9 inches, the area of the slice will be
36 square inches, and its weight will be
Fig.
fs of 6 stones 8 lb., or 3 stones 5 lb., a
considerable difference of weight for horses
to turn over in the same distance travelled.
718. The proper form and position of
the furrow-slice are essential requisites in
good ploughing. The furrow-slice should
always be of such dimension, and laid in
such position, that the two exposed faces
in a series of slices shall be of equal
breadth, and any departure from this rule
is a positive fault. Laid up agreeably to
this rule, furrow-slices will not only pre-
sent the niaximuui of surface to the at-
mosphere, but also contain the maximum
of cubical contents. Fig. 17 represents
the movement of the furrow-slice, as well
as its position after it is laid by the
17.
A VIEW OF THE MOVEMENT OF THE FURROW-SLICE.
plough, where a b\s the edge of the land as
cut by the preceding furrow: c d the
slice in the act of turning over, but from
which the plough has been removed; ef\
the edge of the land from which the slice
c d \s being cut ; j h, g h the sole of the
furrows, and i k I m, slices previously laid
up. A consideration of this figure will
also show, that the extension of tlie slice
takes place along the land-side edge e d
only, from e to where the backward flexure
is given to it when rising on the mould-
board; and where it is again compressed
into its original length, by the back parts
of the mould-board in being laid down.
The slices c i I, are laid over at an angle
of 4.5 degrees ; and in slices of 7 inches in
depth and 10 inches in breadth, tlie alti-
tude of the triangle at o, t, and /, is 5
inches, each of their sides 7"071 inches,
and the sum of the two exposed faces
14"142 inches.
719. Correct ploH(/kinff possesses these
characteristics: — The furrow-slices should
be quite straight ; for a ploughman that
cannot hold a straight furrosv is unworthy
of his charge. Tlie furrow-slices should
be quite parallel in length, and this pro-
perty shoM's tliat they have been turned
over of an uniform thickness ; for thick
and thin slices lying together present irre-
gularly horizontal lines. The furrow-slices
should be of the same height, which shows
that they have been cut of the same
breadth]; for slices of different breadths,
laid together at whatever angle, present
unequaf vertical lines. The furrow-slices
should present to the eye a similar form of
crest and equal surface ; because where
IM
PRACTICE— WINTER.
one fiirrow-slice exhibits a narrower sur-
face than it should have, it has been covered
with a broader slice than it should be; and
■where it di:«plays a broader surface than
it should have, it is so exposed by a nar-
rower slice than should be upon it. The
furrow-slices should have their back and
face parallel ; aud to discover this property
after the land has been ploughed requires
rather minute examination ; but it is
easily ascertained at the time of plough-
ing. The ground, on being ploughed,
should feel equally firm under the foot at
all places, for slices in a more upright po-
sition than they should be, not only feel
hard and unsteady, but will allow the
fceed-corn to fall down between them and
become buried. Furrow-slices in too flat a
state always yield considerably to the
pressure of the foot ; and they cover
each other too much, affording insufficient
mould for the seed. Furrow-slices should
lie over at the same angle, 45°, thus pre-
senting crests in the best possible position
for the action of the harrows. Crowns of
ridges formed by the meeting of opposite
furrow-slices, should neither be elevated
nor depressed in regard to the rest of the
ridge ; although ploughmen often commit
the error of raising the crowns too high into
a crest, the fault being easily committed
by not giving the first furrow-slices suf-
ficient room to meet, aud thereby pressing
them upon one another. The last furrow-
slice should be uniform with those of the
rest of the ridge; but ploughmen are very
apt to miscalculate the width of the slices
near the sides of the ridges; for if the spe-
cific number of furrow-slices into which
the whole ridge should be ploughed are
too narrow, the last slices of the open fur-
row will be too broad, and will therefore
lie over too flat ; and should this too broad
space be divided into two furrows, each
slice will be too narrow, and stand too
upright. When the last furrows are ill
made, the open furrow cannot be pro-
portionately ploughed out ; because, if the
space between the last furrows is too
wide, the open furrow must be made too
deep to fill up all the space; and, if too
narrow, there is not sufficient mould to
make the open furrow of the proper size.
If the last furrow-slices are laid too flat,
the open furrow will throw too much
mould upon the edges next the open furrow,
and thus make them too high. When the
la«t furrows of adjoining ridges are not
ploughe<l alike, one side of the ojien fur-
row will require more mould than the
other.
720. The usual tpeed of horses at the
plough may be ascertained in this way.
A ridge of 5 yards in breadth requires a
length of 968 yards to contain an imperial
acre; to plough which at 9 bouts, (a bout
being a walk along a ridge and back
again,) of 10-inch breadth of furrow-slice,
counting no stoppages, will make the
horses walk 99 miles, which in 10 hours
gives a speed of 1742 yards per hour; and
at 10 bouts of 9-inch furrow-breadth, gives
11 miles of travel to the horses, or 1936
yards per hour. But as ridges are not
made of 968 yards in length, and as
horses cannot draw a plough that dis-
tance without being affected in their
wind, and as allowance must be made
for time lost in turning at the ends of
the ridges, as well as for afl'ording rest
to the horses, those, speeds will have to
be considerably increased to do that
quantity of work in the time. By an
experiment, which is related by Sir John
Sinclair as having been made by a late
Earl of Mar, it was found, that 1 hour 19
minutes out of 8 hours are lost by turn-
ings while ploughing an acre on ridges of
274 yards in length, with an 8-inch
furrow-slice.* Hence, in ploughing an
acre on ridges of 250 yards in length,
which is the length of ridge I consider
the best for horses in draught, the time
lost by turnings, in ploughing 10 hours,
with a 10-inch furrow-slice, is 1 hour 22
minutes. I presume that the experiment
alluded to does not include the necessary
stoppages at times for rest to the horses,
but which should be included; for how-
ever easy the length of ridge may be for
the draught, horses cannot go on walking
in the plough for 5 hours together (one
yoking) without taking occasional rests.
Xow 250 yards of length of ridge give
3-8 ridges to the acre, or 34 bouts of 10-
inch furrows; and allowing a rest of one
minute in every other bout, 1 7 minutes will
have to be added to the 1 hour 22 minutes
lost — that is, 1 hour 39 minutes lost out
• Sinclair's Code of Agriculture, p. 306, fifth edition.
PLOUGHING.
im^
of every 10 hours, for turnings and
rest. Thus 17,424 yards will be ploughed
in less than 8g hours, or at the rate of
rather more than Ig mile per hour, or
nearly 13 miles of walking in ploughing an
acre in 8g hours. These results ax-e per-
haps near the truth in ploughing lea in
spring; they are too little in ploughing red
land in summer, and perhaps too much in
ploughing stubble land in winter; but, as
lea-ploughing is the criterion by which all
others are estimated, they may be taken
as an approximation to the truth.
721. Taking farther data from the same
experiment, the quantities of laud ploughed
in different speeds, at given breadths of
furrow-slices, will be as under : —
Speed. ! Distance walked Breadths of la^^Hioughid
iRj^teper in 8J hours. f^^y^s i„ gj^^.o^^ at
Hour- I I ploughed. j^ ^
Miles. \ Miles. Yards.
1
14
2
3
12
12
17
16
26
1284
440
642
220
808
880
332
24 1320
1
14
21
I 1 0 34
3
42
722. I have alluded to the time lost in
turnings while ploughing land of any de-
scription. The following table shows the
comparative amount of time lost in
turning on ploughing long and short ridges
derived from the same experiment.
1
To„^i, „f Breadth of
Time lost '^'?^.f-
in turning. ,^"'ed to
* ploughing.
I
Hours of
work.
Yards, 1 Inches.
78 10
149
200 ,..
212
274 ! ...
B. M.
5 11
2 44
2 1
1 56^
1 22
B. M.
4 49
7 16
7 59
8 3^
8 32
B.
10
Thus it appears that a ridge of no more
than 78 yards in length requires 5 hours
11 minutes out of every 10 hours for
turnings at the landings, with a 10-
inch furrow-slice ; whereas a ridge of
274 yards in length only requires 1 hour
22 minutes for turnings— making a differ-
ence of 3 hours 49 minutes in favour of
the long ridge as regards the saving of
time. Consequently, iu the case of the
shortest ridge, only 4 hours 49 minutes
out of the 10 can be appropriated to
ploughing ; whereas, in that of the long
ridge, 8 hours 32 minutes may be devoted
to that purpose. Hence so very short
ridges involve great loss of time to plough,
and are therefore a decided loss to the
farmer. This is a subject worthy of agri-
cultural students to experiment on, ia
order to ascertain the exact time taken in
ploughing and turning and resting on ridges
of different lengths, in the different sea-
sons, and iu different soils. A watch with
a good seconds-liand will be required to
mark the time, and the observations should
be made, unknown to the ploughmen, when
at their usual rate of work ; for any one
constantly in the presence of the men, will
cause more work than usual to be done, less
than the usual rests taken, and less time lost.
723. Experiments on this subject were
undertaken by a friend of mine in the
spring of 1847. The standard of plough-
ing was taken at 4840 square yards, or 1
acre in 10 hours, on ridges of medium
length, including the time consumed in the
turnings. In comparing the ploughing of
lea on ridges of 329 yards in length with
those on 78 3'ards, it was found that the
distance lost in ploughing the latter, in 10
hours was IGSO yards, the equivalent loss
of which, in time, is rather more tiian
58 minutes. But as 329 yards is much
longer than a medium length of 250 yards,
and as the former actually incurred iu
ploughing a loss in time of 58 minutes, it
follows that the entire loss of time incurred
in ploughing an acre of ridges of 78 yards
in length was 1 hour 45 minutes out of the
10 hours. This is a very different result
from that obtained by the experiments of
the Earl of Mar, related above.
724. In other fields the results were
these, also in lea-ploughing : —
Ridges.
T .1, r Time taken
No. 1
_ 2
- 3
^ 4
_ 5
YDS.
78
87
112
118
170
11 53
12 16
10 35
9 31
10 15
Loss of
Gain of
time.
time.
R. M.
B. M.
1 53
0 0
2 16
0 0
0 35
0 0
0 0
0 29
0 15
0 0
168
PRACTICE— WINTER.
No. 1 ridges were on a etccp hill, with
thin clay soil resting on a tilly subsoil.
The ridges on Xos. 3 and 5 were of the
same clay soil, the upper part resting on
till, the lower part on a light gravel.
The results are too variable and contra-
dictory to be depended on ; but the
■ubject is worthy of farther investigation
and experiment, on ridges of various
lengths, and on soils of different consistency.
725. When horses are driven in the
plough heyond their step^ they draw very
unequally together, and, of course, the
plough is held unsteadily. In that case,
the plough has a tendency to take too
much land ; to obviate which the plough-
man leans the plough over to the left, in
which position it raises a thin broad
furrow-slice, and lays it over at too low
an angle. On the other hand, when the
ploughman allows the horses to move at
too slow a pace, he is apt to forget what
he is about, and the furrow-slices will then,
most probably, be made too narrow and too
shallow ; and though they may be laid over
at the proper angle, and the work appear
cxterijally well enough executed, there
will be a deficiency of mould in the
ploughed soil.
726. There is another circumstance
which greatly affects the speed of horses
at work on some farms, I mean the great
tieepness of the ground ; and it is not
unusual to see the ridges traversing such
steeps straight up and down. Ridges in
such a position are laborious to plough, to
cart upon, to manure, anil for every opera-
tion connected with farming. The water
runs down the furrows when the land is
under the plough, and carries to the bottom
of the declivity the finest portion of the
soil. In such a position a ridge of 250
yards is much too long to plough without
a breathing to the horses. Although the
general rule of making the ridges run N.
and S. is the correct one, in such a
situation as a steep acclivity, they should
be made to slope along the face of the
hill, instead of running up and down the
acclivity ; and the slope will not only be
easier to labour in every respect, but the
soil will be saved being washed so n'.uch
away in the fiirrow.s ; but the direction of
the slope should n<it bo made at random,
it should fall away to the right hand in
looking up the acclivity, because then the
plough will lay the furrow- si ice down the
hill when it is in the act of climbing the
steep, and on coming down the hill the
horses will be the better ;ible to lay the slice
up against the iuclinatii.n of the ground.
What the exact length of the ridges on
such an acclivity ought to be, even with
the assistance of the slope, I cannot say,
but should imagine that 1 00 or 150 yards
would be fculhcient for the horses ; but,
at all events, there is no doubt it would
be nuich better f<jr the labour of the
farm, as well as the soil, to have 2 fields
100 yards long each, one higher up the
slope than the other, than the whole
ground in one field of 200 yards in
length.
727. Ploughing matches. — This seems
to me a fitting place to say a few words
on ploughing matches. I believe it admits
of no doubt that, since the institution of
jdoughing matches throughout the country,
the character of our farm-servants, as
ploughmen, has risen to consideraMe cele-
brity; not but that individual phiULlnnen
could have been found before the piactice
of matches existed as dexterous a? any of
the present day, but the general existence
of good ploughing mu^t be obvious to
everv one who is in the habit of observ-
ing the arable condition of the country.
This inijirovement is not to be ascribed to
the institution of ploughing matches alone,
because superior construction of imple-
ments, be:ter kept, better matched, and
a superior race of horses, and suj erior
judgment and taste in field labour in the
farmer himself, are too important elements
in influencing the conduct of ploughmen,
to be overlooked in the consideration of
this question.
728. But be the primary motive for
improvement in the most important branch
of field labour ns it may, doubtless s
projtcrly regulated emulation amongst
workmen of any class, proves a strong
incentive to the execution of superior
workmanship ; and the more generally
the inducement is exten»led, the more
generally the improvement arising from
it mnv le expected to be diffused; and
on this account the plough uieddh of the
lligiilaiid and Agricultural Society of
Scotland, being open in competition to all
PLOUGHING-l^IATCHES.
169
parts of Scotland every year, have per-
haps excited a spirit of emulation among
ploughmen, as a reward to those vrho
excel, beyond any thing to be seen in any
other country. Wherever 15 ploughs can
be gathered together for competition at
any time and place, there the ploughman
who obtains the first premium offered by
those interested in the exhibition, is en-
titled to receive, over and above, the
Society's silver plough medal, bearing a
suitable inscription, with the gainer's
name engraved upon it. About 60 appli-
cations are made for the medals every year,
so that at least 900 ploughmen annually
compete for them ; but the actual number
far exceeds that number, as, in many in-
stances, matches comprehend from 40 to 70
ploughs, instead of the minimum number of
15. Besides stated competitions, such
matches are occasioned by the welcome
which neighbours are desirous of giving an
incoming tenant to his farm, and its hearti-
ness is shown in the extent of the plough-
ing given him before he has collected
a working stock sufficient for the pur-
pose.
729. Ploughing-matches are generally
very fairly conducted in Scotland. They
usually take place on lea ground, the
plougliing of which is considered the best
test of a ploughman's skill, though I hold
drilling to be much more difficult of correct
execution. The best part of the field is
usually selected for the purpose, if there
be such, and the same extent of ground,
usually from 2 to 4 ridges, according to
the length, is allotted to each portion of the
ground to be ploughed. X pin, bearing a
number, is pushed into the ground at the
end of each lot, of which as many are
marked off as ploughs are entered in com-
petition. Numbers, on slips of paper cor-
responding to those on the pins, are drawn
by the competing ploughmen, who each
takes possession of the lot he has drawn.
Ample time is allowed to finish the plough-
ing of the lot, and in this part of the
arrangements, I think too much time is
allowed, to the wearisome annoyance of
the spectators. Although quickness of time
in executing the same extent of work is
not to be compared to excellency of exe-
cution, it should enter as an important
element in deciding the question of skill.
Every competitor is obliged to feer his own
lot, guide his own horses, and do every
other thing connected with the work, such
as assorting his horses and trimming hia
plough-irons, without any assistance.
730. The judges, who have been brought
from a distance, and have no personal in-
terest in the exhibition, are requested to
inspect the ground after all the ploughs
have been removed, having been kept
away from the scene during the time the
ploughs were engaged. This appears to
me an objectionable part of the arrange-
ments, which is made on the plea that,
were the judges to see the ploughs at
work, some particular ones might be re-
cognised by them as belonging to friends,
and their minds might thereby be biased
in their favour. Such a plea pays a poor
compliment to the integrity of a judge ;
and any farmer who accepts that respon-
sible and honoured office, and would allow
himself to be influenced by so pitiful a con-
sideration, would deserve not only to be
rejected on any such occasion, but scouted
out of society. One consequence of the
exaction of this rule is, loss of patience
by the spectators, while the judges are occu-
pying no more than the necessary time
for deciding the ploughing of, it may be, a
large extent of ground. The judges ought,
therefore, to be present all the time of the
competition, when they could find leisure
calmly and minutely to ascertain the posi-
tion and depth of the furrow-slices, and
mature their thoughts on points which may
modify first impressions. That the bare
inspection of the finished surface cannot
furnish satisfactory information as to the
land having been correctly ploughed, but
which must be obtained by comparing the
soles of the furrows while the landis plough-
ing, I shall endeavour to show.
731. It has been seen (702) that the
East Lothian plough lays over a slice of
a rectangular form, and the Lanarkshire
one of a trapezoidal form, and that the
high-crest form of slice, and serrated
furrow-sole, contain one-seventh less earth
than the other. Now, were the surface-
work only to be judged of, which must be
the case when judges are prohibited seeing
the work done in the course of execution,
the serrated extent of the furrow-sole can-
not so well be ascertained by removing
portions of the ploughed ground here and
170
PRACTICE— WINTER.
there, as by constant inspection. As equal
ploughing consist;3 in turning over equal
portions of soil in the same extent of
ground, otlicr things being equal, a com-
parison of the qu;uiiity «f earth turned over
by the.^e two k;iiJ^ <.f i>l()ughs can only be
made in this way : In a space of I square
yaid turned ovjr by each, taking a furrow-
slice in both ca-es at 10 inches in breadth
and 7 inches in depth, and taking the
specific gravity of soil at 1*48, the weight
of earth turned over by the East Lothian
plough would be 34 st, 9 lbs., while the
Lanarkshire plough would only turn over
29 st. 10 lbs., making a difference of 4st.
13 lb. in the small area of 1 square yard.
In these circumstances, is it fair to say
that the horses yoked to the East Lothian
plough have done no more work than
those yoked to the Lanarkshire, or that
the crop for which the land has been
ploughed will receive the same quantity
of loosened mould to grow in in both
such cases? The prohibitory rule against
the judges making their inspection during
the ploughing has been relaxed in several
instances ; but, I fear, more from the cir-
cumstance of the spectators losing their
patience while waiting for the decision,
after the excitement of the competition is
over, than from regard to the justness of
principle. Thus may originate these and
other common -sense remarks on the usual
mode of conducting ploughing-matches;
but the matter which follows will be found
more important as affecting the character
of good ploughing.
732. The primary objects of the insti-
tution of ploughing-matches must have
been to produce the best examples of
ploughmanship — and by the best, must be
understood that kind of ploughing which
shall not only seem to be well done, but
must be throughout and properly done. To
be particular, the award should be given
to the plough that produces not only a
proper surface finish, but exhibits, along
with that, the power to cut and turn
over the greatest quantity of soil in the
most approved manner. That this com-
bination of (jualities has ceased to be the
criterion of merit, is now sulliciently appa-
rent to anyone who will examine for him-
self the plougliing which has boon rewarded
in recent ploughing-matches ; and the
causes of such awards is this : —
733. The introduction of the Lanark-
shire plough by Wilkie, gave rise, as is sup-
posed, to the high-crested furmw-olice, fig,
16. It cannot be denied that the ploughs
made on this principle produce work on
lea land highly satisfactory to the eye of a
ploughman, or to that of any person, in-
deed, who appreciates regularity of form;
and as there are many minds who dwell
with pleasure on beauty of form, but com-
bine not the idea with usefulness, it is no
wonder that work which thus jilcases the
mind, and satisfies the judgment through
the sense of sight only, should become a
favourite one. While the crested system of
ploughing kept within bounds it was well
enough, but, in course of time, the taste
for the practice became excessive ; and at
length, losing sight of the useful, a depraved
taste sacrificed utility to beauty, in as far
as ploughing is concerned. Thistaste gradu-
ally spread itself over certain districts,
and plough-makers vied with each other in
producing ploughs that should excel in that
particular quality. A keen spirit of emula-
tion amongst ploughmen ke])t up the taste
amongst their own class, and fre(|ueutly
the sons of farmers became successful com-
petitors in the matches, which assisted to
give the taste a higher tone. Thus, by de-
grees, the taste for this mode of ploughing
spread wider and wider, until in certain
districts it became the prevailing method.
At ploughing-matches in thof-e districts,
the criteri(m of good ploughiug was
generally taken from the a))]iearanco of
the surface; furrow-slices ])ossessing the
highest degree of parallel i.sui, exposing
faces of unequal breadth, and, above all, a
high crest, carried off the palm of victory.
I have seen a quorum of ploughing judges
"plodding their weary way" for two hours
together overa field, measuring tlielueadths
of faces, and scanning the parallelism of
slices, but who never seemed to consider
the under-ground work of any imixirtance,
ill enabling them to <lecide correctly, lender
such regulations, it is not surprising that
ploughmen devote their abilities to produce
work to satisfy this vitiated taste, ami that
plough-makers find it their interest to
encourage the desire, by exaggerating
more and more the construction of those
])arts of the plough which produce the
desired results. Thus have viiluable
institutions of ploughing-matches, in the
districts alluded to, been unwittingly made
DIFFERENT FORMS OF RIDGES.
171
to engender an innoA'ation wbicli, though
beautiful enough, and, when practised with-
in due bounds, ia also useful, has induced a
deterioration in really useful and sound
ploughing.
734. But it is not yet too late to retrieve
what has been lost. Let the Highland and
Agricultural Society of Scotland, and all
local agricultural associations, institute a
code of rules to guide the judges of plough-
ing-niatches in delivering their awards.
Let these rules direct the land to be
thoroughly ploughed to the bottom of the
furrow, as well as satisfactorily to the sight.
When such rules shall be promulgated from
competent authority, we may hope to see
ploughing-raatches exceed their pristine
integrity — doing good to every one con-
cerned in them, and restoring the confi-
dence in them which is at present on the
wane, but distrust in which has only
arisen from an accidental misdirection of
their proper object. Let, in short, Small's
plough (fig. 2) be the only one patronised
in all cases of ploughing in public com-
petition, and individual farmers and plough-
makers will then find it their interest to
use and make no other.
ON PLOUGHING DIFFERENT FORMS OF
RIDGES.
735. One might imagine, that as the
plough can do nothing else but lay over
the furrow-slice, ploughing would not
admit of any variety; but a short course of
observation will show any student the many
forms in which land may he ploughed.
736. The several modes of ploughing
have received characteristic appellations,
such as gathering up; crovvn-and-furrow
ploughing ; casting or yoking or coupling
ridges ; casting ridges with gore-furrows;
cleaving down ridges; cleaving down ridges
with gore-furrows ; ploughing two-out-
and-two-in ; ploughing in breaks ; cross-
furrowing ; angle-ploughing, ribbing, and
drilling ; and Uie preparative operations
for all kinds of ploughing is termed feering
or striking the ridges.
737. These various modes of ploughing
have been contrived to suit the nature of
the soil and the season of the year. Clay
soil requires more caution in being ploughed
than sandy or gravelly, because of its
being more easily injured by rain ; and
greater caution is required to plough all
sorts of land in winter than in summer.
The precautions consist in providing facili-
ties for surface-water to flow away.
Though the different seasons thus demand
their respective kinds of ploughing, some
modes are common to all seasons and soils.
Attention to the various methods can alone
enable the agricultural student to under-
stand which kind is most suitable to the
circumstances of the soil, and the peculiar
states of the season. To give the best
idea of all the modes, from the simplest to
the most complicated, let the ground be
supposed to be even on the surface.
738. The supposed flat ground, after
being subjected to the plough, is left either
in ridges or drills, each of which occupy
areas of similar breadth. Ridges are com-
posed of furrow-slices (fig. 17) laid beside
and parallel to one another, by the going
and returning of the plough from one side
of the field to the other. The middle part
of the ridge receives the name of the
crown., — the two sides, the Jla7iks, — the
divisions between the ridges, the open
furrows, — and the edges of the furrow-
slices next the open furrows, the fut^row-
brows ; and the last furrows ploughed in
the open furrows are named the mould or
h int-end furrows.
739. The ridges are usually made in
the direction of N. and S., that the crop
growing upon both their sides may receive
the light and heat of the solar rays in an
equal degree throughout the day; but they,
nevertheless, are made to traverse the
slope of the ground, whatever its aspect
may be, with the view of allowing the sur-
face-water to flow most easily away.
740. Ridges are formed of different
breadths, of 10, I'i, 15, 16, and 18 feet, in
different parts of Scotland ; and in England
they are formed as narrow as 8 and 6
feet, and even less. These various breadths
are occasioned partly by the nature of the
soil, and partly by local custom. As regards
the soil, clay soil is formed into narrow
ridges, to allow the rain to flow off very
quickly into the open furrows, and in many
parts of England, is ridged at only 10
172
PRACTICE— WIXTER.
and 12 feet in width, and in some localities
are reduced to riJglcts of 5 or 6 feet.
In Scotland, even on tlie strongest land,
they are seldom less than 1 5 feet, in some
localities 16, and on light soils 18 feet.
In Berwich-shire and lloxhiirt,'lishirc, the
ridges have for a long period been 15 feet
on all classes of soils — being considered
the most convenient width for the ordinary
manual and implemental operations. In
other districts 18 feet are most common.
More than half a century ago ridges were
made very broad, from 24 to 36 feet, high
on the crown — from an idea that an undu-
lated surface affords a larger area for the
crop to grow on — and crooked like the
letter S, from another mistaken notion
that a crook always presents some part
of the ridge in a right direction to the sun ;
which, although it did, removed other
parts as far from it. lu the Carse of
Gowrie such broad crooked ridges may
be still seen ; but the common practice is
to have the ridges of moderate breadth,
straight, and pointing to noonday. In
many parts of Ireland th.e land is not
ploughed into ridges at all, being made
with the spade into narrow stripes called
lazt/'hcds, separated by deep narrow
trenches. Where the plough is used,
Fig.
hr^wever, narrow ridges of 12 feet are
mostly formed. For uniformity of pj,^ jg
description, let it be understood
that 1 shall only .speak of a ridge of
15 feet in width.
T41. The first process in the
ridging up of land from the flat
surface is ihc fecr'wg it, which is
done by placing H])right, in the
direction of the ridges, three or
more poles (fig. 18) 8^ feet in
length, graduated into feet and
half-feet, and each ])ainted at the
top of a diirereut colour, such as
blue, red, white, to form decided
contrasts with one another when
set in line, and they should not be
green, to be confounded with trees
and hedges, nor brown, to be mis- „
A PEER*
taken for the red land. i^g pole.
742. To make the important preliminary
process of feering land more easily under-
stood, let us suppose a and b, fig, 1 9, to pre-
sent the S. and E. fences of a field, of which
let X be the headncJfje or headland, of the
same width as the ridges, namely 15 feet.
To mark off the width of the headridge
distinctly, let the plough pass in the
19.
c^x^,^^^^^:^^^::^^
<J
MODS OF FKBRmO RIBOKS.
DIFFERENT FORMS OF RIDGES.
179
direction of re", with the furrow-slice lying-
towards x. Do the same along the other
headland, at the opposite side of the field.
Then take a pole and measure off the width
of a quarter of a ridge, viz. 3 feet 9 inches
from the ditch lip, a toe, and plantapoleatc.
With another pole set off the same distance
from the ditch, a to <f, and plant it there.
Then measure the same distance from the
ditch, at 6 to/, and at/ look if d has been
placed in the line of/c; if not,shiftthe poles,
at </ and/only, a little until they are ail in a
line. Make a mark on the ground with the
foot, or set up the plough-staff, fig. 5, at/
Then plant tliepole aty, in the line oifdc.
Before starting to feer, measure otf 1;^
ridge, namely, 18 feet 9 inches, from /to
k^ and plant a pole at k. Then start with
the plough from/ to d, where stop with
the pole standing between the horses'
heads, or else pushed over by the tying of
the horses. Then measure with it, at right
angles to/c, a line equal to the breadth of
1^ ridge, 18 feet 9 inches, towards s, in the
line of k I, where plant the pole. In like
manner proceed from d to y, where again
stop, and measure off" 1^ ridge, 18 feet 9
inches, from ^ towards u, still in the line
of k I, and plant the pole there. Proceed
to the other headridge to the last pole c,
and measure off l;j ridge, 18 feet 9 inches,
from c to I, and plant the pole at /. From
I look towards k, to see if the intermediate
poles are in the line of those at I and k, if
not, shift them till they are so. On com-
ing down cf, obviate any deviation which
the plough may have made from the
straight line. In the line of/f, the furrow-
slices of the feering have been omitted, to
show more distinctlythe setting of thepoles.
The furrow-slices are shown at m and n.
743. As a means of securing perfect
accuracy in measuring ofl' the breadths of
ridges at right angles to the feerings, lines
at right angles to/ c, from d and ff, should
be set otf in the direction of d t and (/ v,
by a cross-table and poles, aud marked by
a furrow drawn by the plough in each of
these lines, before the breadths of the
feerings are measured from d and y, along
theni. Most people do not take the trouble
of doing this, and a proficient ploughman
renders it the less necessary; but every
careful farmer will do it, even at a little
sacrifice of time and trouble, to ensure
perfect accuracy of work.
744. It is essential to the correct feer-
ing of the whole field to have the two first
feerings/ c and k I, drawn correctly, as an
error committed there will be transmitted
to the other end of tlie field ; and, to attain
this correctnes.^, two persons, the plough-
man and the farm-steward, or farmer
himself, should set the poles. An experi-
enced ploughman, and a steady pair of
horses, should alone be entrusted with the
feering of land. Horses accustomed to
feering will walk up of their own accord to
the pole standing before them within sight.
745. Proceed in this manner to feer the
line k I, and so also the line o p ; but in all
the feerings after the first, from /to k, the
poles, of course, are set otf to the exact
breadth of the ridge determined on — in this
case 15 feet, as from k to o, / to jt», s to ^,
M to », jo to ?p, in the direction of the
arrows. And the reason for setting ofli" c
1 at so much a greater distance than I p ot
p w is, that the half-ridge a h may be
ploughed first and without delay, and that
the rest of the ridges may be ploughed
by half-ridges.
746. The first half-ridge a h is, however,
ploughed in a diflfereut manner from tho
other half-ridges ; it is ploughed by going
round the feering/ c until the open furrow
comes to a e on the one side and to h i on
the other. Were the feering set off the
breadth of a half-ridge, 7i feet, in the
line of ik, from a to A, instead of the quar-
ter ridge, 3 feet 9 inches, from a to f, the
half-ridge a /t, would be ploughed with all
the furrow-slices turned towards h i, and
the plough would have to return back
empty, at each furrow-slice, thus losing
half its time.
747. The line h i thus becoming the
feering along with k I, for ploughing the
2 half-ridges z i and z k, the open furrow
is left in the line;r y, corresponding to that
in the line e a, and betAveen these open
furrows is embraced and finished the full
ridge of 15 feet e z, having its crown
along i h.
748. As the plough completes each
feering, the furrow-slices are laid over as
at m and n. While one ploughman pro-
ceeds in this manner to feer each ridge
across the field, the other ploughmen com-
174
PRACTICE— WINTER.
mence the ploufrliing of tlie lanJ into
ridges ; and to attbrd a nuuiljcr of them
space for heginnin^ work at the same
time, the fecring-plougliinan eliouhl be
set to work more tlian half a day in
advance of tlie rest. In commencing tlie
plonghing of the ridges, each ploughman
takes two feerings, and begins by laying
tiie farrow-slices, in and n together, of
both the feerings, to form the crowns of
two future ridges. One ploughman thus
lays together the furrow slices of / c and
k /, whilst another is doing the same with
those of 0 p and r ?r. I have just de-
scribed how the half-ridge a A is ploughed,
and also stated that the rest of the ridges
are ploughed in half-ridges. The advantage
of ploughing by half-ridgos is, that the open
furrows are left exactly equidistant from
the crowns, whereas, were the ridges
Fig.
ploughed by going round and round the
crown of each ridge, one ridge might be
made narrower than the determinate
breadth of 15 feet, and another broader.
749. After laying the fecring furrow-
slices 80 as to make the crowns of the
ridges, at/f, k /, op, and r v, the mode
of ploughing the ridges from the flat
ground is to hie the horses towards you,
on reaching the headridgcs, until all
the furrow -slices between each feering
are laid over us far as the lines y r,
which become the open furrows. This
method of jiloughing is called gather-
ing up, the disposition of the furrows in
Avhich is shown in fig. 20, where a a a
embrace two whole ridges and three open
furrows, on the right sides of wliich all the
furrow-slices lie one way, from a to b, read-
20.
FATHERING IT lUDU
ing from the right to the left ; and on the
left sides they all lie in the opposite direc-
tion, from a to b, reading from the left to
the right, and both sets of furrow-slices
meet in the crowns b b b. Tiie open fur-
rows a a a are finished off with the mould
or hint-end furrows, the method of making
which is described in the next figure.
750. Were the furrow-slices counted in
fig. 20, they would be found to amount
to 20 ; whereas 10 inch furrow-slices across
a 15 feet ridge would only count 18, which
would be the number turned over in loose
ES FRU.M THK ILAT.
mould ; but the above figure is supposed
to rej)resent gathered-up ridges in lea
ground, and the mould-furrows are shown
a-s correctly formed as the others — which
they ought always to be ; but in plough-
ing lea, or grass, the slices scarcely ever
meai-ure 10 inches in breadth, and most
ploughmen do not regard the mould-furrows
as forming a part of the regular ridge, but
only a finishing to it.
751. The mould or hint-cud furrow, is
made in this way : When the last two
furrow-slices of the ridges a a, fig. 21, are
21.
AN OIEN KLIIKUW WITH MOILD Oil HlNr-ENl) FIUR0W-8LIC18.
DIFFERENT FORMS OF RmGES.
175
laid over, the bottom of the open furrow is as
wide and flat as represented by tlie dotted
line c, and extending above from a to a.
The plough goes along this wide space and
first lays over the triangular furrow-slice b
on one side, and another of the same form
h on the other side, up against and cover-
ing the lowest ends of the furrow-slices a
a, by which operation the ground is hol-
lowed out in the shape represented below c
by the sole of the plough. The dotted
line d shows the level of the ground in the
state it was before it was ridged up, and the
furrow-slices a a show the elevation at-
tained by the land above its former level
by ploughing.
752. Crown-and-furroic ploughing can
easily be performed on land which has
been gathered up from the flat. No feer-
ing is. required, the open furrows answer-
ing the purpose. Thus, in fig. 20, let the
furrow-brow slices d be laid over into the
open furrows a, and it will be found that
they will just meet, since they were for-
merly separated by the same means ; and
in ploughing the ridges in half-ridges, a
will become the crowns of the ridges, and
h the open- furrows, — hence the name of
this mode of ploughing. Its effect is to
preserve the ploughed surface of the ridges
in the same state they were when gathered
up from the flat.
753. When no surface-water is likely
to remain on the land, as in the case
of light soils, both these are simple
modes of ploughing land ; and they form
an excellent foundation for drills for
turnips on stronger soils, and are much
practised in ploughing land for barley after
turnips. But when the land for barley after
turnips is to be twice ploughed, and it is
inconvenient to cross-furrow the land, —
which it will be when sheep on turnips
occupy a field having long ridges, or the
season is too wet to leave the land in a
cross-furrow, — then the land should be so
feered as, in gathering up from the flat, the
crown-and-fiirrow ploughing may after-
wards complete the ridges.
754. On looking at fig. 20, where the
ridges are complete, it is obvious that,
were they ploughed into crown-and-furrow,
thereby making the open furrows a a a
the future crowns, a half-ridge would be
left at each side of the field, — a mode of
finialiing off" a field displaying great care-
lessness and want of forethought. The
feering, therefore, should be so made as
the gathering up from the flat should leave
a half-ridge on each side of tlie field, and
the subsequent crown-and-furrow plough-
ing will convert them into whole ridges.
Thus, the first feering should be made at
e«, fig. 19, instead of/^, and every other
at the width of one ridge, 15 feet. On
ploughing these feerings, the open furrows
will be left at i k, k I, o /», and r w ; and
these will form the feerings of the subse-
quent crown-and-furrow ploughing.
755. Another mode of ploughing land
from the flat surface is casting or yoking
or coupling the ridges. The feering for
this is done in a difl'erent manner from the
two foregoing. The first feering is made
in the line of e a, fig. 19, ch'se to the ditch,
and every other is measured ofi" of the
width of 2 ridges, oO feet — as at y z, be-
twixt k I and o ]), and again at half a
ridge beyond r u\ Casting is begun by
laying the furrow-slices of the feerings
together, and then laying the first furrow-
slice towards e a, on going uj), and towards
y z, betwixt I and p, on coming down, the
bout ; and so on, furrow after furrow, hie-
ing the horses on the headridges always
towards you, until the open furrow is left
at y z, betwixt k I and i h. The eff'ect of
casting is to lay the entire number of fur-
row-slices, 20 of every ridge, in one direc-
tion, and in opposite directions on adjoining
ridges. The proper disposition of the
furrow-slices is seen in perspective in fig.
22, which exhibits three entire ridges, ab,
be, and cJ, two of which are cast or yoked
together, that is, the furrow-slices of a h
meet those of c b m b, which forms the
crown of the coupled ridge, and those of
c d lie in the opposite direction from c 5,
and are ready to he met by those of the
adjoining ridge beyond d at </, and they
leave the open furrow between them at c :
and so on, an open furrow between every
two ridges. Ridges lying thus yoked can
easily be recast, by reversing the furrow-
slices oi b c and c d into the open furrow
c, and converting c into the crown of the
yoked ridge b d, and making the crowns
b and d open furrows. Casting keeps the
land in a level state, and can most con-
veniently be formed on dry soils. It forms
176
PRACTIC E— ^^ I NI EU.
a good foundation for drillinfr, and makes
an excellent seed -furrow ou dry land.
Lea aud seed-furrow for barley, on light
land, are always thus ploughed. It is an
economical mode of ploughing land in
regard to time, as it requires but few
feerings; the furrow-slices are equal, and
the horses are always turned inwards, that
Fig. 22.
CASTING, YOKING, OR COUPLING BIDGi:>.
It is best performed upon furrow. A gore-furrow is a space formed
to prevent the mecUng of two ridges, and
a substitute for an open furrow between
them ; and it can only be formed where
a feering or an ojjen furrow exists. It is
made as shown in fig. 23. Let the dotted
furrow-slices a and f, and the dotted line i
form an open furrow, of which c is a point
23.
• is, towards you.
the flat surface, and should the land be
ploughed again, it may be recast, and no
half-ridges left.
756. Casting ridges is as suitable
ploughing for strong as light land, pro-
vided the ridges are separated by a gore-
Fig,
MODB OP MAKING
in the middle, and let it be converted into
a gore-furrow. Make the plousrh pass
between the centre of the open-furrow c
and the left-hand dotted furrow-slice e^
and throw up to the right the triangular-
shaped mouKl-furrow-slice 6, with the
mould seen below c. Then turn the horses
sharp from vou on tlio headridge, and lay
the dotted furrow-slice a upon ft, which
will thus become the furrow-slice (/.
Again turning the horses sharp from you
on the headiiilge, take the j)lough lightly
through part of the dotted furrow-slice <?,
and lay it of a triangular-shape for the
mould-furrow-slice /, the upper end of c
being left untouched: but a portion of/
will trickle down towards »', and so will
also a portion of d when it was ploughed.
Turn tlie horses on the off he.idiidge still
from you, and bring the plough down
behind </, and lay upon it the ordinary
furrow-slice^. Turning the horses again
A GORE-FITRROW.
from ycu on the nigh headriJge. lay ti.o
ordinary furrow-sliceA upon thetriangular-
shaped mould-furrow /, by destroying the
remainder of the dotted furrow-slice, and
some more earth ; and then turn the horses
from you again on the off headridge fiT
the last time, and come down the open
furrow t, pushing the soil up with tic
mould-board fn»m i against /", and clearing
the furrow of iinv loose soil in it, and the
gore-furrow is completed. A gore furrow
is most perfectly formed and preserved in
clay-soil, for in tender soil it is apt to
moulder down by the action of the air into
the open furrow, and prevent it l»eing a
channel for running water; but, indeed,
gore-furrows are of little use, aud are sel-
dom formed on light soils.
757. Casting with a gore-furrow upon
a gathered ridge always makes the open
furrow barer of earth than the gore-furrow;
DIFFERENT MODES OF PLOUGHING RIDGES.
177
but it is not so correct to say that this is an
imperfection unavoidable in casting a ridge,
as it is so only in casting after gathering
it up from the flat, and more so, of course,
after two gatherings up. Casting, in
my opinion, should never be practised on
gathered ridges, to remain in a perma-
nent form, though it may be used for a
temporary purpose, as in fallowing to stir
the soil and overcome weeds ; for, observe
its necessary consequences : Suppose the
two gathered ridges between a a a, fig.
20, were cast together towards the middle
open furrow a, the effect would be to re-
verse the position of the furrow slices from
a to b, on either side of a, and they would
remain as flat as formerly ; but what would
be its effect on the furrow slices on the
other halves of the ridges from b to d?
They would be gathered up twice, and the
coupled ridge would have two high fur-
row-brows by two gatherings, and two low
flanks by one gathering. It would, in
fact, be unevenly ploughed, and the open
furrow on each side would, of course, be
much bared of soil, from being twice ga-
thered up. No doubt the distortion might
be partially obviated by making the fur-
row-slices between a and b on each side of
the middle open furrow a deeper and
larger tlian those between b and d, and
a uniform shape to the coupled ridge might
be thus preserved ; but it would be done
by the sacrifice of substantial ploughing;
and it is much better to confine casting
wltliin its own sphere, than practise it in
circumstances unfavourable to the proper
ploughing of the land.
758. The open furrow in casting does
not necessarily bare the earth more than a
gore-furrow. It is broader, certainly,
from the circumstance of the furrow-slices
being laid away from each other ; but its
furrow-sole is not actually ploughed deeper
than tlie g )re-fi.irrov.'. I would also ob-
serve that casting is almost impracticable
after two gatherings, because the effect
would be to cleave down the sides c o, fig.
20, on both sides of a, again to Ifie level
of the ground; whilst it wouhl gather up
the two sides actually corresponding with
d b three times, thereby giving very un-
equal heights to the two sides of each
coupled ridge, or making the furrow-slices
on the same ridge of very unequal size, in
order to preserve their level — practices
both to be deprecated. An author, in
speaking of casting, and showing how-
it may be performed by ploughing the
furrow-slices of two adjoining ridges in
opposite directions, states that "the inter-
furrow, which lies between the two ridges,
unavoidably leaves a shoulder or hollow
place, of more or less width, according to
the expertness of the ploughman, in th«
centre of the crown, which defect can only
be completely relieved by reploughing ;"*
and informs us, that the defect may bo
partly prevented by using two ploughs of
different widths of mould-boards. I do
not see why ploughing two furrow-slice*
into the open furrow in casting should bo
more difficult or less substantial than in
any other mode of ploughing. A good
ploughman will leave in the future crown
of the ridge, in every case, neither a shoul-
der nor a hollow place.
759. Nearly allied to casting is the
ploughing named tico-out-and-two-in,
which may also be executed on the flat
ground, and requires a particular mode of
feering. The first feering should be mea-
sured of the breadth of 2 ridges, or 30 feet,
from the ditch a e, fig. J9; and every
subsequent feering of 4 ridges breadth, or
60 feet. The feeriiigs are thus but iewr.
The land is ploughed in this manner : Let
a b, fig. 21, be the side of the field, and
let c d be the first feering of 30 feet from
a b ; and also, let ef be the next feering
of 60 feet. After returning the feering
furrow-slices, begin ploughing round the
feering c f/, wliich always keep on the
right hand, and kupjnn^f the horses from
you, on both the head-ridges, until about
the breadth of a ridge is ploughed on
each side of c d, io g g and h h. While
this is doing, 2 ridges to i i and k k are
ploughed around efhy another ploughman.
At this juncture, open furrows occur at h k
and i i, embracing between them 2 ridge."?,
or 30 feet, from k to i. Then let the plough-
man who has ploughed round c d plough
from h to i, laying the furrow-slices first
to h and then to i, by hieing the horses
towards him, on both headridges, until
the ground is all ploughed to I I, which
becomes the permanent open furrow. The
Srltlsh IIc.fLandry, vol. ii. p. 46.
178
PRACTICE— WINTER.
next pennanent open furrow made by the the ridge g a has not been ploughed ;
other plou'^'liman, will be at m m, 60 feet it is so along with the headridges m a
or 4 ridges breadth from 1 1. But as yet and I m, after all the ridges of the field
Fig. 24.
FKERING FOR PLOUGHING RIDGKS TWO-OUT-AND-TWO-IN.
have been ploughed, laying its furrow-
slices towards g g, and making the open
furrow at a b. The effect of plough-
ing two-out-and-two-in, is to lay all the
furrow-slices across two ridges in one
direction from a to r, and across two ridges
in the opposite direction, from ^ to c, both
double ridges meeting in c d, which be-
comes the crown of the 4 ridges from ^ to a.
In like manner the furrow-slices over the
4 ridges from / to m, meet in their crown
Fig.
ef. In ploughing this mode, every plough-
man takes in a feering of 4 ridges, which
he completes before he goes to another.
The reason, I suppose, that this mode of
ploughing has received its peculiar appel-
lation is, that iico ridges are ploughed with
the horses turning oi/^wards, and two by
their turning inwards.
760. The appearance of the ground on
being ploughed two-out-and-two-in is seen
25.
rLOLGai.NG Rir-UKS TVVl>OUT-ANI>-TWO-m.
in fig. 25, where the space from a to « is
60 feet, comprehending 4 ridges, between
the open furrows a and e, two of which,
a b and b c, have their furrow-slices lying
to the right, and those of the other two, e d
and d c, lying to the left, meeting the
former at c, which becomes the crown of
the whole division of 4 ridges.
761. This method of ploughing places the
land in large flat spaces, and as it dispenses
with many open furrows, it is only suitable
for light soils — in which it may be used for
seed furrowing, and for drilling turnips aud
potatoes — or for. any well-drained land.
762. The gore-furrow, described in fig.
23, might be applied to this ploughing on
the stronger classes of soils ; but its intro-
duction would change the character of the
ridges altogether, inasmuch as the crown
<*, fig. 25, would not only be converted into
an open furrow, but its actual centre trans-
ferred from c to by and <f, where, the fur-
DIFFERENT MODES OF PLOUGHIXG RIDGES.
179
row-slices not meeting from opposite direc-
tions, but lying across it, there would be
no true crown. Exactly in a similar man-
ner, when the gore-furrow is introduced
into cast ridges, as in fig. 22, the crowns
at b and d are converted into open furrows,
and transmuted into a centre e, which, the
furrow-slices lying across the ridges,
would therefore not be a true crown.
763. A nearly allied ploughing to the
last is that oi ploughing in breaks or Jivi-
sio7is. It consists of making feerings at
indefinite distances, and ploughing large
divisions of land without open furrows.
Some farmers plough divisions of 8 ridges
or 40 yards ; but so great a distance incurs
considerable loss of time in travelling from
furrow to furrow at the landings. Instead,
therefore, of the breadth of a given num-
ber of ridges being chosen, 30 yards are
substituted ; and this particular breadth
has the advantage of causing deviations
Fi,
in ploughing from that of the ordinary
ridges, and of loosening any hard land that
may have been left untouched by the
plough in ploughing the ordinary ridges.
Land is ploughed in breaks only for tem-
porary purposes, such as giving it a tender
surface for seed-furrowing or drilling up
immediately thereafter. The time lost in
ploughing wide breaks might be easily
estimated in figures by fig. 24, where, the
feerings c d and e f being supposed to be
60 yards asunder, the ploughs have to go
round c d and ^/ until they reach h and i
respectively, thus travelling in a progres-
sive increasing distance to 30 yards for
every furrow -slice of 10 inches in breadth
laid over.
764. Another mode of ploughing is
ttcice-gathering-rip. Its eifect may be
seen in fig. 26, where the twice-gathered-
up furrow-slices are seen to rest upon the
solid ground. It may be practised both on
26.
»,-<te*»
TWICE-GATHERING-UP RIDGES.
lea and red-land. On red-land that has
been already gathered up from the flat, it
is begun by making feerings in the crowns
of the ridges, as at b, fig 20. The furrow-
slices of the feerings are laid together,
and the ridges ploughed by half-ridges, in
the manner of gathering up from the flat.
The half-ridge left by the feerings at the
sides of the field must be ploughed by
themselves, even at the risk of losing time,
because it would not do to feer the first ridge
so as to plough the half-ridge as directed
to be done in the first-gathering-up, in fig.
19, around the feering of the quarter-ridge
f c, because the furrows betwixt /" and i,
when ploughed in the contrary direction
they were before, would again lower the
ground; whereas the furrow-slices from
e to/ and from z to i, being ploughed in
the same direction as formerly, the ground
would be raised above the level of if, and
disfiijure the ploughing of the entire ridge
z e. Gathering up from the flat preserves
the flatness of the ground ; and the second
gathering-up would preserve the laud in
the same degree of flatness, though more
elevated, were there depth enough of soil,
and the furrow-slices made in their proper
form ; but a roundness is usually given to
a ridge which has been gathered up, both
by harrowing down the steep furrow-
brows, and by plougliing the furrow-slices
of unequal size, from want of soil at the
furrow-brows and open furrows.
765. In gathering up lea the second
time, no feering is required. The plough
goes a little to the left of the crown of
the ridge, and lays upon its back a thin
and narrow furrow-slice, «, fig. 26, to
serve as a cushion upon which to rest the
future crown furrow-slices. The horses
180
PRACTICE— WINTER.
aro tlien hupped sliarj> round from you,
and tlio furrow-slice b is laid so as to
rest, at tlic proper angle of 45% upon a.
Hupping the horses again tiharp round
from you, the furrow-slice c is also laid
at the same angle upon the other side
of «; but c and h should not approach
each other so near as to cover a, but leave a
Hpace of about 3 or 4 inches between them,
the object of which is to form a receptacle
for the seed, which, were c and h to make
a sharp angle, would slide down wlien
sown, and leave the crown, the best part
of the ridge, bare of seed. The ridges are
ploughed in half-ridges to the oj)eu furrows
.7, which are finished with mould-furrow-
slices, but these are obtained with some
ditlicult}^ for want of soil. Twice-gather-
ing-up is only practised in strung land
and its object is to lift the mould above
the cold and wet subsoil. On dry land
no such expedient is required, nor on
strong land drained. In fig. 2G the dotted
line e represents the configuration of the
ground before the second gathering-up was
begun, and it may be seen that the open
furrow at d is now deeper than it was with
once gathering-up.
Fig,
766. The mode of ploughing exactly
opposite to twice gatheiing-up is cleaviny
or throwing down. The open furrows of
twice-gathered-up land constitute deep
feerings, which are filled up with the
slices obtained from the mould-furrows
and furrow-brows of the adjoining ridges;
and in order to fill them fully, the plough
takes as deep a hold of these as it can.
The furrow-slices are ploughed exactly
the reverse way of twice-gathering-up,
and in half-ridges. The eflfect of cleaving
down is to bring the ground again to the
level from which it hud been elevated by
the twice-gathering-up. The open furrows
are left at the crowns, at a, fig. 26, the
mould -furrows being seldom ploughed,
cleaving down being usually practised to
prepare the land for cross-ploughing in
the spring.
767. But when clay land is cleaved
down in winter, it is always so with gore-
furrows, and tliese, with the open furrows,
aftord a convenient channel, at every half-
ridge, for the water to flow oft" to the
ditches; and as twice-gathering-up is only
practised on clay soils, and cleaving down
CLEAVING DOWN RIDGES WITIKU I
can only be practised after twice-gather-
ing-up, it follows that cleaving down is
only suitable to clay soils. The effect of
cleaving down ground is seen in fig. 27,
which represent^ it without gore-furrows
at h and mould-furrows at c; but in fig.
28, the gore-furrows are shown at o, and
the open and mould-furrows at h. The
dotted line </, fig. 27, showing the sur-
face of the former state of the ground, as
Fig. 28.
CLEAVING DOWN RIDGF.s ;\ iTll (JURE- FURROWS.
DIFFERENT MODES OF PLOUGHING RIDGES.
181
does the dotted line c, in fig. 28. Below
a and b, fig. 27, are shown the former
open furrows by the dotted line, as also
<loes the dotted line below a, in fig. 28.
In fig. 28, the ground upon which the fur-
row-slices rest is made somewhat rounded,
to show the effect of twice-gathering it
up. In strict practice, a ridge can only
be cleaved after it has been twice gathered
up, because it is scarcely correct to say
that a ridge is cleave<l down after one
gathering-up from the fiat, when it is, in
fact, plouglied crown-and-furrow. With
a strong furrow, a twice-gathered -up
ridge can be made flat by one cleaving
down.
768. Wliat is called cross-ploughing^ or
the cross-furrotc, derives its name from
ploughing right across the furrow-slices in
the ridges, in whatever form these may
have been formerly ploughed. Its object
is to cut the furrow-slices into small pieces,
so that the land may be easily pulverised.
It is commonly executed in the spring,
and should never be attempted in winter ;
because the position of the furrow-slices
would retain the rain or melting snow,
and render the land wet. But, even if
cross-furrowing were executed quickly in
winter, and the weather would allow the
soil to be safely ridged up, the soil would
become so consolidated during winter that
it would have to be again cross-furrowed
in the spring before it could be rendered
friable. The object of cross -furrowing
being to pulverise land, it is practised on
every species of soil, and exactly in the
same manner. It is ploughed in divisions,
the feerings being made at 30 yards asun-
der, and ploughed in the same manner as
two-out-aud-two-in, fig. 24; that is, by
going round the feerings, hupping the
horses constantly from you, until about half
the division is ploughed, and then hieing
them towards you, still laying the furrow-
slices towards the feerings, until the divi-
sion is ploughed. In cross-ploughing,
however, the open furrow is never left
open, and is closed with two or three of the
last furrow-slices being returned, and all
mark of a furrow obliterated by the plough
pushing the loose soil into it with the
mould-board, which is purposely laid over
and retained in that position by a firm
hold of the large stilt only. The oblitera-
tion should be complete, otherwise the
hoUowness at these furrows would be shown
across the future ridges.
769. Another mode, having a similar
object to cross-ploughing in pulverising the
furrow-slices by cutting them into pieces,
is called angle-ploughing^ and is so named
because the feerings are made in a diagonal
direction across the ridges of the field.
The ploughing is conducted in divisions of
30 yards each, and in exactly the same
manner as cross-pkuighing, with the same
precautions as to the season, and the obli-
teration of the open furrows. It is never
practised but after cross-ploughing, and
not always then, and only in clay soil,
unless the cross-ploughing has failed to
produce its desired effect of pulverisation
on the soil.
Fig. 29.
EXAMPLE OF X RIDGE ILL PLOUGHED.
770- These are all instances of good
substantial ploughing with rectangular
furrow-slices; and were they constantly
practised, there would be no instances of
bad ploughing as in fig 29, no high-crowned
ridges as at (7, caused by bringing the two
feering-slices or the two open furrows too
close together from opposite directions ; no
lean fianks, as at i, by making the fur-
row-slices broader than they should be,
with a view to ploughing the ridge fast, and
constituting hollows which become recep-
182
PRACTICE— WIN'TER.
tacles for surface-water to sour the land.
When tlie snil is strong, lean flanks be-
come so consolidated, that they are almost
sure to resist the action of the harrows,
when passed across the ridge ; and iu
light soil they are filled up with the
loose soil by the harrows, at the expense
of the surrounding heights. No proud
furroic-hroics as at c, by .•netting up the
furrow-slices more upright than they
should be, to the danger of being drawn
entirely into the oi)en furrows on the har-
rows catching them too furoiblyon leaving
the ridire in cross-harrowing. And no
Mrtt-^MdZ-sided open furrows, as at d^ by
turning over one mould-furrow flatter than
the other. Not to extend this lengthened
catalogue of evils accompanying bad
ploughing, I will only mention that every
sort of crop grows unecpially on an ill-
l)loughed ridge, because they grow better
on the spots where the soil is most kindly ;
but the bad effects of bad ploughing are
not confined to the season in which it is
performed, as it renders the soil unequal
when broken up again, and the thinner
and harder parts do not yield so abuu-
dantly as the deeper and more kindlj'.
The line d e, fig. 29, shows the position of
the surface before the land was ploughed,
and the irregular relation of the furrow-
slices to that line, show the unequal man-
ner in which the ridge had been ploughed.
771. It is the opinion of some agricul-
tural writers,* that land when ploughed
receives a curvature of surface j whereas,
correct jdoughing — that is, making the
furrow-slices on the same ridge all alike —
cannot possibly give the surface any other
form than it had before it was ploughed.
If the former surface were curved, then
Fis
the newly ploughed surface would also be
curved ; and if it were flat, the new sur-
face will be flat also. In gathering up a
ridge from the flat ground, the earth dis-
placed by the plough occupies a smaller
area than it did by the extent of the open
furrows, the fcering-slices being only
brought again tfigether j but the displace-
ment only elevates the soil above its former
level, and the act of elevation cannot im-
part a curvature to it. It is true that
ridges on being harrowed become curved,
because the harrows draw the soil into the
open furrows, where the least resistance is
presented to them, and thereby alter the
uniformity of the surface as left by the
plough ; but the curvature thus acquired
had no connexion with the ploughing.
Seeing a curvature thus produced without
knowing its cause, most ploughmen endea-
vour to give the ridge a curvature, and
accomplish it by bad ploughing ; that
is, they give a slight cresting t« the
crown, then plough the flanks with nar-
row and rather deep slices set up at too
high an angle, for about four bouts, giving
the last of these rather less depth and
height than the rest, and tlie remaining
three bouts next the open furrows they
plough flatter, and finish off" the desired
curve with the mould-furrow slices. This
artful device produces a ridge of pleasing
enough curvature, and it is practised by
the ploughmen with no intention to de-
ceive ; for they conceive they are thereby
displaying their greatest skill. A really
good ploughnuin, liow-ever, will resort to
no such expedient.
772. There is a kind of ploughing prac-
tised in parts of the country in autumn
and winter, which bears the name of
30.
RIB-PLOUGHING STUBBLE LAND.
BritiJi Uuahandry, vol. ii. p. 45.
PLOUGHING STUBBLE AND LEA.
18S
ribbing in Scotland and of raftering in
England. I notice it only to condemn
it. It consists of turning the furrow-
slices on their backs upon as much of the
firm soil as they will cover, as in fig 30,
where a are the furrow-slices turned over
upon the firm soil i, and c are the plough-
tracks. The figure represents the work
done in a more compact, clean, regular,
and straight manner than is usually to be
found in practice; for the ploughing not
unfrequently causes the furrow-slices to
lap over the firm soil, and the plough-
tracks are seldom straight. The land
lies in this state all winter, and dry
enough ; but the greatest proportion of the
soil remaining unpluughed, can be no
better for the treatment. This ploughing
can be done quickly, and without care, and
is generally taken in a diagonal direction
across the ridges, without a feeriiig. It is
chiefly practised on land in a very foul
state, with the view of destroying the
weeds ; and it is believed their destruction
is quickly eflected by exposing the under
surface of the furrow-slices, where tlie roots
of the weeds are most abundant, to the
action of frost, and the opinion no doubt is
correct; but if the exposed part of the
ground is thus benefited, it is evident
the unploughed part can receive none,
since it is not exposed at all, and it con-
stitutes the largest proportion of the land ;
so that any advantage attending the prac-
tice is more than counterbalanced by its
disadvantages. It is practised on all sorts
of soils, and whether of stubble or lea
ground ; but in Scotland is confined to the
north of the Firth of Forth, where it is
now abandoned on the large farms, and
confined to the fields of the small tenants ;
and here it may maintain its ascendency,
for certainly no where are weeds more
conspicuous.
ON PLOUGHING STUBBLE AND LEA
GROUND.
773. Although we have entered on the
consideration of the winter operations of
the farm, we have hitherto confined our
observation to a few preliminary subjects,
the nature of which must be understood
by the agricultural student at the outset
of his career, or he will fail to appreciate
what is to follow. The time is now
arrived, however, when we must com-
mence in earnest the actual work of the
farm, in all its departments. You are
now quite prepared for this. You have
been made acquainted with the plough, its.
mode of attachment to the horses, the
difiereut methods in which the land is
ploughed into ridges, and all the classes
of persons required to execute the work
of a farm conducted on the system of
mixed husbandry.
774. As agricultural students, take an
attentive view of the fields immediately
after harvest, when the crop has been
gathered into the stackyard, and you will
perceive that a large proportion of them
are in stubble, whilst others are occupied
by grass, turnips, and young wheat. On
examining the stubbled fields particularly,
you will observe young grass amongst the
stubble in some fields, and none in others.
You cannot, of yourself, discover at once
that the varied states of those fields bear
a certain proportion to one another ; and
the reason why they bear any proportion
is, that they are cultivated under a " re-
gular rotation of crops," which necessarily
causes every field, in its turn, to carry the
same series of crops. The numbers com-
posing the series depend on the nature of
the soil, and it shall be my duty to make
you acquainted with the relation of soil
and crop in due time. Meantime, suffice
it to intimate, that when the stubble is in
the state you find it, in the beginning of
the agricultural year, the parts ^yhich con-
tain no grass must undergo an immediate
change, to prepare them to receive the
crops which are to occupy them, in their
appointed time. The immediate change
alluded to is effected by the plough, not
at random, but by those fixed rules which
determine the " various modes of plough-
ing land into ridges," according to the
nature of the soil and the crop. Of the
stubble-land, the part which is to bear the
earliest crop is ploughed first, and so on
progressively, until that to be occupied
by the latest. For this reason, the land
which is to bear the bean-crop is ploughed
first, then that for the potatoes, then for
the turnips, and, last of all, for the bare
fallow. Tiie stubble is generally all
ploughed before the older grass or lea is
ploughed.
775. On clat/ soil you will find the
184
PRACTICE— WINTER.
8tubble<l ridges of a roumlcd form, linving
been twice iruthercd up, fig. 26 ; and the
way to plougli them so as to keep tlietu
dry iluring winter is to cleave tlieni down
without citlior a gore- furrow, fig 27, or
a mould- furrow, fig. 21, when on a con-
siderable declivity; or with gore-furrows,
and mould-furrows, fig. 28, when the land
is flat. On less stronij soil, casting with
a gore-furrow will preserve the land dry
whether flat or on a declivity. On lii/Zit
loams, casting without gore-furrows, fig.
22, will serve the purpose. And on sandy
and ffravellj/ soils, crown-and -furrow is the
most appropriate mode of ploughing stub-
ble. It is rare that stubble land is sub-
jected to any other mode of j)loug]iing in
winter; but the mode of plougliing adopted
in the j)articular case depends on the mode
in which the land had been previously
ploughed on the particular class of soil.
If it hvad been twice gathered up, fig. 26,
on clay soil, it should now be closed down
with gore-furrows, fig. 28 ; if so ploughed
on loam, cleaving down without gore-fur-
rows, fig. 27, answers best. If it had
been cast on strong soil, it should now be
recast with gore-furrows ; but if it had
been cast on loam, recast it without gore-
furrows. If it had been ploughed two-out-
and-two-in, renew the furruw-slices, with
gore-furrows between every two ridges.
And if it had boon i)lnughed crown and
furrow, reverse the furnjw-slices. A good
general rule for all winter-ploughing, is
to reverse the former furrow-slices with
gore- furrows on lieavy,and without theinon
lighter soils: and the rule should he ap-
plied even to thorough-drained land, until
the ultimate eH'ects of the draining have
been ascertained.
776. Strong clay soil should never be
ploughed in a wet state, as it will become
very hard in spring, and of course difficult
to work.
777. Snow should never be ploughed in
under any pretext, nor the soil f>loughed
at all, when in a frozen state. The frost
and snow thus concealed remain a long
time unaltered under the soil, and the
spring maybe far advanced ere its warmth
will reach them so as to melt it, and
relieve the soil from its chilled condition.
778. When the soil is tolerably clean,
and dry, either by thorough -draining or
a natunilly porous subsoil, it is some-
times desirable to plough the stubble-land
deep with three horses instead of two,
in winter, especially when the spring-
work may be anticii)ated to be unusually
pressing. The horses arc yoked according
to the arrangement given in fig. 8. The
form of ploughing may either be crown-
and-furrow, if the soil is light, or cast to-
gether with a gore-furrow, when somewhat
heavy. One ploughman may direct the
three horses well enough ; but the assis-
tance of a boy to turn the leading horse
at the land-ends, and keep the coulter
clear of rubbish with the plough-staff', fig.
5, would greatly expedite the work.
The three horses may easily turn over a fur-
row-slice of 9 or 10 inches in depth, which
being taken of proportionate breadth, but
few slices across an ordinary ridge of 15
feet would be required.
779. In every variety of soil, ploughed
in the forms just dcf-cribcd fur winter,
care should be taken to have plenty of
channels, or r/oics or (jrips, as they are
usually termed in Scotland, cut in the hol-
lowest places, so as the surface-water may
find them at every point by which to
escape into the nearest open ditch. The
gaws are first drawn by the plouL^h laying
them open like a feering, taking, in all
cases, tiie Imllowest parts of the ground,
whether these happen to cross the ridges
or go along the open furrows ; and they
are immediately cleared out by the
hedger with the spade of the loose earth,
which is sjiread over the surface. The
fall in the gaws should tend towards a
jioint, or j)()ints, best adapted to carry
off the surface- v.ater bv the shortest route,
and do the least injury to the soil. The
ends of the open furrows which terminate
at the open furrow along the side of the
lowest headridge, as well as this furrow
itself, should be cleared out with the spade,
and cuts formed across the hollowest
places of the headridge into the ditch.
The precaution of gaw-cutting should
never be neglected in winter in any kind
of soil, the stnmger, no doubt, requiring
more gaws than the lighter; but as no
foresight can anticipate the injuries con-
sequent on a single deluge of rain, it should
never be neglected, and never is by the
provident farmer, though many small
PLOUGHING STUBBLE AND LEA.
185
farmers pay little heed to its observance,
and, of course, to their own loss.
780. The most common form of plough-
ing lea ground in strong soil is to cast it
with a gore-furrow, fig. 22, and on less
strong soil the same form of ploughing
without a gore-furrow ; whilst on the
lightest soils the crown and furrow is most
suitable. Gathering up is a rare form of
ploughing lea, though it is occasionally
practised on strong soil on gathered-up
or cast ridges, when it is rather difficult
to plough the furrow-brows and open fur-
rows as they should be. The oldest lea is
first ploughed, that the tough slices may
have time to mellow by exposure to the
winter air, and for the same reason the
strongest land should be ploughed before
the light. Lea should never be ploughed
as long as it is at all affected by frost or
snow, or when rime is on the grass, or
when the ground is soft with rain. Ice
or rime ploughed down chills the ground
to a very late period of the season, and
when the rain softens the ground much,
the horses cut the turf with their feet, and
the furrow-slice will be squeezed into an
improper shape by the mould-board. Nor
should lea be ploughed when hard with
drought, as the plough will take too shallow
a furrow, and raise the ground in broad thin
slabs. A semi-moist state of ground in
fresh weather is the best for ploughing lea.
781. Gaws should never be neglected to
be cut after lea-ploughing, especially in the
first ploughed fields, and in strong land,
whether early or late ploughed.
782. It is a slovenly practice to allow
the headridges to remain unploughed for
a considerable time after the rest of the
field, and the neglect is most frequent on
.-(tabblc ground. The reason in support
of the neglect is, that as all the ploughs
cannot be employed on the headridges, it
is inexpedient to neglect another entire
field for them ; and the reason would be
a good one were there little chance of bad
weather occurring ; but in winter it should
be remembered that gaws cannot be cut
until the headridges are ploughed. To
leave a ploughed field to be injured by
wet weather, shows little regard to future
consequences, which may turn out to be
serious. No doubt, on thorough-drained
land, less dread of ill consequences from
the neglect of gaw-cutting may be felt;
but even in the best drained land, I think
it imprudent to leave isolated hollows in
fields in winter without a ready means of
getting rid of every torrent of surface-
water that may fall unexpectedly. Let,
therefore, as many i)loughs remain in the
field as will plough the headridges in a
projjer manner, with the assurance that
the ground which lies dry all winter may be
worked a w^eek, ore ven two, earlier in spring.
783. The ploughing of headridges for
the winter requires some consideration.
In stubble, should the former ploughing
have been casting with or without a gore-
furrow, reversing it will leave a ridge on
each side of the field, which will be most
conveniently ploughed along with the head-
ridges by the plough going round parallel
to all the fences of the field, and laying
the furrow-slices towards them. The
same plan might be adopted in ploughing
lea in the same circumstances. Should the
ploughing in stubble have been a cleaving
down with or without gore-furrows, the
headridges should be cloven down v/ith' a
gore-furrow along the ends of the ridges,
and mould-furrowed in the crowns. On
the ridges being ploughed crown-and-fur-
row, the headridges may be gathered up
in early and late lea-ploughing, and in
stubble, cloven dov/u without a gore-fur-
row along the ends of the ridges. The
half- ridge on each side of the field may be
ploughed by going the half of every bout
empty; but a better plnn would be, if the
ridges icere short, to plough half of each"
headridge towards the ends of the ridges,
going the round of the field, and passing
up and down the half-ridges at the sides
empty, and then to plough the half-ridges
with the other half of the headridges in
a circuit, laying the furrow-slice still to-
wards the ridges, and which would have
the effect of casting the headridges to-
wards the ends of the ridges, and of draw-
ing the soil from the ditches or fences to-
wards the ridges. When the ridges have
been ploughed in a completed form in lea,
the headridges of clay soils should be
gathered up, by making an open feering
along the crowns.
784. A difference of opinion is enter-
tained by agricultural writers, of the
186
PRACTICE— ^VINTER.
manner in which a species of headriJgc
should be formed, whose site is where, by
reason of irregularities in the feuccs or
surface of the ground, or length of the
ridges, the ridges from other directions
than one meet in a common line. The
question is, whether those ridges should
meet in an imaginary line or at a com-
mon headridge? It is the opinion of
some that the part Mhere the opposite sets
of furrows meet, may be made an open
furrow, or a raised up ridge or headland,
as circumstances may require. When
ridges meet from opposite directions, it is
clear they cannot be ploughed at the same
time without the risk of the horses en-
countering one another upon a common
headridge ; and where no headridge
exists, should one set of ridges be ploughed
before the other, in the ploughing of the
second set, the end of the ploughed land
of the first will be completely trampled
upon. There should, therefore, be one
headridge at least between two sets of
ridges, that one set may be ploughed be-
fore the other. But the most independent
way, in all respects, with such an arrange-
ment of ridges, is to treat each set as if it
belonged to a separate field, and give each
a headridge of its own.
785. Whatever mode of ploughing the
land is subjected to, you should take care,
when ploughed for a winter-furrow, that
the furrow-slice is of the requisite depth,
whether of 5 inches on the oldest lea, or
7 inches on the most friable ground ; and
also of the requisite breadth of 9 inches in
the former and 10 in the latter; but as
ploughmen incline to hold a shallow and
broad furrow, to make the labour easier
to themselves, and to go over the ground
quickly, there is no likelihood of their mak-
ing too narrow a furrow. A furrow-slice in
red land should never be less than 9
inches in breadth and 6 inches in depth
on the strongest soil, and 10 inches in
breadth and 7 inches in depth on lighter
soils. On clay soil, that has lain long in
grass, 9 inches in breadth and 5 inches in
depth is as large a furrow-slice as may be
obtained; but on lighter soil, with younger
grass, one of 10 incliesby 6, and even 7, is
easily turned over. At all seasons, espe-
cially in a winter-furrow, you should esta-
blish for yourself a character of a deep and
correct plougher.
786. I have sufficiently evinced my
preference for the rectangular furrow-slice,
and this I do on the broad principle that
deep-ploughing ought to be the rule, and
any other jtractice the exception. Ac-
cording to the rule of some farmers, the
exception may be practised in many -cases.
787. Shallow ploughing is considered
admissible in the case of a field that has
been depastured by sheep, and is simply to
be ploughed for the seed-furrow. The
reason usually assigned for this is, that
the droppings of the sheep, forming only a
top-dressing, would be buried so deep
that, as a manure, they would be placed
beyond the reach of the plants composing
the crop that had been sown upon the field.
While I allow that a shallow furrow is ad-
missible in such a case, the reasons assigned
for it by practical men, though seemingly
plausible, may be called in question. Thus,
it is well known that the roots of vege-
tables in general push themselves out in
pursuit of their nutriment, and with an
instinctive perseverance will pass over
or through media which aflbrd little
or no nutriment, in order to reach a
medium in which they can luxuriate at
will. With the largest vegetable produc-
tions this is remarkably the case; and
though, amongst those plants which the
farmer cultivates, the necessity of hunt-
ing, as it were, for food cannot occur to a
great extent, yet we are aware that the
roots of the cereal grasses extend from 6
to 12 or more inches; and there is good
reason to believe that their length depends
upon the depth of the penetrable soil, and
that the luxuriance of growth in the
plant will in general be in proportion to
that depth, soil and climate being the
same.
788. Another plea of exception to deep
ploughing, is in some parts of fallow
ploughing, where a deep furrow might be
injurious; and these occur in the later
part of the process.
789. A third is for a seed-furrow, though
in many cases this is doubtfully beneficial.
790. A fourth exception is when the
soil is naturally thin, and the subsoil in-
ferior. A shallow seed-i\iTxovf is allowable
in such a case.
OCCUPATION OF THE STEADING IN WINTEK.
187
791. In some of the clay districts, a
system of shallow and narrow ploughing
is practised, under the impression that the
exposure of the soil, thus cut up m thm
slices, tends more to its amelioration than
when cut deep and broad. The impres-
sion may, to a certain extent, be correct,
as a certain portion of the soil thus treated
will doubtless undergo a stage of improve-
ment; but, allowing that it does so, the
improvement is but a half measure, boils
of this kind are frequently deep, and,
though apparently poor, they afford the
stamina out of which may be formed the
best artificial soils— the clay loam— which
may be brought about by the due appli-
cation of manure, and a proper, well-
directed, and continued system of plough-
ing. On lands of this kind, deep plough-
ing will always be attended with beneficial
effects; and instead of the apparently thm
and hungry soil which the shallow system
is sure to perpetuate, the result might be a
deep and strong clay loam. To effect this,
however, no expense or labour should be
spared ; the draining should be efficient,
and the manure, especially those sub-
stances which tend to sharpen and render
clay porous, should be abundantly sup-
plied.
792. The most extensive departure from
the rule of deep ploughing is admissible
in those lands where a naturally thm
soil rests on a subsoil of sand or gravel
variously impregnated with oxides of iron.
To plough deep at o^ice in such situations
might run the risk of injury to the scanty
quantity of soil naturally existing. But
it is to "be observed of soils of this kind,
that the subsoil has always a tendency to
pan ; and if such does exist, deep ploughing
alone, in the form of subsoil ploughing,
will destroy the pan,— the frequent cause
of sterility in^oils of this kind,— by break-
ing it up and exposing it to the air, a way
of°ameliorating both soil and subsoil.
793. There appears, in short, every rea-
son for inculcating deep ploughing, not
only where existing circumstances admit of
its adoption, but w'here its ultimate effects
are likely to induce a gradual improve-
ment of the soil and all its products, admit-
ting always that a variation in depth is
proper and necessary under the varying
circumstances of crops and seasons.
ON THE OCCUPATION OF THE STEADING IN
WINTER.
794. Long before the ploughing of the
stubble-land has been finished, the grass
will have failed to support the live-stock,
and accommodation must be afforded them
in the steading, where they require con-
stant attention and care.
795. As a farm of mixed husbandry
comprises every variety of culture, so its
steading should be constructed to aford
accommodation for every variety of pro-
duce. The grain and its straw, being im-
portant and bulky articles, should be ac-
commodated with room as well after ai3
before they are separated by thrashing.
Room should also be provided for every
kind of food for animals, such as hay and
turnips. Of the animals themselves, tho
horses being constantly in hand at work,
and receiving their food daily at regular
intervals of time, should have a stabhh
which will not only afford them lodging,
but facilities for consuming their food.
Similar accommodation is required for
cows, the breeding portion of cattle.
Young cattle, when small of size and of
immature age, are usually reared in en-
closed open spaces, called courts, having
sheds for shelter and troughs for food and
water. Those fattening for sale are either
put into small courts with troughs, called
hammels, or fastened to stakes in byres or
feedins-houses, like the cows. Young
horses" are reared either by themselves in
courts with sheds and mangers, or get
leave to herd with the young cattle.
Youne pigs usually roam about every
where", and generally lodge amongst the
litter of the young cattle; whilst sows
with sucking pigs are provided with small
enclosures, fitted up with a littered apart-
ment at one end, and troughs for food at
the other. The smaller implements of hus-
bandry, when not in use, are put into a
suitable apartment; whilst the carts are
provided with a shed, into which some of
the larger implements, which are only
occasionally used, are stored by. Wool is
put into a cool clean room. An apart-
ment containing a furnace and boiler, to
heat water and prepare food when required
for any of the animals, should never be
wanting in any steading. These are the
principal accommodations required in a
188
PRACTICE— WINTER.
steading where live-stock arc housed; and
even in tlie most convenient arrangement
of the apartments, the entire building
will cover a considerable space of
ground.
79fi. Tlic leading principle on which
these arrangements is determined is very
simple, and it is tiiis— and it may be easily
understood by placing before you Plate II.,
containing the ground-plan of a steading
suited to a farm of 500 acres, occupied in
the i)ractice of the mixed husbandry, with
the names of the several apartments
written in them: — Straw being the
bulkiest article on the farm, heavy and
nnwieldy, in daily use by every kind of
live-stock, and having to be carried and
distributetl in small quantities by bodily
labour, should be centrical ly placed, and
at a short distance from the apartments
of the stock. Its receptacle, the stratc-
barn, should thus occupy the central
point of the steading ; and the several
apartments of the live-stock be placed
equidistant from it.
797. That so bulky and heavy an
article as straw should in all circumstances
be moved to short distances, and not at
all, if possible, from any other apartment
but the straw-barn, the thrashing-inachinc^
which supplies the straw from the grain,
should be so placed as to throw the straw
into the straw-barn.
798. The stack-yard, containing the
unthrashed straw with its corn, should be
placed contiguous to the thrashing-
machine.
799. The pas.^nge of straw from the
stack-yard to the strav.--bar:i ilirough the
thrashing-machine beinir 'liioctly pro-
gressive, the stack-yard, t'i;i:'shing-mill,
and straw-barn should l>o j lace<l in a
line, and in the order jjist mtMitioned.
800. Different classes of stock require
different quantities of straw, to maintain
them in the same degree of cleanliness
and condition. Those retjuiring the most
should therefore be placed nearest the
straw-barn. The younger stock requiring
most straw, the courts they occupy should
be contiguous to the straw-barn, and most
conveniently one on each side of it.
801. The older or fattening cattle re-
quiring the next largest quantity of straw,
the hammels they occupy should be placed
next to these courts in nearness to the
straw-barn.
802. Horses in the stable.", and cows in
the byres, requiring the smallest quantity
of straw, the stables and byres may be
placed next farthest in distance to the
hammels from the straw-barn. The rela-
tive positions of all these apartments are
thus determined by the comparative u.se
made of the straw by their occupants.
803. There are two apartments whcso
positions are nece.ssarily determined by
that of the thrashing-machine, the one the
U])per, or thrashing-barn, which contains
the unthrashed corn received from the
stack-yard, and ready for thrashing by
the mill ; and the other the corn-barn,
below the mill, which receives the corn
immediately after its separation from the
straw by the mill to be cleaned for market.
804. It is a great convenience for the
granaries to be in direct comnmnication
with the corn-barn, to save the labour of
carrying the clean corn to a distance when
laid uj) for future use. To confine the
extent of ground occupied by the steading
in as small a space as practicable, and at
the same time secure the good condition
of the grain, the granaries should be ele-
A-ated above the ground, and their floors
form convenient roofs fur cattle or cart-
slieds.
S0.j. The elevation which the granaries
thus give to a j)art of the buildings
should cause this part to shelter the cattle-
courts from the N. wind in winter; and,
to secure a still greater degree (.f Avarmth
fur the cattle, their courts should be open
to the sun. The courts being open to the
S., and the granaries forming a screen
from the N., it follows that the ::ranaries
should stand E. and W. on the N . side of
the courts; and as it has been shown that
the cattle-courts should be placoil one on
each side of the straw-barn, it al.<o follows
that the straw- barn should stand N. and S.,
that is, at right angles to the S. of the
granaries. The fixing of the straw-barn
thus to the S. of the granaries and the
thrashing-machine, the stack-yard is
PULLING OF TUKNIPS.
189
necessarily fixed to the N. of both ; and its
northern aspect is highly favourable to the
preservation of the corn in the stacks.
806. Many existing steadings have a
very different arrangement from this; buti
may safely assert, that tlie greater the devia-
tion from the princij^lcs above inculcated,
the less suitable are they as habitations
for live-stock in winter. It seems unne-
cessary to refer farther to the steading
for the present. I shall describe the par-
ticulars of its construction as they occur
in the course of observation.
807. When the CA'enings become cold
before the grass is entirely consumed in
the fields, the cattle are housed in the
steading for the night, and let out into
the fields during the day. Cows, giving
milk, are housed at night as soon as the
evenings feel cool, as a low tempera-
ture is injurious to the functions of the
secretory organs, exposed as these are to
so large an extent in the udder of the cow ;
while the same temperature would not
affect the other classes of cattle, though
the younger cattle are commonly allowed
to remain too long in the field after the
grass has failed.
ON PULLING AND STORING TURNIPS, MAN-
GOLD-WURTZEL,CARROTS, PARSNIPS, AND
CABBAGE FOR CONSUMPTION IN WINTER.
808. As soon as the grass has failed,
and it is found necessary to keep any
portion of the cattle constantly in the
steading, turnips should be provided for
them in requisite quantities, and the
method of supply should be gone about in
a systematic manner.
SO!). When diff'ereut sorts of live-stock
are supported on the same farm, as is tlie
case ill the mixed husbandry, the sheep
are provided with the turnips they consume
upon the ground on which they grow.
This saves the trouble of carrying off a
large proportion of the crop, so the labour
of removing it is confined to the propor-
tion consumed in the steading by the cattle.
The proportion thus carried off" is not
taken from the ground at random, but
according to a systematic method, pre-
viously determined on, and which requires
jour attention to understand.
810. One object in leaving turnips on
the ground for sheep is, to afford a greater
qihintity of manure to the soil than it
received in its preparation for the turnip
crop ; and as sheep can withstand winter
weather in the fields, and they are not too
heavy for the ground, they are selected to
consume them on it ; and it is a convenient
method of feeding sheep, aff'ording them
ample accommodation, giving them their
food on the spot, and returning it again to
the land in the form of manure.
811. It has been found, by experience,
that more than half of a fair crop of turnips
consumed on the ground by sheep leaves
more manure than is proper for the ground
to receive at one time for the succeeding
grain crop ; and the too great effect is
evinced by the crop being laid to the ground
for want of strength in the straw, and
the ears not being filled with sound grain ;
but the proportion removed is entirely
regulated by the state of the soil and
crop, as may be seen by this statement.
The usual proportion pulled of a good crop
is one-half, but should the soil be in low
condition, a third only is removed, and if
in fine condition, two-thirds or even three-
fourths may be pulled; but the quantities
thus jjulled depend upon the bulk of the
crop. If the crop is very large, and the
ground in fine condition, two-thirds may
be pulled ; but it is rarely the case that
the soil is so rich, and the crop so large,
as to make a half too large a proportion to
be left on the ground. If the crop is poor,
one-third only should be pulled, and a
very poor crop should be wholly eaten
on, whatever condition the soil may be in.
Another consideration, materially aff"ectiug
the quantity to be left on the ground,
is, the occurrence of a poor crop of turnips
over the whole farm. Hitherto I have
only been speaking of that part of the
cropof turnips to be usedbj'' the sheep, but
when the entire crojj is so bad as to be in-
sufficient to maintain all the stock fully,
the proportion to be consumed by the
sheep and cattle respectively should be
determined on at once, and maintained
throughout the season. In such a case,
neither the sheep nor cattle can be fattened
on turnips ; and other expedients must be
resorted to to do so, if desired; and, if
not desired, the stock must be left in a
lean state. The economical plan is, to
allow the sheep to get as many turnips aa
190
PRACTICE— AVTNTER.
Avill feed llicm, and to fccfl tlie cattle on
the roniaindcr of the crop, alon^ with oil-
cake or corn, because oil-cake can bo
more easily carried to the steading than
turnips. Thus, considerations are re-
quired to determine the jiroportion of the
turnip crop to be pulled ; but the standard
proportion is one -half, and when that
Fig
(piantity is deviated from, it sliould be
from such urgent circumstances as those
mentioned.
812. Fig. 31 shows how turnips are
stripped oft' the ground in the various pro-
portions enumerated above. The half can
be pulled in various ways, but not all
31.
THE METHODS OF STRirPING THE GROUN
alike beneficial to the land : for example,
it can be done by leaving 2 drills a and
taking away 2 drills b ; or by taking away
3 drills e and leaving 3 drills /; or by
taking away 6 drills i and leaving 6 drills
h ; or by taking away 1 drill / and leaving
1 drill k. Though the same result is at-
tained in all these difl'erent w'ays, in as
far as the turnips are concerned, there are
cogent reasons against them all except
the one which leaves 2 drills a and takes
away 2 drills b ; because, when one drill
only is left, as a*^i /, the sheep have
not room to stand while eating, nor lie
down with ease between k and m, and
because sufficient room is not left for a
horse and cart to ])ass along I, without
injuring the turnips on either side with
the horses' feet or the cart wheels ; Avhcre-
as, when 2 or more drills are pulled, as at
e, and only 2 left, as at a, the sheep have
room to stand and eat on either side of the
turnips, and tlie cart passes easily along
6 or c without injuring the turnips, as the
horse walks up the centre unoccupied
hollow of the drills, and the wheels
occupy an unoccupied hollow on each side.
*•♦*•* X -a
» * f « s *
ar ic k r * *
a T *i * * *
* *■ I :k X *
If »^ X .« X *
Xt X *- %- *
* •»£. it « *
.**:*«'?
^ id *. X. ^
t* * *L ii
.* * :t * *
-*. i* ,* *
*,i* *>«
-*- **:\*.\
D OF TCRNIPS IN ANY GIVEN PROPORTIONS.
Again, when 3 drills are left, as at/, the
sheep injure the turnips of the two outside
rows to reach the middle one; and they
will commit much more injury to turnips
left in 6 drills, as at //. Tiiis latter mode,
when practised on light soils, is observed
to aftect the succeeding grain crop, which
is never so good on the ground occu{)icd
by the turnips. When other proportions
are determined on, one-third m.ay be
easily left, by pulling 2 drills, as at b, and
leaving 1, as at r ; and one-fourth may be
left, by pulling 3 drills, as at e, and leaving
1, as at f ; and three-fifths may be left,
by pulling 2 as at cf, and leaving 3, as at/.
Whatever j)ro]tortion may be removed, the
rule of having 2 em])ty drills for the
horses and carts to pass along when taking
away the pulled turni{)S, without injury to
the turnips, should never be violate<l.
8 1 3. The perfect convenience of the plan
of leaving 2 and taking 2 drills, when the
half of the crop is to be eaten on, will be
best shown in fig. 32, where the <lrill8
are represented on a larger scale than in
this fiirure. One field- worker clears 2
PULLING OF TUKNIPS.
191
drills at a, and another simultaneously as at c and d, amongst the standing turnips
other 2 at 5; and in doing so, the turnips of the 2 drills e and /, on the right hand
are placed m heaps at regular distances, of one worker, and on the left of the other;
Fig. 32.
THK METHOD OP PULLING TURNIPS IN PREPARATION FOR STORING.
and thus every alternate 2 drills left un
pulled become the receptacle of the tur-
nips pulled by every 2 workers. The cart
then passes along a or h, without touching
the turnips in e and g, or in / and A, and
clears away the heaps in the line of c d.
In the figure the turnips are represented
much thinner on the ground than they
usually grow, in order to make the parti-
culars more conspicuous ; but the size of
the bulb in proportion to the wdth of the
drills is preserved both in the drills and
the heaps. The seats of the pulled turnips
are shown upon the bared drills.
814. The most common state in which
turnips are placed in the temporary heaps, c
and d, is with their tops on, and the tails or
roots cut aw^y. The cleanest state for the
turnips themselves, and the most nutri-
tious for cattle, is to take away both the
tops and tails. Many farmers have the
idea, that turnip- tops make good feeding for
young beasts or calves at the beginning
of the season, — not from the knowledge
that the tops contain a larger proportion
of bone-producing matter than the bulbs,
as chemical analysis informs us, but from
a desire to keep the turnips for the larger
beasts, and to rear the young ones in
any way;^ but the notion is a mistaken
one, as might easily be proved by giving
one lot of calves turnip-tops and another
bulbs without tops, when the latter will
present a superiority in a short time, both
in bone and flesli. No doubt the large quan-
tity of watery juice the tops contain at
this season makes the young cattle devour
them with eagerness on coming off a bare
pasture, and indeed any cattle will eat
the tops before the turnijis, when both are
presented together ; but observation and
experience confirm me in the opinion that
the time of cattle in consuming turnip-tops
is worse than thrown away ; inasmuch as
tops, in their cleanest state, are apt to pro-
duce looseness in the bowels, partly, per-
haps, from the sudden change of food from
grass to a very succulent vegetable, and
partly from the dirty, wetted, or frosty
state in which tops are usually given to
beasts. This looseness never fails to brino-
down the condition of cattle in so consi-
derable a degree, that part of the winter
passes away before they entirely recover
form the shock their system has received.
Like my neighbours, I was impressed with
the economic idea of using turnip-tops,
but their weakening eflfects upon young
cattle caused me to desist from their use ;
192
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and fortunate was the result, as ever after
their abandonment the calves throve apace.
A few tops inav be given to young cattle
•with impunity along witli straw, but that
few will starve, not feed or rear, young
cattle. The tops are not thrown away,
when sj>read upon the ground, as they
serve to manure it. I have no hesitation
in recommending the tops and tails to be
left in the field. Sheep are not so easily
injured by them as cattle, on account,
perhaps, of their costive habit ; and j>cr-
liaps in spring, when turnips are naturally
le-^s juicy, tops might be of service as a
gentle aperient, but at that season, when
they niiglit be most useful, they arc the
most scanty and fibrous.
815. The tops aud tails of turnips are
easily removed by means of very simple
instruments. Figs. 33 and 34 represent
these instru- p; 33 p. ^
ments m their
simplest form,
fig. 33 being an
old scythe reap-
ing hook, with
the point brok-
en off. This
makes a light
instruraent,and
answers the
purpose pretty
weU; but fig.
34 is better.
It is made of '^■•'^*^*'^^^ ^""^ another in-
. TOPPING AND RTRUMENT
ttie point of a tailing tlr- for the
wornoutpatent >''ip»- same plr-
scythe, the very ''°^*-
point being broken off, and the iron back
to which the blade is riveted driven
into a helve protected by a fcfule. This
is ratlier heavier than the other, and on
that account removes the top more easily.
81G. A gujieriur instrument to either
has lately been contrived by Mr James
Kinninmonth, at Invtrteil in Fife, and its
form is seen in fig. 3 j, under the name of
the "Turnip trimming-knife." The ne-
cessity for another instrument of the kind
arises from the fact, that when the top of
a turnip has dwindled into a comparatively
small size, it affords but an inadequate
hold for pulling the turnip from the
ground ; and when the attempt is felt by
Fie. 35.
TURNIP trimming-knife.
the worker likely
to fail, she natu-
rally striked the
point of the in-
strument into the
bulb to assist her,
and the conse-
quence is, that
a deep gash is
made in the tur-
nip, which, being
stored for months,
generally suffers
in its useful quali-
ties, by producing
premature decay
in the wounded
part. In fig. 3.3,
a is the handle, b
the cutting edge,
steeled and pro-
perly tempered, aud c an appendage
welded to the extremity of the back,
in the form of a narrow edge or hoe. If
the turnip requires any effort to draw it,
the front of the hoe c is inserted gently
under the bulb, and the operation of lifting
it is effected with the greatest ea.^e and cer-
tainty. Tiie price of this knife, when made
on purpose, is Is. 6d., but, were it brought
out as a regular article of manufacture, it»
price might be considerably le:>s.*
817. The mode of using these instru-
ments in the removal of the tops and tails
of turnips is this : The field-worker moves
along between the two drills of turnips
to be drawn, at a, fig. 32, and pulling a
turnip with the left hand by the top from
either drill, holds the bulb in a horizontal
direction, as iu fig. 36, over and between
Fig. 35.
MODE OF TOPPING AND TAILING TURNIPS.
' TransactloHi oftht Uijhland and AgnaUtural SoeUt]/ for July 1844, p. 286.
PULLING AND STORING TURNIPS.
193
the drills e and/, fig. 32, and with the hook
or knife described, first takes off the root
at h with a small stroke, and then cuts off
the top at a, between the turnip and the
hand, with a sharper one, on which the
turnip falls down into the heap c or c?,
whic»Lever is forming at the time. Thus,
pulling one or two turnips from one drill,
and then as many from the other, the two
drills may be cleared. Another field-
worker acts as a companion to this one, by
going up 6, pulling the turnips from the
drills on eithei side of her, and dropping
them, topped and tailed, into the same
heaps as her companion. The tops are
scattered upon the cleared ground. A left
and a right-handed field-worker get on best
together at this work.
8i6. Due care is requisite, on removing
the tops and tails, that none of the bulb be
cut by the instrument, as the juice of the
turnip will exude through the incision.
When turnips are to be consumed imme-
diately, an incision does no harm ; but
the slicing off a portion, and hacking the
skin of the bulb, indicates carelessness,
and, if persevered in, will confirm into a
habit.
817. When two-thirds of the turnips
are drawn at h, and one-third left, c, the
field-worker goes up h, fig. 31, and, pall-
ing the 2 drills there, drops the prepared
turnips between c and d. When three-
fourths are pulled, as at e, and one-fourth
left, as at c, the turnips may still be dropped
in the same place between c and </, the field-
worker pulling all the 3 drills herself, and
the horse walking alonge when taking them
away. When 3 drills are pulled, as at e,
and 3 left, as at /, the same field-worker
pulls all the 3 drills, and drops the turnips
along the outside row next herself of those
that are left in /. When three-fifths are
left, as at/, and two-fifths pulled, as at </,
the field-worker pulls the 2 drills at y, and
drops the turnips between the two rows
next her of/. When six drills are pulled,
as at i, 3 women work abreast, each pull-
ing 2 drills, and all three drop the turnips
into the same heap, in front of the woman
in the middle. This plan has the sole
advantage of collecting a large quantity
of turnips in one place, and causing little
carting upon the land. When the field is
intended to be entirely cleared of turnips,
VOL. I.
the clearance is begun at the side nearest
the gate, and carried regularly on from
top to bottom of the field — the nearest part
of the crop being cleared when the weather
is least favourable, and the fartl.tst when
most so. The workers are all abreast.
818. When a field is begun to be stripped
for sheep, that part should be first chosen
which will afford them shelter whenever
the weather becomes coarse. A planta-
tion, a good hedge, a bank sloping to the
south, or one in a direction opposite to that
from which high winds prevail in the loca-
lity, or a marked inequality in the form of
the ground, will all afford shelter to sheep
in case of necessity. On the sheep clear-
ing the turnips from this part first, it will
always be ready for a place of refuge
against a storm, when required.
819. On removing prepared turnips from
the ground, the carts should be filled by
the field-workers, as many being employed
as will keep them a-going — that is, to have
one cart filled by the time another ap-
proaches the place of work in the field.
If there are more field- workers than will
be required to do this, the remainder should
be employed in topping and tailing. The
topped and tailed turnips should be thrown
into the cart by the hand, and not with
forks or graips ; the cart should be placed
alongside the drill near two or more heaps ;
and the carter should manage the horses
and assist in the filling, until the turnips
rise as high in the cart as to require a little
adjustment from him in heaping, to pre-
vent their falling off in the journey.
820. As it is scarcely probable that there
will be as many fiehl-workers as to top
and tail the turnips, and assist in filling
the cart at the same time, so as to keep
even two carts at work, it will be neces-
sary for them to begin the pulling so much
sooner, — whether one yoking, or a whole
day, or two days, — but so much sooner,
according to the quantity to be carried
away, as to keep the carts a-going when
they begin to drive away the turnips; for
it imi)lies bad management at all times to
let horses wait longer in the field than the
time occupied in filling a cart. And yet
how common it is to see horses waiting
until the turnips are pulled, and tailed, and
thrown into the cart, by, perhaps, only two
N
194
rRACTICE— AVIXTER.
women, the carter buiUiug tbem up not
as fast as he can get tlieni, but as slow as
he can induce the women to give them.
The driving away shouhl not commence at
all until a sufficient quantity of turnips is
prepared to employ at least two carts, one
yoking; nor more turnips than will
employ that number of carts for that
time, should be allowed to lie upon the
ground before being carried away, in case
frost or rain should prevent the carts
entering the field for a time.
821. Dry weather should be chosen for
the pulling of turnips, not merely for the
sake of keeping the turnips clean, but for
that of the land, which ought not to be
cut up and poached by the cart-wheels and
horses' feet ; because, when so cut, the
sheep have a very uncomfortable laii", and
the ruts form receptacles for water, not
soon emptied ; for let the land be ever so
•Nvell drained, its nature cannot be entirely
changed — clay will always have a ten-
dency to retain water on its surface, and
soil every thing that touches it, and deep
loam and black mould will still be pene-
trated by horses' hoofs, and rise in large
masses, with the wheels, immediately
after rain. No turnijis should therefore
be led off fields during, or immediately
after severe rain ; nor should they be
pulled at all, until the ground has again
become consolidated ; and as they cannot
be pulled in frost, and if they are urgently
required from the field in any of these
states of weather, a want of foresight is
evidently manifested by the farmer and
his manager.
822. In commencing the pulling of
turnips, one of the fields to be occupied
by the sheep should first be stripped to
provide a break for them whilst on pasture,
to be ready to be taken possession of be-
fore tlHj pasture becomes bare.
■823. On the weather proving unfavour-
able at the commencement of the operation,
that is, too wet or too frosty, or an im-
portant operation intervening — such as the
wheat-seed, no more turnips should be
pulled and carried off than will sufiice for
the daily consumption of the cattle in the
steading ; but, whenever the ground is dry
at top and firm, and the air fresh, no op-
portunity should be neglected of storing
as large a quantity as possible. This
is a very importaut point of management,
and, as I conceive, too much neglected by
most farmers, who frequently ])rovide no
more than the quantity of food daily re-
quired. Some employ one or two carts an
afternoon's yoking, to bring in as n*ny
turnips as will serve the cattle for two
or three days at most, and these are brought
in with the tops on, after much time has
been spent in the field in waiting for their
pulling and tailing. This is a slovenly
mode of providing provender for cattle.
To provide turnips in the best state, iude-
jicndent of the states of the weather, should
be regarded a work of the first importance
in winter; and it can only be done by
storing a considerable quantity in good
weather, to be used when bad weather
comes. When a store is prepared, the
mind remains easy as to the state of the
weather, and having a store does not pre-
vent you taking supplies from the field as
long as the weather permits the ground to
be carted upon with impunity, to be im-
mediately consumed or to augment the
store. I believe no farmer would dissent
from this truth ; and yet many violate it
in their practice ! Tlic excuse most ready
to be offered is the want of time to store
turnips when the potato-land should be
ploughed and sown with wheat ; or when
the beasts are doing well enough yet upon
the pasture ; or when the turnips still con-
tinue to grow. The potato-land should be
sown ; and, after a late harvest, it may be
so after the pasture has failed ; but the
other excuses, founded on the growing
state of the turnips and rough state of the
pastures, are of no force when adduced
against the risk of reducing the condition
of the stock. Rather than incur such a
risk, give up the rough pasture to the
sheep. The ewes may require it.
824. The storing of turnips is well done
in this manner. Choose a piece of lea
ground, convenient of access to carts, near
the steading, for the site of the store, and,
if possible, in an adjoining field, on a 15-
feet ridge, running N. and S. Fig. 37
gives the form of the turnip-store. The
cart with the topped and tailed tu *iips is
backed to the spot of the ridge chosen to
begin the store, and there emptied of its
contents. The ridge being 15 feet wide,
the store should not exceed 10 feet iu
PULLING AND STORING TURNIPS.
195
width at the bottom, to allow a space of
at least 2i feet on each side towards the
open furrow of the ridge, for the convey-
ance of water. The turnips may be piled
Fig. 37.
THE TRIANGULAR TURNIP-STORE.
up to the height of 4 feet ; but will not
pile to 5 feet on that width of base. The
store may thus be formed of any length ;
but it is more desirable to make two or
three stores on adjoining ridges, than a
very long one on the same ridge, as its
farthest end may be too far off to use a
wheel-barrow to remove the stored turnips.
Straw drawn out lengthwise is put from 4
to 6 inches thick above the turnips for
thatch, and kept down by means of straw
ropes arranged lozenge-shaped, and fas-
tened to pegs driven in a slanting direction
in the ground, along the base of the straw,
as may be distinctly seen in the figure.
Or a spading of earth, taken from the fur-
row, may be placed upon the ends of the
ropes to keep them down. The straw is
not intended to keep out either rain or
air — for both are requisite to preserve the
turnips fresh — but to protect them from
frost, which causes rottenness, and from
drought, which shrivels turnips. To
avoid frost, the end, and not the side,
of the store should be presented to the
N., from whence frost may be expected
most to come. If the ground is so flat, and
the open furrows so nearly on a level
with the ridges, as that a fall of rain might
overflow the bottom of the store, a furrow-
slice, in that case, should be taken out
of the open furrows by the plough, a gaw-
cut made with the spade, and the earth
used to keep down the ropes.
825. When the turnips are to be used
from the store in hard frost, the straw on
the S. end is removed, as seen in fig. 37,
and a cart, or the cattle-man's capacious
light wheel-barrow, backed to it ; and,
after the requisite quantity for the day
has been removed, it is replaced over the
turnips.
8 26. Some people evince a desire to
place a turnip-store in the stack-yard, on
account, perhaps, of protection from frost
by the stacks, but a stack-yard has not
sufficient room in the beginning of winter
for the turning of carts. I have seen tur-
nips stored up between two stacks in the
early part of the season, only as a tem-
porary expedient until straw was thrashed
out.
827. There are other forms of store
which will preserve turnips fresh and good
for a considerable time. I have seen
turnips heaped about 3 feet in height,
quite flat on the top, upon the ground, and
covered with loose straw, and though rain
passed through them readily, they kept
very well.
828. A plan has been tried to pull them
from the field in which they have grown,
and set them upright with their tops on in
another field, in a furrow made with the
plough, and then to cover the bulbs with
the next furrow-slice.
829. Another is, to pull the turnips, as
in the former case, and carry them to a
bare or lea field, and set them upright
beside one another, as close as they can
stand, with their tops and roots on.
830. No doubt, both these plans will
keep turnips fresh enough, and an area of
I acre will thus contain the growth of 4
196
PRACTICE— WINTER.
or 5 acres of the field ; but turnips cannot
be 60 secure from frost in those positions
as in a store ; and after the trouble of
lifting and carrying them has been in-
curred, it is much easier to take them
to a store at once, where they would
always be at hand, than take them first
to, and bring them again from, another
field ; and even if they were so set in a
field adjoining the steading, they would
occupy a much larger space than any
store.
831. Objectionable as these plans are,
compared to triangular or flat-topped
stores, they are better than storing turnips
in houses, where they engender heat and
sprout on the toji, and never fail to be-
come rotten at the bottom of the bin.
Piling them against a high wall, and
thatching them like a to-fall, preserves
them very little better than in an outhouse.
832. Turnips put into pits dug in the
ground, and covered with earth, have
failed to be preserved.
833. A plan has been recommended to
drive stakes 2^ feet high into the ground,
and wattle them together with brushwood,
making an enclosure of three sides, in the
interior of which the turnips are packed,
and piled up to a point and thatched, like
the store in fig. 37 ; and the turnips are
represented as keeping fresh in such a
structure until June ; and one advantage
attending the plan is said to be, that
"where room is rather limited in the rick-
yard, one pile of this description will con-
tain 3 times as much as one of those placed
on the ground of a triangular shape; and
the saving of thatch is also considerable."
But, as it appears to me, the providing of
stakes and tiie trouble of wattling to form
an enclosure, will far more than counter-
balance any advantage of space or saving
of straw for thatch, comjuired with the
simple mode I have described in fig. 37 ;
but no necessity exists for having a turnip-
store in a rick -yard.
834. In pulling mangold-wurtzcl, care
should be taken to do as little injury to
the roots as possible. Cleansing with the
knife should on no account be permitted;
and rather leave some of the leaf on than
injure the crown of the root in any way.
The drier the weather is the better for
storing the crop, though the roots will not
be injured in the store by a little earth
adhering to them in wet weather. The
roots are best prejiarcd for the store by
twisting ofi' the top with the hand,
as a mode of preventing every risk of
injuring the root. Mangold-wurtzel not
being able to withstand frost, the croj>
must be entirely cleared from the field
before its aj)peanxnce; and the best way
of pulling them is in the order indicated
in fig 32, at a, where two drills are pulled
by one Avorker, and the adjoining two drills
by another; and the trimmed roots placed
in heaps in the hollow intermediate to the
four drills, the leaves being also thrown
into heaps between the roots. " The
leaves, thus treated, when intended to be
fed either by sheep folded on land, or
carted ofi' and thrown on pastures for
cattle or sheep, are always clean and fit
food for stock, which they are not when
thrown over the land and trampled on.
Besides this, the beet which has been
palled, and not carted during the day,
should always be covered the last thing
before leaving for the night, and the leaves,
being laid conveniently in heaps, are used
for that purpose. Mangold-wurtzel stand-
ing on the ground, and protected by the
broad leaves, will stand a frost (if not
very severe) witiiout injury, but a very
slight frost will damage those roots which
are pulled ; therefore it is a wise precau-
tion to cover up the roots that are left at
night." If the leaves are not desired to
be used as food, they may be scattered over
the ground.
S35. On removing any roots, the cart
goes up between two rows of pulled roots,
and thereby clears a space at once of the
breadth of eight ilrills. In this manner
the work proceeds expeditiously, and with
as little injury to the land by trampling
as possible. To save the land still fartiier,
the carts should always be driven up an<l
down the drills and not across them,
whether going Avith a load or returning
emj)ty. The pulling and driving a good
crop of 20 tons of mangold-wurtzel is stated
to cost from !)d.tols. per ton, and a bad crop
will cost considerably more. " In a wet
season, the removal of a croj) of beet from
a retentive soil is frequently injurious, by
the necessary treading in carrying the
crop: in extreme cases this may be en-
tirely obviated by removing the crop by
VARIETIES OF TURNIPS.
197
manual labour; and though tlie soil be
not of that reteutive nature, yet those
who farm wet land have occasionally
recourse to the carrying the crop to heaps
at the side of the field, in baskets, or
wheeling in barrows ; and find that the
cost does not greatly exceetl the carrying
the crop in carts. Planks to wheel upon
would facilitate the operation."
836. The storing of mangold-wurtzel
may be effected in various ways, but in
every case the roots must be secured
against frost, and a thick covering of
straw will eflect the purpose. One plan
is to build up the roots against a wall, and
line the outside of the lieap with hurdles
and straw, and cover it with straw one
foot thick as a thatch.* Another plan is
to pile the roots, like a pit of potatoes, 6
feet in width at the bottom, and 4 feet
high, to the point of the triangular taper,
cover them with straw, and place a stra-
tum of earth over it, taken from each side
of the heap, and leaving the crest of the
triangular heap uncovered with earth, to
act as a ventilator from the roots, through
the straw.t
837. Carrots are also taken up before
the frost appears, and stored for winter
use. They are best taken out of the ground
with a three-pronged fork, when sovrn on
the flat ground, but on drills the plough,
without the coulter, answers tlie purpose
nearly as well, and executes the work much
more expeditiously, though the extremities
of the largest can-ots are broken oflT. On
being taken up in either way the tops are
wrenched off by the hand, and may be
given to the cattle, or strewn over the
ground to be ploughed in.
838. Carrots not being so easily affected
byfrostasmangold-wurtzel,maybe stored in
an outhouse mixed with dry sand, or in a
triangular heap, and covered with straw
only, or with straw and earth.
arfe apt to inflame the udder. The leaves
come in as a convenient auxiliary to grass
at this period ; and, if given moderately,
a good armful per day to each cow will
impart as much richness to the milk as the
parsnip itself." +
840. The ]iarsnip m:iy be taken up from
the flat or the drill and stowed in precisely
the same manner as carrots, not being
much aff'ected by frost, and will keep fresh
in the store until April. Care, however,
should be taken that none of the leaves
remain attached to the roots.
841. Callages should be pulled up by
the roots ; for when the stem is cut over,
and left in the ground, it will sprout out
again, and the aftergrowth will much ex-
haust the soil.
842. In storing cabbages they may be
shoughed into the soil, or, what is better,
hung up by the stems with the head down-
wards, in a shed, where they will keep
fresh for a long time.
ON THE
VARIETIES OP
CULTIVATED.
8S9. " In October, the leaves of the
parsnip, as they he</in to decay, should
be cut oflf and given, when dry, to the
cows : it is important to see that they be
dry, as, when moist from rain or dew, they
* Journal of tie JgriciiUural Society of En jJ and, vol. ii. p
t /6iW, vol. viii. p. 218-221.
+ Lawson's Agriculturists'' Manual, p. 237, and Supplement, p. 49
843. There are a great many more
varieties of turnips cultivated in the coun-
try than seems necessary. Mr Lawson
enumerates and describes no fewer than
46 varieties cultivated in the field; namely
11 of swedes, 17 of yellow, and 18 of
white,§ the names being derived as much
from the colour of the flesh as the skin.
One kind from each of these classes seems
requisite to be cultivated on every farm,
although the yellow is omitted in some dis-
tricts, and the swede in others. Where the
swede is omitted, it has never been culti-
vated, and where the yellow is the favou-
rite, the swede is unknown ; for where it
is known, its culture is never relinquished,
and its extension is nearly overspreading
the yellow, and even curtailing the boun-
dary of the white. Tlie white varieties
come earliest into use, and will always be
esteemed on account of their rapid growth
and early maturity, though unable to
300.
§ lUd.
198
PRACTICE— TVINTER.
withstand severe frost. Being ready for
use as soon as the pasture fails, they atibrd
the earliest support to both cattlo and
sheep; and only such a quantity should
be stored of them as will last to the end
of the year. The yellows then follow, and
last for about 2 mouths, to the end of
February or thereabouts ; and the same
rule of storing them, for a specified time, is
follo\\-ed as with the whites. The swedes
finish the course, and should last until the
grass is able to sujiport the young cattle,
Fig.
to the end of May or beginning of June,
to which period they will continue fresh in
store, if stored in the proper time and
manner as recommended above ; and the
most prt)j)er time for storing them is be-
ft)re vegetation makes any appearance,
in the end of March or beginning of April.
844. Of all the 18 varieties of white
turnips, I should say that the white globe
(Brassica rapa, depi'essa, alba, of De
CandoUe) a, fig. 38, is the best for early
38.
THK WHITE GLOBE TURNIP.
THE PURPLE TOP SWEDISH
TURNIP.
THE ABERDEENSHIRE YELLOW
BULLOCK TURNIP.
maturity, sweetness, juiciness, size of root, 845. I suspect that our crops of white-
weight of crop, and elegance of form. Its globe turnip ordinarily consist of middle-
form is nearly globular, as its name indi- sized bulbs, or they contain many blanks,
Gates; skin smooth, somewhat oily, fine,
and j)erfectly white ; neck of the top and
tap-root small ; leaves long, (frequently 1 8
inches,) upright, and luxuriant. Though
the root does not feel particularly heavy
in the hand, it does not emit a hollow
sound when struck, as the tankard turnip
does; its flesh is somewhat firm, fine-
grained, though distinctly exhibiting fibres
radiating from the centre ; the juice easily
exudes, and the rind is thin. Its specific
gravity was determined by Dr Skene Keith
at 0*840; and its nutritive properties by
Sir Humphry Davy, at 42 parts in 1000;
of which were, of mucilage 7, of sugar 34,
and of albumen or gluten 1.''' Mr Sinclair
mentions this remarkable fact in retrard to
as the following statement will show.
Taking the distance between the turnips
at 9 inches — being that at which white
turnips are usually thinned out — and the
usual distance between the drills at 27
inches, an area of 243 square inches of
ground is allowed for each turnip. Hence
there should be 25,813 turnips per im-
perial acre ; and taking 20 tons per acre
as a fair crop, each turnip thouhl only
weigh 1 lb. .5 oz. ! Now, a size of 0'
inches in diameter overhead may be as-
sumed ; and having the specific gravity
at 0'840, each turnip should weigh 6 lb.,
and the crop 69 tons 2 cwt., instead of
30 tons per acre. The inevitable conclu-
sion is, either that blanks occur to the
the white turnip, that '" the quantity of enormous extent of only 9445 turnips
nutritive matter contained in difi'erent
roots of the same variety varies according
to the size and texture of their substances.
Thus, a root of the white-loaf turnip,
measuring 7 inches in diameter, afforded
only 72;^- grains; while the same quantity
of a root which measured oidy 4 inches,
afforded 80 grains;" and he makes this
important conclusion, that " the middle-
sized roots of the common turnip are there-
fore the most nutritious." t
insteail of 25,813 ; or the average distance
between the turnips must be 20 inches
instead of 9. When actual results fall so
very far short of expectation, the inquiry
is, Whether the great deficiency is occa-
sioned by the death of plants after the
singling process has been completed? or
the average size and weight of each turnip
are much less than we imagine; or the
distance left by the singling is greater
than we desire ? — or from all these causes
* Davy's Aijr'icuUural Chemistry, p. 135, edition of 1839.
t Sinclair's Hortus Gramineus Woburnensis, p. 406-407, edition of 1824.
VARIETIES OF TURNIPS.
199
combined ? From whichever cause, singly
or combined, it is worthy of serious in-
vestigation by the farmer, whether or not
the fate of the crop really depends more
on these occult circumstances than on the
mode of culture ? Let us examiue this a
little: —
846. Weights and sizes of white turnips
have been ascertained with sufficient ac-
curacy. The white globes exhibited at
the show of the Highland and Agricultural
Society at Inverness in October 1839,
gave a girth varying from 28 1 to 34 inches,
and a weight varying still more — from 8
lb. to 15;! lb. each root ; and 3 roots of the
same girth of 30|^ inches, varied in weight
respectively 8 lb., 9f lb., and lU lb.*
After such a statement, our surprise at re-
sults may be moderated, it being evident
that crops of tlie same bulk weigh difl'e-
rently; and turnips from the same field
exhibit different fattening proj^erties ;
and different localities produce turnips of
different bulk. Whence arise so various
results? The above weights are not
the utmost to which this turnip attains,
examples occurring from 18 lb. to 23 lb. ;t
and I have pulled one from amongst
swedes, weighing 29 lbs., including the
top.:}: And yet from 30 to 40 tons per
imperial acre are regarded a good crop of
this kind of turnip.
847. Of the yellow turnip, Mr Lawson
has described 17 varieties, of which per-
haps the greatest favourite is the green-
top Aberdeen Yellow Bullock (Brassica
rapa, depressa, Jlavescens^ of De Candolle.)
This is a good turnip, of the form of an
oblate spheroid, c, fig. 38 ; the colour of the
skin below the ground, as well as of the
flesh, being a deep yellow orange, and
that of the top bright green. The leaves
are about 1 foot long, dark green, rather
soft, spreading over the bulb, and collected
into a small girth at the top of the turnip ;
the tap-root is small. Its specific gravity,
as determined by Dr Keith, is 0.940 ; and
its nutritive property, according to Sin-
clair, is 44 in 1000 parts, of which 4| are
of mucilage, 37f of sugar, and 1^ of bitter
extract or saline matters. This root feels
firm and heavy in the hand, with a smooth
fine skin, the flesh crisp, but not so juicy,
nor the rind so thin as the globe.
848. Selected specimens exhibit a cir-
cumference of from 27 to' 30 inches, with
a weight varying from 6 lb. to 8^ lb., but
specimens may be found weighing from 9
lb. to 11 lb. with the same diameter, show-
ing a difference of 2 lb. in weight. Yel-
low turnips seldom yield so heavy a crop
as either the globe or swede, 30 tons the
imperial acre being a good crop ; but their
nutritive property is greater than white
turnips. In the northern parts of the
kingdom, v*'here light soils predominate,
they are grown in preference to the swede;
but, from my own experience in raising
the swede on the driest gravelly soil, I
believe if it receives the sort of culture it
requires, it would exceed the yellow in
weight and nutrition in every soil.
849. Of the 18 varieties of the Swedish
turnip described by Mr Lawson, the Pur-
ple-top (Brassica canipestfis, napo-hras-
sica, rutabaga^ of De Candolle,) has long
obtained the preference; and certainly if
weight of crop, nutritious property, and
durability of substance are valuable proper-
ties in a turnip, none can exceed this. It
is of an oblong form, h, fig, 38, having the
colour under ground and of the flesh a
deep yellow orange, and the part above
the ground a dusky purple. The leaves
are about 1 foot long, standing nearly up-
right, of a bluish green colour, and growing
out of a firm conical crown, which forms
the neck of the bulb. The skin is some-
what rough, the rind thicker than either
the white or yellow turnip, and the flesh
very crisp. This turnip feels heavy and
hard in the hand. According to Dr
Keith, the specific gravity of the orange
swede is 1.035, and of the white 1.022,
and Sir Humphry Davy estimates its
nutritive property at 64 in 1000 parts, of
which 9 are starch, 51 sugar, 2 gluten,
and 2 extract. Dr Keith found the
Swedish turnip heaviest in April, at the
shooting out of the new leaves, and after
its flower stem was fairly shot in June,
the specific gravity of the root decreased
* Q^uarterly Journal of Agriculture, x. p. 456. + Lawson's Agriculturists' Manual, p. 253-254.
+ The Norwich Mercury of July 1841, makes mention of a turnip, — a white one, we presume, —
exhibited at Fakenham market, and sent from Van Diemen's Land in strong brine, which weighed
84 lb., having a girth of 5 feet 2 inches. It is said to have weighed 92 lb., when pulled.
900
PRACTICE— WINTER.
to 0.94, that of the yellow turnip. This
differential fact indic'at<>s the comparative
ralaea of those turnips, and also the time
for storing the swede. As Sir Humphry
experimented on Swedish turnips grown
in the neiirhbourhood of London, where
they are confessedly inferior to those in
the northern counties, his results as to
their nutritive properties may be consi-
dered below the true mark, especially as
the cases given by Professor Johnston
show the proportion of nutriment as 74^
in the 1000.
850. Picked specimens have exhibited
a girth of from 25 to 28 inches, varying
in weight from 7 lb. to i)^ lb., but the
weight varies in a diflfereut proportion to
the bulk, as one of 25 inches gave 9^ lb.,
whilst another of 26 inches only weighed
7 lb. It is no uncommon thing to see
swedes from 8 lb. to IO5 lb. A crop of
16 or 20 tons maybe obtained by crdi-
nary culture, but in the neighbourhood of
large towns, such as Edinburgh, 28 or 34
tons are obtained on the imperial acre. I
have heard of 50 or 60 tons boasted of,
but suspect that the calculations had been
made from limited iind select, d spots ;
nevertheless, a large and equal crop will
sometimes be obtained, under favourable
circumstances, such as I remember seeing
of 50 acres withia the policy of Wedder-
bum, Berwickshire, in 1815, when farmed
by Mr Joseph Tod, Whitelaw, on walking
over which I could nut detect a single
turnip of less apparent size than a man's
head. The crop was not weighed, and
was let to be consumed by cattle and sheep,
the wethers to pay 6d. a-head per week,
and it realised £21 per imperial acre!
Taking a man's head at 7 inches in dia-
meter, and the specific gravity of a Swedish
turnip at 1.035, the weight of each turnip
should be 6 lb. 11 oz., and allowing 19,360
turnijis per acre, at 1 2 inches apart in the
drill, and 27 inches between the drills, the
crop should weigh 58 tons 1 cwt. Take
the calculation in another form, and see
the result of £21 at 6d. a-head per week,
which implies the support of 32 sheep to
the acre ; and take Mr Curwen's estimate
of a sheep eating 24 lb. a-day, for 180
days, or 26 weeks,t the crop should have
weighed 61 tons 12 cwt. This must be
the correct weight, so the above estimated
one by sight comes very near the truth.
The quantity of turnips eaten by sheep is,
however, variously stated. Sir John
Sinclair gives a consumption of 21 acres of
44 tons each, by 300 sheep in 180 days,
or nearly 38 lb. a-day for each sheep.*
If we take the usual allowance of 16 young
sheep to an ordinary acre of 30 tons, which
is 23?i lb. a-day to each, or ten old sheep,
which is 373 lb. to each, both respectively
are near the results given by Mr Curwen
and Sir John Sinclair, the difference be-
tween them being exactly that consumed
by old and young sheep. Whether we
take 24 lb or 38 lb. as the daily consump-
tion of turnips by sheep, there is no doubt
whatever of the £21 per acre having been
received for their keep ; but the exact
consumption of food by live-stock is un-
known, although a subject worthy of expe-
rimental investigation.
851. The proportion the top bears in
weight to the root is little in the Swedish
turnip, as evinced in the experiments oi
Mr Isaac Everett, South Creake, Norfolk,
on a crop of 17 tons 9 cwt., grown at 18
inches apart, and 27 inches between the
drills, gave 3 tons 3 cwt. of tops, on the
15th December, after which they were
not worth weighing ; and, what is remark-
able, the tops are lighter in a crop raised
on drills than on the flat surface ; that is,
whilst 28 tons 8 cwt. of toppe<l and tailed
turnips afforded only 5 tons 10 cwt. of
tops from drilled land, a crop of 28 tons
16 cwt. from the flat surface yielded 6 tons
16 cwt. of tops.§
852. The yellow turnip will continue
fresh ia the store until late in spring, but
the swe le has a superiority in this respect
to all others. The most remarkable in-
stance I remember of the swede keeping
in the store, in a fresh state, was in Ber-
wickshire, on the farm of Whitsome Hill,
when in the possession of Mr George
Brown, where a field of 25 acres waa
pulled, rooted, and topped, and stored in
the manner already described, in fine dry
• Johnston's Lecturet on Agricultural Chemistr'i, 2 J edition, p. 928.
t Carwen's Agricultural Hints, p. 39.
% Sinclair's Account 0/ the HutbanHry of Scotland, vol. ii. Appendix, p. 47.
§ Journal of the Agricultural Sodety of England, vol. iL p. 270.
VARIETIES OF TURNIPS.
201
■nreather in N'ovember, to have the field
sown with wheat. Tije store was opened
in February, and the cattle continued on
them until the middle of June, when thej
were sold fat, the turnips being then only
a little sprouted, and somewhat shrivelled,
but exceedingly sweet to the taste. One
property possessed by the Swedish turnip
stamps a great value upon it for feeding
stock, the larger it grows the greater
quantity of nutritive matter it contains.
According to Sinclair, 1728 grains of
large-sized Swedes contained 110 grains
of nutritive matter, whereas small-sized
ones only yielded 99 grains,* affording a
sufficient stimulus to the farmer to raise this
valuable root, to the largest size attainable.
,853. This is a comjiarative view of the
specific gravity of the turnips and roots
just referred to : — •
Specific gravity of orange Swedish turnip
in December, .... 1*035
It is heaviest in April, about the
shooting of the new leaves ; and in
June, after the development of the
flower stalk, it is . . . 0-940
Specific gravity of white Swedish turnip, 1-0-22
— — yellow bullock, . 0940
— — white globe, . 0-840
— — carrot, . . 0-810t
854. The composition of turnips and the
other roots spoken of is thus given by Pro-
fessor Johnston : —
Water, .
Sugar,
Gum,
Albumen,
Pectic and 1
meta-pectic >
acids, )
Oil, . .
Cellular fibre,
Saline matter,
Casein, (so )
called,) . \
Fibre and j
pectic acid, )
Starch and 1
fibre, . )
Johnston.
Johnston.
Hermb-
STADT.
Crome.
Turnips.
Mangold Wurtzel.
Grown on different soils near
Tranent, East Lothian.
Long Red.
Short Red.
Orange Common
Globe. Carrot.
Parsnip.
89-30
5-61
0-11
0-72
1-76
0-19
1-63
0-54
89-42
6-21
Oil
0-47
1-33
0-22
1-75
0-49
89-00
6-54
0-16
0-36
1-51
0-18
1-59
0-59
85-18
9-79
0-67
0-09
0-39
3-08
84-68
11-97
0-50
0-18
0-26
3-31
86-52
10--24
0-13
0-03
0-33
2-45
80-00
7-80
1-75
1-10
0-35
9-00
79-40
5-50
6 10
210
6-90
99-86
100-
99-93
99-20
100-89
99-70
100-
100-
Professor Johnston remarks, that the above
analyses of the common carrot and parsnip
are very imperfect, and require to be re-
peated.
855. He adds—" I regret to say that
our present knowledge of the valuable
esculent, the cabbage, is almost nothing.
In my laboratory the proportion of water
in the leaves of several varieties of cab-
bage has been found to average 92 per
cent, and in the stalk 84 per cent. The
dry solid matter of the leaf contains from
7 to 20 per cent of inorganic or mineral
matter, in which there is mucli sulphuric
and phosphoric acids. The dry matter of
the cabbage is unquestionably nutritive,
though the proportion of protein, or sup-
posed muscle-forming constituents, has not
as yet been determined. The flower of
the cabbage, however, (cauliflower,) in the
dry state, has been found to contain as
much as 64 per cent of those compounds,
gluten, albumen, &c., or more than any
other cultivated vegetable. The common
mushroom in the dry state is the only
* ?>mc\ai,\T's Hortas Gramineus Woburnensis,-p. 407.
+ Keith's Agricultural Report of Aberdeenshire, p. 302
202
PRACTICE— '\^^NTER.
vegetable, as yet known, which approaches
to this proportion. Were it possible to
dry cabbai^e, therefore, it would form a
very concentrated food." *
856. A summary of the foregoing re-
sults will be useful for reference : — The
three kinds of turnips described, the purjde-
topped swede, the Aberdeenshire yellow
bullock, and the white globe, possess all
the properties for feeding stock, and re-
main fresh during the feeding season,
which is all that can be desiderated by the
farmer : therefore it seems unnecessary to
cultivate any other variety where these can
be procured pure of their kinds. But as —
857. The white stone turnip comes
quicker to maturity than the white globe ;
and in case the grass should fail in autumn
more quickly than expected, it may bo
advisable to sow a few of the white stone
variety for early use, and though not re-
quired, it will be found useful for sheep to
begin the season with. And as —
858. Laing^s sicede is found to resist
the influence of vegetation longer in spring
than the purple-topped ; a few may be
sown to be used in the latest part of the
feeding season, and need not be stored
until the end of April.
859. A "white globe turnip of 7 inches
in diameter affords 72^ grains, whereas
one of 4 inches diameter affords 80 grains
of nutritive matter, the smaller being the
more nutritive.
800. A large swede contains 110 grains,
and a small one only .99 grains of nutritive
matter, the larger swede being the more
nutritive.
8fil. The quantity of nutritive matter
in the same variety of the turnip varies
— in M'hite turnips from 8 to 13 per
cent, and in the yellow turnip from ll^
to 17 percent; so that 20 tons of one crop
may bo as feeding as 30 tons of another,
which is an important fact, and may
ccount for the discrepancies experienced
y farmers in feeding stock-
weighs from 30 to 35 tons per imperial
acre.
863. A good crop of yellow turnips
weighs from 30 to 32 tons per imperial
acre.
864. A good crop of white globe turnips
weighs from 30 to 40 tons per imperial
acre.
8G5. A bushel of turnips weighs from
42 lbs. to 45 lbs.
866. The nutritive matter contained in
an imperial acre of turnips is great. In a
crop of 20 tons, or 45,000 lbs., there are
900 lbs. of thick or woody fibre, 4000
lbs. of starch, sugar, gum, 670 lbs. of
gluten, 130 lbs. of fat or oil, and 300
lbs. of saline matter. Turnips, it may be
observed, in the table of analysis, contain
a very large proj^ortion of water, and this
enhancing the cost of transport, makes it
almost necessary to have them consumed
on the spot where they are grown.t
8G7. A young Leicester sheep may be
supposed to eat 23 lbs., and an older one
38 lbs. of turnips per day, during the
winter half-year, or 180 days, and a young
black-faced sheep 18 lbs., and an old one
28 lbs. per day, in the same time.
868. The usual allowance to eat a crop
of 30 tons of turnips in the winter half-
year, or 180 days, is 16 young and 8 old
Leicester sheep, and 20 young and 10 old
black-faced sheep per acre. In making
this last estimate the state of the crop
should be taken into consideration ; a close
crop of small yellow or white turnij>s takes
longer time to consume than a bulkier
crop of larger turnii)S ; but a croj) of large
swedes, though thin on the ground, will
take a longer time to consume than a
closer crop of smaller roots.
809. An ox will cat about a ton of tur-
nips every week. A two-year-old short-
horn ox will consume 26 tons, and a three-
year-old 30 tons of turnips in 180 days.
The smaller breeds of cattle consume less.
862. A good crop of swede turnips 870. Implicit reliance cannot be placed
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 911-14.
t Ibid. p. 928.
VARIETIES OF TURNIPS.
203
in any of these data, as they have not been
derived from sufficiently accurate experi-
ments, but they may enable you to make
an aj^proximation in apportioning turnips
to sheep and cattle.
871. The price of turnips depends
almost entirely on the demand of the lo-
cality. In the neighbourhood of towns
they are always high-priced, where an ordi-
nary crop of white will fetch £lO, of yel-
low £12, and of swedes £l6 an imperial
acre. They are chiefly purchased by milk-
men, or cowfeeders, as they are usually
called in Scotland. In the country, about
£.5, 10s. for white, and £S for Swedish
turnip, to be carried off the land, are given ;
and for white, when consumed on the
ground by sheep, £3 to £5 an acre is
considered a fair price ; and on the premises
by cattle £5, and from £5 to £7 per acre
for swedes, with straw. A fairer plan for
both the raiser and consumer of turnips is
to let them by week at so much a head of
stock. At the usual price of Sd. per head
per week for young sheep, for the ordinary
period of 26 weeks, makes a cost for keep
of 6s. 6d. ; and if it take 16 sheep to con-
sume an acre, the turnips will realise about
£5, 5s. per acre. For old sheep, double
or 6d. per head per week is given, at a
cost of 13s., which, for 8 sheep, will
realise the same sum per acre. For
cattle 5s. per head per week is given,
"with straw ; and if an ox take 26 weeks
to eat an acre, the turnips and straw will
realise £G, 10s, In years of plenty, 2d.,
and of scarcity 4d. per head is given for
young sheep, and for older stock double
those prices.
872. There are two hybrids of turnips
■worth mentioning, as they were pro-
duced by art — the Dale hybrid, by Mr
Dale, Liberton, near Edinburgh, and the
Lawtown hybrid, by Mr Wright of Law-
town, near Coupar-Angus. It is probable
that most of the varieties in use are
natural hybrids. Dale's hybrid is a cross
betwixt the green-topped swede and the
globe ; but whether the white or green-
topped globe I do not know. It possesses
more of the ap])earance and properties of
the yellow turnip than of either of its pro-
genitors ; and has the advantage of arriv-
ing'sooner at maturity, and may therefore
be sown later than the ordinary yellow
turnip.
873. The Lawtown hybrid is a cross
between the green-topped swede and the
green-topped globe, the result of which is a
heart-shaped, white-fleshed, green-topped
turnip, considerably heavier and hardier
than the globe, wnth its leaves set on like
those of the swede. The obvious results
of these two crosses are — a yellow turnip,
Dale's, which arrives sooner at maturity
than the older varieties; and a white globe,
the Lawtown, which is more hardy than
any other variety of white.
874. The crop afibrded by these hybrids,
in an experiment made in 1835, by Mr
John Gow, Fettercairn, Kincardineshire,
was, by the Dale, 28 inches in girth, 23
tons, and by the Lawton, 32 inches in
girth, 27 tons the imperial acre.*
875. Although storing is the proper
method of securing turnips for use during
a storm of rain or snow, when the turnip-
field should not be entered by a cart, yet,
as a storm may overtake you, you should
be provided with food for the cattle. Rain,
snow, and frost, exhibit prognostics of their
approach ; and when any of them indicates
a determined result, send all the field-
workers and ploughmen to the turnip-field,
and pull the turnips in the manner described
above, fig. 32, removing only the tails,
and throw the turnips with their tops into
heaps of from 3 to 6 cart-loads each, ac-
cording to the bulk of the crop, taking
care to finish each heap, by placing the
tops of the uppermost turnips all around
the outside, to protect the bulbs from the
frost, should it come suddenly unaccom-
panied with snow. To such heaps rain or
snow will do no harm, and they serve to
point out where they are, should snow
cover the ground thickly. As the turnips
gathered in frost or snow should be imme-
diately consumed and not stored, they
may be thrown from the heaps into the
cart with a fork or graip, and the tops
removed at the steading, where thej^rocess
may be done in the severest weather, when
women could not stand out in the field to
do it.
Lawson
son's Agriculturist'' s Manual, pp. 241, 245, and 257.
204
PRACTICE —WINTER,
876. I give a in fig. 39 to show you
Fig. 39.
AN ILL-SHAPKD TURNIP. THE TANKARD TCRMP.
what I conceive to be an ill-formed tur-
nip, as also one, b, which stands so much
out of the ground represented by the
dotted line as to be liable to injury from
frost. The turnip a is ill-formed, inasmuch
as the U2)per part of it around the top
is hollow, where rain, snow, or rime
may lodge, and find their way into the
heart, and corrupt it, as is actually found
to take place. All white turnips, when
allowed to remain on the ground after they
have attained maturity, become soft and
spongy, of inferior quality in the heart,
and susceptible of rapid putrefaction,
which frequently overtakes them in sudden
changes from frost to thaw, and reduces
them to a saponaceous pulp. This fact
affords a good motive to store white tur-
nips after they come to maturity, which
state is indicated by the leaves losing their
green colour and becoming flaccid. There
are some sorts of white turnips always
spongy in the heart, and among these I
would class the tankard-shaped, repre-
sented by b, fig. 3.9 ; as also a flat-shaped
red- topped white, and a small flat white
turnip, both cultivated by small farmers,
because, being small, they require little
manure to bring them to maturity, and
this class of tenants spread the manure
on the land as thin as jiossible to make
it go the farther, I need scarcely tell
you that economy is only to be found
in the cultivation of the best varieties of
turnip,
877. I think it useful to give you a
tabular view of the number of turnips
there should be on an imperial acre, at
given distances between the drills, and
between the plants in the drills, and of the
weight of the crop at specified weights of
each turnip, that you may compare actual
receipts with defined data, and endeavour
to ascertain whether diflfercuces in the crop
arise from deficiency of weight in the
turnip itself, or in the plants being too much
thinned out. The distance between the
drills is the usual 27 inches, the distance
between tlie plants is what is allowed to
the different sorts of turnips. As the
imperial acre contains 6,272,640 square
inches, it is easy to calculate what the crop
should be at wider and narrower intervals
between the drills.
oS
li
^
ii
» 2
1 =■
"5 -
-1
n
<
I Iff
Inches
iDche*.
Square inches.
rb. |Ton«.Cwt.
(I
11 lOi
2
23 1
3
34 llA
27
9
between the
243
25,813
4
5
46 2
57 r2A
pUnt* of white
6
69 3
tuniipt.
7
^8
(\
2
3
80 13A
92 4
10 7
20 14
31 1
27
10
between the
270
23,232
■t
41 8
51 15
;)lant9 of yellow
6
62 2
turnipt.
7
u
fl
2
3
72 9
82 16
9 8
18 172
28 5,
27
11
297
21,120
4
5
6
7
18
ri
2
3
37 14^
47 2
56 in
65 19'
75.8^i
8 121
17
25 ]8i
27
12
between the
324
19,360
4
5
34 11
43 3j
plant* of
6
51 Ifi.i
flO 9}
■wed**.
7
u
69 2
878. On comparing a common crop of
20 tons of swedes with these data, and
keeping in view the distance of 12 inches
between the plants, the inevitable conclu-
sion is, that the average weight of turnips
must be less than 3 lb., or the distance
between them greater than 1 2 inches. In
VARIETIES OF TURNIPS.
205
the one case your skill in raising a crop
is almost rendered nugatory, and in the
other yuur negligence in wasting s^aee in
the thinning out appears conspicuous. An
amendment in both particulars is therefore
requisite, and fortunately attainable ; for,
aa a slight difference in either makes a
great difference in the weight of a crop,
your endeavour should be both to make
the turnip heavy, and the desired distance
between them invariable. For example,
5 lb. turnips, at 9 inches asunder, give a
crop of 57 tons 12^ cwt. ; whereas the
same weight of turnip at 1 1 inches apart,
gives only a little more than 47 tons.
Now, how easy is it for careless people to
thin out the plants to 11 instead of 9
inches, and yet, by so doing, no less than
IO5 tons of turnips are sacrificed. Again,
a difference of only 1 lb. on the turnip —
from 5 lb. to 4 lb. — at 9 inches asunder,
makes a difference of 11^ tons per acre.
So that a difference of only 1 lb. in each
turnip, and 2 inches in the distance between
them, makes the united sacrifice of 21 tons
per acre ! Who will deny, after this, that
minutiae require the most careful attention
in farming ?
879. One occasionally sees in the
newspapers statements of great crops of
turnips ; but when all particulars are not
known, it is tpiite possible for great errors
to be committed in making returns from
any other mode of ascertaining the amount
of a crop of turnips than by topping and
tailing a whole field, and weighing every
cart-load separately. For example. Sup-
pose 1 yard is measured from a turnip
along a drill, one yard will embrace 5
turnips of white and 4 of swedes : and,
if the measurement is begun between two
turnips, one yard will only embrace 4
turnips of white and 3 of Swedes, making,
in the white a difference of 1 turnip in
every 5, and in the swedes 1 in every 4 ;
and if the weight of an acre is calculated
on such data, the crop, in the case of the
white, will be i, and in that of the swedes
\ beyond the truth. Again, if the yard
be placed across two drills, their produce
will be included within the yard, the dis-
tance between the drills being only 27
inches ; but if the yard be placed across
one drill only, then its produce alone will
be included, as the yard will not reach to
the drill on either side, and if the produce
of sthe whole field is calculated on such
data, the result, in the latter mode of
measurement, will just give half the
amount of the other. These ways of
weighing a crop, when thus plainly stated,
appear ridiculous ; but they are the causes
of error into which country people, who
are not aware of the effects of the powers
of numbers when squared, are very liable
to fall. The part, too, of the field measured,
may give a very different result from the
whole, or another part, for even on tur-
nip-soil, how different are the size and
number of turnips on a rising knoll and
a hollow ! The difference is not so ob-
vious on looking upon the tops alone, as
after the sheep have eateu off the leaves,
and exposed the bulbs. The plan, also, of
filling one cart-load or so and weighing it,
and filling the other cart-loads to a similar
extent, without weighing them, is a falla-
cious one, when the fact is known, a3
shown above, of turnips grown on tho
same field differing much in weight, and
therefore a few more or less in a small
cart-load, will make a considerable diffe-
rence in the amount over a whole field. I
question much whether any person ever
weighed every cart-load of turnips as
they were brought from a field, or eveu
measured many places of the same
field, to ascertain the number and weight
of turnips in them ; and unless some plan
approaching to either be adopted, the re-
sults obtained will never prove satisfac-
tory.
880. When tlie trouble of weigliing
every care-load is wished to be avoided,
the smallest and the largest and the
middle-sized turnips should be pulled,
topped, and tailed, and chosen from every
part of the field where a difference of size
and number is found to occur — such as
in hollows, on knolls, on sloping and level
ground, at the top and bottom of the field —
and each turnip weighed, and the tops
weighed too, separately if desired, and
then the average weight of the turnip may
be relied on. A convenient machine for
such a purpose is one of Salter's spring
steel-yards, with a tin basin suspended
from it by chains, in which a turnip may
be placed and weighed with ease and
celerity. Besides doing this, the distance
from centre to centre of the tops of the
turnips before they are pulled should be
206
PRACTICE— WINTER.
measured, and noted down, and the aver-
a;re distance from turnip to turnip would
then be ascertained. Having thus obtained
correct data of the weight and number of
turnips within the given limits of a field,
the amount of the crop would be confi-
dently ascertained. The average girth of
turnips, though ascertained, is not an essen-
tial element in determining the weight of
the crop. But the truest method is to
weigh all the turnips in the field.
881. The history of the turnip, like that of
other cultivated plants, is obscure. According to
the name given to the swede in this country, it
is a native of Sweden ; the Italian name JVa-
roni /ie Loponia intimates an origin in Lapland,
and the French names Chou de Lapone, Chou
d< Suedf, indicate an uncertain origin. Sir
John Sinclair says, " I am informed that the
swedes were first introduced into Scotland anno
1781-2, on the recommendation of Mr Knox, a
native of East Lothian, who had settled at
Gottenburg, whence he sent some of the seeds
to Dr Hamilton."* There is no doubt the plant
was first introduced into Scotland from Sweden,
but 1 believe their introduction was prior to the
date mentioned by Sir John Sinclair. The late
Mr Airth, Mains of Dunn, Forfarshire, informed
me that his father was the first farmer who cul-
tivated swedes in Scotland, from seeds sent him
by his eldest son, settled in Gottenburg, when
my informant, the youngest son of a large family,
was a boy of about 10 years of age. Whatever
may be the date of its introduction, Mr Airth
cultivated them in 1777; and the date is cor-
roborated by the silence preserved by Mr Wight
regarding its culture by Mr Airth's father when
he undertook the survey of the state of hus-
bandry in Scotland, in 1773, at the request of
the Commissioners of the Annexed Estates, and
he would not have failed to report so remarkable
a circumstance as the culture of so useful a plant,
60 that it was unknown prior to 1773. Mr Airth
sowed the first portion of seed he received in
beds in the garden, and transplanted the plants
in rows in the field, and succeeded in raising
good crops for some years, before sowing the
seed directly in the fields.
882. I have not been able to trace the history
of the yellow turnip ; but it is probable that it
originated, as supposed by Professor Low, in a
cross between a white and the swede rt" and, as
its name implies, the cross may have been efiected
in Aberdeenshire. Its origin must, therefore,
have been subsequent to the introduction of the
swede.
883. All the white varieties of field turnips
obtained at first the name of the " Norfolk
whites," from the circumstance of their having
been first cultivated in that county, to any ex-
tent, by Lord Townshend, who, on coming home
from being ambassador to the States-general, in
1730, paid great attention to their culture, and
for which good service he obtained the appella-
tion of '' Turnip Townshend."
884. It is rather remarkable that no turnips
should have been raised in this country in the
fields until the end of the 17th century, when it
was lauded as a field-root as long ago as Colu-
mella, and in his time even the Gauls fed their
cattle on them in winter. The Romans were
so well acquainted with turnips, that Pliny men-
tions having raised them 40 lb. weight.^ Tur-
nips were cultivated in the gardens in England
in the time of Henry VIII.§
885. Dale's hybrid originated in a few ounces
of a hybridal seed being sent, in 1822 or 1823,
by the late Mr Sherriff of Bastleridpe, Berwick-
shire, to Mr Robert Dale, Liberton West Mains,
near Edinburgh, who, by repeated selection and
impregnation, brought it to what it is, a good
yellow turnip, and now pretty extensively cul-
tivated.
886. The Lawton hybrid originated about 12
years ago by Captain Wright of Lawtown, in
Forfarshire, crossing the green-topped white
with the green-topped swede, to harden the
white, which object proved successful; but its
culture has not been pushed. By sowing the
swede beside the white Lawtown, the latter has
been converted into a yellow tnmip, possessing
the properties of the swede ; and were the cross
still farther prosecuted, I have no doubt that a
distinct variety of the swede would be ob-
tained.
887. A variety of swedes was brought into
notice, aboiit 8 years ago, by Mr Laing, Dnddo,
Northumberland, who found it amongst his ordi-
nary swedes, and observed it by its remarkably
elegant form of leaf, which is much notched near
its base. It is now in use, and possesses the
valuable property of resisting the influence of
vegetation for at least a fortnight longer than
the common varieties, as I had a favourable
opportunity of observing in Berwickshire late in
spring 1841, and on this account may be stored
and kept in a fresh state to a very late period o .
the season.
888. Like all plants, the tumip,when consumed
by fire, leaves an ash containing a variety of in-
organic substances. The composition of the
ash of the bulb is thus afibrded by Boussingault
and Muspratt : —
• Sinclair's Account of the Jlutbandry of Scotland, vol. i. p. 278, note.
+ Low's Elftnrntf of Prartiral Aijr'icvlturf, p. 2?0.
* Dickson's Husbandry of the Ancient*, \o\. ii. p. 250-4.
§ Phillips' Hiitory of Caltirated Vegetables, vol. ii. p. 3C5.
VARIETIES OF TURNIPS.
207
Boussingault.
Muspratt.
Potash
41-9f>
37-69
Soda
5-09
16-6.2
Lime
13-6-0
11-91
Magnesia
5-34
4-02
Oxide of iron, alumina,
&c. 1-28
0-50
Phosphoric acid .
7-58
5-80
Sulphuric acid
13-60
1-2-70
Chlorine
3-60
3-79
Silica
7-95
6-15
100-00
99-18
Per-centage of ash in
the dry state
7-60
5-66
889. The proportion of ash left by the tops is
much greater than that of the bulbs, the dry
tops leaving from 14 to 20 per cent. Of these
proportions a much larger amount consists of
phosphoric acid in the tops than in the bulbs^
and more than a third of the whole ash consists
of earthy phosphates, as thus shown in an ana-
lysis by Johnston : —
Potash, soda, and carbonic acid
Sulphuric acid ....
Chloride of sodium .
Phosphates of lime and magnesia
Carbonates of lime and magnesia
Silica
25-95
12-62
14-02
36-40
10-01
1-00
100-00*
890. In the beginning of 1848, it was proposed
by some farmer in the county of Wigtown, to
convert the Swedish turnip into a sort of meal,
not so much for the use of man as food for stock.
If it were possible to convert the bulb into a
meal that could be preserved over years, the
superfluity of one year might assist the deficiency
of another ; which would constitute desirable
economy, as the turnip crop varies in weight to
the extent of 50 per cent, according to the
nature of the season.
891. The turnips would be converted into
meal by being washed, and their juice then
squeezed out by means of rollers ; and on the
squeezed fibre being dried in a kiln, would be
easily ground by millstones into meal. The
liquid portion could be evaporated, and its solid
matter mixed with the meal.
892. A portion of turnip meal, thus prepared,
was sent by Mr James Caird, Baldoon, to Pro-
fessor Johnston for analysis, and was found to
contain 22"82 per cent of water, and when
burned, aflforded 5-53 per cent of ash. When
burned for nitrogen, it gave 13-68 per cent of
protein compounds in the undried, or 17'72 per
cent in the dried state. Its composition was
this : —
Natural state.
Dried at 212"
Protein compounds
13-68
17-72
Gum
4-14
5-36
Sugar
48-72
59.23
Oil . . .
Ml
1-44
Fibre and pectin
8-10
10-49
Water . .
22.82
Ash .
4-27
5-53
It contains too much water to keep a length of
lime, a very large proportion of sugar, and the
protein compounds are equally great. It is, there-
fore, quite suited for feeding stock.f
893. The cabbage is considered good food for
cows giving milk. The varieties of cabbage most
suited for field culture are the Drum-head {Bras-
sica oleracea, capitata depressa,) and the great
round Scotch or white Strasburg, from which
the German sour-krout is chiefly made {Brassica
oleracea, capitata spherica alba of De Candolle.)
Of these two the drum-head is the most produc-
tive, and the Scotch stands the winter best.
The taste of milk is less tainted by the cabbage
than turnips, and I believe more milk may be
derived from it ; though a decayed leaf or two
in a head of cabbage will impart both to butter
and milk a strong disagreeable taste. " This,"
says Sinclair, " I have long had an opportunity
of proving." If planted in such drills as are
commonly made for turnips, cabbages require
good soil, and placed 18 inches asunder at least,
which will give 12,907 plants to the acre, and,
at 24 inches 9,680 plants ; and if they at all attain
to the weight that cabbages sometimes do, that
is from 18 lb. to 23 lb. each, the lowest number,
18, will give a crop of 78 tons ; but the usual
crop is from 35 to 40 tons per acre. Their uses
are to feed milk cows, to fatten oxen, and sheep
are very fond of them. It is questionable how
far their culture should be preferred to turnips,
excepting on soil too strong for these, and as
they require a large quantity of manure, they are
not an economical crop in Scotland. I have no
personal experience of the cabbage as a food for
milk cows or feeding cattle, but know them to
be much relished by ewes at the season of lamb-
ing.
894. The fresh leaves of the cabbage contain
from 90 to 92 per cent of water. The dry leaf,
when burned, leaves from 18 to 26 per cent of
ash ; so that a crop of 20 tons of cabbage, carry
off from the soil more than one-half more of
mineral matter than 20 tons of turnips— the
quantity being 900 lb. These 900 lb. consist
of—
Potash
Soda
Lime
Magnesia .
Oxide of iron
Phosphoric acid
Sulphuric acid
Chlorine
Silica
1051b.
184,,
189,,
54 „
5,.
112,,
192,,
52 „
7„
900 1
10-2-84
99-77
895. Since the failure of the potato, a number
of varieties of cabbage have been recommended to
be cultivated in the fields, among which is the
turnip-stemmed cabbage or khol-rabi {Brassica
oleracea, caulo-rapa, alba of De Candolle.) The
varieties of this plant are numerous, but the best
suited for field-culture are the large red and
* Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 384-5.
+ Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society for March, 1848, p. 238.
J Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 389.
208
rRACTICE— WINTER.
green sorts. It is a native of Germanv, wiiere
it-iamuth iuiUivateii,as also in tlie Low Countries
and the north of Franco, vvlicre it is cliiefiy given
to milk cow.-, for which it is well adapted, on
account of its possessing little of that acridity
found in the turnip to affect butter and milk.
It is taken up before the frost sets in, and stored,
like potatoes or turnips, for winter use. Its
habits and produce are similar to the Swedish
turnip, resembling it in the swollen bulb at the
top of the stem wiien divested of leaves. Hares
are so fond of it, that, on farms where they
abound, its culture is found to be impracticable.
Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt first introduced it into
England from Germany.* It was successfully
raised on tlie poor soil of Bagshot Heath, by Mr
Hewitt Davis, in tlie dry summer of 1847, with-
out purchased manure. He gave it to cows in
milk, and ewes nursing early lamb, and both
kinds of stock throve well upon it. Its solid
matter varies from 1 2 to 2"2 per cent, and con-
tains nearly 3 per cent of nutritive matter,
896. Although the parsnip {Pastinacex sativa
edulis of De Gaudolle) is too tender a root for
general cultivation in this country, it deserves
notice on account of its fattening properties, as
well as the good milk it yields. According to
Colonel Le Couteurthe weight of a good crop varies
from 13 to 27 tons per acre ; the latter quantity
bein:,' sufficient to support 12 Jersey cuws for six
raunths, witli a mixture of mangold wurtzel
or turnips. The parsnip yields a heavier crop
in Jersey than the Altriiigliam carrot in the ratio
of 840 : 261 ; but the white Belgian carrot was
lieavier than the parsnip in the ratio of 524 :
318. As parsnips contain G per cent more of
mucilage than carrots, the Colonel conceives that
the difference is sufficient to account for the
superior fattening as well as butyraceous quality
of the parsnip. t " In the fattening of cattle,"
says Don, " the parsnip is found equal, if not
superior, to the carrot, performing the business
with as much expedition, and affording meat of
exquisite flavour, and a highly juicy quality.
The animals eat it with much greediness. It is
Reckoned that 30 perches, where the crop is good,
will be sufficient to fatten an ox 3 or 4 years old,
when perfectly lean, in the course of 3 months.
They are given in the proportion of about 30 lb.
weight morning, noon, and night, the large ones
being split in 3 or 4 pieces, and a little hay
supplied in the intervals of those periods. And
when given to milk cows with a little hay, in
the winter season, the butter is found to be of as
fine a colour and excellent a flavour, as when
feeding in the best pastures. Indeed, the result
of ex|)eriment has shown, that not only in neat
cattle, but in the fattening of hogs and poultry,
the animals become fat much sooner, and are
more healthy, than when fjd with any other root
or vegetable ; and that, besides, the meat is more
sweet and delicious. Tlie parsnip-leaves being
more bulky than those of carrots, may be mown
off before taking up the roots, and given to cows,
oxen, or horses, by whom they will be greedily
eateu.'":J:
897. The carrot is raised in the field in several
parts of the country, especially since the failure
of the potato ; and of the cultivated varieties of
the carrot, the white Belgian bids fair to supersede
all Qthers in the field. In a comparative experiment
made by Mr Annesley, Fern Hill, Tockington,
in 1842, between the white Belgian and Altring-
ham carrots, he obtained from 25 tons to 29 tons
8 cwt. of the former, to from 19 tons to 21 tons
8 cwt. of the latter, with the same kinds and quan-
tities of manure ; while in the weight of the tops
the difference was not nearly so great, the top of
the Altringhani being from 7 tons 10 cwt. to 8
tons 4 cwt. and of the Belgian from 8 tons 1 1
cwt. to 9 tons 14 cwt per acre. Both these
crops had an excellent chance to be good, the
land in 1840 having been in potatoes, and in 1841
in beans. The seed was laid in on the 9th April
at the rate of 8 lb. per acre ; and the white
carrots were pulled on the 4th November, the
red on the 21st. The soil for both was a clayey
loam, one foot ia depth, resting on a stiff clay.§
898. The nutritive matter contained in a crop
of 25 tons, or 56,000 lb. per acre of carrots, con-
sist of husk or woody fibre 1680 lb.; of starch,
sugar, &c. 5600 lb.; of gluten, &c. 840.; of oil
or fat, 200 lb.; and of saline matter, 800 lb.||
899. Sir Charles Burrell mentions that, in
consequence of giving his horses and cattle white
carrots, the great saving in the use of hay is
remarkable ; having formerly 50 loads of hay in
reserve at the end of the season, he has now 400
loads. Less hay may therefore be made ia future,
or more sold.H
900. The quantity of nutritive matter afforded
by a crop of mangold wurtzel of 20 tons, or
45,000 lb. per acre, consists of 900 lb. of husk or
woody fibre ; 4950 lb. of starch, sugar, &c.; 900
lb. of gluten, &c.; and of saline matter 450 lb.
No oil or fat has yet been detected in an appre-
ciable quantity.**
ON
THE FEEDING OF SHEEP ON TURNIPS
IN WINTER.
001. Eooni having been prciJared on
the turnip land for the sheep to be fattened
upon turnips, by removing the half of the
crop in the manner described above, fig. 31,
and having selected that part of the field
* Sinclair's //■|jr/«.s- Grimiiifius Wubuniensis, p. 411; and L^Lvrson'a Agriculturist's Manual, p. 187.
t Journal uf the EiKjlish Agricultural Society, vol. 1. p. 422 ; and vol. ii. p. 41.
J Don's (ieneral Dictioiiari/ of Botany and Gardening, \o\.\. p. 229.
§ Jiiurnnl of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. iv. p. 270.
11 Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 928.
H Journal of the Agricultund Society of England, vol. v. p. 281.
** Johnston's Lectures oh Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 928.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
209
to be first occupied, which will afford the
sheep shelter in case of need, the first
thing to be done is to carry the articles on
carts to the field required to construct a
temporary enclosure to confine them with-
in a given space. It is the duty of the
shepherd to erect these temporary enclo-
sures, and he requires but little assistance
from other labourers.
902. There are two ways of enclosing
sheep upon turnips, by hurdles made of
wood, and nets made of twine. Fig. 40
represents 2 hurdles set as they should be.
Fig. 40,
HURDLES OR FLAKES SET FOR CONFINING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
nnd the mode of setting them is this : The
sliepherd requires the assistance of another
person for this purpose. The hurdles are
set down in the line of the intended fence.
The first hurdle is raised by its upper rail,
and the ends of its stakes are sunk a little
into the ground with a spade, to give them
a firm hold._ The second hurdle is let into
the ground In tlie same manner, both being
held in that position by the assistant.
One end of a stay/ is then placed between
the hurdles near the tops of their stakes,
and the stay and hurdles are fastened
together by the peg }i passing through
holes in both. Another peg i is passed
through a lower part of the stakes. The
hurdles are then inclined away from the
ground fenced, until their upper rail shall
stand 3 feet i) inches above the ground.
A short stake e is driven into the ground
by the wooden mallet, fig. 41, at a point
Fig. 41.
THE shepherd's WOOD MALLET.
where the stay / gives the hurdles the
above inclination, and a peg fastens the
stake and stay together, as seen at g.
After the first two hurdles are thus set,
the operation is easier for the next, as
one hurdle is raised after another, and
VOL. I.
fastened to the last, until the entire line
is completed.
903. Objections may be urged against
the use of hurdles, such as the inconve-
nience of carrying them from one part
of a field to another in carts, — their lia-
bility to be broken in consequence, — the
shepherd being unable to set them without
assistance, — the time they require to be set,
— being easih' upset by a high wind blowing
from behind them ; and the constant repair
they require in replacing pegs, stays, and
short stakes. When carefully laid past at
the end of the season, they will last several
years.
904. Nets, made of twine of the requisite
strength, form a superior enclosure for
sheep ; and, to constitute tliem into a fence,
they are supported by stakes driven into
the ground.
905. The stakes are best formed of thin-
nings of ash-trees which have been planted
thick together, and grown tall and
small, 3 inches in diameter and 4 feet 9
inches long — allowing 9 inches of a hold
in the ground, 3 inches between the ground
and the bottom of the net, and 3 inches
from the top of the net to the top of the
stake; or they may be made of larch
weedings, 4 inches in diameter and 4 feet
9 inches long; but every kind of wood
they are made of should be seasoned with
the bark on before being cut into stakes.
They are pointed at one end with the axe,
and that end should be the lowest one
tio
TRACTICE— WINTER.
Fiff. 4J
THE SHEPHERD S KNOT, BV
WHXH A NET IS FASTENED
TO A STAKE.
when growing as a tree, as the bark is of the net parallel with the general ear-
then in the most natural position for re- face of the ground throughout ita entire
pelling rain. length.
906. A net is set in this manner : If the
grounJ is in its usual soft state, the stakes
niavi«im]>lv be driven into tl)e ground with
the' hardwood mallet, fig. 41, in the line
fixed on for setting tlie net, at distances of
3 jiaces asunder. The wood of the apple-
tree makes the best mallet, as not being
apt to split. Should the soil be thin and
the subsoil moderately hard, a hole suffi-
ciently large for a stake may be made in
the subsoil with the tramp-pick used in
draiiiing ; but should it be so
very hard and a larger hole re-
quired than can be easily formed
by the tramp-pick, or should tbe
ground be so dry and hard as to
require the use of any instrument
at all, the most efficient one for
the purpose is calletl a drirer,
fig. 42, formed of a piece of
pointed hard- wood, strongly shod
with iron, with its upjier end
protected by a strong ferrule of
iron to prevent its splitting by
the strokes of the mallet. The
stakes are driven that their tops ''""^
II 1 . r 1-1 DR1\ ER.
may not be less than 4 leet high,
along as many sides of the enclosure as are
required at the place to form a complete
fence.
907. The net is set in this manner:
Being in a bundle, having been rolled up,
when no longer required, on the arms and
/astened together by the spare ends of the
top and bottom ropes, these are unloosened
and tied to the top and bottom of a stake
driven close to tbe fence, and run out
loose in hand towards the right as far as
it will extend on the side of tlie s^takes
•next the turnips. On coming to the second
Btakefrom the fence, with your face to the
turnips, the bottom rope first gets a turn
to the left round the stake, then the top
rope a similar turn round the same stake,
Boas to keep the meshes of tlie net straight.
The bottom rope is then fastened with the
shepherd's knot to this stake, 3 inches from
the ground, and the top rope with a similar
knot near the top of the«take, drawing the
Bet even along and upwards ; and so on,
one stake after another, until the whole net
K-tet up^ care being taken to liave the top
908. The shepherd's knot is made in
this way : Let a, fig. 43, be the continua-
tion of "the rope fastened to the first stake,
then press the
second stake Fig. 4."'..
with the left
hand towards a
or the fastened
end, standing
at the opposite
sideof tbestake
from the net,
and at the same
time tighten
the turn of the
rope round the
stake with the
right hand by taking a hold of the
loose end of tlie rope </, and putting it
between a and the stake at e, pull it tight
round the stake till it comes to i, where
it,s elastic force will secure it tight when
the stake is let go. The bottom rope
is fastened first, to keep the net at the
proper distance from the ground, and then
the top rope is fastened to the same stake
in the same manner at the proper height;
and so on at stake after stake. A net
may be set up either towards the right
or the left as the starting-point may be
situate, but in proceeding in either direc-
tion, the top and bottom ropes should be
wound round the stakes, so as the rope
should always be uppermost towards the
direction in which the net is to be set up.
Thus, in fig. 43, the end of the rope d is
above <7, and continues uppermost until
it reach the next stake to the left. If
both the cord and stake are dry, the
knot may slip as soon as made, but if
the part of the stake at h where the
knot is fastened is wetted a little, it will
make the rope keep its hold until tbe cord
has acquired the set of the knot. It is
difficult to make a new greasy rope retain
its hold on a smooth stake even with the
assistance of water, but a little earth
rubbed on it will counteract the greasy
effect.
9i09. Some precautions are required in
setting a net besides this of the ropes. If
tbe net is new, it may be set as tight as
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
211
you please, because all the cords will
stretch considerably ; but if old, the least
damp or rain afterwards will tighten them
so as to cause them to break. If the net
is at all damp, it should be set tight, be-
cause rain cannot make it tighter, and if not
then set tight, the first dry weather will
loosen all the knots, and cause the cords to
slip down the stakes; but although it should
not be slackened to that degree, it will
shake about with the wind, and bag down
and touch the ground. Such an occurrence
will cause the shepherd to reset the whole
net, which is a just punishment to him for
either not having the nets dry, or not set-
ting them with judgment when damp. In
wet weather shepherds take the oppor-
tunity of a dry moment of setting a dry
net in anticipation along a new break of
turnips, and they also hang up wet nets to
dry on the stakes drawn along another
break. Nets should never be wound up
in a wet state, even for a short time, as
they will soon mould and rot.
910. On connecting the setting of one
net to another, its top and bottom ropes
are fastened to those of the last net, and
the ends of the nets themselves are brought
together by lacing the meshes of both
with a part of the twine left there for the
purpose, as at a, fig. 44. Here the knots
in the top and bottom ropes are seen, and
the twine a b lacing the meshes are made
THE NET SET FOK CONFINING SHEEP UN TIRNIPS.
to appear strong, to let it be perceived.
One net is set after another, until the
whole area is enclosed. "Where there is a
turn in the line of nets in going from one
side of the enclosure to another, as seen on
the right side of fig. 51, if a large piece of
the net is still left at the turn, it should be
brought down the next side ; and tlie
stake at the corner should be driven very
securely down, to resist the strain upon it
by the nets pulling from diflJ'erent direc-
tions, and such a strain will be the most
powerful in damp weather. But the safer
plan is to take a fresh net at the turn, and
fasten it to another stake, and coil up the
end of the first net along the tops of the
stakes. AH surplus ends of nets, when
wet, should be hung upon the back of the
stakes to dry. Part of the nets will cross
ridges, and part run along them. Where
they cross ridges but once gathered-up, or
crown-and-furrow, the bottom of the nets
will be nearly close to the open furrows,
but where they cross a deep gaw-cut, a
stake or two may be placed upon the
bottom rope to keep it down, for some
sheep acquire a habit of creeping under the
net, where they find an opening. Where
nets cross twice-gathered-up ridges a stake
should be driven at the side of the open
furrows, and another at the crown of the
ridge, and the bottom rope tightened
parallel to the surface of the ground.
911. In setting nets, each side of the
enclosure should be a straight line, and the
surface of the netsperpeudicular : and the
diflferent sides should meet at right angles,
so that every break of turnips should either
be a rectangle or a square ; the strain will
thus be equalised over the entire cords and
stakes of each side, and no undue pressure
exerted on any one stake. A shepherd
who pays attention to these particulars,
will preserve the nets and stakes much
longer in a serviceable state than one
ignorant or careless of them.
912. The shepherd should always be
provided with net-twiueto mend any holes
SIS
PRACTICE— WINTER.
that may break out in the nets ; but where
nets hajipon to be s^et across liare-roads, the
hares will certainly keep their runs open ;
and it is better to allow their h<»les to re-
main open than, by filling them up, have
them cut daily.
913. After the hurdles or nets have
been set round the first break, the ground
may be considered ready for the reception
of the sheep ; and the ground should be
made ready before the grass fails, that
the fattening sheep may not in any degree
lose the condition they have acquired on
the grass ; for you should ahvays bear in
mind that it is much easier for you, and
much better for the animals themselves, to
improve the condition of lean sheep, than
to regain lost condition. Much rather
leave pastures a little rough than risk the
loss of condition of the sheep for want of
turnips. The rough pasture will be ser-
viceable in the winter to the ewes in lamb,
and to aged tups. Sheep therefore, to be
fattened, should be put on turnips as early
as will maintain the condition they have
acquired on the grass.
914. A break of turnips is that part of
the field occupied by the sheep.
915. As the tops of white turnij)s are
luxuriant at the commencement of the sea-
son, the first break should be smaller
than the succeeding ones, that the sheep
may not have too many tops to eat at first,
on a change of food from grass to turnips,
and they eat them greedily on account
of their freshness and juiciness ; Let the
sheep always fill themselves with turnips
before taking them from one break to an-
other. The second break may be a little
larger than the first, and the third may be
of the proper size to contain a week's food
for the number of sheep. These arrange-
ments cause the shepherd some trouble for
two or three weeks in the beginning of the
season ; but they are trifling compared
with the advantage derived by the sheep.
Rather let him have the assistance of a
field-worker to shift the nets than neglect
them. When the tops wither in the
course of the season, and a night of sharp
frost will effect this, or after the sheep
have become accustomed to the turnip, all
danger is over. The danger to be ai)prc-
hended is diarrhoea, an unnatural state for
sheep, and which soon emaciates tliem and
causes them to sink under it, antl none
recover from so great a relaxation of the
system until after a considerable lapse of
time.
91(). Another precaution is, to avoid
putting shee{> on turnips for the first time
in the early part of the day when they are
hungry. Danger may be apprehended from
luxuriant tops at all times, but when they
are wetted by rain, snow, or half-melted
rime, they are sure to do harm. The
afternoon, when the sheep are full of grasa,
should be chosen to put them first od
turnips, and although they will imme-
diately commence eating the tops, they will
not have time to hurt themselves. Should
the weather prove wet at first, and the
ground be cloggy or soft, rather than allow
the sheep so uncomfortable a lair, it would
be advisable to put them in an adjoin-
ing grass field until the ground becomes
dry.
917. Sheep for turnips are selected for
the purpose. Ewes being at this season
with young, are never, in Scotland, put on
turnips in the early part of winter, but con-
tinue to occuj)y the pastures, part of which
should be left on purpose for them in a
rough state, to support them as long
as the ground is free of snow. The reason
whvewes in lamb are never put on turnips
is tiieir becoming too fat, and producing
small lambs, and being attacked by in-
flammation at the lambing time.
918. Aged tups are most frequently put
on turnij)s, and young tups always, but
never in the same part of the field as the
feeding sheep, having a snug corner to
themselves, or the turnips led for them to
a sheltered part of a grass field.
919. Young sheep, lambs of the same
year, hoggs, are always put on turnips,
whether with the view of fattening them
at once, or enlarging the size of their
bone.
920. Every year a certain number of
old ewes, unfit for farther breeding, from
want of teeth, or a supply of milk, arc
drafted out of the flock to make room for
the same number of 3'oung female?, and
arc fattened upon turnips.
FEEDING SHEEP OX TURNIPS.
213
921. It sometimes happens that the cas-
trated male lambs of last year, instead of
being sold, have been grazed during the
summer, and are fattened the second sea-
son on turnips.
922. All these classes of sheep, of diffe-
rent ages, may be mixed together and oc-
cupy tbe same break of turnips. It is
seldom that the lambs of last year are
kept on to the second year, but the draft
ewes are always fed along with the young
sheep, and prove useful in breaking the
turnips and eating the picked shells. A
mixture of old and young sheep are less
useful to one another when turnips are cut
by machines.
923. As sheep are best known by tech-
nical names given them according to age
and sex, I shall enumerate them now, and
employ them in future. A new-born
sheep is called a lamb, and retains the
name until weaned from its mother and is
able to support itself. The generic name
is altered according to the sex and state
of the animal ; when a female it is a ezce-
larnb, when a male a tujhlamh, and this
last is changed to hogg-lamb when it
undergoes emasculation.
924. After a Limb has been weaned,
until the first fleece is shorn from its back,
it receives the name oihogg, which is also
modified according to the sex and state
of the animal, a female being a nce-
hogg, a male a tup-hogg, and a castrated
male a icether-hogg. After the first fleece
has been shorn, another change is made in
the nomenclature ; the ewe-hogg then
becomes a gitnmer, the tup-hogg a shear-
ling-tup, and the wether-hogg adinmonf,
and these names are retained until the
fleece is shorn the second time.
925. After the second shearing another
change is effected in all the names ; the
gimmer is then a ewe if she is in lamb,
but if not, a barren gimmer, and if never
put to the ram a eild giinmer. The shear-
ling tup is then a 2-shear tup, and the
dinmont is a tcet/ier, but more correctly
a 2-shear icether.
926. A ewe three times shorn is a
twinter exce, (^tico-tr inter ewe ;) a tuj) is a
3-shear tup; and a wether still a ?c^^/<^r.
•or more correctly a 3-shear icether — which
is an uncommon name among Leicester
sheep, as the castrated sheep of that breed
are rarely kept to that age.
927. A ewe four times shorn is a three
winter etce, or aged ewe ; a tup, an aged
tup, a name he retains ever after, what-
ever his age, but the}' are seldom kept
beyond this age ; and the wether is now
a wether properly so called.
928. A tuj) and ram are synonymous
terms.
929. A ewe that has borne a lamb,
when it fails to be with lamb again is a tuj)-
eill or barren ewe. After a ewe has ceased
to give milk she is a geld-ewe.
930. A ewe when removed from the
breeding flock is a draft ewe, whatever
her age may be ; gimmers put aside as
unfit for breeding are draft gimmers, and
the lambs, dinmonts or wethers, drafted
out of the fat or young stock are sheddittgSy
tails, or drafts.
931. In Enirland a somewhat different
nonieuclature prevails. Sheep bear the
name of la?7ib until 8 months old, after
which they are ewe and icether teggs until
once clipped. Gimmers are theaves unlal
theybear the first lamb, v,-hen they are etces
of \-tecth, next year ewes of 6-teeth, and
the year after full-mouthed ewes. Din-
monts are called .^Z/^ar //or/^;s until shorn of
the fleece, when they are 2-shear tccthers,
and ever after are wethers.
932. When sheep are on turnips they
are always supplied with dry fddder, hay
or straw; hay is the most nutritious though
expensive ; but sweet fresh oat-straw
answers the purpose very well. The
fodder is supplied to them in racks.
There are various forms of straw-racks
for sheep ; some are placed so high that
sheep can with difficulty reach the fodiier;
and others are mounted hi^h on wheels.
The form in fig. 45 I have found a
verv convenient one, containing plenty of
straw at a time, admitting the straw easily
into it, being easily moved about, of easy
access to the sheep, and being so near the
ground as to form an excellent shelter. It
is made of wood, 9 feet in length, 4^ feet
214
PRACTICE— WINTER.
in height, and 3 feet in width, having a
double sparre.l rack, covered with an
anf'led roof of boards to throw off the rain.
The rack is supported on 2 triangular-
bhaped tressels b, shod with iron at the
pointSjWhicharepushed into thcground, and
Fig. 45.
THE SHEKP STRAW OR BAT RACK.
act as stays against the wind from either
side. The billet c, fixed on the acute
edge of the rack, rests upon the
ground, and supports it from bending
down in the middle. The lid a is opened
on hinges when the fodder is put into the
rack. There should be at least 2 such
racks in use ; and when set together at an
angle against the weather point, the space
comprehended between them affords suf-
ficient shelter to a considerable number of
sheep, as seen at r, fig. 51. Such racks are
easily moved about by 2 persons, and their
position should be changed with a change
of wind.
933. It is the shepherd's duty to fill these
racks with fodder, and one or all may
require replenishment daily; and this he
does easily by carrying a small bundle of
fodder every time he visits the sheep.
When carts are removing turnips direct
from the field, thev carry out the bundles;
it being the shepherd's duty to have the
bundles ready for the carters in the straw-
bam or hay-house. Though for nothing
but shelter the racks should be kept full of
fodder. Fodder is required more at one
time than another, in keen sharp weather
the sheep eat it greedily, and when tur-
nips are frozen they will often have
recourse to it, and it is useful along with
succulent tops. In rainy, or s«ft muggy
weather, sheep eat fodder with little relish;
but it has been observed that they eat it
steadily and late, and seek shelter near
the racks, prior to a storm of wind and
rain or snow ; and in fine weather they
select a lair in the more exposed part of
the break. With a sloping rack of this
form, when hay is employed as fodder, the
hay should be well shaken free of seeds, as
these are apt to get among the wool.
With straw fodder no such annoyance is
experienced.
934. Until of late years sheep were
allowed to help themselves to turnips,
and when the bulbs were scooped out as
far as the ground would permit, their
shtl's, as their bottoms fast in the ground
are called, were picked out with a turnip-
pici'cr, the mode of using which may be
seen in fig. 46. Its handle « is 4 feet long,
and blade A 1 0 inches, including the eye for
Fig. 46.
THK BEST FORM OP TURNIP-PICKER IN USE.
the handle. By its mode of action, you
will observe that the tap-root of the tur-
nip is cut through and the shell separated
from the ground at one stroke. A com-
mon form of these pickers is with the
mouth cleft in two, fig. 47, between which
Fig. 47.
OBJECTIONABLE FORM OF TURNIP- PICKER.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
215
the tap-root is lield, and the shell and root
pulled up together. It is found, however,
that tlie tap-root contains an acrid juice
detrimental to the,'stomach of sheep, so that
the better plan is to cut it off and leave it
in the ground to rot, as is done by the
best form of blade, 5, fig. 46. Notwith-
standing the very general use now of
turnip-slicers, wliich have dispensed with
the turnip-pickers, I still give the figures
of these, as on many farms too few turnips
are raised to require the services of the
largest class of turnip-slicer.
935. Only half the ground occupied by
the shells should be picked up at once—
every alternate double row — to make the
sheep occupy a larger space of ground
while consuming them. When the ground
is dry, the shells should be nearly eaten
up before a new break of turnips is given;
but on a few shells being left, the sheep
will come over the ground again and eat
them, especially in frost; and though then
in a shrivelled state, shells are sweeter and
softer than turnips.
936. But the mode more recently
adopted of serving turnips to sheep, cut
into small pieces with a turnip-slicer in
troughs conveniently placed, should be in
general use, while the sheep have still
liberty to eat the turnips from the
ground.
937. The most convenient, and a simple
form of turnip-slicer, is the lever turnip-
slicer for sheep. It is easily moved from
place to place, on two small wheels, drawn
along by means of two handles. It is suf-
ficiently effective to supply sliced turnips
to a small flock of sheep, and is peculiarly
convenient for use where a few sheep are
placed by themselves, such as tups in the
corner of a grass field, or ewes in a pad-
dock at the period of lambing. The view
of the instrument is seen in perspective in
fig. 48, which consists of a wooden frame
supporting a trough, together with the
cutting apparatus. The frame is formed
of four posts, a a a a, spreading a little
below Each pair is connected by cross-
rails, b b, and they are connected longitu-
dinally by the bars, d d. which form also
the handles of the wheel-barrow, being
bolted to the posts at a suitable height for
Fig. 48.
THE LEVER TURNIP-SLICER FOR SHEEP.
that purpose. A pair of wheels, c c, of veniency of a wheel-barrow. The trough
cast-iron, fitted to an iron axle, which is «, into which the turnips are laid for cut-
bolted to the front posts, gives it the con- ting, has a sloping continuation in front
4?
216
rRACTICE— WINTER.
of the cutters, for tlin)wiug (»ff the sliced
turnips. Tlie cutting apparatus consists of
a groove<l frame of iron,/, in which the
comjKtund cutter moves up and down bj
means of the lever handle, g. A forked
support, h, is bolted by a palm to the fur-
ther side of the wooden frame, and at the
extremity, «', of the fork a swing link is
jointed. The lower end of the link is
jointed to the extremity of the lever, which
is likewise forked, forming its fulcrum ;
and the gridiron-cutter, k /, is also jointed
by its top-bar to the lever at /. While
the point /, therefore, of the cutter moves
in a parallel line by its confinement in the
grooves of the frame /, the fulcrum is
allowed to vibrate on the joint t of the
swing link — thus allowing an easy verti-
cal motion to the cutter tlirough the full
range of its stroke I have known one
field-worker supply 220 sheep with sliced
turnips by the aid of an instrument such
as this. It is worked by moving the
handle, ^, with the right hand, while the
left pushes forward each turnip succes-
sively to be sliced by the gridiron-
cutter.
938. A more efficient machine is to be
found in the wheel tutnip-slicer for sheep,
fig. 49, which is a perspective view of it.
The wooden frame, spreading a little wider
below, is formed with four posts, a a a a,
one of which is only partially seen in the
Fig. 49.
THE WHEKL-BARROW TURNIP-SLICER FOR SHEEP.
figure. The posts are connected on the
sides by top-rails, h b, and two brace-rails,
c c, below, one of which serves to support
the spout, d, which discharges the sliced
turnips. The sides of the frame thus
formed are connected by cross-rails above
and below, e e e, and is there furnished
witli the handle-bars,//, bolted to the
posts, and projecting a convenient length
beyond them at one end. The barrow-
wheels, ffp, are fitted to an iron axle.
which is bolted to the posts in front. The
hopper, h. is fixed upon the top-rail by
means of a cast-iron sole bolted upon the
rail, and is further supported by a wooden
bracket at each side, as seen at /, and by
the iron .«tay /:. The slicing- wheel /, is a
disc of ca>t-iron, carrying throe sets of
cutter*. Tlie di.sc is mounted on :im axle
passing through its centre, where it is
fixed, and which is supported on bearings
placed on the top-rails, and, when worked,
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
217
it is turned by the winch-handle m, fixed
upon this axle. This machine is now
generally made of the disc of cast-iron,
carrying the cutters, mounted on a wooden
frame, which is most conveniently mounted
on wheels like a wheel -barrow. It was
at one time made entirely of iron, but was
found inconvenient to move about.
8 feet, and it should be acute at tie bottom,
for the more easy seizure of the pieces of
turnip by tlie months of the sheep, and it
is so made by nailing two boards, of 9
inches in breadth, upon the two triangular-
shaped ends, and in the niches formed in
tlie two billets of wood to serve for feet.
Tlie troughs are set in a line along the
outside of the 2 rows of ti
uinips about to
939. Fig. 50 is a simple and convenient be pulled for slicing. The turnip slicer, fio-.
"" " "^ ' ' ' 49, is wheeled to each trough successively
by one field worker, who works the handle,
and the hopper is filled by another worker
who tops and tails the turnips. The sheep
range themsleves on either side of each
troujrh.
form of trough for containing the turnips
Fig. 50.
THE TURMP-TROUGH FOR SHEEP- FEEDI.NG.
as they fall sliced from any of the above
machines. Its most convenient length is
940. I have constructed fig. 51 to
give you a bird's-eye view of a break
of turnips in a turnip-field occupied by
Fig. 51.
-X X It if t %-% X n t *
* If ^ if * t ^ X
* * ■% "X -i Tt -«
t •% -b -i i
■*■ * 'e f *^ ^
■r * * * It
t^ * * if
* * *
THE MODE OP OCCUPYING TURNIP-LAND WITH SHEEP.
the sheep. There are the turnips a, half the place where their food is preparing for
of which have been pulled. The ground them, whilst others </ are still lying rest-
is represented bared beyond the turnip- ing regardle.<s of food. Some, //, are
sheer b in its advance across one side of standing, as if meditating what next to
the break to the other. The turnip- slicer do, and others /, examining matters about
b IS proceeding up beside the two drills the nets. Some nibble at the dry fodder
c, and depositing the sliced turnips into in the racks r, whilst a group k, l"ie under
one of the small troughs d, out of another their shelter. Such are the usual occupa-
of which some of the sheep are eating, tions of sheep when they have abundance
whilst others are eating the turnips in the of food at their command. The field-
drills c. The sheep are scattered over the worker I is slicing the turnips with the
ground as they are usually seen, some machine. The nets m are represented
following one another iv a string/ towards enclosing two sides of the break, the other
<*''
218
PRACTICE— WINTER.
two sides being supposed to be the fences
of the field. Tbe remainder of the net
along the upper part of the break is coiled
round the top of a stake at />, and there
also the mallet and driver await their use.
941. The turnips h, fig. 50, to the right
of the nets, apj)ear undrawn, while those,
0, above the nets are stripped, indicating
tliat the progress of the break at this
time is upwards towards the top (if the
field, in a line with the drills and the
ridges ; and this part of the arrangement
is uot a matter of chance, because the
breadth of each break should succeed one
another across the field, that the land,
when cleared of turnips, may be ploughed
into ridges. A large field, that engages
the sheep for a cousiderable part of the
season, is ploughed as each stretch of
breaks is cleared, to preserve the manure.
In ploughing, however, with this intent,
the sheep should not be deprived of any
natural shelter, which should be secured
to them as long as practicable, by arrang-
ing the breaks so as to make one first at
the most sheltered part of the field, that
the sheep might resort to the bottom of
the break they are occupying, after the
first breadth of breaks had been given up
and ploughed from the bottom to the top
of the field. Such an arrangement re-
quires some consideration at first, as its
oversight may create much inconvenience
to sheep for want of shelter, or delay the
ploughing. Shelter to sheep on turnips
does not merely imply protection from a
blast for a night or two, but also the pre-
servation of the fleece, and the comfort to
the flock through the winter.
942. I have already stated, that tups
or rams are fed on turnips in a separate
division from the feeding sheep. Some
apportion them in a space in the same,
whilst others give them a break in another
field ; but I prefer giving tups turnips in
a small grass paddock, an<l slicing them
with the lever turnip-slicer, fig. 48. Where
tups form a large lot of 40 or 50, it may
cause more trouble to fetch their turnips
than to enclose them on the ground ; but
it should be borne in mind, in regard to
tups, that whenever a tup and ewe in
season become aware of the presence of
each other in the same field, or in con-
tiguous fields, neither will rest to feed.
The air will carry the scent from their
bodies reciprocally. Tups in a separate
field cause as much trouble to the sheplierd
in visiting them as a larger flock ; whereas,
were they near home in a grass paddock,
he could visit them frequently in going to
and coming from his house.
943. Shecj) while on turnips are fed
with other substances, such as «iil-cake or
corn. Either of these is served in a
covered trough, fig. 52, to protect it from
the weather. Its construction requires no
explanation.
Fig. 52.
THE OIL-CAKE OR CORN BOX FOR FEEDING SHEEI'.
944. I have had no experience of feed-
ing sheep on oil-cake or corn, having
farmed turnip-land, upon which sheep
never failed to become abundantly fat
without adventitious aid. On deaf and
clay soils, however, oil-cake proves bene-
ficial ; and it may also be served in these
troughs to sheep on grass in winter as
their entire food. Oil-cake has the efiect
of keeping the dung of sheep in a moist
state. It is given them in a bruised form,
partly in powder, and partly in pieces, as
it falls from the oil-cake breaker, a con-
venient machine on every farm. There is
no use measuring the quantity of oil-cake
to sheep when on turnips, as they will eat
it when inclined, and some sheep eat it
more heartily than others, but 1 lb. to
each sheep a day is the usual allowance.
945. Fig 52 gives a perspective view of
an oil-cuke breaker, wherein a a a n are
the four posts of a wooden frame on which
the n)achincry is supported : b b are two
top-rails. The posts are supportoil to-
wards the botti.m by the four stay-rails
c c c ; and the top-rails are hold in
position by cross-rails </, one only nf '.vhich
is seen in the figure. Of the machinery,
the acting parts consist of 2 rollers, studded
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
219
all over with pyramidal knobs or teeth, roller; and having a smooth space or zone
These are arranged in zones upon each between each of the knobbed zones; the
Fi-. 53.
THE OIL-CAKB BREAKER.
knobs of one roller corresponding to the
smooth space in the other. In this figure,
g g &re two pinching screws, which serve
to regulate the distance at which the
rollers are to work, and, consequently,
the degree of coarseness to which the
cake is to be broken. The wheel h is
placed upon the shaft of the roller e, and
the pinion i, with its shaft, and the winch-
handle k, act upon the wheel h, giving a
very considerable mechanical advantage
to the power which is applied to the ma-
chine. The fly-wheel I is likewise placed
upon the shaft of the pinion i, and is
requisite in this machine to enable the
power to overcome the unequal resistance
of the work. A feeding-hopper n is
placed over the line of division of the two
rollers. The hopper is here represented
in section, the near portion of it being
supposed entirely removed, in order to
exhibit more distinctly the construction of
the rollers.
946. Salt is frequently given to sheep
on turnips; but with what result, as re-
gards their fattening, I have never learned.
I have given them it, and the eairerness
with which they at first followed the shep-
herd when he laid down a small quantity,
here and there, upon flat stones, and the
relish they manifested, was very remark-
able ; but the relish lasted a very short
time, and then every day they tocjk so
little, as if they were trifling with it.
Perhaps the cultivator who advocated the
220
PRACTICE— WINTER.
use of salt to animals most pcrseveringly
was tlu> late Mr C'urwcn, of Workingtou
Hall, C'uinbcrlaiiJ, who gave from 2 to
4 ounces per week to each sheep, when on
ilry pastures ; and on turnips or raj)e, it was
supplied without stint.
947- "It is, in fact, inclisputally prored,''
says Mr Ciithbert W. Johnson, " that if
sheep are allowed free access to salt, they
irill never be subject to the disease called
the rot. Is not this a fact worthy of a
farmer's earliest, most zealous attention ?
Some recent experiments also lead me
even to hope that I shall one day or other
be able to prove it to be a cure for this
devastating disease. I have room but for
one fact : Mr Rusher, of Stanley, in Glou-
cestershire, in the autumn of 1828, pur-
chased, for a mere trifle, 20 sheep, decidedly
rotten^ and gave each of them, for some
weeks, 1 ounce of salt every morning;
two only died during the winter ; the sur-
viving 18 were cured, and have now, says
my informant, lambs by their sides."*
948. There are certain inconveniences
attending the feeding of sheep on turnips
in winter, v,-liich you should be made
aware of. A lieavy rain falling some
days, will render the ground soft and
poachy, th<;ugh thorough drained, or even
naturally dry. When the cause soon dis-
appears, the removal of the sheep for a
uight and day to an old grass field will
give the land sufficient time to resume its
firmness; and a little oil-cake will support
the sheep all the time they will be there.
A very heavy rain may fall in a day,
and inundate the lower etid (»f the field
with water, whicli may take some days to
subside. The best way of keeping the
sheep from the wetted part is to fence it
off with a net.
949. A fall of snow, driven by the
wind, may cover the sheltered part of the
field, and leave the turnips bare only in
the most exposed. In this case, the sheep
must feed in the exposed part, and the
racks should be so placed there as to afTord
shelter. But the snow may fall heavily,
and lie deep over the whole field, and
cover every turnip out of reach. Two
expedients only present themselves in
such a case ; one is to cast tho snow from
the drills containing the turnips, and pile it
upon those which have been stripped.
This cannot be done by the shepherd him-
self, or by female field-workers. The
ploughmen must clear away the snow ; in
doing so in severe frost, as many turnips
only should be exposed as will serve the
sheep for the day. The advantage of thus
clearing away the snow is, the immediate
access to the turnips ; but when the snow
lies a considerable time, all the manure
will be left by the sheep in the channels
cut through the snow, and, of course, the
parts upon which the snow was piled will
receive none. The best plan to pursue at
first, under such circumstances, is the
other expedient, to give the sheep oil-cake
in their troughs, in a sheltered place of
the field for a time, until it is seen whether
the snow is likely soon to disappear; and
should it remain long, the snow may be
cleared away, and its disadvantages sub-
mitted to. In the great fall of spring
1823, my turnip-field was covered with
snow 4 feet deep. Having no oil-cake,
and finding it impossible to remove the
sheep, the snow was cut into trenches, in
which the sheep soon learned to accom-
modate one another, and throve apace.
A fresh fall of snow came a hv,- days after
from the opposite quarter, and filled up
the trenches, which had to be cleared out
again. The snow continued upon the
ground until the end of April, and as there
was then no time to manure the land which
hrid been covered with the snow, — and,
indeed, its soft state would have rendered
carting upon it impracticable, — the suc-
ceedinir crop of barley grew in strips cor-
responding to the trenches. Even a supply
of oil-cake would not, in this case, have
superseded the trenching of the snow, to
have had the turnips eaten in time for
the barley-seed.
0.50. Whilst the young sheep and tups
are thus provided with tuniips in winter,
the ewes in lamb find food on the older
grass, which, for their sakes, should not
be eaten too bare in autumn. When pas-
tures are very bare, or snow covers the
ground, they should have turnips sliced in
troughs, or, what is better, clover-hay in
a sheltered spot. The best hay for sheep
* Johnson's Obserrations on the Employnent of Salt, p. 12
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
221
is the red clover, and next, meadow-Lay;
but much rather give them turnips than
hay in a wet or moulded state, as either
has a strong tendency to engender diseases
in sheep, generally such as consumption
of the lungs and rot of the liver ; and as
regards ewes in lamb, in particular, it is
apt to produce abortion. If turnips cannot
be had, and the hay bad, give them
sheaves of oats, or oats in troughs, or oil-
cake ; but whatever extraneous food
is given, do not supply it in such quantity
as to fatten the ewes, but only to keep
them in fair condition with hay. In the
severe snow-storm of 1823, I put my ewes
into an old Scots-fir plantation, into which
only a small quantity of snow had pene-
trated, and supplied them there with hay
upon the snow round the roots of the
trees. A precaution is requisite in using
a Scots-fir j)Iantatinn in snow for sheep;
its ever-i:reen branches intercepting the
snow are apt to be broken by its weight,
and fall upon the sheep and kill them ;
and in my case, a ewe was killed on the
spot by this cause the first night. Much
loaded branches should therefore be cleared
partly of their snow where the slieep are
to lodge. In driving ewes, heavy with
lanii>, through deep snow to a place of
shelter, plenty of time should be given
them to wade through it, in case they
overreach themselves, and bring ou
abortion.
951. In the south of Scotland, and
more generally in England, rape is grown
for slice}). The rape (Brassica rapa
oleij'era of De Candolle,) cultivated in this
country, is distinguished from the colsat
of the Continent by the smoothness of its
leaves. It has been cultivated for the
fattening of sheep in winter from time im-
memorial. The green leaves, as food for
sheep, are scarcely surpassed by any other
vegetable, in so far as re.s])ects its nutri-
tious properties; but in quantity it is in-
ferior both to turnips and cabbages. Its
haulm may be used as hay with nearly
as much avidity as cut straw.* The con-
sumption of rape by sheep is conducted
by breaks in exactly the same manner as
that of turnips ; but it is never stripped or
pulled, the entire crop being consumed
on the ground. In England, the rape
intended for sheep is sown broadcast and
very thick, in which state it grows very
suitable for them. In Scotland, it is raised
in drills like turnips ; and although not so
conveniently placed for sheep as the broad-
cast, the to}} leaves being somewhat beyond
their reach from the bottom of the drill,
yet the form permits the land being well
cleaned in summer, which renders the rape
an ameliorating crop for the land. It is
acknowledged on all hands, that, for oil,
the drill form of culture is far the best.
952. Every kind of sheep kept in the low
country should be treated in winter in the way
described above, though the remarks are meant
to apply to the management of the Leicester,
which is the breed cultivated where sheep form
an integral part of the mixed husbandry. Where
a Leicester flock is so kept, the ewes are re-
garded as a standing jlock — ^that is, they have
themselves been bred and produce lambs upon
the farm untilthey become unprofitable, when they
are fed off. But on lowland farms, in certain
districts, no flock of ewes is kept for breeding,
and sheep ti> be fattened on turnips are bought
in. For this purpose some farmers purchase
wethers, others old ewes, dinmonts, or lambs.
When wethers are selected, the Cheviot and
black-faced breeds are obtained from the moun-
tains. Sheep are thus easily obtained for tur-
nips at fairs in autumn ; but where certain
mountain stocks have acquired a good name,
purchasers go to the spot, and buy them direct
from the breeders.
953. Sheep on turnips have little shelter but
what the fences of the field afford, or planta-
tions. In some cases this is quite sufficient ; but
in others it is inadequate. Of late years, the
subject of shelter has attracted much attention,
and artificial means have been suggested, con-
sisting of various devices, involving different
degrees of cost, to afford shelter, not merely
against sudden outbreaks of weather, but with
the view of gradually improving the conditiou
of sheep, both in carcass and wool. It is a
natural expectation, that a fat carcass should
produce the most wool, and constant shelter
preserve its quality.
954. Ewes in lamb are very apt to catch cold,
and when exposed to wet and cold weather, or
kept in a wet lair, will pick lamb, that is, suffer
abortion, and perhapsbecome rotten.
955. Mr Hunter of Tynefield, in East Lothian,
tried in 1809 the littering of the break, occupied
by the sheep, with straw, and supplied them with
turnips upon it. He littered 300 sheep upon 25
acres of turnips, which afforded 36 tons of ma-
nure the acre, with the straw of 60 acres of
wheat, or 60 tons of straw. The sheep thus
treated for 5 months, fetched 23, a-head more than
* Don's General Dictionary of Botany and Gardening, yol. i. p. 245.
222
PRACTIC E— WINTER.
those treated in the usual manner. This increase
of price is small, and not at all commensurate to
the trouble of carting, at intervals, 60 tons of
straw to the field — of carting the same, as ma-
nure, from that field to another, and of carry-
ing the turnips from the drills to the fold. When
turnips are laid upon straw, >hee;> cannot bite
them easily, from their rolling aw.-\y ; and this
is an objection to layi-ig wlule turnips on grass,
instead of cutting thcin with a turiiip->licer.
Amongst damp litter she-.-p invariaMy contract
foot rot — of which seven of Mr Hunter's flock
died, the value of which should be deducted
from the profits otherwise obtained.*
956. Sheep have been recommended to be fed
in sheds, and these are proposed to be movable
or stationary. The perspective view of a mov-
able shed is seen in fig. 54. It is 15 feet long, 7
feet wide, with an opening of | of an inch
Fig. 54.
A MOVABLE SHED FOR SHEEP ON TL'RMPS.
between the floor deals. The floor rests on 2 axle s
of iron supported on 4 iron wheels, 1 foot dia-
meter, which raise the shed 6 inches above the
ground. The roof is made pavilion-wise, with
deals overlapping each other, and elevated 5 feet
above the floor. One side and both ends, when
the shed is in use, could be boarded in the
quarter from which the wind comes ; and if the
boards are fastened dead, the shed shonld be
wheeled round to suit the wind ; but if boarding
be considered too expensive for fitting up such
sheds, hurdles clad with thin slabs, or wattled
with straw or willow, might be placed against
one side and the ends, and answer the purpose.
A horse is required to wheel such a shed to any
distance. A shed of the above dimensions may
accommodate about 20 sheep, and its cost is said
to be £4. But should this construction be con-
sidered too unwieldy, the shed could be made of
two pieces of half the size, which would easily
be moved about by people, and, when placed
together on end, would form an entire shed of
the proper dimensions. The cost of two half-
sheds will of course be greater than an entire
one. Whether any one will ever incur the cost
of sheltering sheep on turnips in such sheds i.«,
I conceive, questionable ; and some time will
elapse ere the sheep become so familiarised to
them as to enter them freely.f
957. Stationary sheds have been erected at
the steading, the courts attached to them littered
with straw, and the sheep daily supplied with
sliced turnips. Many years ago the late Mr
Webster of Balruddery, in Forfarshire, attempted
to fatten sheep in this manner, and I had oppor-
tunities of witnessing his experiments, which
were not succes-sful, inasmuqii as he employed
black-faced sheep, and they became severely
af^icted with the foot-rot.
958. Mr Childers, M.P. for Mai ton, fed 40
Leicester wether-hoggs on turnips, 20 in the field
and 20 in a shed. The shed consisted of »
thatched erection of roujfh deals, having a floor
of slabs raised 18 inches above the ground, with a
small court attached to it. The boarded floor was
swept every day. and fresh straw put over the
court after every shower of rain. The sheep
were divided into as equal lots as could be
drawn, the score to be fed in the shed weighing
183 stones 3 lb., and those in the field 184
stones 4 lb. Each lot got as many sliced tur-
nips as they could eat, which amounted to 27
stones every day ; 10 lb of linseed-cake, or ^ lb.
to each sheep, per day ; { pint of barley to each
sheep ; and a little hay, and a constant supjdy
of salt. They were fed from 1st J.muary to 1st
April ; and, on the fourth week, the liojrgs in
the shed eat 3 stones fewer turnips eviry day ;
in the ninth week, 2 stones still fewer, and of
linseed-cake 3 lb. less per day. The ret'Uits
were these : —
» arM
January 1 .
February 1 . ,
I .March 1 . ,
j April 1 . . .
Total increase .
hogg..
locreue. [
1
St. lb.
1^3 3
2f5 0
215 10
23a 9
St. n>. 1
21 11 '
10 10
23 13 1
5S 6 {
et. tb. I
1K4 4 I
199 S '
20S 2 :
220 12
1$ 4
S «
12 iO
33 8
" Consequently," says Mr Childers, " the s^hcep
in the shed, though they consumed nearly J le.^a
food, have made 4 greater progress."^ Tims, i;i
4 months, the thed-fed hoggs gained about {
stone a-head more than thote in th.e field, aii/l
were worth 3s. a-head more. This experiment
of shed-feeding corroborates the ordinary, expe-
rience in the progress of fattening sheep ; namely,
that the greatest progress is made at the begin-
ning and end of the season. In the beginning,
the fat is laid on in the inside, to fill up ; and at
the end, it is laid on on the outside, after the
acquirement of muscle in the intermediate
period.
959. Similar experiments have been made in
Scotland with success. Mr Wilkin, Tinwald
Downs, Dumfriesshire, fed 20 cross-lred Cheviot
and Leicester hoggs in courts and sheds, on
turnips, grass, and oil-cake, and their increased
value over others in the field was estimated at
from 22s. to 25s.
• Sinclair's Jccount of the Hu^ndry of Scotland, vol. ii. Appendix, p. 47.
+ Qwjrtcrli/ Journal of Agriculture, vol. xi. p. 27-30.
X Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. i. p. 169.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
223
560. Mr John M'Bryde, Belkar, fed both
Leicester and Cheviot wethers in stalls on tur-
nips, rice, sago, sugar, and linseed-oil, and rea-
lised 7s. ahead more llian from those fed in the
field.* But in estimating the advantages derived
from shed-feeding, the trouhle occasioned in
bringing the turnips from, and taking the manure
to the held, j^hould always be borne in mind.
But should the plan leave no profit, yet, if it
improve the quality of the wool in its most essen-
tial particulars, it is worthy of consideration iu
many cases.
961. A very recent instance of feeding sheep
in sheds is that related by the Rev. A. Huxtable,
rector of Sutton Waldron, in Dorsetshire. His
sheds vrere 50 feet long, IS feet wide, and
thatched with straw within 3 feet of the ground,
before and behind, and behind a turf wall reaches
the thatch, while in front hurdles are used to keep
in the sheep. Each shed contains about 50 sheep,
and costs, without thestraw, 41s. Within the sheds
the ground was excavated 8 or 9 inches, puddled
and made water-tight, and covered with 6 inches
of sawdust, burnt clay, and good dry mould.
This compost received and absorbed the manure
thatfell, which was swept into it twice every day.
Over the compost was erected a perfectly level
flooring of movable boards for the sheep to lie
upon, at a cost of Is. 4d. per head of sheep. The
boards, after sweeping, are watered with a solu-
tion of 3 lbs. of sulphate of iron, which instantly
removes the odour not only of the ammonia, but
the more offensive sulphuretted hydrogen. The
sheep are fed under the sheds. Mr Huxtable
having observed sheep prefer the most beaten
roads on the downs for their bed, he gives them
the bare boards to lie upon ; and in order that
the courts attached to the sheds should also be
hard, he floored them with a sort of asphalt
made of chalk beaten small, covered with gas
tar and sand. The sheep occupy the courts
while the sheds are being swept clean. The
food consists of turnips, the last fortnight only of
swedes, half a pint per day, (never more) of
oats or peas, with straw cut into chaff, over
■which ground linseed has been poured mixed
with boiling water. The increase of weight
attained by the sheep was not accurately ascer-
tained, but the results of the arrangement have
been most successful, both in the health and
well-doing of the sheep, there never having been
Been one instance of lameness, even in the
slightest degree, in a confinement of 5 months.
The general issue may be allowed to be satis-
factory, as in 12 weeks they realised a profit of
13s. a-head.f
962. In situations where the ground is rather
high and smooth, and the climate indifferent,
sheds, with yards attached to them, are
recommended for the accommodation of Lei-
cester and half-bred hoggs in winter on tur-
nips. " From the experience I have had," says
Mr Purves, " I do not see that sheep are better
off" iuvsheds than in the open air where the climate
is fine, the situation dry and well sheltered, ex-
cept in a snow-storm or iu very wet weather ;
but, taking average situations into account, mure
especially in such districts as Caithness, where
the climate is variable and the soil damp, and
where there is no natural or artificial shelter,
there is no doubt of the advantage of the plan ;
and its general introduction and uniform success
in that county are its best recommendation. This
system, also, in a great measure dispenses with
the necessity of keeping a large number of cattle
to trample down the straw in arable farms, [this
remark applies only to farms where cattle are
bought every year, not bred ;] and as sheep are
decidedly a more profitable stock than cattle,
and managed at less expense, their number can
be, in this way, considerably increased, especially
if bone manure or guano be used and thorough-
draining persevered in. The expense of keeping
in this way is much the same as in the fields.
There is, however, less loss of turnips, and the
manure is better jireserved ; and its value will
more than compensate for the carting of it to the
land. When oil-cake or oats are given, the
difference of expense will be amply repaid in the
superior quality of the wool and mutton, and in
getting the sheep early to market, and in saving
the grain for other stock.
963. " A shed of 100 feet in length and 14 feet
in width, — having a back wall of 6 feet high of dry
stone harled with lime, and pillars in front of
stone and lime, with small trees laid across the
shed for joists, covered with branches and
thatched with straw, together with a court
fronting S. of 100 feet square, fenced on the E.
and W. sides with a dry stone-wall 6 feet high,
and in front with a 4 feet wall, and all coped
with turf — will contain 300 lioggs. A turnip-
house of 40 feet in length, and 14 feet in width,
should be constructed at one end of the shed,
stretching along one of the side-walls of the
court; and an apartment for the shepherd should
be made at the end of the house, 12 feet long
by 14 feet wide." J -,
964. But the modes of feeding sheep in sheds
have been modified to confining them always with-
in the shed ; which particular mode of feeding
has obtained the appellation of box-feeding. If
shelter is the one thing desirable, sheep will cer-
tainly experience it to the greatest degree in box-
feeding. No farther description of this mode
seems necessary, as it must be well understood
from the foregoing descriptions of shed-feeding.
965. Boxing-feeding has been refined into
stall-feeding, in which the sheep are not only
confined within a shed, but are each tied with a,
leather strap by the neck, to a stake in a stall
under the shed. It is related that " the intel-
ligent and able steward of a gentleman had two
lots of sheep feeding in a shed, the one lot tied
up each to its own stall, the other remaining
* Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. xi. p. 128.
i" Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. vi. p. 242.
t Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society for January 1845, p. 399.
224
PRACTICE— WINTER.
loose in another part of the same shed. Though
treatol, in other respects, similarly, the pro-
gress of tliose tie<l up «us much more rapiJ
and profitable than that of tho>e which were
loosti. The effect was very evident— the cause
not so. However, one evening going round the
cattle-sheds, at a late liour, he observed, upon
opening the door of the sheep-house, that the
loose sheep were on their feet, alert and restless,
and as he entered they were constantly on the
move ; their food was unfinished. Those, on the
contrary, that were tied up were reposing with
full stomachs and empty troughs. Each having
eaten, uninterrupted, all it could get, was mak-
ing itself ready fur the next supply. Nothing
was wasted. The difference in their progress was
thus accounted for."
966. The shed is IC feet wide, affjrding room
for a double row of stalls, and a passage between
them. The floor of the stalls upon which the
pheep stand consists of boards three-fourths of
an inch apart, supported over tanks into which
the dung and urine of the sheep drop. Each
stall is fitted up with a trough and stake, and
the sheep are fastened to the stake by means
of a leather strap round the neck, with a chain
7 to 9 inches, enough to allow the sheep to
lie down with its head clear of the trough.
Within, 6 inches of their height the sides of the
shed are formed of a bank of earth, which admits
air and light above it, but the opening can be
filled up with straw when desired.*
967. The reSection arising on hearing of
sheep being confined within and fattened in
sheds is, that it may perhaps be a profitable
enough amusement for those who liave but a
Tery few sheep to feed,— but where is accommo-
dation to be found for the hundreds of thousands
of sheep fed on turnips every winter ! I have
known a farmer feed as many as 5000 sheep in
a winter, — and where is he to procure the mate-
rials to erect sheds for that number without
immense trouble and expense ? I wish not to
be misunderstood. I neither corroborate nor
deny the statements that have been made in
regard to the profits derived from this mode of
feeding sheep; but I consider all the plans I
have seen recommended as impracticable on a
large scale, and therefore inapplicable to the
country in general. Another reflection such
methods call forth is, the counteraction given to
the natural habits of the sheep. I advocate
shelter for sheep as earnestly as any man can
do, but would aJlow them as much liberty as
not to interfere with their entire personal move-
ments. This I plead for all other animals as
well as sheep.
968. But shed-feeding is not invariably at-
tended with success. Mr T. E. Pawlett, Bur-
ton, Bedfordshire, put up 8 lambs in a yard of
hurdles and straw, and 8 in the open field ; and
the former gained in weight, in 9 weeks and
3 days, from 7th December to 11th February, 19^
lt>. and the latter 20J ft. each. In another ex-
periment, the year foilowini:, 8 lambs iu the yard
gained each ;V2 lb. in 1*2 week?, and 8 in the
open field 28 tt>. each, giving the advantage of
4 ft. to those iu the yard.
969. " Tliis difference," observes Mr Pawlett,
" is very trifling, and not in the least sufficienf to
compensate any one for the extra trouble and
expense which must necessarily be incurred by
making yards, building sheils, taking the straw
to a part of the farm where, perhaps, the inanure
is not wanted, and by the heavy cartage of
the turnips, which, even for a short di-tance,
is costly. And if the sheep fed in yard', dur-
ing the winter, are not made fat tnou^li for the
butcher iu the spring, and have to be turned
again to pasture, they will suffer much more
from the cold winds, having been confined and
kept warm in the winter, than tho?e s-heep win-
tered in the usual manner in the fields. It is
my opinion, also,"' adds Mr Pawlett, '" bnt I con-
fess I have no means of ascertaining the fact by
way of experiment, that the wool may be injured
by yard-feeding ; for 'he lambs kept in that way
have a more unfavourable and unheuuhy appear-
ance than those fed in the commuu manner.
After these trials, and finding no adequate ad-
vantage in the practice, I have given up the
system of feeding sheep iu yards."
970. "The advocates of yard-feeding sheep
allege that they eat less food, if kept in that way,
than others do which are fed in the open field.
During the trial of these experiments, no diffe-
rence w.TS observed as to the quantity of food
consumed by each lot, — they ate as much alike as
possible, tlie food being carried to them in
scuttles. If one lot of sheep eat less than an-
other, it is a proof with me that tlie> thrive in a
less degree — of course I allude to sheep of the
same size and breed — as I find by weighing my
sheep monthly, which are kept in small lots, that
those which eat less food, (and this is often the
case, without any apparent cause, as they are
kept in the same way.) generally gain less iu
weight than the other lots which feed well."
071. Although Mr Pusey recommended shed-
feeding, " I am bound to state," he observes,
" that, in an experiment like Mr Pawlett's, I
kept 10 Down lambs in a shed and 10 out of
doors, weighing each lot rej:nlarly ; but that I
found tlie gain i>f weight rather on the side of
the lambs fed out of doors.'" t
97"2. One or two curious and interesting facts
were elicited by some experiments made by
Mr Pawlett, in feeding slieep on different kinds
of turnips. A lot of lambs were put on white tur-
nips, in October, and another lot on swedes, and in
the course of the month the lot on »vhite turnips
had gained each 10 J ft., while that on swedes
only gained 4' ft each, showing a gain of 6 ft,
in the month. Other experiments for the same
purpose produced similar results. '* Since these
• Gardenert' Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette, for March 4^, 1848.
t Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. vi. p. 371-2.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
225
experiments," observes Mr Pawlett, " I have
invariably used wliite turnips for'lanibs in the
autumn, and find they are excellent food if
not sown too early in the season, and are not too
old at the time ; and preferable to swedes during
the months of September and October, equal to
them in November, or until the latter part of
that month, and very inferior to them in De-
cember, or when the weather becomes cold and
frosty. Lambs are not naturally fond of white
turnips, and will take to swedes much sooner. "
A turnip-cutter will bring them to like any tur-
nip sooifer than any other expedient.
973. Cabbages are much relished by lambs
early in the season ; but they do not thrive well
on carrots in any season.
974. A curious and unexpected result was
brought to light by Mr Pawlett, and thus, in his
own words, — " Being aware that it was the
custom of some sheep-breeders to wash the food,
— such as turnips, carrots, and other roots, — for
their sheep, I was induced also to try the system;
and as I usually act cautiously in adopting any
new scheme, generally bringing it down to the
true standard of experience, I selected for the
trial two lots of lambs, — one lot was fed, in the
usual manner, on carrots and swedes unleashed;
the other lot was fed exactly on the same kinds
of food, but the carrots and swedes were washed
very clean every day; they were weighed before
trial, on the 2d December, and again on the 30th
December, 1335. The lambs fed with the un-
washed food gained each 7i ft-, and those on
the washed gained 4| ft. each ; which shows
that those lambs which were fed in the usual
way, without having their food washed, gained
the most weight in a month by 2| ft. each lamb.
There appears to me no advantage in this
method of management — indeed animals are fond
of licking the earth, particularly if fresh turned
up ; and a little of it taken icto the stomach
with the food must be conducive to their health,
or nature would not lead them to take it."*
975. I cannot conclude the subject of feeding
sheep in confinement without bearing in mind
that constant confinement is ungenial to the
nature of sheep,- — that sheep so confined cannot
again have liberty in the open field without loss
of condition in flesh and deterioration of the wool,
— that, were the plan universally adopted, there
would not be found room around steadings for
many flocks, consisting of thousands, which are
fed on turnips in winter, — that the trouble at-
tendant on the plan would be very great in
bringing food to, and taking away the manure
from, the sheds — that the additional trouble
thus imposed would greatly reduce the amount
of profit, — and that, were sheep fed with a variety
of food on the land, and greater means used to
promote their comfort thereon, larger profits
might be received by feeding sheep than have yet
been realised ; and I shall now adduce some in-
stances to that efiect.
976. To test the value of Unseed cake as a
fattening food for sheep, Mr James Bruce,
Waughton, East Lothian, took two lots of sheep
of 60 each from two flocks. A part of two fields
of Swedish turnips, vrhich presented a uniformity
of soil and crop, was carefully divided into
equal portions, each of which was occupied by
20 sheep.
977. One lot of 60 consisted of half bred din-
monts of good quality, 20 of which a were put
on turnips alone, 20 b on home cake, and 20 c
on foreign cake. On the 1st January 1844, a
weighed 2803 lbs., 6 2768 lbs., and c 2739 lbs. On
the 7th February, a having consumed its portion
of turnips, was reweighed, and found to be 2880
lbs. ; and on the 1st of March, having also con-
sumed theirs, b weighed 3054 lbs., and c 2966 lbs.
The quantity of cake consumed by each division
was 1182 lbs., being nearly 16 oz. each day per
sheep.
978. The other lot of 60 consisted of cheviot
dinmonts of inferior quality, 20 of which d were
put on turnips alone, 20 e on home cake, and 20
/ on foreign cake. On the 9th January, the
weight of d was 2031 lbs., of e 2082 lbs., and of/
2001 lbs. On the 15th of February, d having
finished their turnips were reweighed and gave
2097 lbs.; and on the 2d of March, having also
finished theirs, c weighed 2315 lb., and / 2274
lbs.; e and / on the cake consuming the same
quantity of turnips. The management of thia
lot was exactly similar to that of the other, de-
scribed above ; but the sheep would take no
more than 13 oz. each of cake each day.
979. The results of both these experiments
are given in the following table : —
Lots of
Sheep.
Live Live
weight weight
at first, at last.
( 20 a
i^ 20 6
(•20 c
(20 d
|60- 20 e\
I (20 fi
lb.
2S(13
27(58
2739
21131
20.-<2
2001
Incr.
from
caltc.
Of cake'
to pro-i
duce i
1 lb. I
mutton.!
lb.
2S80
30')4
29{!S i
2097 I
2315 I
2274 1
77
286
227
6(>
233
273
2U9
150
107
207
11K2
1182
880
880
lb. oz.'
5 3
7 14
5 4
4 4
980. The remarks whicli the perusal of this
table suggest are — that as regards the increase
of live weight, the offal of the sheep remaining
comparatively the same, whatever weight is
gained is of intrinsic value ; that the improve-
ment on the turnips alone is below the average —
and this might have been anticipated upon all
the sheep, since they were much confined to a
particular spot, but as all the lots experienced
the same inconvenience, no one lot was pecu-
liarly circumstanced ; that the improvement ex-
perienced by b and e on the home cake, in the
one field, was reversed by c and /on the foreign
in the other field,^a circumstance quite unac-
countable. The average quantity of cake to pro-
duce 1 lb. of mutton was 5 lb. 10 oz.
* Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. vi. p. 368-370.
VOL. I.
226
PRACTICE— WINTER.
981. In another experiment Mr Bruce put 15
sheep a upon linseed, 20 6 upon linseed cake, 20
c upon a mixture of beans and linseed for three
weeks, and afterwards upon poppy cake, 20 d
upon bean?, and 20 e upon a mixture of beans
and linseed. The results will be understood by
the conteuts of this table : —
Lots
of
sheep
or2()
each.
.11
lb.
lb.
Incr.
lb.
a
1839
2008
169
b
2401
2603
202
e
2382
2479
97
~
2479
2657
178
d
2404
2557
153
e
2417
2736
319
Eaten by each sheep per
week.
lb. oz.
3 8^ Linseed
A\ Beans
7 li Linseed cake
5 15; Beans & linseed
9 13^ Poppy cake
7 li Beans
6 4 Beans &linseed
Quantity of irpredients to
produce 1 lb. mutton.
Total consumption.
lb, oz.
2 14^ Linseed
6 5 Linseed cake
4 11 Beans & linseed
4
2
7 3 [6 10 Poppy cake
13i 8 b\ Beans
1 124 3 8i Beans & linseed
lb.
477 Linseed
36 Beans
1275 Linseed cake
310 Beans
48 Linseed
1 1 80 Poppy cake
1275 Beans
702 Beans
422 Linseed
An explanation is requisite for the presence of
beans with the linseed given to the sheep in a ;
the linseed, lying in a ground state, had acquired
a musty smell, and the beans were added to in-
duce the sheep to eat it.
982. In order to ascertain which of those sub-
stances would economise the consumption of
turnips the most, Mr Bruce put all the above
lots of sheep on a full allowance of white turnips.
without tops and roots, in a grass field, together
with abundance of the materials just enumerated,
in the order given above, and another lot e of 20
sheep were supported solely on turnips. The
remains of all the turnips left were collected and
weighed, and deducted from the gross weight to
show the actual consumption. The results, which
are interesting, will be seen in the following
table :—
Lots of
slieep of
20 each.
Turnips
consumed
Other ingredients
consumed.
Consumption by Sheep each day.
Saving of
Turnips.
Percentage
of saving.
Turnips.
Other ingredients.
a
b
c
d
e
f
lb.
1782
1781
2402
2312
2699
3522
lb.
52 I Linseed
3 \ Beans
200 Linseed cake
280 Poppy cake
200 Beans
100) Beans
60 i Linseed
lb.
14|
Hi
15
14i
162
22
lb. oz.
0 7 ) Linseed
0 \ \ Beans
1 4 Linseed cake
1 12 Poppy cake
1 4 Beans
0 10 ) Beans
0 6 \ Linseed
lb.
859
1741
1120
1210
823
lb.
324
491
31?
341
23i
983. The remarks suggested by the results of
this table are — that the saving of turnips effected
by the linseed cake is very great, and secures a
larger proportion than the cake used in the for-
mer experiment realised ; but much of such re-
results as these must depend on the size and con-
dition of the sheep, as the lower the condition
the greater quantity of food will be consumed.
It may be safely held, says Mr Bruce, that an
allowance of 1 lb. of good linseed cake to a sheep
of 9 stones' weight imperial, every day, will effect
a saving in the consumption of turnips of 33 per
cent, and at the same time so improve the health
of the sheep as to diminish the chances of death
by upwards of 50 per cent.
984. Whether or not the use of these extra-
neous ingredients increases the tallow in sheep is
a reasonable inquiry, and Mr Bruce made experi-
ments to ascertain this point also, by taking 5
average ewes from each division of the experi-
ment (981,) first weighing them, and in two days
afterwards killing them after being driven 23
miles. The results are detailed in the following
table :—
I-oU of
Shwp
Lire
Weight 01
Weight
"'■r
of 5
Fed upon.
«eisht.
carcass.
ot
eiuh.
Dec. 23.
Dec. 35.
tallow.
■kin.
lb.
lb.
lb.
lb-
a
Linseed and be.ins
666
344
55
62
b
Linseed cake .
647
333
67
67
C
IJeaiis and linseed
and poppy cake
654
a-js
67
57
d
Henns ....
&il
327
49
52
t
Beans and linseed
688
347
61
60
985. The conclusion which Mr Bruce draws
from these experiments is, that " they clearly
establish the fact, that mutton can be produced
at a lower rate per lb. upon a liberal use of such
ingredients along with turnips than upon turnips
alone, taking of course the increased value of the
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
227
manure into account ; and that of the articles
used linseed is the most valuable, and beans the
least so, but that a mixture of the two forms a
useful and nutritious article of food."
986. I would wish to point out, in the results
of the last table, the curious relationship there
seems to exist between the weight of the tallow
and the skin of the sheep. One can scarcely
imagine such a relation to exist, as the weight of
the skin of a lean and of a fat sheep cannot be
very different, and a skin must weigh more when
the wool is fully grown upon it than when new
dipt. The skins above referred to would be
pretty full of wool in December, when the ewes
■were slaughtered. Still the coincidence of the
figures, indicating the weight of the tallow and
skin respectively is certainly remarkable.*
987. Experiments were made in 1844-5 on the
Earl of Radnor's farm at Coleshill, on the com-
parative fattening properties of different breeds
of sheep under the same treatment. The sheep
consisted of Leicesters, South-downs, half-breds,
■ — a cross between the Gotswold and South-down
— and Cotswolds. The sheep, being then lambs,
were divided into lots of 3 each of each breed,
and were grazed 4 months, from 29th August
1844 to 4th January 1845, when they were
put on hay and swedes for 3 months, from 4th
January to the 31st of March following. While
on grass, the different breeds gained in weight as
follows : —
lb.
The Leicesters being 46 each,
South-downs 47
Half-breds 44^
Cotswolds 56 J
lb.
im each,
W
1-2
greater money return than the other ; whilst the
breeders of the Sussex South-downs reply, that
more of their smaller sheep can be kept on the
same farm. There being this difference of opinion,
it is of consequence to know which pays best in
the same circumstances. This point has been
proved, in as far as a single trial can go, by an
experiment made by Mr George Shackel, Read-
ing, Berkshire, on the large and small varieties,
both bred in Hampshire, and they were lambs.
He says, — " I give an. account of the cost of each
lot, as well as the proceeds of the sale when they
were fat. The two lots were fed in the same
time, on the same food, and penned on the same
ground, but were kept separate from the com-
mencement of the experiment. I allowed each
lot when on turnips, these not being sliced only
the swedes, the same sized piece per day ; and
and when on swedes, from Christmas 33 bushels
sliced per day, and 18 bushels of excellent clover
chaff to each lot ; and on the 20th February 1847,
we gave them 1 lb. each sheep of oil-cake a-day,
on the average, until they were sold out."
Cost of 100 very large lambs per head in Oct.
1846 ..... 41s.
Cost of 100 very much smaller, weighing about
1 .3 st. less, but in better condition . . 35s.
Difference in price per head . . 6s.
Received per head for the 100 lambs,
from" March to May 1847-, which cost
4ls. each . . . £3 1 3
Received per head for the 100 lambs,
from March to May 1847, which cost
3,5s. each . . . 2 9 0
la favour of the large lambs per head 0 12 3
988. While on swedes and hay they gained as
fallows : —
Gained each. Consumed eadi.
Hay
Swedes.
Leicesters
15 1b.
255 lb.
4027 lb.
South-downs
14
252
4110
Half-breds
17^
261
4255
Cotswolds
17
276
4862
Calculating the hay at 76s. per ton, the swedes
at 10s. per ton, and the mutton at 7d. per lb.
the results of the experiment are first in favour of
the Leicesters, then of the half-breds, then of the
South-downs, and lastly of the Cotswolds. The
experimenter, Mr E. W. Moore, observes,
" I have lately seen the account of an experi-
ment between half-bred sheep and the Leicesters,
which confirms the opinion I entertain, that up
to a certain point there is no breed of sheep that
v?ill make mutton so rapidly as the Leicesters in
proportion to the food consumed." +
989. There are two varieties of the South-down
breed of sheep, one a large plain sheep, the other
a small compact neat sheep. The defenders of
the large plain Hampshire South-downs say that
this breed comes to greater weight, and makes a
It ought to be mentioned that the markets were
in favour of the large lambs about 2s. per head,
so that the actual difference is 10s. 3d.; and if we
deduct the original difference of price of 6s. in
favour of the small breed, there are still 4s. 3d.
per head in favour of the large breed. It would
be highly interesting to ascertain the difference
between 100 of the best Sussex and 100 of the
best Hampshire South-downs, kept on the same
land, on the same food, and tested out of
doors.J
990. The efficacy of Warnes' compound for
feeding sheep, I will defer taking notice of until
we come to consider the nature of its composi-
tion, and the mode of making it in the feeding of
cattle.
991. Sheep are not fed on turnips on every
kind of farm. Carse-farms are unsuited to this
kind of stock, and where turnips are raised
on them, cattle would be more conveniently
fed. There being, however, abundance of straw
on clay-farms, sheep might be fattened for sale
in small courts and sheds at the steading on oil-
cake, and hay and other succedanea for turnips,
more easily than on other farms.
* Transactions of the HigMand and Agricultural Society for July 1846, p. 376-81.
+ Journal 0/ the Agrlcuftural Society of England, vol. vii. p. 296. J Ibid. vol. viii. p. 487.
228
PRACTICE— WINTER.
992. On farms in the nciglibonrhooil of lar>;e
towns, wlieiicc a supply of luanure is obtained at
all times, turnips are not eaten off with sheep ;
but near small towns, they are so fattened to
manure the land. They are boujjht in for the
purpose, and consist of Clieviot or Black-faced
wethers, Leicester hoggs.or draft ewes — the latter
of which, if young, feed more quickly thaa
wethers of the same age.
993. On dairy farms there is as little use for
sheep as near towns, except a few wethers to eat
off part of the turnips raised with bone-dust or
guano, in place of, or in conjunction with, farm-
yard dung.
994. On pastoral farms, sheep are not fattened
on turnips ; but their treatment in winter pos-
sesses exciting interest. There are tico torts of
jia$tural farms for sheep, and I shall make a few
remarks on their constitution, and of their fitness
for rearing sheep.
99.5. Tlie first thing that ? trikes any one on ex-
amining a pastoral country is the entire vant of
shelter. After being accustomed to see the en-
closed and protected fields of arable land, the wind-
ing valleys and round-backed hills of a pastoral
country appear naked and bleak. One is not sur-
prised to find bare mountain-tops, and exposed
slopes, iu an alpine country, because it is scarcely
practicable for man to enclose and shelter elerated
and peaked mountains ; but amongst green hills
and narrow glens, where no natural obstacles to
the formation of shelter seem to exist, but whose
beautiful outlines rather indicate them as sites
for plantations that would delight the eye of
the beholder, one would expect to see at least
ordinary means used for procuring shelter and
comfort; and, should these even be deemed too
great for the sake of the farm itself, the farm-
house might surely receive protection from
trees.
996. The chief difficulty of forming shelter
by planting on a large scale is the dreaded ex-
pense of enclosing it — for it is wisely concluded
there is no use of planting trees unless they can
be protected from injury, and few animals injure
young trees so severely as sheep, by nibbling
with their teeth as well as rubbing against them
with their fleece, and yet in a mountainous
country there is no want of rock for building
rough but substantial stone fences ; labour is
but required to remove and put them together,
and it is surprising what a quantity of stones a
couple of men will quarry from a hill face, and
a couple of single-horse carts will convey, in the
course of a summer. The carriage could always
be made downhill, fresh rock being accessible at
a higher elevation as the building proceeds up-
wards. Or, failing rock, turf, even peaty turf,
makes a very good turf wall.
997. Suppose a hill-farm containing 4 square
miles, or 2560 acres, were enclosed with a ring-
fence of plantation of at least 60 yards in width,
the ground occupied by it would amount to 174
acres. A 6-feet stone wall round the inside of
the planting will extend to 13,600 yards, which at
Is. 6d. per running yard, will cost £1020. But the
sheltered 2386 acres will be worth more to the
tenant, and of course to the landlord, than the en-
tire 2560acre5 unsheltered would ever be; and the
fence will enhance the growth of the trees by 10
years at least, whilst the proprietor will have
the value of the wood for the cost of fencing.
Besides, planting one farm with a ring-fence shel-
ters one side of 4 adjoining farms of the same size.
Were neighbouring proprietors to undertake
simultaneously the sheltering of their farms by
large plantations, on a systematic plan, not only
would warmth be imparted over a wide extent
of country, but the planting and fencing would
be accomplished along the march-fences at less
cost to each proprietor.
998. Low pastoral farms are usually stocked
with Cheviot, and high ones with the more hardy
Black-faced breed ; and although the general
treatment of both is nearly alike, yet the
respective farms are laid out in a somewhat
different manner.
999. A low sheep-farm contains from 500 to
2000 sheep — one that maintains from 500 to
1000 is perhaps the highest rented, being within
the capital of many farmers ; and one that
maintains from 1000 to 2000, if it have arable
land attached to it, is perhaps the most pleasant
to possess, as it affords employment to the
farmer, while he could easily manage the con-
cerns of 6000 sheep without arable land, with
good shepherds under him. A shepherd to every
600 sheep is considered a fair allowance, where
the ground is not very difficult to traverse,
and it may be held as a fair stent to put 1000
sheep on every 1200 acres imperial.*
1 000. Every sheep-farm should have as much
arable land to cultivate as to supply turnips
and hay to the stock, and provisions to the people
who inhabit it. It is true, the necessaries and
luxuries of life may be purchased ; but every
dweller in the country would prefer to raise the
necessaries of life to purchasing them in any town
or village. It is not easy to determine the pro-
portion which the arable land should bear to the
pastoral, to supply all the necessaries ; but per-
haps 2 acres arable to every 20 breeding ewes
may suffice. Taking this ratio as a basis of cal-
culation, a pastoral farm maintaining 1000 ewes
should have 100 acres arable, which would re-
quire 2 pair of horses to labour jn a 4-course
shift ; the pasture supplying the place of two-
years-old lea. The rotation would be divided
into 25 acres of green crops, 25 acres of corn
after them, 25 acres of sown grasses, and 25
acres of oats after the grasses. Manure will be
required for 25 acres of green crop, which would
partly be supplied by the 50 acres of straw,
by bone-dust or guano, and by sheep on the
turnips. To make the straw into manure there
are 4 horses, the cows of the farmer, the shep-
little's Practical Oburration* on MouHtain Skeep, p. 10.
FEEDIXG SHEEP OX TUKN^IPS.
229
herd, and ploughmen ; with a young heifer or
two, the offspring of the cows. The arable land
should be enclosed within a ring-fence of thorn,
if the situation will admit of its growth, or of
stone.
1001. A steading suitable for the arable por-
tion of such a sheep-farm should have all the
accommodation afforded in the plan, fig. 55, where
the north range of building, standing E. and W.,
Fig. 55.
.,„„,^
<^
STEADING FOR THE ARABLE PART OF A
SHEEP- FARM.
is 18 feet in width, comprehending a cart-shed,
a, 18 feet square, gig-house, b, 10 feet by 18 feet,
corn-barn, c, 32 feet by 1 8 feet with chaff-house,
<^, straw-barn, e, 40 feet by 18 feet on the ground,
with granary above the implement-house, cart-
shed, and gig-house, and upper-barn over the
corn-barn, with a door, for taking in the grain in
sheaf, by the side of the horse course, p, which is
26 feet in diameter. The E. wing is 18 feet in
width, and contains the cart stable, 32 feet by 18
feet, fitted up with a loose box, /, and 4 stalls, ,j,
6 feet wide, a hay-house,/), 10 feet by 18 feet,
riding-stable, i, 12 feet by 18 feet, and boiler-
house, 0, 15 feet by 18 feet, with a boiler and fur-
nace in the gable. The W. wing is also 18 feet
in width, and contains an implement-house, k, 18
feet square, a cow-byre, /, 25 feet by 18 feet,
having 5 stalls of 5 feet each ; an out-house, n,
12 feet by 18 feet, for weighing the wool in and
doing any thing to the sheep, and a wool-room,
IB, 34 feet by 18 feet. The apartments may be
made larger or smaller to suit the extent of the
farm : r is the pump-well ; s granary stair : the
partition walls are 1 foot thick.
1002. The pasture division of the farm should
bfe subdivided into different lots. Hoggs are best
adapted for soft rough grass, springing from a
damp deep soil, and ewes for the short and bare,
upon a dry soil and subsoil. Hoggs attain large
bone on soft rough pasture, where ewes would
rot, and these thrive better on dry soil where
hoggs would be stinted. That farm is best
which contains both kinds of pasture, and main-
tains both breeding and rearing stock.
1003. In subdividing a farm into lots, each
should contain within itself the same quality of
pasture, whether rough or short ; for if fine and
coarse grass be within the same lot, the stock
will remain almost constantly upon the fine. To
the extent of one-fifth of coarse to fine may be
permitted within the same lot. Should a large
space of upper and inferior soil lie contiguous to
what is much better, it should be divided by a
fence; and, if requisite, a different breed of sheep
reared upon it. By such arrangements, not only
a greater number of sheep might be maintained
upon a farm, but the larger number would always
be in better condition.*
1004. The drainage of pastoral farms should
never be neglected. The best mode of doing it
will be fully explained to you when we come to
treat of the subject of draining in general.
Meanwhile you should know, in reference to
pastoral farms, that one means of keeping part of
the surface dry is to scour the channel of every
rivulet, however tiny, that runs through the
farm, every year— especially in those parts where
accumulated gravel causes the water to overflow
its banks in rainy weather, or at the breaking up
of a storm. The overflowed water, acting as a
sort of irrigation, sets up a fresh vegetation,
which is eagerly devoured by sheep in spring, to
the risk of their health ; and the sand carried
by it is left on the grass on the subsidence of the
water, much to the injury of the teeth and
stomachs of the sheep. The confinement of
water within its channels also prevents it wet-
ting the land.
1005. In recommending a connexion of arable
with a pasture-farm, my object is simply to
secure an abundant supply of food for sheep in
winter. Were our winters as mild as to allow
the sheep to range over the hills in plenty and
safety, there would be little use for arable land,
for the provisions of its inhabitants could easily
be obtained from a market. But when storms
at times almost overwhelm a whole flock, and
protracted snow and frost debar the use of the
ground for weeks togetlier, it is absolutely
necessary to provide food for slock upon the
farm. I am aware of the folly of trusting to
corn in a high district to pay rent with, — the
stock must provide for that ; but, nevertheless, the
more food and shelter are provided in icinter for
stock, the less loss will be incurred during the
most inclement season. Let one instance, out of
many, suffice to show the comparative immunity
from loss in providing food and shelter for
* A Lammertnuir Farmer's Treatise on Sheep in High Districts,^. 51. The Lammermuir Farmer
was the late Mr John Fairbairn, Hallyburton, Berwickshire.
330
PRACTICf::— WINTER.
sheep in winter. In the wet and cold winters of
1816 and 1818, the more tlian usual loss of sheep
and lambs on the farm of Crosscleuch, Selkirk-
shire, was as follows : —
lu I8I&
200 lambs at 8s. each . £80 0 0
4Uoldshecp, afJOs. each 40 0 9
£120 0 0
In 1818.
200 lambs, at 8s. each . £80 0 0
30 old sheep, at 20s. each 30 0 0
Value of total ejira loss.
110 0 0
£230 0 0
whereas on the farm of Bowerhope, belonging to
the same farmer, and on whicli one-third more
sheep are kept, the e-rtra loss in those years was
as follows : —
In 1816.
70 lambs, at 8s. each . £28 0 0
10 old sheep, at 203. each 10 0 0
£38 0 0
In 1818.
50 lambs, at 8s. each . £20 0 0
8 old sheep, at 20s. each 8 0 0
28 0 0
Valne of total ejIra loss
Deduct loss on Crosscleuch,
£6() 0 0
230 0 0
Value saved on farm of Bowerhope £164 0 0*
lOOG. Food and shelter being thus both neces-
sary for the proper treatment of sheep in winter,
the means of supplying them demand the most
serious attention of the store-farmer. In winter,
sheep occupy the lower part of the farm. Hoggs
are netted on turnips in the early part of the
season, and ewes and other sheep subsist on the
grass as long as it is green. The division
allotted to green crop in the arable part of the
farm contains 25 acres, and allowing 3 acres for
potatoes for the use of the farmer and his
people, there remain 22 acres for turnips ; and
as land among the hills is generally dry, turnips
grow well there ; so that 30 double-horse cart-
loads to the acre, of 1 5 cwt. each, may be cal-
culated on as a return from the crop. It is thus
judiciously recommended by Mr Fairbairn to
strip and carry off, about the end of October or
beginning of November, if the weather is fresh,
before the grass fails, J of the turnips, and store
them in heaps ; and allow the eice-hoij<js to eat
the remaining ^ on the ground, with the small
turnips left when tlie others were pulled. In strip-
ping the land in this proportion, 1 drill should be
left and 4 carried otf. This is an e.xcelleut sug-
gestion for adoption on every hill-farm, as it
secures the turnips from frost, and gives the
entire command of them whenever required in
a storm.
1007. It is found that Ao././s fall ofif in condition
on turnips in spring, in a "high district, if con-
fined upon the turnip-land — not for want of
food, but of shelter and of teeth. They are
always removed from the turnips in the after-
noon to the pasture, where they remain all night,
and are brought bade to the turnips in the
following morning. Tliis treatment, it is obvi-
ous, deprives the land of much of the manure
derivable from the turnips ; and hence, farm-
dung should be put on the land instead, where
the turnips were raised with bone-dust or guano,
before the grain is sown. The turnips thus con-
sumed occupying 4j acres, may last the 17 score
of ewe hoggs — the number kept for refresliing
the ewe-stock — about 6 or 7 weeks. After the
turnips are consumed, the hoggs should be sup-
plied from tl>e store sliced on their pasture, with
1 double cart-load to every 8 score, which will
be consumed in about 4 hours, after which they
depend on the grass for the remainder of the
day. Hoggs are treated in this manner until
March, or longer, if the weather is bleak ; when
they maintain their Condition, and become proof
against the manj^diseases which poverty engen-
ders, and their fleece weighs J lb. more. The
cost of the 8 acres of turnips given to the hoggs,
valued at £3 an acre, in a high district, is 17d,
on each, which is so far reimbursed by the
additional pound of wool worth lOd. oris. The
balance of 5d. to 7d. a head, the true cost of the
keep of the sheep on turnips, is a trifle compared
to the advantage of wintering them in a healthy
state and fair condition.
1008. As to the older sheep, they must partly
depend, in storm, upon the 14 acres of turnips
yet in store, and hay. The hay is obtained from
the 20 acres of new grass, and allowing 5 acres
for cutting-grass for suppers to horses and cows,
15 acres, at 120 hay-stones (of 22 lbs.) per acre,
gi>e 2400 hay, or 3771 imperial stones. The
1000 ewes will eat Ij lb. each every day, be-
sides the two cart-loads of turnips amongst
them, and the hoggs ^ lb. of hay. At this rate
the hay will last 31 days, a shorter time than
many storms continue. The ground would yield
more hay were it top-dressed with a special
manure; and, besides this, the rule should be to
begin with a full hand of liay at the commence-
ment of farming, and preserve what may be
left over in a favourable season, to mi.x with
the new of the following one, with a little salt,
and be thus prepared for any unusual coutiuu-
ance of storm.
1009. But in a storm, provender eannot be
given to sheep upon snow, safely and conve-
niently, as ground drift may blow and cover up
both ; so no place is so suitable for preserving sheep
and provender safe from drift as a stell. There
are , still many store-farmers sceptical of the
utility of stellS, if we may judge from their
practice ; but many repetitions of a storm are
not required to convince any one, that stock are
much more comfortably lodged within a high
enclosure than on an open heath. A stell may be
formed of plantations or high .^tone-wall. Either
will afibrd shelter ; but the plantation requires
to be fenced by a stone-wall. Of the planta-
tion stells, I conceive the form of fig. 5G a good
• Napier's Treatise on Practical Store-Farming, p. 126.
FEEDING SHEEP OX TURXIPS.
231
one, and may be characterised an outside stell.
It has been erected by Dr Howison, of Cross-
Fig. 56.
THE OUTSIDE STELL SHELTERED BY PLANTATION,
ON EVERY QUARTER.
burn House, Lanarkshire, and proved for 30
years. The circumscribing stone-wall is 6 feet
high, the ground within it is planted with trees.
Its 4 rounded projections shelter a corresponding
number of recesses embraced between them; so
that, let the wind blow from whatever quarter it
may, two of the recesses will always be sheltered
from the storm. The size of this stell is regu-
lated by the number of the sheep kept ; but this
rule may be remembered in regard to its power
for accommodating stock — that each recess occu-
pies about i part of the space comprehended be-
tween the extremities of the 4 projections; so that,
in a stell covering 4 acres— which is perhaps as
small as it should be— each recess will contain .';
an acre. " But, indeed," as Dr Howison observes,
" were it not from motives of economy, I know
no other circumstance that should set bounds to
the size of the stells ; as a small addition of
walls adds so greatly to the number of the trees,
that they become the more valuable as a plan-
tation ; and the droppings of the sheep or
cattle increase the value of the pasture to a
considerable distance around in a tenfold de-
gree."*
1010. In making stells of plantation, it would
be desirable to plant the outside row of trees as
far in as their branches shall not drop water upon
the sheep in their lair, as such dropping never
fails to chill them with cold, or entangle their
wool with icicles. The spruce, by its pyramidal
form, has no projecting branches at top, and
affords excellent shelter by its evergreen leaves
and closeness of sprays, descending to the very
ground. The Scots fir would fill up the intervals
behind between the spruce ; but every soil does
not suit the spruce, so it may be impossible to
plant it every where. Larches grow best amongst
the debris of rocks and gn the sides of ravines;
Scbts fir on thin dry soils, however near the rock
may be ; and the spruce in deep moist soils.
1011. The late Lord Napier recommended the
establishment of what he called a " system of
stells," which would place one in the " particular
haunt" of every division of the flock ; and he
considered that 24 stells would be required on a
farm maintaining 1000 sheep— that is, 1 to little
more than every 40 sheep.f However desirable
it is to afford protection and shelter to stock, it
is possible to incur more trouble and expense
than necessary in accomplishing the object. On
a farm where the practice is for the whole hirsel
to graze together, it would almost be impracti-
cable to divide them into lots of 40, one lot for
each stell ; and the division could not be accom-
plished without great waste of time, much bodily
fatigue to the shepherd and his dog, and con-
siderable heating to the sheep. I rather agree
in opinion with the late Mr William Hogg, shep-
herd, Stobohope, that stells should be as large as
to contain 200 or even ."00 sheep on an emer-
gency ; and even in the bustle necessarily occa-
sioned by the dread of a coming storm, 200
could be easily shed off from the rest, and
accommodated in the sheltered recesses of a stell
like fig. 56, which is accessible from all quar-
ters ; and 5 such stells would accommodate the
whole hirsel of 1000 sheep.
1012. Suppose, then, that 5 .such stells were
erected at convenient places — not near any natu-
ral means of shelter, such as a crag, ravine, or
deep hollow, but on an open rising plain, over
which the drift sweeps unobstructed, and on-
which, of course, it remains in less qmntity than
on any other place— with a stack of hay inside,
and a store of turnips oiitsiile, food would be
provided fur an emergency. On a sudden blast
arriving, tlie whole hivsel might be safely lodged
for the night in the leeward outside recesses of
even one or two of these stells, and, should
prognostics threaten a /i/hu/ storm, next day, all
the stells could be inhabited in a short time.
Lord Napier recommends a stack of hay to be
placed close to the outside of every small circu-
lar stell ; but it, so placed, would, I conceive, be
a means of arresting the drift which would
otherwise pass on.
1013. Instead of the small circular stell, Mr
Fairbairn recommends a form without planta-
tion, having 4 concave sides, and a wall running
out from each projecting angle, as in fig. 57 — eacli
stell to enclose i an acre of ground, to be fenced
with a stone-wall 6 feet high, if done by the
landlord ; but if by the tenant, 3 feet of the
wall to be built of stone, and the other 3
feet built of turf ; which last construction, if done
by contract, would not cost more than 2s. per
rood of 6 yards. An objection to this form of
stell, without a plantation, maybe seen when the
wind rushes into any of the recesses : it strikes
against the perpendicular face of the wall,
from which, being reflected upwards, it throws
* Prize Essays of the Ilhjhland and AgricuUural Society, \o\. xii. p. 3c
+ Napier's Treatise on Practical Store-Farming, p. 122. "
34.
S82
PRACTICE— WLNTER.
down the enow immediately beyond the wall,
where the drift is deposited in the inside of the
Fig. 57.
A FORM OF OUTSIDE STKLL WITHOUT
PLANTATION.
stell ; a«d hence it is, I presume, that Mr Fair-
bairn objects to sheep being lodged in the inside
of a BteU.*
1014. Tills form, though affording more shelter,
i^ open to the same objections as were the ancient
stells, a, b, or c, fig. 58, the remains of n^any of
which may Le observed amongst the hills, and
might yet screen sLeep from a boisterous blast
in summer.
1015. Much diversity of opinion exi?ts regard-
ing the utility of theepcoti on a store-farm.
These are rudely formed houses, in which sheep
are put under cover in wet weaiher, especially
at lambii;^' time. Lord Isapier recommended,
one to be erected beside every stell, to contain
the hay in winter if necessary, and Mr Little
advises them to be bnilt to coutain the whole
hirsel of sheep in wet weather. It seems a chi-
merical project to house a large flock of sheep
for days, and perhaps weeks ; and, if practicable,
could not be done but at great cost. I agree
with those who object to sheep-cots on high
Fig. 58.
FORMS OF ANCIENT STELLS.
farms, because, when inhabited in winter, even
for one night, by as many sheep as would fill
them, an unnatural height of temperature is
occasioned. Cots may be serviceable at night
when a ewe or two becomes sick at lambing, or
when a lamb has to be mothered upon a ewe
that has lost her own lamb, and such ca^es being
few at a time, the cot never becomes overheated.
1016. In an unsheltered store-farm it is found
requisite to have '2 paddocks, nnd the number is
sufficient to contain all the invalid sheep, tups,
and twin lambs, uutil strung enough to join the
hirsel.
1017. Hay should be stacked within, and the
turnips stored around the outside walls, or in
the plantation of stells.
1018. Tups may gra«e with the hirsel ia the
early part of the summer ; but as no ordinary
wall will confine then in autumn, they should
be penned in one of the stells, on hay or turnips,
until put to the ewes.
1019. Where a rivulet passes through an im-
portant part of a farm, it will be advisable to
throw hridijeM across it at convenient places for
sheep to pass easily along, to better pasture or
better Shelter on the opposite bank. Bridges
are best constructed of stone, and though rough.
if put together on correct principles, will be
strongest ; but if stone cannot be found fit for
arches, they may do for the buttresses, and trees
laid close together across the opening, held firm
"by transverse pieces, and then covered with
tough turf, will form a safe roadway.
1020. For some time, the South-down sheep
lave been triedfn thesame pastoral districts as the
Cheviot have occupied for many years, and since
then have shown an equal aptitude with the Che-
viot for the Scottish lowland pastoral climate ;
and as their mutton is the favourite in the Lon-
don market, I think it not improbable they may,
ere many years pass, supersede the Cheviot in
many of oar pastoral farms, as they have already
trenched upon their ground in many localities in
the low country.
1021. Tlie highest hill farms for sheep in Scot-
land occupy an altitude ranging from 1500 to
3000 feet and upwards above the sea, and indeed
some of them extend to the highest points of our
mountain ranges.
1022. At such elevations, the pasture must
necessarily be both coarse and scanty, consisting
entirely of alpine plants. A considerable extent
of such herbage is required to support a single
sheep during a summer, and consequently the
farms are of very great extent, many of them
* A Lammermuir Farmer's Treatise on Sheep in Hi^h Districts, p. 58.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
23?
extending miles in length, and embracing many
thousands of acres.
,023. The Black-faced, or mountain or heath
sheep, as it is called, because it thrives upon
heath as a food, is a breed of sheep admirably well
suited for occupying the highest range of farms,
— having not or.ly a bold and daring disposition,
capable of enduring much fatigue in search of
food, but a hardy constitution, and yielding a con-
siderable quantum of the most delicious mutton.
1024. The circumstance of elevation and seclu-
sion from roads imposes in the treatment of this
breed a difference from that pursued in the
lower country. The store-farmers of the lovsrer
country who breed Black-faced sheep sell what
lambs they can spare after retaining as many
as will keep their ewe-stock fresh. They thus
dispose of all their wether-hoggs, the smaller
ewe-hoggs, and draft- ewes. Suppose 1000 ewes
wean 1000 lambs, 500 of these will be wether
and 500 ewe hoggs, of which latter 17 score, or
340, will be retained, to replace one-sixth of the
ewes drafted every year, and the remaining 160,
together with the 500 wether-lambs, will be dis-
posed of. The high hill store-farmer purchases
those lambs, rears them until fit, as wethers, to
go to the low country to be fed fat on turnips ;
and, acting thus, he never keeps breeding ewes.
1025. The state of the hill-pastures modify the
mode of management on the hill-farms. The
hill-pasture does hot rise quickly in spring,
nor until early summer ; and when it does be-
gin to vegetate, it grows rapidly into herbage,
affording a full bite. It is found that this
young and succulent herbage is not congenial to
the ewe —it; is apt to superinduce in her the
liver-rot ; but -It is well adapted for forwarding
the condition and increasing the size of bone of
young, sheep. It is, therefore, safer for the hill-
farmers to purchase lambs from the south coun-
try pastoral farmers, who breed Black-faced
sheep largely, as well as the Cheviot, than tg,
keep standing flocks of ewes of their own. Tlf^
winter half-year, too, on the hills, is a 'long
period to be obliged to sustain a flock of ewes on
extraneous food,
1026. It seems- impracticable to have arable
land on a hill-farm, at least hill-farmers are un-
willing to admit that turnips are the best food
for their stock in winter. Whatever may prompt
them to object to arable culture on their farms, the
reasons would be very strong that would prove
that Black-faced sheep would not thrive on tur-
nips in the hills, if these were raised for them
on the spot. Doubtless on many farms, far re-
moved from the great roads, it would be diflicult
to bring even a favoured piece of ground into
culture, and especially to raise green crops upon
it as they should be ; but there are many glens
among the hills, not far removed from tolerable
roads, in which the soil might be cultivated to
great advantage,and the gieen crop and hay from
which would maintain the flock well through
a stormy period extending from 6 weeks to 2
months.
1027. As a corroborative proof of the utility
of cultivated land to hill-farms, is the practice
of hill-farmers taking turnips or rough grazings
for their stock in the lower part of the country,
as nearly adjacent to their own homes as food
can be procured ; and of the lowland farmers,
wlio possess hill-fanns, bringing tlieir sheep to
the low country in winter, and putting them on
turnips. If turnips and rough pasture will repay
to be so taken, much more would they repay
if raised at home ; and if the stock might be
thus brought through the dreary part of winter
tolerably well, they would experience the con-
veniences of home when the snow fell deep, and
covered the ground for weeks together. Stores
of turnips and stacks of hay would then be as
useful at home as abroad ; and, when these failed,
whins and bushes would afiord as good food at
home as at a distance. Hence the utility of
raising turnips at home, and of storing a large
proportion to be used in emergencies. Where a
Scots-fir plantation is near a haunt of sheep these
need not starve, for a daily supply of branches,
fresh cut from the trees, will nut only support
them, but make them thrive as heartily as upon
hay alone ; and if a small quantity of hay is giveu
along with the fir-leaves, they will thrive better
than on hay alone.*
1028. The want of adequate shelter at home
may induce some hill-farraers to send their
stock to a lower country in winter. Their hills
are bare of wood, the few trees being confined
to the glens ; and of course sheep can find no
shelter in tlieir usual grounds ; and it is sur-
prising how susceptible of cold even Black-faced
sheep are when the atmosphere is becoming
moist. They will cower down, creep into corners
and beside the smallest bushes for shelter, or
stand hanging their heads and grinding their
teeth, having no appetite for food. If a piercing
y, blast of wind follows such a cold day, the chances
"are that not a few of them perish in the nigh.t,
and if thick snow-drift comes on, they drive be-
fore it, apparently regardless of consequences,
and descend into the first hollow, where they are
overwhelmed. Thus the utility of stells becomes
apparent, and many hearty wishes are no doubt
expressed for them by the farmer and his shep-
herd, when they have them not in the hour of peril.
102!). Sketching pictures of melancholy efiects
of storms is no substitute for the necessity, the
utility, the humanity of cultivating such an extent
of ground, in favoured spots, as would raise food
to support, beyond a doubt or a dread, the whole
flock through the protracted period of the longest
storm. Such effects of storms are the strongest
incentives to form extensive plantations, for shel-
ter, on all our mountain ranges. Though some
of the trees would fail to grow here and there,
it does not follow that the most would not grow
quite well to afford invaluable shelter in the
bleakest period of the year. And such catas-
Little's Practical Observations on Mountain Sheep, p. 44
234
PRACTICE— WINTER.
trophcs urge the more strongly upon hill farmers
the coii.-^truftion of eoinmodious stells in the
most exposed situations of the farm. Opinion is
not agreed as to the be.st form of stell for liigh
pastures, where wood is seldom found. At such
ahei<'ht the spruce will not thrive; and the larch,
bein" a deciduous tree, affords but little shelter
with its spear-pointed top. There is nothing left
but the evergreen Scots fir for the purpose, and,
when surrounding a circular stell, such as
fig. 51), it would afford very acceptable shelter
to a large number of sheep. This form of
stell consists of 2 concentric circles of wall,
Fig. 59.
AN INSIDE sti;ll sheltered by plantation.
enclosing a plantation of Scots fir, having a circu-
lar space a, in the centre fur slieep, as large as
to contain any number. This may be denomi-
nated an inside stell, in contradistinction to the
outside one in fig. 5G, and lias been proved
eflficient by the experience of Dr Howison. Its
entrance, however, is erroneously made wider
at the mouth than at the end next the interior
circle, a, which produces the double injury of
increasing the velocity of the wind towards the
circle, or of squeezing the sheep the more the
nearer they reach the inner end of the passage.
The walls of the passage should be parallel and
winding, to break the force of tlie wind.
Fig.
lO-'iO. But where trees cannot be planted with
a prospect of success, stells may be formed with-
out them, and indeed usually are ; and of all
the forms that have been tried, the circular ha?
obtained the preference on hill-farms ; but the
difficulty of determining the size as the best, is
still a matter of dispute amongst hill-farmers.
Lord Napier thought 7 yards diameter a good
size, and the largest not to exceed !•"> yards
inside measure ; while Mr William Hogg ap-
proves of 18 yards. I agree with Mr liogg. In
the first place, the circular form is better than a
square, a parallelogram, or a cross ; because the
wind striking against a curved surface, on coming
from any quarter, is divided into two columns,
each weaker than the undivided mass ; whereas,
on striking against a straight surface, though its
velocity is somewhat checked, it is still undi-
vided, and its force still great, when it springs
upwards, curling over the top of the wall, throw-
ing down the snow a few yards into the in-
terior of the figure. Any one who has noticed
the position of drifts of snow on each side of
a straight stone wall, will remember that the lee-
ward-side of the wall is completely drifted up,
while on the windward-side a hollow is left,
often clear to the ground, between the snow and
the wall. Every form of stell, therefore, that
presents a straight face to the drift will have
that fence drifted up and be no protection to the
sheep. Of two curves, that which has the larger
diameter will divide tlie drift the farther asun-
der. A stell of small diameter, such as 7 yards,
dividing a mass of drift, divides also the current
of air immediately over it so suddenly that the
snow it carries is let fall into the stell. A stell
of large diameter, of 18 yards, on dividing a
column of air, deflects it so much on each side
that it has long passed beyond the stell before it
regains its former state, and before it deposits
its snow ; and hence the snow is found to fall in
a triangular shape, with its ape.x away quite to
leeward of the most distant part of the stell, and
of course leaves the interior free of deep snow.
1031. Fig. 60 represents a stell of 18 yards
diameter inside, surrounded by a wall of 6 feet
high, the first 3 feet of which may be of stone,
and the other 3 feet of turf, and will cost 2s. 4d.
per rood of 6 yards, if erected by the tenant, but if
by the landlord, and wholly of stone with a cope,
60.
THB OIBCVLAR STELL FITTED UP WITH HAV-RACKS, AND SUPPLIED WITH A HAY-STACK.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
235
will cost 7s. per rood: this size gives 9-3 roods,
■wliich at 7s. makes its cost £3, 5s. 4d., including
the quarrying and carriage of the stones — a
triiiing outlay compared to the permanent ad-
vantage derived from it on a hill-farm. The
opening into the stell should be from the side
towards the rising ground — and its width 3 feet,
and of the whole height of the wall, as seen iu
the figure ; or it is sometimes a square of 3 or 4
feet, oa a level with the ground, through which
the sheep enter, vrhile persons obtain access, in
such cases, by means of stile-steps over the wall.
Such a structure as this should supersede every
antiquated form ; and it will easily contain 10
score of sheep for weeks, and even 15 or 16 score
may be put into it for a night without being too
much crowded together.
1032. Stells should be fitted up with hay-racks
all round the inside, as in fig. 60, not in the ex-
pensive form of circular wood work, but of a
many-sided regular polygon. It is a bad plan
to make sheep eat hay by rotation, as recom-
mended by Lord Napier and Mr Little, but con-
demned by Mr Fairbairn, as the timid and weak
will be kept constantly back, and suffer much
privation for days at a time. Let all have room
and liberty to eat at one time, and as often as
they choose. The hay-stack should be built in
the centre of the stell, as in fig. 60, on a base-
ment of stone, raised 6 inches above the ground
to keep the hay dry. A small stack, 5 yards in
diameter at the base, 6 feet high iu the stem,
with a top of 6 feet in height, will contain about
450 hay-stones of hay, which will last 200 sheep
33 days, about the average duration of a long
storm ; but upon that base a much greater
quantity of hay might be built. The interior
circumference of the stell measures ICO feet round
the hay-racks ; and were 8 or 9 six-feet hurdles
put round the stack, at once to protect the hay
and serve as additional hay-racks, the hurdles
would afford 47 feet more — which together give
1 foot of standing room at the racks to each of
200 sheep at one time.
1033. Stells form an excellent and indispensable
shelter for sheep in a snow-storm, when deprived
of their pasture ; but it has occurred to me that,
in want of stone-stells, very good stells or cham-
bers might be made of snow of any form or size
desired. Even around the space occupied by
sheep, after a heavy fall of snow, a stell might
be constructed of the snow itself, taken from its
interior, and piled into walls as wide and high as
required. Such a construction would remain
as long as the storm endured. A new storm could
be made available for repairs, and, even after the
ground was again clear, the snow walls would
remain as screens for some time after. A small
open drain or two, in case of a thaw, would con-
vey away the water as the snow melted.
1034. As long as the ground continues green,
natural shelter is as requisite as stells, — these
consist of rocks, crags, braes, bushes, heather,
and such like. To render these as available to
sheep as practicable, the ground should be
cleared of all obstructions around them, and
bushe's planted in places most suited to their
growth, such as the whin {Ulex eurupoea.) in
poor thin clay, and it is a favourite food of sheep
in winter ; the broom {Genista scoparia,) on rich
light soil ; the juniper {Junipcrus comrtmnis,) in
sandy soil ; the common elder [Samhucus nhjra,)
in any soil, and it grows well in exposed windy
situations ; the mountain ash {Fijrus aucuparia,)
a hardy grower in any soil ; and the birch when
bushy {Betiila alba,) grows in any soil, and forms
excellent clumps or hedges for shelter, as well
as the hazel {C'orylus arellajnt,) and the common
heaths {Erica tidga ris and tetralix,) when they get
leave to grow in patches to their natural height in
peaty earth. I shall advert to the protection of
mountain land when we come to speak of shelter.
1035. There are other modes of protecting hill
sheep from the feverities of the weather besides
stells, and which may be regarded as more per-
sonally comfortable to them than any other ;
and one of these is what is termed hraUing, which
is done by covering the sheep with a cloth as an
apron or brat. In tracing the origin of this
practice, Mr M'Turk of Hastings Hall in Dum-
friesshire, observes that, " After exhausting every
practicable means of yielding protection and
shelter to sheep on the hills, by the erection of
stells, &c., it was still found that a more constant
and effectual method was necessary, and salving
was resorted to, as the cheapest and most likely
way of attaining three important objects— namely,
defence from the cold, security from the ravages of
the scab, and the destruction of vermin. It hais
long been known to those interested in the man-
agement of sheep, that more protection is afforded
by bratting than the use of any salve ; but, until
of late years, salving was considered necessary,
at the same time, to destroy vermin ; but this
double expense was too considerable to admit of a
profitable return. There was another difficulty
connected with bratting, which rendered it ex-
ceedingly inconvenient and unpopular. The
practice was to sew the brat to the wool upon
the animal, which, in hands little accustomed to
the use of the needle, was both awkwardly per-
formed, and attended with great trouble and loss
of time. Never could cloth be obtained for brats
at so cheap a rate as at present, while, at the
same time, substances have been discovered
which effectually destroy vermin, and entirely
obviate the necessity of smearing, at not more
than one halfpenny per head, or one-tenth of the
expense of smearing. Cloth, well suited for the
purpose, may be made from the refuse wool of
carpet manufactories, as thick and warm as a
blanket, and at only a 6d. per yard. If sacking
is employed it may be had for 4d. per yard.
1036. " When intended fur bratting hoggs, the
cloth should be three-quarters wide, and two
feet will be sufficient to cover one Black-faced
hogg. When intended for old sheep of the best
description, the brats may be made larger by ap-
plying the cloth the long way, and we have then
27 inches in width to cover the back and sides
instead of 24, and it can be cut off as long as the
largest sheep requires. The brat should come as
far down the sides as to cover the widest part of
>36
PRACTICE^— WINTER.
the libs and all the back, from the tail to the
back of the neck. Instead of fitting the cloth to
every nheep, the be.'-t plan is to select a sheep of
the average size of the class, and measure and
cut the quantity of cloth required. When the
cloth has been applied to the animal, and its
proper dimensions ascertained, the parts should
then be marked to ivliich the different straps and
strings are to be se\^cd. to hold it in its proper
place. A strap is fi.xeil to one of tho front cor-
ners, ill a direction to pass beneath the throaty
and be sewed to llu- other corner ; and other
straps are intended to pass under the belly.
These straps are only sewed at first at one end,
and the other end is sewed after the brat is fitted
on, 90 as to keep it tight in its place. The straps
should be of a soft material, that they may not
chafe or injure the skin when the sheep is moving
about. When made, the brats are dipped in
coal tar, the better to resist the wet and rotting,
and if taken care of will last, thus prepared, for
five seasons. They ought to be made early
in summer, to have time to be dried before
November, when they are used. They remain on
the sheep, but not longer than the beginning or
middle of April, according to the state of the
weather, and the condition of the flock. A per-
son accustomed to the use of the needle, can
make a brat in five minutes, and fit it on in less
than other five.
1037. " A woollen brat with strings will not
cost more than 5d., a flaxen one about Sj.; but
the former will last much longer, and answer
better. To enable the shepherd to identify the
brats, when not in use, they should be branded
with the farm mark in white paint. The sheep
are bathed for the destruction of vermin, and the
wool should regain its wonted appearance before
the brat is fitted on. The prices are,— for
Small woollen brats . 5d. to last for 5 years.
Larger .... 6" — —
Flaxen . . . . 3i — 2
Bathing to destroy vermin J — 1
038. Fig. 61 represents a bratted eheep, the
Fig. 61.
A BRATTED SHEEP.
tie a passes below the belly, immediately behind
the shoulder ; b immediately in front of the hind
legs ; c under the middle of the belly ; whilst d %
and e pass unnoticed under the wool across the
breast, and those from the hind corners at /"may
pass behind the hind legs, and be sewed below
to'lhe ties of b.
103.9. It occurs to me to suggest that this
thick woollen cloth might be rendered water-
proof, and the strings to fasten on the brats might
be of vulcanised India rubber, which while yield-
ing to the motions of the animal, will cause the
brat always to adhere firmly to its body.
1040. " We have found from our own experi-
ence," says Mr M'Turk, " and we have not heard
the fact doubted by any one conversant with the
management of sheep, that no salve hitherto
tried has afforded a degree of protection equal to
bratting, when thus secured to the animal. We
are therefore entitled to conclude that, under this
treatment, the flock will be in higher condition,
and if so, the clip of wool will be greater, and the
loss by death considerably lessened, and affording
the means of bringing some of the more reduced
of the old ewes through the winter, which conld
not have otherwise survived in a high and ex-
posed district. When the brat is taken off in
April, the wool will be found to have retained
the yolk, and will appear quite yellow. When
examined, it will be found to be sappy and sound,
and free from the defect that wooi-staplers call
httsktf and piiitii/, that is, dry and brittle, which
occasions much loss in the manufacture, ^^'hen
washed, its natural whiteness is unimpaired, we
would even say increased, from the soap em-
ployed in the bathing, and the yolk which is re-
tained."*
1041. Since hay is the principal food given to
mountain sheep in snow or in black frost, it is
matter of importance to procure this valuable
provender in the best state, and of the best de-
scription. It has long been known that irriga-
tion promotes, in an extraordinary degree, the
growth of the natural grasses ; and perhaps there
are few localities which possess greater facilities
for irrigation, though on a limited scale, than the
highland glens of Scotland. Rivulets meander
down those glens through haughs of richest alla-
rium, which bear the finest description of natural
pasture plants. Were those rivulets subdivided
into irrigating rills, the herbage of the haughs
might be multiplied many fold. Such being the
condition of those glens, I cannot too earnestly
draw the attention of hill-farmers to the utility of
converting them into irrigated meadows ; and
though each meadow may be of very limited ex-
tent, the grass will be most valuable when con-
verted into hay. One obstruction only exists to
their formation, the fencing required around
them, to keep the stock off while the grass
is growing fur hay. But the exertion of fencing
should be made for the sake of the crop
protected by it. Besides places for regular
irrigation, there are rough patches of pasture,
probably stimulated by latent water performing
Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society for July 1843, p. 45.
FEEDING SHEEP OX TURXIFS.
237
a sort of nnder-irrigation to the roots of the
plants, which should be mown for hay ; and to
save farther trouble, this hay should be ricked on
the spot, fenced with small hurdles, around which
the sheep would assemble at stated hours, feed
through the hurdles in frosty weather from
the rick, and wander again over the green sward
for the remainder of the day ; and when the snow
came, the stells would be their place of refuge
and support. As the hay in the stack is eaten,
the hurdles are drawn closer around the stack,
to allow the sheep again to reach it.
1042. Hurdles are constructed in different
forms. Fig. 40 is the strongest and most durable,
but also the most expensive hurdle in the first
cost. Each hurdle, with its fixtures, consists of
14 pieces — viz. 2 side-posts a, 4 rails 6, and 3
braces odd, which go to form the single hurdle ;
and 1 stay/, 1 stake (j, and 3 pegs at g, h, and i,
which are required for the fixing up of each
hurdle. The scantling of the parts are the side-
posts 4 5 feet long, 4 inches by 2 inches. The
rails 9 feet long, 3J inches broad by 1 inch thick.
The braces, 2 diagonals 5 feet 2 inches long, 2^
inches broad by J inch thick, and 1 upright 4 feet
long, and of like breadth and thickness. The
stay is 4^ feet long, 4 inches broad, and 2 inches
thick, and bored at both ends for the pegs ; the
stake Ij foot long, pointed and bored. The pegs
1 foot long, 1^ inch diameter. The cost is 2s.
6d. each with the fixtures.
1043. The preparation of the parts consists in
mortising the side-posts, the mortises being usu-
ally left round in the ends, and they are bored at
equal distances from the joining and stay pegs.
The ends of the rails are roughly rounded on the
edges, which completes the preparation of the
parts ; and when the flake is completed, its dimen-
sions are 9 feet in length, and 3 feet 4 inches in
breadth over the rails ; the bottom rail being 9
inches from the foot of the post, and the upper
rail 5 inches from the head.
1044. Another form of flake, more extensively
employed, has 5 rails, which are If inch square.
The ends of the rails are turned round by ma-
chinery, and the side-posts bored for their recep-
tion, as well as the pegs also by machinery.
The bottom rail is 9 inches from the foot of the
posts ; the spaces between the first and second,
and the second and third rails, are each 7 inches,
and the two upper spaces are respectively 8 and
9 inches, leaving 5 inches of the post above the
upper rail.
1045. These are extensively manufactured in
Perthshire, where young larches are abundant.
Their price, when sold in retail by fifties or hun-
dreds, is Is. 9d. to 2s. each, includiag all the
parts, sold in pieces ; the expense of putting the
parts together is usually 2d. each hurdle, includ-
ing nails. In Kirkcudbright, flakes of 5 spars,
and 6 feet long, sell for Is. 2d. each.
1046. Where the common crack-willow {Salix
fragiiis) will grow, every farmer may have poles
enough every year for making 2 or 3 dozen
hurdles to keep up his stock. To establish a
plantation, large cuttings 9 or 10 feet long should
be pushed, not driven, into moist soil, and on being
fenced from cattle, will soon shoot both in the
roots and head, the latter being fit to be cut every
seventh year. Where soil for a willow-planta-
tion does not naturally exist, the farmer can buy
his hurdles ready made at 16s. the dozen ; when
made at home they cost 4d. each, and when the
shepherd makes them they cost only his time.
Hurdle-makers go the round of the country in
England, and make at 4d. and mend at 2d. each,
finding their own tools.
1047. A very common form of hurdle used in
England is shown in fig. 62. It is formed of any
sort of willow or hard wood, such as oak-copse.
Fig. 62.
THE ENGLISH HTRDLE.
ash-saplings, or underwood, such as hazel. It
consists of 2 heads a a, 6 slots 6, 2 stay-slots c c,
and an upright slot d. The slots are mortij-ed
into the heads and nailed with flattened fine-
drawn nails, at 6d. per lb., which admit of being
very firmly riveted, upon which the strength of the
hurdle mainly depends ; 100 poles at iSs. make
36 hurdles, which, including nails and workman-
ship, cost £\, lis. 6d, or lOs. 6d. per dozen.
Although the horizontal slots are cut 9 feet long, ,
the hurdle, when finished, is only somewhat more
than 8 feet, the slot ends going through the heads
1 or 2 inches : 2 hurdles to 1 rod of 16 feet, or 8
to 1 chain of 22 yards, are the usual allow-
ance.
1048. A larger kind of hurdle, called park
hurdles, worth 2s. each, is made fur subdividing
meadows or pastures, and are a sufiicient fence for
cattle. The small hurdles are used for sheep,
the larger to fence cattle, whereas the Scotch
flakes answer both purposes at once, and are
therefore more economical.
1049. The hurdles being carted to the field, ac-
cording to the English mode, they are laid down
flat, end to end, with their heads next to, but
clear of, the line in which they are to be set. A
right-handed man generally works with the row
of hurdles on his left. Having made a hole in
the hedge, or close to the dyke, for the foot of
the first hurdle, with the fold-pitcher, fig. 63,
which is an iron dibber, 4 feet long, having a
well-pointed flattened bit, in shape similar to
the feet of the hurdles, he marks on the ground
the place where the other foot is to be in-
288
PRACTICE— WINTER.
Fig. 63.
inserted, and there with his dibber
he makes the second hole, which,
like all the others, is made 9 inches
deep. With the left hand the
hurdle is put into its place, and held
upright while lightly pressed down
by the left foot on the lowest slot.
Tliis being done, the third hole is
made opposite to, and about six
inches from, the last. The dibber is
then put out of hand by being Stuck
in the ground near where the next
hole is to be made ; the second
hurdle is next placed in position,
one foot on the open hole, and the
other foot marks the place for the
next hole, and so on throughout the
whole row. When the place of the
second foot of a hurdle is marked on
the ground, the hurdle itself is
moved out of the way by the left
hand, while the hole is made by both
hands. When the whole row is set,
it is usual to go back over it, giving
each head a slight tap with the
dibber, to regulate their height, and
give them a firmer hold of the
ground.
1050. To secure the hurdles steady
THB FOLD- against the rubbing of the sheep,
PITCHER IN coufyiiugs^ or, as they are commonly
sKTT^vr' *^*^'®*1» copses, are put over the heads
of each pair where they meet, which
is a sufficient security. These couplings are made
of the twigs of willow, holly, beech, or any other
tough shoots of trees, wound in a wreath of
about 5 inches diameter.
1 051 . The number of hurdles required for feed-
ing sheep on turnips is one row the whole length
of the ridges of an enclosed field, and as many
more as will reach twice across 2 eight-step lands
or ridges, or 4 four-step lands, that is, 48 feet, or
3 or 4 ridges of 15 feet. This number, whatever
it may be, is sufficient for a whole quadrangular
field, whatever number of acres it may contain.
The daily portions are given more or less in
length, according to the number of the flock.
Two of these portions are first set, the sheep
being let in on the first or corner piece. Next
day they are turned into the second piece, and
the cross-hurdles that enclosed them in the first
are carried forwards, and set to form the third
piece. These removes are continued daily till
the bottom of the field is reached : both the
cross-rows are then to spare, and are carried and
set to begin a new long-row, close to the offside
of a furrow, and the daily folding carried back
over 2 or 4 lands as at first. It is always the top
of a field, if there be any difference of the level,
where the folding is begun, that the flock may
have the driest lair to retire to in wet weather.
1052. " When there U a mixed flock, that is,
couples, fattening and store sheep, two folds or
pens are always being fed off at the same time,
which only require an extra cross-row of hurdles.
The couples have the fresh pens, while the lambs
are allowed to roam over the unfolded turnips,
by placing tlie feet of the hurdles, here and there,
far enough apart, or by lanit»-hurdles made with
open panneld for the purpose. The fattening
sheep follow the couples, and have the bulbs
picked up for them by a boy. The stores follow
behind and eit up the shells."* It is never the
practice in Scotland to put ewes with their lambs
upon turnips, as uew grass is considered much
better for them, and the only ewe that suckles a
lamb on the early part of the turnips in winter is
the Dorsetshire. The «for*-sheep in Scotland —
that is, the ewe-hoggs — are always fed as fully as
the wether-hoggs that are fattened. In England
the entire turnip-stock, ewes, lambs, and wethers,
are fattened for the butcher, and sold, if possible,
before the turnips are all eaten. They have hay,
oil-cake, or corn, either in the field or in the
sheep-house, in wet or stormy nights.
1Q53. An acre of good turnips maintains 5 score
of sheep for 1 month.
1054. Nets, by which sheep are confined on
turnips in winter, are made of good hempen
twine, and the finer the quality of the hemp, and
superior the workmanship bestowed on it, the
longer will nets last. Being necessarily much
exposed to the weather, they soon decay, and if
carelessly treated will scarcely last more than
one long season. Nothing destroys them so
rapidly as laying them by in a damp state; and if
rolled up wet even for a few days, they become
mildewed, after which nothing can prevent their
rotting. They should never be laid by damp or
dirty, but washed and thoroughly dried in the
open air before being rolled up and stowed away.
It is alleged by shepherds that nets decay faster
in drought, and exposure to dews and light, in
summer than in winter. Several expedients have
been tried to preserve nets from decay, among
others, tanning, in imitation of fishermen ; but
however well that process may suit nets used at
sea, it makes them too hard for the shepherd's
use in tying the knots around the stakes. Per-
haps a steeping in Kyan's or Burnett's solution
might render them durable, and preserve their
pliability at the same time.
1055. She^'p-nets are wrought by hand only.
They are simply made of dead netting, which
consists of plain work in regular rows. A aliep-
herd ought to know how to make nets as well as
mend them, and cannot mend them well unless
he understand how to make them. Net making
is a very suitable occupation for women.
105G. All the instruments required in this sort
of net-making are a needle and spool. " Needles
are of two kinds, those made alike at each end
with open forks, and those made with an eye
and tongut at one end and a fork at the other.
In both needles the twine is wound on them
nearly in the same manner — namely, by pacing
it alternately between the fork at each end, in
• Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 647-53.
FEEDING SHEEP OX TURNIPS.
239
the first case, or between the fork at the lower
end and round the tongue at the upper end, in
the second case ; so that the turns ut' the string
may lie parallel to the length of the needle, and
be kept on by the tongue and fork. The tongue
and eye needle is preferable both for making and
mending nets, inasmuch as it is not so liable
to be hitched into the adjoining meshes in work-
ing ; but some netters prefer the other kind, as
being capable of holding more twine in propor-
tion to their size." An 8-inch needle does for
making nets, but a 4-inch one is more conve-
nient for mending them.
1057. Spooh, being made as broad as the length
of the side of the mesh, are of difiFereut breadths.
They "consist of a flat piece of wood of any
given width, of stout wood, so as not to warp,
with a portion cut away at one end, to admit
the finger and thumb of the left hand to grasp
it conveniently. The twine in netting embraces
the spool across the width ; and each time that
a loop is pulled taught, half a mesh is completed.
Large meshes may be made on small spools, by
giving the twine two or more turns round them,
as occasion may require."
1058. "In charging your needle, take the twine
from the inside of the ball. This prevents tang-
ling, which is at once recommendation enough.
When you charge the needle with double twine,
draw from two separate balls."*
1059. In joining the ends of tioine together, in
mending, the bend or weaver's knot is used, and
in joining top and bottom ropes together in
setting nets, the ree/-knot is best, as the tighter
it is drawn the firmer it holds.
1060. Sheep-nets run about 50 yards in length
when set, and weigh about 14 lb. Hogg-nets
stand 3 feet in height, and dinmonts 3 feet 3
inches, and both are set 3 inches above the
ground. The mesh of the hogg-net is 3^ inches
in the side, and of the dinmont 4{ inches ; the
former requires 9^ meshes in the height, the
latter 8j. The twine for the hogg-net is rather
smaller than that for the dinraont, but the top
and bottom rope of both are alike strong. A
hogg-net costs 123., or under 3d. per yard ; a
dinmont 10s., or under 22-d. per yard, at Berwick
upon-Tweed and Coldstream ; but they are now
sold in the prison of Edinburgh at 7s. 6d., or
under 2d. per yard ; while in Loudon the charge
is 42d. per yard.
1061. It is imagined that nets will not confine
Black-faced sheep on turnips, because they
would be broken by being entangled in the sheep's
horns ; but the objection is unfounded as this
anecdote will show : A very extensive feeder of
Black-faced sheep, on seeing my Leicester hoggs
on turnips confined by nets, expressed a willing-
ness to try them with his own sheep, adducing
the great expense of hurdles as a reason for
desiring a change. After receiving a pattern
net from me to stand 4 feet high, he had others
mados like it ; and so successful was the experi-
ment, even the first season, he ever after enclosed a
large proportion of his Black-faced sheep with
nets. There were a few cases of entanglement at
first, but the shepherd was constantly with his
large flock, and no harm happened to the sheep
or nets, and it was remarked that the same sheep
never became entangled more than once. They
never attempted to leap over the nets, though
they would not have hesitated to do so over a
much higher wall.
1062. Nets are wrought by machinery. " Net-
ting for fruit trees," observes Dr Bathurst,
" is made, I believe, by machinery at the factory
of Mr Benjamin Edgington. I do not know
that any other nets have as yet been made for
general purposes, or of any other description
than plain or dead-netting. False meshts, or
change of size of spools, have not hitherto been,
as far as I know, effected by machinery. "f I
have made inquiry of the net-workers in the
neighbourhood of Edinburgh, and find that the
use of machinery is entirely confined to the
making of fishing nets.
1063. A mode of preserving corn dry for sheep
on turnips has been tried with success in Fife.
It consists of a box like a hay-rack, fig. 64, in
which the corn is at all times kept closely shut
Fig. 64.
THE CORN-BOX FOR SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
up, except when the sheep wish to eat it,
when they get at it by a simple contrivance. Into
the box a b the corn is poured through the small
hinged lid y. The cover c d, concealing the
corn, is also hinged, and when elevated the
sheep have access to the corn. Its elevation is
effected by the pressure of the sheep's fore-feet
upon the platform ef, which, moving as a lever,
acts upon the lower ends of the upright rods g
and h, raises them up, and elevates the cover c
d, under which their heads then find admittance
into the box. A similar apparatus gives them
access to the other side of the box. The whole
machine can be moved about to convenient
places by means of the 4 wheels.
1064. The construction of the interior of the
box being somewhat peculiar, another, fig. 65, Ib
* Bathurst's Notes on Nets, p. 15, 17, and 138.
t 76ii.p. 144.
240
PRACTICE— WINTER.
THK VERTICAL SECTION OF ,, , ^ .
THE INTERIOR OF THE CORN. \1"^ '"^PP" formmS
jj,)x the corn-store ; a
is the cover of the
box raised onit^ hinges by the rod/, acted upon
by the phittbrm e /' fig. 64, and when in this
position, tlie sheep put their heads below a at c,
fig. 65, and eat the corn at d. Machines of similar
construction have bean devised to serve poultry
with corn at will.* It is a safer receptacle for
corn in the field than the open oil-cake trough,
fig. 52, but the animals require to become fami-
liarised with its use.
1065. Sheep may be fed on horse-chestnuts.
In Switzerland, the chestnuts are bruised in a
machine for the purpose, and 2 lbs. of them are
given to each sheep, morning and evening, by
little at a time, as they are of a heating nature.
They impart a rich flavour to the mutton.
1066. It is necessary that I point out the dis-
eases to which the animals, whose care falls
under our notice, are liable, in the various sea-
sons; but I shall not enter into the particulars of
their treatment, leaving you to consult the
■works of accomplished veterinarians. The first
disease which presents itself on sheep, iu the
low country in winter, is purginfj, occasioned by
eating too heartily of the tops, when first con-
fined on turnips. At first, the complaint is not
alarming, and the i)hysicking may do good ulti-
mately ; but should it increa^^e, or continue
beyond the existence of the exciting cause, it
may pass into diarrhoea, causing prostration of
strength, and at last terminate in dysentery.
When the purging is moderate, the pain is incon-
siderable : but when aggravated, the mucous
membrane, which is the seat of the disease,
acquires a tendency to inflammation, and griping
and colicky pains arc the consequence. The
disease should not bo thought li;,'htly of, but
speedily checked. When the green food, as in
this case, is obviously at fault, the sheep should
be removed to dry pasture until the symptoms
disappear. One year, I remember, the white
turnip tops grew so luxuriantly, that when
Leicester hoggs were put on in October, they
were very soon seized with ptirging, and the
symptoms were much aggravated by alternate
occurrences of rain and raw frost. The sheep
were removed to a rough moory pasture, which
had been reserved for the ewes ; and, while there,
I caused the field-workers to switch off the tur-
• i'rj;« Efsa'j of the Illjldand and
t Hogg On tSheep, p. 100.
given of a vertical nip-tops with sickles, and thus got rid of the
^ectioll of it, where cause Of complaint. In a short time the hoggs
h is the hinged lid were restored to the turnips, and throve apace ;
by which the corn though the wool behind was much injured by the
is put into the box, facal discharge. And this is one of the losses
wlieuce it is at once incurred by such a complaint ; and at a season,
received into the too, when it would be improper to clip the
hopper d, the bot- soiled wool away, to the risk of making the
toui of which, being sheep too bare below to lie with comfort upon
open, and brought the cold ground,
near that of the box,
a small space only is 1067. Sheep are sometimes infested with a
left for the corn to species of louse, which belongs to the same gene-
, pass into tlie box, ric group as that of the horse, and is named the
Trichodectes sphceroceyhal us, the I'tdiculus oris
of the older zoological writers. It is charac-
terised by Mr Denny as having the head nearly
orbicular, rough, and fringed with stiff hairs, and
the third joint of the antenna? longest and clavate.
Being one of the gnawing lice, it destroys the
wool by cutting it near the root.
1068. This animal is perhaps induced to make
its appearance by an increase of condition after
a considerable period of poverty. It is seldom
seen on Leicester sheep, because, perhaps, they
are seldom in the state to induce it ; but hill-
sheep are not unfreqnently infested by it, and
when so, it is amazing what numbers of the ver-
min may be seen upon a single sheep, its powers
of reproduction seeming prodigious. It lodges
chiefly upon and below the neck, where it is
most effectually destroyed by mercurial ointment,
which should not, however, be applied, in quan-
tity, in very cold or in very wet weather ; and
in these circumstances, tobacco-juice and spirit
of tar may be safely used. Professor Dick
says, that, in slight visitations of the louse, a
single dressing of olive oil will cause its dis-
appearance.
1069. The Ettrick Shepherd mentions a curi-
ous danger to which sheep affected with lice are
liable, " the animal is in danger of being bridled.
This is occasioned by the animal's bending its
neck extremely to claw its throat with its teeth;
on which occasions the teeth often fasten in the
wool, so that it cannot disengage them, and it
soon loses the power of its neck. I have known
several die in this way."t
1070. A quart bottle of decoction of tobacco-
leaf, containing a wine glass of spirit of tar, is
a useful lotion, for many purposes, for a shepherd
to have constantly in his possession ; and it \s
easily poured out by a quill passed through the
cork.
1071. Another disease to which sheep are sub-
ject on passing from a state of poverty to im-
proved condition, is the scab, and hoggs arc most
susceptible of it. This disease indicates its
existence by causing sheep to appear uneasy, and
wander about without any apparent object ; to
draw out locks of wool with its mouth from the
affected parts, as the disease increases ; and,
lastly, to rub its sides and buttocks against every
Agricultural Society, vol. vii. p. 405.
FEEDING SHEEP ON TURNIPS.
Ml
prominent object it can find, such as a stone, a
tree, a gate-post, the nets, and such like. Mr
Youatt says that it arises from an insect, a
species of acarus ;* and mercurial ointment is a
sure remedy ; a weak compound of 1 part of the
ointment with 5 of lard for the first stage, and
another, a stronger, of 1 part of ointment and 3
of lard, for an aggravated case. The ichorous
matter from the pustules adheres to and dries
upon the wool, and gets the name of scurf,
which should first be washed off with soap and
water before applying the ointment. The scab
is a very infectious disease, the whole flock soon
becoming contaminated ; but the infection seems
to spread, not so much by direct contact, as by
touching the objects the animals infected have
rubbed against. Its direct effects are deteriora-
tion of condition, arising from a restlessness
preventing the animal feeding, and loss of wool —
large portions not only falling off, but the re-
mainder of the broken fleece becoming almost
valueless ; and its indirect effects are propaga-
tion of the disease constitutionally, and hence
the loss to the owner in having a scabbed flock,
for no one will purchase from one to breed from
that is known to be, or to have been, affected by
scab.
1072. The very existence of this disease is
disgraceful to a shepherd — not being able to
detect its existence at the earliest stage, and
allowing it to make head amongst the flock.
When it breaks out in a standing flock, it must
have been latent in the sheep, or in the ground,
when the shepherd took charge of the flock, and
some shepherds have only the skill to suppress,
not eradicate it ; but it is his duty to examine
every sheep of his new charge, and every newly
purchased one, before being allowed to mix with
the hirsel, and also to make inquiry regarding
the previous state of the ground.
1073. On soft ground sheep are affected with
foot-rot, when on turnips. The first symptom is
a slight lameness in one of the fore-feet, then in
both, and at length the sheep is obliged to kneel
down, and oven creep upon its knees, to get to
its food. The hoof, in every case, first becomes
softened, when it grows mis-shaped, occasioning
an undue pressure on a particular part ; this sets
up inflammation, and causes a slight separation of
the hoof from the coronet ; then ulcers are formed
below where the hoof is worn away, and at length
arrives a discharge of fetid matter. If neglected,
the hoof will slough off, and the whole foot rot
off — which would be a distressing termination
with even only one sheep ; but the alarming thing
is, that the whole flock may be similarly affected,
and this circumstance has led to the belief that
the disease is contagious.
1074. Much difference of opinion, however,
exists among store-farmers and shepherds on this
point, though the opinion of contagion prepon-
derates. For my part, I never believed it to be
so, and there never would have been such a
belief at all, had the disease been confined to a
few^sheep at a time; but though numbers are
affected at one time, the fact can be explained
from the circumstance of all the sheep being
similarly situate ; and as it is the condition of
the locality which is the cause of the disease, the
wonder is that any escape the affection at all,
rather than that so many are affected.
1075. The first treatment for cure is to wash
the foot clean with soap and water, then pare
away all superfluous hoof, dressing the diseased
surface with some caustic, the butter of antimony
being the best — the affected part being bound
round with a rag, to prevent dirt» getting into it
again — and removing the sheep to harder ground,
upon bare pasture, and there supplying them
with sliced turnips. This cure indicates that
the disease may have been prevented by carefully
examining every hoof before putting the sheep
upon the bare ground, and paring away all ex-
traneous horn ; and should the turnips be upon
soft moist ground, let them be entirely sliced,
and let the sheep be confined upon a small break
at a time, which will soon be trodden firm, and
walking superseded. I may mention that sheep
accustomed to hard ground, when brought upou
soft, are most liable to foot-rot, and hence the
necessity of frequent inspection of the hoof when
sheep are on soft ground ; and if the farm has a
large proportion of soft land, the shepherd should
inspect a few sheep daily.
1076. Erysipelatous complaints occur in winter
amongst sheep. " Wildfire, it is said," observes
Professor Dick, "generally shows itself at the
beginning of winter, and first attacks the breast
and belly. The skin inflames and rises into
blisters, containing a reddish fluid, which escapes
and forms a dark scab. The animal sometimes
fevers. Venesection (blood-letting) should be
used, the skin should be washed with a solution
of sugar of lead, or with lime-water, and physic
given, such as salts and sulphur ; afterwards a
few doses of nitre."t
1077. There is no circumstance upon which an
argument could be more strongly founded in
favour of arable land being attached to every
hill-farm, for raising food for stormy weather,
than the fatality of hraxy. It affects young sheep
of the Black-faced breed, which subsist upon the
most elevated pasture. Indigestion is the pri-
mary cause, exciting constipation, which sets up
acute inflammation of the bowels, and causes death.
The indigestion is occasioned by a sudden change
from succulent to dry food ; and the sudden
change is impelled by the sudden appearance of
snow concealing the green herbage the sheep were
eating, obliging them to subsist upon the tops of
old heather, and the dried twigs and leaves of
the bushes that overtop the snow. By this ac-
count of the origin of the disease, it is obvious
that were stells provided for shelter, and turnips
for food, the braxy would never affect young, hill-
sheep.
1078. The Ettrick Shepherd thus describes its
* Youatt On Sheep, p. 53-8.
VOL. I.
+ Dick's Manual of Veterinart/ Science, p. 110.
M42
PRACTICE-WIKTER.
syirptoins : — " The loss of cu<l is tlie first token.
As the distemper advances, the agony which the
animal is suffering becomes more and more visible.
When it stands, it brings all its four feet into the
compass of a foot ; and sometimes it continues to
rise and lie down alternately every two or three
minutes. The eyes are heavy and dull, and
deeply expressive of its distress. The cars hang
down, and, when more narrowly inspected, the
south and tongue are dry and parched, and the
white of the eye inflamed. . . . The belly is pro-
digiously swelled, even so much that it some-
times bursts. All the different apartments of
the stomach Sre inflamed in some degree."*
Violent inflammation succeeds, with a tendency
to mortification and sinking, so that, after speedy
death, tlie stench of the viscera, and even of the
carcass, is intolerable. Its effects are so sudden,
that a hogg apparently well in the evening will
be found dead in the morning.
1079. Cure thus seems almost unavailable, and
yet it may be effected, provided the symptoms
are observed in time ; when, if blood is drawn
freely from any part of the body, as from nicks
made across the under side of the tail, from the
vein under the eye, and that behind the fore-arm,
and a dose of salts administered in warm water,
the animal will most probably recover.f
'1080. But the grand object is pr^r^n^ionof the
disea,se, by a timely supply of succulent food ;
and if turnips cannot be obtained, it may be
worth the store-master's consideration whether
oil-cake should not be provided, and given along
with hay, during a storm. The laxative property
of oil-cake is well established, and its carriage
to tie remotest hill-farm comparatively easy.
Mr Fairbaim recommends the use of salt to
young sheep, when shifted suddenly from fresh
to dry food ; and as a condiment it would prove
beneficial, especially in the case of ruminants, as
cattle and sheep, the structure of whose digestive
organs renders them peculiarly susceptible of
indigestion ; and on this account it would be a
valuable assistant to the more nutritious oil-cake.
Instead of entirely acquiescing in the Ettrick
Shepherd's recommendation "to pasture the
young and old of the flocks all together," — as
has been done in Peeblesshire, to the eradication,
it is said, of the braxy,--as being in many cases
impracticable and attended with no profit, Mr
Fairbaim suggests, " Let the pasture for a hirsel
be as nearly as possible of one soil. To overlook
this is a mighty error, and the surest means of
making the flock unequal. The heath should
also be regularly burned, and the sheep never
allowed to pasture long upon foft grass," but put
them on turnips, as "an infallible antidote
against the progress of the malady," which he
has " invariably found to give a settling stroke
to the disease."^
' 1081. The Ettrick Shepherd mentions the ex-
istence of 4 kinds of braxy, namely, the tijitel
ticknets, the sickness in the flesh and blood, the
dry braxy, and the leater braxy, all originating
* Hogg's Shepherd's Guide, p. 32.
J A Lammer,nmr Fanner^s Treatise
in the cause above described, and of a class of
diseases allied in their nature to hoven in cattle,
and flatulent colic or batts in horses.
OX THK ACCOMMODATION AFFORDED TO
CATTLE IX WIXTER BY IDE STEADING.
1082. On looking at the plan of the
steading, Plate II., 3'ou will find that the
cattle should occupy the following parts,
— the courts, the hamuiels, and the byres.
1083. The courts are occupied by the
young beasts, such as the calves of the
year, and the year-olds.
1084. The hamraels by the two-year-
olds, or such as are fattening for the
butcher.
1085. The byres are destined for the
milk cows, the breeders of the calves; and
in parts of the country, byres are also em-
ployed in the fattening of the cattle for
the butcher: but where thev are used, of
course haniniels are dispensed with. We
shall, by-and-by, see whether byres or
hammels are best suited for the fattening
of cattle.
1086. Before any of these apartments
can be occupied by their res])ective
tenants, they should be liberally littered
with straw. The first littering of the
courts and hammels should be abundant,
as a thin layer of straw makes an uncom-
fortable bed, whereas a thick one is not
only comfortable in itself, but acts as a
drain to the moisture in the heap of
manure above it. More comfort to cattle
is involved in this ordinary matter than
most farmers seem to be aware of, but it
is obvious that the first layer of litter, if
thin, soon gets trampled down, and in
rainy weather the soil below it as soon
becomes poached — that is, saturated with
wet and pierced into holes with the cattle's
feet ; so that any small quantity of litter
afterwards laid upon this, will but absorb
the moisture below it, and afford no dry
lair to the cattle. A thick layer does not
become poached even in wet weather, the
feet cannot pierce through it, and, acting
as a drain, the moisture is let pass and
+ The Mountain Shepiherd's Jfanu'il, p. 13.
on Sheep in High Dittrictf, p. 194.
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE CATTLE IN THE STEADING.
243
kept below, and the bedding above remains unfavourable circumstances as regards the
comparatively dry. command of straw.
10S7. Sometimes a deficiency of straw
is experienced in the early part of winter,
from various causes, amongst which may be
mentioned a dislike in farmers to thrash
a stack or two of the new crop in early
winter, even when no old straw or old
stack of corn is left from the former crop —
and a ready excuse is found in the want
of water or wind to move the thrashing
machine ; but however recently formed
the stacks may be, and inconvenient to
thrash their produce at the time, it should
be done by some means rather than stint
the cattle of bedding ; for should bad
weather immediately arrive, an event not
unlikely to happen, the cattle may become
so chilled in their ill-littered quarters, that
a great part of the winter may elapse
before they recover from its effects ;
and hence arise disease and serious reduc-
tion of profit.
1088. With even plenty of old stacks, a
want of water to drive the thrashing-
machine may really be experienced, and
this is no uncommon occurrence in the
beginning of winter on farms which de-
pend upon surface-water only for their
supply ; and. a windmill is in no better
condition from want of wind. In case
such contingencies may happen, it is
the duty of the farmer to provide a
sufficient quantity of litter in good time,
— and there are various ways of doing
this. Those who still use the flail
may employ it at any season ; and those
having horse thrashing-mills are equally
independent. Bog-land supplies coarse
herbage, "svhich should be made into hay
in summer ; but precaution is requisite in
using turf as a bottoming for the litter of
courts, as turf will become like a sponge
full of water after the first fall of rain,
and scarcely any quantity of straw will
prevent the cattle rendering the bedding
above it a poached mass. I once tried
turf, after considering it well dried, but
was glad to drive it out of the courts
again. Ferns cut and won, as also dried
grass and leaves from woods, form an ex-
cellent foundation for litter. By one or
all of these means, a comfortable bed may
be provided for the cattle at the com-
mencement of the season, under the most
1 089. The plan of the steading, Plate II.,
shows two courts for young cattle, one on
each side of the straw-barn. It will be
observed that the left-hand court is entirely
closed in by itself, while the right-hand
one has a causeyed road round two sides
of it, which is the cart road to the corn-
barn, and to one of the doors of the straw-
barn. The cattle have liberty to walk on
this road when they choose, but it should
nevertheless be swept clean every day by
the cattle-man. The left-hand court is
occupied by the calves, and the other
by the year-olds. They are both fitted
up alike with turnip troughs along the
walls, with a straw-rack which stands inde-
pendently in the middle of the court,
and with straw-racks along the walls of
the sheds, which, in these cases, are placed
under the granaries in the highest part or
north range of the building.
1090. The troughs for turnips are placed
against the walls, as in fig. 66, where a is
Fig. 6S.
TURNIP TROUGH FOR COURTS.
the wall against which the trough is built,
and b a building of stone and lime 2 feet
thick, to support the bottom of the trough,
of which the lime need not be used for
more than 9 inches in the front and sides
of the wall, and the remaining 15 inches
244
PRACTICE— WINTER.
may be filled up with any liarJ material ;
c is the flairgijig placed on the tup of this
wall, to form the bottom of the trough.
Some board the bottom with wood ; and,
where wood is plentiful, it is cheap, and
answers the purpose, and is pleasanter for
the cattle in wet and frosty weather; but
where flags can be easily procured, they
are more durable : </ is a plank 3 inches
thick and 9 inches in depth to keep in the
turnips. Oak planking from wrecks, and
old spruce trees, however knotty, T have
found a cheap and durable front for turnip
troughs. The planks are spliced together
at their ends, and held on edge by rods of
iron e batted with lead into the wall, and
with nut and screw in front. The height
in front should not exceed 2 feet 9 inches
for calves, and 3 feet for the other beasts,
and it will become less as the straw daily
accumulates. The trough, here shown
short, may extend to any length along the
side of a court.
1091. The strmc-racls for courts are
made of various forms. On farms of liglit
soils, where straw is usually scarce, a rack
of the form of fig. 67, will bo found ser-
viceable in preserving the straw from rain,
COVERED STRAW-RACK FOR COURTS.
where a a is the sparred bottom inclined
upwards to keep the straw always forward
to the front of the rack in reach of the
cattle. The shank supporting the movable
cover, i, which jirotects the straw from
rain, passes through the apex of the bottom.
The shank with its cover is moved up and
down, when a supply of straw is given, by
the action of a rack and pinion, c, worked
by the handle d. The rack is made of
wood, 5 feet 8(juare, and 5 feet in height to
the top of the corner posts ; and sparred
all round the sides as well as the bottom,
to keep in the straw.
1092. A more common kind of rack is
in fig. 08, of a square form, sjjarred round
the sides and bottom to keep in the straw.
The cattle draw the straw through the spars
Fig. 68.
WOODKV STRAW-RACK FOR COl'RTS.
as long as its top is too high for them to
reach over it, but after the dung accumu-
lates, and the rack thereby becomes low,
the cattle get at the straw over the top.
It is made of wood, '> feet square and 4
feet in height. This, and the rack above,
may he pulled up higher when the dung
accumulates much.
1093. Fig. 69 is a rack of malleable iron
to supply the straw always over its top,
Fig. 69.
IRON STRAW-RACK FOR COURTS.
and is rodded in the sides to keep in the
straw. It remains constantly on the
ground, and is not drawn up as the dung
accumulates, as in the case of the racks
described. It is 5\ feet in length, 4,}; in
breadth, and A\ in height; the upjjcr rails
and legs are of 1 inch s(|uarc iron, and the
other rails f inch. This is, of course, the
most durable straw-rack.
1094. Few things indicate greater care
for cattle than the providing of stored tur-
nips for their use ; such being not only
ACCOM]VIODATION FOR THE CATTLE IN THE STEADING. 245
convenient, but the best mode of keeping
them clean and fresh. The sites of the
turnip stores may be seen both in the
isometrical view, Plate I. and in the plan,
Plate II. They should be made of stone
and lime 8 feet by 5 inside, and 6 feel in
height, with an opening in front, 2 feet
and upwards from the ground, for putting
in and taking out the turnips; or they
may be of wood, where it is cheap. They
may either be covered or straw used to pro-
tect the turnips from frost. They should
be placed near the cattle, and be easy of
access to carts from the roads.
1 095. The supply of water to all the
courts is of paramount consideration. The
troughs may be supplied with water either
directly from pump-wells, or by pipes from
a fountain at a little distance, the former
being the most common plan. As a pump
cannot conveniently be placed at each
trough, I have found a plan of supplying
any number of troughs from one pump, to
answer well, provided the surface of the
grQund will allow the troughs being placed
nearly on the same level. One plan is to
connect the bottoms of any two or more
troughs on the same level, with lead pipes
placed under ground ; and on the first
trough being supplied direct from the
pump, the water will flow to the same
level throughout all the other troughs.
This particular arrangement is subject to
tliis objection, that when any one of the
troughs is emptying by drinking, the water
is drawn off from the rest of the troughs,
to maintain its level throughout the
whole.
1096. Were the trough which receives
the water placed a few inches helow the
top of the one supplying it, and a lead
pipe to come from the bottom of the sup-
ply trough over the top of the edge of the
receiving one, the water might entirely be
emptied, by drinking, without affecting
the quantity in any of the others. Let a,
fig. 70, be the supply trough immediately
beside the pump; let h be the trough in
Fig. 70.
WATER-TROUGHS.
any other court to be supplied with water
from cf, and let it be 3 inches below the
level of a. Let a lead pipe, 6?, be fastened
to the bottom of «, the orifice looking up-
wards, and protected by the hemispherical
drainer, c. Let the lead pipe, J, be passed
under ground to the trough h, and emerge
from the ground by the side of and over
the top of h at e. When a is filling with
water from the pump, the moment the
water rises in a to the level of the end of
the end of the pipe at ^, it will commence
to flow into 5, and will continue to do so
until h is filled, if the pumping be con-
tinued. The water .in a, helo^c the level
of the end of the pipe at e, may be used
in a without aftecting J, and the water
in h may be entirely used without affect-
1097. Water-troughs may be made of
various materials; a is hewn out of a solid
block of free-stone, which makes the closest,
most durable, and best trough.
1098. If of flag stones, as 5, the sides
are sunk into the edges of the bottom in
grooves luted with white lead, and held
together with iron clamps, h^ at the corners.
This makes a good trough, but is apt to
leak at the joints.
1099. Trough/ is made of wood dove-
tailed at the corners, which are held to-
gether by clamps of iron, i. When made
of good timber, and painted, they last
many years.
1100. Water-troughs arc sometimes
supplied from a large cistern, somewhat
elevated above their level, and filled from
a well with a common or force-pump. In
this case a cock, or ball-and-cock, are re-
quired at each trough : if a cock, the sup-
246
PRACTICE— WINTER.
ply must (leiicnd on tlie cock being turneil
in due time ; and if a ball-and-cock, the
8Ui)ply depends on the ciatem always hav-
ing water in it : but this method is expen-
sive, and liable to go out of order.
1101. In an abundant supply of water
from natural springs, accessible without
the means of a pump, lead-pipes may be
made to emit a constant stream of water
into each trougli, and the surjjlus con-
veyed away in drains to the horse-pond, or
to any other useful purpose.
1102. Still another mode may be
adopted where the supply of water is
plentiful, and it flows constantly into a
supply-cistern. Let the supply-cistern be
2 feet in length, 1 foot wide, an<l 18 inches
in depth, provided with a ball-and-cock,
and let a jtipc proceed from its bottom to
a trough of dimensions fit for the use ot
cattle, into which let the pipe enter by
the end or side a little way, say 3 inches,
below the mouth of the trough. Let a
pipe proceed from this trough, as from the
lower bend of the pipe c, at the bottom of
the trough h, fig. 70, into the end of an-
other trough, and so on, from trough to
trough, into the ends of as n)any succeed-
ing troughs, on the same level, as are re-
quired, and the water will rise in each as
high as the mouth of the pipe, and which,
when withdrawn by drinking from anyone
trough, the ball aud-cock will replenish it
direct from the supply-cistern ; but the
objection to the ball-and-cock applies as
strongly in this as in tiic other case,
although economy of pipe attends this
method.
1 103. The sheds attached to large cattle
courts arc usually provideil with more
than one opening ov tloor, with the view
of allowing a timid animal to escape by one
door while chased by another. But, in
my opinion, the comfort of the cattle is
more secured with only one entrance, in-
asmuch as every draught of air is pre-
vented ; and although the c)bject of two
entrances is laudable in atlbrdin<: a means
of escajje to a beast that may be ill-used
by the i-est, the advantage to one is dearly
bought at the sacrifice of comfort to the
others; and, after all, it is doubtful whether
the contingency thus dreaded can be avoid-
ed in any May, unless from the proba-
bility of general agreement after a common
use of the same apartment for some time.
Cattle bought promiscuously from diflTerent
quarters, and put together, are much less
likely to agree in the same court than
those brought up together from calf hood.
Howeverbrought together, there should not
exceed 20 beasts kept together in a court.
1104. Hammels are fitted up with tur-
nip troughs in the same manner as the
courts, though the straw- racks are always
fastened in the corners or against the walls
in the sheds, and never placed in the small
courts.
1105. Hammels consist of a shed, and
an open court, communicating by a large
opening. The shed part need not be so
wide as the rest of the apartments in the
farmstead, in as far as the comfort of the
animals is concerned; and in making it
narrower, considerable saving isetl'ected in
the cost of the roofing.
1106. There is no definite rule for the
size of hammels ; but as their advantage
consists in assorting the cattle according to
their age, temper, size, and condition, and
in giving them liberty in the fresh air,
they should not only be much smaller than
courts, but only contain 2 large oxen, or 3
small ones. Hammels, however, are often
made much larjjer tlian this. When the
dung is ])r()]iose(l to be taken away by
horse and cart from the courts, these should
not be less tlian 30 feet in length by 18 feet
in breadth, and the entrance gate 9 feet in
width ; and this size will easily accommo-
date 4 oxen, which will each attain the
dead-weight of 70 stones im])eriah But
the dung may be taken out with barrows,
and a court 15 feet in length by 12 feet in
width, free of the turnip trough, will ac-
commodate 2 such oxen as these.
1107. The sheds to both these sizes of
courts need not exceed 14 feet in width,
and their lengtli is equal to the width of
the courts.
1108. To give jicrmanency to hammels,
the sheds should be roofed like the other
buildings, though to save expense many
farmers roof them with small trees jilaced
close together upon the walls of the sheds,
and build thereon straw, corn, or beans.
ACCOMJklODATION FOR THE CATTLE IN TliE STEADING.
247
This is an excellent place for a stack of
beans or pease; but the finished building is
the best adapted for its own purpose. Tem-
porary erections are constantly requiring
repairs, and in the end cost as much as
substantial work.
1109. The door of the shed, 5 feet in
width, sh-ould be at one side and not in the
middle of the hanmiel, to aflbrd the more
room and warmth to the interior. The
corners of the scuncheon should be cham-
pered off, to save the cattle being injured
against sharp angles.
1110. The divisions betwixt the respec-
tive courts should be of stone and lime
walls, 1 foot in thickness, and 6 feet in'
height. Those within the sheds should be
carried up quite close to the roof, but more
frequently they are only carried up to the
first balk of the couples, over which a
draught of air is generated from shed to
shed, much to the discomfort of the
animals.
1111. I prefer hammels to large courts,
even for the younger beasts, because the
heifers might be separated from the steers,
and each class subdivided to suit cohiur,
strength, age, temper, or any other point in
which a few agree, and difier from the
rest, and it is surprising how much better
the same animals look when well assorted.
1112. Neither courts nor hammels are
completely furnished for the comfort of
their tenants unless provided with well-
built drains to convey away the surplus
liquid manure, when there happens to be
any excess of it. For this purpose a drain
should enter into each of the large courts,
and one across the middle of each set of
hammels. The ground of every court
should be so laid off as to make the lowest
part of the court at the place where the
drain conmiences or passes ; and such
lowest point should be furnished with a
strong block of hewn freestone, into which
is sunk flush an iron grating, having the
qars only an inch asunder, to prevent the
passage of straws into the drain. Fig. 71
gives an idea of such a grating, made of
malleable iron, to bear rough usage, such
as the wheel of a cart passing over it ; the
bar^3 being placed across, with a curve
Fig. 71.
DRAIN GRATING FOR COURTS.
downicai'ds, to keep them clear of obstruc-
tions for the water to pass through them.
A writer, in speaking of such gratings,
recommends "they should be strong, and
have the ribs well bent upicards^ as in that
form they are not so liable to be choked
uj) ;" * a remark quite correct in regard to
the form of gratings for the sewers of
towns, as with the ribs bent doicnicards
in such a place, the accumulated stuff
brought upon them would soon prevent
the water getting down into the drains;
but the case is quite diflerent in courts
where the straw, covering the gratings, lies
loosely over the ribs bent downwards, and
acts as a drainer; but were it to be pressed
against the ribs bent upwards, the water
could not percolate through it. Any one
who has seen the straw of dunghills pressed
hard against a raised stone in the gronnd
below it, will easily understand the efl.ect.
The positions of these gratings ai'e indi-
cated in the plan, Plate II.
1113. Liquid manure drains should be
builtwith stoneand lime walls, 9 inches high
and 6 inches asunder, flagged smoothly in
the bottom, and covered with single stones.
Fig. 72 shows the form of this sort of
drain, and sufliciently explains its struc-
Fig. 72.
tr^if ■ " - -
LIQUID-MANURK DRAIN.
Prize Essays of the Higldand and Agricultural Society, vol. viii. p. 375.
248
PRACTICE— WINTER.
ture. As litjuiJ manure is sluggish in its
motion, tlie drains require a much greater
fall in their course tiian rain-water drains.
They should also run in direct lines, and
have as few turnings as possible in their
passage to tlie tank, which should be situ-
ate in the lowest part of the ground, not
far from the steading, and out of the way.
The advantage of these drains being made
straight is, that, should they choke up at
any time, a large quantity of water poured
into them would clear the obstruction
away. The direction of these drains
may be seen in the plan, Plate, II., to-
wards the tank. It might be possible to
have a tank to each set of hammels and
courts, to collect the liquid manure from
each separately; but such a multiplicity
of tanks would be attended with much
expense at first, and inconvenience at all
times. Were the practice adopted of
spreading the liquid manure on the field at
ouce, as is done by the Flemish farmers,
a tank in every court would be conve-
nient.
1114. The liquid manure tank should be
built of stone or brick and liniQ. Its form
may be either round, rectangular, or irre-
gular, and it may be arched, covered with
wood, left open, or placed under a slated
or thatched roof ; the arch forming the
most complete roof, the rectangular form
should be chosen. I have found a tank of an
area ofonly 100 square feet, and a depth of 4
feet below the bottom of the drains, contain
a large proportion of tlie whole liquid ma-
nurecollected during the winter,fromcourts
and hammels well littered with straw, in a
steading, for 300 acres, well provided with
rain-water sjjouts. The ]M»sition of the
tank may be .seen in the plan, Plate II.
It is rectangular, and might be roofed with
an arch.
111.'). A cast-iron pump should be af-
fixed to one end of the tank, the spout of
which should be as elevated as to allow
the liquid to run into the bung-hole of a
large barrel placed on the framing of a
cart, or over a series of compost dung-
hills. I have lately seen an iron pump
which raised water by means of a series of
screw-fans, made of metal, such as are
used in tlie screw-propellers of ships, and
which, being simple in construction, and
not liable to be put out of working order,
would answer well for pumping so thick
and viscid liquid as liquid manure.
1 1 1 G. It is clear that if all the rain that
falls upon the roof of the steading gets
leave to make its way into the courts and
hammels occupicil by the cattle, that it
will p:iss through the manure as rapidly,
and in as large a quantity, as the rain
happens to fall copiously or otherwise ;
and tliat, in its way through the manure
to the drains which convey it to the liquid-
manure tank, it will dissolve a large pro-
portion of the soluble part of the manure,
and in so far deteriorate the quality of the
dunghill. The liquid manure thus con-
veyed to the tank will, therefore, largely
consist of rain water; and when it is
carried from the tank to the fields, or spread
over the compost heaps, there will be
carried or spread as much of rain-water.
Now, of what utility is it to the field or
the compost heap in incurring the expense
and trouble of moving about so much rain-
Mater? Would it not be a more sensible
proceeding to prevent tlie rain-water en-
tering the courts, and only bestow the
trouble of carrying or spreading the pure
liquid-manure which shall flow from the
dunghills, when the straw is unable to
absorb and retain any more of it ? No
doubt it would ; and yet I believe the
largest proportion of the liquid manure
one hoars being collected in the tanks,
consists only of rain-water, excepting in
the case of dairy fiirms, where the cows arc
supplied largely with succulent food in the
byres, and with very little litter.
1117. For the purpose of getting rid of
the rain water, the eaves of the roofs of
the houses which surround the courts
should be provided with raiu-icatcr
spouts, not only to take it from the roofs,
but to jiour it into drains to be carried to
a ditch at a distance from the farmstead.
1118. As to the rain from the other
parts of the roofs, drains should be formed
along the bottom of every wall not imme-
diately surrounding the courts. The drains
should be dug 6 inches below the founda-
tion-stones of the walls, conduited with a
main pipe-tile, and the drain filled to the
surface of the ground with brokcm stones.
The broken stones will receive the rain
dropping from the roofs, and the pipe-tile
ACCOMMODATION" FOR THE CATTLE IN THE STEADING.
249
conduit will carry it away ; and should
the stones ever become hardened on the
surface, or grown over with grass, the
grass might be easily removed, and the
stones loosened by the action of the hand-
pick.
1119. Eain water-spouts are made of
wood, cast-iron, lead, or zinc, the last
being quite durable, very light, and
cheapest in the end, and are fastened to
the wall by iron holdfasts. The direction
of the rain-water drains may be traced
along the dotted lines, accompanied by
arrows, in the plan Plate II.
1 1 20. The cow-house or byre is occupied
by the cows, and in some districts by the
fattening oxen also, and is fitted up in
a peculiar manner. The cows stand in
stalls : the stalls, to be easy for the cows
to lie down and rise up, in my opinion, for
a large kind of cattle should never be
less than 5 feet in width. Four feet is
a more common width, but is too nar-
row for a large cow, and even 7 feet
is considered in the dairy districts a fair-
sized double stall for two cows. My
opinion is, that every cow should have n
stall for her own use, lying, standing, or
eating her food, of sufficient length and
breadth that she may lie at eaSe betwixt
the manger and the gutter. The width of
the byre should be 18 feet ; the manger
2 feet in width, the length of a large co^v
about 8 feet, the gutter 1 foot broad, leaves
7 feet behind the gutter for a passage fur
containing the different vessels used in
milking the cows and feeding the calves.
The ceiling should be quite open to the
slates, and a A'entilator for every four or
five cows in the roof, for regulating the
temperature and supplying the byre with
fresh air. A door, divided into upper and
lower halves, should open outwards to the
court on a giblet-check, for the easy
passage of the cows to and from the court,
and each half fastened on the inside with
a hand-bar. Two windows with glass
panes, with the lower parts furnished with
shutters to open, will give sufficient light,
as also air, with the half-door. The walls
should be plastered for comfort and clean-
liness.
1121. The stalls are most comfortably
made of wood, though some recommend
stone, which always feels hard and cold.
Tiieir height should be 3 feet, and length
no farther than to reach the flank of the
cow, or about 6 feet from the wall. When
of wood, a strong hard-wood hind-post is
sunk into the ground, and built in ma-
sonry. Between this post and the manger
should be laid a curb stone, grooved on the
uj)per edge to let in the ends of the travis
boai'ds. The deals are held in their places
at the upper ends by means of a hard-
wood rail, grooved on the under side, into
which t!ie edge of the deals are let ; and
the rail is fixed to the back of the hind-
post at one end, and let into the wall at
the other, and there fastened with iron
h(ddfasts. Stone travises are no doubt
more durable, and in the end perhaps
more economical, where flag-stones are
plentiful ; but I would in all cases prefer
wood, as feeling warmer, being more dry
in damp weather, and less liable to injure
the cows coming against them, and within
doors will last a long time. The plan of
the byres may be seen in Plate II.
1122. The mangers of byres are usually
placed on a level with the floor, with a
curb-stone in front to keep in the food,
and paved in the bottom. Such a position
I conceive highly objectionable, as, on
breaking the turnips, the head of the ani-
mal is so depressed that an undue weight is
thrown upon the fore-legs, and an iuju-
rious strain induced on the muscles of the
lower jaw. A better manger is made of
flag-stones or wood, resting on a building
of stone and mortar, raised about 20 inches
from the ground, and a plank set on edge
in front to keep in the food. This front
should be secured in its position with iron
rods batted into the wall at one end, and
the other end passed through the plank to
a shoulder, which is pressed hard by means
of a nut and screw. Out of such a man-
ger the cow will eat with ease any kind
of food, whether whole or cut ; and all
feeding-byres for oxen should be fitted,
up with mangers of this construction.
Mangers are generally made too narrow
for cattle with horns, and the consequence
is the rubbing away of the points of the
horns against the wall.
1 1 23. The supply of green food to cattle
in byres may be eftected from the outside
through holes in the wall at the back of
250
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the manger. This is a convenient mode
for the cattle-man, but is costlj' in the
outfit, and allows the wind to blow for-
cibly upnn the heads of the cows. Fi<,'.
73 is a door shut in the oi)eniug of the
wall on the outside. I prefer giving the
food by the stall, when it is 5 feet wide,
and no cold air
Fig. 73.
DOOR THROUGH WHICH TO
SUPPLY MANGERS WITH
TURNIPS.
can come upon the
cows. But when the
stalls are narrow, a
passage of 2i feet
in width, betwixt
the stalls and the -
■wall, would allow
the cattle-man to
supply turnips and
fodder. In such a
case, the space be-
hind the cows is reduced to 4^ feet in
width.
1124. A wide single stall is not only
useful in supplying the food from within
the byre, but admits of the cows being
more easily and conveniently milked. A
double stall is objectionable for several
reasons : a cow is a capricious creature,
and not always friendly to her neighbour,
and one of them in a double stall must be
bound to the stake on the same side as
she is milked from ; and, to avoid the in-
convenience, the dairy- maid either puts
the cow aside nearer her neighbour, in the
same stall — which may prove unpleasant
to both parties — or the cow in the adjoin-
ing stall nearer her neighbour, which
may prove equally inconvenient. Neither
is it a matter of indifference to the cow
from which side she is milked, for many
■will not let down their milk if the milk-
maid sits down to the unaccustomed side.
The best plan in all respects is, for each
cow to have a roomy stall to herself.
1125. The^oor of byres should be paved
with rectangular stones, excepting the
gutter, ■which should be broader than an
ordinary square-mouthed shovel, and
flagged at the bottom, to form a trough
with two curb-stones, and it is then
quickly cleaned out. A similarly firmed
gutter, though of smaller dimensions,
should run from the main one through the
wall into a liquid manure drain. The
causewaying of the stalls should extend
only a very little farther than the hind-
posts, because cattle, in lying down and
rising up, first kneol upon their fore-knees,
which would be injured if pressed against
any hard substance like stones, and which
would be the case if the causeway was
not always covered with litter. I remem-
ber of a valuable short-horn cow, in
Ireland, getting injured in the knees from
this cause : they swelled so much, and
continued so long in a tender state, that
she would not lie down at all ; and all the
while her owner was not aware of the
cause until I suggested it; and on remo-
val of the pavement, and substitution of
beaten mould, and proper treatment of
the parts afi'ected, she recovered and con-
tinued well.
1126. A most excellent pavement has of
late years been made by the Kamtulicon
Company in London, of caouchouc or India
rubber and sand, which possesses all the
firmness of boards and the softness of
India rubber, and is impervious to damp-
ness from below, and unaffected by
wet upon its surface. It forms a very
suitable paving for the inner half of the
stalls of byres, or the stalls of stables.
It is to be regretted that so valuable an
article is so dear. It was sold two years
ago at l)s. per square yard of one inch in
thickness, it then rose to lis., and to 21s.,
owing, it is said, to the scarcity of the gum,
which costs Gd. per lb. in the crude state.
It is now 14s. Still, at the dearest cost, I
would fit up every byre I had with it.
1127. The India rubber pavement is
always laid upon hard concrete, and its
durability depends upon the tlegree of
perfection in which the basis has been
formed. The concrete consists of ]niLting
together, for every bushel of good lime-
shells, 2^ bushels of sharp sand, and 4
bushels of gravel, and mixing them with
as much water as to form a pa,<te of the
consistency of lime mortar, and which
will then have a bulk of S bushels of con-
crete.
1128. A ground work to place the con-
crete upon is formed in this manner;
Let the earth be removed to the depth of
12 inches, and its place occujued with
small bruken stones, well beaten down
and compacted together, leaving room
above them for at least 2 inches of con-
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE CATTLE IN THE STEADING.
251
Crete, and for the thickness of the India
rubber pavement to lie above it. The
concrete is spread upon the surface of the
broken stones firmly, and finished with a
smooth surface. Two or three days will
be required to render the concrete hard
enough for use, according to the state of
the weather ; but it must not be used until
it has become very hard.
1 1 29. The pavement is formed in slabs
of about 7 feet long, and 18 inches in
width, of two thicknesses, one inch and
half an inch. The half-inch is too thin for
tlie purpose of pavement for grown cattle
to stand upon : perliaps three-quarters of
an incli would suffice, but I would prefer
the inch-thick in all cases. Tiie pavement
is easily cut into pieces of any size with a
chisel and hammer. The pieces are laid
flat upon the hardened concrete, and one
piece is joined by the edge to another, by
using a solution of the caoutchouc in
naptha, which, being like a thin jelly, is
easily spread with a broad knife upon the
edges of the pieces of the pavement ; and,
on these being brought together after a
while, the spirituous naptha evaporates,
and leaves the gum as a firm cement in
the joinings ; and after the solution has be-
cunie firm, the pavement is fit for use.
1 1 SO. Fig. 74, is a section of a travis and
manger of a i//r(?, as just described, where
a is the wall, b the building which sup-
ports the manger e, having a front of wood,
and bottomed with either flags or wood; d
the Jiard-wood hind-post, sunk into the
ground, and built in with stones and
mortar ; e the hard-wood top-rail, secured
behind the post d, and let into and fixed
in the wall a with iron holdfasts ; / the
stone curb-stone, into which the ends of
the travis-boards are let ; g the travis-
boards let endways into the curb-stone
below, and into the top-rail above, by a
groove in each ; h a liard-wood stake, to
which the cattle are fastened by binders, the
lower end of which is let into a hole in the
block of stone i, and the upper fastened
by a strap of iron to a block of wood k^
built into the wall a ; in is the gutter for
the dung, having a bottom of flag-stones,
and sides of curb-stones ; n the paved
floor; 0 the opening through the wall a by
which the food is supplied into the manger
c to the cattle, from the shed s behind.
This shed is 8 feet wide, j? being the
pillars, 6 feet in height, which support its
roof q, which is a continuation of the
slating of the byre roof, the wall a of
which is 9 feet high. But where these
small doors are not used, the sheds, pillars
jD, and roof q, are not required, but they
might form a convenient turnip-store, to
which access might be obtained from the
byre by a back door.
1131. Cows are bound to a stake in
the stall by means of a ligature which
goes round the neck behind the horns.
One method of binding is with the baikie,
which is made of a piece of hard-wood, e
fig. 75, standing upright, and flat to the
Fig. 74.
BYRE TRAVIiS, MANGSR, AND STAEB.
252
PRACTICE— WINTER.
Fig. 75.
neck of tlio cow. A rope ri fastens the
lower end of it to the stake, uj)on which it
slides up and down
by means of a loop
which the rope forms
round the stake.
This rope passes U7i-
der the neck of the
animal, and is never
loosened. Another
rope k is fastened at
the upper end of the
piece of wood <', and,
passing ocer the neck
of the animal, and
round the stake, is
made fast to itself
by a knot and eye,
and serves the pur-
pose of fastening and
loosening the animal. The neck, being em-
braced between tlie two ropes, moves up
and down, carrying the baikie along with
it. This method of binding, though quite
easy to the animals themselves, is objec-
tionable in preventing tlieni turning their
heads round to lick their bodies ; and, the
stake being in a perpendicular position, the
animals can only move their heads up and
down, and are obliged to hold them always
over the mangers.
1132. A much better mode of binding
cattle is with the sm/, which consists of an
iron chain, fig. 7Cj where a is the large
ring of the binder, which slides up and
down the stake h, which is here shown in
the same position as is h in the section of
the stall in fig. 74. The iron chain, being
put round the neck of the cow, is fas-
p. -g_ tened together
by a broad-
tongued hook
at c, which is
put into any
link of the
chain that
forms the
gauge of the
neck, and it
cannot come
out until turn-
ed on purpose
edgeways to
the link of
, " which it has
CATTLE 6BAL OR BINDER. a liold. This
BVRK WINDOW.
sort of binder is in general use in the
midland and nurthern counties of Scotland.
It is the most durable form of binder, and
gives the animal liberty, nut only to lick
itself, but to turn its head in any direction
it pleases ; and the inclination of the stakes
gives the animal the farther liberty of lying
down or standing back quite free of the
manger.
1133. A convenient form of icindow is
essential to the comfort of a byre. It
consists of two shutters, a a, fig. 77, 2
Fig. 77. ^^^\ ^^ height,
which open by
cross-tailed hin-
ges, and are kept
shutwitb thumb-
latches. The
window-frame is
made of wood,
and glazed with
four rows of
panes, 2^ feet in
height, and 5 in
number to the
width — the opening of the window being
4,^ feet in height and 3 feet in width.
Such a form of window admits of much
light and air.
1134. A good description of window
for cottages and oflGces was made by Messrs
M'Culloch and Co., Gallowgate, Glasgow,
and for which they received a premium
from the Highland and Agricultural
Society. " This window is extremely
simple in its construction, and may with
safety be ])ronounced efficient in point of
comfort and utility ; while the price, it is
believed, will not be higher than the
cheapest description of iron windows now
in use, and, for durability, will be prefer-
able to those of any other material. The
dimensions that have been recommended
for the windows of ordinary cottages are,
39 inches for the height, and 24 inches for
the width, within tlie wooden frames.
The size of glass required for tliese frames
is 7 J by 5\ inches. The sa.sh is divided
into 2 unecjual parts, the lower i)art hav-
ing 3 squares in height, and the upjier
part 2. The lower jiart is permanently
fixed, while the upper part is constructed
to turn in the vertical direction on j>ivots,
which are situate in the line of its middle
astragal ; and both parts are set in a sub-
ACCOLmODATION FOR THE CATTLE IN THE STEADING.
253
stanfcial wooden frame, which may either
be, built in while the wall is erecting, or
set in afterwards in the ordinary way,
with or without checked rebats, according
to the taste of the proprietor. The window
and its arrangements will be better under-
stood by reference to the annexed cuts,
fig. 78 showing an inside elevation, fig.
79 a vertical section, and fig. 80 a plan,
in each of which a portion of the wall is
Fig. 78.
THE ELEVATION OF AN IMPROVED WINDOW FOR
LIGHT AND AIR.
exhibited, and the same letters refer to
the corresponding parts of each figure ; a
is a portion of the surrounding wall, b
the wooden frame of the window, c the
lower sash, which is dormant, and d the
upper and movable sash. In fig. 79, the
upper sash is represented as open for ven-
tilation. When shut, the parts of the
opening sash cover and overlap the fixed
parts in such a manner as to exclude wind
and water; but when ventilation is re-
quired, the arrangement of the parts which
produce this is such as to enable the ad-
mission of air to any extent. For this pur-
pose the notched latch e is jointed to a
stud in the edge of the sash ; a simple iron
pin or stud is also fixed in the wooden frame
at s, and, the notches of the latch being
made to fall upon this stud at any required
distance, the requisite degree of opening is
Fig. 79.
secured ; and when the sash is again closed,
the latch falls down parallel with, and close
to, the sash. To secure the sashes when
shut, the T bolt /, in the middle of the
meeting bars,
has only to be
turned a quar-
ter round, and
the movable
sash is held
fast in close
contact with
the other.
Fig. 78 repre-
sents the win-
dows as finish-
ed with sim-
ple dressings,
namely, plain
deal shutters,
facings, and
sole, which, at
a small ex-
pense, would
give an air of
neatness and
comfort, and
promote a cor-
res ponding
taste in the
other parts of
a cottage. Though the dimensions of the
Fig. 80.
THE VERTICAL SECTION OF AN
IMPROVED WINDOW FOR
LIGHT AND AIR.
THE PLAN FOR AN IMPROVED WINDOW FOR
LIGHT AND AIR.
window here stated may be conceived suf-
ficient for lighting an apartment of ordi-
nary size in a cottage, they can, neverthe-
less, be varied to suit every purpose in
oflaces and elsewhere. This may be done
either by employing two such windows, as
above described, with a mullion of wood or
of stone between them, or the single win-
dow may be enlarged by 1 or 2 squares in
width, or in height, or in both directions."*
Prize Essays of the Highland and Agricultxiral Society, vol. xiii. p. 538-41.
254
PRACTICE— WINTER.
11.3.1. It is proper to mention that zinc,
in the opinion of tradesmen, is too Aveak
for\vin(h)\v-sai>hes to admit of repair b}' an
unj»ractised hand. AVood and lead are, for
the i-ame reasons, equally unsuitable.
Malleable iron, even so thin as to impede
the liirht but little, if the astr.agals are not
provided with flanges for the glass to rest
against, the repair mu.<t also be a work of
some difficulty, and is also deemed unfit for
the purpose. Cast-iron, therefore, appears
to be the material least liable to objection :
but astragals of cast-iron must be of con-
siderable thickness, and such frames, con-
sequently, could not be adapted to a very
small size of glass, without materially ob-
scuring the light. The iron sashes, as
shown above, without the wooden frames,
cost 5s., and glass for such windows may
be purchased at 2|d. per square.
11.36. It greatly promotes the comfort
and health of animals confined for many
hours every day in one apartment to have
the fresh air admitted to them without the
creation of draughts, and no means of ob-
taining this object is so much in our power,
as placing ventilators in the roof of the
part of the steading so occupied by the
animals.
1137. Fig 81 is a ventilator, in which
the Venetian blinds a are fixed, and answer
Fig. 81.
\ \ \ \ 'X~\
A VENTILATOR.
the double purpose of permitting the escape
of heated air and effluvia, and of prevent-
ing the entrance of rain or snow. The
blinds are covered and protected by the
roof 6, made of slates and lead ; <; is an
apron of lead. Such a ventilator would be
more ornamental to the steading than fig.
81 is, and more protective to the blinds, if
its roof projected 12 inches over. One
ventilator 6 feet in length, 3 feet in height
in front, and 2 feet above the rid'MUi;: of
the roof, for every six horses or cows, might
suffice to maintain a complete ventilation.
But such openings in the roof will not of
themselves constitute ventilation, unless an
adequate supply of fresh air is admitted
below ; and the supply might be obtained
from small openings in the walls, including
the chinks of doors and windows when
shut, whose gross areas should be nearly
equal to those of the ventilators. The
openings should be in such situations and
numbers as to cause no draught of air upon
the animals ; and might be conveniently
placed, protecteil by iron gratings on the
outside to prevent the entrance of vermin,
in, the wall behind the animals, of such a
form as to deflect the air upwards against
a plate of iron, to spread it about as much
as possible. Other forms of ventilators are
in use, consisting of a piece of large lead
pipe projected through the roof and bent
downwards ; or simply a few of the slates
or tiles raised up a little, cither of which is
better than no ventilator at all, but neither
so effectual for the purpose of ventilation as
the one 1 have described.
1138. The construction of byres for the
accommodation ol fattening oxen and »n7^
coirs is quite the same, but feeding byres
are usually made much too small for the
number of oxen confined in them. When
stalls are put up, they seldom exceed 4 feet
in width ; more frequently two oxen are
put into a double stall of 7 feet, and not
unfrequently travises are dispensed with
altogether, and simply a triangular piece
of boarding ])laced across the manger
against the wall, to divide the food betwixt
each pair of oxen. In double stalls, and
where no stalls are used, even small oxen,
as they increase in size, cannot all lie down
at one time to chew their cud and rest ; and
as they require more room and rest the
fatter they become, the larger the oxen
become they are hampered the more. In
such confined byres, the gutter is placed too
near the heels of tlie oxen, and prevents
them standing back when they desire.
Short stalls, it is true, save the litter being
dirtied, by the dung dropping from the
cattle directly into the gutter, and the ar-
rangement saves the cattle-man trouble;
but the saving of the litter in such a case
is at the sacrifice of comfort to the animals.
1139. Such arrangements for economy
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE CATTLE IN THE STEADING.
255
arelegltiniate considerations forcowkeepors
in toAvns, where both space and litter are
valuable ; but when they induce to the con-
struction of inconvenient byres in farm-
steads, they indicate parsimony in the
landlord and ignorance in the architect;
and every farmer who consults the well-
being of his animals should never sanction
such a plan. The truth is, the erection of
confined structures is one of the many evils
arising from being unacquainted with agri-
culture by those who sanction them, be-
cause they save a little outlay at first.
Expenditure is a tangible object ; but, in
stinting the requisite accommodation in the
farmstead, proprietors injure their own inte-
rests, for it has a considerable influence on
the mind of the farmer when valuing the
rent of the farm he wishes to occupy.
Should you have occasion to fit up a byre
for milk cows or feeding oxen, bear in
mind that a small sum withheld at first,
may cause a yearly loss of greater amount,
by preventing the feeding cattle attaining
the perfection which a comfortable lodging
would promote, or the cows bearing the
stout and healthy calves, which ample
room would promote the growth of.
1140. The several apartments being
thus prepared for the reception of all the
sorts of cattle to be accommodated in the
steading in winter, let us now dispose of
all the cattle into their respective apart-
ments ; and for this purpose look at the
plan of the steading, Plate II. The difie-
rent classes of cattle are cows, calves of the
year, one-year-olds, two-year-olds, bulls,
heifers in calf, and extra cattle.
1141. Cozr5 occupy the byre Q. Each
should always occupy the stall she has
been accustomed to, and will then go out
and come into its own stall without inter-
fering with any other. Cows thus learn
to stand quietly in their stalls to the cattle-
man who feeds them, and the dairy-maid
who milks them. The byre is furnished
with a court I, water-trough ic, and liquid
manure-drain x; the turnip store is at/.
1142. The servants' cotes are accommo-
dated in the byre Y, in th.e same range of
building as the hammels N, fitted up in the
same manner as the byre Q, and having
a court », water-trough ?c, and liquid-
manure drain x. This byre has no turnip
store", as the servants supply their own tur-
nips.
1143. The calves of the year occupy the
large court K. Where they are put all to-
gether male and female, strong and weak,
buthavingplenty of trough room around two
of the walls, they are all provided with
abundance of food, without the fear of
the stronger bufll'eting about the weaker.
The shed they occupy at night is at D,
with the straw-rack in it h, and in the
centre of the court stands the straw-rack
0, fig. 67, where straw is scarce, or figs.
68 and 69, where it is plenty. The turnip
troughs are fitted up as in fig. 66, and
extend along two of the walls. The water-
trough is at w, it being essential for young
stock to have water at will, and necessarily
so, when they do not get as many turnips
as they can eat ; and when they do, young
cattle are all the better from having it at
command. The turnip- store for this court
is at <7 ; and x is the mouth of the liquid-
manure drain, to carry oflP the superfluous
water. The young creatures occupying
this court, where is much traflic in going
to and fi'om the corn-barn C, soon become
familiarised with the people of the barn,
and frequently get pickiugs of corn.
1144. The court I is fitted up precisely
with the same conveniences of feeding-
troughs z^ water-trough «?, straw-racks h
and 0, and turnip-store i, as the other
court for the 1 -year-olds.
1145. The 'i.-ycar olds, fattened for the
butcher, occupy the hammels M, where are
feeding-troughs z, liquid-manure drains x,
fodder in racks, in three of the corners of
the sheds, and turnip-stores at e and/.
1146. When oxen are fattened in byres
instead of hammels, the byres are fitted up,
as I have said, in the same manner as thos^
at Q and Y. Oxen usually stand in pairs
in double stalls, with a small partition
across the turnip-trough at each travis.
When cattle are bound to the stake for the
first time, they are apt to be restless for
some days, and until they become recon-
ciled to their confinement, which they will
be very soon, provided they have plenty
of food given them.
1147. Occasionally the cow stock re-
256
PRACTICE— WINTER.
quires to be renewed, one or two at a time,
hy yoimg he'ihrs; and as these, when in
calf, are not' fattened, tbey are put into
hammels by themselves as at N, which are
fitted up ill precisely the same manner as
those at M, with feeding-trouirhs^, straw-
racks in the corner of tiie sheds, liquid-
manure drain. r. and turnip-stores /> and y.
Each hammel will afford accommodation to
those heifers in calf.
11 i8. The old cows, which these heifers
are to supersede, are fattened in the ham-
mels N.
1 ] 49. Bulls, young and old, occupy the
hammels X, which are also fitted up with
feeding-troughs z, water-troughs ir, liquid-
manure drains x, and racks in the corners
of the sheds. More than one bull-calf
may be reared together; but more than
one bull which has served cows should
never be intrusted together.
1150. It is the duty of the cattle-man
to attend to all these cattle during the
winter, and he assists in assorting them into
their respective apartments.
1151. Having accommodated all the
cattle, according to their kinds and ages,
in their respective places in the steading,
for the winter, let us attend to the treat-
ment which each class should daily receive
during their confinement from the cattle-
man ; but it may be useful, in the first in-
stance, to enumerate the nomenclature by
which cattle are recognised, and to specify
the particular duties of the cattle-man.
1152. The naTnc* given to cattle at their
various ages are these : — A new-born
animal of the ox- tribe is called a calf^ a
male beinir a bull-ccdf\ a female a qucy-calj\
lteifer-cijlt\ or coic-calf; and a castrated
jiialc cah is a stot-culf, or simply a calf.
( 'aif i.^ aiiidicd to all young cattle until
they a'.tain <mo year old, when they are
f/ear-oliig or i/edrlinr/a, — i/rar-old hull,
yi"\r old qn y or heifer, year-old slot.
t't^t in sunn; jdaces is a bull of any age.
1 \.'>:l. In another year they are 2-year-
old biilL '1-year-vld quey or heifer, l-year-
uld stjfi-.v ste:r. In England females are
i-tirks from calves to 2-year-old, and males
etecrs; in Scotland both young male and
female are stiris. Tlie next year they are
3-year-old bull, in England y-year-old
female a heifer, in Scotland a 3-year-old
quey, and a male is a 3-year-old slot ox steer.
1154. When a quey bears a calf, it is a
cow, both in Scotland and England. Next
year the //«//« are ayed ; the cozr* retain
the name ever after, and the slots or steers
are oxen, which they continue to be to
any age. A cow or quey that has received
the bull is served or bulled, and are then
in calf, and in that state are in England
in-calvers. A cow that suffers abortion
slips its calf. A cow that has either ??jm<?<^^
being in calf, or has slipped calf, is eilt;
and one that has gone dry of milk is a
yeld-coir. A cow giving milk is a milk
or milch-cow. When 2 calves are born
at one birth, they are twins ; if three, trins.
A quey calf of twins of bull and quey
calves, is a free martin, and never pro-
duces young, but exhibits no marks of a
hybrid or mule.
1 1 .55. Cattle, black cattle, horned cattle,
and neat cattle, are all generic names for the
ox tribe, and the term beast is a synonyms.
1 1 5C). An ox without horns is dodded or
humbled.
1 1 57. A castrated bull is a segy. A
quey-calf whose ovaries have been oblite-
rated, to prevent her breeding, is a spayed
heifer or a spayed quey.
ON THE REARING AND FATTENING OF
CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
1158. The most personally laborious
part of the duty of a cattle-man in winter
is carrying straw in large bundles on his
back to every part of the steading. It
may easily be imagined, from this state-
ment, that when the straw-barn is incon-
veniently placed, or at a considerable
distance from the byres and hammels, the
labour of the cattle-man must be very
much increased ; indeed, it is possible,
from that circumstance alone, for hira to
require assistance to fulfil the duties he
has to perform. An inconvenience of this
kind may thus be the cause of incurring
the expense of another man's wages for
the winter.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
257
1159. A convenient means of carrying
Btraw is with a soft rope about the thick-
ness of a finger, and 3 yards in length,
furnished at one end with an iron ring,
through which the other end slips easily
along until it is tight enough to retain the
bundle, when a simple loop-knot keeps
good what it has got. Provided with 3
or 4 such ropes, the cattle-man can bundle
the straw at his leisure in the barn, and
have the bundles ready to remove when
required. The iron ring permits the
rope to free itself readily from the straw
when the bundle is loosened.
1160. The dress of a cattle-man is
worth attending to, as regards its appro-
priateness for his business. Having so much
straw to carry on his back, a bonnet or
round-crowned hat is the most conve-
nient head-dress for him ; but what is of
more importance when he has charge of
a bull, is to have his clothes of a sober
hue, free of gaudy or strongly-contrasted
colours, especially t'ed, as that colour is
peculiarly oifensive to bulls. It is with
red cloth and flags that fl"> bulls in Spain
are irritated to action at their celebrated
bull-fights. Instances are in my remem-
brance of bulls turning upon their keepers,
not because they were habited in red,
but from some strongly contrasted bright
colours. It was stated that the keeper
of the celebrated bull Sirius, belonging
to the late Mr Robertson of Ladykirk,
wore a red nightcap on the day the bull
attacked and killed him. On walking
with a lady across a field, my own bull —
the one represented in the plate of the
Short-horn Bull, than which a more gentle
and generous creature of his kind never
existed — made towards us in an excited
state; and for his excitement I could
ascribe no other cause than the red
shawl worn by the lady ; for as soon as
we left the fic.d he resumed his wonted
quietness. I observed him excited, on
another occasion, in his hammel, when- the
cattle-man — an aged man, who had taken
charge of him for years — attended him one
Sunday forenoon in a new red nightcap,
instead of his usual black hat. Be the
cause of the disquietude in the animal
what it may, it is prudential in a cattle-
man to be habited in a sober suit of clothes.
1161. Regularity of time in everything
VOL. I.
done for them, is the chief secret in the
successful treatment of cattle. Dumb
creatures as they are, cattle soon under-
stand any plan that affects themselves, —
and the part of it to which they will recon-
cile themselves most quickly is regularity
in the time of feeding ; and any violation
of regularity will sootf cause them to show
discontent. The regularity consists in
giving the same .sort of cattle the same
kind of food at the same period of the day,
each day in succession. The cattle- man
cannot follow this regular course without
the guidance of a watch ; and if he has not
one of his own, such is the importance of
regularity in this matter, that no one
should be selected a cattle-man until a
watch is provided him.
1162. The cattle-man's day's work com-
mences at break of day, and ends at night-
fall, expanding the day with that of the
season, until daybreak appears at 5 in the
morning, and nightfall occurs at 6 in the
evening ; and after those hours he is not
expected to work, excepting at 8 at
night, when he examines, with a light,
every court and byre, to see that the cattle
are in health and comfort before he goes
to bed. At every hour of daylight he
does its stated work ; and it is only in the
morning and evening, as the day lengthens
with the season as it advances, that any
change in the time is allowable. As the
same amount of work must be done every
day,- he has most to do in the least time
— in the shortest days in winter, and as
the days lengthen he has more leisure.
1163. Let us accompany the cattle-man
through a whole day's work. He break-
fasts before he begins his labours. At
daybreak, or not earlier than 5 in the
morning, should the day dawn before that
hour, he goes to the byre Q, Plate II., to
the co'-s, and removes any dung in the
stalls into the gutter, with a graip, to make
them clean for the dairymaid, when she
comes to milk the cows. This business may
occupy about 10 minutes.
1164. On farms on which calves are
bred, the cows are heavy with calf in win-
ter,— so most of them will be dry in that
season, and those still yielding milk, being
the latest to calve, will give but a scanty
supply. It is not as inilk-covfs that cows
268
PRACTICE— WINTER.
Fig. 82.
aro treated in winter, receiving but little
succulent food.
1165. The graip with which he clears
away the dung is seen in fig. 82, and con-
sists simply of three long prongs of iron,
and a helve of wood set
in a socket of iron having
a slight bend in it at the
end nearest the prongs.
This bend gives a leverage
power to the handle, when
the graip is used to lift
rank wet litter ; and it
serves also to keep the
hands so elevated as not
to be dirtied by the dung
or litter.
1166. He then goes to
the servants' cow-byre Y,
and does the same piece of
work for the cows there,
and for the wives of the ser-
vants, who also 'milk their
cows at this time. It may
occupy him 5 minutes.
1167. He shuts the doors
of both the byres, and
leaves the half-doors into
the courts open for the ad-
mission of fresh air.
1 1 68. He goes to the fat-
tening beasts in the ham-
mels M, and always cleans
out with a shovel the refuse
of the turnips of the former
meal, first from the same
trough, beginning at one end
of tlie range of troughs ; and
immediately that one trough
is cleared out, he replenishes
it with turnips from tiie tur-
nip store at hand, the tur-
nips being broken with one
of the instruments in use.
In this manner one hammel
is supplied with turnips after
another. This may occupy
him 40 minutes.
1169. The byre and
stable shovel is seen in fig.
83. It has a broad square
mouth, to stretch across the
THK GRAIP.
Fig. 8a.
THK SQU ARK-
MOUTHED
AlOVJiL.
bottom, and ent^r the comers of the gutter
of the byre or the turnip troughs of the
hammels and courts. Its helve is of wood,
having a slight curve in it, to save the
hands being dirtied when using it in
shovelling dung.
1 170. There are various ways of cutting
or slicing turnips for cattle. An old
sharp-edged spade will cut them in pieces
well enough ; but the turnips are either
too much bruised, or the cut pieces are apt
to start away. Any of the instruments
made for the purpose is better — of which
are several — and a choice may be made
from them according to the qnantityof the
turnips to be sliced. Fig. 84 is one form of
hand slicer. The cutting part consists of 2
steel-edged blades, which are slit half-
and-half at their middle point, so as
to penetrate each
Fig. 84. other, standing at
p right angles, form-
ing the ct'Ofs cutter
a a a a. They are
then embraced in a
four-split palm, and
riveted. The palm
terminates in a
short shanks, which
is again inserted
into the hooped
end of a wooden
handle b, which is
finished with a
crosshead c. The
price of this instru-
ment is 8s. 6d. The
mode of using it is
obvious. It is held
by the hand in a
vertical position ;
and when placed
upon a turnip, one
thru.st downward
cuts it into quar-
ters. This instru-
ment is also varied
in its construction,
being sometimes
made with 3, and even with 4 blades,
dividing the turnip into 6 or into 8 por-
tions.
1171. Another form of the same spe-
cies of slice is represented by fig. 85. It
has two blades a a; but they, instead of
THE HAND Tl'RMP-CHOP'
PER, WITH CROSS
BLADES.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
Fig. 85.
crossing, stand parallel to each other,
and therefore divide the turnips into
three portions, resembling
slices, of considerable
thickness, the middle one
being 1^ inch thick. In
the construction of this
cutter, a blunted stud is
formed at the extremi-
ties of each blade, which
project below tlie cut-
ting edge about | inch,
serving as guards to save
the cutting edges from
receiving injury when
they have passed through
the turnip, by striking
against any hard surface.
These guards, it may be
remarked, would form a
useful addition to all this
class of cutters. The arm
b of the blades rises to a
height of 9 inches, widen-
ing upward to 3^ inches, to give freedom to
the middle slice to fall out. The two arms
Fig.
THE HAND TURNIP
CHOPPER, WITH
PARALLEL BLADES
259
coalesce above, and are then formed into
the socket c, to receive the handle, which
terminates in a crosshead.
1172. The lever turnip-slicer, fig, 86, is
a more efficient instrument than either of
these. It was contrived by Mr Wallace,
Kirkconnell, as an improvement on a
pre-existing machine of the same kind.
It consists of a stock in 2 pieces, con-
nected by an iron bar or strap a c, which
is repeated on the opposite side, and the
M'bole bolted together. The two pieces
forming the sole are separated longitudi-
nally from each other, so as, with the two
side-straps of iron, to form a rectangular
opening, bounded on the two ends by the
parts of the sole, and on the two sides by
the side-straps, which, to the extent of
the opening, are thinned off to a sharp
edge, and thus form the two exterior
cutters. The sole is supported at a height
of 2 feet upon 4 legs, and the lever d e is
jointed at d by means of a bolt passing
through it and the ears of the side-straps.
The lever is 4 feet in length, its breadth
86.
THE LEVER TURNIP-SLICER FOR CATTLE.
260
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and thickness equal to that of the sole,
but is rcthiced at the end « of a conveni-
ent size for the hand. It is furnislied with
a block of wood w», the lower face of
wliich is studded with iron knobs, to pre-
vent the turnip sliding from under it.
The cutter blocks / y are made of cast-
iron, and contain 8 cutters, which make
the most convenient size of slice. In
using this portable machine, the workman
takes hold of the lever at c with his right
hand, and, having raised it sufficiently
hiiHi, throws a turnip into the cradle with
the left hand. The lever is now brought
down by the right hand, which, with a
moderate impetus, and by means of the
block in, sends the turnip down upon the
cutters, through the openings of wliich it
passes, while the cutters are dividing it,
and the whole falls in uniform slices into
a basket placed beneath. In most cases
it is found more convenient to have a boy
to throw in the turnips, to expedite the
work. The cost of this machine is SOs.
1173. When this lever turnip-cutter is
furnished with an additional set (>f cut-
ting knives, six in number, fixed at right
anirles to those described above, the
machine is rendered useful for cutting
turnips for sheep ; and it will cut thera
in long narrow parallelepipeds, well
suited in shape for being taken into the
mouths of sheep. It will thus be also a
cheap instrument, not exceeding 40s. in
price.
1 1 74. From the hammels the cattle-
man proceeds to the large court K to the
calves, cleans the turnip troughs of the
refuse, supplies them with turnips from
the store, breaking the turnips "with one
of the slicers, — the lever one doing tlie
work most quickly. The calves not being
able to eat a large quantity of turnips,
he may be occupied with them for 15
minutes.
1 1 75. The year-olds in the other large
court I then demand his care. The turnip
troughs are cleared of refuse, fresh turnips
are supplied from the store, and sliced
with the machine. These larger animals
requiring more turnips, he may be occu-
pied among them about 25 minutes.
1176. The fattening oxen in the ham-
mels receive, of course, as many turnips
as they can eat, — and so ought the young
beasts in the courts ; but in case of a de-
ficiency in the croj), the calves should have
a full allowance, while the older slots and
queys may be put upon short allowance.
Kather than this, it would be better to
purchase oil-cake for the fattening oxen,
and give them fewer turnii)s, and let the
younger beasts receive a full allowance.
1 1 77. The bulls in the hammels X next
receive his care. Their turnip troughs
are cleaned out, and a few fresh turnips
given them, and sliced with a hand in-
strument. The two hammels may engage
him 10 minutes.
1178. The extra beasts feeding in the
hammels N should next be attended to,
by cleaning out their turnip trough, and
giving them a fresh supply of sliced tur-
nijis, which will be most conveniently
done by a hand instrument. These may
take 10 minutes to be attended to.
1179. The heifers in calf in the ham-
mels N should have no turnips in the
morning, only a little fresh oat-straw. It
may take 10 minutes to go for this to the
straw-barn, and put it into the racks.
1180. Having thus given all the cattle
at liberty their morning's ration of food,
the cattleman takes a bundle of fresh oat-
straw from the straw- barn, returns with it
to the byre Q, and gives a little to each of
the cows to engage them, while he em-
ploys himself in removing all the dung
and dirtied litter from the stalls and
gutter, with the graip, shovel, and wheel-
barrow, fig. 87, into the court, wheeling
and spreading it equally over its surface,
and sweeping the gutter and causeway
clean with the besom. The work alto-
gether may engage him 30 minutes.
1181. In like manner he gives the ser-
vants' cows a little fresh oat-straw, ana
cleans out their byre of dung and litter. In
doing this he may be engaged 25 minutes.
1182. The wheel-barrow is shown in
fig. 87, and is of the common form, with
close-boardeil bottom, sides, and back, and
of a capacity sufficient to carry a good
load of litter ; but not of greater breadth
FEEDING CATTLE ON TUENIPS IN WINTER.
261
than will easily pass, with a load, through
the door.
Fig. 87.
A WHEEL-B.4RR0W.
1183. When the byres have thus been
cleaned, he takes a bundle of litter from
the straw-barn, and returns with it to the
byre, and on clearing the troughs of the
refuse fodder, and sprinkling it over the
stalls for litter, they are ready for the
reception of the turnips about to be given
to the cows. After n[iilking is finished by
the dairymaid in the morning, the common
practice is to give the cows, though heavy in
calf, a feed of cold turnips into their empty
stomachs, which I consider a very inju-
dicious practice ; and this is evinced by
the fact of the foetus indicating unequivo-
tal symptoms of its existence in the womb,
B it does after a drink of cold water
iken in the morning. I therefore prefer
iving cows some fresh straw, to prepare
leir stomach for the turnips. Cows in
Jf never get as many turnips as they
can eat, the object being not to fatten,
but support them in a fair condition for
calving; and were they fed fat, they
would run the risk of losing their life at
calving by inflammation, and their calves
would be small. It is not easy to specify
the number or weight of turnips that
should be given to cows; but I conceive
that ^ of what a feeding ox would con-
sume will suffice. After the troughs have
been supplied with the requisite quantity
of turnips sliced, and the same order of
distribution, from stall to stall, daily ob-
served, the stalls are littered with the
straw the cattle-man brought with him ;
and on shutting the principal door, and
leaving the other half-door open for air,
he leaves them for a time to rest and chew
their cud ; for nothing irritates cows more
than to go about them, or about the byre,
and make a noise, while they are eating
their principal meal. All this work may
require about 30 minutes.
1184. The turnips are supplied to the
cows, either through the openings in the
wall, or from the passage running along
the heads of the stalls, or from the cause-
way by the stalls themselves, by whichever
way the byre has been constructed. The
most common practice of carrying the
turnips is by the stalls in baskets, called
sculls, which are hollow hemispherical-
shaped baskets of willow, having an open-
ing on each side, to take hold of the stout
rim for handles. Sculls are made of the
common basket-willow, or of iron wire.
1185. A wire basket is seen in fig. 88,
where the rim ab c, forming its mouth, is
Fig. 88.
THE WIRE TURNIP-BASKET,
a flat slip of iron f of an inch in breadth,
and the keel or bottom a d c is oi the
same dimensions and materials. Holes
are punched through them, at about 3
inches apart from each other. The small
iron rods are inserted through them, re-
ceiving a bend to suit the form of the
basket, and the ends of those attached to
the rim a b c are shouldered below, and
fastened with a counter-sink rivet above.
The spaces left at the ends of the keel,
under the rim, at a and c, form the
handles. The cost is about 2s. 6d. each,
and with due care — such as the replace-
ment of a rod now and then, when
broken, — will last from 5 to 10 years.
Were there two keels instead of one, the
basket would stand steadier upon the
ground to be filled with turnips.*
1186. The servants' cows are then
littered for them to lie down and rest, the
turnips being given to them by the ser-
vants themselves, in such quantities, and
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, Tol.xi. p. 112.
PRACTICE— WINTER.
at such time, as they think proper. The
littering may occupy about 10 minutes,
1187. The supply of turnips to the
servants' cows depends on the terms of
the agreement made with the servants.
When a specified number of cart-loads
are given, the servant may not choose to
give them to his cow during the earlier part
of the winter, if she is dry ; but if in
milk, the servant's family give what quan-
tity they choose from their own store. If
the farmer has agreed to treat his servants'
cows in the same manner as his own, the
cattle-man takes charge of them as he does
those of his master.
1188. The heifers in calf now get a
few turnips, and they should be sliced
with one of the hand instruments. This
may occupy 10 minutes.
1189. The extra beasts feeding in the
hammels N should now receive some
fresh oat-straw as fodder. The time eu-
gaged in this may be about 10 minutes.
1 1 90. All the cattle having now been
fed, the next step the cattle-man takes is
to supply the cattle in the hammels and
courts with fodder and litter. He first
pulls all the old fodder out of the racks and
scatters it about as litter, and then supplies
them with fresh oat-straw from the straw-
barn. The litter straw is then taken from
the straw-barn, and used to litter the
courts and hammels in such quantity as is
requisite at the time, dry, fresh, or frosty
weather saving the usual quantity, and
rainy weather requiring more than the
usual quantity, to render the courts com-
fortable. This distribution of the straw
may occupy about 30 minutes. ,
1191. Whatever be the state of the
weather, whether cold or warm, wet or
dry, the cows should now be turned into
the court to enjoy the fresh air, lick them-
selves and one another, drink water from
the trough, and bask in the sun. They
should go out every day until they calve,
except, perhaps, in a particularly stormy,
cold wet day. One hour at least, and
longer if fine, they should remain out.
1 1 92. In loosening cows from the stalls,
a plan requires to be pursued to prevent
confusion. Every cow, in the beginning of
the season, should be put in the stall she has
occupied since she first became an inmate
of the byre ; and she will always go to it,
and no other, avoiding the least collision
with the rest. In loosening them from
the stalls, they should be so one by one,
always beginning at the same end of the
byre, and finishing at the other, and not
indiscriminately. This will prevent im-
patience in each animal, and collision on
the floor, and jamming in the doorway on
going out, — accidents always injurious to
animals with young.
1193. The servants' cows are let out
into their court in the same manner. The
two byres may in this way occupy 15
minutes.
11 94. It is now time to give the fatten-
ing beasts in the hammels their mid-day
ration of turnips; and in doing this it is as
necessary to clear the turnip troughs of
refuse as in the morning. The turnips
should also be sliced. This may occupy
20 minutes.
119.*). In enumerating all the portions
of time mentioned in doing these various
pieces of work by the cattle-man, it will
be found to amount to 5 hours 5 minutes;
and if he began his work at dawn, at 7
o'clock, the time now, after the fulfilment
of so much of the day's labour, will be 5
minutes past 1 2 at noon. Farm labourers
dine at 12 o'clock, so the cattle-man is
thus ready for his dinner, both as regards
time and the state of his work. Should
the cattle-man find he has too little time
to accomplish the amount of work indi-
cated, he has the consolation of believing
that, as the days lengthen after the 22d of
December, he will have longer time to do
the same quantity of work, and that he
cannot possibly have more to do at any
time.
1196. The cattle-man is entitled to rest
one hour at dinner.
1197. Immediately after his dinner-
hour is spent, the cattle-man goes to the
straw-barn, and bundles as many vhid-
lings of straw, for supper, a-s there are
cows or cattle in byres under his charge.
A windling is a small bundle twisted and
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
263
fastened upon itself, and is about 10 lbs.
in weight. He also makes up a few
large bundles of fodder. Taking one of
these last to the cow-byre, he places fod-
der into every stall.
1198. The cows are then returned from
the court into the byre ; and, to remove
every temptation from even a greedy cow
running up into another one's stall for the
sake of snatching a little of her food, no
green food should be lying in the troughs
when they return to their stalls; and none
should be given them immediately after
returning to the byre, as the expectation
of receiving it will render them impatient
to leave the court, and make them rest-
less in the stall until they receive it.
This is contrary to usual practice, but
it will suppress inordinate desire, pre-
vent violation of discipline, and the ne-
cessity for correction. When subjected
to regular discipline, cows soon obey
it, and make no confusion, but conduct
themselves peaceably. They should be
bound to the stake in the same regular
order they were loosened from it, from
one end of the byre to the other, and the
regularity provides against any cow being
forgotten to be bound up.
1199. The servants' cows are returned
into their byre in the same manner.
1200. He then replenishes the racks
in the courts and hammels with fresh
straw, strewing about the old fodder
as litter; and he litters both with as much
fresh straw from the barn as is requi-
site to render the ground comfortable
to the cattle to lie down in the open air if
they choose- In moonlight, many of the
cattle choose to be out in the open air all
night, even though rime should be depo-
sited on their backs.
1201. He places the windlings in the
byres in the proportion theyare required by
the cows, for their evening foddering; and
he does this to avoid the danger of going
into the straw-barn at night with a light.
1202. When the business with the straw
in foddering and littering has been gone
through, it is time to give the cows their
second ration of turnips, to have them
eaten up by the time the dairymaid returns
to the byre, at dusk, to milk them. Some
people don't give cows when dry a second
ration, but I think they require it for the
support of their condition. The dairy-
maid closes the door of their byre.
1 203. The fattening oxen in the ham-
mels then receive their evening ration of
turnips, having the troughs cleaned out, and
the turnips sliced as on the former occa-
sions, and the quantity given will depend
on the state of the night ; for if the moon
shine through the greaterpartof the night, a
larger allowance of turnips should be given,
as cattle eat busily during moonlight.
This is alsoapracticewithsheepon turnips.
1204. The calves in the larger court K,
and the young cattle in the other large
court, receive their second ration of turnips
sliced, immediately after the fattening
beasts have been served. Although both
these lots receive as many turnips as they
can eat, their daily allowance may be given
at two instead of three times, to save a
little trouble. Where the turnip troughs,
however, are not sufficiently extensive to
contain the requisite quantity, without
piling the turnips on one another in heaps, it
will be necessary to afiPord a supply three
times instead of twice; for where turnips
are so piled up in the troughs, the cattle
never fail to push over, if they can, upon
the dung litter, every turnip they have
bitten a piece off, to get to the fresher ones
below, and thus cause waste.
1205. The extra beasts fattening in the
hammels N should be treated in the
same manner as the young beasts.
1206. The young heifers in the hammels
N, and the bulls in the hammels X, next
receive their turnips; and as neither of
them get as many as they can eat, their
proportion is divided into two small meals,
sliced, one served after all the rest in the
morning, and the other after the rest in
the evening. Both these classes depend-
ing much upon fodder for food, it should
be of tlie sweetest and freshest straw, and
supplied at least 3 times a day, morning,
noon, and evening ; and having water at
command, and liberty to move about, they
will maintain sufficient condition. The
heifers and bulls are supplied from the tur-
nip stores p and q.
264
PRACTICE— WINTER.
Fig. 89.
1 207. He then litters the servants' cows
for the night, by which time the cows in
the other bvre will be niilke<l ; immedi-
atelj after which they are also littered for
the night, and the doors closed upon them,
and the labours of the day are finished.
1208. At eight o'clock in the evening
the cattle-man inspects every court, byre,
and hammel, and sees that all the cattle
are well and comfortable. Until twilight
permit him to see the cattle, he takes a
lantern to assist him. In the courts and
hammels the cattle have access to the fodder
at all times ; in the byres it is otherwise.
He now gives the cows the windlines of
straw he had made up in tlie straw-
bam, and piled up in each bvre at night-
faU.
1209. A proper form of lantern that
will distribute a sufficient intensity of
light all around, and be safe to carry to
any part of a steading, amongst straw
or other highly inflammable material, is yet,
perhaps, a desideratum. The nearest ap-
proach to safety of
any form of lantern 1
have seen is that in
fig. 89, which consists
chiefly of a stout glass
globe, which may
be knocked against a
piece of timber and
yet not be fractur-
ed. It has an oil-
lamp, which screws
and uuscrews into
its place from below,
within the foot upon
which it stands, and a
ring by which it is
carried ; and the hand
- is elevated enough to
j be protected from the
heat which escapes
along with the smoke
from the ventilator. A
lantern of tin, with a globe about 9 inches
meter, a suitable size, costs 6s. 6d.
1210. The treatment of oj^n fattened in
a byre is somewhat different fnjm that of
cows. As it is unusual to fatten oxen in
byres and hammels on the same farm, what
I have said of fattening cattle in the ham-
mel should be considered in lieu of what I
A SAFE LANTERN.
shall now say of fattening them in a byre.
Cattle get as many turnips as they can
eat, and are not permitted to leave their
stalls until sold off fat. After the stalls
of the cow-byres have been cleared into
the gutter, of any dung that might annoy
the dairymaid, the cattle-man goes to the
feeding- byre, and, first removing any
fodder that may have been left from the
previous night into the stalls, and any
refuse of turnips from the troughs into the
gutter, gives the cattle a feed of turnips at
once. The quantity at this time should
be more than the third of what they eat
during the day; for they have wanted a
long time, and they should be fed 3 times
a-day — in the morning, at noon, and at
sunset ; and in distributing the food, the
same regularity should always be observed
as in the case of the cows, the same ox re-
ceiving the first supply, and the same ox
the last. When thus fed in regular order,
cattle do not become impatient for their
turn. The best plan is to begin serving
at the farthest end of the byre, as the
cattle-man has then no occasion to pass
and disturb those already served ; and so
in the case of duitlle-headi'd byres, in which
cattle stand on both sides, tail to tail, both
sides should be ser\-ed simultaneously, one
beast alternately on each side, thus still
leaving the served ones undisturbed. With
the half-door left open for the admission
of fresh, and the emission of heated air
through the ventilators, the cattle-man
leaves them to enjoy their meal in quiet-
ness. Whenever the cattle have eaten
their turnips, the byre should be cleared of
the dung and dirty litter with the graip,
shovel, besom, and wheeled into the dung-
hill with the barrow. A fresh foddering
and a fresh littering are given, when thev
are left to themselves to rest and chew
the cud until the next time of feed-
ing, which should be at mid-day, when
rather less than a third of turnips wiB
suffice. After finishing this feed, more
fodder is given, and the dung drawn from
the stall into the gutter. In the aftemoun,
before daylight goes, the dung should again
be carrie«l away to the dungliill, and then
the last supply of turnips given. After
these are eaten up, a fresh finidering is
given, and the litter shaken up and aug-
mented where requisite. After eating a
little of this fodder, the cattle will lie down
and rest until visited at night.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
265
1211. In thus minutely detailing the
duties of the cattle-man, my object has
been to show you rather how the turnips
and fodder should be distributed relatively
than absolutely; but whatever hour and
minute the cattle-man finds, from expe-
rience, he can devote to each portion of
his work, you should see that he performs
the same operation at the same time every
day. By paying strict attention to time,
the cattle will be ready for and expect
their wonted meals at the appointed times,
and will not complain until they arrive.
Complaints from his stock should be dis-
tressing to every farmer's ears; for he may
be assured they will not complain until
they feel hunger; and if allowed to hunger,
they will not only lose condition, but ren-
der themselves, by discontentj less capable
of acquiring it when the food happens
to be fully given. Wherever you hear
lowings from cattle, you may safely con-
clude that matters are conducted there in
an irregular manner. The cattle-man's
rule is a simple one, and easily remem-
bered : — Give food and fodder to cattle at
fixed times, and dispense them in a fixed
routine. I had a striking instance of the
bad effects of irregular attention to cattle.
An old staid labourer was appointed to
take charge of cattle, and was quite able
and willing to undertake the task. He
got his own way at first, as I had ob-
served many labouring men display great
ingenuity in arranging their work. Low-
ings were soon heard from the stock in
all quarters, both in and out of doors,
which intimated the want of regularity
in the cattle-man ; whilst the poor crea-
ture himself was constantly in a state of
bustle and uneasiness. To put an end to
this disorderly state of things, I appor-
tioned his entire day's work by his own
watch ; and on implicitly following the
plan, he not only soon satisfied the wants
of every animal committed to his charge,
but had abundant leisure to lend a hand at
any thing that required his temporary as-
sistance. His old heart overflowed with
gratitude when he found the way of mak-
ing all his creatures happy ; and his kind-
ness to them was so undeviating, they
would have done whatever he liked. A
man better suited, by temper and genius,
for the occupation I never saw.
1212. You may regard all these minute
details, on the treatment of cattle, frivolous
and. unnecessary : but they are not so; and
your own interest will soon tell you, that
where a number of minutite have to be
attended to, unless taken in order, they
are apt to be forgotten altogether, or at-
tended to in a hasty manner ; and none of
these conditions, you will also admit, are
conducive to correct management. Ob-
serve the number of minute things a cattle-
man has to attend to. He has various
classes of cattle under his charge — cows,
fattening beasts, young steers, calves,
heifers, bulls, and extra beasts besides ;
and he has to keep them all clean in their
various places of abode, and supply them
with food and fodder three times in a short
winter's day of 7 or 8 hours. Is it possible
to attend to all these particulars, as they
should be, without a matured plan of con-
duct ? The catt!e-man requires a plan for
his own sake ; for were he to do every
thing when the idea just struck him, his
mind, being guided by no rule, would be
as prone to forget as to remember what he
had to do. The injurious effects upon the
condition of animals of irregular attend-
ance upon them, seem to render a concocted
plan necessary to be adopted. Before you
can see the full force of this observation,
you would require to be told that food,
fodder, and litter, given to cattle in an
irregular manner, — such as too much at one
time and too little at another, frequently
one day, and seldom another, — surfeiting
them at one time, hungering them at
another, and keeping them neither clean
nor dirty, never fails to prevent them
acquiring that fine condition which good
management always secures.
1213. Let us reduce the results of bad
management to figures. Suppose you
have three sets of beasts, of dift'erent ages,
each containing 20 beasts, that is, 6U in
all, and they get as many turnips as they
can eat. Suppose that each of these I)easts
acquires only half a pound less live weight
every day than they would under the most
proper management, and this would incur a
loss of 30 lbs. a day of live weii;lit, wliitli,
over 180 days of the fattening seaion, will
make the loss amount to 540U lbs. of live
weight, or, according to the common riiles
of computation, 3240 lbs., or 231 stones of
dead weight at 6s. the stone, £.Qd^ (is., a
sum e(j[ual to more than five times the
266
PRACTICE— WINTER.
wages received by the cattle- man. The
question, then, resolves itself into this —
whether it is not for your interest to save
this sum annually, by making your cattle-
man attend your cattle according to a regu-
lar plan, the form of which is in your own
power to adopt and pursue ?
1214. What I have just stated applies
to the fattening of ordinary cattle, but
selected cattle may be desired to be fattened
to attain a particular object. You may
have, for instance, a pair of very fine oxen,
which you are desirous of exhibiting at a
particular show. They should have a ham-
mel comfortably fitted up for themselves,
and your ingenuity will be taxed to render
it as convenient and comfortable as pos-
sible, which you will the better be able to
do, after determining on the sorts of food
you wish to give them. You will present
a choice of food, and, therefore, will pro-
vide a trough for sliced Swedish turnips —
a manger for linseed-meal — another for
bruised oats — a third for compound — a
rack for hay — and a trough for water.
There should be abundance of straw for
Jitter and warmth, and daily dressing of
the skin to keep it clean, as fat oxen can
reach but few parts of their body with
their tongue. But all these appliances
will avail nothing, if a regulated attention
is not bestowed by the cattle-man. Tlie
cattle have as much as they can eat, but
then what they eat should be administered
with judgment, if you wi.<h to attain a
particular end. It will not sufiice to set
an adequate portion of each sort of food
daily before them, to be taken at will ;
one or more of the kinds will have to be
given at stated times, that each may pos-
sess the freshness of novelty and variety,
and thereby be eaten with relish. Every
particular thus demands attention, and
affords .sufficient exercise to the iudjrment :
and if this is in the case with i)articular
animals, the necessity for attending in a
similar manner on cattle in ordinary cir-
cumstances cannot but be impressed on
your mind.
1215. Much has been said on the pro-
priety of wisping and currying cows and
fattening oxen in the byre, and much
may be said in recommendation of the
practice, were the cattle always confined
to the byre ; but animals which are at
liberty a part of the day do not require
artificial dressing, except when in high con-
dition, inasmuch as they can drcj-s their
own, and one another's skin, much better
thananycattle-man. With cattle constantly
confined in the byre, it seems indispensable
for their good health to brush their skin
daily; and I believe no better instrument
can be used for the purpose than an old
curry-comb, assisted with a wiwj) of straw.
Currying should only be performed on the
cattle when not at food ; and this should
be strictly enjoined, for people, who have
charge of animals, have a strong propensity
to dress and fondle them when at food ;
from no desire to torment them, but chiefiy
because they will then be in a quiet mood.
Still the process has a tendency to irritate
some cattle, and please others so much as
to make them desist eating, and on that ac-
count should be prevented. Many other
animals are never more jealous of being
approached than when eating their food,
— as exemplified by the growl of a dog, and
the scowl of a horse.
1216. From the commencement of the
season to the end of the year, white tur-
nips alone are used ; after which, to the end
of the winter season, the yellows are
brought into requisition, or swedes, where
the yellows are not cultivated.
1217. When turnips are brought from
the field in a dirty state, which will be the
case in wet weather from clayey soil, they
ought to be washed in tubs of water, and,
as long as the dirt is fresh, they will be
the more easily cleansed. Washing is not
so troublesome and expensive a business
as may at first seem. A field-worker,
having a large tub of water placed beside
a store about to be filled with turnips,
takes them up one by one with a small
fork, and dashing them about in the water
for an instant, ])ulls them off a^inst
the edge of the store or barrow; and this
she does much faster than the cattle-man
wheels them away and slices them for
the beasts. A friend of mine used a
very curious mode of washing turnips.
Whenever any of the fields of his farm,
along which passed the lade that con-
ducted the water from the dam to the
thrashing-mill, were in turnips, he caused
the lade to be filK-d pretty full of water,
by making a damming in it in the par-
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
267
ticular field, according to the fall of the
ground. The turnips were then topped
and tailed, and plunged into the lade,
from a cart when the distance was con-
siderable, and from a hand-barrow, carried
by field-workers, when near. The dam-
ming in the field being cut, and the sluice
at the mill a little opened, the current of
water floated the turnips to the steading,
where they were taken out from behind
the grating of the sluice, and carried to the
stores in barrows. When the turnips were
very dirty, they were washed in the lade
by a person pushing them about with a
pole. That some provision for cleaning
turnips is sometimes necessary, is certain ;
for I have seen very fine cattle eating
turnips in such a state that the dirt actually
bedaubed them to the very eyes, which the
tops, being left on, had assisted much in
doing. Surely no one will say that filth,
in any shape, is beneficial to cattle ; not
that they dislike to lick earth at times, but
they do so, in their own way, to rectify
acidity in the stomach.
1218. When turnips have not been
stored, and are brought from the field as
required, they will probably be in a frozen
state at times, when, even if sliced by any
of the instruments in use, they will be
masticated by the cattle with difficulty ;
and frozen turnips never fail to chill cattle,
which is indicated by the staring coat.
Means should therefore be used to thaw
frozen turnips, and the most available is to
put them for a time in tubs of cold water.
This process is attended with much more
expense than storing them in the proper
season.
1219. It is supposed that an ox, which
attains a weight of 70 stones imperial at
the end of the season, consumes in fattening
a double horse-load of turnips per week;
and, as carts are usually loaded at field-
work in winter, the weight of a load
may be estimated at about 15 cwt.; so
that the ox will consume about 2g cwt. or
16 stones 2 lbs. a day, or 5 stones 5 lbs. at
each of 3 meals, and about 19i tons during
the season of 26 weeks. The calves may
consume ^, or 8 stones, and the 2-year-
olds |, or 1 2 stones a day ; cows receiv-
ing one-third of the oxen, 5 stones 5 lbs.
a day. Each scullful contains about 37? lbs.
Thes^e comparative quantities are given
from no authenticated data, for I believe
no comparative trials, with different ages
of cattle, have ever been made, but merely
from what people imagine to be near the
truth ; and such an estimate should be
made at the beginning of every season,
that you may know whether there are
turnips enough to serve the stock. It was
correctly ascertained by Mr Stephenson,
Whitelaw, East Lotliian, in a careful ex-
periment of feeding 18 oxen of 42 stones,
that they consumed 10 stones 2 lbs. on an
average each of turnips daily;* and Mr
Bosvvell Irvine of Kingcausie, found that
oxen of 43 stones consumed only 9 stones
of turnips each daily.t This discrepancy
between the two statements might be ex-
plained, perhaps, if we knew every parti-
cular of the treatment in the two cases.
Taking 9^ stones as the average (juautity
of turnips consumed every day by oxen of
42 stones, and taking it for granted that
oxen consume food nearly in the propor-
tion of their weight, the result will be very
nearly what is stated above by guess, nearly
16 stones per day, by cattle of 70 stones.
1220. Cows are kept on every species of farm,
though for very diftereiit purposes. Ou carse
and pastoral farms they are merely useful in
supplying milk to the farmer and his servants.
On dairy farms they afford butter and cheese for
sale. On some farms nearlar'ie towns, they sup-
ply sweet and butter milk for sale. And on
farms of mixed hvsbandry, they are kept for the
purpose of producing calves.
1221. On carsejand pastoral farms, cows receive
only a few turnips in winter, when they are dry,
and are kept on from year to year ; but where
the farmer supplies milk to his work-people, as
a part of their wages, they are disposed of in the
yeld state, and others in milk, or at the calving,
bought in to fill their place, and these receive a
large allowance of turnips, with perhaps a little
hay. On such farms, little regard is paid to the
breed of the cow, the circumstance of a good
milker being the only criterion of excellence. .
1222. On true dairy farms, the winter season
is unfavourable to the making of butter and
cheese for sale. The cows are in calf during
this season, and receive raw turnips and hay
until they calve. As soon as they calve they
receive prepared food.
1223. The food is prepared in this manner : —
Topped and tailed, though not washed turnips
* Prize Essays of the Highland and Agricvliural Society, vol. sii. p. 63. t Ibid., vol. xi. p. 462-4.
268
PRACTICE— WINTER.
are put into a large boiler until it is about half
filled, and a few handfuls of salt strewn over
them. The boiler is then filled and heaped up
with cut hay ; as mui-h water is poured into it
as nearly to fill it ; a board is placed upon the
hay, and the fire is then kindled in the furnace.
By this process the turnips are boiled soft, and
the hay steamed or stewed ; and in about three
hours the mess is ready to be put into a cooler,
the hay undermost, the turnips above it, and the
water from the turnips poured over both, and
they all remain in it until parted amongst the
cows.
1224. The Cooler. — The cooler is an oblong box,
fig. 90, having the sides perpendicular, and the
endB berelled, and provided with two wheels,
THE COOLER FOR A BYRB.
mounted on a bent axle, which passes nnder the
bottom of the box, and two handles, for the
purpose of moving the cooler to where it is
wanted. The cooler may be constructed of any
dimensions, to suit the nizeofthe dairy ; and one
6 feet long, 2 feet wide, 24 feet deep, will coDUin
as much food as will serve 2U cows at one meaJ.
1225. Before serving out the mess to the cows,
the cooler is either wheeled into the byre, or to
its door from the boiling-house. The turnips are
broken and mashed with a small graip, against
oue of the bevelled ends of the cooler, — the one
next the handles being the more convenient of
the two to stand at. While a portion of the
turnips is thus broken, it is mixed with a little
of the hay, well shaken up, and the turnip water.
A proportion to each cow is put into a small tub,
receiving a little of broken oil-cake, bruised
linseed, or bean meal, and emptied into its
feeding-trough in the byre. A prepared mess of
this description is given to the cow twice a day,
morning and afternoon. Should the mess be
rather warm, it will easily be cooled by the
addition of cold water into the cooler.
1226. The Cylinder Stravp-cvUer. — So named
from having the cutters (generally two, but
sometimes four) placed on the periphery of a
skeleton cylinder, each cutter lying nearly in the
plane of revolution. Besides the cutting cylin-
der, they necessarily have a pair of feeding
91.
THE CYLINDER STRAW-CITTER WfTH STRAIGHT KNIVES.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
269
rollers, which bring forward the substance to be
cut, and also, from the velocity of their motion,
regulate the length of the cut. Two forms of
the machine exist, the essential difference of
which is, that, in the one, the cutters are placed
upon the cylinder with a large angle of obliquity
to the axis, generally about 35", and are there-
fore bent and twisted until their edges form an
oblique section of the cylinder, while the box,
or the orifice through which the substance is
protruded for being cut, lies parallel to the axis
of the feeding rollers. In the other variety, the
knives are placed parallel to the axis of the
cylinder, and therefore straight in the edge ;
while the cutting-box is elongated into a nozzle,
and is twisted to an angle of 15° with the axis
of the feeding-rollers. I prefer this latter
variety, because the knives, being straight, are
easily taken off and put on, and sharpened by
any common smith or carpenter, and twisted
knives are generally very heavy to work.
1227. The cylinder straw-cutter with straight
knives, as constructed by Mr James Slight,
Edinburgh, at prices from £7, 10s. to £8, 10s.,
is represented by fig. 91, being a view in per-
spective of the machine. The machine is made
entirely of iron, chiefly cast-iron. The two
side-frames a a, are connected together by the
stretcher bolts 6, one being formed of the bed-
plate c, which is bolted to a projecting bracket,
and carries the cheeks or frame of the feeding-
rollers. The lower roller carries upon its
axle the driving-wheel g, and also the feed-
ing-wheel, which works into its equal wheel i,
fitted upon the axle of the upper roller. In
the apex of the side-frames, bearings are formed
for the axle of the cutter-wheels k, which form
the skeleton cylinder, and whose axle carries
also the driving-pinion I, acting upon the wheei
g. Intermediate between the feeding-rollers and
the cutter-wheels is placed the twisted cutting-
box or nozzle m, bolted to the roller-frame. On
the further end of the cutter-wheel axle the
fly-wheel « is fixed ; and on the near end of
the same the winch-handle o, by which the ma-
chine is worked. The feeding-trough p is hooked
to the roller-frame at the mouth, and supported
behind by the jointed foot q. The cutters r
are made of the finest steel, backed with iron.
The cutters are fixed upon the cylinders, each
with two screw-bolts, as seen at r, passing through
the ring of the wheel, and they are placed
slightly eccentric to it ; the cuttiug-edge being
about J inch more distant from the centre than
the back. To secure the regular feed of the
rollers, the lower one turns in fixed bearings ;
but the other is at liberty to rise and fall in the
fork of the roller-frame. In order further to
secure a uniform pressure on this roller, abridge
is inserted in the fork, resting on both jour-
nals of the roller. A compensation lever v
has its forked fulcra through a strap, which is
hooked on to pins in the roller-frame ; and it
thus bears upon the bridge at both sides by
means of the forked end. A weight ic is ap-
pended to the extremity of the lever, which, thus
arranged, keeps a uniform pressure on the upper
roller, while it is always at liberty to rise or fall
* Prize Essays of the Highland and
according to the thickness of the feed which the
rollers are receiving.
1228. The Canadian Straw-cutter. — Besides
this machine, 1 shall give a figure of a simple
and efficient straw-cutter, which has been im-
ported from Canada, as its name implies, and
which is preferred by some persons to any other
kind. A description of this machine was sent
from Canada by Mr Fergusson of Woodhill, now
of Fergus, Upper Canada, to the Highland and
Agricultural Society, in whose Transactions it
was first published;* but the present figure is
taken from the machine as made by Mr Slight,
Edinburgh, who has greatly improved the con-
struction of the cutting cylinder. Fig. 92 is a
view in perspective of this machine. It consists
of a wooden frame, of which a a a a are the four
posts, the front pair being higher than the back
pair. These are connected by two side-rails, one
of which is seen at b, and a cross-rail c, which
last serves also to support the bottom of the feed-
ing-spout. The posts are further connected by
four light stay-rails below ; and the frame, when
thus joined, supports the rollers at the front. The
feeding-spout is d. The acting part of this straw-
cutter consists of the cutting cylinder e, armed with
cutters or knives ; its axle runs in plumraer-
blocks, bolted upon the posts, and carries likewise
the wheel /. The pressure cylinder g is a plain
cylinder of hardwood, beech or elm, turned true
upon an iron axle, which runs in plummer-
blocks similar to the former, and carries no
wheel, but revolves by simple contact with the
cutting cylinder. The pressure cylinder is fur-
nished with a pair of adjusting screws at h h,
which act upon the plummer-blocks of the cylin-
der, and afford the means of regulating the pres-
sure of the one cylinder upon the other. The
shaft i, which has also its plummer-blocks, carries
at one end a pinion, which acts upon the wheel/,
while, at the other end, it carries the fly-wheel I.
The winch handle m is also attached to the shaft
i, and serves to put the machine in motion.
1229. As this machine acts entirely by direct
pressure, it will readily be observed that, in
working it, the straw being laid in the trough d,
and brought in contact with the cutting cylin-
der and its antagonist, the hay or straw will be
continuously drawn forward by means of the
two cylinders ; and when it has reached the
line of centres of the two, it will be cut through by
the direct pressure of the cutting edges of the one
against the resisting surface of the other cylin-
der, and the process goes on with great rapidity.
The straw is cut into lengths of about a inch ;
and though it passes in a thin layer, yet the rapi-
dity of its motion is such that, when driven by
the hand, at the ordinary rate of 44 turns of the
handle per minute, the number of cuts made by
the cutting cylinder in that time is 360 ; and the
quantity, compared by weight, will be three times
nearly what any other straw-cutter will produce,
requiring the same force to work it, — that is to
say, a man's power. There is one objection to
this machine, which is, the wearing out of the
resisting cylinder ; but this is balanced by the
excess of work performed, and by the circum-
Agricultural Society, vol. xii. p. 336.
270
PRACTICE— WINTER.
/ Btanee that the moving cylinder can be removed six months. The price of
at an «xpe*ie of 29., and it will last from three to cutter is £6, lOs.
Fig. 9-2.
the Canadian straw-
THE CANADIAN STRAW-CUTTER.
1230. The Lhc Straw-cutter is, for the most feature, the cutting knife, fixed upon the fly-
part, employed in England, and is the most nu- wheel, is invariable, except that it at times carries
merous of this class of machines. The principal one, and at others, two knives. ,
Fig. 93.
PLAN or A BYRK FOR A LAROS DAIRT-FARM.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
271
1231. In a large dairy farm, comprehending
from 40 to 60 cows, the most economical arrange-
ment is to place them all under one roof in one
byre, situate close beside the boiling-house and
hay-house, when the food can be prepared and
dealt out, the byre cleansed, and the cows
milked, under the immediate superintendence of
the head dairymaid. I shall give a plan of such
a byre, which may be extended in width and
length, to contain any number of cows desired.
Fig. 93 represents such a byre, capable of accom-
modating 48 cows in double stalls, and so ar-
ranged that the stalls of 24 cows may be cleaned
at one time, and the mangers of from 12 to
24 replenished from the same passage : a are
the double stalls, 8 feet wide, and 7 A feet long
from manger to gutter: 6 the stone troughs or
mangers, 27 inches long and 16 inches wide, and
8 inches deep inside ; two are placed in each
double stall, and each 6 inches from the side of the
stall, and its upper edge 18 inches above tlie
floor : g the gutter or grupes for receiving the
dung and urine, 1 5 inches wide, in each of which
is a grating h communicated by a drain with those
which convey the urine to the liquid-manure
tank : i are the foot-paths, 4 feet wide, from the
outer doors k to the stalls, along which the cows
leave and enter their stalls, and by which the
cattle-man removes, in his barrow, by the doors,
the dung and litter from the gutters and stalls
to the dunghill : d are the passages along the
heads of the stalls, 4 feet wide, from which the
food and fodder are put into the mangers ; the
principal passage I, 6 feet wide, being the one
along which the cooler, fig. 90, is drawn, with the
prepared food, from the boiiing-house : k are the
outer doors at the end of each footpath i, by
which each division of cows leave and enter the
byre, without disturbing the rest : / are the
windows, such as fig. 78, situate one at the
end of each passage d, along the heads of the
stalls : m is the central position of the water-
cock, to supply the cattle-man and assistant
dairymaids tor washing down the footpaths i,
the gutter g, and the mangers b : the water
thus used and enriched, on finding its way
into the liquid-manure tank, keeps the drain
clear: c are the travis-boards, 2 feet long
across the mangers, and 3 feet in front of the
travis post, from which they slope in a trian-
gular form to the floor ; e is the boarding, 2^
feet high, along the heads of the stalls, and over
which the food and fodder are put into the man-
gers 6. Thus furnished, the byre, containing 48
cows, will be 64 feet in length, and 54 feet in
breadth.
1232. Connected with the byre is the apart-
ment M, 15 feet by 16, containing two large
boilers, which are heated alternately, to prepare
the food by turns, and is provided with an outer
door 3^ feet wide, and a window — the door be-
ing opposite the one of the byre, also 3^ feet
wide, at the end of the principal passage i of the
byre — and with a water-cock to each boiler.
1233. The store o is 17i feet by 16, and con-
tains the topped and tailed turnips for the
boilers, also provided with a door for taking in
the turnips, and a window to give light to the
assistant dairymaid, when replenishing the
boilers with turnips, through the door into the
boiling house w. This apartment is also fur-
nished with a convenient space p, for containing
the coals used in the furnaces ; and, being here,
the boiling-house is kept free of dust.
1234. The hay-house r, 18^ feet by 16, adjoins
the boiling-house, provided with a door for tak
ing in the hay, and a window to afford light to
cut and take away the cut hay to the boilers,
through the door into the boiling-house n. In
this apartment stands the straw-cutter, fig 91,
for preparing the hay, near the window, and
may here be driven by hand or power.
1235. At the other end of the byre is a large
apartnient,54 feet by 16,at the one end of which is
a turnip store o, for the turnips to be given raw
to such of the cows as have not calved, and are
not in milk. The turnips are put into the store
by an outer door. The hand-lever turnip-slicer,
fig. 86, would stand conveniently here for use.
1236. Opposite to this turnip store is the hay
house r, for the hay given to the cows as ordinary
fodder. The hay is taken into the apartment by
an outer door. An inside door, 3^ feet wide,
allows both the turnips and hay to be takeu
along the principal passage l.
1237. A window is placed opposite the inside
door, on either side of which, s and t, may stand
the oilcake breaker, fig. 53, the linseed crusher,
fig. 97, and the barrels to contain the bruised
linseed and bean-meal. Thus every convenience
wanted for a byre may be obtained, by such a
plan, under one roof, the entire building being
101 feet in length by 58 feet in breadth, over the
walls.
1238. It will be observed that the width of
this byre is much beyond that of ordinary stead-
ings ; but the construction of the trussed form of
roof is now so well understood that it is per-
fectly safe on ordinary thickness of walls ; and aa
a large number of cows can be easily taken care
of under one roof, this form of lyre seems well
adapted for the purposes of a large dairy.
Figure s of this sort of roof will be given when
we come to consider the construction of steadings
in general.
1239. To keep the stone troughs always sweet
and clean, they should be washed out and
scrubbed with a heather rinse once a-day ; and.
Fig. 94.
SECTION OF A STONE TROUGH FOR A BYRX.
272
PRACTICE— WINTER.
that the water may be conveniently got rid of,
the troughs should be formed as in fig. 94, with
the bottom sloping both along it from a to c, and
across it from (/ to e, where is a metallic sucker
and stopper, to allow the water to escape to the
drain uiiiierneath; and this drain, of course, com-
municates with the other drains. A convenient form
and size of trough is 27 inches in length, 16 inches
in width, and 8 inches in depth at a, increasing to
9 inches at c, aud 10 iaches at e, the lowest point.
1240. A hydraulic apparatus is sometimes pro-
vided to such byres, for the supply and removal
of cold water from the troughs, by means of the
action of a lever operating at each trough ; and
as long as the apparatus works well, its con-
venience is certainly great, but it is apt to get out
of proper action, when its presence becomes a
continual source of annoyance.
1241. The cows of a farm in the immediate
neighbourhood of towns, and those in the
towns' dairies themselves, are fattened when the
milk leaves them, and not allowed to breed
again, — the time in which they would remain dry
being regarded as lost ; and new-calved cows, or
just about to calve, are purchased from the
country in their stead. A market is held in
most towns every week for the purchase of such
cows, which are usually brought from a distance.
The calves are sold, and not attempted to be fat-
tened. The dairyman in and near large towns
must always have milk to supply his customers ;
and it is his interest to render the milk as pala-
table as possible. For this purpose he purchases
cows early to calve at all seasons, and prepares
the whole food given them.
1242. The cows in the public dairies in Edin-
burgh are supported in winter on a variety of
substances— namely, turnips, brewers' and dis-
tillers' grains called draff, dreg, malt comiiis,
barley, oats, hay seeds, chaff, and cut hay. One or
more of these substances, with turnips, are cooked
together, and the usual process of doing this, and
administering the cooked food, is as follows :
— Turnips, deprived of tops and tails, and washed
clean, are put into the bottom of a boiler, and
covered near to its top with a quantity of malt
comins, cut hay, hay seeds, chaff, or barley, or
more than one of these, as the articles can be
procured. Water is then poured into the boiler
sufficient to boil them, and a lid placed upon it.
After being thoroughly boiled and simmered, the
mess is put into tubs, when a little pounded rock-
salt is strewed over it, and chopped into a mash
with a spade. As much dreg is then poured
upon the hot mash as to make it lukewarm, and
of such a consistence as a cow might drink up.
From 1 to li stable pailfuls of this mixture, —
from 40 to 60 pints imperial, — according to the
known appetite of the cow, is then poured into
the trough belonging to each cow. The trough is
afterwards removed and cleaned, and tlie manger
Is ready for the reception of fodder— hay or
ttraw This mess is given 3 times a day, after
the cows have been milked, for dairymen well
understand that animals should not be disturbed
while eating their food. The times of milking
are 6 a.m., 12 noon, and 7 p.m. The sweet milk
and cream obtained by these means, and received
direct from the dairy, are pretty good. The for-
mer ^ells in Edinburgh at lii., and the latter at Is.
the imperial pint. Dr Cleland states the price of
sweet milk in Glasgow at l^d. the imperial pint.
1243. It will be observed in the enumeration
of the articles given to cows, that none are so
expensive as oil-cake, cabbages, kohl-rabi, or
cole-seed. These products were employed by the
late Mr Curwen, in his experiments to ascertain
the cost of producing milk for supplying the poor,
aud his results show they leave very little profit.*
1244. There is little milk in winter on a farm
of mixed husbandry, which only supports cows
for breeding stock, the supply being derived from
one or two cows that are latest of calving in
spring. All the spare milk may probably be
eagerly bought by cottars who have no cows ;
but should this not be the case, a little butter
may be made once in 10 days or a fortnight,
which, if not palatable for the table, may be used
in making paste, and other culinary purposes.
A little saltpetre, dissolved in water, and put into
the new warm milk, certainly modifies tlie rank
taste of turnips in both butter and milk. Cows
are not bought in but bred on such farms.
1245. In pastoral farms, where cattle are
wholly bred and no sheep, the cattle in winter,
and especially the young ones, require both food
and shelter, though both are not unfrequently
denied them. There should be provided arable
land to raise turnips, and courts and sheds
to shelter them. Suppose we take the .same
extent of arable land as we took for a sheep
pastoral farm, namely, 100 acres, which is the
least compass for a pastoral farm of tolerable
extent. Under a four-course rotation, lOO acres
will afford 25 acres of green crop, 50 acres of
straw, and 25 acres of cutting grass every year.
What the young cattle want is a few turnips a-
day, and shelter in sheds at night.
1246. This form of steading seems suitable to
such a farm, where a, fig. 95, is a corn-barn and
chaff-house, 25 J by 18 feet, with an upper barn
above them, containing a four-horse tliraslung-
machiue ; b, a straw-barn 26 feet by 18 feet ; c,
a cart shed 20 feet by 18 feet, with two ports, to
contain four carts and other larger implements,
with a granary above it having access by an out-
side stair * ; rf is the work-horse stable, 32 feet
by 18 feet, having four stalls of 6 feet in width
each, a loose box x 8 feet wide, and two win-
dows ; e is the hay house, 12 feet by 18 feet ; /
the riding-horse stable, 12 feet by 18 teet ;
g a turnip store, 12 feet by 18 feet ; h is
the cow-byre, 25 feet by 18 feet, having 5 stalls
of 5 feet in width each ; » is an out-house for
putting the smaller implements in, 1)!] feet by
18 feet: should it be desired to give the cow-
byre another stall, this apartment may be made
Curwen's Agricultural Hintt, p. 47-52.
FEEDING CATTLE 02T TURliriPS IN" WINTER.
273
as much smaller ; k is another turnip-store, 12 18 feet, provided with a boiler and furnace ; m
feet by 18 feet ; Hs the boiling-house, 1'2 feet by are four courts for the cattle, and ?i the sheds
Fig. 95.
0
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ss^^s^ss
^^^^^^2^2^
C^^^^^
W^KVA'^ ... - I
A PLAN OF A STEADING FOR THE CATTLE OP A PASTORAL FARM.
belonging to them, 15 feet in width. In the
drawing the sheds are represented at 18 feet in
width, to render the appearance of the steading
uniform ; but 15 feet is sufficient width for sheds.
The courts m will be 30 or 33 feet in length from
the gates, according as the sheds are made 15 or
18 feet in width : o are turnip-troughs placed
against the southern walls of the courts ; and r
are water-troughs. The courts are supplied with
straw from the doors of the straw-barn 6, the
most distant ones also through the gates in the
walls between the courts ; and the turnips are
put over the front wall into the troughs from the
barrowfuls brought from the respective stores at
g and k\ t is the horse-course 26 feet in
diameter.
1247. The lengths of the wings of the building
containing the work-horse stable, the straw-
barn, and cow-byre, is 733 feet each ; and the
width of the courts may be extended to any
length, and the courts increased to any number,
to contain the number of cattle to be accommo-
dated ; but the courts should in every case face
the south, the meridian sun, to receive its heat
and drought, and especially as the straw on a pas-
toral farm will always be scanty for the number
of cattle. Ferns form good litter for such courts.
1248. In carse farms, the accommodation of
cattle in winter is made a matter of secondary
import, and it is not unusual to see the courts
facing the north ; but there being abundance of
straw ©n such farms, the animals do not feel the
cold s» severely as might be expected from the
exposure.
1249. This form of steading seems well suited
for the accommodation of cattle in a carse farm,
VOL. I.
in fig. ^^, where a is the corn-bam and chaff-
house, 30 feet by 15 feet, above which is the
upper barn and thrashing-machine, which should
be one of 8 horse power, driven by steam,
Fig. 96.
A PLAN OF A STEADING FOR THE CATTLE OP A
CARSE FARM.
there being so much of the long straw of wheat
to thrash; h is the engine-house, 8 feet by 18 feet;
c the boiler-house and chimney-stalk ; d is the
straw-barn, 40 feet by 15 feet, and as high as the
upper bam; this barn has two doors outside the
courts /,for the convenience of carrying straw to
the work-horse stable and cow-byre, besides an-
other into one of the courts to take out the chaff
274
PRACTICE— WINTER.
by. The straw-barn need not b« made very large
on a carse farm, though there is abundance of
straw, a.« the fresh stra^v only is used for fodder,
and the re^st is stacked up by itself in a con-
Tenient place ; e i- the implement house, \h feet
by l.i feet, to contain the small implements, with
a w.jjilen fljured apartment above, to hold the
meal chest for supplying the ploughmen with
meal, and other articles of a cleanly and dry
nature, requiring to be placed under lock and
key ; / is the work-horse stable, 102 feet by 18
feet, containing IG stalls of 6 feet each, for 8
pairs of horses, and provided with two doors and
four windows, with a passage by a back-door,
opposite/, by which the straw from the straw-
bnm d is brought and the dung and litter
wheeled out into the court ; gg are hay-houses,
one at each end of the stable, each 18 feet by 18
feet ; h is the cart-^hed, 80 feet by 15 feet, con-
taining 8 ports for carts and heavy implements ;
t is the C'lw-byre, 40 feet by 15 feet, to contain
8 cows if required, to provide the ploughmen
with milk ; it is the boiler-house, 264 f^^t by 15
feet, a large size for such a purpose, but where
so many hordes require prepared food, a large
store of Swedi^-h turnips, beside bruised corn and
beans, is convenient,-- the boiler should either be
a large one, or two boilers beside each other ;
// are the courts fur the cattle, each 46 feet long
by 38 feet wide, faciiig tlie meridian sun, their
dimensions being dependant on the length given
to the north range of the building, which is de-
termined by the extent of granary accommoda-
tion, which cannot be less than 50 feet to each
gratiary, on a farm where much grain is raised;
m m are the .-heds, 1 8 feet wide, belonging to the
courts, one being 38 feet long, the others only
30 feet, on account of the room for the engine ;
fj n are the troughs placed against the south
walls of the courts, to contain turnips or bean
chaff, as the case may be ; the granaries are
over the ^heds m in. one of the hay-hou?es ./, and
part of the cart-shed A ; over which last place the
com to be driven to market should be kept, to
allow the carts to be easily loaded with it; and
the other granary will answer for seed and horse-
corn, the latter being tent down by a spout
into the corn-chest in the hay-house below.
Water-troughs should be provided in the cattle-
courts.
1250. The outer wings of this steading extend
to 1414 f^ct over the walls.
1251. There are no wintering cattle kept on
farm« in the neighbourhood of large towns ; the
few cattle being fed for the butcher either in
byres or haminels.
1252. I have minntely described in what man-
ner the steading <>f a farm of mi.\ed husbandry is
occ'ipied in winter, and how tattle, in general,
are fed on turnips ; but Qattle are fed on other
substances than trirnips, either by themselves or
in co:ijn!icti<>n with turnips. Hitherto potatoes
have been the most common subRtance used for
this purpose; but they cannot now be depended
upon as a crop, and will probably be a costly
food for the future. Oil-cake is used in large
quantities, though very expensive. As a sub-
stitute for oil-cake, it has been proposed to raise
linseed at home, and feed cattle on it in a bruised
state. Linseed oil, absorbed in cut straw and
hay, has been recommendel. Many cattle are
fed on the refuse derived from distillation and
brewing, commonly called dniJT and dreg— the
former being in the state of grains, the latter in
that of a liquid. Oats, barley-meal, peas-meal,
bean-meal, have all been pressed into the service
of feeding cattle. We shall now direct our
attention to the results of the various sub-
stances which have been given to cattle, with a
view to expediting their condition towards
maturity, as also to the actual states in which
these substances should be administered as food
to them.
1253. The Potato. — The potatoes used in feed-
ing cattle are either the common kinds known in
human food, or others raised on purpose, such
as the yam and ox-noble ; and they are given
either alternately or with turnips. In feeding
cattle with potatoes of any kind, and in any way,
there is considerable risk of flatulency and
choking. To prevent the latter, the potatoes
should be smashed with a hammer, or with a
instrument like a paviour's rammer; and though
some juice will come out in the operation, no
great loss would perhaps be incurred. To pre-
vent flatulence from potatoes is no easy matter;
but a friend of mine used a plan which com-
pletely answered the purpose, which was, mix-
ing some cnt straw with the broken potatoes.
The straw obliging the cattle to chew every
mouthful before being swallowed, may prevent
tQO large a quantity of gas being generated in the
paunch, which bruised jKitatoes alone might do,
and it is the pressure from this gas which oc-
casions ;he distressing complaint called horen.
A farm-steward, who had considerable experience
in feedmir cattle on potatoes on a led-farm,
always placed as many potatoes, whole, before
the cattle as they cotild consunie, and they never
swelled on eating them ; because, as he conjec-
tured, and [erhaps rightly, they do not eat them
so greedily when in their power to take them at
will, as when doled out in small quantities at
distant periods. This fact confirms the pro-
priety of mi.\ing cut straw amongst potatoes
when given in small qnantities. in order to satisfy
the appetite, and fill the paunch with uuferment-
able matter. The only precaution required in
giving a full supply of j)otatoes is, to give only a
fi-v.-, and frequently at first, and gradually to in-
crease the quantity.
1254. The nutrient powers of the potato was
carefully examined by Dr Fromberg in 1R46.
The potato contains a very lart:e proportion of
water, on an average about 76 j er cent, or
thrce-fourths of its entire weight. The propor-
tion of dry or nutritive matter mn»t, therefore,
be on the average only 24 per cent, or one-fourth
of the Weight.
1255. The quantity of water in the potato
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN ^V'lNTER.
275
depends very much upon the state of ripeness the
crop has attained. Youn^ unripe potatoes give
82 per cent, and ripe full-grown ones only 6!}'G
per cent of water, the solid matter varying from
31*4 per cent in the ripest, to only 18 percent in
the unripost. The water also differs in quantity
from the different parts of the potato, the rose
end containing the most, the middle next, and
the heel end the least; but these distiuctious can-
not be made available in feeding.
1256. The proportions in the component parts
of the potato vary much in those in the natural
and in the dry state. For example: —
^ ^ ' ' round numbers.
Water . 75'52
Starch . 13"72 . . . 64*
Dextrin . O'o5
Sugar . 3'30 and Gum . 15'
Albumen, casein,
gluten . l'4l Protein compounds 9'
Fat . . 0-24 .. . 1-
Fibre . 3-2e . . . 11-
100-00
100-
1257. The ash of the potato consists of, ac-
cording to —
Boussingault. Fromberg:.
Lanark. Drummore. Mean.
Potash
59-95
57-58
49-73
55-75
Soda
traces
3-66
1-93
1-86
Lime
2-09
0-81
3-31
2-07
Magnesia .
6-28
4-53
5-03
5-28
Oxide of iron and
alumina
0-59
0-42
0-56
0-52
Pho.sphoric acid .
13-16
9-98
14-58
12-57
Sulphuric acid
8-27
14-63
18-04
13-65
Chlorine
314
5-16
4-51
4-27
Silica
6-52
3-68
2-49
4-23
.
100-00
100-45
10018
100-20
Per-centageofash
in the dry state
4-00
4-01
3-75
3-92
1258. As the fibrous part forms an important
element in the general composition of the potato,
the composition of its a^sh becomes interesting,
which is as follows, according to Mr Filgate —
Potash and soda, -with a little common salt 372
Lime 50-84
Magnesia 10-21
Oxide of iron 3-82
Phosphoric acid .... 19-o6
Su|^,lmric acid ..... 5-74
Silica 5-54
Per-centage of ash
99-53
1-40
" These analyses show," observes Professor
Johnston, " that the fibre leaves only one-third
of the quantity of ash which is left by the whole
potato, and that this ash consists chiefly of lime
in the state of carbonate and of phosphate. It
appears, therefore, that the alkaline matter of
the potato exists chiefly in the sap, while the
phosphate of lime is principally attached, in an
insoluble state, to the fibre." In feeding, there-
fore, with potatoes, calves would be most bene-
fited by the fibre, while the sap might be most
useful to milk cows.
1259. The quality of nutritive matter derived
from a crop of potatoes of 6 tons, or 13,500 lbs., cr
about 25 bolls per acre, is as follows, — 540 lbs. of
husk or woody fibre ; 2,400 lbs. of starch, sugar,
&c. ; 270 lbs. of gluten, &c. ; 45 lbs. of oil or iat ;
and 120 lbs. of saline matter.
1260. On comparing the nutritive properties in
the solid matter of the potato with other roots, it
is found that the potato and yellow turnip do
not differ much, though the advantage is on the
side of the turnip, but that the mangjld-wnrlzel
exceeds the potato in protein compounds in the
ratio of 15A to 9. "This is a very important
fact,'" remarks Professor Johnston, " and is de-
serving of further investigation. If, as at pre-
sent supposed, the protein compounds serve the
purpose, when eaten, of supplying to animals the
materials of their muscle, the mangold-wurtzel
ought to be considerably superior to the potato
in this respect. Even in their natural state this
should be the case, since 100 lbs. of the man-
gold-wurtzel contain, of these protein compounds,
2|, while the potato contains on an average only
2 lbs. It is to be desired, therefore, that the
mangold-wurtzel should be more generally cul-
tivated, wherever circumstances are favourable
to its growth."*
1261. Linseed. — The seed of the flax plant, or
linseed, has long been known by farmers to be a
very nutritious substance ; as well as one that
may be used to advantage in certain complaints
of cattle, as a safe and efiicacious medicine. The
whole seed boiled soft, and, together with the
water in which it has been boiled, is given in
many parts of the country as a cordial drink to
cows after calving, and as a tonic to promote
recovery after an illness. But, like all seeds
having a strong envelope, when administered in a
whole state, even on being boiled, is apt to pass
through the digestive organs of ruminating ani-
mals unaltered. To derive all its nutrient pro-
perty, it should be used only when bruised or
converted into meal. In the form of meal it has
long been used, after being boiled into a porridge
or jelly, as an assistant food to milk for the older
calves,until they are weaned. Linseed meal, wh.en
boiled and used hot, forms also an excellent
poultice for the drawing of any sore that may
affect an animal.
* Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Cliemistry, 2d edition, pp. 384, 421, 916, 928. To those
desirous of following the progress of Dr Fromberg's analysis of the potato, I would refer to his inte-
resting memoir in the Transacfwits 0/ the Uighland and Agricultural /Society for ilarch 1847, p.
637-98.
276
PRACTICE— ■\^^NTER.
1262. The composition of linseed is as follows,
according to Leo Meier : —
Oil .
11-8
Husk, &c. .
44-4
AVoodv fibre and starch
1-5
Sugar, &c.
10-«
Mucilage
7-1
SoluMe albumen (casein?)
15-1?
Insoluble do.
37
Fatty matter
3-1
Loss
3-0
100-0
Beside oil, linseed, we see, contains a consider-
able proportion of gum and sugar, and a large
quantity here called soluble alhumen, having a
great resemblance to the curd of milk. In this
respect it resembles the oat, instead of containing
gluten. " Besides its fattening property," ob-
serves Professor Johnston, " which this seed pro-
bably owes in a great measure to the oil it con-
tains, this peculiar albuminous matter ought
to render it very novrishinij also ; — capable of
promoting the growth of the growing, and of
sustaining the strength of the matured animal."
1263. The composition of the ash of linseed is
as follows : —
Riga.
Dutch.
Johnston.
Johnston.
Potash
25-85
17-59
aooi
Soda
0-71
6-92
1-88
Lime
25-27
8-46
812
Magnesia
0-22
lU-83
14-52
Oxide of iron
3-67
l-_>5
0-68
Phosphoric acid
40-11
36-42
37-64
Sulphuric acid
2-47
2-16
Sulphate of lime
1-70
Chlorine
0-17
0-29
Chloride of sodium (c
ommon
salt)
1-55
Silica
0-92
ld-'58
5-60
100-00
98-69
100-90
Per centage of as
h 4-63*
1264. The importation of linseed from abroad
is considerable. The Russian seed is the best
for sowing, and is of course the highest in price ;
but I suppose the inferior seeds, such as the
Dutch, will answer every purpose of feeding
cattle. In Lithuania, the raising of linseed of
the finest quality is an especial object of the
cultivators of flax ; and to attain this object they
sacrifice the quality of the fla.\. Accordingly,
we find the flax imported from Riga is generally
of a coarse quality. The quantity of linseed im-
ported of all kinds, was —
Inl842 . . . 367,700 quarters.
1843 , , . 470,5.'?9
1844 . . . 616,947
1845 . . . 633,293
Average of the 4 years
522,1-20
Taking this average, and assuming the ave-
rage price at £2, 5s. per quarter, it gives
£1,174,770.+
1265. There are several efficient enongh
machines for bruising linseed into meal, thonjjh,
from the oleaginous nature of the seed, the
rollers are apt to clog up and get out of working
order. As simple and cheap a machine for the
purpose as is perhaps made, is the one by Mr A.
Dean, Birmingham, which is driven by hand, and
costs £6, 5s., and is represented by fig. 97, where
Fig. 97.
THE LINSEED BKUISER.
a is the hopper for containing the seed;/" the box
containing the crushing rollers ; c the spout down
which the meal descends ; d the winch-handle
which gives motion to the rollers; e the fly-wheel ;
and b the slide which regulates the feed to the
rollers.
1266. Oil-cake.— 0\l-czke has been long and
much employed in England for the feeding of
cattle, and is making its way in that respect into
Scotland. It consists of the compressed husks
of linseed, after the oil has been expressed from
it, when it is formed into thin oblong cakes.
The cakes, when used, are broken into pieces by
the machine, fig. 53. Cattle are never entirely
fed on oil-cake, which is always associated with
other substances, as turnips, potatoes, cut hay,
or cut straw. When given with cut hay or
straw, an ox will eat from 7 to 9 lbs. of it a-day ;
and the hay or straw induces rumination, which
the cake itself would not do. Oil-cake and cut
meadow-hay form a very palatable and nutritious
diet for oxen, and is a favourite one in England.
When given with turnips or potatoes, 3 lbs. or
4 lbs. a-day will sufiBce.
1267. The importation of foreign oil-cake is
stated at as much a-s 75.000 tons annually ; and
when it is considered that it is very seldom sold
so low as £7 per ton, and sometimes as high as
£12, an idea may bo formed of the large sum
sent out of the country every year for the pur-
chase of food for animals. What may be the
annual consumption of oil-cake in the kingdom
* Johnston's Lectures on AgriculUiral ChemiMry, 2d edition, p. 381 and 921.
+ Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. viii. p. 443.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
277
cannot be ascertained, as a considerable quantity
of it is manufactured in this country by the oil-
crushers. The English oil-cake bears the highest
price in the market, seldom under £11 per ton ;
and of the foreign, that from Flensburg in Schles-
wig is most in repute, and sells at from £9 to £ 1 0
per ton. There is no doubt that foreign oil-cake
is adulterated with the husks of other seeds ; and
yet no sufRcient motive exists for doing this,
since the cake is formed when the oil is com-
pressed— unless, indeed, other oil-producing seeds
are purposely mixed with the linseed, for adul-
terating the linseed oil. It seems to me an im-
possible process to break down pure linseed-cake,
and, after mixing it with the husks of other seeds,
to compress it again into a solid cake. The oil,
therefore, must be adulterated before the cake ;
and, in that case, the purchasers of foreign linseed
oil for feeding cattle would be as much imposed
on as when purchasing foreign cake — unless the
oil of other seeds is as nutritious as linseed oil,
in which case, by a parity of reasoning, the husks
of those seeds ought to be as nutritious as those
of the linseed. The matter is then brought to
this, that the feeder must either purchase pure
linseed or raise it for himself.
1268. The nutritive properties of oil-cake have
been ascertained by analysis by Professor John-
ston. The composition of the oil-cake of com-
merce is as follows : —
English American
linseed-cake, linseed-cake.
Water . . 10-05 10-07
Mucilage . . 39-10 36-25
Albumen and gluten 22-14 22-26
Oil . . . 11-93 12-38
Husk . . 9-53 12-69
Ash and sand . 7-25 6-35
100-00
100-00
The large per-centage of protein compounds
is nearly equal to that of pease and beans —
a result somewhat unexpected, since the value
of oil-cake for feeding stock has hitherto been
supposed to depend on its power of laying on
fat. The proportion of oil, too, is greater than
in any of the grains, oats having 7, while the
cake has 12 per cent.
1269. Oil-cake leaves 6 per cent of ash. The
composition of the ash is as follows : —
English American
linseed-cake, linseed-cake.
Alkaline salts . . 31-55 38-20
Phosphate of lime and mag-
nesia . . . 47-67 56-26
Lime . . . 4-88 1-24
Magnesia . . 1-51 trace.
Silica . . . 10-81 4-04
Sand . . . 3-86
100-28
99-74
The American cake seems one of pure quality.
The phosphates are large in quantity, and twice
as valuable for making bone as oats or barley.
The dung derived from oil-cake is richer than
that from even grain, because it contains more
phosphate than the animals can use, which there-
fore^must pass away into the dunghill ; the oil
is in larger quantity than can be appropriated,
and must also find its way into the dunghill ;
and as full-grown animals scarcely appropriate
any of the phosphates, when oil-cake is given them
to fatten, these will all pass into the dunghill.*
1270. The valuable property of oil-cake, then,
is its containing a large proportion of the phos-
phates. From the consideration of this property.
Professor Johnston has recommended a mixture
which contains all the ingredients found by
analysis in oil-cake, and which, theoretically,
ought to produce similar results ; but these can
only be ascertained by experiment. If such a
mixture could be made at less cost than the
price of oil-cake, it would be the farmer's interest
to use it, instead of taking the trouble of seeking
and paying for oil-cake ; and if it could be manu-
factured into the form of durable cakes, it might
be transmitted to any part of the country. The
mixture is this : —
Braised linseed . . .40 lbs.
Bean meal . . . ,60
Bone meal, (ground bones) . . 4
104
the constituents of which are, in every 100 lbs.: —
Starch .... 40 lbs.
Protein compounds
Fat
Saline matter
Water and busk
27
11
7
15
loot
1271. It seems to me extremely doubtful that
any such mixture can be made so low in price
as to come seriously into competition in the
market with oil-cake, because oil-cake will be
made, whether or not it can be sold at a high
price, as long as oil shall be crushed from seed ;
and if a high price cannot be obtained for the
cake, the oil-crushers will take any price for it
rather than keep it. Tlie high price of cake
either keeps the price of oil lower than it would
be, or gives a higher profit to the oil-crushers.
Should the price of oil remain as it is, after
farmers shall have manufactured mixtures at
home for feeding their cattle, it will show that
oil-cake has hitherto realised extravagant prices,
which I have long suspected to be the case, as
I cannot understand why an article that must be
made at all events, should realise in a public
market so large a price as £10 per ton, unless the
demand for it was inordinate.
1272. The importation of oil-cake from abroad
was : —
In 1842
1843
1844
1845
67,293.1 tons.
63,2671
85,890
74,68 1^
Average of the 4 years
72,783
Taking this average quantity, and assuming the
Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society for Jan. 1846, p. 202-4. f lb. p. 207.
278
PRACTICE— ^^^^TEIL
average price at £8, lOs. per ton, it givts
£618,655, 10s.*
1273. Distilhry Drti]. — Draff is the exhausted
husks of the barley used in distillation, and dreg
is the refuse of the still. Dreg is in a state of
.thin and thick liquid.
1274. Five gallons of thin, and two gallons of
thick dreg yield 3 lbs. of dry food. One gallon
of the thin, on evaporation, leaves 4,235 grains,
and the same quantity of the thick 10,884 grains
of dry solid matter.
1275. Tlie 4,235 grains of solid matter from
the thin dreg, affords of
Organic matter
Inorganic matter
3,871 grains.
3'i4
4,235
And the 10,884 grains from the thick dreg,
gives of
Organic matter . . 10,290 grains
Inorganic matter . . 5i^4
10,884
Hence weight for weight of the thick dreg con-
tains as little water, and as much organic and
inorganic matter, as the turnip.
1276. The 364 grains of the inorganic matter
of the thin dreg, and the 594 grains of the
thick, contain, on analysis, the following in-
gredients : —
Thin dreg. Tliick dre?.
Ora^llon Oranllon
contains
contains.
Per cent
Grains.
Ter cent.
Grains.
Potash and soda, •with
a little muriatic and
sulphuric acids 46'24
168
38-36
226
Phosphoric acid, com-
bined in the liquid
with some of the above
potash and soda 21 '67
79
24-35
145
Phosphate of magnesia
and lime . . 2o-88
104
1.5-.00
.04
Siliceous matter . 2-56
10
20-.95
1-24
Loss . . . 0-65
3
0-44
5
10000
364
100-00
594
Here the alkaline pho.«phates abound ; and the
large proportion of siliceous matter in the thick
dreg is probably derived from the husk of the
malt, and would render the dreg a good manure
for corn and grass, as well as food for young
stock. The dairymen in large towns, as I have
already noticed, (1242.) give large quantities of
dreg to their milk cows, as a drink ; and the
nourishing drink is therefore attended with little
trouble in its use.+
1277. Brewers^ Draff or Grains. — Brewers'
draff", it is generally understood, contains less
nutritive matter than that of distillers.
1278. The composition of brewers' draff is as
follows, in every 100 lbs.: —
Water .... 75-85
Gum .... 1-06
Other organic matter, chiefly husk . 21 -28
OrL'anic matter, containiug nitrojen,
(protein cunipounds,) . . 0*62
Inorganic matter, as ash . . 1*19
J 00-00
Here is an evident deficiency in tlie protein com-
pounds.
1279. The ash is thus composed : —
Alkaline salts (chlo-
rides, with a small
quantity of sul-
phates)andalkali
Phosphoric acid in
combination with
the alkali
Earthy phosphates .
Silica
Percent In 1000 p.trti
of CLili. of wet draff.
7-60 0-90
In 1000 part*
of dry draff.
3-7--
211
0-25
1-04
4800
5-81
24-06
41 -.=51
4-94
20-46
99-22 11-90
49-28
1280. A bushel of draff weighs about 46 lbs.
and costs from 3d. to 3id. Albumen can be ob-
tained cheaper in oil-cake, but the draff affords
the phosphates more economically.
1281. Draff is best used as food when accom-
panied with other substances, such as turnips,
oil-cake, or beans.+
1282. Barlei/, 'Sprouts or Comi))s. — "When bar-
ley begins to sprout," says Professor Johnston, "it
throws its roots immediately outwards from the
one extremity, while the young germ (acrospire)
proceeds beneath the hu>k towards the upper
extremity of the grain. The maltster arrests
the growth before the young germ escapes from
the husk ; and when he dries his malt, the young
root falls off in considerable quantity. They
are known by the name of barley sprouts or
comins, and are employed both as a manure and
in the feeding of cattle."
1283. Comins, when burned, leave 725 per
cent of ash, which contain the following^ in-
gredients:—
Lime
3-09
^lasrnesia
5-46
Oxide of iron
1-09
Phosphciric acid
24-K7
Sulphuric acid
4-84
Chlorine
7 -9.5
Silica, soluble in water
l-flO
Insoluble silica
13-96
99-84
* Journal of the AijviciiUuraJ Society of Enijland, vol. viii. p. 443.
+ Transactionf of the Highland and Agricultural Society for March 1846, p. 305-6.
+ Ibid for January 1847, p. 582.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
279
1284. Comins are thus rich in alkaline salts
and phosphoric acid, and silica, and may there-
fore be advantageously employed, both as food
for animals and a manure to plants.*
1285. Malt. — Of late years a desire has been
expressed by some agriculturists to have the
duty taken off malt, — to have the excise restric-
tions, in fact, removed from the manufacture of
this commodity, that they may be enabled to
malt their own barley for the purpose of feeding
live stock. If this restriction should ever be
removed, which I have no doubt will be when-
ever the necessities of the public revenue allow
it, it is interesting to inquire into the changes
effected in barley in the process of malting, and
thus to ascertain whether barley is really ren-
dered more nutritious by malting, as seems to
be the general impression amongst feeders of
stock.
1286. According to Dr R. D. Thomson, the
composition of the same barley is thus altered
by malting : —
Barley. Malt.
Natural state At 212" Natural state At212i'
Carbon 41-()4 4(vll 42-44 43-,'j;3
Hydrogen 6-02 6-6.5 6-64 7-00
Nitrogen 1-81 2-01 Ml 1--29
Oxygen . 37-66 41-06 43-08 46-51
Ash . 3-41 4-17 1-68 1-27
Water . 9-46 ... 5-0.5
1288. The comparative composition of the ash
of barley and malt is as follows : —
100-00 10000 100-00 100-00
Hence, if these figures are reduced to their
equivalents, it appears that barley loses carbon
in the process of malting, without doubt, in the
form of carbonic acid, and also nitrogen, in the
shape of albumen, — possibly in part as ammonia ;
whilst the malt has gained hj'drogen and oxygen —
that is water ; and 100 parts by weight of barley
is reduced to 80 parts by weight of malt.
1287. As regards the comparative nutritive
power of barley, when converted into malt, Dr
Thomson observes, that " The quantity of nitro-
gen in different parts of the same sample of malt
varies very remarkably^ — indeed to such a degree
that the results obtained by three analysts, who
had obtained almost identical numbers for the
" nitrogen in barley, differed as much as from MS
to 1-62. This, indeed, is a circumstance which
might be anticipated, from the nature of the pro-
cess of malting, and is one which renders malt a
very objectionable substance as an article of
nourishment, since, in the same specimen, diffe-
rent portions would vary so much, according to'
the preceding data, as that 73 lbs. of one part
would produce as much effect in the nourish-
ment of an animal as 100 lbs. of another portion.
. . . . So that the nutritive powers of barley
and malt, according to these estimates, are as
follows : —
59 barley:= 1 00 malt, according to the lowest estimate.
79 ... = hio-hest ... •"
Barley.
Malt.
Potash
16-00
14-54
Soda
8-86
6-08
Lime
3-23
3-89
Magnesia
4-30
9-82
O.xide of iron
0-83
1-.59
Phosphoric acid
3680
35-34
Sulphuric acid
0-16
Chlorine
0-15
trace.
Silica
29-67
28-74
10000
100-00
Per-centage of ash
3-05
2-52
1289. The loss sustained by barley in malting
may, perhaps, be stated as follows : —
^^'ater .... 6-00
Saline matter , . , 0-48
Organic matter . . . 12-52
19-OOt
1290. Barley-meal. — Barley, when reduced to
meal, is used in the feeding of stock, and espe-
cially of pigs. Whole grains of barley are boiled
in water as a mash for horses. I haye just given
the composition of both barley and malt, and
shall now state the quantity of nutritive matter
afforded by an acre of land, from a crop of barley
producing 40 bushels per acre: — 40 bui^hels,
weighing 2100 lbs., gives of husk or woody fibre
315 lbs. ; starch, sugar, &c. 1260 lbs. ; gluten, &c.
from 250 lbs. to 310 lbs. ; oil or fat from 42 lbs.
to 63 lbs. ; and 60 lbs. of saline matter.^
1291. Oatg. — Oats are seldom given to animals
as food in the form of meal, but horses are
greatly supported, during most part of the year,
on the grain of oats, while the meal is used by
the labouring people of the farm. The quantity
of nutritive matter afforded by an acre of land,
from a crop of oats producing 50 bushels per
acre, is as follows : -50 bushels, weighing 2100
lbs., give 420 lbs. of husk or woody fibre ; 1050
lbs. of starch ; from 290 lbs. to 400 "lbs. of gluten,
&c. ; from 75 lbs. to 150 lbs. of oil or fat, and 80
lbs. of saline matter. §
1292. The composition of the grain of the oat
is as follows : — i
Hopetoun oats. Potato oats.
Ayrshire. Northumberland.
Starch
Sugar
(ium
Oil
Casein (avenine)
Albumen
Gluten
Epedermis
Fnmiberg
64-80
2-58
2-41
6-97
16-26
1-29
1-46
!-39
Alkaline salts, and loss 1-84
100-00
Norton.
65-60
0-80
2-28
7-38
16-29
2-17
1-45
2-28
1-75
100-00
* Johnstone's Lectures on Agricidtural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 425-6.
+ Thomson's Experimental Researches into the Flod of Animals, p. 106-121.
J Johnston's Lectures on Aijricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 928.
§ Ibid.
280
PRACTICE— WINTER.
1293. " The quantities of oil given above," Mr
Norton observes, " are large, but I thiuk correct.
The earlier analyses of oats give from three to
four- tenths of a ]>er cent of oil. Both Boussingault
and Johnston, however, have recently found
from (! to 8 per cent. This oil is of a beautiful
pale yellow colour, and its smell may be perceived
on heating oatmeal cakes. The fattening qua-
lities of the oat must be very great. The maize
or Indian corn is celebrated for fattening ani-
mals, and Dumas gives only 9 per cent as its
maximum of fatty matters. Boussingault gives
7 per cent as the average ; while Liebig has de-
nied that it contains more than 5 per cent. If
we take 7 per cent as the average, the meal
of the oat, so far as the oil is concerned, should
nearly equal that of the Indian corn."
1294. The per-centage of ash in the oat I
have already given, (4G2,) and the composition
of that ash is as follows : —
Potato oats.
Nortliiimberland.
Norton.
16-27
31-56
5-32 id-'-ii
8-()9 9-98
0-88 5-08
1-25
Potash ....
Soda ....
Lime ....
Magnesia
Peroxide of iron .
Peroxide of manganese
Sulphuric acid ' . .
Phosphoric acid . . . 49-19 46-26
Chloride of sodium (common salt) (1-35
Chloride of potassium . . ... 5-32
Soluble silica . . . 0-89
Insoluble siliea . . . 0-98 3-70
97-86 98-27
" In every part of the plant but the grain," ob-
serves Mr Norton, " we have found sulphuric
acid in the watery solution of the ash ; in the
grain it seems to give way to phosphoric acid.
In the only instance in which sulphuric acid was
present, the grain was from a poor crop, grown
on an e.xhausted soil; and it is possible that the
sulphuric acid may have been present only be-
cause the crop found it impossible to obtain a
full supply of phosphoric acid. The large quan-
tity of phosphoric acid is remarkable ; in nearly
every case it constitutes almost or quite one
half of the ash. It is easy, therefore, to see how
the addition of bones or guano should benefit the
oat crop. Silica is very small in quantity in the
grain, compared with that in other paVts of the
plant."-
1295. Pease-meal.— The pea in the grain, and
boiled, is given as food to pigs, while pease-meal
is used in bread by the labouring population of
the south of Scotland ; and it is boiled to the
form of jelly, and given to calves amongst milk.
1296. The quantity of nutritive matter de-
rived from an acre of pease is as follows, from a
crop producing 25 bushels per acre : 25 bushels
= 1 600 lbs., give of husk or woody fibre 1 30 lbs. ;
of starch, gum, kc, 800 lbs.; of gluten, 380 lbs.;
of oil or fat, 34 lbs.; aud of saline matter, 48 lbs.
1297. Bean-meal. — The bean, when bruised or
boiled, is a favourite food of the horse when
mixed with oats, or in a mash of boiled barley ;
and bean-meal is highly relished by fattening
oxen.
1298. The quantity of nutritive matter de-
rived from an acre of beans producing SO bushels,
or 1,900 lbs. per acre, is, of husk or woody fibre,
190 lbs.; of starch, sugar, &c., 760 lbs.; of gluten,
&,c., from 450 lbs. to 530 lbs.; of oil or fat, from
38 lbs. to 57 lbs.; and of saline matter, 57 lbs.
1299. The chemical composition of these
grains has not yet been carefully investigated.
Let this statement sufiBce: —
Composition of tlie
Grain. I
Water. Husk. Meal.
Peas 14-0 10-5 75-5
Field
beans 15-5 16-2 68-3 I
Composition of the
Meal.
Starcli. Legumin. Gum, &&
O'5-O 23 12
69-0
19
12
1300. The proportion of the ash of the pea
and bean I have already given (462) and the
composition of that of the field-bean and field-
pea is as follows -. —
Bean .ash. Pea asli.
Jlean of 3 analyses. Mean of 4 analyses.
Potash . . 3;5-56 3(i-05
Soda . . 10-60 7-42
Lime . . 5-77 5-29
Magnesia . . 7-99 8-46
Oxide of iron . 0-.56 0-.09
Phosphoric acid 37-57 33-29
Sulphuric acid . 1-00 4-36
Chlorine . . 0-73
Silica . . . 1-15 0-51
Chloride of sodium
(common salt) . ... 3*13
98-93
99-50
It will be observed from these analyses that
those leguminous grains contain a very large
proportion of the protein compounds, and are
therefore eminently useful in supplying the
waste of muscular matter.+
1 301 . Indian Corn. — This grain is very nourish-
ing to every kind of stock. It is raised in very
large quantities in America, and is tliere used
both by man and beast. In southern Germany,
the horses are chiefly supported upon it, the
grain being simply steeped in water for several
hours before being used. In Italy, cakes are
made of its flour, which are much reli>hed when
new baked, but become flinty and hard on
being kept. The flour, having a .somewhat
chalky flavour, will not likely be mucli relished
in this country as a part of the food of the
people; but the grain seems well adapted for the
fattening of all the domesticated animals, espe-
cially poultry.
* Tramacdons of the Highland and A'lricultnral Society for July 1846, p. 346-53.
t Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 377, 895, 928.
FEEDING OF CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
1302. The nutritive matter afforded by an
acre of this grain, producing 30 bushels, or 1800
lbs., is as follows : — of husk or woody fibre, 100
lbs. ; of starch, sugar, &c., 1260 lbs. ; of gluten,
&c., 216 lbs. ; of oil or fat, from 90 lbs. to 107
lbs.; and of saline matter, 27 lbs. The most re-
markable result in these particulars is the large
quantity of fat contained by this grain.
1303. Its composition when dried, according
to Payen, is this: —
Husk
5-9
Gluten, &c.
12-3
Starch ....
. . 71-2
Sugar and gum . .
0-4
Fatty matter . . .
9-0
Saline matter or ash
1-2
1000
1304. The composition of the ash of the grain
from a mean of two analyses, obtained from the
United States, by Fromberg, and from Germany
by Letellier, is as follows : —
Potash ....
Soda ....
• I 32-48
Lime ....
! '. 1-44
Magnesia
16-22
Oxide of iron .
0-30
Phosphoric acid
44-87
Sulphuric acid
2-77
Chlorine
0-18
Silica • . . .
1-44
99-70
According to the analysis of Letellier, Indian
corn consists almost entirely of the phosphates
of potash, soda, and magnesia.*
1305. Warnes' Compound. — Mr Warnes,
Trimingham, in Norfolk, recommends a composi-
tion for feeding both sheep and cattle, consisting
of linseed and barley, which he says is much
superior in nutrition to the best oil-cake; and
to this composition he has given the name of
Compound.
1306. Compound for Sheep. — The directions he
gives for making the compound for sheep are
these: — Let a quantity of linseed be reduced to
a fine meal, and barley flattened into the thick-
ness of a wafer by means of a crushing-mill with
smooth rollers. Put 168 lbs. of water into an
iron boiler, and as soon as it boils, not before, stir
in 21 lbs. of linseed meal, and let the water
again boil, which it may do in about 5 minutes.
Then let 63 lbs. of crushed barley be sprinkled
by hand by one person upon the boiling mucilage,
while another person rapidly stirs the mass,
cramming in the barley. After the water, lin-
seed, and barley, have entirely incorporated,
which will not occupy above 10 minutes, put the
lid upon the boiler, and throw the furnace-door
open ; and should the fire be strong, rake it out,
when the mass will continue to simmer, until
the barley shall have absorbed all the linseed
mucilage. When this has been accomplished,
the barley will have resumed nearly its original
shape, and may be compared to small oil-cakes,
which, when cold, will be devoured by sheep
with avidity. After a little practice, the eye
will be a sufficient guide as to the proportions of
the materials, without the trouble of weighing
them. The compound is then put into tubs
out of the boiler, and pressed down with a
rammer to exclude the air, and prevent rancidity.
If properly made, the compound ought to be
like clay when made into bricks, in which state
it will keep a long time. It will be seen that
these proporti««is consist of 3 parts of barley to
1 of linseed, and of 2 parts of water to 1 of
barley and linseed included. Also, that the
weight of the whole is 18 stones when put into
the boiler, but, after it has been made into com-
pound and becomes cold, it will be found in
general reduced to something less than 15 stones.
1307. Compound for Oxen. — In making the
compound for oxen, the same process as to the
cookery is followed, but the barley should be
ground into fine meal, the water reduced to 150
lbs., and the fire extinguished, the meal becoming
sufficiently cooked by immersion in the hot
water and mucilage: the above quantity of 15
stones will afford 1 bullock for a fortnight 1
stone per day, containing H lb. of linseed.
1308. The compound for cattle may be formed
into cakes, on being put into moulds with a
trowel, while in a hot state, the mould having no
bottom, and resting on a board, upon which the
cakes are cooled. When cold, the cakes may be
cut into pieces like bread, and given to the
cattle, but Mr Warnes considers this a trouble-
some, expensive, and unnecessary proceeding.
1309. The linseed mucilage may be made into
a compound with other materials than barley or
grain of any kind, the compound with pease and
bean meals being a very nutritious mixture.
The mixture with turnips, carrots, and mangold-
wurtzel, is effected in this way: Let the roots be
washed and sliced, and boiled in the boiler with
a small quantity of water : when sufficiently
boiled, some of the roots are put into a tub with
a little linseed meal, and the mass is beaten with
a rammer, while another person turns it over
until it becomes uniform. In this way one por-
tion after another is prepared. Cut hay or
straw and fine chaff may be prepared in the same
manner with the mucilage. For example, 1
peck of fine linseed meal is stirred in 20 gallons
of boiling water, and in about 10 minutes the
mucilage is ready to be poured over 2 bushels of
cut hay in a trough at a time, until the mucilage
is exhausted ; and its absorption by the hay is
promoted by beating with a rammer, and on
being pressed down.
1310. This quantity of compound will serve
21 scores of sheep for a day, the peck of linseed
costing Is. 9d., or Id. per score, including the
trouble of crushing and boiling it. It is not
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chetnistry, p. 892 and 928.
Stt
PRACTICE— WINTER.
easy to detenaine the quantity of this which an
ox may require, <>o much dependitif^ on the size
aud condition uf the animal ; but 1 lb. of linseed
meal per day mixed in mucilage, with 2 or 3
skeps of cut straw or hay, along with boiled
Swedish turnips, according to experience, will
advance the cundition of an ox.
1311. Tlie compound may be formed with any
kind of farm-produce, provided it contains a
proper (|uantity of the linseed. If barley, beans,
or pease be used, they must first be ground into
nieal ; if grass, clover, hay, straw, or pea and
bean hanlm be u«ed, they must first be cut
into chafi" ; if turnips, carrots, mangold-wurtzel,
cabbages, or potatoes, are used, they must first be
boiled or steamed ; after which all or any of the
above materials may be formed into the com-
pound, by admixture of the linseed boiled in
water. The compounds are essentially of three
kinds — the corn and pulse compound, the root
compound, and tlie grass and chaflF compound.
These may all run into and mingle with each
other, according to circumstances, but they con-
stitute the three leading distinctions, and in one
or other of which all the cattle-compounds may
be classed — lin.seed being, however, the chief
ingredient for fattening.
1312. The apparatus required for the making
of compounds according to Mr Warnes' method,
is, — a linseed crusher, a barley mill and bruiser,
a boiler, one or two half-hogsheads, and two or
three pails, with a ladle, stirrer, and rammer.*
1313. Corn-bruisur. — This machine is shown
in perspective in fig. 98. It is constructed al-
most entirely of cast-iron, except the hopper and
discharging-spout ; but its frame or standard
may with propriety be formed of hardwood, when
circumstances render the adoption of that ma-
terial desirable. In the figure, ana is the
frame-work, consisting of two separate sides con-
nected by two stretclier-bolts. A case, W, formed
of cast-iron plates, is bolted upon the projecting
ears at the top of the fram«, and contains the
bruising cylinders. The cylinders are of cast-
iron or ofsteel, and have an axle of malleable iron
passing through tbem. The spur-wheels c and
d are fitted upon the axle of the cylinders. The
cylinder corresponding to <l is jierfectly smooth,
while that of c is grooved into sharp edges. The
grooves lie obliquely on tlie face of the cylinder.
The winch-handle e is attached to the axle of the
roller c, whose bearings are permanent, while
those of d are movable, being formed in separate
plates, and fitted to slide to a small extent in a
seat, for the adjustment of the cylinder to any
desired grist. This adjustment" is effected by
means of the screws/, which act upon the sliding-
plates of the bearings : <j is one of the bearings of
a feeding-roller, placed also within the case ; it
is turned by means of a toothed wheel fitted
upon the further end of its axle, and which is
driven by another wheel on the axle of the
cylinder (/. The fly-wheel h is fitted upon the
txle of the cylinder c ; t is the feeding-hopper,
attached to the top of the case by two small
hooks ; and it; is a wooden spout to convey the
bruised grain from the case. This is a very
efficient machine for bruising either oats or beans.
From the different Teli>cities of the two cylinders,
Fig. 98.
THE HAND CDRN-liRl'I.sKR.
the grooved one being the fastest, it pro(iuces a
cutting a-s well as a bruising action, which ren-
ders its effects on the ;.'rain more ]icrfect than
simple pressure. It can be worked by one man,
who will bruise 4 bushels of oats in an hour.
The price of the machine is £6, lOs.
1314. Pfain Corn-hniher for pomr. — When
corn is desired to be merely flattened and not
reduced to the mealy state, it is necessary to
use plain rollers, and these cannot be worked
effectually but by power. Fig. 99 is an eleva-
tion of such a machine. It is a very efficient
one, and adapted to power. In the figure, a a Is
one of the side-frames of cast-iron, which are
connected together by stretcher-bolts, and the
frame so formed is bolted to a floor through the
palms at cc. On the top bar of thofram«'s there are
two strong snugs cast sufficient to resist the pres-
• Warnes On the Cultivation of Flax, 2d edition, p. 134-266.
FEEDING OF CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
283
Bure of the rollers, and are formed also to receive
the brass bushes in wliich the journals of the two
rollers are made to run. The two rollers are
fitted with malleable iron shafts; one roller runs in
permanent bearings, but the other has its bushes
movable, for adjustment to the degree of bruising
required, and this adjustment is effected by the
adjusting screws <;. The shaft of each roller
carries a wheel h ; one roller lias also upon its
Fig. 99.
AN ELEVATION OF THE POWER CORN-BRUISER.
shaft the driving-pulley i, which, by means of a
belt *s from any shaft of a thrashing-machine, or
other power having a proper velocity, puts the
rollers in motion. The rollers are enclosed in a
square wooden case k k, in the cover of which a
narrow hopper-shaped opening is formed, to di-
rect the grain between the rollers. A hopper
m, for receiving the grain, is supported on the
light wooden frame-work n n, which also sup-
ports the feeding-shoe o, jointed to the frame at
p, and suspended by the strap q, which last is
adjustable by a screw at q, to regulate the quan-
tity of feed. After passing the rollers, the grain
is received into a spout, which either delivers it
on the same floor, or through a close spout in the
floor below. The price of thiTmachine, as manu-
factured by Mr Slight, Edinburgh, is £10.
1315. I have now shown you how cattle are
treated and fed on turnips in winter, and
enumerated a variety of ingredients which are
employed separately, or in conjunction with tur-
nips, to fatten cattle. 1 shall now relate some
experiments showing the comparative value in
feeding of some of these ingredients and turnips,
and then exhibit the comparative advantages of
treating cattle in winter in various ways.
1316. The late Earl Spencer made an experi-
ment to ascertain the comparative values of
mangold-wurtzel and Swedish turnips in feeding
cattle. He selected two steers equally well bred,
rising 2-years old, and on the 24th of December
1825, he put one on Swedish turnips, and the
other on mangold-wurtzel. Their weights were
determined by measurement, both being 4 feet
10 inches in length by 6 feet 5 inches in girth,
weighing 668 lbs. each. On the 23d January
182G, one had consumed 1624 lbs. of Swedish
turnips, giving an increase of weight to 703 lbs.
or absolutely an increase of 35 lbs., which was at
the rate of 48^ lbs. for every ton of turnips con-
sumed. The otlier consumed 184 8 lbs. of mangold-
wurtzel, giving a weight of 721 lbs., or absolutely
53 lbs., or at the rate of 65^ lbs. for every ton of
the root.
1317. As this difference may have arisen from
a greater propensity to fatten, the food was ex-
changed, and on the 20th February No. 1 had
consumed 1884 lbs. of mangold-wurtzel, giving an
increase to 734 lbs., having absolutely increased
in weight 31 lbs., or at the rate of 36f lbs. for
every ton of the root. No. 2 had consumed 1880
lbs. of Swedish turnips, making him weigh 734
lbs., or making an increase of 13 lbs., or at the
rate of 154 ^bs. to every ton of turnips consumed.
"" 1318. They were then both put on mangftld-
wurtzel, dividing the food equally between them.
On the 19th March they luul ea<-h consumed
1792 lbs., and No. 1 weighed 784 lbs., giving an
increase of 50 lbs., and No. 2 weighed 765 lbs.,
with an increase of 31 lbs.
1319. It would appear that the propensity to
feed in No. 1 was greater than No. 2, in the pro-
portion of 50 to 31; but notwithstanding this, in
the first month, when No. 1 was upon Swedish
turnips, and No. 2 upon mangold-wurtzel. No. 2
beat No. 1 in the proportion stated 'above, of
65 1 to 48^. No. 2 in the first month, wlien
feeding on mangold-wurtzel, increased in girth 3
inches, and in the next month, when fed upon
Swedish turnips, did not increase in girth at all,
indicating a stoppage of growth. " It appears,''
observes his lordship, " as if there could be no
great inaccuracy in estimating the relative
weight of the animals, as, soon alter the experi-
ment was concluded, I sold No. 1 to a butcher in
the county for £24, 3s., and No. 2 at Smithfieid
for £24."*
1320. It would appear, from experiments made
by the late Mr Moubray of Cambus, Clackman-
nanshire, that cattle may be fed on turnips and
hay as cheaply as on turnips and straw, because,
when straw is given, more turnips are consumed.
* Journal of the Agricultural Society of Emjland, vol. ii. p. 297.
284
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and, therefore, when turnips are scarce, hay may
be used with advantage.
1321. It would also appear, from other experi-
ments made by hiui, that cattle may be fed
cheaper on distillery draff and dreg than on tur-
nips and straw ; but the distillery refuse requires
more time to bring cattle to the same condition,
which in some circumstances may be an incon-
Tenience.*
1322. Linseed oil has been successfully em-
ployed by Mr Curtis of West Rudham, in Nor-
folk, to feed cattle. His mode of using the oil is
this: — First ascertain how much cut straw the
oxen intended to be fed will consume a-week,
then sprinkle the oil on the cut straw, layer
upon layer, at the rate of 1 gallon per week per
ox. The mixture, on being turned over fre-
quently, is kept 2 days before being used, when
a slight fermentation takes place, and then the
oil will scarcely be discerned, having been en-
tirely absorbed by the straw, which should, of
course, be the best oat straw. This mixture, when
compared with oil-cake, has stood its ground.
1323. Linseed of fine" quality weighs 52 lbs.
per bushel, and yields from 11 to 12 gallons of
oil per quarter, weighing S^ lbs. per gallon, or
about 25 per cent of its weight. The price of
linseed oil is about 34s. per cwt. of ]2\ gallons,
which makes the feeding of an ox only cost
2s. lOd. per week.f
1324. Mr Curtis has fed cattle for upwards of
20 years upon what he calls ijrfen malt, which
consists of steeping light barley " for 48 hours in
soft water, when the water is let off, and the
barley is thrown into a round heap, in a conical
form, till it gets warm and begins to sprout
freely. It is then spread out and turned over
repeatedly as it grows. The only care required
is, that the sprout or future blade does not get
cut off, as the malt will then loose much of its
nutritions quality." He finds this substance,
which costs with its labour Is. a stone, prefer-
able to oats at lOd. in their natural state.:^ It is
questionable, however, that, if this mode of treat-
ing barley were generally adopted by feeders of
stock, they would not become amenable to the
Excise laws. The experiment might be danger-
ous; and every question with the Excise, as is
well understood, invariably leaves its opponent
the loser.
1325. Mr Brodie, .\bbey Mains, East Lothian,
made an experiment on feeding cattle, from
October 1836 to June 1837, on different kinds of
food. There were 4 lots of cattle, consisting of
5 each. The first lot was fed on turnips and
straw, which, being the usual treatment, formed
the standard of comparison. The second lot had
half the weight of turnips and 30 lbs. of oil-cake
a-day. A third lot was fed on the last quantity
of turnips and bean-meal and bruised oat*. And
the fourth had distillery grains and ground beans.
The value of the cattle, when put up to feed, was
£1 1 a-piece, and they were of the Aberdeenshire
polled breed. This in a summary of the cost of
feeding : —
Lot 1. White turnips at 8s. 4d., swedes
at 12s. (id. per ton, cost . £53 9 10
Average cost of each bea«t per week 0 6 3
Lot 2. Turnips as above, oil-cake, £7, 15s.
per ton, cost . £48 16 0
Average coit of each bea^t per week 0 5 9
Lot 3. Turnips as above, bean-meal, 5s.,
bniised oats, Se. O'd. per bushel,
coft . . £58 8 1
Average cost of each beast per week 0 6 8
Lot. 4. Turnips and bean-meal, as above,
draff, 4s. 6d. per quarter, dreg,
2s. 6d. per puncheon, cost . £63 3 2
Average cost of each beast per week 0 7 2
The ultimate resu
ts are as follows: —
Lots. Live weight.
Beef.
Tallow.
Hide. {
1.
2.
3.
4.
St.
5.36
552
517
545
St. lbs.
283 3
295 10
280 7
280 0
St. lbs.
36 10
41 6
37 2
36 11
St lbs. I
27 13
29 6
26 13
25 7
" Upon the whole," concludes Mr Brodie, " it is
evident, by these experiments, that feeding with
turnips as an auxiliary has been the most ad-
vantageous mode of using turnips, as, by the
above statement, it is apparent that if the cattle
of the first lot had only been allowed half the
quantity of turnips which they consumed, and
had got oil-cake in lieu of the other half, as was
given to the second lot, the expense of their keep
would have been lessened £4, 13s., and from su-
perior quality of beef, their value would have been
increased £10, making together £14, 13."§
1326. Some remarks occur to me on the pro-
gress of this experiment, — that if the cattle had
been sold on the 7th April 1837, when they
were adjudged by competent farmers, they would
not have repaid the feeder his expenses, as the
price of lot first, with the cost pf feeding to that
time, amounted to £95, Is. 8d., and they were
only valued at £82 ; lot second cost £S0, 12s.,
and were valued at £88, 10s.; lot third £93, 4s.,
and valued at £77; and lot fourth £97, 4s. 5d.,
and their value was only £81, 10s. And this is
almost always the result of disposing of cattle
before the end of fhe feedin<j gensou. because it is
only after they attain high condition that the
quality of the meat improves so rajtidly as to
enhance its value so as to leave a profit. As
with sheep so with cattle, the inside is first filled
up before the outside indicates condition. Tliis
result should be a useful hint to you to weigh
well every consideration before disposing of your
fattening beasts in the middle of the feeding
• Prizt &.«/iy« oftht Highland and Agricidtural Sorietij, vol. xiv., p. 61. f Ibid. p. 587.
J Jbid., p. 588. § (luarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. viii. p. 331.
FEEDING OF CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
285
season. The cattle of the first lot continuing to
receive the same sort of food they had been ac-
customed to, throve more rapidly at first than
those in the other lots, but afterwards lost their
superiority; thereby corroborating the usual ex-
perience of stock not gaining an advantage
immediately on a change of food, even of a
better description, such as from turnips to grass.
1327. Pollard or bran has been often recom-
mended to be given to feeding cattle. Mr
Dobito gave, iu the early part of the season of
feeding with white turnips, half a stune of bran
to each beast a-day, with an equal quantity of
oat-hay or straw, and no oil-cake. " Some per-
sons," observes Mr Dobito, " may fancy this food
is of too loosening a nature; but I can assure
them,from several years' experience, that although
pollard is loosening by itself, it has the etfect of
preventing the watery white turnips from purging
too much. Although the bullocks do not gain
much iu weight during this time, yet I am satis-
fied they go on faster afterwards, — the reason of
which, I suspect, is, that their bodies are more
prepared for the artificial state they have to live
in for the next few months." In November
swedes are given 1 bushel, cut with a slicer, for
the day's consumption ; then a dry bait, consist-
ing of 2 lbs. of oil-cake, 3 lbs. of bran, and a
little hay-chafi*; and turnips again. The bran can
be purchased for £4, 15s. a ton.* Would not oil-
cake answer all the purposes of bran as to prepar-
ing the bodies of the cattle for the feeding they are
afterwards to receive ? I think it would.
1328. At one time it was a question whether
cattle would thrive better on food prepared or
cooked for them by means of fire. It was well
understood that horses and pigs both fattened
and continued healthy upon prepared food ; and
the experience of dairymen in large towns estab-
lished the fact, that cows gave a much greater
quantity of milk on prepared than on raw food.
Still it was believed that cattle would not fatten
well on boiled or steamed food, from the opinion,
that food given in a comminuted state to cattle,
which are ruminating animals, the cud would be
prevented being chewed. Be that as it may, the
Highland and Agricultural Society, by premium,
induced several farmers to put the matter to
the test of experiment, and independent of the
supposed effect of prepared food upon the system
of ruminating animals, it was desirable to ascer-
tain whether, even should cattle be found to
thrive equally well on prepared as on raw food,
the trouble incurred in preparing it would be
repaid by the superior condition of the cattle, for
unless this was decidedly the case, there would
be no use of undertaking the trouble.
1329. The results of the experiments under-
taken in consequence of the Society's premium
were, that no profit attends the feeding of cattle
on prepared food. The first instance I shall
notice, in support of this conclusion, are the ex-
periments of Mr Walker, Ferrygate, East
Lothian. He selected, in February 1833, 6
heifers of a cross between country cows and a
short-horn bull, that had been on turnips, and
were advancing in condition, and divided them
into 2 lots of 3 heifers each, and put one lot on
steamed food, and fed them three times a-day, at
daybreak, noon, and an hour before sunset. The
food consisted of as many swedes as they could
eat, with 3 lbs. of bruised beans and 20 lbs. of
potatoes, with i s-tone of straw and 2 ounces of
salt to each beast. The three principal ingre-
dients were mixed together in a tub placed over
a boiler of water, and cooked by steaming. The
lot on raw food also got as many swedes as they
could eat, and brui&ed beans were given them at
noon, and one-half of the potatoes in the morning
and another half in the afternoon. It was soon
discovered that tlie lot on the cooked food con-
sumed more turnips than the other, the consump-
tion being exactly 37 cwt. 16 lbs., whilst, when
eaten raw, it was only 25 cwt. 1 qr. 14 lbs., the
difference being 55 lbs. every day, which con-
tinued during the progress of the experiment for
3 months.
1330. Steers were experimented on as well as
heifers, there being 2 lots of 2 each. They also
got as many Swedish turnips as they could eat,
and had 30 lbs. of potatoes and 4^ lbs. bruised
beans, 2 oz. of salt, and 5 stone of straw each,
every day.
1331. The cost of feeding the heifers was as
follows : —
3 heifers on steamed food —
Consumed of. Cwt. qr. lb. per cwt.
Swedish turnips, 37 0 16 at 4d. £0 12 4|
Potatoes . 3 3 0 at Is. 3d. 0 4 8
Beans, 1 bushel 0 2 7 . 0 3 0
Salt . . . . 0 0 Of
Coals and extra labour . . 0 2 0
£1 2 li
Cost of 3 heifers 1 week
or 7s. 43d. per week each.
3 heifers on 7-aw food —
Consumed of. Cwt. qr. lb. per cwt.
Swedish turnips 25 1 14 at 4d. £0 8 6|
Potatoes, beans, aud salt, as above 0 7 8|
Cost of 3 heifers 1 week
or 5s. 5d. each per week.
£0 16 3
2 steers on steamed food —
Consumed of. C^^•t. qr. lb. per cwt.
Swedish turnips 28 2 0 at 4d. £0 7 10
Potatoes . 3 3 0 at Is. 3d. 0 4 8
Beans ..027 • 030
Salt 0 0 Oi
Coals and extra labour . . 0 16
Cost of 2 steers for 1 week
or 8s. 6^d. each per week.
£0 16 Oh
2 steers on raw food —
Consumed of ■ Cwt. qr. lb. per cwt.
Swedish turnips 17 2 0 at 4d. 0 5 10
Potatoes, beans, and salt, as above 0 7 8^
Cost of 2 steers for 1 week
or 6s. y^d. each per week.
£0 13 6J
• Journal of the Agricultural Society 0/ England, vol. vi. p. 77.
rRACTICE— WINTER.
1332. The following table shows the progress of
condition made bj
these heifers and steers.
Arenige live-
1 1
Average 1 Average | xvemge
live- incn-aseof ^^^1 A»era«e
1
1
weiglit of 3 at
Average I Average
CXTTLK.
cooimence-
weiglit of live- , „„j..|,, of wtislil-i.f
wiik'lit of weight of
ment of
3 at end | weight in "^^'Z °'
of feeding. 3 montlK.!
1 1
talluw.
liide. offal.
feeding.
St.
St. lb».! St. lb.
St Ihs.
St lbs.
St lh«.
St Iht.
Heifer on steamed food
74
90 0
16 «
50 0
7.11
3 IJ
'Jfi 9
Heifer on raw food
74
89 3
15 0
50 1
8 4
4 4
26 10
Steer on su-amed food
84
103 4
19 0
56 19
8 11
5 1-2
28 3
Steer on raw food
90
106 5
15 0
58 6
8 8
5 4
30 4
1333. The comparative profits on the cooked
and raw food stand thus :- —
Live-weight of 1 heifer, when put to feed
on steamed food, 74 st.=42 st. 4 lbs.
beef, at.7s. 6d. per stone, sinking offal £11 12 7
Cost of keep 12 weeks 5 days, at
7s. 4 id. per week . . . 4 19 0
Total cost . £16 11 7
Live-weieht of the same heifers, when
finisheil feeding on steamed food, 90
st.=50 St. 9 lbs., at O's. 6d. per stone,
^sinking offal 16 9 1.^
Loss on steamed food on each heifer £0 2 6.^
Live-weight of 1 heifer, when put to feed
on raic food, 74 st.= 42 st. 4 lbs. beef,
at 5s. 6d. per stone, sinking (iff;il. 11 12 7
Cost of keep 12 weeks 5 duys, at
5s. 5d. per week . . . 3 8 10^
Total cost £15 1 o^
Live-weight of the same heifer when
finished feeding on raw food, S9 st.
31bs.= 50st. rifc.,at 6s. 6d. per stone,
sinking offal 16 5 5.^
Profit on raw food on each heifer £ 1 4 0
Live-weight of 1 steer when put up to
feed on steamed food, 84 stones^=50 st.
4 lbs., at 5s. 6d. per stone, sinking
offal £13 4 0
Cost of keep 12 weeks 5 days, at
8s. 6^d. per week ' . . .384
ToUl cost £18 12 4
Live-weight of the same steer after being
fed on steamed food, 1(14 st. 71bs. =
56 St. 10 lbs., at 6s. O'd. per stone,
sinking offal £18 8 7A
Profit on each stot on steamed food £0 3 8.^
Live-weight of 1 steer when put on raw
food, 90 St. = 51 St. (I lbs., at 5s. Cd.
per stone, sinking offal . . .£14 2 lOJ
Cost of 12 weeks 5 days' keep, at
6s. 9Jd. per week . . .461
Total cost £18 8 11|
Live-weight of the same steer after ln-ing
fed on raw food 106 st. 7 lbs.=.58 st.
6 lbs. at 6s. 6d. per stone, sinking offal 18 19 9 J
Profit on each steer on raw food £0 10 10
1334. Tlie facts brought out in this experi-
ment are the.se: — It appears that the turnips lose
weijilit on beiiiju; steamed. For example, 5 tons
8 cwt. only weighed out 4 tons 4 cwt. 3 qrs. 16
lbs. after being steamed, having lost 1 ton 3 cwt.
12 lbs., or i of weight; and they also lost i of
bulk when pulled fresh ia February ; but oa
being pulled in April, the loss of weight ia
steaming decreased to l. Potatoes did not
lose above ,;'„ of their weight by steaming, and
none in bulk. Tiie lieifcrs on steamed food not
only consumed a greater weight of fresh turnips,
in the ratio of 37 to 25 ; but after allowing for
the loss of steaming, they consumed more of the
steamed turnips. Tlius, after deducting i from
37 cwt. 16 lbs. — the weight lost iu steaming
tliem— the balance 29 cwt. 2 qr. 17 Ibf. is more
than the 2.5 cwt. 1 qr. 14 lbs. of raw turnips
consumed, by 4 cwt. 1 qr. 3 lbs. All the cattle
on the steamed and raw food reli.shed salt ; so
much so, that when it was withheld, they would
not eat their food with the avidity they did when
it was returned to them.
1335. Steamed food should always be given in
a fre^h state — that is, new made ; and if old, it
becomes suur, when cattle will scarcely touch it.
and the sourer it is they dislike it the more.
" In short," says Mr Walker, " the quantity they
would consume miijht have been ma<le to agree to
the fresh or sour state of the food when pre.~ented
to them. . . . We are quite aware, that to
have done a large quantity at one steaming
would have lessened the expense of coal and
labour, and also, by getting sour before being
u^ed. saved a great quantity of food ; but we are
equally well aware, that, by so doing, we never
Could have fattened our cattle on steamed food."
1336. An inspection of the above table will
show that both heifers and steers increased more
in live-wei>;ht on steamed than on raw food; the
larger profit derived from the raw food arising
chiefly from the extra expense incurred in cook-
ing tne food. It appears, however, that a greater
increase of tallow is derived from raw food.
The results appear nearly alike with heifers and
steers of the same age; but if the steers were of
a breed possessing less fatteninir propensity than
cross-bred heiiers, — and Mr Walker does not
nioution their breed,— then they would seem to
acquire greater if«i.//if than heilcr-. which I be-
lieve is the usual experience. The conclusion
come to by Mr Walker is this : " We have no
hesitatiou in saying that, in every respect, the
advantage is in favour of feeding with raw food.
FEEDING OF CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
287
But it is worthy of remark, that the difference in
the consumption of food arises on the turnips
alone. We would therefore recoinmeiid every
person wishing to feed cattle on steamed food to
use potatoes, or any other food that would not
lose bulk and weight in the steaming process; as
there is no question tiiat, iu doing so, they would
be brought much nearer to each other in the
article of expense of keep. . . . Upon the
whole, we freely give it as our opinion, that
steaming food for cattle will never be attended
with beneficial results under any circumstances
whatever ; because it requires a more watchful
and vigilant superiniendence during the whole
process, than can ever be delegated to the com-
mon run of servants, to bring the cattle on steamed
food even upon a footing of equality, far less a
superiority, to those fed on raw food." *
1337. One of the steers fed on raw, and an-
other on steamed food, were kept and put to
grass. In th;;ir external condition, no one could
have said how they had been fed. They were
put to excellent grass on the •20th May, and the
steer on raw food gained condition until iOth
July, when, perhaps, the pasture may have be-
gun to fiil. That on steamed food lost to that
time 3 stones live-weight. On 20th August both
were put on cut grass, and both improved, espe-
cially the one that had been ou steamed food,
until the 18th October, when both were put on
turnips, and both gained alike by the 10th No-
vember— that is, the steer on raw food increased
from 108 to 120 stones, and the other from 106
to 118 stones, live-weight.
1338. One instance in a question of this nature
will not suffice. Similar results as to profit were
obtained by the experiments of Mr Howden,
Lawhead, East Lothian. " To me," be says, " it
has been most decidedly shown that preparing
food in this way [by steaming] is any thing but
profitable. Local advantages — such as fuel and
water being at hand — may enable some others to
steam at less expense ; but in such a situation as
mine, I am satisfied that there will be an ex-
pense of more than 10s. a-head upon cattle in-
curred by the practice. A single horse-load of
coals, carriage included, costs me 10s. ; and
exactly 6 cart-loads were required and used in
preparing the food for the cattle, equal to 6s. 8d.
each, and probably as mucli more would not be
an over-estimate fur the additional labour in the
3 months." A few facts, worthy of attention, have
been brought to light by Mr Howden's experi-
ment, and we shall attend to these without going
into details. It seems that raw potatoes and
water will make cattle fat, — a point which has
been questioned by some of our best farmers.
Potatoes, beans, and oats, taken together, will
feed cheaper, in reference to time, than turnips
or potatoes separately; and from this fact may
be deduced these others, namely, that potatoes,
when used alone, to pay their expense, would
require the beef fed by them to fetch 4d. per lb.;
turnips alone S^d.; while potatoes and corn to-
gether vrould requiie 3d., and the beef of finer
quality. This is a curious fact. Of 6 heifers, I
iu a li^t of 3 weighed 1022 lbs. ; and another, in
another lot of 3, weighed also 1022 lbs., on 5th
M:irch, when both were put up to be experiment-
ed on, the one on rr,\v and tlie other prepared
food ; and on the 5th June fuliowing, alter both
had consumed 140 lbs. of turnips a day, they
were of the same weight, namely, 1176 lbs., ex-
actly showing an increase of 154 lbs. This is a
remarkable coincidence ; but here it ends, and
the superiority of cooked food becomes apparent;
for the beef of the heifer fed on raw turnips
weighed 4',', stones, and its tallnv 5 stones 10 lbs.;
whereas that of the one fed on steamed turnips
was 44 stones 4 lbs., and its tall .w 6 stones 12
lbs. How is this to be accounted for { Partly,
no dtiubt, on the food being cooked, but partly, I
should suppose, from the superior state of the
animal, indicated by its thinner hide, being 8 lbs.
lighter, imparting a greater disposition to latten.
Mr Howden, however, mentions this fact. The
turnips lor the experiment were stored against a
wall, one store having a northern and another a
western aspect ; but whether fi-om aspect, or
dampness, or other cause, those intended to be
eaten raic had fermented in the store a while be-
fore being observed, and thus, becoming unpala-
table, of the 18 t'ins 15 cwt. stored, about 24 tons
were leftunconsumed; so that, in fact, the heifers
upon the raw turnips did not rLceive their food
in so palatable a state as those on the steamed.
Steaming renders tainted turnips palatable as
well as musty hay, while it has a contrary effect
on tainted potatoes, the cattle preferring the raw.
Turnips require a longer time to steam, and,
according to Mr Howden's experience, they lose
g or I'o more of their weight than potatoes. f Vuu
may observe, from the state of the turnips in the
store, the injudii'iousuess of storing them against
a wall, as I have before observed (831.)
1339. Mr Boswcll of Kingcausie, in Kincar-
dineshire, comes to the same conclusion as to the
unprofitableness of ft eding cattle on cooked food.
He observes, "that it is not worih the trouble
and expense of preparation to feed cattle ou
boiled or steamed food; as, although there is a
saving in food, it is counterbalanceil by the cost
of fuel and labour, and could only be gone into
profitably where food is very Idgh iu price and
Coal very low." His experiments were made on
10 dun Aberdeenshire horned cattle, very like one
another, and their food consisted of the Aberdeen
yellow bullock turnips and Perthshire red
potatoes. The 5 put on raw food weighed alive
228 stones 11 lbs., and the other Son cooked, 224
stones 6 lbs. imperial. When slaughtered, the
butcher considered both beef and tallow " to be
perfectly alike." Those fed on law food cost
£32, 2s. Id., on cooked £34, 5s. lOd., leaving a
balance of £2, 3s. 9d. in favour of the former.
Circumstances attending the feeding of cattle
are not alike iu all cases. Thus, Mr Buswell
found, " That the lot on raw consumed much
more food than those on steamed." a result
directly the opposite of t'.iat st-tted l)y Mr Walker,
(1329.) '-Twice a-wcck, on fixed days,' he
Prize Essni/s of the Highland and Agricultural Society, vol. x. p. 253-2C6. t ^'-id- P- 266-70.
288
PRACTICE— WLNTER.
observes, " both lots got a small quantity of the
tops of comraon lieuili, wliich acted in tlie way
of presenting any scouring ; in fact, turnip-cattle
eeem very fouil of heather as a coudiment.
13J0. The dung of the steamed lot was from
first to la.<t in the be^^t state, without the least
appearance of purgiug, and waa free of that
abominable smell which is observed when cattle
are fed on raw potatoes, or even when a portion
of their ftjod consists of that article. Another
fact was observed, that after the steamed lot had
taken to their food, they had their allowance
finished sooner than the raw lot, and were there-
fore sooner able to lie down and ruminate."'
1341. Mr Boswell mentions a curious fact re-
garding the preference or dislike shown by cattle
forfood indifferent states. " \Vhen>airturnipsand
potatoes were put into the stall at the same time,
the potatoes were always eaten up before a tur-
nip was tasted ; while, on the other hand,
steamed turnips were eaten in preference to
steamed potatoes.''*
1342. Before leaving this subject, I shall men-
tion some interesting conclusions arrived at by Mr
Ilobert Stephenson, Whitelaw, East Lothian,
while experimenting on the feeding of cattle.
He put up three lots of 6 each, one fed on oil-
cake, bruised beans, bruised oats, with whatever
turnips they could eat, and potatoes on the last
few days of the experiment : another lot received
the same sort of food, with the exception of the
oil-cake ; and the third had turnips entirely.
The live-weights of the lots varied trom 346 ^ to
486 imperial stones. The experiment was con-
ducted for 17 weeks, from November 1834 to
March 1835.
1343. Each beast that got —
Oil-cake cost ... 6s. per week.
Cora 4g. 6d.
Turnips 2s. 3d.
1344. Estimating the value of fed beef at
6s. 6d. per imperial stone, the —
Loss incurred by the oil-cake was 12J per cent.
Gain left ... corn ... R^
turnips ... 22
1345. It took—
90 lbs. of turnips to produce 1 lb. of live-weight.
40 lb. of potatoes
8, 'j lbs. of corn ...
21 y^j lbs. of oil-cake
1 346. The cost of doing this was as follows : —
Per 1 lb. of
live-weight.
90 lbs. of turnips, at 4d. per cwt., 3i^d.
40 lbs. of potatoes, at Is. 6d. per cwt., 6j'',sd.
Sy'nlbs. of corn at 3s. 3d. per bushel of
•»01h.<. 5^.j.d.
21y'5 lbs. of oil-cake, at Jd. per lb, or
£7 per ton, . . . 16T=!i5d.
1347. These numbers are not absolute and
invariable, and apparently similar circnmt-tances
in the feeding of cattle will produce dissimilar
results. What the circumstances are which
regulate the tendencies of cattle to fatten, are
yet unknown. The fact is, cattle consume very
different quantities of turnips in different states
of condition, consuming more when Ipan, in pro-
portion to their weight, than when fat. A lean
beast will eat twice, or perhaps thrice, as many
turnips as a fat one, and will devour as much as
\ part of his own weight every day, while a very
fat one will not con^^ume y'j. Some steers of Mr
Stephenson's, in November ate 2/n lb. for every
stone of live-weight they weighed ; the year
after the quantity decreased to l^^n lb., and after
the experiment was concluded, when their live-
weights were nearly doubled, they consumed
only Ij^s lb. 1 had a striking example of this
one year, when I bought for £6, in April, a very
lean 2-year-old steer, a cross betwixt a short-horn
bull and .\iigus cow ; a large-boned thriving
animal, but his bones were cutting the skin.
He was immediately put on Swedish turnips ;
and the few weeks he had them, before being
turned to grass, he could hardly be satisfied,
eating three times as much as the fat beasts in
the same hammel. He was grazed in summer,
and fed off on turnips and sold in April following
for 17 guiueas.
1348. The results of these experiments were,
that oil-cake is an unprofitable food for cattle,
that corn yields a small profit, that turnips are
profitable, and that when potatoes can be sold
at Is. 6d. per cwt. they are also unprofitable.
" When any other food than turnips," observes
Mr Stephenson, " is desired for feeding cattle,
we would recommend bruised beans, as being
the most efficient and least expensive : on this
account we would prefer bruised beans alone to
distillery offal. As regards linseed-cake, or even
potatoes, they are not to be compared to %ans.
We give it as our opinion, that
whoever feeds cattle on turnij>t aivtie will have
no reason, on the score of profit, to regret their
not having employed more expensive auxiliaries
to hasten the fattening process. This opinion
has not been rashly adopted, but has been con-
firmed by a more extended and varied experi-
ence in the feeding of cattle than has fallen to
the lot of most men. "
1349. Whether cattle consume food in propor-
tion to their weights, Mr Stephenson observes,
" that cattle consume food something nearly in
proportion to their weights, we have very little
douht, provided theii hareyrer'wus/i/ hten/fd in the
tanu maiinfr, and are nearly alike in condition.
Age, sex, and kind, have little influence in this
respect, as the quantity of food consumed depends
much on the length of time the animal ha-< l>een
fed, and the degree of maturity it has arrived at,
— hence the great difficulty of selecting animals
to be experimented upon. To explain our mean-
ing by an example, we would say that 2 cattle
of the same weight, and which had been previ-
ously kept for a considerable time on similar
food, would consume about the same quantity.
But, on the contrary, should 2 beasts of the same
• Prize Ettayi of the Hiyhland and Agricultural Svciety, vol. x. p. 271.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
289
weight be taken, the one fat and the other lean,
the lean beast would perhaps eat twice, or per-
haps thrice, as much as the fat one ; more espe-
cially if the fat one had been for some time
previously fed on the same food, as cattle eat
fi^radually less food until they arrive at maturity,
when they become stationary in their appetite."
1350. "We shall conclude," he says, " by re-
lating a singular fact" — and a remarkable one it
is, and worth remembering, — " that sheep on tur-
nips will consume nearly in proportion to cattle,
weight for weight ; that is, 10 sheep of 14 lbs. a-
quarter, or 40 stones in all, will eat nearly the
same quantity of turnips as an ox of 40 stones ;
but turn the ox to grass, and 6 sheep will be
found to consume an equal quantity. This great
difference may perhaps," says Mr Stephenson,
and I think truly, " be accounted for by the
practice of sheep cropping the grass much closer
and oftener than cattle, and which, of course,
prevents its growing so rapidly with them as
with cattle."*
1351. Notwithstanding these results, which
were undoubtedly obtained from carefully con-
ducted experiments, instances are not awant-
ing in which cattle have been very profitably
fattened upon prepared food. Mr Warnes, for
example, has fattened bullocks on his compound
of linseed, with barley and beans, or any other
of the substances I have enumerated in describ-
ing the method of making it for cattle. (1307.)
It will be necessary to quote a few in-
stances of Mr Warnes' success. " The last
of my experimental bullocks for 1841," he
observes, " was disposed of at Christmas, at
8s. 6d. per stone. He weighed 60 st. 5 lbs. im-
perial; cost £7, 17s. 6d. thirteen months pre-
viously; so that he paid £17, 10s. for little
more than one year's keening. His common
food was turnips and grass : 14 lbs. a-day of
barley or pease compound were given him for 48
weeks, and an unlimited quantity the last five
weeks ; when, considering the shortness of that
time, his progress was perfectly astonishing, —
not only to myself, a constant observer, but to
many graziers and butchers who had had occa-
sional opportunities of seeinghim. Altogether, the
weight of compound consumed did not exceed
2 tons 4 cwt., at the cost of only £3, 16s. per
ton." . ..." A few bullocks were shown
by Mr Warnes as proofs of the fattening pro-
perties of the compound ; and, as much difference
of opinion was expressed respecting the weight,
2 were killed on the spot, viz., a Devon steer,
and a yoilng home-bred heifer. The following
are the particulars of the cattle slaughtered: — the
Devon bullock, purchased on the 8th of January,
at £9, 15s., killed on the 28th October following,
weighed 58 st. 10 lbs., loo'^e fat 8 st. 7 lbs., value
of the carcass at 8s. per stone, £23, 10s. ;
which, after deducting the cost price, and £8,
lis. for compound, leaves a balance of £5, 4s.,
with the manure for turnips and grass, the real
value of which was trifling, on account of the
small quantity consumed. The home-bred was
only 1 1 months old, and was purchased in May at
£3.Jt weighed 29 St. 12 lbs., loose fat 4 st. 2 lbs.,
value of the carcass at 8s. per stone, £12, leav-
ing a balance of £9 for compound and grass;
latterly it had a few turnips and potatoes, but
no milk or any other food whatever." The low-
est priced beasts always pay the best when
fed on compound. Two small bullocks pur-
chased by Mr Warnes, and one bred on the farm,
were worth £4, £3, 3s., and £4, 10s. respectively.
" Two of them were Durham heifers, the other
Norfolk bred ; their ages 18 months each when
killed. The first weighed 46 st. 7 lbs. ; the second
41 St. 2 lbs.; the third 35 st. imperial, making
122 st. 9 lbs., wliich, at 6d. per lb. the current
price of beef in the neighbourhood, amounts to
£42, 18s. 6d.; and had I sold them by weight,"
observes Mr Warnes, " would have afforded a
balance of £31, 5s. 6d., and a profit unexampled
in the agricultural history of this county — unex-
ampled on account of the shortness of time, the
size of the animals, the smallness of the outlay,
and the food being entirely a home production
Should it be asked, what was their condition
when purchased ? I refer to the cost price."
1352. These instances are, perhaps, sufficient
to establish the intrinsic value of the com-
pound as a fattener of cattle ; but it is of impor-
tance to establish its superiority over oil-cake,
and if it be not, there is little likelihood of
people taking the trouble of making compound,
for it must be admitted, on all hands, that its
use is attended with considerable trouble. To
make the comparison, 6 beasts selected to be fed
on compound weighed 602 st., and 6 beasts on
oil-cake, 590 St., the former 6 having the advan-
tage of weight to neat cattle of 12 st. When
fat, the former weighed 725 st. and the latter
705 St., giving a balance in favour of the former
of 20 St. ; from which falls to be deducted the
12 St. originally possessed by them, thus leaving
still a balance in their favour of 8 st. But a
greater difference than this was shown by the
dead-weight ; which, of beef, loose fat, and hides,
was 38 St. 6 lbs. more of the compound-fed than
of the oil-cake-fed beasts. Nor would the mere
value of the beef and fat show the superiority of
the compound-fed, as these consumed a smaller
quantity of turnips, and their compound only
cost £19, 6s. 14d., while the oil-cake was
£21, 14s. 9d.t
1353. This, however, does not exhaust the
subject of feeding cattle on linseed. Mr Joseph
Marshall, Holme Lodge, Bedale, Yorkshire, has
presented it to the notice of agriculturists in
another aspect. On liis farm, the food is pre-
pared, and all other work connected with the
system performed, by one man, except the grind-
ing of the corn, which is done at the mill. He
uses Dean's hand-n.ill, fig, 97, for crushingthe lin-
seed, and Clawdray's chopper to cut the straw,
1354. The best artificially prepared food
which he has hitherto found, is boiled linseed,
ground corn, and cut straw, along with some
* Prize Essai/s of the Hiijhlavd and AqricvUural Society, vol. xii. p. 61.
■)" Warnes On the Cultivation of Flax, 2d edition, p. 27, 133, and 174.
290
PRACTICE— WINTER.
raw turnips, piren a. in.erva.s. The crushed
linseed i:- boiled in water, 1 lb. of linseed in H
gallon of water, for '2 or 3 hours. The ground
com and chopped straw are mixed together first,
and then the boiled linseed is poured over them
and mixed with them, on a floor, with a shovel ;
the heap allowed to stand 1 or 2 hours, and
given while yet warm : for, if allowed to stand
a few hours, the mass ferments and quickly turns
sour. Hence the necessity for the strictest clean-
liness in all the vessels and implements made use
of. Linseed may be boiled 3 times every day, —
twice for the feeding beasts, and once for the
store beasts, consuming about 1 cwt. of coal.
1355. The apparatus used by Mr Marshall for
boiling the linseed consists of a small steam
boiler and furnace, which supplies steam by a
pipe to a double-cased iron vessel, one placed
within the other, like a small hat within a large
one, the inner one resting, by its rim, upon that
of the outer. The steam is introduced between
the two vessels, and boils, by its heat, the water
and linseed contained in the iuner one.
1356. A heifer weighing from 40 to 50 st.
will consume, daily, 2 lbs. of crushed linseed, 5
lbs. of ground com, 10 lbs. of chopped straw, and
about 80 or 90 lbs. of yellow bullock turnips, with a
little straw, not cut, placed in its rack at night.
1357. The cost of preparing this food is as
follows, in which no charge is made for straw
and turnips, but ample allowance made for coal,
labour, and outlay of capital.
Cost of preparing food for 22 cattle and 3
draught horses, for 8 weeks, in 1844 and 1845 : —
2688 lbs. of linseed, or 48 lbs. per day.
192 lbs not used on Sundays deducted.
2496 lbs., or 46.1 bushels of 54 lbs. at 6s.
perbu^he'l . . . £13 18 0
458 st of ground oats, at 1 lid. per st. 21 18 1 1
8 weeks'' wages, sU I3s. per week . 5 4 0
1 cwt. of coal per day. at I5s. per ton 1 1 0
terest oa outlay of £50, tear aud wear 15 9
£43 7 8
In teres
this kind of food is. that it saves the consump-
tion, and makes the beasts pretty independent
of the turnip crop, which is always an expensive
one to rai«e, and cannot, in all ^ea'^ons, be reck-
oned to grow fully. This advantage may be
made to appear in thL< way :- a.-^fuiiiing I acre
of laud to grow 20 tons of yellow bullock turnips,
worth £6, \5>. per acre, each beast will eat 85
lbs. per day, with the prepared food ; so that 20
tons of turnips will feed 20 beasts for 26 days at
a cost of Is. 8d. per week per head. Again, as-
suming 1 acre of land to yield 20 tons of swedes,
worth £8, 5s. per arre, each beast will eat 63 lbs.
daily, with prepared fond. Hence 20 tons will
supply 20 bea*ts for 35 days, at a cost of Is. 8d.
per week per head; and hence, also, 5 acres of
swedes, yielding 20 tons per acre, will suffice for
20 beasts for 25 weeks.
1360. An instance or two of the coniparatiye
effects of this mode of feeding may .-iiffice to
show its superiority over tJ.e one with oil-cake.
Mr Hutton of Sowber Hill, near Northallerton,
fed two lots of beasts of 8 each, against each
other for 8 weeks. The cost of Uoing so was as
follows: —
«. d.
Linseed-cake, 3 St., at 13Jd. per stone 3 4^
Turnips, 9iJ0 lbs. " . .30
Labour, iic , . .0 5^
Cost per week per head 6 ] 0
Linseed and ground com
Turnips, VM lbs.
Labour, iS.c.
Coals
4
4
1
6
0
H
0
6
Cost per week per Lead 5 9j
Average cost of 25 beasts per week for
8 weeks . . . .044
1358. The mode in which the cattle are fed is
as follows: — At 6 a. m. each beast is supplied
with about 40 or 45 lbs. of yellow bullock turnip,
sliced, fig. 86 ; at 10 a. m. 1 lb. of linseed, boiled
and prepared as above, 24 lbs. ground corn, and
5 lbs. of chopped straw are given ; at 1 p. m. the
turuipe are repeated ; and at 5 p. m. the prepared
food is repeated. At night a little straw is placed
in the rack. If any beasts refused their messes
they were removed and given to those that had
finished tlieirs and were desirous of more. No pre-
pared food is given on Sunday, to save the cattle-
man some trouble ; and on this omission of the
food, the cattle return to it with increased
appetite.
1359. One advantage derived from the use of
The two lots of beasts were sold at liedale
market; and thoseled on prepare! food realised
£2, 6a. Gd. more than those otherwise fed.
1361. Mr Tliompson of Moat Hall, by York,
also tried the experiment, and fed tv»o beasts
with prepared food against other two led on oil-
cake and bean meal, with turnips. The cost of
the two methods was as follows : —
lOA lb?, of linseed, at 7s. per bushel of 56
lbs. per bushel, or U per lb. .
:>5 lbs. bean nu-»l, at Is. per ctuue .
loo lbs. of coal daily at 14a. pet ton •
l:L.\tra wages, 4 s. per week
Cost per head per week
21 lbs. of oil-cake, at £10 per ton
21 lbs. of bean meal, at Is. per stone
20 stones of turnips extra, say
Cost per Lead per week 4 4
The cost of the two methods is about the same.
" If we compare, however," observes Mr Tiiomp-
son, " the increase of weight of the two bullocks
fed on the old plan for 31 days, \.t. 8 st. 2 lbs.,
with the increase of the same bullocks when fed
11
4 3
1 10|
1 6
0 14
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
291
on prepared food for 31 days, viz., 14 st. 5 lbs., the
superiority of the latter is very apparent." *
1362. On comparing the effect of feeding
beasts on linseed with oil-cake or bean meal, it
would seem that the superiority lies entirely in
the linseed, which, containing a large proportion
of oil and uf si>lnble albumen, fully supports on
trial the high character of its nutritive proper-
ties indicated by chemical analysis, (r2()2.)
"Experience alone," says Mr Warnes," will con-
vince any one that whether hay, peas or potatoes,
beans or barley, are employed, the office of all
mainly consists in conveying linseed to the
stomach of the animal, and that a great error
would be committed by a parsimoniuus use of
that potent ingredient." "One of the main causes
of the rapid progress of cattle, when fed on pre-
pared food," observes Mr Thompson, " is, I con-
ceive, the perfect state of health the animalsenjoy.
Linseed oil is a mild purgative, and when com-
bined with meal, especially bean meal, the
bowels and skin are kept uniformly in a state of
health, which, I think, cannot be surpassed, and
which I never before saw equalled." " What I
have seen of this system," observes Mr Huttou,
"convinces me that certainly double the quantity
of stock can be maintained with the same quan-
tity of turnips as was consumed by the old
metliod of feeding cattle. The manure is of the
best quality, and very soon fit for use. No ma-
nure I liave seen has equalled, in efficacy, that
derived from this process. Hence, it is hard to
fix any precise limits to the number of stock
that may be maintained on a farm, with a mode-
rate supply of turnips, when this method is
rightly carried out, and persevered in. It seems
peculiarly adapted to stiff soils, where the tur-
nips cannot be consumed on the land. It is also
applicable to light land, where only a small
quantity of turnips can be taken away ; as the
whole of the straw, by this method, may be
made into a much better quality of manure."
1363. Of the two methods of using the linseed
presented to public notice by Mr Warnes and
Mr Marshall, 1 would prefer the latter, as being
the more natural one — to give the cattle some raw
turnips every day ; and I cannot get over the
fact of boiled or steamed turnips having been
proved to bestow no benefit, as evinced by those
carefuUy-conducted experiments I have described
above (1329.) The steam boiler recommended
by Mr xVIarshall serves no good purpose, in my
opinion, and is attended with much outlay at
first — not less perhaps than £40 or £50. Now, a
simple builerand furnace would be much cheaper,
and answer every purpose more easily and
readily, and there is no risk of the apparatus
going wrong. If the linseed burning in the pan,
or it boiling over, is dreaded, from want of care
on the part of the person whose business it is to
prepare the food, the risk may be easily avoided
by putting the metallic vessel in which the linseed
and water are into the boiler, containing water,
and both waters may easily be boiled at one time.
Indeed the steaming process, for any purpose, is
* Marshall Oti the Feedhiij of Stock with Prepared Food, p. 4-11.
•f" Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. viii. p. 481-2
going fast out of use, and the old-fashioned opeu
boiler is again being resorted to daily.
1364. There are objections to Mr Warnes'
method of making tlie compound, which are well
expressed by Mr Thompson thus :— '' The cheap-
est, and I think the best way of making this com-
pound, is to mix it on a smooth brick floor, im-
mediately adjoining the pan or boiler in which
the linseed mucilage is prepared. Upon the
floor throw down the cut straw or chaff ; mix
with it, whilst dry, the meal intended to be
given ; upon this heap, flattened at top, pour the
mucilage by bucketfuls : nothing more remains
to be done but to turn the heap over with a
shovel. The partial cooking of the mixture by
its own heat, is perfectly well effected in a heap
such as I have described, if smoothed over with
a shovel, and left for half an hour before being
served out to the cattle. The advant:iges of this
mode of mixingare — that it is more quickly dune;
that there is scarcely any limit to the quantity
of food that can be prepared without any ad-
ditional utensils ; and that a few minutes suffice
to wash the floor clean after each mixing. In
tubs, the compound cannot be thoroughly mixed
without a liberal use of the stirrer and rammer ;
and where there are many cattle, and conse-
quently several tubs, the whole process of putting
successive layers, stirring and rannaing, has to
be repeated in each. Taking the compound out
of the tubs also, after it has been rammed down
tight, especially from near the bottom, is tedious
compared with shovelling it up from a heap on
the floor ; and each tub must be washed and
scraped very clean, otherwise the small fragments
remaining turn sour, and gi'O a disagreeable
taste to the next mixing. In all the feeding
establishments in Yorkshire that I am acquainted
with, mixing on the floor is preferred to the use
of tubs."t
1365. Still another question remains to be
considered in reference to the feeding of cattle
in winter, which is — whether they thrive best in
hammels or in byres at the stake I The determi-
nation of this question would settle the future
constructi/>n of steadings ; for, of course, if more
profit were certainly derived by the farmer in
feeding his cattle in hamaiels than in byres, not
only would no more byres be erected, but those
in use would be converted into hammels— and
this circumstance would so materially change the
form of steadings as to throw open the confined
courts, embraced within quadrangles, to the
influence of the sun, at the only season these
receptacles are required, namely in winter.
Some facts have already been decided regarding
the comparative ettects of hammels and byres
upon cattle. Cattle are much cleaner in ham-
mels than in byres. No doubt they can be kept
clean in byres ; but not being so, there must be
some difficulty incidental to byre-management —
and it consists, I presume, in the cattle-man find-
ing it more troublesome to keep the beasts clean
in a byre than in hammels ; otherwise the fact
is not easily to be accounted for, for he takes no
Note.
202
PRACTICE— WINTER.
fffciol care to keep beasts in hammels clean.
Perhaps when cattle have liberty to lie d.jwn
where ihey plea.*e, they may choose the driest,
because the most "comfortable spot : whereas, in
a byre, they must lie down upon what may be,
and' which they cannot see behind thera. There
is another advantage derived from hammels — the
hair of cattle never scalds off the skin, and never
becomes short and smooth, but remains long and
moisy, and is all licked over, and washed clean
by rain, until it is naturally cast in spring ; and
this advantage is felt by cattle when sent to
market in winter, where they can withstand
much more wet and cold than those which have
been fed in byres. A third advantage is, that
cattle from hammels can travel the road without
injury to their feet, being accustomed to be so
much upon their feet, and to move about. It
has been alleged in favour of byres, that they
accommodate more cattle on the same space of
ground, and are less expensive to erect at first
than hammels. That in a given space more
beasts are accommodated in byres tliere is no
doubt — and there is as little doubt that more
beasts are put in a byre than should be — but I
have great doubts that it will cost more money
to accommodate a given number of cattle in a
hamrael than in a byre ; because hammels can
be constructed in a temporary form with wood and
straw, and they make beasts very comfortable, at a
moderate charge, whereas byres cannot be formed
in that fashion ; and even in the more costly
form of roofs and walls, the shedding of ham-
mels requires, comparatively to a byre, but a
small stretch of roof ; and it is well known that
it is the roof, and not the bare masonry of the
walls, that constitutes the most cosily part of a
steading. I have seen a set of hammels, having
stone and lime walls, and feeding-troughs, and a
temporary roof, erected for £1 tor every beast it
could accommodate, and no form of byre could
be built at that cost, liut all these advantages
of hammels would be of trifling import, if it
could be proved by experience that cattle return
larger profits on being fed in byres ; and unless
this superiority is established in regard to either,
the other is undeserving of prelerence. How,
then, stands the fact ? — has experiment ever tried
the comparative effects of both on auy thing like
fair terms I Mr Boswell of Balmuto has done
so both in Fifeshire and at Kingcausie, in Kincar-
dineshire, to give variety to the experiment, and
it shall now be my duty to make you acquainted
with the results.
1 366. At Balmuto, 4 three-year-olds were put
in close byres, and 4 in open hammels, and the
same number of two-year-olds were accommo-
dated in a similar manner at Kingcausie. Those
at Kingcausie received turnips only, and of
course straw ; at Balmuto a few potatoes were
given at the end of the season, in addition to the
turnips. The season of the experiments extended
from 17th October 1834 to 19th February 1835.
The results were these ; —
The 4 hammel-fed 2-year-oIds at Kingcausie gained of live weight
— 4 ... 3 year-olds at Balmuto — —
— 4 byre-fed 2-year-oIds at Kiogcansie gained of live weight
— 4 — 3-year-olds at Balmuto — —
Gain of live weight by the hammel-fed
St. ItK.
. 32 7
. 36 0
St. lbs.
45 8
46 0
91 8
68 7
23 1
Tliis is, however, not all gain, for the hammel-fed consumed more turnips, the Aberdeen yellow
bullock, than the byre fed.
Ton. cwt. qr. 11m;
1 nose at Kingcausie consumed more by . . . . . . . 1 7 2 t>
And those at Balmuto — — . . . . , , . 2 4 3 22
Total more consumed
3 12 2 0
In a pecuniary point of view, the gain upon
the hammel-fed was this : — 23 stones 1 lb. live
weight, = 13J stones beef, at 6s. per stone, gives
£4, 23.; from which deduct the value of the tur-
nips, at4d. per cwt., £1, 4s. 2d., leaving a balance
of £2, 78. lOd. in favour of hammel-feediiig.
1 367. It is a prevalent opinion amongst far-
mers, that young cattle do not lay on weight so
fa»t as old. But this experiment contradicts it ;
for the two-year-olds in the hammels at King-
causie gained 45 stones 8 lbs. on their united
weights of 320 stones 7 lbs., in the same time
that the three-year-olds in the hammels of Bal-
muto, weighing together 350 stones, were of
gaining 46 stones. Besides, the young beasts in
the hammels at Kingcausie gained orer those in
the byre 13 stones 1 lb., whilst the older cattle
in the hammels at Balmuto gained over those in
the byre only 10 stones. So that, in either way,
the young cattle had the advantage over the
older.
1368. Mr Boswell observes, that "hammels
ought never to be used unless when the climate
is good, ami the accommodation of courts dry
and well sheltered ; and, above all, unless when
there is a very large quantity of litter to keep
the cattle constantly clean and dry." Shelter is
essential for all sorts of stock in any situation,
and the more exposed the general condition of
the farm is, the more urcniiere is of shelter;
but let the situation be what it may, it is, in mj
opinion, quite possible to render any hammel
FEEDING CATTLE OX TURNIPS IN WINTER.
293
sheltered enough for stock, not only by tlie dis-
tribution of planting, but by temporary erections
upon the weather-side ; and these means will be
the more effectual when the hainmel is placed
facing the meridian sun, which it should be in
every case. If these particulars are attended
to, and rain-water spouts placed along the eaves
in front to prevent the rain from the roof falling
into the court, and well-built drains, with con-
venient gratings, connected with all the courts,
are properly made, the quantity of straw required
will not be inordinate, as I have myself expe-
rienced when farming dry turnip-soil. Mr
Boswell's testimony in favour of hammels is
most conclusive, and it is this, — " From the re-
sult of my own experiment, as well as the
unanimous opinion of every agriculturist with
whom I have conversed on the subject, I feel
convinced that there is no point more clearly
established than that cattle improve quicker, or,
in other words, titrite better in open hammds
than in close byres."*
1369. A method of accommodating cattle while
feeding has been practised in some parts of
England for a few years past, and it is called
box-feeding. The boxes, as they are termed,
consist of several railed in spaces under one roof,
or a series of them protected by a roof against a
high wall as lean-to's, or upon low walls as a
shed roof. They form, in short, a series of loose
boxes or cribs. They are made from 10 feet to
8 feet square, and are intended for the accom-
modation of a single beast each. The crib out
of which the beast takes its food is made to
move up and down between two posts, according
as the litter becomes high by accumulation, or
low by removal. The bottom of the box is sunk
into the ground, say 2 feet, and the hollowed
space is built round the sides with brick work,
or mason work, to the level of the ground, and
causewayed or paved in the bottom. A passage,
from which the food is supplied, runs along one
end of the boxes. Compound and cut straw are
regularly supplied to the cattle, and litter strewn
in sufEcient quantity to keep them clean ; and,
thus supplied with food and litter, they are re-
presented as being very comfortable in such
boxes.
1370. Mr Warnes says, that when these boxes
are erected with rough materials, they cost only
30s. a-piece. Timber of all kinds is sold, I
believe, very cheap in the rural districts of
England ; but in Scotland, no accommodation for
cattle kept constantly under roof, and affording
requisite shelter in winter, can be erected at so
small a cost. But if cattle are to be really
benefited by comfortable accommodation, why
grudge them it, since benefit to them is profit to
their owners ? A space of 8 feet square seems
too small for an ox that will attain 50 stones ;
and as to the ox having room to shy away from
any person going beside him, in such a limited
space, is out of the question — especially when
the two upper rails, which form two sides of the
* Prize Essai/s of the Illijhiaudand Anr
+ See Journal of the Agricultural Sociity
J Warnes On the Cultivation of Flax, 2d
box, are obliged to be left as wide as to allow
the 4iead of the beast to pass between them,
on turning himself.f I feel the same objection
to cattle being so confined when feeding, as I did
to the sheep in their confined cribs and stalls,
(967 ;) and the question of the feeding is not to
be ascribed to the boxes, but to the superior
nature of the linseed upon which they are fed.
Indeed, I should consider the dampness inherent
to a situation dug 2 feet into the ground, in ren-
dering even dry straw unwholesome in it as a bed,
as having a tendency to injure the progress of an
ox towards maturity rather than otherwise ; and
I am sure that exposure at will to the sun and
air, and even rain in winter, is much more con-
ducive to the health of an ox than constant con-
finement under a roof. It is true that box-feeding
affords much more liberty to the animal than
when feeding at the stake in a byre : but in what
respects box-feeding should excel small hammels
it is not easy to discover. The cost of construct-
ing small hammels, to hold two or three oxen
together, is not great, — two is the number I
would always prefer, as affording society, and
avoiding contention on the one hand, and loneli-
ness on the other, — but the cost of constructing
accommodation for cattle I consider a secondary
consideration, in comparison to affording them
the greatest comfort ; and greater comfort than
a haramel may afford is scarcely possible to be
attained by any other means— certainly not by
such boxes ; and the manure would be equally
as well compressed and good in hammels as in
boxes.
1371. Surely Mr Warnes endeavours to make
too much of box-feeding, to compare it with -the
worst method of feeding cattle, when he truly
observes, that " in a yard the master cattle con-
sume the choicest parts of the turnips. They
delight in goading and driving the underlings
about, and allow them but little rest. . . .
In fact, the system of feeding cattle in boxes
can be regulated to the greatest nicety, while
that in the yard must ever remain slovenly,
wasteful, and imperfect." Compare this picture
with the general system adopted in the north of
England and the south of Scotland, in fattening
cattle in small hammels, and it will be found to
possess all the advant-ages derivable from boxes,
in which, as Mr Warnes informs us, " every bul-
lock can eat at his leisure, ruminate unmolested,
and take his rest."J Small hammels and boxes
are thus the receptacles for cattle that admit of
a legitimate comparison with one another, for
affording them shelter, health, and comfort, and
not open courts or yards.
1372. It is a very common practice in Ireland
to turn out cows, when even giving milk, upon the
pasture in winter, where, of course, very little
subsistence can be obtained by them ; and the
objectionable practice exists by necessity, as no
turnips have been raised for tlieir support. To
show the loss incurred by such a practice, 1 shall
give an instance of the increased value of the
icultural Societi/, vol. xi. p. 461.
of England, vol. viii. p. 473.
edition, p. 166-7
294
PRACTICE— A\TNTER.
produce of a single small cow, naturally a bad
milker, from being so treated, to receiving pre-
pared food in the byre. Mr John Lynch, the
owner, thus writes : —
1844.
"Nov. 7,1 had her milked at 11 o'clock a.m., in
the presence of workmen — the milk
measured was 1 quart and 3 naggins,
and at night her milk was but 3
naggins.
... 9, Milked before the workmen, at 10
o'clock A.M., 1 quart and 1 naggin ;
and in the evening again, before them,
3 naggins.
... 11,1 got her in to house-feed, after the
following manner : —
1st feed, 6 o'clock a.m.. Cut straw, hay, and
turnips, all boiled to-
gether.
2d ... 8 Raw turnips.
10 Let out on the field till
1 2 o'clock.
3d ... 12 ... M. Hay.
4th ... 3 ... P.M. Prepared food same as
in the morning.
Sth ... 6 ... ... Raw turnips and man-
gold-wurtzel leaves,
&c.
6th ... 8 Hay.
The result was an increase from the 1st day
to the 3d, when she milked 2 quarts in the
morning and the same at night ; on the Sth day
2.^ quarts at each milking ; and on the 12th day
after being put in she milked 3 quarts at a time,
and continued so fur four days. Being limited
in my supply of green food, (as I then thought.)
I curtailed her a little in the different feeds,
consequently she did not increase.
From the day on wliich she was £ s. d.
got in to house-feed, up to the first of
April, (being 140 days,) her milk
averaged 5 quarts per day, at l^d.
per quart 4 7 6
On the 1st of April, the turnips
and mangold- wurtzel not being nearly
consumed, I increased her feeds again,
when she averaged 6 quarts a-day for
the first fortnight, and 7 quarts dur-
ing the remainder of the month— being
64 quarts per day for 30 days, or 195
quarts, at Ud. per quart . . 1 4 45
9th May. — The vetches were now
fit for cutting, and the supply of tur-
nips and maugold-wurtzel continuing
up to the 1.5th of June, she frequently
milked 9 quarts a-day. Her milk at
this date (lot August) is 9 quarts,
allowing an average from the 1st of
May to the present date (being 92
days) at 8 quarts per day, or 736
quarts, at 1 id. per quart . . 4 12 0
Total amount from 11th Nov. to
Ist August 10 3 10^
Deduct the value of 21 cwt. of hay,
at £2 per ton . . . .220
£8 1 lOi
Dublin Farmers* Gai
The quantity of ground under green fo6d
was —
Mangold- wurtzel . . lO.l perches English.
Swedish turnips . . 21
Aberdeen yellows . 9.J
Vetches and rape . 15
Statute measure 5ij:=35 perches Irish.
An Irish acre of ground bearing crops such as
the above, and being turned to the same advan-
tage, would (notwithstanding the cow being such
a poor milker) bring in a return of £46, IDs.,
(minus the price of hay,) together with a large
quantity of manure, and the cattle well fed.
My cow is at present in excellent condition. Had
she not been house-fed, I would have had to buy
milk and butter for my family during the winter,
and to pay about '60s. for sea-weed or guano,"*
1373. I have dwelt the longer on the subject
of feeding cattle, because of its great importauce
to the farmer, and also because of the uncertainty
sometimes attending its practice to a profitable
issue ; and whether it leaves a profit or not de-
pends, no doubt, upon the mode in which it is
prosecuted. Many are content to fatten their
cattle in any way, or because others do so,
provided they know they will not actually lose
money by it; but if they do not make them in the
ripest state they are capable of being made, they
are, in fact, losing part of their value. But hovy
are they, you may ask, best to be made ripe 1
There lies the difBculty of the case — and it must
be attended with much difficulty before a man
of the extensive experience in fattening cattle as
Mr Stephenson has had, would express him-
self thus : — " We have had great experience ia
feeding stock, and have conducted nnmben of
experiments on that subject with all possible care,
both in weighing the cattle alive, and the whole
food administered to them, and in every experi-
ment we made ire difcorered something neir. But
we have seen enough to convince us, that were
the art of feedinc) letter understood, a great deal
more beef and mutton might be produced from the
same quantity of food than is generally done."
So far should such a declaration deter you from
fattening cattle — it should rather be a proof of the
wideuess of the field still open for you to
experiment in ; and fortunately, of late years,
facilities have daily presented themselves.- Oil-
cake is now a more general favourite than it was
some years since, and linseed and linseed-oil now
rank themselves amongst the richest class of
cattle food. Chemistry has also stepped forward
to inform us of the substances which afford most
bone, those which supply most muscular fibre,
and those which deposit most fat. The theory
of the digestion of the domesticated animals, and
of the combined effects of variius sorts of food,
is now better understood than it was ; and to
these we shall direct our attention, after you
have learnt the mode of feeding every kind of
animal found on a farm.
1374. There are but few rfi.tfa.'w incidental to
cattle in a state of confinement in winter, these
being chiefly confined to the skin, such as the
:tte, of 9th August 1845.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
295
afFection of Hce, and to accidents in the admini-
stration of food, as koren and obstruction of the
gullet may be termed.
1375. Lice. — When it is known that almost
every species of quadruped found in the country,
and in a state of nature, is inhabited by one or
more pediculidai— sometimes peculiar to one Iciud
of animal, at other times ranging over many it
will not excite surprise that they should also
occur on our domestic ox. Indeed, domestica-
tion, and the consequences it entails — such as
confinement, transition from a lower to a higher
condition, high feeding, and an occasional devia-
. tion from a strictly natural kind of food— seem
peculiarly favourable to the increase of these
parasites. Their occurrence is well known to
the breeder of cattle, and to the feeder of fat
cattle ; and they are not unfrequently a source
of no small annoyance to him. Unless when
they prevail to a great extent, they are probably
not the cause of any positive evil to the animal ;
but, as their attacks are attended with loss of
hair, an unhealthy appearance of the skin, and
their presence is always more or less unsightly,
and a source of personal annoyance to the cattle,
they may much impair the animal's look, which,
when it is designed to be exhibited in the market,
is a matter of no small consequence. As an
acquaintance with the appearance and habits of
these creatures must precede the discovery and
application of any judicious method of removing
or destroying them, I shall describe the species
now which are most common and noxious to the
ox, and afterwards such as infest the other do-
mestic animals of the farm. They may be divided
into two sections, according to a peculiarity of
structure, which determines the mode in vihich
they attack an animal — namely, those provided
with a mouth formed for sucking, and such as
have a mouth with two jaws formed for gnawing.
Of the former there are three species, which are
very common, attacking the ox, the sow, and the
ass.
1376. 0.v-Iot,fe {Hcemafopinm eurmernm,)
fig. lOC.-It IS abi.ut 1 or U line in length-the
line being the twelfth part of an inch, as seen by
the hue belovy the figure-the head somewhat
triangular, and of a chestnut colour, the eyes pale
brown, antenna pale ochre-yellow ; thorax dark-
p. ,„„ er chestnut than the
^^' • head, with a spiracle
or breathing-hole on
each side, and a deep
furrow on each side
anteriorly ; the shape
nearly square, the an-
terior line concave ;
abdomen broadly ov-
ate, greyish-white, or
very slightly tinged
with yeliow, with four
longitudinal rows of
dufky horny excre-
scences, and two black
curved marks on the
THE OX-LOUSE, H^EMATO- hist Segment ; legs long
PiNUs EURY.sTERNUs. and strong, particular-
T
ly the two fore pairs, the colour chestnut ; claws
strong and black at the extremity. This may be
called the common louse that infests cattle. It is
most apt to abound on them when tied to the stall
for winter feeding, and a notion prevails in Eng-
land that its increase is owing to the cattle feediiTg
on straw. The fact probably is, that it becomes
more plentiful when the animal is tied up, in con-
sequence of its being then lessableto rubaiidlick
itself,and the louse is left to propagate, which it does
with great rapidity, comparatively undisturbed.
It generally concentrates its forces on the mane
and shoulders. As the parasite is suctorial, if it
is at all the means of causing the hair to fall off,
it can only be by depriving it of the juices by
■which it is nourished, which we can conceive to
be the case when the sucker is inserted at the
root of the hair ; but it is more probable that the
hair is rubbed ofi'by the cattle themselves, or is
shorn off by another louse to be just noticed.
The egg or nit is pear-shaped, and may be seen
attached to the hairs.
1377. Ox-louse (Trichodectes scalaris,) fig.
101.— This parasite, which was described by
Linnaeus and the older naturalists under the
name of Pediculus Bovis,
is minute, the length
seldom exceeding ^ a
line. The head and tho-
rax are of a light rust
colour, the former of
a somewhat obcordate
sliape, with two dusky
spots in front ; the third
joint of the antennae long-
est, and spindle-shaped
(in the horse-louse, Tri-
chodectes Equi, that joint
is clavate ;) abdomea
pale — tawny, pubescent,
the first 6 segments with
a transverse dusky or
rust-coloured stripe ou
the upper half, a nar-
row stripe of the same
colour along each side,
and a large spot at the
hinder extremity of the abdomen ; legs, pale
tawny. Plentiful on cattle ; commonly found
about the mane, forehead, and rump, near the
tail-head. It has likewise been found on the
ass. It is provided with strong mandibles, with
2 teeth at the apex, and by means of these it
cuts the hairs near the roots with facility. Both
these vermin are destroyed by the same means
as the sheep-louse, (1067.)
1370. Chokinci.—When cattle are feeding on
turnips or potatoes, it occasionally happens that a
piece larger than will enter the gullet easily is
attempted to be swallowed, and obstructed' in
Its passage. The accident chiefly occurs to
cattle receiving a limited supply of turnips, and
young beasts are more subject to it than old.
When a number of young beasts in the same
court only get a specified quantity of turnips or
potatoes once or twice a-day, each becomes
apprehensive, when the food is distributed, that
THE OX-LOUSE, TRI-
CHODECTES SCALARIS.
296
PRACTICE— WINTER.
it will not get its own share, and therefore eat8
what it can with much apparent greediness, and,
not taking,' sufficient time to masticate, swallows
its food hastily. A large piece of turnip, or a
amall potato, thus easily escapes beyond the
power of the tongue, and, assisted as it is by the
saliva, is sent to the top of the gullet, where it
remains. Cattle that project their mouths for-
ward, in eating, are most liable to choke. When
turnips are sliced and potatoes broken, there is
less danger of the accident occurring, even
amongst young cattle. The site of the obstruc-
tion, its consequent effects, and remedial mea-
sures for its removal, are thus described by
Professor Dick. " The obstruction usually
occurs at the bottom of the pharynx and com-
mencement of the gullet, not far from the lower
part of the larynx, which we have seen mistaken
for the foreign body. The accident is much
more serious in ruminating animals than in
others, as it immediately induces a suspension of
that necessary process, and of indigestion, fol-
lowed by a fermentation of the food, the
evolution of gases, and all those frightful symp-
toms which will be noticed under the disease
hoven. The difficulty in breathing, and the
general uneasiness of the animal, usually direct
at once to the nature of the accident, which
examination brings under the cognisance of the
eye and hand. ]Vo time viuU he iont in endea-
Touring to afford relief; and the first thing to be
tried is, by gentle friction and pressure of the
hand upwards and downwards, to see and rid
the animal of the morsel. Falling in this, we
mention first the great virtue we have frequently
found in the use of mild lubricating fluids, sucli
as warm water and oil, well boiled gruel, «Scc.
The gruel is grateful to the animal, which fre-
quently tries to gulp it, and often succeeds.
Whether this is owing to the lubrication of the
parts, or to the natural action superinduced, it is
unnecessary to inquire ; but the fact vve know,
that a few pints of warm gruel have often
proved successful in removing the obstruction.
Jf this remedif should he ineffectual, the foreign
body may perhaps be within the reach of the
small hand which a kind dairy-maid may skil-
fully lend for the purpose. Jf this good service
cannot be procured, the common probang must
be used, the cup-end being employed. Other
and more complicated instruments have been
invented, acting upon various principk>s, — some,
for example, on that of bruising the obstructing
body — and the use of these requires considerable
skill. Disappointed in all, we must finally have
recourse to the knife."* You may try all these
remedies, with the exception of the knife, with
perfect confidence. The friction, the gruel, the
hand, and the probang, I have successfully tried ;
but the use of the knife should be left to the
practical skill of the veterinary surgeon.
1379. The common pruhang is represented in
fig. 102, a being the cup-end, which is so formed
that it may partially lay hold of the piece of
turnip or potato, and not slip between it and the
gullet, to the risk of rupturing the latter ; and
being of larger diameter than the usual state of
Fig. 102.
0
the gullet, on being pressed forward it distends
the gullet, and makes room for
the obstructing body to proceed
to the stomach. Formerly the
probang was covered with cane,
but is now with India-rubber,
which is more pliable, it is used
in this manner : Let the piece of
wood, fig. 103, be placed over
the opened niuuth ot the animal
as a bit, and the straps of
leather attached to it buckled
tightly over the neck behind the
horns, to keep the bit steady in
its place. The use of the bit is,
not only to keep the month open
without trouble, but to prevent
the animal injuring the ))robang
with its teeth, and it offers the
most direct passage for the pro-
bang towards the throat. Let a
few men seize the animal on both
sides by the horns or otherways,
and let its mouth be held jjroject-
ing forward in an easy position,
but no fingers introduced into the
nostrils to obstruct the breath-
ing of the animal, nor the tongue
forcibly pulled out of the side of
the mouth. Introduce now the
cup-end a of the probang, fig.
1 02, thriiugh the round hole 6 of
the mouth-piece, fig. 103, and
push it gently towards the throat
until you feel the piece of the
turnip obstructing you; push then with a firm
and persevering hand,
cautioning the men, pre-
vious to the push, to hold
on firmly — tor the start-
n : of the piece of tur-
nip by the instrument
may give the animal a
smart pain, and cause it
to wince and even leap
a-icie. The obstruction
w:ll now most liki-'l) give
way, especially if the
ojieration ha^ been per-
formed before the parts
around it began to swell;
but if not, the probang must be used with still
more force, whilst another person rubs with his
hands up and down upon the distended thi'oat of
the beast. If these attempts fail, recourse must
be had to the knife, and a veterinary surgeon sent
for instantly.
1380. The probang, fig. 102, is 5 feet 1 inch in
length, three-quarters of an inch in diameter,
with pewter cup and ball ends 1^ inch diameter.
The mouth-piece, fig. 103, is .'> inches long and 3
inches wide, with two handles, 5 inches long
each. Price of the probang is 12s., and with the
mouth-piece 14s.
THE lATI'I.;
rRonAN<i.
Fi?. 10.3.
THK MOl'TH-I'IECE FDR
THK CATTLB PROB.iNG.
1381. Horen. — The hoven in cattle is the
corresponding disease to the gripes or batts in
Dick's Manual of Veterinary Science, p. 46.
FEEDING CATTLE ON TURNIPS IN WINTER.
297
horses. The direct cause of the symptom's are
undue accumulation of gases in the paunch or
large stomach, which, not finding a ready vent,
causes great pain and uneasiness to the animal,
and, if not removed in time, rapture of the paunch
and death ensue. The cause of accumulation
of the gases is indigestion. " The structure of the
digestive organs of cattle," says Professor Dick,
" renders them peculiarly liable to the complaint,
whilst the sudden changes to which they are ex-
posed in feeding prove exciting causes. Thus,
it is often witnessed in animals removed from
confinement and winter feeding to the luxuriance
of the clover field ; and in house-fed cattle, from
the exhibition of rich food, such as pease-meal
and beans, often supplied" to enrich their milk.
We have already mentioned that it sometimes
proceeds from obstructed gullet. The symptoms
bear so close a resemblance, both in their pro-
gress and termination in rupture and death, to
those so fully described above, that we shall not
repeat them. The treatment mostly corresponds,
and it must be equally prompt. The mixture of
the oils of linseed and turpentine is nearly a
specific."* The recipe is, linseed oil, raw, 1 lb. ;
oil of turpentine, from 2 to 3 oz. ; laudanum,
from 1 to 2 oz., for one dose : or hartshorn,
from 4 to 1 oz., in 2 pints imperial of tepid water.
In cases of pressing urgency, from 1 to 2 oz. of
tar may be added to -| pint of spirits, and given
diluted, with great prospect of advantage. These
medicines are particularly effective in the early
stage of the disease, and should therefore be
tried on the first discovery of the animal being
affected with it. Should they not give imme-
diate relief, the probang may be introduced into
the stomach, and be the means of conveying
away the gas as fast as it is generated ; and I
have seen it successful when the complaint was
produced both by potatoes and clover ; but I
never saw an instance of hoven from turnips,
except from obstruction of the gullet. The trial
of the probang is useful to show whether the
complaint arises from obstruction or otherwise,
for should it pass easily down the throat, and
the complaint continue, of course the case is a
decided one of hoven. Placing an instrument,
such as in fig. 103, across the mouth, to keep it
open, is an American cure which is said never to
have failed. But the gas may be generated so
rapidly that neither medicines nor the probang
maybe able topreventorconveyit away, in which
case the apparently desperate remedy of paunch-
ing must be had recourse to. " The place for
puncturing the paunch," directs Professor Dick,
" is on the left side, in the central point between
the lateral processes of the lumbar vertebra, the
spine of the ileum, and the last rib. Here the
truchar may be introduced without fear. If air
escape rapidly, all is well. The canula may re-
main in for a day or two, and on withdrawal,
little or no inconvenience will usually manifest
itself If no gas escapes, we must enlarge the
opening freely, till the hand can be introduced
into the paunch, and its contents removed, as we
have sometimes seen, in prodigious quantities.
This done, we should close the wound in the
divided paunch with 2 or 3 stitches of fine cat-
gut, and carefully approximate and retain the
sides of the external wound, and with rest, wait
for a cure, which is often as complete as it is
speedy. "f To strengthen your confidence in the
performance of this operation, I may quote a
medical authority on its safe effects, on the human
subject, even to the extent of exposing the intes-
tines as they lay in the abdomen. " I should
expect no immediately dangerous effects from
opening the abdominal cavity. Dr Blundell has
stated, that he has never in his experiments
upon the rabbit observed any marked collapse
when the peritoneum was laid open, although in
full expectation of it. The great danger to be
apprehended is from inflammation, and the
surgeon, of course, will do all in his power to
guard against it."t I once used the trochar
with success in the case of a Skibo stot which
had been put on potatoes from turnips, and as he
was in very high condition, took a little blood
from him after the operation, and he recovered
very rapidly. In another year I lost a fine one-
year-old short-horn quey by hoven, occasioned
by potatoes. Oil and turpentine were used, but
as the complaint had remained too long, before
it was notified to myself, late at night, the
medicine had no effect. The probang went down
easily, proving there was no obstruction. The
trochar was then thrust in, but soon proved
ineffectual ; and as I had not the courage to use
the knife to enlarge the opening the trochar had
made, and withdraw the contents of the paunch
by the hand, the animal sank, and was imme-
diately slaughtered. The remedies cannot be
too soon applied in the case of hoven.
1382. The irocAar is represented in fig. 104.
It consists of a round rod of iron a, 5 inches in
Fig. 104. length, terminating
at one end in a tri-
angular pyramidal-
shaped point, and
furnished with a
wooden handle at
the other. The rod
is sheathed in a cy-
lindrical cover or
case 6, called the
canula, which is open
at one end, permit-
ting the point of the
rod to project, and
THE TROCHAR. fumished at the
other with a broad
circular flange. The canula is kept tight on
the rod by means of a slit at its end nearest
the point of the rod, which, being somewhat larger
in diameter than its own body, expands the
slitted end of the canula until it meets the body,
when the slit collapses to its ordinary dimen-
sions, and the canula is kept secure behind the
enlarged point, as at c. On using the trochar,
in the state as seen in c, it is forced with a
thrust into the place pointed out above, through
* Dick's Manual of Veterinary Science, p. 54. f Ibid. 54-5.
X Stephens On Obstructed and Inflamed Hernia, p. 183-4.
298
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the skin into the paunch ; and on withdrawing
the rod by its handle, — which is easily done,
notwithstanding the contrivance to keep it on, —
tlie cannla is left in the opening, and retained in
its place by the flange, to permit the gas to
escape through the channel. On account of the
distended state of the skin, the trochar may
rebound !rom the thrust ; and in such an event,
a considerable force must be used to penetrate
the skin. The spear of the trochar is 5 inches
long, and the handle 4 inches, and price 3s. 6d.
1,383. The fardlebound of cattle and sheep is
notliing more than a modification of the disease
in hur.-es called stomach-staggers, which is
caused by an enormous distention of the stomach.
*• In this variety, it has been ascertained," says
Professor Dick, " that the manipHes are most
involved, its secretions are suspended, and its
contents become dry, hard, and caked into one
solid mass. Though the constipation is great,
yet there is sometiiue:^ the appearance of a sliglit
purging, which may deceive the practitioner."*
The remedial measures are, at first, to relieve
the stomach by large drenches of warm water,
by the use of the stomach-pump. Searching
and stimulating laxatives are then given, assisted
by clysters, and then cordials.
1384. Warts and angle-berries are not uncom-
mon excrescences upon cattle. They are chiefly
confined to the groin and belly. I have fre-
quently removed them by ligature with waxed
silk thread. Escharotics have great efficacy in
removing them ; such as alum, bluestone, corro-
sive sublimate.
1385. Encyfted tumours sometimes appear on
cattle, and may be removed by simple incision,
having no decided root or adhesion. 1 had a one-
year-old shurt-horu qiiey that had a large one
upon the front of a hind foot, immediately above
the coronet, which was removed by a veterinary
surgeon by simple incision. What the true cause
of its appearance may have been, I cannot say ;
but the quey, when a calf, was seen to kick its
straw rack violently with' the foot affected, and
was lame in consequence for a few days ; after
which, a small swelling made its appearance
upon the place, which, gradually enlarging, be-
came the loose and unsightly tumour which was
removed.
1386. A gray-coloured scabby eruption, vul-
garly called the ticker, sometimes comes out on
young cattle on the naked skin around the eye-
lids, and upon the uo>e between and above the
nostrils. It is considered a sign of thriving, and
no doubt it makes its appearance most likely on
beasts that are improving from a low Stat€ of
Condition. It may be removed by a few appli-
cations of sulphur ointment.
1387. In winter, when cows are heavy in calf,
some are troubled with a complaint commonly
called a coming dotrn of the calf-led. A part of
the womb is seen to protrude through the vagi-
nal passage when the cow lies down, and disap-
pears when she stands up again. It is supposed
to originate after a very severe labour. Ban-
dages have been recommended, but, in the case of
the cow, they would be troublesome, and indeed
are unnecessary ; for if the litter is made firm
and a little higher at the back than the front
part of the stall, so as the hind-quarter of the
cow shall be higher than the fore when lying,
the protrusion will not occur. I had a cow that
was troubled with this inconvenience every year,
and as she had no case of severe labour while in
my possession, I do not know whether, in her
case, it was occasioned by such a circumstance ;
but she may have been sold on account of that
complaint, which gave her no uneasiness, alter
the above preventive remedy was resorted to.
1388. It not unfrequently happens to cattle
in large courts, and more especially to those in
the court nearest the corn-barn, that an oat-
chafiFgets into oue of their eyes in a windy djy.
An irritation immediately takes place, causing
copious watering from the eye, and, if the cbaff
is not removed, a considerable inflammation
and consequent pain soon ensue, depriving the
sufferer of the desire for food. To have it re-
moved, let the animal be firmly held by a number
of men, — and as beasts are particularly jealous of
having any thing done to their eyes, a young
beast even will require a number of men to hold
it fast. The wetted forefinger should then be
gently introduced under the eyelid, pushed in
as far as it can go, and being moved round
upon the surface of the eye-bull, is brought to
its original position, and then carefully with-
drawn, and examined, to see if the chafi" has
been removed along with it, which it most likuly
will be ; but if not, repeated attempts will succeed.
A thiji handkerchief around the finger will secure
the extraction at the firtit attempt. Fine salt or
snuff" have been recommended to be blown into
the eye when so affected, that the consequent
increased discharge of tears may float away the
irritating substance ; but the assistance of t!ie
finger is much less painful to the animal, and
sooner over, — and as it is an operation I have fre-
quently performed with undeviating success, I
can attest its efficacy and safety. Another re-
medy recommended is, to take an awn of barley,
and, on seeing the position of the chaff", to use
its butt-end to take hold of it, which, it is said,
it will do, by drawing the awn towards you
against its serrated teeth ; and, I have no doubt,
cures have been eff"ected with it ; but, to secure
its success, a barley awn must be at hand,
which it may not be at the time, and in using
it, should the animal give a start and break the
awn and leave it in the eye, the cure would be
worse than the cause of the complaint.
ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF STABLES FOR
FARM-HORSES.
1389. With the exception of a few
weeks in summer, when they are at grass,
Dick's Manual of Veterinary Science, p. 57.
CONSTEUCTION OF STABLES FOR FARM-HORSES.
299
farm-horses occupy tlieir stable all the
year round. The stable is situate at 0,
Plate T., where its front elevation, with
two doors and two windows, is seen sur-
mounted with two ventilators, as fiir- 81, on
the roof. The plan of it is seen at O, Plate
II., containing 12 stalls and a loose box.
1390. The lenirth of a work-horse stable,
of course, depends on the number of horses
employed on tlie farm ; but in no instance
should its width be less than 18 feet, for
comfort to the horses themselves, and con-
venience to the men who take charge of
them. This plan being made for a definite
size of farm contains stalls for 1 2 hoi'ses,
with a loose box, the entire length being
84 feet. Few stables for work-horses are
made wider than 16 feet, and hence few
are otherwi.■^e than hani)'ered for room.
A glance at the jTivtit-iilnrs wMiich should
be accommodated \\\ the widtli of a work-
horse stable, will show you at once the
inconvenience of this narrow breadth.
The length of a work-horse is seldom less
than 8 feet ; the Avidth of a hay-rack is
about 2 feet ; the harness hanging loosely
against the wall occupies about 2 feet ;
and the gutter occupies 1 foot ; so
that in a -width of 16 feet there is
only a space of 3 feet left from the
heels of the horses to the harness, to pass
backward and forward, and wheel a bar-
row and use the shovel and broom. No
wonder, when so little room is given to
work in, that cleanliness is so much ne-
glected in farm-stables, and that much of
the dung and urine are left to be decom-
posed and dissipated by heat in the shape
of ammoniacal gas, to the probable injury
of the breathing and eyesight of the
horses, when shut up at night. To aggra-
vate the evil, there is very seldom a ven-
tilator in the roof; and the windows are
generally too small for the admission of
light and air; and what is still worse, a
hay-loft is placed inmied lately above the
horses' heads ; and, to render the condi-
tion of the stable as bad as possible, as
regards cleanliness, its walls are never
plastered, and their rough stones form
receptacles of dust and cobwebs.
1391. Some imagine that twelve horses
are too great a number in one stable, and
that 2 stables of 6 stalls each would be
better. Provided the stable is properly
ventilated, no injury can arise to a larger
than a smaller number of horses in it;
and there are practical inconveniences in
having 2 stables on a farm. Tliese are,
that neither the farmer nor farm-steward
can personally superintend the grooming
of iiorses in two stables ; that the orders
given to the 2)loughmen by the steward
must be repeated in both stables; and
that either all the ploughmen must be
collected in one of the stables to receive
their orders, or part of them not hearing
the orders given to the rest, there cannot
be that common understanding as to the
work to be done which should exist among
all classes of work-people on a farm.
1392. Another particular in which most
stables are improperly fitted up, is the
narrowness of the stalls, 5 feet 3 inches
being the largest space allowed for an
ordinary-sized work-horse. A narrow
stall is not only injurious to the horse
himself, by confining him peremptorily to
one position, in which he has no liberty
to bite or scratch himself, should he
feel so inclined, but it materially obstructs
the ploughman in the grooming and sup-
plying the horse with food. No work-
horse, in my opinion, should have a
narrower stall than 6 feet from centre to
centre of the travis, in order that he may
stand at ease, or lie down at pleasure with
comfort.
1393. It is a disputed point of what
form the hay-racks in a work-horse stable
should be. Tlie prevailing opinion may
be learned from the general practice,
which is to place them as high alj the
horses' heads, because, as it is alleged, the
horse is thereby obliged to hold up his
head, and he cannot then breathe upon
his food. Many better reasons, as I con-
ceive, may be adduced for placing the
racks low down. A work-horse does not
require to hold his head up at any time,
and much less in the stable, where he
should rest a-s much as he can. A low
rack permits the neck and head, in
the act of eating, to be held in the
usual position. He is not so liable to put
the hay among his feet from a low as
as from a high rack. His breath cannot
contaminate his food so much in a low as
in a high rack, inasmuch as the breath
naturally ascends ; and as breathing is
300
PRACTICE— WINTER.
eraployeH by the Lorse in choosing his
food by the sense of smell, he chooses his
food at pleasure from a low rack, whereas
he is first obliged to pull it out of the
high one before he knows he is to like
what he pulls. He is less fatigued eating
out of a low than from a high rack, every
mouthful having to be pulled out of the
latter, from its sloping position, by the
side of the mouth turned upwards. For
this reason mown grass is much more
easily eaten out of a low than a high rack.
And, lastly, I have heard of peas falling
out of the straw, when pulled out of a
high rack, into an ear of a horse, and
therein setting up a serious degree of in-
flammation.
13.94. The front rail of the lozc rack
should be made of strong hardwood, in
case the horse should at any time playfully
put his foot on it, or bite it when groomed.
The front of the r<*ck should be sparred,
for the admission of fresh air among the
food, and incline inwards at the lower end,
to be out of the way of the horses' fore-feet.
The bottom should also be sparred, and
raised at least 6 inches above the floor, for
the easy removal of the hay seeds that may
have passed through the spars. The man-
ger should be placed at the near end of
the rack, for the greater convenience of
supplying the corn. A spar of wood
should be fixed across the rack from the
front rail to the back wall, midway be-
tween the travis and the manger, to pre-
vent the horse tossing out the fodder
with the side of his mouth, which he will
sometimes be inclined to do when not
hungry. The riucf through which the
stall collar-shank passes, is fastened by a
staple to the hardwood front-rail. I have
seen the manger, in some new steadings,
made of stone, on the alleged plea that
stone is more easily cleaned than wood
after prepared food. I do not think wood
more difficult of being cleaned than stone,
when cleaned in a proper time after being
used. As ploughmen are proverbially
careless, the stone manger has perhajjs
been substituted on the supposition that
it will bear much harder usage than wood;
or perhaps the proprietors could obtain
stone cheaper from their own quarries
than good timber from abroad : but what-
ever may have been the reasons for pre-
ferring stone in such a situation, it has a
clumsy appearance and feels uncomfortable,
and is injurious to the horses' teeth when
they seize it suddenly in grooming, and
even work-horses will bite any object
when groomed ; and I suppose that stone
would also prove hurtful to their lips when
collecting their food at the bottom of the
manger.
1395. The best hiynl-posts of travises
are of cast iron, rounded in front, grooved
in the back as far as the travis-boards
reach, and run with lead at the lower ends
into stone blocks. These posts are most
durable and able to withstand the kicks
of the horses, some of whom always strike
out when groomed. When wooden posts
are used, they are fastened at the upper
ends to battens stretching across the stable
from the ends of the couple legs where
there is no hay-loft, and from the joists of
the flooring where there is, and sunk at the
lower ends in stone blocks placed in the
ground. The head-posts are divided into
two parte, which clasp the travis-boarda
between them, and are kept together with
screw-bolts and nuts, and their lower ends
are also sunk into stone blocks. Their
upper ends are fastened to the battens or
joists when the hind-posts are of wood.
The tracis-hoards are put endways into
the groove of tlie hind-post, and pass be-
tween the two divisions of the head-post
to the wall before the horses' heads ; and
are there raised with a sweep so high
as to prevent the horses putting their
heads over it.
1396. The/oor of all stables should be
made hard, to resist the action of the
horses' feet. That of a work-horse stable
is usually causewayed with small round
stones, imbedded in sand, such as are to
be found on the land or on the sea-beach.
This is a cheap but not good mode of pav-
ing. Squared blocks of whinstone (trap
rock, such as basalt, greenstone, &c.) an-
swer the purpose much better. Flags
make a smoother pavement for the feet
than either of these materials, and they
undoubtedly make a floor that can be kej>t
quite clean, as the small stones are apt to
retain the dung and absorb the urine
around them, which, on deC(tnipos!tion,
cause filth and a constant annoyance to
horses. To avoid this inconvenience in
a great degree, it is advisable to form the
CONSTRUCTION OF STABLES FOR FARM-HORSES.
301
gutter behind tbe horses' heels of hewn
freestone, containing a continuous channel,
along which the urine runs easily, and all
filth is completely swept away with the
broom. This channel sliould have a fall
of at least 1^ inch to the 10 feet of
length. But pavement makes too smooth a
floor for a work-horse stable ; and the
feet of work-horses are apt to slip upon
it: causewaying is therefore better for
such a stable. The causeway on both
sides should incline towards the gutter,
the rise in the stalls being 3 inches in all.
In some stables, such as those of the
cavalry and of carriers, the floor of the
stalls rise much higher than 3 inches; and
on the Continent, particularly in Holland,
I have observed it to be considerably more
than in any stables in this country. Some
veterinary writers say that the position of
the feet of the horse imposed by the rise,
does not throw an injurious strain on the
back tendons of the hind legs.* This may
be, but it cannot be denied that, in this
position, the toes are raised above the
heels much higher than on level ground.
I admit that a rise of 3 inches is necessary
in stalls in which geldings stand, as they
eject their water pretty far on the litter;
but in the case of mares, so great a rise is
unnecessary. It is indisputable that a
horse always prefers to stand on level
ground, when he is free to choose the
ground for himself, and much more ought
he to have level ground to stand on in a
stable, which is his place oi rest. It is no
argument in this case to call for instances
in which the horse has been lamed by
standing in a stall having a great de-
clivity; for the question is, not whether
or not the horse can be rendered lame, in
any degree or in any way, but how to
aff"ord the greatest ease, and even comfort,
to the work-horse while in the stable.
1397- Fig. 105 gives a view of the par-
ticulars of a stall for u-ork-/iorses, fitted
up with wooden travis-posts, which is yet
the common method: a a are the strono-
hind- posts; b b^ the head-posts, both sunk
into the stone blocks c c c c, and fastened to
the battens dd, stretching across the stable
from the wall e to the opposite wall ; //,
the travis-boards, let into the posts a ahy
grooves, and passing between the two divi-
sions of the posts bb; the boards are repre-
sented high enough to prevent .the horses
annoying each other ; (/ g are curb-stones
set between the hind and fore posts « and b.
to receive the side of the travis-boards in
grooves, and thereby secure them from
Fig. 105.
<ii \\\ 'M III !li _ \\\ I!!
A STALL FOR A WORK-HORSE STABLE.
decay by keeping them above the ac-
tion of the litter ; A is the sparred bot-
tom of the hay-rack, the upper rail of
which holds the ring i for the stall collar-
shank; k the corn-manger or trough; / the
bar across tlie rack, to prevent the horse
tossing out the fodder ; 7n the pavement
within the stall ; n the freestone gutter for
conveying away the urine to one end of the
stable ; o the pavement of the passage be-
hind the horses' heels; p are two parallel
spars fastened over and across the battens,
when there is no hay-loft, to support
trasses of straw or hay, to be given as
fooder to the horses in the evenings of
winter, to save the risk of fire in going at
night to the straw-barn or hay-house with
a liLdit.
Stewart's Stable Economy, p. 17.
302
PRACTICE— WINTER.
1398. I tliink it right also to give a
figure of a stall, furnislied with cast-iron
hind-posts, as in fig. 106. •
Fi?. 106.
A STALL WITH CAST-IRON HIND- POSTS.
1309. The roo/of a ?r(7rX;-stal)le should
always he open to the slates, and not only
60, hut have openings in its ridge, pro-
tected by ventilators, fig. 81 ; and such
are ahsolutely necessary for a work- horse
stable. It is distressing to tlie feelings to
inhale the air in some farm stables at night,
particularly in old steadings econoniicully
fitted up, which is not only warm from
confinement, moist fnmi breathing, and
stifling from sudorific odours, but cutting
to the breath, and pungent to the eyes,
from the volatilisation of ammonia. The
windows are seldom opened, and can
scarcely be so by disuse. The roof in
such a stable is like a suspended extin-
guisher over the half- stifled horses. This
evil is still further aggravated by a hay-
loft, the floor of which is extended over
and within a foot or less of the horses'
heads. Besides its inconvenience to the
horses, the hav in it, through nightly
roasting and fumigation, soon becomes
dry and brittle, and contracts a disagree-
able odour. The only remedy for all these
inconveniences is cianplete ventilation.
1400. Vent'iJat'ion. — The object of ven-
tilation, to anva]jartment wliich constitutes
the abode of animals, is to procure a con-
stant supply of air in suHicieut i)urity to
meet the demands of the anini.al economy.
The practice that has long prevailed, as
regards ventilation, seems to deny its uti-
lity, and to doubt the injury accompany-
ing its neglect. "• It is upwards of eiglit-
and-forty years," says Stewart, " since
James Clarke of Edinburgh protested
against close stables. He insisted they
were hot and foul,* to a degree incompat-
ible willi health, and he strongly recom-
mended that tliey should be aired in such
a manner as t(( have tliem always cool and
sweet. Previous to the publication of
Clarke's work, people never thought of ad-
mitting fresh air intoastalde ; they had no
notion of its use. In fact, thev regarded it
as highly pernicious, and did all they could
to exclude it. In those times the groom
shut up his stable at night, and was care-
ful to close every aperture by which a
breath of fresh air might find admission.
The keyhole and the threshold of the door
Mere not forgotten. The horse was con-
fined all night in a sort of hot-house; and,
in the morning, the groom was delighted
to find his stalde warm as an oven. He
did not perceive, or did not notice, that
the air was bad, charged with nmisture,
and with vapours more pernicious than
moisture. It was o})pressively warm, and
that was enough for him. He knew no-
thing about its vitiation, or about its in-
fluence upon the horses' health. In a
large crowded stable, where the horses were
in constant and laboi-ious work, there
would be much disease, — glanders, grease,
mange, blindness, couglis, and broken
wind would prevail, varied occasionally
by fatal inflammation. In another stable,
containing fewer horses, and those doing
little work, the principal diseases would be
sore throats, bad e^^es, swelled legs, and
inflamed lungs, or frequent invasions of
the influenza. Rut every thing on earth
would be blamed for tliem before a close
stable." Moreover, he observes, *" Tiie
evils of an impure atmosphere vary accord-
ing to several circumstances. The ammo-
niacal vapour is injurious to the eyes, to
the nostrils, and the throat. iStablos that
are both close and filthy are notorious for
producingbliudness, Couglis, ami inflamma-
tion of the nostrils; these arise from acrid
vapours alone. Tiiey are most common
in those dirty iiovels where the dung and
urine are allowed t<j accumulate for weeks
together. The air of a stable may be con-
CONSTRUCTION OF STABLES FOR FARM-HORSES. 309
taminated by union with animoniacal of 625 lbs., or it would heat 1 lb. of water
vapour, and yet be tolerably pure in 87,528 degrees. It would consume, at the
other respects. It may never be greatly same time, the enormous quantity of
deficient in oxygen ; but v.dien the stable 3o0,429 cubic inches of oxygen, or I91;j
is so close that the supply of oxygen is cubic feet of this gas; and as this amounts
deficient, other evils are added to those to one-fifth of the atmospheric air, we find
arising from acrid vapours. Disease, in a that a cow, consuming 6 lbs. of carbon for
visible form, may not be the immediate respiratory purposes, would require 956^
result. The horses may perform their cubic feet of atmospheric air, a sufficient
work and take their food, but they do not indication of the immense importance of a
look well, and they have not the vigour free ventilation in cow-houses, and of the
of robust health; — some are lean, hide- dangerofover-crowding,if the animals are
bound, having a dead dry coat, — some expected to retain a healthy condition."*
have swelled legs, some mange, and
some grease. All are spiritless, lazy 1402. Here are data furnished of the
at work, and soon fatigued. They may quantity of air required to be admitted
have the best of food, and plenty of it, into a byre, for the necessary use, daily, of
and their work may not be very labo- a single cow of ordinary size. How, then,
rious, yet they always look as if hatf is this large quantity of fresh air to be
starved, or shamefully overwrought, admitted into a byre, when all the doors
When the influenza comes among them, it and window^s are shut? This question
spreads fast, and is difficult to treat. Every involves and presupposes another, namely,
now and then one or two of the horses be- How is as large a quantity of vitiated air
come glandered and farcied." to be expelled from the byre ? — for this
must first take place ere a ventilation
1401. In order to show in a striking through the byre can be maintained. The
light the necessity there exists of using popular notions, however, regarding veu-
means to promote ventilation in all tilation are very indefinite; as Mr Stewart
places occupied by animals, it may, observes, "Most people do not imagine
perhaps, be done in the best manner by that one set of apertures is required to
stating the estimated quantity of air carry away the foul, and another to admit
wdiich is vitiated every day by a cow of the pure air. Even those who know that
ordinary size. Dr Robert D. Thomson, one set cannot answer both purposes in a
after showing that the large quantity of perfect manner, are apt to disregard any
carbon, 6,172 lbs., daily taken by a cow provision for admitting fresh air. They
in its food, is employed for a purpose say there is no fear but sufficient will find
totally distinct from proper nutrition, its way in somehow, and the bottom of the
proceeds to say, — "We are at present door is usually pointed to as a very good
acquainted with only one other purpose inlet. It is clear enough, that while air
for which the carbon of the food can be is going out, some also must be coming in,
employed, viz., the generation of animal and that if none go in, little or none can
heat tiiroughout the body, a function un- go out. To make an outlet without any
doubtedly carried on, not only in the inlet betravs ignorance of the circura-
lungs, but also througimut the entire ca- stances which produce motion in the air.
pillary system of tlie skin, at least in man To leave the inlet to chance, is just as much
and perspiring animals. If this view be as to say that it is of no consequence in what
correct, then it follows that upwards of direction the fresh air is admitted, or
6 lbs. of carbon are expended by a cow whether any be admitted. The outlets
daily in the production of animal heat, niay also serve as inlets ; but then they
And as 1 lb. of carbon, when combined must be much larger than when they
with the necessary amount of oxysen to serve only one purpose, and the stable,
form carbonic acid, gives out as much heat without having purer air, must be cool or
as would melt 104-2 lbs. of ice, it is evi- cold. Wlien the external atmospi:ere is
dent that the quantity of ice capable of colder than that in the stable, it enters at
being melted by the heat generated by a the bottom of the door, or it passes through
cow, in one day, would amount to upwards the lowest apertures, to supply and fill the
* Thomson's liesearches into the Food of Animals, p. 113-114.
304
PRACTICE— WDsTER.
place of that which is escaping from the
higli apertures. If there be no low open-
ings, tlie cooler air will enter from above —
it willform acurrentinwardsat theoue side,
while the warmer air forms another cur-
rent, setting outwards at the other side.
But when tiie upper apertures are of small
size, this will not take place till the air
inside becomes very warm or hot."* So
little do many people see the necessity of
ventilation, that they cannot distinguish
between the warm air and the foul air of
a stable ; and, consequently, if the admis-
sion of fresh air is wanted to expel the
foul, they immediately conclude it must be
cold, and do harm. Now, it is the proper
action of ventilation to let away all, and
no more of the warm air of a stable, than
■what is foul, and then, of course, no more
than the same quantity of fresh air can
find its way into it.
1403. A ready means of letting out the
foul air from a stable, is by a number of
ventilators, such as is described at fig. 81,
situate on the ridge of the roof; and one
means of admitting fresh air below, is by
the windows when they are open ; but
when they are shut, other means must be
supplied. As doors and windows are
usually situated in farm-stables, the fresh
air should not be allowed to enter by them
through the night ; they should therefore
be made tight. Fresh air coming directly
from the doors or windows towards the
nostrils of a horse, must pass either over
his body, or first strike against his limbs —
in either case doing more injury than good.
The fresh air should come in near the
horses' nostrils, where it is really required
to be breathed in. An opening through
the head wall of the stable, a ie'w feet
above the horse's head, seems the tnost
convenient and proper place for the air to
find its way. For the supply of every
horse alike, an opening should be made
above the head of each horse ; and being
so numerous, they should be small. I
cannot particularise the size, as that must
depend on many circumstances, — the
number of horses, contents of the stable,
tightness of the doors and windows, and
suchlike. The air, on entering, being
colder than that in the stable, will fall
downwards, and so retard the velocity of
its entrance ; the openings should be pro-
vided with a covering of perforated plates
of zinc; and should the current be still too
strong, let it strike against a board fastened
to the wall, and so ])laced as to cause the
air to be reflected upwards before it de-
scends. Experience will soon adjust the
various parts of the means of ventilation
to their proper relative proportions.
1404. The windows of steadings should
be of tlie form for the purpose they are
intended to be used. On this account
the windows of stables, and of other apart-
ments, should be of ditferent forms. I
have already given the forms of those for
byres, &c., in
Fig. 107. figs. 77 and 78.
Fig. ] 07 repre-
sents a window
for a stable. The
opening is 4|feet
in height by 3
feet in width.
The frame-work
is composed of a
dead part a, of 1
foot in depth, 2
shutters b b to
open on hinges,
and fasten in-
side with a thumb-catch, and c a glazed
sash 2 feet in height, with 3 rows of
panes. The object of this form of win-
dow is, that generally a number of small
articles are thrown upon tlie sole of a
work-horse stable window, such as short-
ends, straps, &c., which are only used
occasionally, and intended to be at
hand when wanted. The consequence
of this confused mixture of things, which
it is not easy for the farmer to prevent,
especially in a busv season, is, that wlren
the shutters are desired to be opened, it is
scarcely possible to do it without first
clearing the sole of every thing ; and,
rather than find another place for them,
the window remains shut. A cupboard in
a wall sug'gests itself for containing such
small articles ; but in the only wall,
namely, the front one of the stable, in
which it would be convenient to make
such a cupboard, its surface is occupied
by the harness hanging against it ; and
besides, no orders, however peremptory,
will prevent such articles being at busy
times thrown upon the window-soles; and
A STABLE WINDOW.
* Stewart's Stable Economy, pp. 35, 43, and 51.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE STEADING FOR FARM-HORSES.
305
where is the harm of their lying there at
hand, provided the windows ai"e so con-
structed as to admit of being opened when
desired ? When a dead piece of wood, as a,
is put into such windows, small things may
remain on tlie sole, while tlie shutters b b
may be easily opened and shut over
them.
1405. The harness should all be hung
against the wall behind the horses, and
none on the posts of the stalls, against
which it is too frequently placed, to its
great injury, in being constantly kept in a
damp state by the horses' breath and per-
spiration, and apt to be knocked dov/u
among their feet. A good way is to sus-
pend harness upon stout hardwood pins
driven into a strong narrow board, fastened
to the wall with iron holdfasts; but per-
haps the most substantial way is to build
the pins into the wall, when a new stable
is building. The harness belonging to
each pair of horses should just cover a
space of the wall equal to the breadth of
the two stalls which they occupy, and
when windows and doors intervene, and
which of course must be left free, this
arrangement requires some consideration.
I have found this a convenient one : A
spar of hardwood nailed firmly across
the upper edge of the batten d^ fig. ] 05,
that supports both posts of the stall, will
suspend a collar on each end, high enough
above a person's head, immediately over
the passage. One pin is sufficient for each
of the cart-saddles, one will support both
the bridles, while a fourth will suffice for
the plough, and a fifth for the trace
harness. Thus 5 pins or 6 spaces will be
required for each pair of stalls ; and in a
stable of 12 stalls — deducting a space of
13 feet for 2 doors and 2 windows in such
a stable — there will still be left, according
to this arrangement, a space for the har-
ness of about 18 inches between the pins.
Iron hooks driven into the board betwixt
the pins will keep the cart-ropes and
plough-reins by themselves. The curry-
comb, hair-brush, and foot-picker, may be
conveniently enough hung up high on the
hind-post, betwixt the pair of horses to
which they belong, and the mane-comb is
usually carried in the ploughman's pocket.
When the hind-posts are of cast-iron, as
recommended already, these small articles
cannot be hung upon them ; and in such a
VOL. I.
case, there being no batten to suspend the
collars from, hooks must be suspended
from the couple legs to hang the collars
upon.
140(5. Each horse should be bound to
his stall with a leather stall-collar, hav-
ing an iron-chain collar-shank to play
through the ring i of the hay-rack, fig.
105, with a turned wooden sinker at its
end, to weigh it to the ground. Iron
chains make the strongest stall collar-
shanks, though certainly noisy when in
use ; yet work-horses are not to be trusted,
with the best hempen cords, which often
become affected with dry rot, and are, at
all events, soon apt to wear out in running
through the smoothest stall-rings. A
simple stall-collar with a nose-band, and
strap over the head, is sufficient to secure
most horses ; but as some acquire the trick
of slipping the strap over their ears, it is
necessary to have either a throat-lash in
addition, or a simple belt around the neck.
Others are apt, when scratching their
neck with the hind-foot, to pass the fet-
lock joint over the stall collar-shank, and,
finding themselves entangled, to throw
themselves down in the stalls, bound neck
and heel — there to remain unreleased until
the morning, when the men come to the
stable. By this accitlent I have seen
horses get injured in the head and leg for
some time. A short stall collar-shank is
the only preventive against such an acci-
dent, and the low rack admits of its being
constantly in use.
1407. Besides the ordinary stalls, a
loose-box will be found a useful adjunct to
a work-horse stable. A space equal to
two stalls should be railed off at one
end of the stable, as represented in the
plan, Plate II. It is a convenient place
into which to put a work-mare when ex-
pected to foal. Some mares indicate so
very faint symptoms of foaling, that they
frequently are known to drop their foals
under night in the stable — to the great
risk of the foal's life — where requisite
attention is not directed to the state of
the mare, or where there is no spare
apartment to put her in. It is also suit-
able for a young stallion, when first
taken up and preparing for travelling
the road ; as also for any young draught-
horse, taken up to be broke for work.
306
PRACTICE— WINTER.
nntil lie becmiie accustomed to the stable.
Itniiirlit also be, when unfortunately so re-
quired, converted into a temporary hos-
pital for a horse, which, when seized
with complaint, might be put into it
until it is ascertained whether or not
the disease is infectious, and if so, removed,
to the proper hosj)ital. Some peoj»le
object to having a loose-box in the
stable, and would rather have it out of
it ; but the social disposition of the horse
renders such a place useful on such
occasions. It is, besides, an excellent
place to rest a fatigued horse for a few
days. It is also a good place for a foal
when its mother is obliged to be absent
at work in the fields, until both are turned
out to grass.
1408. The hay-house should be adjoin-
ing the work-horse stable, as at H, Plate
II. It is 18 feet in length, 17 feet in
width, and its roof is formed of the floor
of the granary above. Its floor should be
flagged with a considerable cpiautity of
sand to keep it dry, or with asphaltutn.
It should have a giblet-checkod outer
door to open outwards, with a hand-bar to
fasten it on the inside ; it should also have a
partly glazed window, witli shutters, to
aftord light, when taking out the hay to
the horses, and air to keep it sweet. As
the hav-house communicates immediately
with the work-horse stable by a door, it
may find room for the work-horse corn-
chest, which may there be conveniently
supplied with corn from the granary above,
by means of a spout let iiitotlie fixed part
of the lid. For facilitating tlie taking out
of the corn, the end of the chest should be
placed against the wall at the side of the
door which opens into the stable, and its
back jiart boarded with thin deals up
to the granary floor, to prevent the
hay coming upon the lid of the chest.
The walls of the hay-house should be
plastered.
1409. The form of the corn-chest is
more convenient, and takes up less room
on the floor when high and narrow than
when low and broad, as in fig. 108, which
is 5 feet long and 4.^ feet higii at the back
above the feet. A part of the front b folds
down with hinges, to give easier access to
the corn as it gets low in the chest. Part
fo the lid is made fast, to receive the spout
rf, for conveying the corn into it from the
granary, and to render its movable part a
lighter, and this is fastened with a hesp
and padlock, the key of which should be
Fig. 108.
THE CORN-CHEST FOR THE WORK-HOIISES.
constantly in the custody of the farm-
steward, or of the person who gives out
the corn to the ploughmen, where no farm-
steward is kept : c is the corner of the
doorway into the work-horse stable, and
e is the boarding behind to prevent the hay
falling on the lid. A fourth ])art of a peck
measure is always kept m the chest for
mea-suring out tlie corn to the horses. You
must not imagine that because the spout
snp})lies corn from the granary when re-
(]uired, that it supplies it without measure.
The corn ajipiopriated for the hoi-ses is
jireviouslv measured ofi" on the granary
floor, in any convenient quantity, and then
shovelled down r,he spout at times to fill
the cliest. A way to ascertain the quan-
tity of corn at any time in the chest is to
mark lines on the inside of the client indi-
cative of every quarter of corn which it
contains. In some parts of the country
tlie corn for the horses is put into small
corn chests, one of which is given in charge
to every })loiiglinian, who kee])S the key,
and supplies his lua-ses with corn at state<l
times. The small chests are generally
jilaced at hand in the stable within the
bays of the windows, and in reoe.-<se8
made on purpose in the wall. A certain
quantity of corn is put into each chest at
the same time, which is to last the ])air
of horses a certain uumber of days. This
treat:mext of farm-horses ix winter.
307
plan may save the steward or some
other person the trouble of giving out corn
to the horses every day, but it places it
too rauch in the power of the ploughmen
to defraud the horses of their corn, and
appropriate it for their own purposes ; and
it is an inconvenient plan when at any
time it is proper to give a particular horse,
or pair of horses, a little more corn than
usual, for some extra work performed by
them. There cannot be a safer measure
in conducting any farm, than to confine
every class of work-people to the perform-
ance of their own proper duties.
ON THE TREATMENT OF FARM-HORSES IN
WINTER.
1 410. Farm-horses are under the imme-
diate charge of the ploughmen, one of
wiiora works a pair, and keeps possession
of them generally during the whole period
of his engagement. This is a favourable
arrangement for the horses, working more
steadily under the guidance of the same
driver than when changed into different
hands ; and it is also better for the plough-
man himself, as he performs his work most
satisfactorily to himself, as well as his
employer, with horses familiarised to him.
In fact, the man and his horses must be-
come acquainted before they can under-
stand each other; and when the peculiar
temj)ers of each party are mutually under-
stood, work becomes more easy to both,
and more attention is bestov,-ed upon it.
Some horses show great atta.chment to
their driver, and will do whatever he de-
sires without hesitation ; others show no
particular regard: and great ditierences
may be remarked of ploughmen towards
their horses. Upon the whole, there exists
a good understanding in this country be-
tween the ploughman and his horses; and,
independently of this, few masters are dis-
posed to allow their horses to be ill treated,
and there is no occasion for it ; as horses
which have been brought up on a farm, in
going through the same routine of work
every year, become so well acquainted
with what they have to do, that, when a
misunderstanding arises between them and
their driver, you may safely conclude that
the driver is in the wrong.
1411. The treatment which farm-horses
usually receive in winter is this: — The
ploughmen, when single, get up and break-
fast before day-break, and then go to the
stable, where the first thing they do is to
take out the horses to the water. The
usual place at which horses drink is at the
horse-pond ; and should ice prevent them,
it must be broken. To horses out of a
warm stable, water at the freezing point
cannot be palatable ; and yet it is not
easy to devise a better plan — for though
the purest water were provided in a trough,
it would be as liable to freeze as in a pond;
and to have twopailfuls of water thawing
all night in the stable, for each pair of
horses, is an expense which no farmer will
incur, and which, besides, would limit the
drink to the horses. The only other plan
is to have a cistern within the stable, from
which the water could be dravrn in pail-
fuls in the morning; but still the giving
every pair of iiorses water fi-om a cistern
from the same pails would cause some loss
of time, and the cistern would become
useless in mild v.eather. As matters are
arranged at present, the horses are taken
to the pond to drink, and brought back to
the stable to receive their morning allow-
ance of corn. From habit, however, the
horses do not require to be led to and from
the pond, one of the men only seeing they do
not wander or hiiter away their time : and
while the horses are out of the stable, the
rest of the men take the opportunitj' of
removing the dung and soiled litter made
daring the night into the nearest court-
yard, with their shovels, fig. S3, wheel-
barrow, fig. S7, and besom.
1412. While the horses are still absent,
one of the ploughmen supplies each manger
with corn from the corn-chest, where the
steward is ready to deliver him the feed
appointed for each horse; or every man
takes to him his pair of nose-bags, and
receives the supply of corn for his own
horses before beginning to clean out the
stable ; or the steward himself puts the
corn into the mangers while the men are
employed in cleaning the stable. This
last plan, if the steward is provided with
a ligiit box beside the corn-measure, to
carry two feeds at a time, saves most time,
which, in a short winter's morning, is of
some consequence. On the return of the
horses to the stable from the water, they
find their mangers plenished with corn —
308
PRACTICE— TVIXTER.
and it is scarcely worth while binding
them with the stall-collars, if the men re-
main in the stable, and go to work when-
ever the horses have finished their corn ;
but this seems the best time for the men
to take their breakfast, ami which married
men usually do— and in quitting the stable,
they put the stall-c(dlars on the horses,
and leave them in quietness to eat their
com. It is not an unusual practice to
curry and wisp the horses, and to put
the harness on them while engaged with
their corn ; but this should never be al-
lowed. Let the horses eat their food in
peace, and many of them, from sanguine
temperament or greed, cannot divest them-
selves of the feeling that they are about to
be taken from their corn when handled
during the time of feeding. The harness
can be quickly enough put on after the
feed is eaten, as well as the curry-comb
and brush used, and the mane and tail
combed. An allowance of a little time
between eating their com and going to
work is of advantage to the horses, as
work, especially when severe, undertaken
with a distended stomach, is apt to bring
on an attack of batts or colic.
1413. Men and horses continue at work
until 12 noon, when they come home — the
horses to get a drink of water and a feed
of Corn, and the men their dinner. Some
keep the harness on the horses during this
short interval, but it should be taken off,
to allow both horses and harness to cool —
and at any rate the horses will be much
more comfortable without it — and it
can be taken off and put on again in a few
seconds, and the oftener the men are
exercised in this way they will become the
more expert in putting it on and taking
it off.
1414. When the work is in a distant
field, rather than come home between
yokings, it is the practice of some farmers
to feed the horses in the field out of the
nose-bags, and the men to take their din-
ners with them, or be carried to them in
the field by their own people. This plan
may do for a day or two in good weather,
on a particular occa.sion ; but it is by no
means a good one for the horses, as no
mode gives them a chill more readily than
to cause them to stand on a head-ridge for
even half an hour in a winter dav, after
working some hours. A smart walk home
can do them no harm ; and if time really
presses for the work to be done, let the
horses remain a shorter time in the
stable. Tlie men themselves will be infi-
nitely more comfortable to have dinner at
home.
1 415. A practice exists in England, con-
nected with this subject, which I think
highly objectionable — that of doing a day's
work in one yoking. For a certain time,
horses, like men, will work with spirit;
but if the work endures beyond that time,
they not only lose strength, but spirit, and
in the latter i)art of the yoking work in a
careless manner. Horses kept for 7 or 8
hours at work must be injured in their
constitution, or execute work in the latter
part of the yoking badly, or receive extra-
ordinary feeding, any of which conse-
quences is symptomatic of bad manage-
ment. Common sense tells a man that it
is much better for a horse to be worked a
few hours smartly, and have his hunger
satisfied before feeling fatigue, when he
will again be able to work v»ith spirit,
than to be worked the entire number of
hours of the day without feeding. I see
no possible objection to horses receiving a
little rest and food in the middle of a long
day's work, but I perceive many and
serious ones to their working all day long
without rest and food.
1416. The men and horses come home
at mid-day, the usual dinner hour of agri-
cultural labourers, and the first thing done
is to give the horses a drink at the pond
on the way to the stal)le, and no washing
of legs should be allowed. From the water
the horses j)roceed to the stable, where.the
harness is taken off; and as the men have
nothing else to do, every one gets the corn
for his horses from the steward, at the
corn-chest, in nose-bags or a small box.
Of these two modes of carrying horse corn
in the stable, I prefer the trough, as being
most easily filled and emptie<l. The
horses are bound up, the stable door shut,
and the men go to their dinner, which
should be ready for them. After dinner
they return to the stable, when the horses
will have finished their feed, and a small
quantity of fresh straw — for at this tinie
farm-horses get no hay — will be well
relished. The men have a ievf minutes to
TREATMENT OP FARM-HORSES IN WINTER.
S09
spare until 1 p.m., when they should wisp
down the horses, put on the harness,
comb out the tails and manes, and be
ready to put on the bridles the moment 1
o'clock strikes, which is announced by the
steward.
1417. The afternoon yoking is short,
not lasting longer than sunset, which at
this season is before 4 p.m., when the
horses are brought home. After drinking
again at the pond, they are gently passed
through it below the knee, to wash oiF any
mud from their legs and feet, which they
can hardly escape collecting in winter.
In thus washing the horses, the men should
be prohibited wetting them above the
knees, which they are ready to do when
mud reaches the thighs and belly; and to
render the prohibition effectual, the liorse-
pond should not be deeper than to take a
horse to the knee. In wetting the belly
at this season, there is danger of contract-
ing inflammation of the bowels or colic ;
and to treat mares in foal in such a way
is highly imprudent. If the feet and
shanks are cleared of mud, it is all that is
requisite for washing in winter. On the
horses entering the stable, and having their
harness taken off, they should be well
strapped down by the men with a wisp of
straw. Usually two wisps are used, one
in each hand ; but the work is better done
with one, shifting the hand as occasion re-
quires. A couple of wisps may be used
to rub down the legs and clean the pas-
terns, rendering them as dry as a moderate
length of time will admit. The work
usually done at this time in the stable is
nearly in the dark, and farmers either
think there is no occasion for light in a
stable at this hour, or grudge the expense;
but either excuse is no justification for
doing any work in the stable in the dark.
In fact the steward ought to have a light
ready when the horses enter the stable,
and then every thing would be seen to be
done in a more satisfactory manner than
they generally are.
1418. After the horses are rubbed down,
the men go to the straw-barn, and bundle
each 4 windlings of fodder-straw, one to
be given to each horse just now, and the
other two to be put across the small fillets
/?, fig. 105, in the stable, when the stable
is fitted up as in this figure ; but if con-
strncted as in fig 106, the windlings may
remain in the straw-barn till wanted.
This preparation is made for the same
reason that the cattle-man stowed away
his windlings for the cows in the byre —
that the straw-barn may not be entered
with a light ; but the steward may enter it
safely with such a lantern as fig 89, to let
the men see to get the straw required just
now, both for fodder and litter The stable
has been without litter all day, since its
cleansing out in the morning, and the
horses have stood on the stones at mid-day.
This is a good plan for purifying the stable
during the day, and is not so much at-
tended to as it deserves. Sufficient litter-
straw is now brought in by the men from
the straw-barn, and shaken up to make
the stalls comfortable for the horses to lie
down. Leaving the horses with their
fodder, and shutting the stable doors, the
men retire to their homes, to whatever
occupation they please, until 8 p.m.,
the hour at which horses receive their
suppers.
1419. When 8 p.m. arrives, the steward,
provided with light in the lantern, sum-
mons the men to the stable to give the
horses a grooming for the night, and their
suppers. The sound of a horn, or ringing
of a bell, are the usual calls on the occa-
sion, which the men are ready to obey.
I may remark, In passing, that the sound
of a horn is pleasing to the ear in a calm
winter night — recalling to my mind the
goatherd's horn in Switzerland, pour-
ing out its mellow and impressive strains
at sunset — the time for gathering the
flock and herd together from the moun-
tain sides to their folds in the neighbour-
ing village. Lights are placed at con-
venient distances in the stable, to let the
men see to groom the horses. The groom-
ing consists first in currying the horse with
the curry-comb ^, fig. 109. to free him of
the dirt adhering to his skin, and which,
being now dry, is easily reraoA'ed. A wisp-
ing of straw removes the roughest of the
dirt loosened by the curry-comb. The
legs ought to be thoroughly wisped — not
only to make them clean, but dry of any
moisture that may have been left in the
evening; and at this time the feet should
be picked clear, by the foot-picker a, of
any dirt adhering between the shoe and the
foot. The brush c is then used, to remove
310
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the remaining and finer portions of dust
from tbe hair, and it is cleared from tlie
brush by a few rasj)s along the curry-comb.
The wisj/mg and brushing, if done with
some force and dexterity, with a coml)ing
of the tail and mane with the comb </,
Fig. 109.
iMg. 111.
wmr
THE CURRY-COMB, BRUSH, FOOT-PICKER, AND
MANE-COMB.
should render the horse pretty clean ; but
there are more ways than one of grooming
a horse, as may be witnessed by the skim-
ming and careless way in which some
ploughmen do it. It is true that the
rough coat of a farm-horse in winter is not
easily cleaned, and especially in a work-
Fig. 110. stable where much dust
floats about and no
horse-clothes are in use;
but, rough as it is, it
should be clean if not
sleek; and it is the duty
of the steward to ascer-
tain whether the groom-
ing has been efficiently
done. A slap of the
hand upon the horse will
soon letyou know the ex-
istence of the loose dust
in the hair. Attendance
at this time will give
you an insight into the
manner in which farm-
horses ought to bo
THE COMMON STRAW clcancd and generally
FORK. treated in the stable.
1420. The straw of the bedding is
then shaken up with a fork, such as in
fig. 110. This figure has ratlier longer
jiroiigs, and too sharp
for a stable fork, which
is most handy for shak-
ing up straw when about
5 feet in longtli, and least
1 dangerous of injuring
the legs of the hor.'^es by
puncture when in a
bluntedstate. The united
prongs terminate at tiieir
nj)])er end in a sort of
spike or tine, as seen in
fig. Ill, which is a steel
j)ronged fork of tlie form
used in Lincolnshire,
and is an excellent in-
strument for working
amongst straw, driven
THE LINCOLNSHIRE j^to ^ hoopcd ash shaft.
STEEL STRAW FORK, rr,, . i <•
lliis mode or mounting
a fork is much better than with socket and
nail, which are apt to become loose and
catch the straw.
1421. The hf)rses then get their feed of
oats, after which tiic lights are removed
and the stable doors barred and locked by
the stev/ard, who is custodier of the key.
In some stables abed is j)rovided for a lad,
that lie may be present to relieve any ac-
cident or illness that may befall any of the
horses; but, where the stalls are properly
constructed, there is little chance of any
horse strangling himself with the collar,
or of any becoming sick where a proper
ventilation is established.
1422. In winter it is customary to give
farm-horses a mash, once at least, and
sometimes thrice a-week. The mash con-
sists of steamed potatoes or boiled turnips,
boiled barley, oats or beans, mixed some-
times with bran, and seasoned with salt.
The articles are pre])ared in the stable
boilerd)ouse, Plate II., in the afternoon,
by the cattle-man, a field-worker, or
other person a]i]K)inted to do it, and put
into tubs, in which it is carried to the
stable by the men, and dealt out with a
shovel, for supper at night, in the troughs
used to carry the corn to the horses. It
is warm enough when the hand can bear
the heat. The (plant ity of coin put into
the boiler is as mncli as when given raw,
and in its preparation swells out to a con-
TREATMENT OF FARM-HORSES IN WINTER.
311
siderable bulk. The horses are exceedingly
fond of mash, and, when the night arrives
for its distribution, show unequivocal
symptoms of impatience to receive it.
1423. The quantity of raw oats given to
farm-horses, when on full feed, is 3 lippies
a-day, by measure, and not by weight ; but
taking horse-corn at almost the greatest
■weight of 40 lb. per bushel, each feed will
weigh 2 j lbs., the daily allowance amount-
ing to 11 J lbs.; but the lippy measure, when
horse-corn is dealt out, is most frequently
not striked, but heaped, or at least hand-
waved, so that the full allowance will
weigh even more than this. As horses
work only 7 or 8 hours a-day in winter,
their feeding is lessened to perhaps 2 full
feeds a-day or 7^ lbs., divided into three
portions — namely, a full feed in the morn-
ing, ^ a feed at mid-day, and ^ a feed at
night; and on the nights the mash is
given, the evening ^-feed of raw oats is
lot given. Some small farmers withdraw
the corn altogether from their horses in
the depth of winter, giving theui mashes
of some sort instead ; whilst others only
give them one feed a-day, divided at morn-
ing and noon, and a mash at night, or
raw turnips or potatoes at night. One of
the sorts of mash alluded to consists of
barley, or oat or wheat chafi", steeped for
some hours in cold water in a large cistern,
made for the purpose, and a little light
barley or oats sometimes put in, to give the
appearance of corn. But a greater decep-
tion than such a mess, in lieu of corn, cannot
be practised upon poor horses, — for what
support can be derived from chaff steeped
in cold water ? As well might the mess
be mixed up at once in the manger. No
doubt horses eat it, but only from hunger;
and when obliged to live upou it, exhibit
thin ribs, pot bellies, and long hair — charac-
teristics which bespeak poverty of condi-
tion. A neighbour farmer to myself,
faithfully as the winter came round, fed
his horses, as he phrased it, upon this
steep, and the consequence was, that they
went like snails at their work ; and when
returning home from delivering a load of
corn at the market-town, with even the
support of a half-feed of corn, one leg was
like to knock over another. A farm-
steward recommended this steep to me, as
effecting a great saving in corn, and showed
me a fine set of cisterns, made of pavement,
which he had advised his master, a landed
proprietor, to erect for the purpose of
making it. Instead of eulogising his fine
cisterns, I jtrojiosed to do any number of
days' work of any sort he pleaded with my
horses against his, on their res})ective modes
of feeding, and it would then be seen
which v.-as best able to support the horses in
working condition. He declined the trial,
as he had frequent opportunities of seeing
my horses pass his way with single carts,
stepping out at 4 miles an hour, with a
load out and home. No doubt the steep
is economical, in as far as saving in corn
is concerned ; but the saving is effected in
substituting bad food for good, and at the
expense of the horses' condition. One
season, as a mash, I tried steamed potatoes,
with salt alone, of which the liorsus were
excessively fond, and received three times
a- week, and on which they became sleek
in the skin, and fat, notwithstanding much
heavy work ; but in spring, when the long
days' field-work was resumed, they were
all affected by shortness of wind. Should
cooked potatoes necessarily have this effect
upon horses ? I may mention that oats
and barley, and every other species of
grain, when desired to be cot)ked, must
at least be nmcerated, and to do this effec-
tually icarni water nmst be used, so that
cold water cann<jt effectually draw out the
nourishing portion of grain.
1424. The price of a curry-comb ranges
from 8d. to Is. 6d. a-piece: brush, 3s.
6d. : mane-comb, 6d. : foot-jjicker. Is., and
one to fold for the pocket. Is. 6d. Shears
to trim the mane and tail, od. to Is. 4d.
Plain nose-bags. Is. 6d., with leather bot-
toms, 7s. each.
1425. I have often thought that the
usually careless manner of placing the
lights in the stable in the evening is highly
dangerous to the safety of the bi'ilding ;
and yet, in the most crowded and dirty
stables, no accidents of fire almost ever
happen. Sometimes the candle is stuck
against a wall by a bit of its own melted
grease ; at other times, it hangs by a
string from the roof in an open lantern,
set apparently on purpose to catch straws.
A good stable lantern is still a det-ideratum;
and it ' should hold a candle, and not an
oil-lamp, as being the most cleanly mode
of carrying about light ; and if the candle
812
PRACTICE— WINTER.
could be made to require no snuffing, it
would be perfect. A tin-lantern, with a
horn glass, is what is commonly in use to
carry the candle in the air; but wlien it
becomes blackened with smoke in the in-
side, it is of little use to give light outside.
The globe lantern of glass, made very
strong for use on board of ship, has an oil
lamp in it, and is, perhaps, the best yet
contrived. It has one invaluable property,
that of perfect safety. It is fig. 89.
1426. From the stable the steward
takes the lantern, and, accompanied by a
few of the men, or by all — and of
necessity by the cattle-man — inspects
all the courts and hamraels to see if the
cattle are well ; and if it be moonlight,
and any of the cattle on foot, appa-
rently desirous of more food, gives them a
few turnips. The byres in which cattle
are feeding are also visited, and the fresh
windlings of straw, laid up in reserve by
the cattle-man, are now given them, any
dung in the stalls drawn into the gutter,
and the bedding shaken up with a fork.
The cows, both the farmer's and servants',
are visited and treated iu like manner.
The bulls, heifers in calf, and young horses,
all are visited at this time, to satisfy the
mind, before retiring to rest, that every
creature is well and in safety.
1427. This is the usual routine of the
treatment of farm- horses in winter, and,
■when followed with a discernment of the
state of the weather, is capable of keeping
them in health and condition. The horses
are themselves the better of being out
every day; but the kind of work they
should do daily must be determined by the
state of the weather and the soil. In wet,
frosty, or snowy weather, the soil cannot
be touched ; and the thrashing and carry-
ing of com to market are then conducted
to advantage. In frost, the dnng from the
courts may be taken out to the fields in
■which it is proposed to make dungliills.
When heavy snow falls, nothing can be
done out of doors with horses, except
thrashing corn, when the machine is im-
pelled by horse-power. In very heavy
rain the horses should not be exposed to it,
as every thing about them, as well as the
men, become soaked ; and before they be-
come again in a comfortable state, the
germs of future disease may be engendered.
When it is fair above, however cold the
air or wet the soil, one of the out-door
works mentioned above should be done by
the horses; and it is better for them to
work only (me yoking a-day than to stand
idle in the stable. Work-horses soon show
symptoms of impatience when confined in
the stable even for a day — on Sundays, for
example ; and when tlie confinement is
much prolonged, the'v even become trouble-
some. When such occasions happen, as in
continued snow-storms, the horses should
be ridden out for some time every day,
and groomed as carefully as when at work.
Exercise is necessary to prevent thicken-
ing of the heels, a shot of grease, or a
common cold. Fat horses, when unaccus-
tomed to exercise, are liable to molten
grease. Such weather affords a favourable
opportunity forcleaning harness, the bushes
of cart-wheels, the implement-house, or
any neglected place in the steading.
1428. It is advisable for a farmer to
breed his own horses; and, on a farm
which employs 6 pairs, two mares might
easily bear foals every year, and perform
their share of the work at the same time,
without injury to themselves. The advan-
tage of breeding working stock at iiome is,
that, having been born and brought up upon
the ground, tliey not only become natural-
ised to the products of its particular soil,
and thrive the better upon them, but
also become familiarised with every person
and field upon it, and are broke into
work without trouble or risk. Tiie two
marcs should work together, and be driven
by a steady ploughman ; and their work
should be confined to plougliing in winter
and spring, wlien they are big with yoimg,
for the shaking in tlie sliafts of a cart, or
going roimd in the horse-course, is nothing
in their favour. Their driver should plough
with them, when ever that operation can
be performed ; and when it cannot, he
should assist the other men at their carts
with manual labour.
1429. There is a good arrangement as
regards the horses adopted by some fanners,
as well as being adapted to married plough-
menofdifterentstrengthsandages, whichis,
thekeepingapairortwoof the horsesalways
at home, ploughing and doing other works
at home, and never bearing cart-loads upon
the high-way. Old horses, mares in foal.
TREATMENT OF FARM HORSES m WINTER.
318
and ploughmen advancing in life, are kept
at home ; and the others, consisting of the
youngest of the horses, and the most ac-
tive of the men, are appointed to drive all
the loads to and from the farm. This sub-
division of labour has the advantage of
causing the sorts of work best adapted for
the capacities of the men to be executed
most perfectly.
1430. Supposing, then, that one or two
mares bear a foal every year, these, with
the year-olds and two-year-olds, should be
accommodated in the hammels N, Plates
I. and II., according to age — where there
are more than one of the same age, the
older being apt to knock the younger about ;
but where one only of every age is brought
up, they may be placed together for the
sake of companionship, and horses, being
social auimals, learn to accommodate them-
selves to one another's tempers. AVhere
blood foals are bred as well as draught,
they should have separate hammels, the
latter being rough and overbearing, though
the bloods generally contrive in the end to
obtain the mastery. Young horses never
receive any grooming, and are even sel-
dom handled ; but they should be accus-
tomed to be led in the halter from the
period they leave their mothers.
1431. The food usually given to young
horses in winter is oat-straw for fodder,
and a few oats; and where they are win-
tered among the young cattle in a large
court, they have only the chance of pick-
ing up a little corn from the corn-barn, or
the refuse of hay from the litter of the
work-horse stable in spring — when they
seldom get corn. The fact is, young horses
are unjustly dealt with ; they are too much
stinted of nourishing food, and the conse-
quences are smallness of bone, which de-
prives them of the requisite strength for
their work, and dulness of spirits which
renders their work a burden to them. I
speak of what I have seen of the way in
which a large proportion of the farm-horses
of this country are brought up when young.
Their treatment seems to be derived from
the opinion that little nourishing meat
should be given to young horses. Instead
of this, they should receive a stated allow-
ance of corn, — and if bruised, so much the
better, — according to their ages ; and when
a mash is given to the work-horses, the
young ones should always have a share.
For the purpose of receiving corn and
mash, mangers should be put up in the in-
side of each hammel, apart from each other.
Attempts at domineering will be made by
the artful over the simple colt or filly ; biit
proper correction administered at times,
and justice done to all on every occasion,
will put an end to OA'erbearing conduct.
The steward cannot be better employed
than in giving corn to the young horses ;
and the cattle-man should attend to their
fodder and litter : and were the mash for
the horses prepared before daylight departs,
the messes could be gi^'en to the young
horses immediately after the men leave the
stable in the twilight. Should a mash be
deemed too expensive for young horses,
they should get Swedish turnips or carrots
every day — moist food being as requisite
for them as dry fodder and corn.
1432. The names commonly giA'en to the
different states of the horse are these : —
The new-born one is called a foal, the
male being a colt foal, and the female cijillf/
foal. After being weaned, the foals are
called simply colt or y?//y, according to the
sex, which the colt retains until broken in
for work, when he is a horse or (/elding,
which he retains all his life ; and the filly is
then changed into mare. When the colt is
not castrated he is an entire colt ; which
name he retains until he serves mares, when
he is a stallion or entire horse; when cas-
trated he is a gelding ; and it is in this
state that he is chiefly worked. A mare,
when served, is said to be covered by or
stinted to a particular stallion; and after
she has borne a foal she is a brood mare,
until she ceases to bear, when she is a
barren mare or eill mare ; and when dry
of milk, she is yeld. A mare, while big
with young, is iw foal. Old stallions are
never castrated.
1433. There are various ways of em~
ploj'ing ploughmen in winter, when the
horses happen to be laid idle from the state
of the weather. Some farmers always
employ them to dress the corn for the
market, with a view to economy. Plough-
men may certainly be employed in thrash-
ing corn with tlie mill, when not engaged
with their horses ; but to lay horses idle
for the sake of employing their drivers at
barn-work, is poor economy. Men gene-
8U
PRACTICE— AVINTER.
rally cannot r'uUlle corn \\ell, and in every
other respect are too roii^h in tlieir nio<le
of Work fur tiie nicer work of tlie barn. In
deep snow, when all the roads of the farm
are blown up, the men may be usefully
eniploN-ed in cutting open roads to the
most freijuented place for the time, such as
to the field of turnips, to the one where the
sheep are feeding on turnips, to that in
which it is proposed to make a dunghill.
Their services of this sort niay even be
ret|uired on the public highway, to the
extent it passes through the farm, when it
is determined to cut open the road for the
public convenience. In the severe snow-
stoi'm of 1823 this had to be done oftener
than once; and unless the farm -servants had
rendered assistance upon that occasion, the
o])ening of the roads would have cost more
money, and taken a lonirer time to be
opened, than they did. In that state of
the weather, the men are usefully employed
in assisting the shepherd to open channels
in the snow, among the stripped turnif^s,
to allow the sheep to get at them, and in
carrying hay to the ewes. In heavy falls
of rain, and sudden breaking up of snow-
storms, rivulets and ditches often become
more full of water than they can conveni-
ently contain, and are therefore apt to
overflow the arable ground on each side,
to the injury of new wheat, or souring of
the ploughed land, as the case maybe. It
is the duty of the hedger to attend to the
state of the ditches, and see that no injury
arises from the water, in its course through
the farm ; but the exertions of one man,
in such an emergency, are quite inadequate
to stem the torrent of water. The men,
therefore, all turn out, with suitable im-
plements, and assist in removing the ob-
structions the water may have raised
against its own course, and cut gaws, where
necessary, for leading off the water from
the ploughed soil. Small rivers, on the
sudden breaking up of a season of frost,
bring down shoals of ice, which, on accu-
mulating at the sharp turns of the river,
form dammings there, obstructing the ]>as-
sage of the water, which, only finding a vent
over the banks or embankment, destroysthe
soil on either side. AVhere such an incident
is likely to happen, the men should be pre-
pared with proper instruments, a^ poles,
long forks, sledge-hammers, and mallets, to
break and guide the shoals, and prevent
their accumulation at any place. A timely
preparation of this kind may be themeauo
of averting much damage. Such occujia-
tions as I have mentioned, are quite befit-
ting stout men ; and if the stewar-i be on
the outlook for every casualty whicli may
reasonably happen, and take the lead to
avert them, he will feel the satisfaction
of having been the means, by the exer-
cise of forethought and ju<lgnient, of
saving much valuable property to his
master.
1434. The horse thrives well on cooked food.
He lias a single or simple stomach, which must
be filled at once with well mastic:;ted food, be-
fore the gastric juice can act upon it in a proper
manner; and should any food which enters it in
an insufficiently masticatod state, escape beyond
the influence of the juice into the bowels, it may
decompose there, generate gas, and produce the
analogous disease of horen in cattle, namely,
flatulent colic or baits. To render food in such a
state at first as shall save the horse the trouble
of mastication, is therefore to do him a good
service; and hence cooked food is in a proper
state for feeding a horse, and hasbeen proved to
be economical. Still, the cooking will be carried
to an injurious degree, if it shall, by dint of ease
of deglutition, prevetit the flow of a sufficient
quantity of saliva into the stomach, which is
necessary to complete digestion,- — " the quantity
of which,'' says Professor Dick, "is almost in-
credible to those who liave not had an oppor-
tunity of ascertaining it, but which tlie following
fact will testify. A black horse had received a
wound in the parotid duct, which bi came fistu-
lous. When his jaws were in motion, in the act
of eating hay, 1 had the curiosity to collect in a
glass measure the quantity which flowed dnrnig
1 minute, by a stop-watch; and it amounted to
nearly '2 drachms more than 2 oz. in that time.
Now, if we calculate that the paiotid glaiid on tiie
opposite cheek poured into the mouth tlie same
quantity in the same time, and allow that the
sub-lingual and sub-maxillary glands on each
side combmei!, pour into the mouth a quantity
equal to the two parotids, we then have no less
than 8 oz. of saliva passing into the mouth of a
horse in 1 minute, for the purpose of softening
the food and preparing it for digestion."* Yet
it is impossible for any horse to swallow food, in
the most favourable state it can be made for
swallowing, without moving his jaws to a certain
degree, and this insures a certain quantity of
saliva entering his stomach.
1435. But more than this, cooked food may be
presented in too nutritious a state for tlie
stomach ; and there may be, on the other hand,
too little nutriment in the food given : For " the
digestive organs of the horse, like those of the
ox," says Professor Dick, " are very capacious,
* Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 1025.
TREATMENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
815
and are evidently intended to take in a large
proportion of matter containing a small propor-
tion of nutriment; and if the food upon which
they are made to live is of too rich a quality,
there is, by the excitement produced, an increase
of the peristaltic motion, in order to throw off
the superabundant quantity which has been
taken into the stomach and bowels. It is neces-
sary to give, therefore, a certain quantity of
hulk, to separate, perhaps, the particles of nutri-
tious matter, that the bowels may be enabled to
act upon it properly. A horse could not live so
well on oats, if fed entirely upon them, as when
a portion of fodder is given ; with them a certain
quantity is required. But this may be carried
too far, and the animal may have his bowels
loaded with too large a quantity of unnutritious
food," — -as witness the nature of the steep before
alluded to (1423) — "and nothing less than
such a mass as will render him incapable to per-
form any active exertion, will be sufficient to
afford him even a scanty degree of nourishment.
A horse living ou straw in a straw-yard becomes
pot-bellied. Hence it is, that a proper arrange-
ment in the properties and proportions of his
food becomes a matter of important considera-
tion."* These and the preceding remarks com-
prehend all the rationale of feeding horses, and,
if carefully considered, may conduct you to
adopt such an appropriate mixture of materials
in your possession, as may serve to maintain the
strength, good health, and condition of your
horses, and to do so economically. Mean time I
shall enumerate a few of the attempts that have
hitherto been made of making comparative mix-
tures of food for horses, with the view of ascer-
taining whether cooked or raw food maintains
horses in the best order.
1436. The most careful set of experiments
that have yet been recorded in supporting /«»•*«-
horses ou boiled and raw grain, and on raw grain
prepared and in a natural state, was made by
Mr James Cowie, Halkerton Mains, Kincardine-
shire. He subjected no fewer than 12 horses to
the experiment, dividing them into 3 sets of 4
each, and keeping each set on a separate fare.
The horses were weighed on Ist March, when
the expeiiment began, and their weights varied
from 9 cwt. 3 qrs. to 1 2 cvvt. 1 qrs. 4 lbs. ; and
they were again weighed on 1st May, at the end
of the experiment, and their weights varied from
9 cwt. 2 qrs. 23 lbs., to 12 cwt. 1 qr. 14 lbs.
Thus the entire weights did not vary much at
both the periods, though individual weights did.
The ages of the horses ranged from 4 to 12 years.
They were fed as follows ; —
First Set. — 2 on cut barley and beans, mixed, rau\
'' 2 ... ... boiled.
Second Set. — 2 on oats and beans, 7'av:
" 2 ... boiled.
Third. Set. — 2 on oats rare.
" 2 ... boiled.
Each horse got 1 peck = 4 lippies = 4 feeds =
about 16 lbs. of grain daily, with oat straw. The
weight of the barley was 50 lbs., and of the oats
42 lbs. per bushel. The horses were not put
suddenly upon a change of food, for Mr Cowie
had been in the practice of giving them daily
raw, cut, and boiled grain alternately. The ex-
periment having been conducted at a season of
heavy work, it is not surprising that the horses
lost some weight upon the whole ; thus their
gross weights on 1st March was 130 cwt. 2 qrs.
26 lbs., and on 1st May it had decreased to 124
cwt. 3 qrs. 22 lbs.— a difference of 5 cwt. 3 qrs.
4 lbs. ; but as one horse only lost 5 lbs., another
kept his weight, and a third gained 10 lbs.— 3 out
of the 12 thus proving themselves quite able to
stand heavy work— the remaining 9 had to bear
almost the entire loss of weight, which varied
individually from 1 qr. 23 lbs. to 3 qrs. 12 lbs.
The result of the losses and gains stand thus : —
Total loss of weight of 6 horses on boiled grain,
Total loss of weight of 6 horses on raw grain,
Deduct gain by 1 horse,
same state of 1 horse,
Average loss on each horse on boiled grain, nearly,
raxv, bruised and unb raised, nearly.
Cwt. qr. lbs.
, ,
3 2 27
Cwt. qr. lbs.
.
2 0 15
Cwt. qr. lbs.
0 0 10
0 0 0
,
0 0 10
sed, nearly.
2 0 5'
0 2 14
0 1 12
In the course of the experiment it was observed,
that one or two of the horses fed on boiled grain
perspired more freely at their work than the
others, drank less water, and voided softer dung,
but with no tendency to purge.
1437. The facts brought out in this experiment
were, that the horses fed on unhruised raw and
on boiled grain, gave results so nearly alike,
that it seems inexpedient to incur the expense of
covkinq food for horses, as that costs about 1 gd.
ou two feeds for each horse. This is a rather
remarkable result, for one s-hould have expected
that the boiled grain would have had the advan-
tage. Bruised raw grain seems the most nourish-
ing, and, in not requiring cooking, the most
economical mode of feeding work-horses. For
all the horses that had boiled and unhruised raw
grain lost 70 lbs. each — and 6 or 7 per cent of loss
in an animal is considerable; while those which
had brnised grain, though raw, either gained
weight or lost none. And as to economy in using
bruised grain, besides the cooking, it is alleged that
boiled whole grain passes through the horse uudi-
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 1031.
816
PRACTICE— WINTER.
gested,as well as raw whole grain, and the quan-
tity which thus escapes is equal to one-sixth of
what a horse consumes; whereas, the bruised grain
undergoes a considerable degree of digestion be-
fore passing away. If the loss is a sixth part on
a horse which gets 12 lbs. of whole oats daily, a
yearly saving may be effected of more than 2
quarters of corn, by giving him 10 lbs. of
bruised.
1438. Many economical forms of mixtures
have been recommended for farm-horses, and
these are among them : —
10 lbs. of chaffed straw, at £1 per ton, Id.
10 lbs. of oats, at 3s. per bushel, . . 9
16 lbs. of turnips, at 10s. per ton, . 1
Expense of cutting and chaffing, . 0^
Cost of one horse each day, 1 1 ^d.
1 6 lbs. of hay, at 3s. 6d. per cwt., . 6d.
5 lbs, of oats, at 3s. per bushel, . 4^
16 lbs. of turnips, at 10s. per ton, . l'
Cost of one horse each day, 1 1 ^d.
28 lbs. of steamed turnips, . . 3^d.
7 lbs. of coals at Is. per bushel, . 1
Expenses of steaming, ... 0,^
-6 lbs. of straw, at £1 per ton, . . l|
Cost of one horse each day, 6^d.
This last mixture, containing no corn of any
kind, is said to " succeed remarkably well — and
although the horses perspired considerably while
at work, they kept their condition exceedingly
well" — and has been adopted by some farmers in
the south of England, and by Mr Karkeek, the
veterinary surgeon, as having been " highly
recommended by several practical farmers."*
No doubt horses can live on turnips as well as
grass, without corn, and they may be said to
work upon them; but I agree with Mr Stewart,
when he observes, — " What the owner might call
work is not known. In this country, grass alone
will not produce workable horses ;" and the same
may more truly be said of turnips and straw.
"If food is not given," continues Mr Stewart,
" work cannot be taken. Every man who has a
horse has it in his power to starve the animal ;
but that, I should think, can afford little matter
for exultation."t
1439. Turnips are frequently given to farm-
horses in the evening in lieu of a feed of corn, and
even of a hot mash at night ; and horses are very
fond of Swedish turnips, which, on being washed,
are set before them whole, unless some of the
men take the trouble of slicing them with their
knives ; but the best way is to slice them with
Wallace's turnip- slicer, fig. 86; and those turnips
are also much relished by horses when boiled,
along with oats, or barley and beans.
1440. Potatoes are given to horses in a raw
state, and they seem to relish them, but not so
much as Swedish turnips.
1441. But of food of the root kind, none de-
lights horses so much as the carrot. It is to be
regretted that this root can only be cultivated
successfully on very light soil, otherwise it would
be worth wliile to raise as many as would sup-
port the horses, with corn, all winter. Stewart
says, that " for slow-working horses, carrots may
supply the place of corn quite well, at least for
those employed on the farra."+ They might be-
come fat enough on 70 lbs. of carrots a-day, but
would want stamina without corn. Carrots are
easily and successfully grown in the island of
Guernsey ; but are not given to horses on account
of an allegation, that " when on this food their
eyes are injured."
1442. A writer mentions a similar effect pro-
duced by the parsnip at a certain season of the
year. " To horses," he says, " parsnips are fre-
quently given, and have the property of making
them sleek and fat; but in working they are
observed to sweat profusely. If new, and cut
sufficiently small, no other ill effect results —
except, indeed, at one period of the year, towards
the close of February, when the root begins to
shoot; if then given, both horses and horned
cattle are subject, on this food, to an inflamma-
tion in the eye, and epiphora or watery eye — in
some subjects, perhaps, producing blindness. "§
The boiling of both carrots and parsnips might
have the effect of removing this dangerous
tendency evinced by those roots when eaten
raw.
1443. Horses are very fond of bread; with a piece
of bread, and especially oat-cake, a horse will be
captured in the field, when a feed of corn will not
induce him to be taken. It is common in Holland
to see travellers, at a village inn, slice down bread
with a knife in a trough for their horse. Upon
the principle of economy, M. Longchamp pro-
posed to feed the cavalry of France with a bread
composed of j of boiled potatoes and 5 oat-
meal, properly baked in an oven. The usual
allowance of oats for a horse, at 10 lbs., costs 13
sous; but 10 lbs. of this bread would only cost
5 sous.
1444. But independent of all succedanea,
which may be given to horses at times as a treat,
and as a beneficial change of food, there should
be a regular feed prepared for farm-horses, and
administered every day. I shall give two for-
mulae which have been found to make good pre-
pared food for farm-horses, and they may be
prepared without much trouble, provided the
proper apparatus is erected for the purpose.
One is the following, which is given in quantities
suitable for several periods of the day for one
horse: —
* Prize Essays of the H{(/hland and Agricultural Society, vol. xiv. p. 347.
+ Stewart's 6'«a6/e Economy, -p. 281. ' X Jbid.p. 193.
§ Q,\ia.yle^s Ag7-iculture of the Channel Islatids, p. 103.
TREATIklENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
817
\
15
In the morning.
3^ lbs. of oat and bean meal ) i , i ,,
11 lbs. of chopped straw ' -
At mid-day.
3 lbs. of oat and bean meal
12 lbs. of chopped straw
At night.
1^ lbs. of oat and bean meal "j
Vi lbs. of steamed potatoes > 14J
2 lbs of chopped straw J
44 lbs.
This quantity is quite sufficient for the strongest
farm-horses, and less will be consumed by
ordinary ones; but that can be regulated accord-
ing to circumstances, by withdrawing a little
meal and straw, still retaining the proportions.
The usual allowance of oats, as you have seen,
(1423,) is 11| lbs. a-day, when the grain is of the
finest quality ; but horses seldom receive the
finest oats, and are usually supported on the
kind called common oats, which do not weigh
heavy. The allowance may betaken at 10 lbs.;
and when hay is given them in spring, they eat
at least 1^ stone of 22 lbs. = 33 lbs. every day.
This mixture contains no hay, and only 8 lbs. of
oat and bean meal, and 11 lbs. of steamed
potatoes, which cannot be estimated beyond the
cost of steaming.* The value of the ordinary
and of the prepared food can thus be easily
estimated; and it will be found that the prepared
is the cheapest, and better for the liorses' health,
and equally good for condition and spirit. The
mixture is made in this way: The meal and
chopped straw are mixed together in a tub, a
little salt sprinkled over them, the steamed
potatoes, or 23 lbs. of Swedish turnips boiled,
poured hot into the tub, and then the whole is
stirred into a mess with a shovel, let stand to
acquire an equal temperature throughout, and
to render the meal pulpy with the potatoes.
1445. A formula given by Professor Low con-
sists of chopped straw, chopped hay, bruised or
coarsely ground grain, and steamed potatoes by
weight, in equal parts, with 2 oz. of salt ; and of
this from 30 lbs. to 35 lbs., or 32-2- lbs. on an
average, is given to a horse every day.+ This
mixture, including hay, is more expensive than
the above ; and I am doubtful that 35 lbs. of it
will satisfy a farm-horse on active work in spring,
when he can eat 33 lbs. of unchopped hay a-day,
besides corn.
1446. It appears surprising that preparing
food for farm-horses should only have been
recently practised; but the practice of the tiTtf
and the road, of maintaining horses on large
quantities of dry oats and rye-grass hay, had
doubtless a powerful influence in retaining it on
farms. But now that a more natural treatment
is adopted for horses on fast work, farmers may
easily be persuaded that their horses, on slow
work, would derive greater benefit from prepared
food. How prevalent was the notion at one
tima that horses could not be expected to do
work at all, unless there was hard meat in them!
" This is a very silly and erroneous idea, if we
inquire into it," Professor Dick truly observes;
" for whatever may be the consistency of the
food when taken into the stomach, it must, before
the body can possibly derive any substantial
support or benefit from it, be converted into
chyme — a puUacious mass; and this, as it passes
onward from the stomach into the intestinal
canal, is rendered still more fluid by the admix-
ture of the secretions from the stomach, the
liver, and tlie pancreas, when it becomes of a
milky appearance, and is called chyle. It is then
taken into the system by the lacteals, and in this
fluid, this soft state — atid in this state only —
mixes with the blood, and passes through the
circulating vessels for the nourishment of the
system. "J Actuated by rational principles, Mr
John Croall, the enterprising coach-proprietor in
Edinburgh, supports his coach-horses on 8 lbs. of
chopped hay, and 16 lbs. of bruised oats; and the
late Captain Cheyne found his post-horses work
well on the following mixture, in the proportions
given to each horse every day ; and this consti-
tutes the second formula I referred to above: —
( 8 lbs. of bruised oats.
In the day <. 3 lbs. of bruised beans.
( 4 lbs. of chopped straw.
At night
15 lbs.
22 lbs. of steamed potatoes.
1 ^, lb. of fine barley dust.
2"lbs. of chopped straw.
2 oz. of salt.
25h lbs. In all 37 s lbs.
Estimating the barley-dust at lOd. per stone ;
chopped straw, 6d. per stone; potatoes, steamed,
at 7s. 6d. per cwt.; and the oats and beans at
ordinary prices, the cost of supper was 6d., and
for daily food, Is. with cooking — in all Is. 6d. a
horse each day.§ 46 lbs. of Swedish turnips
boiled would afford equal nourishment to the 22
lbs. of steamed potatoes.
1447. The late Mr James Carmichael, Raploch
Farm, Stirling, while remarking on some of the
inflammatory complaints whicli farm-horses are
most subject to from their treatment, contrasts
that of the harness-horse as being more favour-
able to health. The harness horse " is chiefly
fed on corn and hay, and is regularly supplied
at intervals of three or four hours at most,
according to his work or stages; while the farm-
horse has his consecutive yokings, extending to
10 or 12 hours a-day — often more, with but
little intermission for baiting or rest — has less
corn, and in general subsists nearly two-thirds of
the year on coarser fodder, (oat or bean straw,)
which fills the stomach without afi'ording much
real nourishment. Let it not however be said,"
he observes, " that the fresh straw of tlie common
* Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iv. p. 383.
"t" Low's Elements of Practic<d Agriculture, p. 497.
X Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 1033.
§ Ibid. p. 1029.
318
PRACTICE— AVINTER.
crops of the farm, together with the ordinary
feeds and mashes duly served, are insufficient to
maintain the horses in proper condition, under
ordinary circumstances, without the aid of much
or any hay. Nothing is so easy and obvious
than to prepare the food of horses in a proper
manner, although it certainly requires some care,
activity, and arrangement, on the part of both
master and servant. If, for example, in com-
mencing with the fodder of the new crop, and
until the system of steaming becomes more
general — if the new straw were mixed with some
sweet dry straw of the previous season, or
sprinkled with a few handfulsof salt, as it comes
from the thrasliing floor, it would greatly pro-
mote the health of the horses, as well as of the
other stock; and provident farmers always
reserve one or two stacks of corn or pulse for
the purpose of being so mixed, or used alone,
until the straw of the new crop becomes seasoned,
by a few weeks in the stack — as pease or bean
straw, of beans especially, is very flatulent if
taken new or in a soft state, but excellent fodder
thereafter, and is much relished by horses accus-
tomed to it. And when the leaves, pods, and
chopped stems, or chaff of beans, and the small
corn from the winnowing -machine are mixed and
boiled or steamed together, with some turnips or
potatoes, seasoned with salt, and given lukewarm
in lieu of oats, to jaded horses as they return
from work in the evening, the benefits are appar-
ent in their plumper forru and glossy coats. It
is by means of ruch mashes, or by combining the
corn with the chopped hay, that old and weary
hordes are enabled to masticate so easily, and lie
down more readily to repose; whilst others must
stand several hours gnawing their ill-suited
ration, or hastily swallow it in a crude state, to
stifle the cravings of hunger, and lie down to die
ofcolic. Carrots and Swedish turnips, well
cleaned and dried, may safely be given in an
unprepared state when the horse is cool, and not
attenuated with hard work; and the second crop
of clover, if early made into hay, and slightly
salted, with or without a mixture of old hay or
straw, might be made greatly more available for
all kinds of stock, instead of remaining inert
until late in the season, bleaching under every
change of weather, and then given to the horses
in a half-rotted green state."*
1448. Mr Marshall, Holme Lodge, Bedale,
supports his draught-horses on a mixture of
bruised linseed and ground oats, in the propor-
tions specified (13,54) when speaking of the
fattening of cattle on the same mixture. " The
draught-horses," observes Mr Marshall, " had
their allowance of prepared food on coming from
work. When at constant work, and long days,
each horse was supplied with about 5 lbs. of
ground oats or split beans, divided into two
portions, and given morning and evening, in addi-
tion to the 5 lbs. contained in the prepared food.
During the three winter and othei months in the
year that my horses have had this provender,
they have improved in their condition, have been
free from disease, and capable of performing any
work that horses, kept for agricultural purposes,
could reasonably be required to do.+
1449. Mr Warnes says, " Were horses, both ia
town and country, fed on linseed," using little
water and plenty of linseed-meal, " one half at
least of the corn now consumed in stables would
then find its way to the dwellings of the poor
In some cases three parts of the oats, in others
the whole, might be superseded by linseed ; and
expense, at the same time, be considerably
reduced. Linseed-meal, sprinkled in small quan-
tities upon grains hot from the brewery and
intimately incorporated with a rammer, is excel-
lent food, when mixed with chaif, for horses
employed in slow work. Nor will the compound
turn sour if properly consolidated. '"+ I have
hoard of no instance in Scotland of farm-horses
being fed on this compound of linseed.
1450. That horses will thrive on bruised
ickins or furze, I had considerable experience in
the winter of 1826, to which expedient I was
impelled in consequence of the heat of that
summer having burned up the straw of all .-orts
of grain on light soil. Old whins, growing in a
fir plantation, supplied young shoots from 1 foot
to 3 feet in length, which were cut by a field-
worker with a hook, and led to the steadin;^,
where it was biuised with a rammer, rig. 112,
having a shank a, 3
Fig. 112. feet 8 inches in
length, a bulged out
part 6, to give ilia in-
strument weight, and
shod with an iron
cutter c, 4 inches
square and 3 inches
deep, having its low-
er edges sharpened,
and furnished with 3
parallel cutters, ri-
veted to it by their
ends. Every man
bruised, with this
implement, as much
furze in the morning,
on a stone floor, in
20 minutes, as served
his pair of horses for
the day. The horses
relished the whins
better than hay, and
became remarkably
fine in condition and
coat. Machines, to
bruise or beat, have
been invented for the
preparation of whins ;
but the simple ram-
mer represented
above, and used by hand, is better than any
other for bruising young whins ; and no large
THE WHIN-BRUISER.
* Trati^actlonx of the Hhjhland avd Agriadtural Society for March 1848, p. 220-1.
+ Marshall On Fe-diiuj titock icHh Prepared Food. p. 5.
i Warnes On the Culliration of FUix, 2d edition, p. 317.
TREAT^IENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
319
quantityof whins at any age should be bruised
at once, else the mass will heat, and ferment, and
become unpalatable food. But when the older
sprays of whins are used, one of the more power-
ful machines is required to bruise them into a fit
state to be eaten by horses. 1 have seen au old
cart-wheel, placed on its ring, and made to re-
volve in a circular trough ; but better is an old
mill-stone shipped by the hole through its centre,
upon a r2-feet horizontal axle of wood, attached
by one end to a swivel on the top of a stout post,
driven into the ground, round which the stone
revolves on a paved circular bed, 8 feet in dia-
meter ; and a horse is yoked with a swing-tree
at the other end of the axle, to draw the stone
round on its edge in the trough, into which the
fresh whins are thrown, and. when bruised, taken
out ready for use ; but young whins are at all
times much preferable to old ones for food.
1451. In the southern parts of Germany, in
Italy, and in most parts of the United States of
America, the horses in winter are fed on Indian
corn, instead of any otlier species of grain, and it
maintains them in fine condition. This grain be-
comes as hard as our beans, and horses would
find as great, and perhaps greater difficulty in
breaking it, were it not steeped in water for a
number of hours before it is used, when it is
easily masticated.
besides. Now, when I first changed my mode
of fseding from corn and hay to cut sheaf, the
horses improved in condition wonderfully, thus
showing that it suits them well. In very busy
seasons, when they are very hard worked, 1
allow them half a peck of oats at dinner-time,
besides the cut sheaf. Last winter I had only
18 acres of oats ; these kept \'2 draught-horses,
besides 4 young horses occasionally. This quan-
tity of oats would not have served through the
year, had I not pursued this system of feeding.
The mode I have adopted of preparing the cut
sheaf is this: — 1 have my straw-cutter to work
from the horse-wheel of my thrashing-machine,
and I generally have as much cut in one day as
will serre 1*2 draught-horses for nearly a mouth.
One man attends to and feeds the cutter with the
oat sheaves, whilst another man carries the cut
sheaf into the granary ready for use, when it is
taken to the stable in bags as required."
1454. Cooking apparatus. — The means em-
ployed for cooking food for horses and cattle are
either boiling or steaming. In the first, au open
vessel is employed, in which the roots or other
substances are placed with a sufncicnt quantity
of water. In the second, either a partially closed
vessel is employed, or a perfectly closed one, in
which the steam is generated, and conveyed ia
pipes to a partially closed one.
1452. Machines for cutting straw and hay
have already been given in figs. 91 and 92, as
also those for bruising linseed and corn in figs.
97 and 98, while treating on thj feeding of
cattle.
1453. As the maintenance of horses is a serious
expense to farmers, any treatment that proffers
a probable reduction of the cost of their keep,
while thf- animals are sustained in health and
condition, deserves attention and even a trial.
With this view I relate a method of feeding
horses quite in the power of any farmer to follow.
It is that practised by .Mr Trotter near Darlington,
which is this : — " I have paid some attention to
the subject of keeping draught-hoises during
winter for some years past, bat for the last
three years I have adopted quite a different
mode to what I previously followed. My method
formerly was, to allow my draught-horses each 2
bushels of oats per week, together with 1 bushel
of beans, and as much hay as they could eat,
generally clover-hay ; but for the last three win-
ters I have fed them almost entirely on cut oat-
sheaf, cut into half-inch chafi", which to me has
been a very great saving. In an oat crop of
about 40 stooks per acre, which might yield
near 60 bushels, the feed of a draught-horse
averages 2 sheaves per day, or 14 sheaves per
week, which would be about 1 bushel and 3 pecks
of corn Der week, if it had been thrashed out,
which is a saving of 1 peck of oats per week
each horse, from what 1 formerly gave them ;
besides, I save the bushel of bran per week, and
the clover-hay, which latter was a very consider-
able item ; for draught-h^^rses, when they get
three feeds of clean oats in a day, when at work
they will eat a great quantity of clover-hay,
1455. Steaming in a separate vessel has been
followed in a variety of forms ; but these may be
ranked under two distinct kinds. The first is
an open vessel, a boiler, generally of cast-iron,
having a channel or groove of 1 inch wide and 2
inches deep, formed round its brim. Tlie vessel
is placed over a furnace properly constructed,
and is partly filled with water. The groove is
also filled with water. A sheet-iron cvlindrical
pan. of 3 or 4 feet in depth, and of a diameter
suited to pass into the groove of the water-vessel,
(which is generally about 3 feet diameter.) is
also provided. The pan has a perforated bottotn,
to admit steam freely from the lower vessel. It
is also furnished ^^'ith an iron bow, by which it
can be suspended, and by which it can be conve-
niently tilted while suspended. This is the
steaming pan ; and for the purpose of moving it
to and from the boiler, a crane, mounted with
wheel and pinion, and a chain, couiplptes the
apparatus. To put this in operation, the pan is
Vlled with the substances to be ^teamed, and
covered over either with a deal cover or with old
canvass bags. It is then placed upon the boiler
by means of the crane, and the fire is pietty
strongly urged till the water in the boiler gives
off its steam, \vhich, passing up through the
bottom of the pan, and acting upon the co;itents,
produces in a few hours all the results of boiling.
The water in the groove of the boiler serves as
a sealing, to prevent the escape of steam without
passing through th.e pan. But noMvithstanding
this, It is evident that the steam can hardly ever
reach the tempeiature of 212" : and hence, this
apparatus is always found to be very tardy ia
it< effects. When the contents or the pan have
been found sufficieiitly done, the whole is removed
from the boiler by means of the crane, and tilted
330
PRACTICE— WINTER.
into a large trough to be thoroughly mixed, and
from thence served out to the stock. A general
complaint has been urged against this construc-
tion of apparatus, arising from the slowness of
the process of cooking by it, and consequent
expense of fuel. Boilers of the form here
described are not well calculated to absorb the
maximum of calori« that may be afforded by a
given quantity of fuel, neither is the apparatus
generally the best adaptation for the application
of steam to the substances upon which the steam
has to act. Such boilers, as already observed,
can never produce steam of a higher temperature
than 212°. If they did, the shallow water-luting.
formed by the marginal groove, would be at once
thrown out by the steam-pressure ; for it is well
known, that the addition of P to the tempera-
ture of the steam increases its elasticity equal to
the resistance of a column of water about 7
inches high. A groove, therefore, of 7 inches in
depth would be required to resist the pressure
which would even then be only one-fifth lb. of
pressure on the square inch. Under such circum-
stances the temperature in the steaming-iian will
always be under 2\'2° : hence the tedious nature
of the process by using this apparatus.
1456. The apparatus which deserves the pre-
Fig. 113.
THB CLOSBD-BOILER STEAMIXG APPARATUS.
cedence of the above is represented in fig. 113.
The principle of its construction is that of a
closed boiler, in which the steam is produced
under a small pressure of 3 to 4 lbs. on the inch.
It is then delivered through a pipe to one or
more separate vessels containing the substances
that are to be cooked ; and these vessels are so
arranged as to be readily engaged or disengaged
with the conducting steam-pipe. The ouiliue
a b c d o( the figure represents a section of the
steaming-house, with the apparatus in due order
of arrangement, and of the extent that may be
capable of supplying an establishment of from
10 to 16 horses. The boiler e is of a cylindrical
form, '20 inches in diameter and 4 feet in length.
It is set on brick-work/, over a furnace of 14
inches in width, with fire-grate and furnace-door.
The brick building requires to be 6 feet 6 inches
TREATIklENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
321
in length, 4 feet 6 inches in breadth, and the
height about 3 feet 6 inches. The furnace is
built with a circulating flue, passing first to the
further end of the boiler, then turning to right
or left, according as the chimney may be situ-
ated, returns to the front of the boiler, and
terminates in the chimney on the side opposite
to the first turning. The flues should not be less
in width at the upper part than one-fourth the
diameter of the boiler ; and their height will be
about one-third the diameter. The steam-pipe
is attached to the boiler at its crown, takes a
swan-neck bend downwards to within 12 inches
of the floor at g, and terminates at p ; it is fur-
nislied with as many branch nozzles as there are
intended to be steaming-vessels. The steam-
pipe may be either cast-iron or lead, and 2 inches
diameter in the bore. The receptacles or steam-
ing-vessels h h are usually casks of from 50 to
100 gallons contents. They are mounted with
2 iron gudgeons or pivots, placed a little above
mid-height ; they are, besides, furnished with a
false bottom, supported about 3 inches above the
true one ; the former being perforated with a
plentiful number of holes, to pass the steam
Tvlvich is introduced between the two bottoms.
The connexion between the steam-pipe and the
receptacle may be either by a stop-cock and
coupling-screw — which is the most perfect con-
nexion— or it may be by the simple insertion of
the one nozzle within the other, in the form of a
spigot and faucet. In this latter case, the nozzle
that leads from the steam-pipe is stopped with a
wooden plug, when the receptacle is disengaged.
Besides the steam-pipe, the boiler is furnished
with a pipe i, placed in connexion with a cistern
of water k, the pipe entering into it by the
bottom, and its orifice closed by a valve opening
upward, the lower extremity of tlie pipe passing
within the boiler to within 3 inches of its bottom.
A slender rod I passes also into the boiler through
a small stuffing-box ; and to its lower end,
within the boiler, is appended a float, which rests
upon the surface of the water within the boiler.
The upper end of this rod is jointed to a small
lever, which has its fulcrum supported on the
edge of the cistern a little above k ; the opposite
end of the lever being jointed to a similar but
shorter rod, rising from the valve in the bottom
of the cistern. This forms the feeding apparatus
. of the boiler, and is so adjusted by weights, that
when the water in the boiler is at a proper
height, the float is buoyed up so as to shut the
valve in the cistern, preventing any further
supply of water to pass iuto the boiler, until, by
evaporation, the surface of the water has fallen
so far as to leave the float unsupported, to such
extent as to form a counterpoise to the valve,
which will then open, and admit water to de-
scend into the boiler, until it has again elevated
the float to that exteut that will shut the valve
in the cistern. By this arrangement, it will be
perceived that the water in the boiler will be
kept nearly at a uniform height ; but to accom-
plish all this, the cistern must be placed at a
certain fixed height above the water in the
boiler, and this heightyis regulated by the laws
which govern the expansive power of steam.
This law, without going into its mathematical
VOL. I.
detaills, may be stated in round numbers as
follows : — That the height of the surface of the
water in the cistern must be raised above the
surface of that in the boiler, 3 feet for every
pound-weight of pressure that the steam will
exert on a square inch of surface in the boiler.
Thus, if it is estimated to work with steam of 1
lb. on the inch, the cistern must be raised 3 feet ;
if 2 inches, 6 feet ; 3 inches, 9 feet ; and so on.
If the steam is by any chance raised higher than
the height of the cistern provides for, the whole
of the water in the boiler may be forced up
through the pipe into the cistern, or until the
lower orifice of the pipe, within the boiler, is
exposed to the steam, which will then also be
ejected through the pipe ; and the boiler may be
left dry. Such an accident, however, cannot
occur to the extent here described, if the feeding
apparatus is in proper working order ; and its
occurrence to any extent is sufficiently guarded
against by a safety-valve.
1457. The safety-valve of the steam-boiler is
usually a conical metal valve, and always open-
ing outward ; it ought always to be of a
diameter large in proportion to the size of boiler
and steam-pipe, so as to insure the free egress of
any rapid generation of steam. For a boiler of
the size under consideration it should be 2 inches
in diameter on its under surface — that being the
surface acted upon — this gives an area of fully
3 square inches ; and if loaded directly, or
without the intervention of a lever, for steam of
a pressure of 1 lb. on the inch, it will require
3 lbs.; if 2 lbs. on the inch, 6 lbs.; if 3 lbs. on the
inch, 9 lbs., and so on. With these adjustments,
the steam, should it rise above the proposed
pressure, will, instead of forcing the water
through the feed-pipe, raise the safety- valve, and
escape into the atmosphere until the pressure is
reduced to the intended equilibrium.
1458. Another precautionary measure in the
use of the steam-boiler is the gauge-cock, of
which there are usually two, but sometimes one,
a two-way cock ; they are the common stop-
cock, with a lengthened tail passing downward,
the one having its tail terminating about IJ
inch below the proper water-level in the boiler,
the other terminating Hindi above that level,
which allows a range of 3 inches for the surface
of the water to rise or fall. The first, or water-
cock, when opened, will throw out water by the
pressure of the steam upon its surface, until the
surface has sunk 1 1 inch below its proper level,
when steam will be discharged, thus indicating
the \vater in the boiler to be too low, and that
measures should be taken to increase the supply.
When the second, or steam-cock is opened, it
will always discliarge steam alone, unless the
water shall have risen so high as to come above
its orifice, in which (!ase the cock will discharge
water, indicating a too large .-upply of water to
the boiler, and that it should be reduced ; for this
purpose the feed-pipe i is provided with a stop-
cock wi, whereby the admission of water can be en-
tirely prevented at the pleasure of the attendant.
1459. The foregoing description refers to a
823
PRACTICE— T\aNTER.
Bteamin.ff npnuvatiis of the best description, and
implies that ih^ water-cistern can be supplied
eitlier from a fountain-head, or that water can
be pumped up to the cistern. But tliere may be
cases wliere neitlier of these are easily attainable.
Under such circumstances the feed-pipe may rise
to the )u"ght of 4 i'r4i feet, and be surmounted
by a fuiiin 1. aid nnler it a stop-cock. Iii this
case, also, a float with a wire stem, rising '.nrough
a stufSug-box on the top of the boiler, must be
employed— the r:ttf-tri may r\?e ^ fev inches above
the stuffing-box, in hvi.'. ot \ graduated scale —
having the z^ro in its middle point. When the
■water is at the j.roper hinght in the boiler, the
top of the stem should point at zero, and any
rise or fail i:i the water will be indicated, accord-
ingly, by the i o-^ition of the stem. To supply a
boiler nDin.ted after this fashion, the first thing
to be att'^nded to, before setting the fire, is to fill
up the boiler, tliri>ugh the funnel, to the proper
level, wl'iii-h niil be indicated by tlie float point-
ing to zero ; but it s-hould be raised, in this case,
two or till 03 inches higher. In tliis stage the
gauge-cock*! are non-effective ; but when the
steam has been got up, they, as well as the float,
must be consulted freq.iently ; and should the
water, by evaporation, fall so low as 3 inches
below zero, a sup;)ly must be introduced through
the funnel. Tn i tfeot a supply, in these circum-
Btaiicei>, the steam must be allowed to fall rather
low; ami ihe fur.ui'l being filled, and the stop-
cock open"d. t'.,e >vater in the former will sink
down iliro.igh the tube, provided the steam be
sufficiently low to admit its entrance; but the
first portior •>f water that can be tlius thrown
in will go iar it? effect this, by sinking the tem-
perature. The sinking of the temperature by
the adciltio;< u*' a l:irge quantity of cold water,
is the ohjection to tl is mode of feeding ; b>it this
is obviited tf .lome extent from the circum-
stance that, Tnii^-s the steaming receptacles are
large or iimnerius, the first charge of water
will generally serve to cook the mess, wh'-'U a
fresh charge can be put in for the next.
1460. In r.sing tliis steaming apparatus, it has
been noticed that the casks are fnrnish'jd with
gudgeons, which piay in the posts n n ; these are
kept in pjsiiim by the collar-beam o to which
they are H'tached— the casks being at liberty to
be tilted upon the-'f gudgeons. They are charged
when in the i.piii;lit position, and tlie connexion
being forni.'d with the steam-pipe, as described,
they are ccvered at top with a clo.-e lid or a thick
cloth, and the process goes on. When the sub-
stances are sr.tficlently cooked, the coni>liiigs r r
are diseiigMi>,ed, the upper part of the cask is
swung forw.ird, and their contents discharged
into a troiig'i, -.v'ach is brought in front of thtm
for that purpose.
1461. The connexions with the steam-pipe are
sometimes, for cheapness, formed by a slidiiig
tube of copper or brass, about 4 inches in length,
which, alter the nozzle of the cask and that pro-
jecting from the sieam-pipe are brought directly
opposite to each other, is slid over the junction,
and as a moderate degree of tightness only is
requisite in such joints, a strip of sacking
wrapped round the ends of the slider is found
sufficient. On breaking the connexion, and
opening the exit nozzles, the steam will of course
flow out. but this is checked by a wooden plug,
or even a potato or slice of turnip, thrust into
the orifice, may be sufficient. It is advisable,
however, that a main stop-cock should be placed
in the steam-pi [le any where between the boiler
and the first receptacle.
1462. The most perfect mode of connexion
between the steam-pipe and the receptacles is a
stop-cock and coupliiui-fcnic. These should be
of Ij iiicli bore: they are more certain in tlieir
effect, and more convenient in their application,
though attended with more expense in the first
cost of the apparatus. In this case no main-
cock is required. The extremity of the steam-
pipe should, ill all cases, be closed by a small
stop-cock, for the purpose of draining off any
water that may collect in the pipe from con-
densation. A precaution to the same effect is
requisite, in the bottom of each cask, to draw off
the water that condenses abundantly in it ; or a
few small perforations in the bottom will effect
the purpose.
14615. It must be remarked, in regard to
steaming, that where grain of any kind is given
in food in a cooked state, that dry grain cannot
be cooked, or at least boiled to softness in dry
steam, the only effect produced being a species
of parching ; and if steam of high temperature
is employed, the parching is increased nearly to
cirbonisation. If it is wished, thercfove, to boil
grain by steam, it must be duiie by one of the
two following methods. The grain must either
be soaked in water for a few hours, and then
exposed to the direc-t action of the steam in the
receptacle— or it may be put into the rei'cptacle
with as much water as will cover ii — and then,
by attaching tlie receptacle lo the steam-pipe
by the coupliiig step-cock, or in the absence of
Slop-cocks, by passing a bent leaden i>ipe from
the steam-pipe over the upper edge of the
receptacle, and descending again iusule — to the
space between the false and the true bottoms —
the steam discharged thus, by either method,
will shortly raise the temperature of the water to
the boiling point, and produce the desired effect.*
1464. The time required to prepare food in
this way varies considerably, according to the
state of the ajqiaratus, and the principle of its
construction. With the apparatus just described,
potatoes can be steamed in casks of from 32 to
50 gallons contents, in 30 to 45 minutes. In
ca':ks extending to }iO gallons, an hour or more
may be required. Turnips require considerably
longer time to become fully ready, especially if
subjected to the process in thick masses : the
time may be stated at double that of potatoes.
When tlie apparatus is ill constructed, the time,
in some cases, required to cook turnips, extends
to 5 hours. And, with reference to the appa-
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. vi. p. 33.
TREATMENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
323
ratus first described, (1455,) the time is seldom
under 5 hours.
1465. The prices of steaming apparatus vary
according to quality and extent ; but, on an
average, the open boiler and pan apparatus, in-
cluding a power-crane, vrill range from £7 to
£10 ; and of tlie other, fig. 113, the price ranges
from £8 to £16. The e.x;pense of building the
furnace, and supplying mixing troughs, will add
about £2, 10s. to each.
1466. Experience is every day discovei-ing the
trouble and inconvenience felt in the use of a
steaming apparatus of tlie perfect construction
even of the one just described, and far more of
others of less ingenious construction ; and the
consequence is, that many are abandoning the
steaming process altogether, and returning to
the once contemned open boiler. It is quite pos-
sible that more fuel is required in the boiler than
in tlie steaming apparatus to produce the same
efiects ; but tlie former is so simple in its use,
so ready at all times, so free from danger and
accident, and so efficient in its results, that it
will ultimately be the only apparatus in a farm
that will be used to prepare food for either cattle
or horses. I liave had opportunities of witness-
ing the use of both apparatus in extensive farms
where food is constantly prepared, and has been
for many years past ; and my conviction is now
entirely in favour of the boiler. And now that
potatoes, which are best cooked by steaming,
cannot now be depended on as a ci-op, and may,
in future, Lear a high price —and, on the cuitrary,
as turnips are best cooked by boiling, and ^vhose
culture is extending every year — the boiler pro-
mises to become the more useful apparatus of
the two.
1467. Fig. 114 represents a common large boiler,
Fig. 114.
BOILER A.N'U FURNACE.
fitted up in the best manner, where a is the cast-
iron boiler, from 3 J- to 4 feet diameter across the
top ; h the furnace-grate for containing the fire,
with its door ; and c the damper, in the flue for
regulating the draught upon the fire. Its use is
so well known to country people that nothing
need be said on it here.
1468. But the boiler is not always properly
built upon its seat in the furnace. It is furnished
with two or three studs or ears, projecting from
under theflange around its mouth, by which it may
easily be suspended. A not unfrequent, but im-
proper way of setting the boiler upon the furnace,
is to cause the edge of its bottom to rest upon the
building from both sides of the furnace-door to
the back part of the building, where the flue is
formed in connexion with the chimney. The
effect of tliis mode of setting is to cause the entire
force of the fire in the furnace to strike against
the bottom only of the boiler, and the greatest
force will affect that part of the bottom which is
nearest the furnace-door — the heat from whence
must cook the entire contents of the boiler, and
where at times the bottom must be so greatly
heated — as when the contents of the boiler are
removed immediately after they are sufficiently
cooked, and cold water is poured into the boiler,
in preparation for the cooking of another mess —
thai the bottom of the boiler is c'ther cracked
by tlie sudden cooling of tlic water, or is honey-
combed by the fire, when the liquid in tlie boiler
oozes gradually through the corroded metal into
the fire.
1469. Now, the proper way of setting a boiler
is this: — When the building has proceeded so
far as to have formed the ash-pit, and received
the grate and dumb plate and furnace-door, to
the height of the latter, let a circular basin
be built of the form of and a few inciies
larger than the boiler, to contain the boiler itself;
and let it be so contracted, as it comes nearer to
its height, as to suspend the entire boiler within
the basiu by its ears ; and let a flue be built from
behind, or at one side of the basin, as the case
may be, into tlie chimney. The advantage of
this mode ot setting is, that the heat of the 'fire is
not confined to one part of the boiler, but is dif-
fused over the whole of its under surface; and
though the heat may not be so great at any one
part, it cooks the contents moi-e equally, and pre-
serves the boiler from overheating and injury.
1470. In any case a damper is a requisite
part of a boiler and furnace, to regulate the
draught through the fire, according to the state
of the air. It is to be regretted that this regu-
lator is little attended to after the first time it has
been adjusted; and the consequence is, when the
fire does not burn so briskly as desired, more
coals or wood are put into the furnace ; and
when it burns too fiercely, it is regarded as a
happy incident, instead of the draught of air
being reguhited by means of the damper, accord-
ing to the circumstances of the case.
1471. The horse is an intelligent animal, and
seems to delight in the society of man. It is
S24
PRACTICE— T^^XTER.
remarked by those who hare much to do with
blood-horses, that, when at liberty, and seeing
two or more people standing conversing together,
they will approach, and seem, as it were, to wish
to iisten to the conversation. The farm-horse
will not do this ; but he is quite obedient to call,
and distinguishes his name readily from that of
his companions and will not stir when desired
to stand until his ofr« name is pronounced. He
discriminates between the various sorts of work
he is put to, and will apply his strength and skill
in the best way to effect his purpose, whether in
the thrashing-mill, the, cart, or the plough. He
soon acquires a perfect knowledge of the nature
of his work. I have seen a horse walk very
steadily towards a feering pole, and halt when
he had reached it. He seems also to have an
idea of time. I have heard a horse neigli al-
most daily about 10 minutes before the time of
loosening from work in the evening, whether
in summer or winter. He is capable of distin-
guishing the tones of the voice, whether spoken
iu anger or otherwise, and can even distinguish
between musical notes. There was a work-
horse of my own, even when at his corn, would
desM' eating, and listen attentively, with pricked
and moving ears and steady eyes, the instant he
heard the note of low G sounded, and would
continue to listen as loug as it was sustained ;
and another was similarly affected by a particu-
lar high note. The recognition of the sound of
the bugle by a trooper, and the excitement occa-
sioned in the hunter when the pack give tongue,
are familiar instances of the extraordinary power
of particular sounds on horses, in recalling old
associations to their memory. The horse's me-
mory is very tenacious, as is evinced in the re-
cognition of a regarded stable after a lengthened
absence.
1472. As to the names of farm-worses, I may
mention that they should be short and emphatic,
not exceeding two syllables in length, for longer
words are difficult of ready pronunciation, and
inconvenient to utter when quick or sharp action
is required of the horse ; and are almost always
corrupted into short ones. For geldings, Tom,
Brisk, Jolly, Tinker, Dragon, Dobbin ; for mares,
Peg, Rose, Jess, Molly, Beauty, Mettle, seem
good names ; and as to those of stallions, they
should be indicative of more importance, as
Lofty, Farmer, Plough-boy, Matchem, Diamond,
Blaze, Sampson, Champion — which last is the
name of the black stallion pictured in Plate IV.
— are all names which have distinguished prize
draught stallions.
1473. Diseases of Horses. — In respect to the
diseases of the horse, if we were to regard in a
serious light the list of frightful maladies inci-
dent to this animal, which every work on veteri-
nary science contains, the farmer would never
purchase a horse ; but, fortunately for him, his
horses are exempt from the largest proportion of
those maladies, which chiefly relate to the foot
and leg. Nevertheless, many serious and fatal
disorders do overtake farm-horses in their usual
work, with the symptoms of which you should
be 60 far acquainted as to recognise the nature
of the disease ; and as you should be able to per-
form some of the simpler operations to assist the
animal in serious cases, until the arrival of the
veterinary surgeon, a short account of these may
prove useful. One or more simple remedies,
when timely exercised, may have the effect of
quicklyremovingthesymptomsof less serious com-
plaints. They consist of bleeding, giving physic
and drenches, applying fomentations, poultices,
injections, and the like.
1474. Bleeding. — " In the horse and cattle,
sheep and dog, bleeding, from its greater facility
and rapidity," says Professor Dick," is best per-
formed in the jugular or neck vein, though it
may also be satisfactorily performed in the }'late
and saphena veins, the former coming from the
inside of the arm, and running up directly in
front of it to the jugular ; the latter, or thigh-vein,
running across the inside of that lin.b. Either
the fleam or lancet may be used. When blood
is to be drawn, the animal is blindfolded on the
side to be operated uj on, and the head held
to the other side ; the hair is smoothed along
the course of the vein by the moistened finger,
the point selected being about 2 inches below
the angle of the jaw. The progress of the blood
toward the heart is to be obstructed, and the
vein thus made sufficiently permanent and tense.
A large-bladed fleam, and a good sized-lancet,
are preferable, as the benefit of the operation is
much increased by the rapidity with which the
blood is drawn. From 8 to 10 pints imperial is
a moderate bleeding for the horse and ox, regu-
lated in some degree by the size. From 12 to
1 6, or even 20 pints, is a large one ; &nd some-
times, in skilful hands, it is expedient to bleed
till fainting is induced, and the animal drops
do^vn under the operation. The vessel in which
the blood is received should be such that the
quantity cau be readily ascertained. When this
is sufficient, the edges of the wound are to be
brought accurately together, and kept so, by a
small sharp pin being passed throngh them, and
retained by a little tow. It is of importance, in
closing the wound, to see it quite clo.^e, and that
no hairs or other fureign i-orfiM interpose. For
a time the head should be tied up, and care
taken that the horse does not injure the part."
1475. Tlie dangers arising from carelessness
in blood-letting are not nnmerons ; and " the
first of which, thoiiirh it may alarm the inexpe-
rienced, is very trifling. It is a globular swell-
ing, thrombus, sometimes as large as the fist,
arising immediately around the new-made in-
cision. The filtrating of the blood from the
veiu into the cellular membrane, which is the
cause of the disease, is rarely very copious.
Gentle pressure may be used at first, and should
be maintained with a well-applied sponge and
bandage, kept cool with cold lotion. Occa.«ion-
ally there is inflummation of Oie jugviar from
bleeding. . . . The cause is usually referred
to the use of a foul fleam, or from allowing hairs
to interfere with the accurate adjustment of the
edges of the wound. The first appearance indi-
cative of the disease is a separation of the cut
edges of the integuments, which become red and
TREATMENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
325
somewhat inverted. Suppuration soon follows,
and the surrounding skin appears tumefied, tight,
and hard, and the vein itself, above the orifice,
feels like a hard cord. After this the swelling
of the neck increases, accompanied with extreme
tenderness, and now there is constitutional irri-
tation,with tendency to inflammatory fever. . . .
In the first stage we must try to relieve by evapo-
rating lotions or by fomentation. If these fail,
and as soon as the disease begins to spread in the
vein, the appropriate remedy is to touch the
spot with the actual cautery, simply to sear the
lips of the wound, and apply a blister over it,
which may be repeated. Purgatives in full doses
must be administered, and the neck, as much as
possible, kept steady and upright."
1476. Blistering. — "Blistering plasters are
never applied to horses. An ointment is always
used, of which rather more than half is well
rubbed into the part to be blistered, while the
remainder is thinly and equally spread over the
part that has been rubbed. When there is any
danger of the ointment running, and acting upon
places that should not be blistered, they must
be covered with a stiif ointment made of hog's
lard and bees'-wax, or kept wet with a little
water. . . . The horse's head must be
secured in such a way that he cannot reach the
blister with his teeth When the
blister has become quite dry, the head may be
freed. Sometimes it remains itchy, and the horse
rubs it ; in that case he must be tied up again.
. . . . When the blister is quite dry, put
some sweet-oil on it, and repeat it every second
day. Give time and no work, otherwise the
horse may be blemished by the process."
1477. Physicking. — " Physicking, which in
stable language is the term used for purging, is
employed for improving the condition when in
indifferent health, and is a remedy for disease.
The medicines chiefly used are, for hurses, Bar-
badoes aloes, dose from 3 to 9 drachms ; croton
bean, from 1 scruple to 5 drachm, or cake, from
I drachm to 1 drachm, to which may occasionally
be added calomel, from 1 to I5 drachm. For
cattle, aloes, in doses somewhat larger than
for the horse ; Epsom salts, or common salt,
dose from 1 lb. to 1^ lb., with some stimulus, as
ginger, anise, or carraway-seed ; also linseed-oil,
dose 1 lb., and croton oil, 15 to 20 drops, or the
bean or cake, the same as in the horse. For dogs,
jalap, dose 1 drachm, combined with 2 grains of
calomel ; croton oil, dose 2 drops ; bean, 5 grains ;
and syrup of buckthorn, dose I oz.
1478. " These, it will be observed, are average
doses for full-grown animals ; in the young and
small they may be less, in the large they may
require to be greater; but much injury has often
been done by too large doses too frequently re-
peated. To the horse, physic is usually adminis-
tered in the form of a bolus or ball; to cattle by
drinking or drenckithj, though for both either way
may be employed. A ball is conveniently made
of linseed-meal, molasses, and the active ingre-
dieat, whether purgative, diuretic, or cordial ; it
should be softish, and about the size of a pullet's
egg. In administering it, the operator stands
before the horse, which is generally unbound,
and turned with its head out of the stall, with a
halter on it. An assistant stands on the left side,
to steady the horse's head, and keep it from
rising too high ; sometimes he holds the mouth,
and grooms generally need such aid. The ope-
rator seizes the horse's tongue in his left hand,
draws it a little out and to one side, and places
his little finger fast upon the under jaw ; with
his right hand he carries the ball smartly along
the roof of the mouth, and leaves it at the root
of the tongue ; the mouth is closed, and the head
is held, till the ball is seen descending the gullet
on the left side. When loath to swallow, a little
water may be offered, and it will carry the ball
before it. A hot, troublesome horse should be
sent at once to a veterinary surgeon. Instru-
ments should, if possible, be avoided, and adding
croton farina to the mash often answers the
purpose."
1479. "The horse must xmAergo preparation
for physic, which is done by gently relaxing the
bowels. During the day previous, his food should
be restricted to bran mashes — a quarter peck
being sufficientfor afeed— and this with his drink,
should be given warm ; corn should be withheld,
and hay restricted. He may have walking and
trotting exercise morning and evening. The
physic is given on an empty stomach early in the
morning ; immediately after, a bran mash is
given ; that over, the horse goes to exercise for
perhaps an hour, and is watered when he returns.
The water should be as warm as he will take it ;
and he should take as much as he pleases
throughout the day ; bran mash should be given
as often as corn usually is, and better warm than
cold ; if both are refused, bran may be tried, but
no corn, and but little hay. Sometimes gentle
exercise may be given in the afternoon, and also
next day. The physic usually begins to operate
next morning, though it rarely takes effect in 12
hours, frequently not for 30. Wlien the physic
begins to operate, the horse should stand in the
stable till it sets, which may be in 1 2 hours." *
The stable should be well littered behind the
stall, to receive the discharge.
1480. Drenches should be given with caution
either to horse or ox ; " that no unnecessary
force be used, that they be never given by the
nostrils, and especially that, if the slightest irri-
tation is occasioned in the windpipe, the animal
shall immediately be set at liberty, that, by
coughing, he may free himself of the offending
matter."
1481. " Many practitioners and horse pro-
prietors," says Mr Youatt, " have a great objec-
tion to the administration of medicines in the
form of drinks. . . . There are some medi-
cines, however, which must be given in the form
of drink, as in colic. ... An ox horn, the
larger end being cut slantingly, is the usual and
Dick's Manual of Veterinary Science, p. 8.
386
PRACTICE— WINTER.
best iDstrument for administering drinks. The
noose of a halter is introduced int» tlie mouth,
and then, by means of a stable-fork, the head is
elevated by an assistant considerably higher than
for the delivery of a ball. The surgeon stands
on a pail on the offside of the horso, and draws
out the tongue with the left hand. He then, with
the right hand, introduces the horn gently into
the mouth and over the tongue, and by a de.v-
terous turn of the horn, empties the whole of the
drink — not more than about G oz. — into the back
part of the mouth. The horn is now quickly with-
drawn, and the tongue loosened, and the greater
portion of the fluid will be swallowed. A por-
tion of it, however, will often be obstinately held
in the month for a long time, and the head must
be kept up until the whoTe is got rid of, which
a quick, hut noc violent, slap on the muzzle will
generally compel the horse to do. The art of
giving a drink consists in not putting too much
in the horn at once ; introducing the horn far
enough into the mouth ; and quickly turning
and withdrawing it without bruising or wonnd-
iig the mouth, the tongue being loosened
at the same moment. A bottle is a disgrace-
ful instrument to use, except it be a flat
pint bottle, with a long and thick neck."*
The nearside horn has the most handy twist for
administering a driuk with the riglit baud.
1482. Fomentations. — " Clean water is the
best fomentation. It should be as hot as the
hand can bear it, yet not hot enough to pain the
animal. In fomenting the horse, the groom lias
rarely enough water, and he does not continue
the bath'.ng long enough to do any good. If the
leg is to be fomented, get a pailful of water as
hoc as the hand can bear it ; put the horse's foot
into it, and, with a large sponge, lave the water
well above the afiected part, and keep it con-
stantly running down the whole limb. Foment
for half an hour, and keep the water hot by
adding more."
1483. Poultices. — " Poultices should be formed
of those materials which best maintain heat and
moisture, and they should be applied as warm
as possible, and can be safely borne. They are
usually made of bran mash, turnips, or oatmeal
porridge. Linseed meal alone makes the best of
poultices, and some of it should always be added
to the other ingredients. Wet bandages act as
poultices."
1484. Lotions. — " Of cooling lotions, cold water
is the menstruum. It may be made colder by
the introduction of a little salt or ice. Sal-am-
moniac and vinegar may be added for the same
purpose. The object is to reduce heat, and pro-
mote evaporation. The addition of a little spirits
is made with the same object."
1485. The Pidse.—" 0{ the /io?-sc, the natural
pulse is from 35 to 45 beats in the minute ; under
fever, it rises to 80, 90, and 100. The most
convenient spot to examine it is at the edge of
the lower jaw, a little before the angle, where
the maxillary comes from the neck to be distri-
buted over the face. The pulse is one of the
most important indications iu all serious dis-
orders."
1486. Injections. — " Injections, tliongh easily
administered by means of the old ox-bladder and
pipe, are still more conveniently given with a
syringe. For laxative clysters for the lior.->e or
cow, from 1 gallon to 12 pints imperial of warm
water or gruel, at the temperature of 96^ P'ahr.,
with a couple of handfuls of salt or 2 oz. of soft
soap, prove most useful. Stronger ones may be
obtained by adding a few ounces of aloes to the
mixture. In cases of diarrhcea or over-purging,
the injection should consist of a few pints of
warm gruel, to which is added 1 oz. of catechu
electuary, or from ^ drachm to 1 drachm of pow-
dered opium. The only art in administering a
clyster, — where, however, there is often bung-
ling, and even injury, by wounding tlie rectum, —
is to aruitl fritjhteninij the animal, auoiututg the
pipe well, and gently insinuating it before thejlnid
is forced uj}.''
1487. " In general, bran mashes, carrots, green
meat, and hay, form the sitk horse's diet ; gruel
and tepid water his driuk." + Of the diseases
themselves, I shall only notice those at present
which usually atfect/ar//(-horses in winter.
1488. Horse-louse [Trichodecles Eyiii.)— The
horse is infested by a louse as well as the ox, and
which is represented in fig. 115. It will be found
referred to by the older
writers on natural liistory,
under the name of Ptiicu-
lus Equi. Colour of the
head and thorax bright
chestnut, the former very
large and somewhat square,
the surface with a longitu-
dinal black line towards
each side, forming an angle
near the middle ; antennae
with the third joint longest;
abdomen pale, tawny yel-
low, with fine pubescence,
the first eight segments hav-
ing a dusky transverse band
on the upper half, the late-
ral margins also with a
dusky band ; legs pale chest-
nut; length 1 line. Com-
mon in the tail-head and neck of the horse,
especially when fresh from pastv.re iu autumn.
Found also on the ass. A little oil will destroy
this animal when it first appears; but if allowed
to establish itself for some time, mercurial oint-
ment will be necessary, but in small quantities at
a time.
1489. Besides being infested by this species, the
ass has a louse peculiar to itself, the Jlemato-
pimis Jsini ; of a rusty red ; abdomen whitish,
tinged with yellow, and having a row of dark
horny excrescences on each side; head long, with
THE HORSE-LOUSE,
TRICHODECTES EQUI,
* Youatt On the Horse, p. 507, edition of 1843. •{- Dick's Manual if Veterinary Science, p. 9.
treat:ment of farm horses in winter.
327
a deep sinuosity behind the antennse; length 1 to
If line. It frequents the mane and neck, and is
common.*
1490. Batts. — One of the most common com-
plaints amongst farm-horses is the flatulent colic,
gripes, or batts. It arises from indigestion,
which again is occasio-aed by various causes, such
as hard work immediately after feeding, drinking
water largely after a feed of corn, bad state of
the food, fast eating, and, in consequence, a
paucity of saliva, an overloaded stomach, a sud-
den change of food from soft to hard and dry,
and more likely to occur after eating turnips,
potatoes, carrots, and grass, than hay and oats,
and after pease than barley. The indigestion
arises in two forms; the food either undergoing
no change, or running rapidly to fermentation.
In the former case acute foot-founder is apt to
arise, and its treatment is purgatives, drenches,
and injections. In the latter case, the symptoms
are most alarming — the horse falls down, rolls
over, starts up, paws the ground with his fore-
foot, strikes his belly with the hind-foot, perspi-
ration runs down, and agony appears extreme.
Relief may be obtained from this dose : — Linseed
oil, raw, 1 lb. ; oil of turpentine from 2 to 3 oz. ;
laudanum from 1 to 2 oz., or hartshorn from ^ to
I oz. The following tincture may be kept in
readiness : In 2 lbs. of whisky digest for 8 days
3 oz. of ginger, 3 oz. of cloves, and then add i oz.
of sweet spirits of nitre. Half a pint iiuperial of
this tincture is a dose, in a quart of warm water.
The abdomen should be rubbed, the horse walked
slowly about, and supplied with a good bed, and
with room to roll about. If there is no relief in
half an hour, a second dose may be given, and, ere
long, if still required, a third. Farm-horses
that have keen appetites and devour their food
greedily, and when they have been long in the
yoke, are most apt to this disease.
1491. Inflammation of the bowels. — The symp-
toms of the batts are very similar at first to those
of inflammation of the bowels, and, if mistaken,
seriousconsequences may arise, as the treatment of
the two complaints is very diff"erent.. The sy niptoms
may be distinguished thus : In batts, the pulse
remains nearly unaltered, whereas in inflamma-
tion it is quickened; all the extremities, the ears,
and feet, feel cold in batts, hot in inflammation.
Whenever inflammation is appreliended, blood
maybe taken; in batts this is not necessary; but,
under such an apprehension, the assistance of the
veterinary surgeon should be obtained as speedily
as possible. I have cured many horses of the
batts by administering stimulating drinks with a
handy cow's horn. I remember of one horse
being seized with inflammation of the bowels, on
its arrival home from delivering corn at the
market town ; and thougli the usual remedies of
bleeding and blistering were resorted to, they
proved ineifectual — no doubt from being dispro-
portioned to the exigencies of the case — and the
horse sunk in five days in excruciating agony.
There was no veterinary surgeon in the district
at that time, which was many years ago. Now,
however, thanks to the Veterinary College of
Edinburgh, tlirough the really practically useful
tuition of its indefatigable principal, Professor
Dick, there is not a populous district or the coun-
try in which a skilful veterinarian is not settled.
To the surgeun, therefore, in a sevious case such as
this — and, indeed, in all cases of cxteu&ive infiam-
ination, and especially in the interioi of the body
— recourse should immediately bj hsd. i say
immediately, for it is but fair to give the surgeoa
the chance of treating the case correctly from its
commencement, and not to impose upon him the
task of amending your previous bungling. In-
flammation of the lunjs, as well as intlaiumatiou
of the A-ic?/(<?_i/s— both of which the larm-horse is
subject to — should always be trei^ted by the vete-
rinarian; but, fortunately, these foi'niiaable mala-
dies may, almost with certainty, be evaded with
well-timed Avorking, discrimination of M'ork ac-
cording to the state of the weather, and by good
food, supplied with regularity, and proper quan-
tity.
1492. Common colds frequently occur among
farm-horses at the commencemeut of winter, and
when not entirely unheeded, but treated with due
care, seldom leave serious effects. " A cold re-
quires nothing more but confinement in a mode-
rately warm stable for a few dayt; with clothing,
brau mashes instead of corn, and a little laxative
and diuretic medicine." The evil lies not so
much in the complaint as in its ordinary treat-
ment ; it is seldom thought seriously of by far-
mers— " It is on/y a cold," is the usual remark —
and, in consequence, the horse goes out every day,
feels fatigued, gets wet, becomes worse, and then
the lungs not unfreciueutly become affected, or a
chronic discharge is established from one of the
nostrils. One season 9 horses out of 12 in one
stable were affected, one after another, by a
catarrhal epidemic,vfhic\i required bleednig, poul-
ticing, or blistering under the jaw, besides the
medical remedies mentioned above. These I was
obliged to take cliarge of myself, tliere being no
veterinarian in the district, and all fortunately re-
covered. Ihe remaining 3 were slightly afl'ected
afterwards, and easily brought throu^li ; but had
the cases been unlieeded from the first, very seri-
ous loss might have been incurred by death.
1493. Grease. — " The well-known and unsight-
ly disease called grease," says Professor Dick,
"is a morbid secretion of the cutaneous pores of
of tlie heels and neighbouring parts, of a peculiar
greasy oifensive matter, attended with irritation
and increased vascular action. It is most fre-
quently seen in coach and cart horses, but often
also in young colts which are badly cared for ;
and it is most common in the hind-feet, but
occurs in all. Its main cause seems to be sudden
changes in tlie condition of the foot from dry to
wet, and from heat to cold, greatly augmented,
of course, by evaporation." Hence the evil
effects of wasliiiig tlie legs at night without
thoroughly drying them afterwards. "The first
appearance of grease," continues the Professor,
" is a dry state of the heels, with heat and itchi-
Denny's 3£onoyraphia Anoplurorum Britannice.
328
PRACTICE— WINTER.
ness. Swelling succeeds, with a tendency to
lameness ; the discharge augments in quantity,
the hair begins to fall off. . . . In the early
stage the parts should be washed with soap and
water, and a solution of sugar of lead and sul-
phate of zinc applied; this may not be chemically
scientific, but we have found it superior to any
thing else. Even in old and aggravated cases it
is very efficacious. . . . If the horse be strong
and full of flesh, laxatives should be given, fol-
lowed by diuretics ; if weak, tonics may be added
to these last. The feeding, too, must be varied
with the condition : — green meat and carrots
should be given, and mashes frequently, as a sub-
stitute for corn. During convalescence, exercise
should be given, and bandages and pressure
hasten the cure." I have no hesitation in saying
that it is a disgrace for any steward, and in the
want of such a functionary, it is so in the farmer
himself, to allow his horses to become greasy.
1494. There is a complaint called a shot of
grease, arising from a different cause from the
common grease. " In the horse, plethora," says
Professor Dick, " creates a strong disposition to
inflammation of the eyes, feet, and lungs, and
sometimes to an eruption which is called s^ir/eit,
or the nettle-rush. The hair falls off in patches,
and the skin is raw and pimpled. There is also
a tendency to grease, and to what has been de-
signated a weed or shot of grease in the heavy
draught-horse. One of the legs, generally a hind
one, suddenly swells ; the animal becomes lame;
there is pain in the inside of the tliigh; increased
upon pressure ; and fever supervenes. . . .
We have seen it occur chiefly during continued
rest after hard work and exposure to weather, in
animals which were highly fed. The best treat-
ment is large blood-letting, scarifying the limb,
fomenting, and applying hay, straw, or flannel
bandages, with purgatives and diuretics. The
pressure of a bandage will expedite the reduction
of the part to its natural dimensions.
1495. Stomach staggers. — "The most promi-
nent symptoms of this disease are the horse's
hanging his head, or resting it on the manger,
appearing drowsy, and refusing food; the mouth
and eyes being tinged witli a yellowish colour ;
there is twitching of the muscles of the chest, and
the fore-legs appear suddenly to give way, though
the horse sehioni falls. Inflammation of lungs or
bowels, or lock-jaw, may supervene. Its cause
is long fasting and over- work; but the quality of
the food acts as a cause. Its treatment is reliev-
ing the stomach and bowels with searching laxa-
tives, such as croton, also aloes and calomel, with
ginger. Clysters should also be given, and after-
wards cordials. Blood-letting from the jugular
vein will be attended with advantage. Finally,
steady exercise and careful feeding will prevent
a recurrence of the disorder." * I had a year-old
draught colt that was affected with this disease.
He was a foul-feeding animal, delighting to eat
the moistened litter from the stable and byre.
He was bled and physicked by a veterinarian,
who had established himself in the neiijrhbour-
hood, and the front of his head blistered. He
quite recovered, and having been removed from
the temptation of foul-feeding, he was never
again similarly affected.
1496. The practice of keeping he-goats in the
stables of inns, and of those persons who have
extensive studs, is supposed, by the common
people, to act as a charm against the mad stag-
gers ; but, as Marshall judiciously observes, the
practice may be explained on physiological prin-
ciples. " The staggers are a nervous disorder," he
remarks; "and as odours, in many cases, operate
beneficially on the human nerves, so may the
strong scent of the goat have a similar effect on
those of the horse. The subject," he adds, " is
worthy of inquiry." -f- And he gives a striking
instance of the good effects of the practice.
1497. Thrush. — I have said that the feet of
the farm-horse are not liable to so many diseases
as those of horses subjected to high speed on
hard roads. Farm-horses, however, are liable to
thrush and corns in the feet. The former is
situate at the hind part of the cleft of the frog,
originating principally from continued applica-
tiou of moisture and dirt; and hence it may be
most expected to be seen in dirty stables, of
which there are not a few in the country. After
being thoroughly cleaned out, the hollow may
be filled with calomel, which generally cures; or
with pledgets of tow dipped in warm tar, or
spirit of tar, applied at night, and retained during
the day. The general health of the horse should
be attended to.
1498. Corns arise from undue pressure of the
shoes upon the sole.
1499. Broken wind. — Besides natural com-
plaints, farm-horses are liable, in the execution
of their work, to accidents which may produce
serious complaints. Thus over-work, in a pecu-
liar state of condition, may produce broken wind,
which is the common phrase given to all dis-
organised affections of the lungs, though the
term is defined by veterinarians to be " the
rupture of some of the air-cells of the lungs,
whereby air-vesicles are produced on the surface,
and the expulsion of the air is rendered less
direct and easy. It is usually produced b}-, ani-
mals being urged to over-exertion wlieu in bud
condition, though a horse may become broken-
winded in a straw-yard." There are many
degrees of broken wind, which receive ai>pella-
tions according to the noise emitted by the horse;
and on this account he is called a piper, trum-
peter, whistler, wheezer, roarer, high-blower,
grunter, with thick wiud, and with broken wind.
I had two uncommonly good horses affected in
the wind by working much in the traces of a
four-horse plough, which was employed to rip
up old turf-walls, intermixed with large stones,
and to break up rough ground. Those serious
effects arising from that sort of work, gave me
the hint to relinquish them, and to betake myself
to the spade, which 1 soon fouud did the work
* Dick's Manual of Veterinary Science, p. 55.
+ Marshall's Rural Economy of Gloucestershire, vol. ii. p. 34.
TREATMENT OF FARM HORSES IN WINTER.
329
much better, and in the end cheaper. The
horses got gradually worse under the disease, and
at length, being unable to maintain their step
with the rest, were disposed of as broken-winded
horses.
1500. Sprains. — "A sprain, or strain, is
violence inflicted, with extension, often rupture
and displacement, upon the soft parts of a joint,
including cellular membrane, tendons, ligaments,
and all other parts forming the articulation.
The dislocation or disruption may be complete,
or it may be a mere bruise or stress; and innumer-
able are the shades of difference between these
extremes. Effusion of the fluids is an attendant
consequence. Parts of vital importance, as in
the neck or back, may be implicated, and the
accident be immediately fatal, or wholly irre-
mediable; on the contrary, they may be to that
extent only that, with time and ease, restoration
may be accomplished. They constitute a serious
class of cases. The marked symptoms are, pain
in the injured parts, and inability of motion some-
times complete. The treatment is at first rest,
a regulation of the local action and constitutional
disturbance, according to circumstances, by vene-
section, general and local, the antiphlogistic
regimen, fomentation, bandages, and other sooth-
ing remedies; and when the sprain is of an older
date, counter-irritation, friction, and gentle
exercise." Farm-horses are not unfrequently
subject to strains, especially in doing work con-
nected with building, draining, and other heavy
work; and they are most apt to occur in autumn,
when geldings are generally in a weak state.
For rough work of this kind, old seasoned horses
are best adapted, and such may often be procured
for little money at sales of stock.
1501. Saddle-galls. — When yonng horses are
first put to work, the parts covered by the saddle
and collar are apt to become tender, heated, and
then inflamed, and if the inflammation is
neglected, the parts may break out into sores.
Washing with a strong solution of salt in water,
with tincture of myrrh, is a good lotion, while
attention should be paid to the packing of both
saddle and collar, until they assume the form of
the horse intended to wear them. " Tumours,
which sometimes result from the pressure of the
saddle, go by the name of warbles, to which, when
they ulcerate, the name of sitfasts is applied,
from the callous skin which adheres to the centre.
Goulard water may be used to disperse the
swelling; a digestive ointment will remove the
sitfast; and the sore should be healed with a
solution of sulphate of zinc."
1502. Crih-hiting and wind-sucking. — These
practices are said to increase the tendency to indi-
gestion and colic, and to lower condition, render-
ing the horses which practise them unsound.
" A crib-biter derives his name from seizing the
manger, or some other fixture, with his teeth,
arching his neck, and sucking in a quantity of
air with a peculiar noise. . . . Wind-suck-
ing consists in swallowing.air, without fixing the
mouth. The horse presses his lip against some
hard body, arching his neck, and gathering
together his feet." Both vices are said to be
prevented by fastening a strap round the neck,
studded with one or more sharp points or
prickles opposite the lower jaw; but this means
will not avail in all cases, for I had a year-old
colt which first began crib-biting in the field by
seizing the gate or any other object he could
find. Being prevented using the gate by a few
thorns, he pressed his mouth against any object
that would resist him, even against the sides or
rumps of his companions, and he then became
a regular wind-sncker. A strap of the above
form was put on, recommended to me by an
artillery officer; but though it remained upon
the colt for more than a twelvemonth, night and
day, and as tight as even to affect his appearance,
he continued to crib-bite or wind-suck in spite of
it, even to the laceration of his skin by the iron
prickles. Growing largely to the bone, though
very thin, he was taken up to work at the early
age of two years, solely with the view of seeing if
the yoke would drive him from the practice; but
it had no such effect. Whenever he came into
the stable, he set to with earnestness to bite and
suck with the strap on, until he would become
puffed up as if to bursting, and preferred sucking-
wind to eating his corn. At length 1 was so
disgusted with the habit of the brute that I sold
him to a carrier, to draw a heavy single cart,
and being a powerful animal and good worker,
got a fair price for him, though sold as a crib-
biter. I may mention that the constant practice
of the vice neither retarded his growth nor
injured his health.
1503. Dust-ball.— M'Mers' horses are most
liable to be affected with this disease. Dust-ball
is composed of corn and barley-dust, saved in
grinding meal and used as food, and occurs
sometimes in the stomach, but more frequently
in the intestinal canal. " In an advanced stage,
no doubt can remain as to the nature of the dis-
order. The countenance is haggard, the eye
distressed, the back up, tlie belly distended, the
respiration becomes hurried, bowels habitually
costive, and sometimes the horse will sit like a
dog on his haunches. Relief may frequently be
afforded. Strong purgatives and large injections
must be given, and under their continued action
the offending body is sometimes removed." On
using barley-dust as food for horses, it would be
well to mix it thoi-oughly with other prepared in-
gredients, instead of using it in the dry state.
1504. Worms. — Farm-horses are sometimes
affected with worms. These are of three kinds:
the round worm, teres; the thread-worm, ascaris;
and the tape-worm, tnenia. "In the horse the
taenia is very rare; in the dog exceedingly com-
mon. When the horse is underfed, his bowels
are full of teres and ascaris; and the appearance
of his staring coat, want of flesh, and voracious
appetite, betoken it. They occasion gripes and
diarrhoea, but the mischief they produce is not
great. The principal habitat of the ascaris is
the ccecum, although tliey are sometimes found
in countless multitudes in the colon and rectum.
Turpentine is a deadly poison to all these worms;
but this medicine, so harmless in man,' acts most
330
PRACTICE— WINTER.
disagreeably in the lower animals. Hence it must
not be given to ^hem pure, or in large quantities,
but mixed in sma'l proportion with other oils, as
linseed, or in a pill; and, with these precautions,
it may be found at once safe and efficacious."
1505. Nf'jtiloF, or specks in the eye. — Farm-
horses are not subject to the more violent dis-
eases of the eye; but being liable to accidents,
the effects of inflammation — nebula? or specks —
do sometime? appear. " The former are super-
ficial, the latter dip more deeply into the sub-
stance of the part. Directly in the sphere of
yision, these of course impede it, and cause
obscurity of virion. Even here we must proceed
gently. These blemishes are the pure conse-
quences of inflammation, and, this subdued, their
tendency is to disappear. Time and nature will
do much, and the duty of the practitioner con-
sists in helping forward the salutary process,
where necessary, by gently stimulating washes,
whilst irritating powders should be avoided."*
With these sensible remarks of Professor Dick,
I shall conclude what I have to say of the dis-
eases of the farm-horse at this time.
1506. The offals of the horse are not of great
value. His hide is of most value when free of
blemishes. It tans well and forms a good
leather, which, on being japanned, is chiefly used
for covering carriages. I was informed by a
friend who settled in Buenos Ayres as a mer-
chant, that he once bought a lot of horses, con-
taining no fewer than 20,000, for the sake of
their hides alone, and that some of them would
have fetched good prices in England. They were
all captured with the lasso. Hides sent from
Buenos Ayres have merely been dried in the sun.
1507. " Hair, horn, and wool," says Profesi^or
Johnston, " are distinguished from the muscular
parts of the animal boiiy by the large proportion
— about 5 per cent — of sulphur which they con-
tain. They consist of a substance which, in
other respects, closely resembles gluten and
gelatin in its chemical composition. When
burned, they leave from 1 to 2 per cent of ash.
. . . The inorganic matter contained in hair
is, generally speaking, the same in kind as that
which exists in the muscular fibre and in the
bone. It contains the same phosphates of lime
and magnesia, the same sulphates and the same
chlorides, among which latter common salt is
most abundant. The absolute quality of ash or
inorganic matter varies, as well as the relative
proportii-i.? in which the several substances are
mixed together in the different solid parts of the
body; but the substances themselves of which the
inorganic matter is composed are nearly the
same, whether they be obtained from the bones,
from the muscle, or from the hair."t
1508. "Hair, of all animal products, is the
least liable to spontaneous change. It can be
* Dick's Manual of Veterinary Science, p. 104.
+ Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 1013.
t Thom^^on"s Animal Chtmistry, p. .'^Oi.
§ Ure's Dictionary of the Arts,— &Tt». If air, Button.
II Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 1012.
dissolved in water only at a temperature some-
what above 230° Fahr. in Papln's digester, but
it appears to be partially decomposed by this
heat, since some sulphuretted hydrogen is tli^en-
gaged. By dry distillation, hair gives off several
sulphuretted ga£es, while the residuum contains
sulphate of lime, common salt, much silica, and
some oxides of iron and manganese. It is a
remarkable fact that fair hair affords magnesia
instead of these latter two oxides. Horte-hair
yields about 12 per cent of the phosphate of
lime. Hair also yields a bituminous oil, which
is black when the hair is black, and yellowish-
red when the hair is red. "J
1509. " Hairs are tubular, their cavities being
filled with a fat oil having the same colour with
themselves. Hair plunged m chlorine gas is
immediately decomposed, and converted into a
viscid mass; but when immersed in weak
aqueous chlorine it undergoes no change, except
in a little bleaching."
1510. "Hair, as an object of manufacture, is
of two kinds — the curly and the straight. The
former, which is ."^hort, is spun into a cord, and
boiled in this state, to give it the tortuous
springy form. The long straight hair is woven
into cloth for sieves, and also for ornamental
purposes, as in the damask hair-cloth of chair
bottoms. For this p.irpose it is dyed of various
colours." Horse -hair is also used for fishing-
lines, and horse-tails for cavalry caps.
1511. "Button moulds are made of the bones
of the horse, ox, aud sheep. The shavings, saw-
dust, a:id more minute fragments in making these
moulds, are used by the manufacturers of cutlery
and iron toys, in the operation of case-hardening,
so that not the smallest waste takes place. '§
The bones of all these animals, when reduced
small, make the valuable manure bone-dust,
well known to every farmer.
1512. "The bones, like the muscles, consist of
a combustible and an incombustible portion; but
in tiie bones the inorganic or inconlbn^tible part
is by much the greater. . . . The incombus-
tible portion consists, for the most j'art, of
phosphate and carbonate of lime. The relative
proportions of these two earthy compounds.also
vary with the kind of animal, with its age, its
condition, its luod, and its state of health. To
form 100 lbs. of bone, the animal will usually
require to incorporate with its own substance
about —
^o lbs. of gelatin.
55 phosphate of lime.
4 carbon:.te of lime.
3 phosjihate of magnesia.
'A of soda, potash, and common Ba!k**|
100 lbs.
THE FARMERS' SADDLE AND HARNi:SS HORSE.
331
1513. M'Queen estimated in 1836 the number latter case. But Mr Bell, in his Commentaries,
of horses employed in agriculture, in the whole vol. i.'p. 242, says that " when the faults are
kingdom, a. l,60i),178, and valuing these at such as the buyer can only learn from the seller's
£25 each, the amount would be £40,229,450. information, the concealment is fraud."l|
1514. If we take his estimate of the annual
increase of agricultural horses at 8000, at £25
each, their value is £200,000; and supposing that
this number is sufficient to supply the tear and
wear occasioned by work, the yearly estimate of
the wear aud tear may thus be taken at one-
twentieth of the entire value, or £2,000,000 a-
year. Marshall, and the Agricultural Committee
of 1821, estimated the wear and tear of farm-
horses at one-tenth ; but if the annual increase is
correct, as given by M'Queen, this cannot be the
proportion, and I should say, from ordinary expe-
rience, that it is above the mark.
1515. To test the value of the labour of the
farm-horse, M'Queen offers these data — the
labour of 1 horse is equal to that of 5 able-bodied
men, and as the yearly charge of a man is £29,
it follows that the value of the labour of 1,609,178
farm-horses should be yearly of the prodigious
sum of £233,330,810.*
1516. Since 1822, farm-horses have been ex-
empted from duty, aud brood-mares have always
been so. The numbers entered for the duty were
832,726, — Ireland being always exempt.f The
duty was 1 7s. 6d. each, and the sum thus remitted
was £728,435 yearly.
1517. By the customs tariff of 1846, horses,
mares, geldings, colts, foals, may be imported
free.J
1518. Dealers in horses must procure a license,
for which they pay yearly £12, 10s. if out of,
and £25 if in London. In 1831, the number of
horse-dealers licensed in all parts of the kingdom
was 1037.
1519. Slaughterers of horses must also procure
a license.!
1520. The stealing of horses is not now a
capital crime.
1521. "By cases, it is seen that it is not
necessary, by the law of Scotland,^that a horse
should be warranted sound at the period of sale,
as is generally thought, to entitle the buyer to
return it, should it prove unfit for the purpose
for which it is sold. By the law of England,
warrandice is necessary to entitle the buyer to
return an unsound horse. By the law of both
Scotland aud England, the buyer of a subject
sold with all faults, has no right to question the
sale, when he has not been drawn into it by
fraud, (Shaw, Deo. 1594, M. 14229; Baglehole, 3
Camp. 154.) See Lord Eldon's judgment in the
ON THE TREATMENT OF THE FARMERS*
SADDLE AND HARNESS HORSE IN WIN-
TER.
1.522. I Lave said (9) that the agri-
cultural pupil should have no horse of his
own at first, to tempt him to leave home
and neglect his own training ; and before
he is entitled to one, he should know how
to groom it, to be able to correct the
groom when he neglects his duty, or per-
forms it in an improper manner. I would
advise the pupil himself to undertake the
charge of a horse for some time — not merely
to superintend its keeping, but to clean it
himself, to water and corn it at stated
times at morning, noon, and night, and to
keep the saddle and bridle in jjroper order.
I groomed a new-broke-iu blood tilly for
four months one winter, and got more in-
sight into its form, temper, management,
and wants, than I could have obtained
by observation alone in a much longer
time. On coming home even at night,
from visiting a friend, I made it a point
with myself to make tlie mare comf(ntable
for the night before indulging in my own
rest.
1523. Usually a young lad, a groom,
is hired by the farmer to take charge of
his saddle or harness horse, or of both, to
go errands and to the post-office, and
otherwise to make himself serviceable in
the house. Sometimes the hedger or
shepherd acts the part of groom. My
shepherd acted as grooyi, and his art in
grooming was so skilful, that many friends
would have been glad could their pro-
fessed grooms have turned out the saddle-
horse or drag in as good a style. Besides
being useful in carrying the farmer to
market, or other short distances, a roadster
is required to carry him over the farm
when it is of large extent, and the work-
people require pretty constant superinten-
* M'Queen's General Statisficit of the British Empire, p. 15 and 37. 1836.
+ Porter's Proijress o/the Nation, p. 163. 1847. t The Ciistums Act, 26th June 1846.
§ M'CuUoch's Commercial Dictionary, — arts. Horse, Horse-dealers.
II llie Farmers Lawyer, p. 142.
332
PRACTICE— WINTER.
dence in the important operations of
eeed-tinie and barvest. A liarness-horse
is useful to a family at all times, and to the
farmer himself when he visits his friends ;
and many farmers now prefer riding to
market in a gig or drosky to horseback.
1524. A saddle or harness-horse is treated
somewhat differently in the stable from a
work-horse. The first thing to be done
early in the morning is to shake up the
litter nearest the strand with a fork, re-
moving the dung and soiled straw to a
court-yard, and sweeping the floor clean.
Then give the horse a drink out of the
pail, which is constantly kept full of water
in the stable. The usual practice is to
offer the water immediately before giving
the corn ; but I conceive it more conducive
to the health of the horse to slake his
thirst a while before giving him corn, to
allow the water time to reach its destina-
tion, and acquire the temperature of the
body. Should the horse have to under-
take a longer journey than walking about
the farm, the allowance of water should
be stinted to 10 gluts; but if he is to be
at home, he may drink as much as he
pleases.
1525. The grooming is begun by first
removing the sheet, and gently going over
the whole body with the currycomb, fig. 10.9,
to remove any particles of mud that may
possibly have escajjcd the former night's
grooming, and also to raise the scurf from
the skin ; and then wispiug down with
straw, to clear off what the currycomb
may have raised to the surface. The
brush follows, to clear the hair of its scurf,
the currycomb being used to clean the
brush. Of wisping and brushing, wisping
is the more beneficial to the legs, where
the hair is short and the tendons and
bones are but little covered, because it
excites warmth and cleans sufficiently.
Both wisping and brushing should be be-
gun at the head and terminated at the
other end of the body, along the lie of the
hair, which, notwithstanding different
swirls, tends from the upper to the lower
jiart of the body. Many a groom rests
content with a brushing only; but it does
not effectually remove the dust raised to
the surface, and a wisping is required to
do it. The horse sliould be turned round
in the stall, to have his head, neck, coun-
ter, and fore-legs, wisped, which, when
done, he is again turned to his former
position, to have the body, (juarters, and
hind-legs, wisped over; and when the whole
of this has been accomj^lished, the iiorse may
be considered clean. All this grooming
implies the bestowal of nmch more labour
than most farmers' riding-horses receive.
They are usually scuffled over in the
morning with the currycomb, and skimmed
with the brush, and with a hasty combing
of the mane and tail the job is considered
finished. The mane and tail ought to be
carefully combed out, and wetted over at
the time of combing with a half-dry
water-brush. The sheet should then be
thrown over the horse, and in putting it
on, it should be thrown more towards the
neck of the horse than where it is intended
to remain, and from thence drawn gently
down the hair with both hands, to its
proper position, while standing behind
the horse. It is kept in its place by
means of the roller, which should be
buckled on tightly. The litter is then
neatly shaken up with a fork, taking care
to raise the straw so far up the travis on
each side as to form a cushion for the side
of the horse to rest against wheu he lies
down.
1526. The feed of corn is then given
him, and a little hay thrown into the
rack ; and on the stable-door being shut,
he is permitted to enjoy his meal in peace.
At mid-day he should have another drink
of water from the pail, the dung removed,
the litter shaken up, and another portion
of oats given him. At 8 o'clock at night
the sheet should again be taken off, the
currycomb and brush used, and the entire
dressing finished again with a wisjjiing.
The sheet is then thrown over him as in
the morning, the litter shaken up and
augmented, water given, and the sup2)er
of oats, or a mash, finishes the day's treat-
ment of the saddle-horse.
1527. The wisp for this purpose is best
made of Russia mat, first Avetted and then
beaten to a soft state, and after being
dried is rolled up in the form of a wisp,
just large enough to fill the hand. This
wisp cleanses the surface of the hair most
effectually when it is damped with a little
water and dried by being beaten against
a stone wall.
THE FARMERS' SADDLE AND HARNESS HORSE.
833
1528. A wisp of horse-hair cloth makes
a horse's skiu very clean; but in dry
weather it is apt to excite such a degree
of electricity in the hair of the horse as
to cause it to attract much dust to it.
1529. The treatment just described is
most strictly applicable to the horse re-
maining all day in the stable ; but when
he is ridden out, a somewhat diflerent
procedure is required. When he comes
home from a dirty ride, the first thing is
to get clear of the mud on the belly and
legs. A very common practice is to wade
the horse through the pond, as the farm-
horses are ; but this should not be done,
since wading through a pond cannot
thoroughly clear the legs of mud to the
skin, and there still remains the belly to
be cleaned by other means than wading.
The plan is, in winter, to bring the horse
into the stable upon the pavement, and,
on taking oif the saddle and bridle and
putting on a halter, scrape all the mud
as clean off the belly and legs as can be
done with a blunt knife. With a pailful
of lukewarm water wash down the legs,
outside and inside, with a water-brush,
fig. 116, then each foot separately,
Fig. 116.
THE WATKR-BRUSH.
picking out the mud with the foot-picker,
fig. 105, and washing the mud clean
from the belly with the water-brush. A
scrape with the back of the knife, after
the washing, will bring out all the super-
fluous water from amongst the hair in the
belly, and a stroke down the legs with the
hands will clear them of most of the water.
On going into the stall the liorse should be
wisped lirmlv with straw, rubbing the
belly first, and then both sides of each leg
until thoroughly dry. It is scarcely pos-
sible to dry the belly at once, so it should
get another good wisping with dry clean
straw after the legs are dry. The head,
neck, and body are then thoroughly
cleaned with the currycomb, brush, and
wisp, as above described. On combing
out the mane and tail, putting on the sheet,
and bedding plentifully with dry straw,
the horse will be placed out of danger, and
feel pretty comfortable even for the night;
but should he have arrived some time
before the evening time for grooming, the
currycomb and wisp reapplied then will
remove any moisture or dust that may
have escaped before.
1 530. Considerable apprehension is felt
in regard to wetting the abdomen of horses,
especially at night — and the apprehension
is not ill founded, for if the moisture is
allowed to remain, even to a small degree,
its quick evaporation ensues from the ex-
cited state of the body consequent on
exercise, and rapidly reduces the tempe-
rature of the skin. The consequence of
such a cooling tends to irritate the skin,
and bring grease into the legs, and this
is the danger attending the wetting of the
bellies of farm-horses with coW water; but
warm water cleanses the hair and makes it
dry sooner, even on the abdomen, where it is
generally much longer than on the legs.
Unless, however,as much labour is bestowed
as will dry the skin, and which is usually
more than may be expected from ordinary
country grooms, it is safer for t!ie horse
to remain in a somewhat dirty state all
night, than to risk the consequences of an
attack of grease and inflammation by
neglected wet limbs and abdomen. If
the requisite labour s/mll be bestowed
to render the skin comjiletely dry, less
risk is incurred in wetting the belly than
the legs, inasmuch as the legs, in propor-
tion to their magnitude, expose a much
larger surface for evaporation, and are not
so near the source of animal heat as the
body.
1531. Clipping the hair close to the
body of saddle and harness-horses, has
been recommended and practised pretty
extensively within the last few years.
The effects likely to arise from this opera-
tion may be collected from these remarks
of a veterinary surgeon : — "If the owner,''
says he, "cannot suffer a long coat of
hair, and will have it shortened, he must
never allow the horse to be motionless
while he is wet or exposed to a cold blast.
He must have a good groom and a jrood
stable. Those who have both, seldom
834
PRACTICE— -^^TNTER.
have a horse that requires clipping, but,
when clipped, lie must not want either.
A long coat takes up a deal of moisture,
and is difficult to dry ; but, whether wet
or Jrr, it afforus some defence to the skin,
which is laid bare to every breath of air
when deprived of its natural covering.
Everyone must know from himself whether
wet clothing and a wet skin, or no cloth-
ing and a wet skin, is the most disagree-
able and dangerous. It is true that
clipping saves the groom a great deal of
labour. He can dry the horse in half the
time, and with less than half the exertion
■which a long coat re4uires ; but it makes
his attention and activity more necessar}',
for the horse is almost sure to catch cold
if not dressed immediately. When well
clothed with hair he is in less danger,
and not so much dependent, upon the care
of his groom."* These observations con-
lain the whole rationale of clipping, and
show it is inapplicable to farm-horses, aad,
as country grooms are usually qualified,
clipping would prove but problematically
beneficial to the saddle or harness horse of
the farmer.
1532. Saddle-horses receive oats in
proportion to the work they have to per-
form, but the least quantity supposed to
keep them in such condition as to enable
them to do a day's work at any time, is
three half-feeds a-day — one in the morn-
ing, another at mid-day, and a third at
night. When subjected to daily exercise,
riding-horses require three feeds a-day,
and an extra allowance for extra work,
such as a long journey. A mash once a-
week, even when on work daily, is re-
quisite ; and when comparatively idle, a
part of the mash prepared for the work-
horses, may be aduiinistered with much
advantage. I am no advocate of a bran
ma-h to a horse in good health, as it serves
only to loosen the bowels without bestow-
ing much nourishment. Boiled barley is
better. A riding-horse should have hay,
and not straw, in winter ; and he will eat
from a half to three-quarters of a stone of
22 lbs. daily.
1533. A method of feeding harness-
horses is practised by Mr R. O. Durham.
Turnham Green, London, on his omnibus
horses. They are now partly fed on
carrots, instead of wholly on oats as for-
merly, and the results deserve the attention
of the fanner in supporting his own saddle-
horse. Mr Durham observes: — "I make
b(dd to ofter to the keepers of horses a
plan which I have successfully practised
for the last three years,- to save a large
consumption of oats ; and, having had the
management of upwards of 200 horses be-
hmging to the Hammersmith Conveyance
Company, I can confiilently state that the
plan is not only a great saving in expense,
but is in tiic highest degree conducive to
the health, and the development of the ca-
pabilities of the horse. In autumu I lay in
a sufficient store of either white or red
carrots, (white preferred,) to last till the
spring, and from every stud of 8 horses I
deduct from their daily allowance of '>ats,
(which is 4 bushels, or 152 lbs.,) 1 bushel,
or 38 lbs., in place of which I substitute
about 72 lbs. of carrots sliced thin, and
then mixed with the chaff and oats — thus
saving one bushel of oats in every stud
per day ; a ton of carrots being e(j[ual to
4 quarters of oats. Now, taking the
number of horses working in the omni-
buses round London at 8 per omnibus, and
the number of omnibuses at 1400, the
saving in the consumption of oats by
omnibus horses only would be 1,4UU
bushels, or 175 quarters, per day. But
almost all descriptions of horses do well
upon thi? food. Blaine, in his Veterinari/
Art, says of carrots that 'agricultural
horses may be supported on them wholly,
when sliced and mixed with chatF; the
sweet jiarsnip has similar pn^perties, and
may be used with almost equal success ;
and the Swedish turnip has proved an ex-
cellent food, the sugar jnedominating in
all these to an eminent degree ; ' and he
adds, 'but carrots stand foremost, and
hardly too much can be said on their ex-
cellent qualities. 'J'hey appear jjarticularly
favourable to condition, as the skin and
hair always look well uuder their use ;
they are highly nutritious, and so favour-
able are they to the free exercise of the
lungs that horses have been found even
to hunt on them, and, in conjunction with
a certain portion of corn, would form as
good a fooil as could be devised for our
coach and machine horses and our hack-
• Stewart's Stable Economy, p. 120.
THE FARMERS' SADDLE AND HARNESS HORSE.
835
neys.' And further on he states, ' that in
very many cases of horsts In fair work,
carrots may be wholly substituted for corn,
provided the quantity be doubled or
trebled — and with additional advantage to
the health and condition of the animals.' "
1 534. Of harness there should be two
pairs of girths in use with the saddle, when
the horse has much work to do, to allow
one pair to be thoroughly cleaned and
dried while the other is in use. The best
way to clean girths is first to scrape off
the mud with a knife, and then to wash
thorn in cold water, and hang them up to
a fire or bright sun to dry quickly. Warm
water makes them shrink rapidly, and so
does long exposure to wet. If there is
time, they should be washed the same day
they have been dirtied ; and if not, on
being scraped at night, they should be
washed in the following morning, and
hung up in the air to dry; and if the air is
damp, liang them before the kitchen fire.
Girths allowed to dry with the mud on
soon become rotten and unsafe.
1535. The stirrup leathers should be
taken off and sponged clean of the mud,
and dried with a cloth ; and the saddle-
flaps should also be sponged clean of mud,
and the seat spongt-d with a wrung S|;>onge,
and rubbed dry with a cloth.
1 536. The stirrup-irons and bit should
be washed in water, and rubbed dry with
a cloth, immediately after being used.
Fine sand and water, on a thick woollen
rag, clean these irons well, and a dry rub
afterwards with a cloth makes them bright.
Some smear them with oil on setting them
past, to prevent rust ; but oil, on evapora-
tion, leaves a resinous residuum to which
dust readily and strongly adheres. The
curb-chain is best cleaned by washing in
clean water, and rubbed dry with a cloth,
and made bright by friction between the
palms of both hands.
1537. Carriage harness should be
sponged clean of mud, kept soft and
pliable with fine oil, and, when not ja-
panned, blackened with the best shoe
black, Everington's being excellent. There
should be no plating or brass ornaments
on a farmer's harness ; plain iron japanned,
or iron covered with leather, forms the
neatest, most easily kept, and serviceable
mounting. Bright metallic mountings of
every kind soon assume the garb of the
shabby genteel iuthe hands of an ordinary
rustic groom.
1538. The wheels of a carriage are best
cleaned v/ith a worsted mop and water,
and made dry with a soft linen cloth, and
finished with chamois leather. The body
should be washed with a wet sponge, and
rubbed dry with chamois leather. In rak-
ing off" mud from the body of a carriage
with a wet sponge, care should be taken
to let the loose mud run off of itself with
the water from the sponge, and to keep the
sponge clean by wringing out, to avoid
scratching the varnishing.
1539. On choosing a spunge to be used
for carriage cleaning, the form should be
of a hollow cup about the size of the hand,
this form having the finest and most
delicate edge for cleaning a smooth surface
such as a carriage panel. The substance
should have a fresh appearance and fair
colour, tough, and free of sand and grits.
Never buy a sponge ofiered at a small
price for its size, as it will be sure to be
rotten, and most likely of a dead brown
colour. Before using any new sponge, it
should be thoroughly and repeatedly
washed with suap and warm water.
1540. In selecting a chamois skin, it
should be ecpially thick tliroughout, feel
delightfully smooth, be large, and free of
hard s])ots. Chamois leather as sold in the
s'lops is not all made of the skin of the
chamois of the Alps, that of the common
goat and the doe being manufactured as
that of the real chamois.*
1541. A saddle-horse stable, when more
than one horse is kept, should be provided
with 2 pails for water, and one for washing
the feet in, or the carriage wheels. It is
a dirty habit to give the horse his di'iuk of
water out of the same))ail in which his feet
is usually washed, which shouh! never be
allowed to be used for any other purpose.
The other furniture of such a stable con-
sists of a fork to shake up the s+raw, a
Ure's Dictionary of the Arts, — art. Leather, p. 767.
336
PRACTICE— WINTER,
broom, a mop to wash tne floor when of
India rubber pavement, or the carriage-
wlieels, and a box for holding stuffing of
cow-dung for the feet. The corn- chest
should be provided with a sieve to purge
out the dust and sand from the corn.
1542. The horse should be provided
with a rug and roller, the wearing of
which serves to keep his skin free of dust,
A rug costs 13s. 6d., and a roller 5s. 6d.;
a riding-saddle £4, 10s. ; double bridle,
30s. ; stall collars, 6s. 6d. ; water-brush,
fig. 116, 3s. 6d. ; and a set of harness for
gig or carriage for one horse, £8 — all of
the best materials and workmanship.
1543. Wax lights are best aud cleanest
for carriage lamps, and for all the number
a farmer will require in a season he should
not hesitate on using them. The reflectors
are now made large and bright, and are
best cleaned with a soft clean muslin rag.
1544. Besides all the diseases mentioned as
incidental to the farm-horse, the saddle-liorse is
liable to many more, arising from afiections in
the foot. When we consider the violence of the
action of the horse in trotting, and that he has
to trot not only with a load on his back, bearing
a large proportion to his own weight, but upon
a hard road, which yields but in a very slight
degree to his Weight, and at times for several
hours at a stretch, we need not be surprised to
find his feet become much heated, and even in-
jured. So used, without protection, his feet, in
a natural state, would soon be so seriously injured
as to be incapable of re^sisting the concussion of
a hard road ; and the only protection capable of
resisting so hard a substance as an artificial road,
and, at the same time, be so light as not mate-
rially to interfere witli his action, is a plate of
iron fastened upon the sole of the foot, and com-
monly denominated a shoe. Were this shoe
fastened upon the foot so as to allow the foot its
■ natural freedom when in action, we might easily
believe that the protection afforded by so tena-
cious and obdurate a substance as iron would be
most effectual to the feet ; but, alas ! so far is the
shoe, as ordinarily made and fastened on, from
giving the foot its natural freedom, there is great
reason to believe, that all the variety of lame-
ness exhibited by the saddle-horse may truly be
ascribed to the manner in which his feet are
shod. This statement is highly important to
every one who has a horse to feel interested in ;
and that it is founded on observation and reason,
a recent publication enables me to prove con-
vincingly to the agricultural student,
1545. The horse's foot is not circular, as is
generally supposed, but is curved considerably
and abruptly outwards ; while the inner quarter
is carried back in a gradual and easv curve as is
shown in fig. 1 1 7, where the outer crust from a to
b is more curved than the inner one from 6 to e J
Fig. 117.
THE HORSE S FOOT IN THE NATURAL STATE,
and the outer crust is also thicker than the
inner, as is also shown in the figure. " There are
very few things so little varied in nature as the
form of the ground surface of the horse's foot,"
says Mr Miles of Dixfield, near Exeter ; " for,
whether the hoof be high-heeled and upright or
low-heeled and flat, large or small, broad or nar-
row, the identical form of the ground surface is
maintained in each, so long as it is left to nature's
guidance. The advantage of this form is so ob-
vious, that it is matter of wonder it should be inter-
fered with. The enlarged outer quarter extends
the base, and increases the hold of the foot upon
the ground ; while the straighter inner quarter
lessens the risk of striking the foot against the
opposite leg. It should surely be our object to
retain these valuable qualities as long as we can,
and not lightly sacrifice either of them to a false
notion of what may be considered a prettier
form. Whenever we observe nature steadily
persevering in one plan, depend upon it, it is not
within the range of man's ingenuity to amend
it ; and he will better secure his own interest in
accommodating his views to her laws, than in
attempting to oppose them." Instead, therefore,
of attempting to alter the form of the foot to the
circular one given to the shoe, the shoe onght to
be made to fit the form of the natural foot.
1546. In preparing the foot for the shoe, both
judgment and skill are requisite. The outer
crust « 6 c, as well as the sole d, should be well
rasped down ; and the operator mostly errs in
taking away too little than too much. The
quantity depends on the form of the upper part
of the foot, which varies considerably in different
horses. In upright feet and high heels horn
grows abundantly, especially towards the toe,
and such feet are benefited by having the toe
shortened, the heels lowered, and the sole well
pared out ; while with flat feet and low heels
FAEMERS' SADDLE AND HARNESS HORSE.
337
the horn grows sparingly, and such will admit of
very little shortening in the toe, being always
weak, and the heels are already too low for the
rasp ; and the sole presents so little dead horn,
that tlie drawing-knife should be used with great
discretion. Perfect and tolerably well formed
feet, with a fair growth of horn, should have the
toe shortened, the heels lowered, and the sole
■well pared out — that is, all the dead hurn re-
moved, and, if need be, some of the living too —
until it will yield, in some small degree, to hard
pressure from the thumb. Besides the form of
the foot, other circumstances regulate the degree
of paring to which the foot should be subjected ;
such as, it is manifestly unwise to pare the sole
as thin in a hot dry season, when the roads are
strewed with loose stones, as in a moderately
wet one, when they are well bound and even
— the most favourable surface that most of our
horses ever have to travel upon — when advantage
should be taken to give the sole a thorough
paring, in order that the internal parts of the
foot may derive the full benefit arising from an
elastic and descending sole — a state of things very
essential to the due performance of their separate
functions.
1547. The corners formed by the junction of
the crust and bars, as at a and c, fig. 117, the
bars being a d and c d, should be well pared
out, as this is the seat of corn ; and no accumu-
lation of horn should be allowed to take place,
to increase the pressure on the particular part.
The bars should be pared down to the level
of the sole. " I prefer paring them down to
the level of the sole," observes Mr Miles, " or
very nearly so, avoiding, however, any approach
to what is called 'opening out the heels' — a most
reprehensible practice, which means cutting
away the sides of the bars, so as to show an
apparent increase of width between the heels,
which may for a time deceive the eye ; but it is a
mere illusion, purchased at the expense of im-
paired power of resistance in the bars, and
ultimate contraction of the foot. It is self-
evident, that the removing any portion from the
sides of the bars must diminish their substance,
and render them weaker, and consequently less
able to resist contraction."
1548. With respect to the frog a, fig. 117, Mr
Miles observes, that "the layer of horn that
covers the frog is thinner in substance, and more
delicate in texture, than that of any other part of
the foot, and, when once destroyed, is very im-
perfectly and sparingly reproduced. The first
stroke of the knife removes this thin horny
covering altogether, and lays bare an undue sur-
face, totally unfitted, from its moist, soft texture,
for exposure either to the hard ground or the
action of the air ; and, in consequence of such
unnatural exposure, it soon becomes dry and
shrinks ; then follow cracks, the edges of which,
turning outwards, form rags ; these rags are
removed by the smith at the next shoeing,
whereby another such surface is exposed, and
another foundation laid for other rags ; and so
on, until at last the protruding plump elastic
cushion, interposed by nature between the navi-
cular joint and the ground, and so essential to
its preservation from injury, is converted, by the
mischievous interference of art, into the dry,
shrunk, unyielding apology for a frog to be seen
in the foot of almost every horse that has been
regularly shod for a few years." This shrinking
of the frog is produced by the shoeing without
the additional assistance of the knife. Indeed,
shoeing seems almost to check its growth en-
tirely in the generality of feet ; for, if we compare
the size of tiie frog with the circumference of
the foot in a horse being accustomed to be shod,
we shall find the space occupied by it will not
exceed one-tenth, or even one-twelfth, of the
whole circumference, whereas in the natural and
unshod foot it occupies about one sixth. The
evident practice, then, should be to leave the frug
alone, and never allow a knife to approach it.
Nature will remove the superfluous horn, and the
rags can do no harm, and, if unmolested, will soon
disappear altogether.
1549. The shoe should not be too light, be-
cause it is then liable to be bent, and becomes an
insufiicient covering to the foot. The web of the
shoe should be broad, and continued through the
whole shoe to the heels, to give increased cover-
ing and protection to the sole of the fobt. The
outside of the shoe should exactly fit the crust of
the hoof, thereby giving the entire foot an equal
bearing on all its parts from the toe to the heel.
The usual practice is to have a portion of the
shoe projecting outwards, along both the outer
and inner quarters of the hoof ; aud when this
form of shoe is connected with a narrowing of
the web at the heel, the eff"ect is to place the
heel upon the inside line of the web, thereby
producing an unequal bearing upon the ground
surface of the foot. The setting off of the shoe
at the heels is a great inconvenience to the horse
when his foot sinks into the ground, inasmuch as
the part set oft" forms a base for the ground to
resist the foot when pulled up ; and doubtless it
is in this way that most of the shoes are pulled
off and lost in the ground. It is evident,
when the shoe fits the foot of the horse exactly,
that when the foot is pulled up through the
ground after sinking, the !-hoe must follow the
foot without detriment or difficulty. " I always
employ," remarks Mr Miles, "a tolerably wide-
webbed shoe, and bring in the heels of it almost
close to the frog, so as to reduce the opening
between the heels as much as I conveniently
can ; and if in fitting the shoe I observe a corner
pressing upon, or in any way interfering with the
frog, I cause it to be cut ofl" rather tlian have a
shoe opened out to let in the frog — for in open-
ing out the shoe a portion equal to the objec
tiouable corner must be thrust out beyond the
hoof, which is very undesirable, as presenting a
ready hold for stiff ground to pull the shoe by.
This plan of bringing in the heels, while it covers
and protects the angles where the bars are
reflected, at the same time draws the sides of
the shoe nearer together, and opposes in a stoney
road a surface of iron instead of the unprotected
foot, warding off, thereby, many a blow that
would otherwise prove injurious." Suppose such
a shoe, aud so put on, were made of glass, it
338
PRACTICE— WINTER.
would s-liow the pnrts of the foot through it as
reprcseuted in fif. 118, where a b c is the crust
Fig. 113.
THE THA'.-i AKKNT SHOE, SHOWING THE CLOSE
FITTING OF THE SHOE TO THE FORE- FOOT.
with the shoe closely fitted on ; at a and c the
angles formed by the bars and crust are protected
and supported by the shoe. The shoe is made
sufficiently long, fully to support the entire struc-
ture of the heels.
1550. Fig. 119 shows, by a transparent shoe,
Fig. 119.
b
THE TRANSPARENT RHOE, SHOWING THE USUAL
SEAT GIVEN TO THE SHOE UPON THE FORE- FOOT.
the usual seat given to the shoe a b c upon the
foot, wliere it is obvious that the heels oftlieshoe
at 'I and c are made to project a considir.ibie
distance on the outside of the crust of tlie hoof, at
both heels of the foot -the consequence of ^^•hi(•h
:arr:ingenieut must be, that, when the hor.-'c's foot
sink's into the ground, espwvially in soft toiigli
clay, the force reqtiisrte io draw it out uf the
ground, while the ground pvcs.Je.-^ wiiliconsiJcrabie
weight upon the projecting portions of the shoe
at<( and c, will not only bring an undue strain
upon the nails of tlie shoe, but most pro-
bably draw the shoe off the foot altogether,
accompanied with a severe sprain of the fetlock
joint ; and the effects of such an accident will be
in proportion to the speed the horse is running,
and the weight he baa to carry.
1551. The shoe should be of equal thickness
throughout, and the toe turned a little up out of
the line of wear, thereby impartini; to tlie toe of
a new shoe, when placed on a flat surfice, the
same elevation from the ground line as that of
an old one. The common practice is to have the
shoe thickest at the heels, whereby tlie toe is
thrown forward, and is caused to strike against
every projection which comes in its way ; and a
lump of steel is welded on the toe, which not
only increases its thickness and the number of
obstacles it necessarily encounters, but, being of
a harder texture, is longer in wearing down, and
consequently exposes the foot to the greatest
amount of concussion. A small clip at the point
of the toe is very desirable to prevent the dis-
placement of the shoe backward : it need not be
driven up hard, being merely required as a stay
or check. The ground surface of the shoe should
be perfectly flat, witli a fullering or groove run-
ning round the outer edge, just under the plain
surface on which tlie crusf bears. Tiie groove
protects the heads of the nails; and as it .urther
increases the hold of the shoe on the ground, it
should be always carried back to the heels.
15w2. No shoe should ever be nailed to the
foot until it has been ascertained that the pres-
sure of the hands is sufficient to keep it steadily
in its place, and preclude any appearance of day-
light between it and the foot. A hct shoe, to
scorch any part that bears unevenly upon it, is
the only way by which tlie even bearing neces-
sary to a ])ert'ect fitting of the shoe can be insured.
A notion prevails that the shoe gives the particu-
lar form to the foot. This is a mistake, for no
foot can possibly be affected by any form of slioe
it may stand upon. It is the sitnari-n of the
nails which alters the form of the foot, by pre-
venting its expansion, and such prt-veiitiou of
expansion is tlie sole cause of all the lameness
affecting the foot; and as long as the preseixt luode
of placing the nails shall be per.'-evered in, so long
will the foot of the horse be liable to be affected
by lameness. If, on the contrary, the nails are
placed on the outside quarter and toe, leaving
the heels and quarters in the insiJc, which are
the most expansive parts, fre<', the form of the
foot will in no degree be iiffected by the .*hoe, for,
supposing the shoe to be too coiitraci»d, liie foot
will expand out over it. The n"ii3 should be
li;;htly driven before their clenches sre turned up.
The cleiu-hes should not be rasped a-vay too fine,
nor should tiie covering of the lioof be r'llowed to
be rasped away, as it destroys the ci-vering pro-
vided by nature as a protection agiinst ili<; too
rapid eva|)oration of the moisture of the hoof,
which causes the horn to become dry and brittle.
1553. Wlien the foot has thus ;iced>ni to play
FARMERS' SADDLE AND HARNESS HORSE.
339
with outside nailing, and the strain upon the
nails by the expansion and contraction of the
hoof removed, the i^hoe may be held in its place,
as long as it should be at a time, with a much
fewer number of nails than is the common prac-
tice. By a series of experiments conducted for
years, with a number of horses doing both fast and
slow work, Mr Miles has been enabled to demon-
strate that 3 nails will keep on a shoe as firmly
as 8, the common number. " Since the publica-
tion of the preceding edition of this treatise," ob-
serves Mr Miles, '' I have had seven months'
additional experience in the use of 3 nails, during
the whole of which time all my horses have been
shod with that number. . . . These last ex-
periments are not recorded with a desire of in-
ducing others to trust to such slender fastening ;
for, however desirable it may have been to ascer-
tain with precision the smallest number of nails
indispensable to the security of a shoe, it by no
means follows that it is therefore either prudent
or expedient to adapt it fur general use. The
chief value of such knowledge is the unanswer-
able argument it supplies ag-iinst the supposed
necessity for 7 or 8 nails. I do not know that
any very great advantage is to be expected from
3 to 4 nails over 5, further than the confirmation
of the valuable and im[)ortant fact that a shoe
can be securely retained by a few nails; and, that
being the case,tlie fewer we employ, iu reason, the
better, because, thy smaller the number the larger
the intervening space of sound horn to nail to at
the next shoeing." The practical conclusion 1
would draw from all that has just been said on
this interesting and important subject, is, that 5
nails are sufficient for a saddle-horse, and 4 quite
so for a farm-horse in the fore feet, 1 inside the
toe, 3 outside, the quarters being free.
1554. In illustration of the nailing, fig. 120
represents a foot shod with 5 nails, where 4 are
Fig. 120.
crust ate, leaving the' entire space from it to
the heel free. The small turn up clip on the
shoe is shown at h. Tiie fullering is carried dowu
to the heels, but not across the toe.
1555. In comparison with this nailing, fig. 121 is
given to show an ordinary mode of nailing with
Fig. 121.
SHOBING THE FORE-FOOT WITH FIVE NAILS.
spread over the outside cfust at a, from the vi-
cinity of the toe b to near the heel, and 1 is
placed in the vicinity of the toe in the inside
'^^iW^
SHOEING THE FORE- FOOT WITH SEVEN NAILS.
7 nails, 4 in the outside at a and 3 in the inside
crust at c, dispersed equally over both the out-
side and inside quarters, with the fullering
carried round the toe b, and terminating at each
quarter, while the heels of the shoes expose the
angles formed by the crust and bars of the foot.
1556. With respect to the hind foot, Mr Miles'
experience recommends the employment of 7
nails for security, 4 in the outside and 3 in the
inside crust, with the latter placed closer and as
far removed from the quarter as jiostible. In-
stead of the mischievous practice of turning dowu
the outer heel of the shoe, to tlirow an uncomfort-
able strain upon the fetlock joint alone, he recom-
mends the hind shoes for saddle and Iianiess
horses to be made thicker for the last two
inclies towards the heels, the last inch being flush
with the ground to prevent strain upon the back
sinews when the horse is suddenly stopped with
his hind foot far under him, as when he has to hold
back against a steep hill. For this last reason,
calkins, if both turned down equally, which they
seldom are, may be useful to farm horses that are
much upon the road ; but if much at home, thick
heels to the hind shoes will suffice for this ))ur-
pose. Clips, however, on the toes of the b.ind
shoes will tend miidi to keep the shoes secure in
their place, and ease the pressure on the liiud
heels in going down hill with a load.
1557. In connexion with the proper shoeing
of the foot is the nature of the accouunudation
afforded the saddle-horse for giviu,;; the hoofs of
his feet liberty to expand and contract ; and
such liberty can only be awaided him, off the
road, in a loose box instead of a stall. Mr
Miles' observations on this subject at cue*
840
PRACTICE— WINTER.
show the utility and rationale of employing
I'nise lioxes inste;iil of stalls. " The almost per-
petual movement of a horse in a state of nature,
wJiile grazing', greatly tends to preserve the
different elastic parts of his foot in a sound and
healthy condition, by the regular compression
and expansion they undergo, according as his
weight is tlirown njion or removed from them ;
but if we chain hiiu to a post for tweuty-two out
of every twenty-four hours, we can scarcely won-
der that so unnatural a proceeding should de-
range an organ that requires motion to preserve
it in health Let us see how luose
boxes are to prevent evils. When a horse is
free to move, he very rarely remains long in the
same place or the same position ; he is perpe-
tually tiiruiug himself about, either to catch a
distant sound, or observe an approaching foot-
step,— every thing attracts him, every thing in-
terests him ; and, what is of far greater moment,
every thing causes him to move, whereby each
foot is beneftted to the extent of some four or
five expansions and contractions, and the sound
of the corn-bin at feeding time will produce at
least fifty such. It is far otherwise with the
poor beast chained up in a stall : he is attracted
by the same sounds, hears the same step approach,
and feels the same interest ; he pricks his ears,
bsuds his head, and strains his neck ! but, alas, he
dois not move, — his feet are not expanded, — •
turning about he knows to be impossible, and
therefore he does not attempt it. Even the sound
of the corn-bin, though it excite him to jump and
play, will scarcely cause him to expand his feet :
the excitement inclines him to rush forward,
while the wall forbids him to comply, and he
18 forced to collect himself, so as to throw
his weight on his hind quarters, almost to
the entire exclusion of the fore feet. Horses
accustomed to a loose box generally acquire a
slow deliberate movement in it, allowing their
weight to dwell evenly and fully upon each fore
foot ; whilst those kept in the stalls for the most
part move in it with a quick, sudden, catching
motion, scarcely ever intrusting their whole
weight to either foot for more than a moment."
Loose boxes are not so useful to farm as to saddle
horses, as they have regular exercise every day,
and they consequently have more need of rest
than of motion in the stable.
1558. Fig. 122 gives a very convenient ar-
rangement of sn<!li loose boxes, where a is a
large one, 18 feet by 8 feet, for a large har-
ness horse, or a mare with a foal for a time ; e
is the next largest, 1 3 feet by 8 feet ; and b is
the smallest one, 10 feet by 8 feet ; h are the
corn mangers ; i the hay racks ; d the harness-
room, 8 feet by 5 feet,with a window ; and (7 a space
to contain the pails, fork, shovel, and broom. The
doors of the loose boxes, and the outer d-^r /'/', ,ire
eo made to open as to leave a clear passage efor ilie
horses to go out and come in with freedom; while
the door of the harness-room and the various uten-
sils are covered by these doors, and placed out of
reach of the horses. The parlition-walls between
the horses should be made of brick, and lined
with deal 4 feet high, and carried to 6 feet at the
hay-racks, and iron rails should surmount the
walls to the height of 8 feet. The rails sepa-
rate, while they allow the horses to associate.
Fiir. 122.
PL.\N OF LUOSli liOXES FOR SAUDLE-HUK^KS.
1559. Objections have been made against loose
boxes, on the ground that they occupy mnch
larger space than stalls ; but this objection should
bear little weight in a set of offices iu the coun-
try, where space is no object. It is also said
that horses are always dirty in loose-boxes, by
their moving about casting up dust, and lying
down upon their own dung. Such an objection
is most likely to be urged by an indolent coun-
try groom. They are also said to allow foul-
feeding horses to eat their litter. This is true,
but any horse can be prevented doing so by
means of a muzzle.
1560. A light muzzle of iron is given by Mr
Miles, as in fig. 1 23, the construction of which
Fig. 123.
THE HORSE MUZZLE FOR SADDrK-IIORSES.
explains itself, the frame-work a b being made
of flat iron rod, supported with iron-wire, and
the muzzle is suspended from the horse's head
by means of leather straps c c ; the nose and
jaws being protected by cushion d d. " It is
not necessary," says Mr Miles, " that the
head should go farther into it than thies
FARMERS' SADDLE AND HARNESS HORSE.
341
inches above the angle of the mouth ; but
it is essential that the bottom of the muzzle
should hang fully three inches below the lips,
because the horse is thus obliged firmly to deposit
the muzzle before he can be able to reach the
bottom of it with his lips, in doing which the
weight of the muzzle, and the pressure thus made
upon it, will effectually flatten the straw out of
his reach ; and, by disappointing his hopes, soon
cause him to discontinue his fruitless efforts.
But if the bottom of the muzzle be brought tight
up against the lips, the head and muzzle will act
together, and the horse will eat just as much of
his bed as he pleases. Its whole utility depends
upon the horse's nose being so free of the muzzle
that he shall not be able to reach any part of it
with his lips without putting it down, when he
instantly defeats his object." * With such aa
instrument as this muzzle, any horse may be
prevented eating the litter in a loose-box.
1561. The horse having liberty to move freely
about in a loose box, it is necessary that its floor
be level and smooth, entirely free from inequali-
ties. Common causewaying is neither even nor
smooth. A pavement of flags makes a floor both
even and smooth ; but it is very hard, not yield-
ing in the least to the weight of the horse's foot.
It would be desirable could a subatance be found
to make a floor even, smooth, and elastic, and
such a substance is India rubber pavement, which
has already been described (1121.)
1562. The saddle and harness horse are sub-
ject to all the diseases incidental to the farm
horse, and to many more, from which the latter
is almost always exempt. The parts of the body
of the saddle horse and harness horse most sus-
ceptible of disease are the feet and legs, and the
diseases affecting these arise from the peculiar
treatment received by the horse, whether from
idleness, or excess of work.
1563. When a horse obtains more rest than
his work requires, he is idle. Absolute idleness
is, when he suffers close confinement in a stable
or loose-box. He soon becomes weak, fat, short-
winded, and stiff. If well fed, he may retain
healih and spirits two or three months; but in
this time he almost loses the use of his legs, and
his skin becomes foul and itchy. " I am unable
to say " observes Stewart, " how soon absolute
repose will entirely destroy working condition.
The time must vary with the horse's employment
and the manner in which he is fed. Those of
slow work may suffer confinement for six or
eight weeks before they become as feeble as idle-
ness can make them. If half starved, or fed so
poorly that the horse loses flesh, less than a
month will produce the effect. If fully fed, he
accumulates a load of fat, which makes him
weaker than idleness with moderate feeding
would make him. Fast workers lose their con-
dition much sooner; one week of superfluous rest
impairs the condition of a hunter ; he loses
wind, but he is still able for much work. To
* Miles On the Horse's Feet, 6th edition, p. 14,
of which being the result of extensive experience
to the mind of the reader.
destroy his condition entirely, he would in most
cases require about four weeks of close confine-
ment; some would need less, and some would per-
haps retain a portion of their condition nearly
eight weeks. A great eater degenerates fastest.
Comparative idleness is that in which the horse
gets exercise, or perhaps some work, yet not
sufficient to maintain his condition. The owner
may not use him oftener than once or twice a
fortnight, and he receives exercise from a groom
in the intervals. Horses kept for work of this
kind rarely have good grooms to look after them.
They are generally in the charge of men who
seem to think exercise is of no use but to keep
the horse in health. A daily walk, with a smart
trot, will keep the horse in condition for moderate
work ; hut if the owner ride or drive fast and far, and
at irregular intervals, as much exercise as keeps
the horse in health is not sufficient. Every
second, third, or fourth day, the exercise should
resemble the work. The horse should go nearly,
or quite as far, and as fast, as the owner usually
rides him. It may be too much to do every day,
or every second day; but, keeping always within
safe bounds, the horse should have work or
exercise equal to his work, at regular intervals.
Many people work a horse on Sunday, as if they
thought six days of idleness should enable him
to perform a week's work in one day. When
the horse lias much to do on Sunday, he should
in general do nearly as much on Wednesday, and
on other days he may have walking exercise.
1564. A single day of severe exertion may
destroy the horse's working condition. Wxslungs
may be injured, a disease may succeed, and
require many days to cure it. Between the
disease, the cure, and the idleness, the condition
may be wholly gone before any thing can be done
to keep or restore it. This is termed over-work-
ing, and is not the excess I here mean. That
to which I allude is not the excess of one day.
The horse may perform the work for several
days, or even weeks, quite well, yet it may be
too much to be done long. One of two things
will happen, or both may occur together. The
horse will lose flesh and become weak, or his
legs fail, and he will become lame. Emaciation,
the loss of flesh from excess of work, is easily
explained. The work is such as to consume
more nutriment than the digestive apparatus can
supply. The horse may have as much of the
best food as he will eat, yet tlie power of the
stomach and bowels is limited. They can furnish
only a certain quantity of nutriment. When the
work demands more, it is procured from other
parts of the body. The fat, if there be any, is
consumed first; it is converted into blood; a little
is taken away every day; by and by it is all
removed, and the horse is lean. Should the
demand still continue, other parts are absorbed;
the cellular tissue, and ultimately every particle
of matter which the system can spare, is converted
into nutriment. When the whole is consumed,
the supply must be wholly furnished by the
digestive apparatus; and if that were unable to
et seq. — a valuable practical work, every sentence
, carries conviction of the sentiments of the author
342
PRACTICE— WINTER.
meet tlie demand .it first, it is still less able now.
By this time tiie horse is \ery lean: his bones
stare through tlie skin, he is spiritless, stitf and
slow, .ind his belly is tucked up almost to his
baok-bone. The horse becomes unfit for work.
Rest and tf'od food soon restore him; but if the
■work be still exacted, the solidsand fluids change,
the system f:ilis into decay, and a disease, such
as a common cohl. or the influenza, from which
a horse in ordinary condition would soon recover,
produces in this worn-out animal ijh-mdiTS or
f'lrni. Work is sometimes exacted till the
horse is ruined: but the owner rarely escapes,
for when glanders once appears, it seldom stays
where it begins. General stiffness usually
accompanies emaciation. When first taken from
the stable, the horse seems to l)e stiff all over: he
obtains greater freedom of motion after he is
tolerably well warmed by exertion; but he never
has great speed. In racers and hunters, the
extent of stride is perceptibly contracted towards
the close (if their working season. They are
termed stale, and require some repose, and green
meat or carrots, and sometimes a little physic to
refresh them.
1S6.5. The leijs are often so ill formed, that
they fail without excess of work. But fast
paces, long journeys, and heavy weights, ruin
the very best. A single journey may produce
lameness; it may give the horse spariu, or qroijiji-
vess, or some other lameness may be the result of
one day's work. Biittliisis more than excess. The
horse may have to perform it twice or thrice in
his lifetime, but if it be such as to make him
lame, it is too much to form regular work. The
excess to which I allude does not produce lame-
ness till after the horse has done the journey
several times in succession. When in two or three
he becomes lame, it is high time to make arrange-
ments for preventing more. The distance may
be shortened, the drauglit or weight lightened,
or the pace retarded. The legs often show that
the work is in excess, thou^'h the horse may not
be lame. The fore legs suffer most, but the hind
are not exempt. When there is much up-hill
work, or much gallo()ing, the hind fail as often
as the fore. The fiasterns become straight, and,
in extreme cases, the fetlock joint is bent forward:
this is termed A-/(McA:/(»«/-or('r. At a later period,
the knees bend forward. The whole leg is
crooked, deformed, tottering. Besides these,
the legs become tumid, round, puffy. There is a
general tumefaction, and the legs are said to be
(jourdy, fleshy, or stale. The deformity produces
unsteadiness of action; the limbs tremble after
the least exertion, and the horse is easily thrown
on the ground. The tumefaction produces a
tendency to cracked heels and to grease. Some-
times the pasterns descend backward, instead of
inclining forward. Very often the back tendons
suffer enlargement, which, in some cases, depends
entirely upon accumulation of the fluid by which
they are lubricated, not upon any enlargement
of the tendons themselves. The back and fetlock
joints are always large and puffy. These enlarge-
ments are termed irhid-galls, bog-sparin, and
thorough-pin. They are little bags containing joint-
oil, which prevents friction. Rapid and lasting
motion increases the quantity of the fluid, and
dilates the bags which contain it. Tlie legs of
racers and hunters are always more or less the
worse of wear towards the close of their working
season. If these horses were wanted all the
year through, the legs would demand rest, though
the body might not. Hunters rest all summer,
racers all winter, and during repose their legs
regain their original integrity and form. The
legs of horses are very differently construc'ed.
Some are so well formed that they suffer a gnat
deal before they begin to fail; others are so de-
fective tliat they will not stand hard work. With
racers and hunters, much may be done to save
them: fomentations, hand-rubbing, and bandages,
are of much service after severe work, bat tliey
require too much time and attendance to be
employed for inferior horses. It is the fashion
at present to dispense with breech-bands; and
where the road is pretty level, or the carriage
light, they are of little use. But it seems to me
they have been too generally discarded. With-
out breech-bands, the whole weight of the car-
riage in going down hill is thrown upon the neck,
and from the neck to the fore-legs, llilly ground
is destructive to both f'ure and hind legs, but the
fore ones always fail first.
1.566. The feet are often injured by excess of
work. The fore-feet are liable to one disease,
which has been emphatically denominated * the
curse of good horses.' I mean the narlcular
disease, or gruggiiiess. It is very common among
all kinds of fast workers. Bad shoeii/g, neglect
of stable care to jireserve the feet, hard roads,
and various other agents, have been blamed for
producing it. But it seems to me the most com-
mon and the most certain cause has been too little
considered. Long journeys at a fast pace will
render almost any horse groggy. Bad shoeing
and want of stable care both help, but I am
sure they alone never produce grogginess. The
horse must go far and fast: if his feet be neglected,
or bad shoeing, a slower pace and a shorter dis-
tance will do the mischief; but 1 believe there is
nothing in the world will make a horse groggy,
except driving him far enough and fast enough
to alter the synovial secretion of the navicular
joint. Cart horses are quite exempt; those work-
ing in the omnibuses, always on the stones, and
often at 10 miles an hour, but never more than a
mile without stopping, are nearly exempt. The
horses most liable are those which work long and
fast. Founder is sometimes, though very rarely,
the result of excessive work, but in most, if not
in every case, there is also some error in feeding
or watering in operation at the same time. Of all
these evils, it most frequently haj>pens that the
horse is affected in more ways than one. In
general, emaciation, stiffness, and staleness of the
legs, go together.
1 ^G7. Horses that are doing full work, as much
as they are able to do, can hardly have an excess
of food. Some kinds of work, such as that given
to mail and stage horses, require an unlimited
allowance. If the horse have good legs, or legs
equal to the pace, distance, and weight, he can-
not perform all the work of which he is capable
THE FATTENING OF SWINE IN WINTER.
343
without as much corn as he will eat. But there
are some kinds of work, such as racing and hunt-
ing, and especially steeple-chasing, vvliich are so
injurious to the legs that long intervals of repose
are necessary — sometimes eight or ten days must
elapse before the horse can repeat his task. In
this time, a great eater will become fit and
short-winded upon a full allowance of food, or his
skin will itch and rise in pimples. In such a
case, bran mashes or a few carrots should be
given now and then, instead of corn. Alteratives,
diuretics, and suchlike evacuants, may be
given; but I think more economy in the distribu-
tion of food would render them less necessary.
Deficiency of food impairs condition ranch
sooner, and more certainly, than excess. It pro-
duces emaciation and stiffness, dulness and
weakness, in less time than excess of work.
The food is deficient when the horse loses flesh,
and gets less corn than he could eat. The work
is in excess when he loses flesh, and has all the
corn he will consume."*
1568. You thus clearly perceive that, as re-
gards the saddle and harness horse, idleness,
excess of work, excess of food, and deficiency
of food, are one and all fruitful sources of
disease, affecting both the legs and feet, and
the hind- legs as well as the fore.
1569. Trimmin(f the heels. — Cart-horses, how-
ever much hair they may have on the heels, are
never trimmed ; blood-horses never require
trimming; and saddle-horses, having now more
blood in breeding than formerly, their heels
are not so rough, and do not require so much
trimming — so that trimmed heels are rarely to be
seen. Nevertheless, it may be necessary to make
a few remarks on the effects of trimming on the
constitution of the horse.
1570. " There has been considerable difference
of opinion," observes Mr Stewart, " as to the
propriety of trimming the heels. Some contend
that the long hair soaks up the moisture, keeps
the skin long wet and cold, producing grease,
sores, cracks, and scurfiness. By otliers this is
denied : they afiirm that the long hair, far from
favouring the production of tliese evils, has a
tendency to prevent them. But there is another
circumstance to be taken into consideratiou, and
that accounts sufficiently for the difference of
opinion. When the horse is carefully tended
after his work is over, his legs quickly and com-
pletely dried, the less hair he has about them
the better. The moisture which that little takes
up can be easily removed ; both the skin and the
hair can be made perfectly dry before evapora-
tion begins, or proceeds so far as to deprive the
legs of their heat. It is the cold produced by
evaporation that does all the mischief, and if
there be no moisture to create evaporation, there
can be no cold, no loss of heat save that which
is taken away by the air. If there were more
hair about the heels, they could not be so soon
nor so easily dried. If the man requires ten
minutes to dry one leg, the last will have thirty
minutes to cool; if he can dry each in two
minutes, the last will only have six minutes to
cool, and in that time cannot become so cold as
to be liable to grease. Whenever, therefore,
the legs must be dried by manual labour, they
should have little hair about them
During two very wet winters, I have paid par-
ticular attention to the subject ; my practice
has brought it before me, whether i would or
not; I have had opportunity of observing the
results of trimming and no trimming among
upwards of 500 horses. Nearly 300 of these are
enijiloyed at coaching and posting, or work of a
similar kind, and about 150 are cart-horses.
Grease, and the other skin diseases of the heels,
have been of most frequent occurrence where the
horses were both trimmed and washed; they have
been common where the horses were trimmed,
but not washed; and there have been very few
caseswhere washing and trimming were forbidden
or neglected. I du not include horses that al-
ways have the best of grooming ; they naturally
have little hair about the legs, and some of that
is often removed; their legs are always washed
after work, but they are always dried be/ore
they hare time to cool. If, then, the horse have
to work often and long upon wet or muddy
roads, and cannot have his legs completely dried
immediately after work, and kept dry in the
stable, and not exposed to any current of cold
air, he must not have his heels trimmed. In
most well regulated coaching stables, this opera-
tion and washing are both forbidden." f
1571. The saddle and harness horse is subject
to many complaints of the legs and feet. It is
not my province to treat of all these fully. Suf-
fice it to nominate the most common complaints
in those members, and you may consult the
works of veterinarians on their origin, symptoms,
and treatment.
1572. In the fore legs and feet are oone-spavin
mallenders, founders, grogginess, broken-knees,
sprains, wind-galls, corns, sand-cracks, quitters,
ring-bone, laminites, navicular disease, contracted
hoof.
1573. In the hind-legs and feet, spring-halt,
curb, knapped hough, sprains, bone-spavin, bog-
spavin, thorough-pin, sallenders.
ON THE FATTENING OF SWINE IN WINTER.
1574. There should be no litter of
young pigs in winter on an ordinary farm,
because young pigs are very susceptible
of cold ; and as a cliance of being exposed
to it will frequently occur in the most
comfortable sty, it is scarcely possible to
avert its injurious effects — which are, red-
dening of the skin, staring of the coat,
and, if not actually killing, chilling them
Stewart's Stable Economy, p. 378-84.
f Ibid. p. 113.
844
PRACTICE— WDJTER.
to such a decree as to prevent tlieir
growth uutil the return of a more genial
temperature in spring. If circumstances,
however, render it prufitable to raise suck-
ing pigs at Christmas, — and a roast pig at
that merry season is a favourite dish in
England, — tiie matter may be accom-
plished as easily as the raising of house
lamb, by having sties for the sows under
a close roof, with doors and windows to
shut out cold and admit light.
1575. But as few pigs are so accommo-
dated, the usual practice is the best, of
refraining from the breeding of young
pigs in winter, and of letting those which
are able to provide for themselves have
the liberty of the courts; but still that
liberty should be guarded with discretion.
Of several litters on foot at the same time,
the youngest should receive more nourish-
ing food than the older; and the reason
for giving them better treatment is
founded on the general princijde, that
creatures when stinted of fuod, so long as
they are growing to the bone, never attain
the largest size of frame they are capable
of. Those growing to the bone, until it
is capable of carrying as much flesh as is
best suited to the market, ueeil not be
fattened. Those which have attained the
full size of bone require but a short time
to fatten into a ripe state. This mode of
treatment, which delays the fattening, is
peculiarly applicable to swine, which,
having at all times a ready disposition to
fatten, can be made to lay on fat almost
to any degree, at any time, at any age,
and upon any size of bone.
1576. That the youngest pigs may re-
ceive better treatment, they should have
a court and shed for themselves. These
pigs consist, probably, of the last litters of
the season of as manv brood sows as are
kept. Here they should be provided daily
with turnips as their staple food — of the
sort given for the time to the cattle, and
sliced as small as for sheep ; and they
should, besides, have a portion of the warm
mash maile for fhe horses, with such other
pickings from the farm-house which the
kitchen affords. They should also be ]>ro-
vided with a trough of clean water, and
plentj' of litter under the shed every day.
Their court-yard should be cleaned out
every da}'. Pigs are accused of dirty
habits, but the fact is otherwise; and the
accusation really applies more to their
owners, who keep them dirty, than to the
animals themselves. When constrained
to lie amongst dirt, and eat food only fit
for the dunghill, and dealt out with a
grudging hand, how can they exhibit other
than dirty propensities ? But let them have
room, choice of clean litter, and plenty of
food, and they will soon be seen to keep
their litter clean, place their droppings in
one corner of the court, and preserve their
bodies in a wholesome condition. It is
the duty of the cattle-man to supply the
store pigs with food, and clean out their
court-yard ; and this part of his duty should
be conducted with as much regularity as the
feeding of the cattle. Whatever food or
drink may be obtained from the farm-
house is brought to their court by the
dairy-maid.
1577. The older pigs have the liberty
of the large courts, amongst the cattle,
where they make their litter in the open
court, when the weather is mild, and in
the shed when it is cold. Though thus left
at liberty, they should not be neglected of
food, as is too often the case. They should
have sliced turnips given them every day,
in troughs, and they should also have
troughs of water. Pigs, when not sup-
plied with a sufficiency of food, will leap
into the troughs of the cattle, and help
themselves with turnips; but such dirty-
ing of the cattle's food and troughs should
not be tolerated, and it arises from their
keeper neglecting to give the pigs food.
The cattle-man attends upon those pigs,
and should give them turnips and water
at regular times.
1578. I have seen in England a hand-
some pigs' trough adapted for standing in
the middle of a court. It c<msists of cast-
iron in one entire piece, and is represented
in perspective by lig. 124. Its external
ajij^earrance, when viewed as it stand.-* on
the grouud, approaches to that of a hollow
hemisphere, with the apex flattene<l ; and
interiorly the flattened part rises up in the
centre, in the form of a central pillar — thus
converting the hemisphere into an annular
trough, whose transverse section ])resents
two troughs in the form of two semicircles
conjoined. The diameter a A of this trough
is 30 inches, the edge is finished with a
THE FATTENING OF SWINE IN WINTER.
345
round baton, serving both for strength and
for comfort to the animals who eat out of
it ; the depth is about 9 inches, and it is
divided into 8 compartments by the divi-
Fig.
sions c, which are formed with a con-
vexity on the upper edge, to prevent the
food being thrown from one compartment
into the other. This trough stands upon
124.
THE RING PIGS'-TROUGH, TO STAND IN A COURT.
the top of the litter, is not easily over-
turned, — the cattle cannot hurt them-
selves upon it, — while it is easily pushed
about to the most convenient spot for it
to stand.
1 579. It is seldom that farmers take the
trouble of fattening pigs for the market,
because, if tlie breed has a kindly dispo-
sition, the pigs are generally sufficiently
fat for converting into pickled pork by the
time they have attained the weight most
desirable for that method of curing,
— namely, from 4 to 6 stones imperial.
Dealers and butchers purchase pork-
lings of those sizes; and finer meat of
the kind cannot be obtained than what is
thus brought up at liberty in a farm-yard,
being firm, sweet, tender, well propor-
tioned in lean, and sufficiently fat for the
table. Pork-curers buy from farmers and
dealers in the carcass, and none alive.
But the farmer should once a-year fatten
a few pigs for his own use as ham. These
should be at least a-year old, attain the
weight of 18 or 20 stones, and be slaugh-
tered about Christmas. Castrated males
or spayed females are in the best state for
this purpose ; and are placed in separate
sties. Four pigs of 20 stones each every
year, will supply a pretty good allowance
of ham to a farmer's family. Up to the
time of being placed in these sties, tlie pigs
have been treated as directed above ; but
when confined, and intended to be fattened
to ripeness, they receive the most nourish-
ing food.
1580. Piggeries or pig-sties are highly
useful structures at the farm-stead. They
are of three kinds — 1. Those for a hroo'/-
sow tcitk a lifter of i/oung pigs. This
kind should have two apartments : one for
the sow and litter to sleep in, covered
with a roof, and entered by an opening;
the other an open court, in v/hich the feed-
ing-trough is placed. For a breeding-sty
each apartment should not be less than
0 feet square. 2. lihosQ ^ox feeding pigs.
These should also nave two apartments rone
with litter for sleeping in, covered with a
roof and entered by an opening ; the other
an open court for the troughs fur food. A
sty of 4 feet square in each apartment,
will accommodate 2 feeding pigs of 20
stones each. These two sorts of sties may
each have a roof of its own, or a number
of them may have one roof over them in
common. The former is the common plan ;
but the latter is the most convenient for
cleaning out, and inspecting the internal
condition of the sties, and the state of the
pigs. 3. The third kind of sty is for the
accommodation of weaned young pigs,
when they are confined, to receive better
treatment than the older ones. It should
have a shed and court of from 20 to 25
feet square.
1581. As swine have very powerful
necks, and are apt to push open doors of
Cdunnon construction, a form of one such
as is represented in fig. 125 is very secure.
The door slips up and down in grooves in
the masonry, and the contrivance is such
846
PRACTICE— '\VINTER,
as to elude the ingenuity of the most
Fig. 125.
DOOR FOR A PIG-STY.
cunning old brood-sow to discover a mode
of escape.
1582. A very convenient trough for a
piggery containing a number of pigs — such
as the young ones, as above, or others con-
fined in summer from roaming aliout — lias
been long manufactured by the Shotts Iron
Company, of which fig. 126 is a view in
Fig.
perspective from the interior of the court.
It is nearly all made of cast-iron, and pos-
sesses the great convenience of allowing
the troughs to be filled witli food from the
outside of the building, the feeder being at
the same time free of any annoyance from
the inmates. Troughs of tliis kind are
placed in proper sized openings in the ex-
ternal wall of the piggery court, in the
manner shown in the figure, wliere a marks
the wall on one side of the opening — that
on the hither side being left out of the
figure, in order to exhibit the form of the
trough. Tlie trough, part of which is seen
at i, is 4 feet in length, 16 inches wide
at top, and 8 inches at bottom, and is D
inches deep. The two ends c and d rise
in a triangular form to the height of 3^
feet, and arc connected at the toj) by the
stretcher-bolt e. The lower part of each
end extends inward to f ff^ making a
breadth of 3 feet 4 inches when complete ;
but this part of the end g in the figure is
broken oH'. to show part of the trough h.
Two intermediate divisions h h divide the
trough into 3 compartments — these divi-
sions extend to the same length as the
ends /'y, and are all 21 inches in height.
By means of these divisons, each animal,
when there are more than one together,
has its own stall, and can take its food undis-
1-26.
THE PIGS' TROUGHS, WITH SUBDIVISIONS, TO STAND IN AN OPKNINi! OF THE OUTKR WALL OF THE STT.
THE FATTENING OF SWINE IN 'WINTER.
347
turbed bv its neiofhbours. A swintr-door
? IS jointed on the pivots ^ ^, to complete
the form, by filling up the opening of the
wall. In the figure this door is thrown
to the full extent outward, where it
always stands during the time the animals
are feeding, and is fixed there by a slide-
bolt on the outside. When food is to be
introduced the bolt is withdrawn, and the
door moved from that position to I, and
there bolted until the compartments of the
trough are cleaned and filled, when the
door is again swung back to its original
position, and the food is placed before the
animals. The door has slits formed in it
corresponding to the divisions hh, to allow
of its swinging freely, and yet have depth
snfScieut to close the entire opening down
to the outward edge of the trough. A
dowel or stud m is let into the wall at
each end, to secure the upper part of the
trough. On several visits to the Duke of
Buccleuch's home-farm at Dalkeith Park,
which is conducted by Mr Black, I have
been much interested with tlie piggery,
where the stock is of the finest quality,
and, amongst other things of interest, saw
what is very probably the original of tlie
trough here described. The troughs in
this piggery are composed of wood, but
precisely on the same principle as here
figured and described, and their introduc-
tion there dates as far back as the time of
the late Duke Henry of Bnccleuch, whose
invention they are supposed to be, and
which must be at least more than 40 years'
standing.
15S3. By direct expei'iment, it has been
ascertained that pigs fatten much better
on cooked than on raw food. This being
the case, it is only waste of time and ma-
terials, as also loss of flesh, to attempt to
fatten pigs on raw food of whatever kind ;
for although some sorts of food fatten
better than others in the same state, yet
the same sort, when cooked, fattens much
faster and better than in a raw state. The
question, tlierefore, simply is — what is the
best sort of food to coolc for the purpose of
fattening ])\gi\ Boots and grains of all
kinds, when cooked, will fatten pigs. Po-
tatoes, turnips, carrots, parsnips, mangold-
wurtzel, as roots; and barley, oats, pease,
beans, rice, Indian corn^ as grain, will all
fatten them when prepared. WI)ich, then,
of all these ingredients should be selected
as the most nourishing, and, at the same
time, most economical ? Carrots and
parsnips amongst roots are not easily
attainable in this country, and therefore
cannot be regarded economical food ; and
as to the other sorts of roots, when cooked,
potatoes doubtless contain more nourish-
ment than turnips, even in proportion to
their former prices — for it M-as as easy to
obtain ] Os. for a ton of Swedish turnips as
Ss. for a boll of 40 stones of potatoes ; and
yet potatoes contained solid matter in the
proportion of 25 to lOg as regards tur-
nips. It is now, however, questionable
whether potatoes can be depended on as
a crop at such a price as to fatten pigs on
economically. But mangold-wurtzel pre-
sents properties for supporting animals
which are worthy of attention. It con-
tains 15 per cent of solid matter, potatoes
having 25 per cent; but it contains a
larger proportion of the protein compounds
— those ingredients which supply the ma-
terials of muscle, than potatoes. Thus
they contain respectively, when dried at
212^Fahr. : —
Portein com- Other niitri-
poiind. tive matter.
The dried potato . 8 per cent. 82
yellow turnip 9^ 80
mangold-wurtzel 15 J 75
So that the proportion of the protein com-
pounds in the mangi.ld-wurtzel is nearly
twice as great as in the potato. " Tliis is
a very important fact," observes Professor
Johnston, " and worthy of further investi-
gation. If, as at present supposed, the
jirotein compounds serve the purpose, when
eaten, of supplying to animals the mate-
rials of their muscle, the mangold-wurt-
zel ought to be considerably superior in
this respect to the potato. Even in their
natural state this should be the case, for
100 lbs. of mangold-wurtzel contain of
these protein comjiounds, according to the
above determination, 2^ lbs. ; while the
potato contains, on an average, only 2
lbs."* As to grains, I have never heard
of wheat or wheat-flour being given to
pigs — it would certaily not be economical —
barley or oat-meal being usually emjrdoyed.
Pease and beans, whether raw or cooked,
are proverbially excellent food for pigs.
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 916.
348
PRACTICE— WINTER.
And a? t.) rice and Indian corn, they will
both fatten well if cooked. Amidst all
these ingredients for choice, regarding the
question of economy alone, it may be as-
sumed that entire feeding on grain, of
whatever kind, would be too expensive;
so that as boiled roots are of themselves
nourishing food, a proportion, with any
of the grains, should furm a moderately
priced food which will insure fatness. It
has been ascertained in England, that 2
pecks of steamed potatoes, mixed with 9
lbs. of barley-meal and a little salt, given
every day to a pig weighing from 24 to
28 stones, will make it ripe fat in 9 weeks.
Taking this proportion of food to weight
of flesh as a basis of calculation, and as-
suming that 2 months will fatten a pig
sufficiently well, provided it has all along
received its food regularly and fully, I
have no doubt that feeding with steamed
potatoes and barley-meal, for the first
month, and in the second with steamed
potatoes and pease-meal, (both seasoned
with a little salt,) and lukewarm water,
with a little oatmeal stirred in it, given
by itself twice a-day as a drink, will make
any pig, from 15 to 30 stones, ripe/at for
hams. The food should be given at stated
hours^ 3 times a-day — namely, in the
morning, at noon, and at nightfall. One
boiling of potatoes, or turnips, where these
are used, in the day, at any of the feeding
hours found most convenient, will suffice ;
and at the other hours the boiled roots
should be heated with a gruel made of
barley or pease-meal and boiling water —
the mess being allowed to stand a while
to incorporate and cool to blood-heat. It
should not be made so thin as to spill over
the feeding-trough, or so thick as to choke
the animals; but of that consistence which
a little time will soon let the feeder know
the pigs best relish. Tlie ijuantityof food
given at any time should be apportioned
to the appetite of the animals fed, which
should be ascertained by the person who
feeds them ; and it will be found that less
food, in proportion to the weight of the
animal, will be required as it becomes
fatter. It is the duty of the dairy-maid to
fatten the bacon-pigs, and that of the cattle-
man to keep them clean and littered.
1584. Washing pigs with warm water
and soap rapidly promotes their fattening ;
and, after the first trial, they delight in the
scrubbing.
1585. When pigs are fattening they
lie, and rest, and sleep a great deal, no
other creature showing " love of ease" so
strongly in all their actions; and, in truth,
it is tliis indolence wliich is the best sign
of their thriving condition. The opposite
effects of activity and indolence on tlie
condition of animals is thus contrasted
by Liebig : — " Excess of carbon," says he,
" in the form of fat, is never seen in the
Bedouin or in the Arab of the desert, who
exhibits with pride, to the traveller, his
lean, muscular, sinewy limbs, altogether
free from fat. But in prisons and jails, it
appears as a pufiiness in the inmates, fed
as they are on a poor and scanty diet;
it appears in the sedentary females of
oriental countries ; and, finally, it is pro-
duced under the well-known conditions of
the fattening of domestic animals ;" * and,
amongst these last, the pig may be in-
stanced as the most remarkable.
1586. In some parts of England, as well
as on the Continent, such as Holstein, the
food given to pigs is always in a sour state.
Arthur Young recommends the construc-
tion of tanks, fur the express purpose of
containing mixtures of 5 bushels of meal
to 100 gallons of water until they become
acid, and says they are not ready to be
given until in that state. " Two or three
cisterns," he says, " should be kept fer-
menting in succession, that no necessity
may occur of giving it not duly prepared.
The ditFerence in profit between feeding
in this manner, and giving the grain whole
or only ground, is so great that whoever
tries it once will not be apt to change it
for tlie comm(m method." The acid thus
produced by the fermentation of vegetable
matter is the lactic acid. It is not deemed
necessary in Scotland to make the food of
pigs acid ; and although pigs no doubt do
relish an acid diet, it does not follow it
should necessarily be in that state to
render it tlie more wholesome. But he
seems to entertain some doubt on the sub-
ject, for he says, — " Pease-soup, however,
is an excellent food for hogs, and may,
for what I know — but I have not sutti-
Liebig's Animal Chemistry, p. 89.
THE FATTENING OF SA\TLNE IN WINTER.
349
ciently compared them— equal the above,
especially if given in water milk-warm."
After mentioning that the food of pigs is
warmed in Gascony, and that tlie practice
has long been discontinued in England, he
gives it as his opinion that " warm food
in water, regularly given, I should suppose,
must be more fattening than that which
is cold, and, in bad weather, half frozen."*
In Mexico, pigs are fattened entirely on
Indian corn moistened in water.
1 587. The denominations of pigs are
the following: — When new born, they are
Gsdled sucking pi(/s, or s'imi)\y pi c;s ; and
the male is a boar j)ig^ the female soicpvj.
A castrated male, after it is weaned, is a
shot or hog. Hog is the name mostly used
by naturalists, and very frequently by
writers on agriculture ; but, as it sounds
so like the name given to young sheep,
(hogg,)I shall always use the terms pig and
swine for the sake of distinction. The
terra hog is said to be derived fr<mi a
Hebrew noun, signifying " to have narrow
eyes," a feature quite characteristic of this
species of animal. A spayed female is a cut
sow pig. As long as both sorts of cut
pigs are small and young, they arepoT-kers
Qv porklings. A female that has not been
cut, and before it bears young, is an open
sow ; and an entire male, after being
weaned, is always a hoar or hraicn. A
cut boar is a bratcner. A female that has
taken the boar is said to be lined ; when
bearing young she is a hroo/l sotc ; and
when she has brought forth pigs she has
littered or farroiced., and her family of
pigs at one birth form a litter ov farrow of
pigs.
15S8. Of judging of a'fat pig, the back
should be nearly straight ; and though
arched a little from head to tail, that is no
fault. The back should be uniformly broad,
and rounded aoross along the whole body.
The touch all along the back should be
firm, but springy, the thinnest skin spring-
ing most. The shoulders, sides, and hams,
should be deep perpendicularly, and in a
straight line from shoulder to ham. The
closing behind should be filled up ; the legs
short, and bone small ; the neck short,
thick, and deep ; the cheeks round and
lilled out; the face straight, nose fine,
eves, bright, ears pricked, and the head
small in proportion to the body. A
curled tail is indicative of a strong back.
All these characters may be observed in
the figure of the brood sow in Plate V ;
though, of course, the sow is not in the
fattened state.
1589. A black-haii'ed pig is always
black in the skin, and a white one white —
which latter colour gives to it a cleaner
appearance than the black.
15i)0. The breed which shows the
greatest disposition to fatten is the pure
Chinese; but as it lays on too large a
proportion of fat, it is not bred for its own
sake, and only for crossing with. I never
saw a breed to equal that originated by
the late Lord Western, in Essex, for lay-
ing on a due proportion of lean and fat,
and I believe it to be a cross between the
Essex and Chinese breeds. I received a
present of a young boar and sow of that
breed from Lord Panmure, and had the
breed as long as I farmed ; and such was
the high condition constantly maintained
by the pigs, on what they could pick up
at the steading, besides the feed of tur-
nips supplied them daily, that one could
be killed at any time for the table, as a
porkling. They were exceedingly gentle,
indisposed to travel far, not very prolific,
could attain, if kept on, to a great weight ;
and so compact in form, and small of bone
and offal, that they invariably yielded a
larger vtcight of pork than was judged of
before being slaughtered. Though the
less valuable ofl'al was small, the propor-
tion of loose seam was always great, and
more delicious ham than they afforded
was never cured in Westphalia.
1591. An experiment on the comparative ad-
vantages of feeding pigs on raw and boiled food
was UKide 111 \iVio by iMr.Iohn Dudgeon, Spylaw,
Roxburghshire. He put up 6 Ae-pigs in one lot,
and 5 shi; ones in another, and they were all care-
fully cut, and 9 weeks old. The he-pigs were
put on builed food, namely, potatoes and hashed
beans ; the she ones on raw of the same sort.
The 6 he-pigs increased in live-weight, from •2d
July to r2tli October, 38 stones, 6 lbs. 4 oz., or 6
stones, 5 lbs. 11 oz. each ; whereas the 5 she ones
only increased, in the same time, 17 stones, 11
lbs. 8 oz., or 3 stones, 7 lbs. 14 oz. each. Other
3 pigs were fed at the same time on boiled and
raw food indiscriminately, as it happened to be
Young's Farmer's Calendar, p. 518 and 560.
860
PRACTICE— WINTER.
left over after serving the other two lots. The
facts brought out in this experiment are, that the
pigs " fed exchirively upon boiled meat did
thrive in a superior manner to tlie others, and
even to those which had an occasional mixture
of raw and boiled meat ; thus showing that
boiled meat is at all times more nutritive thau
raw." The " pigs were repeatedly washed with
soap and water, which refreshed them greatly,
and caused them to relish their food." Those
" which got a mixture of food both prepared and
raw, approached nearer to those which were fed
on boiled to their feeding properties ; hut they
appeared occasionally shy at having tlieir meat
so mixed. It is therefore better, in general, to
continue for some time only one description of
food ;as,wliateverthe animals becomeacctistomed
to they begin to relish, and thrive upon it accor-
dingly."*
1592. Mr Robert Walker, Ferrygate, East
Lothian, also made an experiment on the same
subject in the same year. He put 5 pigs on
steamed potatoes and prei)ared broken barley,
and other 5 on raw potatoes and raw broken
barley. The pigs were "2= months old. On the
4th March 1333, the live- weight of the 5 pigs
fed on raw food was 7 st. 10 lbs. ; on the Ist
June following, it was 16 st. 13 lbs., showing an
increase of 8 st. 3 lbs. or on each pig of 1 st. 9 lbs.
On the 4th March the live-weight of those fed
on steamed food was 7 st. 8 lbs., and on the 1st
June it was 19 st. 13 lbs., showing an increase
of 12 St. 5 lbs., or on each pig of 2 st. 6i lbs.
The increase in the time was C7 lbs. more than
double the original live-weight of the pigs fed on
steamed food ; whereas, in those fed ou raw, the
increase was only 7 lbs. more than the double ;
" so that there can be very little doubt," as Mr
Walker concludes, " that steamed food is more
profitable for feeding pigs than raw food. In
fact, I do not think it possible to make pigs fat
on raw potatoes, without other food, wheu con-
fined to them alone. "+
1593. The late Mr James Scott, Beauchamp,
Forfarshire, on converting potatoes into tapioca,
whicii he raised in great fiuantities on that large
farm, used part of the refuse for his liorses, and
purt, assisted by peas, for feeding pigs, to the
number of 400 every year.
1594. Dairy farms are well suited for rearing
pigs ou the dairy refu.se in summer ; but in winter
the mo-t that can be done is to keep the brood
sows in pig in fair condition for littering in spring.
On carse and pastoral farms, no more pigs can
conveniently be roared than to scrvi; the farmer's
family. On mixed farms, pigs constitute a por-
tion of the regular stock.
1595. With regard to the diseases of swine,
they are fortunately not numerous, as it is no
easy matter to administer medicine to them. The
safest plan, iu most cases, I believe, is to slaugh-
ter them whenever any symptoms of internal
disease show themselves. Swine are infested
with a louse {Iloeniatopinut sltis,^ like all domes-
ticated animals. It was described by the old
naturalists under the name of Pediculus /u'u. It
is represented in fig. 127. Head and thorax of
Fig. 127. a dull rusty colour, the
, former pear-shaped and
narrow, with an angular
black line at the apex,
and one on each side be-
fore the eyes ; abdomea
large, flat, and oval, of
a bluish or yellowish
ash-gray colour, most of
the segments with a
black horny prominence
at each side, surrounding
a white breathing-hole ;
legs pale ochre-yellow,
the thigh marked with
dusky bands ; length 1^
THE sow-LutsE, (Hffi- j^ ja ijne. This speciea
M.iToPiNis sns.) j^ generally very plen-
tiful on swiue, more particularly on those fresh
imported from Ireland. It appears to abound
most on lean animals. " In walking," says Mr
Denny, " it uses the claw and tibial tooth with
great facility (which act as a finger and thumb)
■in taking hold of a single hair ; the male is
much smaller, sub-orbicular, and the segments
lobate. The egg or nit is f of a line in length,
of a cream colour, and elegantly shagreened,
oblong, and slightly acuminated, surrounded by
a lid which, wheu the young insect is ready to
emerge, splits circularly — or, as a botanist would
say, has a circumeisile dehiscence."^ Oil iu the
first stage, and mercurial ointment iu after stages,
will destroy this insect.
1596. Consumption is a disease which affects
pigs. It is brought on by " neglect and expo-
sure to cold and damp. The animal becomes
thin, the coat staring, the skin appearing as if
glued to the ribs ; obstinate cough supervenes ;
discharge is frequent from the nose, and glandu-
lar swellings appear about the netk. Ou dis-
section, the lings are studded with tubercles."
" It is in the «arly stage alone of the complaint,"
observes Professor Dick, "that any thing can be
done, and the prospect of cure is but taint.''§ In
alluding to the lungs, I may mention a remrirk-
able instance of their state I ouce observed in a
sow of my own. She had borne several litters,
and became asthmatic, which inoreasii.g so as to
appear distressing to the animal, she was killed ;
and one lobe of the lungs was found to be so
completely ossifiel, that its surface was con-
verted into a shell nearly as hard as the crust of
a crab, and was filled with a thick yellow fluid.
Having understood afterwards tha' this was a
remarkable case, I regret that the lobe was not
examined by a veterinarian. I take this oppor-
tunity of suggesting to every farmer, who may
happeu to meet with au instance of structural
* Piizc Essai/s of the Highland and Agricultural Society, vol. x. p. 275-9.
'flbid. vol. X. p. 279-JlO. X Denny's Motuxjiajihui Anuplurorum Britannia.
§ Dick's Manual of Vtterinary iScience. p. 84.
TREATMENT OF FOWLS IN WINTER.
351
disorganisation, whether external or internal, in
a part of any animal he owns, to have it ex-
amined by a competent veterinarian.
1597. Pigs are subject to a cutaneous disease
called measles, which is supposed to render the
flesh unwholesome. " The measles," says a
writer, " are very prevalent, though seldom
fatal,; and if not checked, affect the grain of the
meat, which may be commonly seen in the shops
of a faded colour, and the flesh punctured, as it
were, with small holes, or distensions of the
fibre. The commencement of the disease appears
in languor and decline of appetite, followed by
small pustules in the throat, together with red
and purple eruptions, more distinct after death
than during the life of the animal ; but may, it
is said, be removed in this stage by giving small
quantities of levigated crude antimony in .the
food. Generally speaking, even if the animals
be in health, a small quantity of nitre and sul-
phur, occasionally mixed up with their food,
besides stimulating their appetite, will frequently
prevent disease : neither can we too much insist
on cleanliness, nor upon the punctual regularity
of feeding at stated times."* The injunction
contained in the last words, if followed, will do
more for the preservation of health in pigs, than
the administration of any specific after disease
has once shown itself. I can truly say, that,
with the simple means here enjoined, I never
had % pig in the least affected in the skin by
disease or vermin.
ON THE TREATMENT OP FOAVLS IN WINTER.
1598. Of all the animals reared on a
farm, none are so much neglected by the
farmer, both as regards select ion of their kind
and disposition to fatten, as every sort of
domesticated fowl. Indeed, the supposition
that any farmer should devote a part of
his time to the consideration of poultry, is
regarded by him as an unpardonable affront
on iiis manhood. Women only, in his
estimation, are fit for such a charge— and
doubtless they are, and would do it well
too, v.'ere they not begrudged of every
particle of good food they niay bestow
on pjultry. Tiie consequence is, as
might be expected in ev^ery farmstead,
the surprise to find a single fowl of any
description in _^oo(/ condition — that is, such
as it might be killed at the instant in a fit
state for the table. The usual objection
againsc feeding fowls is, that they do not
pay — and no doubt the market price receiv-
ed for lean, stringy-fieshed, sinewy degged
fowls is far from remunerative ; but whuse
fault is it they are sent to market iu that
state, but the rearer of them? aijd why
should purchasers give a high price for
fowls in such a coudition ? tSome excuse
might be made for having lean fowls, were
any difiiculty experienced in fattening
them : but there is none ; and the idea of
expense is a bugbear, and, like all other
fears, would vanish were a plan adopted
for rearing fowls more consonant with
common-sense than the one usually pur-
sued, which seems to be founded upon the
notion that fowls can never be ill off if
they are at liberty to shift for themselves.
Such a sentiment involves a grievous error
in the rearing of any kind of live stock.
Better keep no stock at all than rear them
on such a principle. Fowls may be deemed
a wortldess stock, and so they generally
arc ; but tliey are so only on account of
the mode of managing them. Apart from
every consideration of profit to be derived
from sales in market towns, a desire sliould
exist in the farmer to have it in his power,
at all timf.s, to present a well-fed fowl at
bis own table ; but he cannot feel such a
desire, while he grudges the food required
to make tliem so. He may rest assured
that economy would attend good feeding
in the long run, us f/ood poultry always at
command would save a long butcher's bill
now and then, which must be settled with
cash — and cash cannot be connnanded by
the farmer except by sale at market of
some commodity of the farm. Few far-
mers kiil their own mutton, tliat is, keep
fat sheep for tlieir oun use: lamb, they
do kill in the season ; but as to beef, it
is always purchased — so that, situate as
the farmer's family usually is, tlie produce
of the poultry-yard ami pig-sty should
constitute the principal fare upon their
board. And why should tliey not have
these in tlie highest perfection ?
1 5n9. In winter, no fowls are brought
forth iu Great Britain. The ciiuuite is
ton severe for them ; the cohl would either
kill chickens outright, or prevent their
grov.'th so as to render them unprofitable
f(/r the rearing they would require. None
of the fowls lay many eggs iu winter. But
notwithstanding these natural barriers,
both chickens and eggs may be obtained
in that season by good management.
ICOO. The ordinary fowls on a farm
are, — the cock (^Phasianus gallus^ — the
British Husbandry, vol, ii.p. 5?0.
352
PRACTICE— WINTER.
turkey (^Meleagris gaUopavai), — the goose
(^Anas miser), — the duck (^Anas domes-
tica) — jukI the pi;rcf>n {('oIudiUi Hc'ki), —
the whitt'-backed or rock-dove, whicli \v;is
loiii'' confounded with the blue -hacked
dove (Columba crnas). In re::anl to
all the-se, I shall first state their condition
in winter, and then describe tiie mode in
•which they should all be fed ou nearly the
same ingredients.
1601. And first, in reirard to the condi-
tion of the /ipfi. As hatchings of chickens
are brought out from April to September,
there will be broods of chickens of differ-
ent ages in winter — some as old as to be
capable of laying their first egirs, and
others mere chickens. The portion of
the broods taken for domestic use are
the young cocks and the older hens, there
being a natural reluctance to kill young
hens, which will lay egji^s largely in the
following season. At all events, of the
hen-chickens, the most likely to become
good layers should be preserved. The
marks of a chicken likelv to become a
good hen are, a sinnll head, brii,'-lit eyes,
tapering neck, ful! brea-st, straight back,
plump ovoidal-shaped body, and moderate-
ly long grey-coloured legs. Every yel-
low-legged chicken slinuldbe used, wluaher
male or female, tlieir flesh never being
so fine as the others. As to the cnlour
of the feathers, that is not a matter of
much importance, some preferring to have
them all white, others all black; but I
believe there is none better for every
useful purpose than the mottled grey.
Young fowls may either be roasted or
boiled, the male making the best roasted,
and the female the neatest boiled dish.
The older birds may be boiled by them-
selves, and eaten with bacon, or assist
in making broth, or that once favourite
wintor-soap in Scotland — cockiclcekie. A
chicken never eats more tenderly than
•when killed a short time before being
dresseil ; but if not so soon used, it should
hang in the hirder for three or four days
in winter. An old fowl will become the
move tender on being kept for a week
before being used. The criterion of a
fat hen, when alive, is a plump breast,
and the rump feelij^g thick, fat, firm, on
being handled laterally between tlio finger
and thumb. The skin of the abdomen
should be thick and fat, and fat iljould
be found under the •wings. ^V^lite flesh
is always preferable, though poulterers
insist that a yellow-,<f|///»('</ chicken makes
the most delicate roast, which I very
much doubt. A hen is dejtrived of life
by dislocation of the neck on being over-
drawn, and there the blood collects and
coagulates.
Ifi02. T'wrXvv/f, being hatched in -May,
will be full grown in stature bv \. inter,
and, if they have been well fed in the
interval, will be ready for u>e. Indeed,
the Christnuis season never fails to create
a large demand for turkeys; and it must
be owned there are few ni<ire delicate
and beautiful dTshes presented at table,
or a more acceptable present to a friend,
than a well-fed turkey. Y<iung cocks
are selected for roasting, and young hens
for boiling, and both are most relished
with a slice of ham, or of pickled ox-
tongue. The varieties in comm<m use are
white, black, or mottled grey; and of
these the white yields the fairest and
most tender flesh. The criterion of a good
turkey, when alive, is the great fulness of
the muscles covering the breast-bone,
thickness of the rump, and existence <»f
fat under the winus; though the turkey
does not yield much fat, its greatest pr -
perty being abundance of tender wliite
flesh. Young turkeys attain to great
weights. I have had, year after year,
young cocks weighing, at Christmas, 18
lbs. each in their feathers, ^s'orfolk has
long been noted for its turkeys, where
they are fed on buck-wheat, and large
droves are annually sent to the Loudon
market. A turkey is deprived of life by
cutting its thmat, when it becomes com-
pletely bled. The barbarous practice of
cutting out the tongue, and hanging by
the feet to bleed slowly to death, for the
alleged purpose of rendering the flesh
white, ought to be strictly forbidden.
160.3. Geese, having been hatched in the
e-'riy part of summer, will also be full
grown and fit for use in winter. I liclievo
little diflercnce in flavour (»r apj)earancc,
as a dish, exists between the young male
and female goose, though there may be of
si7.e. The criteritm of a fat gix.se is
plumpness of muscle over the breast, and
thickness of rump, when alive ; ainl, in
addition, when dead and plucked, of a
TREATMENT OF FOWLS IN WINTER.
353
uniform covering of ichite fat under a fine
skin on the breast. It is a good young
goose that weighs in its feathers 1 2 lbs. at
Christmas. The goose is a favourite dish
at Michaelmas in England, and at Christ-
mas in Scotland ; but people tire sooner
of goose than of turkey, and, in conse-
quence, it is not so frequently served at
table. A green goose, however, is con-
sidered a greater delicacy in England than
a turkey-poult. Geese are always roasted
in Britain, though a boiled goose is not an
uncommon dish in Ireland ; and their flesh
is certainly much heightened in flavour by
a stuffing of onions, and an accompani-
ment of apple-sauce. A goose should be
kept a few days before being used. It is
bled to death by an incision across the
back of the head, which completely frees
it of blood. Large flocks of geese are
reared in Lincolnshire, and from thence
driven to the London market, and many
more find their way from Ireland to this
country. It is rare to see a grey gander,
and as rare a white goose. I remember
seeing large flocks of geese on the islands
in the Elbe near Hamburg, where they
were reared chiefly for their quills, their
carcasses being salted and sent to Holland.
The invention of the steel pen has much
injured the quill-dressing trade, and, in
consequence, good quills are now not
easily obtained. Geese have long been
proverbially good watchers. I have seen
a gander dispute the approach of beggars
towards the kitchen door, as pertinaciously
as a watch- dog.
1604. Ducks, being also early hatched,
are in fine condition in winter, if they
have been properly fed. Ducklings soon
become fit for use, and are much relished
with green peas in summer. I believe
there is no difference in ffavour and deli-
cacy betwixt a young male and female
duck. They are most frequently roasted,
and stuffed with sage and onions — though
often stewed ; and if smothered among
onions when stewed, few more savoury
dishes can be presented at a farmer's table.
A duck never eats better than when killed
* MacGillivray's History of British Birds, vol.
+ I ascertained the result by weight; and as the facts may be worth recording, I may mention
that, in an average of three drachms, there were 75 grains of chevalier barley in each drachm, of a
sample weighing 065 lbs. per bushel; and 97 grains of Siberian early oat in 1 drachm of a sample
weighing 46 lbs. per bushel. Of Chidham white wheat, a favourite food of the pigeon, weighing 65
lbs. per bushel, there were 86 grains in the drachm.
J Venables' Tour in Russia — Appendix.
VOL. I. Z
immediately before being dressed. It ia
deprived of life by chopping off' the head
with a cleaver, which completely drains
the body of the blood.
1 605. Hens and turkeys are most easily
caught on their roosts at night with a light,
which seems to stupefy them ; and geese
and ducks may be caught at any hour, in
the out-house they may be driven into.
1606. As young pigeons alone are used,
and as pigeons do not hatch in winter,
they require no other notice at present
than what regards their feeding ; and to
give an idea of their gastronomic powers,
of three rock-doves sent to Professor Mac-
Gillivray, " the number of oat-seeds in
the crop of the second amounted to 1000
and odds, and the barley-seeds in that of
another were 510. Now supposing," he
observes, " there may be 5000 wild pigeons
in Shetland, or in Fetlar, which feed on
grain for 6 months every year, and fill
their crops once a day, half of them with
barley and half with oats, the number of
seeds picked up by them would be
229,500,000 grains of barley, and
450,000,000 grains of oats, — a quantity
which would gladden many poor families
in a season of scarcity. I am unable," he
adds, " to estimate the number of bushels,
and must leave the task to the curious."*
I was curious enough to undertake the
task, and found the result to be 422
bushels, or 52 quarters 6 bushels of barley,
and 786 bushels, or 98 quarters 2 bushels
of oats, or 151 quarters of grain in all.t
] 6O7. The prices of poultry in towns
are pretty high. In Edinburgh, for in-
stance, in winter a couple of chickens are
2s. 6d. ; hens from Is. to Is. 9d. each;
ducks 3s. per couple; turkeys, 3s. 6d. to
8s. a-piece ; geese, 3s. 6d. to 5s. each ; and
eggs are from Is. 2d. to Is. 8d. per dozen.
In the country towns, the prices are fully
one-third below, though in London the
highest prices are not above these. In
Eussia, fat turkeys are Is. lOd. ; geese, 2s. ,
and fowls and ducks, Is. Sd. per couple t")^
i. p. 285.
854
PRACTICE— WINTER,
In Ireland, ponltryof all kinds are cheap,
but not so cheap as in Russia.
1608. Farmers usually sell poultry alive,
exceptin? in some parts of the country,
such as the Borders, where geese are killed
and plucked, for the sake of their feathers,
before being sent to market. Poulterers
in towns, on the other hand, kill and pluck
every sort of fowl for sale — so that the
purchaser has it in his power to judge of
the carcass; and if he buys an inferior
article at a high price, the fault is his
own. It is easy to judge of a plucked
fowl, whether old or young, by the state
of the leys. If a hen's spur is hard, and
the scales on the legs rough, she is old,
whether or not you see her head ; but the
head will corroborate your observation, if
the under bill is so stitF that you cannot
bend it to a curve, and the comb is thick
and rough. A young hen has only the
rudiraenta of spurs, tlie scales on the legs
smooth, glossy, and fresh-coloured, what-
ever the colour may be, the claws tender
and short, the under bill soft, and the
comb thin and smooth. An old hen-
turkey has rough scales on the legs,
callosities on the soles of the feet, and
long strong claws ; a young one has none
of these. When the feathers are on, an
old turkey-cock has a long beard, a young
cock but a sprouting one ; and when oli',
the smooth scales on the legs decide the
point, beside difference of size in the
wattles of the neck, and in the elastic snot
upon the nose. An old goose, when alive,
is known by the roughness of the legs, the
strength of the wings, particularly at the
pinions, the thickness and strength of the
bill, and the firmness and thickness of the
feathers; and when plucke-l, by the smootii
legs, weak pinions and bill, and fine skin.
Ducks are distinguished by the same
marks, but there is this difference, that
a duckling's bill is much longer in pro-
portion to the breadth of its head than
that of an old duck. A young pigeon is
easily recognised by its pale-coloured,
smooth-scaled, tender, collapsed feet, the
yellow long down interspersed among the
feathers, and the soft under bill. A pigeon
that can fly has red-coloured legs, no
dowTi, and is too old for use.
1609. The hen-house should be divided
into at least four apartments, included
within a court-yard. The use of four
apartments is, to devote one of them to
tlie hens and turkeys, which roost high ;
and therefore wooden roosts should be
put up for them, not narrower tiian to
allow the feet of the fowls to be spread
out. The roosting-house for these fowls
is in G, Plate II., under a part of a
granary. The geese and ducks should
rest on the floor, and have a house for
themselves, and this may be at the hatch-
ing-house. When geese and ducks are
obliged to rest below hens, they are made
uncomfortable and dirty by the droppings
from the latter. There should be a hatch-
ing-house to accommodate both classes of
birds, when they sit upon their eggs, in
separate nests. The fourth apartment
is the one for the use of those which are
laying their eggs. For convenience, com-
partments are made in it for containing
nests, which are made to suit the nature
of the fowls. The largest apartment should
be occupied by the most numerous body
of fowls, namely, the hens and turkeys ;
and the egg-house should have access by
a trap-ladder and opening through the
wall from the outside, to admit the laying
hens. There should be an opening with
a sliding-shut in the outer door of this, as
well as one in those of the geese-house
and hatching-house, to give admittance to
the birds when disposed to go to rest in
the afternoon ; and these shuts should be
closed every night. In the accommoda-
tion thus appropriated to every class of
fowls, each apartment will be occupied
by its own class. The usual practice is
to put all kinds of fowls into the same
apartment; and the small space occupied
by even a single room seems to be
grudged ; as if any sort of accommodation,
however hamj»ered or incommodious, were
good enough for poultry. How breeders
and feeders of stock can reconcile their
minds to such indifference towards any
class of their live-stock, while cherishing
the desire of having a good fowl at tlieir
table, is more than I can imagine, unless
they believe that quite opposite modes of
treatment will produce similar results in
different classes of animals. In very cold
weather, the apartment occiijiied by the
hens and turkeys should be kept warm by
any expedient, such as the shutting of
doors, and putting straw upon the slated
roofs of all the apartments during a con-
TREATMENT OF FOWLS IN WINTER.
355
tinned storm. Snow forms a warm cover-
ing on a roof, but tlie heat from fowls
roosting under, soon melts it ; so it is better
to remove the snow and put on straw,
and allow the snow to fall upon the straw.
Fowls thrive best in a mild temperature,
and not great heat ; and such expedients
will afford sufficient heat during the
severity of a winter storm. I do not enter
into all the particulars usually to be
found in a regularly constructed poultry-
house — for these are best suited to a pro-
prietor's offices : those I have referred to
are quite well enough constructed for a
farm, and if the fowls were as well
attended to as such accommodation would
afford them protection and comfort, they
would exhibit a much better appearance
than they usually do about farmyards.
1610. A pigeon-house is a necessary
structure, and may be made to contribute
a regular supply of one of the best
luxuries raised on a farm. As pigeons
are fond of heat at all seasons, a room
in the gable, above the bulls' hammels,
as seen in Plate I., would suit well. A
large pigeon-house is not required, as with
ordinary care, pigeons beiug very prolific
breeders, a sufficient number for the table
may be obtained from a few pairs of
breeding birds. I had a pigeon-house not
exceeding 6 feet cube, and not very favour-
ably situated either for heat or quiet-
ness, which yielded 150 pairs of pigeons
every season. The flooring should be strong
and close, and the sides, front, and roof,
in the inside, lathed and plastered. A
small door will suffice for an entrance,
to which access may be obtained from
the wool-room. The pigeon-holes in the
gable should be made of stone, and kept
bright with white paint. The nest-cells
should be made of wood, 9 inches cube
all round the walls.
1611. When pigeons receive artificial
heat, they not only continue to hatch
longer in autumn, but will recommence
in spring sooner than they would other-
wise do. Indeed, by a little management,
and keeping the house always pretty
full of pigeons, to retain heat amongst
themselves, they might be encouraged to
hatch all the year, with the exception,
perhaps, of two months in the depth of
winter, inDecemberand January. Pigeons,
like other birds, are most prolific when
not too old ; and as old cocks tyrannise
over the young ones, they should be
destroyed as well as the oldest heus. It
is no easy matter to get hold of old pigeons
to kill them, as they are always on tiie
alert, and ready to make their escape ; but
there are various ways of destroying
them, and a favourite one is shooting,
which is not the best in this case, as
young ones may be wounded in the act of
killing the older birds. The safest plan
is to mark the birds you wish to destroy
daily for some time, in order to recognise
them readily, and the old cocks are easily
discerned by their froward manner, and
the interruption tliey give at the pigeon-
holes to the entrance of others, though the
old hens never conduct themselves in that
manner. Other means must therefore be
taken to recognise them. The marks are
rough scaly legs, callous soles of the feet,
bright red scales on the legs, strong bill,
strong wings, thick covering of feathers,
and brilliancy of the play of colours upon
the neck. AH these marks are most con-
spicuous in winter, the season when the
process of cocking a pigeon-house, as it is
termed, should be performed, as then no
young ones will be unknowingly deprived
of their parents. The safest way of
catching the old ones, is to enter the
pigeon-house gently, late of a dark night,
with a light, and on entering and shutting
the door, the first movement should be to
stop up the holes to prevent them escap-
ing, which the old cocks will be the first
ta attempt ; and, should the holes be
beyond the reach of the floor, a ladder
should have been placed in the pigeon-
house, during the day, to assist in effecting
the purpose. Two persons are required to
capture the pigeons, as they will endeavour
to elude every attempt ; one to take
special charge of the light, which would be
bright and safe in the lantern, fig. 89. A
light landing-net used by anglers is a
convenient instrument fur entrapping a
pigeon, whether sitting or flying. Every
bird caught should be examined and
recognised, and every one exhibiting signs
of old age should be destroyed, by striking
the back of the head forcibly against the
wall, or cutting it off with a large sharp
knife. When the process of weeding is
performing, it should be done effectually
at once, and not repeated in the same
856
PRACTICE— WINTER.
season; as such a nocturnal visitation can-
not fail to intiiiiitlate the whole flock. Nor
should it be done in the season of hatch-
ing, though done without fail every year ;
and the consequence will be, that your
pigeon-bouse will be stored with prolific
birds, which will receive no annoyance
from barren ones. Perhaps a dozen of
birds, male and female, so destroyed, may
suffice at a time. The unstopping of the
holes, and the removing of the slain birds
and ladder, should be done quietly.
1612. The daily treatment of fowls
may be conducted in this manner: — Some
person should have special charge of them,
and the dairy-maid is perhai)8 the best
qualified for it. As fowls are very early
risers, she should go to the hen-house in
the morning, on her w^ay to the byre, and
let out all the fowls, giving the hens and
turkeys a feed of light corn and cold
boiled potatoes, strewed along at some
convenient and establislied place out of
the way of the general passage of horses
and carts ; such as between the hammels
N, and the byre and calves' courts, Plate
II. The ducks should get the same food
either near the horse-pond, or at any
pond or trough of water, placed for them,
as they cannot swallow dry food without
the assistance of water. Geese thrive
well upon sliced turnips, a little of which,
sliced small, should be left by the cattle-
man for the dairy-maid at any of the stores,
and given at a place apart from the hens.
When stated places are thus established
for feeding fowls at fixed hours, they will
resort to them ; at least, the well-known
call will bring the hour to their recollec-
tion, and collect them together on the spot
in a few seconds, the regular administna-
tion of food being as essential for their
welfare as that of other stock. Ducks
pick up a good deal of what falls about
the stable, and near the corn-barn door,
as well as in the straw-barn ; and geese
will help themselves to the turuij)s that
may chance to fall from the troughs of
the cattle ; and they are also fond of raw '
potatoes. After her own dinner, say 1
o'clock P.M., the dairy-maid takes a ))art
of the potatoes that have been boiled at
that time, and while a little warm, gives
them crumbled down from their skins,
with some light corn, to the turkeys and
hens. At this time of the day the spaces
below the stathels of the stacks in the
stack-yard form excellent dry sheltered
places for laving down food, and the
stack-yard is a very probable place for
their resort after the morning meal, when
it rains or snows. In laying down food
for the fowls, the pigeons should be re-
membered, as they Avill feed with the
hens, and on the same sort of food. Before
sunset, the fowls are all collected together
by a call, to be put into the house, which
they will readily enter; and many will
have taken up their abode in it already,
especially the turkeys, which go very
Soon to roost. The ducks are the latest
idlers. The floors of the diti'erent a])art-
ments should be littered with a little fresh
straw every day, sufficient to cover the
dung, and the whole cleaned out every
week. Sawdust or sand, where they are
easily obtained, forms an excellent cover-
ing for the floor of hen-houses. Troughs
of water should be placed in their own
court-yard, supplied with fresh water, and
cleaned out every day.
1613. This mode of daily treatment
will maintain fowls in a condition for
using at any time ; and it cannot be said
to involve much expense, for the riddlings
of potatoes and light corn boiled may be
regarded Jis the ofl'al of the farm : but the
truth is, food administered to these crea-
tures at irregular intervals, though it be
of the finest quality, will be compara-
tively thrown away, when compared to
tlie good effects of food of cA'en inferior
quality given at stated ho7(rs. This
})lan contrasts favourably with that which
gives large (piantities of food in one sjuit
at long intervals, in a claminv state — as
also with that which permits fowls to shift
for their food at the farmstead. Eitiierof
these ways will never fatten fowls ; and
food given in over-abundance at one time,
and restricted at another, will never
fatten any animal ; nor will they obtain
sufficient food at all times when made
to shift for themselves, because of fowls,
like other animals, some can forage most
perseveringly, whilst others are indo-
lent and careless of food when not jdaced
before them. A regular jilan is recom-
mended, and when repeated daily, their
coTidition must increase, because it cannot
decrease, the minimum quantity of food
being always sufficient to appease hunger;
TREATMENT OF FOWLS IN ^^^NTER.
357
and tbey can never feel hunger when
supplied with food at appointed times.
Thus, in the long run, more nutrition will
be derived from inferior food regularly-
administered, than from richer given irre-
gularly.
1614. Should it be desired, however, to
be particularly indulgent to fowls intended
for immediate use, the following materials
will render the respective sorts of fowls
perfectly ripe in a short time. Boiled
potatoes, warm, and light wheat, for heus ;
boiled potatoes, warm, and firm oatmeal
porridge, warm, for turkeys ; boiled pota-
toes, warm, and oats, for geese ; and boiled
potatoes, warm, and boiled barley, warm,
for ducks. The potatoes and porridge
should be crumbled down and strewed
about in small pieces. As potatoes cannot
now be depended upon, Indian corn boiled
may be advantageously substituted for
them. But immediate effects, even from
superior food, should only be expected on
fowls that have been regularly fed as
recommended above, up to the time the
superior food is indulged in. Let starved
fowls receive the same ingredients, and a
long time will elapse ere they exhibit
symptoms of improved condition, besides
the risk they run, in the mean time, of
receiving injury from surfeit and indiges-
tion. No doubt, superior feeding will
incur cost, if persevered in throughout the
season ; but I am disposed to affirm that,
were proper breeds of fowls only culti-
vated, and were the shortness of time
taken into consideration in which a pure
breed will ripen on good food, a profit
would actually be derived from its use.
The experiment has never been satisfac-
torily attempted by farmers, and all the
instances we know of superior feeding,
apart from experiments by men of science,
are derived from the establishments of
noblemen, whose object not being to obtain
a profit, their fowls are fed with the view
of producing tlie greatest results.
1615. Other ingredients may be used
for feeding fowls, among which are buck-
wheat, rice, and Indian corn. Buck-wheat
is successfully grown in England, not so
in Scotland. It is said to fatten poultry
well, thouifh not so well as graiu. It is
excellent feeding for pheasants. Rice may
be given either raw or boiled: in the
former state, fowls will pick it as readily
as grain after feeding on boiled potatoes,
and, when boiled, it will fatten without
the aid of potatoes — but, of course, it is
more expensive, as even good damaged
rice can seldom be obtained under 16s. or
18s. per cwt., which is nearly 2d. per lb.,
without the expense of cooking. Fine
barley, weighing 56 lbs. per bushel, sell-
ing at 4s. per bushel, is nearly one penny
per pound. Indian corn is employed in
America, in the southern parts of Ger-
many, and in Lombardy, for feeding
poultry, and they become very fat upon
it. It is too large to be swallowed raw,
like the horse-bean of this country ; but
when steeped in water, or boiled, it is
easily eaten, and, if sold at 4s. per bushel,
it would not cost Id. per lb. " From a
desire to save expense," says Boswell,
" the bran of wheat, and sometimes
pollard, or middlings, are given to fowls ;
but these bruised skins, where little if
any of the farina of wheat remains, ap-
pear to contain a very small portion of
nourishment in proportion to the cost
price. M. Reaumur found by experiment,
that it is little or no saving to substitute
bran for good grain in feeding poultry.
Bran is not given dry, but mixed with
water to the consistence of paste. Some
people boil this ; but it does not increase
the bulk, except in a very trifling degree,
and is, therefore, of small advantage. He
found that two measures of dry bran,
mixed with water, were consumed by
fowls in the same time that they would
have eaten a single measure of boiled
barley, equivalent to three-fifths of a
measure of dry barley."* Bran, though
not destitute of nutrition, is of little use
to fowls as food ; but may be the means
of conveying nourishing food, in the shape
of fat, broth, and other rich liquids from
the kitchen, which they could not other-
wise avail themselves of but by such an
absorbent. Fowls are very fond of bread,
and of butcher-meat, cooked or raw, and
they will pick a rough bone very neatly.
They sometimes display even carnivorous
propensities. Many a time have I ob-
served them watching for a mouse at the
casting down of a stack in the stack-yard ;
Boswell's Poultry-Yard, ■g. 54.
858
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and the moment one attempted to escape,
awav tliev would run, cocks and liens
together, in full chase after it : and on
mobbing it, peck it not only to death, but
to pieces, and swallow it.
1616. I have said that eijgs^ and chick-
ens too, may be obtained in winter by
good management. The young hens of
the first broods in April will be old enough
to lay e^J^§,^ in winter. A few of these
should be selected for the purpose ; and as
the period of laying approaches — which
may be ascertained by their chauntiug a
song and an increased redness of the
comb — they should be supported by better,
warm feeding, and waruier housing at
night. The feeding consists of warm
potato, or warm Indian corn, and firm
oatmeal porridge, twice a-day — at morn-
ing when they are let out, and in the
afternoon at 1 o'clock, with a few grains
of oats. To give them peace in feeding
uj)on their tempting fare, they may be fed
by themselves in the court-yard of the
hen-houses, and the outer-door shut upon
them after the rest of the fowls have left
their night's quarters. Their comfortable
housing consists in directing them into the
batching-house betimes every afternoon,
and therein making for them a number of
comfortable nests of clean oat-straw, to
choose amongst, and, when each has taken
to the one she selects for her own, leaving
an old Q^g in it for a nest-egg. A little
lime and gravel should be placed within
their reach — the gravel assisting the
digestion, and the lime affording the cal-
careous covering for the egg. These three or
four young hens will lavas many eggs every
day ; and though they are not so large as
those of more matured fowls, being only
pullets' eggs, still they are fresh ; and it
is no small luxury to enjoy a new-laid
Ggg at breakfast every winter-morning —
a luxury which I enjoyed ad many years
as I lived in the country.
1617. With regard to young broods in
winter, I believe few people will impose
upon themselves the trouble of setting
hens on eggs so late in the season for the
purpose of rearing cliickens in winter —
and yet it may be done without difficulty ;
but sometimes the task is imposed invo-
luntarily upon one, inasmuch as some hens
will secret their nests in the fields, at a
heilge-root, or other safe j)lace, and bring
out strong broods of chickens on the eve
of winter ; and in such an event, the little
innocents, brought into a cold world, can-
not be allowed to perish for want of care.
When a late brood makes its ajtpearance,
or is purposely brought forth, it should be
kept apart from the rest, in a warm and
sheltered place; and where no better place
presents itself, it may be comfortably
housed in a corner of the boiler-house,
(Plate II.,) where a hamper or basket,
placed over mother and chickens, or a
fence of some kind, erected across a cor-
ner, near the fire, will protect them in
their comfortable nests from external
danger. From thence they should be let
out for a while in tiie forenoon, to receive
the fresh air and bask in the sun, and
returned to their nest long before sunset.
In rainy weather they may be conducted
to a shed, and in hard frost kept in the
house altogether, as frost soon benumbs
their legs — and whenever they lose the
power of these they soon droop and die.
Their nest should be elevatetl some inches
above the floor, to keep them above the
draught of air that swee])s along it, with
a broad sloping base to ati'ord the chickens
an easy access to their nest ; and every
evening, a little of tlie cleanest and
warniest of the straw, from under a cow in
the adjoining byre, will form an excellent
lining for the nest for the hen to brood
them upon. Food should be given them
from morning to evening every three
hours. It may consist of Marm boiled
mealy potatoes crumbled down small,
picks of oatmeal porridge — mixed with
oatmeal, and a flat low dish of clean
water. With variety of food, daily atten-
tion, and warm housing, they will get on
well, and by spring be as plumj) as par-
tridges, and as valuable as ortolans. I am
surprised to observe Mr Mowbray say,
that "to attempt to rear winter chickens
in thiscliniate, even in a carpeted room, and
with a constant fire, would in ail jiroba-
bility be found abortive. I have rej)eat-
edly made the experiment," he adds,
" with scores, without being able to pre-
serve an indivitlual through the winter.''*
The difficulty I am sure is small, though
Mowbray's Praetieal Treatise on Domestic Poultry, p. 57.
TREATMENT OF FOWLS IN WINTER.
359
the trouble may be unnecessary; but
neither a " carpeted room," nor a " con-
stant fire," will of themselves rear chick-
ens : the whole art consists of suitable food
medium temperature, fresh air, and well-
timed attention ; and with these a large
number of chickens may be reared in
winter at one time, if desired.
1618. Such is the way I would recom-
mend the feeding of poultry on a farm.
It is not an expensive mode in a pecuniary
point of view — at least not more so than
shoukl be incurred on a farm — for it con-
sists entirely of ordinary fare, and regular
attention ; and therein depends the entire
value and success of the plan. That the
plan is a valuable one, and worthy of imi-
tation, I have proved beyond doubt, as it
supplied fowls of every kind in their
respective seasons, in high condition — at
any hour they were required — and without
the least previous formal preparation.
Thus, a chicken, a young cock, a hen,
were at command throughout the year ; a
duckling in the autumn ; a goose or a tur-
key from Michaelmas to March : and this
not for one year, or only in a favourable
season, but year after year for 15 years —
as long, in short, as I had opportunity to
practise it. In truth, a young fat fowl
and a fresh ^g^ were never awanting,
from January to December ; so that much
truth was conveyed in Gobbet's remark,
when he said, " one thing about fowls
ought always to be borne in mind, — they
are never good for any thing after they
have attained their full growth, unless
they be capons or poullards."* As with
pigeons so with fowls ; keep them always
young, and they will always prove prolific
and healthy.
1619. In regard to the undue means
used for pampering fowls to fatness, I quite
agree with Gobbet that "crammed fowls
are very nasty things ;" and when we
reflect on the worse than imprisonment
practised for the purpose, by cooping up
fowls in the dark, and tying their feet
together, the means used to attain the end
become highly reprehensible. Liebig ex-
plains the rationale of this latter practice.
'" Experience," he says, " teaches us that
in poultry, tlie maximum of fat is obtained
• Cobbet's Cottage Economy.
by tying the feet and by a medium tem-
pera'ture. These animals, in such circum-
stances, may be compared to a plant
possessing in the highest degree the power
of converting all food into parts of its own
structure. Tiie excess of the constituents
of blood form flesh and other organised
tissues, while that of starch, sugar, &c., is
converted into fat. When animals are fed
on food destitute of nitrogen, only parts
of their structure increase in size. Thus,
in a goose fattened in the method above
alluded to, the liver becomes three or four
times larger than in the same animal when
well fed with free motion, while we cannot
say that the organised structure of the
liver is thereby increased. The liver of a
goose fed in the ordinary way isjirm and
elastic ; that of the imprisoned animal
soft and spongy. The difference consists
in a greater or less expansion of its cells,
which are filled with fat."t The practice
of stuffing appears to me the more repre-
hensible, in that its principal effect is to
increase the off"al.
1620. The denominations of the com-
mon fowls of the farm are as follows : —
The male of the fowl is the cock^ and the
female the lien ; the young are cock chick-
ens and hen chickens according to their
sex. A hen chicken before it begins to lay
eggs is a pullet, and a castrated cock is a
capon. Turkeys are likewise termed cock
and hen turkeys, and the young of both
sex a poult. The male of the goose tribe
is a gander, the female a goose, and" the
young of both sexes ?i gosling. A gosling
fit for eating is a green goose. The male
of the duck tribe is a drake, the female a
duck, and the young of both sexes a duck-
ling. Pea cock and pea hen are the terms
for the old male and female, and peafowls
for the young of both sexes. Gock and hen
are the distinguishing terms for the male
and female of all the gallinaceous race of
birds, and so also with the pigeon tribe.
1621. Peacocks may be treated in the
same manner as turkeys.
1622. Guinea-fowls, notwithstanding
the delicacy of their eggs, should never be
tolerated in a farm-yard, both on account
of the horrid grating noise they make,
•\ Liebig's Animal Chemistry, p. 94
S60
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and the strong propensity they evince of
constantly annoying other fowls.
1623. The feathert of the various sorts of
fowls used, are either disposed of or conTerted
into domestic use. The following directions on
sweetening and managing feathers are given by
a lady of my acquaintance, who is a notable
housewife ; and as they very nearly accord with
my own experience, I shall transcribe them in
her own intelligent words. " Every one is aware
that the feathers of cocks and hens are very
inferior to those of geese and ducks, for the
purpose of filling beds and pillows ; and, con-
sequently, it is scarcely necessary to mention,
that the former should be kept separate from
those of the two latter fowls. As the birds are
plucked, the large feathers should be selected
and placed asunder. Paper-bags are the best
recipients. The pinion feathers should be stripped
from the quill, and added to the other feathers ;
and, if great caution have not been used in
plucking the birds, they should be carefully
looked over, that no part of the skin has been
torn and adhering to the base of the quills.
The bags of feathers should be placed in the
bread-oven on the day after it has been heated,
and, after some hours, removed to a dry airy
place ; and this ought to be done every week."
On this part of the subject, I may mention a
less troublesome plan than the oven, where
there happens to be an apartment behind the
kitchen-fire, against the wall of which the bags
containing the feathers may be hung up, and
there the feathers will soon iron. " Notwith-
standing," continues our instructress, " every
apparent caution shall have been used, the fea-
thers are frequently found to be tainted, either
from carelessness in plucking, or by neglecting
to attend to them afterwards ; and no subsequent
bakirtij or picking will be found available to
restore them. In this case, the only method to
render them sweet is to boil them, which is to
be effected in the following manner : one or two
large canvass or calico bags must be made, into
which the feathers from the small paper-bags
must be emptied and tied up ; a washing-copper
must be nearly filled with rain-water, and made
to boil. The calico-bags, then, one at a time,
are to be dipped, and, by means of a stick,
pushed about, and squeezed, and kneaded, for
the space of four or five minutes, then lifted out
and taken out of doors ; and being tied together
and the openings kept secure, that no feathers
may escape, they must be hung over a line, and
left to drain and dry. Several times a-day the
bags are to be shaken up and turned over ; and
as soon as the feathers appear to be light and
drying, which will not be the case for nearly a
week, the bags must be hung up during dry
weather only, and taken in every night. In
about a fortnight, the feathers will become per-
fectly sweet and ready for use ; and the water
in which they were boiled will sufficiently indi-
cate that this plan was not only necessary, but
efiicacious, in cleansing them from impurities
which would else have rendered them useless."
As an attestation of the practical efficacy of the
plan, the lady adds, " having tried the method
ourselves, we can assure our readers of its eligi-
bility."* Feathers are now efficaciously and
quickly cleaned, and freed from all impurities, bj
the action of steam upon them.
1624. In regard to the diseases of fowls, I can
say without the fear of contradiction, that, if
fowls are attended to in a systematic manner,
with wholesome food prepared for them, every
day, and their roosting place kept cleap and
airy, very little disease will aflfect them at any
age. Mr Mowbray observes that " Thq diseases
of our domestic animals kept for food are gene-
rally the result of some error in diet or manage-
ment, and should either have been prevented, or
are to be cured most readily and advantageously
by an immediate change, and adoption of the
proper regimen. When that will not succeed,
any farther trouble is extremely questionable ; and
particularly with respect to poultry, little hope
can be derived from medical attempts. "+ I am
not of the opinion that, when fowls are observed
to be affected by any disease, a mere change of
regimen will readily eflfect a cure. On the con-
trary, the value of the animal is lost in the time
permitted the disease to develop its symptoms.
The plan, therefore, that averts the greatest
amount of loss in the animal itself, and. of ex-
pense in the attempt "to cure its disease, is to
kill the animal the moment the least symptom of
disease is seen to afiect it. If atowl is found
" in a corner" pining away, the fault lies with
those who have the charge of it ; for if they
fulfilled their duty in daily noticing, as they ought
to have done, the state of every creature .under
their charge, none could stray away from the
rest under the efi"ect of disease, or afty other
cause, without being immediately missed, and
searched for.
1()25. SniJTters. — Tlie only disease I can re-
member to have seen in winter is what is vul-
garly called the sHf/ff <)•.<, that is, a discharge of
matter from the nose, which causes a noise in
the nose like stifled breathing. It is evidently a
catarrhal aflectiou, and has most probably been
superinduced by exposure to rain or cold in
stormy weather. When first observed to be
aff"ected with this complaint, any fowl kept in
the condition it should be may be used without
scruple, which is a much better plan than tor-
menting the animal by pursuing the usual prac-
tice of thrusting a feather through its nostrils.
If the fowl is not fit for killing, the fault lies
either with the person who has charge of the
poultry or with the farmer himself, who grudges
the creature its food.
1626. I have seen a classified list of the
• Quart^rlii Journal of Agriculture, vol. x. p. 480-1. A curious account is given in Head's
Home Tour, of the modes of plucking feathers of fowls of various kinds in a large poulterer's esta-
blishment in Lincoln.
t Mowbray's Practical Treatise on Domestic Poultry, p. 211.
FEEDING OF FOWLS IN WINTER.
361
diseases alleged to affect poultry, given by a cor-
respondent of the Gardener^s Chronicle for 7th
November 1846, and the numbers seem to me
appalling, as I have seen but very few of them : —
3d Division — Catarrhal,
respiratory and pul-
monary.
Chip.
Pip.
Influenza, inflamed head,
eyes, and nostrils.
Roup or glanders.
Asthma.
Phthisis.
4th Division — Nervous.
Meaghrims.
Apoplexy.
Paralysis.
5th Division' — External and
accidental.
Obstruction of rump gland.
Fractures.
Bruises.
Tumours,
Ulcers.
Vermin.
Corns.
1st Division — Febrile and
Inflammatory.
Moulting fever.
Loss of feathers ; mange.
Hatching fever.
2d DrvisioN — IHgestive.
Sick OP full crop.
Oon, lush, or soft eggs.
Egg-bound.
Torpid gizzard.
Diarrhoea.
Fluxes.
Constipation.
Gapes, or Facciola.
Worms.
Canker.
Gout.
Dropsy.
1627. Lice. — As to vermin, every fowl, like
every other animal, is affected with lice. The
common hen is infested by more than one pedi-
cular inhabitant, but the most frequent is the
Lipeurus variabilis, which has a narrow body,
the head rounded in front, the general colour
dirty white, smooth and shining, the margins
with a black band, the abdomen having a brown
interrupted stripe down the middle. According
to Mr Denny, our principal authority on this
subject, it prefers the primary and secondary
feathers of the wings, 4imong the webs of which
is moves about with great celerity.
1628. 3Ienopon palH^fhn iS' almost equally
common in poultry, running over the hands of
those who are pluckinglheir feathers, and difficult
to brush off from the smoothness* of their bodies.
1629. The peacock has a large and very d^>-
gularly formed parasite of this nature, named
Goniodes falcicornis.
1630. Another, not unlike the one just men-
tioned in general appearance, occurs plentifully
on the turkey.
1631. Geese and ducks are infested by similar
foes, particularly the latter, on which the Doco-
phorus icteroides, a species common to the whole
anserine tribe, is usually very abundant.*
1632. As 1 have mentioned bran as an ingre-
dient at times administered to fowls as food, it
may be worth while to notice what chemists say
of its nutritive properties. The proportions
of water, and of oil and fat, do not vary much in
pure bran. The oil varied from 5'26 to 6'53 per
cent, and the water from ir82 to 1323 per
cent, in six different cases. The albumen varies
in a greater degree. The composition of bran is
v<iry^nearly as follows : —
Water . . . . 13'1
Albumen (coagulated) , 19*3
Oil . . . . 4-7
Husk and a little starch . 55'6
Saline matter (ash) \ . 7*3
100-0
The ash has not yet been analysed. As it ap-
pears that the nutritive matter, consisting of the
albumen and oil, amounts to 24 per cent, bran
should be a good ingredient to assist, at least in
the feeding of pigs and other stock.-f*
1633. Goose fat is used for some purposes on
a farm. It is useful in anointing the udders of
cows in spring, should they become hard, and it
has the property of evaporating slowly. It also
keeps a poultice moist until it should be renewed ;
and, on account of this property, it constitutes a
good ingredient of grease for smearing the axles
of cart-wheels. This fat may be rendered in the
same manner as mutton-suet and lard, and kept
in a jar covered with bladder. Goose fat " is
colourless, and has a peculiar taste and smell,
rather agreeable. If melted, it congeals at 80^°
Fahr. into a granular mass, having the con-
sistence of butter. When exposed to pressure
between the folds of blotting paper at 281°, it is
resolved, according to Braconnot, into
Fusible at 111°. Fusible .at 126^°. Fusible at 11 3».
Goose fat. Duck fat. Turkey fat.
Stearin, 32 28 26
Elain, 68 72 74
100
100
100+'
1634. Professor Johnston says that the solid fat
of the goose is the same as that of man, and as
that in olive oil and butter, and is named mar-
garin ; and that the solid fat of cattle, the
sheep, the horse, the pig, differs from that of man,
and is known by the name of stearin. The elain
or fluid part of fat is identical in all animals, and
is exactly the same thing as the fluid part of
olive oil, of the oil of almonds, of many other
fruits, and as the fluid part of butter ; and it
exists in a larger quantity in the fat of the pig
than in that of the sheep, and hence it is that
lard is always softer than suet.§
1635. I have often heard it expressed as a
decided opinion, that it is impossible to fatten
fowls with a profit. It seems to me strange that
fowls should not make a return for their keep
when the other animals on a farm do ; so I can-
not coincide witli the opinion until I have seen
the experiment fairly tried by a farmer ; and, so
far as my own limited experience instructs me,
my opinion is in the opposite direction. An
Englishman has sent me a calculation by which
he endeavours to prove, that the eggs alone fur-
* Denny's Monojjraphia Anoplurorum Britannice.
+ Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 866.
X Thomson's Animal Chemistry, p. 138.
§ Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 1011-2.
S62
PRACTICE— WINTER.
nished by good and young hens would afford a
reasonable profit ; and as the particulars of the
calculation are very feasible, and it is evident
he has thought seriously on the subject, I give
the results he renders so probable. " 1 consider,"
he says, " that one man, with the occasional as-
sistance of his wife, is sufficient to take charge
of 10,000 head of poultry, as he would only have
to feed them and keep the place clean, and
collect the eggs, &c. I do not intend to keep a
breeding stock, as I am quite aware it would be
both expensive and difficult to breed .3000 chick-
ens every year. I would fatten and sell, a little
before the moulting season, about 3000 of the old
hens every year,iiicluding a proportionate number
of cocks, and with the same money purchase as
many pullets and young cocks, so in the end it
would be the same as breeding them ; and I do not
Bee why the old hens should not be eatable and
saleable at about three years of age. If the
pullets purchased yearly were hatched about
March or April, they would begin to lay about
the beginning of November, and would lay on an
average at least 4 eggs a-week each, from that
time to the moulting season the following year.
Supposing the hens to stop in the moult 6 weeks
• — most good hens will get over it in a month — and
begin to lay again in November, I calculate they
would lay on an average about 5 eggs a week
each for about 4 weeks ; and from this time
during 8 weeks, which would be into the winter
quarter, about 4 eggs a-week each; as also from
the last time during 12 weeks, which would be
into spring, 5 eggs a week each; and continuing
forward and during the summer for 22 weeks,
until the moulting season again, 6 eggs a-week
each.
1636. " I consider 12 acres of grass land, being
50 square feet for each fowl, quite sufficient space
to roam in when they have an enclosed yard,
well drained, with good surface, sheds for shel-
ter from sun and rain, and green meat given
them every day to supply the place of grass.
1637. " Supposing 1 peck of barley to weigh 14
lbs. each hen would have 1 8 oz. a week ; and, tak-
ing the average number of eggs laid in a year
between a pullet and a hen at 214, and allowing
2 oz. for each egg divested of its shell, the ave-
rage would be 8 oz. a-week from each hen; and
as, of course, that weight of corn would be re-
quired to produce the eggs, there would be left
10 oz. of corn a-week to support the life of each
hen, supply insensible perspiration, and the ma-
nure. Besides the barley, I would allow 1^ oz.
of oats to each hen a-day, which I would con-
sider sufficiently high feeding.
1638. " Supposing, also, that we reckon the
wholesale price of the eggs, during the summer,
at Is. per 36, and in winter Is. per 24, and in the
other parts of the year a medium between these two
prices : eggs sold by retail scarcely ever exceed,
in the summer, from 24 to 28 for Is., and in
winter from 12 to 15 for that sum.
1639. " I have not taken into account some few
* The Farmer'
hens out of the stock, that might perchance want
to sit, as I should try to avoid that c.isualty by
having the best known everlasting lasers, such
as the Dorking, &c.
1640. "Suppose that each fowl voids as much
as 1 oz. of dry dung every day, the 10,000 would
yield about rather more than 100 tons every
year, which may safely be considered worth £7
per ton.
1641. " Taking these data as correct, the fol-
lowing may be expected to be the results : —
1» umber For one _ .
of eggs, shilling, v*'"^.
£ t- d.
FrKS ft
Number, week.
5,800 hens 5
3,000 pullets 4
- In
weeks.
4
5,800 liens 4
3,000 pullets 4
8
5,800 hens 5
3,000 pullets 4
12
5,800 hens (5
3,000 pullets 4
22
116,000
48,000
164,000 30 273 0 0
185,000
96,000
348,000
144,0fl0
765,600
264,000
281,600 24
492,000 30
586 0 0
-1,029,600 36 1439 0 0
8,800 laying stock,
1,200 cocks 6 in the moult
10,000 entire stock 52 weeks 1,967,200
RecUoning one egg less out of
every 15, to ni.iUe up for the
smallness of the pullets' eggs,
would reduce the number by
131,146 30 216 0 0
Leaving 1,830,054
Value of 102 tons of dung at £7 per ton
Peduet for expenses, namely: —
l.'iO(i quarters of barley, at 30s.
1070 . . . . oats, at 203. .
M'ages of man and woman
Green meat, sutli m lettuce, &c.
Incidental e.xpen8es and casualties
Kent
2893 0 0
714 0 0
3607
0 0
f 19.->9 0 0
1070 0 0
70 0 0
40 0 0
50 0 0
100 0 0
3289 0 0
Profit . . £328 0 0"
] 642. In regard to the right of farmers shoot-
ing pigeons, it has been decided that " The
tenant was found not justified in shooting his
landlord's pigeons, on the allegation that they
destroyed his crops. (Easton, May 18, 18.'i2 ;
10 S. D. 542.)"* This decision proves the
fallacy of a common opinion, that a farmer" may
shoot pigeons in the act of destroying his crops,
provided he does not carry them away after they
are shot. If this opinion were supported by law,
any tenant that had a grudge against his land-
lord might lure his pigeons by various means to
a particular spot, and there shoot them, and let
them lie : but such conduct, it is clear, could not
be tolerated.
ON THE RATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF
ANIMALS.
1643. The action of the digestive organs
of animals on the food eaten by them, and
I Lawyer, p. 35.
RATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF ANIMALS.
363
the appropriation of every particular con-
stituent part of the food by those portions
of the animal system most in want of them,
is now better understood by the aid of
chemistry, than when the former edition
of this work was written. It is therefore
necessary you should be made acquainted
with whathas been ascertained of the nature
of the food raised on farms for the use of
animals, that you may be enabled the
better to understand the art of feeding
those animals to the best possible advan-
tage ; and the properties of their food can
only be understood from a previous know-
ledge of the functions performed by the
digestive organs of the different animals
fattened on the farm.
1644. The domesticated animals of the
farm are all comprehended in two of the
great divisions of animated nature, namely,
quadrupeds and birds. Of the quadrupeds,
they are all embraced under one class, —
the mammalia, or those which suckle
their young ; and of this class they occupy
twosub-classes, — one the ruminants, having
compound stomachs, and the other hav-
ing simple stomachs. The ox, the sheep,
the goat, have compound stomachs ; the
horse, the pig, the ass, the mule, the dog,
the cat, have simple stomachs. Of tiie
birds, the few members of this family
raised on the farm occupy both the great
divisions of it, namely, land and water
birds. The common fowl, the turkey, the
peacock, theguinea- fowl, are the land birds;
the goose and duck are the water birds.
1645. Differing as these quadrupeds
and birds do in external appearance,
their digestive organs are nevertheless
very similarly constituted, thereby indi-
cating that the same kind of food will
maintain alike all the animals of the farm.
These organs consist of the oesophagus,
the stomach, and the large and small in-
testines, which last are divided into the
duodenum, the jejunum, the ileum, the
cu3cum, the colon, and the rectum.
1646. The functions of these several
parts are, — of the a^sophagus or meat-
pipe to convey the masticated food, mixed
with a large quantity of saliva, from the
mouth to the stomach. The stomach
digests the food received in this state, and
reduces it to a finer state of division, by
means, it is supposed, of the action of a
fluid which is exuded from the coats of
the stomach during the process of diges-
tion, and the fluid has been supposed to be
an acid, and that the hydrochloric. But
Dr R. D. Thomson doubts that digestion
is effected by means of an acid. " An
acid certainly makes its appearance in the
stomach," he remarks, " when food is pre-
sent; but whether this acid takes any part
in the digestion or solution, is still disputed.
During the digestion of vegetable food in
pigs, whose stomachs bear a close resem-
blance to those of man, I have always
found a volatile acid present in minute
quantities, which corresponded with the
properties of acetic acid ; but it is the
only acid which distils over from the
liquor of the stomach at a temperature of
212°. The filtered liquid of the stomach,
under such circumstances, contains no
hydrochloric acid, but an acid which is
either lactic, or corresponds very closely
with it." After making attempts to dis-
cover the hydrochloric acid, he concludes,
— " I regret, therefore, to be obliged to in-
fer, that the commonly received view of
digestion is scarcely admissible. It is
perhaps safer to conclude that there is a
deficiency of knowledge on this important
subject ; and that not only do we require
to possess a few facts additional, before we
can be said to understand the process, but
we want an entirely new basis on which
to found a theory of digestion. It seems
highly probable, from n)y own observation,
that the starch of food is converted into
sugar, and that this again passes into
sini])ler forms, as alcohol — perhaps acetic
acid or lactic acid — by a kind of substitu-
tion so well explained by the theory of
Dumas, and finally into gaseous forms, as
carbonic acid and vapour of water, or after
some such fashion as suggested by Liebig.
. . . . The most superficial observer
must have noticed that digestion is some-
thing more than a mere chemical action.
Does not the famished m?iw feel refreshed
after eating, and does not the pulse beat
quicker when food has been swallowed ?
There is, therefore, a nervous action in-
duced, the nature of which it is only wise
to admit we do not as yet understand."*
* Thomson's Researches on the Food of Animals, p. 19-23.
S64
PRACTICE— WIXTER.
The duodenum is the commencement of
the email intestines, and receives the food
from the stomach in the form of chyme,
through the pyloric duct. In its passage
through the duodenum, the food receives
the pancreatic juice from the duct con-
nected witli the pancreas or sweetbread,
and bile from the bile-duct of the liver.
Here these fluids efl'ect a change of the
chyme into chyle — the pancreatic juice
converting one portion into a white, thick,
milky fluid, and the bile into a yellow pul-
taceous mass. The next intestine, the
jejunum, conveys the reduced food on-
wards, acts upon it, and retains it only a
certain time, and on this account is called
the empty-gut. There is little difference
between this intestine and the next, the
ileum. Both intestinesare much convoluted,
in order to lessen the pace of the food
through them, until the great system of
absorbents connected with the mysentery,
shall have extracted the nutritive portion
of the food or chyle from the innutritions,
and carried it to the circulating system, to
be distributed over every part of the
body. The small intestine, the ileum,
terminates in the large intestine, thecajcuni
or blind-gut, by a valve which prevents the
return of its contents. The large intes-
tines, the caecum and colon, are destined
to serve as a store-house for all that portion
of the food which is of no use to the sys-
tem, and which is usually known under
the names of dung and fieces ; but a
portion of the absorbents have their ves-
sels also in these, to extract all the nourish-
ment possible to be obtained from the food,
before it finally leaves the body. The
rectum or straight-gut constitutes the
lower termination of the abdominal vis-
cera, and is the receptacle for the dung
before it is ejected by the anus. Both the
duodenum and rectum are straight, be-
cause it is not necessary that their con-
tents should remain in them.
1647. The oesophagus of the Aor*^ enters
the stomach in a somewhat curved direc-
tion, to prevent the regurgitation of the
food. The stomach is globular, has four
coats, and is small, not half so large as
that of the human being compared with
the bulk of the body. "The successive
contraction of each part of the stomach,
by producing a series of folds or wrinkles,
serves to agitate the alimentary mass,
and, by bringing every part of it in its
time to the surface, to expose it to the
influence of the gastric juice ; while at the
same time the whole of the contents are
gradually propelled forwards, from the
orifice which is connected with the oeso-
phagus to that by which they are dis-
charged." The duodenum in man is so
named because it is twelve finger-breadths
in length; in the horse it is nearly two
feet in length, and is therefore misnamed.
The pancreatic secretion and the bile are
received into the duodenum about five
inches from its commencement. The
jejunum and ileum are very little dis-
tinguishable in the horse, the former being
two-fifths, and the latter three-fifths of
their united lengths, and both would con-
tain eleven gallons of fluid. Of the large
intestines, the caecum is the first, and it is
called the blind-gut because it has but
one opening ; and any thing that passes
into it, having reached the blind or closed
end, must return in order to escape. The
ileum pierces it at right angles, and is
furnished with a valve. It is principally
the fluid part of the food which enters the
ca?cum. A horse will at one time drink a
great deal morethau his stomach will con-
tain ; and whatever quantity he drinks,
does not remain in the stomach or small
intestines, but passes on to the caecum,
and is there retained, as in a reservoir, to
supply tiie wants of the system. The
caecum holds four gallons. The colon
forms a very large portion of the large
intestines, being capable of containing
twelve gallons of liquid. Along the out-
side of both caecum and colon run three
strong bands, each of them shorter than
the intestine, thus puckering them up, and
forming them into sets of cells which de-
tain the food in them for a very long time;
and in order that, during this detention,
all the nutriment may be extracted, they
are largely supplied with blood-vessels and
absorbents. At the termination of the
colon commences the rectum or straight-
gut, and though much smaller than the
colon, is capable of containing three gal-
lons of water. It has no bands, so that
the passage of the faeces may not be re-
tarded in it ; but the sphincter nmscles of
the anus prevent the dropping of the
dung until the horse is disj)osed voluntarily
to expel it, which is eft'ected by the
efforts of the animal, assisted by the mu8«
RATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF ANIMALS.
365
cular coat of the rectum — which is stronger
than any other of the intestines, — and
aided by the compression of the internal
oblique and transverse muscles. The
entire length of the intestinal canal of a
full-grown horse is ninety feet, of which
the small intestines occupy sixty-six feet,
and tlie large twenty-four. The intestines
of the horse are thus about ten times as
long as his body. The intestines are
chiefly retained in their relative positions
by the mysentery, which is a doubling of
the peritoneum, including each intestine
in its folds, and also enclosing the arteries,
the veins, the nerves, and the vessels
which convey the nutriment from the in-
testines to the circulation. The dispro-
portion in size between the larger and
smaller intestines, is much greater in the
horse than in any of the other domesticated
animals.*
1648. The stomach of the pig is also
simple. "It is a truly oraniverous one,
and beautifully adapted by its pyramidal
appendage and glandular structure, as
well as by tlie villous mucous membrane
with which it is lined, for the digestion of
the heterogeneous food which it is destined
to receive, being, perhaps, more analogous
to that of the horse than to any other
animal. In form it is globular." Tlie
intestines of the pig bear a stronger re-
semblance to those of the human being
than we find in any other animal. They
are sixteen times the length of the body
of the animal, and the proportion of the
small intestines to the large is as three
to one. There are fewer cases of derange-
ment in the intestines of the pig than in
most of our domesticated animals, from
the circumstance of its stomach and intes-
tines being prepared, by the softening
powerof their highly mucous villous lining,
for the reception and digestion of a hetero-
geneous mass of food, which to other
animals would be actually poisonous ;
rendering it evident that, although the pig
in a state of nature is a herbivorous ani-
mal, it was also destined to become
omniverous for the service of man.t
1649. The compound stomachs oi cattle
and sheep are of very different construc-
tion from those which we have just been
corhsidering, and as the stomach alc.ne pre-
sents any great peculiarity in the diges-
tive organs of this and the above class of
animals, our attention shall be particularly
directed to it. The entire system of
stomachs of the ruminants is divided into
four compartments, the first being at tlie
termination of the oesophagus, and is termed
the rumen, ventriculus, or paunch. It is
of great size, occupying nearly three-
fourths of the abdominal cavity, and is
divided into four unequal sacs, by the
duplicature of the coats of the rumen.
The left side of the rumen is elevated as
high as to lie in contact with the left
flank, through which the trochar (fig. 104)
is introduced in cases of the hoven. All
the food when first swallowed goes into the
rumen, and is preserved there for the act
of rumination; and a portion, and occasion-
ally the greatest part, of the fluids that
pass down the gullet enter the rumen.
The office of the rumen is to macerate the
food as received from the gullet, without
altering it ; and this it does by sending it
into the different compartments, rubbing
it down by the papilljs, and lubricating it
with mucous. While in action the
rumen has a swinging motion, both up-
wards and downwards, and backwards and.
forwards. The macerated and lubricated
food thus passes by degrees into the second
stomach or reticulum, which has the con-
figuration of honeycomb on its surface.
Its principal duty seems to be to roll the
food into pellets, in preparation to be' re-
turned into the mouth by the gullet for
remastication ; and having apparently
nothing else but this to do, it is the small-
est of all the stomachs, and is ovoidal in
form. The function of this stomach leads
me to remark, that the oesophagus of the
ruminants does not terminate in the first
stomach it meets, as in the case of animals
having single stomachs, but extends itself
through the series of all the four stomachs,
its internal lining forming portions of
the roofs of all the stomachs which it
passes through. The food, whether solid
or fluid, may thus at the will of the ani-
mal, or under peculiar circumstances of the
constitution, pass into the third or fourth
stomachs without a particle of it entering
into the first or second; and M-e know that
this is the case with the food after it has
• Youatt On the Horse, p. 285-96,— edition of 1843.
t Youatt On the Pig, p. 89-90.
A*
866
PRACTICE— WINTER.
undergone the process of rumination, or a
second mastication. The third stomach,
also ovoidal in form, is called the many-
plies, because it is furnished intenially with
a series of plies orsheets of various breadths,
suspended across it, each covered with
papillie, and margined with a horny sub-
stance, for the purpose of maceratintr the
food still more minutely, in preparation
for the last or true stomach, the abomasum.
This last is of an elongated form, and is
covered with a villous lining, capable of
supplying the gastric juice for the ultimate
digestion of the food, which depends upon
this organ.
1650. The smaller and larger intestines
of the ruminants being divided into the
same vessels, having to perform the same
functions as in those of the horse and pig,
it is unnecessary to recapitulate their indi-
vidual structure and relative functions,
further than to remark, that the larger
intestines are not so cellated as in the
horse, and not so disproportionably large
to the smaller ones ; but, that the food
may not be hurried through them along
their even surface, they are considerably
elongated, being not less than twenty-two
times the length of the body of the ox.
1651. As the internal structure of the
organs of digestion of the sheep are so
very similar to that of cattle, a separate
notice of them seems unnecessary, further
than the remark that the intestinal canal
is still longer in proportion in the sheep
than in the ox, being twenty-seven times
the length of the body.*
1652. The process of rumination be-
ing an important one, and curious in
its action, the manner in which it is
performed is worth being described. " The
cow is generally found couching on her
right side, in order that the intestines,
which are principally lodged on that side,
may not press upon and interfere with the
action of the rumen. After a pellet that
has undergone the process of rumination
is swallowed, there is a pause of two or
three seconds, during which the cow is
making a slow and deep inspiration. By
means of this tlie lungs are inflated and
press on the diaphragm ; and the dia-
phragm, in its turn, presses on both the ru-
men and the reticulum, and assists their
action. Suddenly the inspiration is cut
short by an evident spasm ; it is the for-
cible ejection of the pellet from the reti-
culum, and of a fresh quantity of food
from the rumen over the valvular fold, to
enter the reticulum as soon as it expands
again. This spasmodic action is imme-
diately followed by the evident passage of
the ball up the oesophagus to the mouth.
This prolouired inspiration is precisely the
same as that to which the human being
has recourse when he would expel a por-
tion of the gas that distends the stomach."t
No portion of the food is returned for ru-
mination in less than 14 hours; the average
period is 16 or 18 hours, and hard fibrous
substances are detained 30 hours. In the
ox, each pellet receives from 30 to 40 mo-
tions of the mouth : in the sheep it must
receive a great many more. The stomach
of the sheep is never less than half filled.
1653. The fact of the intimate connec-
tion of the CBSophagus with all the stomachs
of the ox or sheep, serves to explain the
reason why, in administering medicine to
these animals, it at times takes no etfect,
having dropped into the paunch instead
of being carried along tlie oesophagian
canal to the abomasum, or last stomach.
This shows that a medicine, administered
in the shape of a ball, would be very apt to
enter into the paunch, and that medicine in
a liijuid state is best adapted to ruminants.
Every such drink should be administered
slowly to give it time to proceed to the
farthest stomach.
1654. In giving drink to sheep, Youatt
says, " If the assistant stands astride over
the sheep, and holds the head firmly be-
tween his knees, the medicine may, in the
majority of cases, be administered slowly
and gently, and with the certainty of
reaching its intended destination, instead
of entering into and remaining useless, or
worse than useless, in the paunch. There
are very few things in the treatment of
our ruminating patients that deserve more
attention than the method of adminis-
tering the required medicines. The opi-
nions of practitioners would undergo ma-
terial change with regard to the efficacy
• Youatt On Sheep, ^. 410-65.
t Youatt On CatUe, p. 414-31.
RATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF ANBIALS.
367
of many drugs, and the doses in wliich
they should be employed, were sufficient
care bestowed on the mode in which they
are given."
1655. The loss of cud in either ox or
sheep is rather a symptom of approaching
disease than a disease itself, and should
not be overlooked, but recovered, by the
administration of a little laxative medi-
cine, accompanied with aromatic ingre-
dients, as carraway seed and ginger.
A slight circumstance will interfere with
the process of rumination, such as raising
an animal while in the act of ruminatipn,
or a sudden fright, or any thing that incites
fear. Such interruptions, therefore, should
be carefully avoided when animals are
observed to be engaged in rumination.
1656. The paunch is of little use to the
calf and lamb as long as they are supported
wholly on milk, as that liquid, being in the
prepared state, finds its way at once to
the last stomach, and is easily digested.
Hence it is that calves and lambs, when
left at liberty, suck the teat frequently
during the day.
1657. In order, therefore, to give ex-
ercise to the rumen, it is necessary, in feed-
ing both cattle and sheep, to give at least
a portion of their food in such an unpre-
pared state as that it shall enter the rumen,
and undergo rumination, before it is carried
into the last stomach ; and, on tliis account,
dry fodder or cut chaff is a wholesome in-
gredient for cattle and sheep to partake
of, along with the more nutritious and com-
minuted food which they receive.
1658. The digestive organs of birds con-
sist of the several parts which have been
enumerated as existing in quadrupeds,
namely,theoesophagus,thestomach,theduo-
deum,jejunum, colon, andrectuni; and these
organs respectively perform nearly the same
functions in birds as those in quadrupeds.
Birds, however, are furnished with some
additional organs of digestion, which per-
form peculiar functions — such as the crop,
which is an enlargement of the esophagus,
situate between the mouth and the stomach,
and seems to serve as a store for the
newly acquired food which is swallowed
at one time in greater bulk than could be
contained by the stomach. This con-
trivance forms a connecting link betwixt
birds and ruminating animals. Another
peculiarity of structure is the preventri-
culus, which is also an enlargement of tb«
oesophagus immediately above the stomach;
and, being furnished with glands, its use
is to furnish the stomach with a fluid
which acts on the food in a similar manner
to the gastric juice. The mechanical tri-
turation of the food in the stomach is
much assisted by the presence of small
pieces of quartz. A thii-d peculiarity is
the insertion of the ureters into the en-
larged portion of the rectum, named the
cloaca. It is very generally imagined
tliat birds pass no urine; but this is a mis-
take ; and it is not observed to pass, be-
cause it is voided at the same time, and by
the same organ as the dung, which it serves
to liquify. Another gland, the bursa fa-
bricii, is also found in the cloaca, which dis-
charges a mucous fluid among the dung.
1659. The most important animals bred
on the farm are to be found amongst the
mammalia in the groups Butninantia, or
those which chew the cud, and Pachyder-
mata, or those which have thick skins ;
and amongst birds in the groups Rasores
or scrajiers, Ge?mtores, or cooers, and N^a-
tator\'s, or swimmers. The characters of
the quadrupeds of the farm are generally
well understood, and require no particular
description ; but as those of the birds are
less understood, it may be instructive to
give here a characteristic sketch of each
group from a very competent authority.
16G0. Rasores, scrapers or gallinaceous
birds. " Tlie extensive order of the raso-
res or gallinaceous birds," says Professor
Macgillivray, " is composed of species
whose direct utility to man is more obvi-
ous than of any other group, the flesh of
all of them affording a much esteemed and
wholesome food, for which reason several
of the larger kinds have been reduced to
a state of domesticity, in which they are
found to be highly profitable. In this
respect, as well as in the nature of their
food, and therefore also in the structure of
their digestive organs, they bear an obvious
analogy to the ruminating quadrupeds.
To this important series belong the turkey,
the peacock, the connnon fowl, the phea-
sant, and the numerous species of grouse
and partridge, which, although not cap-
368
PRACTICE— WINTER.
able of being collectively defined by clia-
racters deriveil from the exterior, are yet
clearly separated from all other birds by
the peculiar form of their intestinal canal.
. . . Re|)resentatives of this order
are found in all parts of tlie world, from
the forests and jungles of the Indian isles,
wiiere the peacock unfolds his gorgeous
train, to the frozen shores of Labrador
and Greenland, where the ptarmigan bur-
rows among the snow, in search of the
scanty herbage. Certain genera are pe-
culiar to particular regions, as the turkeys
to America, the argus to India and China,
the pheasants to the warm and temperate
parts of Asia, the guinea-fowls to Africa;
while others, as the grouse and partridges,
are generally distributed. The affinities
of the rasores are various ; on the one
hand to the jtigeons, through crax and
penefope ; on the other with the bustards,
which lead to the plovers ; and with the
gallinules and rails. Tliey feed on seeds,
berries, fruits of various kinds, and on buds,
twigs, and herbaceous })lants, as vfeW as
occasionally on insects and w^orms. Their
digestive organs are peculiar, in possessing
the large globular crop or recipient of their
food, and the extremely large caeca, in
which it undergoes a second elaboration
after passing through the small intes-
tines. The bill is, of course, admirably
adapted for cutting, breaking oS", or
wrenching the vegetable substances on
which they feed ; and which are ground
to a coarse pulp in the stomach, the action
of which is aided by the numerous par-
ticles or fragments of quartz swallowed
for that purpose. The food being compa-
ratively nutritious, besides undergoing
the usual elaboration in the intestines, re-
quii'es for its coujplete assimilation a very
great length of tube, which is sujjplied by
the coeca. They seek their food in the
ground, on which very many reside; but
some are of arborial habit. They rise
with great celerity, and many bear a
strong, rapid, and continue<l flight, al-
though for the most part they fly heavily,
by continued quick flaj)s of their short
curved wings. Their nests arc placed on
the ground, and very artlessly constructed,
being usually a slight hollow, with some
blades of green twigs or leaves. The eggs
are numerous, and the young, which are
born with their eyes open, and their bodies
covered with short thickish down, are
able to run about in a few minutes, or
imniediatoly after exclnsion from the e^^g.
From the nature of llieir food, they do not
always require the care of their male ])a-
rent, but are led by their motiier, who
manifests the greatest anxiety for their
welfare — protects thenj from cold and wet
under her wings, feigns lameness to draw
intruders after her, wliile they remain
squatted, and eagerly points out to them
the substances on which they may feed.
Many of the gallinaceous birds habitually
scrape up the earth and dry leaves with
their feet, for the j)urpose of exposing the
seeds and insects; and it is for this reason
that they have obtained the name of
rasores or scrapers. They have also a
habit, like the pigeons, buskers, and
some other birds, of lying in the sand or
dry earth, and scattering it over them
with their feet and wings ; or, rather, they
are fond of basking in the sun, and of ly-
ing in warm sheltered places. The British
species are too few, and too little diversi-
tied, to render it useful to s])eak generally
of them here, farther than that, being all
of moderate or large size, excei)ting one,
they are exposed to numerous enemies,
of whom, however, man, while he fosters
them, commits greater havoc among them
than all the rest. They belong to the
genera phdsianus, t.trao, Inyopas, pcrd'ix^
coturnix^ and ortyx. The first of these
belongs to the family gallinte, of which it is
not necessary to give thcgeneral characters,
as our only species are the domestic fowl,
with which every ])erson is familiar — a re-
presentative sufficiently characteristic to
afford a good general idea of those beau-
tiful bir<ls, whose natural residence is in
the warmer and temperate parts of Asia,
especially India and China."
IGGl. Geinitores^ cooers, or pigeons. —
"The beautiful, very extensive, and gene-
rally distributed family of birds known by
the names of pigeons, doves, and turtle-
doves, appears to form an order of itself,
separated by well-defined limits, but
yet, as in other cases, presenting modifi-
cations of form indicative of its affinity
to conterminous groups. Tiie peculiar
shape of the head and bill, more than
any other external feature, serves t(j ren-
der the difi'orent species readily recognis-
able as belonging to a single tribe ; for
whatever may be the size, colour, or even
RATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF ANIMALS.
369
shape of a pigeon, it cannot be mistaken.
. . . The colurabinse feed on vege-
table substances, some chiefly on soft fruits,
others on nuts, seeds of grasses and other
plants, some on the herbaceous parts of
plants. The process of assimilation seems
to take place in a somewhat different
manner to that of gallinaceous birds. The
intestine is much longer ; but in the latter
the difference is made up by the great
development of the ca^ca, which in the
pigeons are merely rudimentary, that is,
extremely small, and secreting a mucous
fluid only. The oesophagus, crop, and
gizzard are smaller in the two orders, as
well as to a certain extent in the thick-
billed gramineous birds. Although their
legs are short, pigeons walk with great ease,
and even celerity. Their flight is very
unlike that of the gallinaceous birds, being
strong, rapid, and protracted. Their nests
are generally placed on the branches of
trees or bushes, sometimes in holes, and even
on the ground. They are formed of a broad
basis of twigs, often without any lining,
but also often lined with various soft sub-
stances, and for the most part flat. The
eggs are generally two, elliptical and pure
white. The young are at first scantily
covered with soft down, and are fed with
farinaceous or pulpy substances, which
have undergone some degree of macera-
tion in the crop of the parent bird, from
the mouth of which they receive it by in-
troducing their bill sideways. In this
respect, also, pigeons differ greatly from
the gallinaceous birds. In their mode of
drinking, also, a remarkable difference is
observed ; for while they immerse their
bill to the base in the water, and drink
continuously, the gallinaceous birds take
a mouthful, elevate their heads to enable
them to swallow it with ease, and repeat
the action until satisfied. The young re-
main in the nest until able to fly, soon
after which they are left to shift for them-
selves; whereas the young rasores follow
their mother abroad immediately after
birth, and are never far from her mouth,
but pick up the substance she points out
to them. The pigeons, like many other
birds, are fond of basking in the sun, and
of rubbing themselves in the dust or sand,
and scattering it over them. These birds
are found in all the warm and temperate
parts of the globe, but are much more
abundant, and exhibit the most beautiful
tints, in the former often rivalling the
parrots in the splendour of their plumage.
Only four species occur in Britain, three
of which are resident ; the fourth, the
ringed turtle-dove, migratory, remaining
in the south of England during the sum-
mer months." *
1662. Natatores^ swimmers, anserian
birds. In consequence of the valuable
work on the British birds by Professor
Macgillivray being in an unfinished state,
I am unable to give any description of
the digestive organs of the class of birds
which embraces the goose and duck, the
only aquatic birds bred on the farm. I
must therefore confine myself to a few
general remarks on the Anatidce, or duck
tribe, from the most recent publication I <
can find. " A family of web-footed birds ;
order Natatores. They are distinguished
by a broad depressed bill, which is covered
with a soft skin, and by the hind toe not
being included in the web. The bill is
furnished with a set of horny laniinje at
the edge of each mandible, which serve to
filter the fluid taken up by the bill, and
retain the solid substances taken up with
it ; the tongue is large and fleshy, the
gizzard strong and muscular, and lined
with a tough coat, so as to be capable of
grinding down the shells of the mollusca
on which they feed. Many are migratory,
and fly with great strength at a consider-
able elevation."+
1663. Having thus seen what the con-
struction is of the peculiar apparatus which
elaborates the food sent into it, and that
the structure of the digestive organs of all
classes of the domesticated animals, bred,
on the farm, bear so much similarity, —
that the same sort of food may support
them all alike, — we should now consider
what are the constituent parts of the food
which are required to support and in-
crease the particular parts of the body..
* Macgillivray's History of British Birds, vol. i. p. 103 and 249. Those who desire to acquire a,
knowledge of the comparative anatomy of birds, cannot do better than peruse the introductory part;
of the first volume of this valuable work, from page 20 to page 92; and here they will also find an
interesting account of a beautiful subject — the structure and classification of the feathers of birds.
+ Maunder's Treasury of Natural History, art. Anatidae.
VOL. I. 2 A
870
PRACTICE— 'WTNTER.
The animal body, we all know, is made up,
in a general sense, of a hard bony skeleton,
wbicb forms tlie frame-work that acts as
a support to the rest of the body. Bone
is found, by chemical analysis, to consist of
6.5 per cent of mineral matter, chiefly
phosphate of lime. Upon and attached
to this bone are large masses of fibrous
flesh, which constitute the muscles of
the body. About 77 per cent of this
muscle consists only of water, and the
remaining 2-3 per cent is chiefly com-
posed of fibrin, tlie characteristic proper-
ties of which are supposed to be derived
from the large proportion of nitrogen
which it contains — about 16 per cent.
Large quantities of fat are found dispersed
over all parts of the animal body. It is
found to be composed chiefly of carbon.
The intestines, veins, nerves, are com-
posed chiefly of fibrous matter. Of the
juices of the body, the largest proportion
consists of water ; and of the fluids, the
blood composes the largest proportion,
and the dry part of the blood has much the
same composition as fibrin.
1664. Xow, you have seen from the
composition already given of the several
vegetables and grains raised on farms, for
the support of the domesticated animals, tliat
they contain principally starch and sugar,
which consist of carbon, hydrogen, and oxy-
gen, and the protein compounds, which last
comprehend all the substances that contain
nitrogen, such as albumen, fibrin, casein,
gluten. And the composition of the ash
of such of the vegetable substances as has
been given, indicates that it is composed
principally of lime, phosphoric acid, and
the alkalies pota.sh and soda. So that the
vegetables and grains rai.sed on the farm
contain, in their composition, all the ma-
terials necessary to form all the water,
bone, fibrin, fat, and fluids, which com-
pose the animal body.
1665. In the application of these sub-
stances to the particular state of the ani-
mal economy, it should conform with
reason to give such of them as contain
phosphoric acid and lime most abundantly
to young animals, because these are still
forming their bones, and will until the
skeleton is fully developed. The sub-
stances which supply fibrin freely should be
given to animals at all ages, as the enlarge-
ment of muscle is one of the principal
objects of the breeder of live-stock. And
those substances which sujiply fat should
chiefly be given when it is desired to fatten
the animals for the butcher or domestic
use. This seems a very sim])h' view of the
rearing and fattening of animals ; but in
practice it is not so easy as it is simple
in theory, for the vital principle often
interferes very influentially with the
desired results, by creating diflerences in
the constitution of animals reared under
exactly similar circumstances, as to give so
complete a bias to the results as evidently
to place the forming of the condition of
any particular animal almost beyond our
control. Still, as much of the result accords
with expectation as to encourage ns to
persevere in the improvement of the rear-
ing and fattening of our live-stock.
1666. As no one has done so much of
late years to explain the process of diges-
tion, and, in consequence, to establish the
practice of feeding animals upon rational
and truly scientific principles — a rough
sketch of which I have attempted to give
in a preceding paragraph, — as the now
famed Liebig of Giessen in Germany, it is
but fair to give his views on the subject,
and which I find ably done to my hand
by Dr Gregory of Edinburgh, in his
edition of a recent work of great merit.
"The life of animals," he says, "is dis-
tinguished chemically from that of vege-
tables by the circumstance, that by ani-
mals oxygen is constantly absorbed and
rejdaced by carbonic acid, while, by vege-
tables, carbonic acid is absorbed, its carbon
retained, and its oxygen given out. C-on-
sciousness, and the power of htcomotion,
are peculiar to animals. In animals, two
processes are constantly carried on — that
of respiration, by which the animal heat is
kept up ; and that of nutrition, by which
the matter consumed in the vital functions,
and expelled from the body, is restored.
Respiration is essentially a combustion of
carbon and hydrogen, which, in combin-
ing with oxygen, are converted into car-
bonic acid and water, and at the s;ime time
furnish the animal heat. Liebig calculates
that the amount of carbon daily burned in
the body of an adult man is about 14
oimces, and that the heat given out is
fully sufficient to keep up the temperature
of the body, and to account for the evapora-
RATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF ANIMALS.
371
tion of all the gaseous matter and water
expelled from the lungs. This carbon is
derived, iu the first place, from the tissues
of the body, which undergo a constant
waste, but alternately from the food. . .
. . The tissues can only be decomposed
by the exercise of the vital functions,
and the food of the herbivora contains
but little of the albuminous compounds,
only sufficient to restore the waste of the
tissues ; while the carbon required for
respiration is supplied by the starch, gum,
sugar, oil, &c., which form the great
mass of their food, and no such amount of
muscular motion is required in them as in
the carnivora. It is in the form of bile,
chiefly, that the carbon undergoes com-
bustion. Hitherto the true function of
the bile has been disputed
The tissues, which are consumed, are re-
solved first into bile and urate of ammonia.
The former is secreted from the liver, re-
absorbed, and burned. The latter, in
serpents and birds, is expelled unchanged;
but in man and quadrupeds, in whom the
amount of oxygen inspired is much greater,
it also is oxidised, yielding finally carbonic
acid, ammonia, and urea
The urine of the herbivora differs from
that of man, in containing, besides urea,
much hippuric acid when they are at rest
or stall-fed, and beuzoic acid when they
are in full exercise, and when, conse-
quently, more oxygen is supplied. The
bile of the herbivora is much more abun-
dant than that of the carnivora, — an ox
secreting, according to Burdach, 37 lbs.
of bile daily. As the waste of matter in
the herbivora is but limited, it is obvious
that it cannot supply all the bile, and,
consequently, a great part must be derived
from the starch and other non-azotised
constituents of their food, which lose
oxygen, and enter into combination with
some azotised product of the decomposi-
tion of the tissues. . . . Soda is neces-
sary for the formation of bile, and is sup-
plied in the form of common salt: when
the supply of soda is defective, the meta-
morphosis of albuminous compounds can
yield only fat and urea. Now, it is
worthy of observation tiiat, if we wish to
fatten an animal, we must carefully avoid
giving it much salt in its food
In the urine of the herbivora, soda is pre-
sent in far larger quantity than that of
the carnivora, and combined with carbonic,
hippuric, or beuzoic acid. This shows that
the herbivora require a far greater amount
of soda than is contained in the amount of
blood — constituents daily consumed, which
in them is small ; and this soda is obtained
from their food, and employed in produ-
cing their abundant bile. The plants in
which the herbivora feed cannot grow in
a soil destitute of alkalies ; but these alka-
lies are not less necessary for the support
of the animals than of the plants. The
soda is found in the blood and bile ; and
the potash is now known to exist in large
quantity in the juice of flesh, and to be
absolutely essential to the production of
casein, that is, the secretion of milk. In
like manner the phosphate of lime, which
is essential to the growth of grasses, is
equally essential to the production of bone
in the animals whicli feed on these plants.
It is impossible not to be penetrated with
admiration of the wisdom which is shown
in these beautiful arrangements.
1667. " Let us now consider the changes
which the food undergoes in the process of
digestion. When the food has entered the
stomach, the gastric juice is poured out,
and after a short time the whole is con-
verted into a semi-fluid homogeneous
mass, the chyme. Many, researches have
been made to discover the solvent con-
tained in the gastric juice, but iu vain. It
contains no substance which has the pro-
perty of dissolving fibrin, albumen, &c. ;
and we are compelled to adopt the opinion
of Liebig, accoi'ding to which the food ia
dissolved in consequence of a metamor-
phosis analogous to fermentation, by
which a new arrangement of the particles
is efi'ected. As iu fermentation, the
change is owing to the presence of a body
in a state of decomposition or motion,
which is propagated from the ferment to
the sugar in contact ; so, in digestion, the
gastric juice contains a small quantity of
a matter derived from the living membrane
of the stomach, (1810,) which is in a state
of progressive change ; and the change or
motion is propagated from this to the par-
ticles of the food, under certain conditions,
such as a certain temperature, and, as it
now appears, the presence of a free acid,
which is phosphoric or lactic, or botii. . .
Besides the gastric juice, the only other
substance eni[)loyed in digestion is the
oxygen which is introduced into the sto-
872
PRACTICE— WINTER.
mach with the saliva, which, from its vis-
cidity, encloses a large quantity of air.
The chvme then leaves the stomach, an<J
gradually parses into the state of chyle,
which resembles blood, except in colour,
being already alkaline, not acid like the
chyme. By means of the circulation, oxy-
gen is conveyed in the arterial blood to
every part of the body. This oxygen, acting
on the tissues destined to undergo change,
produces a metamorphosis by which new
soluble compounds are formed. The
tissues thus destroyed are replaced by the
new matter derived from the food. Mean
time, those of the products of metamor-
phosis which contain tlie principal part
of the carbon are separated from the
venous blood in the liver, and yield the
bile ; while the nitrogen accumulates,
and is separated from the arterial blood
in the kidneys, in the form of urea or
uric acid.
1668. "The blood has another important
function to perform, namely, to convey for
excretion to the lungs the carbonic acid
formed in the extreme vessels or cells in
all parts of the body. There is reason to
believe that the globules of blood possess
the property of absorbing oxygen in the
lungs, when they become arterial, and thus
convey this oxygen to all parts. The glo-
bules then give up the oxygen to the par-
ticles of the tissues undergoing change,
and in its stead carbonic acid is taken up,
and the blood becomes venous. It is not
known what chemical compound in blood
absorbs and carries the oxygen, but it is
by some conjectured to be a compound of
iron analogous to the protoxide. It is
certain that air is indispensable to the
blood, and it is remarkable that sulphu-
retted hydrogen and hydrocyanic acid both
in-tantly destroy the power of the blood to
perform its functions — hence their horrible
energy as poisons, when inhaled. Now,
these compounds both act on protoxide,
protochloride, and other analogous com-
pounds of iron, immediately depriving
them of their characteristic power of act-
ing on oxygen.
1669. " With regard to the carbonic acid
which is produced in all parts of the body in
the continual metamorphosis of the tissues,
Enderlin has proved that blood contains
no carbonates whatever ; and Liebig has
since recently pointed out that the required
proj)erlie3 exist in a still higher degree in
the phosphate of sodii, which does exist in
the blood, and ap|)ears to be altogether
indispensable to its existence. No salt
known is so well adapted for this function.
It is truly remarkable that, while both
phosphate of soda and phosphate of potash
exist in the food, the former alone should
occur in the blood ; and this is especially
wonderful when we consider that the juice
of the flesh, which is only separated from
the blood by various thin membranes, per-
meable to liquids by endosmose and exos-
mose, contain much phosphate of potash,
and little or no phosi)hate of soda. It is
evident that the vessels or cells must pos-
sess in their peculiar membranes a power
of selection, or of allowing some salts to
pass in one direction only, and others in
the opposite There can be no
doubt that the function of the acid salt,
the phosphate of potash, in the juice of the
flesh, and apparently also in the gastric
juice, is as important as that of phosphate
of soda in the blood. Probably a part of
that function is to insure the constant
acidity of these fluids, as phosphate of soda
does tJie constant and essential alkalinity
of the blood, in which the power of ab-
sorbing and giving out carbcmic acid — in
other words, respiration — de})ends. And
we see. too, that if this be so, the phosphate
of potash, of the juice of flesh, and of the
gastric juice, cannot be replaced, as far as
its functions are concerned, by phosphate
of soda.
1670. "Another jirobable function of the
substances whicli give acidity to the juice
of the flesh, and alkalinity to the blood, is
the production of electric currents. Ii has
been shown by Matteucci that such cur-
rents exist in the body ; and we can easily
see how they may arise, when we observe
two fluids, (me acid, the other alkaline,
separated by a niemhrane peinicable to
one or both, and tiie fluids in contact with
muscle and with norvous mattor. At the
request of Liebig, Bufl'constnicteil piles of
discs of ])asteb<iard steejied in blood, with
slices of muscle and brain, which showed
a powerful current from the blood to the
muscle.
1671. "Since no blood can be formed
without soda, no animal could live if con-
EATIONALE OF THE FEEDING OF ANIMALS.
378
fined to sucli inland plants as contain only
potash. It is well known, indeed, that
animals in countries far inland, as Bavaria,
are habitually supplied with common salt,
either in substance or in the form of salt-
springs. Of both they are instinctively
fond. But fortunately salt is found, in
even inland countries, in all soils and in all
waters, and consequently in most plants.
Were it altogether absent no blood could
be formed, unless salt or soda were artifi-
cially supplied to every animal. All in-
land plants contain earthy phosphates, and
phosphate of potash, in variable propor-
tion, often with mere traces of the com-
pounds of sodium. When these phosphates
act as common salt, (chloride of sodium,)
there are formed chloride of potassium and
the common alkaline phosphate of soda,
which latter salt is absolutely indispen-
sable to the formation of blood. The
chloride of potassium is found in the juice
of flesh.
1672. " It is truly a spectacle worthy of
admiration, to see the essential properties
of two of the most important animal fluids
— the blood and the juice of flesh — thus
secured by the existence of a difference,
at first sight altogether insignificant,
between the relation of phosphoric acid
to two alkalies, which so much resemble
one another that they may be mutually re-
placed, each by the other, in a multitude
of cases — nay, do actually replace each
other in many plants. The reader will
not fail to remark, how emphatically these
facts impress on us the necessity of attend-
ing carefully to the most minute charac-
ters of all the compounds which can be
formed among the elements composing the
organic kingdom, even when these cha-
racters appear, at the time, to have no
considerable relation to the vital pro-
cesses.
1673. " The researches of Dr R. D.
Thomson have demonstrated, that the
most favourable proportion between the
albuminous or azotised, and the saccharine
or non-azotised constituents in the food of
animals, is that of 1 part by weight of the
azotised to 7 or 8 of the saccharine. This
proportion exists naturally in the most
nutritious food, such as grain ; while in
such food as potatoes, the amount of albu-
minous matter is much too small. Hence
potatQCS alone must be regarded as very
inferior in nutritive power to wheat, oats,
rye, or maize, equal weights being com-
pared.
1674. "There is another constituent of
the animal body, namely, fat, the produc-
tion of which deserves notice. It is not
an organised tissue, but is formed and col-
lected in the cellular tissue under certain
circumstances. These are, rest and con-
finement,— that is, a deficiency of oxygen,
and an abundance of food containing a
considerable proportion of non-azotised
matter, such as starch, sugar, &c. . .
. . . Now the chief source of fat is
sugar, the composition of which is such,
that when deprived of oxygen fat remains.
... It is obvious, therefore, that fat
can only be formed by a process of de-
oxidation. But it is produced when
oxygen is deficient ; and it appears, as
Liebig has pointed out, that, when there
is a deficient supply of oxygen, the pro-
duction of fat, which is the consequence
of the deficiency, yields a supply of that
element, and thus serves to keep up tlie
animal heat and the vital functions, which
would otherwise be arrested. This is
another beautiful instance of contrivance
equally simple and wonderful. That fat
must be formed by the deoxidising pro-
cess is proved by the phenomena of the
fattening of animals. A goose tied up,
and fed with farinaceous food, altogether
destitute of fat, acquires in a short time
an increase of weight of several pounds,
the whole of which is fat. Again, the
bee produces wax, a species of fat, from
pure sugar.
1675. "With regard to the production
of nervous matter, which animals alone
can form, we see, from its ccmiposition,
intermediate between that of albumen and
fat, that it may be formed, either by de-
priving albuminous matter of some azotised
product, or by adding to fat an azotised
compound. Where it is formed we do
not know, but it must be formed in the
animal body ; and Liebig has suggested,
that the power of the vegetable alkalies
to affect the nervous system may be
owing to their composition, which ap-
proaches nearer to that of nervous matter
than any other compounds. These alka-
lies may promote or check the formation
874
PRACTICE WINTER.
of nervous matter, and thus produce their
peculiar effects."*
1676. These observations tend to show,
that we may expect in progress of time
to explain a large class of phenomena
connected with animal life on chemical
principles We cannot do so yet, not-
withstanding the plainness of the views
propounded l)y Liebig. He may have
opened up the true path, but it is for
experimenters to pursue it with research
and perseverance, in order to confirm or
refute his views. As yet, philosophers
are by no means agreetl as to the cir-
cumstances which regulate the process of
digestion : some would ascribe our igno-
rance of it on account of the intricacy of
the subject, the obscurity which attends it,
and the deficiency of observation as to the
true nature of the process ; whilst others
regard the process as simple, referring the
preparation of the food in the stomach to the
presence of an acid in that organ, which
dissolves the food, and enables it to enter
as a constituent of the circulating fluids of
the animal system. The acid whith eti'ects
this important object is the hy<lrocliloric
acid, which they consider to have been
satisfactorily pro veil to be present during
the period when food exists in the stomach ;
and they conceive they can imitate the
process of animal digestion in glass, or
other vessels out of the body, .-simply by
exposing animal and vegetable fo(»d to
the influence of dilute acids. The subject
is not so very simple in nature as it would
seem to be when conducted in a glass
vessel. There are indications, no doubt, of
the direction in which we are to search
for a solution of the ditticulties of the sub-
ject, but we are still at a great distance
from the elucidation of the precise manner
in which animals digest their food.
1677. "There cannot be a doubt," as
Dr R. D. Thomson observes, " that if we
understood the nature of the process by
which the food which we swallow is
converted into living flesh, important
results would follow in reference to
the preservation of the health of ani-
mals, and the treatment of diseases. If
we were properly acquainted with every
transformaticm througli which the consti-
tueuts of the food pass, after it has been
masticated, until it is finally removed from
the system, it is clear that, in cases where
the stomach is unable to perform ita ac-
customed functions, the assistance of art
might be called in to minister to digestion."
If Dr Thomson, who has experimented
so largely on the subject, feels any diffi-
culty in it, it must indee<i be dithcult.
His own researches were conducted with
a view to arriving at a practical result —
namely, the comparative effects of certain
given articles of food on the fattening or
secreting j)owers of animals; and these
"seem to demonstrate, that the fat of ani-
mals cannot be produced from the oil of the
food, but must be evcdved from the calori-
fiant or heat-forming portion of the ani-
mal, essentially assisted by its nitrogenous
materials. By following out this princi-
ple, he li;is been enabled to detect an im-
portant relation existing between the
nutritive ami calorifiant portion of tlie
food, uj)on the determination of which, for
the various conditiims of animals, he con-
siders the laws of animal dieting depend.
He endeavoured to apply the law to
various articles of human food ; ami he
trusts that the basis has been laid for
future researches, which may be directed
to ailminister to the health and comfort of
mankiml, and of the domesticated animals.
In conducting the experiments upon cattle,
he found not only his habitual acquaintance
with animals, but also his medical know-
ledge, in continual requisition, in conse-
quence of the tendency of the varied
condition of the animal system, from the
sudden and frequent changes of diet, to
induce symptoms of disease. These were
carefully watched and overcome, by such
precautions as clearly follow from a close
consideration of the principles announced
in his work." t This work I would re-
commend for perusal by every student of
agriculture.
ON THE ACCOMMOnATION OP THE GRAIN
CROPS IN THE STEADING.
1678. On looking at the plan of the stead-
* Turner's Elements of CItemigtry, p. 1314-25, 8ih edition, 1847. In Grisenthwaite's E»$ay on
Food, the source of animal heat being the combustion of carbon, derived from the food, in the lungs,
was demonstrated in 1838, much in the same way as it is by Liebig at the present time.
+ Thomson's Rctearchet on the Food of Animals, p. vi. Preface.
ACCOMMODATION FOR GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
375
ing in Plate II, it will be observed that
tlie thrashing-machine, placed in the
upper barn above the corn-barn C, the
machine for separating the corn from the
straw, is in the middle of the great range
of the steading, ready to receive the un-
thrashed crop from the stack-yard beiiind
it, S, and as ready to deliver the straw
thrashed into the straw-barn L, and the
grain into the corn-barn C below. The
straw-barn L, is purposely made of the
height of the upper barn, to contain a
large quantity of straw, as it is often
convenient in bad weather to thrash out a
considerable quantity of corn, when no
other work can be proceeded with, or
when high market-prices induce farmers
to take advantage of them. There is
another good reason for giving ample
room to the straw-barn. Every sort of
straw is not suited to every purpose, one
sort being best suited for litter, and
another for fodder. This being the case,
it is desirable to have always both kinds
in the barn, that the fodder-straw may
not be wasted in litter, and the litter-
straw given as fodder to the injury of the
animals. Besides, the same sort of straw
is not alike acceptable as fodder to every
class of animals. Thus wheat-straw is a
favourite fodder with horses, as well as
oat-straw, whilst the latter only is accep-
table to cattle. Barley-straw is only fit
for litter. To give access to litter and
fodder straw at the same time, it is neces-
sary to have a door from each kind into
each court. Thus four doors, two at each
side near the ends, are required in a large
straw-barn. Slit-like openings should be
made in its side-walls, to admit air and
promote ventilation through the straw.
A skylight in the roof, at the end nearest
the thrashing-machine, is useful in giving
light to those who take away and store
up the straw from the thrashing-machine
when the doorsareshut, which they should
be whenever the wind happens to blow
too strongly through them into the ma-
chine against the straw. Instead of
dividing straw-barn doors into two verti-
cal leaves, as is usually done, they should
be divided horizontally into an upper and
lower leaf, so that the lower may always
be kept shut against intruders, such as
pigs, whilst the upper admits both light
and air into the barn. One of the doors
at each end should be furnished with a
good stock-lock and key, and thumb latcb,
and the other two fastened with a wooden
han<r-bar from the inside. The floor of
the straw-barn is seldom or never flagged
or causewayed, though it is desirable it
should be. If it were not so expensive,
the asphaltum pavement would make an
excellent floor for a straw-barn. What-
ever substance is employed for the purpose,
the floor should be made so firm and dry
as to prevent the earth rising and the
straw moulding. Mouldy straw at the
bottom of a heap superinduces through-
out the upper mass a disagreeable odour,
and imparts a taste repugnant to every
animal. That portion of the floor upon
which the straw first alights on sliding
down the straw-screen of the thrashing-
machine, should be strongly boarded, to
resist the action of the forks when re-
moving the straw. Blocks of hard wood,
such as the stools of hard-wood trees, set
on end causewaywise, and sunk into the
earth, form a very durable flooring for
this purpose. Stone flagging in this place
destroys the prongs of the pitchforks.
The straw-barn should communicate with
the chafi"-house by a shutting door, to
enable those who take away the straw to
see whether the chafl" accumulates too
high against the end of the winnowing-
machine. The communication to the
wool-room in this plan is by the straw-
barn, by means of a stair made of wood
or stone. The straw-barn is 72 feet in
length, 18 feet in breadth, and 15 feet in
height to the top of the side walls.
1679. C is the corn-barn. Its roof is
formed of the floor of the upper barn,
and its height is generally made too low.
Tiie higher the roof is, the more easily
will the corn descend to be cleaned from
the thrashing-machine down the hopper
to the winnowing-macliine. Nine feet is
the least height it sliould be in any in-
stance. The plan gives the size of the
corn-barn at 31 feet by 18 feet ; by tak-
ing 5 feet for partitioning off the ma-
"tehinery of the thrashing-mill, the extent
of the workable part of the barn floor
will be 26 feet by J 8 feet. In that space
I have seen much barn-work done. The
corn-barn should have in it at least two
glazed windows, to admit plenty of light
in the short days of winter, and they
should be guarded outside with iron
876
PRACTICE— WINTER.
stanchions. If one window cannot be
got to the south, the door when open will
answer for the admission of sunshine to
keep tlie ap.irtnient comfortably dry for
the work-people and the grain. The door
is generally divided into upper and lower
halves, which, as usually placed, are
always in the way when the winnowing-
niachine is used at the door. A more
convenient method is to have the door in
a whole piece, and when opened, to fold
back into a recess in the outer wall, over
the top of which a plinth might project to
throw off the rain. In this case theribats
and lintel must be giblet-checked as deep
as the thickness of the door, into which it
should close flush, and be fastene<l with a
good lock and key, and provided with a
thumb-latch. The object of making the
corn-bam door of this form is to avoid the
inconvenience of its opening into the barn,
where, unless it folds wholly back on a
wall, is frequently in the way of work,
particularly when winnowing roughs, and
taking out sacks of corn on men's backs.
As to size, it should not be less in the
opening than 7^ feet in height and 3i feet
in width. A light half-door can be hooked
on, when work is going on, to prevent tbe
intrusion of animals, and the wind sweep-
ing along the floor. The floor of the
corn-barn is frequently made of clay, or
of a composition of ashes and lime ; the
asphaltic composition would be better than
either ; but in every instance it should be
made of wood, — of sound hard red-wood
Drahm battens, ploughed and feathered,
and fastened down to stout joists with
Scotch flooring sprigs driven through the
feather-edge. A wooden floor is the only
one that can be depended on being con-
stantly dry in a com-ham ; and in a bam
for the use of corn, a dry floor is indis-
pensable. It has been suggested to me
that a stone pavement, square-jointed, and
laid on a bed of lime over 9 inches of
broken stones — or an a.'^phaltum pavement,
laid on a body of 6 inches of broken
stones, covered with a bed of grout on the
top of the stones, would make as dry and
a more durable barn-floor than wood, and
which will not rot. Xo doubt stone or
asphaltum pavement is durable, and not
liable to rot; but there are objections to
both, in a corn-bara, of a practical na-
ture, and it is certain that the best stone
pavement is not proof against the under-
mining powers of the brown rat : whilst
a wooden floor is durable enough, and
certainly will not rot, if kept dry in the
manner I shall recommend. The objec-
tions to all stone pavements as a barn-
floor are, that the scoops for shovelling
the corn pass very harshly over them, —
the iron nails in the shoes of tlie work-
people wear them down, raise a dust upon
them, and crush the grain, — and they are
hurtful to the bare bands and light im-
plements, when used in taking up the com
from the floor. For true comfort in all
these resrtects in a barn-floor, there is
nothing like wood. The walls of this
barn should be made sm<toth with hair-
plaster, and the joists and flooring form-
ing its roof cleaned with the plane, as dust
adheres much more readily to a rough
than to a smooth surface. The stairs to
the granaries should enter from the com-
barn, and a stout plain-deal door with
lock and key placed at thebotttmi of each.
And at the side of one of the stairs may
be enclosed on the floor of the barn, a
space t, to contain light corn to be given
to the fowls and pigs in summer, when this
sort of food becomes scarce.
1680. As the method of hanging doors
on a giblet-check should be adopted in all
cases in steadings where doors on outside
walls are likely to meet with obstructions
on opening inwards, or themselves be-
coming obstructive to things passing out-
wards, the subject deserves a bcpaiate
notice. In fig. 1 28, a is the inside form
Fig. 128.
THKCORX-B.AHN DOOK.
of a strong door, mounted on crooks and
bands, fully oj)en, and thrown back into
the recess of the wall b, the projecting
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
377
part of. the lintel c protecting it effectually
from the rain ; d is the giblet-check in the
lintel, and <? that in the ribats, into which the
door shuts flush; /is the light movable door
used when work is going on in the corn-barn.
1681. The wooden floor of the corn
barn is liable to decay unless precautions
are used to prevent it ; but a much too
common cause of its destruction is ver-
min— such as rats and mice. I used a
most effectual method of preventing the
destructive ravages of either renuin or
damp, by supporting the floor in the par-
ticular manner represented in fig. 1 29.
Fig. 129.
SECTION OF THE CORN-BARN FLOOR.
The earth, in the first instance, was dug
.out of the barn to the depth of the foun-
dation walls, which should be two feet
below the door soles, and in the case
of the buildiug of a new steading, this
can be done when the foundations of the
walls are taken out. The ground is then
spread over with a layer of sand, suffi-
cient to preserve steadiness in the stout
rough flags b b which are laid upon it and
jointed in strong mortar. Twelve-inch
thick sleeper walls a a, of stone and lime,
are then built on the flags, to support the
ends of the joists of the floor. The ends
of the joists c, formed of 10 by 2^ inch
plank, are then laid on edge upon the
walls 16 inches apart, and the spaces be-
tween them filled up to the top of the
joists with stone and lime. The building
between the joists requires to be done in a
peculiar way. It should be done with
stjuared rubble stones, and on no account
should the mortar come in contact with
the joists, as nothing destroys timber, by
superinducing the dry rot, more readily
tlian the action of mortar. For the same
reason care should be observed in build-
ing all the joists into the walls, in
placing the safe - lintels over the doors
and windows dry-bedded ; and in beam-
filling between the couple-legs. The
floor d is then laid on a level with the
door-sole, and finished with a neat skift-
ing board i i round the walls of the barn.
By this contrivance the vermin cannot
possibly reach the floor but from the flags
b, which are nearly 2 feet under it. A
hewn stone pillar <?, or even two, are
placed on the flags under each joist to
support and strengthen the floor. This con-
struction of floor freely admits the air above
and below to preserve it, and affords room
under it for cats and dogs to hunt after the
vermin. The figure also gives a section of
the building above the corn-barn, constitut-
ing the upper barn/, having similar outside
walls, coupling, slating, and ridging of the
roof to the middle range of the building.
1682. The chaff-house stands be-
tween the corn and straw barns. It is
separated from the former by a wooden
partition, and from the latter by a stone
wall. Its height is the same as that of
the corn-barn, the floor of the upper barn
forming a roof common to both. It is 18
feet in length and f4 feet in width. It
contains the winnowing - machine, or
fanners of the thrashing-machine, from
which it receives the cliaft'. It has a thin
door with a thumb-latch into tlie straw-
barn, for a convenient access to adjust the
gearing of the fanners ; as also a boarded
windo w, hung on crooks and bands, fastened
in the inside with a wooden hand-bar, and
looking into the large court K ; but its
principal door, through which the chaff is
emptied, opens outwards into the large
court I. This door should be giblet-
checked, and fastened from the inside with
a wooden hand-bar. The space between
the head of the fanners and the wall should
be boarded up, but not to interfere with
the action of the fanner-belts, and merely
to prevent the chati' being scattered among
378
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the machinery, and persons climbing up 1683. The tipper ham d, fig. 1*80, oo-
by it into the upper barn. cupies the whole space above the corn-bam
Fig. 130.
t * .-^jf*!^ .^ ^
b '
"P'M'W r
J
PLAN OF UPPER BARN, GRANARIES, AND WOOL-ROOM.
and chaff-house. It is 32 feet in length and
30 feet in breadth, and its roof ascends to
the slates. It has a good wooden floor like
the corn-barn, supported on stout joists.
It contains the principal machinery of the
thrashing-machine, and is wholly a])pro-
priatedto the storing of the unthrasliedcorn
previous to its being thrashed by the mill.
For the admission of barrows loaded with
sheaves from the stack-yard, or of sheaves
direct from the cart, this barn should
have a door at ^ towards the stack-yard
of 6 feet in width, in two vertical folds to
open outwards, on a giblct-check, one of
the folds to be fastened in the inside with
an iron cat-band, and the other provided
with a good lock and key. It is in this
barn that the corn is fed into the thrash-
ing-mill ; and to afford light to the man
who feeds in, and ample light to the barn
when the door is tshut, which it should be
when the wind blows strongly into it, a
skylight should be placed above the place
where the man stands. The large door
should not be jilaced immediately behind
the man who feeds in the corn into the
tlirasliing- machine, as is frequently the
case in farmsteads, to his great annoyance
when tlie sheaves are bringing in. There
should be slits in the walls for the circu-
lation of air among the corn-sheaves, which
may not at all times be in good order when
taken into the barn. A hatchway a, 3 feet
square, in the floor, over the com-bam
below, is useful for handing up any corn or
refuse tl)at has to be again put through the
mill. Its hatch should be furnishetl with
strong cross-tailed hinges, and a hasp and
staple, with a padlock and key, by which
to secure it from below in the coru-barn.
An opening 6 of 4 feet in height and 3
feet in width, should be made through the
wall to the straw-barn, to receive any
straw that may require to be put through
the mill again. This opening should be
provided with a door of one leaf, or of
two leaves, to fasten with a bar, from tlie
upper barn. The thrashing- machine is
not built on the floor, but is supported on
two very strong beams extending along tlie
length of the barn: ^is thesite of the thrash-
ing-machine in this figure. The allusion to
the entrance to the wool-room wlien speak-
ingof thestraw-barn(in 1678,)isheresliovvn
by the stair c' into the wool-room ?p, which
is above the bulls' hammels X, Plate 11.,
and on a level with the upper barn d.
1684. Immediately in connexion with
the upper barn is ihe f/nngiraif g^ fig. 130.
It is used as an incline.l plane, upon which
to wheel the corn-barrows, and forms a
road for the carriers of sheaves frnm the
stack-yard. This road should at all times
be kept hard and smooth with small broken
stones, and sutHciently strong to endure
ACCOMMODATION" FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
379
tbe action of barrow-wheels. Either
asphaltum or wood pavement would answer
this purpose well. To prevent the gang-
way affecting the wall of the corn-barn
with dampness, it should be supported on
a semicircular arch of masonry. Some
farmers prefer taking in the corn on carts
instead of by a gangway, and the carts in
that case are placed alongside the large
door, and emptied of their contents by
means of a fork. I prefer a gangway for
this reason, because it enables the farmer
to dispense with horse-labour in bringing in
the stacks if they are near at hand, and
they should always be built near the upper
barn for convenience. Barns, in which flails
alone are used for thrashing the corn, are
made on the ground, and the barn-door is
made as large as to admit a loaded cart to
enter and empty its contents on the floor.
1685. In fig. 130, e « are two granaries
over the cattle sheds, poultry-house, and
hay-house. That on the left is 76 feet in
length and 1 8 feet in width, and the other
65 feet in length and 18 feet in width.
The side walls of both are 5 feet in
height. Their roofs ascend to the slates,
as in the upper barn/ fig. 1 29. Their
wooden floors should be made strong, to
support a considerable weight of grain ;
their walls made smooth with hair plaster ;
and a neat skifting-board should finish the
flooring. Each granary has 6 windows,
three in front and three at the back,
and there is one in the left-hand gable.
These windows should be formed to admit
light and air freely ; and I know of no
form so capable of afl'ording both, as fig.
131. The opening is 4| ifeet in length
and 3 feet in height. In the frame a are
a glazed sash 1 foot in height, composed
of two rows of panes, and b Venetian
shutters, which may be opened more or
less at pleasure: c shows in section the
Fig. 131.
GRANARY WINDOW AND SECTION OF SHUTTERS.
manner in which these shutters operate.
They revolve by their ends, a round pin,
in holes in the side-posts of the frame d,
and are kept in a parallel position to each
other by the bar c, which is attached to
them by an eye of iron, moving stifi" on an
iron pin passing through both the eye and
bar c. The granary on the right hand
being the smallest, and immediately over
the work-horse corn-chest in the hay-
house, should be appropriated to the use
of horse-corn and other small quantities of
grain to be first used. The other granary
may contain seed-corn, or grain that is
intended to be sold when the prices suit.
For repairing or cleaning out the thrashing-
machine, a large opening in the wall of this
granary, exactly opposite the niachinery of
the mill in the upper barn, at t, fig. 130,
will be found convenient. It should be
provided with a movable board, or folding
doors, to close it in, and to be fastened
from the granary. This opening is not
shown in fig. 130.
1686. S is the plan, Plate II., of the
stack-yard. As most of the stacks must
stand on the ground, it should receive that
form which will allow the rain-water to
run off" and not injure their bottoms. This
is done by forming the ground into
ridges. The minimum breadth of these
ridges may be determined in this way :
The usual length of the straw of the grain
crops can be conveniently packed in stacks
of 15 feet diameter; and as 3 feet is little
enough space to be left on the ground be-
tween the stacks, the ridges should not
be of less width than 1 8 feet. The
stack-yard should be enclosed with a
substantial stone and lime wall of 4^ feet
in height. In too many instances the
stack-yard is entirely unenclosed, and left
exposed to the trespass of every animal.
It is desirable to place the outside rows of
the stacks nextthe wall on stools or stathels,
which will not only keep them off the wet
ground, should they remain a long time
in the stack-yard, but in a great measure
prevent vermin getting into the stacks.
These stathels are usually and most econo-
mically made of stone supports and a
wooden frame. The frame is of the form
of an octagon, and under its centre and
each angle is placed a support. The
frame-work consists of a plank a a, fig.
132, 1 5 feet in length, and of others 7^
880
PRACTICE— WINTER.
feet in length, 9 inches in depth, and 2^
inches in thickness, if made of Scots fir,
but less will suffice with larch. The sup-
ports consist of a stone b, sunk to the level
Fig. 132.
A WOODEN STATU KL FOR STACKS.
of the ground, to form a solid foundation
for the upright support c, 18 inches in
height, and 8 inches square, to stand upon,
and on the top of this is placed a flat
rounded stone or bonnet d, of at least 2
inches in thickness. The upright stone is
bedded in lime, both with the found stone
and bonnet. All the tojjs of these stone sup-
ports must be on the same level. Upon
these are placed on edge the scantlings a «,
to the outer end of which are fastened
with strong nails the bearers ee, also 9
inches in depth and 2 inches in thickness.
The spaces between the scantlings a are
filled up with fillets of wood, //, nailed
upon them. If the wood of the frame-
word were previously jireserved by Kyan's
or Burnett's process, it would last perhaps
twenty years, even if made of any kind of
home timber, such as larcii or Scots fir.
There should be a wide gateway into
the stack-yard, and where the corn is
taken on carts to the u})j)er barn to be
thrashed, tlie same gateway may answer
both purposes ; but where there is a gang-
way to the upper barn, the gate may be
placed in the most convenient side of the
stack-yard. Where carts are solely used
for taking in the corn to the upper barn,
the rows of stacks should be built so
widely asunder as to permit a loaded
cart to pass at least between every two
rows of stacks, so that any particular
stack may be accessible at pleasure.
When a gangway is used, this width of
the arrangement of the stacks is not ne-
cessary, the usual breadth of 3 feet be-
tween the stacks permitting the passage
of corn-barrows, or of back-loads of
sheaves. Thus, where a gangway is
used, the stack-yard may have a smaller
area to contain the same bulk of grain.
Stack-stools, or stathels, or staddels, as
tliey are variously called, are sometimes
made of cast-iron ; which, though neat and
eliicient, are expensive and liable to be
broken by accidental concussion from
carts. Malleable iron stathels Avould re-
move the objection of liability to fracture,
but would not remove that of expense.
Stacks on stathels are represented in
Plate I. in tiie stack-yard S. It has been
recommended to divide the frame of the
stathels into two parts, so that they might
be j)ut under cover when not in use in the
stack-yard. Were the stathels made re-
movable, they would be more convenient
in two pieces than in one ; but the proj)riety
of removing them is (picstionable, when it
is accompanied with tlie necessity of remov-
ing the supports also ; for it is clear that
the supports could not be left standing in
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
381
the stack-yard with the slightest chance of
remaining in that position for any length
of time, and the found-stones upon which
they stand would be liable to be broken ;
and obliged to be put up every year,
which would be intolerable trouble.
1687. Rats and mice being very de-
structive and dirty vermin in steadings,
and particularly so to grain in granaries,
means should be used in the construction
of steadings to prevent their lodgment in
any particular part. Many expedients
have been tried to destroy them in gra-
naries, such as putting up a smooth tri-
angular board across each corner, near
the top of the wall. The vermin come
down any part of the walls to the corn at
their leisure, but when disturbed run to
the corners, up which they easily ascend,
but are prevented gaining the top of the
wall by the triangular boards, and on fall-
ing down either on the corn or the
floor, are there easily destroyed. But
preventive means, in this case, are mucli
better than destructive, inasmuch as the
granaries should always be kept free of
them, and the grain will then only be sweet
and clean. Tlie great means of prevention
is, to deprive vermin of convenient places
to breed in above ground, and this may be
accomplished in all farmsteads by building
up the tops of all the walls, and beam-
filling between the legs of the couples
with stone and mortar — taking ^are to keep
the mortar from contact with the timber.
These places form the favourite breeding-
ground of vermin in farmsteads, and should
therefore be occupied with substantial
stone and mortar. The top of every wall,
whether of stables, cow-houses, hammels,
and other houses, should be treated in this
manner; for, if one place be left them to
breed in, the young fry will find access to
the granaries in some way. The tops of
the walls of old as well as of new farmsteads
should be treated in this manner, either
from the inside, or, if necessary, by remov-
ing the slates or tiles until tlie alteration
is effected. Precaution is necessaiy in
making beam-fillings, especially in new
buildings, to leave a little space open
under every couple face, to allow room
for subsidence or the bending of the
couples after the slates are put on. Were
the couples, when bare, pinned firmly up
with stone and lime, the hard points would
act as fulcra, over which the long arm of
the couple, while subsiding, with the load
of slates new put upon it, would act as a
lever, and cause its points to rise, and there-
by start the nails from the wall-plates, to the
imminent risk of pushing out the tops of
the walls, and sinking the top of the roof.
Besides the tops of the walls, rats and
mice breed under ground, and find ac-
cess into apartments through the floor.
To prevent lodgment in those places
also, it will be proper to lay the strongest
flagging and causewaying upon a bed of
mortar spread over a body of 9 inches of
small l)roken stones, around the walls of
every apartment on the ground-floor where
any food for them may chance to fall,
such as in the stables, byres, boiling-house,
calves' house, implement-house, hay-house,
pig-sties, and hen-house. The corn-barn
has already been provided for against the
attacks of vermin ; but it will not be so
easy to prevent their lodgment in the
floors of the straw-barn and hammels,
where no causewaying is usually employed.
The princijial means of prevention in those
places are, in the first place, to make the
foundation of the walls deep, not less than
two feet, and then fill up the interior space
between the walls with a substantial
masonry of stone and lime mixed with
broken glass ; or perhaps a thick body of
small broken stones would be sufficient, as
rats cannot burrow in them as in the ground.
1688. Arrangement of the machinery.
— A plan of the ground-floor of the corn-
barn, with portions of the adjacent apart-
ments, is shown on a large scale in fig.
1 33 ; .p is the corn-barn, t the chaff-house, s a
part of the straw-barn, ?/ the engine-house,
and z the boiler-house. In this arrange-
ment a is the position of the first fanners,
b that of the elevator from the seconds-
spout, and c that from the clean-spout,
when these are used : d is the position for
the second fanner, supplied by the elevator
c, when such is not driven by hand, and
is attached to the machinery. In the
eiigine-housey, fisthe position of the steam-
en}rine,/tlie main shaft, carrying the fly-
wheel, and which is put in motion by
the action of the engine upon the crank.
The main shaft carries also, in the usual
construction, a spur-wheel g ; but this
member is subject to variation, according
to the pofeitiuu of the engine-house and
S82
PRACTICE— ^VTNTER.
barns. In the present arrangement, and
in many others, the spur-wheel y, as well
as that marked A, act merely as intermedia^
to bring the power into contact with the
Fig. 133.
THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE GROUND-FI.OOR OF THE BARNS.
main spnr-wheel i, the last giving motion
to the drura-pinioD, as will be more dis-
tinctly shown in another figure. The
lasting advantage of having the straw-barn
placed in the most central position to the
whole steading, induces the trifling addition
of the intermediate wheels g and A, for
the purpose of carrying the motive power
from the main shaft to the shaft of the
great spur-wheel i ; and this arises from the
present arrangement not admitting of the
steam-engine being advanced so far to-
wards the straw- barn as that its main shaft
might lie nearly opposite to the drum of
the thrashing-machine. In cases, again,
where the corn and the straw barns lie in
one line of range — or even although their
position may be at right angles, as here
laid down, but their relation being such as
to admit of the main shaft coming nearly
opposite to the drum — the intermediate
wheels become unnecessary, and the great
spur-wheel i is then placed upon the main
shaft/ itself. It is of small importance
which of these methods of taking up the
power be adopted, the additional wheels
adding but a small increase to the ex-
pense, and a little to the tesistance ; but
the lasting advantages of the position of
the straw-barn much n)ore than balance
these. Cases frequently occur also, where
only one intermediate wheel is required;
and in others, it has been judged by some
engineers more appropriate and expedient
to dispense with all these wheels, and to
substitute a lar^e pulley in the place of
the wheel g. In these cases, a pulley of
projtortionate dimensions is placed ujion
the drum shaft, and the motion conveyed
through a belt. The only subsidiary
machine that is usually placed on this floor
is the hummeller, at /•. The door from
the corn-barn into the engine-house is at
m ; that to <me of the granaries at y; ; and
r is the window of the corn-barn.
1GS9. The engine-house y is for the
steam-engine <", when one is used. It is 18
feet in length and 8 feet in width, and the
granary floor above forms its roof. It has
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
383
a window looking into the large court I,
and a door v with steps into the boiler and
furnace-house z, which house is 24 feet in
length and 8 feet in width, and has an
arched opening at the left or end door.
The boiler is seen at w. The chimney-
stalk 0 is 6 feet square at the base, and
rises tapering to a height of not less than
50 feet. If wind or horses are preferred
as the moving power, the windmill-tower
or horse-course would be erected on the
site of the boiler-house z.
1690. In the upper or thrashing-barn,
that appropriated to the corn in the straw,
the outline arrangement is represented in
fig. 134, wherein the space a, funned by the
Fig. 134.
LI
0
9 E
I I
5
THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE UPPER FLOOR
OF THE BARNS.
placement of the foundation beams h and
c, is the position occupied by the thrash-
ing-machine. The foundation-beams are,
in the present case, framed into beams
d and e, represented by the dotted lines ;
the space a varies in length, according to
the circumstance of the arrangement of
the machinery, from 12 to 16 feet, and
in width, according to the power by which
the machine is intended to be worked,
from 3 to 4 feet;//// mark the places
of the posts which form the frame-work of
the drum, and he g g those of the shakers.
The ST^acG ffhh is appropriated to the
gearing or drivingapparatusoftheuiachine,
corresponding to the space occupied by the
spur-wheels^ h i in fig. 133. Of the sub-
ordinate machines that occasionally have,
but which always should have place in this
floor of the barn, I may point out the posi-
tion i as one very appropriate for the corn-
bruiser; and, on the other hand, in the straw-
barn.*, the position ^'is equally appropriate
for the straw-cutter. The door for taking
in the corn from the stack-yard is seen at m.
1691. The arrangements mentioned in
the two preceding paragraplis are subject
to considerable variety, arising from local
circumstances in the relative positions of
the beams, the power, and other acces-
sories ; but of these relations the experi-
enced mill-wright will always be able to
form that arrangement of the parts of his
machinery that will bring out the most
beneficial results ; while the inexperienced
will find, in the arrangements here laid
down, data founded on experience and
extended observation. It may be observed
that the foundation-beams b and c, fig. 134,
should beofthebestMemel timber, or of oak,
ash, or beech, where hard woods are plentiful .
1692. Details of the Thrashing-ma-
chine. — In describing the thrashing-
machine, it is necessary to begin with
the frame-work, and in that which sup-
ports the main shaft. This, it invariably
falls out, has its bearing for one point in
the wall that separates the barn from the
locality of the power, whatever that may
be. For this purpose, when the altitude
of the position of the shaft has been de-
termined, an opening of 2 feet square is
formed in the wall, the sill of which should
be of one solid stone, laid at the proper
level, and upon which the pillow-block of
the shaft is bedded. If intermediate
wheels are employed, another and similar
opening must be formed for the bearing of
the shaft of the great spur-wheel. Such
other shafts, also, as may require to be
extended to the wall of separation, should
have bearings in recesses, formed in the
wall at the respective positions, such as
for the extension of the shafts of the drum
and of the feeding- rollers, which, in general,
mav be arranged in one recess. The sills
884
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and bearers in these minor recesses will
be found more convenient if funned of
good sound Memel timber, than of stone.
In further describing the machine, the
letters of reference apply to corresponding
parts of fig. 135, an elevation; and of
Fig. 135.
THK KLKVATION OF A
fig. 136, a longitudinal section. In these
figures, a a mark portions of the barn- wall,
b b the ground-floor line, and c c the founda-
tion-beams. The letter d marks the dif
ferent parts of the frame-work of the case
of the machine. The position and form of
the feeding-board is marked by the letter
e ; and as this apjiendage is not required
of great strength, it is usually of a tempo-
rary construction, and sometimes even por-
table. The two sides of the frame- work
d require to be tied by means of cross-rails,
which are most conveniently fixed upon
the top-rails of ibe frame-work by bolting.
1693. The openings in the two sides of
the framing are filleil in with panels,
neatly fitted and strengthened with cross-
bars at each end of the panels. Those
panels that fill up the frame on the gear-
THRASHING-MACHINK.
ing side of the machine, may be per-
manently fixed in their respective places;
but all tiiose on the other side must he
made easily movable, for giving access
to the diSVrent parts of the interior, for the
purpose of cleaning. In the panels that
close up the drum-case, it has been re-
commended to leave an opening of 6 inches
diameter round the shaft, for the )>urj)ose
of admitting a current of air, which, it is
supposed, might jjieveut the winding of
straw round the shaft and ends of the
drum. "When the construction is good
in other respects, it does not appear that
this precaution is necessary.
1694. As to the gearings of the Ihrash-
ins-machine, enough of them to let you
understand their use may be described in
a few words, by referring to figs. 135 and
^^^ '
iJ
K
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING,
385
136. In fig. 135,/ is the great spur-
wheel, corresponding to i, fig. 133, which
gives motion to all the internal machinery.
It has a small bevelled wheel on its shaft,
which moves the small inclined shaft ^,
giving motion to the feeding-gear h, which
moves either from 45 to 50, or from 65 to
70 rotations in a minute, according as
the straw is wished to be taken in fast
or slow ; but the immediate action of the
great spur-wheel/ is on the pinion j', which
is placed on tlie shaft of the drum, and
moves it : and as the two wheels have a
great disparity of size, it will be easily
understood that the drum moves at a high
velocity, which is not less than 360 revo-
lutions in a minute, and the spur-wheel
50 rotations. A small pinion on the spur-
wheel shaft, gives motion to the inter-
mediate wheel k, which drives the wheel
I on the shaft in the first shaker. The
two intermediate wheels m m are required
to move the wheel n of the second shaker,
and to give it a contrary motion to the
first shaker. Instead of such wheels, a
small wheel on the shaft of the spur-wheel
/, is sometimes made to move the feeding-
gear, and both shakers, by means of pitch-
chains ; but although this is a simpler,
and perhaps cheaper construction than
the other, it is much more likely to go
out of working order.
1695. The description of the machine
is as far advanced as to enable you to
trace the progress of the straw .through
the machine. The spur-wheel / moves
from right to left to give the beaters i' of
the drum i, fig. 136, a motion from left to
right, that is, they shall beat the straw
in an upward direction. The sheaves of
corn are placed in the feeding-board e,
and are taken from it by the rollers of
the feeding-gear h', and retained hold of
136.
THE LONGITUDINAL SECTION OF A THRASHING-MACHINE.
VOL. I.
2b
386
PRACTICE— WINTER.
while tlie beaters of the drum, passing in
an upward direction, separate the corn
from the straw, which are both prevented
bein>.' driven upwards into the air by the
drum-cover »". On the straw being
carried over the top of the drum, it is
drawn by its force towards the first
shaker/, and throws it towards the seccmd
shaker n, which lifts it over itself, and
throws it down upon the straw screen o',
upon which it slides further down to the
floor of the straw-barn. The shakers
have a lower velocity than the spur-
wheel.
Ifi96. The corn passes through the
machine in this manner : — The straw and
corn pass together over the top of the
drum j, and are raked together by the
shaker I, near the screen l', through which
the corn immediately falls into the hopper
0, de.-?cends still farther upon the vibrat-
ing shoe of the fanners /», and on failing
still farther, from which the wind, created
by the fan, separates the chaff from the
corn, carrying the former into the chaft-
house, and allowing the latter to pass
through the spout v to the floor of the
corn-bam. As much of the corn as passes
over the ridge m" between the two shakers
/ and M, is met by the brushes of the
shaker «, which sweep it clean ofi" the
board n' towards the screen ;«', through
which it falls into the hopper o and fanners
J}, in company with that passed through at
first through the screen /'.
1697. The fan of the fanners is moved
by means of a leatliern belt or a hempen
rope g q, fig. 135. which is iriven motion to
by a sheave on the shaft of the drum, and
carried by a couple of sheaves at r, one of
which conve\-s the rope down to the
sheave *, on the spindle of the fan, and
the other carries it back again to the
drum. The sheave s is composed of
sheaves of diSerent diameters, to allow
the fan to be driven at diff"erent velocities,
according to the state and nature of the
corn to be cleaned, and its spindle is sup-
ported at one end by the ui)right post t.
The velocity of the fan is 220 rotations
per minute.
1698. The thrashing-machine is set in
motion by diflTerent kinds of power,— by
steam, by horse-strength, by the wind,
and by water. Of these, wind power is
getting more and more ont of use in driving
farm machinery, on account of the great
uncertainty attending the motions of so
fickle an element, in so variable a climate
as ours ; and every day, as the manage-
ment of the steam-engine is more and
more understood, it is becoming more
in use on farms. Where water is suffi-
ciently abundant, it is the simplest, as
well as the cheapest, of motive powers,
and is always preferred to all others; but
where the supply is insuflicient, although
it may be ample enough for a time in
winter, it partakes of the disadvantages
attending wind, — it may be insutficient
at the time it is most wanted. Experience
has abundantly proved that thrashing-
machines dependent on water derived
cliiefly from the drainage of the surface of
the ground, freijuently suffer from a short
supply in autumn, and laie in spring, or
early in summer, thereby creating incon-
venience for the want of straw in the end
of autumn, and the want of seed or horse-
corn in the end of spring. Wherever such
casualties are likely to happen, it is better
to adopt a steam-engine at once. Although
coal sliould be both distant and dear, for
all that a steam-engine requires, a steam-
engine should be erected in preference to
using horses in the thrashing-machines;
for besides having to keep a larger number
of horses on a large farm, in the propor-
tion of one pair in every five pairs, the tear
and wear of horses in the rotary motion of
the horse-course is very considerable.
1699. Of the three classes of steam-
engines, — the atmospheric, the low, and
the high pressure, — the high pressure is
most commonly used on farms, partly from
the notion that it requires less water, is
more simple in its construction and
management, and cheaper than the con-
densing or low pressure engine. It is cer-
tainly very simple in its construction, and
its management is easily understood, even
by country people, and it is generally less
costly than the condensing engine ; but a
sufficient reason for the preference may
be found in the fact, that an engine from
four to six horse power is quite sufficient
to move most thrashing-machines, whereas
the condensing engine is better ajiplicable
to purposes requiring a higher scale of
power.
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
387
1700. The high-pressure steam-engine is
60 called because the steam is generated
in the boiler, at so great a degree of
tension as to exert a considerable pres-
sure on the boiler, — not less, perhaps,
than 25 lbs. to tlie square inch, and it
may be increased to a much higher rate
without difficulty ; that is, the pressure
on the interior of the boiler above that of
the atmosphere on its exterior, which is
equal to 14 lbs. to the square inch. It is
also called non-condensing, because it gets
quit of the steam in the elastic state, and
is not condensed again into water as in
the condensing engine. And it is some-
Fig.
times called the puffing engine, because it
emits the steam it has used in successive
jets or pufl's.
1701. Crank high-pressure Steam-
Engine. — The high-pressure steam-engine
may be formed with a beam or an over-
head crank, besides a variety of other
forms ; but these two are the forms found
on the farm, and of these the crank engine
is the most common, and it is on this
account that I have selected its figure for
illustration. It is represented in fig.
137, where bh \s the ground floor, c c the
sole plate, which is bolted down to a mass
137.
THE CRANK HIGH-PRESSURE STEAM-ENGINE.
of solid masonry, npon one or two blocks
of stone of at least one foot in thickness ;
dd are cast-iron columns, supporting an
entablature e e of the same metal, which,
extending across the house, is let into the
walls on both ends to support the lying
shaft of the engine ; /is the steam cylin-
der ; g is the piston- rod of the cylinder ;
h the connecting-rod between the piston-
rod and the crank k ; i is a guide-bar
extending between the columns through
which the head of the piston-rod passes
388
PRACTICE— WINTER.
to preserve its parallelism ; the end of
the lying shaft is seen at the letter k ; mm
is the fly-wheel ; and the small circle at i
is one of the balls of the governor. The
steam-pipe leading from the boiler joins
the engine at n, from whence the steam
descends to o, and passing through that
branch, and tlie throttle-valve case />, it
enters a channel that half embraces the
cylinder, and opens into a small steam-
chest that contains the slide-valve, which
are concealed behind the cylinder in the
figure. The steam-chest covering the
slide being thus in communication with
the boiler, the steam, from its elasticity, is
always ready to flow into any channel
that is opened for it. Hence, as the slide
is moved alternately from off the passage
leading to the upper and to the lower ends
of the cylinder, the piston is made to re-
ciprocate between the top and bottom.
At every change of the slide, the passage
leading to the atmosphere is put in com-
munication with the top or with the bot-
tom of the cylinder, and the steam which
had, in the previous stroke, done its duty
on the piston, is drawn off and discharged
through a channel corresponding to that
by which it entered, and passing through
the branch q^ into the column yr, it is
discharged into the atmosphere by the
pipe r, which frequently terminates in
the chimney. The crank-shaft carries
two eccentrics — the one for the pump-rod,
to which is jointed the plunger of the
pump, for supplying water to the boiler ;
the other moves the slide-valve rod, which
is so adjusted as to move the valve at the
precise time and place required for the
due admission and emission of the steam
to and from the cylinder. The shaft liJce-
wise carries the pair of level •wheels that
give motion to the governor. The gover-
nor consists of two oblique rods, with balls
attached to their lowest extremities; and
these being suspended by a joint on the ver-
tical axis, the whole is rendered capable of
revolving horizontally upon that axis. If the
machinery that gi ves motion to the governor
is accelerated, the revolving balls partake
of the acceleration, and the centrifugal
action thus generated gives them a ten-
dency to fly off from the centre of revolu-
tion. This outward motion is converted
into the means of regulati(m, for while the
balls and rods extend their circle of gyra-
tion, they act upon two jointed arms.
The lever ic is applied to the collar
above the joint of the rods, and being
suspended near its centre, has its opposite
extremity jointed to the rod x, the lower
end of which acts upon tiie lever of the
throttle-valve «. The throttle-valve is a
thin circular plate of metal, having an
axis fixed across its diameter, and is nicely
fitted into the steam-way passing through
the case p. The spindle passes the sides
of the case steam-tight, and carries on
one end a small lever by which the valve
can be turned, and the lever is put in
connexion with the lower end of the rod
X. The extension of the balls of the
governor, acting through the lever w and
rod X, depresses the lever s of the valve,
and by thus turning the valve, reduces the
steam-w^ay, and prevents further accelera-
tion of the machine.
1702. Insetting down the engine, we
have to consider the space necessary to
receive it. This, in the direction of the
barn wall, need not be larger than 8^
feet, or a few inches more than the dia-
meter of the fly-wheel ; the breadth, in
the other direction, should not be less
than 8 feet, but may extend to 9 or 9^
feet. An engine-house, therefore, of the
form and dimensions afforded by the plan
Plate II., is not well adapted to this
form of engine, its length in the direction
of the barn being too great for the en-
tablature beam ; and if adopted for such
a form of house, a wall must be run up,
or a beam placed across, reducing its
length to 8|- feet, or thereby. In almost
every case this form of engine is the most
commodious for its application to a thrash-
ing-machine, especially in regard to the
directicm of height ; for the height that
the crank-shaft stands above tlie floor
of the engine-house will generally bring
it near to the large spur-wheel, which,
though not in all thrashing-machines, is
yet to be found in a large majority of
them. This is supposing that the floor
of the engine-house is nearly on a level
with the barn floor, which will generally
be the case, unless artificially changed.
1703. Mr Slight has given this rule for
finding the horse-power of such a non-
condensing engine : —
Multiply the square of tlie tliaraeter of the
cylinder in inches, by sixth-tenths of the
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
389
entire pressure of the steam in the boiler in
lbs., on the circular inch, minus half an at-
mosphere, or 5'57 lbs., on the circular inch;
and multiply the product by the velocity of
the piston, in feet per minute. The last
product is the power of the engine in lbs. to
raise one foot high per minute ; and for the
horse-power divide as usual by 33,000. For
example.
Let the cylinder be 9 inches diameter, the
length of stroke 20 inches, and the number
of strokes per minute 64, being equal to a
velocity of 214 feet per minute for the pis-
ton, and the pressure in the boiler 25 lbs. on
the circular inch, equal to 32 lbs. on the
square inch nearly ; then (6 x 25 — 575
= 9-35 ; and
9'^x9'35 X 214
33000 = 5-horse power nearly.
By this rule for the power of non-con-
densiug engines, a cylinder of 10 inches
diameter, with a pressure of 25 lbs. on
the circular inch, and making 60 strokes
per minute, is equal to 6-horse power;
and the piston will move at a velocity of
214 feet per minute, making the con-
sumpt of steam, allowing for waste, equal
to 128 cubic feet per minute, or 7680
per hour. The proportion of water to
steam consumed at tbis pressure, is about
1 to 850, or a little more than 9 cubic
feet of water, being about 57 gallons
per hour for the supply of the boiler.
This calculation is stated merely to show
how small the quantity of water is that
suffices for a non-coudeusing engine of
6-horse power.
1701. The setting ou and stopping the
non-condensing engine is an exceedingly
simple operation ; and its simplicity is
even simplified by the addition of a cock
or valve on the steam-pipe, which is very
frequently adopted, and in that case the
throttle-valve is not required to be so
accurately fitted as where no stop-cock
is employed. To set on the en</ine, the
steam must first be brought up to the
requisite degree of pressure. When this
is accomplished, which is known by the
safety-valve rising so as to allow the
escape of steam, the stop-cock, if there is
one, is opened, the throttle-valve being
also opened ; the steam is admitted both
above and below the piston by moving the
slide with the handle of the wiper-shaft,
to heat the cylinder, the eccentric rod
being at the time disengaged from the
shaft. This done, the ^ab of the eccen-
tric rod is laid upon the arm of the wiper-
shaft ; and, if the crank is in a horizontal
position, the engine may start ofi" without
assistance ; but, if it does not move, the
fly-wheel is to be pushed round a few
feet, or until the crank has once passed
the centres, when it will move on freely.
If no resistance is upon the engine, the
throttle-valve should be put nearly shut,
but so soon as the resistance comes, — the
commencement of thrashing, for example,
— the throttle-valve lever is to be con-
nected to the vertical rod, and the work
will proceed regularly.
1705. In stopping, where there is a
stop-cock, the siiutting of it puts a stop to
further motion, except what the momen-
tum of the parts may continue to give
out for a few seconds ; where there is no
stop-cock, the first step is to disengage
the throttle-valve lever, and close the
valve, and immediately after disengaging
the eccentric rod from, the wiper-shaft,
the engine will stop. It is advisable to
keep this rod disengaged at all times when
the engine is standing.
1706. As the engine-house is seldom
accessible directly from the barn, there
ought always to be means established for
communicating a signal between the two
places; and this should proceed from the
chief of the operation, — the person who
feeds the machine. As there can be but
two propositions to make — to set on and
to stop — one signal is sufficient, and a hell
seems to be the most convenient medium
of communication.
1 707. The boiler.— Oi all the parts of
the steam-engine, the boiler, though by
far the simplest in its construction, is the
most important. In it is generated the
agent of power, while all the otlier parts
are merely the accessories and media
through which the effects of the miglity
agent are developed. It has constantly,
while in action, to resist this imprisoned
and powerful agent, and that merely by
the strength of its parts; hence the ne-
cessity for having boilers made of the best
possible materials, and those connected in
the best possible manner.
1708. The form now most generally
adopted for the boilers of farm-engines,
and it is undoubtedly the best, is the plain
390
PRACTICE— WINTER.
cylindrical l)<>iler, with hemispherical
e'luls. Tiie Statfurdsbire plate is con-
sidered tlie best fur the purpose; and tbey
are generally bent to tlie circle in the
cold state, by the aid of a machine. The
joininirs are all effected by riveting with
short bolts, the plates being previously
punched by a machine for the reception
of the rivets. The rivet-bolts are inserted
and riveted down in the red-hot state, so
that, besides the effect of the riveting to
draw the contiguous surfaces of the
plates into close contact, there is the
powerful contraction of the iron while
cooling, to produce still more perfect con-
tact. To insure j>erfect tiglitness in the
joinings or /an</iH«/^, technically so called,
the whole of tlie joints, after tbey are all
riveted up, undergo a i)rocess of caulk-
ing, which is simply the stamping up of
the edges of the plates into intimate con-
tact with the adjoining surface, by means of
flat-edged chisel% struck with a hammer.
1709. Various rules arc given for the
dimensions of boilers, corresponding with
anv given power of engine ; but the most
natural are those founded upon the ex-
tent of surface exposed to the flame of
the fire, and the flame and heated air of
the flues, taken along with the cubical
contents of the boiler. From researches
into the relations of the fire-surface and
contents, we can fonn a very correct
value of the power of boilers from their
capacity alone. According to these, a
cylindrical boiler for high-pressure steam
should have, in its entire capacity, 1 2 cubic
feet of space for each cubic foot of water
boiled off \>er hour. Now it has just been
shown (1703) that a 6-horse power
cylinder of 10 inches diameter will con-
sume the steam of 9 cubic feet of water
per hour, and 9x12=108 cubic feet for
the capacity of bi.iler ; and taking its
diameter at 3 feet 4 inches, which gives a
sectional area of 86 feet; and dividing
the cubical capacity of the boiler by this
last number, we have -— ; =12*5 feet for
o'o
the length of a cylinder that will yield
the capacity required. But as it will
have hemispherical ends, the extreme
length will be 13i feet nearly, which
agrees very well with practice.
1710. The position in which the boiler
is to be set down, should be as near as
possible to the engine, so that the jiipe
conveying the steam should be as sliort
as jHjssible, to prevent all uunecessary
condensation of steam.
1711. The furnace of the b<jiler has
undergone many changes, both in form
and dimensions, and in the means of sup-
plying it with air for the consumj)tion of
the smoke. The latter property, though
always desirable, is not of weighty im-
portance in farm-engines, but it is essential
that, in every case, the furnace be so
constructed as to produce the requisite
supply of steam with certainty and de-
spatch. To effect these objects, it is
required to expose as much as possible of
the bottom of the b«jiler to the action of
the fire, without reducing that portion of
tlie surface which falls to receive the heat
from the flame and smoke passing along
the flues. In cvlimlrical boilers, this is
effected by making the width of tlie fur-
nace equal to three-fifths of the diameter
of the boiler, the covering of the side
flues rising to within 2 inches of the level
of the centre of the boiler, that being the
line to which the sinking of tlie water
shf)uld be restricted, so that the fire or
heated air shall never impinge on any
part of the surface that is not covered in-
ternally with water. The area of fire-
grate commonly allowed is one superficial
foot to each horse power ; or, if the fur-
nace is 2 feet wide, the grate-bars should
be 3 feet in length. This is too small
unless coal of the very best quality is
burned ; and, to insure abundance of
fire, the bars should be of such length as
to give l| square foot to the horse power
nearly, and should be laid with a slope
of 1 inch on the foot of length. In front
of the bars, a breadth of from 15 to 18
inches is occupied by the dumb-plate or
dead-plate, upon which the fresh fuel
should always be laid down on its first
introduction to the furnace. The mouth
of the furnace is closed by a door and
frame of cast-iron, leaving the opening of
the ash-pit about 3 feet in height.
1712. The chimney for the steam-
engine is an object of some importance.
Upon its height and area depends much
of the future effects of the engine ; and
very numerous are the views taken of
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
391
these by engineers. The following points
may, however, be taken as data not easily
controverted. The height should not be
less than 50 feet ; and, if it is desirable to
avoid the nuisance arising from smoke,
the height should greatly exceed tliis.
The internal sectional area should be as
large as may be consistent with economy
in the exjjense, but should never be under
80 square inches for each horse power.
Thus a chimney for a 6-horse engine
should have its area at the top 80x6"=
480 square inches, and V 480=22 inches
nearly, the side of the square of the
chimney internally ; and if circular, the
diameter should be 25 inches nearly. The
height of the chimney being determined,
and also tlie side of its square externally,
the square of its base is found by adding
to the length of the side at top the
amount of increase arising from the slope
given to the sides. The usual slope or
battre is f inch to a foot ; with a height,
therefore, of 50 feet, the increase at bot-
tom will be 18| inches on each side ; and
the walls being one brick, or 5 inches tliick,
the side of the square at top will be 22 +
(5x2)=32 inches, and this added to 18|
X 2=3y| + 32=5 feet 11 ^ inches, the sides
of the square at the bottom.
1713. The regular supply of water to
the boiler of a steam-engine is a matter
of great importance, as is also the proper
method of water-gauge ; and it is also of
great importance that the water sent into
the boiler should have its temperature
raised as high as possible before entering.
This is effected in a very simple manner,
and to a temperature of about 140° by the
apparatus; but as the description of all
the apparatus by which all these ends are
best effected would involve the relation of
much minutiae, it is unnecessary for me to
enter into them.
1714. The fuel for the steam-engine is
always coal, where it can be procured ;
but either wood or peat may be used. In
the neighbourhood of coal-woiks, the re-
fuse or culm is always procurable at a low
price, and is quite sufficient in point of
quality for an engine furnace ; 1 cwt. of
this culm will, on an average, be required
per hour that the furnace is burning, for
a 6-horse engine. Wliere the locality
involves a distant carriage, it is tlien
better to use the large coal, of which,
with^ due care, | cwt. will suffice for an
hour. In stoking, the coal should al-
ways be laid down on the dead-phate,
pushing it forward before putting in a
fresh supply. The fire should be kept
clear, and always free of the clinkers
that may be formed in the bars. On all
occasions of stopping, the damper should
be let down and the furnace-doors opened,
to prevent unnecessary waste of fuel ; but
at all times, while working, the furnace-
doors must be kept shut, unless the supply
of steam is found to be too great.
1715. The Horse-wheel. — Until of late
years the thrashing-machine was in most
cases impelled by horses moving in a cir-
cular course ; and as this power continues
to be employed on the smaller class of
farms, it is still of that importance to
demand being here brought under notice.
Horse-wheels are of various construction,
as under-foot and over-head; the former
being chiefly used where small powers are
required, and the latter where four horses
and upwards are employed. In general,
in the under-foot wheel, the horses draw
by means of trace-chains and swing-tree.
In the over-head wheel, of old construction,
we also find occasionally the same method
of yoking practised ; but in all modern
over-head wheels the horses draw by a
yoke descending over their back, from a
horizontal beam placed over-head. Cus-
tom seems, as usual, to have produced a
preference for this mode of yoking, though
there appears good reason for calling its
propriety in question, especially if the
course has a diameter of 22 feet or up-
wards. The argument in support of the
over-head draught is, that the horse exerts
his force in the direction of a tangent, or
very nearly so, to the curve in which he
walks, or at right angles to the beam by
which he draws; while, in the swing-tree
draught, his shoulders being considerably
more in advance of the point of attachment,
his exertions must necessarily tend in a
direction that will form an angle more
acute than a right angle, but wiiich will
vary with the radius of the course. It is
quite true that this is the case, and that
the horse will draw at a disadvantage, to
a certain extent, but the amount of this
disadvantage is small. In a 26'-feet
course, which is a good medium, giving
S93
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the over-liead draught the full advantage
of the right-angle— 90°— the other will
draw at an angle of about 72° with the
radius or beam ; and it is easy to show
that the amount of disadvantage arising
from this is as 21 to 20. If the draught
of a horse in a wheel amounts to 170 lbs.
under the favourable position, it will re-
quire an exertion of 178,^ lbs. from the
same horse, when yoked unfavourably,
that is, by a swing-tree. With this dis-
advantage, which is but small, if we com-
pare the freedom of action and uniformity
of the resistance in the case of the swing-
tree draught, with the constrained action
and jolting effects which the horse under-
goes in the over-head yoke ; and to these,
if we add the chances of disadvantage to
horses of low stature, being constrained to
draw at an unfavourable vertical angle,
we shall soon find an amount of disad-
vantage greater than in the former case.
The question is not now of that impor-
tance that it once possessed, in conse-
quence of the extensive application of
steam ; but it appears still to be deserving
of consideration.
1716. In the construction of the horse-
wheel, also, a question arises as to the
diameter of the actual tcheel^ whether it
should be equal in diameter to the entire
horse-walk, and work as a spur-wheel, or
have a diameter considerably under the
former, and be applied as a face or bevelled
wheel. It appears to nie that the large
spur-wheel, of 25 or 30 feet in diameter,
has been conceived under a false impres-
sion, and that, on principle, its application
is erroneous. It is also probable, that a
consideration of the overshot water-wheel,
which, from its construction, and the na-
ture of the element employed, requires that
its power shouhl be given off at or near
the extremity of its arms, may have given
rise to this formation ; but the causes that
combine to render this not only advisable,
but imperative, in the water-wheel, if
every thing is duly considered, do not
apply to horse power. When the horse-
w'heel has a diameter larger than the mean
diameter of the horse-path, it gives the
first motion a higher velocity than that of
the moving power, by its more extended
radius; and if any inequality occurs in
the moving power, it will sensibly affect
the succeeding motions. Horses do not
exert a perfectly uniform force when yoked
in a wheel — the very act of stepping forth,
by removing the exertion from one shoul-
der to the other, produces small incre-
ments and decrements alternately to the
power, and these must be communicated
to the wheel which extends beyond that
point of the lever by which the horse
draws. Besides this effect on the machine,
it must have an equally bad effect upon
the horses ; for, in consequence of the con-
struction of the large wheel, and from the
yoke being applied to a point where all
elasticity is removed, the draught becomes
what is termed dead, — that is to say, there
are no elastic or yielding parts betwixt the
power and the first impulse, that might
tend to soften the sudden strains that
come upon the horses, unless other means
are resorted to to produce that result.
Wheels of this construction will, there-
fore, be found more fatiguing to the horses
than those of smaller diameter.
1717. Of horse- wheels with a*?n«// circle
of teeth, the diameter best suited for all
purposes, and which might produce a
maximum eftect, has not yet been defined;
but from analogy, and taking into view
the properties of the centre of jiercussion,
we may infer that the radius of the seg-
ments forming the toothed wheel should
be two-thirds of the radius of the beam,
measuring to the centre of draught, which
may be taken at 11 feet when the course
is 26 feet diameter, giving to the toothed
segments a diameter of 14 feet 3 inches.
The diameter thus found is subject to mo-
dification, arising from considerations of
strength, and the too great obliquity of
the diagonal braces of the wheel, that
would follow u[x)n a large diameter. Such
considerations will induce a reduction of
diameter to 12^ or 13 feet, as a good
medium size of wheel. The projection of
the horse-beams beyond the point of action
of the toothed segments, produce that de-
gree of elasticity pointed out in 1716
the absence of which forms a defect in
wheels of large diameter.
171 8. The horse- wheel rey>resented in
fig. 138, is constructed on data derived
from the foregoing considerations, and is an
elevation of the wheel. It is constructed
for four lior.«es, — the cour.-e is 26 feet dia-
meter within the pillars, and the wheel is
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING. 393
13 feet diameter, with a hollow cast-iron the wheel are bolted. The position of the
central shaft, having a flange at top and horse-wheel must be always adjoining to
bottom, to which the arms and stays of the barn ; it may or may not be on the
Fig. 138.
THE HORSE-WHEEL FOR A THRASHING-MACHINE.
side towards the stack-yard, but generally
the former. In the figure, the barn -wall
is marked «, and of the two main pillars,
which support the main collar-beam, one
is marked b ; of the two minor pillars,
erected solely for completing the bearings
of the roof, one only is seen at c, and d is
the floor or horse-walk. The footstep of
the horse-wheel is supported on the stone
block e, the step being adjustable by four
screws, to bring the wheel to the true
level ; and / is the collar-beam, which is
laid upon and bolted to the main pillars,
and carries the plummer-block for the
head of the central shaft. The sheers g
are framed into the collar-beam, and rest-
ing on the wall a ; and these have two
diagonal braces, not seen in the figure, to re-
sist the shake from the action of the wheel
upon the pinion of the lying shaft ; and
the cast-iron bridge i is bolted down upon
tlie sheers carrying the end of the lying
shaft. The flanges of the central shaft k,
and the one at the top not seen, form the
foundation of the wheel ; to the latter are
bolted the horizontal arms, as well as the
horse-beams o, and these are supported by
the diagonals n n, seated in and draw-
bolted to the flange k. The horizontal
braces p p, of the horse-beams are framed
into the ends of the horizontal arms, and
secured with cast-iron knee-plates at their
junction with the wheel and with the
horse-beams. Tlie yoke-bars ^^ ^, are made
of hard wood, tapering towanls the lower
end, strongly bolted to the horse-beams.
and are each mounted with an iron pulley
near the lower end, over which the
draught-chain passes, the height of which
from the horse-path should be 3 feet 6
inches, liable to slight variation, arising
from the stature of the horse that is to be
yoked into it. The wheel r is now always
made of cast-iron, in segments, and, when
the wheel is very carefully made, are fitted
and bolted to a bed-plate of the same
material, previously bolted to the arms and
horse-beams, and is 13 feet diameter. The
horse-wheel pinion s is mounted on the
lying shaft s t, whose inward bearing is
upon the barn wall, in an opening formed
for the purpose, and this shaft carries the
spur-wheel zi inside the barn. The calcu-
lations of this machine would stand thus: —
The horses will walk the course three times
in a minute, being at the rate nearly of 2^
miles per hour, the lying shaft s t will
make 1 1 revolutions for one of the wheel,
or 33 per minute, and if the drum pinion,
wliich is driven by the wheel ^^, is made
8"6 inches diameter, the wheel being 7 feet,
would give the drum 320 revolutions per
minute; a fair aA^erage velocity for a 4-
horse machine, which can be increased by
a quicker step of tlie horses, say to 2^
miles per hour, which would give 340 re-
volutions per minute to the drum.
1719. Some horses, when yoked in a
wheel, are observed, after a short practice,
to take advantage of lagging back, and
allowing those who are more willing to
394
PRACTICE— WINTER.
take the Iieavy end of the work. To
counteract this, methods have been adopted
to make the horses draw by cliains, so
arranged as to make them work against
each other in pairs; or make any number
of tlieiii draw from a ring-chain common
to tlie whole. Another method was to
make each horse draw against a certain
weight suspended over j)ulley6 ; but all
these have their imperfections in one way
or another. A new and more perfect ar-
rangement of the ring-chain was intro-
duced by Mr Christie, Khynd, Fifeshire,
which received tlie a])pn)hation of the
Highhmd and Agricultural Society of
Scotland.* This arrangement is exhibited
in tl)e figure by the doted lines under the
horse-beams ; but I do not enter into the
details of the arrangement. Suffice it for
me to say that the princi])le of the arrange-
ment is, that thi' rhh/-c/iain forms ajigiire,
of so many equal sides or angles as there
are horses in the ichcel^ and that the angles
always remain equal. The defects of
any other method of this kind which Uas
been tried being, that the angles vary ac-
cording to the sluggish or active temper
of the horses.
1720. A method of equalising the resis-
tance to the shoulders of each individual
horse has been long practised, and which,
from its simplicity as well as its beneficial
effects upon the horses, is deserving of
general adi-ption. The apparatus consists
of an iron lever with equal arn)s, ^vhich is
suspended uj)on a bolt by a jterforation
through the centre of the lever forming the
fulcrum, and the ends are formed into
hooks to which the draught-chains are at-
tached. Fig. 139 represents the applica-
tion of this to the horse-beam, wherein a
is a part of the beam, and h h the yoke-
trees ; c is the lever above described, sus-
pended upon the back of the horse-beam ;
ddi\\e draught-chains, hooked to the lever,
and passed under the pulleys of the yoke-
trees, beyond which the horse is yoked to
the extremity of the cliains. The advan-
tages of this mode of yoking will at once
be obvious ; for suppose that, from inad-
vertence, the hor.se may have been un-
equally yoked, whenever he exerts his
force, the chain that had been yoketl short
— suppose it to be the left shoulder — will
immediately pull down the end of the lever
to which it is hooked, and so bring the
longer chain to bear with equal resistance
Fig. 139.
THE LEVER FOR EQUALISING DRAUGHT IN
TUE THRASHING-MACHINE.
upon the right shoulder. It will be found,
also, that the lever will vibrate at every
step taken by the horse, as his efforts are
changed at every step from the one shoul-
der to the other; the lever will therefore
tend to equalise his exertions in respect to
Lis muscular economy, and to the motion
of the machine.
1721. The Water-irheel. — Water, when
it can be commanded, is the chea})est and
most uniform of all powers; and on many
farms it might be commanded by carefully
collecting and storing in a dam. Water-
wheels have been commonly treated as of
two kinds; but, with great deference, I
conceive they may be classed under two
heads. The under-shot, or oprnjioat-board
wheel, which can only be advantageously
employed where the supply of water is
considerable and the fall low ; it can
therefore rarely answer for farm purposes,
and need not be discussed. The second is the
bucket- whee], which may be over-shot or
breast, according to the height of the fall.
It is this wheel that is adopted in all cases
where water is scarce or valuable, and the
fall amounting to 6 or 7 feet or more,
though it is sometimes employed with even
less fall than 6 feet. It is the most effec-
tive mode of employing water, except
where the fall is excessively high, or ex-
* Prize Estayt of the Highland and Agricultural Society, vol. xii. p. 264.
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
395
ceeding 50 feet, when, in such cases, it is
applied to motive machines that will
rarely be employed for agricultural pur-
poses, such as Barker's mill, &c.
1722. When it is proposed to employ a
stream of water for the purpose of power,
the first step is to determine the quantity
delivered hy the stream in a given time ;
this, if the stream is not large, is easily
accomplished by an actual measurement
of the discharge, and is done by damming
up the stream to a small height, say 1 or
2 feet, giving time to collect, so as to
send the full discharge through a shoot,
from which it is received into a vessel of
any known capacity, the precise time that
is required to fill it being carefully noted.
This will give a correct measure of the
water that could be delivered constantly
for any purpose ; if in too small a quantity
to be serviceable at all times, the result
may found a calculation of the time re-
quired to fill a dam of such dimensions as
might serve to drive a thrashing-machine
for any required number of hours. If the
discharge of the stream is more than could be
received into any moderately-sized vessel,
a near approximation may be made to the
amount of discharge by the following
method: Select a part of its course, where
the bottom and sides are tolerably even,
for a distance of 50 or 100 feet; ascertain
the velocity with which it runs through
this space, or any measured portion of it,
by floating light substances on its surface,
noting the time required for the substance
to pass over the length of the space. A
section of the sti'eam is then to be taken,
to determine the number of superficial feet
or inches of sectional area that is flowing
along the channel, and this, multiplied
into five-sixths of the velocity of the
stream, will give a tolerable approxima-
tion to the true quantity of discharge —
five-sixths of the surface velocity, at the
middle of the stream, being very nearly the
mean velocity of the entire section. Sup-
pose the substance floated upon the surface
of the stream passed over a distance of
100 feet in 20 seconds, and that the
stream is 3 feet broad, with an average
depth of 4 inches — here the area of the
section is exactly 1 foot, and the velocity
being 100 feet in 20 seconds, gives 300
feet per minute, less one-sixth = 250 feet,
and this multiplied by the sectional area
in feet, or 1 foot, is 250 cubic feet per
minutei"or the discharge. It is to be kept
in mind that this is only an approximation,
but it is simple, and from repeated experi-
ments I have found it to come near the truth.
For those who wish to enter more elabo-
rately into the subject, I may here state a
formula derived from those of Sir John
Leslie, for finding the mean velocity, and,
having also the transverse section, to find
the discharge of a stream or river.
Multiply the constant 1'6 into the hydraulic
depth, and into the slope of the surface of
the water per mile, the square root of the
product will give the mean velocity of the
stream in feet, per second ; and the root,
multiplied by the section of the stream in
square feet, is the discharge per second.
The hydraulic depth is the transverse sec-
tion of the stream in square feet, divided by
the periphery of the stream, less the sur-
face breadth.
Example, — If the surface hreadth be 3 feet, the
bottom breadth 24 feet, and the slope of
the sides each 9 inches, a transverse section of
these dimensions will contain 2 square feet
nearly, which, divided by the periphery,
which is
3-l--75-f75->- 2-5 = 7, the periphery,
then the area of the section=2 feet ;
and 2-^(7 — 3)='5foot, or =6 inches, the
hydraulic depth.
And suppose the slope at the place of section
to be 14 inch on 100 feet, or 6'5 feet per
mile, apply the formula —
1-6 X -5 X 6'.5=2'3 feet, the velocity per
second nearly, and the delivery will be
2'3 X 2 = 4'6 cubic feet per second,
which, multiplied by 60, gives 276 cubic
feet per minute.
1723. The next step is to ascertain, by
levelling, from the most convenient point
at which the stream can be taken off, to
the site where the water-wheel can be set
down, and to that point in the continua-
tion of the stream where the water can be
discharged from the wheel, or what is
called the outfall of the tail-race. If the
water has to be conveyed to any consider-
able distance from the point where it is
diverted from the stream to the wheel, a
lade must be formed for it, which should
have a fall of not less than 1| inches in
100 feet, and this is to be deducted from
the entire fall. Suppose, after this deduc-
tion, the clear fall be 12 feet, and that the
water is to be received on a bucket-wheel
whose power shall be equal to 4 horses. —
896
PRACTICE— WINTER.
The rule for finding the quantity of water required per minute to produce 4 horses' power is
to multiply the constant 44,000 by the horse-power, aud divide the product by the product
obtained by multiplying the cunslant,— the weight of water per cubic foot by the height of
the full.
Example. — Multiply the constant . . . 44,000
By the horse-power, .... 4
Which divide by the
weight of water per cubic foot,
Multiplied by the height of the fall,
)1 76000(234 cubic feet, the quantity
62'5 1500 of water required per
12 minute to produce 4
2,600 horses' power.
7500 2,250
3,500
3,000
44,00^x_4^234 cubic feet.
625x12
The rule for finding the horse-power of any ascertained discharge of water will be found in (117.)
The formula is this —
1724. If the stream does not produce
this quantity, a dam must be formed by
embanking or otherwise, to contain such
quantity as will supply the wheel for three
or six hours, or such period as may be
thought necessary. The quantity required
for the wheel here supposed, for three
hours, would be 42,120 cubic feet; but
suppose tlie stream to supply one-fourth
part of this, the remainder, or 31,590 feet
must be provided for in a dam, which, to
contain this, at a depth not exceeding 4
feet, would be 88 feet square. But the
constant supply of water is often much
smaller than here supposed, and in such
cases the dam must be proportionally larger.
1725. The dam may be formed either
upon the course of the streair*, by a stone-
weir thrown across it, and proper sluices
formed at one side to lead off the water
when required; or, what is much better,
the stream may be diverted from its course
by a low weir into an intermediate dam,
which may be formed by digging and em-
bankments of earth, furnished with sluice
and waste-weir, and from this the lade to
the wheel should be formed. The small
weir on the stream, while it served to
divert the water, when required, through
a sluice to the dam, would, in time of
floods, pass the water over the weir, the
regulating sluice being shut to prevent
the flooding of the dam. This last me-
thod of forming the dam is generally the
most economical and convenient, besides
avoiding the risk which attends a heavy
weir upon a stream that may be subject
to floods. When water is collected from
drains or springs, it is received into a dam
formed in any convenient situation, and
which must also be furnished with a waste-
weir, to pass oft' flood waters, besides the
ordinary sluice.
1726. The position of the sluice in the
dam should be so studied as to prevent the
wrack floating on the surface of the water
finding its way into the sluice, and thence
to the water-wheel. To avoid this incon-
venience, the sluice should not be placed
at the lowest point of the dam, where it
most commonly is, but at one side, at
which the water will pass into the lade,
while the rubbish will float past to the
lowest point.
1727. The wator-wheel should be on
the bucket principle, and, for a fall such
as we have supposed, should not be lesa
than 14 feet diameter; the water, there-
fore, would be received on the breast of
the wheel. Its circumference, with a
diameter of 14 feet, will be 3'141G x
14=44 feet; its velocity, at 5 feet per
second, is 44 x 5 = 220 feet a minute ;
and 234 cubic feet, per minute (1723,) of
water spread over this, gives a sectional
area ft»r the water laid upon the wheel of
234
^- = rOG feet; but as the bucket should
not be more than half filled, this area is
to be doubled = 2-12 feet ; and as the
breadth of the wheel may be restricted to
3 feet, then ^=-704 foot, the depth of
the shrouding, eijual to 8^ inches nearly;
and if the wheel is to have wooden sole-
ing, 1 inch should be added to this depth
already found, making t)^ inches.
ACCOMMODATION" FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
397
1728. The arc in which the wheel is to
be placed must have a width siifRcient to
receive the wheel with the toothed seg-
ments attached to the side of the shroud-
ing. For a bucket-wheel it is not necessary
that it be built in the arc of a circle, but
simply a square chamber — one side of it
being formed by the wall of the barn, the
other by a wall of solid masonry, at least
2^ feet thick : one end also is built up
solid, while the opposite end, towards the
tail-race, is either left entirely open, or, if
the water is to be carried away by a tun-
nel, the water-way is arched over and the
space above levelled in with earth. It is
requisite tliat ti)e walls of the wheel-
arc here described, should be built of
square-dressed stone, having a breadth
of bed not less than 12 inches, laid flush
in mortar, and pointed with Roman
cement.
1729. Fig. 140 is a sectional elevation
of the wheel ; a' a' is the barn-wall, b' b'
140,
THE SECTION AND ELEVATION OF A BUCKET WATER-WHEEL.
is the sole of the arc or chamber, formed
of solid ashler, having an increased slope
immediately under the wheel, to clear
it speedily of water. The shaft, the
arms, and shrouding, are all of cast-iron,
the buckets and sole being of wood; and,
to prevent risk of fracture, the arms are
cast separate from the shrouding. The
width of the wheel being ^ feet, the
toothed segments 4 inches broad, and they
being 1 inch clear of the shrouding, gives
a breadth over all of 3 feet 5 inches, and,
when in the arc, there should be at least
1 inch of clear space on each side, free of
the wall. The shaft is not required to be
longer than just to pass through the bear-
ings ; for, in wheels of this kind, it is
improper to take any moticm directly from
the shaft. The eye-flanges i, 2 feet dia-
meter, are separate castings, to which the
arms c are bolted ; the flanges being first
keyed firmly upon the shaft. The shroud-
ing d d '\s cast in segments, and bolted
to the arms and to each other at their
joinings. On the inside of the shroud-
plates are formed the grooves for securing
the ends of the buckets and of the sole-
boarding, in the form as shown in the
898
PRACTICE— WINTER.
section from e to e. The form of the
buckets sliould be such as to afford the
greatest possible space for water at the
greatest possible distance from the centre
of the wheel, with sufficient space for the
entrance of the water and displacement of
the air. In discharging the water from
the wheel also, the buckets should retain
the water to the lowest possible point.
These conditions are attained by making
the pitcli ff of the buckets, or their dis-
tance from lip to lip, L'- times the depth
of the sliroiiding ; the depth of the front
of the bucket /_y inside, equal to the pitch ;
and the breadth of the bottom g h as
great as can be attaineii consistently with
free access of the water to the bucket
immediately preceding ; this breadth,
inside, should not exceed two-fifths cf the
depth of the shrouding. The figure repre-
sents one-half of the shrouding-plates re-
moved, in order the better to exhibit the
position of the buckets.
1730. The shrouding -plates are bolted
upon the buckets and soling by bolts pass-
ing from side to side; and, in order to
prevent resilience in the wheel, the
arms are su[»ported with diagonal braces.
The toothed segments which operate on
the pinion k, are bolted to the side of the
shrouding ilirough palms cast upon them
for that purpose, and the true position of
these segments requires that their pitch-
lines should coincide with the circle of
gyration of the wheel : when so placed,
the resistance to the wheel's action is made
to bear upon its parts, without any undue
tendency to cross strains. For that rea-
son, it is improper to place the pitch-line
beyond the circle of gyration, which is
frequently done, even uf)on the periphery
of the water-wheel. The determination
of the true place of tlie circle of gyration
is too abstruse to be introduced here, nor
is it necessary to be so minute in the small
wheels, to which our attention is chiefly
directed ; suffice it to say, that the pitch-
line of the segment wheel should fall
between one-half and two-fifths of the
breadth of the shrouding, from the extreme
edge of the wheel.
1731. Another important point is that
tchere the power is taken off from the
wheel, that is, the ))laciiig of the pinion k.
The most advantageous part for placing
this pinion is in a line horizontal to the
axis of the water-wheel : here the whole
weight of the water acts in impelling the
pinion, while no strain is brought on the
shaft bey<md the natural weight of the
wheel. In every position above this, un-
necessary strains are brought upon the
shaft and otiier parts of the wheel, and
these increase with the distance from the
first point /t, till, if placed at the oi)posite
point horizontal to the axis, the load upon
the shaft would be double the weight of
all the water upon the wheel, over and
above the weight of the wheel itself.
1732. Laying the water upori the
wheel is another point of some conse-
quence ; but whether it be delivered over
the crown of the wheel, or at any point
below that, the water should be allowed
to fall through such a space as will give
it a velocity equal to that of the periphery
of the wheel when in full work. Thus,
if the wheel move at the rate of 5 feet per
second, the water must fall upoti it
through a s[)ace of not less than '4 foot ;
for, by the laws of falling bodies, the
velocities acquired are as the times and
whole spaces fallen through, to the squares
of the time. Thus the velocity acquired
in ]" being 32 feet, a vehjcity of 5 feet
will be acquired by falling .IJG"; for 32:
1":: 5: .156", and 1"-: 16:: .156"": .4
foot, the fall to produce a velocity of 5
feet. But this being the mininmm, the
fall from the trough to the wheel may be
made double this result, t)r about 10 inches.
The trouL'h which delivers the water upon
the wheel should be at lejist 6 inches less
in breadth than the wheel, to give space
for the air escaping from the buckets, and
to prevent the water dashing over at the
sides ; I, fig. 1 40, is the trough and m the
spout that conveys the water to the wheel.
It is convenient to have a regulating sluice
??, that serves to give more or less water
to the wheel ; and this is worked by a
small shaft passing to the inside of llie
barn. The shaft carries a pinion q, work-
ing the rack of the sluice-stem r, a small
friction-roller s being placed in proper
bearings on the crosshead t of the sluice-
frame ; and this a])paratus is workdl inside
the barn by means of a lever handle upon
the shaft of the ])inion </. As a waste-
sluice, the most convenient and simple, in
a mill of this kind, is the trap-sluice o,
ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GRAIN IN THE STEADING.
399
which is simply a board hinged in the sole
of the trough, and opening from the
wheel ; it is made to shut close down to
the level of the sole, and, when so shut,
the water passes freely over it to the
wheel. The lifting of this sluice is effected
by means of the connecting-rod u and
crank-lever », the latter being fixed upon
another small shaft, which passes through
the wall to the interior of the barn, where
it is worked in the same manner as the
former. When it is found necessary to
stop the wheel, the trap is lifted, and the
whole supply of water falls through the
shoot 0 p, leading it to the bottom of the
wheel-arc b'l/, by which it runs off, until the
sluice at the dam can be shut, which stops
further supply. The wheel here described,
if it moves at the rate of 5 feet per
second, will make 6^ revolutions per
minute. The pinion-shaft of k will carry
a spur-wheel by which all the other parts
of the machine can be put in motion. The
rate of the spur-wheel depends on the
relation of the water-wheel and its pinion.
In the present case they are in the pro-
portion of 8 to 1, and, as the water-wheel
makes 6| revolutions per minute, this,
multiplied by 8, will give 54 to the spur-
wheel.
1733. There is a diminutive form of
thrashing-machine that merits notice, — a
one-horse machine. In some of our pa-
storal districts, where the proportion of
arable land is so small as not to warrant
the expense of a large thrashing-machine,
these have been very successfully adopted.
They are constructed with a small horse-
wheel, generally over-head; and the
motion is carried into the barn in the
usual ft)rm, where a spur-wheel drives the
drum-pinion at a velocity of 250 turns
per minute. Tliedrum strikes downward,
and has a pair of feeding-rollers. There
is neither shaker or fan attached to the
machine, and four people are required to
carry on the process, the dressing being
an after operation. With this little
machine 12 bushels of oats can be thrashed
in an hour ; and the whole cost of it is
about £20.
1734. There remains to be noticed one
more member of this family of machines,
— the Engl ish portable thrash ing-machine.
It is now most extensively employed in
the southern parts of the kingdom, and
apparently to good purpose. But while
this may be granted to tlie machine, I
demur to the practice whicli involves out-
of-(h)or tlirashing, and a system of lialf
performed work. But it is to the machine,
and to one member of it alone, that I
wish to direct attention, namely, the drum.
It appears to me, in regard to this mem-
ber, that the English and the Scotch
machines operate on different principles.
In the latter, as is well known, the thrash-
ing is performed by a process of beating-,
and the instrument acts over but a short
space, upon the grain undergoing the pro-
cess— that is, while it is under the drum-
cover, or about one-fourtli the circum-
ference of the drum-case; and even during
a part of tliis progress, the cover is so
distant from the beaters — about 3 inches —
that little effect is produced upon the
straw beyond a few inches from the feed-
ing-rollers. There can be no doubt that,
owing to this peculiar construction, when
a stray ear of corn, or a sheaf-band, hap-
pens to enter root foremost, they are very
likely to pass unthrashed, for the rollers
have no hold of them ; and they are so
lightly pressed upon the beaters that we
cannot be surprised at their passing in an
imperfectly thrashed state. It has come
under observation, also, that, taking our
machines as usually worked, and applying
them to the thrashing of corn cut by tlie
scythe, the work, from the same cause, is
often imperfectly performed, mainly in
consequence of many of the ears entering
by the reverse end. Of late years, many
attempts have been made to improve our
thrashing-machines, by improving the
shaking apparatus, apparently forgetting
that the shaker should have nothing to
do beyond separating loose grains from
the straw. The duty of the shaker is not
to thrash; and when foul thrashing ap-
pears, it is the drum, not the shakers, that
are in fault.
1735. Let us turn to the English
machine, which has nothing, it is true,
beyond a drum and feeding-rollers, and
they even — the rollers — can be left out.
The drum, or, as it might be called, the
rubber., though armed with what may be
termed beaters, does not, in fact, thrash
by beating, but by rubbing the grain
against a wire grating ; and in this lies its
400
PRACTICE— WINTER.
best qualities. The drum of this machine
is a skeleton formed of two rings of cast-
iron, fixed upon an axle, and to these
rings are fixed six beaters, lying parallel to
the axle, forming a skeleton cylinder. It
revolves within a concave, which embraces
nearly three-fourths of its circumference,
and is nowhere more distant from the
beaters than 1^ inch. The concave is
nearly throughout an open trellis or grat-
ing, composed of plates and rods of iron
and wire ; and to complete all, this drum
makes from 700 to 9U0 revolutions per
minute. In an apparatus of this kind, it
is impossible that an ear of corn, enter
bow it may, can escape unthrashed, or
rather rubbed ; for it is evident, that the
machine operates by a process of rubbing
out the grain ; and with all the delects
attending those machines, it must be
granted that they thrash clean.
1736. Contrasting these machines, we
see the Scotch one operating with a very
heavy, and, from its general construction,
sluggish cylinder, its beaters moving with
a velocity of less than 3000 feet a mi-
nute, and the grain subjected to its influ-
ence over a space not exceeding 1 \ foot ;
and when worked by 4 horses, thrashing
at the rate of 26 bushels of w heat per hour,
dressing included. In the English machine
is to be seen a small and extremely light
skeleton cylinder, which, from its structure,
must be easily moved, though its beaters
move with a velocity of 4000 feet per
minute, and the grain subjected to its in-
fluence over a space of about 4 feet, and,
when worked by 4 horses, thrashing at
the rate of 36 bushels of wheat per hour,
but not dressed, though in general very
clean thrashed. The straw is perhaps a
little more broken, whidi is sometimes
unimportant.
1737. "I cannot view these two ma-
chines," well observes Mr Slight, " with-
out feeling impressed with a conviction
that both countries would soon feel the
advantage of an amalgamation between
the two forms of the machine. Thfe drum
of the Scotch thrashing-machine w(»uld
most certainly be improved by a transfu-
sion from the principles of the Englisli
machine ; and the latter might bo ecjuaily
improved by the adoption of tlie manu-
facturing-like arrangements, and general
economy of the Scotch system of thrashing.
That such interchange will ere long take
place, I am convinced ; and as I am alike
satisfied that the advantages would be
mutual, it is to be hoped that these views
will not stand alone. It has not been
lost sight of, that each machine may bo
said to be suited to the system to which
it belongs, and that here, w here the corn
is cut by the sickle, the machine i.< adapted
to that ; while the same may be .'^aid of
the other, where cutting by the .'^^cvtlie is
so much practised. Notwithstanding all
this, there aj)pears to be good jiroperties
in both that either seems to stand in need
of, and it is not improbaldc but that the
grain in Scotland will ere long be entirely
cut down by the scythe."
ON THE THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF
GRAIN.
1738. The first preparation for thrash-
ing corn — that is, separating the grain
from the straw by the thrashing-machine
or the flail — is taking in the stack to be
thrashed, and mowing it in the upper or
thrashing-barn. The person appointed to
superintend the barn-work, is the one
who forks down the stack to be conveyed
into the barn. This is generally the
steward, where there is one ; and where
there is none, the jjcrson who superintends
the field-workers usually takes this ciiarge.
In some cases the hedger does it, when
there is not much field-work in winter.
Suppose, then, that the steward under-
takes the duty, — he is assisted in it by 4
field-workers.
173.9. When about to take in a stack, he
provides himself with a ladder to reach
its eaves, and a long small fork, usually
employed to pitch sheaves at leading-
time to the builder of stacks. He also
provides himself with a stout clasp-knife,
which most farm-servants carry. Stand-
ing cm the ladder, he, in the first place,
cuts away with the knife all the tyinga
of the straw-ropes at the eaves of the
stack. On gaining the top, the ladder
is taken away, and he cuts away as much
of the ropes as he thinks will allow him
to remove the covering with the fork.
The covering is then pushed down to the
ground, until the top of the stack ia
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
401
completely bared. On the side of the
stack nearest the barn, a little of the co-
vering is spread upon the ground by the
field-workers, to keep the barn-sheet off
the ground, and they spread the sheet
over tlie spread straw, close to the bottom
of the stack. The sheaves first thrown
down from the top of the stack upon the
sheet are taken by the women, and placed
side by side, with the corn end upon the
edge of the sheet, along both its sides, to
keep them down from being blown up by
the wind, or turned up by the feet. The
sheet is seen spread out at «, fig. 141,
141.
CASTING DOWN A STACK TO BE THRASHED.
fritm the base of the stack i, which is in the
act of being thrown or cast down by the
steward c, and the sheaves, keeping down
one side of the sheet, are seen lying in a
row as at d. One barrow g, is in the act
of being loaded by the field- worker /,
whilst another worker g assists in load-
ing every baiTow as it returns empty;
and another barrow h is seen fully loaded,
and in tlie act of being wheeled away by
the third field-worker « to the barn. Each
barrow-load, as it arrives at the upper
barn, is tilted upon the floor, and emptied
at once, instead of the sheaves being lifted
out of it one by one. Two barrows, if
the distance from the barn is not great,
will bring in a stack of ordinary size in a
moderate time, say in 3 hours. The fourth
worker remains in the upper barn, to pile
up the sheaves as they are brought in into
what are called mo«*5— that is, the sheaves
are placed in rows, parallel to each other, to
a considerable height, with their butt ends
outwards, the first row being piled against
the wall, as seen at a, fig. 145. In casting
the stack, the steward takes up the sheaves
in the reverse order in which the builder
had laid them at harvest-time, beginning
with those in the centre first, and then re-
VOL. I.
moving those around the circumference one
by one. The fork thrust into the band will
generally hit the centre of gravity of the
sheaves, where they are most easily lifted,
and swung towards the sheet. The sheaf
k is about the position it assumes on being
pitched by a fork, the corn end always
having a tendency to drop downwards,
and it is supposed to have been lifted
from its bed at I. When all the sheaves
of the stack have been wheeled in, the
steward takes a rake and clears the ground
of all loose straws of corn that may have
been scattered from the stack to the barn,
and puts them into the sheet, the four cor-
ners of which are then doubled in towards
the middle, including within them the
grain that may have been shaken out by
the shock received by the sheaves on being
thrown down ; and the sheet, with its con-
tents, are carried by all the women into
the barn, and its contents emptied on the
floor, near the feeding-in board of the
thrashing-machine. The sheet is then
siiaken, and spread out upon the stack-
yard wall, or other airv place, to dry be-
fore being folded up to be ready for use on
a similar occasion. The covering of the
stack is then carried away by the women,
2c
402
PRACTICE— WINTER,
to such parts of the courts and hanimels as
are considered by the cattle-man to require
littering, before it becomes wetted with
xain, and tlie ground raked clean. The
straw-ropes, which bound down the cover-
in"' of the stack, should be cut by the
steward into short lengths before being
carried away in the litter, as lonij rojjes
are found very troublesome to tlie men
■when filling their carts with the dung on
clearing out the courts. Stacks should be
carried into the barn in dry weather,
though a drizzling or muggy day will do
little harm to the straw. Damp straw
passes through the thrashing-mill not only
with difficulty, but is apt to mould and
contract a disagreeable smell in the straw-
barn. A stack may remain in the barn
until the straw is required ; or it may be
thrashed the first wet day; or it may be
required to be thrashed on the subse(iuent
part of the day in which it is carried ; or
it may be requisite to thrash it as brought
Fig.
in, in which case additional hands are re-
quired to bring it in, while the usual bam-
workers are enij>loyed at the mill. The
steward having to feeil in, the hedger, or
engine-man, or one of the men, should field-
operations not be pressing,or even a woman,
in a case of emergency, can cast the stack,
provided the covering is taken oft" for her,
which the steward will do ere the mill is set
on Two barrow.s actively worked will keep
the mill going, if tlie distance from the
stack to the barn is short.
1740. The barn-sheet is made of thin
canvass, and should be about 12 feet
square. It is useful not only for this, but
many other j)urpose§ of the farm, of which
notice shall be taken as the occasion
suits.
1741. A very convenient means of
conveying the sheaves from the jtack to
tlie barn is the corn-barrotc, fig. 142, the
142.
THE CORX-BARROW.
construction of which is so obvious that a
specified description seems unnecessary,
farther than that it is about (J feet in
length, and stands 2^ feet in height to
the top of the bracket. The sheaves are
laid across the barrow in rows, with the
corn and butt ends alternately, and tliey
are kept from sliding oft' in the act of beinij
wheeled, by the slanting bracket which is
supported by stays. In this way, from 10
to 15 sheaves, according to their bulk,
may be wheeled away at once by a
woman.
1742. Ladders are most useful imple-
ments about a farm-steading. Tliey are
best formed of tapering Norway j)iue
spars, sawn up the middle. A useful form
of ladder for farm purposes is shown in
fig. 143, where the rounded form of the
Norway spar, divided in two, is placed
outmost, though it is as often placed
inmost. These spars a a, are connected
together by steps b of clean ash, pushed
through auger- made holes in the spars,
and rendered firm by means of wedges
driven into the outside ends of the steps.
The steps are 9 inciies apart, and 16 inches
long at the bottom, and 13 inches at the
top, in a ladder of 15 feet in length, which
is the most useful size for the use of a
stack-yard. To prevent the ladder from
falling to pieces, in consequence of the
shrinking of the round steps, a small rod
of iron is placed under the upper, middle,
and lower steps, where one of its ends is
jtassed through each spar, and held firmly
there by means of a shoulder on the inside,
and a nut and screw on the outside of
each end of the rods. When properly
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
40S
finished and painted, such a ladder will
last many years.
Fig. 143.
THE LADDER.
1743. A couple of 10 feet, a couple of 15
feet, and one of 24 feet ladders, will suffice
for all the purposes of a farm, as also
for the repairs of the steading and houses.
1744. Some dexterity is required to set
a long ladder on end, as also to carry it
from one place to another. To place it
in a j)erpendicular position, its lower or
heavy end should be shoved against any
object capable of resisting its slipping
upon the ground ; and on its light end
being elevated arm's-length above the
head, the position is kept good by another
person taking a step between the prongs
of a fork, by means of which that end of
the ladder is still more elevated, while it
is still increased by the first person push-
ing arm's-length, simultaneously, against
one step after another, till the perpen-
dicular j)ositiou is gained. A long ladder
is carried from one place to another in
this way, provided the distance to be
carried is sliort. Set the perpendicular
edge of the ladder against the right
shoulder, and then take hold of a step
with the right hand, and raise the ladder
steadily by it a little from the ground,
while, to retain the perpendicular position,
grasp a step above the head firmly with
the left hand, and then walk steadily
forward. Some can carry it steadily by
grasping one step with both hands, with
the edge leaning against the shoulder;
and some even are so powerful in the
arms, as to carry a ladder by the steps at
arm's-length before them, with one arm
above, and another below the head. A
ladder may be moved on the ground a
short distance, while standing in a per-
pendicular position, by holding a spar in
each hand at arms-length, and then mov-
ing first one foot of the ladder in advance,
and then the other, till the spot is gained.
This sort of motion, when applied to
moving a large stone, is technically named
by masons cuttivg. A long ladder is
brought down from the perpendicular to
the horizontal position, by placing it
against a stack, as against c, fig. 1 4o, or
any other object which will resist its foot-
slipping on the ground, and allowing it to
come to the inclined position against the
arms, with the hands stretched above the
head, and the ladder will approach the
horizontal position the farther you recede
from its lower end, the upper end being
supported by another person with a long
fork. When not in use, ladders should be
laid on the ground along the side of a stack,
or the stack-yard wall; when left standing
they are apt to twist. Ladders are more
frequently destroyed by being brought to
the grouiid in a careless manner, and by
being blown down by the wind while rest-
ing against a stack, than by fair use.
174.5. Anotlier mode of taking in a
stack into the upper barn is with a horse
and cart, when the sheaves are mowed
up by one woman, and carried from the
door by another. When this \}\&n is
adopted as a fixed one, there is no gang-
way to the upper barn, the cart being set
alongside the wall, and the sheaves forked
into the door upon the floor, from whence
404
PRACTICE— WINTER.
they are carried to the mow. This j>lan
als<) requires the stack-yard to be con-
structed so as a cart may pass and turn
between every two rows of stacks, thereby
causing it to occupy a large space of
ground. It has also the effect of laying a
plough idle when a stack is taking in,
unless there be an odd horse, w orked by
a lad, employed over and above the
ordinary number of draughts. If a plough
is laid idle upon every stack being taken
in, greater loss is incurred by eniph.ying
the horses in this way, than in paying 4
women and having 2 barrows ; and, after
all, the women will be required to work
in the barn when the mill is set on. "When
a horse is employed, 2 men are required
at the taking in of the stack ; one to cast
the stack, and the other to drive the
horse, unless, indeed, a woman is em-
ployed to cast the stack, which she may
occasionally do, but cannot be depended
on to possess the requisite strength to
do the work throughout the season. On
taking in with a horse, one barn-sheet
is required at the stack and another at
the barn-wall. The cart-wheels are apt
to cut up the stack-yard in wet weather,
unless the roads through it are metalled
with stone.«, which incurs expense; and in
time of snow, a complete road must be
cut for the passage of the cart. Roads
through a stack-yard, to admit carts every
where, and give freedom to go to the barn
from any part, lays the stack-yard open
to people and stock. I confess I like the
gangway and barrows, as being a neater
and quieter mode of proceeding with the
work, especially as women are obligeil to
be employed in the barn ; but even with a
gangway, a cart or carts maybe occasion-
ally employed in taking in a stack while
the mill is going, by the sheaves being
forked from the cart, across the head of the
gangway, into the upper bam, and thence
taken to the mow or feeding-in table.
1746. Before setting on tli© thrashing-
mill, its several parts require to be oiUd.
Fine sweet oil should be employed for
this purpose, though too often a coarse
dirty oil is used. It should be jtut for use
into a small tin-flask, having a long nar-
row spout, fig. 144, to reach any gudgeon
behind a wheel. The guilgyns which
require oiling are those of the drum, the
apiir-wheel, the shakers, and the fanners;
and, with horsepower, that of the pinion of
the lying-shaft, as also the step of the
Fig. 144.
THE OIL-CAN.
bone-wheel ; and in the case of water-
power, those of the wheel, and the lying
and upright shafts. It is the duty of the
steward to oil the machine.
1747. When steam is employed as the
moving power, the fire should be kindled
by the engine-maa in time to get up the
steam by the moment it is wanted. From
half an hour to an hour may be required
for this ])urpose, according to the state
of the atmosphere. When water is the
power, the sluice of the supply dam should
be drawn up to the proper height, to
allow the water time to reach the mill-
wheel sluice when it is wanted. When
the power is of horses, the horses are
yoked in the wheel by their respective
drivers, immediately after leaving the
stable at the appointed hour of yoking;
and while one of the men is left in charge
of driving the horses, the others go to the
straw-barn to take away the straw from
the screen of the mill with straw-forks,
fiffs. 110, 111, and fork it in mows across
the breadth of the barn.
1748. The steward undertakes the feed-
ing-in of the corn, and has the sole con-
trol of the mill. Two women are ap-
pointed to the upper barn above — one to
bring forward the sheaves, the other to
loosen their bands and place them, as re-
quired, upon the table of the feeding-in
board. Other two women are a]>])oiiited
in the corn-barn below, one to take away
the corn as it comes from the spout, and
riddld it with a riddle appropriate to the
sort of corn, in a bin in one corner or side
of the barn. The other takes away the
ronghs, or coarse corn, from the other
spout, and riddles it with an appropriate
riddle in a henp by itself, throwing the
ekimniings of the riddlings in a chaff-
sheet, which she carries to the upjx'r barn,
to be again put through th ■ mill. Where
elevators are in use, one woman is suffi-
cient in the corn-barn to riddle the com
as it comes from the clean spout, and the
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
405
otlier woman, in this case, tramps tlie
straw-mow in tlie straw-barn. It is tlie
duty of one of tlie women in tlie corn-barn
to see that the chaff does not accuinuiate
upon the end of the mill-fanners, and
fall down into the rough spout. To
ascertain the state of the chaff easily, a
small sliding shut should be made in the
wooden partition between the corn-barn
and chaff-house, on o[)ening and looking
through which, the state of the chaff will
at once be seen. When water or steam
is employed, women either take away
the straw from the machine, independent
of those in the barns, or men do it, such
as the hedger or cattle-man, and at times
the shepherd. In all cases, a woman
should spread the straw and tramp it in
mows in the straw-barn, as it comes from
the mill, and form one mow after another.
1749. A chaff-sheet for carrying oat-
chaff or riddlings, or other refuse from the
barns, consists of thin sacking or cotton
bagging — and there should at least be two
of them in the corn-barn. From 5 to b\
feet square makes a convenient size of
chaff-sheet.
1750. Every thing being thus prepared,
(and every preparation ought to be com-
pleted before the mill is moved,) the mill
is ordered by the steward to be set a-going
by the engine-man or driver — and which
is best done by means of ringing a bell,
hung in the engine-room or horse-coui-se, —
when the power is steam or horses, and he
himself lets on the water to the wheel
when the power is water. The power
should be applied gently at first, and no
corn should be presented until the mill
has acquired its proper momentum — the
thrashing-motion^ as,'\i is termed. When
this has been attained, in a very few
seconds, and which a little experience will
teach the ear to recognise instantly, the
steward — the feeder-in — takes a portion
of a slieaf in both his hands, and, letting
its corn end fall before hiui on the feeding-
in board, spreads it with a shaking and
disengaging motion across the width of
the board. His great care is, that no
more is fed in than the mill can thrash
cleverly ; that none of the corn is pre-
sented sideways, or with the straw end
foremost. He thus proceeds with a small
quantity of corn for a few minutes, until
he ascertains the capacity of the mill for
work at tlieparticular time, which is much
affected by many circumstances, and then
the rc((uisite quantity is fed in ; but on
no account should the feed exceed one
sheaf at a time, however fast they may
have to be supplied in succession.
1751. The ascertainment of the capa-
city of the mill is necessary every time
the mill fs used ; for however well ac-
quainted the feeder-in may be with it
generally, and whatever power may be
employed, it is not alike effective under
all circumstances. For example, the
water may flow quicker or slower; the
horses move slower and duller or brisker ;
and the steam be more or less easily
raised, and retain its elasticity longer or
shorter one day than in another. If
water is flowing freely into the supply-
dam while the thrashing is going on, it
"will come more quickly towards the wheel,
and consequently maintain the thrashing
pace of the mill for a longer time than
when it flows from a full dam until it is
emptied, when the power becomes less by
degrees. So with horses : the state of
the weather will oppress them one day,
and they will work with languor and
irregularity, do what the driver can to
induce them ; while in another day, they
will work with an active pace throughout
the yoking. I presume less of this varia-
tion will be felt with steam than with any
of the other powers, but still the state of
the atmosphere must have some effect on
its elasticity. The direction and stiength
of the wind affects the progress of thrash-
ing. When it blows in the direction of
the straws passing through the mill, the
thrashing will proceed briskly. So power-
fully have I seen this exem{)lified, that the
upper barn door had to be kept shut, to
moderate the effect of the wind. On the
other hand, when the wind blows against
the straw through the mill, the thrashing
may proceed so slowly as that the doors of
the straw-barn are obliged to be closed —
and then some of the corn will pass along
with the straw.
17.')2. Acquainted with all these pro-
motive and retarding circumstances,
suppose that the feeder-in </, fig. 145, is
I ready to proceed. He takes the sheaves
from the feeder-in board e, supplied by the
406
PRACTICE— WINTER.
woman stationed beside it /, whose duty
it is to loosen the bands of the sheaves ;
but he should not allow her to put on more
than one sheaf at a time on the table, as is
the propensity to do, much to his annoy-
ance in separating the sheaves ; while the
Fig. 145.
FBEDIXG IN CORN INTO THE THRASHING-MAf IIINK IN THK IPPER BARN.
other woman g^ brings forward the sheares
from the mow «, and places them in a
convenient position before the other
woman /", and even loosens a band occa-
sionally in assistance.
17.53. There are certain circumstances
which greatly affect the action of the mill
in the cleanness of its thrashing. One de-
pends on the dririvp of the horses^ in which
a considerable diH'erence is felt by the
feeder-iu when one man keeps the hordes
at a regular pace, whilst another drives
them by fits and starts. The regular mo-
tion is attained by the driver walking
round the course in the contvart/ direction
to the horses, in which he meets every
horse at least twice in the course of a
revolution, and which keeps all the horses
upon their mettle, every horse expecting
to be spoken to when he meets the driver.
The irregular motion is jtroduced by his
Walking in the same direction with the
horses, when the horse next him makes the
greatest exertion until he outstrips the
man, when he slackens his pace ; and then
the horse following him, on coming up to
the man, exerts himself until he also
passes Irim ; and so on in succession, one
horse after another. The man always
walks slower- than the horses ; and when
he irives a crack of the whip the horses
give a start, an<l strain the machine; but
immediately after this they relapse into
the irregular motion, caused as above
described. In such a style of driving a
willing horse is sure to get more to do, and
a lazy one less than he should, as horse-
wheels are usually constructed. Tlie
gangway, which is sometimes made for the
driver to walk in within the stays of the
wheel, serves only to encourage his indo-
lence. I have seen a fellow fast asleep
while leaning against one of these stays,
on being carried round on the gangway.
Tiie horses receive a breathing of 15 or
20 minutes at mid-yoking in the mill.
1754. Another cause of foul thrashing
is cuttin<r the bands of the sheaves with a
knife, instead of loosening the band and
corn-knot. The cutting is a quick mode
of assisting the woman who han<ls the
sheaves to the feeder-in, but the knot, in
passing sideways with the sheaf, almost
escapes the drum. Every band should be
loosened, its corn-knot untied, and laid
along the sheaf to which it belongs, when
it will have the chance of being thrashed
clean. If one woman is unable to loosen
the bands fast enough, on account of the
shortness of the sheaves, the other woman
should assist her by laving loosened sheaves
before her ; but if a third woman is found
requisite for the work, let her be engaged
rather than the straw be not thrashed clean.
1755. Too slow or too fast a motion of
the mill, and the ]>ermission of jiortionsof
sheaves going broa<lside on, or butt end
foremost, to the feeding-rollers, will cause
foul thrashing, and consequent loss of corn.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
407
1756. There are several incidental In-
conveniences attending the act of thrash-
ing under particular circumstances — as,
when the sheaves are very long, the
feeding-rollers take a long time to pass
them through, even after the fast motion
has been given them. In a very quick
motion, the beaters of the drum are apt
to chop the straw in pieces. On the other
hand, very short sheaves are taken in so
quickly as almost to elude the drum, even
when the feeding- rollers are put on the
slow motion. It is a laborious task to
feed in short sheaves of any sort, and
especially of oats, so as to keep this mill
steadily thrashing ; and it is loss both of
time and power to allow the feeding-rollers
to be idle, even for a moment, I was once
very hard worked, as were the women
who loosened the sheaves and riddled the
corn, in feeding-in a stack of ordinary
dimensions of Blainslie oats of very short
straw, when the sheaves disappeared
through the feeding-rollers in an instant,
though on the slowest motion. The stack
took about 65 hours to thrash with horses,
and during this time 64 bolls, or 384
bushels, of clean corn passed through the
mill — nearly 10 bolls or 60 bushels an
hour. Another cause besides short straw
may cause great labour in feeding-in,
— namely, inordinate application of the
moving power. Wind is the power which
is most likely to elude the control of man.
I remember of a windmill which ran off,
and could not be stopped by the brake, in
consequence of a sudden gale pressing
more forcibly upon the sails than it was
in the power of the apparatus to furl them ;
and such a velocity did the mill attain
that two men were required to feed in,
and horses and men to bring in corn to
the machinery, until the M'ind should abate
a little — which it did not at all until three
large stacks of oats had been thrashed,
at the rate of 16 bolls, or 96 bushels, per
hour. When the straw is long and supple,
it is apt to wind round the upper feeding-
roller — and, when it does, no more corn
should be fed in, as it will be drawn in
instantly by the drum. In some mills a
reverse motion is given to the feeding-
rollers, to obviate the accident by unwind-
ing the straw ; but it does not always serve
the purpose intended. Indeed, I never
Baw a good instance of unwinding by the
rollers. A much better plan is, to cut the
straw with a stout knife, while the rollers
are n\oving in their usual course. The
most convenient form of knife is that of
a razor set dead in a stout wooden handle.
It should be always at hand within a
leathern strap nailed on the inside of the
post of the drum-framing, near the right
hatul of the feeder-in. Long oat-straw is
liable to warp at all times, especially when
damp, and brought direct from the field.
Some mills are closed in with boarding
above the drum-cover, to conceal the first
rake from view ; but in close muggy wea-
ther, or with the straw not completely dry,
tlie straw is apt to linger about the rake —
and, to notice this inconvenience, the board
has to be raised up very often. Such a
board is useful when wheat is thrashing,
when its grains, striking against the sur-
face of the rake, are thrown back with
great force upon the face of the feeder-in.
So painfully have I felt the pellets of
wheat strike my face, in the absence of
such a board, that a sack had to be nailed
up to ward off the grain. The inconveni-
ence of the straw collecting in front of the
first shaker I have seen most frequently
occur when seed-wheat was thrashing iu
autumn, before the straw was completely
won ; and wheat-straw, in that state, will
even wind round the rollers.
17-'57. When the sheaves are about all
thrashed, one of the women takes the rake
^, fig. 145, and pushes with its inverted
head all the loose corn along the floor, as
about c, that has come out fi'om the straw,
into a heap at the feeding-in board, upon
which it is placed by the other woman
with the wecht/^ While the feeder-in is
putting this loose corn towards the rollers
with a stout stick, kept in the barn for the
purpose, the woman who had raked it iu
now sweeps the entire floor towards the
board, with the besom i. The mill is then
stoj)ped for a few minutes, until ail the corn,
chaft", and straw belonging to the particu-
lar stack thrashed are swept away from
the drum-gudgeons, and elsewhere, and
placed on the feeding-in board, that no
remains of the corn iu hand may be left
to mingle with perhaps a very difterent
sort of grain iu the stack that will be
thrashed next. While all this is proceed-
ing, the women in the corn-barn are not
idle. One has riddled the tail of the
corn-bin, and shovelled the bin close against
408
PRACTICE— WINTER.
a convenient part of the barn-wall ; wliile
the other lins taken up to the upper haru
the roiiKiiiiin«,' refuse, to be passed again
throuu'h the mill, and swept the barn
floor clean, and hung up the riddles against
the walls, and put the other implements
into their proper places.
IT.'iS. When barley is thrashed, the
roughs are , not riddled as it comes from
the spf)ut, but reserved to be put through
the mill after the sheaves have all been
thrashed. The hatchway «, fig. 127,
forms a convenient means of communica-
tion betwixt the corn and upper barns,
and through it the roughs arc handed up
in wechts, and placed on the feeding-in
board, from which the feeder-in supplies
the mill in small quantities with the stick,
so as the roughs may have time to be
thoroughly beaten by the drum ; for, with
the exception of the fanners to blow away
the awny refuse into the chaff-house, the
rest of the machinery of the mill is of little
value in this operation. The use of the
stick for this and the operation mentioned
above, is to save the hands of the feeder-in
being seized by the feeding-rollers, when
feeding in so short a substance as roughs.
Few mills have elevators, and therefore
the barley-ronghs are usually treated as
now described.
IT-'iO. Any portion of the straw that
happens to be damp, which it is very
likely to be immediately after harvest,
will probably not be thrashed clean, and
it is advisable to put it again through the
mill. The opening in the wall at i, fig.
137, betwixt the upper and straw barns,
permits the damp straw to be forked up
from the straw-barn into the upper barn.
1760. After the mill has been used for
every purpose, the sluice of tlie dam is
immediately let down, the horses taken
out of the mill-course, or the steam let oil",
the hatchway and opening are closeil, and
the door of the upper barn is locked.
1761. The feeding-in of oats is similar
to that of wheat, but only the straw is not
60 easily separated in the sheaf.
1762. The bean being easily separatctl
from its pod, the fast motion of the
thrashing-machine should be put on when
it is thrashed ; but, the straw being
brittle, the best plan to avoid its being
much broken with the fast motion is to
feeJ the sheaves thin sidfwa^s, instead
of lengthways, into the feeding-rollers.
The pods being covered with down, it be-
comes black on the crop being won, which
the thrashing throws off like a thick black
impalpalde dust, which, on entering the
mouth and nostrils, and blackening the
clothes, makes the thrashing of beans a
disagreeable process; and the noise occa-
sioned by their impinging against the iron
lining of the drum-case, is most deafening,
and overpowers the human A'oice. In
thrashing peas, the feeding-rollers are
put on the fast motion, and the sheaf is
allowed to be taken in by them, while the
feeder holds on by the sheaf, and pulls it
thinner and thinner. Peas are as easily
thrashed out as beans ; but the process
does not create so offensive a dust, though
the noise attending it is very great. Peas
are riddled with the oat riddle, the refuse
generally being small clods of earth and
shrivelled grains, which are left in the
riddle, and given to the pigeons.
1763. I have said that the straw, as it
is thrashed, is mowed up in the straw-barn,
and it is done in this manner: — Two per-
s(ms are required to take away the straw
when the thrashing-mill is in motion.
The straw is received, as it falls continu-
ously down the straw-screen o', fig. 136,
upon the strongly boarded part of the floor
of the straw-barn below it, and is thence
taken up in forkfuls, with a large straw
fork, fig. 110, and carried to the part of
the straw-barn where it is intentled to be
mowed up, and where a field-worker is
ready to receive it and mow it up. The
mowing consists of spreading the straw in
a line, across the end or along one side
of the straw-barn, in breadths or mows of
.•5 or a feet, and tramjiling it firmly with
the feet ; and, when one mow has reached
such a height as the roofing ol the barn
will easily allow, another one is made
upon the floor beside it, and so on in suc-
cession, one mow after another, in jiarallel
order, until the stack is thrashed or the
barn filled. The advantage of putting
up straw in the barn in mows, in pre-
ference to building it over a large por-
tion of the barn-floor, is — that a mow
receives the straw in forkfuls, which re-
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
409
quire to be only spread a very little before
being tramped firm; wliereas over a broad
space the forkfuls would have to be
carried to tlie farthest end and sides — a
task which no single field-worker could
do as fast as the tnen fork it. And when
the straw is taken away, each mow is
easily removed by force of the arms alone,
whereas straw is very difficult to be pulled
asunder when built up and tramped in
broad spaces.
1764. When a stack of litter straw is
being thrashed, the cattle-man may be
saved a good deal of trouble in carrying
the litter to the courts and hammels,sliould
they require to be littered. To effect this,
the straw is carried in back-loads from
the straw-screen in short ropes, one end
of which is hooked on to the bottom of the
screen, and the other end is held in one
hand of the person who is to carry the
load, while the other hand guides the
straw into the rope. Those who carry
assist each other on with the load in the
barn. The carriers litter one court after
another methodically, and not at random,
in which tliey are assisted and directed
by the cattle-man, and by the field-worker
who would have had to mow the straw in
the barn.
1765. For the convenience of this pro-
cess, as well as for many others, it is
better to have the end of the straw-screen
cut off about 3^ feet above the floor of the
straw-barn, instead of allowing it to slope
down to the floor, because, when it is so pro-
longed, its end is in the way upon the floor,
and very apt to become injured by the
prongs of the large forks striking against it
when removing the straw; and it much in-
terferes with the convenience of bundling
straw directly from the mill, either for the
purpose of litter, fodder, or thatching stacks.
In some mills there is no straw-screen atall,
the straw fulling on the floor direct from
the apron of the second shaker. Besides
the inconvenience of the straw thus falling
directly upon the persons taking it away,
the want of a screen prevents the stray
grains of corn being separated from the
straw, and are therefore carried away in it.
1766. The next process in connexion
with corn is the winnbicivg — that is,
making it clean for the market — and this ■
process is conducted in the corn-barn.
The first thing to be done towards pre-
paring the thrashed heap of corn for the
market, is passing the roughs of wheat or
oats through the blower. Thismac-hine is
set with its tail at the barn-door, that the
chaff may be blown away from it. The
steward drives the fanners, one woman fills
the hopper with the roughs ; and as they
do not pass easily through the hopper, an-
other woman stands upon the stool belong-
ing to the barn, fig. 164, and pushes them
with her hand towards the feeding-roller;
while the other two women riddle the corn
upon the new-thrashed heap. The riddlings
of the roughs, and all the light corn, may
be put past for the fowls.
1767. Before proceeding to describe
particularly the winnowing of corn, it is
necessary to give you some idea of the
machines by which the corn is made clean
for market, such as the windowing ma-
chines, or fanners — so named in the latter
sense because they blow away the filth
from the corn by means of fans. When
cleaning fanners are fixed to one spot, and
are connected with elevators, they are
generally of large dimensions, and of more
complicated construction than when made
to be moved about in the barn. Fig. 146
is the elevatAon of the fixed fanner, which
is in dimensions 6 feet 9 inches in length,
4 feet 9 inches in height, and 1 foot 9 inches
in breadth, and where a is the fore fram-
ing, made in halves, and bolted together,
for the convenience of removing the out-
ward half of the fan-case ; h is the back
frame made single; c c is the side boarding ;
c? is a crank on the end of the spindle of
the fan, the arms of which are seen tra-
versing the spaces ^, which are the air-ports
by which the air finds access to the fans,
and upon which are placed sliding panels
//, by which the admission of the air, and
ultimately the force of the blast, can be
regulated ; the crank d is attached to the
connecting rody, which communicates mo-
tion to the double or bell-crank spindle h,
whose office it is to move the riddle-frame.
The hopper i receives the undressed grain,
and the spouts k I in deliver respectively
the first, second, and light grain, after
separation in the machine ; but, as it would
be inconvenient to deliver all these at one
side, there are corresponding sliders, k' I'
m'; and each side being provided with
410
PRACTICE— WINTER.
Fig. 146.
THK ELEVATION* OF THE DRESSING FANNER.
spouts and sliders, the latter are shifted so fourth foot of the machine to any inequa-
as to cause the three qualities to be de- lities of the barn-floor.
livered — two on one side, and the third in
the opposite. The slot-bar n is for the 1768. Y\^.\-^'i xsvilongitudinal section
purpose of adjusting the length of the of the same fanner, the letters of which
Fig. 147. ^
THE LONGITl DINAL SECTION OF THE DRESSING FANNER, WITH RIDDLES AND SIEVES.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
411
partly correspond with those in fig. 146.
The fans revolve within the circular case
fg A, the space /^ being open for the dis-
charge of the air,^o being the funnel-hoard;
s t\^ the shoe ; q r s is the riddle-frame,
which receives the two riddles u and v^
slid in grooves and movable ; w is the
hopper, on the front of which is the sluice
*, moved by the screw- winch x, to regu-
late the feed. The sieve frame is a' h\
■which receives two sieves into the grooves
e' and/'. The frames of both riddles and
sieves are supported by the chains V and
A', attached to the stretcher-rod h. The
toothed wheel i, seen through the air-port,
is turned by a winch-handle, and acts
upon a pinion fixed upon the axle of the
fan. The proportion of the wheel and
pinion are 45 to 1, the fan making from
212 to 220 revolutions per minute. The
spare riddles are kept in the locker lc\ V
being the lid opening into it; c ??' is a
slider that can be raised or depressed to
catch the light grain, while it allows the
chaff to j)ass over,
1769. The full complement of riddles
for the riddle-frame is 6, of which 2 only
can be employed at one time. Their
meshes are — for wheat 5 in the inch, for
barley 4 in the inch, and for oats 3 in
the inch. The slap-riddles are three quarter
inch, and 1 inch in the meshes. The sieves
are made of wire-cloth : the upper one has
9 meshes in the inch, the lower 7 meshes.
1770. Fig. 148 \^ 2itransvers('' section oi
the same fanner : a a are the frames, c c the
side-boardings, m m the light spouts, m' the
sliders, to change the direction of the dis-
charge; and 0' p' is the sloping division
0' p of fig. 147. The sieve-frame, with
its 2 sieves, are contained between a' and
b' ; and // are 2 flaunch-boards, sloping
over the sieve-frame, to direct the grain
upon the sieve. The riddle-frame, with
its riddles u and v, are contained between
r and 0; and w is the hopper, with its
sluice s. The end of the connecting-rod g,
fig 146, is seen at ^17, as jointed to the bell-
cranks that shake the riddles and sieves
by their attachment at b' and 0; i' is the
toothed wheel, with its winch-handle k,
and framework I, by which the fan is im-
pelled.
1771. When this fanner is in operation,
the blast is sent through the funnel f gob',
fig. 147. Its chief force is directed
Fig. 148.
THE TRANSVERSE SECTION OF THE DRESSING
FANNER.
upon that end of the riddles q 0; and
as the grain falls from the hopper upon
that end of the riddles, the lighter chatf is
immediately blown ofi' beyond the point c.
The remainder, with the grain, will be
passing tiirough the riddles towards the
sieve ; and during this stage, any remains
of chaff are blown off and the light grain
and seeds are blown beyond b'. The blast
not having power to carry them over c, they
fall down between c and b', and are dis-
charged at the lights spout 7n; at the same
time, the heavy grain and seeds fall upon
the upper sieve /', when all the plump
full-sized grains roll down over this sieve,
and are delivered at the Jirsts spout k.
These grains, together with other seeds
whose specific gravity exceeds the lights,
but whose bulk is under that which
the upper sieve is intended to pass, con-
sequently fall through the meshes, and
are received upon the lower sieve e'; upon
this the grain so received rolls down and
is delivered through a small oi)ening at the
foot of the sieve e' into the chamber of the
seconds spout I. The smaller seeds, such as
those of sinapis and others, being too small
to be retained even upon this sieve, fall
412
PRACTICE— WINTER.
through it, and arc received into the cliain- 1772. The finishing fanner or duster.
ber «, from whicii they arc removed at — This is a fanner of !;iniplcr construction
convenience throuirh the aperture;/, wliicii tiian fis^. 146. As re;.Mrds the hlast, it
ischised hy a sliding shutter. Tlie usual is constr\lT;ted on tlie same ]jrinciple as tiie
price of this fanner, with its riddles and former. Fig. 14!) is an cLvntion, in which
sieves, is <£!>, 9s. the framework is similar to the last, hut its
Fig. 149.
THE ELk:\'ATlUN OK TIIK FINISHING FANNER OH Dl'STER.
over-all dimensions are smaller, the ex- an open funnel, d e f fj ; the latter part,
treme length being .5 feet 8 inches, the /\<7 being continued outward from the feed-
height 4 feet 8 inches, and the width, as ing roller h, which is so placed as not to
before, 1 foot 9 inches. The main frame offer any obstruction to the current. The
aa\s again made in halves, and the back hopper i is furnished wnth asliderX% which
frame h is also single ; c is the air-port, is adjusted to the requisite feed by the
The wheel «?, and its pinion on the axle of screw I; and the sole of the funnel, from
the fan, are in the same pro{)ortion as be- m to rf, is a solid board, while the shoot
fore; but on the axle of the wheel, a from <Z to ?»■ — thepointof discharge for the
pulley is mounted, which, by means of a best corn — is a wire sieve. That part of
cross-belt e, drives the pulley /, of the
same diameter, and which is placed upon
the axle of a feed ing- roller. The side-
boarding^^, is formed to the taste of the
maker, except in that part which forms
the fan -case, and in the ])arts h and i,
which are cut away to afford more ready
access to the light corn, and to the small
Eeed that may have been sej)arated : /" and r the wheel-framing, and d the wheel ; /
the sole m d, and the board g o, are both
fitted to slide up or down to temper the
division of the light corn, should any of
them remain ; and p is a. division, sepa-
rating the light corn from the small seeds.
1774. Fig. 1 .51 is the transrersc section;
a a are the frames, h is the winch-handle.
I are handles by which it may be lifted
from one place of the barn to another.
1773. Fig. 150 is the longitudinal sec-
tion, where a a and Lb are the cross rails
of the frames, and c the air-port. In this
inac!iine, the blast is sent directly through
is the pulley of the feedinir-rollor, li the
roller, and i the hop])cr. Of the interior
parts, p is the division under the sole, m
is the sole as seen below, and dd are the
vanes of the fan, e e being its axle.
177"'. In operating with this fanner,
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
413
the grain is taken from tlie hopper by the
revolution of the feeding-roller ; and as it
falls perpendicularly in a thin sheet, is
intercepted by the blast under the most
Fig. 150.
THE LONGITUDINAL SECTION OF THE FINISHING FANNER OR DVSTER.
favourable circumstances. All such chaff iioht grain that may have remained is
and dust as yet remain amongst it, is separated also, and falls between g and w,
blown over the back-board ^, tig. 150 ; the down the spout g o ; the remainder ruiis
Fig. 151.
THB TRANSVERSE SECTION OF THE FINISHING FAN-
NER OR DUSTER.
down the sole m d, and in passing from d
to «, should any small seeds yet remain,
they are intercepted, and fall through the
screen d ii, while the best corn passes on,
and is delivered at n. The price of this
fanner is £6, 15s.
1776. The thrashing-machine fanner
differs little in its essentials from the first
described. Its position p is seen in figs.
135 and 136, immediately under the great
hopper 0. The width for a 6-horse power
machine ought to be considerably more
than the common fanners, not under 24
inches, nor is it requisite that it sliould
exceed 30 inches. The fan is of the same
diameter, and i\\ejirsts spout stands in the
same relation as described in fig. 146.
There is no spout corresponding to the
seconds of that figure ; but the foul spout
takes the place of the light corn. The rid-
dles and sieves of fig. 147 are entirely left
out, and in their place a simple shoe, with
a sheet-iron bottom, which is perforated
all over in 1-inch holes at five-eighth inch
apart. This is placed under the great hop-
414
PRACTICE— WINTER.
per, and is a!,'itateilbya connecting rod from
a crank on the fun-axle, in the same man-
ner as cxiiibited in fig. )4() at/;. The ex-
treme length of the machine fanners should
be 8 feet, and their height 4 feet 10 inches.
1777. Riddles. — The most complete im-
plements for separating heavy articles
from corn of any kind are riddles. They
are formed either entirely of wood, or
partly of wood and wire. Wood riddles
have long been in use, though I believe,
in tiie hands of a skilful riddler. the wire
riddle makes the best work. The wood
are made of fir or willow, but American
elm is the best. The wire riddles have
hitherto been made of iron wire, on
account, perhaps, of its cheapness ; but I
shouhl suppose that copper wire would
make a bette'r and more durable riddle.
A riddle, whether of wood or wire, con-
sists of a bottom of open mesh-work, and
of a cylindrical rim of wood, the diameter
of which is usually 23 or 24 inches, and
its depth 3 inches. Rims are made either
of fir, or oak, or beech, the last being most
used. ' In fir rims, Uie wooden withes of
the bottom are passed tlirougli slits,
thereby endangering the splitting of the
rim itself all round, which they not unfre-
quently do; but in the oak rim the
withes are passed through bored holes,
which never cause splitting. There is
little danger of wire splitting the rims of
any sort of wood. The following figures
of riddles are portions only of the bottom of
each kind, but the meshes are at full size?.
177
8. Fig. 152 is a wheat riddle of
wood, the
Fig. 152.
THE Wooden wheat riddle.
meshes of
which are a
quarter of
an inch
square, the
breadth of
the wood
splits three-
sixteenthsof
an inch, and
its price is
3s. 6d. with
an oak rim.
1779. Fig. 153 is a wooden barley
riddle having a mesh of five-sixteenths of
an inch square, the breadth of the withes
being a quarter of an inch.
3s. with an oak rim.
Fig. 153.
The price is
1 J_
')\m
W
THE WOODEN BARLEY RIDDLE.
1780. Fig. 154 is a wooden riddle for
oats, with three-eighths of an inch square
Fig. 154.
THE WOODEN OAT RIDDLE.
of mesh, and the breadth of the withes a
quarter of an inch. The price is 2s. 4d.
with an oak rim.
1781. Fig. 155 is a wooden riddle for
Fig. 155,
THE WOODEN BEAN RIDDLE.
beans, hav-
ing five-six-
teenths of
an inch
square in the
mesh, with
willies of
three - six-
teenths of
an inch in
width. The
J price is 3s.
Gd. with aa
oak rim.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
415
1782. For riddling the roughs of wheat
and oats, the roughs of barley not being
riddled, a wooden riddle, fii
Fig. 156.
156, has
the good grain
together with
Fig. 159.
THE WOOCEN RIDDLE FOR THE ROUGHS OF
WHEAT AND OATS.
meshes of one inch square, and the breadth
of the withes three-eighths of an inch. The
price is 2s., with
Fig. 157.
THE IRON-WIRE WHEAT
RIDDLE.
an oak rim.
1783. Fig.
157 is an iron-
wire riddle for
wheat, having
25 meshes in
the square inch,
including the
thickness of the
wires. The price
is 5s., with a
beech rim.
1784. Fig. 158 is an iron-wire riddle
for barley, having 16 meshes to the square
inch, including the thickness of the wire.
Fig. 158.
THE IRON WIRE BARLEY
RIDDLE.
The price is 4s.,
with abeech rim.
A barley wire
riddle answers
for riddling
beans, but an
opposite process
is performed, —
the small and
shrivelled beans
and other refuse
pass through the
meshes, while
left in the riddle ;
any lumps of clay and
stones that may
have accompa-
nied the good
grain, and which
nmst be re-
moved by the
hand.
1785. Fig.
159 is an iron-
wire riddle for
oats, having 12
meshes to the
square inch, in-
cluding the thickness of tlie wire. The
price is ys. 6d., with a beech rim.
1786. Fig. 160 is a wire riddle for
roughs, having the meshes 1| inch square.
Fig. 100.
THE IRON-WIRE RIDDLE FOR ROUGHS.
The price is 2s. 6d., with a beech rim.
Eiddles for roughs are also called slap-
riddles. When elevators are used in a
thrashing machine, no slap-riddles are re-
quired.
Fig. 181.
THE WOODEN SIEVE.
1787- Sieves.
—Fig. 161 is
a wooden
sieve for sift-
ing out dust,
earth, and
small seeds,
from corn,
havingmeshes
of one-eighth
of an inch
square, and
the breadth of
416
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the withes also one-eighth of an inch,
price is 3s. uJ., with an oak riui.
The
Fig. 162.
1788. Fig. 162 is an
iron-wire sieve, having 64
meshes to the square inch,
including the thickness of
the wire. The size is 22
inches diameter, culled No.
THE IRON- WIRE 8, and, with a heech rim, is
^'^^^ sold fur 5s. 6d.
1789. These are all the sizes and varie-
ties of riddles and sieves required on a
farm. Of slap-riddles and sieves, only
one of each size is used ; but of the riddles
for wheat, barley, oats, and beans, two of
each kind are required, whether of wood
or wire. I have tried both kinds, and pre-
fer the wire, as making better work, though
I am aware they require more dexterous
riddlers, to use them with advantage, than
the wooden riddles.
1700. ^Vechts or maunds for taking up
corn from the bin or floor, of the form of
h, fig. 145, are made either of withes or
of skin, attached to a rim of wood. One
of fir withes, with a rim of oak, costs
2s. 6d. A young calfs skin with the
hair on, or sheep's skin without the wool,
tacked to the rim in a wet state, after be-
coming dry and hard, makes a better and
more durable wecht than wood. Wechts
should be made of different sizes ; two as
large as two fulls shall fill the bushel with
ease, and others of smaller diameter, and
less depth of rim, to take up the corn fr^m
the fanner, to give to the riddlers. Bas-
kets of close and beautiful wicker-work,
such as fig. 163, are used in barns in parts
of England instead of wechts.
Fig. 163.
THR C0RN-BA8KKT OP WICKSR-WORK.
1791. A stont four- legged stool, 2^ feet
long, 9 inches broad, !»nd 9 inches iiigh,
fig. 1C4, made of ash, is useful in a barn,
to alh)w the women to reach the hopper of
the fanner easilv. For want «f a stool
the inverted bushel is taken to stand upon,
much to its injury.
Fig. 164.
THK BARN STOOL.
Fif. 165. 1792. Atcooden hoe,
fig. 165, 7 inches long,
and 4 inches deep in
the blade, fixed to a
shaft 9 inches long,
made of plane-tree, is
easier than the hands to
fill wechts with corn
from the floor.
THE BARN WOODEN
HOE
1793. A couple of wooden scoops, such
as tig. 166, to shovel up the corn in heaps.
Fig. 166. are indispensable imj)le-
ments in a corn-barn. The
scoop is 3 feet 3 inches
in height, with ahead like
a common spade ; a helve
18 inches in length, and
the blade 14 inches wide
and 16 inches long. The
blade, helve, and handle,
are all of one piece of
wood, of plane- tree, the
belly of the scoop being a
little hollowed out, and its
back thinned away to the
sides and face. This is a
convenient size of scoop
for women's use, and who
have most occasion to use
it, and it is also light. In
THE CORN SCOOP, the granaries in towns,
scoops are made longer, with a handle of
a separate piece of ash, and are clumsy
implements when made of more than one
piece of wood. A wooden scoop does not
injure a floor so much as an iron spade, and
better retains the corn upon its face, iu the
act of shovelling.
1704. Brooms are useful implements
in a steading, to sweep the different sorts
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
417
of floors, and they are formed of materials
suited best to clean the particular sort
of floor. For sweeping the floors of cause-
wayed or paved stables and byres, the
twigs of the birch tree form the most
elastic and durable brooms. They are tied
together with stout twine in bundles of
about 6 inches in diameter at the tied end,
and 2 feet in length. A wooden handle
of about 3 feet in lengtli is driven into
the tied end, and is kept in its ])lace by a
pin passed through it and the twigs. Tiie
sweeping end receives such a trimming
with the knife as to give it a flattened face
to the ground, sloped away to a point.
Fresh, twigs make the best brooms, and
after they have become perfectly dry, they
are very brittle. Brooms for the corn-
barn and granaries are best made of stems
of the broom plant, (^Genista scoparia,) a.iid
I presume the instrument derived its
name from the plant being so used, which
is simply tied together with twiue at one
end, about 3 feet in length, and used with-
out a handle. The broom is also in the
best state when fresh, and becomes very
brittle on being dried. When long straight
stems of the common ling (^Calluna vki-
garis) can be procured, they make Loth
good and durable brooms. The harder
birch is required to clear the dirt from
between the stones of a causeway, and the
softer broom answers best to keep the
baru-fluor. Hair brooms do not answer,
as bristles have not strength to clear
away the heavier dust often encoun-
tered in barns. Perhaps brooms of whale-
bone would answer better than broom, but
I have seen none of them as yet tried in
the country.
1795. Nails should be driven at con-
venient places in the walls and partitions
of the barn, to hang the riddles, wechts,
and sieves upon.
1796. The necessary implements being
described, the heap of grain, suppose it to
be wheat, is next to be winnowed. For
this purpose, the blower, fig. 140, is placed
alongside the heap, with its tail away
from the direction in which it is pmposed
to place the new riddled heap of grain
with its ofi"side, that is, its side farthest
from the driver, next the heap. The
steward adjusts the component parts of
the blower to suit the nature of the grain
VOL. I.
to be winnowed — namely, the tail-board,
g 0, fig. 150, should be no higher up than
to allbw the chaflf to escape over it,
while it retains the lightest even of the
grain ; the slide, m d, in the interior,
should only be so far up as to permit the
light grain to be blown over it, while it
retains all the heaviest, which pours down
d n to the floor. What falls from this
slide is the light corn, and it drops nearest
the chafl". The wire-screen below this
slide on (/ n permits dust and small seeds
of wild plants to pass through, and deposits
them between the liglit and heavy corn.
The opening of the sluice at the feeding-
roller k and h is so adjusted as that the
grain shall fall as fast, but no faster, than
the wind shall have power to blow away
the chaif and light corn from amongst the
heavy. All these adjustments of parts
may not be made the most perfect at once,
but a little trial will soon direct him
what requires to be rectified, and experi-
ence of the machine will enable him to
hit near the mark at once. The blower
should be made to stand firmly and
steadily on the floor when used.
1797. The arrangement of the persons
who winnow the corn, so as to proceed with
regularity and despatch, is this: — The
steward drives the blowei*. One woman
fills the hopper with corn with a large
wecht, or the basket, fig. 163, from the
heap, on the opposite side from the driver.
Her duty is to keep the hopper as nearly
full as she can, as then the issue of corn
from it is most regular, and she is assisted
in doing this the more easily by the use of
the barn-stool, fig. 164. Another woman,
with a smaller wecht, takes up the good
grain as it slides down upon the floor,
with the wooden hoe, fig. 165, and divides
the wechtful between the other two women,
who each stand with a riddle, fig. 152 or
157, in her hand at the place where the
new heap is to be made. The heap is
made in one corner, or against any part
of a wall of the barn, to take up as little
room as possible. When the two women
have received the grain into their riddles,
they riddle it, bringing the last part of
each riddling towards the edge of the
heaj), and casting what is left as the
scum in the riddles into the bushel, as a
receiver, placed conveniently to receive it.
The riddlings consist of capes, large
2d
418
PRACTICE— WINTER.
grains, sprouted grains, small stones, the
larijer class of seed of weeds, that could
not jKi-'s through the wire-screen in the
hh)\ver, clods of earth, bits of straw too
heavy to be blown away, and such like.
By the time the women have riddled the
quantity given them, the other woman
has taken up as mucii from the floor at
tiie blower as to supply them with a fresh
(piantity. When the corn begins to ac-
ctiiiiidate amongst the riddlers' feet, one
of them takes the wooden scoop, fig. lOfi,
and drawing with it the tail or edge of
the heap into a small heap, gives it up
in portions to the other riddler, who ])Uts
the remains of the riddlings into the bushel;
after which the large heap is shovelled up
against the wall, while the scattered grain
on the floor is swept towards it with a
broom i, fig. 145, by one of the riddlers, or
the woman who gives up the corn from the
blower, as the case may be. Wliile the
unwinnowed heap is becoming less, as tiie
riddled one increases in bulk, the woman
who has charge of it shovels it also up at
times, and sweeps in its edge, that no
scattered grains may be permitted to lie
upon the floor to get crushed with her
shoes. All the women should endeavour
to do their respective parts in a neat and
cleanly way. There is much diflerenee in
the mode of working evinced by different
women in the barn, some constantly spill-
ing grain on the floor, when they have
occasion to lift it with a wecht, evincing
the slattern ; but it is the duty of the
steward to correct every instance of care-
lessness ; whilst others keep the floor
clean, and handle all the instruments they
use with skill and neatness.
1798. The thrashed heap of corn being
thus passed through the blower, and
riddled in the manner described into
another heap, the chaffy matter blown
upon the floor is then carried away to the
dunghill, and the light corn subjected to
examination, as well as the riddlings in
the bushel. When the grain is of fine
quality, there will be no good grain, and
little bulk in the light corn heap, which
may all be put past for hen's meat ; but,
in other circumstances, the liizht corn, to-
gether with what is in the bushel, should
again be put through the fanners, and all
the grain taken out of it that would not
injure the clean corn, when mixed with
it. Wlien the light corn has thus been dis-
posed of, and the ."ceds and dust from the
screen carried out and ])laced on a bare
piece of ground for the pigeons, fowls, or
wild birds to pick up. and vol tlirowu upon
the dungiiill to render it foul with the
seeds of wild plants, the heap should be
shovelled up, the fanner thoroughly cleaned
and placed aside, and the floor swej)t.
17f>n. When corn is dressed clean,
there should nothing be seen but good
grains, — no shrivelled grains, no seeds of
other ])lants, no clods of earth, no straw,
no chafled grains. It is highly probable
that the dressing described above will be
sufficient to clean the corn ; but should any
earth or sn)all seeds be still detected
amongst it, and the blower cannot separate
these, the corn shoidd be sifted through a
sieve, fig. iGl or 162. Should light sub-
stances be still detected along with shri-
velled grain, the whole should again be put
through the fanner, and riddled as before
descrihed. Should light substances <mly
be found, these mav be blown away by the
fanner, and the corn will not again be re-
(|uiretltobe riddled, but measured into the
bushel, and ])ut into sacks from the fan-
ner. Good grain will be sufficiently dress-
ed by one piissage through the fanners, but
that of inferior quality will require twice
juitting through ; or should a su|)erior
class of fanner be used, such as fig. 146,
grain of even very inferior quality may
be made sufficiently clean by one winnow-
ing. In general, oats are made clean by
one winnowing, but wheat and barlev
require two thorough winnowings, that
is, twice through the fanner, and twice
riddled.
1800. Suppose, then, that the corn has
been treated as last described, and lies
in a heap to be measured into sacks, the
arrangements for doing this is seen in
fig. 167, where a is the steward with
the strike in his right hand, ready to
strike the corn in the bushel />, which
is in the act of being filled by the two
women cc, who are jjouring a wecht ful
each into it at the same time, and in
sucli quantity, as to fill it at once.
Other two women dd are holding the
mouth of the sack e ready for the bushel
to he emptied into it. The first two
bushelfuls are emptied into the sack from
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
419
the floor, and the last two are emptied and one of the women lifting it by its
by first placing the edge of the busLel handles, and when there, the women slip
upon the half-filled sack by the steward the month of the sack under the handle
Fig. 1()7.
THE MEASURING UP OF GRAIN IN THE CORN BARN.
nearest them, and while they raise the
bushel a little by means of the sack, the
steward turns the bushel over from him,
pouring the grain completely out of it into
the elevated mouth of the sack ; and thence
sustaining the weight of the empty
bushel with both hands, he sets it down
by the handle beside the heap of corn,
with one liandle towards the heap and
the other towards the sack, ready again
to be filled. Four bushels, or half a
quarter of grain, are put into one sack.
The sack, when full, is wheeled away
by the steward with the sack-barrow f
amongst the other sacks at g; and while
the steward is doing this, one of the
women d brings forward an empty sack
from the heap /«, which had been laid
neatly down by the steward, in sufficient
number to contain all the corn in tiie
heap, or what portion of it may be desired
to be measured up at the time. As the
heap i diminishes, one of the women c
shovels it into smaller space with the
scoop ^, and sweeps the floor clean to-
wards the heap with the broom /, and
then the whole party advance nearer the
heap. It is customary for the two sets
of women c c and d d to take the filling
of the bushel by turns every four sacks
filled, as the holding of the sacks is at-
tended with little fatigue, compared to
filling the bushel.
1801. There are some particulars re-
garding the measuring up of grain which
require attention. In the first place, the
bushel should be filled at once, because
it will hold more corn when filled with
two separate wechtfuls than with two at
once, the first wechtful getting time ti»
subside before tlie other is poured above it.
1802. In the next place, the wechtfuls
should not be poured into the bushel
from a great height, as the higher fall
compresses more grains into the bushel.
The women, cc in fig. 167, are purposely
shown pouring the corn from too great a
height into the bushel.
] 803. Another consideration is, that the
bushel be striked immediately after it is
filled. To do it quickly, the corn raised
in the centre of the bushel by the pouring
should be levelled with a wave of the
fingers of the left hand, in the lightest
manner, so as to make it spread around
towards, and not lower than, the edge of
the busliel farthest from tlie heap, and this
part of the edge is sweeped with the side
of the same hand, to clear it of every
grain of corn, and make it ready for the
strike to be applied, which should always
be drawn towards the heap, in order to
make the superfluous grain striked ofl" fall
as near it as practicable. As a proof how
much grain sinks in a bushel in a very
short time after it has been striked, a
space in the inside of the rim will be seen
all the way round, the moment that the
bushel is touched to be emptied; but a
more obvious proof is obtained on striking
the mouth of the bushel with a smart stroke
of the strike, and the grain will imme-
diately subside a considerable space.
420
PRACTICE— WINTER.
1804. Anotber matter is, that the grain
be well shaken down into the sack while
it is inoasured, so as to till np the comers,
and make the whole sack firm. It is
miicli easier for men to carry a well filled
sack to a distance, and especially up
several stairs to a granary, than one that
is loosely filled in. The filleil sack can
be commanded like a j)ack of goods ; in a
slack one, the grain is apt to shift its
boithage, to use a nautical phrase, and to
change the centre of gravity of the load.
1805. The corn is measured up direct
from the fanners in this way : — The stew-
ard drives the fans, one woman fills the
hopjjer, another puts the winnowed grain
into a large wecht, and fills the bushel at
once, strikes the bushel and empties it,
while the other two women hold the sacks,
one of whom wheels them away with the
sack-barrow as filled. There is one ob-
jection to this mode of filling the bushel,
that the tremor of the floor, occasioned
by the working of the fanner, is apt to
shake down the corn in it more than in the
way described above. In measuring up
corn for horses, or seed-corn of any kind,
or the corn to be given to the men as part
of their wages, it may be measured up in
any circumstances ; and as only oats can
be measured after one winnowing — it is
only that species of grain which is mea-
sured up direct from the fanner.
1806. Corn is now invariably measured
by the imperial bushel, fig. 168. It is of
Fig. 168.
THE IMPERIAL BUMihl, <it .\ cu.si KNIKNT FORM.
Cooper-work, made of oak and hooped
with iron; and, according to the AVeights
and Measures Act, must be stamped by
competent authority before it can he le-
gally used ; and, having been declared the
standard measure of caj)acity in the
country for dry measure, it forms the basis
of all contracts de|)endent on measures of
capacity when otherwise indefinitely ex-
I)ressed (.'ith Geo. IV., c. 74, sec. 15.)
The busliel must contain just 2150.42
cubic inche.'i, though its form may vary.
The form represented in the figure I con-
sider most convenient, being somewhat
broader at the ba.'-e than at the top, and
furnished with 2 fixed handles. It is not
too broad for the mouth of an ordinary
half-quarter sack, nor too deep to compress
the grain too much; and its 2 handles are
l)laced pretty high, so that it may he car-
ried full without the risk of capsizing.
Some bushels are made inconveniently
broad for a sack, for the sake of being
shallow, that the corn may not be com-
pressed in them. I have seen others sj)re;ul
out so much in the mouth as to render
them unsteady. Some have no handles at
all, and are obliged to be lifted by the
arms ; whilst others have only one handle
for the ])erson who overturns the bushel to
lay hold of, and that sometimes a jointed
one, and there being no handle on the
other side for the sack to pass under, the
sack is apt to slip over the mouth of the
bushel while it is being emptied ; and
others have the handles too low to be of
any service to the isack to pass under in the
act of the bushel being emptied. These
different structures of bushelsbecome essen-
tial conveniences or inconveniences when
much corn has to be measured up in a short
time ; and when convenience is studied in
them, they contribute much to ease labour.
I felt this forcibly one short day in winter,
when I had to measure up 1 25 bolls of oats,
equal to 750 bushels, with the old firlot of
1 5 busliel, of a convenient form, overturn-
ing it 500 times, and wheeling away every
b<»ll with a sack-barrow to diflereut parts
of the barn.
1807. In connexion with the bushel is
the strike for sweeping off the superfluous
corn above tlie edge of the bushel. It is
usually made of two forms; the one a flat
piece of wood, like a in fig. Ki!); the
otiier of the form of a roller, like fj. The
Weights and Measures Act prescribes that
the strike shall be of a round form, of a
piece of light wood, 2 inches in diameter;
but he who put the notion into the heads
of tho.'^e who drew nj) the act, that this is
the best form of strike, must have had
little experience of using one. If the ob-
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
421
ject is to separate one stratum of grains
of corn from another — and tliis is the only
object of using a strike — the shar'p edge of
Fig. 169.
THE FLAT AND CYLINDER CORN-STRIKES.
the fiat strike is evidently best fitted for
the purpose. A cylinder, when passed
with a uniform motion over a bushel,
though not rolling, must push down some
of the grain that is in front of it, under it ;
and, if it is rolled across the bushel, it
must press down still more grain, in the
manner of a roller passing over friable land,
and, of course, tnake the bushel hold more
grain than it would naturally do. I would
advise all sellers of grain to use the flat
strike, whatever purchasers may wish them
to do. On striking wheat, the strike is
drawn straight across the bushel, the grains
being nearly round, and yielding easily to
the forward motion of the strike ; but in
the case of barley and oats,pease and beans,
the strike should be moved across the
bushel in a zig-zag manner, because, those
grains being long or rough, a straight
motion is apt to tear away some of them
even to be below the level of the edge of
tlie bushel. The strike should be made of
wood in the best seasoned state, and of
that kind which is least likely to lose its
struightness of edge, while it should be
light to carry in the hand, and hard to
resist blows. Perhaps plane-tree may
afford the nearest approach to all these
properties.
1808. Wheat and oats require no other
dressing than what may be given by the
fanner; but it is otherwise, at times, with
barley. When barley has not been
thoroughly ripened, the awns are apt to be
broken off at too great a distance from
the grain, by the thrashing-machine ; and
as the part left must be got rid of before
the grain can be said to be dressed, means
are used for that purpose by the hummel-
ler, which may be driven by the same
power as the thrashing-machine, or used
by the hand.
1809. The hummelling of barley is a
process that, in many cases, is essential to
the marketable condition of that grain, and
it is effected in many different ways. In
some cases the thrashing-machine itself is
made the hummeller, by employing an iron
fluted cover to the drum ; in others, with-
out this addition, the barley isshutup in the
drum-case for a few minutes while thedrum
is revolving, as recommended by the late
Rev. Dr Farquharson, Alford.* Another
method is with a conical receiver, within
which a spindle, carrying a number of
cross arms, is made to revolve, and the
grain passes through this machine, lying
nearly in a horizontal position, before
entering the fanner. This form of the
hummeller was made public by Messrs
Grant, Grantown, Banff'shire,+ and, with
some modifications, — which are, however,
very important ones, and give a new
character to the machine, — a hummeller
similar to it is now the most ap})roved
form, the case being made cylindrical, and
its position vertical. Instead, also, of the
grain passing loosely through the cylinder,
an essential characteristic of the improved
machine is, that tlie cylinder shall be
always full of grain.
1810. The q/linder hummeller consists
of a cylindrical case of wire-cloth, having
an upright iron spindle revolving within
it, armed with a number of flat thin blades
of iron, kept in revolution at a high
velocity. The grain is admitted through
a hopper at top, keejiing the cylinder
always full, and is discharged through a
small orifice at bottom, the degree of
hummelling depending upon the area of
this orifice. Fig. 170 is an elevation of
this hummeller. The sole frame a a lests
on the floor of the corn-barn (see k fig.
130 ;) b h are two strong posts rising from
the former, and secured to the beams of
the floor above ; c is a bridge-tree which
supports the foot of the spindle h ; two
rings of wood d d, are supported by the
uprights/'. It is lined with wire-cloth, of
10 or 12 meshes in the inch, and placed
Prize Essat/s of the Highland and ^Agricultural Society, vol. xiii. p. 66. f Ibid.
422
PRACTICE— WINTER.
between the poets b by and is furnished
with a bottom, which just admits the
spindle h to pass through, and haying a
Fig. 170.
J
-J'l
n:
THE ELEVATION OP THE CYLINDER HUMMELLER.
thin shield on the spindle, oyer the open-
ing. The spindle supports the blades,
which are in 2 rows, 5 and 4 in a row,
riveted into the spindle; or the blades
may be crucifurm, with an eye in the
centre, through which the .shaft passes.
The hopj)er k may be either formed round
the spindle, or it may stand at one side ;
and it may be furnished witli a slider to
rei,nilate tlie feed, though this is virtually
dune by the contraction or enlargement
of the orifice below. To save space,
fig. 170 is represented broken oif; but m
is a bridge-piece bolted upon the posts
I, to support the head of the spindle,
and also the end of the horizontal shaft;
the spindle h and shaft carry the mitre-
wheels 0 that give motion to the spindle.
The spindle refpiiros to have a velocity of
300 to 400 per minute, and the motion
may be conveyed in various ways, suited
to the general arrangements of the ma-
chinery. In the present case, it is brought
at once from the great 8i)ur-\vhcel by a
pinion of the same size as that of the
drum ; and its siiaft is HUp]K)rtod on a
bracket at the one end, wiiije the oilier
has a bearing in the wall that se]iarale3
the barn from the engine-house.
1811. The Iland-kitinmi'ller. — In the
smaller class of farms, hand-hummellers
are pretty generally used, and are of
various forms, but all retaining one ]>riu-
ciple of construction and of effect. Tliey
are round, square, and oblong ; but in all
three forms, tlicy consist of a number of
parallel bars of iron, placed in a frame of
one of the forms above-named. Fig. 171
rig. 171. is a square
hummeller in
persj)ective. It
consi-sts of a
sijuare frame of
iron, 1 2 inches
each way, 2
inciiesin depth,
and ^ inch
thick. Bars of
similar dimen-
sion.-- are rivet-
eil into the
sides of the
frame, and
crossing each
other, forming
cou\partments
of from I ^ to 2
inches square.
A branched iron
stem is riveted
THE HAND-HfM!MELI,EK. (,) \\^q fraUlC
below and at top, and forms a socket into
which a wooden helve is fixed, having a
crosshead by which it is held in the hand.
Such huinmellers are fre<piontly nuide
with parallel bars only, in which case they
are less expensive but much less elfeclive.
It is used with a mincing motion on a thin
layer of barley on the floor.
15512. To make sacks stand so as each
mav be taken away with ease from a
number, they should be set, the first one
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
423
in a corner, with one shoulder against and every other sack in the same row,
one wall, and the other shoulder against as b and e, will stand with the left
the other wall, as seen at a, fig. 172; shoulder against the wall, and the right
Fig. 172.
FILLED SACKS AS THEY SHOULD
shoulder against the side of the sack set
down hefore it. In the succeeding row,
the first sack, as d, will have its right
shoulder against the wall, and its left
shoulder against the side of the first sack
a that was set up in tiie corner ; and the
succeeding sacks, e and/, will have their
left shoulders in the hollows between the
sacks, b and c, in the first row, and their
right shoulders against the sides of the
sacks that were set down just hefore each
of them : and so on, row after row. In
short, tlie sacks stand shoulder to shoulder,
instead of side to side. Now, the utility
of this arrangement is, that the sacks, in
the first place, are as closely set together
as they can possibly be ; for the left
shoulders of d and e, as may be seen, fill
uj) the hollows between the right shoulders
of a b and h c. In the next place, as each
sack is removed in the reversed order in
which tliey were placed, it presents its
broad side either to the barrow to be
wheeled away, without the slightest en-
tanglement with any other sack, or to be
lifted at once as it stands upon the man's
back, without the usual trouble of having
to be kneed forward to a more convenient
spot. Thus, look upon/, the last placed
BE PLACED ON THE BARN FLOOR.
sack, and the first to be removed. It is
obvious that its side is presented in the
most proper position for the barrow ; and
its corners (/ and h are qnite ready for
the hands of the persons who are to assist
in raising it to a man's back. The figures
show also the difference between tight and
slovenly sacking up of corn;/ shows a
slackness of putting the first bushel into
it, where there are creases between ff and
h, and the corners at ff and h project
too much out, because the corn above
them is too slack. On the other hand,
d shows a well-filled sack. When filled
sacks are wheeled aside, theii* mouths
should be folded in and closed up, as
represented in the outer row d ef. On
tying sacks, which they must be when
intended to be sent away by cart, the
tie should be made as near the corn as
possible, to keep the whole sack firm, as
seen iu a, b, and c.
1813. There are three modes of lifting
a sack to a man's back. One is, for the
person who is to carry the load to bow
his head down in front of tlie sack, placing
his back to its broad side, and bending his
left arm behind his own back, across hia
424
PRACTICE— WINTER.
loins, and his right hand upon his right
knee, to await in this position the assistance
that is to be given him. Two people
assist in raising the sack, by standing face
to face, one on eacii side of it, bowing
down so as to clasp hands across the sack
near its bottom, as from g to /<, below the
carrier's head, and thrusting the fingers
of tiie other hands into the corners^ and /«,
which yield and go inwards, and thereby
afford a firm hold. Each lifter then
presses his shoulder against the edge of
the sack, and with a combined exertion
upwards, which the carrier seconds by
raising his body up, the bottom of the
sack is raised uppermost, and the tied
mouth downmost, resting against the
back of the carrier. The lifters now leav-
ing hold, the carrier keeps the sack steady
on his back, with his left arm across its
mouth. Another plan is, for the carrier
to lay hold of the top of the shoulder of
the sack with both his hands, his arms
crossing each other. His two assistants
do as directed before; and while they lift
the sack between them, the carrier quickly
turns his back round to the sack and re-
ceives it there, retaining a firm hold of
the parts he had at first. A third i)lan is
for the assistants to raise the sack upon
another one, and then the carrier brings
his back down against the side of the
sack, laying hold of its shoulders over his
own shoulders, and rising up straight witii
it on his back. The last plan recpiires
most strength from the carrier, he having
to rise up with the load ; the second most
from the lifters, they having to lift the
load up; and in the first both parties are
nearly equally concerned.
1814. The more upright a man walks
with a loaded sack on his back, with a
short firm step, the less will the load feel
oppressive to him.
1815. A filled sack is kneed forward by
placing both knees against the side of the
sack, an<l, while embracing it with both
arms, and grasi>ing hold of it with both
hands, lifting it from the ground, and push-
ing it forward a space with the knees, and
thus from space to space, or around a pivot.
1816. In regard to loading a cart with
filled sacks, the general principle is to
place all the mouths of the sacks within
the body of the cart, so that should any of
the tyings give way, the corn will not be
spilled upon the ground. One mode of
loading a cart, a double horse load, is re-
presented in Plate III., which is supposed
to be a loaded cart on its way to a market
town. Two sacks are laid Hat on the bottom
of the cart, with the mouths next the horse.
Two are placed on the front, with their
bottoms outwards. Two are placed on the
tail-board with their bottoms outwards,
and the mouths of all the four are within
the cart. These last four sacks are placed
on their edges, with t^e corners just over
the edge of the front and back of the cart.
Other two sacks are placed together on
edge above these four, and one behind, flat,
with all their mouths pointing inwards.
Nine or ten old bolls, that is, 54 or 60
bushels, used to be carried by two horses,
according to the distance to be travelled;
but now that half-quarter sacks are in use,
and the single-horse cart is most generally
employed, the loads have assumed a dif-
ferent form, according to the length of the
journey, and as the horses are to be loaded
or return empty from the market town.
About 3() bushels of wheat, 40 of barley,
and 5Q of oats, each (piantity making about
1 t(m weight, is considered a good load for
a double cart in the country ; and a single
one will take a projjortionate quantity of
these numbers, according to the circum-
stances in which the farm is situated in
reference to the place where the grain is
to be delivered ; but 15cwts. make agood
load for a single horse. The carters in
towns take much heavier loads of corn
than those in the country. I may men-
tion that the sacks, as represented in the
cart in Plate III., seem too large and full
for corn ; they rather have the ajipearance
of being filled with rye-grass seed.
1817. The sacks for corn require to be
attended to, to keep them in serviceable
condition. They arc usually made of a
sort of canvass, calle<l sacking, and accord-
ing to the quality of the tow of which the
sacking is made, and tiic mode in which it
is manufactured, whether tweeled ori)lain,
the j)riee of sacks varies from Is. 3d. to
2s. Od. each. Every sackful of corn, be-
fore it is put into the cart, is tied at the
mouth with a piece of cord, a soft cord
answering the purpose best. The ties are
cither attaclieil to the seam of the sack it-
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
425
self, or are carried in the ploughman's
pocket. Every sack should be marked
with the initials of its owner's name, or
with the name of the farm. Tlie letters
may either be painted on with a brush, or
formed by painting upon open letters cut
through a plate of zinc. In either case, red
lead is used. The initials are put on, and
appear as those on sack/, fig. 172. When
sacks become wetted with rain, they should
be shaken and hung up in the air to dry ;
and it" they get besmeared with mud, they
should be washed and dried. If the air can-
not dry thein in time to prevent mouldiness,
tbey should be dried befoi-e a fire. Where
steam is used fur thrashing, sacks may be
dried in tbe boiler-house. An airy place
to keep sacks is across the granary, over
ropes, suspended between the legs of the
couples. Holes will break through sacks,
by wear, by tear, or by mice, which will
almost invariably find their way into sacks
of corn that have stood a considerable
time on the barn floor. The best thread
for darning even canvass sacks, is strong
worsted; and if well darned, the mended
parts become the strongest parts of the
sack. When a considerable accident oc-
curs to a sack, probably the best way of
using the torn sack is, to keep it for cutting
up to mend others. The person who has
the charge of thrashing and cleaning the
corn, has the charge of the sacks, and
must be accountable for their number.
1818. Sacks, when filled, are most con-
veniently wheeled to any part of the barn,
Fig. J 73. in a barrow
made for the
purpose. A
good form of a
sack -barrow
may be seen
in fig. 173. To
be conveni-
ent, it should
stand upright
of itself, as
seen in the fi-
gure. There
are two modes
of using it ;
one when the
sacks stand
upright when
THE sACK-BAKRow. filled, aud the
other when the sacks stand as in fig. 172.
On standing behind the wheels, in the first
case, and on taking a hold of the handle a
with the right hand, and the mouth of the
sack with the left, aivd, pushing it oflf, in-
sert the iron scoop b of the barrow between
the sack and the floor ; and on pulling the
sack towards you, push the wheels forward
by the right foot on the axle, and the
sack is placed on the scoop, ready for
removal. In the other case, push the
scoop of the barrow below the sack f,
which is lying a little from you ; and on
pulling the sack towards you, it becomes
ready for removal. The iron shields c
over the wheels save their rubbing against
the sacks. The height of the barrow
should be 3i feet, its breadth, over the
wheels, H foot, and the frame made of
ash, and painted. The load is most easily
wheeled with the barrow held in a nearly
upright position.
1819. A frame of iron, to Iiold the sack
in filling, has lately been introduced into
England ; but as I consider it better
adapted for tlie potato-field than the corn-
barn, I shall defer describhig it at present.
The objection to using it in a corn-barn
is, that the spikes of the legs injure a
floor.
1820. The Weiphing-machine is an
important article of the barn furniture,
and various forms of it are resorted to.
The common beam and scales is the most
correct of all the instruments of the class;
but it is defective, as being less convenient
for the purposes of the barn than several
others that are partially employed. Steel-
yards of various forms are also used ; but
in all steelyards there are grounds for
doubting their accuracy, in consequence of
the operator not seeing the true counter-
poise of the substance weighed, but only
its representative, bearing an actual weight
greatly smaller than the substance, but in
the inverse proportion to it that the longer
arm of tlie steelyard on which it is ap-
f)ended bears to the shorter arm. Many
of these steelyards, from their compact-
ness, are, however, greatly to be com-
mended; and, when well constructed,
and properly adjusted, will be found to
answer the purpose of weighing such bulky
articles as grain with sutticient accuracy.
Their choajiness also, wdien compared with
some other instruments on the beam and
426
PRACTICE— WINTER.
1821.
balance jirinciple, Tcliich combines every
C(»iivenieiice fur tlic setting on and removal
of the hags of grain, willi accuracy an«l
A weighing-machiiMy on the neatness of Construction, is exhibited in
scale principle, holds out a great induce
ment for their adoption.
Fig. 174.
THE BALANCE WEIGH ING-MACUI,NE.
fig. 174. This machine is constructed sujiports a cross-liead suspended on the
clii^^fly of cast-iron, tlie framework a is end centres of the beam, aufl to whicli \tt
connected by cross-stretcher bolts ^, and attached the ]>illar //, to the lower end of
is supported in iront 011 the wheels c c, which is attached the shelf-plale or scale
while the back pans are supported on the //, upon which the principal weigiits ?/" aie
feet f/. Tiie folding handles <>, one on each ])laced. The cross-head carries also the
side, turn on a joint pin at e, and become top shelf or scale X", ujion which the smaller
levers by which the machine can be moved weights are ))laccd. and a dead j)hite / is
about like a wheelbarrow. The beam, fixed on the framework on which the
parts of which are seen at //, is double, small weights stand ready for use. The
and also formed of cast-iron, with steel opposite ends of the beam carry a frame
centres, the two bars forming the beam- m, only partially seen, to the lower end of
stand, and arc connected by a diagonal which the shelf « is jointed, and upon this
truss. The one end of the double beam shelf the bag 0, about to bo weighed, is
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
427
shown in the fiffure. To the upper end of
the frame m there is also attached, by a
strong bracket not seen in the figure, the
shelf or scale/?, and upon this scale the
bag maybe placed and weighed with equal
accuracy, while it is supported by the light
frame qq. The object of the top and bot-
tom weighing shelves is to suit the place-
ment, or the removal of the bag, either
from or to a man's back by the top shelf,
or from or to the corn-barrow by the
lower shelf. When the machine is not in
use, the lowershelf « is foldedup against the
back of the frame, and the light frame or
hixckqq folds down over the folded- up lower
shelf «, reducing the machine to a very com-
pact state. In weigliing with this machine,
from its being on the princij)le of the bal-
ance, the amount of weights required is
e(|ual to the absolute weight of the body
that is being weighed, and the true weight
is determined when the scales or shelves
k and y? coincide in one level line witli the
dead-plate /. In constructing this machine,
the bottom of the pillar g^ and of the frame
wi, are provided with a horizontal connect-
ing-rod, which preserves their parallelism,
and, consequently, the correct indications
of the beam. Weighing-machines are con-
structed, on the same principle, with
wcxjden frame-work, which renders them
lighter and cheaper ; but from the change-
able nature of the material, as a fleeted by
moisture and dryness, they are liable to de-
rangement. The price of the machine, as
exhibited inthe figure,is<£8, 10s. ; and when
constructed in wood the price is £5 ot £.Q.
1X22. Biddling.— The riddling of corn
is a complicated and difficult operation.
I have never found a person who could
describe it in words ; and as it is the only
species of farm labour I never could per-
form to my own satisfaction, I feel that I
cannot describe it so as to be of service
to those who would desire to learn it. I
may say, generally, that riddling consists
of iiolding the bottom of the riddle a little
inclined from you, and of giving the corn
in it a circular motion, always from right
to left, accompanied with an upward jerk
of .the left hand, which seems to loosen
and sliake the mass of corn, and has the
eft'ect of bringing up all the lighter ini-
j)urities in it to the surface, while the
rotatory motion seems to draw these to the
centre of the riddle into a. he^p, and the
same jerk causes, at the same tune, the
heavy corn to descend equally througli the
meshes ,of the riddle. Very few people,
who profess to riddle, can do it well. I
have never seen a man do it well, though
I have several women. A good criterion
of the ability to riddle is this : — Place a
man's hat with a flat crown in the centre
of the riddle, and if you can make the hat
start up on any point of the edge of its
crown, and by the motion of the riddle
cause it to revolve on that point, in the
centre of the riddle, as long as you please,
and with what velocity you may, you will
certainly be able to riddle corn well. The
usual way of riddling is to swing the riddle
from side to side in an elliptical course, and
make the corn fall through the meshes
quickly, all which may easily be done by
any novice; but such a motion sends much of
the impurities along with the corn, instead
of collecting them in the centre. Corn
passes more quickly through a wire than
a wooden riddle, and it requires a skilful
hand, with a quick circular motion, to
prevent it passing too quickly. The
withes of the wooden riddle retarding the
passage of the corn through the meshes,
an indiflferent riddler will make better
work with a wooden than a wire riddle.
Before all the corn has been jiassed through
the riddle, the impurities, collected in the
centre, are brouglit in a heap to the left-
hand side of the riddle, the riddle being
inclined to that side for the purpose, while
the rotatory motion is continued to the last.
The impui'ities are then thrown into any
vessel placed for their reception, such as a
wecht, and the bushel is so used when
the corn is not measuring up.
1 823. Si/tinp. — Sifting is jjerformed with
the sieve, and its object is to separate
small heavy objects from corn, while, at
the same time, whatever impurities lighj^er
than corn Jire also brought to the sur-
face. It is performed precisely in the
same manner as riddling, when it is well
done, but the circular motion is made to
revolve much quicker. Corn is only sub-
jected to sifting, after it has been win-
nowe<l and riddled as clean as these
o])erations can make it; and yet, with a
thorough sifting, it is surprising what im-
purities may he discovered amongst it,
both in the scum of light matter brought
to the surface, as well as the heavy stuff,
498
PRACTICE— WINTKIl.
which descends through the small meshes,
leaving the good grains heiiinil on the
sieve. All 8eed-corii sliould he .sifted ; and
I liclieve tiiere is no way of duintr it so
effectually as with the hand. Sifting-
niachincs have heen contrived for the
purpose, with more or less success, and
are now generally adopted in meal-
mills, and, no douht, save much manual
labour, though I am douhtfnl of theit sift-
ing so well as the hand ; for I consider
meal-sifting by the hand as the jterfection
of riddling, and in doing it, the meal is not
only moved in precisely the same manner
as corn when well riddled, but the sieve
itself is made to revolve gently and re-
gularly, with a slight jerk, from the right
hand to the left, making the whole process
such a complication of motion as would
be difficult to imitate with machinery.
Reeing-machines have been invented for
cleansing corn, but with what success,
compared to riddling by the hand, I can-
not say. They are successful, however,
in cleansing rye-grass seed.
1824. Carts. — The common cart being
80 intimately connected with the produce
of barn-work, this seems a very befitting
time to say a few words on its construc-
tion and use. Agricultural carriages are
either four-wheeled waggons or two-wheel-
ed carts; and as the Scotch practice, which
I profess chiefly to follow, admits, with
very few exceptions, the two-wheeled cart
only, the following observations are chiefly
confined to that implement.
1825. Though the cart, in general, is a
vehicle very much diversified in structure
to suit the numerous purposes to which, in
a commercial country, it is applied, yet
for the purposes of the farm its varieties
lie within narrow limits, and may be
classed under two principal kinds, the tilt
or coup close-bodied cart, and the close-
bodied dormant cart ; but these, again,
vary as to size, forming single and dvuhle
horse carts, which are merely varieties of
the first. A third aiui less important
kind, is the corn or hay cart, used chiefly
in the seasons of corn and hay harvest ;
and there are others not re(juired on every
farm, but are important to some, such as
the cage cart, for carrying lambs and other
live-stock to market, and the water and
licjuid-manure cart.
182(). The till oirt is the niost imj)or-
tant vehicle of transport on the farm, and
is employed for nine-tent lis of all the pur-
poses of carriage required in the multi-
farious o]>erations througliout the year.
It is employed to convey manure of all
kinds; to convey stone and other materials
for draining and other operaticms ; leading
home turnips and potatoes; and for carry-
ing produce of all kinds to market. For
some of these operations the tilt cart is
pre-eminently adapted, such as carrying
and distributing of manures, or other
matters that can be safely discharged by
tilting. The dormant cart, on the other
hand, issuflicieutly commodi<)Us when sub-
stances have to be carried that require to
be di.schargcd from the cart by lifting,
such as grain in bags, and many other
articles requiring to be conveyed to and
from the farm.
1827. Fig. 175 is a view in perspective
of the common one-horse tilt or couj) cart,
of a simple and much approved construc-
tion, and consists of the following parts.
The wheels a a, which are of the usual
height, 4 feet 6' inches, are of the dished
construction, with cylindrical tread or sole,
and are inclined from the vertical to bring
them to the standard gauge below. The
axle, which is of the bent order, with 2^
inch arms, is only seen as it protrudes
through the nave. The body of the cart,
bb, with its bolsters, one of which is seen
at c, by which it rests ujmn the axle, and
to which the shafts are jointed by means
of a joint-rod that passes through the
holsters and the ends of the shafts. The
shafts d are secured to the body by means
of the lock seen in the figure in front;
and they are here represented resting upon
a tresste to keep the cart upon a level ;
and, lastly, the top-sides e e, which are
fitted to ship and unship as occasion may
require.
1828. The double-horse agricultural
cart diflers only from the one-hor-^e tilt,
fig. 175, and its detail-s in being of larger
dimensions, but especially in depth ; the
length is also increased a few inches, while
the width remains nearly the same, and
the limbers are stronger; but all the di-
mensions are variable, according to the
tastes and olijects ot the owners. This
cart is represented at work in Plate III.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
429
1829. In all carts of the flcscriptions
here noticed, the cladding or Ijcarding of
the floor and sides is an important point :
very line and .straiglit grained deal should
bo avoided, liecause of its liability to split.
Of IIicnW oods best adapted for the purpose,
FiK. 1
THE SINGLE-HORSE TILT CART.
I may name the common saugh or willow, yields, by calculation and experiment, a
the larch, the common Scots fir, and others result which loads the horse in the shafts
of the pine tribe; and the more they abound with a fair degree of pressure, and such
in sound knots, so much the better are as he is (piite capable of supporting through
a moderate journey. The amount of this
load on the back of tlie horse has fre-
(|uent]y been very much overrated; and
kw practical people have a clear conception
of its amount. When the cart is pro-
they adapted to the purpose, not only pre-
venting the splitting of the boards, but
adding to the durability of the material.
1830. The nails used for fixing tiie
boarding should always be the common perly loaded, there will be a preponderance
cart wai7, which is distinguished from other of one-seventh of the load before the axle
common nails by its diminished length, on whicli the cart body rests.
increased thickness, and being cliisel-
pointed, qualities tliat adapt it for being 1832. The method of yoking the horses
driven into hard wood, while its thickness into tlie cart may be seen in Plate III.,
gives it the requisite strength to resist the where the horse in the shafts is yoked as
rough usage that such machines are always it would, be in a single-horse cart, and
liable to. where both the horses are yoked, as in the
double-horse cart, with all the necessary
1831. It is always of importance to harness. In addition to the collar and
husband well the energies of the horse ; bridle required for yoking the horse to
and in no case is it more necessary than the ])l(Uigli, as already described in (076,)
in the cart horse. To facilitate tlie ar- and (GSO,) the horses require the following
rangement of the load in the two-wheeled harness in the cart : —
cart here described, the practice has been The siiaft-horse.
to place tiie cart upon the axle, in a ])osi- ''Saddle an<l ghtli. ^-l Ibs.weiglit, worth £12 0
tion that places four-sevenths of the body "^^^"^ '
before the axle, and three-sevenths of it
behind. Whether this has been deiUioed Collar,
from calculation or experiment, cannot Ilaims,
now be determined; but (me thing is cer- l*'''"le,
tain, that the above proportion seems to
suit all purposes, and what is more, it
10 _
l.T „
7 ~
5^ lbs.
1 0 0
2 2 0
1 0 0
0 5 6
0 10 0
£3 17 6
430
PRACTICE— WINTER.
234
15
7 ~
44 .
1 7 •-'
_ 10 0
0 ."5 6
_ 0 10 0
50 lbs.
£3 '2 8
Tlie Tracc-luiree.
Two l>ark-band8 and girih, 8 lbs. weight,
worth £0 Ifi 0
Cart chains, . . 14 @ 7ii.per Ib.O H 2
Stretcher, . . H _ „ 0 ;i 0
Collar,
H:iiins,
Bridle,
1833. In Forfarsliire the trace-Iiorse is
liainessed ilifforentlyrrciiitliatt^liown in the
plate. A broad .strap is hooked to the
upper part of the back of the collar, and
terminates at the other end in a crupper,
through which the tail is made to pass,
and a haunch strap goes down each side
from the top of the (piarter to support the
trace-chains and stretcher. This plan sup-
ports the stretcher well, and completely
prevents it striking the Imcks of the horse
when turning and halting,biit itconfinesthe
action of the horse very much, and, when
the bearing-rein of the bridle is passed
over the top of the haims, the horse's
head is jiulled up to an inconvenient de-
gree. The yoking seen in the i)late is
better therefore than this mode.
1834. A set of cart and jdongh harness
■was exhibited bv ^Ir David Scott, sadtller,
Glasgow, at the Highland and Agricul-
tural Society's Show at Edinburgh, in
184S, the coin])onent parts of which were
fastened together by means of spring-
hooks, instead of the common buckle, which
seems to nie to deserve the attention of
farmers. The parts are easily put to-
gether and separated. Connected with
the same contrivance of spring hooks was
a collar, which being kept together with a
sj)ring-hook, nuiy be easily disengaged and
expanded, and removed from the neck of
the horse in case of the horse falling, and
any other part of the harness can be as
easily iliseniragod in case of accident. The
price of this form of harness complete is
£(), 8s.
l8o.'». I may also mention that, at the
same Show, Messrs WaUlie and Hunter,
saddlers, Kelso, exhibited a cait-saddle,
the l)oards and ])aucls of wiiich, being
movable, adjust themselves to any form
of the horse's back, like a pad. The price
of this saddle is £l, Is.
1836. Hamcps leather is best for farm
purposes in the long run, though highest
priced at fii-st.
1837. Hemp and Manilla reins are the
best, and cost f)}^ per lb. They should
always be used doultle with the cart,
whether the horse be yoked double or
single. The double reins are wouiui up
with a tie and loop, to hang on any hook or
slij) below any jiart of the harness, aa
shown below the haunch-strap of the
breeching in Plate III. The shaft-hurse
requires bridle, collar, liaims, saddle, and
breeching, to be fully equipped. The
bridle, collar, and haims, constitute the
harness common to both j)lough and cart.
The breeching is buckled to the back part
of the wooden tree of the saddle, at such
length of strap as suits the length of the
horse's quarter. The saddle — as saddle
and breeching together are commonly
called — is placed on the horse's back im-
mediately behind the shoulder, and
strapped firmly on, in case of slipping off
in the yoke, with the belly-band, which
can scarcely be seen in the plate ; the
breeching being put over the horse's hind-
quarter. Time was when a crupper was
a general appendage to the breeching —
the efl'ect of which was to place an undue
pressure upon the root of the horse's tail,
when the saddle was pressetl forwanl by
the back-chain, on the cart descending a
declination. Now that the comfort of
animals is better attended to, b}' the re-
moval of annoyances to the work-horse,
tlic cru))j)er has been generally removed.
The back-chain is fastened to the back-
chain hooks of the shafts of the cart, and
gets leave to remain there constantly. In
yoking, the shafts are held up with their
})oints elevated; the horse is told to turn
and back under them, which he does very
obediently, and even willingly ; they are
then brought down on each side of the
horse ; the back-chain is then adjusten
along the groove of the saddle, to such
length as that the «lraught-chains. m hen
extended, shall be in a straight line to the
axle ; the shoulder slings, or draught-
chains, are linked to the draught-1 k of
the cart, at such length as to be an ex-
tension of the above line ; the breeching-
chains are linked to the breeching-hooks,
of such length as to allow the breeching to
bang easily upon the hams of the horse —
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
431
not to cliafe the hair — in his motion for-
ward upon level ground, but as tight as
before the back-chain hooks slip as far
back as they can upon the runner-staples
of the shafts, the hams of the horse shall
press against the band of the breeching
sufficiently to keep the cart back, before
the horse's rump shall touch the front of the
bodyof tliecart. The cart belly-band is then
buckled round the near shaft under the
runner-staple, just as tight as not to press
against the horse's chest on level ground,
and only when he goes up-hill. All these
adjustments of parts are made in a short
time, even with a new horse, cart, or har-
ness, and they require no alteration after-
wards.
1838. The harness of the trace-horse is
simple beyond the collar, haims, and
bridle, consisting only of 2 back-bands,
belly-band, and trace-chains. The back-
band is placed where the saddle should be,
and is fastened to the trace-chains on either
side witli a triangular buckle having a long
hooked tongue. The trace-chaius are linked
to the draught-hook k, fig. 11, of the haims
at one end, and fastened by a hook at the
other end to a staple in the under side of
the shafts ; the point of which hook is
always placed in the inside, to put it out
of the way of taking hold of any thing
passing near the shafts of the cart. The
trace-chains are usually divided in two
pieces, one called the short-endfi, which
pass from the shafts to the stretcher, and
the other part stretch from tlie stretcher
to the haims. The short ends are usually
left attached to the cart. A hook on each
side of the stretcher attaches the short-
ends to the other part of the trace-chains.
The use of the stretcher is solely to
expand the trace-chains beyond the hind-
quarters of the trace-horse. The trace-
chains being distended from the haims to
the shafts, the back-band is hooked on to
them, so as always to lie firmly on the
horse's back ; and the belly-band is also
hooked in like manner to the same [lart of
the chains, to keep both ends of the back-
band firm. The rump-band is hooked on
to the trace-chains, so as to lie easy on the
rump when these are distended ; and the
position of this band may vary farther
or nearer on the loins or rump, as it may
best lie, its use being solely to keep the
chain and stretcher from falliuff on the
horse's hocks when he turns. The leins are
then fastened on each side of both horses
to the ring of the bridle, having been pre-
viously passed through rings on the haims
and the back-band. The horses are now
ready to start, in as far as the harness is
concerned.
1839. To unyoke the horses is just to
undo what has been done in yoking; the
reins are first taken ofi' and coiled ujj; the
stretcher is unhooked from the chains, and
it and the short- ends brought o»'er the
head of the shaft-horse and laid upon the
shafts of the cart behind him, and the
trace-horse is then free ; the cart belly-
band is then unbuckled ; the draught-
slings and breeching-chaius are unhooked ;
and on the shafts being raised up, the
shaft-horse is free ; and on the bearing-
reins being slip])ed over the top of the
haims, both the horses' heads are free to
take a drink of water, or shake themselves.
1840. The cart should always be under
cover in a cart-shed when not in use, as,
when not so accommodated, and being a
machine composed of many parts, the
weather soon has an injurious etl'ect upon
its upper works. When backed into the
port of a cart-shed, the shafts are easily
put up out of the way of the horse again
being yoked, by hanging the back-chain
upon a hook suspended hy a chain from the
balks of the roof, when the shed is not floor-
ed above, an<I, when it is floored, the hook
to support the back-chain may be sus-
pended from a joist of the flooring.
1841. The (/r ease used for farm-carts is
commonly a mixture, melted together in
equal ])arts, of tallow or train-oil and
common tar. It is kej)t in a deep narrow
tub, and applied with a broad pointed
stick. The tub should have a cover, but
is usually without one, and sul)ject to col-
lect dust in the cart-shed. When a cart
is to be greased, the linch-pin and washer
are removed from the projecting point of
the axle ; the upper part of the wheel is
then pulled towards you from the cart
with such a jerk as to allow the lower edge
of tiie wheel to remain on the same spot
of ground it was, and the point of the
axle-arm will then lean upon the edge of
the bush at the hack of the nave. The
grease is then spread upon the upper side
432
PRACTICE— WINTER.
of the axlc-ann with the stick, the wheel
pushed hack to its proi)er place, uiul the
washer ami liiich-pin respectively restored
to theirpriiper places in the projecting point
of the axle. Tiie groove of the saddle is
also greased, to lessen the friction of the
back-chain when playing upon it. The
grease used for railway carriages has
sulphur in it, which is said to make it
more durable, and might, no doubt, be
used in farm carts, provided the cost were
not exorbitant. It is, I believe, a patented
article.
1842. Systematic writers on agriculture, when
treating of tlie various plants cultivated on a
farm, describe their diaracters in botanical phra-
seology ; and though this seems a proper mode,
when different genera of plants have to be dis-
tinguished from each other ; yet when mere
varieties of the same species, and especially
when tliose varieties are numerous, require to be
described, a more natural method of classifying
them seems likewise desirable, that other people
than botanists may easily distinguish them.
Professor Low, when treating of wheat, enume-
rates 11 diiferent subdivisions* which arp culti-
vated, and which, doubtless, possess distinct
botanical characteristics ; but such distinctions
are not likely to be appreciated by the majority
of farmers. Mr Lawson has described !i3 varie-
ties of wheat ;t Colonel le Coutenr mentions
having in his possession, in 1836, no fewer than
150 varieties :J; and the Museum of the High-
land and Agricultural Society in Edinburgh
possesses 141 varieties.! To distinguish all
these varieties by botanical terms would puzzle
any farmer.
1843. For this reason, it has occurred to me,
that a method should be established for easily
recognising the different kinds of grain in use
by the external characters of the ear and grain.
Colonel le Couteur has given a classification of
icheat involving this principle, and adduces a
similar reason lor attempting it, when he says, —
" No one has done so, as a branch of agriculture,
in those plain terms which may be intelligible,
not to the botanist or scientific reader only, but
to the great mass of farmers." And the prin-
cipal object he considers should be held in view,
in establishing such a classification, is the nature
and qualities of each variety for making bread \
1844. In prosecuting this idea of a classifica-
tion. Colonel le Couteur divides all the varieties
of wheat into two classes, namely, beardless and
bearded. lu so far he imitates the modern
botanist, who divides the cultivated varieties of
wheat into the two divisions of barbatum a)id
imbirbe, signifying the above conditions. But,
unfortunately for the stability of this classifica-
tion, that distinction is not immutable, for some
bearded wheat lose their beards on cultivation,
* Low's Elements of Practical A<iriculture, p. 2
J Le Couteur Un \Vhcat, p. ii., Dedication; and
and some beardless ones are apt to become
bearded, when cuhivated on poor soils and ex-
posed situations. Some of the otlier grains
indicate a temlency to similar sjiorting, for the
potato-oat as.sumes a beard when sown a long
time on the same ground in a poor state. He
subdivides beardless wheat into while, red,
yellow, and Iiver-(!oloured, smooth chaffed, and
velvet chaffed ; and the bearded he divides under
the same colours. Some varieties of wheat are,
no doubt, decidedly downy on the chaff, but
others, again, are so very little so, that it is
difficult to (iistiiiguisli them from some of the
roughest, varieties 'of smooth chaffed ; and it is
known that the same wheat will be differently
affected, in this resjiect, by the soil upon which
it grows ; for a sharp soil renders the chaff and
straw smoother and harder than a deaf one,
wliich has a tendency to i)roduce soft and downy
chaff and straw. Downiness is thus not a more
permanent cliaracter than the beard for esta-
blialiing the denominations of the great divisions
of wheat. Conjoining the characters of the
grain and ear of wheat, is, in my opinion, inju-
dicious, inasmuch as the character of neither
separately can positively indicate tlie state of
the other, and both are not required to indicate
the superior properties of any variety of wlieat
for making bread. A baker at once distinguishes
the grain which will afford the best bread; and
neither he, nor any farmer, could indicate such a
property from the ear of any wlieat. Colonel
le Couteur assumes a liver-coloured wheat, as a
distinctive colour, as well as others. I confess 1
cannot distinguish this colour ; and I never re-
member to have seen a wheat of a liver-brown
colour. I think all the colours of wheat may be
classed under two of the primary colours, yellow
and red — for even the whitest has a tinge of
yellow — and the brownest is deeply tinged with
red ; and as xcltite and red are the terms by
which the colours of the wheat have been longest
known, these should be retained ; and the sub-
tints of yellow and red found in wheat may be
easily designated. The variety of wheat which
should form the standard of each colour has
never yet been indicated ; but, judging from the
collection of wheat in the Highland and Agri-
cultural Society's Museum, I should say that the
Hungarian white wheat indicates the purest
white, and the blood-red wheat the purest red.
184.5. Were I to attempt to classify both the
wheat plant and grains of wheat, by natural
marks, 1 would make two classifications, one by
the ear and the other by the grain, so that each
might be described by its own characteristics, and,
if desirable, when describing the plant, reference
could be made to the characteristics of the grain.
In this way confusion wouldbeavoided in describ-
ing the ear and the grain. The farmer who
grows the wheat plant, and sells it in the grain,
should be acquainted with both ; but the baker,
who is only acquainted with the grain, need
know nothing of the ear. Were he, however, to
receive an ear of each variety of grain he pur-
chased, he would be best able to describe at once,
20. t Lawson's y/i/ric«/<«r«s«'» J/anwo/, p.29.
p. 77. § Catalogue of the Museum, p. 63-6.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
433
to the farmer, what particular variety afforded
him the flour best suited to his purpose.
1846. Wheat. — On examining the ears of
wheat that have come under my notice, 1 think
they may be divided into three classes, as repre-
sented in fig. 176, which show the ears half the
Fig. 176.
CLASSIFICATION OP WHEAT 1!Y THE EAR.
natural size, and which may be distinguislied
thus : a is a close or compact eared wheat, which
is occasioned by the spikelets being set near each
other on the rachis, and this position makes the
chaff short and broad. This specimen of the
close-eared wheat is Hickling's Prolific. The
second class of ears is seen at b, the spikelets
being of medium length and breadth, and placed
just so close upon the rachis as to screen it from
view. The ear is not so broad, but longer than
a. The chaff is of medium length and breadth.
This specimen is the well-known Hunter's white
wheat. The third class is seen at c, the spike-
lets of which are set open, or so far asunder as
to permit the rachis to be easily seen between
them. The ear is about the same length as the
last specimen, but is much narrower. The chaff
is long and narrow. This is a specimen of Le
Couteur's Bellevue Talavera white wheat.
1847. These three classes of varieties consti-
tute the Triticum sativum imberbe oi hoinnKis, —
that is, all the varieties of the beardless culti-
vated wheat. Formerly they were divided by
botanists into Triticum hybernum or winter
wheat, and Triticum cestivum or summer wheat ;
but experience has proved that the summer
wheat, so called, may be sown in winter, and
the winter wheat sown in spring, and both
come to perfection. Paxton says that Triticum
is derived from '" tritum, rubbed — in allu.sion to
its being originally rubbed down to make it
eatable."* It is of the natural order Graminece of
Jussien, and of the third class Tr.andria,
second order Diijynia, and genus Triticum, of
the Linnaean system. In the natural system of
Lindley, wheat stands in class iv., Endugens ;
alliance 1, Glumales ; order 29, Graminacece ;
genus 11, Hordew.
1848. In </, fig. 176 is represented a bearded
wheat, to shuw the difference of appearance
which the beard gives to the ear. The bearded
wheats are generally distinguished by the long
shape of the chaff and the open position of the
spikelets, and therefore fall under the third classc.
But cultivation has not only the effect of de-
creasing the strength of the beard, but of setting
the spikelets closer together, as in the specimen
of the white Tuscany wheat, shown at d in the
figure, which is considered the most compact
eared and improved variety of bearded wheat.
Bearded wheat constitutes the second division of
cultivated wheat of the botanists, under the title
of Triticum satitumbarbatum. The term bearded
is used synonymously with spring wheat, but
erroneously, as beardless wheat is as fit for
sowing in spring as bearded, and the bearded
may be sown in winter.
1849. In regard to classifying wheat by the
grain, on observing a great variety of forms, I
think they, as well as the ears, may all be
classed under three heads. The first class is
Fig. 177.
SHORT, ROtND,
PH'.MP FORM, AND
SMALL SIZE OF
WHEAT.
shown in fig. 177, where all
the grains are short, round,
and plump, with the bosuni
di^tillctly marked, and well
filled up. In the cut, the
grain to the left is seen with
the median line along its
bosom ; another, below it,
with the round or opposite
side lying underniost ; and
the third and fourth show
the germ and radicle ends respectively. All
fine vhite wheat belongs to this class, and is en-
closed in short, round, and generally irhite chaff,
which, when ripe, becomes so expanded as to
endanger the falling out of the grain. Very few
red wheat belongs to this class. In reference to
the ear, this class is found in short-chaffed and
broad spikelets, which are generally compact,
as a fig. 176. The specimens here, of the grain,
are of the Hungarian white wheat.
1 850. The second class is represented by fig.
178, where the grains are long and of medium
size, that is, longer and larger than the grains
of fig. 177. The chaff is a.ho viedium-sized. la
reference to the ear, it is of the medium standard,
* Paxton's Botanical Dictionary, Triticum. See also Hooker's British Flora, p. 20, edition of 1831.
VOL. I. 2 E
434
PRACTICE— WINTER.
in respect to breadth and closeness of spikelets,
as b, fi^. 176, though medium-iUfd i/rain is not
roiifint d to this sort of ear ; and is found in the
com/.>art ear, as in Hickling's pmlific white and
Kie. 178. red wheat, as well as in the
y^ opfii ear, such as the red
f\ iJanzigcreepiiij^ wheat. .Most
y^ ii of rr</ wheat belongs to this
ffl y ^ class of grain, though many
\jlj ' j of the if*jf^ vneditiiH- tiztd -
^^ 1 J such as Huntor's white —
CJ^ ^ also belongs to it. This spe-
RATii KR LONG, cimen of grain is the Cauca-
MEDn.M-siZED roRM sian red wheat, whose ear is
or WHEAT. bearded, and belongs to the
open-spiked cla^s c, fig. 176. The left-hand grain
shows the median line strongly marked, and the
ends of all the grains are sharp.
1851. Fig. 179 represents the third form of
Fig. 179.
LARGE ."SIZE AND
LO.NG FORM OF
WHEAT.
grain, which is lar<je 'ind
i'lti'j to a greater degree
than the last class. Its
ck'ifii lon<j, and, in refer-
ence to the ear, the spike-
lets are generally open ;
though, in the case of this
epecitnen, the Odessa long
white wheat, the ear is me-
dinm-sized, and the chaff
long as well as the grain.
The median line of the uppermost grain is not
Bo distinctly marked as in the two former cases.
The ends of the grain are pointed but not sharp,
and the skin seems rather coarse. The germ
and radicle are boldly marked.
1852. The three sorts of wheat in these figures,
all placed in similar positions, are of the
natural size, and indicate the forms of the prin-
cipal varieties of wheat found in our markets.
1853. It will be seen from what has been
stated, that no inevitable relation exists between
the ear and the Qmin ; that the compact ear does
not always produce the round grain nor the
while wheat ; that in the medium ear is not
always found the medium-sized grain ; and that
the open ear does not always produce the lar:re
long grain. Still, there exist coincidents which
connect the cAo/f with the qrain. For example,
the lenifth of the <■*<?/' indicates the lenijtk of the
gr'iin, upon whatever sort of ear it may be found ;
and, generally, the colour of the chaff determines
that of the grain ; and as the open sjdkelel bears
long chaff, the long chaff covers grain of coarser
quality than the chaff of the compact ear. On
desiring, therefore, to determine the sort of i/ratn
any number of ears of different kinds of wheat
contain, the form and colour of the chajf deter-
mine the point, and not whether the ear carries
Compact, medium, or open, bearded or beard-
less, woolly or smooth spikelets.
1854. But the classification of wheat is nn-
important to the farmer, compared to the mode
of judpimj it, to ascertain the external charac-
ters which best indicate the purposes to which it
may be best employed, in the particular con-
dition of the sample. The purposes are, for
seed and the making of flonr — whether the flour
is to be employed in the manufacture of bread
or of cuiitectiuns, or in some of the arts,
as starch-making. In ita beH condition, all
wheat, whether red or white, small or large, long
or ruuiid. should appear plump within its skin,
and not in the leart shrivelled or shrunk. The
skin hhould be fine and smooth, and not in the
least scaly or uneven in surface. The colour, be
it what tint it niay, should be bright, lively, and
unitbrm, and not in the least dull, bleached, or
particoloured. The grains should all be of the
same t-izc and form, not bhort and lung, round
and long, small and large. The grains should
be quite periect; there should be no bruises, or
holes, or dried rootlets hanging from one end, or
woolly appendages protruding from the other. If
perfect in all these respects, wheat is fitted for
every purp-jt-e, and may be purchased by the
general merchant. For particular purposes, par-
ticular properties must be sought for.
1855. When wheat is quite opaque, indicating
not the least translucency, it is in the best state
for yielding the finest flour— such flour as con-
fectioners use for pa.-try ; and in this state it
will be eagerly purchased by them at a large
price. Wheat in this state contains the large?t
proportion of fecula or starch, ajid is therefore
best suited to the starch-maker, as well as the
Confectioner. On the other hand, when wheat is
translucent, hard, and flinty, it is better suited to
tlie common baker than the confectioner and
starch manufacturer, as affording what is called
strong flour, that rises boldly with yeast into a
spongy dough. Bakers will, therefore, give
mure for good wheat in this state than in the
opaque ; but for bread of finest quality the
flour should be fine as well as strong, and there-
fore a mixture of the two conditions of wheat ia
best suited for making tiie best quality of breal.
Bakers, when they purchase their own wheat,
are in the habit of mixing wheat which respec-
tively possesses those qualities ; and millers who
are in the habit of supplying bakers with flour,
mix different kinds of wheat, and grind them to-
gether for their use. Some sorts of wheat natu-
rally possess both these properties, and on that
account are great favourites with bakers, though
not so with confectioners ; and, 1 presume, to
this mixed property is to be ascribed the great
and lasting popularity which Hunter's white
wheat has so long enjoyed. We hear also of
" hii/k inijred " Danzig wheat, which has been so
mixed for the purpose, and is in high repute
amontrst bakers. Generally speaking, the purest
coloured white wheat indicates most opacity,
autl, of course, yields the finest flour : and red
wheat is iiio>t flinty, and therefore yields the
strongest flour : a translucent red wheat will
yield stronger flour than a translucent white
wheat, and yet a red wheat never ^eali^es so
high a i>rice in the market as white — partly be-
cause it contains a lari:er proportion of refuse in
the grinding, bnt chiefly because it yields less
fine flour, that is, starch.
1856. The weight of wheat varies according
THRASHING AND WINXOWING OF GRAIN.
435
to the state of the season from 59 lbs. to 68 lbs.
per imperial bushel ; the former being very light,
and produced only in a wet late season, on infe- •
rior land, the latter being extraordinarily heavy,
and produced only in a very clear hot season on
the best soil. A good average weight for wheat
is 63 lbs. per bushel, the finest samples from the
best soils in the same circumstances being 65
lbs. Of Chidham white wheat, weighing fio lbs
per bushel, I found that 86 grains weighed one
drachm. The bushel should contain Zl.'ijOiO
grains of wheat : at 63 lbs. to the bushel, and 87
grains to the drachm — the most common case —
the bushel should contain 701,568 grains.
1857. For seed, the base from which the root-
lets issue should be distinctly marked and rather
prominent, and the end from which the blade
springs should be covered with a slight hairiness.
The protuberances of the rootlets and hairy end
should on no account be rubbed off by sheeling,
as tbat would render the grain unfit for seed,
and deprive it of its vitality. Nor should the
grain be kiln-dried, as that process also deprives
it of vitality ; but, indeed, wheat is never kiln-
dried in this country.
1858. Kiln-drying makes wheat too hard for
grinding, and imparts a smoky odour to it.
Hardness, however, is not necessarily induced by
kiln-drying, as some wheat becomes hard by ordi-
nary drying; and in parts of the Continent, such
as on the shores of the Mediterranean, some
wheat is naturally so hard, that others are called
soft merely to distinguish them. When no
smokiness can be detected in the odour of foreign
wheat, the surest test of its having retained its
vitality is to germinate the grain near the fire, in
a glass, amongst as much water as will swell it.
1859. Damaged wheat may be detected in
various ways. If it has been in sea-water, al-
though not enlarged by moisture, it never loses
the saline taste ; and even when washed in fresh
■water and dried in a kiln, the washing gives it
a bleached appearance, and the kiln-drying may
be detected by the smell or taste. Wheat which
has been slieeled to make it look round and
plump, may be detected by the ends being rubbed
down. When heated in the stack, though not
to the degree of affecting the colour, it tastes
bitter. When long in the granary, it appears dull
and dirty, though passed through the fanners ;
and, though not seriously injured, contracts a
musty smell. Wheat is attacked by insects in the
granary, which breed within its shell and eat the
kernel, and the shells are then easily detected
by their lightness, and the holes in them. Ger-
minated, swollen, burst, bruised, smutted grains,
as well as the presence of other kinds of grain
and seeds, are easily detected by the eye.
1860. Difference of opinion exists in regard to
the best mode of preserrinf) wheat in (/raiiarles.
The usual practice is to shovel the lieap over
from the bottom every few weeks, according to
the dryness or dampness of the air, or heat or
coldness of the atmosphere. In this mode of
treatment, a free ventilation of air is requisite in
the granary, and the worst state of the atmo-
sphere for the grain is when it is woist and varm.
Extreme heat or extreme cold are preservatives
of grain. The practice of others is not to turn it
over at all, but keep it in the dark in thick
masses, reaching from the floor to the ceiling.
No doubt, if air could be excluded from a granary,
the grain would be preserved in it without
trouble ; and a good plan of excluding the air
seems to be, to heap the grain as close together
as possible. When kept long in heap without
turning, it retains its colour with the fresh tint,
which is secured by keeping it in the dark.
The ancients used to preserve grain many years,
to serve for food in years of famine. Joseph, in
Egypt, preserved wheat for seven years in the
stores ; in Sicily, Spain, and the northern parts
of Africa, pits were formed in the ground to pre-
serve it ; and the Romans took great pains in
constructing granaries, which kept wheat for 50
and millet for 100 years.* As regards the far-
mer, the question of preserving wheat in granaries
should little affect him, the best way of keeping
wheat being in the straw in the stack ; and when
the stacks are thrashed, that the straw may be
used, he should dispose of his wheat immediately,
and take the current market-prices. During the
cuiiency of a lease, this is the safest practice for
securing him an average price ; and it saves
much trouble in looking after the grain, much
vexation when the grain becomes injured, and
much disappointment when the price falls below
its expected amount. Two friends of mine,
large farmers, were both great losers by keeping
wheat of tlieir own growth. They each stored
three years' crop, and though offered £6 a quarter
for it, refused it, and were obliged at last to take
65s. Such is not unfrequently the fate of farmers
who speculate in grain of their own growth ; but
when they become merchants, and involved in
the intricacies of foreign trade, their ignorance
of their new profession makes them feel the effects
of their temerity in engaging in it.
1861. Wheat is prepared for the use of man
by being ground iniKi fiour. The machinery used
for grinding wheat is simple and effective. The
first process is to put the wheat through the
sheelitdj cylitider, which rubs off every extraneous
matter adhering to the outer skin of the grain,
and renders it plumper, brighter in colour, and
free from every impurity. The quantity of black
suffocating dnst wliich flies off from the cylinder
in this process, and the seeds and other substances
separated from the grain and collected together,
surprise every one, wlio has never previously
witnessed the process, how such impurities caa
proceed from an af'pareiit/y dean sample.
1862. After the sl)eeling, the wheat is put into
a large liopper, which conveys it, by means of the
shoe and clack, through the upper one of two
millstones of French bhurr,+ which grind it into
* Dickson's Husbandry of the Ancients, vol. ii. p. 426.
■f" See Ure's Dictionary of the Arts, art. Millstone, for an account of this remarkable substance.
486
PRACTICE— WIXTEK.
» flour containing all the ingredienU of the
wheat. On leaving the atones, the flour has
aUained a high rise of temperature. In orUer
to cool it, which should be done as quickly as
possible, it ia immediately carried, in small quan-
tities on an endless web, to a well ventilated
cooling-room, to be spread upon a wooden floor,
and turned frequently over with a wooden shovel.
1863. After it is thoroughly cooled, it is made
to descend from the cooliug-room, by a hopper,
into the boufting or drftting cylinder, in which it
is separated into several parts, by being pushed
by revolving brushes through wire-cloths of dif-
ferent size of mesh. These parts usually consist
of firsts, or fine flour; of $<co»df, or second flour ;
of third*, or sharps; of broad or coarse bran, and
oifine bran.
1864. Sometimes the coarse bran onlyi? taken
out, when the flour is said to be overhead, and
makes good coarse household bread. Sometimes
both fine and coarse bran are taken out, and the
flour makes a sweet coarse bread, but not so
good as the overhead. When a small quantity
of the firsts is taken out, to make the flour as fine
as possible, it is used for pastry and fancy bread ;
and the seconds then become finer, and make the
seconds loaf of superior quality. When a large
proportion of the flour is made into firsts, it is
not fiite, and the seconds are thereby reduced iu
quantity and made coarser. The sharps, or thirds,
which consist of the kernel of the grain, broken
and escaped from between the millstones, are
used by biscuit-bakers.
1865. The first or broad bran is used for bran-
nashes, and mixing with horse-corn; and the fine
bran is employed to feed poultry and pigs.
1866. In London the millers dress the flour into
seven distinct sorts. From a quarter of wheat
of 8 bushels, there are yielded of —
Bushels. Pecks.
Fine flunr, ..53
Seconds, ...02
Fine middlings, ..01
Coarse middlings, . . 0 ^'A.
Bran, . . . 3 O'
Twentv-pennv, . . '' (^
Pollard, .' . 2 0
ToUl,
14
1867. So that grinding increases the bulk of
flour and bran in the proportion of 14 4 to 8 of
the bulk of wheat.
1868. WTiether flour is properly gr^iund, is
judged of on being taken into the hand as it falls
fr>ra the spwut from the millstones. It is rubbed
by the thumb along the side of the forefinger,
and if it feel pleasantly smooth, without being
greasy or rough, it is well. When the outer
edge of the milhtones are set too close, the flour
feels grea.sy, and has been too much bruised — or
killed, as it is termed — and it does not easily
rise with yeast in the making of bread. When
the stones are set too far asunder, the grain ac-
camulates too much under the eye of the mill-
stone, and is there bruken, which prevents a part
of the skin of the grain being separated from the
kernel, so that the bran is thick, roui^h, and
heavy, containing much waste of substance.
1869. \rhen the large bran is inspected, and
is found to be entirely skin, and no white sub-
stance of the wheat adhering to it, the shelling
has been well executed ; and bran in this state,
on being thrown up, will fall lightly towards the
ground in large thin flakes. The small bran has
always a part of the substance of the wheat
attached to it, being derived from the groove
which forms the bosom or median line of the
grain, and is produced after the large bran has
been sloughed ofi^ and a considerable portion of
the grain ground down to the level of the groove.
1870. Whether flour is properly dretud is
ascertained in the same way, by rubbing the fine
flour with the thumb along the forefinger; and if
it feel smooth and even, sot in the least rough or
gritty, or greasy, it is well. To judge still further
whether the flour has been perfectly dressed, press
a polished surface, such as the back of a silver
spoon, upon it, and if the smooth pressed surface
expose no minute brown spots of bran, i4is clean
dressed; and if none can be detected by a good
raagnifying-glass, it is as perfectly dressed as
machinery can do it.
1871. There is no means of judging whether
any parcel of flour will make good bread, the
^uur of the opaque and flinty wheat being undis-
tinguishable from each other ; and it is perhaps
this difiiculty which induces bakers to buy wheat,
and have it mixed and made into floor on their
own account — otherwise the .«;implest plan for
them would be to buy the sort of flour they want.
On account of this practice of the bakers being
very general, most of the flour millers in Scotland
grind only ou hire.
1872. Flour is put np into farkf of 286 lbs., or
20 stones imperial. It is pressed by the bottom
of the sack being beaten against the floor by
means of a fork-lever, to which the sack is sus-
pended, on being filled at the spout from the dress-
ing-machine. Of wheat weighing 64 lbs. per
bushel, 4^ or 5 bushels will be required to make
a sack of fine flour. Of the fine crop of 1815, I
remember of the late Mr Brown, Whiisome Hill,
Berwickshire, selling to Mr Mackay of Clarabud
Mill, in that county, 800 bolls, or 4800 bushels
of red Danzig creeping wheat, weighing 27 stones
per boll, or 63 lbs. per bushel, which yielded 24
st'jues of fine flour, and only 3 stones of refuse,
which is only one-ninth of the entire weight.*
• As an instance of the great fluctuation in the price of wheat, occasioned by a difierence in
seasons, I may mention that part of this fine wheat was sold in 1815 for ?,2<. per boll of 6 bushels,
or 5s. 4d. per bushel ; and in August 1816, a very wet season, part was sold for 105s. per boll, or
17s. 6<L per bushel, being a rise in price of about 328 per cent in the coarse of a few months.
THRASHIXG AXD WmNOWiNG OF GRAIN.
437
I find the fine white wheat used by the bakers of
Edinburgh yield 13^ st. of 14 lbs. of flour from 4
bushels, weighing 18 St., 2 st. of odds, seconds,
parings, sharps, and waste, and 24 st. of brau.
1873. Many devices are practised to adulterate
flour. I remember a miller in Cornwall being
fined in very heavy penalties for adulterating
his flour with washed leUpar, obtained from the
disintegration of the granite of his neighbour-
hood. Potato-flour and bean-flour are mixed
with wheat-flour, and though not positively un-
wholesome, or perhaps unlawful, are frauds, inas-
much as they are articles of inferior value to the
flour of wheat. Every kind of adulteration caa
be detected. "If potato-flour be added," says
Dr Ure, " which is frequently done in France,
since a vessel which contains 1 lb. of wheat-flour
will contain 14 lb. of potato-flour, the proportion
of this adulteration may be easily estimated. If
gypsum or ground bones be mixed with flour,
they will not only increase its density still more,
but they will remain after burning away the
meal." — " Bean or pea flour may be detected by
pouring boiling water upon it, which develops
the peculiar smell of those two substances." —
'• Nitric acid has the property of colouring wheat-
flour of a fine orange yellow, whereas it does not
affect the colour of potato-flour." — "Pure muri-
atic acid colours good wheat-flour of a deep
violet, but dissolves potato-fecula." — " As fecula
absorbs less water than flour, this afibrds a ready
means of detection."-—" Alum may be detected
in bread by treating the bread in water, and
pouring a few drops of nitrate or muriate of
barytes in it, when a heavy white precipitate will
folkiw, indicating the presence of sulphuric
acid."* " Guaiacum," says Dr Thomson, " is
rendered blue, by various animal and vegetable
substances. It becomes blue, according to Tadei,
when rubbed in the state of powder with gluten
of wheat, or with the farina which it contains."t
If a little of this gum and water be put amongst
flour, it is a very good and easy test of its sound-
ness when the flour becomes b/ue. " It has been
found so difficult to detect the adulteration of
flour," remarks Mr Babbage, " and to measure
its good qualities, that, contrary to the maxim
that government can generally purchase any
article at a cheaper rate than that at which they
can manulacture it, it has been considered more
economical to build extensive flour-mills, and to
grind their own corn, than to verify each sack
purchased, and to employ persons in continually
devising methods of detecting the new modes of
adulteration which might be resorted to." J
1874. Any one may analyse flour in this way :
— " A ductile paste is to be made with 1 lb. of
flour and a sufficient quantity of water, and left
at rest for an hour ; then having laid across a
bowl a piece of silken sieve stuff', a little below
the surface of the water in the bowl, the paste is
to be laid on the sieve, on a level with the water,
and kneaded tenderly with the hand, so as
merely to wash the starchy particles out of it.
. . . . The water must be several times re-
newed, until it ceases to become milky. The
gluten remains on the sieve."§
1875. The analysis of wheat and flour by the
celebrated Vauquelin gave the following results.
It may be observed, however, of the wheat and
flour subjected to this analysis, that they were
of foreign growth, and the results cannot be
adopted for practical purposes in this country,
as if they had been obtained from British wheat
and flour. " In general," says Davy, " the
wheat of warm climates abounds more in gluten,
and in insoluble parts ; and it is of greater
specific gravity, harder, and more difiicult to
grind."||
Components.
French
wheat.
Odessa bard
wheat.
Odess^ soft
wheat.
Ditto.
Flour of
Paris
bakers.
Ditto of good
quality and
ill iiubhc
establishments.
Ditto, in-
ferior kind,
Starch, .
Gluten,
Sugar, . .
Gum, . .
Bian, . .
Witer, .
71-49
10-96
4-72
332
lobo
56-5
14-55
8-48
4-90
2-30
12-00
62-00
12-00
7-56
5-80
1-20
1000
7-2-00
7-30
5-42
3-30
1-2-00
72-8
10-2
4-2
•2-8
lo-b
712
10-3
4-8
3-6
80
67-78
9-02
4-80
4-60
2-00
1-2-00
100-49 98-73
98-56
100-02
100-0
97-9
100-20 IT
It seems that Odessa wheat contains more than
double the quantity of sugar that French wheat
does. The gluten mentioned liere is a mixture of
gluten and albumen. The gum has a brown
colour, and contains azote.
lo"6. It is the gluten which gives to a mixture
of flour and water its tenaciousness, ductility,
and elasticity, and forms an important nourishing
property of loaf-bread. Gluten has a great re-
semblance to animal tendon or membrane, con-
taining no less than 14^ per cent of azote. When
subjected to fermentation, which is of a peculiar
character, and has thereby obtained the appella-
* Ure's Dictionary of the Arts, art. Flour of Wheat.
f Thomson's Organic Chembtri), — Vci/etables, p. 535.
X Babbage On the Economy of Machinery and Manufactures, p. 102.
§ Ure's Dictionary of the Arts, art. Bread.
II Davy's Lectures on Aoricultural Chemiftry, p. 136, edition of 1839.
^ Thomson's Organic Chemistry, — Vegetables, p. 876.
438
PRACTICE— WINTER.
tion of panary fennenUtion, a considerable
volume of carbonic acid gas is eyolred, but
which is retained in the mass of the dough by
the tt'uacity of the gluten. Thus confined during
its evolution, the gas expands the dough to
nearly double its pristine volume, and gives it
its vesicular texture ; and it is the infinite num-
ber of these cellules, filled with carbonic acid
gas, and apparently lined with a glutinous mem-
brane of a silky sotiness, that gives to the well-
baked loaf that light, elastic, porous constitution,
which good bread always possesses.
1 P77. Wheat-flour also contains oil, which pos-
sesses the general properties of the fatty oils, or
of butter. The proportion of oil in the outer
part of the grain of wheat is greater than in the
Potash,
Soda,
Lime,
Maenesia, .
Oxide of iron.
Phosphoric acid,
Sulphuric acid.
Silica,
inner part. This appe.irs from the proportion of
fat yielded by the several part- of a sample of
grain gruwn in the neighbourhood of Durham.
Thus,-
Per cent.
The fine flour gave of oil, . I '.5
Tlie boxing.*, . . . l!'.''i6
The pollard or slurps, . S'.it!
The bran, . . . 3-25
The more husk in it, therefore, the more oil a
flour is likely to contain. Hence the agreeabi*
flavour of coarse bread.
1R78. Wheat when burned in the grain leave*
ash, of which the following is the coniposiiiouy
according to various authorities : —
will and Frexenius.
Birbon.
Thoa.
BoD.'iisfnsaaTt.
Erdmann.
MMnof the
Gicssen
Uunwd.
Kurbr.4w.
Bccbetttronn.
i^ipcic.
Sil AuUjKC
Red.
White.
•21 -87
33-iU
6-4. •}
24-17
3012
25-90
•23-72
15'75
•27-79
lo:u
0-44
9-05
1-.03
?,m
3!il
301
3(M)
l-.<»2
2-81
.0-60
i:k,4
r2-.t8
13-.=i7
16-2«
6-27
I-2-03
l-.JG
o-.il
0-50
(I-.V2
1-33
0-(i7
4J»:«
4fK.'l
4'iU
45-53
48 30
60-39
4.9-81
017
0-27
lol
0-24
0-42
9«-44
i'-'91
1-31
3-37
1-17
10000
<)9-f.'9
99 05
100-00
99-6-2
.99-50
« Of the differences of this table," observes Pro-
fessor Johnston, " part, no doubt, are due to the
Tariety of wheat examined, part also to soil,
climate, season, mode of culture, deirree of ripe-
ness, and other circumstances, the effect of which
we have as yet no means of ascertaining. For
all practical purposes, the mean of six analyses
may at present be regarded as affording a valu-
Where grown.
Sunderland Bridge, near Durham,
Kinihlesworth, do.
lloujhall, . Ho.
Plawsworth, . do.
1 880. The composition of bran is as follows : —
Water, . . . . 1^^ 1
Gluten, .... 1.9-3
Oil, ..... 4-7
Husk, and a little starch, . . fiS-f!
Saline matter, (ash,) . • 7'<i
100-0
1881. Leaten was at first used to produce the
fermentation spoken of in dough. It is nothing
more than a piece of dough kept in a warm place
until it undergoes a process of fermentation,
swelling, becoming spongy, or full of air-bubbles,
at length disengagingan acidnlo-spiritous vapour,
and contracting a sour taste. A much better
promoter of the panary fermentation is yea^t,
which is the viscid froth that rises on the surface
of beer in the first stage of its fermentation.
1882. With good wheaten flour, the proportion
able approximation to the true composition of the
ash of the grain."
1879. Tlie saline and other inorganic matter of
wheat resideschiefly in thehnsk,as may be seen by
the relativeqiiantiiiesiif ash It-ft liy the flonr,bran,
&c.ofseveral samples of English and foreign wheat,
as determined in Professor Johnston's laboratory:
Asli left per cent by dry
Fine Flour. Boxings. Sliarps. Bran.
1-24 4-0 5-8 6-9
1-15 :<-8 4-9 6 7
0-9'! 3-0 5-6 71
0-93 2-7 5-5 7-6*
given by the bakers to make bread is, three-
fourth's weight of flour and one-fourth of
yeast, water, and salt. The bread loses one-
seventh of its weijiht in baking. With these pro-
portions, a sack of flour of 280 lbs. yields 92
loaves of 4 lbs. each. •
1883. It is not unusual for farmers to bake
their household bread, and it may be done in this
way: Take, say 24 lbs. of flour, whether fine or
ground overhead, and put it in a hollow clay
dish. Make a deep holloa- in the middle of it,
and sprinkle a handful of salt over it. Then take
half a pint of thick, sweet, fresh, well washed
yeast, about 5 quarts of milk-warm water, from
65° to 70° Fahr., and a pint of bran, and stir
them together in a pitcher. Too hot water will
stop, and too cold will prevent fermentation.
Ponr the water and yeast over the flour tlinnigh
a sieve, and, mixing all liiihtly together, set the
mass before the fire, covering it with a cloth.
• Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, pp. 365 and 86i)-9, 2il e<iition.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
439
Light the oven fire, and bring it to a clue heat.
lu about au hour the sponge will have risen
sufficiently, when it should be kneaded with con-
siderable ibrce for about 15 or '20 minutes. The
dough t-hould not be worked too stitf, though it
requires to be a little stiff'er when the loaves are
fired on their own soles than when fired in pans.
The kne;ided dough is again set before the fire,
and covered with a cloth as before, when a new
fermentation ensues, which will have proceeded
far enough when the dough increases half more in
bulk, that is, in about an hour, when the dough
is portioned out into the size of the loaves desired,
and placed in the oven to be fired. If the oveu
is too hot, the douglx will be encrusted on the
surface too much and too soon, and, if too cold,
the bread will be heavy, and not rise sufficiently
in the firing. Experience must teach these
particulars. This quantity will make 27 lbs. of
bread.
18fi4. The danger of making the bread soiir is
incurred between the first and second processes
of fermentation. In the first it is the vinous fer-
mentation, wliich of itself is innocent, but if
increased heat is applied, or the sponge allowed
to stand too long, it is apt to run into the acetous
fermentation. This tendency is checked during
the first process by kneading the dough in time.
If, however, the second fermentation is allowed
to continue longer than it should be, the acetous
fermentation will rapidly appear, and then the
bread will inevitably be sour unless some counter-
acting e.xpedient is adopted, such as an applica-
tion of an alkali, as carbonate of soda, or of au
alkaline earth, as magnesia or chalk. It is
certainly better to employ these neutralising in-
gredients than to allow the batch of bread to
become sour, but better still to use the means of
making the batcli into sweet bread, than to
rectify that acidity in it which ought never to
have overtaken it; and the means of avoiding
acidity arc, to make the sponge fresh in the
morning, a thort time before the bread is to be
fired, and not to allow it to stand over night in
the kitchen in a low temperature. I speak from
experience, and can safely aver that, with these
precautions, not a sour loaf was seen in my house
for many years. I do not say that a sponge left
over night must become sour, but only that it is
much mure a}it to become so tlian when fresh
made. . When the second fermentation is allowed
to proceed too far, both the lactic and acetic
acids are formed; the former most sensibly aftects
the taste, and tjie latter the smell ; and both
combine to make bread sour.
1805. Brewer's barm makes the lightest and
best yeast for family use, and what of it may not
be used at one time, may be kept sweet for some
weeks in the following manner : " As this sub-
stance works out of the barrels, it should be
placed in deep pans, and left to settle for a day
or two. The thin fluid should then be poured
ofi", and the pan filled with cold fresh spring
water, stirring the thick yeast well up. Every
day this operation is to be repeated, and occasion-
ally it ought to be strained through a sieve into
another vessel. It vvill thus always be ready
for use." Experience alone can tell whether the
scent or appearance of yeast procured at a brew-
ery are those the most desirable; but these hints
may prove useful. " If it be fit for the purpose,
it will smell rather fragrant; if stale, it will have
a strong acid and slightly putrid scent. In this
state we have known it to be recovered and
rendered available by adding a tea spoonful of
flour, the same of sugar, a salt spoonful of salt,
and a tea cupful of warm water, to a half pint of
yeast, and setting it near the tire to rise, having
well stirred it. This should be done about an
hour before it is intended to be mixed with the
flour; for that time is required in order to watch
whether the fermentative principle is strong
enough to work the bread. In a quarter of an
hour the mass will have nearly reached its
height, and a fine head will have formed. This
must be looked at carefully. If it continue up
and appear opaque, it may be trusted ; but if it
' go back,' that is, sink, look hollow and watery,
and the bubbles break, it will infallibly spoil the
batch; it must be thrown away. Ihaii ought
always to be uhcJ, however fresh and good the
ferment may be found. Bran contains an acid
principle which tends to subdue the bitter taste
of the hop, and it also possesses much fermentative
matter that assists the action of the yeast." In
this way, " we have ourselves baked bread that
was made with the barm from our own home-
brewed beer for six successive weeks ; not from
necessity, but in order to ascertain the extent of
time to which yeast might be kept sweet."*
1886. On the propriety of fermenting bread,
Dr Robert D. Thomson conceives that there are
materials, the use of which in baking bread would
be more economical than fermentation. " Bread,"
he observes " may be made either by the usual
process of fermentation, or by the action of hydro-
chloric acid uponsesquicarbonate of soda. In many
respects the latter process deserves the preference,
when we consider the chemical nature of the two
methods. The vulgar idea, which yields the
palm of superiority to the former, does not
appear to be based on solid data ; and it seems
desirable that, iu a case of so much importance in
domestic economy, the arguments in favour of
such an opinion should be subjected to a careful
experimental examination. Judging a priori, it
does not seem evident that flour should become
more wholesome by the destruction of one of its
important elements, or that the vesicular condi-
tion engendered by the evolution of carbonic acid
from that source, should at once convert dough
(if it were unwholesome) into wholesome bread.
1887. "When a piece of dough," continues
Dr Thomson, " is taken in the hand, being ad-
hesive, and closely pressed together, it feels
heavy, and if swallowed in the raw condition, it
would prove indigestible to the majority of indi-
viduals. This would occur from its compact
nature, and from the absence of that disintegra-
tion of its particles, which is the primary step ia
* Quarterly Journal o/ Agriculture, vol. ix. p. 200.
440
PRACTICE— AVTNTER.
digestion. But, if the same dough were subjected
to the elevated heat of a baker's oven, 450°, its
relation to the digestive powers of the stomach
Would be changed, because the water to which
it owed its tenacity would be expelled, and the
only obstacle to its complete division, and conse-
quent subserviency to the solvent powers of the
animal system, would be removed. This view of
the case is fully borne out by a reference to the
form in which the flour of the various species of
the Cfri'atia is employed as an article of food by
different nations. By the peasantry of Scotland,
barley-bread, oat-cakes, pease-bread, or a mixture
of peas and barley-bread, and also potato-bread
mixed with flour, are all very generally employed
in an unfermented form, with an effect the re-
verse of injurious to health. With such an
experience under our daily observation, it seems
almost unnecessary to remark, that the Jew does
not labour under indigestion when he has substi-
tuted, during his Passover, unleavened cakes for
his usually fermented bread ; that biscuits are
even employed when fermented bread is not con-
sidered sufficiently digestible for the sick ; and
that the inhabitants of the northern parts of
India, and of Affghanistan, very generally make
use of unfermented cakes, similar to what are
called scones in Scotlantl. Such, then, being
sufficient evidence in favour of wholesomeness of
unfermented bread, it becomes important to dis-
cover in what respect it differs from fermented
bread. Bread-making being a chemical process,
it is from chemistry alone tliat we can expect a
solution of this questiou."
1888. After describing the usual mode of baking
loaf-bread, Dr Thomson proceeds to argue that
" the result gained by this process may be con-
sidered to be merely the expansion of the par-
ticles of which the loaf is composed, so as to
render the mass more readily divisible by the
preparatory organs of digestion. But as this
object is gained at a sacrifice of the integrity of the
flour, it becomes a matter of interest to ascertain
the amountof loss sustained in the process. To de-
termine this point, I had comparative experiments
made upon a large scale witli fermented and unfer-
mented bread. The latter was raised by means
of carbonic acid, generated by chemical means in
the dough The result of my experiments
upon the bread produced by the action of hydro-
chloric acid upon carbonate of soda, has been,
that in a sack of flour there was a difference in
favour of the unfermented bread, to the amount of
30 lbs. 13 oz. ; or, in round numbers, a sack of
flour would produce 1U7 loaves of unfermented
bread, and only 100 loaves of fermented bread of
the same weight. Hence, it appears that in a
sack of flour, by the common process of baking,
7 loaves, or 6J per cent of the flour, are driven
into tlie air and lost.
1889. " An important question now arises from
the considerationof the result of this experiment.
Does the loss arise entirely from the decomposi-
tion of sugar, or is any other element of the flour
attracted 1 It appears from a mean of 8 analyses
of wheat-flour from different parts of Europe
by Vanquelin (1872) that the quantity of sugar
contained in flour amounts to 5 61 per cent. But
it is obvious that, as the quantity lost by baking
exceeded this amount by nearly one percent, the
loss cannot be accounted for by the removal
merely of the ready formed sugar of the flour.
We must ascribe this entire loss to a conversion
of a portion of the gum of the flour into sugar,
and its decomposition by means of the ferment,
which is highly probable; or we must attribute it
to the action of the yeast upon another element
of the flour. And if we admit that yeast isgener-
ated during the panary fermentation, tlien the
conclusion would be inevitable, that another
element of the flour beside the sugar or gum has
been affected ; for Liebig has well illustrated
tlie fact, that when yeast is added to wort,
ferment is formed from the gluten contained ia
it; at the same time the sugar is decomposed into
alcohol and carbonic acid. >«'ow, in the panary
fermentation, which is precisely similar to the
fermentation of wort, we might naturally expect
that the gluten of the flour would be attracted to
reproduce yeast,"
1890. Dr Thomson has given the following
recipe for making good unfermented bread : —
" Take of—
Flour, . . . 41hs.
Supercarbonate of soda of the
shops, ... 5^ drachms.
Muriatic acid, . . 6A
Salt, ... 5"
\\ ater, . . . 3-t oz.
Tlie soda is first mixed with the flour very inti-
mately. The salt is dissolved in the water, and
added to the acid, the whole being then rapidly
mixed as in common baking. The bread may
either be baked in tins, or be formed like cottage
loaves, and should be kept from one to 1%to hours
intheo^en. Should the bread prove yellow, it
is a proof that the soda has been in excess, and
indicates tlie propriety of adding a small addi-
tional portion of acid, the acid varying somewhat
in strength." *
1891. Professor Johnston mentions a curious
fact as regards the action of yeast. "One of
the most satisfactory experiments in proof of
the organised or vegetable character of yeast
has lately been made by Ludersdorf. He rubbed
yeast carefully in a mortar till, when seen under
the microsco]>e, all tlie globules had disappeared,
and then mixed it with a solution of sugar. It
caused no trace of fermentation, while an equal
weight of unrubbed yeast in another similar
solution of sugar occasioned a copious evolution
of gas. The fermentation brought on by yeast
is not, therefore, a purely chemical process, it is
the result of the organisation of the particles of
yeast. A similar exjieriment had sh«wn De
Saussure that the leaves of plants cease to de-
compose carbonic acid when their organi>ation is
de^troyed ; and Freny has made the same obser-
vation' in regard to the skins of fruits. While
the result is purely chemical, therefore, the im-
Thomson's Retearches on the Food of AnimaU, p. 180-5.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
441
mediate cause in all these cases is the surface of
the organised body."*
1892. It is rather remarkable that Raspail,
who used the microscope to so great advantage
to chemical investigation and elucidation, had
no idea of the organic structure of yeast. He
observes " 1 regard ferment as a mixture of
gluten still unchanged, and of the residue result-
ing from the change produced on it by the process
of fermentation. Do the gluten and the sugar
act on each other in this case, either chemically
or physically, by a kind of double decomposition,
or do they act in a manner resembling the
galvanic influence of contact ? This is a point
which science has not yet (in the year 1834,
when the translation of this work was published)
been able to determine. "+
1893. It is assumed by some people, that a
mixture of potatoes amongst wheateu flour ren-
ders bread lighter and more wholesome. That
it will make bread whiter, I have no doubt ;
but I have as little doubt that it will render it
more insipid, and it is demonstrable that it
makes it dearer than wheaten flour. Thus,
take a bushel of " seconds" flour, weighing 56
lbs. at 5s. 6d. A batch of bread, to consist of
21 lbs., will absorb as much water, and require
as much yeast and salt, as will yield 7 loaves, of
4 lbs. each, for 2s. 4d., or 4d. per loaf. *' If,
instead of 7 lbs. of the flour, the same weight of
raw potatoes be substituted, with the hope of
saving by the comparatively low price of the
latter article, the quantity of bread that will be
yielded will be but a trifle more than would have
been prodacfd from 14 lbs. of flour only, without
the addition of the 7 lbs. of potatoes ; for the
starch of this root is the only nutritive part, and
we have proved that but one-seventh or one-
eighth of it is contained in every pound, the
remainder being water and innutritive matter.
Only 20 lbs. of bread, therefore, instead of 28
lbs., will be obtained ; and this, though white,
will be comparatively flavourless, and liable to
become dry and sour in a few days ; whereas,
without the latter addition, bread made in pri-
vate families will keep rrell for 3 weeks, though,
after a fortnight, it begins to deteriorate, espe-
cially in the autumn." The calculation of com-
parative cost is thus shown : —
Flour, 141bs., sayat l^d. per lb., = Is. 5.Jd.
Potatoes, 7 lbs., say at 5s. per sack, = 02
Yeast and fuel, . . . = 0 4J
2s. Od.
The yield, 20 lbs., or 5 loaves of 4 lbs. each, will
be nearly 5d. each, which is dearer than the
wheaten loaves at 4d. each, and the bread be-
sides of inferior quality.
1894. " There are persons who assert — for we
have heard them — that there is no economy in
baking at home. An accurate and constant atten-
tion to the matter, with a close calculation of
every week's results for several years — a calcu-
lation induced by the sheer love of investigatioa
and experiment — enable us to assure our readers,
that again is invariably made of from l^d. to 2d.
on the 4 lb. loaf. W all be intrusted to servants,
we do not pretend to deny that the waste may
neutralise i\\e profit ; but, with care and investi-
gation, we pledge our veracity that the saving
will prove to be considerable.":): These are the
observations of a lady well known to me.
1895. The microscope has ascertained the
structure of wheaten flour. " The largest grain3
of the fecula of wheat," says Raspail, " do not
generally exceed '002 of an inch in size. They
are spherical, and along with them we see empty
and torn membranes, resulting from the bruising
of the grains by the mill. They are much
smaller, rounder, and better preserved, when
they are extracted from the grain while it is
greenish, and not ripened on the stalk. . . Pani-
fication," he observes, " is a process whose object
is to burst all the grains of iecula, which are in
the farina, associated with a very fermentable
substance called gluten. The finest and best
baked bread is what is made of farina abound-
ing in an elastic gluten ; for this gluten, rising
in large blisters by the dilatation of the gases
imprisoned within it, allows each feculent grain
to participate in the communication of the heat,
and to burst, as it would by boiling. Hence, after
panification, if the paste has been well kneaded,
we do not find a single grain of fecula entire.
The bread will be duller and less properly baked,
if it contains less of this gluten. This is the
reason why, other circumstances being alike, the
bread of rye and barley is less nourishing than
that of wheat. Wheaten bread will likewise be
heavier and less perfect, according as the flour
has been more or less mixed with other grain or
with fecula. It has been observed," he con-
tinues, " that the more of foreign fecula we mix
with flour, the less increase of weight does the
bread acquire. Thus, G lbs. of flour produce
8 lbs. of bread ; but 3 lbs. of fecula of the
potato, with 3 lbs. of flour, produce only 6 lbs.
of bread. The reason of this is the following : —
The grains of fecula do not imbibe the water,
but only are moistened by it ; in other words, it
only adheres to them. The gluten, on the other
hand, imbibes it as a sponge would do, and the
more it is kneaded the more it imbibes, and the
water thus imbibed adds to the weight of the
bread. There are two reasons, then, against this
sort of mixture ; and this adulteration, though
it be not a crime, is still a fraud, because the
immediate result of it is to diminish at once the
weight and the nutritive quality of the bread."
Thus the minutest scientific research corrobo-
rates facts evolved by practice.
1896. Wheat contains more ijlutcn than any of
the other grains, and it is this substance which
confers the relative value on wheat as an article
of food. It is most developed when used in the
form of bread. '• If we prepare two masses of
* Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 41 1, note.
•J* Raspail's Organic Chemistry, p. 334. J Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. ix. p. 584-9.
ii2
PRACTICE— WINlTiR.
glnten by kneading, says Raf^pail, " we shall
not be able to make them unite by simple con-
tact ; but if we tear open the side of each, and
bring the edges tugether, the smallest effurt will
be sufficient to unite the two masses into one.
The object of kneading, then, is to press the two
edges of the glutinous parcels against each
other. Hence tiie quantity of gluten will vary
according to the mode of kneading employed.
Thu* Beccaria, who contented himself with
placing the farina in a sieve, and keeping it
under a stream of water, but without stirring it,
obtained less gluten than Kesselmeyer, who in
the first place made a paste of the farina, and
then kneaded it continually under a stream of
water, till the water ceased to pass off milky.
In the former process, the weight of the water
falling on the farina brought a few parcels to-
gether, but kept asunder or disunited the greater
number, which consequently passed through the
sieve, la the second process, on the contrary,
the hand in kneading compressed, turned in
every direction, aud brought together by every
point of contact, the scattered parcels, and
scarcely allowed the water to carry off any
thing but the round and smooth grains of fecula.
I have ever found that, in this process, we
obtain more or less gluten, according as the paste
is pressed in different ways ; for when it is
merely compressed perpendicularly, we lose a
good deal more of the gluten than when it is
rolled upon itself with some force."
1897. In regard to the nutrithe properties of
plati'n, there is no doubt they are of a superior
order, though not for the reason ascribed by
Magendie, who concluded that gluten is nutri-
tious because sugar, which contains uo nitrogen,
could not support dogs in life beyond a certain
time ; while Parmentier was led to infer that
gluten remains undigested. *' But who does not
perceive," justly asks Ra.-^pail, " that animals,
till then accustomed to live on flesh, must suffer
on being all at once deprived of tuis aliment,
just as a horse would suffer from being fed on
flesh instead of hay ; for as digestion i^- a com-
plex operation, why should we seek to study it
by violating its elements ? Sugar will not fer-
ment by itself — why, then, ex|>cct that it should
ferment without albumen in the stomach I If
this mode of experimenting entitle us to erase
sugar, oil, and gum from the list of nutritive
substances, we must also erase pure gluten, and
even pure albumen ; for if an animal be fed on
them alone, it will die just as certainly as if it
had been fed exclusively on sugar. This is one
of those questions," he concludes, "in which
both sides are wrong, and the truth lies in blend-
ing the opposite opinions together. Neither
gluten nor sugar, taken singly, is nutritive ; but
they become alimentary when united."*
1898. Notwithstanding the reasonableness of
these remarks of Raspail, certain experimenters
insist that the nutritive value of bread is in pro-
portion to the quantity of gluten it contains ;
and in like manner they determine the value
of wheat, because certain varieties of foreign
wheat are used by our bakers to mix with our
own wheat, and, it being found that those varie-
ties of foreign wheat contain more gluten than
certain other varieties of British wheat, the
conclusion is formed, without the investigation
of other circumstances, that a mixture of foreign
wheal is at all times necessary to enable our
bakers to make the finest quality of nutritious
bread. Thus, Sir George .Mackenzie, Bjrt., in a
recent pamphlet, that may be regarded as a
supplement to another one which appeared
from his pen at a former period, on a kindred
subject, observes that " Each of these varieties
(of wheat) differ from the rest in its habits of
growth and in productiveness, and above all in
its degree of fitness for the purposes of the
baker. Now, it is or ought to be well known
that the baker rannot use home-grown wheat by
itself, on account of its deficiencies in certain
qualities. He has therefore to procure, from
foreign countries, wheat possessing those qualities
in a high degree, to mix with that of home
growth, to enable him to produce good bread.
Much has been said of rendering Great Britain
ijidependent of foreign supply. But it has been
a sad mistake to suppose that this can be done
by increasing merely the quautitxi of home pro-
duce. Let that be done to any amount — still, if
nothing el-e be attended to, quantity will not
render us independent. We must liave ijualitji
too. The only means, by the application of
which we can hope to become comparatively
independent, has been furnished by organic
chemistry. I believe I was the first to call
attention to this ; but I have called hitherto in
vain, so difflcult is it to expel old not;oiis and
prejudices, and to substitute knowledge derived
from fact and experience, .\draitting the fact
that the baker nui?t have foreign wheat, the
question arises, what can be done to render it
unnece>sary for the baker to import it ? The
answer is, lo produce wheat at home of timilar
qnolity. It is not manures, it is not soil, it is
not the most careful draining and cultivation, that
will render the wheats now cultivated so much
better as to supersede foreign wheat. We may
produce finer-looking aud more abundant crops,
but we cannot change the inherent qualities of
any wheat. What, then, is to be done ? is the
next question. We must first ascertain ichit it
is that renders foreign wheat superior to our
own, for the purpose of making bread. For the
answer we must apply to the cfiemift. He pro-
ceeds, first, to determine the proportions of the
different component parts of foreign wheat.
This done, he subjects the varieties of wheat
grown at home to the same processes, and finds
that the proportions of certain ingredients of
foreign grain are greater in reference to others
than in the home-grown wheat. This di-covery
having been made, and as we know that foreign
wheat has been grown in this country, and/tiiVt-rf
to give satisfaction, we must not sit still, under
the impression that our climate will not admit of
wheat being grown equal in quality to foreign.
It may be — perhaps is — quite true, that most of
Raspail's Organic Cltemistri/, p. 114, 130, 18-2, and 396.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
443
the varieties of wheat cultivated abroad will not
succeed with us. But to conclude, in the present
state of our knowledge, that we cannot produce
any wheat equally good as foreign grain, ia
absurd. There are many varieties of wheat,
and new ones may be raised ; and I maintain
that if, possessing a small farm of its own, with
a proper establishment, an association proceed
to collect varieties of wheat of the best charac-
ter, to analyse them, and select the best sorts,
and to try them on a farm of their own, in
reference to soil and climate, some may be found
adapted to our climate, and suited in all re-
spects to the farmer and baker — for the farmer
also must have wheat possessing certain quali-
ties. In the search, the chemist would have to
be constantly applied to, and the closest attention
would have to be bestowed by a botanical phy-
siologist on the growth and habits of the varie-
ties under trial. The soil, of course, would have
to be examined, the various manures applied,
and the results registered. A meteorological
register should also be kept, and observations
made of the effects of the weather. If among
known varieties we cannot find one to answer
expectation, then we must resort to hybridisation,
which, being judiciously managed, will doubtless
yield some new varieties adapted to our views."*
1899. It may be fully admitted, that British
bakers mix foreign among our own wheat in
making bread ; but the practice is confined to the
bakers resident in large towns, where foreign
wheat can be easily obtained at any time. The
bakers in the country towns and villages never
use foreign wheat, except, it may be, under the
peculiar circumstance of a scarcity of wheat
in our own country. The reason why even
bakers in large towns use foreign wheat at
all is, not that the British wheat is of inferior
qu<il'itij to the foreign, but that the foreign wheat,
at the commencement of winter, is in a better
condition for grinding into ilour than the British.
The foreign wheat used by our bakers is almost
wholly brought from the ports of the Baltic,
and the practice of the farmers and dealers in
grain, in that part of the Continent, is to prepare
their wheat for shipment by kiln-drying. If it
were not kiln-dried, it would most likely heat,
and be thereby injured on board ship. The kilns
used there for drying grain are quite of a diff'erent
construction from ours. They consist of a double
cone of iron, the inner one being of cast iron,
in which the fire is lighted — the outer one con-
sisting of sheet iron. The wheat is i)assed in a
thin stream upon the cast-iron heated cone, be-
tween the double cones, and the steam derived
from the water evaporated from the grain, issues
at the top between the cones. It is known to
all farmers and millers, that British wheat is too
damp or raw to be ground into flour daring the
winter. The month of Alarch must first pass
away ere the wheat of this country is dry enough
to be ground by itself into flour. It could be
kiln-dried, no doubt; and- though our kilns are
not suited for drying it properly — either smoking
or roasting it too much — kilns like those of the
Continent could easily be constructed here for
the purpose. But there exists a strong dislike
on the part of both our bakers and millers to use
kiln-dried wheat by itself. The bakers aver
that the flour retains a flavour of the kiln, which
even the process of fermentation in baking does
not altogether dissipate ; and the millers truly
assert that kiln-dried wheat is too free for their
millstones, the grain splintering to pieces before
the bran is shelled off. The foreigners kiln-dry
their wheat, because the process renders it safe
for exportation by sea; and as they use no wheat
flour for bread, they are not interested in pre-
serving the natural taste of the flour, or the
best state of the grain for grinding. While,
therefore, the British wheat cannot be ground
into flour by itself in winter, and the foreign
wheat cannot bear the action of the stones by
itself, the baker and miller have no alternative
but to mix the raw British wheat in winter with
the dry kiln-dried foreign wheat ; and the mixing
secures the double advantage of drying the raw
wheat by means of the kiln-dried, while the
kiln-dried is softened by being in contact for a
time with the raw. The proportion in which
the two states of wheat are mixed varies from
one-third to one-sixth of the foreign kiln-dried,
according to the state of rawness of the British
wheat. The expediency of using foreign wheat at
all by the baker arises, if not solely, in a great
part to meet the exigencies of the miller, tlie
dressing of whose millstones is unsuited equally
to grinding wheat in a raw or brittle state.
1900. As to the superiority of foreign wheat
in making the best bread, it is, in my opinion, of
doubtful pretension. I have given Sir Humphry
Davy's (1875) statement of the wheat of warm
countries abounding more in gluten — and the fact
is not surprising, when we know the dry state
in which foreign wheat is always sent to this
country. Professor Johnston states that English
wheat loses from 15 to 17 per cent of weight by
being dried; while foreign wheat, from Semitioff,
for e.Kample, loses only 13 per cent.+ But be
the proportion of gluten in foreign wheat what
it may, it is not on account of the greater pro-
portion of it that the baker mixes foreign wheat
with the British, but simply to remove the raw-
ness of the home wheat by a process which will
render it eminently fit to be ground into flour,
witliout the slightest risk of injuring its sweet-
ness for bread. The bakers in the country re-
serve some old British wheat to mix with the
raw of the new crop, and they make as good
bread therewith as the bakers do who use foreign
wheat ; and home wheat, alter it has been fairly
dried in the slack or granary — best in the stack —
is ground by itself into flour, and makes as good
broaii as foreign, and is then in a better state
for grinding by itself than the kiln-dried foreign
wlieat is by itself.
1901. What, therefore, has been said regard-
ing the higher nutritive powers of foreign wheat
* Mackenzie's Short Plea, p. 5-7.
•f- Johnston's Lectures on AgricuUia-nl Chemistry, Sd edition, p. 867, note.
444
PRACTICE— WINTER.
over British I consider to have arisen from the
criterion attempted to be established by Liebig,
and some other chemists, of what constitutes the
true principle of nutrition in bread. That crite-
rion would maintain that the greater abundance
of gluten in a wheat is a sure test of its nutritive
superiority. That some error lurks in such a
rule the followinj^ fact indicates. I requested
Professor Johnston to analyse for uie two speci-
mens of wheat, as respects their comparatively
nutritive powers, one grown in 1845, the other in
1846. They were both of the same variety of
wheat, grown in similar circumstances, as to soil
and management, on the same farm iu Lincoln-
shire, and the analyses stood thus : —
COMPOSITION OF LINCOLNSHIRE WHEAT.
Grown Grown
in Itna. in 1846.
Water per cent, . . . l-'?? 13-16
Protein compounds, or muscle-
forming matter in the whole
grain 15-31 14-14
Protein compounds in the whole
grain freed from hygrometric
water, . • . • . • • 1^-60 IC-JC
Protein compounds in sifted flour
of grain freed from water, . 15-09 15-77
A note accompanying the analyses says, that
*' the numbers 15'09 and 15-77 ought not, pro-
perly, to be compared with each other, but with
those immediately above them. The grain in
each case was merely pounded in a mortar, and,
though they were sifted through the same sieve,
the one may have been more pounded than
the other, and therefore when silted may have
given a finer flour, containing more of the bran,
in which the excess of the protein compound
resides." Chemically speaking, the amount of
the protein compound is the test of the relative
nutritive powers of these two samples of wheat,
and of course the wheat grown in 1845 was
more nutritive, and ought of course to have been
of more value, than that grown in 184G. Now,
1845 was an unfavourable season for the growth
of good wheat ; the crop was generally inferior
throughout the kingdom : the above sample of
that year was lean, hungry, and not unlike the
winnowings of good wheat, and would have
made heavy clammy bread ; and a corn-mer-
chant valued it at 10s. less per quarter than
the wheat of 184G, which was beautifully fine.
Are we to conclude, then, that the wheat which
makes heavy clammy bread is more nourishing
than that which makes light, spongy bread ? —
that the corn-merchant and baker do not know
the wheat that will make the best bread ? — and
tliat no dependence can be placed on the e.\ternal
characters of grain, as regards their nouriahing
properties? Certainly not.
or of powder. The effect will be the same,
proviiied the irons used be sufficiently heat-
ed. It is sufficient to mix the fecula with a
little water, to dip the linen in it, clapping
it with the ha, id, and to apply the hot iron
while tlie lineu is still moist. The grains of
fecula will burst from the action of the heat, the
membranes will dilate as they combine with a
portion of the water that is present, the soluble
mass will be freely dissolved in the rest of it,
and the linen will be starched and dried by
one process." Fecula is used in making size for
paper as well as glue ; and " it is known that
weavers are obliged, in order to preserve the
humidity of the batter used in dressing the
threads, to work habitually in low, damp, and
consequently unwholesome places. Diibuc, an
apothecary at Rouen, proposed to add to the
dressing a deliquescent chloride, which, by at-
tracting the moisture of the air, might prevent
the drying of the batter, and thus admit of the
workman carrying on his labour in drier and
more-healthy places. Verguaud recommends the
use of the fecula of the horse-chestnut, which
contains a proportion of potash sufficient to pre-
vent the batter from drying." * " The wheat of
the south of Europe, in consequence of the larger
quantity of gluten it contains, is peculiarly fitted
for making viucaroni and other preparations of
flour, in which a glutinous quality is considered
as an excellence." f The macaroni is formed
into different sized tubes, by the dough being
pressed from a machine in broad fillets, the e<lges
of which are brought into contact and adliere
while the dough is yet moist. Macaroni makes
the finest flavoured dish with I'armesan cheese.
1903. A crop of wheat, yielding 30 bushels per
acre, weighing l!i001bs.,afi"ordsof nutritive matter
270 lbs. of husk or woody fibre ; JiOO lbs. of
starch, sugar, ^c. ; 1 80 to 340 lbs. of gluten, &c. ;
3(> to 7*2 lbs. of oil or fat ; and 36 lbs. of saline
matter. :J;
1904. " It is a very remarkable circumstance,"
as observed by Dr Lindley, " that the native
country of wheat, oats, barley, and rye should
be entirely unknown ; for although oats and
barley were found by Colonel Chesney, appa-
rently wild, on the banks of the Euphrates, it is
doubtful whetlier they were not the remains of
cultivation. This has led to an opinion, on the
part of some persons, that all our cereal plants
are artificial productions, obtained accidentally,
but retaining their habits, which have become
fixed in the course of ages. This curious sub-
ject has been discussed in the Gardener's Chronicle
for 1844, p. 56'5, 779, &c., whither the reader
is referred for farther information." §
1902. Wheat is used in .«<(irr/j-making. " In
starching linen," says Raspail, " the fecula of
the potato, of the horse-chestnut, &c., may be
used, as well as that of wheat ; and it may be
nsed either hot or cold, in the state of starch
* Raspail's Orf/aiiic Clicniislrif, p. 135.
t Davy's Aiiriculturnl (luiiiisfry, p. 136, edition of 1839.
X Johnston's Lectvrtu ou A>jrict(IUir(il ( lumhtr>j, 2d edition, p. 928.
§ Lindley 's VejctaUe Kiriijil<im,\K 112.
1905. "Under the name of wheat are com-
prised an immense number of varieties, produced
during a cultivation of many centuries. Two
principal varieties are usually recognised, viz.
Triticum cestitum and Triticuin hibenium — sum-
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
445
tlip importance of this precious cereal. The
isodieiiiial curve of OU" or 69°, which appears to
be the extreme limit of the possible cultivation
of wheat towards the equator, oscillates between
lat. "-'0° and 'Jo°. The cultivation of wheat is
very productive in Chili and in the united state
of Rio de la I'lata. On the plateau of southern
Peru, Meyer saw most luxurious crops of wheat
at a height of if") 00 feet, and at the foot of the
volcano of Arequipo, at a height of 10,600 feet.
Near the lake of Tibicaca, (12,795 feet high,)
where a constant spring heat pre va-ils, wheat and
rye do not ripen, because the necessary sum-
mer lieat is wanting ; but Meyer saw oats ripen
in the vicinity of the lake."*
1906. Barley. — Its botanical position is the 3d
class Triatidr'ia, 2d order Diji/iiia, genus Hor-
d'ldii, of the Liuniean system ; and in the natural
order of Gramiiiece by Jussieu. Dr Lindley
places barley, in his natural system, in class iv.
Kndo(/ens; alliance 7, Glumahs ; order 29,
Graminacece, and genng \\, Hordei, the same
position as wheat. Professor Low divides the
cultivated barleys into two distinctions, namely,
the 2-rowed and the 6-rowed, and these com-
prehend the ordinary, the naked, and the sprat
or battledoor forms.f Mr Lawson describes
20 varieties of barley ;i while the Museum of
the Highland and Agricultural Society contains
specimens of 30 varieties. § The natural classi-
iicatioa of barley by the ear is obviously of three
kinds — 4-rowed, 6-rowed, and 2-rowed. Fig. 180
mer and winter wheat — the limits of which, both
polar and equatorial, must differ somewhat ; but
this difference is not ascertained, because travel-
lers, and even botanists, seldom allude to the dis-
tinction. Wheat is cultivated in Scotland to the
vicinity of Inverness, (lat 58° ;) in Norway to
Drontheim, (lat. 64° ;) in Sweden to the parallel
of lat. 62° ; in western Russia to the environs of
St Petersburg, (lat. 60° 15' ;) while in central
Russia, the polar limits of cultivation appear to
coincide with the parallel of 59° or 60°. Wheat
is here almost an exclusive cultivation, espe-
cially in a zone which is limited between the lati-
tudes of Tchernigov, lat. 51° and Eeateriuoslav,
lat. 48°. In America the polar limits of wheat are
not known, on account of the absence of cultiva-
tion in the northern regions. The physical con-
ditions of these limits are, in the different coun-
tries where cultivation has been carried to the
utmost extent, as follows : —
Mean temperature, Falir.
Lat. Year. Winter. Summer.
Scotland, (Ross-shire,) 58" 46° 3.50 570
Norwav, (Drontheim,) 64 40 25 59
Sweden, . . .62 40 25 59
Russia, (St Petersburg,) 6015'38 16 61
This table shows how little influence winter cold
has in arresting the progress of agriculture to-
wards the north ; and this is confirmed in the
interior of Russia, where Moscow is much within
the limits of wheat, although its mean winter
temperature is (according to Sehonw) 53° 2'.
The spring-sown wheat escapes the cold of
winter, and wheat sown in autumn is protected
during winter by a thick covering of snow. The
farther in advance to the north, the more deep
and enduring is the covering. The temperature
of air, during the severe season, can therefore
have no direct action on plants which are annual,
or at least herbaceous, and buried under the
snow. The isothermal curve of 57° 2', which
appears to be the minimum temperature re-
quisite for the cultivation of wheat, passes in
North America through the uninhabited regions
of Canada. At Cumberland House, which is situ-
ated in the middle of the continent of North .Ame-
rica, in lat. 54° N., long. 102° 20' W., the officers
of the Hudson's Bay Company have established
a prosperous agriculture. Captain Franklin
found fields of barley, wheat, and even maize,
(Indian corn,) growing here, notwitlistanding the
extraordinary severity of the winter. The polar
limits of the cultivation of wheat is the more im-
portant, since, during a part of their course, they
Coincide with the northern limits of those fruit
trees which yield cider ; and in some parts also
with the limits of the oak. Agriculture and
forests, therefore, both undergo a sudden ami
remarkable change of appearance on approach-
ing the isothere of 57° 2'. In middle and western
Europe, wheat, {I'riticum vul<iare) is cultivated
chiefly in the zone between lat. 36° and 50° ;
farther north, rye [Stcale cerenh) is generally
preferred. To the south of this zone, new com-
binations of heat, with humidity, and the addi-
tion of many other cultures, sensibly diminish
* Johnston's rhi/sical Atlas — Phytologii, Map No. 2.
f Low's Elemeutf of Practical Agriculture, p. 244.
X Lawson's Agriculturist's Manual, p. 33. § Catalogue of the Museum, p. 60.
2-ROWKD.
446
PRACTICE— WINTER.
represents the 3 forms, where a is the 4-rowed,
or bere or bigg; e is the 6-rowed ; and 6 the
2-rowed ; all wliicli figures represent the ear in
balf its natural size. Of these the bere or bigg
was cultivated until a recent period, when the
2-rowed has almost entirely supplanted it, and
is now the most commonly cultivated variety, the
6-rowed being rather an object of curiosity than
culture.
1907. In classifying barley by the grain, there
are just two kinds, btre or Oi']^, and barley.
Fig. 181.
and, though both are
awned, they are suffi-
ciently marked to con-
stitute distinct varieties.
In the bere, fig. 181,
the median line of the
bosom is so traced as to
give the grain a twisted
form, by which one of
SCOTCH BKRE OR BIGG, jts sides Is larger than
the other, and the lengthened point is from where
the awn has been broken off. The figures repre-
sent the grain of the natural size.
Fig. 182.
%k
w
ENGLISH BARLEY.
1908. In the barley, fig.
182, the median line passes
straight, and divides the
grain into two equal sides,
and whose shortness and
plumpness give it a cha-
racter of superiority. The
cluster of grain is of the
natural size.
1909. The bigg was long chiefly cultivated ia
Scotland, and a 2-rowed variety, under the name
of common or Scotch barley, has long been in
cultivation ; but several of the English varieties
are now naturalised, and in their new sphere
show a brighter and fairer colour, plumper and
shorter grain, quicker in the property of malting,
though less hardy and prolific, than the common
barley.
1910. The crenulated or shrivelled skin across
both sides of the median line in the English
barley is a good criterion of malting ; and as most
of the barley raised in this country is converted
into beer or spirits, both of which require malt to
produce them of the finest quality, it is not siir-
prisinir that tho>e varieties of barley which yield
the greatest return of malt should always realise
the highest prices.
1911. A good crop of barley yields a return
of from 48 to 60 bushels the imperial acre.
Good barley weighs from 55 lbs. to 59 lbs. per
bushel. A crop of CO bushels per acre will
yield of stmw, in the vicinity of a town, 176
stones of 14 lbs. to the stone, or 1^*5 ton, and
the weiuht of the grain of that crop, at 56 lbs.
per bu-hel, will be IJ ton. It takes of bigg
111 grains to weigh 1 drachm; of 6-rowed
barley, 93 ; and of Chevalier barley, 75 grains.
Of the three kinds, the Chevalier is much the
heaviest ; and taking the number of grains in %
drachm at 75, and the weight per bushel 57 lbs.
the number uf grains of Chevalier barley in a
bushel will be 547,200.
1912. By far the largest proportion of the
best barley grown in this country is converted
into mull tor making uialt liquor and spirits, and
barley is also used for distillation in the raw state.
In 1831 and 1841 the following quantities of
malt paid duty at 2s. 7d. pt-r bushel, viz : —
England and Wales. 1 Sotlaiid. Ireland-
Total.
Jiii&hels. j Bu^lielt-. { Bushels. | Bu»liels.
1831 ( 32,.%-3,470 4,1 >!6,9.55 2,101,8441 39,2.52,269
Ihitv \ i;4,l.-}l,879 £.V24,8M £263,4.5!/ £4,i>20,l48
1841 j 30,9.56,348 4.058,2-i6 1,l4.'t,6-.91 3 ',11 4,285
Duty t £3,87.'>,7;'l i:o08,» 90'£144, 1 10 £4,532,591 !
1913. The use of malt in this country has fallen off
materially during the last hundred years, when
compared with the number of the people ; but it
would not be correct to attribute the circum-
stance wholly to the effect of taxation, although
there can be no doubt that the consumption has
been materially checked by the duty imposed.
The introduction of tea and coffee into extensive
use throughout the kingdom must necessarily
have interfered with the consumption of beer ;
and the same effect must have followed the
increased use of spirits, only a small proportion
of which is distilled troni malted grain.
1914. An increase of consumption in the last
15 years was occasioned by the repeal of the
duty on beer, which, while it existed, was in fact
an additional duty on malt, but nevertheless the
consumption has fallen off in proportion to the
increase of population, as thus : —
Consumption
Bushels used. Population. of bushels
per head.
In 1831, 39,2.52,209 24,029,702 163
1841, 36,164,285 26,711,694 1-35
1915. "The importation of malt from foreign
countries is strictly prohibited ; and as from
some cause or other, not very well understood,
barley brought from beyond seas cannot be
profitably malted here, our landowners," ob-
serves >lr Porter, "enj'>y the practical monopoly
of the home market. The foreign-grown barley
that is sometimes imported is used for grinding,
and other pur]>ose< for which inferior qualities
are adapted, and thereby admits of a more ex-
tensive use of the superior home-grown barley
in the form of malt. When the corn trade was
free, and tlie duty on malt was more reasonable
than it h.is been of late years, the barley districts
of Enuland afforded an abundant supply of a
quality adajited to the use of the maltster.'"*
1916. Pot and pearl barley are made from
barley for culinary purposes ; and both meal and
• Porter's Progreu of tkt Nation, p. 563-5,
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
447
flour are manufactured from barley for tlie pur-
pose of making unleavened bread, vvhioli is eaten
by the labouring class in some parts of the
country, and barley bannocks are esteemed a
luxury by people in towns. Porridge of barley-
meal, with rich milk, is accounted a pleasant
and light supper, and less heating than that of
oatmeal. Of the states of barley the soft is best
adapted for making into malt and meal, and the
flinty into pot barley.
1917. It was supposed that the reason for the
flinty barley makfng the best pot barley was,
that it contains the most gluten or nitrogen; but
Professor Johnston showed by analysis that it
contained less gluten than the soft barley, in the
proportion of 8-03 to 10-93.
1918. Though the composition of barley is of
similar materials to that of wheat, the whole
grains of two varieties grown at Hohenheim
contained —
GLUTEN, &c.
Ordinary
Water. state. Dry state.
Jerusalem barley, . . 16.79 12.2f) 14.74
Common winter barley, 13 80 15.35 17.81
yet barley thus contains little gluten compared
to wheat. If barley-meal be made into a dough,
and washed with water upon a sieve, nearly the
whole passes through, the husk almost alone
remaining.
1919. The composition of barley-meal is —
Water, .
Gluten, albumen, &c.
Starch,
Fatty matter,
Saline matter, or ash.
14
14
68
100
I have already given the composition of barley
ash in (1288.)*
1920. The grains of the fecnia of the barley
are very fine, not exceeding .00098 of an inch
in size. Barley flour only contains 3 per cent of
gluten, and is tlierefore much less nutritive than
wlieaten flour. The hirdcin, ascribed by Proust
to act so important a part in the germination of
barley, is asserted by Raspail to be notliing
more, under the microscope, than bran. " That
this is the case," be says, " is proved by dissec-
tion ; for if we make a transverse slice of each
of the grains of wheat and barley, we shall
perceive that the pericarp of the wheat peels off
entire like a circular ban<l, while that of the
barley can only be detached in very small frag-
ments. Now, what takes place, under tlie edge
of the scalpel," he alleges, " will also happen
under the pressure of the millstones ; conse-
quently, the bran will be much more minutely
divided in the farina of barley than in that of
wheat. In boulting flour, therefore, it will
remain in the sieve ; while, in the other, its
almost microscopic fragments will pass through
with the fecula and gluten, and will be almost
inseparable, by mechanical means, from the
farina." Hence, if pearl barley " be ground, we
obtain from it a farina as white as that of wheat,
and containing only a very minute portion of
hordein, equivalent to the amount of those frag-
ments of the pericarp which had been protected
by their situation in the posterior groove of the
grain. "t
1921. "The meal so highly commended by
the Greeks was prepared from barley. . . .
It was not until after the Romans had learnt to
cultivate wheat, and to make bread, that they
gave barley to the cattle. They made barley-
meal into balls, which they put down tiie throats
of their horses and asses, after the manner of
fattening fowls, which was said to make
them strong and lusty. Barley continued to be
the food of the poor, who were not able to pro-
cure better provision ; and in the Roman camp,
as Vegetius has informed us, soldiers who had
been guilty of any offence were fed with barley
instead of bread corn. "J
1922. 3faltlnc/. — This process produces a con-
siderable change in the constitution of the grain.
The bnrley is steeped in cold water for at least
40 hours, according to law. Here it imbibes
moisture, increases in bulk, and emits a quantity
of carbonic acid gas, not exceeding 2 per cent.
The moisture imbibed is 0.47, tlicit is to say,
every 100 lbs. of barley, when taken out of the
steep, vi-eighs 147 lbs. The increase of bulk is
one-fifth, that is, 100 bushels of grain measures
out 120 bushels. The steep water dissolves
from /ij to iJo of the husk of tb.e barley, and
hence barley becomes paler by steeping. The
steeped barley is then put on a floor in a heap
16 inches deep, to remain so for 26 hours. It
is then turned with wooden shovels, and dimin-
ished in depth to a few inches by repeated
turnings. In 96 hours the grain becomes 10°
hotter than the air, and tlien swfats. when it is
frequently turned, the temperature being pre-
served in the grain from 55° to 62°. The roots
now begin to afipear, the stem called acroi^pire,
springs from the same end, -and advances within
tlie husk to the other end of the grain ; but the
process of malting is stopped by kiln-drying
befre the term has made much progress. Tiie
kiln, at first 90°, is raised gradually to 140°.
The malt is then cleaned, and the rootlets re-
moved, as they are considered injurious, and are
called comhis. Miilt is from 2 to 3 per cent
greater in bulk than the barley, and it loses one
fifth or 20 per cent in weight, of which 12 per
cent is lost by drying ; so the real loss is only 8
per cent, accounted for by the steep water
carrying away Ij per cent, dissijjated on the
floor 3 per cent, roots cleaned away 3 per cent,
and waste .| per cent. The roots take away the
* Johnston's Lectures on Aqricultural Chemhtry, 2d edition, p. 881-3.
+ Raspail's Onja»ic Cliemikry, p. 120-206.
J Phillips' History of Cultivated Vegetables, vol. i. p. 50.
448
TRACTICE— WINTEll.
glutinous portion of the grain, and the starch is
converted iuio a sort of sugar.
1923. Bfr. — Beer is a beverage of great an-
tiquity. "The earliest writer who meiitiuiis
6«r," commences Dr Thomson, in his account of
the proee.-s of malting, of which the foregoing
paragraph is the subsiaace, " is Herodotus, who
waa born in the first year of the 74th Olympiad,
or 444 years before the commeuceuieiit of the
Christian era. He informs us that beer was the
common dr.nk of the Egyptians, and that it was
manufactured from barley, because vines did not
grow in their country. In the time of Tacitus,
whose treatise on the Manners of the Germans
was written about the end of the first century of
the Christian era, beer was the common drink of
the Germans. Pliny mentions beer as employed
iu Spain, under the names of ecelia and ceria,
and in Gaul under the name of cervisia. Almost
every species of corn has been used in the
manufacture of beer. In Europe it is usually
made from barUi/, in India from rice, in the
interior of Africa, according to Park, from the
seeds of the IIolcus fpkatui. But whatever
grain is employed, the process is nearly the same,
and it is iisjuj in the first place to convert it
into malt.''*
1924. "Barley is cultivated farther north than
any of the other grains : fields of it »re seen in
the northern extremity, in the Orkney Islands,
and in Shetland (lat. 61° >'.,) and even at the
Faroe Islands (lai. 61° to 62° 1.5' N.) Iceland
(lat. 63° 30' to 66° N.) does not produce it,
although au industrious population have made
every exertion to acquire some species of cereal ia.
In western Lapland, the limit of barley is under
lat. 70' near Cape North, the northern extre-
mity of Europe. In Russia, on the shores of
the White Sea, it is between the parallels of
67° and 68° on the western side, and about 66°
on the eastern side, beyond Archangel. In cen-
tral Siberia, between lat. 58° and 50°. Such is
the sinuous curve which limits the cultivation of
barley, and consequently that of all the cereals.
A little farther north, all employment of vege-
tables ceases, at least as an important object of
nourishment -the people live on the product of
their cattle, as in the high Alps, or by hunting
and fishing, according to locality. But beyond
the limits of barley there occurs a narrow and
indeterminate zone, iu which certain early pota-
toes are cultivated, and where the snow does not
cover the ground for a sufficient length of time
to prevent the raising of some liiliens, some
fruits, barks, or wild roots, fit for the nourish-
ment of man. As the introduction of the potato
is, in comparison to barley, recent in these
regions, it almost every where forms the limit
between the agricultural aud the pastoral or
nomad life. From the importance of the culti-
vation of barley in the north, it is evident that
wherever the human species has attaiued the
fir-t stage of civilisation, the attempt will haw
been made t« a<lvance it as far as possible to-
wards the p<de. It, then, it is liiuited hj a
sinuous curve, as already e.vplaiucd, it i.- because
circumstances of a purely |di\sical nature oppose
to it an instirmoiiiiiable barrier. A mean tem-
perature of 'iS" 4' during summer seems to be, for
our c^atiueut, the ouly iiidispensuble cunditiou
for the cultivation of barley ; in the inlands of
the Atlantic Ocean, a summer temperature of
three or four degrees higher appears to be neces-
sary for its succes-. Iceland, ludeed, where this
grain cauuot be cultivated, presents in its
southern districts at lleikavik, a mean tempera-
ture of 37°. 4' lor the year— 24° for the winter,
aud 49°. 4' for the r^umnier. It appears that here
Considerable raui< are the means of preventing
the cultivation of cerealia. Thus the limit of
barley in the countries where its cultivation is
of the most importance, varies between 46°.4'
and 49° of mean temperature, during summer.
In the continental regions 46". 4' is sufficient ; but
in the islands the excessive humidity requires to
be compensated by a little heat in summer.
Barley is cultivated as an alimentary plant as
far as the northern limit of rye and oats. Farther
north it loses its importance, and is very little
cultivated. Between the tropics this cereal does
not succeed in the plains, because it suffers from
heat more than any of the other cultivated
grains." +
1925. O'lts. — Oats are cultivated on a large
extent of ground in Scotland — one-fifth of the
amble groun<l ; aud it is believed that no country
produces of them greater crops of finer quality.
The plant belongs to the natural order of Gru-
mtiiffr, of the Ju>sieun sy>tera, aud it occupies
the class Truintirin, order Di<iyttia, genus
Arena, of the Linna>an system. In Limiley's
natural system it occupies class iv. Endogen/,
alliance 7, GlvmaUs, order 29, Gram'ttiacfce, and
genus 9, Arenece. Its ordinary botanical name
is Arena satira, or cultivated oat. The terra
oat is of obscure orifiin. Paxton conjectures it
to have been derived from the Celtic dan, to
eat.:J: There are a great number of varieties of
this grain cultivated in this country. Mr Law-
son describes 38 ; § and 54 are deposited in the
Highland aud Agricultural Society's Museum. Ii
1926. The natural classification of the oat by the
Fig. 183. grain consists only of two
forms — one plump and short
and beardless, as iu fig. IU3,
which represents grains of
/n LjIV\ /Tl the potato-oat, in different
/// W ^A I 1 positions, beardless, plump,
smooth-skinned, and shin-
ing, having the base, from
which the rootlets emerge,
THE POTATO OAT. well marked, and the end
from which the germ rises short, and bluntly
pointed.
• Thomson's Ornanie Chemistni—VegetabUr, p. 1011-12.
t Johnstou's PA^»i<-a/ j4//u»— Phytoiogy, Map No. 2.
Paxton's Botanical Lictionsr;/, art. Arenn. § Lawson's A<jriculturi*Vi ManitU, p. 44.
U Catalogue of tht Museum, p. 59.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
449
1927. The other form of grain, fig. 184, is long
and thin, and has a tendency to produce long
Fig. 184.
THE WHITE SIBERIAN
EARLY OAT.
awns, or a beard. The
specimens are of the
white Siberian early
oat, which does not
grow on an ear having
the panicles on one side
of the rachis, as is the
case withtlie Tartarian
oat, fig. 186, but on a
regularly balanced ear,
like fig. 185. It is cul-
tivated in the poorer
soils and higher districts, resists the force of the
wind, and yields a grain well adapted for the
support of fiirra-horses. The straw is fine and
pliable, and makes an excellent dry fodder for
cattle and horses, the saccharine matter in the
joints being very sensible to the taste. It comes
early to maturity, and hence its name.
1928. The natural classification ofthe oat by the
earisobvious. One kind, fig. 185, has its branches
spreading equally
* 'g- ^"^- on all sides, short-
ening gradually
towards the top of
the spike in a coni-
cal form, and the
panicles are beard-
less. This is the
potato oat. While
the ear is yet re-
cent, the branches
are erect, but as
the seeds advance
towards maturity,
and become full
and heavy, they
assume a depend-
ent form. By this
position, the air
and light have free
access to the ripen-
ing grain, while
the rain washes off
the eggs or larvae
of insects that
would otherwise
prey upon the
young seed. This
variety is exten-
sively cutivated iu
Scotland on ac-
count of the tine
and nourishing
quality of its
meal, which is
largely consumed
by its people. It
is cultivated in
the richer soils of the low country. The plant is
tender, and the grain is apt to be shaken out by
the wind. The straw is long and strong, inclin-
ing too much to reediness to make good fodder.
It is late in coming to maturity. Its peculiar
name of the potato oat is said by one writer to
THE POTATO OAT.
have been derived from the circumstance of the
first plants having been discovered growing acci-
dentally on aheap of manure, in company with
several potato plants, the growth of wliich was
equally accidental,* while another writer says
plants of it were first found in 1789 in Cumber-
land, growing in a field of potatoes. The ear in
the figure was taken from the stack.
1929. The other kind of the ear ofthe oat has its
panicles shorter, nearly of equal length, all on the
Fig. 186. s^™^ side of
the rachis, and
bearded. Fig.
186, a head of
Tartarian oat,
taken from the
stack, repre-
sents this kind
of ear. The
seeds of this
variety of form
also assume
the dependent
form, and from
this circum-
stance, as Well
as that of pos-
sessinga beard,
it is of such a
hardy nature
as to thrive in
soils and cli-
mates where
the other
grains cannot
be raised. Of
this variety of
form the Tar-
tarian oat is
most exten-
sively culti-
vated, the wild
oat being re-
garded as a
troublesome
weed amongst
THE TARTARIAN OAT. the Cultivated
grain. This variety derives its name, most pro-
bably, from having been brought originally from
Tartary. It is much cultivated in England, and
not at all in Scotland. It is a coarse grain, more
fit fur horse-feed than to make into meal. The
grain is dark-coloured, awny ; the straw coarse,
harsh, brittle, and rather short.
1930. The crop of oats varies from 36 to 72
bushels per imperial acre, according to the kind,
and the circumstances of soil and situation. Oats
vary in weight from 36 lbs. to 48 lbs. per bushel.
Whiteness, of a silvery hue, and plumpness, are
the criteria of a good sample. The potato oat,
47 lbs. per bushel, gave 134 grains to 1 drachm ;
the Siberian early oat, weighing 46 lbs. per
bushel, gave 109 grains; and the white Tarta-
rian oat, weighing 42 lbs., gave 136 grains; so
that these kinds respectively will afford 806,144,
641,792, and 731,136 grains of oats per bushel.
Rhiud's Ilistory ofthe Vf^etuble Kingdom, p. 218.
VOL. I.
2f
460
PRACTICE— WINTER.
A crop of potato oats, yielding CO busliels to the
acre, at 47 lbs. per bushel, will weigh of grain 1
ton 5 cvvis. '20 lbs., and will yield of straw 1 ton 5
cwt.s. lii lbs., in the neiglibonrhood of a large
town ; or, in other words, will yield (5 keniplus
of 40 windliiigs each, and each windling 9 lbs. in
weight. Hut I have been made acquainted with
a crop of Hopetuun oats near Edinburgh, of no
more than 60 bushels to the imperial acre, yield-
ing 2 tons 1 8 cwts. 16 lbs. of straw. The common
oats yield more straw, in proportion to the grain,
than the potato variety. In particular spots, such
as on the banks of the river Islay, near Coupar-
Angus, 1 1 4 bushels per imperial acre, of potato
oats, have been frequently reaped.
1931. The portion of the oat crop consumed by
man is manufactured into meal. It is never called
flour, as the millstones are not set so close in
grinding it as when wheat is ground, nor are the
stones for grinding oats made of the same mate-
rial, but most freijueiitly only of sandstone — the
old red sandstone or greywacke'. Oats, unlike
•wheat, are always kiln-dried before being ground ;
and they undergo this process for the purpose of
causing the thick husk, in which the substance of
the grain is enveloped, to be the more easily
ground off, which it is by the stones being set
wide asunder ; and the husk is blown away, on
being winnowed by the fanner, and the grain
retained, which is then called groats. The groats
are ground by the stones closer set, and yield the
meal. The meal is then passed through sieves,
to separate the thin husk from tlie meal. The
meal is made in two states: one/n<?, which is the
state best adapted for making into bread, in the
form called oat-cake or bannocks ; and tlie other
is coarser or rounder ground, and is in the best
state for making the common food of the cnuntry
people — porridge, .S'(;o«(ce,parritch. A difference
of custom prevails in respect to the use of these
two different states of oatmeal, in different parts
of the country, the fine meal being best liketl tor
all purposes in the northern, and the round or
coarse meal in the southern counties; but as oat-
cake is chiefly eaten in the north, the meal is there
made to suit the purpose of bread rather than of
porridge ; whereas, in the south, bread is made
from another grain, and oatmeal is there used
only as porridge. There is no doubt that the
round meal makes the best porridge, when pro-
perly made — that is, seasoned with salt, and
boiled as long as to allow the particles to swell
and burst, wlien the porridge becomes a pulta-
ceous mass. So made, with rich milk or cream,
few more wholesome dishes can be partaken by
any man, or upon which a harder day's work
can be wrought. Children of all ranks in Sect-
land are brought up on this diet, verifying the
poet's assertion,
" The halesome parritch, chief o' Scotia's food."
IJiniNS.
Forfarshire has long been famed for the quality
of its brose and oat-cake, while the porridge of
the Borders has as long been equally famons.
It is so every where, the sharp soil producing the
finest cake-meal, and clay land the best meal for
boiling. Of meal from the varieties of the oat
cultivated, that of the common Angus oat is the
most thrifty for a poor man, though its yield in
meal is less in proportion to the bulk of corn.
1 932. In regard to the i/ifld of meal from any
given (juaulity of oats, when they give half their
weight of meal, they are said to give creu meal.
Supposing a boll of oats of G bushels to weigh 16
stones, it slmuld give It stones or 1 6 pecks of meal,
and, of cour.-e, « stones of refuse to yield even
meal. But the finer class of oats will give more
meal in proportion to weight than this— some
nearly 9 stones, and others as much as 12 sloiies.
The market value of oats is therefore estimated
by the meal they are supposed to yield, and, in
discovering this property in the sample, millers
become very bxpert. When oats yield less than
even meal they are considered to give ill, or are
unprofitable to make into meal, and are disposed
of for horses, or kept at home for that purpose.
1933. "The farina of the oat seems, to the
unassisted eye, cottony, or, as it were, felled, from
the presence of an innumerable quantity of hairs
with which the seeds are covered, 'i'lie grains
of the fecula have a size of about '00276 by
•0018 of an inch. They appear in general
yellowish, and strongly shaded. Some of these
have the appearance, but not the form, of the
fecula of the potato."*
1934. The chemical analysis of the oat has
been carefully investigated, within these few
years, by Mr Norton, of Nevvhaveu,in the United
States of America, whilst an assistant in the
laboratory of the Chemistry Association of Scot-
land in Edinburgh; and some of the results thus
obtained I have already given, such as the com-
position of the grain of the oat in (1292.) the
per-centage of ash in it in (462,) and the com-
position of the ash in (1294.)t
1935. " We find no mention made of oats in
Scripture," says Phillips, " which expressly states
that Solomon's horses and dromedaries were fed
with barley ;" but " the use of oats as a proven-
der for horses appears to have been known in
Rome as early as the Christian era, as we find
that that capricious and profligate tyrant, Cali-
gula, fed Incitatug, his favourite horse, with (lilt
uats out of a golden cup." Oats are mixed with
barley in the distillation of spirits from raw
grain ; ar.d " the Muscovites make an ale or
drink of oats, which is of so hot a nature, and
so strung, that it intoxicates sooner than the
richest wine. "J
1936. "The oat Carena satiraj is cultivated
extensively in Scotland, to the extreme north
point, in lat. 58° 40'. In Norway its culture
• Raspail's Or(7a7ijc C//rmi.s«rv, p. 113.
+ This highly interesting Meiuuir by Mr Norton may be perused in the Transactiom of the High'
land and Atiricultiiral Society for July 1846, p. 321-56.
X Phillips' Uistorj of Cultivated Vegetables, vol. ii. p. 9.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
451
extends to lat. 56° ; in Sweden to lat. 63° 30'.
In Russia, its polar limits appear to correspond
with those of rye. Whilst, in general, oats is
cultivated for the feeding of horses, in Scotland
and in Lancashire, it forms a considerable portion
of the usual food of the people. This is also the
case in some countries of Germany, especially in
the south of Westphalia, where the inhabitants
of the " Sauerlands" live on oaten bread. South
of the parallel of Paris oats is little cultivated;
in Spain and Portugal it is scarcely known; yet
it is cultivated with considerable advantage in
Bengal, to the parallel of lat. 25° N."*
1937. Oatmeal has long been the ordinary
food of the Scottish ploughman, and in several
districts of that country he lives upon it three
times a-day, consuming a stone every week ; and
a stouter and more healthy man cannot be seen.
It was considered a rather anomalous circumstance
to find men thriving as well on oatmeal as on
wheat bread and butcher meat ; but the anomaly
has been cleared up by the investigations of
chemistry. In the analysis of the oat in (1292,)
it may be seen that the grain contains fully 7
per cent of oil or fat, and 17 per cent of avenine —
a protein compound, as the gluten of wheat is —
making together 24 per cent of really nutri-
tive matter, capable of supporting the loss in-
curred by labour of the fibrous portion of the
body. AH vegetables contain fat, and the
largest proportion of vegetable fats contain the
elaic and margaric acids, mixed with a small
proportion of the stearic. The elaic is always in
a fluid state, and the margaric and stearic in a
solid; and of the latter two, the margaric is much
less, and the stearic acid very much greater in
animal fat than in those of plants, (1600.) It is
by the dissipation of this oil or fat by heat,
in baking, that the agreeable odour of the oat-
cake is at once recognised on approaching the
humble cottage of the labouring man.
1938. Dr Robert D. Thomson recommends
that, " when it is proposed to make a loaf of
oatmeal and flour, the common oatmeal should
be sifted so as to obtain the finest portion of the
meal, or it may be ground to the proper consis-
tence. This should be mixed with an equal
weightof bestflour — Canadian, for example — and
fermented. I have not succeeded in making a
good loaf with a smaller amount of flour than a
half, although I have tried it in various propor-
tions. If we were to attempt to raise oatmeal
without an admixture with flour, in con^Jeqllence
of the absence of gluten, that principle which re-
tains the carbonic acid of fermentation, we should
obtain only a sad, heavy, doughy piece of moist
flour. This form of bread, it appears to me, and
to many wlio have examined it, would be a great
improvement on the hard, dry oat-cakes, so
much used in the more unfrequented parts of
our country, where the inhabitants have scarcely as
yet commenced to share in what are in other
localities considered to be necessaries of life." +
1939. When Dr Thomson avers, "If we were
to attempt to raise oatmeal without an admixture
with flour, in consequence of the absence of
gluten, that principle which retains the carbonic
acid of fermentation, we should obtain only a sad,
heavy, doughy piece of moist flour," he must
never have seen or tasted the fine barm-raised
Fiff 18" O'^*'"^^^ loaves, used with beer, at
the harvest-dinners in Forfarshire,
and which are relished by the work-
people there much better than the
best wheaten bread. Such an oat-
loaf, with fresh butter and new
honey, forms a most delightful relish
at the farmer's harvest breakfast or
tea table.
1 940. Bye. — Botanically,this plant
occupies the class Trlandria, order
Z)ii7)/nta, genus )SVca/e,of the Linna;aa
system ; the order Gravihiece of
Jussieu ; and class iv. Eudo<jens, alli-
ance 7, Glitmales, order 29, Gravii-
vacece, genus 1 1 S'ecafe, of the natu-
ral system of Lindley. It is the
Secale cereale of the botanists, so
called, it is said, from d secando, to
cut, as opposed to leguminous plants,
whose fruits used to be gathered by
the hand. A figure of the spike of
rye is shown in fig. 187, and is not
unlike the spike of a hungry bearded
wheat. There is only one known
species of this plant, which is said to
be a native of Caudia, and was
known in Egypt 3300 years ago; but
there are several varieties which are
raised as food, 4 of which are de-
scribed by Mr Lawson,+ and 7 to be
seen in the Museum of the Highland
and Agricultural Society .§
1941. The grains of rye are long and narrow,
Fig. 188. not unlike shelled oats or
groats, but more flinty in
appearance. They are
shown in various positions
in fig. 188, and are of the
GRAiN.s OF RYE. natural size.
1942. The rye is not much cultivated in thia
country, particularly in Scotland, where only a
patch here and there is to be seen. It is, how-
ever, exten.-ively cultivated on the Continentj
especially in sandy countries, where it forms the
principal article of food of the labouring
classes.
1943. The produce of rye may be about 24
bushels per acre, and the weight of the grain is
stated at from 52 lbs. to 57 lbs. per butihel ; the
number of grains in 1 drachm being 1()5, at 55
lbs., the bushel should contain 1,161,600 grains.
1944. The grain of rye, according to Bous-
* Johnston's J'hysicnl Atlns, — Phytology, Map No. 2.
■j- Thomson's Researches on the Food of Aniuuils, p. 176.
X Lawson's Agriculturist's Manual, p. 31. § Catalogue of the Museum, p. 62.
452
PRACTICE-WINTER.
irtngault, yields 24 per cent of bran and ':
flour. The composition of tlie grain is : —
6 of
Gluten, albumen, &c..
. 10-5
Starch, . . . .
. 64-0
Fatty matter, ,
. 3-5
Sugar, . . . .
, 3-0
Gum, . . . .
. 11-0
F^pidennis and salts,
. 6-0
Loss, ....
. 2-0
100-0
" The gluten of rye," says Dr Thomson, " differs
in several particulars from that of wheat. It is
less tenacious and more soluble. When it was
allowed to ferment, Eiuhoff perceived a strong
smell of nitric acid, which is peculiar to this
species of gluten. The starch of rye bears a
striking resemblance to that of wheat. Like
tlii^ last, it does not form a colourless solution
with boiling water, and always precipitates at
last, when the solution is left a sufficient time to
rest."*
1P4.5. The grains of the fecula of rye meal are
peculiarly shaped. " The largest grains of this
fectihi," says Raspail, " are about "002 of an
inch in size ; but what distinguishes them from
all the other varieties is, that they are flattened,
and with sharp edges like discs, and for the
most part marked on one of their sides with a
black cross, or three black rays united at the
centre of the grain. "t
1046. In a crop of 25 bushels to the acre,
weighing 1300 lbs., the nutritive matter derived
from rye consists of 1 30 lbs. to 260 lbs. of husk
or woody fibre ; 780 lbs. of starch, sugar &c. ;
130 11)3. to 230 lbs. of gluten, &c. ; 40 lbs. to 50
lb.-, of oil or fat ; and 26 lbs. of saline matter.
1947. The grain of rye leaves 2'425 per cent,
of ash, which is thus compo-ed : —
Will & Fresenius. Bichon.
(ilESSEN. CLKVKS. MEAN.
Pftash,
So.la,
Lime,
IVIagnesia,
Oxide of iron,
Phosph<iric acid,
Sulphuric acid, .
Silica,
3-'-76
1 1 -43
■ 22-n!(
. 4-45
18 89
11-67
. 2-<)2
7-05
4-93
, 10-13
10 •.")7
10 •.•55
. 0-112
1-90
1-36
. 47-2.0
51-81
49-:)5
. 1-46
o-.-,i
0 98
. 017
0-69
102-85
0-43
100 00
101-35
1948. "Rye f Secnir cereale) is cultivated in
Scandinavia, on the western side to the parallel
of lat. 67° N., and on the eastern side to lat.
65" or 66° N. In Russia, the polar limit of rye
is indicated by the parallel of the city of Ja-
rciibk, in the government of Wologda, lat. 62°
30'. . . . It is as common in Russia, Ger-
many, and some parts of France, as it is rare in
the Rritish islands. Rye-bread still forms the
principal sustenance of at least one-third of the
population of Europe ; it is the characteristic
grain of middle and northern P^urope ; in the
southern countries it is seldom cultivated. "g
1949. Rye-bread is heavy, dark-coloured, and
sweet ; but, when allowed to ferment, becomes
sour. In Russia, 100 lbs. of rye flour, containing
16 per pent of water, yield from 150 lbs. to 160
lbs. of bread. There, horses get it on a journey,
in lieu of corn.
1950. Beans. — Beans belong to a very diffe-
rent tribe of plants to what we have been con-
sidering. They belong to the natural order Le-
gumliwsce of Jussieu, because they bear their
fruit in legumes or pods ; and in the LinnnNin sys-
tem they occupy the class and order I)iadflfihia
decnndrla. In Lindley's natural system they
occupy the sub-class iii. Peri<ji/nousE,zo<jeiif,a.\\\-
ance 42, liosiilcs, order 209, Fahiacece, and tribe
5, Phascolea;. Their ordinary generic term is
Fabn vulgaris ; formerly they were classed
amongst the vetches, and called Vic'ta Faba.
The common bean is divided into two clas.ses,
according to the mode of culture to which it is
subjected, that is, the field or the garden. Those
cultivated in the field are called Faba ruli/aris
arre)m$, or, as Loudon calls them, Faba ru/i/aris
equina, hecAwse they are cultivated chiefly for the
use of horses, and are usually termed horse-
beans. With the garden bean we have nothing
to do, though some farmers attempt to raise
a fe\t varieties of them in the field, but I believe
without success. Ail beans have butterfly or
papilionaceous flowers. Mr Lawson has described
8 varieties of the field bean ; and 10 varieties are
placed in the Highland and Agricultural Society's
Museum. II The variety in common field-culture
is thus well described by Mr Lawson : " In length
the seed is from a half to five-eighths of an inch,
by three-eighths in breadth, generally slightly or
rather irregularly compressed and wrinkled on the
sides, and frequently a little hollowed or flattened
at the end ; of a whitish or light brown colour,
occasionally interspersed with darker blotches,
particularly towards the extremities ; colour of
the eye black : straw from 3 to 5 feet rn length.
There is perhaps," continues Mr Lawson, '' no
other grain over the shape and colour of which
the climate, soil, and culture, exert so much in-
fluence as in the bean. Thus, in a dry warm
summer and harvest,
the sample is always
more plump and
white in colour than
in a wet and cold sea-
son ; and these more
60 in a strong rich
soil than in a li^ht,
and more so in a drill-
Fig. 189.
THK HORSK-BBAN.
ed crop than in one sown broadcast." *1I Fig.
189 represents the horse-bean of its natural size.
• Thomson's Organic Chemistr;/,— Vegetables, p. 878. t Raspail's Organic Cliemiilry, p. 116.
% Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Cliemistrit, 2d edition, p. 372, 889, .928.
§ Johnston's Thysical Atlas, — I'hytology, Map No. 2.
II Catalogue of the Museum, p. 68. % Lawson's Agriculturist $ Manual, p. 62.
THKASIIING AND WINNOWI.NG OF GRAIN.
453
1951. "The leguminous order," observes Dr
Lindley, beautifully, " is not only among the
most extensive that are known, but also are of
the most important to man, whether we consider
the beauty of the numerous species, which are
among the gayest-coloured and most graceful
plants of any region, or their applicability to
a thousand useful purposes. The cercis, which
renders the gardens of Turkey resplendent with
its myriads of purple flowers ; the acacia, not
less valued for its airy foliage and elegant blos-
soms than for its hard and durable wood ; the
braziiletto, logwood, and rosewoods of commerce ;
the laburnum ; the classical cytisus ; the furze
and the broom, both the pride of the otherwise
dreary heaths of Europe ; the bean, the pea, the
vetch, the clover, the trefoil, the lucerne, all
staple articles of culture by the farmer, are so
many leguminous species. The gums, Arabic
and Senegal, kino, seuna, tragacauth, and various
other drugs, not to mention indigo, the most
useful of all dyes, are products of other species ;
and these may be taken as a general indication
of the purposes to which leguminous plants may
be applied. There is this, however, to be borne
in mind, in regarding the qualities of the order
in a general point of view — viz., that, upon the
whole, it must be considered poisonous, and that
those species which are used for food by man
and animals are exceptions to the general rule ;
the deleterious juices of the order not being in
such instances sufficiently concentrated to prove
injurious, and being in fact replaced, to a consi-
derable extent, by either sugar or starch." *
1952. The produce of the bean crop varies
from 20 to 40 bushels per imperial acre, the
prolifi£3,cy of the crop palpably depending on the
natui^oP'.the season. The average weight may
be state(J>at 66 lbs. per bushel. It only requires
5 beans to weigh 1 drachm, so that a bushel only
contains 42,240 grains of beans. 1 have not cul-
tivated the bean so much as to enable me to ascer-
tain the weight of a good crop of straw or haulm,
in comparison with that of the grain, for it is
seldom, that the same season gives the largest
return of both ; but 1 have seen it stated, that
" it has been known to yield 2 tons per acre."-f-
A crop of 40 busliels, at 66 lbs. per bushel, gives
1 ton 3 cwts. 64 lbs. per acre.
1953. Beans are given to the horse, whole,
boiled, raw, or bruised. They are given to
cattle in the state of meal — that is, the husk and
grain ground, not very finely, overhead. Beans,
however, can be ground into fine flour ; and in
this state is used to adulterate the flour of wheat.
Its presence is easily detected by the peculiar
smell arising from the flour when warm water
is added to it. Beans impart essential service
to horses having fatiguing work. " If beans do
not afford more nutriment," observes Stewart,
" weiglitfor weight, than oats, they at least pro-
duce more lasting vigour. To use a common
expression, they keep the stomach loiujer. The
horse can travel farther ; he is not so soon
* Lindley's Vegetable Kingdom, p. 546-7.
exhausted In the coaching stables,
beans are almost indispensable to horses that have
to run long stages. They afford a stronger and
more permanent stimulusthan oats alone, however
good. Washy horses — those of slender carcass —
cannot perform severe work without a liberal
alluwance of beans ; and old horses need them
more than the young. The quantity varies from
3 to 6 lbs. per day ; but in some of the coaching
stables the horses get more, 1 lb. of oats being
deducted for every 1 lb. of beans. Cart-horse3
are often fed on beans, to the exclusion of all
other corn, but they are always given with dry
bran — which is necessary to keep the bowels open,
and to insure mastication — and for old horses
they should be always broken." " There are
several varieties of the bean in use as horse-
corn ; but I do not know that one is better than
another. The small plump bean is preferred
to the large shrivelled kind. Whichever be used,
the bean should be old, sweet, and sound ; not
mouldy, nor eaten by insects. New beans are
indigestible and flatulent ; they produce colic,
and founder very readily. They should be at
least a year old. "J All kinds are constipating.
1954 According to Einhoff, the field bean is
composed of
Water,
Husk,
1 cgumen, albumen, &c..
Starch,
Sugar,
Gum, &c.,
Oil and fat, .
Salts and loss,
15-6
10-0
11-7
50-1
. 8-2
4-4
100-0
" Vaquelin could detect no sugar in it. He and
Cornea de Serra found, in the skins of the bean,
tannin striking a blue with the persalts of iron,
animo-regetable matter mixed with tannin, in-
soluble in water, but soluble in potash. The
cotyledons contained a sweet-tasted substance,
starch, legumen, albumen, an uncombined acid,
with carbonate of potash, phosphates of lime,
magnesia, and iron. The ijenneu of the beau
contained white tallow, legumen, albumen, phos-
phate of lime, and irou."§ The legumen of the
bean is analogous in substance to the gluten of
the wheat.
1955. The composition of the ash of the bean
I have already given in (1300,) and the nutri-
tious matter in an acre of beans in (1298.)
1956. The grains of the fecula of the bean
" are egg or kidney shaped, often presenting au
interior grain, as if enclosed in the principal one.
Some of them are broken down and empty. They
attain the size of '002 of an inch.'"|l
1957. The ancients entertained some curious
notions in regard to the bean. The Egyptian
priests held it a crime to look at beans, judging
+ British Ilushandnj, vol ii., p. 215.
Stewart's Stable Economy, p. 205-6. § Thomson's Organic Chemistry,— Vegetables, p. 887
II Raspail's Organic Chemistry, p. 116.
454
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the verj' sight unclean. But the bean was not
every where thus contemned, for Columella
notices them in his time as food for peasants,
and lor them only —
" Aud herbs they mix with beans for vulgar fare."
" The Roman husbandmen had a religious cere-
mony respecting beans somewhat remarkable :
When they sowed corn of any kind, they took
care to bring some beans from the field for good
luck's sake, superstitiousjy thinking that by such
means their corn would relurn home again to
them. The Romans carried their superstition
still farther, for they thought tliat beans, mixed
with goods ofiered for sale at the ports, would
infallibly bring good luck to the seller." They
used beans, however, more rationally, when they
were employed " in gathering the votes of the
people, and for electing the magistrates. A
white bean signified absolution, and a black one
condemnation. From this practice, we imagine,
was derived the plan of ilac^-b'ili'nuj obnoxious
persons." * It would appear, from what Mr
Dickson states, that the faba of the Romans^a
name, by the way, said to be derived from Haba,
a town of Etruria, where tlie bean was cul-
tivated— is the same as the small beau of our
fields.t
1958. Pease. — The pea occupies a similar posi-
tion, in both the natural and artificial systems of
botany, as the bean. The plant is cultivated
both in the field and in the garden, and in the
latter place to great extent and variety. The
natural distinction betwixt the field and garden
pea is founded in the flower, the field-pea always
having a red-coloured, and the garden almost
always a white one; at least the exceptions to this
mark of distinction are few. The botanical name
of the pea is Pisiim satinim, the cultivated pea;
and those varieties cultivated in the field are
called in addition arrenfe, and those in the
garden horteuse. The name is said to have been
given to it by the Greeks, from a town called
Pisa, in Elis, in the neighbourhood of which this
pulse was cultivated to great extent : Mr Paxton
derives the name from the Celtic word jm, the
pea, whence the Latin p\sum.% Mr Lawson has
described 9 varieties of the field pea ; and the
Highland and Agricultural Society's Museum
contains 14 varieties. § Of these a late and an
early variety are cultivated: the late kind, called
the common gray field-pea, or cold-seed, is suited
for strong laud in low situations; and the early,
the partridije, gray maple, or Marlborouijh pea,
adapted to light soils and late situations, is su-
perseding the old gray Hastings, or hot-seed pea.
The gray pea is described as having *' its pod
semi-cylindrical, long, and well filled, often con-
taining from 6 to 8 peas. The ripened straw
indicates 3 varieties — one spotted with a bluish
green ground, one light blue, and one bluish
green without spots." The partridge pea has its
" pods broad, and occasionally in pairs, contaiu-
Fig. 190. "'g {Turn 5 to 7 peas,
of a medium size,
roundish, and yel-
lowish-brown speck-
led, with light-co-
loured eyes. The
THK PARTRIDI.E FIELD PKA. ^ipe straw is thick
and soft-like, leaves large and broad, and average
height 4 feet." || Fig. 190 shows a group of the
partridge field pea of the natural size.
1959. The produce of the pea-crop is either
in abundance or a complete failure. In warm
weather, with occasional showers, the crop may
amount to 48 bushels, and, in cold and wet, it
may not reach 12 bushels the acre. The grain
weighs 64 lbs. the bushel, and affords 13 grains
to 1 drachm ; consequently a bushel contains
106,496 peas.
1 960. The composition of the pea, according
to Braconnet, is this : —
Water, . . . 12-5
Husk, . . . 8-3
Legumen, albumen, &c., . 2l)'4
Starch, . . . 4:i-6
Sugar, . . . 2-0
(lum, &c., . . . 4'0
Oil aud fat, . . . 1-2
Salts and loss, . . 2-0
100-0 If
1961. I have given the composition of the ash
of the pea in (1300,) and the nutritive matter in
an acre of pease in (1296.)
] 9G2. " The grains of the fecula of the pea are
nearly of the same size as those of the beau, and
of the form of those of the potato. When fresh,
they are as strongly shaded at the edges as
those of the bulbs of the Alstrasmeria pelegrina.
Their surface is unequal. The largest of them
is about "002 of an inch." **
1963. The pea was formerly much cultivated
in this country in the field, and even used as food,
both in broth aud in bread, pease baniiorks hav-
ing been a favourite food of the labouring class ;
but, since the extended culture of the potato, its
general use has greatly diminished. It is novr
chiefly given to horses, and also split for do-
mestic purposes, such as making pea-soup, — a
favourite dish with families in winter. Its flour
is used to adulterate that of the wheat, and is
easily detected by the peculiar smell .wjiich it
gives out with hot water. Pease-meal in hrose
is administered in some cases of dyspepsia.
Pea-pudding is eaten as an excellent accom-
panimeat to pickled pork. Pea and barley bread
is eaten on the Borders by the peasantry. It
• Phillips' History of Ciiltirated Vcgetablts, vol. i. p. 67-8.
+ Di<'kson's Husbandry of the Ancients, vol. ii. p. 182-4.
t I'uxtov's l}otanic<d Dietiotinry, art. PisuiH. § Catalogue of the 3Iusi:um, p. 68,
II Lawsou's Agriculturist's ilruiual, p. 70.
^ Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 896.
*• Raspail's Organic Chemistry, p. 116.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
455
was customary in the country to burn peas in
the sheaf, and mix them with butter for sup-
per, under the name of car/ins. In some towns
where ancient customs still linger, roabted peas
are sold in winter in the hucksters' stalls. Pigeons
are excessively fond of the pea, and I have heard
it alleged that they can devour their own weight
of them every day.
1964. Wheat straw. — Wheat straw is generally
long. I have seen it upwards of 6 feet in length in
the Carse of Gowrie,and it is always strong, what-
ever may be its length. Of the two sorts of
wheat, white and red, the straw of white wheat
is softer, more easily broken by the thrashing-
mill and decomposed in the dunghill. Red
wheat straw is tough. It is used for stuffing
horse-collars. The strength and length of wheat-
straw render it useful in thatching, whether
houses or stacks. It is yet much employed in
England for thatching houses, and perhaps the
most beautifully -thatched roofs are in the
county of Devon. Since the general use of
slates in Scotland, the thatching of houses there
with straw has almost fallen into desuetude.
Wheat straw makes the best thatching for corn-
stacks, its length and straightness insuring
safety, neatness, and despatch in the process, in
the busy period of securing the fruits of the
earth. It forms an admirable bottoming to the
littering of every court and hammel of the stead-
Potash, )
Soda, /
Lime, .
Magnesia,
Oxide of iror,
Phosphoric acid,
Sulphuric acid.
Chlorine,
Silica,
Bpi-thier.
10-8t)
5-36
ing. As litter, wheat straw possesses superior
qualities. It is not so suited for fodder, its
hardness and length being unfavourable to mas-
tication ; yet I have seen farm-horses very fond
of it. Horses in general are fond of a liard bite,
and, were wheat straw cut for them by the chaff-
cutter, I have no doubt they would prefer it to
every other kind of straw. It is imagined that,
were wheat straw cut in short lengths, say of 4
inches, it would make not only a more economical
litter for stables and courts than long straw,
but that the manure derived from it would be
more equally decomposed in the soil. Of late
years upholsterers have introduced wheat straw
as stuffing in mattresses for beds, under the name
of paillasse, but such a mattress is a miserable
substitute for crisp, curled, elastic horse hair.
] 965. The chnjfoi wheat does not seem to be
relished by any stock, and is therefore strewn
on the dunghill, or upon the lairs of the cattle
within the sheds. When it ferments, it causes
a great heat, and on this account I suppose it
would make a valuable ingredient in maintain-
ing a heat around the frames of forcing-pits.
The odour arising from wheat straw and chaff
fresh thrashed is glutinous.
1 966. No analysis has yet been made of wheat-
straw and chaff, but the ash of wheat straw has
been found to contain the following ingredients :
Mean of
Boussingault. Fromberg. the two last.
9-5(; 15-52 12'44
0-31 ... 016
8-ii;$ 4-58 6-70
5-19 2-45 3-82
1-04 156 1-30
3-22 2-.'J2 3-07
1-04 10-59 5-82
0 62 1-5G 1-09
7019 60-58 65-38
100-00
100-00
99-76
99-78
Per centage of ash, 4-40
1967. The nutritive matter derived from an
acre of wheat straw, weighing 3000 lbs., consists
of 1500 lbs. of husk or woody fibre ; 900 lbs. of
starch, sugar, &c. ; 40 lbs. of gluten, &c.; 60 lbs.
to 100 lbs. of oil or fat; and 150 lbs. of saliue
matter.
1968. Barley straw is always soft, and has a
somewhat clammy feel, and its odour, witli its
chaff, when new thrashed, is heavy and malt-like.
It is relished by no sort of stock as fodder ; on
the contrary, it is said to be deleterious to horses,
on whom its use is alleged to engender grease
in the heels. Barley straw is thus only used as
litter, and in this respect it is much inferior to
wheat straw, either for cleanliness, durability, or
comfort. It does not make a good thatch for
stacks, being too soft and difficult to assort in
lengths, apt to let through the rain, and rot.
1969. Barley chaff is much relished by cattle
of all ages, and, rough as the awns are, they
never injure their mouths in mastication. It
soon heats in the chaff-house, and, if not removed
7-00
in the course of two or three days — dependent on
the state of the air — decomposition will rapidly
ensue. Both barley straw and chaff seem to con-
tain some active principle of fermentation.
1970. The ash of barley sttaw contains these
ingredients: —
Boussingault. Sprengel. Mean.
Potash, . 9-20 3-43 6-31
Soda, . 0-30 0-.92 0-61
Lime, . 8-50 1057 9-53
Magnc.Ma, . 500 1-45 3-22
Oxidt'of iron, and
a little oxide of
manganese, 1-00 0-65 0-83
, Alumina, . ... 2-78 1-39
Pbo.spnoiic acid, 3-10 3-06 3-08
Sulphuric acid, 1-00 2-25 1-63
Chlorine, . 0-60 1-33 0-97
Silica, . 67-60 73-56 70-58
9630 10000
Per centage
of ash,
7-00
5-24
98-15
6-12
456
PRACTICE— WINTER,
1971. The nutritive matter derived from an
acre of barley gtraw weighing 2100 lbs., consists
of 1050 lbs. of husk or woody fibre; 630 lbs. of
starch, sugar, &c.; 28 lbs. of gluten, &c.; oil or
tkt !; and 105 lbs. of saline matter.
1972. Oat straw. — This straw is most commonly
used as fodder, being considered too valuable to
be applied in litter. It makes a sweet soft fod-
der, and, when new thrashed, its odour is refresh-
ing. It is very clean, raising little or no dust.
Sheep are very fond of oat straw, and will prefer
it to bad hay ; and, even on the threatening of
a coming storm, when on turnips, I have seen
them prefer it to good hay. Of the different sorts
of oat straw, that of the common oats is preferred,
being softer, sweeter, and more like hay than
that of the potato-oat. When oats are cut a little
green, the straw is much improved as fodder,
and it has been recommended to be cut green
and won, and used like hay, under the name of
oat-hay * In Holland, oat-straw is built in the
hay-stack, and both are cut together and used
as fodder by horses and cows.
1973. Oat chaff is not much relished by cattle.
It is very clean, and on this account, as well as its
elasticity, is very commonly used in the coun-
try to fill the tickings of beds, for which purpose
the chaff is riddled through an oat-riddle, and
the grosser refuse left in the riddle thrown aside.
1974. The composition of the ash of oat straw
is as follows: —
a writer, gave as much as £5 per load for it in
the neighbourhood of London, in the winter of
1834-5, but for what particular reason is not
mentioned.f Its ordinary price is £2 per load.
Rye straw is sometimes three or four times as
heavy as the grain, which is a remarkable feature
in this straw.
1977. The plaiting of rye straw for hats was
practised as long ago as the ancient Hritjns. I
have seen very good hats and bonnets for daily
use made by field-workers from the upper joint
of wheat straw. Bee-hives and rusk'uf — that is,
baskets for supplying the sowers with seed — are
beautifully and lightly made cf rye straw; but
where that commodity is scarce, which is usually
the case in Scotland, wheat straw is substituted.
1978. The ash of rye straw contains these in-
gredients : —
WiU and Fresenius.
Potash,
17:w
Soda, .
0-31
Lime,
9-06
Magnesia,
2 41
Oxide of iron,
1-36
Phosphoric acid,
3-82
Sulpiiuric acid,
0-83
Chlorine,
046
Silica, .
64-50
Per centage of ash, about
lOO-ll
4 00
Levi.
Boussingault.
KrRHESS.
Alsvace.
Mean.
Potash,
1218
26-09
19.14
Soda, .
14-69
4-69
9-60
Lime, .
7-29
8-84
8-07
Magnesia,
4-58
2-98
3-78
Oxide of iron,
1-41
2-24
1-83
Phosphoric acid.
1-94
3-19
2-56
Sulphuric acid.
2-15
4-37
3-26
Chlorine, ,
1-50
5-00
3-25
Silica,
54-25
42-60
10000
5-10
4842
99-99
10000
Per centage of ash.
1979. The nutritive matter supplied by an
acre of rye straw, weighing 4000 lbs., is, of husk
or woody fibre, 1800 lbs.; starch, sugar, (Sec, 1500
lbs.; gluten, &c., 64 lbs.; oil or tat I; and of valine
matter, 160 lbs.
1980. Pea and Bean Straw, or llavlm. — It
is difficult in some seasons to preserve the straw
of the pulse crops, but, when properly pieterved,
no kind of straw is so great a favourite as
fodder with every kind of stock. An ox will eat
pease straw as greedily as he will hay; and a
horse will chump bean straw with more gusto
than ill-made rye-grass hay. Sheep . enjoy
1975. The nutritive matter afforded by an acre pease straw much. The product of tlie pulse
of oat straw weighing 2700 lbs., is, of husk or crops is considered much too valuable to
woody fibre, 1210 lbs.; of starch, sugar, &c., 950 be given as litter. Since bean chaff is so
lbs.;of gluten, &c., 36 1bs.;of oil or fat ? ;audof much relished by cattle, there is little doubt
x._ 1 r 1 ^j^_^^ bean and pea haulm, cut into chaff, would
not only be relished, but be economically admi-
nistered; and were this practice attended to in
spring, the hay usually given to horses at that
season might be dispensed with on farms which
grow beans and pease. It is said that, when
work-horses are long kept on bean straw, their
wind becomes affected. This may be the effect of
new or ill-win bean straw, but 1 cannot suppose
that, when well win, it can have any such effect.
saline matter 175 lbs.
1976. Rye Straw. — This straw is always small,
hard, and wiry, quite unfit for fodder, and per-
haps would make but uncomfortable litter in a
stable, though it would no doubt be useful in a
court, for laying a durable bottoming for the
dunghill ; but as it forms most beautiful thatch
for houses, of course it would do for stacks, if it
were not too expensive an article for the purpose.
It is much sought for by saddlers for stuffing
collars of posting and coach-horses, and, in want
of it, wlieat straw is substituted. It is also in
great request by brick-makers, who, as stated by
1981. Young cattle are very fond of bean chaff,
and, with turnips, thrive well upon it. Cows
also relish it much.
Prize Essays of the Illnhfand and A(jricultural Society, vol. xiv. p. 148.
■f British Husbandry, vol. ii. p. 170, note.
THRASHING AND WINNOWING OF GRAIN.
457
1982. According to Sprengel, the asli of the
straw of the bean and pea contains tlie following
ingredients: —
Field-bean.
Field-pea.
Potash,
5;5-08
4-73
Soda,
l-dO
Lime,
19-99
54-91
Magnesia,
6-6'9
6-88
Alumina,
0-32
1-21
Oxide of iron.
0-22
0-40
0.\ide of manganese,
0-16
0-15
Phusphoiic acid,
7-24
4-83
Sulphuric acid,
1-09
6-77
Chlorine,
2-5()
• 0-09
Silica,
7-05
20-03
100-00
100-00
Per-centage of ash, from 4 4 to 6.
1983. The nutritive matter derived from an
acre of pease straw, weighing 2700 lbs., consists,
of husk ur woody fibre, 675 lbs.; starch, sugar,
&c., 1200 lbs.; gluten, &c., 3;s0 lbs.; oil or fat,
40 lbs.; and saline matter, 135 lbs.*
1984. 100 lbs. of the ash of each of these sorts of
straw, gave the following quantities of each of its
constituents: —
CONSTITOENTS.
Wheat
straw.
Farley
straw.
o S
n
is*
lbs. lbs.
lbs.
lb.,.
Iha.
lbs.
Potasli, .
0*
U
\b
1
bSh
4^
Soda,
OS
1
a trace
Oh
u
_1
Lime,
7
lOA
n
6
20
54?
Magnesia,
1
U
Ok
Oh
6*
fit
Alumina,
Oxide of iron,
2J
3
a trace
}^
Oi
}«
1
Oh
Oxide of manganese.
I'
OJ a trace
Oi
Sulphuric acid, .
1
2 \h
6
fif
Phosphoric acid.
5
3 Oi
2
n
4?
Chlorine,
1
\h a trace
0?
2f
0*
Silica,
1
1
81
73^
80
82i
7
20
100
100
100
100
100 jioo
On comparing these numbers, we cannot fail to
remark how large a proportion of potash 'bean-
straw contains ; how small a trace of soda exists
in all the straws ; how large a proportion of lime is
in pease straw, compared with bean straw, and
with the grain of the pea itself ; how large a
proportion of silica is in pease straw compared
with bean straw ; but, on the other hand, how
large a proportion of phosphoric acid is in bean
straw compared to pease straw.
1985. Of all the different kinds of straw, it ap-
pears that wheat, oats, pease, and bean straw
are used for fodder, and barley straw is only fit
for litter; and where a sufficiency of oat and bean
straw exists, wheat straw might be dispensed
with for fodder. This being the relative posi-
tions of the different kinds of straw, their supply
should be so arranged as to prevent the waste of
fodder-straw in litter; and this may easily be
accomplished by having oat straw in the straw-
barn with barley or wheat straw. The procedure
should be in this wise: In the early part of
winter, the grain chiefly in demand ie barley.
Barley straw should therefore be supplied, stack
after stack, until all the stock, with the excep-
tion of the seed-corn, is disposed of. During
winter, the corn for the horses should be thrashed,
and laid up in granary, and, as common oats are
usually given to horses, the straw of them would
form the best sort of fodder to be supplied simul-
taneously with the litter-straw of barley. After the
barley is disposed of, towards spring, the demand
for wheat commences, and then the wheat straw
should come in lieu of barley straw for litter. Far-
ther on in spring, the bean straw comes in lieu of
oat straw for fodder. In this way, provision is
made both in fodder and litter until the grass is
ready for stock.
1986. The colour of the fodder affects that of
the dung of the various animals; thus, pease and
bean straw and chaff make the dung quite black,
wheat straw gives a bleached appearance to the
dung of horses, and oat straw a yellow hue.
1987. I don't know that the specific gravity of
straw has ever been ascertained by experiment;
but I should say, judging by hand, that barley
straw is the lightest, and wheat straw the heavi-
est, not speaking of the weight of rye straw, of
which I have no experience. This is the order
of tlic quantity of silica which each kind of straw
contains, as seen in (1984,) but this circumstance
cannot determine the point, as pease straw con-
tains nearly three times as much silica as bean
straw, and yet bean straw is certainly heavier
than pea straw.
1988. Such are the kinds, uses, and constitu-
tion of the straw usually raised on farms ; and
the proper management of them, so as to confer
the greatest comfort to stock, and procure the
largest amount of manure to the farm, is a matter
deserving of much consideration. I fear there is
too much truth in the observation of Sir .John
Sinclair, when he says that " the subject of
straw is of greater importance than is commonly
imagined; and the nature of that article, taken
in the aggregate, entitles it to more attention
than has hitherto been be.stowed upon it. Far-
mers are apt to consider it as of little or no worth,
because it is not usually saleable, and is rarely
estimated seiiarately from the yearly produce of
the soil. But, though seldom saleable, except in
the vicinity of towns, it has an intrinsic value as
a fund for manure, and a means of feeding
stock." +
1989. The proper management of straw to
which I refer is, that the respective kinds shall
always be appi-opriated to their best uses — that
is, the straw best adapted for litter shall not be
given as fodder, for if it be, the animals will be
rendered discontented. If barley-straw, for in-
stance, is put hotore cattle that have been accus-
tomed to oat-straw, they will not only not eat the
Johnston's Lectures on A<jnrAtUurnl C'hfmiftry,1>i. edition, pp. 305-79 and 928.
+ Sinclair's Code of Agriculture, p. 361.
458
PRACTICE— WINTER.
osnal quantity of fodder, but will eat the dimi-
nished quantity with disrelish. On the other
hand, if fodder-straw is strewn abuut for litter,
it is not used to the best advantage, being partly
wasted. Again, if more straw is thrashed at a
time than can be consumed in a few days ia
fodder, what of it remains to the last becomes
dry and brittle, and unfit for the use of stock;
and even litter-straw, if kept for a long time
before it is used, becomes much lighter, and
loses a portion of its value. So far, therefore, as
the straw is concerned, it is bad practice to stack
up thrashed straw for a lung time, as some
farmers seem fond of doing, for certainly some of
its properties as fodder or litter are wasted. The
plan is, to thrash the straw when and as often as
it is required, both for fodder and litter, and it
will be always in the freshest state for use in
both ways. But to follow out this plan success-
fully, requires the previous consideration, whether
there is a sufficient number of stacks in the stack-
yard for the purposes of fodder and litter through-
out the season; and if so, those should be selected
best suited for each purpose, during the winter,
when good straw is must appreciated. The
remainder can be used fur the inferior purposes
of bottoming the courts and stacks of the ensuing
crop and season. Should the whole quantity of
straw, however, be inadequate to the demands
upon it, it should be thrashed only as required,
and dealt out with an economical hand, so that
no part of the season shall be inadequately sup-
plied. Do these considerations usually engage
the attention of farmers ? I fear not, and cer-
tainly not so much as they deserve. I am aware
it may be replied, that it is of greater interest to
tlie farmer to meet the market of grain, than lose
the advantage by not thrashing out the straw.
Such a necessity may occasionally happen, but, in
following it, it behoves him to consider, on the
other hand, the probable injury arising to his
stock and manure from inattention to the state of
the straw? I suspect the subject has received but
little consideration in this view of the matter.
1990. At one time it was a prevalent notion
thai straw could not be converted into good
manure uuless it were consumed by the cattle and
horses; and the celebrated Bakewell carried this
idea to such a height, that if he had not stock
sufficient of his own to consume all his straw, he
took in those of others fur the purpose. But he
lived to see his error. Opinion changed to the
opposite extreme, so much so, that many farmers
persuaded themselves that straw consutned by
Stock was wasted, and should only be used for
NVheat-straw, 9 kemples of 16 st. of
Barley, „ 7 „
Oat, „ 8 „
Average, 8 „ „
or 1 ton 5 cwt. 16 lbs. per Scotch, or 1 tonO cwt.
13 lbs. per imperial acre. On comparing this
result — from the vicinity of a large town, where
a large supply of manure can always be ob-
litter. This latter opinion is nearer the truth than
the former, but gues beyond the truth ; fur although
it is correct to say that stock ought to depend on
green ciops to fatten them, it is also true that
these are much assisted in their assimilation
into the animal system by the fodder. The
stomach requires to be distended by food, and
nothing does so as easily as sweet, dry fodder,
and it is an agreeable change to the ox after a
hearty meal of turnips. Fattening stork really
consume very little fodder;and,wheu placed before
them at pleasure, they pick out a few choice straws
sufficient -for their purpose. The animals are
thus afforded as much liberty of choice in their
food as their confined situation will admit. Abuve
all, when prepared food is becoming more and
more common on farms, it cannot be prepared in
the best manner without chopped straw.
1991. Tlie ralxie of straw may be estimated
from the quantity usually yielded by the acre,
and the price which it realises. Arthur Young
estimated the straw yielded by the different
crops — but rejecting the weaker soils — at 1 ton
7 cwt., or 30_'4 lb. per English acre. Mr Middle-
ton estimated the different crops in these propor-
tions : —
■\Vheat straw, .
, 31 or
lUB.
3472 per acre.
Barley, „
. 20
2440 „
Uats, ,,
. 25
2800 „
Beans, „
. 25
2800 „
Pease, „
. 25
2800 „
Average rather more than 25 or 2862 „
or 1 ton 5 cwt. 62 lbs. per English acre.
1992. Mr Brown, Markle, East Lothian,
computed the produce of straw as follows in
stones of 22 lbs. per Scotch acre, which I con-
trast with tlie imperial : —
Stones. lbs. cwt. lbs.
Wheat-straw, 160 or 3520 or 31 48 per Scotch acre.
Barlev, „ . IdO 2200 19 72 „
Oats,' „ . 130 2860 25 60 „
Beans & pease, 130 2860 25 60 „
Average, . 1 30 or 2860 or 25 60 per „
or 1 ton 5 cwt. 60 lbs. per Scotch acre, and 1 ton
0 cwt. 76 lbs. per imperial acre.*
1993. In the immediate vicinity of Edinburgh,
the produce, both in Scotch and imperial mea-
sures, per acre, is this : —
Stones. lbs. ton. cwt. lbs.
22 lbs. = 144 or Slb'S or 1 8 32
„ = 112 2464 1 2 0
= 128 2816 1 5 16
= 128 or 2816 or 1 5 16
tained — with Mr Brown's general estimate for
the whole country, and finding the quantity less,
we must conclude that Mr Brown's estimate is
above the mark as an average for the country ;
• Sinclair's Code of Agriculture, p. 362-3.
FORMING DUNGHILLS IN WINTER.
459
and unless the produce of straw be very much
greater in England than in Scotland, we must
also conclude that the estimates of both Artliur
Young and Mr Middleton are above the gene-
ral average ; 1 ton tlie imperial acre of straw
is too hijih au average for Scotland.
1994. In regard to the market value of straw,
it being usually prohibited to be sold except in
Wheat-straw, 144 st. of '22 lbs. at SW. per st
4 bushels,
Oat, „ 128
the vicinity of towns where manure can be
r>?ceived in return, it is only from the price
received f r it in towns that we can form an
estimate of its value. In Edinburgh, the usual
price of wlieat straw is 12s. per kemple of 16
stones of 22 lbs., or 9d. per stone ; and of oat
straw, 10s. the kemple, or T^d. per stone. These
quantities are thus contrasted in Scotch and
imperial measures : —
= £5, 6's. 4d. per Scotch acre, of 10 bolls of
10s. 7d. per boll.
7.id. „ = £4, Os. Od. „ „ 10 bolls of
6 bushels, = 8s. per boll.
Equivalent to
Wheat-straw, 181 st. of 14 lbs. at S^d. perst.= £4, 6s. Od. per imp. acre of
32 bushels, = 2s. 8d. per bushel.
Oat, „ IGI „ „ 43d. „ = £3, 4s. Od, „ „ „
48 bushels, = Is. 4d. per bushel.
1995. In those parts of the country where wheat straw is 6s. per boll of 4 bushels, and
straw, with its corn, is allowed to be sold on oat straw 5s. per boll of 6 bushels. The quan-
foot — that is, as it grows in the field, but pro- tity of straw per boll and per bushel will stand
hibited from being sold by itself — the price for thus : —
Wheat straw, 14 st. 8 lbs. of 22 lbs. per boll of 4 bushels = 3 st. 11 lbs. per bushel.
Oat, „ 12 „ 17 „ „^ ,, 6 „ = 2 „ 3 „ „
Equivalc7it to
Wheat, „ 18 „ 1 „ 14 „ „ 4 „ = 4 „ 7 „ „
Oat, „ Id „ 1 „ „ „ 6 „ = 2 „ 9 „ „
1996. The Romans used straw as litter, as
well as fodder, for cattle and sheep They con-
sidered millet-straw as the best for cattle, then
barley-straw, then wheat-straw. This arrange-
ment is rather against our ideas of the compa-
rative qualities of barley and wheat-straw ; but
the hot climate of Italy may have rendered the
quality of barley straw better, by making it drier
and more crisp, and the wheat-straw too hard and
dry. The haulm of pulse was considered best for
sheep. They sometimes bruised straw on stones
before using it as litter, which is analogous to
having it cut with the chaff-cutter.
1997. Where straw is scarce, they recommend
the gathering of fern, leaves, &c., which is a
practice that may be beneficially followed in this
country, where opportunity occurs.
1998. Varro says, "it is the opinion of some
that straw is called sframentum, because it is
strewed before the cattle."*
ON THE FORMING OF DUNGHILLS IN
WINTER.
1999. Towards the close of winter, the
dung will have accumulated so high in the
large courts I and K, Plate II, as to be-
come nearly level with the feeding-troughs,
thereby making them inconveniently low
for the cattle. Before such an inconveni-
ence occurs, the dung should be removed,
and formed into dunghills, in tlie fields in-
tended to be manured in the ensuing
season ; and the most convenient and
proper time to do this is when the frost,
snow, or rain, prevents the ploughing of
the land. The court K, besides its own
litter and the refuse from the corn-barn
C, contains the litter of the work-horse
stable O, and of all the pig-sties; and the
court I only contains its own manure. The
dung from the cows' courts / and o' should
also be taken away, to save annoyance to
the cows heavy in calf wading in deep
litter ; but the well-trodden litter in the
hammels M and 'N, seldom becomes in-
conveniently high.
2000. I am thus particular in detailing
the contents of each court, because, being
different in their constituent parts, they
should be appropriated to the crop most in
want of the particular manure. For ex-
ample, the court K contains a large ]:ro-
portion of stable litter, and not a little
from that of the pig-sties ; so its contents
are somewhat of a diff'erent nature from
those of the court I, and of the hammels
M, which contain nothing but the litter of
cattle. If it is desired to raise the crop
which thrives best with a large proportion
of horse-dung, the court K would supply
it ; while the court I and the cows' courts
laudo' supply only cow-dung for the crop
most suitable for it. Or should the crop
Dickson's Husbandrt/ of the Ancients, vol. ii. p. 407.
460
PRACTICE— WINTER.
require a manure of niediuin pniportidii,
then the contents of all the courts i-hould
be niixeii toijether. Tlie a|)pr<ij)riati()n of
dung to the particular crop best suited for
it is not so much attended to hy farmers as
it deserves ; and it is not urged by me as
a theoretical suggestion, but as practically
being the best mode of applying the
manure of the farm to raise crops to the
best advantage. To make myself more
intelligible, I shall suppose that carrots
are to be raised on a field of light land ;
then the land should be dunged in the
autumn with a manure such as the contents
of the court K, because it contains a large
proportion of horse-litter. When potatoes
are desired to be raised on heavy soil,
which is not their natural one, horse-litter
also should be used. Turnips grow best
with cow-dung, and therefore the contents
of the courts I and /, and of the hammels
M, would be best for them. Should
carrots not be raised, and the soil be
naturally favourable to the potato, and
therefore horse-dung not be specially
wanted, all the diflerent sorts of dung
should be mixed together, to form dung-
hills possessing general properties.
2001. There is another matter which
deserves consideration before the courts
are begun to be cleared of their contents,
which is the position the dunghills should
occupy in the field ; and this point is de-
termined partly by the form which the
surface of the field presents, and jiartly
from the point of access to the field.
In considering this point, which is of more
importance than it may seem to possess,
it should be held as a general rule, that
the dunghill should be placed in the field
where the horses will have the advantage
of going down-hill with the loads from
it, when the manure is applied to the land.
Wherever practicalh., this rule should
never be violated, as facilities awarded to
labour in the lusi/ season are of great im-
portance. If a field has a uniformly slop-
ing surface, the dunghill should be placed
at the highest side ; but the access to the
field may only be at the lowest side, and
it may be impracticable to reach the
highest side by any road. In such an
untoward case, the loads should be taken
to the highest side, up a ridge i.f the field ;
and frosty weather be chosen to furm the
dunghill in it, as the cart-wheels and
horses' feet will then have firm ground to
move on. But if it is impracticable to lead
dung there, on account of the continued
soft state of the land, or of the steepness of
the ascent, the only alternative is to form
the dunghill at the side nearest the access.
When the field has a round-bucked form,
the dunghill should be placed on the top of
the height, to allow the load to go down-
hill on both sides of the dunghill ; and, to
form a proper site for a dunghill in such a
case, a lieadridge should have been formed
for it along the crest of the height, at the
time the stubble was ploughed. In a level
field, it is immaterial which side the dung-
hill occupies.
2002. The precise spot which a dungbill
should occupy in a field is thus not a
matter of inditierence. I have seen a
dunghill placed in the very centre of a
field which it was intended wholly to
manure. From this point, it is obvious,
the carts must either go across every ridge
between the one which is being manured
and the dunghill, or go direct to a head-
ridge, and thence along it to the ridge to
be manured. This latter alternative must
be adopted if the dung is to be deposited
in drills ; and if not, the drills prepared
for the dung will be much cut uj> by the
passage of the carts across them — a
practice which should never be allowed
when neat work is desired. The dung-
hill shouhl be placed on a head-ridge or a
side-ridge of the field ; and of these two
places I prefer the side-ridge, because the
abutting length of every dunghill prevents
the ends of all the ridges opposite them
being i)loughed or drilled to their proper
length. The dunghill on a side-ridge cur-
tails only a portion of the single ridge
w hich it occupies. When a field rcfpiires
two dunghills, the one first to be used
should be placed along a ridge at such a
distance beyond the space of ground the
manure it contains will just cover, measured
from the side of the field from which the
manuring is to commence, as that the ridge
occupieil by the dunghill may bej>U>ughed
to its end before it is manured ; and the
dunghill to be used second should be
])iaced along the farthest side-ridgo; but
this second-used dunghill should be first
formed, being farthest oflT. Should the
weather he fresh and the ground soft, a
dunghill should be made on the side-ridge
FORMING DUNGHILLS IN WINTER.
461
nearest tlie gateway, and, should no frost
occur, this one should be made large enough
to manure the whole field. A large dung-
hill in one place will doubtless take more
time to manure the field at the busy
season, than two dunghills at different
places ; but, in soft weather and soil, it is
better to incur future inconvenience in
good weather, than make the horses drag
half-loads axle-deep along a soft head-
ridge. When projier sites can be chosen
for dunghills in fields, the loads, in the
busy season, will not only have a pas-
sage downhill, but the dung will be situ-
ate at the shortest distance from the place
it is wanted, and the ploughed or drilled
land uninjured by cart-wheels and horses'
feet.
2003. The fields in which dunghills
should be formed, are those to be fallowed
in the ensuing season ; that is, to grow the
green crops, such as potatoes and turnips,
and for the bare or sunimer fallow — if
there be any — which depends on the state
of the soil, whether it be foul or dirty, or
whether or not the land can grow green
crops. The potato coming first in order,
the land for them should first have its
manure carried out and formed into a
dunghill. The turnips come next, and,
lastly, the bare fallow. All the dung-
hills should of course be respectively made
of such a size as to manure the extent of
land to be occupied by each crop. The
manure for bare fallow, not being required
till much later in the season, may be left
untouched in the courts, or made in pur-
pose in summer.
2004. I have already said (in 1086,
1087, and 1088) that the courts ought
to be completely littered before being
occupied by the cattle ; but as no one
would believe the care that is requisite in
laying down straw in a court, except those
who have witnessed the inconvenience and
loss of time incurred in removing dung
from it, this seems a befitting time to
show how the inconvenience does really
arise. The courts are usually cleared
during frost, when time is erroneously re-
garded of little value, because the plough
is rendered useless; but, notwithstanding
this common opinion, a loss of a small
portion of time, even at this season, may
have a material effect upon several future
operations. For example : the hard state
of the ground may favour the carriage of
manure to a distant field, to gain which,
most of the time is spent upon the road.
Sui)p()se frost continued as long as to allow
time to carry as much manure as would
serve the whole field, provided ordinary
diligence were used on the road, and no
interruption occurred in the courts. Sup-
pose further, on manuring the field in sum-
mer, there was found to be less manure in
the dunghills, by a small quantity, than
was wanted, and that half-a-day, or, at
most, a whole day's driving from the
steading would havesuj)plied the requisite
quantity, it is clear that the one day's
driving could have been accom])lished in
frost at much less trouble than at the sea-
son when the manure is wanted. But
this sacrifice of time must be made at the
instant, or the field will be deprived of its
due i)roportion of manure. Tliis is no
hypothetical case ; it has occurred in every
farmer's experience. Now, what is the
primary cause of this dilemma? Either
too much time had been spent upon the
road in driving the manure, or interruption
experienced in the courts. To which of
these two causes ought the waste of time
to be properly attributed ? With regard to
driving, larm-horses get into so regular a
pace ujion the farm road at all times, that
little loss or gain of time can be calculated
on their speed; and besides, when a head
of carts is employed at any work, each
cart must maintain its position in the
order, otherwise it will either be over-
taken by the one behind, or be left too far
behind by the one before. The probability
therefore is, that the loss of time is incurred
in the courts, and the reason is this : —
The usual mode of taking away the wet
litter from the work-horse stable is to roll
as much of it together with a graip as one
man can lift, and throw it into a barrow,
in which it is wheeled into the court, and
emptied on any si)ot to get quit of it in
the shortest time, and left in heaps to be
trampled down by the cattle. Backloads
of thatchings of stacks, not always dry,
are carried into the courts, put down any
where, and partially s[)read. Long straw
ropes, which bound down the thatching of
the stacks, are ])ulled along the court. la
doing all this — and it is not all done at
one time — no idea ever enters the head to
facilitate the lifting of the straw after-
462
PRACTICE— WINTER.
wards ; and wlicn it is lifted before it he-
comes short by fermentation, considerable
difficulty is experienced in the removal
of it. A lump of long, <lamp straw is
seized in one part by a graip, and theotlier
part, being coiled in the heap it was
tirst laid down, cannot be sejiaratcd with-
out much exertion on the part of the
ploughman, pulling it this way and tiiat ;
and in a court occujjied by young cattle,
it is too soft to be cut with thedung-knife.
Another graip encounters a long straw-
rope, which, after much tugging, is broken
or pulled out, and thrown upon the cart
with its ends dangling down. In short,
not a single graipfid is easily raised, and
the work is not expedited when a heap of
chaflf evades the grasp of the graip. Add to
this the few hands generally sent to assist
the ploughman to fill the carts, and the
consequent time spent by the team in the
court, and some idea may be formed of the
causes which wastes much time in this
necessary work. It is not that the men
are actually idle, for in these circumstances
they may be worked ver^' hard, and yet
show but a small result for their exertion ;
but it is easy to conceive that, in this way,
much time may be uselessly thrown away,
which migiit liave been saved by previous
proper arrangement, and as much time
lost in clearing all the courts as would
have given all the carts a half or whole
day's driving, which is just what was re-
quired to remove the dilemma experienced
in manuring the field. The only eflectnal
method of preventing the recurrence of so
great delay in carrying out manure, is to
put down tlie liner so as it may be easily
lifted ; and to afford as much assistance in
the court as to detain the horses only a
short time, and keep them constantly on
the road : and a constant walk for a short
winter day will not fatigue them.
200.5. The Utter should he laid down at
Jir.it, and continued to be so, in this man-
ner. On fixing on the gate of the court
throiigh which the loaded carts should pass
to the nearest road to the fields requiring
the manure in the ensuing season, and,
after covering the ground of the court
evenly with straw, as mentioned in (1087,)
the litter should be laid above it in small
quantities at a time, beginning at the end
of the court farthest from that gate. The
litter should be spread with the slope of its
lower part towards the gate, and carried
gradually forwanl every day until it
reaches the gate ; and every kind of litter,
whether from the work- horse stable, the
stack-yard, or straw-barn, shoidd be inter-
mixed and treated in the same manner.
The straw-ropes, as I mentioned before,
(1,722,) should be cut into small pieces,
and spread about, and the chat!" not fit for
fodder sprinkled about, and not laid down
in heaps. Thus layer above layer is scat-
tered, until they make a mass of manure
of sufficient height to be carried out and
formed into dunghills in the fields. Were
all the straw for litter cut short with a
chaff-cutter, as has been proposed, no pre-
caution would be necessary to spread it
about, and the dung would be more easily
removed with the graip than the present
plan.
2006. When the time has arrived for
emptying the courts, the process is begun
at the gate through which the loaded carts
are to pass, and the dung first lifted there
will come up in slo])iug layers, having
an inclination from the ground to the top
of the dung-heap, not in entire layers of
the whole (iej)th of the dung hcaj), but in
successive small detached layers, one beside
the other, and succeeding one after tlie
other, from the gate to the farther end of
the court. The cnij)ty carts enter the
court by another gate, if there be one,
and, without turning, take uptheir position
where the loadctl cart was before, and has
just passed through the gate appointed for
it. When there is oidy one gate to a
court, and the court not very large, and
the l(»t of beasts obliged to be kept in it,
for want of room to i)ut them elsewhere,
it is better for the empty cart to wait on
the outside until the loaded one has gone
away. AVhen the court is large, with
oidy one gate, the empty cart should go
in, and turn round to be ready to succeed
the one being filled. On dropping work
at mid-day, it will save time, at starting
again after dinner, to fill the first cart re-
turning eiii])ty from the field, that has not
time to reach it again loaded, and return
before dinner-time ; and allow it to stand
loaded, without the horses, until the time
for yoking, when the horses are i)ut to
it, and it then forms the first load ready
to start for the field immediately at the
hour of yoking.
FORMING DUNGHILLS IN WINTER.
463
2007. On clearing a court, or any part
of it, it should be cleared to the (jround;
because the manure made from a dung-heap
tbathas been simultaneously formed, will be
more uniform in its texture than that made
from a heap composed entirely of new dry
straw on the top, or of old and wet straw at
the bottom. Besides, it is much better, for
the future comfort of the cattle, that the
court receive a fresh dry littering frum the
bottom, than that the wet bottoming should
remain.
2008. Cattle sometimes are injured by
a cart or horse when the court is emptying ;
and, to avoid the risk, they should be con-
fined in the shed as long as the people are
at work in the coui't.
2009. To form a dunghill in the field
requires some art. A dunghill having a
breadth of 15 feet, and of four or five
times that length, and of proportionate
height, will contain as much manure as
should be taken from one spot in manuring
afield quickly. Suppose that 15 feet is
fixed upon for the widtli, the first carts
should lay their loads down at the nearest
end of the future dunghill, in a row across
the whole width, and these loads should
not be spread very thin. Tlius, load after
load is laid down in succession upon the
ground, maintaining the fixed breadth, and
passing over the loads ^^''^^viously laid
down. On frosted ground the bottoming
is easily formed. After the bottom of the
dunghill has thus been formed of the de-
sired breadth and length, the further end
is made up, by layer after layer, into a
gradual slope upwards from the nearest to
the farthest extremity. This is d(Uie with
a view to effecting two purposes ; one to
afl"ord an easy incline for tlie loaded carts
to ascend, the other to give ease of draught
for the liorses to move along the dunghill
to all parts, to compress it firmly with the
carts. Every cart-load laid down above
the bottom layer is spread around, in order
to mix the different kinds of dung together,
and to give a uniform texture to the whole
heap of manure. To effect this purpose
the better, a field-worker should be em-
ployed to spread the loads on the dungiiill
as they are laid down; the ploughmen
being apt to spread it as little as possible.
When the centre has reached the height
which will enable the dunghill to contain
the desired quantity of manure, that height
is brought forward towards the nearer end ;
though the centre will first attain the
greatest elevation, as a slope at both ends
is required — one to allow the carts to take
up the requisite quantity of dung from one
end, and another to allow them to come
easily oft' at the other end. It is essential
to have the whole dunghill equally com-
pressed, with a view to making the manure
of similar texture throughout. Alter the
carting is over, the scattered portions of
dung around, and the thin extreme ends
of the dunghill should be thrown upon the
top, and trampled down, and the entire
top brought to a level. Such a finishing
to a dunghill is very generally neglected.
2010. The object aimed at hy the com-
pression of the dunghill by the loaded
carts, is to prevent immediate fermenta-
tion. So long as the temperature continues
at its average degree in winter of 45°,
tiiere is little chance of much activity in
the interior of a dunghill ; but towards
spring, when the temperature increases, it
vi ill show symptoms of action ; but even
then a temperature of 65° is required to
begin the second stageof fermentation. The
firstferiiientation only evaporatostiie water,
and the destruction of fibre only commences
with the second stage of fermentation.
2011. Covering the dunghill in the
field with a thick layer of earth, with a
view to exclude the air and ciieck fermen-
tation, is unnecessary in the coldest months
of winter, though of service in spring to a
dungiiill which is not to be imme<liately
turned. A dunghill, made up in a loose
manner at once in graipfuls from each
cart-load, gives, in effect, tlie dung a turn-
ing, and, when even covered with eartli.
soon becomes fermented enough for an
early crop, such as beans; but if it is not
to be used until an advanced period of the
season, when the temperature will have
increased considerably, the loose dung
will ferment too rapidly. The new-made
dunghill thus formed should theretore be
covered with earth or not, according to
the use to be nuide of it.
2012. The dung in the hammels, and
especially in the hammels M, will be
found nmch mr)re compressed than that in
the large courts I and K, in consequence of
464
PRACTICE— WINTER.
the heavy cattle moving over, it so often
within a limited space. It is sometimes
so coin pressed as almost to resist the en-
trance of the graip. To enable it to be
easily lifted, it slionlJ be cut in parallel
divisions with the dung spnde^ fig. 191.
Fig. 191.
This consists of a heart-
shaped blade of steel, thin-
ned to a sharp edge along
both faces ; and its cross-
head, or helve, is fastened
to it with nails into a split
socket. The height of the
spade is 3 feet, length of
the cross-head 18 inches,
length of the helve 18
inches, and length of the
blade 16 inches, its breadth
10 inches. It is sharpened
THE DUNG SPADE. „.ith 3 scythe-stonc. In
using this spade, it is raised with both
hands by the cross-head, and its point
thrust with force into the dnng-heap, mak-
ing a rut across the dunghill. The blade,
it will be observed, is heart-shaj^ed, not
squared like a common spade, because,
when cutting the dung-heap to a greater
depth than the length of the blade, the
rounded ears escape catching the dung
which square ones would, on the blade
being drawn up. A man's strenirth is
required to use this spade effectively, a
woman's being too weak. Another instru-
ment for cutting dung is like the common
hay-knife, and used in like manner, but is
not so etiicient as this implement.
2013. It is a practice of some farmers
to keej) the dung from the cow-byres in a
loose state in a dung-court, enclosed with
astout wall3or 4 feet in height, into which
the dung is wheeled as it comes from the
byre, on a plunk as a roadway for the bar-
row to ascend, and it is allowed to accumu-
late to the height of the walls, or even more.
The dung never rctpiires turning, and soon
becomes in a state fit for potatoes or turnips.
This i)lan saves the trouble of turning the
dung, but the dung must be led direct
from the court to the field at a season when
labour is precious, and, when the field is
distant, the extra time spent in taking out
the manure may more than counterbalance
the cost of turning. This dung may be
reserved for a near field, but the nearest
may be found to bo at an inconvenient
distance in the busy season.
*2014. or late years the carting out of dung, M
de.-icnb:U above, lias been objecteil to, because, U
alleged, the gas>e-i u»e!ul to ve>;etatii>ii aro there-
by dissipated. I do not see the force of this ob-
jection in winter, when, certainly, no dfompoting
process can naturally originate or proceed in the
dung-heap. Water, it is true, may be evaporated
at a very low temperature, even below 50°, but
what harm can accrue from this \ and if dung
must be prepared by fermentation for some crop,
of what avail is it to prevent fermentation, if the
manure is no more than sufficiently prepared
wlien applied ? Of course, vngte of the materials
of the dnng-heap should be provided against. To
provide against waste from fermentation, it has
been suggested to make the dunghills under
cover, instead of in the open air, in order to
ward oiF the rain and keep the heap dry, as the
rain may dissolve and carry off the soluble salts
of tlie dung. The shed would certainly keep the
dunghill dry, and thereby retard its fermentation,
but wjiether the dung would be as good by the
treatment, would depend upon circumstances.
If the large courts, as also those of the hammeU
— which are at present open to the air — were
covered, so as to prevent the rain falling on the
dung-litter, the state of the dung would be the
same as that is at present which is made under
the .^heds of the courts and hammels, and wliich
is avowedly too dry to make good manure, and
could never make good manure at all, unless it
were mixed with tlie wet dung-hespof the open
Courts. To have the dung-litter moist enough
by the urine alone of the animals, less litter must
be laid down in the courts so covered, than is at
present in tlie open courts. So little straw would
then be required to be used in litter, that th?
dung-litter would be unable to support the weight
of ihe cattle, and their limbs would peiketrate
through it — a state to which cattle ought not to
be subjected. It thus seems to be desirable, for
the sake of both cattle and the manure, to use the
straw in litter, so as to make the dung-heap as
moist as will make good manure, and as firm a,s
will easily and comfortably support the weight
of the cattle. BotJi these requisites cannot be
obtained under a covered shed; and if the present
mode is really injurious to the manure, tlie only
alternative is to put the cattle under cov^r, in
byre-i, and manufacture the manure as desired ;
but before such a change can be accomplished, the
treatment of young cattle in winter, and the plans
of steadings, would require to be entirely altered.
201 5. It has been made a subject of complaint
again>-t farmers, that uncovered courts receive so
much rain so to dissolve and carry off a large
proportion of the valuable salts contained in the
urine and dung of the cattle. This evil, in n.y
opinion, does not arise so much from the want of
a cover over the courts, as the want of water-
spouts along the eaves of tho^e parts of the
steading which immediately bonier uj)on the
courts. The courts can receive no more rain than
falls on their areas, and this, we have seen, (in
Co4,)does not exceed, during the winter quarter
at least, 192 inch in depth- a quantity which
could easily be absorbed and retained in the
litter, were the rain to fall gradually. The roofs
FORMING DUNGHILLS IN WINTER.
465
of the buildings send down a large proportion
of all the rain received in the courts, and they
send it down in quantities at a time — a con-
dition which empowers the rain to carry off for-
cibly a part of the products of the dung. But
this result is clearly not attributable to the want
of cover to the courts, but the want of spouts to
the houses.
2016. But allowing the courts to be, as they
generally are, uncovered, and the buildings un-
supplied with rain-water spouts, it is still subject
for consideration, whether or not the wet dung-
litter of the courts should be put under cover,
when formed into dunghills, so as to prevent,
at the least, the carrying off the products of the
dung by the rain that may fall from the time
the dunghill is formed until it is used ; whether,
in short, the covering of dunghills is practi-
cable in the fields? The object of the cover
seems to be entirely to prevent, or at least
to retard, the fermentation of the dung-heap,
80 as the gases forming the constituents of
the dung shall not be generated and dissipated
in the air, but retained in the dung-heap, and,
after being ploughed into the soil, evolved only
when wanted by the plants. Could a plan be
devised which would give so complete a command
over the fermentation of the dung-heap, it would
be worthy of adoption by all farmers; but is such
a result certain? Let us cogitate on all the
particulars required to be provided for the
adoption of such a plan. It is easy to erect a
shed in every field, but, to answer its purpose, it
would require to be constructed of a peculiar
form, and in a particular manner. If it is desir-
able to retard the fermentation of the dung-heap —
and the desire to cover it implies that condi-
tion— the heap must be compressed, and there is
no means so ready of compressing it, as by
the weight of the horses and carts. Now a shed,
to afford head-room for the depth of the future
dunghill, to take horses and carts under it,
sliould be of considerable height, and would
be an expensive structure. Were the dung
put under the cover without compression — that
is, wheeled in barrows by the cart-loads, as
laid down by the carts — the dung would in effect
receive a complete turning, and be strongly
encouraged to fermentation. To avoid this risk,
were the dung retained in the courts until the
season arrived when the dung ought to be turned,
the dung-litter will have accumulated to an in-
convenient height in the courts and hammels.
To avoid this inconvenience, and to secure
the retardation of the fermentation, were the
walls and feeding-troughs of the courts and ham-
mels raised so high as to contain the season's dung,
the troughs would be placed inconveniently high
for the cattle to reach the turnips in the early part
of the feeding season. I think all these conflicting
circumstancesmight be compromised in thisway :
Let the dung be taken out of the courts when
the frosty weather permits it, and compressed,
as at present, by the carts on one of the side-ridges
of the field, and, as long as the cold weather con-
tinues, there is very little chance of destructive
fermentation occurring. Let a shed be erected
in the fence of the field, parallel with the side-
VOL. I.
ridge of the field, and the dung-heap should be
formed along the side of the shed. Let the shed
have permanent walls and a permanent roof,
and let the sides be made capable of being closed
in: and, as to the dimensions of such a shed,
suppose the field to be manured contains 25
acres, and allowing 20 cart-loads to the acre,
accommodation would require to be made for 500
cubic yards of dung, which contain 13,500 cubic
feet.
2017. Now the form of such a shed requires
consideration, if we desire to have the manure in
its best condition. Mr Rowlandson, of Bootle
Village, near Liverpool, has considered this sub-
ject practically, and this is his opinion of it: —
" The fermentation of manure heaps," he ob-
serves, " depending upon the presence of heat,
moisture, and the atmosphere, the skilful farmer
will avail himself of the means in his power to
promote or retard fermentation, by dispensing
with or admitting one or other of these agents, as
the case may require. This is done in several
ways. . . . The free admission of the atmo-
sphere is one of the principal causes of excess of
fermentation; and Boussingault, although he does
not state this to be the cause, admits that 'it is of
much importance that the heap be pretty solid,
in order to prevent too great a rise of temperature,
and too rapid a fermentation, which is always
injurious. At Bechelbronn, our dung-heap is so
firmly trodden down in the course of its accumu-
lation, by the feet of the workmen, that a loaded
waggon, drawn by four horses, can be taken
across it without very great difficulty.' Not-
withstanding what has just been stated, many
able writers on the matter have asserted that
tramping down manure is injurious. It is obvious
thateach party isright accordingto circumstances.
If a manure-heap is required almost for imme-
diate use, nothing is more certain than that a free
admission of the atmosphere is necessary, in order
to promote free and rapid fermentation; but this
is done at the expense of a considerable escape
of its volatile contents. On the other hand, if
intended to lie for some months, as is frequently
the case, pressure, and consequent absence of a
great portion of atmospheric air, is advantageous,
fermentation being by this means retarded, ^nd
generally proceeds more equally throughout the
mass
By restricting the admission of air, we have a
direct command over the fermentation of the
manure-heap; and this can only be accomplished
by placing the manure in pits. If they have a
rough covering, so much the better. The usual
shape of a manure-heap is that of a cube or
paralleloj)epidon, each being a figure of six sides,
five of which are exposed to the influence of the
atmosphere, the bottom only not being surrounded
by it. By the pit we shall completely reverse
the order, one side, the top, only being exposed
to the atmosphere ; and that is also the side,
from the altered circumstances of the heap, into
which the air will have the greatest difficulty in
penetrating. In fact, from the absence of
draught from the sides, fresh volumes of air will
only penetrate the top by means of pressure.
The best formed manure, in the
2 G
466
PRACTICE— WINTER.
shortest period, that I ever witnessed, was that
from tiie pit belonging to an extensive cart pro-
prietor. In the stable there were usually about
thirty horses ; the pit was formed in the yard,
and covered over with thick planks, part of
which was covered over with earth, and paved,
only a few boards remaining loose for the con-
venience of removing the manure, with a trap-
door for tiie purpose of putting the manure into
the ])it. The yard was roofeii in, so that no
extraneous moisture could be admitted— so
circumstanced that, in summer, the whole of the
mass, except the accumulation of the last few
days, was converted into a well-fermented
workable state in the course of ten days or a
fortnight : in winter it took about three weeks
to accomplish tlie same. It might be supposed
that serious annoyance would be felt at the
escape of ammonia, and that a most extraordi-
nary heat would be generated ; but such was
not the case. I have been present when Buch
a pit was being emptied, but the heat was not
nearly so intense as that frequently observed in
ordinary farm-yard heaps ; and, unlike the latter,
it was not entirely confined to the centre, whilst
the sides were comparatively cool, but pervaded
the whole mass in an equal degree. No per-
ceptible smell of ammonia was perceived, but a
very copious amount of aqueous vapour was
evolved in the course of its removal— so much so,
that you could not, at times, see the workmen
iu the pit when removing the manure
Another advantage to be derived by using pits is,
that, in winter, the caloric arising from the fer-
mentation of the heap could not be dissipated
80 speedily as it is under the present system,
when surrounded by a cold, perhaps a frosty
atmosphere. It is so well known that ma-
nure-heaps formed in winter do not ferment
equally, or scarcely at all, that it has given rise
to the axiom, that one load of manure formed in
summer is worth two formed in winter." * The
last observation is a strong argument against
turning dung-heaps in winter, and, of course, in
favour of keeping them in a compressed state un-
til a short time before the fermeuted manure is
wanted to be applied to the soil.
2018. From what has been stated, and from
the circumstances of the case, the construction
of a shed for containing the manure-heap, when
preparing in the field for laying on the land,
should be to have a stone-and-lime wall to sup-
port a permanent roof; and, to put the eaves of
the roof beyond the reach of the cattle, when
grazing in the field in siininipr, the wall .should be
C feet above the ground. The width of the shed
should not be more than what a man can reach
across with the graip, when emptying the dung
out of it into the carts ; and this .space may be
taken at 10 feet, which width would admit of a
cheap roof, in as far as the timber is concerned.
To form the shed into a pit, and give scope to
fermentation when it is wanted, the dung-
heap should be fermented at about .9 feet in
tliickness, which would cause the pit to be 3 feet
below the level of the ground. To enable the floor
to keep out water, the shed should be thoroughly
drained all round, and the floor should be well
pudilled to retain the dwug water. To contain
13,.500 cubic feet of dung in a shed 10 feet wide
and 9 feet deep, would require it to be l.'JO feet
in length ; but as it would be more convenient to
have two shed.s, tu contain half the quantity at
the oppo!-ite sides of the fii-ld, tlian tlie whole
quantity in one place, a shed on each side, of 75
feet in length, with the other dimensions given
above, would contain all the dung. And, when
these sheds were inaile in the line of the fence,
they would be useful to the fields on both sides
of them ; and, when erected in the angle where 4
fields meet, one shed would serve the pur|)o.se of
all the fields ; and at that point they would be most
conveniently placed for using the head-ridges
by the carts. A part of the wall in the centre
of each side of the shed should be made only 3
feet high and 6 feet wide, to allow the carts to
back to and get loaded when the dung was re-
moving to the field. A similar form of shed h'
may be seen alongside the figure of tlie liquid-
manure tank A;',. Plate 11.
2019. What I have suggested in regard to the
general treatment of the dung-heap seems, there-
fore, a feasible one — namely, to cart out the dung
iu winter, and to compress it in a heap by the side
of the shed with the carts and horses j and, as
the season advances, and the heat may promote
fermentation naturally, to wheel the dunghill
into the shed to ferment, and where it may be
expected to be ready for use in the course of a
month or six weeks, according to the tempera-
ture of the weather and the material it is com-
posed of, being aware that horse-dung ferments
more quickly and actively than cow-dung. The
cover of the shed will protect the fermenting
mass from rain, anil, when the space which
allowed the dung to be put into the shed
is boarded up, very little free air will find ad-
mission into the inside of the shed. Out of such
a shed will, of course, cause more trouble to
cart away the dung than from the open field ;
but if the dung is preserved in a better condition
in it, the advantage will more than counterbalance
the additional expense of taking it out, whiidi is
only manual labour.
2020. But it may be remarked, that when
the dunghill is left in the air, when first formed
from the courts, the rain or snow will find
their way through it, and injure the quality of
its contents by wa.shing away the soluble por-
tions of the dung. No doubt this may take place
to a certain degree ; but, as long as there is no
active fermentation in a dunghill, and it has been
well compressed, and covered on the top with
earth, or any other material that would ward off
rain, the oozing from it will be very small, and,
at all events, the loss will not be great. " The
amount of my observation," remarks Mr Uow-
landson, in the paper quoted above, '' that in
heaps, as usually formed, with free access to the
atmosphere, a larger amount of humie acid,
soluble in alkalies, is formed than when the
* Journal of Agriculture for October 1845, p. 75-8.
FORMING DUNGHILLS EST WINTER.
4G7
manure is placed in pits, and access of the at-
mosphere is limited. lu the latter case, some
humic acid is formed ; in both cases, the humic
acid is in the same state as that which is found
in barren mosses, as I have determined by re-
peated experiments. The humic acid has a
strong affinity to combine with the alkalies,potash,
soda, and ammonia, in manure-heaps, and this
forms the brown-coloured solution which is
observed running from them after rain. It is
perfectly obvious, therefore, that every drop of
the brown-coloured liquid which oozes from the
manure-heap contains, in combination, one or
other of the above named alkalies, two of which,
potash and ammonia, are of so much importance
as fertilisers. The mode I have suggested of
placing the manure in pits may be said to remedy
this evil, as, at all events, it will prevent the
liquid from running away. It is of no impor-
tance, however, preserving the liquid of manure-
heaps in the state described, as I have repeat-
edly found that no beneficial effects are derived
from the use of it." It will be observed that
these remarks apply to the dung-heap in a state
of fermentation, but, when not fermenting, the
dung-heap, in winter, parts with very little
liquid ; and, by the time it would part with more,
it will have been placed in the shed. All oozing
would, of course, be prevented, were the dung
placed in the shed at once ; but it would be too
soon fermented, if not tramped down, and it could
not be so by men, as Boussingault practises ; as
such a mode would be too expensive in this
country, and not so effectual as with horse and
cart; and, what is still more objectionable, the
dung so compressed in such a pit could not
be turned for fermentation but with inordinate
trouble. The first breadth to be turned would
have to be thrown and wheeled out, and again
wheeled in to fill up the last breadth ; and, in
the mean time, every breadth would be turned
with much inconvenience and loss of time. I am
certain the value of all the oozings lost would
never compensate for this additional trouble, and
the bad work in the turning ; and the oozings,
after all, are not entirely lost, as the midden-
stance requires no more manure.
2021. As the subject of dung-pits in fields is
new in the husbandry of this country, I shall
give a figure of one which I think might answer
tlie purpose in any part of the fence of a single
fielil, or in the point of section of two fences in
the corners where four fields meet. Fig. 192 is
such a place, where a is the shed, 80 feet lung
and V2h fec-t broad, over walls, standing either
E. and W., or N. and S., whichever is most con-
venient for the dung to be brought from the
steading to the corners of the four fields, of
which bb cc are each a fence; dd are the middeu-
stances, 18 feet wide each, upon which the dung
is first formed, when taken out of the courts
early in winter, but, if towards the end of winter,
it should be put into the shed at once ; the one
stance being for the use of the fields b b, and the
other for that of the fields c c. As most of the
dung experiences much warmth from a high
temperature of the atmosphere, before it is
ploughed into the ground, a screen of larch plan-
tation, 12 feet in width, a,s hhh h, may be of use
in some seasons, and it may also be of service in
Fig. 192.
A DUNG- PIT FOR FOUR FIELDS.
protecting the outside of the midden from heavy
rains from any quarter in winter ; e e are the
slip-gates, 10 feet wide, for taking the dung in
and out to the fields b b, and //those for the
fields c c. Of course, the midden-stances d d
should be firmly causewayed or macadamised.
Such an arrangement, shed, stances, and fences,
would occupy a space of 134 feet long by 84-4 feet
broad, or just about a quarter of an acre. The
fences of the four fields meet that of the midden-
stance at the points /* ; gg is a passage for carts
at both ends of the shed.
2022. A rather curious and entirely unlooked-
for effect took place from the oozings of dunghills
in two fields, on the estate of Pumpherston, near
Mid-Calder, in the county of Edinburgh, in
March 1848. Tile-drains, that had been made in
the autumn preceding, were found to be choked
in spring, and bursting out water to the day.
On opening them, the tiles within a limited space
were completely filled with a peculiar substance.
The subsoil in one field was gravelly, and the
drains three feet deep ; that of the other, clay,
with drains of twenty inches deep. In both
cases the drains leading from a dnnghiJl
were only so affected, and the conclusion ar-
rived at "was, that the oozings from the dung-
hills had induced the growth of the substance
found in the tiles. The substance was of a dirty
gray colour, slimy, tenacious, some pieces of it
resembling fragnients of skin, but appearing to
consist, when pulled asunder, of minute fibres, too
fine to be easily observed by the unassisted eye.
It had an extremely offensive, putrid, animal
odour, having a distinct resemblance to that of
cow-dung. It was impregnated with a good
deal of earthy matter which long washing with
water could not entirely separate. It was pro-
nounced by Dr Greville, the famed cry ptogamist,
to be a plant — the Coiiferta bombycina — the fila-
ments of which are exceedingly fine, and act
as a cobweb in catching and retaining minute
insects, larvse, and floating atoms of inorganic
matter in water. These plants grow rapidly, and
as rapidly pass into putrescence ; and accord-
ingly in tills case they had disappeared entirely
from the drains in the course of a fortnight
468
PRACTICE— WINTER.
after, when I went to witness the singular phe-
uometion.*
2023. No dunghill, therefore, should be formed
above tile-drains, for although in this case the
alarming state of the drains was but of short
duration, more permanent injury may be expe-
rienced by other causes. Any how it is safer to
avoid such inconveniences, both by placing the
dungliiiis beyond the reach of drains, and also by
making the sites of dunghills impervious to
liquids. A side-ridge of a field is the safest
I)lace, and, when the dung is put into a pit, it is
quite out of the way of doing harm.
2024. The dung from a cow-byre placed in a
covered pit, direct from the byre, will, I have
no doubt, remain a long time, after the arrival of
warm temperature, unsusceptible of fermentation;
and it is most probably from this property that
it has received the character of being a cold
manure ; whereas horse-dung easily ferments,
and goes rapidly through all the stages of fer-
mentation to that of the destructive, which is
technically called fre-fanphiij, and on this
account it has received the character of being a
hot manure. Both mixed together form a valu-
able manure, especially when the cow-dung bears
tlie largest proportion.
2025. The hot nature of horse-dung, and its
rapidity of fermentation, are supposed partly to
arise from its containing more nitrogenous mat-
ter than cow-dung; but, according to the analyses
afforded by Boussingault, it would seem, at first
sight at least, that such an opinion is not well-
founded. The analyses are : —
Fresh dung.
Cow. Horse.
Water, . 90 GO 7.5-31
Nitrogen, . 0-J2 O'M
Salinematter, M3 402
Df}' dung.
Cow. Ilurse.
2-3
12-0
lb-3
" From these analyses," remarks Professor John-
ston, " it appears that, though recent cow-dung
contains more water than horse-dung, yet the
dry matter of the former is richer in nitrogen
than that of the latter. Were this generally
the case, it ought, one would suppose, after
becoming a little drier, to ferment, or be as warm
as horse-dung. However tlii.s may be, the two
circumstances — that the nitrogen of the food is
discharged chiefly in the urine, and that the cow
voids a much larger quantity of urine than the
horse — incline me to believe that cow-dung must
generally contain less nitrogen than that of the
horse, and that this is really the cause of its
greater coldness. The correctness of this opinion
can only be tested by a series of careful analy-
ses. At the same time it is proper to add, that
the peculiar state of combination in which the
nitrogen exists in two bodies, supposing the pro-
portion in both to be the same, may modify very
much the rapidity of the decomposition they
respectively undergo in the same circumstances."
2026 " Though fermenting with such apparent
slowness, fresh cow-dung undergoes in forty days
a loss of one-fifth of its solid matter, ((iazzcri.)
Though this result was observed in Italy, yet
there is sufficient loss in our climate alt^o to make
it worth the while of an ecoiioniicai farmer to
get his cow-dung early in heaps, and to shelter
it as much as possible from the sun and air."
2027. " Even when fed on the same food, the
dung of the horse should be richer than that of
the cow, because of the large quantity of urine
the latter animal is in the habit of voiding. In
the short period of twenty-four hours, horse-dung
heats, and begins to suffer by fermentation. If
left in a heap for two or three weeks, scarcely
seven-tenths of its original weight will remain.
Hence the propriety of early removing it from
the stable, and of mixing it as soon as possible
with some other material by which the volatile
substances given ott" (much ammonia) may be
absorbed and arrested." Here is a strong motive
for cleaning out the work-horse stable every day,
and of spreading the litter from it over the face
of the cattle-Court, so as it may be intimately
nii.xed with their litter and dung, and also of
tramping a dunghill firmly (2005.)
2028. " Pigs' dung is still colder and less fer-
mentable than that of the cow. ... A
specimen examined by Boussingault was found
to contain per cent.
Recent. Dry.
Water, . . 81 -00
Nitrogen, . . 01J3 337
being richer in nitrogen even than horse-dung."
My experience determines pigs' dung to be hot,
and excellent ; and this was also the opinion of
the ancients, as the Quintilli remarked, that
" the dung of hogs being of superior goodness, is
improper for corn-fields, on account of its abun-
dant heat, for it instantly burns corn grouuds."f
2029. " Sheep's dung is a rich dry manure,
which ferments more readily than that of the
cow, but less so than that of the horse. Bous-
singault found a specimen to consist of —
Recent. Pry.
^\'ater, . ()3'0 — por cent.
Nitroten, , Ml 1-99
The food of the sheep is more finely masticated
than that of the cow, and its dung contains a
little less water, and is richer in nitrogen; hence,
probably, its more rapid fermentation. "+
2030. An ingenious suggestion has been made
by Mr Kirk, l*reston Mains, East Lothian, to
check (he ajiri'iiil of the seeih of veedtt amoih)st
vutnure. His suggestion is founded on the gene-
ral law of the growth of plants, that certain
classes of soils produce certain classes of plants.
This law I have endeavoured to illustrate very
fully from (382 to 435.) The suggestion is, to
put the manure of the straw obtanied from one
kind of soil on to another. Thus, the straw
• Tramactions of the Hiqhland and Atjrlcultural Societt/ for July 1848, p.
+ Owen's Geoponika, vol. i. p 68.
t Johnston's Lectures on Aijricultiiral Cheimstry, 2d ed. p. 821-2.
r8-9.
FORMING DUNGHILLS IN WLNTER.
469
obtained from clay soil, that is wheat land, when
made into manure, should be applied to light soil
— that is, turnip soil ; and as, according to this
law, natural plants, called by farmers weeds,
which thrive upon the clay soil, would not thrive
upon the light, it appears to be within the power
of the farmer to prevent, or at least to check, the
propagation of weeds by seed. Putting this
suggestion into practice would be attended with
some difficulty ; for although Mr Kirk seems to
think it is easy " to make all the straw grown on
one kind of soil into manure by itself," and which,
he conceives, " might be accomplished with very
little additional trouble to the farmer, where
several hammels are employed in the feeding of
cattle,"* yet in large courts it would be almost
impracticable to prevent the mixture of straw of
a stack from clay laud with that from light land ;
and it would be as difficult to devise a plan by
which the straw off clay land should be used in
the small courts of the hammels, while that from
a light soil was in use for litter in the large
courts. Besides all this, the best fodder being
obtained from light land, the cattle, while using
it, could not be littered with straw from clay
land, without running the risk of destroying the
object in view. The suggestion, however, being
founded on correct theory, might be subjected
to experiment, which alone can devise a plan for
carrying it out into practice. But would it not be
better to have the land so clean, as that no seeds
of weeds shall be carried from it with the straw
of the crops ?
2031. Mr John Hannam, in his interesting little
memoir on the economy of waste manures,
says — " Should the farmer be compelled to form
a manure-heap in the field, I would advise him by
no means to carry it to the field fresh, and to
let it decompose there, as is generally the case,
before he uses it;" implying that, whenever dung-
litter is carried to the field, it must necessarily
decompose there. This is by no means a neces-
sary consequence, as it is nearly impossible for
fresh dung-litter to ferment anywhere in win-
ter, when tramped hard with carts and horses.
Were it shaken up loose and moistened, in order
to encourage fermentation with the first increase
of atmospheric temperature, a slight decomposi-
tion might soon be induced, which would after-
wards become active ; but such a result would not
occur if the dung were compressed into a firm
state by adequate means.
2032. He further advises, "before he takes it
from the couch, he should have it nearly as
rotten as he wishes it to be. He should wet it
well with the drainings, and, when he carries it
to the field, cover it up with road scrapings,
earth, &c. At the bottom of the heap, too, there
should be a good bed of earthy matter laid. In
this way the manure will come out for use almost
as fresh as when put in, the atmosphere having
had no access, and the earth at the bottom and
on the top absorbing the liquid and gaseous
matters that would otherwise have escaped."
Without dwelling upon the inconsistency involved
* Quarterly Journal of Agr
f Hannam On the Economy
in the instruction, that " before he takes it from
the conch, he should have it nearly as rotten as
he wishes it to be," with the assertion that
" when he carries it to the field, covers it up with
road-scrapings, earth, &c., the manure will come
out for use almost as fresh as when put in, the
atmosphere having had no access, &c.," only con-
ceive the labour implied in all this treatment of
the manure, and consider how the horses and men
are to accomplish it in the course of a season.
There is first the taking the dung from the courts,
the byres, and the hammels, to the shed at the
liquid-manure tank, there to be well watered
with the drainings, and fermented so as to be as
rotten as is desirable ; then the carting to the
field in which it is to be used, and there made
into a heap, not upon the ground as it is, but
upon a previously constructed " good bed of
earthy matter," which of course must have been
brought into the field ; for if made of its own soil,
no advantage would accrue to the field ; and
lastly, the dung has to be laid on the field. On
the supposition that all the dung of a farm is to
be treated in this manner before it is considered
ready for use, the extent of shed-room at the
liquid-manure tank must be very great, and the
supply of liquid manure to " well water" such a
mass of dung very large; but when the men and
horses are to find time to cart out thrice all the
dung thus treated before it is laid upon the land,
is more than 1 can conjecture.
2033. Mr Hannam thus expresses his strictures
on the treatment the farm-yard manure usually
receives from the hands of farmers: — " Again, is
it an uncommon case for us to see hundreds of
tons of rich farm manure, and vegetable matter,
undergoing rapid decomposition in the fields,
and so exposed to the alternations of weather —
to the storms of winter, and the sun and showers
of spring — that the principal portion of the liquid
and gaseous fertilisers it contains must ' run or
fly away' before the manure is used ?" Surely
this is the language of exaggeration, for no
" rapid decomposition" can take place in dung
among " the storms of winter ;" and as few "gaseous
fertilisers" can "fly away" in " the sun and showers
of spring," the heat of early summer being re-
quired to produce either result in a mass consti-
tuted as farm-yard manure generally is; and as
to " the principal portion of the liquid" " run-
ning away" " in the fields," the earth that re-
ceives it will surely derive as much benefit from
it,.as the " bed of earthy matter" below the heap,
and the "road-scrapings" above it, both recom-
mended to be formed to receive this very liquid.
2034. Strictures apply with more truth, and
will come more forcibly home, and likely be
more attended to, when thus expressed, — " How
seldom are the stores of vegetable, animal, and
other matters useful to vegetation, which observa-
tion may discover and industry collect on many
farms, made use of." f
2035. It is easy to refer to the practice of
other countries, and exhibit it as a pattern to our
■[culture, vol. viii. p. 485.
of Waste 2Ianures, p. 59-62.
470
PRACTICE— WINTER.
farmers; but before the advice will be taken, or
the admonition listened to, it will be necessary
for him who admoui:^hes to show that dissimilar
motives induce the adoption of the same practice
in different countries,— a proposition wliich will
be found difficult to solve ; and yet the proposal
to adopt certain foreign practices in our country
would be as difficult to practise if proposed in
plain terms ; for the motive of the Fleming, the
German, and the Swiss farmer, in applying liquid
manure to their crops in summer, is to counteract
the injurious effects of the ordinary heat and
drought which are experienced by them in that
season; and, in order to possess liquid manure for
that purpose, all the live-stock in Germany and
Flanders, and part of those in Switzerland, are
kept constantly in the house; and further, to pro-
vide abundance of food for the stock, when so
confined, much industry is exerted to raise forage
in those countries in summer. The same summer
heat and drought stint the growth of the straw
of their cereal crops.
2036. Now, no such motive exists in this
country, and therefore it is, and for no other
reason — for depend upon it, where an intelligent
people perceive an advantage, they will, ere
long, use the means of obtaining it — the Conti-
nental practice does not prevail here. In ordi-
nary years, we do not need to counteract the
baleful effects of drought in summer, that season
being no more than hot enough, and therefore
our green crops, and the straw of our cereal ones,
grow luxuriantly; and as the same cause encou-
rages the growtli of perennial grasses, our cattle,
instead of being confined in the house all summer,
are put out to pasture on them, very much to the
saving of labour; and this difference in the cli-
mates is sufficient to explain our apparent want
of indnstry, when compared with the constant
toil imposed by their climate upon the agricul-
tural population of Germany, Belgium, and Swit-
zerland, who are observed by travellers working
in the fields from early dawn to sunset; and whose
patient industry, thus displayed, is very naturally
the theme of much of the laudation which has
been bestowed upon them by observers, who look
no farther than on the surface of things.
ON THE FOUMIXG OF COMPOSTS IN
WINTER.
2037. Although winter is not the season
to expect a qawt-k fennentatioii to arise
among the materials composing a compost
(liingliili, or vi'uhlen, as it is technically
termed in Scotland — being the correspond-
ing phrase to the English mixen — it is a
favourable time for collecting those mate-
rials together in convenient places, and
mixing them in their proper relative pro-
portions.
may be collected at the very commence-
ment of winter — such as the tjuicken or
couch grass collected in the fiehls, while
prej)aring them for the green crops of
hist year ; the dried potato haulms col-
lected on raising the potato ; thescouriugs
of ditches, and the weeds de.-^troycd during
summer ; the dried leaves that may have
fallen in the en<l of autumn ; any moss
or turf that maybe available on the farm;
and any vegetable matter whatsoever.
Fig. 193.
2039. Immediately after a rainy day,
when the land is in such a stat« of wet-
ness as to prevent work
being done upon it, and
the horses have nothing
particular to do, two or
three of the men should
each take a laiid hoe or
h(irlc\ such as fig. 103, and
rake the loose straws and
liquid mud on all the roads
around the steading to the
lowest side of the n lads, and
as much as possible out of
the way of carts and ])eopl6
passing along; while the
rest should take graips and
shovels, and form the
raked matter into heaps,
to be led away, when it
will bear lifting, to the
compost-heaji. The best
state for the roads near
the steading in winter, is
to have a hard and smooth
surface, and this they will
Lave, with an inclination
that causes the water to
run easily into a ditch hard
by. A scra])ing now and
then with the mud hoe
will make such a road dry
and comfortable, even in
THE MUD HOB OR
HAKi.K. waiter.
2040. Where there isplenty of straw, as
on clay farms, some farmers put it upon
the roads around the steading, to tramj)le
it down and wet it with rain, and then lead
it to the dunghill in the field. The object
aimed at of wetting the straw is attained,
but such a littering makes the roads very
damp and plashy.
2038. There are many materials which 2041. The carriage of inouhl, as the
FORMING COMPOSTS IN WINTER.
471
principal ingredient of a compost, is labo-
rious work. With such, a compost is best
made on the spot where the soil is found ;
but when the foundation of a new building
or wall affords mould which must be re-
moved at any rate, it should be used in
compost, and will repay the trouble of re-
moval. Other materials than mould may,
and indeed must, be carried, to form bases
when composts are formed ; such as saw-
dust, spent tanners' bark, rape-cake, and
refuse of manufactures of sundry kinds.
Lime must also be brought to mix with
some of them, and without it few composts
will be made useful. The refuse produc-
tions of the farm must also be carried to
the same convenient places.
2042. On laying down the haulms of
potatoes or twitch for compost, it is usual
to throw down the loads in the corner of
the field or elsewhere, without the least
regard to order ; and the excuse is, that
when the potato crop is taking up, every
liand is too busily employed to attend to
such unimportant things. The potato crop
and the weeds ought to be gathered in a
proper manner; but that is no reason why
the refuse created by them should be mis-
managed, and cause future labour and
expense. Instead of throwing down the
potato stems and twitch any how, a field-
labourer should be stationed at the com-
post-stance, wherever it is, and tlirow them
with a graip into a heap of regular form,
when the materials will not only occupy
the least space of ground, but be in the
best state to receive any additions of liquid
or solid matter, and then the most perish-
able portions of the materials might be
covered with the more durable, and placed
in the best state to preserve their proper-
ties. The neglect I complain of — of appa-
rently unimportant materials — arises from
this cause. There is a strong tendency in
farmers and stewards, when conducting
any labour in the fields, to do what they
consider the least important part of the
work in haste, — unthinkingly forgetting
that correction of hasty work often creates
more trouble than the portion of the work
for which it was neglected is probably
worth. Many instances might be given of
tvjo -hati did 7vork occ-ds'ioned by such haste.
For example, were a field-worker or two
placed where the haulms of the potatoes
are carried to form a future compost-heap,
they would form the heap according to
instructions previously received, as the
cart-loads are laid down ; and as soon aa
the carriage of the refuse was finished, so
would also be the formation of the nucleus
of the future compost-heap. But when the
haulms are laid down at random by plough-
men anxious to get quit of their loads,
considerably more labour will be required
to make them into the same form of heap,
and the work in the end will not be so
well done. Thus, one woman with a light
graip will form a heap of as much loose
material laid before her in a small quantity
at one time, as 3 or 4 women could do the
same work, with the same quantity of
matter scattered confusedly about. The
additional trouble and expense in putting
together materials thrown down and
scattered, is no saving in the end.
2043. The subject of composts, when fol-
lowed out in all its bearings, is an exten-
sive one, — for there is not a single article
of refuse on a farm but what may form an
ingredient of a compost, and be converted
into a manure fit for one or more of the
cultivated crops. At the same time, great
labour attends the formation of composts
of every kind, as the materials cannot be
collected together without horse-labour ;
and in summer the labours of the field are
most important, when those materials are
most abundant ; and to employ then the
time required to collect them, would be to
sacrifice part of the time that should be
occupied in indispensable field-labour. The
most economical mode of forming com-
posts is to collect the materials at times
when leisure occurs, and put them together
in compost-heaps, as they are brought in
quantities to the compost-stance. This
advice will not suit the temper of those
who, wishing to obtain their object at
once, would make the forming of com-
posts a principal business; but every piece
of work should liave its legitimate period
for its execution. I speak in this matter
from experience, and, having been im-
pressed with the utility of composts, and
possessing abundance of materials at my
command for making what I conceived
should be good manure, I persuaded myself
that composts might be made to any extent
on a farm. Having access to rough bog-turf
and peat, dry leaves, black mould, quicken,
potato haulms, shell marl, fine clay, and
473
PRACTICE— "WINTER.
lime-sLells, I was favourably situated for
making composts. But little did I antici-
pate tlie labour I had undertaken. Two
years conviuced me that it was no child's
play to collect together these materials
into one or two places, and cart them out
again to the fields destined to receive them
in the amended form. The labour is not to
be overtaken with the ordinary strength
of a farm, and, if done in a systematic man-
ner, must be so with men and horses ap-
pointed for the purpose, or it should be
done when leisure warrants the undertak-
ing. I put together the materials in the
best niauner I could devise or hear of,
turned them at proper times with the
greatest care, and enjoyed the satisfaction
of possessing a large quantity of good stuff,
— and I invariably found that the oldest
made compost looked richest, most uniform
in its texture, and most active in its effects,
and most like old rotten muck ; but, not-
withstanding its favourable appearance,
unless very large quantities were applied,
little benefit was derived from it — so that
even from 40 to 50 cart-loads to the impe-
rial acre did not produce so good an effect
as 1 2 cart-loads of good muck. I managed
the manual part easily, as labourers under-
took it by piece-work ; but the horse-
labour was overpowering, for every acre
thus imposed a cartage of 80 to 100 loads,
to manure iteven insutKciently. An extra
pair of horses and a man could not have
overtaken the additional labour, and to
incur such an expense for the problemati-
cal good to be derived from composts
above guano or bone-dust, which are easily
carried, is more than the most sanguine
farmer is warranted in believing.
2044. I may relate a few of tiie com-
posts I made with those materials. The
first was a compound of peat-turf and lime-
shells. The turf was wheeled to the mar-
gin of the bog on hard land, and aUowed
to lie some weeks, to drip the water out
of it, and to make it lighter for cartage.
The lime was mixed in the proportion of
1 cart of lime to 27 of turf. After the
compound was twice turned, the mass be-
came a fine greasy pulp, in the course of a
few weeks in spring and the early ]»art of
summer, so greasy, that no one could walk
on it without slipping. It was applied to
good turnip land, to raise turnips, and the
rule adopted to determine the quantity
requisite for an acre was, in the first place,
to fill the drills with it, and the quantity
required to do this was from 30 to 40
double cart-loads per acre. The crop of
white turnips was only tolerable, and cer-
tainly not nearly equal to what was raised
in the same field with 12 loads of farm-
yard dung, while the field became trouble-
somely covered with the bog-thistle, as
also the common field-thistle, and a few of
the burr-thistle, the lime not having been
in sufficient cjuuntity to destroy the vitality
of the thistle-seed contained in the turf,
though the degree of heat created in the
mass to reduce it to a pulp was consider-
able. The proportion of the lime ought
to have been about 1 load to 3 of turfy
peat.
2045. Another compost was made of
peat-turf and farm-yard dung, with a
sprinkling of lime, as directed by the late
Lord Meadowbank in his celebrated trea-
tise on that subject, and which you may
consult.* The effect produced from this
was better than the former compost, but
still not equal to the usual quantity of
dung.
2046. A mixture of lime and black
mould, made on head-ridges upon which
too much earth had accunmlated, was ap-
]»lied before the land was drilled up and
dunged for turnips, only to thicken the soil;
and the labour was not thrown away.
The lime, however, ought to have been in
the proportion of 1 of lime to 3 of mould.
2047. I tried a compost of rape-cake
and mould, the broken cake being sprinkled
on while the earth was turning over, and a
very brisk fermentation was produced in
the mass. After the heat had nearly sub-
sided, it was ajiplied for turnips, with
much success. Unfortunately, no account
was taken of the exact number of cart-
loads per acre of this or any of the other
composts applied, such jiarticulars being
then seldom noted by farmers, who chieHy
supplied the quantity of manure by judg-
ment. Now, however, a better system
])revails, when every particular application
is weighed or measured with exactness.
• Meadowbank's Directiont for preparing Manure from Feat, p. 19, 3d edition in 1842.
FORMEN^G COMPOSTS IN ^VINTER.
473
2048. Shell-marl and bog-turf, when
mixed, produced no heat, and of course
were not reduced into a uniform mass, for
without the agency of heat it is impossible
to make any compost homogeneous.
2049. Bog-turf burnt produced ashes
which varied much in their specific graA-i-
ties; those of white colour being light and
ineffective as a manure, whilst the red
coloured were heavy, earthy in appear-
ance, and well suited to raise turnips ; but
I was unable to distinguish beforehand
which turf would yield the Avhite and
which the red ashes. The trouble attend-
ing the casting of bog-turf, wheeling it to
the side, exposing it to the air to dry,
and afterwards burning it to ashes, or
carting it away for compost, was much
greater than the quantity of ashes or the
quality of the compost obtained would
compensate.
2050. Two years' labour with the con-
coction of these materials were sufficient
to give me a distaste for the business, and
at length I dropped it, and went to the
neighbouring towns to purchase street,
stable, or cow-house manure, and bone-
dust. These never disappointed me, and
the eating off the turnips, which they
raised every year, with sheep, soon put the
soil into a fertile state.
2051. Notwithstanding this resolution,
I made a point every year of making up
a large compost-heap of the twitch
gathered from the fallow land, while it was
preparing for the turnips, — of the potato
haulms, as they were harrowed together, —
and of the dried leaves, which would
otherwise have blown about the lawn and
shrubberies, and of any otiier refuse that
could be collected together on the farm.
These, with the assistance of a little fresh
horse-dung, and of such water as theliquid-
manure tank, which was situate in the
compost-court, afforded, formed a compost
which assisted in extending the boundaries
of the turnip crop ; and if that portion of
the crop was not always tlie heaviest, the
larger proportion of the turnips growing
on it, being eaten off by the sheep, enabled
it to produce its share of the succeeding
corn crop and grass, while the soil was
deepened by the mould obtained from the
compost.
2052. Animals that fall by disease,
when tiieir carcasses are subdivided, and
mixed with a large quantity of earth,
make a compost far superior to vegetable
materials, for raising turnips, especially
swedes.
2053. The produce of privies, pigeons'
dung, the dung of fowls, form excellent
ingredients for dissolving in the liquid
manure in the tank, and afterwards mixing
with a compost- heap.
2054. Of late years, sawdust, long
considered a useless article as a manure,
and which may be obtained in quantity
where saw-mills are at work, is now made
useful on being mixed with farm-yard
dung, ferinented to a considerable degree
of heat, and then subdued with water;'" or
mixed with one-tenth of its proportion with
lime and road scrapings, and kept in com-
post for 3 years. f Such composts have
raised turnips, as evidenced by the expe-
rience of Mr William Sim, Drunimond,
Inverness-shire, and Mr If. H. Drummond
of Blair-Drummond, Perthshire.
2055. Spent tanner's-bark, when laid
for a time on the road around the steading,
and trampled under foot and bruised by
cart-wheels, and formed into a compost
with dung or lime, and allowed to stand
a considerable time, is rendered a good
manure for turnips. Sawdust, tanner's-
bark, and the refuse of the bark of fir-
trees, will not bear the expense of a long
carriage ; but where a sujiply of them is
at hand, their decomposition, though slow,
is worth the trouble, because their effect is
durable.
2056. In the vicinity of villages where
fish are cured and smoked for market,
refuse of fish heads and guts make an
excellent compost with earth. Near Eye-
mouth and Burnmouth, on the Berwick-
shire coast, 30 barrels of fish refuse, with
as much earth from tlie head-ridges as will
completely cover the heap, are sufficient for
an imperial acre. The barrel contains
30 gallons, and 4 barrels make a cart-
Prize Essays of the Highland and Agricultural Society, vol. xii. p. 529. + Ibid. vol. xiii. p. 274
474
PRACTICE— WINTER.
loatl, and the barrel sells for Is. 6d. matter in a state of decay lias tlie pro-
From 400 to 000 barrels may be ob- perty of absorldiii; oxvgen from all otiiei
tainod for each farm in the neigbbour- matters with wliicli they come in contact,
hood, in the course of the season. Since it is probable that a portion of the nitric
the opening of the North British railway, acid of the nitrate of soda was dccoinposed.
the curing of the fish is given up, much to A very heavy .shower of rain fell between
the loss of the farmers in that locality; the time of mixing the weeds, &c., and the
and the fisiiermen now send, by the rail- period of removing them to the fields ;
way, the fish in a fresh state to the larger and I never remembered such a (piantity
towns at a distance. Thus, railways pro- of deep-coloured fluid to exude from so
duce advantage to some, whilst they cause small a mass of manure, evincing that a
loss to others. In the northern counties of great quantity of humic acid had been
Scotland, fish refuse is obtained in large formed, which was ])rol)ably combined
quantities, during the herring fishing sea- with the soda of the nitrate and ammonia
son. On the coast of Cornwall, the pil- of the decomposed horse-manure, and,
chard fishing affords a large supply of not improbably, with the ammonia
refuse for composts. formed by the decomposition of the nitric
acid." *
2057. Whale-blubber mixed with earth
forms a good compost for turnips. This 2060. The solid refuse of manufac-
niost caustic sul)stance, in a fresh state, tures may all be made available for couj-
should be mixed with a large proportion posts; such as the soiled substances from
of earth, and the compost kept for at least woollen waste, — shoddy, consisting of the
3 years. I have seen a blubber compost, short emlsand refuse of wool, — croppings,
2 years old, on top-dressing grass, burn up the ends of wcxd cut off the surface of cloth
every plant by the roots. and merino fabrics, — sweepings, the short
dust sej)arated from the wool, — and singe-
2058. I have heard of a compost of ing-dust, obtained on stuff goods being
whin and broom cuttings and earth, 3 loads })assed quickly over flames of gas ; as also
of earth to 1 of the cuttings, mixed and flax-waste, obtained from the manufacture
watered for 2 or 3 days, and remaining un- of flax, and soa[)-boilers' refuse, all which,
touched for 8 or 10 more, when turned, when combined with earth, moistened with
and again allowed to rest for other 10 liquids, and fermented, form active corn-
days, become a fit compost for wheat or posts for green anil grain crops,
oats. The cost of making this compost
2061. Of the licjuid refuse of manufac-
tures— such astiic li(piid soap-waste, coal-
tar, gas- lime, ammoniacal liquor, sugar-
refiners' refuse — a com))ost might be made
was estimated at 2s. per cart-load.
2059. " WhiLst fallowing a field," ob-
serves Mr llowlandson, " overrun with
weeds, twitch, Sec, I had the weeds, after with earth, or peat, or turf, or any sub-
being well harrowed, carted to the yard, stance wiiich will absorb them, and may
and placed between 2 layers of fresh horse- be applied to grass land and growing
manure. As it was my intention to apply crops as to])-dressings with success, after
the whole as manure to potatoes, I thought they have undergone active fermentation. t
it would be advantageous to throw a little
nitrate of soda on the weeds, &c. This
was done, and a strong fermentation took
place; and the whole of the weeds were
converted, in the course of 10 days,
into a rich black mass. All the work-
people attributed this to the salt-
petre,, as they called it, being used. I
am inclined to think that the heat gene-
ON TUE CONSTRUCTION OF LIQUID-MANURE
TANKS, AND CARTS.
2062. The site of the liquid manure
tank, in reference to the steading, may be
seen at X:', Plate II. It is placed in an
enclosed piece of ground near the stead-
rated by the horse-manure caused the ing, and at a lower level, in order to have
weeds rapidly to decompose; and as the drains to it as short as po.ssible, that
Journal of Aiirlcnlture, for Ortobcr 184.5, p. 7tt-
Hauiiain on the Economy of Waste Manures, p. 78-96.
LIQUID-MANURE TANKS.
475
so thick a substance as liquid manure
niigiit pass easily in them to the tank.
The drains are seen to run in straight
lines from the tank to each suite of courts,
such as directly into each of the large
courts I and K, to the courts of the byres
Q and Y, and to the ends of the hammels
M and N, along the middle of which run
the drains in connexion with those from
the tank. The drains are built in the form
given in fig. 72, and at the hollowest point
of each court, great and small, is a grating,
like fig. 71, placed over the drain to re-
ceive the drainage from the dung-litter,
when an excess of moisture occurs beyond
what the straw can retain.
2063. Tanks are not required on every
kind of farm. On carse-farms, where
much straw and little green food is used,
there can be no liquid manure ; and on
pastoral-farms, the stock confined in win-
ter in the steading are too limited in
number to afl:ord much of that material.
On dairy-farms, on the other hand, where
many cows are maintained, and much
green food consumed by them in byres,
tanks should be constructed for the advan-
tage of the grass land. The practice of
the farmers of Flanders might be usefully
followed on all small dairy-farms, by con-
structing a small tank under ground in
every byre, the contents of which might
be enriched with rape-cake and other valu-
able ingredients. These enriched contents,
employed as a top-dressing on pasture and
forage land, would increase their produce,
for the support of the cows, very consi-
derably. A tank to a dairy-farm seems,
therefore, indispensable, and it should be
of large dimensions, to meet any enlarge-
ment of the dairy. On farms of mixed hiis-
bandrif, if the steading is furnished with
rain-water spouts, and the stock well sup-
plied with litter, I do not see that much
liquid manure can be collected. I had a cir-
cular tank of 1 2 feet in diameter and 4 feet
deep, connected with well-planned courts
by neatly-built drains provided with good
gratings, and the courts were defended from
being deluged with rain water by capacious
rain-water spouts, and care taken that the
cattle were always provided with a suffi-
cient quantity of litter — with all which
accommodations every well constructed
steading should be supplied. The tank was
not filled in the course of the season al)ove
three times— a quantity not worth while
providing a liquid-manure cart to take it
to the field; and even this small quantity
was solely derivable from heavy rains and
melting snows for a few days falling di-
rectly into the courts, and causing a surplus
of water, which was readily conveyed into
the tank by the drains. The ordinary
supply of the liquid manure was merely a
few drops from the sole of the drain into
which all the other drains merged. The
sole of this drain was only 4 feet above
the bottom of the tank, and, except after
rain or snow, the liquid manure never
reached that height. Still, wherever cattle
are housed and fed in large numbers
on turnips, a tank should be constructed
with drains, to keep the courts comfort-
ably dry.
2064. There are several circumstan-
ces to be taken into consideration, be-
fore proceeding to construct a tank for
liquid manure. AVhen a tank is made
deep, such as a well, the building of the
lower part will require to be particularly
strong, to resist the hydrostatic pressure
of the fluid within it, and, of course, will
be so much the more expensive in con-
struction. A tank should therefore be
shallow, not deejier than four or five feet
below the sole of the draius which bring
the liquid manure. It is very desirable
to have the tank covered, for the sake of
protection against accidents, and against
undue action of the atmosphere upon the
liquid. The most durable covering is an
arch; and, to keep the cost of that within
bounds, the tank should be narrow, not
exceeding six feet. The desired capacity
of a tank will thus be attainable by ex-
tending its length. A tank should neither
let in nor let out liquid. To prevent its
letting in water, a drain should be formed
where there is the least appearance of it in
oozings or a spring : ai>d to prevent the
liquid getting out, ajjuddling of clay should
be used, where the subsoil does not consist
of tenacious boulder clay. The clay for
puddling should be well pugged, or beaten
into the consistency of putty.
206.5. You will find the particular in-
structions for the construction of tanks
belcw, and all I shall say here is, that
a fall from 6 inches to a foot is required
along the floor, according to its length ;
476
PRACTICE— WINTER.
and tliat a roomy nian-liole slioiilil be valuable benefits of iKiiiiil manure, he
made in the arch of tlie roof, at each end would not only btrongly recommend the
of the tank, and at the deepest end a third atlojttion of the tank upon all farm.'?, but
opening for the pump.
2066. The ])unip used in tanks is eene-
rally the common cast-iron one ; but 1 have
seen a pump lately, of a construction well
adapted for the lifting of liquid manure,
that it should occupy a jiart in the jtlan of
every new steading. Were such a system
generally adupteil, much of the expense
attending the collection of common manure
from towns and villages, and of the pur-
chasing the still more expensive foreign
which at times contains so much siudiry and manufactured manures, now so largely
matter, as to clog the action of the valve applied, might be saved. It may also be
and plunger of the common pump. The important to add, that the first year's col-
principle here employed is the converse of lection of the liquid manure he considered
the screw-propeller of the steam-boat ; to compensate in full for all the expenses
and its construction is a series of those incurred in the construction of the tank."*
propellers fixed at short intervals on a
vertical axis, placed in the interior of an 2070. Mr Milburn, Sowerby, by Thirsk,
upright pipe. The axis or spindle is put gives the cost of constructing a liquid-
into rather rapid revolution, and the manure tank l-S^ feet in length, 65 feet
water rises without priming or any other in width, and 6 feet deep, inside measure.
with brick in length, and plastered with
lloinan cement, — a size suitable to small
holdings — in these terms : —
Ft. in.
Length within, 13 6
Width, . 6 6
Depth, . 6 0=19i cubic yards.
Cutting over all, at 3d per yard, £0 7 9
Walling, including bricks iu
length, and murtararouud them,
at 4s. per yard, . . 6 8 0
Plastering and cement, . 0 16 0
Covering and flags, , . '2 15 0
£10 6 9t
precaution. No valves nor nice fitting of
any kind are required. This machine is a
fine example of ingenious, simple mechan-
ism. It was invented by Mr M'Dowall,
engineer, Johnston, Ayrshire.
2067. To know the size of tank required
for any particular case, an allowance of
1000 gallons for every cow is a good cri-
terion on a dairy-farm, and that number of
gallons occupy 162 cubic feet. When
enlarged tanks are desired, it is better,
because cheaper, to have parallel rows of
narrow tanks contiguous to each other,
than to extend the breadth or length, and 2071. A simple and convenient mode
increase the depth of the dimensions given of collecting the liquid manure of a dairy-
above (2064.) In a series of parallel farm — of from 130 to 170 acres, with a
tanks, the common walls support the arches stock of cows from 14 to 24, with young
on both sides. beasts and horses — has been j»ractised by
Mr M'Lean, Braidwood, and Mr Wilson,
2068. A tank of 72 feet in length, 6 Eastfield,botli nearFenicuik,Mid-Lothian.
feet wide inside, and 6 feet deep below the Drains are formed from the bvres and
soles of the drains, contains about 2600 stables into one main drain, the mouth
cubic feet, and, with a pump and the car- of which is elevated as high above the
riage of materials, would cost about £24. ground below it as to admit a liquid-
manure barrel — a common butt, mounted
206.9. Mr James Kininnionth, Inverteil, on its cart — to stand under it, and receive
near Kirkcaldy, in Fifeshire, from whom the liquid direct into the bung-hole; and
these particulars have been obtained, says as the barrel becomes full, it is carted
" that, from his experience in the construe- away, and its c<mtents emptied on the
tion of a good tank, he considers that field. The barrel contains 1.50 gallons,
economy, if not directed by judicious views and is nsuullv filled three times a-week.
for the attainment of efficacy in the object. When there is an excess of liquid, in con-
will be attended with loss and disappoint- sequence of much rain, it is allowed to
ment ; and, from his experience also of the run into the dunghills below the drain,
♦ Transactions of the Iliijlilatid and A-jricuhural Society for March 1846, p. 292-8.
t Prite Esaaytof the Ulyhland and AjricuUural iiucieiy, vol. xiv. p. 280.
LIQUID-IVIANURE TANKS.
477
aud after saturating them, it flows into
an open shallow tank, from which it irri-
gates at pleasure a drained moss laid down
to perpetual grass.
2072. The cost of these drains are
thus giren by Mr Wilson : —
In uiider-byre, including cover of
the main drain, . . £2 2 6
In upper-byre, . . 16 0
Stable pavement, grates, and cost
of putting them in, . 2 0 0
Drains from dwelling-house and
scullery, including grates, 0 15 0
Expense of cutting a road, to allow
the bung-hole of the barrel to be
placed under the main drain, 0 10 6
£6 U 0
2073. A common butt, of the above
capacity of 150 gallons, sunk into the
ground, forms a good aud convenient tank
for the use of a labourer's cottage, and,
retaining all the liquid refuse from the
house, would afTord ready means of manur-
ing a portion of the garden.*
2074. The ground along the side of a
long tank is the best site for mixing up
composts, with the assistance of the liquid
manure. Instead of making theconiposts in
the open and level ground, I would form
them under coA^er in a shed, built ])arallel
with the tank, and the floor of which should
be as much sunk in the ground as the
soles of the liquid-manure drains, in order
to allow a free drainage from the shed
into the tank. The walls of the shed
should be built of stone and lime, as high
as 6 feet above the ground, as long as the
length of the tank, and 8 or y feet in
breadth, to make the roof narrow. The
floor should be flagged with pavement,
having an inclination towards the tank,
aud numerous openings should pass through
the bottom of the wall from the lowest
side of the floor, and through the wall of
the tank, to serve as conduits for convey-
ing the drainage from the compost-heaps,
when they happen to be overcome with
an excess of moisture'. The roof should
be made of durable materials ; the back
wall next the tank should have })erfora-
tions just under the eave of the roof, large
enough to allow the end of the spout to
penetrate them which conveys the liquid
from the pump of the tank to different
parts of the compost under the shed ; and
when the compost will take up no more
liquid, the liquid will find its way by the
small drains on the floor into the tank.
The front wall should have an opening 6
feet wide above the ground, through which
to fill the shed with compost materials, and
afterwards to fill the carts with compost.
Here every sort of experiment may be per-
formed in the formation of composts ; and,
if desired, the shed might be subdivided
into compartments, to allow the experi-
ments to be conducted on a smaller scale,
and in diflerent stages of fermentation.
The ground plan of this compost-shed may
be seen at h', Plate II., alongside the
tank k'.
2075. The Water- Cart. —The water-
cart has been very long in use for the con-
veyance of water, when the supply of that
necessary element for houseiiold use has
been distant from the steading. It is
usually the naked bed-frame of a cart
mounted on wheels, and surmounted with
a cask of a capacity suited to the demands
of the establishment. The cask is furnished
with a funnel, inserted in or attached im-
mediately over the bung-hole ; and it is
likewise furnished with a spigot, or with a
stop-cock, inserted into that end of the
cask which hangs over the back of the
cart. When the water-cart has been
drawn to the fountain or the pond, from
which water is to be conveyed, it is filled
either by means of a common pump, raised
so high as to deliver the water which it
lifts into the funnel of the cask, or the
water is lifted with the hand by means of
a scoop., having a helve of sufficient length
to enable the workman to reach the pond
on the one hand, and the funnel on the
other. The scoop best adapted to this
purjiose 18 a small wooden pitcher, about
8 inches in depth and 10 inches in dia-
meter, the helve passing through its sides
in an oblique direction, and a little above
its centre of gravity. Liquid manure can
be conveyed into a barrel by means of such
a scoop as well as water.
2076. The Liquid-Manure Cart. — For
the more ecimomical distribution of this
* Transactions of tlie lligliland and Agricultural Society for July 1848, p. 266.
478
PRACTICE— WINTER.
valuable manure, this machine is now
takiii;^ its due i>l:K-e amonir.st tlie machinery
of the farm. As most commonly used, it
differs very little from tiie above, except
in its being provided with the distributing
apparatus in place of the sjjigot ; but in
large establishments the cask is superseded
bv a covered rectangular cistern or tank,
which takes the place of a common cart-
body. The icaterin[f of public streets
and highways has induced the necessity
of the rectangular tank for the distribution
of water over the surface of roads, be-
cause of the ease with which, by this
construction, a greater quantity of water
can be put upon one pair of wheels. Here
the quantity of water to a given surface
is much greater than in the case of a liquid
manure, and hence the propriety of a
capacious tank for the distribution of
water on streets, while the same prin-
ciple (economy in the expense) leads to
the propriety of employing a smaller and
less expensive vessel for the distribution
Fig,
ofli(juid manure, which will not in general
be superabundant. For u I uj aid manure
cart, a cask of 120 or 14U gallons con-
tents, will be found more economical in
first cost than a rectangular tank ; and as
these machines can be only occasionally
in ojieration, they will, if not very care-
fully attended to, become leaky while
standing unoccujjied. In this respect
the cask will have a manifest advantage
over the tank, for the tightening of a
cask is an operation the most simple, by
the act of driving up the hoops ; while,
in the case of the tank becoming leaky,
no means of that kind can be resorted
to, and the alternative is, either soaking
it in water till the wood has imbibed as
much of the fluid as will expand its sub-
stance and close the leaks, or the vessel
must be tightened by some more exj)en-
sive process. As the more economical of
the two, therefore, in point of expense, I
liave chosen the cask-mounted cart for
the illustration. Fig. 194 is a representa-
194.
THE LIQUID-MANCRK CART.
tion in perspective of this cart, of the
simplest and most convenient construction.
For the more easy means of filling the
cask, it is suspended between the shafts of
the cart, and this position retpiires the
bending of the axle to nearly a semicircle.
The cart is a mere skeleton, consisting of
the shafts a a, which for this purpose
may be made of red pine, their length
being about 14 feet. They are connected
by a fore and hind bar, placed at such
distance as will just adtnit the length of
the cask, while the width between the
shafts is suited to the diameter of it. The
axle, as already noticed, is bent down-
ward to nearly a semicircle, to receive
the cask, and its length will of course be
greater than the common cart-axle ; even
the distance between the caddy-bolts, iti a
straight line, will be usually greater, but
this will depend on the diameter of the
cask. A pair of connnon broad cart-wheels
b b are fitted to the axle. The cask c is
suspended on two straps of hoop-iron, the
ends of which are bolted to the shafts, and
the same bolts pass also through the ends
of two lighter strajis which i>ass over and
secure the cask firmly in its place. The
LIQUID-MANURE TANKS.
479
funnel or hopper d is usually fixed upon
the top of the cask over the hung-hole, or
it may be inserted therein by means of an
attached pipe. The distributor e may be
made of sheet-copper, of cast-iron or
malleable iron, or even of wood; the copper
will be found the most durable, and it
should be at least one-twentieth of an inch
in thickness. The next best is the patent
malleable iron tube : cast-iron, though
sometimes used, is not to be recommended,
neither is wood desirable, from its liability
to choke. The bore of the distributor
should be not less than 2 inches, nor is it
required to exceed 2^ inches, the length
from 7 to 7^ feet, and slightly bent with
a uniform curvature, which last property
causes it to coA'er a wider surface of
ground than it would do if straight. But,
in giving the distributor its curvature,
care must be taken to avoid increasing
the curvature towards the ends, as is some-
times done, to the proA'ention of uniform
distribution of the manure. The ends of
the tube must be closed with movable
covers, screwed or otherwise fixed, that
they may be removed at pleasure, for the
purpose of sponging out the tube when it
happens to get clogged up with any solid
matter. A line of perforations is made
along the hinder side of the tube for the
discharge of the fluid; these should be at
the distance of one inch apart, and their
opening about an eighth of an inch dia-
meter. As the area of these discharging ori-
fices cannot be altered at pleasure, nor their
amount of discharge altered for any given
time, it becomes necessary, in distributing
any given quantity per acre, to regulate
that quantity by increasing or diminish-
ing the rate of travelling the cart over the
gi-ound. The distributor is attached to
the cask by means of a stem/, of the same
materials and bore as the main tube, and
it enters the end of the cask close to the
lower chime. A stop-cock is frequently
put upon the stem /to regulate the dis-
charge— and for this purpose it is very
beneficial, serving in a great measure to
regulate the quantity per acre, but for the
entire setting ofl" or on of the supply, the
stem /"opens into a small chamber inside
the cask, which chamber is closed by a
flap-valve heavily loaded. This valve,
when closed, stops the discharge, aud, when
lifted, the fluid has a free passage to the
distributor. The opening of the valve is
eflfected by a small chain attached to the
flap, rising to the top of the cask at y,
where it passes over a small roller, and
onward to the fore part of the cart on the
nigh side, where it hangs at hand for the
carter to set ofl' or on at pleasure. Fig.
195 is a section of part of the cask, and
showing the chamber and valve;/ is again
the stem of the distributor, h a stop-cock,
i the chamber, and k the valve, which ia
the common leather flap or clack valve,
Fig. 193.
^^
THE APPARATUS FOR REGI'LATING THE
DISCHARGE OF LIQUID MANURE.
well loaded w'ith lead, c c is part of the
cask, / the chain attached to the valve,
and passing oA'er the roller m.
2077- When the liquid-manure cart is
furnished with a tanl\ the latter can, with
equal facility, be placed low for the con-
venience of filling; thus the axle may be
cranked, as in the Liverpool draj'-cart, the
tank resting on the cranked ]!nrt of the
axle ; or the axle may remain straight,
and the tank appended below the axle.
Such a tank may be conveniently built
to contain a ton of the liquid, or about
220 gallons ; and the distributing apparatus
is the same as for the cask. The dis-
tributor, as now made by Mr Crosskill,
and which I saw on a carl exhibited by
him at the Show of the Highland and
Agricultural Society in August 1848,
swings upon a stud; and this is a great
improvement on the former construction,
inasmuch as the distributor always remains
in a level position, whatever may be the
inclination of the ground upon which the
cart has to pa.ss over, and, therefore,
480
PRACTICE— WINTER.
always distributes the li<|nid uniformly ;
wliereius, in a lixeil distriliutor, the licjiiid
is dischari:ed with the jrreater force, and
of course in greater quantity, on the lowest
side, for the time being, of the uneven
ground. The price of these carts varies con-
siderably, partly from construction, and
partly from locality. Mr Crosskill of
Beverley quotes ^16 as the price of the
tank cart, and, with a pump and flexible
tube for filling it any where, £5, 8s. more,
in all £21, 8s. In Scothyid, the average
price may be stated at £18, without a
pump, and, when mounted with a cask,
£l'} — these prices, of course, including
%vlieels and axle.
2078. I saw a new and rather curious
form of liquid-manure cart exhibited by
Mr Richard Stratton of Bristol, at the
Show of the English Agricultural Society
at York in July 1848. The barrel is made
of boiler-plate, in the form of an octagon,
and its axis acts as the axle of a skeleton
cart, between tlie wheels of which the bar-
rel, containing the liquid manure, revolves
on its axis. All the apparatus of valves
and distributors are dispensed with, for the
liquid is simply distributed by means of a
jierforated plate, which can be taken out
and replaced by another having a different
size of |)erforation. When the barrel is
not distributing liquid, the perforated plate
is ke])t uppermost, and has only to be
turned undermost to distribute the liquid.
It is turned by means of a cord fastened
around it. This machine is named the
cylinder liquid-manure cart. When made
of wood, to contain 100 gallons, its price
is £14, 10s., and, when of iron, to contain
1.50 gallons, £17, lOs., with wrought-iron
wheels. This machine ajjpeared to me very
simple, and not liable to go out of order.
2079. " The cUtern for collecting liquid ma-
nure in the farm-stead," observes Mr Slight,
" thouj^'h apparently simple in its construction,
being merely a covered pond or a well, yet seri-
ous error.s are frequently committed in its
formation. The first and most important consi-
deration for the formation of the cistern, is the
effect of hydrostatic pressure ; inattention to
this has caused the failure of many such cisterns.
Tlie liquid we have here to deal with, like all
other fluids, acts on the bottom and sides of the
vessel or body that contains it, with a pressure
directly in proportion to the depth at which the
fluid stands, without reference to either length
or breadth ; that is to say, su^ipose a cistern,
whose bottom is 12 inches square, and its depth
10 feet, filled with water, every square inch in
the bottom will snlfer a pressure equal to the
height of a column of water whose base is one
inch square and 1(1 feet, or 120 inches in height.
The weight of such a column will be 4; lbs.
nearly, and this would be exerted on every
square inch on the bottom, or the whule pressure
on the bottom would be ()25 lbs., the weight of
10 cubic feet of water. There is a natural law
that governs the pressure of fluids, which shows
us that they press equallii in nil directions, dijv/n-
ward, horizontally, and even upwards, the last
arising from the general statical law, that " ac-
tion and reaction arc equal, and in opposite direc-
tions." It follows, from. these hydrostatical laws,
that the lowermost portion of each side of our
supposed cistern will suffer a pressure from the
water equal to that which acts upon the bottom —
hence, taking the lowermost inch in the height
of the sides of this cistern, it will be pressed
with a force of 52j lbs. or thereby, or 4^ lbs. on
the square inch, and each of the lour sides will
suffer the same pressure. Suppose, now, that
the cistern is elongated in one direction to any
number of feet, and again filled to the depth of
10 feet, the pressure on each square foot of the
bottom remains the same as before, and so in
like manner does it remain the same upon the
sides ; for the pressure is not altered in any
direction, although the proportion of the cistern
has been clianged. Keei)ing this in view, it will
be seen that length and breadth produce no
effect on the pressures that a fluid exerts against
the vessel or body that retains it ; and that, in
calculating the resistance to sustain such pres-
sures, depth is the only element recjuiring to be
taken into account. It is also to be kept in view,
that pressure on the bottom or sides is directly
as the depth ; thus, if our supposed cistern were
reduced to .5 feet in depth, the pressure on the
bottom would only be one-half, or 2J lbs. on
each square inch.
2080. The conclusion to be drawn from these
remarks is, that a cistern, in the form of a pit or
well, should be always avoided, unless it can be
formed in a natural bed of impervious clay.
When such a substratum can be attained, a pit
may be adopted, but not otherwise. If siich has
been found, and the pit dug out, it should be
lined with brick, or with stone built in mortar,
the bottom being first lined with tiie same mate-
rial. Wiien the building approaches to the
surface, the wall can be gradually reduced in
diameter to a small compass, leaving only an
opening of 2 to .3 feet square, which is covi-red
in at small expense ; and the saving in this last
item is the only apparent advantage that seems
to attend the practice of pit ci>terns. Deep
cisterns are liable to another inconvenience — of
their becoming recipients of spring or of drainage
water; and it is sonietimes more difficult to keep
such water out than to keep the proper liquid in —
for if springs and their origin lay at considerable
heights, their hydrostatic pressure may be sogreat
as to render the prevention of access to their
products a process of great difficulty.
20til. A (;u'{i"-»of moderate depth, not exceed-
ON LIQUID MANURE.
481
ing 4 feet below the out-fall of the drains, may
be constructed in any situation, whether in gravel
or in clay, and its length can be extended so as
to afford any required capacity ; the breadth
being restricted to that for which materials for
covering it can be most easily obtained, which
may be from 3 to 4 feet, or, if arched, it may be
6 feet. Whatever be the stratum in which such
a cistern is to be formed, (unless it be perfectly
impervious clay,) it should be puddled to the
thickness of at least 1 foot with the best clay
that can be procured. For this purpose, the
earthy matters are to be dug out to a depth of
1^ foot lower than the intended sole, and to a
width of 4 feet more than that proposed for the
cistern. Two or three thin layers of the pre-
pared clay are then to be compactly laid over
the whole breadth of the excavation, and beaten
firmly together at all points, making up the
depth to ) foot, and the surface of it brought to
a uniform level. Upon this the side-walls are to
be founded, and these may be of brick 9 inches
in thickness, or of flat bedded rubble stone 14
inches. The wall should be built in successive
courses of about 1 foot in height, the whole
being bedded in mortar ; and, as each course is
completed, the puddle is to be carefully laid and
beaten in behind, in layers of 6 inches ur thereby,
the first layer being properly incorporated with
the foundation puddle, and each succeeding layer
with the one immediately preceding it. To
prevent the side-walls from being puslied inward
by the pressure of the puddle or of the bank,
tie-walls of brick or of stone should be formed
at every 5 feet of the length of the cistern. These
may be 9 inches of brick, or 14 inches of stone,
and they must have conduits formed at the level
of the sole, to allow the liquid to run towards
the pump. The sole should be laid all over with
brick set on edge, or with strong pavement
jointed, the whole having a slight declivity to-
wards one end, where a small well-hole of 9
inches in depth is to be formed to receive the
bottom of the pump. The brick or pavement, as
the case may be, is to be bedded on tiie puddle,
and grouted flush in the joints with mortar ; and
when the walls and sole are built up, they should
then be pointed in every joint with Roman
cement. The covering may be effected with
strong pavement, of length sufficient to rest on
the side-walls, laid and jointed with mortar ; or
with rough found-stones, where such can be pro-
cured ; and if neither can conveniently be found,
a beam of sound Memel fir may be laid along
the middle of the cistern resting on the tie-walls,
and, with this bearer, stones of half the length
will be sufficient to form a cover. A thin layer
of clay may be laid over the stone covers, and
upon that a coat of gravel. To prevent acci-
dent, it is always desirable to construct the
cistern in a situation where it will be as little as
possible exposed to the transit of carts ; and
this may be always obtained at a small additional
expense of covered drain to convey the manure
from the dunghills to the cistern. Tlie best and
most secure plan, no doubt, though the most ex-
pensive, is to cover the cistern with an arch of
stone or brick.
2082. The pump for lifting the liquid from
VOL. I.
the cistern to the cart may be either of wood or
cast-iron, but the latter is preferable. A common
sucking-pump of Sj inches chamber is quite suffi-
cient; the chamber should be bored out, and the
pump-boxes, for durability, should be also of
metal, with leathern flap-valves. The height of
the pump should be such as to deliver the liquid
freely into the funnel of the barrel or tank; but
if this height is found to raise the pump-lever
above the reach of a man's hand, it is only neces-
sary to joint a light connectiug-rod to the lever,
its lower end being furnished with a cross handle,
and by these means the pump-man will be able
to work the pump in the same manner as the
lower end of the common pit-saw.
2083. Forcing and lifting pumps have been
proposed, and even employed, for the purpose we
have here in view, though with questionable pro-
priety; and here it may be proi)er to explain,
that by the term furce-piimji, is to be understood
a pump that raises water to any height above the
point where the power is applied, by the descent
of a solid piston acting in the chamber of the
pump, sending the liquid into an ascending pipe,
which springs from below the piston.
2084. The lifting pump differs from this in
having a valved piston through which the liquid
passes, as in the sucking-pump, on the descent of
the piston; and, on its ascent, the valve being
now closed, the liquid is lifted and forced into
the ascending pipe, wliich, in this case, springs
from ahore the piston, the chamber being closed
at top with a water-tight stuffing-box. From
this brief description, the simplicity, both in con-
struction and in management, of the sucking or
common pump, as compared with the other two,
will be obvious, the cost being also in favour of
the first.
ON LIQUID MANURE.
2085. Farmers have been subjected of
late years to much ridicule, and even
obloquy, for jjerniitting any leakage to
escape from their dung-heaps. This leak-
age is represented to amount to an enor-
mous quantity, and to be of incalculable
value. The quality, I should suppose,
would depend on the quantity of rain that
may happen to fiill after the dung-heaps
have been formed in the fields, for all the
leakage from a dunghill in a dry season
is of very trifling amount ; and as to
its value — if we may judge from the effect
it produces — we should say that no crop
received from the area of ground which
had been occupied by a midden stance,
would aiiiount to double the value of the
rest of the field. So that the real loss
of the leakage from a dunghill amounts,
at most, to the value of a crop derived from
an area of ground equal to what the
2 H
482
PRACTICE— WINTER.
dunghill occupied ; and the loss does not
even amount to ti)i^, since the midden-
stance is not manured at all, and the earth
is carefidly shovelletl up from it and car-
ried away to another part of the field ; and,
after ail, no one cuuhl point out where the
duncrliill had stood, after the reaping of
the first crop of grain.
2086. I think that ninch more has been
said on this subject than it deserves.
Doubtless it is wrong to j)erniit any thing
to go to waste, and especially so valuable
a material on a farm an manure ; but the
particular case of the leakage from dung-
hills in fields has been exaggerated. Much
greater waste occurs from the leakage
of cattle-courts, and this arises partly from
negligence and partly from necessity. It
arises from nes,digence where the liquid
manure might be conveyed to a tank; but
where this cannot be done, the waste is
submitted to from necessity. I have ob-
served instances of both cases. I have
seen a leakage from courts, arising not from
excess of moisture of what the cattle had
eaten and drunk, — for the litter would
have easily absorbed all that, — but from the
rain deluging the courts at times from the
roofs of the surrounding buililinirs; and
this I have witnes?e<l to the degree of
being obliged to wade above the shoe-tops
in water, where there was no run from the
courts — the courts being hollowed in the
middle. I have also seen runs from courts,
the floors of which were sloped at a high
gradient. The tenants were not to blame,
because their landlords had placed the
steadings upon inclined ground, and had
provided no rain-water rones. On the con-
trary, they deserved commiseration, and
should have had tanks built, and rones pro-
vided for them. But I have seen, in some
cases, steadings staiidinir upon the inclined
ground which formed the face of a rock, in
which it was scarcely possible to dig a
tank. The error was in building stead-
ings in unsuitable situations, and not in the
want of tanks.
2087. It may be remarked that these
are exceptional cases, but they occur very
often, if the circumstances in every case
were particularly examined. I have exa-
mined many of them, and found the leak-
age to arise from the unsuitable situations
of the steadings, and the want of rain-water
rones, rather than from the want of tanks.
It is true, tanks might be constructed to
counteract these evils ; and so they are
by enterprising tenants, who take advan-
tage of even accidental runs from steadings,
and turn tliem to good account. I have
seen the drainage of hammels, occupied
by fattening cattle, directed into a small
])addock instead of a tank, and, by the
assistance of a small stream, made to irri-
gate the paddock at j)roper times in winter.
But, to terminate all disputes on this sub-
ject, there should be a tank constructed at
every steading, whether the convenience
of rones be adopted or not, or whether the
amount of leakage be great or not. If the
tank be found to l)e useless, no iiarm will
accrue, and when it does collect any liquid,
it may be made useful.
2088. If the waste of liquid maunre is
deserving of public attention, it should be
directed to that committed in every town
of the kingdom, and especially in every
seaport town. The drainage from towns
situate in the interior of the country niay
be, and is in many cases, taken advantage
of for irrigation, and for mauurinir garden
groimd. The environs of Edinburgh
afford striking examples of the beneficial
change effected on the soil by means of
sewerage water, inasnmch as poor sandy
soil, not worth naturally above 20s. jier
acre, has been converted into rich meadows,
yielding at least i^20 per acre of yearly
rent. But in the seaport towns no use is
made of this seweraire water ; it is allowed
to flow into the river or ocean. Now,
when we consider what escapes from every
human being every year in dung and urine,
and add to these the washings of soap,
grease, and other materials incidental to
domestic purposes, we may Imagine the
enormous quantity of the most valuable
matter, as manure, which is thus lost every
year, — literally wasted. Take one in-
stance,— a striking one, — that of London.
It has been ascertained by Boussingault,
that man in a healthy state passes 3 lbs. of
urine daily; and Liehig states that in the
same state he voids 5^ oz. of dung. Tliese
two quantities trive a total annual quantity
of 1220 Ihs. of liquid and solid manure,
voided by every jierson on the average.
Now, taking 2,000.000 as the population
of London, the quantity of those manures
voided by the iuhabitants of the metro-
ON LIQUID MANURE.
polis, amotints annually to 1,089,285 tons.
Chemistry has ascertained that the com-
ponent parts of the excrements of man
are as valuable to vegetation as those of
guano ; and as the different sorts of guano
sell from £6 to iilO per ton, we are
warranted in estimating the value of night-
soil and urine at £8 per ton, which would
give the entire value of this manure, in
London alone, every year, at £8,714,280.
The statement seems very like an exag-
geration, but we can arrive at no other
conclusion from the premises, which are
doubtless correct. This is not all lost
every year; but when we consider the
many ways in which those materials are
wasted by the exercise of personal delicacy
alone, we can imagine the larger propor-
tion carried into the Tliames by sewerage,
in comparison with what is really collected.
2089. Let us now consider the nature
and properties of liquid manure. As it
exists in the tanks, it consists mostly of
water derived from the rain which had
fallen in the courts, mixed with a propor-
tion of the urine and dung derived from
the various animals which frequent the
steading. We should therefore expect to
find it a very complicated substance, and
on that account well fitted for the use of
every species of crop. I am not aware
that this particular liquid has been analysed;
but M. Sprengel, who has bestowed much
attention on all the subjects of manure, in
speaking of akl, or the drainings fronx
dung - heaps, observes, " when there is
much rain, and the manure-pit becomes
flooded (whichit never ought to be) with the
rain-water from the adjoining roofs, the
ahl will often scarcely contain 2 per cent
of manuring matter, and is then naturally
of but little use." This is just the opinion
I Avould express, on seeing the drainings
from courts through which rain-water is
allowed to discharge itself.
2090. " The drainage of dung-heaps,"
says Professor Johnston — " the usual liquid
manure of our farm-yards — differs in
composition according to circumstances.
When the urine of cattle is mixed with it
in considerable quantity/, it is found to
contain a portion of the constituents, not
only of the solid and liquid excretions of
the stock, but also of the straw and other
vegetable matter which has fermented
along with it. It varies iu strength,
however, very much with the quantity of
rain or other water with which it is mixed,
or which falls upon the dung-heaps from
which it flows." The composition of two
specimens of such liquid is as follows: —
An imperial gallon contained.
Ammonia,
Solid organic matter.
Solid inorganic matter or ash,
Inorganic nmtter in a gallon
consisted of: —
Allialine salts,
Vliospliate of lime and magnesia,
culouredwitli a little phosphate
of iron.
Carbonate of lime,
Carbonate of magnesia and loss,
Silica and a little albumen, .
Drainings of
Cow dung
Farm-yard
washed by
manure water-
rain.
ed with cows'
urine.
Grains.
Grains.
H-UO
21-30
2110-80
77-60
2tliS-S()
518-40
479-20
617-30
207-80
25-10
44-50
1^-20
31-10
4-30
3-40
13-40
19-00
2CS-80
This is the conclusion Professor Johnston
derives from these facts, " that the liquid
which flows from a dung-heap tcatered
icith urine is greatly richer in ammonia
and iu saline matter than that which
flows from the solid excrements newly
washed by the rain ; that the liquid iu
both cases contains a considerable propor-
tion of phosphate of lime. This does not
exist in cows' urine alone. In both cases
it has been washed out of the solid dung ;
and that both contain also an appreciable
quantity of silica not existing in urine.
This is derived from the straw of the fer-
meuting farm-yard dung, or from the
grass which has passed through the diges-
tive organs of the cow ; that as fermenting
manure can yield in a soluble state every
mineral ingredient which a plant requires,
the liquid that runs from the farm-yard
ought to be no less carefully preserved
than the pure urine of our cattle."'*
2091. In every case of farming, but the
dairy, aflording but a very limited supply
of liquid manure, even of this diluted
kind, our attention is not so excited, in
consideration of this ordinary case, as in
that of the dairy farm, where the genuine
urine of the cow flows but little diluted
with extraneous water, and to which, of
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 812-13.
484
PRACTICE— WINTER.
course, it is requisite to afford a tank. It
is this view of the case which gives us a
doser insight into Flemish farming th:!n
anv other ; not that the Flemings pur-
sue the dairy system of farming in pre-
ference, generally, to any other, but as it
is their practice to confine their entire
number of cattle and horses constantly,
summer and winter, in the steading, the
providing of tanks is with them a neces-
sary arrangement for keeping their stock
in an ordinary state of cleanliness. So
the construction of tanks is with them
as much a matter of necessity, as it is
with those farmers of this country to lose
a proportion of their manure, by wash-
ings of rain, in steadings built upon in-
clined faces of rock, aud unprovided with
rain-water rones. So much is it a matter
of business with the Flemish farmer to
collect the urine passed by his stock, that
they have either vaulted cellars under the
byres and stables, or in other convenient
places of the steading ; and they have,
besides, such vaults placed by the road-
side, that the excrementary materials they
collect from the towns and Tillages may be
emptied into them. And so much do the
inhabitants of the towns in Belgium make
it a business to collect the liquid and solid
manures of their own houses, that it is in
evidence before a committee of the House
of Commons, that a housemaid may be
hired for a year at Bru::es fur £3 of
money wages, with the pririleire of dis-
posing of the manure. The value of the
manure derived from a house is estimate*!
at £1, 17s. per load per annum. Dr Rad-
clift' tells us that the Belgian load is ) .5
cwt. ; and as each person contributes 1220
lbs. to the manure-heap, the value of the
contribution of each j^erson is at most ^1,
7s. a-year.
2092. The tanks in Flanders are con-
structed to any given capacity. They are
generally 40 feet long, 14 wide, and 7 or
8 feet deep ; s<jme so depres.sed in the
ground, as to allow the plough to p:iss over
them. They cost in building, including
materials, lOd. per every tonneau of 38
gallons they contain. A .stock of 8 horses
and 36 head of cattle, housed summer and
winter, will supply 3,000 tonneaux of
urine alone — 114,000 gallons — great care
bein^ taken to secure it from tlie' admission
of rain or any other water. This (juantity,
along with dung and other materials, is fit
to manure 21 acres of land, at the rate of
2480 gallons per acre.
20.93. In Switzerland, the south of Ger-
many, and in Holland, the urine is mixed
with the solid excrements and water,
which are allowed to putrefy before ap-
plying the compound liquid to the land ;
and to this manure they give the name of
ffifl/e. In Flanders, the dung of the cattle
and horses is mixed with the urine in the
tank, together with the night-soil collected
from the towns ; and from 2000 to 4000
rape cakes, of 2 lbs. each, are dissolved in
every 1000 tonneaux, or 38,000 gallons^
of the urine.*
2004. The solid and fluid excrements of
animals form a verv complicated mixture,
as may be seen from the following enume-
ration by Sj»rengel ; but this renders them
the more ralual)le a manure for vegetables.
They contain these substances : —
1. Vegetable or woody fibre.
2. Wax and resin.
3. Chlurophyle, or the green substance of
leaves, partly decomposed.
4. Deposited humus.
5. A fatty and oily substance.
6. Mucus.
7. A peculiar brown colouring matter, in the
solid excrement of oxen.
8. Vei^etable albumen, (hardened.)
9. Animal gelatine.
iO. Animal fibre.
1 1. Salivary matter.
]'2. Oziiiazome.
l.i. Hippuric acid.
14. Uric acid.
1,^. Lactic acid.
1 6. Benzuic acid.
17. Urea.
18. Bilious matter.
1J>. Bilious resiu.
2U. PicroraeL
21. Oxides of iron
from vegetables.
22. E:irtlis, f-ilica, lime, alumina, magnesia.
23. Salts, consisting of mineral acids and bases,
derired from plants and water.
24. Common salt.
25. Carburetted hydrogen. \ Products of the
2<». Phospboretted hydrogen, fermentationami
27. Sulphuretted hydrogen, putrefaction of
28. Ammonia. the food in the
20. Hydrogen. ) bodies of animab.
Numerous as these substances are, it is
Originating in the uri-
nary passages.
aud manganese, derired
Radcliff's Agriculture of Flandert, p. 60.
ON LIQUID MANURE.
485
M. Sprengel's opinion that many more
might be discovered by carefully con-
ducted chemical analyses.
2095. The value of these animal excre-
ments as manure depends very much upon
the age of the animals, their kind, their
mode of employment, the kind and quan-
tity of food they eat, and the nature of
the water they drink. Thus : — Age has
effect ; for the excrements of a full-grown
animal are much better tiian those of
young animals. The state of the animal
has an effect ; the manure from oxen being
much better than that from cows, a great
proportion of the substance of whose food
goes to the production of milk ; and in like
manner the manure of the wether is better
than that of the ewe. The state of the
food has an effect ; for sheep chewing their
food more minutely than cattle, their ma-
nure is richer than that of cattle ; and the
manure derived from cattle fed on the
food in the natural state, is better than
that derived from food which has been
boiled or scalded ; but the manure from
scalded food is more active than the other,
because it is more prepared. The kind of
food has an effect ; for poor and scanty food
cannot supply so rich manure as nourish-
ing and abundant food. The way in which
the animals are treated has an effect ; for
working cattle afford better manure than
fattening oxen, because the latter abstract
from the food, to support their increasing
flesh and fat, the same materialsasgo to pro-
duce milk in cows. The water drunk has
au effect ; for an ox that drinks 80 lbs. of
water a-day will pass more urine than a
cow which drinks the same quantity, be-
cause a large proportion of the water she
drinks goes to the formation of milk.
Boussingault found that a cow which drank
132 lbs. of water a-day passed 18 lbs. of
urine, and gave 19 lbs. of milk ; an ox that
drank the same quantity gave 40 lbs.
of urine. A horse that drinks 35 lbs.
a-day passes only 3 lbs. of. urine — no more
than a man. This latter fact seems re-
markable ; but when we consider the much
greater extent of surface over the body of.
a horse compared to that of a man, the
insensible perspiration of the horse must
carry oft' a large proportion of the liquid
food ; whereas a man drinks daily only
one-tenth more than the urine he passes.
2096. A comparison of the composition
of cows' urine fresh, and after it has been
kept a month, will show the change that
takes place in it by exposure to the air: —
Water in 100,000 parts by weight, .
Urea, along with some resinous colouring matter,
Albumen, .....
Mucus, .....
Benzoic acid (hippuric acid,)
Lactic acid,
Carbonic acid,
Acetic acid,
Ammonia,
Potash,
Soda,
Sulphuric acid,
Phosphoric acid,
Chlorine,
Lime, . . . . . .
Magnesia, ......
Alumina, - .
Oxide of iron, .....
Oxide of manganese, ....
Silica,
Sulphuretted hydrogen, ....
Sediment, consisting of phosphate, and carbonate of lime,
and magnesia, alumina, silica, and oxide of iron, and
of manganese, ....
combined with potash,
soda, and ammonia,
forming salts.
combined with soda, lime, and
magnesia, forming salts,
Cows
' urine.
Fresh.
A month old.
92,624
95,442
4,000
1,000
10
190
40
90
250
516
500
256
165
1
205
487 )
occurring partly
664
664 \
in an uncom-
554
554 )
bined state.
( 405
338
\ 70
26
( 272
272
65
2
36
22
2
0
4
1
1
...
36
5
1
180
100,000 100,000
2097. In winter, urine scarcely contains
half the quantity of urea stated in the first
column, and is then, of course, of less value ;
and, when it has been putrefying for a
486
PRACTICE— WINTER.
niontli, it contains more than as much again
of ammonia as urine in a fresh state. The
ammonia isclerive<l from the decomposition
of the urea, and the other organic hodies
containing nitrogen. The caustic ammo-
nia remains partly dissolved in the water,
and is the substance through which urine
not properly putrefied is so apt to injure
plants. If exposed long to the atmo-
sphere, the caustic ammonia absorbs fi'ora
it carbonic acid, becomes mild, and the
urine may then be employed witliout
danger as a manure for vegetation. But,
on urine being thus exposed to the air, part
of it escapes in the form of gas, so that it
is proper to add to putrefying urine some
acid principle to neutralise the ammonia —
to Jix it, as it is usually termed ; and this
is most simply and perhaps economically
done by adding water to it, which, of equal
bulk to the urine, enables thediluteil mass
to retain four times as much ammonia;
that is, in every 100,000 lbs. of diluted
urine, 1135 lbs. more of ammonia is re-
tained. Another shnple substance for
fixing the ammonia is black vegetable
mould, which supplies humic acid, and
every 90 lbs. of it saturates 10 lbs. of am-
monia ; but as the best earth contains only
45 per cent of humic acid, 200 lbs. of
earth will be re(piired to fix every 10 lbs.
of ammonia. Chemical ingredients may
be employed to fix the aumiouia, but they
are all costly.
2098. It is rather important to trace
the change in liquid manure occasioned by
keeping. Fresh urine of cattle has a yel-
low colour, occasioned by a small quantity
of resinous colouring matter ; but on stand-
ing exposed to the air, the yellow assumes
a brown, and at length a black colour, at-
tributable to the formation of humic acid.
In winter, urine does not possess a trace of
ammonia, whereas it does in summer,
tliereby indicating the decomposition of
urea by heat in the body before the emis-
sion of the urine. The above table shows
that exposure of urine for a month to the
air has the same effect of decomposing the
urea as heat has in the body; and four
weeks are not sufficient time to decompose
all the urea, as still 0-GOO remains. AVhen
exposed for three months and longer, urine
loses its carbonate of ammonia, which is
evaporahle as well as the crude ammonia
itself. In short, a six months' urine con-
tains not a trace of its original urea,
mucus, ami albumen, and new acid com-
binations take place, such a.s the lactate,
hmnate, sulphate, acetate of ammonia.
Urine is supposed to be in a ripe state after
it has putrefied in summer for five or six
weeks, and in winter for eight or nine,
though no absolute rule can be laid down
for this point, so nmch depending on the
evaporation of the air. The chemical rule
for kn(jwing the ripeness of urine is when
it contains neither urea nor caustic ammo-
nia, and this can only be ascertained by
chemical investigation. After exposure
to the air a year and half, urine contains
no organic remains, and only salts and
mineral bodies dissolved in water.
2099. The specific gravity of the urine
of the horse, according to Fourcroy and
Vaucjuelin, varied from 1"03 to I'Oo ;
according to Prout, r029; and to Bous-
singault,''l-064.*
2100. We have seen how complicated a
substance the urine of the cow is, and that
of man we may expect, from the variety
of his food, to be even more so. It is
thus composed, according to Berzelius : —
Water, .... 93;J0
Urt-a, .... 30-1
Uric arid, . . . . 1-0
Free lactic acid, lactate of ammonia,
and animal matter not separable, 17'I
Mucus of the bladder, . . 0-3
Sulphate of potash, . . ."J-J
Sulphate of soda, . . . 3''2
Phosphate of soda, . . 'i"f>
Phosphate of ammonia, . . 1-6
Common salt, . . . 4v5
Sal-ammoniac, . . . 1'5
Phosphates of lime and magnesia, -with a
trace of silica and fluoride of calcium, J-1
lOOO-O
2101. That of the horse, the sheep, and
the pig, is as follows, on an average : —
Horse. Sheep. Pig.
Extractive m.atter, ) .^^.._,g ^.^^ ^.^
soluble in water, )
Extractive nutter, 1 .,,.,,8 g-j.-^g 3-93
soluble in alcohol, )
Salts soluble in water, '2\7Q ]9-57 8-78
Saltsinsolubleinwater, 1.0 40 O.VJ 084
Urea, . 10-40 12-62 2-85
Ilippuric acid, <>-lU ?
Mucus, . 0-0(5 0-25 0-06
Wal»r, . 899-37 928-97 982-2?
100000 990-ii3 100000
* Thomson's Animal Chemittry, p. 49.'?.
ON LIQUID MANURE.
487
In the constituents which supply nitrogen,
the urine of the ox is as rich as that of
the horse, and much richer than that of
the cow, much of the nitrogen of whose
food goes to form the curd of the milk.
2102. The saline and mineral ingre-
dients of the urine of the horse, ox, sheep,
and pig, consist of the following sub-
stances : —
Horse. Ox Sheep. Pig.
Carbonate ofiime, 21-75 1-07 0-82
— magnesia, ll-2() 693 0-4(j
— potash, 33-12 77-28 ... 12-1
— soda, 151(5 ... 42-2.5
Chloride of sodium, 6-27 0-30 32 01 53-1
— • potassium, ... ... 12-00 little.
Sulpluite of soda, 11-03 ... 7-72 7-0
— potash, ... 13-30 2-98
Phosphate of soda, 19-0
"'"«' . \ 0-70^
— magnesia, ... .. . / / q.q
Silica, . . 0-.52 0.35 1-06 f
Oxide of iron and loss, 0-79 0-77 ... J
100-00 100-00 100-00 100-0
The conclusion Professor Johnston comes
to, in reference to the contents of the
foregoing table, is, that "• the fermenting
urine of our domesticated animals cannot
afford phosphoric acid, which must be
conveyed to the soil by the solid excre-
ments."*
2103. If urine is applied to grass land
or to growing crops, while the urea is un-
decomposed, or the ammonia is in a caustic
state, it will destroy vegetation ; but it
may safely be applied to the ploughed soil
at any time, in as far as the soil is con-
cerned, although it is better received by
the soil in some states than in others.
Winter is considered the best season for
applying the liquid manure, not only be-
cause it is then most abundant, but the
ground, being all ploughed, is then also in
the best state for imbibing it : and if ap-
plied to the soil just as it has flowed into
tlie tank, much trouble will afterwards be
saved in driving out the water, which
must be put amongst it to save the am-
monia, and which, in fact, is better saved
by the humus of the soil. Evaporation,
too, in winter is very limited ; and any
rain that falls will only serve, by dilution,
to retain the ammonia, should it atten)pt
to escape. Frozen ground will not take
in liquid manure, though it may be safely
emptied upon snow. Very dry ground
■will not take it in easily. If desired to
be applied in the fresh state to grass land
or growing crops, it should be mixed with
its bulk of water.
2104. It is this circumstance which
renders the use of liquid manure so
troublesome in practice. For instance, on
applying 13^ tons to the acre, after the.
urine has putrefied for five or six weeks,
all the manure obtained from that quan-
tity would very little exceed 10 cwt.
If the due proportion of water were added
to it, the manure would not exceed 16 cwt.,
and even when applied quite fresh, the
quantity would be under one ton.
2105. " Hence," as M. Sprengel pro-
perly concludes from such premises, " it
will be obvious to everyone that the urine
tanks are no such excellent arrangements
as they are frequently represented to be ;
and that it is, in many cases, more pro-
fitable to pour the urine over the dung in
the dung-pit, or to supply as much straw
that the wliole of the urine may be ab-
sorbed, for then the humic acid arising
from the solid excrements will be com-
bined with the ammonia formed, at the
same time, from the urea, &c. There is
this additional advantage, that the urine,
as the most efficient portion of animal ex-
crement, being mixed with the dung, may
be distributed more equally over the
ground, that no manure-barrels, &c., are
required, and that there is no necessity to
bestow labour on the preparation of the
urine; for the urine, if any, which is not
taken up by the dung, may always be
most profitably employed in the prepara-
tion of compost. In some parts of central
Germany, they pour the urine, time after
time, into conical heaps of common earth,
hollowed to a proper depth in the middle ;
and when these have stood the proper
length of time, and been thoroughly
worked for use, they are led to the field.
This process is very advantageous where
good mould, or eartli rich in humus, is not
to be had, but must be conducted with the
requisite caution : we must, for instance,
not pour into the heaps so much urine, that
the liquid penetrates through them and
escapes ; for, even when perfectly clear and
colourless, it always still contains carbon-
ate of ammonia, and other ammoniacal
Johnston's Lectures on Agricultural Chemistry, 2d edition, p. 811.
488
PRACTICE— WINTER.
salts, in solution, humate of ammonia being preferable to concentrate its beneficial
the only one of them which colours the effects on a limited number of acres, than to
urine brown." * attenuate its power over a larger space,
as much per acre as desired is put on
2106. Good as the practice is of saturat- at once, and the extent of ground manured
ing good mould Avith urine, it is not so is measured by the quantity supjilied by
advantageous as might be supi»osed. I the sea. The quantity thus supplied de-
formed a cess-pool which receive*! the pends entirely on the nature of the season,
entire drainage from the house, including as also on the occurrence of storms at
that from the water-closets and scullery, the jtarticular period when the plants are
amongst a quantity of the richest mould I most easily dissevered from the ruck. It
could collect, and on every year putting is this uncertainty of the supply which
the compound or compost on the soil, it throws a doubt on the statement of Mr
was not to be compared in its effects to Kerr, in his agricultural report of Berwick-
those of common farm-yard dung or bone- shire, that the rents of those farms in
dust. It is doubtless to the mixture of East Lothian which have access to sea-
weed, are enhanced to the extent of
25s. to 30s. per acre ;t and whatever may
have been the case in his day, so great an
iniluence on the value of land is not pro-
duced now by sea- weed.
2109. Sea-weed is put on in a fresh state
upon the stubbled land before it is phmghed,
in winter, in prepai'atiou to manuring the
soil for the ensuing potato or turnij) crop.
It is also spread upon the lea ground in-
tended to be ploughed for oats. The weed
does not soon become desiccated in winter;
and thouirh rain fall, it only dissolves the
the contents of privies, along with the
solution of large quantities of rape-cake in
the urine, that the liquid manure used in
Flanders owes so much of its efficacy.
The same composition in this country
would be by far too costly an application,
though, of course, equally efficacious. In
Flanders they call this compound io7i-
bons, (sweet-meats,) to show their high
estimation of it.
ON SEA-WEED AS MANURE.
2107. Winter is the season which sup-
plies the greatest quantity of sea-weed for mucilaginous and saline substauces easily
manure. After a severe storm, or even a separable from it, and carries them into the
heavy ground- swell of the sea, large quan- soil ; and these two classes of ingredients, no
titles of this remarkable substance are cast doubt, render the weed so good a top-dress-
ashore in the bays and estuaries of the ing on every state of the soil. It is only
coast ; and so desirable is it as a ready- on land capable of bearing green crops
made manure for the land, that on those that sea-weed can with propriety be ap-
farms which border the sea-coast of our i)lied in winter, for heavy land would then
island, and in localities accessible to the be poached by the horses and carts ; and
shore, the farmer defers every other work I think it must bo this circumstance, more
in which he may be engaged, to secure a than any other, which gave rise to the
manure which cannot be purchased else- opinion that sea-weed does more good to
where. So well aware is he that the next light than to heavy land.
rising tide may sweep away what the
former one had deposited, that his chief 2110, Sea-weed is also used in a fresh
aim at the time is to draw the weed be- state in winter in trenched ground. In
yond the reach of the approaching waves, s<»me ])arts of the cojist which is com{M)sed
and then at leisure to drive it upon the of sand, and upon which sea-weed is cast,
particular fields which are destined to re- the inhabitants use the weed by placing it
ceive it. ' in the bottom of every trench two I'eet
deep, nearly filling them with it, and
2108. In East Lothian, on whose shores tramping it in, and then throwing the soil
large quantities of sea-ware are thrown upon it, there to remain until spring, when
every year, it is put on the land to the the surface of the ground is prepared for
amount of 32 loads per acre; and it being the sowing of carrots.
* Journal of the Ai^ricultural Society of England, vol. i. 455-80.
+ Kerr's Atjricultural Report of Bcricickshire, p. 377.
SEA- WEED AS MANURE.
469
2111. Sea-weed is very succulent,
feels slimy, and, when exposed to the
summer sun, soon dries into one-third of
its bulk, and becomes' hard and brittle.
2112. It has been recommended to dry
sea-weed, to its being easily carried into
the interior of the country ; but this would
be troublesome in winter; and it is unne-
cessary trouble, inasmuch as there is no
more sea-weed cast ashore than what can
easily be used upon the farms on the coast.
2113. Sea-weeds constitute a numerous family
of plants. Lindley, in his natural system, places
them in class i., Thallogens, alliance \,AI(]als;
order 3, Fucacece, sub-orders 2 and 3, Ualyserece,
Facem. In the Jussien system, they are placed
under class i., Acotyledones, order Alijas. Pro-
fessor Lindley observes of this tribe of plants,
" like all this alliance, the sea-wracks have no
particular geographical limits, but occur where-
ever the ocean or rivers spread themselves over
the land. They are, however, remarkable for the
enormous space which single species of them
occasionally occupy ; some of them forming sub-
aqueous forests in the ocean, emulating in their
gigantic dimensions the boundless element that
enfolds them. Scytosiphon filvm, a species com-
mon in the North Sea, is frequently found of the
length of 30 or 40 feet; in Scalpa Bay, in Ork-
ney, according to Dr Neill, this species forms
meadows, through which a pinnace with difficulty
forces its way. Lessonia fuscusens is described
by Borry de St Vincent as 25 or 30 feet in length,
with a trunk often as thick as a man's tlii^h.
But all these, and indeed every other vegetable
production, is exceeded in size by the prodigious
fronds of Macrocystis pyrffera. This appears to
be the sea-weed reported by navigators to be
from 500 to 1500 feet in length; the leaves are
long and narrow, and at the base of each is
placed a vescicle filled with air, without which
it would be impossible for the plant to support
its enormous length in the water, the stem not
being thicker than the finger, and the upper
branches as slender as common pack-thread.
. . . Some of the species are eatable, owing,
doubtless, to the large quantity of gelatinous
matter that they secrete. The young stalks of
Laminaria digitata, and saccharina, are eaten
under the name of ' tangle.' When stripped of
the thin part, the beautiful A/aria esculenta
forms a part of the simple fare of the poorer
classes of Ireland, Scotland, Iceland, Denmark,
and the Farce Islands. In some of the Scottish
islands, horses, cattle, and sheep, feed chiefly on
FucHs resciculosus during the winter months; and
in Gothland it is commonly given to pigs. Fucus
serratus also, and Scytosiphon filum constitute a
part of the fodder upon which cattle are sup-
ported in Norway."*
2114. Four species are very common on our
coast — the Laminaria saccharina, cousi&img of a
single linear elliptic leaf, without any mid-rib ;
the Laminaria digitata, or common tangle, a
cylindrical stem, sometimes as thick as a walking-
stick, and about two feet long: the Fucus rescicu-
losus, consisting of a double stem, with the edges
of the leaf entire, and in the disc of which, near
the edges, are immersed a number of vescicles or
air-bladders — or crackers, as they are vulgarly
called, because they emit a loud report on being
ruptured by pressure — about the size of a hazel-
nut, and the use of which, no doubt, is to float the
leaves in the water: and the Ilalidrys siliquaria,
consisting of a waved coriaceous stalk about 4
feet long, greatly branched, dark olive when
fresh, and quite black when dry; and it is also
furnished with air-bladders or vescicles.
2115. The constitution of these plants is very
complicated, afi'ording no fewer than 21 ingredi-
ents. The first species, Laminaria saccharina,
afiorded the following substances to the analysis
of Gaultier de Claubry in 1815 : —
A saccharine matter — manna.
Mucilage, in considerable quantity.
Ve£;etable allnimeii.
Green colourini; matter.
Oxalate of potash.
Malate of potash.
Sulphate of potash. ,
Sulphate of magnesia.
Muriate of potash.
Muriate of soda.
Muriate of magnesia.
Hyposulphite of soda.
Carbonate of putash.
Carbonate of soda.
Hydriodate of potash.
Silica.
Subphosphate of lime.
Subphosphate of mag^nesia.
Oxide of iron, probably united with phosphoric
acid.
Oxalate of lime.
The composition of the other species, together
witli the Fucus serratus — which is like the i^.
resciculosus, but witliout air-bladders — and the
Scytosiphon fluin, or thread tangle, is very similar
to the one here given."]"
2116. On combustion, in a particular way, sea-
weed yields an impure salt named kelp. So long
as it is used in the arts, kelp is too expensive to
use as a manure. It supplied at one time the
soda used by the bleachers, but, at the introduc-
tion of foreign barilla, its use as such was discon-
tinued, much to the loss of many proprietors and
labourers in Scotland; but the barilla itself has
been superseded since the very low price at
which soda ash, the dry 'crude carbonate from
the decomposition of sea-salt, is now sold. Kelp,
however, is now manufactured into iodine.J
2117. The composition of the ash of sea-weed
* Lindley's Vegetable Kingdom, Tp.2\. + Thom&on^s Organic Chemistry — Vegetables, p. 944-6.
t Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society for March 184 7, p. 629; and for October
1847, p. 75.
490
PRACTICE— WINTER.
burned in the open air, of the mean of twelve
analyses, is thus given by Professor Johnston : —
Ash of Sea-weed.
Mean.
Potash,
17-5(t
Soda, .
1-2-70
Chloride of sodium,
l(i-.5b"
Chloride of potassium, .
o-.9:j
Iodide of sodium,
0-.05
Lime, .
7-;w
Phosphate of lime,
7-24
Magnesia,
9-8!)
Oxide of iron, .
0-24
Sulphuric acid,
24-7()
Silica,
1-84
100-00
This mean analysis of a number of sea-weeds
agrees pretty nearly with that of kelp.*
2118. The sea- weed used in Scotland in
manure is never cut from the rocks, but is thrown
ashore by the sea. When used for converting
into kelp, it is cut from the rocks; and the older
the plant is, it is the better for being made into
kelp, a-i also into manure, no doubt. But, in
other p:irts of the world, sea-weed is regularly
cut from the rocks for manure alone, as may
be seen from the following description of the
varec (the Scottish wrack) harvest in Jersey.
"The vraic harvest is another peculiarity of
Jersey," says Mr Burn Murdoch. " The time of
the harvest is regulated by the States — that is,
they issue permission to begin cutting upon a
certain day, and fix a time at which it is to cease.
Friday, the 1st March, was this year (1844) the
day of its commencement, and early that forenoon
I repaireii to the point of Le Hocq to witness
the operation. The rocks at this point extend
a very great way from the shore at low water,
and are covered with the sea-weed. Upon this
occasion the tide was very far out, and little
appearance of bustle was observable from the
shore, the dark nature of the rock preventing the
people from being seen from such a distance. Of
course, they commence when the tide is farthest
out, and retreat as it rises. I walked out to the
furthest extremity of the dry portion, and there
the multitudes of men, women, and children, and
horses and carts, which covered the rocks, quite
astonished me. The weed is cut from the rock
by short hooks, and laid in small heaps, and then
loaded upon the carts and driven off till it is
carried beyond high-water mark, where it is
generally emptied, and left to be carried inland
at leisure. It is a very wet job; but still the
country-people like it — it brings them together;
and many courtships are said to be carried on at
vraic harvest. They bake bread of a particular
kind for the occasion, >nd their food is otherwise
of a more generous description than what is in
general use: it is, in fact, a kind of gathering or
meeting of the whole people, and, as such, causes
a variety and stir in the ordinary routine of the
Jersey life. The sea-weed thus procured is of
great value as manure. It is used chiefly for
grass and gardeu crops." +
ON GArLTING OR CLAYING THE SOIL.
2119. In a part of the fen lands of Eng-
land, it is a cu.stomary practice in winter
to cover the surface of a certain proportion
of every farm, one-eighth part, wiih the
clay obtained from the subsoil. The fen
land rcferreil to contains a purtinn of tlie
counties ()f~Hiintinirdon, Cambridge, Nor-
folk, and Sutfollv, and extends to sixty
miles in length, and thirty miles in breadth.
It consists of a flat, interspersed with small
elevations and iiills, which, to distinguish
frmn the flat, are called /lard lands. These
elevations are principally in permanent
pasture, and form an excellent change for
cattle from the fen land.
2120. The drainage of the fen is effocteJ
by artificial rivers running to seaward from
the difterent districts into which the fen
land is divided. The extent of the districts
vary from 200 to 4000 acres each, and
they are incloscil by dikes communicating
Avith a main drain, which runs to a wind-
mill or steam-engine, bv which the water
is pumped out of it, and transferred into
tlie river. Tiie entire country, with the
exception of about GOOO acres, is under a
regular system of drainage and cultivation.
2121. Tlie soil of the fen consists of
decayed vegetable matter on a stratum of
moor, which again rests in some places on a
subsoil of gravel, in others, and much more
generally, of clay. The situation of the
clay varies in difl^erent districts : in some
it is ploughed up at the surface, in others
it is not reacheil until digging for twenty
feet below the surface. The nearer the
clay is the surface, the better is the land
cultivated, the clay being dug uj), and
the surface top-dressed with it ; and it is
this process of top-dressing which I pro-
pose now to describe.
2122. The fen land adjoining the hard
lands jiartaking of the characters of both,
is called skirt i/ land, and it pos.sesses, gene-
rally, great fertility. For a similar extent
• Johnston's Lectures on Aqricxdturnl Cliemistry, p. 624, 2d edition.
+ Buru Murdoch's Notes on Jersey, ^c, p. 44-5.
CLAYING THE SOIL.
491
of country, few equal it in productive vege-
tation, and the greater part being regularly
kept in corn crops, it lias received the
appellation of the " Granary of England."
2123. The fen of Lincolnshire, and that
part of Cambridgeshire in the Isle of Ely
which is near the sea, being of a silty and
salt-marsh character, requires and receives
different management.
2124. The process oi gaulting^ or clay-
ing the soil, is conducted in this manner :
Fig. 196.
THE CLAYING OF THE SOIL.
— Let ab cd\)Q the four sides of the field
to be clayed, and let eehQ the sites of the
pits out of which the clay is to be taken.
The space between the pits depends on the
depth the clay is from the surface: if the
clay is deep, the distance between the pits
is 12 yards, as between g and I; if other-
wise, it is extended to 20 yards : and vary-
ing between these two extremes. When
the distance has been determined on, it is
marked by a plough making a furrow in
each line of pits.
2125. The width of the pits depends
also on the depth of the clay ; if it is 2
feet deep to the clay, the width is 3 feet 3
inches, but if 6 feet and upwards, the width
is made 4 feet.
2126. A pit is dug in the first line <?,
which should be made near the fence a b ;
and at m, halfway distant between the
first line of pits e and the second line e, the
surface soil taken out of the first pit e is
laid down. The pits are made 9 feet in
length. Should the clay be far down, the
sides of the pit e should be supported by
planks, or frame-work of wood, to prevent
the earth falling in, and to protect the
lives of the men working in them ; for
many a life has been sacrificed for the
want of this precaution. The clay as it is
dug out is taken up with a fork or spade
by a girl or boy, and thrown equally over
the space indicated between the dotted
line in h and the fence line a d, on both
sides of the pit in which the men are
working. Two good spits of the spade
generally afford the requisite quantity of
clay.
21 27.' After one pit has been sufficiently
dug out, another is formed along the line, a
space of the ground n being left untouched
between the pits, of sufficient strength
to support the sides from cnrving in. Tiie
upper soil of the second pit is put into the
first pit, to fill it up as far as it will go,
and the clay is taken out of the second pit
and spread upon the surface, exactly in the
same manner as described, and so on, irom
pit to pit, until all the pits in the line are
dug. Wlien the first pit in the second line
at I is begun, its surface soil is wheeled to
fill up tiie last pit dug at ^(7; and when
all the pits have been dug out in the line
I e, the surface soil first taken out and put
down at m is wheeled to fill up the last pit
dug in el. In this manner with every
two rows of pits is the entire field spread
over with the clay.
2 1 28. The pits are levelled up afterwards
with the adjoining soil with the plough.
A little frost does the clay good by pul-
verising it, and makes it more ready
to mix with the soil ; but it is better to
plough the clay in soon than allow it to
become too much dried either by drought
or frost.
2129. The claying of land, if the clay
had to be carted upon it, would be attend-
ed with great trouble. To cover an acre
of soil with only one inch deep of clay
would require 180 cubic yards of it.
492
PRACTICE— SPRING.
SPRING.
SUMMARY OF THE FIELD OPERATIONS AND
OF THE WEATUER IN SPRING.
2130. As regards vegetation, we have
seen that winter is the season of repose,
of passive existence, of dormancy, though
not of death. Spring, on the contrary, is
the season of returning life, of passing
into active exertion, of hope, and of joy —
of hope, as the world of life springs into
view immediately after the industrious
hand has scattered the seed upon the
ground — and of joy, in contemplating, with
contidence, the reproductions of the herds
and flocks. I am unequal to the task of
de.^cribing the emotions to which this
delightful season gives birth ; and I would
rather that 3'ou should go into the country
and enjoy the pleasure for 3'ourself ; for
'•' the chusen draught, of whicli every
lover of nature may drink, can be had, in
its freshness and purity, only at the
living fountain of nature ; and if we at-
tempt to fetch it away in the clay pitchers
of liuman description, it loses all its
spirit, becomes insipid, and acquires an
earthy taste from the clay."
2131. To enjoy the beauties of spring
in perfection, " it is necessary to take ad-
vantage of the morning, when the beams
of the newly-risen sun are nearly level
with the surface of the earth; and this is
the time when the morning birds are iu
their finest song, when the earth and the
air are in their greatest freshness, and
when all nature mingles in one common
morning hymn of gratitude. Tliere is
somet hing peculiarly arousingand strength-
ening, both to the body and the mind, in
the early time of the morning ; and were
we always wise enough t<i avail ourselves
of it, it is almost incredible with what
ease and pleasure the labours of the most
diligent life might be performed. When
we take the day by the beginning, we can
regulate the length of it according to our
necessities; and whatever may be our
professional avocations, we have time to
perform them, to cultivate our minds, and
to worship our Maker, without the one
duty interfering with the other.
2132. "The day-spring of the morning
leads us, by an easy and very natural tran-
sition, to the day-spring of human life,
the morning of our sojourn upon earth ;
and the parallels between the commence-
ment of the life itself, and of those
successive days by which it is nunibered,
is a parallel the most striking. There is
a freshness in young life which no experi-
ence can acquire for us at any future time,
and there is a newness in every object,
which is not felt after years have passed
over our heads. Our bodies are light,
flexible, easily moved, and not liable to be
injured. Our minds, too, never become
wearied or listless ; and although the oc-
cupation and the thought are necessarily
different from those of persons of mature
age, they ave far more energetic, and what
is learned or done takes a more perma-
nent liold of the memory. There are
many circumstances which render the
morning of life of far more importance
than the morning of an individual day.
It is a morning to which no to-morrow
morning can follow ; and, therefore, if it
is neglected, all is inevitably and utterly
lost. We cannot exactly make up the
loss of even one morning, though we can
repair it a little by our diligence in future
mornings. We must bear in mind, how-
ever, that the means of doing this is a
mercy to us, and not a privilege that we
can command as our own. We never
'know what a day may bring forth;' and
as there daily occur around us instances
in which the young and the strong are at
once levelled to the dust, we never can
be certain that the demand shall not be
made on ourselves — 'tiiis night is thy
soul required of thee.' But if it is thus
]>erilous to neglect one morning out of
many, how much more perilous to neglect
SUMMARY OF FIELD OPERATIONS.
493
the one morning of a life — a life granted by
a beneficent God, in a world full of tlie
wonders of bis power, capable of enjoy-
ment, and deny him service while it lasts,
and in the fulness of time entering, through
the atonement of the eternal Son, a life of
bliss which shall have no end.'' *
2133. Spring is a busy season on the
farm. The cattle-man, besides continuing
his attendance on the fattening cattle, has
now the more delicate task of waiting on
the cows at calving, and providing com-
fortable lairs for new-dropped calves. The
dairymaid commences her labours, not in
the peculiar avocations of the dairy, but
in rearing calves — the support of a future
herd — which, for a time, are indulged with
every drop of milk the cows can yield.
The farrows of pigs also claim a share of
her solicitude. The shepherd, too, has his
painful watchings, day and night, on the
lambing ewes ; and his care of the tender
lambs, until they are able to gambol upon
tlie new grass, is a task of peculiar inte-
rest, and insensibly leads to higher thoughts
— "we cannot refrain from thinking of
the unspeakable condescension and kind-
ness of Him who 'feeds his flock like a
shepherd, gathers the lambs into his arms
and carries them in his bosom, and gently
leads those that are with young.' "
2134. The condition of the fields de-
mands attention as well as the reproduc-
tion of the stock. The day noAv aflbrds
as many hours for labour as are usually
bestowed at any season in the field. The
ploughmen, therefore, know no rest for at
least twelve hours eveiy day, from the
time the harrows are yoked for the spring
wheat until the turnips are sown. The
turnip land, bared as the turnips are con-
sumed by sheep, is now ridged up at once
for spring wheat, should the weather be
mild and the soil dry enough, or else cross-
pUiughed, and the ridging delayed until
the barley-seed. The first sowing is the
spring wheat, then the beans, and then
the oat-seed. The fields containing the
fallow land now receive a cross-furrow, in
the order of the fallow-crops — the potatoes
first, then turnips, and lastly the bare
fallow. Grass seeds are now sown amongst
the young autumnal wheat, as well as
amongst the spring wheat and the barley.
The field- workers devote their busy hours
to carrying seed to the sower, turning
dunghills in preparation of the manure
for the potato and turnip crops, continuing
the barn-work to supply litter for the
stock yet confined in the steading, and
to prepare the seed-corn for the fields.
The hedger resumes his work of water-
tabling and scouring ditches, cutting down
and breasting old hedges, and taking care
to release the sprouting buds of the young
quicks from the face of the hedge-bank,
which he may have planted at the com-
mencement and during fresh weather in
winter. The steward is now on the alert,
sees to the promotion of every ojJeraLion,
and intru.sts the sowing of tiie crops to
none but himself, except a tried hand, such
as the skilful hedger, or to an experienced
ploughman in managingan approved grain-
sovving machine. Thus every class of
labourers have their work appropriated for
them at this busy season ; and as the work
of every one is iiidividually defined, it is
scarcely possible for so great a mistake to
be committed as that any piece of work
should be neglected by all.
2135. The farmer himself now feels
that he must be "up and doing;" his
mind becomes stored with plans for future
execution ; and in order to see them exe-
cuted at tiie proper time, and in the best
manner, he must now forego all visits, and
remain at honie for the* season ; or at
most undertake an occasional and hasty
journey to the market-town to get quit of
surplus grain, when the draughts have a
leisure day to deliver it. The business of
the fields now requiring constant atten-
dance, his mind as well as body becomes
fatigued, and, on taking the fireside after
the labours of the day are over, seeks for
rest and relaxation rather than mental
toil. He should at this season pay par-
ticular attention to the state of the wea-
ther, bv observing the barometric and
thermometric changes, and make it a point
to observe every external phenomenon that
has a bearing upon the changes of the
atmosphere, and be guided accordingly in
giving his instructions to his people.
2136. On this account the state of the
Mudie's Spring, p. 12-15.
494
PllACTICE— SPRING.
weather requires constant attention. Tlie
weatlier in spring', in tlie zone we inhabit,
is excee<lingly variable, alternating, at
short intervals, from frost to thaw, from
rain to snow, from sunshine to cloud — very
different from the steady character of the
arctic spring, in which the snow melts
without rain, and the meads are covered
with vernal Holers ere the last traces of
winter have disappeared. Possessing this
variability in itsaimospherical phcn(,ni(*na,
spring presents few of them having pecu-
liarities of their own, unless we except the
constant east wind which blows from
March to !May, and the very heavy falls
of snow which occasionally occur.
2137. Wind. — So invariahle is the phe-
nomenon of the E. wind in spring, that
every person who dwells on the eastcoast of
Great Britain is quite familiar with it,
having felt its keenness and known its ap-
titude to produce catarrhal aftections. An
explanati(m of this remarkable phenome-
non has been given by Mr Hamuel Mar-
shall. " In Sweden and Norway," he
observes, " the face of the country is
covered with snow to the middle of May
or longer. This frozen covering, which
has been formed during winter, grows
gradually shallower to the l.'ith or Kith of
May, or until the sun has acquired 1?° or
18° N. declination ; iwhilc, on tlie other
hand, the va^Jeys ' and mountains of
England have ^eived an accession of 24°
or 2.5°. On tms account, when the tem-
perature of Sweden and Norway is cooled
down by snow to 32°, that of J3ritain is
24° or 25° higher than that of the preced-
ing countries. Because, while the ground
is covered with snow, the rays of the sun
are incapable of heating the air above 32°,
the freezing point. For this reason the
air of England is 24° or 25° more heated
than that of the before-mentioned coun-
tries. The air of Sweden and Norway
will then, of course, by the law of com-
parative specific gravity, displace that of
England, and, from the relative situation
of those countries with this country, will
produce a N.E. wind. The current is in
common stronger by day than by night,
because the variation of temperature is at
that time the greatest, being frequently
from 50° to 60° about noon, and sinking to
32« in the nijrht." *
2138. All the seasons liave their pecu-
liar influence on the winds. " In spring"
says Schouw, " E. winds are common ; at
certain places in March, at others in April.
They diminish the force of the W. cur-
rent, which, in many countries, is at that
time weaker than duritig the rest of the
year. The relation of N. to S. winds is
not constant, and varies according to the
localities. In some the direction is more
N., in others more S. than the mean di-
rection of the year."
213.9. "When winds come from dis-
tant countries, they possess a part of the
proj)erties by which those countries are
characterised," is an observation of
Kaemtz. " Thus the W. winds, that blow
from the sea, are much more moist than
the E., which traverse continents. The
latter, particularly when they are N.E.,
are very cold, especially in spring ; and
they give rise to a great number of rheu-
matic affections. The very opposite sen-
sations produced by violent S. or N. winds,
are much more marked in countries whose
inhabitants live in the open air. I should
not have noticed these differences had not
these winds been characterised by particu-
lar denominations. In the S. of Europe
the N. winds are celebrated for their vio-
lence and for their severity. The oppo-
sition between the elevated temperature of
the .Mediterranean and the Alps, covered
with snow, give rise to aerial currents of
extreme rapidity. If their effect is
added to that of a general N. wind, there
is produced a N.E. wind, having a vio-
lence of which we can form no idea. In
Istria and Dalmatia this wind is known
under the name of bora., and its force is
such that it sometimes overturns horses
and ploughs. It is the same up the valley
of the lilione, where a very cold S. wind
often prevails, which is nanietl nualral,
and which is not less formidable than the
N. wind known in Spain under the name
of gallego."
2140. M. Kaemtz thus endeavours to
explain the cause of the very variable
nature of the wind in our countries. After
having mentioned that the two great
leailing currents of wind on the globe are
the N.E. and S.W., he observes, that " me-
teorological registers present to us the in-
* Brewster's Journal of Science, vol. viii. p. 39.
SUMMARY OF FIELD OPERATIOXS. 495
dication of a great number of winds which diately after by a drift from the opposite
blow from all parts of the horizon. When direction. Truly awful is a storm of snow
we compare corresponding observations in spring amongst tlie hills. Here is a
made in many localities in Europe, we are description of one, with all its accomjiany-
not slow in recognising that those winds ing prognostics : — " One evening, after a
involve no other causes than difl\>rence of day of unwonted tranquillity, dense clouds
temperature. Suppose, for instance, that appear like great snowy mountains in the
a general S.W. wind occupies the upper western part of tlie horizon, while the
regions, but that the W. part of Europe is few clouds, which lie in streaks across the
very hot, whilst the E. regions remain very setting sun, are intensely deep in their
cold, with a clouded sky, the difference shadows, and equally bright in their lights.
of temperature will immediately give rise As the evening closes in, the cloudsdis-
to an E. wind ; and when this wind appear, the stars are unusually brilliant,
meets that from the S.W. there will be a and there is not a breath of air stirring.
S.E. wind, which may be transformed into The old ex^ierienced farmer goes out to
a true S. wind. These difterences of tem- take his wonted nocturnal survey of the
perature explain the existence of almost heavens, from which long observation on
all winds. Now, suppose that a region is the same spot has enabled him to form a
unusually heated, and that there is no tolerably correct judgment of what will be
prevailing wind, then the cold air will flow the state of the weather in the morning,
in on all sides; and according as the ob- Two or three meteors— brilliant, but of
server is in the N,, the E., the S., or the short duration — shoot along a quadrant of
W., he will feel a different wind blowing the sky, as if they were so many bright
from the corresponding points of the hori- lights of the firmament, dropping from
zon. However, to put the fact beyond their orbits. He returns and directs his
doubt, we need corresponding observations, men to prepare for what may happen, as
embracing a great number of localities."* there will certainly be a cliange of the
weather. The air is perfectly tranquil
2141. The character of the winds in when the family retire to their early pil-
spring is, that they are very sharp, when lows, to find that repose which healthful
coming from the N. or N.E. direction ; labour sweetens and never misses, —
and they are also frequent, blowing
8tron-ly sometimes from the E. and some- ^V''^' l^''*''""'' ^^^'^ ^f .^^ transient pain,
.. "' .-i .1 ITT- T 1 <- 1 And new-born vii^our swell 111 every veui.
times from the W. in the former they
are piercing, even though not inclining to But just at the turn of the night, the S.
frost; in the latter they are strong, bois- gives way, the N. triumphs, and the
terous, squally, and rising at times into whirlwind, herald of victory, lays hold of
tremendous hurricanes, in which trees only the four corners of the house, and shakes
escape being uprooted in consequence of it with the shaking of an earthquake.
their leafless state, but by which many a But the house, like its inhabitants, is made
hapless mariner is overtaken and con- for the storm, and to stand secure and
signed to a watery grave, or dashed with- harmless ; while the wind tliutiders in the
out mercy on a rocky strand. fields around, every gust roaring louder
than another amongst the leafless branches
2142. SnoiO-storms. — Very frequently of the stately trees. In a little its sound
snow covers the ground for a time in is muffled, without being lessened, and the
spring. The severest snow-storms and snow is heard battering at the windows for
falls have occurred in February. The an entrance — but battering in vain. Morn-
memorable falls of the 9th February 1799, ing dawns; but every lea and eddy is
and of the 7th February 182-3, are yet wreathed up; the snow still darkens the
fresh in the recollection of many persons air, and reeks along the curling wreaths
alive, when, for weeks together, the inter- as if each were a furnace. For two days
nal CDunnunications of the country were and two nights the storm rages with un-
entirely stopped. Roads opened up in one abated violence ; but on the third day the
direction were again blocked up imme- wind has veered to the E., blows rather
* Kaemtz's Complete Course of Meteorology, p. 50-4.
48<
PRACTICE— SPRING.
feebly, and tliongh the snowfalls as tliickly,
it falls uniformly over tlie whole surface.
This continues for two or three days more;
atni on the evening of the last of these
days, the sun, wliich has not been visible
for nearly a week, looks out just before
settin"-, as if jiroinising a morning visit.
The night remains clear, with keen frost,
and the wind steady at N., and blowing
very gently. The sun rises bright in the
morning, the storm is over, and the wea-
ther remains unbroken for four or five
weeks."
214-3. It is a serious affliction to the
ewes about to lamb, when a spring storm
of snow, such as that described, occurs.
The .snow seldom disappears, even in the
low country, until April, when the lamb-
ing season should terminate ; and it re-
mains much longer amongst the hills,
where food being comparatively scanty at
any time in winter, but especially in spring,
the lambs are brought forth when the winter
pn.'vender is about all consumed, and the
grass that should support the mothers is
still buried under the snow. The loss
suHered by the flock is then fearful, and
irremediable for some seasons to come.
2144. Thaw. — "When the appointed
days of the snow-storm are numbered,
a disturbance again takes place in the
atmo.spliere, but it is of a different kind
from the former. There are little sheets
of lightning playing momentarily in the
lower atmosphere, and the lustre of the
stars is diminislied ; but still there is no
cloud. The wind, however, dies away to
a dead calm towards evening, and all is
ready for the breaking storm. That opera-
tion is the first performed by the s))ring,
and we stiall borrow the words of the
British Naturalist wherein to describe
it : — • ' As the spring gets the mastery,
wliich is aided by the condensation which
takes place during the night, it rises to a
wind, the sound of which cannot be mis-
taken. The rio^idity of trees, window-
frames, and other wooden fabrics, through
which it passes, is relaxed ; the withered
grass and reeds, when these are exposed,
moisten ; and the rattling and thumping
are succeeded by murmuring harmony, in
which, compared with the other, there is
a good deal of music ; and as the morning
advances and the animals come abroad,
and man begins to be active, the hard
metallic sounds are gone, and there is a
softness about nature. There is always a
delightful transparency about the atmo-
sphere, because the little sjiicn/ce of ice
are gone, and the heat of the air is too
much occupied in converting the snow
and ice into water, for ciianging much of
that into vaj)our. When the ciiange is
accompanied by rain, it is far more j»lea-
sant at the time, but there is a danger,
almost a certain one, that the spring will
be treacherous ; and that, in conse<pience
of the great heat required for melting the
snow, and the evaporation of the rain to-
gether, frosts will return long before the
process of thawing, so comparatively slow,
is com])leted. The slow melting of snow
by rain, compared by that oi a warm at-
mosjjhere which is constantly shifting by
the wind, can be easily understood, when
it is remembered that the water which
falls, even if it had the temperature of the
greatest summer-heat, would be cooled
down to the freezing point in melting half
its weight in snow. But as the tempera-
ture can only be a little above freezing,
the water will have the temperature of
32° before it has cooleil perhaps a ten;h
of its weight ; and as the water is a bad
conductor of heat, and great part of the
action of the oblique rays of the sun are
reflected away from its surface, a rainy
breaking of a storm is almost sure to be
followed by frost, if it do not happen
when thesea.son is far advanced.' In such
a situation, and under such circumstances,
the storm not nnfrequently pa.^ses away
in what is emphatically termed a rjentle
thaw; and when this is the case, the spring
comes under the most favourable circum-
stances. The snow is dissolved by atmo-
spheric influence alone, without any rain
from the clouds ; although there are gene-
rally light clouds hovering about, ready
to produce rain if a returning frost should
render a contest of the elements necessary.
Besides its rare pleasantness, the gentle
thaw is attended with several beneficial
consequences. In the first place, there ib
no flooding of the low grounds, and no
washing of the soil from the more elevated
ones ; but the snow forms a trough for
the di.scharge of the water into which it is
melted, and thus the coldest of the snow-
water does not roach the surface of the
land. In the second place, the water pro-
APPENDIX TO WINTER.
NOTES FOR AMERICAN FARMERS
BY JOHN P. NORTON, M.A,
PROFESSOR OF SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE IN YALE COLLEGE, NEW HAVEN.
In attempting even a sketch of the present
condition of practical Agriculture in the
United States, serious difficulties present
tliemselves, which are not encountered in the
study of British Agriculture.
Perhaps the most formidable of these arises
from the immense extent of our country,
combining as it does, tropical, temperate, and
almost arctic climates. While in the extreme
North the thermometer not unfrequently
sinks to between 20 and 30 deg. below the
zero of Fahrenheit, the orange trees of the
South flourish and blossom through eveiy
month of the year. Such a dift'erence of
climate natm-ally indicates a corresponding
diversity in cultivation. Accordingly, while
proceeding from North to South, in each
state a gradual change of practice is obseiTed,
until at last it becomes nearly entire ; all of the
principal crops being such as could not be
successfully grown in the North. So in
travellmg from East to West ; the practice
which would be ad\asable in tlie moister
climate of New England, would be wholly
unfitted to the arid plains of California.
But besides the effects of climate, there are
other causes which, in so widely extended and
so thinly settled a country as this, produce
scarcely less marked variations. Among
these are distance from market, and from
means of transportation. When the products
of a farm must be carried a thousand miles
before they can reach the nearest seaport, the
single question of transportation will decide
as to the most profitable form of produce.
Those who are located at such a distance,
even upon the principal avenues of trade, as
the Mississippi and its tributaries, or the great
interior lakes, sometimes find prices so low
as to render the ordinary modes of cultivation
almost profitless. The wages of labor are
high, and it is only attainable with difficulty.
Under these disadvantages, it is obvious that
the finislied modes of agriculture practised
in older and fully populated countries, are
inadmissible.
We may well doubt if the culture of the
best English or Scotch districts, can be in-
troduced into any part of tliis country, with-
out very material changes. Our funns are in
reality much smaller than theirs, not in nomi-
nal extent, but in the actual amount that is
cultivated thoroughly. I do not, of course, take
into account the immense wheat fields and corn
fields of the west, but speak here of the older
states only, where land has become valuable
and consequently more sub-divided. We' can-
not, with our prices for labor, afford to bestow
that minute perfection of finish exhibited by a
first class British farm. We have not, on the
majority of our farms, that division of labor
which is without doubt most profitable, and
which is exemplified so fully in Mr. Stephens'
work. Each man is ploughman, teamster,
mower, &c., &c., by turns, often perhaps all
in one day. This system has great defects
on the score of economy, but contributes
largely to that feeling of independence and
self-reliance, wliicii so strongly characterizes
the humblest individual in our Northern
States, where all are taught to consider honest
labor honorable. Accustomed from child-
hood to turn their hands to any pursuit at a
moment's notice, and to consider themselves
equal to every enterprise in the way of work,
our men carry the same spirit into other
vocations; manifesting a confidence in their
own resources which never flags, and which
generally triumphs over all obstacles.
Other points in which our practices and
customs difl'er, and probably will continue to
differ, from those of Great Britain, will pre-
sent themselves as we continue some brief
notices of important departments ui the work
of Mr. Stephens.
This work has such a wide-spread and
well deserved reputation, that I have not
thought it necessary by way of preface to
enter at length upon its merits.
The clear and copious details, the fulness
and accuracy of information, the completeness
of every illustration, have in an agricu' iral
work upon practice never been equa>'J d.
Such a work, although it treats of j£. ly
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
things inripplicable to our agriculture, con-
stitutes a vast fund of useful knowledge, from
which may be drawn methods and examples
applicable to every climate and every soil.
It is my intention to assist the American
farmer ia making applications to his own
practice from the book, to point out dif-
ferences and reconcile some apparent incon-
sistencies in the practice of the two countries.
To append a full account of American farm-
ing, would add greatly to a work already
bulky : to do this well would require an
extensive book by itself, and far more ex-
perience than I can pretend to possess as to
the different sections of our country. My
notes v.'ill form a species of running com-
mentary upon Mr. Stephens' observations,
applying them to our own improvement
where it seems practicable. His work is so
divided into paragraphs, these being number-
ed, that the most feasible way of reference
to anything concerning which I may wish to
explain, or from wliicli I would dissent, will
be by simply gi^■ing the number.
It is most proper and convenient to com-
mence, as does Mr. Stephens, with winter,
first devoting a few paragi-aphs to his intro-
ductory matter.
Paragi-aphs 1 to 34. The custom of send-
ing young farmers, or young men intending
to become farmers, to spend some time under
the direction of skilful practical men, is
gaining ground in this country, and will
doubtless have an excellent efl'ect in raising
the standard of farming. It will be noticed,
however, that the young men whose occupa-
tions are described by Mr. Stephens, are rather
more delicately treated than they would be
upon most 'American farms. On these they
would be expected not to go about and try the
ploughs alone, but after a little practice, to do
a good day's work \\ ith one of them ; and the
idea of keejiing a horse for their especial
accommodation would be considered as quite
ridiculous. The .state of society is in some
respects so different in the two, countries, and
the estimation in wliich labor is held on this
side of the Atlantic so much more lionorable,
that it is difficult to institute comparisons in
such matters. I am inclined to think, that
for us, at least, this keeping of a young man
two or three years on a farm would not be
tlie best course ; he would in my opinion run
some risk of becoming a mere drudge, his
thinking faculties would not be sufficiently
exercised, unless he happened to be with a
farmer of more than usual intellectual acquire-
ments, who was willing to devote a far more
tlian common degi'ee of attention to him.
An attendance of two or three months in
each year upon courses of lectures, relative to
scientific agriculture, would expand and culti-
vate tlie mind, would open new sources of in-
terest, and enable liim to reason upon the va^
rious processes which he had obsened during
the summer. This would not injure him as a
practical man ; on the contrary, it would
tend directly to his success. Ijibor during
the usual season of occupation in the open
air would invigorate the frame, as a winter's
study would strengtiien the mind.
Farmers may write and talk about the ele-
vation of their class for centuries to come, as
they have done in years that are past; but
they may rely upon it, that education is the
only true road to that which they desire. Un-
til they ore ready to provide the means of re-
gular instruction in the art of agriculture for
their sons,' mental instruction as well as phy-
sical, they will always be compelled, as here-
tofore, to submit to the leiid of lawyers,
manufacturers, literary men, and members of
other professions, in which a special educa^
tion is considered absolutely necessary to dis-
tinguished success.
An institution which should unite practical
Avdth scientific teaching, if properly organized,
would be the best of all preparatory .schools ;
for there the union of instruction with actual
work would be complete. Such establish
ments have hitherto, for the most part, been
mere manual labor schools, with only the
name of science. We may hope that a better
day is coming; that we shall soon see insti-
tutions capable of imparting every description
of knowledge that is to be desired by the
practical man, and in addition to this so orga-
nized, that by means of extensive researches,
conducted by men of undoubted ability, they
may at the same time advance the range of
our knowledge, and command the respect of
every class in the community.
Mr. Stephens' paragraphs, 512 to 542, enu-
merate some of the principal agi-icultural se-
minaries and schools that have been, or are
in operation, in Great Britain, and the various
countries of Europe. My own inspection of
some of these schools, and the accounts here
given of others, have satisfied me that they
are not in their organization what we. need ;
they are either too scientific, or they are
wholly practical. We want a proper union of
both, it may require some years of experi-
ment and experience to arrive at the proper
medium ; but there is no doubt that it may
ultimately be attained. To an ii:stitution of
such a nature, IMr. Stephens would, undoubt-
edly, lend his full a{)probation ; and might pro-
bal)ly be also led to concede that it afforded
better advantages, than the house and farm of
any merely practical man could otler.
The list of sciences mentioned from para-
giaph 70 to 611. may be somewhat appalling
to the plain agriculturist, who sits down in-
tending to work his way, for a short distiince,
into this unknown land of book farming.
He might well be excused for wiping the per-
spiration from liis brow at such a prospect.
A^HERICAN APPENDIX^W^NTER.
Let me, however, in all due deference to
higher authorities, relieve him by stating that
there is no absolute necessity for his becom-
ing learned in all of these sciences, an accom-
plished mathematician, chemist, optician, zoo-
logist, mechanician, botanist, anatomist, and
geologist. The present paragraphs to which I
refer, compose an excellent comprehensive
treatise on these and other scientific subjects,
which is just what most tlirmers need. It is
a general knowledge of these sciences that
practical men require, such a knowledge as
may be gained by reading popular works, and
understanding leading principles. A carefnl
perusal of the matter under the separate
heads named above, will comince the reader
that here, at least, is nothing incomprehen-
.sible : but on the contrary, a great amount of
information calculated to be directly practical
and useful. Such a compilation as we here
find of general scientific results, and leading
principles, in all branches of science applied
to agriculture, is, alone, worth far more to the
farmer than the whole cost of the work ; it
is valuable as a study, first, and afterwards as
a reference from which he may constantly
glean information, and derive valuable assist-
ance. It is a great object to have simple out-
lines of these sciences, as applied to agricul-
ture, collected and arranged in a convenient
form. The farmer has thus an available
book always near him, in place of being
obliged to search through whole libraries for
what he needs. If the hints and outlines
given here, interest the mind in any particular
department of scientific inquiry, and excite it
to pursue that subject farther, the books re-
ferred to as authorities, will furnish ample
means for so doing.
669. The recommendations in this and suc-
ceeding paragraplis, as to keeping strict
accounts of the crops, the manures, and the
cultivation, in each particular field, are well
%vorthy of notice. The farmer who keeps such
accounts, and registers them in a proper book
during the leisure of winter, will be able at a
glance to know the state of his farm com-
pared to what it was ten or twenty vears
before ; he can see what course of cropping,
what quantity, and what kind of manures have
been mast beneficial, or most injurious, and
can regulate his cultivation accordingly. In
order to accomplish this satisfactorily, every-
thing should be done by weight and measure.
I have seen farm books kept on such a plan,
and the record they afforded was most in-
structive. A meteorological register is also
calculated to be of use, inasmucii as it fami-
liarizes the farmer with every appearance of
the weather, and enables him to predict its
probable changes with some certainty.
The occupations of \\inter, upon which Mr.
Stephens commences at p. 578, \\ill of course
only apply to some of our middle statea,
there being no out of door field labor practica-
ble in the extreme northern states, during
that season. I shall, however, for the sake
of convenience, follow the order which he has
adopted, and comment upon the labors of the
various seasons, without regarding their ap-
plicability to any particular month or time
here.
596. Winter is not alone the season of
domestic enjoyment, or at least it should not
be devoted to that alone. It is a period in
which the inqvxiring mind, bj' reading, writing,
and reflection, can lay up stores of useful
knowledge, and can form intelligent plans for
the coming seasons. The long winter eve-
nings, if only one or two hours of each were
occupied by reading, would enable the farmer
to acquaint himself with all scientific branches
of knowledge relative to his profession.
Clubs, meeting once in a week or fortnight to
pass an evening together, and to discuss sub-
jects of mutual interest, would be very ad-
vantageous to any neighborhood. Tlie pro-
ceedings might be varied by one of the
number reading extracts from some such
work as the " Farmer's Guide,"' or John-
ston's Lectures, for an hour, and then all
discussing the merits of what they had
heard. Such meetings would encourage
friendly feelings in each district, and lead to
a strong spirit of improvement,
626. The uses of snow in protecting the
soil are well known in this country, and are
even more marked than in England. When
the gi-ound has been well covered during the
winter the spring is earlier, because the frost
has not gone so deep ; \\'inter grain is not
thrown out by alternate freezing and tliawing,
manure is not exposed to atmospheric action,
or to be waslied away during every slight
thaw. A heavy coating of snow being so
porous and perfect a non-conductor, has been
likened to a tiiick warm blanket thrown
over the soil. Another benefit wliich results
from a covering of snow, is caused by a small
quantity of ammonia wliich it seems invari.n-
bly to contain. The flakes probably absorb
it in their passage through the air. For this
reason it is said, grass and grain always have
a bright lively color when tliey have lain
under snow, having been benefited by its
gradual melting. Rain contains some ammo-
nia as well as snow, but usually not so much ;
and its influence does not seem to be so
marked upon plants.
661. The iron plotigh has not yet found
much fiivor in this country, ^Vhen these
plouglis have the length that is now given to
tlie best implements, sucli as those of Rug-
glcs, Noni-se, &. ]\Iason, Prouty & Mcars,
Delano, and others, the weight becomes more
th,an our ploughmen like to manage. Wood
is cheap, light, and sufficiently strong, so that
I do not see the advantage to be derived at
.^ilERICAN .^PEXDIX— ^^TNTER.
present from a change in this respect The
remarkable dilTert-nce in price between the
Scotch and American ploug-ho, is worthy of
notice. I am inclined to think that the best
American implements of tliis class, such as
those named above, are equal to any made,
and have known cases where Scotch plough-
men in this country have after a time laid
aside their own favorite ploughs, and t^iken
one of these in preference ; they lay the
furrow well, pulverize it thoroughly, and
move st -adily. It is to be borne in mind that
ease of draught, with depth and N\idth of
furrow, is not all that is to be sought in a
plough. It may slip through the ground
easily, but the question then comes up, does
it pulverize the soil as it goes ; this is a
point sometimes neglected during our trials
of ploughs, the sole object seeming to be
ease of draught As Mr. Stephens says,
plougliing is intended to imitate, as far as
possible, the process of spading; the farther
then, that we remove from a thorough and
complete crumbling and cracking of the soil,
the poorer our work. In order to accomplish
this object of. pulverization there must neces-
sarily be a large amount of friction: it therefore
seems clear to me that too much attention may
be given to this question of lessening friction,
that it may be reduced so far as to injure
the true efficiency of the plough. The very
short ploughs still so common among us, are
well fitted for use among stones and stumps,
where it is necessar}' to be constantly bobbing
in and out of the ground : but they cannot
make handsome or perfect work in open,
smooth fields. The clevis, figured in figs. 3,
3, and 4, is worthy of attention ; it is simple,
and yet admits of draught from a great
number of diflFerent points. I do not know
tliat it is any better than the dial clevis of
Messrs. Ruggles, Nourse &. Mason. The
plough staff, or plough spade, fig. 5, would
be a convenient addition to our ploughs, and
would save many a stoppage to clear away
weeds ; it might, by a bracket and socket, be
easily attached to tlie plough liandle.
676. The collars used in Scotland and
England for work horses, have always seemed
to me unnecessarily large and hea\y, and the
large capes which project from them, adding
so materially to their clumsy appearance, are
nearly useless. Fig. 12, is the only form that
can be of much senice. Such protections
are more necessarj- in the wet climate of
Scotland, where out of door operations mu>t,
I had almost said generally, be done in the
rain, if done at all. \\ ith us they are
scarcely needed, and we certainly should not
inflict Fig. 13 upon our horses, with any idea
of its being omamentil.
686. The simplicity, united with strength,
sho%\'n in this harness, is remarkable. We
too often see horses ploughing in w:igon har-
ness : this is not only heating and distrcHsing
them, by imposing additional covering and
weight, but is poor economy, where a so
much cheaper and more simple iiarness will
do the work equally well.
702 and *3. It is to be noticed that in
neither of these, nor in any subsequent figures,
are the furrows laid flat There is no doubt
that when furrows are set upon edge, the land
lies more mellow and loosely, and that the
beneficial effects of air, moisture, frost decom-
position, &e.. are more readily attained. The
practice of turning the furrows flat seems to
be losing ground in this countr)- at present
though there are still mafiy societies who
award premiums to this kind of work in prefer-
ence. In certain situations and circ-umstmces
the flat furrows are preferable. The temper-
ing of plough irons, upon which so much
stress is laid in 708, '9, '10, and '11, is some-
thing almost unknown in this country, our
shares being seldom taken oft" until worn
out. The cast steel point.s. with the chilling
of the mould board and land side, now ^o
prevalent in our best manufactories, render
all the daily sharpening and setting her©
spoken of, qtiite unneces.sar}'. We caimot,
however, attain the perfection of work to be
found in Great Britain, until we in some
degree imitate the great care with which they
attend to the straightness, the depth, and the
width of their furrows ; in very few, even of
our ploughing matches, is uniformity in all
of these respects sufficiently insisted upon.
720. The tacts given in this and several
subsequent paragraphs, ought to be made
known to all American farmers who are
quietly going on cultivating their one, two,
and three acre fields, keeping up expensive
fences around them, losing tune in ploughing
by frequent turns, losing ground near the
fences which they cannot approach, and pre-
sen-ing this useless ground as a nurserv' for
weeds. The time annually lost in taking out
and putting in bars, or in opening and shutting
gates, might also be brought into the account.
729. It should, I think, be also a rule in
American ploughing matches, that each plough-
man should lay oft' fiis own work, stakes being
previously placed and numbered to show its
boundaries. This is one of the best tests of
skill, and, moreover, one tlmt would prove
quite trving to many men who could work
quhe passably with a straight furrow ready
made for them to commence upon. The
bare knowledge of such a requirement would
improve most competitors wonderfully, by
leading them to practise in advance.
733. It would be higlily advantageous, if
tlie leading state and other societies could,
after mature consultation, agree upon some
code of rules with regard to depth, width, and
general character of ftirrows in different soils.
This would tend to produce uniformity, and
«^4
AilERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
it is to be hoped would do away with the
variety of regulations, which we now find
among the societies of ditFerent sections.
741. The feering poles mentioned here,
would be of much use in insuring accuracy :
tliey are not expensive, and would be much
more certain objects than fence posts or trees,
which are the usual marks steered for. Half
an hour spent in setting up such poles, at the
commencement of operations, would both
save time subsequently, and facihtate the
accuracy of the work.
Tiie ditFerent kinds of ploughing noticed
from p. 749, to p. 793. and the various figures
given, ^\'ill enable the ploughman who is
desirous of improving, to study examples
which will scire as standards, by which to
m-easure Ms advance towards perfection.
Particular notice should be taken of the fact
that shalloic ploughing is only considered ad-
missible in certain rare cases, and is even then
to give way under a system of gradual
deepening.
808. The pulling and storing of root crops,
turnips. b§ets, carrots, &c., has not the im-
mense importance in this country that it has
in England and Scotland. In our northern
etates, the severity of the winters interposes
an obstacle to feeding off upon the land,
which is there a leading feature in root cul-
ture. Fifteen, twenty, and thirty acres, are
not an uncommon number to be occupied by
turnips. Providing store room for such quan-
tities as these, is clearly out of the question ;
and if they were placed in heajis out of doors,
the covering would require to be much more
thick and warm than that which answers in a
comparatively mOd climate. We cannot feed
off in the field, neither can we leave roots in
the ground, to be brought into the cattle yards
at convenient periods tlirough the winter.
These difficulties do not occur in the middle
states, and there the cultiu-e of roots may. as
forming improves, gradually assume more
nearly the proportion to otlier crops which it
bears in Great Britain. In the south, too, the}'
may \vith ad\antage be far more extensively
introduced tlian at present. When we come
to speak of rotations, it will be seen that the
occasional introduction of such crops is cal-
culated to be of very decided benefit to the
soil, as they require a difterent class of inor-
ganic food from the more ordinarily cultivated
plants. The turnip, beet, mangold wurtzel,
parsnip, and carrot, all contain more water
than is found in any otlier crop, it amounting
in most of them, to about 90 per cent. Our
farmers will exclaim against such watery food,
but a slight consideration of the subject will
cause them to take a difterent view of the
matter. The dry substance of turnips, is
about equal in nutritive qualities to the dry
substance of wheat. Now, if we ti\ke a
heaw crop of wheat, s.ay 45 bushels, at 60
lbs. to the bushel, the weight of grain per
acre would be 2,700lbs. Land that would
grow 45 bushels of wheat to the acre ought,
sec. 845 and 848, to produce at least 30 tons of
turnips. At lOlbs. in the hundred, these
would contain in each ton 200lbs. of diy mat-
ter, and consequently, 6000lbs. per acre, or
more than twice as much as was given by 45
bushels of wheat. An acre of good turnips,
is calculated in Scotland to keep four bul-
locks : the wheat from an acre would not do
this. Indian corn compares better with tur-
nips : an acre of land producing such crops
as the above, ought to give 70 bushels of
corn, and this, at 60lbs. to the bushel, would
give 4,900lbs. to the acre, of food superior
either to turnips or wheat for feeding pur-
poses. If the stalks were well cured, and
added to the grain, I am inclined to think
that the nutritive matter from an acre of this
grain, would not fall short of tliat from tur-
nips. It would, however, still be of advan-
tage to cultivate turnips, as a change for the
soil. The other root crops give nearly as
large a yield as turnips, and one or two are,
from several late analyses, somewhat supe-
rior in nutritious qualities. Th'e sugar beet
is an admirable food for milch cows in winter,
causing butter to retain its color and flavor in a
remarkable degree. Carrots, pai-snips, and
mangold wurtzel have, to a certain extent, the
same elTect. TJie culture of these crops has
not progressed so rapidly in this country as
might have been expected, and this for a
variety of reasons. Among these, one of the
most prominent, is the high price of labor.
All root crops require a great amount of
manual labor to keep tliem clear from weeds,
and to thin them out to proper distances in the
rows. In Great Britain, women and children
take this work at low wages ; by dint of prac-
tice they become very expert, and do it with
a rapidity which is quite astonishing to those
who are unaccustomed to the business. Here
it must be done by men, at high wages. They
are clumsy in the performance of their task
from want of practice, and almost invariably
dislike it more than any work at which they
mav be employed. The slowness with which
the weeding operation goes on, is a serious
drawback upon the profit of this cidtivation.
Another cause is to be found in an imperfect
preparation of tiie soil. For these crops, it
should be mellow and deep, free from clods,
stumps, stones, and all obstructions which
would impede the action of a drilling machine,
or interfere with subsequent hoeing and cul-
tivation. Want of attention to these particu-
lars, and scanty supplies of manure, have
caused the failure of root crops in a majority
of cases. These e\ils are in progress of cor-
rection, and will, in time, as suijerior cultiva-
tion progresses, cease to operate. It. however,
remains still to be s!io\™, whether oiu: cli-
e AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
mate is, equally \vith that of Englaml, adapted garded as a most valuabk- article of food
to the production of these crops. The lor siock. The following table from Prof,
drouiflits of .suninier are a serious hindrance Johnston's lectures, shows tlie composition of
to the proper development of the young American linseed cake : —
?lants, and often destroy them altogether. Water 10.07
'he fly is also very injurious. Experience Albumen and Gluten' i ! ! ! 2226
alone can test the question, whether tiiese are Oii 12 38
fatal obstacles or not. Variations in the time J^''^"* • I2.ra
of sowing might be tried with advantage, in '^ _! —
tl;e iiope of avoidh;g such difticulties. lOO.
824. The Scotch method of storing might On comparing such an analysis as this with
be found vej-y convenient here, where large those of wheat, Indian com, &c., we tind
quantities of roots are grown. It would be that the fattening properties of oil-cake must
necessary to cover the heaps much more be remarkable ; and from the large quantities
thickly than is represented in Fig. 37, in order of albumen, &c., which it contains, that it
to prevent access of frost. Roots stored in must also be admiiably adapted to the for-
fields are apt to decay, and in cellars also, un- mation of muscle. A variety of food so rich
less they are both dry and cool. and nutritious as this, will not be exported
879-880. The modes of measuring,orrather when our farmers are convinced of its value,
it should be said of rnagnifying crops, men- and understand how to use it.
tioned here with regard to turnips, have been 956. The various facts given under this
too common in this country as applied to all and ensuing heads, as to the relative profits
crops. No just estimate as to the quantity per of feeding under slielter, and in the open air,
acre, can be formed by weigliiiig or measuring are well worthy of attention. It is shown
the yield of a few square feet : many enormous that w itli less food, the sheltered gheep gain
crops reported upon such data, would dwindle more. Fortunately wood is so cheap in this
wonderfully when subjected to accurate w eigli- country, that no farmer is able to keep a large
ino-, or measurement, of each load. Now that Hock of sheep, but can ati'ord to provide them
sut'h associations as the New York State suitable shelter. Long sheds, open to the
Agricultural Society, refuse to give a pre- south, and having hay stored above, seem to
mmm unless the whole produce has been be the favorite erections. A yard attached,
actually measured by a sw orn surveyor, we aflbrds the sheep room for exercise, and the
may hope for more accurate and really v;i- shed gives them protection in case of storms,
luable information as to the amount of crops. 10u9. In a country so well wooded as arc
901. Feeding of sheep on turnips. The the Eastern and Northern states, sheep can
observations here given relative to the va- usually find natural shelter from sudden
rious forms of hurdles, net fences, &c., for storms late in autumn, or early in .spring, the
inclosing sheep in successive portions of only ones to wliich they are exjjosed. On
a field, will be found valuable for all those the prairies of the w est, some of the varieties
sections of the country where the season will of ^tclh, mentioned here, might be found
permit of feeding off turnips, &c., during win- higlily beneficial. On all bleak hill i'arms, it
ter in the open air. would be an excellent plan to surround the
These cheap fences would also be well barns and sheds w itii a belt of plantation, on
calculated for temporary inclosurcs, on mea- the north and west ; this would break the
dows in autumn, when it is often desirable to Avinds, and protect the inclosures from the
confine stock to one particular portion of the coldest storms. In Great Britain wood is so
field. valuable, that these stells, after the wood has
982. I think that in our agricultural papers grown, constitute an important and lucrative
there are drawings of several forms of racks, property.
that are much cheaper and equally efficient 1114. The liquid manure tank is as yet a
with this, made from plain boards. rare appendage to American farm-yards ; it
The turnip-slicer, Fig. 47, is not unlike is, however, one of such absolute necessity,
some machines for the same purpose, that are that its general introduction will not be de-
made in this country. The simple lever-slicer, layed, when our farmers begin to appreciate
Fig. 48, is an effective implement, and is quite the true value of manure. As too many of
equal to the cutting of a moderate farm, our yards are now ni;innged, a very consi-
Cutting turnips or roots generally, is good derable portion of" the liquid manure, inciud-
economy, as then the animal is able to eat ing washings from tlie solid mutter, as w ell as
them niore readily and more entirely, there the urine, is lost. When conducted imme-
bcing no refuse shells and fragments left to rot. diately upon tlie land tiirough a small ditch, as
943. By far the greater portion of the oil- is frequently the case, it does harm rather than
cake made in tiiis country, goes to Enroj)e, good, by rendering the small portion of land
chiefly to England and Scotland, wliere it wiiich it reaches quite too ricii.
brings a high price, and is universally re- One chief objection that I have heard urged
AJklERICAN APPENDIX— WLNTER.
against these tanks is, that they would be
liable to lill up and overflow, with the large
quantity of water which would be poured into
them from the roofs, &c. It will be noticed
- that Mr. Stephens only intends them to re-
ceive tlie drainings of the yard, and of the
manure itself; as he arranges to conduct away
all water from the roof and spouts, by means
of separate drains. The tank would thus be
able to contain all that might run m from the
yard alone. The liquid could be pumped out
a.'J described in 1115, or mixed ^\^tl^ peat,
ashes, &-c., &.e., in the tank itself. An excel-
lent pump would be that consisting of an
endless chain, with metallic plates attached at
regular distances, revolving in a wooden tube.
This would draw well, and not be easily
choked. Urine, and liquid manure generally,
soon begins to ferment, and then a loss of
ammonia ensues. As the retention of this is
very importiint, it is best to mix frequently in
warm weather, a little sulphate of lune (gyp-
sum), or a small quantity of sulphuric acid.
In both cases sulphate of ammonia is formed,
a salt which is not readily ^■olatilized nor de-
composed. A tank may be built in a very
cheap way to answer every necessary purpose,
and will soon pay for itself in the quality of
the manure it will furnish. Professor John-
ston states, that in Flanders the urine of a
single cow is worth about $10 a year for ma-
nure. If we take half only of this sum, what
an immense aggregate value in each year, is
for the greater part entirely lost.
The plan usually pursued, is to build the
tank in some convenient situation, either in
one corner, or just outside of the yard. The
ground in tiie yard is so sloped that all of the
Uquid runs to a common centre, where a drain
receives it, and carries it under ground to the
tank. This may be built of brick or stone
laid in cement with a smooth floor, or for
temporary purposes of plank, lined at the back
with clay. A tank can be made very cheaply
in tliis latter way from old refuse lumber,
and by tlie time that it has worn out, the
farmer will be quite willing to build a perma-
nent one of stone or brick, from experience
of its benefits. In some cases drains are laid
under the stables, where large stocks are
kept, for the purpose of conducting the
ui'ine to the main drain, and finally, into the
tank. Consideraclo, quantities may be col-
lected in this way if the floors are tight. A
few pailfuls of water occasionally dashed
through these drains for manure, would sweep
away the thick deposit wliich might accumu-
late and gradually threaten to choke them.
They should all be defended at their en-
trances bj' grating, so that straw, and manure
of a solid kind, cannot wash in. All of tliese
precautions may seem like unnecessary trou-
ble ; but in reality there are few things which
pay so well and so soon, as some extra labor
in collecting and preserving manure of every
description, whether liquid or solid. Well
protected, and well kept manure, is worth the
double of that which has been soaked with
rain, and bleached by the sun, during an en-
tire season. In situations where it is not de-
sirable to build a tank, it might be found a
good plan to pave a shallow excavation in the
centre of the yard, into which the drainings
might flow, and be absorbed by long straw,
chafl", &-C., thrown in for that purpose. In
this case also the rain water should be carried
away in another direction, as otherwise there
would be a stagnant pond formed. Such
holes ought to be walled around for the pur-
pose of preventing cattle from getting into
them.
I have seen receptacles of this kind in
Scotland, and found that they seemed td
answer the intended purpose very well.
1 1 32. The method of fastening cattle here
recommended, is a very excellent one, quite
superior to that iu vogue in many parts of
tliis country. Such a method may possibly
be common in some districts among us, bu<
I have seldom seen it.
1165 and 1168. Attention is called to these
implements, for the reason that they are so
inferior in elegance of form, and in lightness,
to our own. The reality of laese and of the
British harul tools generally, that are most
employed on the f;irm, as forks, rakes, hoes,
&c., is far worse than the above pictures.
Their machines are so well and so hand-
somely made, that their hand tools were
always a subject of wonder to me, being both
heavy and clumsy in appearance and m practice.
1171. The turnip slicer, fig. 86, is a remark-
ably useful implement, not easily got out of
order, and very effective. It may be used for
cutting all roots of large size ; and if the
knives were set closer together, even for
potatoes. I have seen these cutters in opera-
tion ; with one person to feed steadily, and
another to work tlie lever, they accomplish a
large amount of work.
The regular apportionment of the day here
given, is worthy of notice and of attentive
perusal, for although there may be no person
who would be inclined to pursue such a
system in full, yet the lesson is a good one,
as inculcating regularity, order, and economy
of time. Every farmer has heard his animals
complam when their food was delayed beyond
its accustomed hour.
1219. The statements here made, relative
to the weight of turnips eaten by a fattening
ox during each day, and during tlie whole
winter, will excite some astonislunent. The
space necessary to store such quantities, and
the labor requisite, even in the comparatively
easy stage of feeding them to cattle, are so
gi-eat as to be a very serious drawback upon
their usefulness. The carrying, cutting, and
feeding of loOlbs. of turnips, per day, to each
ox, is in itself no slight amount of labor.
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
Turnips are not usnally given to cows here,
for the reason that they are said to communi-
cate a disagreeable ilavor to the milk. No
trouble of tliis kind seems to be experienced
in England-
12*J6 and 1228. The principle of the straw
cutter, fig. 91, is largely employed among us,
but it is usual to set the cutter r, instead of at
right angles, so to form obtuse and acute
angles with the cutter wheels k. The
cutters then have a dra\\-ing motion, wliich
increases their efficiency verj' greatl^y. I
doubt if fig. 92 has any right to the title of
Canadian straw-cutter, supposing tliat it was
originally introduced to Canada from the
States. The disk straw-cutter is also much
used in tliis countrj', and besides these a very
great variety of others. The liigh price of
these English implements is curious, ranging
from 832 to §45.
1246. 1 call attention to tliis paragraph, for
the purpose of showing how important it is
to bring all of our buildings into a compact
form. We too often see them scattered
about the premises in most inconvenient
places. A person when feeduig animals, must
spend a large part of his time in going from
one building to another, and collecting the
things of which he is in need. The time lost
in these unnecessary journeys, amounts to a
very serious item. A little forethought and
contrivance, while the building is plamiing,
will render it easy to feed all of the animals
quickly, gi^'ing comparatively little food at a
time, and fresh quantities at shorter inter\als.
As to the proper exposure, I have already
mentioned its effects under anotiior head.
The large farm buildings that are to be seen
in various sections, are capable of uniting
many conveniences imder the same roof, thus
making work easy and simple. Where the
nature of the ground admits of building upon
a side hQl, a degree of perfection in arrange-
ment can be contrived, that is scarcely attain-
able in any other way. Manure kept under
such barns as these becomes occasionally too
dry, so that it does not decompose readily
when turned into the soil. This is particu-
larly the case with horse and sheep manure.
I have seen both of these much injured by
having been excluded from moisture, having
become quite dry and mouldy. In such situa-
tions, some of the liquid manures or drainings
might often be apj)lied with much advantage.
1256 to 1504. The information here col-
lected, regarding the different kinds of food,
both as to their composition and feeding
properties, is both valuable and interesting.
The analyses given under 1303 and 1304, are
not the latest, the results recently obtained
by Mr. Salisbury-, not being known in Eng-
land. Payen must have had some inferior
variety, or the European corn is not equal in
nutritive properties to ours. I will insert
here some of Mr. Salisburj-'s determinations.
Tliese were made upon a large nnmber of
kinds, and were carried out not only in the
grain, but the cob, the stalk, and tiie leaves
from an early period of growth to entire
ripeness.
The following table gives the results of
three analyses.
No. 1. Xo. 2 No. 3.
Starch 5C-10 5308 6152
Sugar and extractive matter, 99-2 1172 12-13
Wwxiy fibre, .... C 95 5 10 5 32
Nitrogenous substances like
gluten 16 54 18-46 inu5
Oil 5.09 4-96 5(12
Gum, 5-.35 6C7 5.66
9995 99-99 lUOOO
These are selections from a large number,
and indicate a much more nutritious food
than that mentioned by Payen. The stalk of
this grain, according to Mr. Salisbury', is also
quite ricli in substances containing nitrogen.
He gives additional analyses, wliich show that
the cob has so much of these bodies as to be
of some value in feeding. The above analyses
may possibly be a little high in their per
centage of gluten, &c., as from the nature of
these bodies, their proportion can only be deter-
mined by an ultimate analysis. Even if it
should prove necessary to reduce their per-
centage a little, this grain would still be both
more nutritious, and more fattening, than any
of the other cultivated grams. The composi-
tion of ash, given by Mr. Stephens, does not
dill'er greatly from that of the varieties
examined by ^Ir. Salisbui-)'. The phosphoric
acid in the ash of the grain amounts to about
half of its weight ; pot;ish and soda being
about thirty per cent, of the remainder. The
phosphoric acid in the ash of the cob is also
quite large,- being from twelve to fifteen per
cent, with even more potash and soda than in
the grain. These substances in the ash, are
an additional reason why the cob may profit-
ably be employed in feeding. It also sen es
the purpose of distending the stomach, thus
saving an equivalent amount of straw or ha)\
1313. These corn bruising macliinea are,
when worked by hand, occasionally efficient
for preparing small quantities of grain ; but for
work on a large scale they are worth little.
Thev operate slowly, the one here named only
bruising four bushels of oats per hour, and
moreover go so hard that men dislike the
work. In any situation where water or steam
mills are within a reasonable distance, it is
far cheaper, in my opinion, to get grinding
done there. If the machine be contrived as
1314, for attaching a horse power, it may be
more advantageously used, although I doubt
if tliere would be much economy in it even
then, except possibly in remote settlements.
1325. This and succeeding jwragraphs,
possess nuK-h interest to the pmctic-.l man.
I do not consider the experiments made upon
steamed food as conclusive, with regard to
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
our practice, since they were made almost
entirely upon turnips. We want much, some
carefully conducted experiments upon the
cooking of Indian meal. Some of the results
from the use of prepared food, of linseed, of cut
straw, &c., are quite remarkable ; the promi-
nent place given to linseed in all of these
preparations is worthy of notice, and may lead
to its profitable employment in those sections
where linseed is cultivated. There seems no
reason why the use of compounds should not
become quite common in this country, par-
ticularly where fuel is cheap. For hogs the
cooking of food is already very extensively
adapted, and it is found that they do remarka^
bly well on that which has even become sour.
The generally superior efficacy of cooked
food is in a great degree owing to a change
which is eifected by heat, of a portion of the
starch into gum and sugar; it is thus more
easily digested. In souring, at least in the first
stages, this process is carried still farther, the
food thus becoming more and more digestible
until the sugar undergoes a second change,
and fermentation begins, resulting in the
production of alcohol. The difficulty in prac-
tice is, that no animal but the hog will eat
food in the sour state.
It is to be remembered, that experiments in
feeding always require to be conducted with
very great caution, as they are extremely
liable to be affected by causes of which the
common observer can know but little. Dif-
ferences in the temperature of the stables, in
the ability of the animals to stand cold or
heat, in their individual constitution, in the
quality or cleanliness of their food, might
each or all influence most materially the
result of an experiment. A great number of
points require attention in order to produce
results worthy of entu-e confidence, and
many of these are fittle likely to occur to
those who have never made such matters
their study. Hence we see multitudes of ap-
parently discordant statements, constantly
appearing in our publications. If the whole
truth in every particular were known, it is
altogether probable that these very experi-
ments might coincide rather than disagree.
The same reasoning applies to experiments
in all agricultural departments. Those who
wish to fully comprehend some of the dif-
ficulties that are to be encountered in at-
tempting to increase our knowledge on these
points, will do well to read a few of the first
pages in a new work by Prof Johnston, en-
titled " Experiments in Practical Agriculture."
1395. The high racks are, I think, almost
universal in this country. Tlie mangers are
elevated to about a level with the horse's
breast, and the rack is immediately above.
Wlien the hay, as is most common, is stored
above the stable, this form of rack is by fjir
most convenient, as then the hay can be
thrust into the top of it without any trouble.
It does not seem as if this situation of the
rack would cause any serious inconvenience
to the horse, as it takes but a moment to pull
out each mouthful, and he can then eat it in
his natural position at leisure. I have never
seen stone mangers in this country : made of
iron they would be lighter and better than
stone in every respect.
1403. Tlie method of ventilation here
described, by means of small windows, is that
which is most commonly employed in this
country ; small slits being cut through the walls
close to the animals' heads. If the building be
of wood, it is common to see a small square
opening with a sliding door. Wood is the
usual flooring material; and so long as it
remains cheap, is probably, all things con-
sidered, the best. It is soft and warm in com-
parison with stone, and is easily and cheaply
renewed. In cow, cattle, and sheep stables,
plank will last a long time, but horses wear
them out more quickly, being more restless
and having their feet shod with iron. Some
persons advocate keeping stock on the
ground, but I can see no advantage to be
derived from such a practice, excepting cheap-
ness in the first outlay. The disadvantages,
however, are considerable. If nnich straw
for litter were not constantly at hand, the
ground would soon become poached and
muddy ; this being in fiict the condition of
most such stables that I have visited. Even
if covered with straw so as to prevent this, it
would grow damp and unhealthy by the
exhalations which would rise. A large
portion of the liquid manure would necessari-
ly be lost by soaking into the ground, and it
would soon become exceedingly difficult to
maintain a proper degi'ee of cleanliness and
freedom from hurtful fumes. Winter being
in the Northern States a season of such cold
as forbids all cultivation of the soil, many of
the matters here treated of may seem to be,
and actually are, for those states, more appro-
priate to other seasons of the year. This,
however, does not hinder the applications of
the principles explained, when the proper time
does come. Our winter feeding must always
be of a different character from that prac-
tised in England ; animals can obtain little
or no support, except from stores laid up by
the farmer, and can nowhere find the shelter
which they need from extreme cold, except in
the buildings which he has provided for them.
These facts point out a serious disadvantage
and burden, under which the farmer in north-
ern climates labors, in the extent of buildings
which he has to furnish and keep in repair, fo'-
the accommodation of large stocks of animals,
and for the storage of their food. This dis-
advantage is one which will increase as the
country becomes more densely settled, as
lumber and various other building materials
10
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
become augmented in price. WTien more
capital comes to be employed in farming, as
the number of acres upou each farm that are
(koroughly cultivated increases, so will the crop
become more and more bulky, callmgfor a cor-
responding enlargement of store-bou!-es. Men
cannot much longer, in the older states, afl'ord
to hold two or three hundred acres of land
which is only tilk-d so far as their individual
labor, with tbuit of one or two assistants, can
accompli>h it. The expense of farming so
much half cultivated land, and the interest
ou its augmenting value, will more than
swallow up their profits ; thus they will be
compelled either to employ more capit;»L or to
subdnide until their land is reduced to such
an extent as they can manage properly. This
will not, however, remove the difficulties
attending the questions of storage, and room
for stock, as the small farm well attended to
will, undoubtedly, produce more than all of
the large one used to do, upon its poor,
neglected fields. Climate we cannot hope to
alter by means of chemical or scientific im-
provements, and our attention must tlien be
turned to other means of escaping from the
evil under consideration. One of these will, I
tliink, ultimately be found in tl.e sfc'.ck yard.
Our ideas of stacks must not be drawn from
the caricatures usu;.lly seen in this country,
made of bog hay, of diy worthless com
stalks, or some other material on which little
value is pl.-ced ; but from such descriptions as
will be given in a subsequent part of this
work. Stacks put up in the manner there
described, resist perfectly the damp, trjing
climate of Great Britain, and would unques-
tionably be found efficacious here. They are
made of different sizes in different districts,
and I have .«een them from such as would
contain 50 bushels of grain, to such as would
yield 5 and 600 bushels. In these stacks,
if well covered and occasionally inspected as
to the thatch, grain \\i\\ keep entirely t-ound
for years, only subject to the ravages of rats
and mice, which would be equally if not
more destructive in a barn. The small
stacks of Scotland, are set upon posts so as
to obviate tliis difficulty also. It is surprising
to see how little rain or moisture, even from
melting snow, penetrates a well made stack.
The great objection to their extensive use in
this country, is the inexperience of our work-
men in building them. It also requires more
time to dispose of a load in a stack than to
pitch it upon a mow or throw it off into a
bay : this is an item of some consequence in
the hurry of harvest Where materials are
sufficiently low, it is probably the best eco-
nomy at present to run up cheap barracks ;
but where they are not it would be better for
the former to study Mr. Stephens, and learn
how to build stacks, ^\^lere new cattle sheds
are wanting, the additional height of frame
and covering for the fides, ar.d of boards
necessary for the floor of a loft, bear in ordi-
nar}' cases a small proportion totlie whole cost.
Another means of improvement would be
to feed more on concentrated forms of food,
as meal, oil-cake, linseed, or jrcpared cake.
Small portions of these cause the animal to
thrive better, while the quantity of bulky
food necessarj- is greatly diminished, and so
of course the supply requisite to be stored
away for winter. Much importance should
be attached, in this respect, to the cuttii^g of
food, as being higlily economical, and at the
same time a more satisfactory practice for the
farmer. Judging from the nmltitude of cutting
machines now annually produced, the demand
for them must be large, and it is to be hoped
that it may still greatly increase. The New
England farmer cannot, like the British,
convert his straw into maimre with facility,
by making litter in his barn-yard in w inter, for
the whole soon becomes a mass of mingled
snow and ice, so that tlie straw often comes
out in spring, bright and long, as if just
threshed. It is then best for him to make as
much manure as possible, by h;door littering,
and by consumption, as cut stuff.
Although the northern farmer is precluded
from ploughing and sowing during the winter
months, and although his time for actual field
operations is thus materially shortened, his
condition during the cold season is by no
means tedious or unpleasiuit. He is able to
give his undivided attention to the feeding and
well-being of his stock, and ought to study
their nature thoroughly, as well as obsenc
carefully the effects of various kinds or
preparations of food upon them. His re-
duced force may thresh out the grain at
their leisure ; all tools should be put in
the best possible order for the coming
campaign, also carts, wagons, and harnesses
repiiired, so that they will not be liliely to
fail at any critical jimcture. It is the time,
too, for making out and balancing farm
accounts, wTiting up records from notes of
past experiments, and devising new or
confirmatory ones for the coming season.
These are fit occupations for the long even-
ings. But, more than this, he has abundant
time for study and reading. It is a common
complaint among practical men, that they
cannot understand scientific books, or what
scientific men say. This is c^-rtainly their
own fault, for there are few farmers who
could not, by a little study and perseverance,
get enough instruction to be of very great
advantage to them in these respects. It is the
improvement of leisure houre, by reading and
reflection, that produces the clear-headed,
sound-thinkuig men, a few of whom are to be
found taking the lead in nearly all of our
country villages. Their aim, however, has
hitlierto been chiefly to increase tlieir stock of
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
11
historical and political knowledge, or of
general information. Tlicy ouglit now, in
addition to these, to devote attention seriously
to science in connexion with agriculture.
Such works as the present, as those of Pro-
fessor Johnston, of Liebig, of Boussingault,
and others, are not only instructive, but highly
interesting. A far better mode of obtaining
this kind of knowledge, is to attend courses
of lectures referring to the various subjects
of which the above works treat. But this
cannot be done by all ; and those who read
attentively will gather much information from
the books themselves, although they may not
be able to understand everything. The
manuficturer, the mechanic, the engineer,
who could not tell why he employed such
and such machinery, or invented certain new
arrangements, or point out with distinctness
the results to be arrived at by certain combi-
nations, with the reasons therefor, would be
considered but poorly acquainted with his
business ; and yet, how many farmers are to
be seen every day, who do not even know
what one of their crops contains, what their
land is made of, or what is the necessity for
applying manure, so far as to explain its
effects. Let us hope that this stiite of things
will not long continue ; that farmers as a body
will rapidly improve under the spirit which
now begins to prevail among them ; that they
will soon understand their own profession,
both practically and theoretically, as do those
who engage in other pursuits. It is true that
tlie farmer has a wider field of knowledge to
travel over than have men in most other
occupations, but then he has more leisure than
they have in which to accomplish his journey.
In the middle States, more of the British
practice may be introduced, on account of the
similarity of climate. In order to the full
prosecution of the most improved Britisli
system, the introduction of sheep husbandry
to a far greater extent than it lias ever pre-
vailed, is a necessary change. When the
south downs, cheviots, black-laced, and other
breeds, famous for the quality of their
mutton, are more generally known and intro-
duced ; the reputation of mutton, now so low
in many parts of the country, will be in-
creased, and the demand for it as an article
of consumption become greatly augmented.
Flocks will be kept to supply the markets
with mutton, the wool being a secondary
consideration, considerable in quantity, but
of medium quality.
Turnip culture, and feeding off, for at
least a large part of the winter, in the open-
field, after the metliod described in this part,
will be found the most economical mode of
fattening for market. Pi-obably no other
crop will fatten an equal number of sheep
per acre; and if, according to some of the
practices to which attention was drawn,
small portions of linseed or oil-cake, or in
this country, Indian meal, were given daily
with the turnips, their growth would be rapid.
The benefits of feeding sheep in this way
are not confined to their increase in weight ;
the land also hnproves very greatly. Feeding
off with sheep is one of the most effectis'e
and speedy methods of bringing up a light
poor soil. It is compacted by their treading,
in a manner more effectual than by folding
with any otiier anhnals. At the same time,
they cover it with a coat of manure that is
evenly distributed, not left in large masses
like that of other stock, and which is very
ready to decompose, wlien ploughed under
the surface. As sheep fattening for market
are mostly well grown, their frames, being ot
full size, would only require extra flesh and
fat laid upon them. The phosphates, &c.,
of tlie food, which would be retained by the
young annual to form part of its increasing
bones, are here mostly returned to the soil in
the manure. Thus, the soil would not lose
much of its organic matter in such a case ; and
if oil-cake, &c., were given, as recommended
above, it would probably improve in its inor-
ganic part, as those varieties of food not only
tend to lay on muscle and fat, but also contain
much phosphates, &,c., which would go to the
soil. Thus sheep husbandry, as connected with
turnip culture, becomes a valuable mode of
enriching the soil. Many light lands, in dif-
ferent parts of England, have been entirely
renovated by such treatment, coming once in
every rotation. The nicety in the cultivation
of this root, which will in a subsequent part
be recommended, cannot as yet be profitably
attained in this new country ; but that good
crops of turnips can be grown is beyond a
doubt, and that with reasonable expense.
The only question, as I have before observed,
is that of adaptedness of climate. This can
be settled decisively by trial alone, and it is
probable, may be modified by changes in the
time of sowing and method of cultivation, as
experience shall indicate. In tlie middle
States then, it is quite possible that turnips
may become a leading crop ; in the northern,
for reasons already stated, I think that they
must always hold a secondary rank to less
bulky and more nutritious crops. I have
spoken of turnips as the type of a class.
Several of the other roots are more valuable as
food, weight for weight ; and it may turn out
that some of them are better adapted to our
warmer and dryer cfimate. They are all
more difficult of extraction from the ground
than turnips, growing less above the surface,
and hence, they would have to be pulled up
in some way before sheep could get at them
with much success.
It may be thought that these volumes are
not adapted in any way for the use of the
agriculturist in the Southern states. Sugar
12
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
cane, tobacco, cotton, Indian com, their great
staples, are not treated of at all ; the compo-
sition of Indian corn is merely noticed in a
siniWe paragraph. This is all true, and yet
the° conclusion that the work ^^^ll be of no
use in the south, is, I think, quite incorrect.
All that relates to ploughing, for instance,
and working the soil, is important. The best
form for a plough-share; the best shape of
furrow ; the complete pulverization of the
soil; the general perfection of work, are as
necessary to the southern planter, as to the
northern farmer. He does not, it is true, do
the work with his own hands ; but he can en-
courage good work among his people.
The general character of southern agricul-
ture, judging from the representations of
southern men, not from personal experience,
is somewhat rude and unfinished. The land
seems to be mostly under an exhausting
system, much being taken off, and little re-
turned. I know this to be largely true at
the north, and yet have no doubt that we are
far in advance of many southern districts. It
is then desirable that a knowledge of better
systems should be widely spread ; that ex-
amples of careful and finished cultivation
should be given ; so that in any case, they and
we may know what our fiirming ought to be,
and may con.stantly aim at improvement.
The southern planters are, many of them,
men of large capital, emplopng from 150 to
300 and 400 slaves, and even upwards. jMen
with such means, have the ability to move
more rapidly in the march of improvement
than the farmer at the north, whose only
wealth lies in his land, and must be extracted
thence by the energies of his own arm. On
these large plantations, we ought to see me-
thodical systems of working; that perfect
di\ision of labor which constitutes the advan-
tage of large manufactories over small ones ;
that method Mr. Stephens so constantly recom-
mends, and so clearly illustrates. This we
find on large English and Scotch farms ; each
class of laborers has distinct employments, in
these they usually continue during the whole
season or year, thereby acquiring a dexterity
and readiness, combined with an excellence in
execution, that can only be attained by con-
stant practice. On northern farms, with few
laborers, this, as has been said, cannot be
done ; on southern, however, it must be prac-
ticable to a large extent, and is doubtless
understood, in a certain degree at least, by
the best planters. Particular hands always at
the plough for instance, would in time do
their work in an admirable manner, if proper
implements were furnished them. Good
ploughing cannot be done with such ploughs
as are, in too many cases, sent south ; an ar-
ticle distinctly and confessedly inferior being
manufactured expressly for that market.
Until the demand in that region for cheap-
ness of tools, without much regard to quality,
is over, the work cannot be of the best cha-
racter.
In some of the southern uplands, where In*
dian corn and rice are the chief crops, it is
quite possible that most other crops miglit be
grown to advantage. It is said that fine
woolled sheep deteriorate there as to the qua-
lity of their fleece : but it would be profitable
to produce good mutton. Many of these up-
lands are of a light poor character ; if root
crops were grown on them, and subsequently
fed off in the field by sheep, the consolidation
of the soil, and the coat of manure left upon
it, would prepare it for a heavy green crop ;
this in turn, ploughed under, would enable
the soil to produce an increased crop of
roots. Continuing in such a system, and aid-
ing it by feeding the sheep A\ith small quanti-
ties of meal, &c., as mentioned above, such
land might be increased in value very rapidly.
From all that I can learn, the present culti-
vation in many of the upland districts, is of
the most rude and primitive description,
scarcely worthy the name of farming. In
such regions a work of this nature is not
likely to be appreciated ; but at the same
time, they are the very places where its in-
struction is most needed.
The southern planter has not the winter
season of comparative leisure which the
northern farmer enjoys ; his winter is a time
of most pressing occupation ; and his season
of activity continues through the whole year.
Planting or sowing of one crop, goes on si-
multaneously with the harvesting of another ;
and so each season has its full complement
of cares. But the planter has an advantage
in one respect : his operations are upon such
a large scale that all he has to do is to plan
out and direct the employment of his forces
and the manner in which the several fields
shall be cropped. Such general dispositions
being made, all of the details are carried oui
by his steward or overseer. The eye of the
master must, it is true, keep the movementj,
of the subordinate in check ; must hold him
diligent and faitiiful : but after all, he will
have abundant time for tiie improvement of
his mind, and the increase of his knowledge,
by studying works connected with the scien-
tific and practical advancement of agriculture
in its various departments. He lias tiie means
and the force necessary to carry out what
seem to be reasonable chanires in practice,
and may by judicious efforts better his own
condition, while his example will prove bene-
ficial to all around him. It seems then that,
in both northern and southern fanning, there
is leisure time which may be usefully em-
ployed in studies and reading relative to im-
proved agriculture.
The commencement is all that is required •
a man accustomed to active life, often dreads
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
13
to begin the reading of a serious, or a long ar-
ticle, even upon an interesting subject. It is
easier, and calls for less mental effort, to spend
his leisure hours in ^•isiting and talking, or in
some active out-door amusement. When,
however, the book or the study is fairly com-
menced, and the mind becomes aroused, his
interest is in no danger of iiagging, and he re-
quires no more urging to pursue the subject.
I have seen repeated instances of this, and
have noticed how close is the connexion be-
tween a course of sound useful readmg, and
a growing uiclination to cast aside old preju-
dices, and to consider proposed improvements
in agriculture as a merchant considers a novel
venture in trade ; not with contempt because
it is new, but with a desire to investigate, and
see if there is not sometliing to be gamed by
embarking in it.
1434 to 1437. The focts developed in these
paragraphs, as to the feeding of horses entirely
upon cooked grain, are interesting and instruc-
tive. More experiments are required, before
we can consider the question entirely settled.
It may well be that for working animals,
cooked food of this description is too easy
in its digestion, passing through the body
before a proper degree of nutrition has been
dja\\Ti from it. The bruisuig of tlie grain
seems clearly an advantage ; and it is obvious,
from the facts noticed in 1444 and succeeding
paragrapiis, that the oats and Indian corn
ground together, a mixture which lias been
gaining in favor here during the last few
years, is a most admirable food. I\Iy own
impression is, that a mixture of this kind
dusted over cut-straw and hay, previously a
little wetted so as to make the meal stick, is
the best regular food that can be given to
horses. This seems to coincide with the
results arrived at by Mr. Stephens. Bean
meal is not used in this country, for the
reason that beans as a field crop are but little
known ; it is an extremely nutritious food,
but I think not equal for our purposes, all
things considered, to Indian meal.
1453. The method of feeding here indi-
cated, I should think well worthy of trial.
Sheaves of oats cut in this way, would not
only form an excellent food, but would super-
sede the necessity of almost any other. The
expense of thresliing would be saved, the
straw all eaten in place of hay, and accordmg
to these experiments the quantity of oats eaten
was reduced ; while, at the same time, the ani-
mal was kept in good workuig condition. Such
a practice is easily tried by all who have a
cutting machine, and may be found highly
worthy of introduction. The oats being mixed
so thoroughly with the straw in the stomach,
could not pass through the animal undigested,
as a large portion of them often do. If the
crop were cut before the straw was fully ripe,
this would be a food of great value.
1456. The apparatus represented by tig.
113, is very perfect in its working, and is.
for large tarms, probably by fiir the most
convenient one that is known. For small
farms it would be too expensive an in-
vestment, unless simplified and cheapened.
It is a great and well founded complaint
against boilers of the common construction,
as fig. 114, that the frequent emptying by
dipping out their contents, is both trouble-
some and tedious. There is, besides, difficulty
in cleaning them thoroughly ; so that a little
liquid or solid is often left in the bottom.
This residue sours, and communicates a dis-
agreeable taste to the whole boiling, when the
kettle is next filled. The barrels in fig. 113
can be inverted and emptied of their contents
in a moment, and can be washed with equal
focility. Steamed food, if the vessels are in
good order, is always clean and sweet.
Where many hogs are kept, such an apparatus
would be extremely valuable, both as a means
of furnishing them %\"ith excellent food, and of
economy in the labor of pi'o paring it. The
pressure of steam need not be large, and
consequently, any old second hand boiler of
small size, would answer for such a purpose.
A safety-valve, however, as Mr. Stephens
recommends, should always be considered
indispensable.
1507 and 1508. Hair, horn, and wool, are
among the most valuable and powerful of
manures. The substance which is liere men-
tioned, as resemblmg gluten, and constitutmg
a large portion of tlieir bulk, 'abounds in
nitrogen, and is consequently a most efficient
fertiliser. Their ash is also rich in phosphates,
and other valuable constituents. Wool, or
woollen cloth, decays slowly in the soil, and
hence affords nutritive matter to tlie crops
for a long period of time. The refuse rags
and sweepings of woollen mills, are valued
very highly in England ; Johnston states that
a price of $16 to .^20 per ton for them, is the
usual rate. The best way to apply horns,
wliich have much the same composition as
bones, is to dissolve them in sulplun-ic acid.
These three kinds of valuable manure have
hitherto been almost entirely neglected in
this country ; immense quantities have been,
and still are, entirely wasted.
1553. This paragraph indicates a very im-
portant fact, and one that, among others,
should lead the farmer to think of the cultiva-
tion of root crops; not alone as a change
among other crops, but as an excellent and
cheap article of food. If caiTOts and parsnips,
cut up with hay and chaff, can be profitably
substituted for grain in feeding horses, either
wholly or in great part, a very important
sa\-ing may be effected ; for an acre of good
carrots or parsnips would maintain as many
horses as would four or five acres of oats.
Horses are extremely fond of both these
14
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
varieties of roofs. Another advantage is,
that so far as yet tried tiiey seem to bear our
cliniatf quite as well, and in many eases
mueii better, than turnips; their roots go
deeper beneath tlie surface than those of
turnips, and eonsequently obtain more mois-
ture to withstand tiie dry summers. This
form of root, however, renders deep plougliing
necessary, as they require a mellow and deep
soil in order to attain their full length. The
most recent analyses of carrots and parsnips,
seem to show their superiority over turnips in
nutritive (jualities ; they contain less water,
and the ,«olid matter, besides being thus larger
in quantity, is somewhat richer in quality.
The mangold wurtzel would probably be
equally palatable to animals, and it is said by
most authors to surpass either of the above
named roots, for feeding. It is hardy, and
returns an abundant yield.
1544 to 1556. These paragraphs form an
excellent and comprehensive treatise, upon the
theory and practice involved in the shoeing of
horses. All who keep horses, or have much
to do with them, know how often they are
lamed, and their efficiency destroyed, by bad
shoeing ; the hoof is pared too much, the nails
are driven in the wrong place, or too near tlie
edge of the hoof, the shoe is too tight. &c.,
&c., all arising from a want of skill and care
in the person who performed the openition.
By reading these paragraphs, and studying
the cuts, every farmer can understand for
himself how the business ought to be done ;
and can oversee it, or give proper directions
for its performance. It will be noticed, that
the number of nails recommended as amply
sufficient, is much less than what are con-
sidered absolutely necessary by most of our
smiths. Probably the degree of care in shap-
ing the shoe, and of attention in fitting it, as
recomnicnded by Mr. Steiihens, obviates the
necessity for many nails.
1574 to 1577. The paragraphs here noted,
show a difiercnt mode of keeping swine, from
that practised in our Eastern and Northern
states. The universal practice in these states,
is to keep them in pens, even where the stock
is Inrge. There are several good reasons for
this: one is that there is no difficulty in
having litters of pigs, and rearing them i>ro-
perly, at any time of the year. We are not
confined to warm weather alone, as here re-
connnended, because the young pigs can
always be made warm and comfortable in the
pens. When kept in pens, they can also be
located in a convenient position ; where the
refuse from the house and the dairy, and food
from the granary, can be furnished them with
Jeji.st trouble. It is easy to have a root cellar
and a boiler near by, for their especial ac-
cominod.ation. If a steaming apparatus like
that in fig. 113, be used, and properly situated,
a very convenient arrangement might be made.
1584 and 1585. The remarks in these para-
graphs bearing upon the cooking of food, and
the experiments dct^iiled in 1591 and 1592,
come with additional force after wliat has been
said relative to steaming apparatus, and other
arrangements for cooking. The s(»uri'd food
mentioned in 1586, has been tried \\it!i great
success by .some feeders. It is ]irohaiilc, tiiat
the lactic acid found in the first stages of
fermentation, acts upon the starcii, and perhaps
in a degree upon tiie woody fibre also ; bring-
ing them into a soluble state, forming sugar
or gum, and thus fitting them for more e.asy
digestion and assimilation in the animal
economy. If the fermentation and souring be
allowed to go too far, alcohol is formed by
the vinous fermentation ; the mass then rapid-
ly proceeds to the acetous fermentation, in
which vinegar is formed ; by this time its value
for food is quite destroyed.
1598 to 1643. The remarks and instruc-
tions under this division, upon the breeding
and management of fowls, will be found hoth
interesting and profitable, to all who t^ike
pleasure in that branch of domestic pursuits.
Even if fowls do no more than pay for their
keeping, there is a profit to the farmer in the
cheap luxuries which are always at hand, to
vary his table during a large part of the year.
But it seems to be agreed by all who have
tested the matter thoroughly, that the breed-
ing of poultry for market, and the selling of
eggs, can be made one of the most lucrative
departments of the farm, in proportion to the
amount of capital invested.
It is worthy of note on p. 1615, that tliey
do not understand Indian corn in Scotland, so
well as our hens, ducks. ])igeons, &c., do ; for
these fowls certainly disregard in a most
flagrant manner the assertion there made,
that the grains of Indian corn are too large to
be swallowed by them, unless previously
crushed or cracked.
16(i8. There seems to be no doubt but that
a part of the food taken into the stomach, is
buriu'd, so tO speak, in the lungs, as well as
in tiie capillary vessels of the extremities and
other parts of the animal. Thus there are
two sources of h.eat in this consumption of
food ; one in the tissues or cells in the ex-
tremes and other parts of the body, keeping
up the viUil heat, and at the same tiuie assist-
ing in the necessary transformation and re-
formation of the various tissues ; the other in
the lungs, to maintain their warmth. In a
part of the body so exposed to chills as the
lungs, owing to the constant inhalation of
cold air, the combustion requisite to maintain
their hiirh and equable temperature, must be
powerful and steady.
1674. To the points specified as to the
quality of food best adapted for fattening,
and as to the advantage of rest and quiet;
there should be added a third importaut
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
16
requisite, which is warmth. Without this, as
nas been explained, the animal consumes a
very large portion of its food in keeping up
the heat of its body. All tliat is used in
this way, adds of course nothing to its bulk ;
hence tlae true economy of furnisliing proper
shelter.
1692. The details given in this, and suc-
ceeding paragraphs, are full and satisfactory
explanations as to the construction of Scotch
and English threshing machines. These are
usually more substantial and expensive in
their structure, than tliose employed in this
country. In many sections, particularly of
the West, parties travel about the country with
machines, and do the threshing for the farmers
at so mucli per bushel, or by a contract for
the entire job. These travelling machines are
usually worked by from sLx to eight horses.
The under-foot wheels spoken of m par. 1715,
are decidedly the favorites in this country;
such a preference may perhaps be owing to
the prevalence of travelling machines, the
under-foot wheel being the only convenient
form for them. In cases where farmers own
a machine, and have it permanently placed,
the overhead wheel is sometimes employed.
Steam power may be said to be almost
entirely unkno\\ni for farm purposes, in the
Northern states. Advantage can, on many
farms, be taken of water power, and much
expense thereby avoided. The directions
given in paragraphs 1721 to 1733, will be
found of much value, to all who have an
opportunity to use water for propelling their
macliinery. The turbine wheels lately intro-
duced, enable water power to be employed
with effect, under circumstances of quantity
of flow, and height of fall, in which a breast
or an undershot wheel would be of little
ser\ice. The American machines used for
threshing, seem to compare well in efficiency
with any that are used in Great Britain. 50 to 60
bushels of wheiit per hour, with 6 to 8 horses,
is not very uncommon work. The horses
being lighter, are more numerous than in the
British machines. All of the best machines
both clean and thresh the gi-ain.
Those made by John A. Pitts, of Rochester,
N. Y., have a high reputation, and are exten-
sively employed. In the construction of our
beater or thresher, there is, I think, an advan-
tage over either the English or Scotch ma-
chines. There are spikes, or beaters, not only
upon the drum, but upon tlie concave ; and so
arranged in an alternating manner, that they
produce a rubbing as well as a beating motion.
These beaters are frequently made of round
iron, but the principle of having them wedge-
shaped seems to be most approved at present.
1821. The machine here figured and de-
scribed, is worthy of a moment's notice, as
being so inferior for all practical purposes, to
the platform scales, now so universal in this
country; such as those of Fairbanks' and
others.
These are quite portable, far lighter and
sunplcr than the Scotch machine, and will
weigh mucli quicker; this for the reason that
being upon the steelyard principle, the great
and unnecessary labor of lifting a weight equal
to whatever is to be weighed is avoided.
The Fairbanks platform scale is also much
more compact, occupying scarcely half the
room. The price is not more than half that
named for the best construction of the above
machines.
1846. This, and succeeding paragraphs, re-
lative to the classification of wlieat, will
possess interest for those who are curious in
varieties of that grain. It is evident, that
there is a degree of discrimination exercised
regarding the character of different samples
of grain, and their fitness for particular pur-
poses, that is almost unknown here. Our
bakers supply themselves witli flour in the
barrel, ground perhaps 500 or 600 miles away,
and unless I am misinformed, consider them-
selves able to pronounce upon its fitness for
bread-making purposes with much certainty.
The distinctions in the varieties of wheat do
not by any means receive so nnich attention
as in Great Britain, and the information that
most farmers are able to aft'ord on such
points, is of a very indefinite character. There
is no doubt but "t!ie character of our wheat
would be improved by care as to the selection,
and as to the purity of seed : not only this,
but the peld would in many cases be in-
creased, for it is a well est^iblished fact, that
of two varieties of white wheat, fur instance,
grown on the same soil, one will outyield
the other. Care upon these points then, may
be profitably exercised, and the subject is not
to be set aside as only interesting to book
farmers and amateurs.
1887. The process here mentioned, has
been recommended in this country, and some-
what extensively practised. There is no
question but that good bread can be made in
this way, and -without the necessary loss,
which ensues from the destruction of a portion
of the bread itself, during the ordinary process
of fermentation. The experiments of Dr.
Thomson, par. 1888, show a very considerable
gain by this method. These, however, do not
settle the question, as it may be that the
mixture of these chemical materials causes
the bread to retain more water than usual,
and in this way increases its bulk. We need
some experiments on this particular point.
Bread one day old, contains, according to
Dumas and Johnston, from 40 to 45 per cent,
of water. Small additions of certain chemical
substances, are capable of making the bread
retain several pounds more in the hundred, of
water.
1896. I shall show, in referring to Indian
16
AaiERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
corn, that this grain, although it does not con-
tain {rluteii, contjiins so much of a substance
whicli is quite equal to the gluten of wheiit in
its nutritive qualities, as to render it the
superior grain of the two.
1901. Tlure should be a distinction drawn,
with regard to the observations in this para-
graph, reliitive to Prof. Johnston's analyses.
I consider tlie principle mentioned as adopt-
ed by liebig, and other leading chemists,
that the amount of nitrogenous substance in
any kind of food determines its nutritive
value, to be in tlie main correct. We find on
analysing any concentrated food, a small
portion of which \\ ill sustain life for a long
time, that it is invariably exeeeduigly rich in
nitrogen ; and thus prove incontestably, that
this is the most important element, when we
are considering what food is most nutritious.
I do not speii.k here of food for fattening
animals, that must have an excess of carbon,
but simply of that which is best adapted to
the formation of solid muscle.
In this view, Prof. Johnston is correct in
saying, that the wheat which contiined most
nitrogen was most nutritious. Whether the
bread was he:ivy or ligiit, makes no difference
whatever. The light bread might be more
easily digested, it is true, but that does not
show that it contains more nutritive matter
than the other ; rice, arrow-root, and tapioca,
ai'e more easily digested than meat, but it
does not thence follow that they are more
nourishing. I do not believe that any baker,
or grain niercliant, caTi tell from the exterior
appearance of wheat, its relative nutritive
qualities. He may say with certainty which
will make tiie lig'litest and most palatable
bread, but cannot know that tliis bread will
be the most nutritious.
We shall mention some of the varieties of
wheat best known in this country, when treat-
ing more particularly of winter and spring
wheat, under their respective heads.
190G. Barley is a crop less cultivated in
this country, than any of the other grains.
The State of New York, according to the
sUitistieal returns, grows more tlian all of the
other states together. Its use is chiefly for
malting; and the great falling off in the con-
sumption of beer, occa.sioned by the tem-
perance reformation, has lessened the demand
for it.
As an article of food for man, barley is
almost unknown ; indeed in many districts,
you may travel for hundreds of miles, and
never see a single field of it. Barley meal,
however, does really make an agreeable and
nutritious food. The fact that it cont;uns less
gluten than wheat, must not be considered as
conclusively deciding that it is greatly inferior
to that grain. In place of gluten, it has
another nitrogenous body, of nearly similar
composition, and quite equal in value. Thus
we see tliat the proportion of nitrogenous or
protein bodies in barley, given in par. 1919.
conies fully up to tlie highest percentage
mentioned under tlie head of wheat.
With regard to these analyses, it may be
proper here to say a few words in explanation.
The fanner should read attentively tlie various
analyses, given under these and succeeding
paragraphs ; for after careful study, he will not
fail to draw many valuable practical conclu-
sions from them. It should be rememlxTed
at the same time that all researches hitherto
made into the composition of plants, have
shown a difference in the constituent parts
of the same plants, when grown hi different
situations, or fed with different manures.
We do not as yet know how far these
variations may be carried, but the fact that
they are considerable, is fully established.
This does not affect, however, the peneral
character of either the organic or inorganic
part; in a grain (such as rice) abounding in
starch, that will always continue to be the
predominating substance, though its e.\acJ
proportion does not remain the same, by per
haps a variation of several per cent. So ii
the ash ; if the alkalies have been the charac
teristic ingredient, as in the potatoe, they wil'
still predominate over everything else, though
often modified in theu-proportioiis; sometimes
one of them may even entirely replace the
other, and still the plant be healthy.
I speak only of perfect plants and seeds, it
is to be observed, for although plants have
thus a certain power of adaptation to circum-
stances, that power has its limit ; when that
limit is passed, we either have an imperfect
stalk or seed, or an utter inability to make
anygrowth whatever.
According to the above remarks, tht
analyses given here are to be considered, not
as representing tiie exact composition of the
various grains under all circum'^tances ; but
as approximations to the general characteris-
tics of each species. The same thing is to be
said relative to the figures purporting to show
the amount taken from the soil by any one
crop, as in p. 1903. They are probably cor-
rect within a few pounds, and are useful in a
high degree, although not entirely accurate.
The malting of barley is an interesting
process to the farmer, as it illustrates beauti-
fully the general process of germination in
seeds, here witnessed on a large scale. The
commencement of germination, is character-
ized by the formation of a peculiar substance
called diastise. This has the power of
changing the starch, and like insoluble sub-
stances of the seed, into sug:ir and a species
of gum. These are both soluble, and are
thus prepared for the purpose of affording
nourishment to the young shoot. The gro\\-th
is arrested by drying the bariey, before the
shoot has absorbed a great quantity ; the grain
a:\ierican appendix^wtnter.
17
is then sweet to the taste, its sugar being
made use of to furnish alcohol for the beer,
by its subsequent vinous fermentation.
" The same varieties of barley seem to be
cultivated in this country as in England, the
Chevalier variety bemg considered one of the
best.
1925. Tiie oats cultivated in the Northern
States, are not usually of any very definite
variety, the majority ha\ing, however, more
likeness to fig. 184, than to fig. 183. Oats as
heavy as the best Scotch potatoe oats, are
seldom, if ever, seen in this country ; the
average weight of our crops being several
pounds less in the bushel, than those grown
in Great Britain. In the number of bushels
we fully equal them, but fall short in weight.
I am inclined to thuak that this is an effect of
chmate. The springs and summers of Scot-
land are much longer than ours, but not so
dry VA\d warm. Their oats grow and ripen
slowly, in a cool moist atmosphere, while ours
grow and ripen very rapidly in a hot dry ah-.
I imagine that the first circumstances suit
this crop best. Sucli a view is strengthened
by the fact, that as we go south the oats be-
come lighter and lighter ; the inference being
that the climate becomes more and more un-
favorable to their perfect development.
Probably this inferior character of our oats
is one reason why oatmeal is not more used
as an article of human food, in this country.
It is, with the single exception of Indian corn,
more nourishing than any of the grains ; I
have never seen a finer race of men than the
Scotch ploughmen, who live on it entirely.
The liking of oatmenl is an acquh-ed taste,
as it is usually quite disagreeable to those
who have never eaten it. After a short time
however, it becomes a very favorite variety of
food, better, I think, as a constant article of
diet, than any preparation of Indian meal.
1940. Rye is an important crop in this
country, more important now than it will be
when our cultivation is better. It is a crop
that will grow and produce a fair return, on
poor light land, where the other grams would
scarcely succeed at all.
A favorite practice with too many farmers,
is to grow rye year after year on such land,
till they scarcely get more than their seed.
They then desist for a time, and let the land
lie idle for some years, till it has regained
strength to produce a few more scanty crops.
Thousands of acres are cultivated, or it should
rather be said destroyed, on this system.
As an article of food, rye is agreeable and
nutritious. In some of its qualities its flour
more nearly resembles that of wheat, than
that of any other grain, containing as it does
considerable quantities of gluten.
1950 and 1958. Beans and Peas, as a field
crop, are almost unknown here ; but these
paragraphs show that they are a remarkably
valuable article of food. The analysis given
of the bean, par. 1954, does not do its nutritive
qualities justice ; in par. 1960. we see that the
pea has about 26 per cent, of albumen, legu-
min, &c., that is of substances cimtaining
nitrogen; the latest e.xaminations indicate
about the same percentage in beans. Both
then are more nutritious than any of the
other grains mentioned.
Indian corn is, doubtless, a much more
economical food than either of these in this
country; but it may be ultimately found best
to introduce their tield culture somewhat ex-
tensively, as a change to a different class of
plants in a rotation of crops.
Mr. Stephens has said notliing of rice
(oryza sativa), a grain wliich is very largely
produced m the southern parts of this con-
tinent.
It contains only one per cent, of asli, tlie
composition of which, accordhig to Johnston,
is as follows :
Potash 18.48
Soda, 10.67
Lime 1.27
Magnesia, 11.69
Ox. of Iron 0.45
Phosphoric Acid 53.36
Chlorine 0.i27
Silica, 3.35
99.54
The character of this ash seems to be not
disshuilar to that from all of the grains
previously named ; phosphoric acid predomi-
nating over every other ingredient, the alkalies
amounting to from 20 to 30 per cent., and mag-
nesia being larger in quantity than lune. The
following analysis, by Payen, represents the
composition of the organic part of this grain.
Starch 86.9
Gluten, &c 7.5
Fatly mutter 0.8
SugMr and Gum, 0.5
Epidermis 3-4
Ash, 0.9
100
Here is a far larger proportion of starch, than
has been instanced in any previous analyses
hi this class of crops. The proportion of
gluten, &,c., of fat, and of sugar, is most
materially diminished. To produce an equal
eflect then, it is necessary to eat a greatly
increased quantity.
Buckwheat (Polygonum Fagopyrum) has
also been passed over, although it is a pro-
duct of much value here. An analysis of its
ash by Biclion, is given by Prof Johnston. It
will be seen to have the same characters as
the ash last noticed.
ASH OF BUCKWHEAT.
Potash, .' H.74
[«oda, 20.10
Lime, 6.66
Magnesia 10-38
0.\-. Of Iron, 1.06
Jk^
18
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTKR.
Phosphoric Acid 5007
Sulphuric Acid 2.16
SiUca, O.Cfl
99.85
We have no very good analysis of the
organic part ; the best that is known I take
from Johnston.
Husk 26.9
Gluten, tc, 10.7
Starch 52.3
i?u<!Hr and Gum, .... 8.3
Fatty matter, .... 0.4
98.6
This w^s made with the husk remaining on
the grain ; taking this away, its composition
and nutritive vahie would be mucli like that
of rice flour. The gluten, &c., in the above,
is too high. Prof. Horsford, of Harvard
College, has determined the nitrogen of buck-
wheat directly, and found it about the same
as in rice.
Last, but most important of all, Indian corn,
or maize (Zea Mays), requires a separate
notice, more full than tlie partial one above
given ; as the largest and most universally dif-
fused crop on this continent. It is cultivated
from the extreuie Nortliern point where grain
v,i\[ grow, to the extreme South, producing
everywliere abundantly, and being a chief
rehancc for food to man and beast. Maize is
the finest in appearance of all the cereal
grasses ; it is considered to have been a
native of this continent, and is supposed to
have been introduced in tlie South of Europe,
at about the beginning of the Sixteenth Cen-
tury. It probably supplies food to a greater
number of the human race than any other
grain, with perhaps the single exception of rice.
In regard to the exact composition of this
most valuable grain, we are still in want of
perfectly precise and reli;ible information, botli
as to its organic and inorganic part. The
analyses made in Europe have been for tiie
most part imperfect ; tliose tiiat are complete
must, if accurate, iiave been made upon
samples greatly inferior to our best varieties.
Some of them make it little more nutritious
than rice, or buckwiieat.
The most important and extended re-
searches that have yet been made, are those
of Prof. Emmons and Mr. Salisbury. The
latter, more particularly, has devoted himself
to this subject, and has given us a great mass
of results, from whicii may be derived much
useful information. In regard to the organic
analyses to be cited, they are all proximate
analyses, in whicli tiie attempt to determine
several distinct nitrogenous constituents, has
been made. Such determinations lose much
of their value, when not supported by ulti-
mate analyses, in which the quantity of the
nitrogen is determined directly and certainly.
This is no discredit to the exertions of 3Ir.
Salisburj', who did all tliat could be done by
industry, in the time allotted to his research.
This department, however, is yet to be
cleared up. There is a nitrogenous body
peculiar to maize, which has been called
gladiadin or zein ; it is quite desirable that
the ex.act nature and composition of this,
should be known. It is probably much like
gluten, casein, and other bodies of the protein
class.
From the numerous organic analyses given
by Mr. Salisbury and Prof Emmons, I have
selected seven, and from these have deduced
a mean, which is here inserted as the best
that the present state of our knowledge will
afford. I have united all of the distinct
nitrogenous .substances which they mention,
under one head. The analysis is as follows :
Starch, 52.3-i
Sugar and est. matter, .... 1664
Gluten, &.C., 15.70
Oil 5.31
Woody fibre, 10.03
IOC
The proportion of real sugar, in the above
16.64 per cent., is probably quite small.
What the extractive matter really is, we are not
informed; it may contain some oil, or some
nitrogen. The percentage of nitrogenous
substances, it will be noticed, is larger than
that in any of the other grains, and indicate.s
truly the great feeding properties of this grain.
The oil also is so large in quantity, as to
exphiin its remarkable superiority for the pur-
poses of fattening.
I find in j\Ir. Salisburj^'s paper, an analysis
of the sweet com, which is worthy of notice.
It is as follows :
Starch, 1C.76
Sugar and ext. matter, .... 36.58
Gluten, &,c 23.33
Oil 10.94
Woody fibre 14 39
100
If this analysis should be confirmed by
subsequent ones, we have in this sweet com,
one of the most nutritious kinds of food
known. The quantity of starch is small ; of
sugar, large, as might be expected : an(i^)f sub-
stances containing nitrogen almost unprece-
dented. The proportion of oil, too, is quite
remarkable. If this kind of corn yields well
on a large scale, it might be of advantage to
test its value, as it would be according to the
abo\T analyses, an unequalled article of food,
nutritious and fattening in a most eminent
degi'ce.
From the same source as the above, I have
selected a number of inorganic analyses, and
have again taken a mean; with the view of
obtaining at least an approximation to the
general composition of the ash. With these
analyses I have also ventured to tiike some
liberties, in calculating them without an item
called organic acids. These can have nothing
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
19
to do with the real ash, and I am unable to
understand how they should be present at all.
With these organic acids left out, the mean
composition of several samples of ash, is given
in the following table :
ASH OF INDIAN CORN, OR MAIZE.
Potash J6.P7
Soda 1:2.63
Lime 0.26
Jluguesia, 15.02
Chliiride of Sodium 0.40
Sulphuric Acid, 0.31
"hosphoric Acid, 52.54
Silica, 1.97
100.00
The greater part of this ash, it will be
noticed, is phosphoric acid, so that it corres-
ponds in this respect with the ash of the
other grains. The quantities of potash, soda,
and magnesia, also come so near as to increase
the lUveness of this ash to the class tiiat 1
have named.
The cob of Indian corn forms so large a
portion of the ear, that it becomes a matter
of importance to know what, if any, is its
nutritious value. Mr. Salisbury has examined
tlus part of the plant also, and I instance
some of his results, as the only ones of much
value that we now possess. They stand
alone; and of course require other results
both for confirmation and comparison, before
we can speak with much confidence as to the
mean composition of this part. In the follow-
ing table is given one of his examinations of
the organic part.
Sugar, &c 2 49
Woody fibre, . . . . . . 90.80
Nitrogenous substances, .... 2.19
Gummy substance, .... 4.52
100.00
This analysis indicates a considerable
amount of various nutritive substances, in this
portion of the plant, and probably explains in
part, some of the results which have been
obtained, by feeding it ground with the
kernels.
Mr. Salisbury has examined the ash from
the cob, and has shown that also to contain
valuable substances for feeding, as may be
seen by the amiexed analysis.
Carbonic Acid VJJ05
Sulphuric Acid, 21.42
Phosphoric Acid, ..... 14.84
Silica 12.83
Lime, 4.19
Magnesia, 7.32
Potash, 30.82
Soda 12.33
99.10
This ash abounds in the alkalies, and in
phosphoric acid: they together making up
more than half of its weight. All of the other
substances', excepting only the silica, are
directly valuable. This is a composition of
ash, diflering remarkably from that of the
straws generally, and has beyond question
nmch intiuence upon the value of the cob as
food.
1764, '66, Sic. Here I shall bring in the ash
from maize again, to complete the notice of
this part also, among the various straws and
stalks. In all, except the bean and peas
stalks, it will be noticed that silica is the
leading substance. The succeeding analysis
shows a decided difference, in the compo.si-
tion of the ash from Indian corn stalks.
Potash, 36.82
Soda, 12.33
Lime 4.1!>
Magnesia 7.32
Phosphoric Acid, 14.84
Sulphuric Acid, 1.42
Carbonic Acid, 10.05
Silica, 12.13
99.10
Silica, in this asii, instead of being more
than half, as in wheat straw ash, and others
of the same class, is but little more than a
tenth. The alkalies are abundant, so also is
phosphoric acid. The ash is in its composi-
tion, between that of the common straws, and
that of peas and bean stalks. For fodder it is
worth far more than any of the other kinds ;
it is considered by many good farmers, when
in its best condition, to be nearly equal to
good hay.
1999 to 2056. On the forming of manure
lieaps, and the management of manures in
winter. These paragi-aphs deserve reading
with great attention, as they contain much
information of a valuable character, with
regard to the fermentation and preservation
of manures. There are comparatively few
farmers in this country, who are aware how
great is the loss of substance, during un-
checked fermentation. Nitrogen in the form
of ammonia, may be detected passing off in
large quantities ; besides this, carbonic acid,
and other products, are continually liberated.
The directions given for the prevention of
such a loss, under these various paragraphs,
are so particular that no fiirmer need suffer it
any longer. It is not necessary for him to
build a shed in every field, or over the whole
of his yards, but he can introduce more care-
ful management. Mr. Stephens omits to
mention here, one of the best methods for
arresting the escape of ammonia during fer-
mentation; it is to sprinkle gypsum occa-
sionally over the surface of the heaps or
yards. The quantity used, need not be more
than a few handfuls at a time.
2037 to 3061. The subject of making com-
posts, is one which attracts a great and in-
creasing degree of attention among American
farmers. Nearly all good farmers are now
convinced; that tliis is one of the most ad-
vantageous modes of applying manure. By
making a compost of absorbent materials.
20
AMERICAN APPENDIX— WINTER.
^sca^(•(•ly niiy of tlie valuable parts of the
luanure can escape. Large quantities of
refuse too, tliat would otherwise dec-ay very
slowly, and juoduce little eflect, are decom-
posed in composts, and thus brought into
forms valuable for assisting tlie growth of
plants. All of the materials mentioned in
these paragraphs, should be carefully pre-
sened, and even sought after. !!\Iany of
them are totally neglected in most districts,
and can he had for the merest trille, in many
eases for the mere expense of carting. The
lish refuse, the dung of pigeons and other
birds, the woollen waste, and the animal tlesh;
are among the most powerful and concen-
trated manures known. The farmer who
systematically collects every species of refuse,
and every available vegetable substiince, can
increase iiis stock of manure to u very eon-
sidei-ablc extent and without material expense.
:2062 to 2084. The subject of liquid manure
tanks, is also one that is beginning to attract
much notice in this country. Farmers find
that they cannot afford to let a large part of
their manure wash away, either into the road,
or upon a small part of some one field. The
consequence of this is, tliat the construction
of tanks has been commenced, and has, I
believe, been attended with the happiest
results. Tiie remarks in par. 2063, show that
a tank is not necessary for all farms : but wher-
ever it is found that much drainage takes place
from the yard, something of the kind is neces-
sary. It need not be large, nor expensive.
The only object is to have a tight recepUicle,
which shall receive and retain the liquid, till
it can be applied to some useful purpose.
For a temporary end, and to try tlie value of
tanks, one could be made from old boards, or
plank, packed with clay behind, so as to be
tight. By the time that it should fail, the
farmer ^\•ould probably be ready to build a
stone or brick one. The liquid may be
pumped out, and Used w ith a water cart as
described in tig. 194, or pmnped upon a com-
post heap. Others prefer to throw ashes,
])laster, peat. &ie.. into the tank, to soak up
the liquid. In this way they obtain a strong
and excellent manure. If too much water
runs into the tank, so as to overflow it, drains
must be inade in such a manner that all
water falling from the eaves of the farm
buildings, may be conducted away in another
direction. A tank l-7th as lonij as that men-
tioned in par. 20G8, or 10 feet long, and 6 feet
■wide, would be quite large enough for the
majority of farms in the country. They
should always be covered over, as much less
is then lost by evaporation. It is an excel-
lent practice to add occasionally, a small
quantity of sulphuric acid (oil of vitriol), to
the liquid in the tank ; this prevents the
escape of ammonia almost entirely, and forms
with it a valuable fertilizing compound.
Sulphuric acid is not an expensive article,
being from '2i to 3 cts. per lb. when purchased
by the carboy.
2085. I doubt the entire correctness of the
statements in this paragraph, as to tlie lo.ss of
fertilizing substiuice by washing away from
manure heaps. If the heaps are of good size,
and properly made, so that niin water may
soak into them, instead of immediately running
off; and if placed in a proper situation, then
it is probably correct that little is lo.st by
leidiage ; but if piled up in a scattered, heed-
less manner, and located on a slope near a
ditch or brook, the loss is inevitably quite large.
I have seen the water of ditches colored nearly
black, for a distance of many feet, by the oozing
from a manure heap. A very good plan to
prevent all possible loss, would be to cut a
small ditch round the lower sides of the heap,
conducting the drainings to the lowest pouit,
and discharging them there into a sunk barrel,
from which they could be pumped up, and
used as might be most advantageous.
2086. The leakage of valuable manure,
from imiiroperly located, or badly constructed
yards, is, in this country, a most important
item of loss. In many cases that I have .seen,
nearly everything soluble is washed away
into the nearest road or stream : the manure
is left in a bleached condition, having lost in
some instances at least half of its value.
Some farmers attenij)t to Siive these drainings
from their yards, by conducting them upon
their meadow land. The usual result of this
is. that but a small portion of the grass is
reached, and that is so much over manured,
that it is a coarse and unpalatable food. The
only economical way to avoid this loss, is to
be found in the construction of tanks, as
recommended in preceding paragraphs.
2107 to 2118. The sea coast of this country
is so extensive, that sea weed becomes a
manure of much inijiortance. There are,
however, many long stretches of coast, where
very little, or none, is cast up by the sea.
This is because there are in the neighborhood
of these beaches, more of the reefs, and rocks,
upon which the weed delights to grow. The
composition of ash from sea weed, as given in
par. 2117. .shows that this ])art abounds iri
substances that are exceedingly important to
all of our crojis ; and likely to be jiarticularly
beneficial to tho.^e crops that are rich in
alkaline compounds. The proportion of this
ash in the dry \\ eed, is greater than in dry
straw. Sea weinl decays very readily, from
the large proportion of water which it con-
tains ; for this reason, and also from the
soluble quality of its ash, it cannot be con-
sidered a ven,- lasting manure. If allowed Uf
dry thoroughly, it will remain unchanged for
a ioiig time, even when buried in the suiL
■ML.
SUMMARY OF FIELD OPERATIONS.
497
duced by the melting of the snow sinks
gradually into the earth, and the earth
has been opened to receive a greater store
than if it had been pelted by rain during
winter. This is occasioned by the radia-
tion of the heat from the lower strata of
tiie earth, which is confined by the snow,
and turned back again to act upon the
earth. In the third place, this last cir-
cumstance produces a beginning of the
spring under the shelter of the snow, which
could not have taken place with free
exposure to the atmosphere. The blade
of the plant is protected, and the roots
have heat and moisture, and the air is
excluded from them. They are thus
placed under the most favourable circum-
stances, and they are stimulated accord-
ingly. The difference in this respect is
very considerable; for if, owing to the action
of the wind during the fall, or to any
other cause, one portion of a field has
been exposed to the air while the frost
continued, and another covered by the
snow, it will be found that vegetation
upon the part which the snow covered will
be fresh, green, and vigorous, long before
that upon the exposed part shows any
decided signs of action. This, by the
way, is the real cause why spring is so
rapid, and meets with so few reverses,
where the winter is firm and decided, but
of moderate length, than it does when the
winter is A'ariable. In such a place as we
are alluding to, the spring-wind usually
freshens as the snow disappears ; and this
latter quickens the melting of the snow,
and dries the surface of the ground.
When the clods begin to dry, the lark
soars aloft at the streak of dawn, calling
the i:»loughmen to their labours. Nor are
they backward to obey ; for they and their
teams have been rested during the storm,
and then return to their labour with fresh
vigour."*
2145. "In the middle of the hill-
country, snow does not fall so heavily as
in the low on either side, the storm being
exhausted before reaching that distance
from the sea. In that case, the stock of
sheep are not so long deprived of grass as
might be expected."t
2146. Clouds. — The prevailing clouds
in spring are the same as in winter,
namely the cirro-stratus ; but it more fre-
quently gathers itself into the cumulo-
stratus, which hovers about in the horizon,
and either subsides entirely below it on
the approach of the frost at night, or veils
the zenith in the day-time, in the form of
the cirro-stratus ; but the cmnulo-stratus
of spring presents a very different aspect
to what it does in summer, having gene-
rally a well defined though ragged margin,
and a peculiar look of transparency or
clearness, which is preserved even when
the clouds become purple or nearly black.
" With such skies," observes Mr Forster,
" I have known cold S. winds ; and on other
occa-sions, with different kinds of clouds,
hot N. winds in spring. The peculiar
appearances which attend these exceptions
to the usual coincidence of phenomena,
ought to be particularly attended to."
2147. Cirri are not unfrequent in
spring, and assume most remarkable re-
lations with the lower classes of clouds.
" I have seen the cirrus," says Mr Forster,
" in tufts, moving along rapidly in the
wind below cirro - cumulus, and over
cumulus in a higher region. There were,
however, other cirri more elevated in the
sky at the same time."
2148. Cirro-cumnli often assume
amusing and sportive features in spring;
sometimes like long tapering columns,
horizontal or inclined, and sometimes like
freckles. " Mostly these little bunches of
cloud are in a plane ; but I have thought,''
observes Mr Forster, " though it might be
an optical deception, that they have been
sometimes in a roundish column, giving a
faint resemblance to the tail of an armadillo.
The cloud which gives what is called the
mackerel-back sky, is composed of the
long waving cirro-strative nubeculjE, but
these sometimes acquire the apparent sub-
stance and solid look of cirro-cumulus." ^
2149. Bain. — The character of the
rain in spring is sudden, violent, and cold,
not unfrcquently attended with hail. The
proportional quantity of rain that falls in
* Mudie's Spring, p. 266-71.
+ Neio Statistical Account of Scotland — Peeblesshire — Tweedsmuir, vol. iii. p. 56.
* Forster's Researches about Atmospherical Phenomena, p. 75.
VOL. I.
2i
498
PRACTICE— SPRING.
spring, takinc: the annual mean as 1, is,
according to M. Flaugergues, in —
February, . . . 00541
March, . . . 0-0557
April, . . . 00802
Mean of spring, . 0-1900
It must not be supposed that these figures
indicate the exact quantity of rain which
falls in the three months of spring, as we
have divided the seasons. The mean-
ing of those fiLniros is not to represent
the actual amount of rain that falls in
spring; but, taking whatever the amount
of fall may be in the year as 1, the pro-
portional amount of rain in the spring
months mentioned, is represented by the
figures given above. If, for example,
we take 26 inches as the amount of rain
which actually falls on the east coast of
Britain, the quantity that falls in these
spring months amounts to .19 of 26 inches,
or 4'94 inches.
2150. The number of rainy days in the
same months is as follows : —
February,
March, .
April,
15-8 days.
12-7 ~
14-0 „
42-5
2151. Evaporation is quick in spring,
especially with an E. wind, the surface of
the ground being as easily dried as wetted.
Hence two or three days of drought will
raise the dust in March.
2152. Sly. — The sky is very clear in
spring when the air is free of clouds, and
of course the blue colour is very inteuse.
It was a remark of Sir Isaac Newton,
that the sky is of the most intense blue
colour, just at the change from di'ought
to deposition.
2153. Prognostics. — The weather in
spring may be regarded as the key-stone
to that of the ensuing seasons ; its indi-
cations are analogous to those of cirri,
which make the first movement in the
upper regions of the sky, when a change
is about to take place in the state of the
atmosphere. The prognostics of spring
are therefore worthy of attention, and the
enumeration of a few of thera may point
to that class of phenomena which deserves
the greatest attention at this season. Dr
Dalton says, that the barometer is at the
lowest of all during a thaw following a
long frost, and is often brought down by
a S. W. wind. When the barometer ia
near the high extreme for the season of
the year, there is very little probability of
immediate rain. When the barometer is
low for the season, there is seldom a great
weight of rain, though a fair day in such
a case is rare : the general tenor of the
weather at such times is short, heavy, and
sudden showers, with squalls of wind from
the S.W., W. or N.W. When the appear-
ance of the sky is very promising for fair
weather, and the barometer at the same
time low, it may be depended upun that
the appearances wnll not so long continue.
The face of the sky changes very suddenly
on such occasions. Very dark and dense
clouds pass over without rain -ndien the
barometer is high ; whereas, when the
barometer is low, it sometimes rains al-
most without any appearance of clouds.
2154. A sudden and extreme change of
temperature, either from heat to cold, or
from cold to heat, is generally followed by-
rain within 24 hours.
2155. According to the observations of
Dr Kirwan, in the course of 41 years
there were 6 wet springs, 22 dry, and 13
variable. He considered a season wet
when it continued to rain for two months ;
and a season dri/., when the quantity of
rain fell short of 5 inches. On these data,
he said that a dry spring was followed by
a dry summer 11 times, a wet S times,
and a variable 3 times : a wet spring was
followed by a dry summer 0 times, a wet
5 times, and a variable, once : a variable
spring was followed by a dry summer 5
times, a wet 7 times, and a variable, once.
21 56. During the forty-one years' obser-
vations, Dr Kirwan farther concluded
that, in the beginning of any year, the
probability of a dri/ spring is as 22 to 41 ;
of a?rt'f, as 6 to 41 ; of a variable as 13
to 41.
2157. After a dri/ spring, the proba-
bility of a dry summer is as 11 to 22; of
a wet as 8 to 22 ; and of a variable as 3
to 22. After a icct spring, the probability
of a dry summer is as 0 to 6 ; of a wet as
SUMMARY OF FIELD OPERATIONS.
499
5 to B ; aiid of a variable as 1 to 6. After
a variable spring, the probability of a dry
summer is as 5 to 13 ; of a wet as 7 to 13 ;
ftnd of a variable as 1 to 13.
2158. After a dr?/ spring atul a dry
vSummer, the probability of a dry autumn
is as 3 to 1 ] ; of a wet as 4 to 11; and
of a variable as 4 to 11. After a dri/
spring and tcet summer, the probability of
a dry autumn is as 2 to 8 ; of a wet, as 0
to 11; and of a variable as 6 to 8. After
a dry spring and variable summer, the
probability of a dry autumn is as 0 to 0 ;
of a wet as 2 to 3 ; and of a variable as
1 to 2. After a icet spring and dry sum-
mer, the probability of a dry autumn is
as 0 to 41 ; of a wet as 0 to 41 ; and of a
variable as 0 to 41. After a wet spring
and a icet summer, the probability of a
dry autumn is as 2 to 5 ; of a wet as 1
to 5 ; and of a variable as 2 to 5. After
a tcet spring and variable summer, the
probability of a dry autumn is as 1 to 41 ;
of a wet as 0 to 41 ; and of a variable as
2 to 4. After a variable spring and dry
summer, the probability of a dry autumn
is as 1 to 7 ; of a wet as 1 to 7 ; and of a
variable as 5 to 7. After a variable
spring and variable summer, the proba-
bility of a dry autumn is as 0 to 41 ; of a
%vet as 0 to 41; and of a variable as 0 to 41.
2159. It is believed by many meteo-
rologists, that when the bodies constitut-
ing our' solar system are placed in parti-
cular ]X)sitions or angles to one another,
or afcct one another, certain effects are
produced in our atmosphere, which are
indicated by consequent atmospherical
phenomena. That increased and dimi-
nished atti'action exist between the mem-
bers of our solar system, as they may
relatively be placed to one another, at any
particular time, admits of easy belief, in a
system so firmly balanced as the solar
system must be ; but what the amount of
the mutual eflects upon one another, at
any time, must be, is a result which long,
laborious, and continued observation alone
can inform us. It is quite reasonable to
suppose, however, that the sun, being so
very much larger a body than any other
in the system, must produce effects much
greater than any of the planets ; and his
aspects must be far more important, both
in power and duration, than the others.
The others are supposed rarely to act
beyond three days before and after their
peculiar aspects.
2160. As regards the general character
of the moon's aspects with the sun, it has
been observed that the full moon and the
quarters are less powerful to cause changes
tlian the new moon and the semi-squares
and sesque-squares. Changes sometimes
take place at the trines, or distance of 120
degrees ; and this aspect seems to act more
powerfully to produce wind, (if there be
any influences in operation at the time to
cause wind,) than any other. Thus, if
there be a high wind, and the moon be
coming to the trine of the sun, the gale will
be very furious about the time of the as-
pect : also, the full moon appears to be
m ore frequently attended by wi ndy weather
than any other, though the trine exceeds it
in the force of the wind. By what has
been advanced, it will appear that the
moon does not act, like the planets, by
her own original power, but that, when she
forms aspects with the sun and planets
simultaneously, she appears to play the
part of an electric conductor, and fires the
train already laid, and ready to explode.
There is reason to believe that electrical
changes in the air occur when the moon
aspects the sun, or passes the equator or
tropics.
21 Gl. Many prognostics of the weather
have been receiveil as proverbs by the
country people ; and as these have only
become current after mature experience,
we may rely on their accuracy. The fol-
lowing are a few relating to the months
of spring in tlje order we have always
placed them.
FEBRUARY.
February fill dyke, be it black or be it white ;
But if it be white, it's the better to like.
The hind has as leif see his wife on the bier,
As that Candlemas day should be pleasant and
clear.
MARCH,
March hack ham, comes in like a lion, goes out
like a lamb.
A bushel of Match dust is worth a king's ransom.
March grass never did good.
A windy March, and a showery April, make a
beautiful May.
March wind and May sun
Make clothes white and maids dun.
500
TRACTICE— SPRING.
So many frosts in March, so many in May.
March many weathers.
March birds are best.
APRIL.
April showers bring forth May flowers.
Cliaucer writes in his Canterbury tales: —
When that Aprilis with her showery soote
The droughte of March had pierced to the roote.
When April blows his horn,
It's good both for hay and com.
A cold April the bam will filL
2162. The equinoctial flowers may be
said to commence with the first break-
ing of the frost before February. These
comprehend the snow -drop, the crocus, the
colt's- foot, all the tribe of daffodils, narcissi,
jonquils, hyacinths, primrose, cyclamen,
beart's-ease, violet, cowslips, crown impe-
rial, and many others ; and every prog-
nostic connected with these plants is of
course indicative of the season of spring.
2163. Rain may be expected when the
swallow flies low, and skims backward
and forward over the surface of the earth
and waters, frequently dipping the
tips of its wings into the latter, because
the insects have descended from the air
to avoid the approaching rain. A super-
stitious respect is paid to the swallow in
many parts of the country even at the
present day. Their nests are protected, and
it is considered unlucky to molest them
even by accident. This is a very old opin-
ion, mentioned by many writers ; and the
circumstance of their building so close to
the habitation of man, indicates that they
have long enjoyed freedom from molesta-
tion. This resj)ect may have originated
inthebirdbeing the harbinger of spring, and
from its inhabiting churches, temples, and
other sacred places, and perhaps, in some
measure, from its utility in clearing the
air of insects. Swallows at one time, among
the Greeks, appear to have been regarded
as an evil omen, when a flock of them
settled on a tent or ship — their low flight
indicating rain, and their settling on build-
ings is an autumnal custom, previous to
their departure, and to the commencement
of wintry weather: hence it is, perhaps,
they have been considered as portending
evil.
2164. The modem husbandman smiles
at the precisi<m observed by the ancients
in sowing, planting, reaping, and otlier
rustic operations on particular days. This
practice, however, till within a very late
period, was common in Europe, and even
to this day is observed in many parts of
Britain. Kay, in his Proverbs, observes —
" Sow or set beans in Candlemas waddle,"
that is, in the wane of the moon, which
is nearest to the festival of the Purifica-
tion. These old rustic rules correspond
to the numerous observations in the
Opera ct Dies of Hesiod and other ancient
writers.*
2165. The only observation applicable
to spring that I can find of the Shepherd
of Banbury is, that, " if the last eighteen
days of February and ten days of March
be for the most part rainy, then the spring
and summer quarters are like to be so too ;
and I never knew a great drought but it
entered in that season." t
2166. It is in spring that certain kinds
of cutaneous eruptions usually appear; and,
to prevent sucli maladies, it used to be the
practice, if not so yet, to administer pur-
gative medicine to young people every
spring.
2167. A phenomenon sometimes occurs
in spring, which, under peculiar circum-
stances, injures plants irremediably for the
season, and even kills them. When
hoar-frost occurs copiously in a calm clear
evening, and should the clearness of the
air continue until the sun rises cloudless
in the east, the sudden melting of the
hoar-frost by the heat of the sun has the
efl'ect of scorching, as if by fire, upon the
tender twigs of plants ; and should the sap,
moreover, be in a state of activity, and the
young leaves budding forth, the leaves will
not only be scorched, but all the branches
bearing them will die in the course of a few
days. This effect may be seen along the
east side of a thorn hedge, after the leaves
have been partially developed ; and such
was the general effect of this scorching,
in the spring of 1837, that every beech,
plane, or oak, that was coming into leaf
were destroyed; and even many evergreens,
that had withstood forty winters, which
Forster'a lU»earchts about Atmofpherkal Pheuomina, p. 284.
t The Shepherd of Banbury's Rules, p. 44.
SUMMARY OF FIELD OPERATIONS.
501
happened to be exposed to its influence,
were also rendered lifeless masses. Such
■was the intensity of cold produced by the
sudden evaporation of the hoar-frost by
the sun's heat, that the sap was frozen,
and the sap vessels ruptured, inconsequence
of the expansion of the ice.
2168. During a snow-storm in spring,
wild birds, becoming almost famished, re-
sort to the haunts of man. The robin is a
constant A^isitor, and helps himself with
confidence to the crumbs placed for his
use. The male partridge calls in the even-
ing within sight of the house, in hopes of
obtaining some support before collecting
his covey together for the night to rest
upon the snow. In the severe snow-storm
of 1823, several coveys used to approach
my own door at sunset, and oftentimes, ere
putting down the sheaf of barley for their
nightly meal, at the root of an old beech-
tree, the old cocks announced their arrival
by the loud chirrup-like call. I believethat,
had it not been for this timely supply of
food, many coveys of partridges would have
perished in the severity and length of that
memorable storm. Hares came to the very
door in the evening, and through the night
in the moonlight, to receive the food set
down for them ; and so powerful a tamer
is hunger of the most timorous creatures,
that even the wood-pigeons, in large flocks,
used daily to frequent an orchard imme-
diately behind tlie house, to pick the tall
curly greens which overtopped the snow,
■ — their favourite food, the Swedish turnip,
being then buried in the fields beneath
the snow. The rooks now make desperate
attacks upon the stacks, and, if allowed,
will soon make their way through the
thatch. Making their attacks upon the
top, they seem to be aware of the exact
place where the corn can be most easily
reached. The sparrows burrow in the
thatch ; and even the lively tom-tit, with a
strength and perseverance, one should
suppose, beyond its ability, pulls out
whole straws from the sides of the stacks,
to procure the grain in the ear.
2169. Further on in the season, the in-
sect world come into active life in myriads,
to serve as food for the feathered tribes.
Rooks, with sturdy walk and independent
gait, diligently search the ground for them,
in the wake of the plough, and feed their
young therewith. Tom-tits clamber round
every branch of the trees which indicate
an opening of their floret buds. The
swallow^s at length appear, giving anima-
tion to tiie air, and the stream of migra-
tion to the N. betokens the approach of
genial weather.
2170. " By the time the season is fairly
confirmed, the leisure-hours of the cot-
tagers," and of the ploughmen, who are
cottagers of the best kind, are spent, in the
evening, " in the pleasing labour, not un-
accompanied with amusement, of trimming
their little gardens, and getting in their
early crops. There is no sort of village
occupation which men, women, and chil-
dren set about with greater glee and ani-
mation than this ; for, independently of
the hope of the produce, there is a pleasure
to the simple and unsophisticated heart in
' seeing things grow,' which, perhaps, they
who feel the most are least able to explain.
Certain it is, however, that it would be
highly desirable, that not only every coun-
try labourer, but every artisan in towns,
where these are not so large as to prevent
the possibility of it, should have a little bit
of garden, and should fulfil the duty Avhich
devolved on man in a state of innocence,
' to keep it and to dress it.' It is impos-
sible for any one who has not carefully
attended to the subject, to be at all aware
how strong the tie is which binds man even
to a little spot of his native earth, if so be
that he can consider it as his own, and that
he himself, and those on whom he loves to
bestow it, are to enjoy the fruit. This is
the very strongest natural hold which binds
a poor man to his country, and to all those
institutions established for the wellbeing
of society. Show rac the cottage, the
roses and the honeysuckles on which are
neatly trimmed and trained, and the gar-
den behind is well stocked with culinary
herbs and a few choice flowers, and I will
speedily find you a cottager who never
wastes his time or money, or debases his
mind, and learns ' the broad road which
leadeth to destruction,' in the contamina-
tion of an alehouse. If the garden is
neat, one may rest assured that the
cottage, however humble it is, is the abode
of contentment and happiness; and that,
however simple the fare may be, it is
wealth and luxury in full store to the in-
mates, because they are satisfied Avith it,
502
PRACTICE-SPRING.
and grateful for the possession of it." * I
bcJieve that the contentment of the lot of
the Scottish married ploughmen, and of
the attachment to tiie farm upon which
they serve, may be traced to the principles
evolved in these remarks. No doubt,
n)uch yet remains to be done to inculcate
on them and their families the advantages
of j)ractising habits of ])ors()nal and domes-
tic cleanliness. Hinds' houses, in this re-
spect, might be much improved ; and if
tliej were, an air of tidiness and comfort
would attend their dwellings, which at
present is too generally awanting. A great
ileal depends on the example of the farmer
himself; for while he keeps hisgarden and
shrubbery and little avenue in a slovenly
manner, it is not to be expected in servants
to evince a desire to excel their master.
2171. A farmer's garden gets a trim-
ming twice or thrice a-year, and in the
mean season weeds riot on without mo-
lestation, and its produce is plucked as best
8uits tlie convenience or caprice of the
kitchen-maid. Doubtless, considerable
croj)s of vegetables are raised in these
gardens ; more by strength of manure than
skill of culture. It is, 1 am aware, incon-
veuientto obtain the assistance of the pro-
fessional gardener in the country when his
services may be most wanted; but when a
hedger is employed on a farm, he should
leani as much of the art of gardening as
to be able to keep the farmer's garden in
decent order in the absence of the gardener,
v,'liose principal duty should be to crop the
ground in the respective seasons. A field-
worker now and then could keep the weeds
in subjection, and allow both the sun and
air free access to the growing plants.
2172. Towards the end of spring, the
farmer thinks of disposing of his fat cattle ;
but, should he not be offered the price he
considers them worth, he keeps them on,
and even determines to put them to grass.
The dealer and butcher affect shyness in
I»urchasing at this season, knowing the
abundance of fat stock in the country ; but
are, nevertheless, unwilling to allow a
prime lot slii> through their hands, and,
therefore, keep a sharp look-out on all the
best stock for disposal. The ready means
of steam conveyance to London i'or fat
stock and dead meat, gives the farmer a
great advantage over the butcher, which
the latter now avails himself of by closing
a ready bargain on the best conditions he
can make.
2 1 73. Spring is the season for the letting
of grass parks. These usually belong to
landed j)roprietors, and form a portion of
their park or lawn. The ready demand
for such grass parks induces the retention
of jdeasure-grounds in permanent pasture,
while it removes every temj>tation in their
owners to speculate in the purchasing and
grazing of cattle. It is not customary for
farmers to let their grass-parks, except in
the neighbourhood of large towns, where
cowfeeders and butchers tempt them with
high prices. Pasture grass is so conveni-
ent for the stock of those classes of people,
that they will give any price for it rather
than want it. In regard to the effect
which letting of grass-parks by tenant«
has on the rights of the landlord, I may
mention that his "hypothec extends ove:f
the crops and live-stock of the tenant, in-
cluding horses, cows, sheep, cattle, and
every tlescription of stock raised on the
farm, but it does not extend to the cattle
of others taken in to graze. On this
ground it has been held an irritancy of the
lease, should the tenant, instead of stock-
ing the farm, take in cattle to graze, and
thereby give the landlord no security for
his rent. — (MacKye, December 4, 1780,
M. 6214.)" t Facility of obtaining grass-
parks in the country is at tinies useful to
the farmer who raises grazing stock, by
putting it in his power to give them, per-
haps, a better bite or warmer shelter than
he can offer them himself, on the division
of the farm which happens to be in grass.
2174. The landed proprietor has also to
seek a market in sjtring for his timber,
which he annually fells in thinning his
])lantations. Such sales afford convenient
supplies to farmers in want of paliuir for
fencing new hedges, wood for sheep-Hakes
or stobs, or timber for the erection of
shedding for animals, or for implements.
They are also serviceable to country join-
ers and implement-makers, in affording
them necessary materials nigh at hand.
The tindjer is felled by the owner, and
" Mudie's Spring, p. 274-5.
+ The Farmer's Laayer, p. 46.
FIELD WORK SHOULD BE IN ADVANCE.
503
assorted into the sizes and kinds of lots
■which he knows will best suit the local
demand. Prunings and small thinnings
ai"e sold as firewood, and purchased
by cottagers who cannot afford to buy
coal, and by farmers who have to supply
fufel to the farm servants that occupy
bothies.
2175. Mean of the atmospherical phe-
nomena occurring in spring is as follows : —
Mean of the barometer in England in
February,
March,
April,
29-81 inches.
29-83 ^
29-86 ^
Mean of spring, 29-83
Mean of the thermometer in England in
February, . . 36°-9 Fahr.
March, . . . 40°-8 ^
April, . . . 45°-8 ^
Mean of spring, 40°-9
Tension of vapour for 40°-9=8-36.
Mean fall of rain in England in
February, . . 1-64 inch.
March, . . . 1'75 ~.
April, . . . 1-59 -.
Mean of spring, 1'66
Prevailing winds in England in February,
March, and April, N.E. and S.W.
Number of storms in the west of Europe in
spring is 17'7 in 100.
Number of hail-storms in England in spring is
29-5 in 100
Number of aurora borealis in
February, . . 307 times.
March, . . . 440 _
April . . . 312 ^
Number of fire-balls seen in
February, .... 50
March, 50
April, 45
ON THK ADVANTAGES OF HAVING FIELD
WORK ALWAYS IN A STATE OF FOR-
WARDNESS.
2176. The season — early spring — hav-
ing arrived, when the labouring and sowing
of the land for the various crops cultivated
on a farm of mixed husbandry are about
to occupy all hands for several months to
come, the injunction of old Tusser, to
undertake them in time, so that each may
be finislied in its proper season, should be
regarded as sound advice ; for whenever
field labour is advanced ever so little at
every opportunity of weather and leisure,
no premature approach of the ensuing sea-
son can come unawares ; and no delay
beyond its usual period will find you un-
prepared to })roceed with the work. When
work proceeds by degrees, there is time to
do it effectually; and if it is not so done,
you have yourself to blame for not looking
after it. When work is advancing by
degrees, it should not be done in a careless
manner, to impress the work-people with
the non-importance of what they are
doing. The advantage of doing even a
little effectually is not to have it to do
over again afterwards; and a small piece
of work may be done as tcell^ and in as
short a time, in proportion, as a greater
operation. Even if only one man is kept
constantly at the plough, he would turn
over, in the course of a time considered
short when looked back upon, an extent
of ground almost incredible. He will
turn over an imperial acre a day — that is,
6 acres a week, 24 acres in a month, and
72 acres in the course of the dark and
short days of the winter quarter. All this
he will accomplish on the supposition that
he has been enabled to go at the plough
every working day; but as that cannot
probably happen in the winter quarter,
suppose he turns over 50 acres in that
time, these will still comprehend the whole
extent of ground allotted to be worked by
every pair of horses in the year. Thus is
a large proportion of a whole year's work
done in a single, and in the shortest,
quarter of the year.
2177. Now, a week or two may quickly
pass in winter, in doing things which, in
fact, amount to time being thrown away —
such as sending away all the teams to a
stock corn-market, on a day when there is
little prospect of disposing of the grain,
and when of course they would have been
better employed at home at the plough ;
or driving some material on the farm,
which would have been easier done when
the ploughs were laid idle at any rate by
frost ; or setting men to thrash or winnow
504
PRACTICE— SPPwING.
corn, and allowing the horses to be idle for
the time; or contriving some unimportant
work to fill up the time for half a day.
Such instances of raisdirected labour are
only reirarded as trifles in icinter ; but
they occujn' as much tini4; as more impor-
tant wurk — and in a season, too, when
every operation of the field is preparatory
to others to be executed in a more busy
season. The state of the work should be a
topic for the farmer's frequent c<jnsidera-
tion, whether or not it is as far advanced
as it should be ; but rather than accuse
himself of neglect, should the work be
backward, he consoles his unsatisfied mind
that when the season for active work
really arrives, the people will be able to
make up for the lost time. Mere delusion ;
for if work can be made up, so can time,
the two being inseparable ; and yet, how
can lost time be made up, when every
moment of the year has its work, and
when that period, long as it seems, is
usually fjund too short in which to do
everything as it ou^ht to be done. The
result is, that the neglected work must be
done in an imprecedentedly short time, and
consequently in an inefficient manner.
2178. Convinced that_/fcW-labour should
be p^rseveringly advanced in winter, when-
ever practicable, I am of opinion that plan
is good which app<^)rtions ploughmen to dif-
ferent departments of labour — some to
work constantly on the farm, others
occasionally to go from home — some as
constantly as possible at the plough,
others fre«|uently at the cart. Thus the
benefits of the subdivision of labour are ex-
tended to farm oi>eralions. When a certain
prop<^rtion of the draughts are appointed
especially to plough, that most important
of all o]>erations will not only be well, but
perseveringly executed. This proportion
of the ploughmen will only be legitimately
employed at any other work when there
is no ploughing to be executed. Ploughing
being a steady occupation, not subject to
irregular action like the cart, may be per-
formed by the older men and horses.
2179. It may be proper to give a fami-
liar example of what I mean by havinir
^W-labour advanced at every opportunity.
The work in spring is to sow the ensuing
crrips; it should therefore be the study of
the farmer in winter to advance the spring
sowing. When the weather is tempting
to sow spring-wheat, then let a portion of
the land, cleared of turnips by the sheep,
be ploughed to answer wheat instead of
barley. If beans are desiderated, then let
the particular ploughing suited to their
growth be executed ; and in whatever
mode the beans are to be cultivated, care
should be taken in winter to have the land
appointed fur them particularly dry, by
letting off the surface-water in winter by
a few additional gaw-cuts where necessary,
or by deepening those already existing.
Where common oats are to be sown, they
being sown earlier than the other sorts,
the lea intended for them should be plough-
ed first, and the land kept dry in winter;
so that the most unpropitious weather iu
spring may not find the land in an un-
prepared state. The land intended for
potatoes, for lumips, or tares, or bare fal-
low, should be prepared in their respective
order ; and when every one of all these
objects have been promoted, and there is
little or nothing to do till the burst of
spring-work arrives, horses and men may
l>jth enjoy a day's rest now and then,
without incurring the risk of throwing the
work back ; but before any recreation be
indulged in, it should l»e ascertained that
all the implements required for the spring-
work, great and small, have been repaired
for work — the plough-irons ne.v laid — the
harrow-lines new laid, shar{>ened, and
firmly fastened — the hames- tight and
strong — the sacks patched and darned, that
no seed-c<>rii be spilt upon the road — the
seed-corn thrashed, measured up^ and
sacked, and what may be last wanted put
into the granary — the horses new shod,
that no casting or breaking of a single
shoe may throw a pair of hordes out of
work for even one single hour — in short,
to have everything ready to start for the
work whenever the first notice of spring
shall be heralded in the sky.
2180. But suppose the contrary of all
this to h.ippen — that the plough-irons and
harrow-tines have to be laid aud sharjien-
ed, when perhaps to-morrow they may be
wanted in the field — a stack to be thrashed
for seed-corn or for horse's-com when the
sowing of a field should be proceeding ;
suppose that only a week's work has b^n
lost, in winter, of a sin trie pair of horses,
the consequence will be in spring that 6
CALVING OF COWS.
505
acres of land have to be ploughed when
they should have been sown : all which in-
conveniences happen in the busy season, by
trifling offputs in winter. Compare the
value of those trifles with the risk of finding
the land unprepared for sowing beans or
spring-wheat. Again, instead of having
turnips in store for the cattle, when the oat-
seed is begun, you are obliged to send away
apart of the draughts to fetch turnips — the
consequence will be, that turnips cannot be
stored, and the cattle will have to be sup-
plied with them from the field during all
that busy season. In short, sup2)ose that
the season of incessant labour arrives and
finds you unprepared to go along with it, —
and what must be the consequences ?
Every creature about you, man, woman,
and beast, will then be toiled beyond en-
durance every day, not to keep up work,
which is a lightsome task, but to make up
work, which is a toilsome burden. Time
was lost when you were idling it in a
season you consider of little value ; and,
after all, the toil will be bestowed in vain,
as it will be impossible for you to sow your
crop in due season. Those experienced
in procrastination may fancy this to be a
highly coloured picture ; but it is drawn
from the life. I have observed every inci-
dent I have mentioned, not, it is true,
in any one year, but some in one, and
some in other years ; and what may occur
in difierent years may all occur in one.
ON THE CALVING OF COWS.
2181. The first great event in spring, on
a farm of mixed husbandry, is the calving
of the cows ; not that this event should
not occur until spring — for most breeders
of farm-stock are anxious to have calves
early, particularly bull-calves, and for
tbat purpose calves are born as early as
December and January — but by far the
largest proportion of cows are not desired
to calve until February, and the season of
calving continues in good time till the
middle of April ; after which, in May, the
calves are accounted late, and then seldom
retained as part of the hreed'mg-^iof^^
namely, that specially set aside to propa-
gate its kind. Reluctance to late calves
arises from no objection to their purity of
breeding — for earliuess or lateness of birth
can have no eflect in that respect; but
chiefly because an early calf possesses the
advantage of having passed through its
period of milking in time to be supported
on grass, as soon as that affords a sufticiency
of food. From 8 to 10 weeks at this
season is a period of great anxiety for the
state of the cows; and, indeed, till her
calving is safely over, the life of every
cow is in jeopardy. Every care, there-
fore, that can conduce to her passing in
safety over this critical period, ought to
be cheerfully bestowed.
2182. The treatment of cows in winter,
in respect to food and exercise, will be
found in (1164, 1183, 1191, 1192,1198.)
When the cow first shows heavy in calf,
which is usually after the 6th month, the
litter in the court should not be allowed to
become too deep, as over-exertion in walk-
ing over rather soft loose litter and dung,
may cause such an excited action of the
animal's system, and most probably of the
womb, as to make her slip calf. The
litter in a court constantly trampled by
cattle at freedom, becomes firm, and aftbrds
a good footing ; but the case is difierent in
a cows'-court, which is usually filled with
loose litter wheeled from the byre; and
as this is walked upon only for a short
time every day, and cows in calf are not
disposed to roam much about, it never
becomes firm. To render the litter as
firm as can be under the circumstances,
the cattle-man should spread every barrow-
ful as he wheels it out, taking care to mix
the straw with the dung in due proportions.
2183. Cows, as they calve, and after it
is considered safe for them to go out in
the air again, should not be allowed to go
into the court at the same time with those
yet to calve ; as calved cows soon come into
season, that is, become desirous of the
bull ; and when in this state a desire pre-
vails on the part of the other cows to ride
upon them, and, what is remarkable, it is
strongest in those cows yet uncalved. As
may be supposed, such violent exertion,
made on soft litter, is likely to prove
injurious to uncalved cows, by causing
inversion of the calf in the womb, febrile
action, or slipping of the calf. The time
of the day at which cows in these difterent
states may go out, should be left to the
discretiun of the cattle-man, who should
consider that as cows, after having calved,
506
PRACTICE— SPRING.
become more tender in their habit than
before, they should enjoy tlie best part of
the day ; that is, from 12 to 2 o'clock,
2184. Cows may he ascertained to he in
calf between the 5th and Gth months of
their gestation. The calf quickens at be-
tween 4 and 5 months. The calf may be
felt by thrusting the points of the lingers
against the right flank of the cow, when a
hard lump will bound against the ab-
domen, and be communicated to the fingers.
Or when a j)ailful of cold water is drunk
by the cow, the calf kicks, when ;i con-
vulsive sort of motion may be observed in
the tlauk, by looking at it from behind,
and, if the open hand is then laid upon the
space between the flank and udder, this
motion may be most distinctly felt. It is
not in every case that the calf can be felt
at so early a period of its existence ; for
lying then in its natural position in the
interior of the womb, it cannot be felt
at all ; and when it lies near the left side
of the cow, it is not so easily felt as on the
opposite one. So that, although the calf
cannot ha felt at that early stage, it is no
proof that the cow is not in calf. Some
cow-dealers show great acuteness in ascer-
taining whether a cow is in calf. One
whom I knew, that was bred a tailor, told
me that when a resinous-looking substance
can be drawn from the teats by stripping
them firmly, the cow is sure to be preg-
nant. After 5 or 6 months, the flank in
the right side fills up, and the general
enlargement of the under part of the ab-
domen aflbrds an unequivocal symptom of
pregnancy. But there is no necessity of
thus trying whether a cow is in calf, for
if she has not sought the bull for some
months, you may generally rely on her
being pregnant.
2185. These are the vulgar modes of
ascertaining the pregnant state of the cow ;
but the late Mr Youatt has aflbrded us
more scientific means of ascertaining the
fact. He says he would not give, nor suHer
any one else to give, those terrible punches
on the right flank, which he had no doubt
were the cause of much unsuspected injur}',
and occasionally, at least, were connected
with, or were the origin of, difficult or
fatal parturition. At a very early stage of
the gestation, he says, by introducing the
hand geutly and cautiously into the vagina,
the state of the womb may be ascertained.
If it is in its natural state, the mouth of
the womb at the os uteri will be clo.sed,
though not tightly so; but if it is impreg-
nated, the entrance of the uterus will be
more firmly closed, and the protrusion will
be toward the vagina. He adds a cau-
tion, however, in using this mode of ex-
ploration— '• When half, or more than half,
of the period of pregnancy is passed, it is
not at all unlikely that so much irritation
of the parts will ensue as to cause the
expulsion of the foetus." He would rather
introduce his hand into the rectum, and as
the foetus of two montiis is still in the
l)elvic-cavity, he would feel the little sub-
stance under his hand. ^ I am certain
that I am pressing upon the uterus and its
contents. I cannot, perhaps, detect the
pulsation of the embryo: but if I had de-
layed my examination until the fa^tus was
three months old, I should have assurance
that it was there by its now increased
bulk, while the pulsation of its heart would
tell me that it was living." When still
older, the pulsation of the heart may be
distinctly heard on applying tiie ear closely
to the flank, here and there, and upwards
and downwards, while the cow was held
quietly and steadily.
2186. The icomh of the cow is a bag of
irregular form, having a chamber or divi-
sion attached to each side, called the horns
of the womb; and so called, perhaps, be-
cause of the form they j)resent, in an unim-
pregnated state, of the large curved horns
of a Black-faced tup. The womb consists
almost entirely of muscular fibres, with a
large proportion of blood-ves.'-els, and of
vascular matter, which admits of con-
traction and extension. Its ordinary
size in a large cow is about 2:V feet in
length, but, Mhen containing a full-grown
foetus, is 7 feet in length. This is an
extraordinary adaptation to circumstances
which the womb ])ossesses, to bear an
expansion of 7 feet, from about a third
of that length, and yet be capable of
performing all its functions. The use of
the horns seems to be to form a lair for the
calf, and each is occupied by the calf
according to its sex. The quey-calf occu-
pies the near, and the bull-calf the ofi'-side
horn, — so that a bull-calf is more easily
felt in the womb than a quey-calf; and
indeed the latter is frequently not felt at
CALVING OF COWS.
507
all until the 7tb.montli, when other symp-
toms afford proofs of pregnancy. "• The
foetus of the cow is huddled up in the
right side of the belly," says Mr Youatt.
" There its motions are best seen, and the
beatings of its heart best heard. Tlie
enormous paunch lying principally in the
left side, presses every other viscus, and
the uterus among the rest, into the right
flank. This also explains a circumstance
familiar to every breeder. If the cow
should happen to carry twins, they are
crowded together in the right flank, and
one seems absolutely to lie upon the other.
Whenever the farmer notices the kicking
of the foetus high up in the flank, he at
once calculates on twins."*
2 187. The exact time of a cow's calving
should be known by the cattle-man as well
as by the farmer himself, for the time
when she was served by the bull should
have been marked down. Although this
last circumstance is not a certain proof
that the cow is in calf, yet if she has
passed the period when she should have
taken the bull again, without showing
symptoms of season, it may safely be in-
ferred that she became in calf at the last
serving, from which date should be cal-
culated the period of gestation, or of
reclioning^ as it is called. A cow is gener-
ally said to go 9 mouths, or 273 days, with
calf, although the calving is not certain to
a day. The experiments of the late Earl
Spencer settle this point most satisfac-
torily. After keeping the record of the
cah'ing of 764 cows, he came to this con-
clusion : — " It will be seen that the short-
est period of gestation, when a live calf
was produced, was 220 days, and the
longest 313 days; but I have not been
able to rear any calf at an earlier period
than 242 days. Any calf produced at an
earlier period than 260 days must be con-
sidered decidedly premature ; and any
period of gestation exceeding 300 days,
must also be considered irregular ; but in
this latter case the health of the produce is
not affected. It will also be seen that
314 cows calved before the 284th day,
and 310 calved after the 285th; so that
the probable period of gestation ought to
be considered 284 or 285 days, and not
270, as generally believed."
2188. It is also a popular belief that
when a cow exceeds the calculated period
of gestation, she will give birth to a bull-
calf, and the belief accords with fact ; as
Lord Spencer observes, " In order fairly
to try this, the cows who calved before the
260th day, and those who calved after the
300th, ought to be omitted as being ano-
malous cases, as well as the cases in
which twins are produced; and it will
then appear that from the cows whose
period of gestation did not exceed 286
days, the number of cow-calves produced
was 233, and the number of bull-calves
234 ; while those whose period exceeded
286 days, the number of cow-calves was
only 90, while the number of bull-calves
w^as 152." t
2189. Cows are most liable to the com-
])laint of the coming down of the calf-bed,
when near the period of calving, between
the 8th and 9th months, and, from what-
ever cause it may originate, the position of
the cow, as she lies in her stall, should be
amended by raising her hind quarters as
high as the fore, by means of the litter. The
immediate cause of the protrusion of a
part of the womb is the pressure of the
calf's fore feet and head against that part
of it which is opposite to the vaginal pas-
sage, and the jn-otrusion mostly occurs
when the calf is in its natural position ; so
that, although no great danger need be ap-
prehended from the {)rotrusion, it is better
to use means to prevent its recurrence than
be indifferent to bad consequences by over
confidence.
2190. Much more care should be be-
stowed in administering food to cows near
the time of their reckoning than is gener-
ally done ; and the care should be pro-
j)ortioned to the state of the animal's
condition. When in high condition, there
is great risk of inflammatory action at the
time of parturition. It is, therefore, the
farmer's interest to check every tendency
to obesity in time. This may partly be
effected by giving fewer turnips and more
fodder than the usual quantity; but some
cows when in calf, and have been long dry,
will fatten on a very small quantity of tur-
nips ; and there is a tendency in dry fdod
to aggravate inflammatory action. Other
* Journal of the Agricultural Society of England, vol. i. p. 172.
+ Ibid. p. 167-8.
608
PRACTICE— SPRIN G.
means should therefore be used, alongst
with a limited allowance of food; and, in
as far as medical treatment can be applied
to the case, there is perhaps nothin<^ so
safe as bleeding and laxatives. " Every
domestic animal like the cow," observes a
very sensible writer on this subject, "is
to be considered as by no means living in
a state of nature. Like man himself, she
partakes of civilised life, and of course is
subjected to similar infirmities with the
human race. Tiie time of gestation is
with her a state of indisposition, and every
manager of cattle should be aware of this,
and treat her with every attention and
care during this time. The actual diseases
of gestation are not indeed numerous, but
they are frequently very severe, and they
occasion always a tendency to slinking, or
the cow slipping her calf. As the weight
of the calf begins to increase, it will then
be necessary to take some precautions,
— and these precautions will consist
in an attention to her diet, air, and
exercise." *
2191. It is the 8th and 9th months that
constitute the critical period of a cow in
calf. The bulk and weight of the foitus
cause disagreeable sensations in the cow,
and frequently produce feverish symptoms,
the consequence of which is costiveness.
The treatment for this is bleeding once or
twice, in proportion to the strength and
condition of the cow, and the administer-
ing of laxative medicine and emollient
drinks, such as a dose of 1 lb. of Epsom
salts with some cordial admixture of gin-
ger and carraway seed and treacle, in a
quart each of warm gruel and sound ale.
Turnips may be given, and they have a
laxative tendency, especially the white
varieties. Potatoes, too, are recommended ;
but I entirely object to giving potatoes to
cows at any time, because of their great
tendency to produce hoven ; and if hovcn
were to overtake a cow far advanced in
pregnancy, the calf would either be killed
in the womb, or it would cause the cow
to slip it.
2192. Having suffered the loss of two
or three cows by costiveness, immediately
after calving — the Swedish turnip in the
maniplies being squeezed flat like the
skins of apples from a cider press — I was
induced to try oil-cnkc as a laxative along
with the Swedish turnip. The cake was
given to the cows for 2 months, one before
and one after calving, and its valuable
property of keeping them in a line laxa-
tive state, and at the same time in good
health, was highly satisfactory; and on
continuing the practice every year after-
wards, no similar mishap ever overtook
ray cows. The quantity given to each
cow daily was 4 lbs., at an intermediate
time between the feeds of turnips. The
time of giving it was as regularly adhered
to as that of the turnips ; and when the
hour arrived for its distribution, 10 o'clock
forenoon, every cow expressed the greatest
anxiety for the treat. It was broken to
them in small pieces with the oil-cake
breaker, fig. 53.
2193. But the state of over-leanness is
also to be avoided in cows in calf. Instead
of being bled, the cow should rather have
nourishing food, such as mashes of boiled
barley, turnips, and oil-cake, not given in
large quantities at a time, but frequently,
with a view to laying on flesh in a gradual
manner, and at the same time of avoiding
the fatal tendency to plethora. I believe
when oil-cake is given to cows before and
after their calving, as I have recommended,
no apprehension need be entertained of
their safety as far as regards their calving,
in whatever condition they may happen
to be, as it proves a laxative to the fat,
and nourishing food to the lean cow.
2194. Slinkhig^ or slipping of the calf,
is a vexatious occurrence, and a great loss
to the breeder of stock. It is not only a
loss of perhaps a very valuable calf, but
its want makes a blank in the number of
the lot to be brought u]) in the season, and
which can only be made up by j)urchase.
And the vexation is, that the cow can never
again be depende<l upon to bear a living
calf, the probability being that she will
slip it every season tiiereafter. Why this
residt should ensue has never been satis-
factorily explained. The only remedy for
the farmer is to take the milk from tlio cow
as long as she gives it, and tiien fatten her
for the butcher. I had a very fine short-
horn cow, bred by myself, that slipped her
second calf; and not being disposed to
trust her again, fed her oil', when she be-
* Skellett On ihr Parturition of the Cow, p. 41.
CALVmG OF COWS.
509
came extraordinarily fat, and yielded very
superior meat ; and I was so far fortunate
that this was the only cow I ever Lad
which became a victim to the complaint
we are speaking of.
219.5. The causes of this troublesome
complaint are various, arising chiefly,
however, from violent exercise, the eflfect
of frights, bruises, and knocks ; " but,"
says Skellett, "a more common cause of
slinking than any of them, and which is
peculiar in its influence on this animal, is
a disagreeable nauseous smell. The cow is
remarked to possess a very nice and
delicate sense of smelling, to that degree,
that the slinking of one cow is apt, from
this circumstance, to be communicated to
a great number of the same herd; it has
been often known to spread like an infec-
tious disease, and great losses have been
sufi"ered by the coAvfeeders from the same."*
As there is much truth in these remarks,
you will see the necessity of keeping every
thing in a byre occupied hy breeding cotes
in a clean and wholesome state ; to have
every particle of filth removed daily from
the feeding troughs in front, and the urine-
gutters behind them ; and to have the
byre thoroughly ventilated when the cows
go out to the court. The same circumstance
■will show you the propriety of prevent-
ing pigs being slaughtered in the court in
which cows walk, and any animal being
bled near the byre ; so much so, that when
any of the cows recpiire bleeding, the ope-
ration should be performed in another
apartment than the hyvQ.
2 J 96. Whenever a cow shows symptoms
of slinking, which may be observed in the
byre, but not easily in the grass-field, she
should be immediately removed from her
companions. The Jirst symptoms are a
sudden filling of the udder before the time
of reckoning would warrant, a looseness,
flabbiness, and redness of, and a yellow
glairy discharge from, the vagina, and a
giving way of the ligaments on both sides
of the rump. When these symptoms are
observed, the cow should be narrowly
watched, aud means of preventing slinking
instantly adopted, one of the chief of which
is bloodletting. This should be followed
by a laxative dose. But these means will
prove ineffectual, if the symptoms make
their appearance suddenly, and go through
their course rapidlv, and the calf will be
slipped after all.
2197. The risk which the cow runs,
after slinking, is in not getting quit of the
cleaning^ or afterbirth^ or placenta^ as it
is not in a prepared state to separate from
the womb. Should it be retained, corrup-
tion will soon take place in it, and produce
a very nauseous smell, which will remain
as long as the cleaning will be in passing
away by degrees in putridity. When
the cleaning does not come away in the
course of a few hours, or at most a day,
the assistance of the veterinary surgeon
should be obtained. The following cordial
drink will promote the cleansing — juniper
berries 3 oz., bay berries 2 oz., nitre 1 oz.,
anise seed 1 oz., gentian \ oz., gum myrrh
5 oz., assafoetida \ oz., well pounded to-
gether, for one dose, and given in 1 quart ol
mild ale made warm in 1 quart of penny-
royal tea. This drink should be given
fasting, and repeated every day till the
cleansing be evacuated. The cow should
have plenty of warm drinks, such as warm
water, thin gruel, and mashes made of malt,
with bran, so as to keep the body gently
open — and this should be attended to at all
times. Should the regimen not be sufS-
cient to keep the body open, and feverish
symptoms appear, recourse nmst be had to
stronger remedies, such as Epsom salts 1
lb., nitre 2 oz., anise seed in powder 1 oz.,
cumin seed in powder 1 oz., ginger \ oz.,
mixed together for one dose, which is to
be given in 2 quarts of water gruel with
\ lb. of treacle. The dose may be re-
peated, if the first dose has not had the
desired effect, in 10 or 12 hours.
2198. As to the pretention of the re-
currence of this vexatious complaint,
though, I believe, the best thing for the
farmer is not to attempt any, but milk and
fatten the cow, yet a natural desire is felt
to retain a valuable and favourite cow, so
that means may be used to enable her
again to bear a living calf. Skellett men-
tions as preventive measures, that " when
a cow has slipped her calf, in the next
gestation she should be early bled, her
body should be kept open by cooling physic;
she should not be forced to take any more
exercise than what is absolutely necessary
Skellett On the Partxtrition of the Cote, p. 62.
610
PRACTICE— SPRING.
for her health, and her interfering with
other cattle guanleil against by keeping
her verv luucli by herself. At the same
time," he adds, "• it must be observed, that
though it is necessary to preserve a free
state of tlie bowels, a laxity of them will
often produce this accident; covi-a/ed very
much upon potatoes, and such other watery
food, an' tcry apt to slinky from their laxa-
tive eftects. In the food of the cow, at
this time, a proper medium should be ob-
served, and it should consist of a due pro-
portion of other vegetable matter mixed
with the fodder, so a-s the bowels may be
kept regularly open, and no more." Our
author, however, does not see how these
remedial measures can be effectual. If the
cow is in high condition indeed, she should
be reduced in condition ; if in very
low, she ought to get nourishing food and
strengthening medicines ; and if she is much
annoyed by nauseous smells, these should
either be counteracted, or the cow with-
drawn from them. To counteract bad
smells, Skellett recommends the following
mixture to be formed, and rubbed a little
every day on the parts the cows commonly
smell each other : — Barbadoes tar 3 oz.,
balsam of sulphur 3 oz., rectified oil of
amber 1 oz., fine oil of thyme 1 oz., and
animal oil 1 oz. " Of what nature that
odour is," continues Skellett, "which gives
offence, we cannot altogether be certain ;
but the author has remarked that its effects
occur at one season more than at another,
and particularly when the weather has
been wet, and the cows have long been
kept at grass. From this fact," he con-
cludes, " it would appear that the smell is
of a vegetable nature, and connected with
their feeding at that time."* It is under-
stood that cows which are fed in the neigh-
bourhood of and in Woods, and that live on
coarse rank pasture in autumn, are most
lialile to this complaint. In Switzerlan<l,
the com2)laint increases after the cows are
put on rank pastures in autumn.
2199. Although slinking is spoken of
as an infectious complaint, it has no pro-
perty in common with any contagious
disease ; and sympathetic influence being
a main cause of it, the result is as fatal as
if direct contagion had occasioned it.
2174. About Ji fortnight before the time
of reckoning, symptoms of cahing indi'
cdfe themscltig in the cow. The loose
skinny space between the vagina and udder
becomes florid ; the vagina becomes loose
and flabby ; the lower part of the abdomen
rather ci>ntract^ ; the udder becomes larger,
harder, more florid, hotter to the feel, and
more tender-looking ; the milk-veins along
the lower part of the abdomen become
larger, and the coupling on each side of
the rump-bones looser ; and when the
couplings feel as if a separation had taken
place of the parts there, the cow should be
watched day and night, for at any hour
afterwards the pains of calving may come
upon her. From this period, the animal
becomes easily excited, and, on that ac-
count, should not be allowed to go out, or
be disturbed in the byre. In some cases,
these entire premonitory symptoms suc-
ceed each other rapidly, in others they
follow slowly ; and the latter is particu-
larly the case with heifers in first calf.
2200. These symptoms are called
springing in England, and the heifers
which exhibit them are named springers.
2201. In different parts of the country,
different practices exist in regard to at-
tending on cows at calving. In the
southern counties of Scotland, the .shep-
herd conceives it to be his duty to attend
on the occasion, assisted by the cattle-man,
and other men if required. In the northern
counties, on the contrary, the calving is
left to women to manage. I tliink this
diflV'rencc in practice must have arisen
from the degree of assistance re(juired at
the operation. In the southern counties,
the large and valuable breed of cows al-
most always require assistance in partu-
rition, the neglect of which might cause
the cow to sink from exhaustion, and the
calf be strangled or drowned at its birth.
Powerful assistance is sometimes required,
and can only be afforded by men, the
strength of women being unequal to the
task. Indeed, I have witnessed the as-
sistance of eight men, given one way and
another, in the extraction of a calf coming
in the natural position. The calf was the
first of twins, very large, and this was the
first labour of the heifer. I shall never
forget the distressing cries of the poor
creature when racked with pain, nor the
* Skellett Oh, the ParturU'wn of the Cov, p. 67-74.
CAL\TNG OF COWS.
511
patience and sympathy evinced by all the
men who were summoned to assist.- It
was an interesting case, conducted by an
experienced shepherd, and lasted alto-
gether about five hours. The cow and
calves wei'e much exhausted; but all were
well in the course of a few days. In
the northern counties, cows are not only
smaller, but the calves are small in pro-
portion, so that most cows calve without
assistance ; and, therefore, women may
manage the calving, and the cow and calf
without difficulty. Of the two modes of
conducting this delicate and oft-times te-
dious operation, I should say that it falls
most legitimately under the guidance of
the shepherd, who seems to be the natural
guardian of all the young stock bi'ought
forth on a farm ; and where there is no
shepherd, the cattle-man should take the
charge, the farmer himself, in all cases,
giving his sanction to the means about to
be employerl — it being but fair that he him-
self should bear the heaviest part of the re-
sponsibility connected with this dangerous
process.
2202. A few preparatory requisites
should be at hand when a cow is about to
calve. Two or three rein-ropes are useful,
when Jlat soft ropes are not provided on
purpose, to tie to the calf. A mat or
sheeting, to receive the calf upon in drop-
ping from the cow, should siie be inclined
to stand on her feet when she calves. The
cattle-man should have the calf's crib in
E, Plate II., well littered. The shepherd
should pare the nails of his hands close, in
case he should have occasion to introduce
his arras into the cow to adjust the calf;
and he should have goose-fat or hog's lard
with which to smear his hands and arms.
Goose-fat makes the skin smoothest and
best withstands drying (1633.) It may
be necessary to have a few sacks of straw
to put under the cow to elevate her hind
quarters, and even to have block and tackle
to hoist her up by the hind legs, in order
to adjust the calf in the womb. These last
articles should be ready at hand if wanted.
Some straw should be spread on the floor
of the byre, to place the new-dropped calf
upon.
2203. All being prepared, and the byre-
door closed for quietness, the cow should
be attended every moment. The proxi-
mate symptoms of calving are thus exactly
described by Skellett, as tliey occur in an
ordinary case. " When the operation of
calving actually begins," he says, " then
signs of uneasiness and pain appear : a
little elevation of tlie tail is the first mark;
the animal shifts about from place to place,
frequently getting up and lying down, not
knowing what to do with herself. She
continues some time in this state, till the
natural throes or pains come on ; and as
these succeed each other in regular pro-
gress, tlie neck of the womb, or os icteri,
gives way to the action of its bottom and
of its other parts. By this action, the con-
tents of the wouib are pushed forward at
every throe ; the water-bladder begins to
show itself beyond the shape, and to ex-
tend itself till it becomes the size of a large
bladder, containing several gallons : it then
bursts, and its contents are discharged,
consisting of the liquor amni, in which,
during gestation, the calf floats, and which
now serves to lubricate the parts, and
render the passage of the calf easier. After
the discharge of the water, the body of the
womb contracts rapidly upon the calf; in
a few succeeding throes or pains, the head
and feet of it, the presenting parts, are
protruded externally beyond the shape.
The body next descends ; and in a few
pains the delivery of the calf is complete."*
The easy calving now described is usually
over in 2 hours, though sometimes it is
protracted to 5 or 6, and even to 12 hours,
particularly when the water-bladder has
broken before being protruded beyond the
shape.
2204. But although the calf may pre-
sent itself in this natural position, with
both its fore-feet projecting, its chin lying
on both the fore-legs, and tlie point of the
tongue appearing out of the side of the
mouth, it may not be calved without as-
sistance. To render this, the feet of the
calf being too slij^pery to be held firmly by
the bare hands, a rein-rope, with a fold-
ing loop at the double, is placed above
each fetlock joint, and the double rope
from each leg is held by the assistants.
A pull of the ropes should only be given
at each time the cow strains to get quit of
* Skellett On the Parturition of the Coic, p. 105.
515
PRACTICE— SPRING.
the calf ; and it should be a steady and firm
pull, in a direction rather downwards from
the back of the cow, and sufiiciently strong
to retain whatever advance the calf may
have made ; the assistance lent being
given rather to ease the cow in her exer-
tions in the throes, than to extract the calf
from her by force. Mean time the shep-
herd endeavours to relax the skin of the
sbajic around the calf's head, by manipu-
lation, as well as by anointing with goose-
fat, his object being to pass the skin over
the crown of the calfs head, and when this
has been accomplished, the whole body may
be gently drawn out. In obstinate cases
of this simple kind, a looped rope passed
across the mouth and round the under jaw
of thecalf,aud pulledsteadily,will facilitate
the passage of the head ; but this expedient
should not be resorted to until it is found
that the shepherd cannot effect it, with his
hands, as the strain upon the cord is apt
to injure the tender mouth of the calf.
220.'5. On the extrusion of the calf, it
should be laid on its side upon the clean
straw in the floor, and the first symptom it
exhibits of life is a few gasps which set
the lungs in play, and then it opens its eyes,
shakes its head, and sniflfs with its nose.
The breathing is assisted if the viscid fluid
is removed by the hand from the mouth
and nostrils ; and the thin membrane which
envelops the body in the womb should
now be removed, much torn as it has been
in the process of parturition. The calf is
then carried by two men, suspended by the
legs, with the back downwards, and the
bead held up between the fore-legs, to its
comfortably littered crib, where we shall
leave it for the present to attend still far-
ther to its mother.
2206. The presentation is sometimes
made with the hind-feet foremost. At
first the hind-feet are not easily dis-
tinguished from the fore, but if a hind
presentation is made in the natural posi-
tion of the body, with the back uppermost,
the hind-feet will be in an inverted posi-
tion, with the soles uppermost. There is
no dilficulty in a hind presentation, only
the tail should be placed in its natural
position, and not folded up, before the legs
are pulled out. The first obstructing
point in this presentation is the rump, and
then the thickest part of the shoulder. On
drav.ing out the head, wliich comes last,
it should be i)ulled away fjuickly, in case
the calf should give a gasp for air at the
moment of leaving the cow, when it would
inhale water instead of air, and run the
risk of drowning. The mouth and nose
should be wiped immediately on the calf
being laid down upon the straw on the
floor.
2207. Some women have a custom of
rubbing the skin of the new-dropped calf
with a wisp of straw; but such a dressing
should not be allowed, as it serves only to
agglutinate the hair. If left to itself, the
ru|uor evaporates in a short time and leaves
the hair dry; but while the evaporation
is proceeding, the calf trembles, no doubt
from feeling cold ; and on this account, its
first litter should be soft, clean, and suffi-
cient to bury its body out of sight. The
trembling is considered a happy symptom
of the strength of the calf.
2208. All as yet has been easily ma-
naged, aiul so will be as long as the cow
lies still in her stall, with plenty of straw
around and behind her hind-quarter; but
some cows are of so restless a disposition
that whenever the pains of labour seize
tbem, they start to their feet, and will
only lie down again when the pain ceases.
Such cows are troublesome to deal with,
and it is scarcely possible, by reason oiF
those fre(|uent risings up and lyings down,
to ascertain the true position of the calf,
especially when it is not presented in a
natural j)osition. In such a case, it is ne-
cossar}' to extract the calf energetically,
and remove the uneasiness of the cow
quickly ; for until she gets quit of the calf,
she will not settle in one position or an-
other. When the calf is so near the exter-
nal air as to enable the operator Xo get the
ropes round its legs, whether fore or hind,
they should be fastened on immediately
after the discharge of the water, and,
on gently pulling them, her attention will
be occupied, and she will strain with great
vigour, the standing position giving her
additional power, so that the extraction
of the calf, in such cases, is generally the
most expeditious. As the calf will have
to fall a considerable height to the ground,
the mat or sheet should be held by two
men, so as to receive the body of the calf
ujKtn it. I had a short-horn cow that was
CALVING OF COWS.
very troublesome at calving, always stand-
ing to calve, but whenever the process
was actually begun, she strained with so
mucli earuestness as to get quit of the calf
in a few minutes. Upon one occasion,
after the water had been discharged, while
the shepherd was preparing the ropes to
fasten round the legs of the calf, she gave
so powerful a strain as to project the calf
bodily from her, when it fell with violence
upon the floor, but luckily ujion the very
straw that had been laid down to receive
it. This instance shows that active means
should be used after the symptoms of
actual calving have begun ; and, if such
means are neglected, the calf may be found
killed or injured for life.
2209. Some calves, though extracted
with apparent ease, appear as if dead
when laid upon the straw. In such a
case, beside removing the viscid fluid
from the mouth and nose, the hand should
be placed against the side of the breast,
to ascertain if the heart beats ; and, if it
does, all that is wanted is to inflate the
lungs. To do this, the mouth should be
opened, and still no breathing felt, some
one should blow steadily into the open
mouth, a device I have seen answer the
purpose ; and also a hearty slap of the open
iiand upon the buttock of the calf, will
cause it to start, as it were, into being.
Perhaps the bellows might be usefully
employed in inflating the lungs. Shoimi
no beating of the heart be felt, and yet
consciousness of life seems to exist, the calf
should be carried without delay to its crib,
and covered up with the litter, leaving
the mouth free to breathe, and it may sur-
vive ; but even after a few gasps, it may
die. Most probably the cause of death
arose from injury received in calving,
such as too long detention in the vaginal
passage, or a severe squeeze in the mouth
of the womb, or by the rashness of the ope-
rator.
2210. The body of the calf when thus
lost should be skinned while warm, cut in
pieces, and buried in a compost for manure,
and the skin either sold or made into
weclits for the corn barn.
2211. The difficult cases of presenta-
tion which usually occur are with one foot
and the head, and the other foot drawn
TOL. I.
back, either with the leg folded back
altogether, or the knee doubled and pro-
jecting forward. In all these states
the missing leg should be brought for-
ward. To efi'ect this, it is necessary
to jjat round the presented foot a cord
to retain it within the power of the ope-
rator, and the head is then pushed
back into the womb to make room to get
at the missing foot, to search for which the
greased arm of the operator should be in-
troduced, and the foot gently brought
beside the other. The rope which was
attached to the first foot now serves to
pull the entire body into the passage, when
the throes may again be exjjected to be
renewed. A calf may be extracted with
one leg folded entirely back alongside the
body, and on feeling this to be really the
case, it is perhaps better to extract the
calf at once, than to delay the parturition
in the attempt to bring forward the leg.
The presentation may be of the head alone
without the feet, which may be knuckled
forward at the knees, or folded back
along both sides. In the knuckled case
both legs should be brought forward by
first pushing the head back, but, in case of
losing hold of the calf altogether, a loop
should be put in the calf's mouth. In the
folded case, one leg at least, and both if
possible, should be brought forward. A
worse case than either is, when one or
both legs are presented and the head folded
back upon the side. In this case the calf
will most likely be dead. The legs should
be pushed back, retaining hold of them by
ropes, and the head brought forward, with
both the legs if possible. It may be be-
yond the strength of the operator to bring
"forward the head ; when he should put a
loop into the calf's mouth, and his assis-
tants will pull forward the head by it.
Still worse cases may occur, such as a pre-
sentation of the shoulder, with the head
lying into the side; a presentation of the
buttock, with both the hind legs stretched
inwards; or the calf may be on its back,
with all the worst presentaticms now enu-
merated. In whichever of these positions
the calf may present itself, no extraction
can safely take place until the head, and
one of the legs at least, are secured, and
the other folded entirely back, or both the
hind legs, with the back turned upper-
most are presented. In no case should a
fore or hind leg be so neglected as not
2 K
514
PRACTICE— SPRING.
only to obstruct the body on passing the
mouth of the womb, but to tear the womb.
The tiffst practice, therefore, is, to secure
both legs as well as the head. This may
cause the operator considerable trouble,
out by retaininff hold of what parts he
can with the cords, and dexterously
candling the part amissing, so as t<> bring
it forward to the passage, whilst the assis-
tants pull as he desires, his object will in
most cases be attained ; but it should be
borne in mind that none of these objects
■will be attained but when seconded by the
throes of the cow herself. If this circum-
stance is not attended to and watched for
by the operator, the muscular grasp of the
■womb will render his arm powerless.
2212. Another circumstance should be
considered by the operator, that when the
hind-quarters of the cow have an inclina-
tion down wards*, she has the power to strain
the stronger, and of course to counteract
his efforts the more easily. What he
should therefore do, is, to raise the hind-
quarters of the cow with bundles of straw
bigher than the fore-quarters, until he has
got the calf in the position he desires, and
then, on letting the cow down aeain, and
watching her strainings, assist her at those
times and only at those, and the extrac-
tion may be accomplished in a reasonable
time.
2213. As to the block and tackle, they
ekould never be resorted to but to save
the "life of the cow; and as they will be
resorted to only to turn the calf in the
womb, there is far more danger of injur-
ing the WDrab than the value of the calf is
worth ; «t»li, if the life of the cow may be
saved while the calf is turned, this should,
of course, be attempted in the best manner
under tbe circumstances. But much
rather destroy the calf by cutting it away
in pieces than lose the cow.
2214. When tbe head only of the calf is
presented, and cannot be protruded through
the vagina, by rea.son of the unfavourable
and obstructive position of the fore legs, an
inepection should immediately be made of
tbe position of the calf, by first thrusting
the head back with a loop in the mouth,
and bringing the legs forward. Wlieu this
inspection has been too long <lelaved, and
tbe bead kept confined in the passage, the
violent throes of the cow will certainly
strangle the calf, and the head will swell
to an inordinate degree. In such a case,
as the swelling will prevent the calf's
head being pushed back to get at the legs,
it must be taken off, the legs brought for-
ward, and the body then extracted. One
of the mott difficult cases is. when the fore
feet are presented naturally, and the head
ie thrust down upon the brisket between
the legs. The feet must first be pushed
back, and the head brought up and for-
ward, when the extraction will become
natural.
2215. A skilful shepherd may be able
to manage all these difficult cases within
a reasonable time; but unless he is par-
ticularly dexterous at cases of parturi-
tion, it is much safer to obtain the advice
of a veterinary surgeon, even although he
should not be required to put a hand to
the operation himself. In the case of
extracting monstrosities, bis assistance is
indispensable.
2216. As regards the extraction of twin
calves, before rendering the cow any as-
si.-^tance, it is necessary to ascertain that
the calves liave made a proper presenta-
tion ; that they are free of each other ;
that one member of the one is not inter-
laced, or presented at the same time, with
that of the other. When they are quite
s^^rated, then each calf may be treated
according to it^'S own case.
2217. Calviug in a byre does not seem
to produce any disagreeable sensations in
the other cows, as they express no surprise
or uneasiness in regard to what is going
on beside them. When the cow gives vent
to painful cries, which is rarely, the others
no doubt express a svmpathy ; and when
the calf is carried away, they may exhi-
bit some restlessness ; but any commotion
arising from the.>e circumstances soon sub-
sides. But if a <lifficult labour is appre-
hended, it is better for the cows, and also
for the cow herself, that she be delivered
in another apartment, well littered, where
the operator and his assistants can have
freedom around her.
2218. A notion exists in some parts of
England, that a cow, when seized with
the pains of labour, should be made to
CALVING OF COWS.
515
aiove alx)Ut, and not allowed to lie still,
although inclined to be quiet. " This pro-
ceeds from an erroneous idea," Skellet well
remarks, " tliat she will calve much easier,
nnd with less danger; but so far from this
')eing the case, the author has known a
great many instances where the driving
has proved the death of the animal by
overheating her, and thus producing in-
flammation, and all its bad consequences.
Every rational man will agree in opinion
with the author, that the above practice
is both cruel and inconsistent in the ex-
treme ; and this is confirmed by what he
has noticed, that the animal herself, as
5oon as the pains of calving come on, im-
mediately leaves the rest of the herd, and
retires to some corner of the field, or un-
der a hedge, in order to prevent the other
cows, or anything else, coming near, that
may disturb her in bringing forward her
young."* In short, too much gentleness
cannot be shown to cows when calving,
and thev cannot be too strictly guarded
against ■e\'ery species of disturbance. The
shepherd will not allow even his dog to
onter the byre when calving is going
on.
221.9. The afterhirth, or placenta, does
not come away with the calf, a portion of
it being suspended from the cow. It is
l^ot quit of by the cow by straining, and,
when the parturition has been natural and
<iasy, it seldom remains with her longer
than from 1 to 7 hours. In bad c^ses of
Jabour it may remain longer, and may only
come away in pieces ; but when it remains
too long and is sound, its separation will
be assisted by attaching a small weight to
it, say of 2 lb., which, with its continued
force, and occasional straining of the
cow, will cause it to drop.
2220. The usual custom is to throw the
afterbirth upon the dung-hill, or to cover
it up with the litter; but it should not be
allowed to lie so accessible to ever}'^ dog
and pig that may choose to dig it up :
nay, pigs have been known almost to
choke themselves with it. Let the sub-
stance be buried in a compost heap, and if
there be none such, iu the earth.
2221. The umbilical cord or navel
string of the calf breaks in the act of par-
turition.
2222> Should the cow seem exhausted in
a protracted case of calving, she may
be supported with a warm drink of gruel,
containing a bottle of sound ale; and
should she be too sick to drink it herself,
it should be given her with the drinking-
horn. After the byre has been cleansed of
the impurities of calving, and fresh litter
strewed, the cow, naturally feeling a strong
thirst upon her from the exertion, should
receive a warm drink. I don't know a
better on« than warm water, with a few
handfuls of oatmeal stirred in it, and
seasoned with a handful of salt, and this
she will drink up greedily ; but a pailful
is enough at a time, and it may be renewed
in a short time after, should she express a
desire for it. This drink should be given
her for two or three days after calving, in
lieu of cold water, and mashes of boiled
barley and gruel in lieu of cold turnips;
but the oil-cake should never be forgotten,
as it acts at tiiis critical period as an
excellent alterative and febrifuge.
2223. A very common practice in this
country, is to give the cow barley in the
sheaf to eat, and even raw barley, when
there is no barley in the straw, and
sometimes a iew sheaves are kept for
the purpose ; and barley-chaff is given
where people grudge to part witli good
barley in this way. Though common, the
practice is objectionable, for nothing causes
indigestion so readily as raw barley or
barley-chaff at the time of calving, when
the tone of the stomach is impaired by
excitement or fever. Boiled barley, or any
mucilaginous drink, is quite safe. No-
thing should be given at this time of an
astringent nature, but rather having a
laxative quality.
2224. It is desirable to milk the new-
calved cow as soon as convenient for her,
as the withdrawal of milk affords relief.
It frequently happens that an uneasiness is
felt in the udder before calving; and should
it increase while the symptoms of calving
are yt-t delayed, the cow will experience
niuch inconvenience, especially if the flush
of milk has come suddenly. The cause
• Skellett On the Parturition o/tJu: Ccir, p. 113.
<S16
PRACTICE- SPRING.
of uneasiness is unequal lianlness of the
udder, accompanied with heat, floridness,
and tenderness. Fomentation with warm
•water twice or thrice a-day, continued
for half an hour at a time, followed by
ijentle rubbing with a soft hand, and
anointing with goose-fat, will tend to allay
irritation. In the case of heifers with the
first calf, the uneasiness is sometimes so
great during the protracted symptoms of
calving, as to warrant the withdrawal of
milk before calving. Should the above
remedial measure fail to give relief, the
great heat may cause direct inflammation,
and consequent suppuration in the udder.
To avert such an issue, the uneasiness
should be attended to the flrst moment it
is observed, as neglect may allow the
complaint to proceed so far as to injure
the structure of the whole udder.
222.5. In ordinary cases of calving,
little ajiprehension need be felt for the
safety of the cow ; but she must be care-
fully attended to for at least a fortnight
after calving. No cold drinks, no cold
turnips, should be given her; and no
cold draughts of air be allowed to blow
upon her. These things may check per-
spiration and cause the milk or puerperal
fever. The hind-quarters, raised up by
litter for a few days, will recover the
tone of the relaxed parts.
2226. But in cases of severe and pro-
tractetl labour the cow may be overtaken
by several casualties, such as flooding or
loss of blood, which is caused by the vessels
of the womb being prevented from collaps-
ing as they should do ; hut it is not often
a fatal com])laint, and may be removed by
the application of a lotion, consisting of
one gallon of spring water, mixed in a
quart of strong vinegar, in which cloths
should be dijiped and ajiplied frequently to
the loins, rump, and shape. A drink of
two quarts of cold water and a pint of
.lie will much relieve her, and assist the
eSbrts of nature.
2227. The womb becomes inverted after
the cleansing happens to remain too long
after delivery, in consequence of long and
severe pressing or straining of the cow.
The womb must be made perfectly clean
witii soap and warm water, and replaced
with care, taking hold of it only by the
u])pcr side. The hind-qiiarter of the cow
should be well elevated with straw, and a
saline dose of laxative medicine adminis-
tered, with some opium, to alia}' pain and
prevent straining.
2228. After severe calving, cold, and
draughts of cold air, may cause inflam-
mation in the womb ; large drinks of cold
water v.ill produce the same eff'ect, as well
as the irritation arising from retention of
the cleansing. A purge is the safest
remedy, consisting of 1 lb of Epsom salts,
2 oz. nitre. ^ oz. of camphor, and 1 oz.
each of coriander and cumin seeds, mixed
in a powder, and given in 2 quarts of
gruel and half a pound of treacle.
2229. But in all cases of severe calving,
the veteriiiary surgeon should witness the
process, and afterwards administer the
jjroper medicines and prescribe the proper
treatment and regimen.
2230. A cow will desire the bull in 4 or
5 weeks after calving. The symptoms of
a cow being in season are thus well de-
scribed by Skellett. '• She will suddenly
abate of her milk, and be very restless;
when in the field with other cows, she will
be frequently riding on them, and if in
the cow-house, she will be constantly
shifting alK)iit the stall ; her tail will be in
constant niotion ; slie will be frequently
dunging, staling, and blaring ; will lose her
appetite ; her external parts will appear
red and inflamed, and a transparent liquor
will be discharged from the vagina. In
old cows these symptoms are known to
continue 4 or 5 d.iys, but in general not
more than 24 hours, and at other times
not more than 5 or 6 hours. Therefore,
if a cow is intended for procreation, the
earliest opportunity should be taken to
let her have the bull ; for if it be neglecte<i
then, it will often be 2 or 3 weeks before
the above symptoms will return. These
instructions," adds Skellett, " are necessary
to be given only to the proprietor of a
small number of cows, where a bull is not
always kept with them. . . . If a cow,
after calviufr, shows symptoms of season
sooner than 4 or 5 weeks, which is sf)me-
times the case, she should not he permitted
to hare the lull sootier than 4 or 5 tceeks
from that period — for the womb before that
time is, in general, in so relaxed a state,
CALVING OF COWS.
517
as not to be capable of retaining tlie seed,
consequently she seldom proves with calf,
if she is suffered to take him sooner."*
This last remark I consider of great value,
for I am persuaded tliat most cases of cows
not holding in calf the first serving after
calving, arises from the want of considera-
tion on the part of breeders, whether
the cow is in that recovered state from
the effects of calving, as to afford a reason-
able hope that she will conceive ; and this
is a point more to be considered than the
mere lapse of time after calving ; for a
cow, after a severe labour, may be in a
much worse state for conception, even at
double that length of time, than another
which has calved with ease, though the
former may have come as regularly into
season as the latter. The state of the body,
therefore, as well as the length of time,
should both be taken into consideration in
determining whether or not the cow should
receive the bull.
2231. There are still other considera-
tions connected with the serving of cows
which deserve your attention. The usual
practice, in places where there is no bull,
13 to take the cow to the bull at a con-
venient time for the cattle-man to go with
her; and, should she have passed the
bloom of the season befn-e her arrival at
the bull, the issue will of course be
doubtful. The cow may have travelled
a long distance and become weary, and
yet no rest is allowed her, and she must
undergo the still farther fatigue of being
served. Some jieople cannot be satisfied
with the service which their cows receive,
until both cow and bull are wearied out.
Others will force either the cow or bull,
or both, to go together against their in-
clination, she being held by the nose,
and he goaded on with threats and thumps.
In all such cases the chances are much
against conception. Tliere is, to be sure,
the inconvenience of not having the bull
on the spot, but, when he is reached,
he may have been worn out for the day
by previous service. No inconvenience
is experienced when there is a bull at
home ; but even then, when the cow has
to be taken to him out of the byre, a
discretion is requisite of the proper time
she should be taken out; and this can
only be known by studying the idiosyn-
cracy of each cow.
2232. It appears to me as essential to
keep a record of the characteristics of
each cow, in regard to her state of season,
as of her reckoning to calve; and the con-
viction is strengthened by the great dif-
ferences, in this respect, evinced by difle-
rent cows under the same treatment. For
example, one arrives soon at mature season
after the symptoms are exhibited : a
second requires a few hours to arrive at
the same point, and the season continues
for some time longer in a languid state: a
third runs through the course of season in
a few hours ; while a fourth is only pre-
pared to receive the bull at the last period
of her season : a fifth may exhibit great
fire in her desire, which induces her keeper
to have her served at once, when too soon;
whilst a sixth shows comparative indiffer-
ence, and, in waiting for an exhibition of
increased desire, the season is allowed to
pass away ; and in such a case, some cattle-
men, conscious of neglect, and afraid of
detection, will persist in the bull serving
her, though she may be very much disin-
clined for the embrace, and does every-
thing in her power to avoid it.
2233. There is no way so natural for a
bull to serve a cow, as when both are in
the field together, and understand one
another. The most proper time is chosen
by both, and failure of conception then
rarely happens. Eut it is possible that the
bull cannot serve the cow in the field, by
disparity of height, or by corporeal confor-
mation, when the cow will require to be
taken to a part of the ground which will
favour his purpose. Two or three thorough
skips are quite sufficient for securing
concejition.
2234. The cow should be kept quiet in
the byre after being served until the desire
leave her, and she should get no food or
water for some hours after, as any encou-
ragement of discharges from the body, by
food and drink, is inimical to the reten-
tion of the semen.
2235. " When nature is satisfied," says
Mr Skellett, " or the symptoms of season
* Skellett On the Parturition of the Cow, p. 11-13.
518
PRACTICE— SPRIXG.
disappear in the animal, conception lias
taken place. Tlie neck of the womb be-
comes then completely clothed by a gluti-
nous subijtance which nature has provided
for that purpose, being perfectly transpa-
rent, and witli difficulty separated from
the parts. This matter is f(jr the purpose
of excluding all external air from the
mouth of the womb during gestation,
which, if admitted to tiie foetus, would
corrupt the membranes and tiie pellucid
liquor in which tiie foetus floats, and would
umhaibtctliy cause the cow to slink. This
glutinous substance also prevents the lips
of the mouth of the wumb from growing
together ; and when the cow comes into
season it becomes fluid, — the act of copu-
lation serving to lubricate the parts, and
prevent inflammation."*
2236. The heifers that are to be trans-
ferred to the cow-stock should be taken
from the hammels X, Plate II, in which
they have been confined all winter, into
the byre, at once into the stalls they are
to occupy, about three weeks or a fort-
night before their reckoning. If they had
been accustomed to be tied by the neck
when calves, they will not feel much re-
luctance in going into a stall ; but if not,
they will require some coaxing to do it.
When taking them to the byre at first, it
should be remembered that a fright re-
ceived at this juncture may not be for-
gotten by them for a long time to come.
To avoid every chance of that, let them
go in quietly of their own accord ; let
them snuft" and look at every thing they
wish ; and having plenty of assistants to
prevent their breaking away, let the cattle-
man, with the shepherd, allow them to
move step by step, until they arrive at
the stall. Here may be some difficulty —
some favourite food should have been
put in the manger to entice them to go
up. Another difficulty will be putting
the seal, fig. 76, round the neck. It should
be hung, when not in use, uptm a nail in the
stake, from which it should be quietly
taken down, without clanking the chain ;
and, while the heifer is eating, let the
cattle-man slip one hand below the neck
with the chain, while the other is passed
over it, to bring the loose end of the
seal round the neck, and hook it into
whatever link he first finds. Tlie moment
the heifer feels she is bound, she will
hang back, or attempt to turn round in
the stall to get away, which she should
be prevented doing by gentle means ; and
after remaining in that state for some
time, and feeling herself well used and
kindly s])oken to, she will yield; but al-
though she may api>ear to submit for the
time, she must not be left alone for some
time — till the assurance she will not at-
tempt to turn in the stall is received. No
dogs should be allowed to be present on
such occasions. I have detailed thus mi-
nutely the first treatment of heifers in a
byie, that you may avoid au accident that
happened to a fine short-horn heifer of my
own, which, on being rather rudely pre-
vented runningaway,bybeingvery quickly
turned on a causeway, was lamed in the
shoulder joint, upon which grew a large
callous lump, which ever after remained
unsubdued.
2237. The following table, containing th«
dates at which cows should calve from those at
which they were bulled, is founded upon the data
afforded by Lord Spencer, namely, 285 days as
the average period of gestation. It is unnecessary
to fill up the table with marking down every
day of the year, as in the short period betweea
each fortnight you can easily calculate the par-
ticular reckoning of each cow : —
A RECKONING TABLE KOU THE CALVING OF COWS.
When Uulled.
When wiU
C»l»e.
When BuUed.
When WiU
CalTc.
Jan. 1.
Oct. la
July
16.
April
27.
— 15.
— 27.
30.
—
11.
— 29.
— 10.
Aug.
IX
May
25w
Feb. 12.
Nov. 2i.
27.
—
8.
— 26.
— 8.
Sept.
10.
June
22.
1 Marcli 12.
Dec. 22.
—
24.
—
«.
i — 26.
— 5.
Oct.
8.
July
20.
April 9.
Jan. \y.
. —
22.
—
X
1 - 23.
— 2.
Nov.
5.
Au?.
17.
1 3Iay 7.
Feb. 16.
—
19.
—
31.
1 - 21.
— 2.
Dec.
3.
Sept.
14.
1 June 4.
— 16.
—
17.
28.
] — 18.
Mar. h :«).
31.
OcU
12.
•■ July 2.
April 13.
2238. A few years since, Mr A. Burnett of
Newcastle-upon-Tyne constructed a table, which
lie denominated The Farmer's Cycle, intended to
indicate at a glance the e.'cact day of reckoning
when every kind of animal should bring furlh its
young, from the day in which it was serred by
the male. Mr Burnett confined his table to cal-
culating the tijne of cows, ewes, and sows ; but it
might as easily be extended to that of mares, and
even to that of the hatching of.all kinds of poultry.
The table consists of a zodiac circle, divided into
as many larire division? as there are mouths in
* Skellett On the Parturitioti of ike Cov, p. 17.
CALVING OF COWS.
519
the year, which are so named, and these again
into as many days as are in every month, Feb-
ruary having the ordinary number of 28, one
more being added by the mind in leap years.
Within this circle, which may be projected upon
a stout piece of card or wood, is another circle,
which is made to revolve upon their common
centre. Upon the movable circle is drawn a
radius with a pointer at its extremity, and there
is marked along it the words " when served " or
" set." On bringing the pointer to the day in
which any female of the stock was served by the
male, other radii set their pointers at the day
when the female should bring forth its young, be
it a cow, a mare, a ewe, or a sow ; allowing the
proper period of gestation to every kind of ani-
mal. The cow is allowed 285 days, the mare
334, the ewe 152, the sow 112 ; and on setting
their eggs, the goose is allowed 30, the turkey 30,
and the hen 21 days. Such a table would be
highly useful in the possession of every shepherd,
cattle-man, and dairy-maid.
2239. The usual mode of determining whether
a cow is in calf is deceptive. She may not have
held when bulled ; she may have taken the bull
again in a few days, and she may not show evident
symptoms of calving until only a few days before
she actually calves. The application of the ear
to the flank of the cow is a simpler and more
certain mode of ascertaining the point : and the
curious and valuable discoveries brought to light
by the stethescope, renders that mode truly philo-
sophical. The existence of pregnancy may be
detected by it at as early a stage as six or eight
weeks, by which time the beating of ihe heart of
the calf may be distinctly heard, and its singular
double beating cannot be mistaken.
2240. Milk or Puerperal Fever. — " Although
parturition is a natural process," as is well ob-
served'by Mr Youatt, "it is accompanied by a
great deal of febrile excitement. The sudden
transferring of powerful and accumulated action
from one organ to another — from the womb to
the udder — must cause a great deal of constitu-
tional disturbance, as well as liability to local
inflammation."* One consequence of this con-
stitutional disturbance of the system is milk-feeer.
" The cause of this disease," says Skellett, " is
whatever obstructs perspiration, and iiccuniulates
the blood internally ; hence it may be produced
by the application of cold air, by lying on the
cold ground, or by giving cold water after calving;
and these causes will naturally produce this
effect from the open state of the pores at this
time, and from the external parts being so wide
and relaxed after the operation. Cows in high
condition are more subject than others to this
complaint, and especially if they have been kept
up for some weeks before calving. "-t* The com-
plaint may seize the cow only a few hours after
calving, or it may be days. Its first attack is
probably not observed by those who have the
charge of the cows, or even by the farmer him-
self, who is rather chary in looking after the con-
dition of cows, in case he should offend his female
friends, to whose special care that portion of his
stock is consigned. The symptoms are first
known by the cow shifting about in the stall, or
from place to place if loose, lifting one leg and
then another, being easily startled, and looking
wildly about her as if she had lost her calf, and
blaring for it. Then the flanks begin to heave,
the mouth to open and issue clear water, she
staggers in her walk, and at length loses the nse
of her limbs, lies down and places her head upon
her side. The body then swells, the extremities
feel cold and clammy. Shivering and cold sweats
follow, the pulse becomes irregular, and death
ensues. The promptest remedy to be used, after
the first symptom has been observed, is to bleed
to the extent of 3 or 4 quarts ; and the next is
to open the bowels, which will be found to have
a tendency to constipation. From 1 lb. to Ij lb.
of Epsom salts, according to the strength of the
cow, with a little ginger and carraway, should be
given as a purge ; and if the dose does not operate
in due time, { lb. of Epsom salts should be given
every 6 hours until the bowels are opened.
This result will be much expedited by a glyster
of warm thin gruel and soap or oil. After the
opening medicine has operated, a cordial drink
will be necessary , by which time the cow may
show symptoms of recovery by expressing an
inclination to eat, in which she should be gra-
tified, but with precaution.
2241. I may here mention an unaccountable
fatality which overtook a short-horn cow of
mine, in Forfarshire, immediately after calving.
She was an extra(ndinary milker, giving not less
than 30 quarts a-day in summer on grass ; but
what was more extraordinary, for two calvings
the milk never dried up, but continued to flow to
the very day of calving, and after that event
returned in increased quantity. In the third
year she went naturally dry for about one
month prior to the day of reckoning ; every pre-
caution, however, was taken that the milk should
dry up without giving her any uneasiness. She
calved in high health, the milk returned as usual
in a great flush after calving, but it was impos-
sible to draw it from the udder ; not a teat
would pa>.s milk, all the four be'unj entirely corded.
Quills were first introduced into the teats ; and
then lubes of larger size were pushed up into the
body of the udder. A little milk ran out of
only one of them — hope revived ; but it soon
stopped running, and all the art that could be
devised by a skilful shepherd proved unavailing
to draw milk from the udder ; rubbing and
softening the udder with goose-fat, making it
warmer with warm water — all to no purpose.
To render the case more distressing, there
was not a veterinary surgeon in the district.
At length the udder inflamed, mortified, and
the cow died in the most excruciating agony on
the third day, from being in the highest state
of health, though not in high condition, as her
milking propensity usually kept her lean. ' No
loss of the kind ever affected my mind so much
■ — that nothing could be done to relieve the dis-
tress of an animal which could not help itself.
Youatt On Cattle, p. 546.
t Skellett On the Parturition of the Cow, p. 195.
520
RACTICE— SPRING.
I was told afterwards by a sheplierd, to whom I
related tJie casi<, that I should have cut off nil
the teats, and although the horrid oj)eratinn
would, of course, have destroyed Iht for a luilk
cow, the miglit have beeu saved for leeding. lie
had never seen a cow so operated ou ; but it
suggested itself to him in consequeuce of having
been obliged at times to cut off the teats of
ewes to save their lives. The suggestion 1 think
is good. The cow was bred by Mr Gurrie, when
at Brandon in Northumberland.
2242. Bed-water.— The ninth day after a cow
has calved, an uterine discharge sliould take
place and continue for a day or two, after which
the cow will exhibit all the symptoms of good
health. I have observed that when this discharge
does not take place, the cow will soon after
show symptoms of red-water. She will evacuate
urine with difficulty, which will come away in
small streams, and be highly tinged with blood,
and at length appear like dark grounds of coffee.
" The nature ami cause of the disease are here
evident enough," as Mr Youatt well observes.
" During the period of pregnancy there had been
considerable determination of blood to the womb.
A degree of .susceptibility, a tendency to inflam-
matory action had been set up, and this had been
increased as the period of parturition approached,
and was aggravated by the state and general
fulness of blood to which she had incautiously
been raised. The neighbouring organs neces-
sarily participated in tliis, and the kidneys, to
which so much blood is sent for the proper dis-
charge of their function, either quickly shared in
the inflammation of the womb, or first took an
inflammation, and suffered most by means of it."*
The prevention of this disease is recommended in
using purgative medicine after calving ; but as
purging never fails to lessen the quantity of milk
given by the cow for some time after, a better
plan is to give such food as will also operate as
a laxative, for some time before as well as after
calving— and the substance which possesses these
properties is oil-cake. 1 have proved this from
experience. I lost two cows in Forfarshire by
red-water, one a short-horn and the other an
Angu.s, and one of the hinds lost one also ; all in
different but successive years, liy examination
of the .*tomach and bowels after death, 1 became
aatibCed that the determination of the blood to
the womb, during pregnancy, had caused a ten-
dency to inflammation in the bowels and stomach,
and that indigestion and constipation were the
consequences, and these were aggravated by the
state of tlie food, which consisted entirely, of
Swedish turnips, and which, at that seasonj in
April, were fibrous, dry, and sweet. The remedy
was obvious— give a laxative diet ; and as that
cannot readily he effected by turnips, particularly
in cows which do not receive as many as they
can eat, nor by raw potatoes, which incur the
risk of hoven, the only alternative was oil-cake ;
and, fortunately, from the period I employed it
medicinally, for a month before and one after
calving, to the extent only of 4 Ibs.a-day to each
cow, the complaint never recurred.
2243. I never saw the disease in Herwickshire ;
and the opinion in Forfarshire, where the disease
is prevalent, that it arises from cowa eating
some noxious plant, and is called the muirill,
cannot be well founded — as cows living on the
tame kiiidsof sovii grasses have been differeittly
affected in different parts of the country. Be-
sides, a two years' pasture has not time to become
stocked with natural plants, whether noxious or
innoxious ; nor could the noxious effects of even
natural pasture plants be felt in spring, after
cattle had lived upon turnips for a number of
months ; nor can simple laxatives, for a few iifija
in spring, counteract the effects of plants grazed
on for half a year in the previous summer. In-
digestion and constipation, at the time of calv-
ing, must therefore arise from some other cause
than the consumption of plants in summer. One
cause may be sought in the prevailing practice ia
Forfarshire, of keeping cows constantly in the
byre during the winter half-year. Remove the
tendency to constipation by a gentle laxative,
and allow the cows air and exercise in winter
in a court, and tlie complaint will never more be
heard of after calving. Whatever may be the
cause of the disease in summer, when it is said to
be most prevalent in dry weather, where cows have
liberty to roam over marshes, muirs, or woods,
and eat what plants hunger may impel them, it is
clear that the disease in spring cannot arise
from the same cause.t
2244. Tail-ill or Tail-slip. — A very prevalent
notion exists in Scotland amongst cattie-men,
that when the tail of an ox or of a cow feels
soft and supple immediately above the tuft of
hair, there is disease in it ; and it is called the
tail-ill, or tail-slip. The almost invariable
remedy is to make a large incision with tire knife
along the under side of the soft part, stuff the
wound full of salt and butter, and sometimes tar,
and roll it up with a bandage for a few days,
and when the application is removed, the animal
is declared quite recovered. Now. tliis notion
is an absurdity. There is no such disease as
imputed ; and as the poor animal subjected to
its cure is thus tormented, the sooner the absurd
notion is exposed the better. The notion will
not soon be abandoned by the cattle-men ; but
the farmer ought to forbid the performance of
such an operation on any of his cattle without
his special permission, and the ab.-urd practice
will fall into desuetude. " The disease, in ordi-
nary cases," as Professor Dick describes it, " is
said to Consist in a softening of the bones about
the extremity of the tail CmoUities osfitun ) ; and
is to be distinguished by the point of the tail
being easily doubled back upon itself, and hav-
ing, at this doubling, a soft and rather crepitat-
ing kind of feel. But let us inquire," as the
Professor very properly suggests, " what is the
healthii state of this organ, and what is its use.
* Yonatt On Cattle, p. 504.
t See P}-ize Kfsayt of the Jlighland and yi^jricultural Sor.ieti/, vol. ix. p. 8-34, for a number of
essaysouthissubject, all of which, it will be observed, uncouditionallv ascribe the origin of the dis-
ease to cattle eating some noxious plants.
MILKING OF COWS.
521
before we proceed to pronounce upon this sup-
posed disease. Almost all the lower animals
are fnrnisjied with this organ ; in some adding
much to their grace and symmetry, and in all
being an organ of greater or less utility." Now,
the natural structure of the tail is this : " The
tail of the ox is lengthened out to the extent of
3 feet, and is formed like a common whip. To-
wards the extremity, the bones terminate gra-
dually, becoming insensibly smaller as they
approach the termination. At this part is found
a soft space, which is said to be the seat of this
disease, the tail-slip. Beyond this, again, a firm,
swelling, cartilaginous portion is found, covered
with hair, to brush off the flies within its reach.
Now, why have we the long column of bones, the
termination with a soft space of a few inches,
and this thickened hard cartilaginous part at the
very extremity, and that extremity covered with
hair l Why, but with a view to form a whip to
drive ofif, with the greatest possible effect, the
insects which wound and do torment the animal.
Here, the column of bones forms the elastic
shaft or handle of the whip ; the soft part, the
connexion between the handle and thong, the
couple ; while the thickened extremity may be
easily recognised to represent the thong, and the
hair to form the lash or point. They have thus
a whip to drive and a brush to wipe off their
foes as they make their attack." The tail being
thus shown to be admirably suited for its pur-
pose, it could not be so well suited for it if it
wanted that soft part which is said to be in a
state of disease. On the conclusion to be drawn
from this statement of facts, the Professor anti-
cipates it thus — " But it will perhaps be asked,
after what I have stated of the facts previously
ascertained, do I deny the existence of the tail-
slip ? I answer, Yes. But if I am again asked.
Is the tail not lia'Ae to disease ? I answer, it is ;
but these diseases, or rather injuries, are only
those common to other parts. The softness at
the extremity is no disease ; it is the natural
structure, intended to allow a free and extensive
motion ; and although, in some cases, mortifica-
tion may have attacked the extremity of the tail,
ought we not to ascribe this to some common
cause — soine external injury ? or might it not,
perhaps, have become frost- bit by exposure to
cold ?" * A real disease of the tail, whatever it
is, is, at all events, not the tail-ill.
ON THE MILKING OF COAVS.
2245. The structure of a cow's udder
is remarkable. It consists of 4 glands,
disconnected with each other, but all con-
tained within one bag or cellular mem-
brace ; and the glands are uniform in
structure. Each gland consists of 3 ])arts,
the glandular or secreting, the tubular
or conducting, and the teat or receptacle
or receiving part. The glandular forms
by far the largest portion of the udder.
It appears to the naked eye composed of
a mass of yellowish grains, but under the
microscope these arc found to consist en-
tirely of minute blood-vessels forming a
compact plexus, which secrete the milk
from the blood.
2246. The udder should be capacious,
though not too large, for the size of the
cow. It should be nearly spherical iu
form, though rather fuller in front, and
dependant behind. The skin should be
thin, loose, and free from lumps, filled up
in the fore-part of the udder, but hanging
in folds in the hind part. Each quarter
should contain about equal quantities of
milk, though I have always believed that
the hind ones yield the most.
2247. The teats should be at equal dis-
tances every way, not too long or too
short, but of moderate size, and of equal
thickness from the udder to the point,
which should be smaller. They should
not be too large at the udder, to permit the
milk to flow down too freely from the bag
and lodge in them ; nor too small at that
place, to allow the coagulation of the milk
to cord iip or fill the orifice ; nor too
broad at the point, to have the orifice as
large as that the cow cannot retain her
milk after the bag becomes full and heavy.
They should be smooth, and feel like
velvet, firm and soft to handle, not hard
and leathery. They should yield the
milk freely, and not require to be forcibly
pulled.
2248. AYhen the milk is first to be taken
from the cow after calving, the points of
the teats will be found plugged up with a
resinous substance, which, in some instan-
ces, requires some force to be exerted on
them before it will yield. The milk that
is obtained for the first four days has a
thick consistence, and is of a yellow colour,
and has obtained the name of beistyn in
Scotland. It possesses the coagulable
})roperties of the white of an e^g^ and
will boil into a thick substance called
beistyii cheese; but it is never used for
such a purpose, and is given to the calf,
because the country people have a notion
that it is not wholesome to use the beistyus.
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 310-13.
MS
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2249. " Tims, then," says a writer, " we
perceive that the milk is abstracted from
the blood ill the glandular part of the
udder; the tubes receive and deposit it
in the reservoir or receptacle ; and the
sphincter at the end of the teat retains it
there till it is wanted for use.*' This is
not (piite correct, for the teat does not
terminate in a sphincter — the milk being
upheld in the teat simply by a valvular
structure, like as the blood is supported in
the veins. A sphincter acts by the
power of four muscles, which contract or
expand at will across a common orifice.
" But we must not be understood to mean,
that all the milk drawn from the udder at
one milking, or meal, as it is termed, is
contained in the receptacle. The milk, as
it is secreted, is conveyed to the recepta-
cle, and when this is full, the larger tubes
begin to be filled, and next the smaller
ones, until the whole become gorged.
Wiien this takes ])lace, the secretion of
the milk ceases, and absorption of the
thinner or more watery part commences.
Now, as this absorption takes place more
readily in the smaller or more distant
tubes, we invariably find that the milk
trom these, which comes the last into the
receptacle, is much thicker and richer than
than what was first drawn off. This milk
has been significantly styled afterings ;
and should this gorged state of the tubes
be permitted to continue beyond a certain
time, serious mrschief will sometimes oc-
cur: the milk becomes too thick to flow
throngli the tubes, and soon produces, first
irritation, then inflammation, and lastly
suj)puration, and the function of the gland
is materially impaired or altogether de-
stroyed. Hence the great importance of
emptying these smaller tubes regularly
and'thoroughly, not merely to prevent
the occurrence of disease, but actually to
increase the cpiantityof milk; for so long
as the smaller tubes are kept free, milk is
constantly forming; but whenever, as we
have already mentioned, they become
gorged, the secretion of milk ceases until
they are emptied. The cow herself has no
I)ower over the sphincter (?)at the end of
the teat, so as to open it and relieve the
overcharged udder ; neither has she any
power of retaining the milk collected in
the reservoirs wlien the spasm of the
sphincter is overcome." *
2250. You thus see the necessity of
drawing away the hist drop of milk at
every milking, and the greater milker the
cow is, this is the more necessary. You
also see the improjiriety of hefting or
holding the milk in cows until the udder
is distended much beyond its ordinary
size, for the sake of showing its utmost
capacity for holding milk, a device which
all cow-dealers, and indeed every one who
has a cow for sale in a market, scrupu-
lously adopts. It is remarkable that so
hackneyed a practice should deceive any
one into its being a measure of the mint-
ing power of the cow — for every farmer is
surely aware, or ought to be, that the per-
son who jjurchases a hefted cow, on account
of the magnitude of its udder as exhibited
in the market, gains nothing by the de-
vice ; for, after the cow comes into his
possession, she will not be hefted, and, of
course, not show the greatest magnitude of
udder, and cannot yield the advantage for
which she was bought erroneously in pre-
ference to others with udders in a more
natural state. If, then, purchasers derive
no benefit from hefting, because they do
not allow it after the cow becomes their
own, why do they encourage so cruel and
injurious a practice in dealers? Is it not
better to select cows by the udder iu the
state in which it will be iu their own pos-
session ? Were purchasers to set their face
against the barbarous practice, by insisting
on a reduction in the price of the cow, for
the injury done her by the hefting, the
dealers would soon be obliged to relin-
quish it.
2251. There is also another fallacy in
regard to the milking properties of a cow,
which should be e.\]»osed — I mean the
notion of a large milk-vein below the
belly indicating the milking powers of the
cow. The vein, commonly called the milk-
vein, is the sub-cutaneous vein, and has
nothing to do with the udder; it belongs
to the rcsjjiratory system, and is the means
of keeping uj» an equilibrium in the blood
between the fore and hind (puirfcrs. This
vein certainly indicates a strongly deve-
loped vascular system, which is favourable
to secretion generally, and no doubt is
so to that of the milk among the rest.
2252. The vessel used for receiving the
Blurtou's Practical Essay on Milking, p. 6.7.
MILKING OF COWS.
523
milk from the cow is simple, and is
shown in fig. 197, which represents one
of the most convenient form, and the size
Fig. J 97.
THE MILK PAIL.
may be made to
suit the dairy-
maid's taste. It
is made of thin
oak staves bound
together with
three thin iron
hoops, which
should always be
keptbright. Pit-
chers of tin are
mostly used to
milk in in the
dairies of towns.
In Holland the
milking pails are
made of brass,
and of course must be kept quite bright,
otherwise they would injure the milk. The
Dutch dairy-maids have a great deal of
trouble in keeping these vessels in proper
order. A pail, as fig. 1 97, is of a conveni-
ent size when 9 inches in diameter at the
bottom, ] 1 inches at the top, and ] 0 inches
deep, with a handle 5 inches high, and hav-
ing a capacious enough mouth to receive the
milk as it descends, and of a sufficient
height to rest on the edge of its bottom
when held firmly between the knees of the
dairy-maid, as she sits upon the three-
legged stool. Of course the pail should
not be milked full, and should be large
enough to contain all the milk that a cow
will give at a milking, as it is undesirable
to disturb the cow by rising from her be-
fore the milking is finished, or exchanging
one pail for another.
2253. The byre-stool is seen in fig. 108,
made of ash, to stand 9 inches in height,
or any other height to suit the convenience
Fig. 198.
THE MILKING STOOL.
of the dairy-maid, with the top 9 inches in
diameter, and the legs a little spread out
below to give the stool stability. Bonie
milkers do not care to have the assistance
of a stool, and prefer sitting on their
haunches; but a stool keeps the body so
steady and secure, that the arms have
greater freedom of action, and are more
readv to prevent accidents to the milk in
case of any commotion with the cow.
2254. The cow being a sensitive and
capricious creature, is so easily offended,
that, if the dairy maid rise from her
before the milk is all withdrawn, the
chances are she will not again stand quietly
at that milking; or if the vessel used in
milking is taken away before the milking
is finished, and another substituted in its
place, the probability is that she will hold
back her milk — that is, not allow it to flow.
This is a curious property which cowa
possess, and how it is effected has, I be-
lieve, never been ascertained; but there is
no doubt of the fact occurring when a
cow becomes irritated, or frightened by
any cause. Of course, all cows are not
aflfected to the same degree ; but, as a
proof of their extreme sensitiveness in this
respect, very few can be milked so freely
by a stranger the first time as by one to
whom they have been accustomed.
2255. There is one side of a cow which
is usually called the mUk'ing side — that is,
the left side — because, somehow, custom
has established the practice of milking her
from that side. It may have been adopted
for two reasons : one, because we are ac-
customed to approach all the larger domes-
ticated animals by what we call the near
side — that is, the animal's left side — as
being the most convenient one for-our-
selves ; and the other reason may have
been, that, as most people are right-handed,
and the common use of the right hand has
made it the stronger, it is most conveni-
ently employed in milking the hinder
teats of the cow, which are often most
difficult to reach, because of the position
of the hind legs, and the breadth of the
hinder part of the udder. The near side
is most commonly used in Scotland, but
in many parts of England the other side
is preferred. Whichever side is selected,
that should always be used, as cows are
very sensitive of changes.
624
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2256. It is a rare eight to see a cow
milked in Scotland by any other person
than a woman, thongh men are very com-
monly enijiloyed in P^ngland. For my
part, I never see a man milking a c<Nv
without being impressed with the idea
that he is engaged in an office which does
^lot befit him ; and this sense seems to be
expressed in the terms usually applied to
the persons connected with cows — a dairy-
maid implying one who milks cows, as well
as performs the other functions of the dairy,
— a dairy-»»«n, one who owns a dairy.
2257. Milking is performed in two
ways, stripping and nievling. Stripping
consists of seizing the teat firmly near the
root between the face of the thumb and the
side of the fore-finger, the length of the
teat lying along the other fingers, and by
pressing the finger and thumb while pas-s-
ing them down the entire length of the
teat, and causing the milk to fiow out of
its point in a forcible stream. The action
is renewed by again quickly elevating the
hand to the root of the teat. Both hands
are employed at the ojjeration, each having
hold of a different teat, and are moved
alternately. The two nearest teats, the
fore and hind, are first milked, and then
the two farthest.
22.'58. Nievling is done by grasping
the teat with the whole hand, or Jist^
making the sides of the fore-finger and
thumb press upon the teat more strongly
than the other fingers, when the milk Hows
by the pressure. Both hands are employ-
ed, and are made to press alternately, but
so quickly in succession, that the alternate
streams of milk sound on the oar like one
forcibly-continued stream ; und although
stripping also causes a continued fiow, the
nievling, not requiring the hands to change
their position, as stripping does, draws
away the larger quantity of niilk in the
same time. Stripjjing is thus performed
by j)ressing and passing certain fingers
along the teat ; nievling by the doubled
Jist, pressing the teat steadily at one place.
2259. Of the two modes, I prefer the
nieding, because it aj)f)ears to me to be
the more natural one of imitating the suck-
ing of a calf. When a calf takes a teat
into its mouth, it seizes it with the tongue
and palate, causing them tt) play upon the
teat by alternate pressures or pulsations,
while retaining it in the same position.
This is what nievling does ; but stripping
is not like this at all, — it is rather like the
action which a thief would make when
stealing milk from the cow. It is said
that stripping is good for agitating the
udder, and agitation is conducive to the
withdrawal of a large quantity of milk;
but there is nothing to prevent the dairy-
maid agitating the udder as much as she
pleases, while holding the teats in nievling —
indeed, a more constant agitation could be
kept up in that way, by the vibrations of
the arms, than by stripping, and is more
like the poking of the udder with the
nose when the calf sucks. Stripping, by
using a constrained pressure upon two sides
of the teat, is much more ajtt to press it
unequally than grasping the whole (eat
in the palm of the hand ; while the fric-
tion occasioned by passing the finger and
thumb firmly over the skin of the teat, is
more likely to excite heat and irritation
in it than a mere grasji of the hand. To
show that this friction causes an unpleasant
feeling even to the dairy-n)aitl, she is
obliged to lubricate the teat frequently
with milk, and to wet it at first with
water; whereas nievling requires no such
expedients. And as a further jtroof that
strij)ping is a mode of milking which may
give pain to the cow, it cannot be em-
ployed when the teats are chapped, or
when these and the udder are aft'ected
with the cow-pox, with so much ease to
the cow as nievling. This difierence I
saw strikingly exemplified one summer,
when all my cows were afll'ected with the
cow-pox, and when the assistant, who
could only milk by stripping, was obliged
to relinquish her duty till the cows were so
far recovered as to be again able to endure
her mode of milking.
2260. Milking should be done/<T«/, to draw
away the milk as quickly as jiossible; and
it should be continued as long as there is
a drop of milk to bring away. This is an
issue which the daii»y-maid cannot too
})artic'ularl3'' attend to herself, and see it
attended to by her assistants. Old milk
left in the receptacle of the teat soon
changes into a curdy state; and the caseous
matter, not being at once broken and re-
moved by the next milking, is apt to irri-
tate the liniuir membrane of the teat durinsr
MILKING OF COWS.
525
the operation, especially when the teat ia
forcibly rubbed down between the linger
and thumb in stripping. The consequence
of" this irritation being repeated is the
thickening in a part of the lining mem-
brane, which at length becomes so harden-
ed as to constitute a stricture which at
length closes up the orifice of the teat.
The stricture may easily be felt from the
outside of the teat, and the teat is then
said to be corded. After this the teat be-
comes deaf., aud no more milk can after-
wards be drawn from the quarter of the
udder with which the corded teat com-
municates.
2261. Cows are easily rendered trouble-
some on being milked ; and the kicks aud
knocks which they usually receive for
their restlessness only render them the
more fretful. If they cannot be overcome
by kindness, thumps will never make them
better. But the fact is, restless habits were
engendered in them by the treatment they
received when first taken into the byre,
when, most probably, they were dragooned
into submission. Udders aud teats are
very tender immediately after calving,
and especially after the first calving ; and
when unfeeling horny hands tug the teats
in stripping., as if they had been accus-
tomed to the operation for years, no won-
der that the young and inexperienced cow
should wince under fhe infliction, and at-
tempt to get quit of her tormentor by
kicking. Can the creature be otherwise
than uneasy ? and how can she escape the
pain but by striking out her heels ? The
hobbles are then jilaced on the hind fet-
Jocks, to keep the heels down. The tail
is then employed by her as an instrument
of annoyance, and it then is held by some
one while the milking is going on ; or it
is tied to the creature's leg by the hair of
the tuft. Add to these the many threats
and scolds uttered by the dairy-maid, and
you will have a faint idea of how a young
heifer is broke into milking. Some cows,
no doubt, are very unaccommodating and
provoking; but, nevertheless, nothing but
a gentle course of conduct towards them
will ever render them less .so. Some cows
are only troublesome to milk for a few
times after calving, and become soon quiet;
others kick pertinaciously at the first milk-
ing. In this last case, the surest plan, in-
stead of hobbling, which only irritates, is
for the dairy-maid, while standing on her
feet, to place her head against the flank
of the cow, stretch her hands forward, and
get a hold of the teats tlie best way she
can, and let the milk fall to the ground ;
and while in this position, it is out of. the
power of the cow to hurt her. Such
ebullitions of feeling, at the first milking
after calving, arise either from feeling pain
in a tender state of the teat — most probably
from inflammation in the lining membrane
of the receptacle ; or simply from titilla-
tion of the skin of the udder and teat,
which become the more sensitive as the
heat wears off; or the udder, being still
hard, gives pain when first touched — and
should the udder be difficult to soften, the
advice of Mr Youatt may be tried, by al-
lowing the calf to suck at least three times
a-day until the udder becomes soft. This
will doubtless cure the udder, but it will
cause another species of restlessness in
the cow when the calf is taken entirely
from her. Still, rather let the dairy-maid
sufter this inconvenience than the udder
of the cow be injured. Be the cause of
irritation what it may, one thing is certain,
that gentle discipline will overcome the
most turbulent temper in a cow.
2262. The milking of cows afl^ords dif-
ferent degrees of pleasure to the milker.
Some yield their milk with a copious flow,
withthegentlest handlingthatcanbegiven ;
others require great exertion to draw the
milk from them in streams no larger than
threads. The udder of the former will
have a soft skin, and the teats will be
short; that of the latter a thick skin, and
the teats long and tough. The former feels
like velvet, the latter not pleasanter than
tanned leather.
2263. A few years ago, a plan of drawing milk
from the cow was recommended by Mr Blurton,
Field Hall, Staffordsliire. by introducing tubes
into two teats, and milking the other teats at the
same time. He was once of opinion that a tube
ill each teat woukl draw away all the available
milk at the time from the udder ; but, finding his
mistake in this, he has adopted the following
method of milking. I may mention that he
names his tubes siphons, but they have not the
form, and therefore cannot have the property, of
the siphon, which first elevates the fluid in a
vessel to draw it over its rim, whereas his tubes
just allow the milk to run out of the bottom of
the udder through the open teat. His improved
plan of milking is this : — " The milker sits dowa
as in the common method, fixing the siphon can
PRACTICE— SPRING.
(pail) firmly between his knees : he then takes
hold of the near-hand teat with a slight pressure
of hi3 ri^ilit hand, and with his left introduces
the tiiiall tube of the siphon an inch or more into
the teat, putting the thumb on the large tube, to
prevent the milk from running out till completely
introduced — and so on with the near fore teat,
reserving the two farthest teats to be milked by
hand. By this method I find that I can milk
three teats with my right hand, assisted by the
siphons, in the time I can milk one with my left,
and this with ease and comfort to myself. I
must here also observe, that tlie action of milk-
ing one or tw') teats by hand, is quite sufficient
to induce the cow to give her milk down freely
from those milked by the siphons ; as I have be-
fore observed, the cow does not possess the power
of retaining her milk in any one quarter of the ud-
der, while it flows freely from the others."
2264. These tabes, containing a small and
larger end, beyond which they cannot pass into
the teat, may be made of ivory, bone, or metal.
They should be thrown into the pail and milked
on before being used, and when taken out of the
teat, let fall into the can. On being used, they
should be dipped in boiling water and blown
through. Tliey do not seem to possess any ad-
Tautage over the hand ; on the contrary, the
hand must be employed to complete what they
cannot accomplish, and must be in use when
they are employed.
2265. Mr Blurton very properly advocates
clean milking, and describes a very good plan by
wliich will be drawn away all the milk from an
udder much better than by any tube. " In
aftering," lie says, " I have adopted the plan
of using the left hand to press dovn the thick
milk into the receptacle and teat, at the same
time mUkinii with the riijht hand; then, in a
similar manner, discharging the wliole from tlie
remaining quarters of the udder." He adds
what is very true, that " it must not be supposed
that this nfithod is distressing to the animal ; on
the contrary, her quietness during the process is
a satisfactory indication that it occasions no pain,
but rather an agreeable sensation." •
2266. I have said that the udder, in some cases
of heifers, becomes uneasy even before calving,
(2224,) and they are very subject to inflamma-
tion soon after calving. " The new or increased
function which is now set up," says Mr Youatt,
" and the sudden distention of the bag with milk,
produce tenderness and irritability of the udder,
and particularly of the teats. This in some
cases shows itself in the form of excoriations or
sores, or .small cracks or chaps on the teats ; and
very troublesome they are. The discharge, like-
wise, from these cracks mingles with the milk.
The cow suffers much pain in the act of milking,
and is often unmanageable. Many a cow has
been ruined, both as a quiet and a plentiful
milker, by baUmanagcmeut when her teats have
been sure She will also form a habit
of retaining her milk, and which very speedily
and very materially reduces its qnantitj. The
teats should be fomented with warm water in
order to clean them, and get rid of a portion of
the hardened scabbiness about them, the con-
tinuance of which is the greatest pain in the act
of milking ; and, after the milking, the teats
should be dressed with the following ointment :
Take 1 oz. of yellow wax, and 3 oz. of lard, and
melt them together, and when they begin to get
cool, rub well in J oz. of sugar of lead, and one
drachm of alum finely powdered." t
2267. Cows difier very much in the time thej
continue to give milk, some not continuing to
yield it more than 9 months, whilst others aflbrd
it for years. The usual time for cows that bear
calves to give milk is 10 months. The cow that
died in consequence of the corded teats, mentioned
above (2136,) gave milk for 3 year>, and bore a
calf every year. A cow of mine that slipped her
calf, and was not again served by the bull, gave
milk for 19 months ; but many remarkable in-
stances of cows giving milk for a long time are
on record. " The immense length of time for
which some cows will continue to give milk," says
a veterinary writer, "if favourably treated, is trulj
astonishing; so much so as to appear absolutely
incredible. My own observation on this subject
extends to four most remarkable cases : 1. A
cow purchased by Mr Ball, who resided near
Hampslead, that continued to give milk for 7
years, subsequently to having her first and only
calf. 2. A Inrtre dun Suffolk cow, shown to me ■
as a curiosity by a Yorkshire fanner. This ani-
mal, when 1 saw her, had been giving milk for the
preceding 5 years, during which period she had
not any calf. The five years' milking was the
result of her second calving. During that period
attempts had been made to breed from her, but
inefiectually. 3. A small aged cow, belonging to
a, fermier near Parts, that gave milk for 3 years
subsequent to her last calf. 4. A cow in the
possession of Mr Nichols, postmaster. Lower
Merrion Street, Dublin. This animal was in Mr
Nichols' possession 4 years, during the entire of
which time she continued to give an uninterrupted
supply of milk, which did not diminish in quan-
tity more than 3 pints per diem, and that only in
the winter moiitlis He disposed of
her for butchers' meat, she being in excellent
condition. The morning of the day on which she
was killed, she gave her usual quantity of milk."
2268. The same writer enters fully into a sub-
ject with which I was not previously acquainted —
namely, the possibility of securing permanency of
milk in the cow. This is efiected, it seems, by
simply spaying the cow at a proper time after
calving. The operation consists in cutting into
the flank of the cow, and in destroying the ova-
ries of the womb by the introduction of the hand.
The cow must have acquired her full stature, so
that it may be performed at any age after 4
years. She should be at the flush of her milk, as
tlie future quantity yielded depends on that which
is afforded by her at the time of the operation.
The operation may be performed in ten days
Blurton, Practical Etsay on Milking, p. 10-12.
t Youatt On Cattlf, p. 552.
REARING OF CALVES.
527
after calving, but the most proper time appears
to be 3 or 4 weeks after. Tiie cow should be
in high health, otherwise the operation may kill
her or dry up the milk. The only preparation
required for safety in the operation is, that the cow
should fast 12 or 14 hours, and the milk taken
away immediately before the operation. The
wound heals in a fortnight or three weeks. For
two or three days after the operation the milk may
diminish in quantity; but it regains its measure in
about a week, and continues at that mark for the
remainder of the animal's life, or as long as the
age of the animal permits the secretion of the
fluid ; unless, from some accidental circumstance
— such as the attack of a severe disease — it is
stopped ; but, even then, the animal may be easily
fattened.
2269. The advantages of spaying milk cows
are thus summed up: — " 1. Rendering permanent
the secretion of milk, and having a much greater
quantity within the given time of every year.
2. The quality of the milk being improved. 3.
The uncertainty of, and the dangers incidental
to breeding, being to a great extent avoided.
4. The increased disposition to fatten, even when
giving milk, or when, from excess of age, or from
accidental circumstances, the secretion of milk is
checked ; also, the very short time required for
the attainment of marketable condition. 5. The
meat of spayed cattle being of a quality superior
to that of ordinary cattle." * With these advan-
tages, of course, breeders of stock can have no-
thing to do; but, since the operation is said to be
quite safe in its results, it may be presented to
the notice of cowfeeders in town.
ON THE REARING OF CALVES.
2270. We left the new- dropped calf
comfortably housed in its crib amongst
plenty of clean straw, until we should
have time to attend to it. Let us no\7
consider how it should be reared until it
shall go to grass to provide for itself.
2271. For convenience, the calves' house
should be placed immediately adjoining
the cow-byre. This apartment is seen at
R, Plate II., fitted up with cribs. It is 3.5
feet in length, and 18 feet in width, and
the roof ascends to the slates. Calves are
either suckled by their mothers, or brought
up on milk by the hand. When they are
suckled, if the byre be roomy enough —
that is, 18 feet in width — stalls are erected
for them against the wall behind the cows,
in which they are usually tied up immedi-
ately behind their mothers ; or, what is a
less restrictive plan, put in numbers to-
gether in large loose boxes at the ends of
the byre, and let loose from both places at
stated times to be suckled. When brought
up by the hand, they are put into a separate
apartment from their mothers, and each
confined in a crib, where the milk is given
them. The superiority of separate calves
to having a number together is, that it
prevents them sucking one another, after
having had their allowance of milk, by
the ears, teats, scrotum, or navel, by which
malpractice certain diseases may be engen-
dered.
2272. The crib is large enough for one
calf at 4 feet square and 4 feet in height,
sparred with slips of tile-lath, and having
a small wooden wicket to aff"ord access to
the calf. The floor of the cribs may be of
earth, but the passage between them should
beflagged,orof asphalt. Abundance of light
should be admitted, either by windows in
the walls, or sky-lights in the roof; and
fresh air is essential to the health of calves,
the supply of which would be best secured
by a ventilator in the roof, such as fig.
81. A door should communicate with the
cow-house, Jiud another, having upper and
lower divisions, into a court furnished with
a shed, as k Plate II., which the calves
may occupy until turned out to pasture.
The crib should be fitted up with a man-
ger to contain cut turnips or carrots, and
a high rack for hay, the top of which
should be as much elevated above the
litter as to preclude the possibility of
the calf getting its feet over it. The
general fault in the construction of calves'
houses is the want of both light and air,
light being cheerful to animals in confine-
ment, and air essential to the good health
of all young animals. When desired, both
may be excluded. The walls of the calves'
house should be plastered, to be neat and
clean. Some people are of oj^inion that
the calves' house should not only have no
door of communication with the cow-house,
but should be placed at a distance from it,
that the cows may be beyond the reach of
hearing the calves. Such an objection
could only have originated from an im-
perfect acquaintance with the character
of these animals. A cow that is pre-
vented smelling and suckling her calf,
does not know its voice, and will express
* Ferguson On Distempers amovg Cattle, p. 29-3G.
528
PRACTICE-SPRING.
no uneasiness about it a few minutes after
tliey are .separateil, and after the first ])or-
tioii of milk has been draw u from ber by
tbe hand.
227G. The front and door of a calf's
critf is represented by fig. 199, in which a
is the wicket door which gives access to
A calf"s-crib door.
it, b b are the hinges, and c is a thumb-
catch to keep it shut. This sort of hinge
is very simple and economical. It consists
of those rails of the wicket intended for the
hiniies, being elongated towards i, where
thev are rounded off; and their lower face is
shaped into a round pin, which fills and
rotates in a round hole made in a billet of
wood, seen at the lower hinge at ^, securely
screwed to the U])right door-post of the
crib. Another billet d is screwed ininie-
diately above the lower rail, /^ to prevent
the door being thrown off the hinges by
any accident. Cross-tailed inm hinges, of
the lightness suited to such doors, would
soon break, by rusting in the dampness
usually occasioned by the breath of a num-
ber of calves confined within the same
apartment.
2274. A court should be attached to the
calves' house. It is 30 feet in length by
25 feet in width, and there should be
erected in it, for shelter to the calves in
cold weather, or at night before they are
turned out to pasture, or for the night for
a few weeks before they are jmt into the
larger court when at pasture, a shed k\
Plate 11., 30 feet in length by 1 2 feet in
width, fitted up with mangers for turni])s,
and racks for hay. A trough of water ic
is also requisite in this court, as well as a
gateway for carts, by which the dung may
be removed, and a liquid-manure grating,
J-, to keep the court dry.
2275. The state of the navL-l-string is
the first thing that should be examined in
a new-dropped calf, that no blood be
dropping from it, and that it is not in too
raw a state. Inattention to this particular
may overlook the cause of the niavel-ill,
the treatment of which is given below ;
and, insignificant as this complaint is
usually regarded, it carries off more calves
than most breeders are aware of.
227G. The first food which the calf
receives consists of the beistyn. Being of
the consistence of the yolk of the egg, it
seems an appropriate food for the young
calf. On giving it its first feed by the
hand, in a crib, it may have risen to its
feet, or been content to lie still. In which-
ever position it is found, let it remain so,
and let the dairymaid take a little beistyn
in a small dish — a handy formed like a
miniature milk-pail, fig. 107, and of simi-
lar materials, is a convenient one — and let
her put her left arm round the neck of the
calf, and sn])port its lower jaw with the
palm of the hand, keeping its mouth a
little elevated, and open, by introducing
the thumb (.f the same hand into the side
of its mouth. Then let her fill the hollow
of her right hand with beistyn, and pour
it into the calfs mouth, introducing a
finger or two with it for the calf to suck,
when it will swallow the liquid. Let it get,
in handful after handful, as much as it ia
inclined to take. When it refuses to take
more, its mouth should be cleaned of the
beistyn that may have run over. Some-
times, when a calf lying is begun to be
fed, it attempts to get upon its feet, and,
if able, let it do so, and rather assist than
prevent it. Some people are afraid to
give a calf as much beistyn at first as it
can take, because it is said to ])roduce the
navel-ill. This is nonsense: let it take as
much as it pleases ; and as to the navel-ill,
it proceeds from neglect of the {)roper
inspection after the calf is born. I have
thus minutely described the simi)Ie process
of first feeding a new-dropped calf by hand,
because verv absurd motles are adojtted of
doing this. Nothing is more common than
to i>lunge the calf's head into a large
rpiantity of beistyn, and because the liquid
bubbles around its mouth with the breath
REARING OF CALVES.
529
from the nose, and it will not drink, its
head is the more forcibly thrust and kept
down into the tub. How can it drink
with its nose immersed amongst the fluid?
and why should a calf be expecteil at first
to drink iclth its head down, when its
natural instinct would lead it to suck with
its head up ? It should always be borne
in mind, that feeding calves by the hand is
an unnatural process ; nevertheless, it is
a convenient, practicable, and easy one,
provided it be conducted in a proper man-
ner. The young calf must be taught to
drink, and a good mode of teaching it is
as I have described above. In this way
it is fed as often as the cow is milked,
which is at first three times a-day at least.
After the first two or three days, however,
another plan should be adopted, for it
should not be accustomed to suck the
fingers, as it will not drink without their
assistance. The succeeding plan is to put
a finger or two of the right hand into its
mouth, and holding the small pail of milk
with the left under its head, bring the head
gradually down into the pail, where the
fingers induce it to take a few gluts of the
milk; and while it is doing this, the
fingers should be gently withdrawn, while
the head should be held down in its posi-
tion with the hand, taking care not to dip
the nostrils into the milk. In a few days
more the fingers will not be required, and
in a few more still the calf will drink of
its own accord.
2277. For the first month the calf should
have as much sweet milk warm from the
cow as it can drink. It will be able to
drink nearly 3 quarts at each meal — that is,
in three meals a-day, in the morning, noon,
and evening, it will drink 8 quarts. After
the first month, to the end of the third, it
gets its quantity of milk at only 2 meals,
morning and evening. It is supported 3
months in all on milk, during which time
it should have as much sweet milk as it
can drink. Such feeding may be con-
sidered expensive, and doubtless it is,
but a good calf cannot be well brought up
in any other way, for no substitute will
answer the purpose of new milk. Some
people grudge giving sweet-milk to calves
after a few days, and take the cream off
it, and give the skimmed milk. This is
considered thrifty management ; but al-
though it may insure immediate gain in
VOL. I.
the cream, it insures ultimate loss in the
calf. It is impossible to derive a double
advantage from a given quantity of sweet-
milk. If butter is preferred to calves or
good beasts at an after period, the imme-
diate wish is attained, and the farmer has
had his preference; but he ought to know
that he cannot have butter and good beasts
frotu the same identical milk. Others,
seemingly more generous, give half-sweet
and half-skimmed milk to the calves ;
whilst some provide a substitute for the
milk, by making gelatine of boiled linseed
or sago, and give no milk at all. When
milk is really scarce, expedients are per-
missible ; but when plentiful, and used
merely in the farm-house, or sold, the
recourse to expedients is a practical avowal
that the farmer does not wish to bring up
his stock as he might.
2278. The jelly from linseed, or lythax^
as it is called, is easily made by boiling
good linseed in water, and while it is in a
hot state to pour it into a vessel to cool,
where it becomes a firm jelly, a proportion
of which is taken every meal, and bruised
down in a tubfiil of warm milk, and dis-
tributed to the calves. They are very
fond of it, and in the third month of the
calf's age, when it can drink a large quan-
tity of liquid at a time, and during a day,
it is excellent food for them.
2279. Sago may be prepared in the same
way ; but without milk it is a very impro-
per food for calves, as it contains no ingre-
dients to afford the substance of moscle
or bone to the young animal.
2280. But a better substance for calves
than either, in my opinion, is pea meal.
It should not be boiled, but made into
hrose, by pouring hot water upon it, and
stirring the mixture till it \sjine. It be-
comes gelatinous on cooling ; and when
cold, a portion of it is put into as much
new warm milk, and mixed so intimately
with the hand, as not a lump of the meal
shall be felt in the mixture, which should
be of a consistence which a calf can easily
drink.
2281. When the calves suck their mo-
thers, and are in large cribs at conve-
nient parts of the cow's byre, in a loose
state, they are let out of the cribs to the
21.
m
PRACTICE— SPRING.
cows, as the hours arrive for feeding them,
each going directly to the cow which
suckles it.
2282. When they are tied by the neck
in stalls, erected for the purpose against
the wall of the byre, immediately behind
the cows, they are loosened from their
bindings, and pass across the byre to the
cows.
2283. Generally, in both cases, one cow
suckles two calves ; and a cow that has
calved early may suckle two sets, or four
calves, or at least three, in the season.
2284. As regards the merit of these
plans, I must say that I am averse to
tying calves by the neck. It cramps their
motions, and deprives them of that freedom
of action which is so conducive to health
and growth. By preventing motion, they
■will no doubt sooner acquire condition ;
but for stock calves, this is of less impor-
tance than strength acquired by moderate
exercise within a limited space, such as iu
a crib. As to having a number of calves
within the same crib, though they certainly
have liberty to move, they have also liberty
to suck one another. The ears, navel,
scrotum, and teats, suffer by this tlirty
habit ; and there is no preventing it after
it lias been acquired, as long as two calves
remain together. Upon the whole, T prefer
the separate crib to each calf, so formed of
spars as to allow every calf to see its
neighbours, and they are tlien as much in
company as to remove the idea of loneli-
ness. The separation, at all events, pre-
vents the abominable habit of sucking
being acquired; and such cribs areas use-
ful Avhen the calves are suckled by the
cows as when brought up by hand.
2285. In regard to bringing up calves
by suckling, there is no question it is the
best way, provided the calf has free access to
the cow which is supporting it; but I am
doubtful of the superiority of suckling over
feeding by hand, when the calf is only
allowed to go to the cow at stated times. It
saves the trouble of milking the cows and
giving the milk to the calves ; but a saving
of trouble is of no importance compared to
rearing young stock well. An objection
to suckling exists, when one cow brings up
two calves at a time, that the quantity of
milk received by each calf is unknown, and
the fastest sucker will have the larger share.
True, they are both brought up ; but are they
brought up as well as when the quantity of
milk consumed by them is known to be
sufficient for their support ? The milk
becomes scarcer, too, aa the calves get
older, instead of becoming more plentiful.
The objection to partial suckling ii^, that a
cow suckling a calf does not allow milking
afterwards with the hand in a kindly man-
ner, as every cow prefers being sucked to
beingmilkedbythe hand. Unless, therefore,
cows are kept for the purpose of suck-
ling entirely, they become troublesome to
milk with the hand after the calves are
weaned.
2286. At a month old, the male calves
that are not intended to be kept for bulls
are castrated. Though the operation is
simple and safe, it should not be performed
at a time when any inflammation atlects
the navel-string, or symptoms of costive-
ness or dysentery are present. Supposing
the calf to be in good health, the castration
is performed in this manner. An assistant
places the calf upon its rump on the litter,
and, sitting down himself, takes it betn eeo
his outstretched limbs on the ground, with
its back at the shoulder against his breast.
Then seizing a hind hock of the calf iu
each hand, he draws up a hind leg to each
side of its body, and holds both in that
position as firmly as he can. The opera-
tor causes the testicles keep the scrotum
smooth and full with his left hand, and cuts
with a sharp knife through all the integu-
ments till tlietestical is laid bare,. which he
seizes with the right hand, and pulls out aa
much of the spermatic cord as he can, and
divides it with the knife. The same
operation he performs on the other testicle,
and the entire castration is acconijili.-lied
iu a minute or two. The calf is laid down
on the litter, and he will feel stiff in the
hind quarters for a few days, and the scro-
tum may even swell. Siiould the swelling
become serious, fomentations of warm
water should be frequently .ipplied ; and
should suppuration ensue, the incisions iu
the scrotum should be o])ened out to give
the matter vent; but the probability is, that
the cuts will heal by the first intenti'm, and
give no further uneasiness to the calf than
a stiffness iu the hind quarters for a few
days.
REARING OF CALVES.
531
2287. The practice some time ago was
to spay the heifer calves — that is, to make
an opening in the flank, through which
the ovaries of the womb were extracted,
in order to extinguish all desire for the
hull ; but the operation is falling into
desuetude, most probably from the circum-
stance of every breed of cattle being now
so much improved, that the heifers are
generally considered fit for breeding, and
are therefore kept open, as the phrase is,
and disposed of at a better price than when
fattened for the butcher.
2288. When the air becomes mild as
the season advances, and as the older calves
attain the age of two months, they should
be put into the court k, Plate II. during
the day ; and, after some days' endurance
to the air, should be sheltered under the
shed at night, instead of being again put
into the cribs. Sweet hay should be of-
fered them in the racks ; as well as a few
slices of Swedish turnips in the mangers
in the shed. The change of food may
cause costiveness in some calves, and loose-
ness in others ; but no harm will arise from
either, if remedial measures are employed
in time. Large lumps of chalk to lick at
will be serviceable in looseness. Should
the weather prove wet, snowy, stormy, or
cold, they should be brought back to their
cribs till the storm pass away.
2289. At 3 or 4 months old, according
to the supply of milk and the ready state
of the grass to receive them, the calves
should be weanedm the order of seniority,
due regard being had to their individual
strength. If a calf has been always strong
and healthy, it may be the sooner weaned
from milk when the grass is in a state to
support it ; but should it have ailed, or be
naturally puny, it should still have good
sweet milk as the best means to recruit its
debility. When determined on weaning,
calves should not be deprived of milk all at
once ; the quantity should be lessened daily,
and given at longer intervals, so that it
may be withdrawn insensibly. Calves, on
being stinted of milk preparatory to wean-
ing, are supplied with a sufficient quantity
of other food than milk, and it is given
so as to entice them to take it. Fresh
bundles of the most clovery portions of
the hay, turnips fresh sliced, fresh carrots,
pure water at will, a little pounded oil-
cake, presented in turns when they used
to get their milk, will be eaten for tlie sake
of novelty ; but if these, or any of them,
are given anyhow to save trouble, and
are left to be picked up in a court, or
bare lea, the calves cannot but sutler from
hunger, nor is it surprising they shouW
make their hunger be loudly known. Tims
treated, they will inevitably fall off in
condition ; and if they do this at the cri-
tical period of weaning, the greater part
of the ensuing summer will elapse ere they
regain the condition, strength, and sleek-
ness of coat, they had when on the milk.
A small sheltered paddock, in good heart,
near the steading, is an excellent place for
weaning calves, before turning them out
to a pasture field ; but unless it afford a
full bite of grass, to support them as the
milk is taken from them, they will bo ;;s
much injured in it as in a poor grass
field.
2290. When i?«/^ calves are brought up,
they should be early calved, and receive
as much new milk as they can drink, and
should not be weaned till the grass is fully
ready to support them. The object of tliis
high keeping is not to fatten them, though
it may do that too, but to give strength to
their bones, and vigour to their cunstltu-
tion, these being much enhanced by the
quality and quantity of food at the earliest
period of existence. The impulse thus
given in calfhood, is evinced by bulls in
the vigour of succeeding life, and it is sure
to lay the foundation of a long andjiseful
service. Even with ordinary calves, if
they are pushed forward in the first month
of their existence, the probability is they
will evade every disease incident to that
age.
2291. I should mention that, when they
receive milk in the court, some will be apt
to plague those which are getting theirs,
by poking their heads into the same pail,
b}'' boxing, or by sucking the ears, &c.
To prevent these annoyances, the dairy-
maid should be i)rovided with a supple cane
or switch, and tap the ears of ever}' one
disposed to be troublesome. Discipline,
while it does no harm to those subjected
to it, impresses on others the necessity of
obedience. We err if we consider animals,
because they are dumb and young, inca-
pable of instruction of any kind. On the
632
PR ACTICE— SPR] NG.
contrary, tliey are very susceptible of it,
and Its influence is evinced by habitual
forbearance from wrong.
2292. On car$e farms no calves are brought
up, those produced by the cows which supply the
people with milk being sold to rearers of stock,
or fattened for the butcher. On pastoral farms,
devoted to sheep, the same plan is usually pur-
sued ; but on those which rear cattle only, as on
the west coast of Scotland, in Wales, and in Ire-
land, the calves are suckled by the mothers, and
entirely brought up by them — which, as I have
already said, is an excellent plan, provided the
mothers are well fed, and make their calves fol-
low them over the pastures, and then they will
become strong, and be free of disease. On dairy
farms calves are not brought up, excepting as
many of the quey calves as shall be required to
renovate the stock of cows, the milk being appro-
priated to quite other purposes ; nevertheless, it
is in the dairy districts that the calves are best
fattened for the butcher.
2293. Strathaven in Scotland has long been
famed for rearing good rial for the Glasgow and
Edinburgh markets. The dairy farmers there
retain the quey calves for maintaining the num-
ber of the cows, while they feed the male calves
for veal. Their plan is simple, and may be
followed anywhere. Milk only is given to the
calves, and very seldom with any admixture, and
they are not allowed to suck the cows. Some
give milk, but sparingly at first, to whet the
appetite, and prevent surfeit. The youngest
calves get the first drawn milk, or fore -broads, as
it is termed, and the older the aftfrings, even of
two or three cows, being the richest portion of
the milk. After being three or four weeks old,
they get abundance of milk twice a-day. They
get plenty of dry litter, fresh air, moderate
warmth, and are kept nearly in the dark to check
sportiveness. They are not bled during the time
they are fed, and a lump of chalk is placed within
their reach. They are fed from 4 to 6 weeks,
when they fetch from £3 to £4 apiece ; and it
is found more profitable to fatten the larger num-
ber of calves for that time, to succeed each other,
of from 25 lb. to 30 lb. per quarter, than to force
a fewer number beyond the state of marketable
Teal.*
2294. The plan followed of fattening calves,
for thirty miles round London, is very diiferent.
There, the cows are made to suckle the calves
three times a-day for the first three or four days,
and afterwards twice a-day. If the cow is full
of milk, two calves are put to her ; and, at any
rate, one calf is put on after another is fattened
off. In this way, the veal-farmers keep from 6
to 12 cows each, and convert their whole milk
into veal. The calves are placed in boarded
boxes, 4 feet high, and just large enough inside
for a calf to turn. The floor is also boarded ; the
boards having holes, are raised from the ground,
and littered with clean wheat-straw. A lump of
* Quarterly Journal of yigriciilture, vol. v. p.
;]: Combe On Digestion
chalk is placed within reach of each calf. The
calf is fed for 10 weeks, when it will attain about
35 lb. per quarter or more, and is then warranted
prime veal. A calf, however, of 9 or 10 .^tones,
will fetch a shilling or two a-stoiie more than one
of 17 or 18 stones. Notwithstanding this, the
English veal-farmers believe, contrary to those
of Strathaven, that a calf grows and fattens faster
after it is 10 weeks old than before, and requires
less milk to carry it on ; and the profit is greater,
inasmuch as one large calf incurs only one prime
cost, one risk of life, and one commission; whereas,
two small calves incur twice the cost and risk of
life. The butchers bleed the calves repeatedly be-
fore slaughtering them ; and they judge of the
colour of the flesh by looking at the inside of the
mouth. and white of the eyes. " The profit of
fattening calves," observes Mr Main, " may be
judged of by an example in figures, which I have
oft experienced. A calf is suckled for 10 weeks,
and weighs from 10 to 11 stones imperial, »inA:JH<7
the offal, as it is called in London. The calf
fetches £5 at market, from which deducting SOs.
which it might have been sold for when a week
old, and 5s. salesman's commission, leaves a profit
of £3, 5s, or 6s. ()<1. per week for the cow's milk.
Now, deducting 2s. 6(1. per week for the keep of
the cow, the bare profit left is only 4s. per week.
But it must be remembered, that a good cow will
fatten off" two calves while siie is in milk — some I
have liad,twoand ahalf : but thiscanbe butrarely
accounted on. Still, taking one cow with an-
other, kept for the purpose of suckling, her annual
returns will be nearly what it is commonly esti-
mated at, namely, £12. To insure this, or any
other snm, as clear profit, depends entirely on the
attention bestowed on the cows and calves. Some
cows are odd-tempered, letting down their milk
only to their own calves, and withholding it from
those they are made to foster. This, if not cor-
rected, will injure both cow and calf ; the one
will be starved, and the other will soon become
dry."t
2295. Veal is generally considered a delicate
species of meat, is held in high repute as a dish,
and always fetches a higher price in the market
than beef or mutton, being 9d. per lb. when beef
is 6d. or 7d; and, being thus accounted delicate,
it is a remarkable fact, that fresh fried veal takes
so long as 4 J hours to digest. +
2296. Navel-ill.— On examination after the first
drink is given to the calf,the navel-string may per-
haps continue slowly to bleed. " In this case,"
advises Mr Youatt, " a ligature should be passed
round it close, but, if it can be avoided, not quite
close to the belly. Possibly the spot at which
the division of the cord took place may be more
than usually sore. A pledget of tow, well wetted
with Friar's balsam, !^hould be placed over it,
confined with a bandage, and changed every
morning and night ; but the caustic applications
that are so frequently resorted to should be
avoided. Some times, when there has been previous
bleeding, and especially if the caustic has been
used to arrest the hemorrhage, and at other times
249. f Ibid. p. 611.
ar^d Dietetics, p. 136.
REARING OF CALVES.
-S33
when all other things seemed to have been going
on well, inflanimatiou suddenly appears about the
navel between the third and eighth or tenth day.
There is a little swelling of the part, but with
more redness and tenderness than such a degree
of enlargement could indicate. Although there
may be nothing in the first appearance of this to
excite alarm, the navel-ill is a far more serious
business than some imagine. Mr Sitwell, an
intelligent breeder at Barmoor Castle in Nor-
thumberland, says, ' that in his part of the coun-
try, as soon as the calf takes on this disease, they
consider it as dead ; and butchers and graziers
will not purchase any calves until the usual time
for having the disorder is passed.' Fomentation
in the part, in order to disperse the tumour, the
opening of it with a lancet if it evidently points,
and the administration of 2 or 3 oz. doses of
castor oil, made iuto anemulsion by means of an
egg, will constitute the first treatment ; but if,
when the inflammation abates, extreme weakness
should come on, as is too often the rase, gentian
and laudanum, with perhaps a small quantity of
port wine, should be administered."* In my
own calves a single instance of this disease was
never ex])erienced, but a careful examination of
the navel-string was made both before and after
the calf was first fed,
2297. Costit€n<^ss.— The black and glutinous
fffices that had been accumulating in the intes-
tines of the calf, during the period of its foetal
existence, should be got rid of ; and there is no
aperient better suited for the purpose than beistyn.
The dairymaid who throws it away, does not
know the jeopardy in which she places the lives
of calves. Should the beistyn not have the elfect
soon of removing tlie freces, 2 or 3 oz. of castor
oil, beat up with the yolk of an egg, or in thick
gruel, should be administered, and a scruple of
powdered ginger, to act as a carminative. In
cases of actual costiveness, which young calves
are very liable to contract, and inattention to
which, at first, is the cause of the loss of many of
the best young stock, arising partly from reple-
tion of milk at times, when calves are permitted
to suck the cows, or when they eat too much hay
at one time after the milk has been too suddenly
removed from them at weaning, active measures
should be adopted to prevent its confirmation, as
the case will soon. become hopeless, fever inevit-
ably ensue, and the food harden into a mass in
the maniplies. Doses of warm water, containing
a solution of 2 or 3 oz. of Epsom salts, should be
frequently administered, both to soften the mat-
ter in the stomach and move the bowels.
2298. Scouring. — Calves are liable to a disease
of an opposite nature from this, namely, looseness,
scouriag, or diarrhcea. They are most subject to
it when put out to grass, though stiU on milk, at
too early an age. I should say that, if so treated
before attaining 2 months, they are certain of
being afiected with it. One means of prevention
is, to retain the calves in the house or shed till
they are at least 2 months old, and if a little
older so much the better. Of course, it is only
the latest calves that are likely to be too soon
put on grass, the earlier having attained the
mature age for weaning before the grass is ready.
In the house, scouring may be brought on by
starvation and excess, and on grass by a sudden
change of food. As long as the calf is lively, and
takes its milk, there need be no apprehension from
a thin discharge of f»ces ; but dulness and loath-
ing of food, accompanied by discharge, should
create alarm. The first application of a remedy
should be a mild purgative, to remove, if possible,
the irritation of the bowels ; and then should
follow anodynes, astringents, and alkalie*, with
carminatives, the Avithdrawal of every sort of
green food, and the administration of' flour or
pea-meal gruel. The following mixture the far-
mer is called to " rely on, and it is recommended
that he should have it always by him, as it will
do for all sucking animals — namely, 4 oz. of pre-
pared chalk, 1 oz. of Winter's bark, powdered, 1
oz. of laudanum, and 1 pint of water. Give 2 or
3 table-spoonfuls, according to the size of the ani-
mal, 2 or 3 times a-day."+ Another prescription
is,—" Take \ oz. to f oz. of tincture of rhubarb,
with an equal quantity of water, according to the
age and strength of the calf. To be given eA'ery
alternateday, in case one dose is not sufiicient. I
have used the remedy for several years," says a
writer, " and have not lost a calf." J Mr E. E.
Dawson, Ingethorpe, Grantham, recommends
this, — " For young calves boil 4 oz. of ground
black pepper in half a pint of ale ; add a tea-
spoonful of ginger ; mix together ; to be given
lukewarm every morning until the calf recovers
of its weakness : to have its milk as nsuah
Older calves will require \ more for a complete
cure. Great care should be used in making use
of the above recipe, that the animal does not
receive the mixture too fast ; for want of this
attention mischief may be done.'" § I liave given
all these remedies for the scour in calves, as it
appears that it may be removed by various means,
and one may be more efficacious in one locality
than in another. I never saw among my calves
but one instance of serious scouring, and it
occurred before the calf was put to grass. It
was a short-horn quey-calf, and the medicine which
effected a cure, after trying many, was taken
from White's Farriery. "■ The immediate cause of
the disorder," observes White, "appears most
frequently to be an unhealthy action of the liver,
which seems to form bile of an acrid or hurtful
quality, by which the bowels are constantly irri-
tated. I would advise, therefore, in the early
stages of the complaint, to give the following
drink for three successive mornings, which will
rather increase the scouring at first ; and when the
efi"ect of this medicine has ceased, let the astring-
ent drink be given every morning and evening."
Thelaxative drink consists of quicksilver pill,from
1 to 2 drachms, India rhubarb 14 drachm, castor
oil 2 oz. in half a pint of gruel. These should all
be well mixed before being given, as the quick-
silver pill is heavy, and will fall down. While
taking this medicine, the animal should not be
exposed to either cold or wet, and all its drinks
should be warm fluids, of which thin gruel ia
Youatt On Cattle, p. 558. + Johnson's Farmer's Encycloj)a;dia, art. Diarrhcea.
Bell's Weekli/ Messenger for March 1842. § Mark Lane Express for November 1842.
684
PRACTICE— SPRING.
the best. The astringent drink is made of starch,
2 oz., wlii>li is made a.-i if for stiffening clothes,
with 1 quart of warm water ; to this add lauda-
num 1 ilrachm, ginger li drachm, and Japan
earth \ oz. I owght to mention that these pre-
scriptions are recommended by White for cows,
that fore lives being milder ; but having tried the
•ne for calves without success, I adopted those
for cows, and succeeded — by only taking half the
quantities of the ingredients prescribed, which
was just the quantities given above. "Anobser-
Tation we have made, when treating of some
other diseases," remarks White, " is equally
applicable to this — that is, at an early period of
the ilisorder, a cure may generally be effected by
the treatment above described; but if neglected,
and suffered to go on until the itructure of the
affected part is injured, medicine is but a useless
expense.'" *
2299. C<ilf-lousf. — It is not a little singular, in
a phy-iological point of view, that there should
be A peculiar pediciilar parasite approyiriaUd to
tie caJf; yet such appears to be the case, although
the creature is by no means common. It is very
lik'? the ox-louse. Ihrmatopinus eiirvfternHs, fig.
100, but comparatively narrower, and having two
row:! of dusky spots on the abdomen. It is
termed Hcenuttopinut tUuli, or louse of the calf.f
2300. Mr Youatt gives a description of cas-
trating bull-calves in France by means of torsion,
termed listourna<}e. Th« effect of the torsion
seems to be, that the testicles remain fixed
atrainst the abdomen, and gradually wither away.
The animal is usually bled after the operation,
and half of the allowance of food is only given ;
and it may be sent to pasture on the second or
third day. if the weather is favourable. Although
this mode of castration does not seem very pain-
ful to the animal, and is rarely attended by
any dangerous results ; yet we are informed of
the state in which it leaves the ox, that ^ the
animal* that are thus emasculated are said to
preserve more of the form of the bull than others
from whom the testicles are excised : they also re-
tain more of the natural desires of the bull, and are
occasionally very troublesome among the cows."*
2301. It is improbable that the breeders of
this country will follow a practice which will
let loo.se such a horde of rujIiM amongst their
herds; as they are already too well aware of the
trouble which even a single riglin and chaser gives
on a farm.
ON THE SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
2302, "When wheat is sown in spring,
it is usually after turnips, whether the.«e
have been entirely stripped from the land,
OT partly cimsunied on the ground by
sheep. Whichever of these states of the
turnip croj> niaj' be chosen to be followed
by wheat, it is not merely sufficient to
raise a good crop of turnips with a plenti-
ful supply of manure for once upon an
exhausted soil, to insure a good crop of
spring wheat; the land should be, and
should have been for some time, in good
heart, otherwise the attempt will inevi-
tably end in disappointment.
2303. Wheat cannot be sown in spring
in every sort of weather, and upon every
variety of soil. Unless the soil possesses
a certain degree of firmness, arising from
clay, it is not well adapted for the growth
of wheat — at least it is more profitable to
sow barley upon it; and unless the weather
is, besides, as dry as to allow strong soil to
be ploughed in early spriug, it is also more
profitable to defer the wheat, and sow
barley in the proper season. The general
climate of a place aflfects the question of
sowing wheat there in spring ; and it
seems a curious problem in climate why
wheat sown in autumn should come to
maturity at a place where spring wheat
will not. Elevation of position, even in a
favourable latitude, produces similareftVcts.
Experience iu these well-known elfects
renders the farmers of Scotland chary of
sowing wheat in spring, unless the soil is
in excellent condition, and the weather
very favourable for the purpose. But,
under the most favourable circumstances,
it has not been sown after the first week
in March, until these few years, when a
variety of wheat has been introduced into
Scotland, named April wheat, because it
may be sown as late as that month.
2304. On farms possessing the advan-
tages of favourable soil and climate, and
on which it is the custom to sow spring
wheat every year, the turnip-land is
ploughed with that view up to a certain
period of the season, usually the begin-
ning of March ; and even on those on
which spring wheat can only be stiwn
occasionally, when a favourable field
comes in the course of rotation, or the
w eather proves tempting, the land should
still be so ploughed as advantage may be
taken to sow the wheat. Should the
weather take an unfavourable turn for
this purpose, the soil may afterwards be
easily worked for barley.
White's Farriery, vol. iv. p. 57-9. t Denny's MohOiiraphia Anoplurorun Britannia.
t Youatt Om Cattle, p. 561.
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
535
2305. The land should only receive one
furrow — the seed-fnrrow, for spring wheat;
and if it were ploughed oftener after a
manured green crop, and in spring, when it
had become tender by the winter frost, it
would want that firmness so essential to
the growth of wheat. The mode of
ploughing this seed-furrow depends upon
circumstances. If the land presents a
visible form of ridge, and soon becomes
wet, it should be gathered up, fig. 20,
and then it will have the appearance of
being twice gathered up, as in fig. 26. If
it is flat, and the subsoil somewhat moist,
gathering up from the flat will answer
best, as in fig. 20. If the soil has a dry
subsoil, though of itself a pretty strong
clay, it may be cast fig. 22 with gore-
furrows, (7o6'.) And should it be fine loam,
resting on an open bottom, the ridges may
be cast together without gore-furrows, as in
fig. 22. It is probable that a whole field
may not be obtained at once to plough up
in either of these waj'^s, and such a case
rarely happens in regard to preparing
land for spring wheat ; but when it is de-
termined to sow it, a few ridges should be
ploughed up as convenience offers, and
then a number of acres sown at one
time. In this way a whole field may be
sown by degrees ; whereas to wait until a
whole field can be sown at once, niay pre-
vent the sowing of spring wheat altogether
in the proper season. Bad weather may
set in, prevent the sowing, and con-
solidate the land too much after it had
been ploughed ; still a favourable week
may occur, and, even at the latter end of
the season, the land may be ribbed with
the small plough, in the manner to be after-
wards described, which will move as much
of tlie tender part of the soil on the sur-
face as sutHcieutly to bury the seed.
230*]. The land, having been ploughed,
should be sotcn as quickly as possible ;
fur which purjK)se the seed-wheat sliould
have been measured up in the sacks, or
ready to be measured up in the ct)rn-barn
or granary, and the means of pickling it
provitled fur. Wheat shouhl be sown
thick in spring, as there is no time for the
plant to sto'jl or tiller — that is, to throw
up young slioots from the roots, as in the
case of autumnal sown wheat. About 3
bushels per imperial acre will suftice for
seed for spring wheat, which does not
tiller,but less would suffice forwinter wheat.
A controversy about thick and thin sowing
is carrying on at present, to which we
shall direct our attention at a convenient
time.
2307. Seed- wheat should be jnckled—
that is, subjected to preparation in a cer-
tain kind of liquor — before it is sown, in
order to insure it against the attack of a
fungal disease in the ensuing summer,
called smut, which renders the crop com-
paratively worthless. Some farmers aflTect
to despise this precaution, as originating
in an unfounded reliance on an imaginary
specific; but the existence of smut, and its
baneful effect upon the wheat-crop, are no
imaginary evils ; and when experience
has proved, in numberless instances, that
steeped grain prevents the appearance
of this serious disease, the small trouble
which pickling imposes may surely be
undertaken, rather than place the entire
crop in jeopardy. Whf/ pickling the seed
should have the effect of preventing the
smut in the crop, is a question more easily
asked than answered ; and it is, perhaps,
because it has never received a satisfac-
tory answer, that pickling is disregarded
by some farmers. No valid objection can
be stated against the practice, for the pal-
pable fact stands obvious to conviction,
that one field sown with pickled wheat,
and otherwise managed in the usual ^vay,
will escape the smut ; while the adjoining
one, managed in exactly a similar manner,
but sown with wheat in its ordinary state,
will be almost destroyed with the disease.
I have seen such a case tested by two
neighbouring farmers, the Messrs Fenton,
late tenants of Nevay and Eassie, in For-
farshire. It is true that, on some farms,
wheat sown in its usual state escapes the
disease, which I have heard the late Mr
Oliver, Lochend, near Edinburgh, state was
the case on his farm ; and it is also true
that pickling does not entirely prevent the
occurrence of the disease on other farms ;
but such cases do not prove that every
farm must also be free of the snmt: indeed
no one, beforehand, can aver that any farm
shall be so ; and while so much uncer-
tainty exists, the safer practice is to pickle
the seed, the expense being a mere trifle.
It is now an ascertained fact, that vaccina-
tion will not insure immunity from small-
pox, yet it certainly very much modifies
586
PRACTICE— SPRING.
ita attack when it does occur, atnl pre-
cisely £>y is the case with pickling wheat.
2308. Wheat is pickled in this way.
For some time, 2 or 3 weeks, let a tub, as c,
fig. 200, be placed to receive a quautity of
chamber ley, and whenever the ammonia
Fig. 200.
TUB PICKLIXG OF WHBAT,
is felt disengaging itself from the ley, it is
ready for use. It is better that the am-
monia be as strong as to smart the eyes,
and water be added to dilute it, than that
the ley be used fresh. This tub should
be removed to the straw-barn, as also the
wheat in sacks to be pickled, and part of
the floor swept clean, to be ready for the
reception of the wheat Let two baskets,
h and </, be provided, capable of holding
easily about half a bushel of wheat each,
having handles standing upright above
the rims. Pour the wheat into the basket
h from the sack a, and dip the basketful
of wheat into the tub of ley c as far down as
completely to cover the wheat, the upright
handles of the ba-skets preventing the hands
of the operator being immersed in the ley.
After remaining in the liquid for a iaw^
seconds, lift up the basket, let the surplus
liquid run out of it, and then place it upon
the drainer e, on the empty tub/, to drip
still more liquid, till the empty basket is
filled with wheat and dipped in the tub.
Now empty the dripped basket d of its
wheat on the floor; and as every basketful
is emptied, let a person spread, by riddling
through a wire wheat-riddle, fig. 157, a
little slaked caustic lime upon the wheat.
Thus all the wheat wanted at the time is
pickled and emptied on the floor, when
the pickled and limed heap is turned over
and over again, till the who'e mass appears
uniform.
2309. The mixing by turning is most
surely managed in this way. — Let two
men be each provided with a square-
mouthed shovel, fig. 83, and let them
turn over the heap, one bearing the
helve of his shovel in the right hand, and
the other with his left — both making their
shovels meet in their edges upon the floor,
under one end of the heaj) of wheat, and,
on lifting each shovel-full of wheat, turn
them over behind them, proceeding by
shovelfuls, to the ether end of the heap.
Let them return in a similar manner in
the opposite direction, and as often, until
the heap of wheat is completely mixed
and dried with the lime. The pickled
wheat is then sacked up, and carried to
the field in carts.
2310. Other substances beside chamber
ley are used for pickling wheat, such
as brine of salt, sutticiently strong to
float an egg; solution of blue vitriol — all
good enough, I dare say ; but when so
simple, etficient, and easily obtained an
article as ley can be had, it appears
to me unnecessary to employ anything
else. It is powerful, and can destroy
vegetable life in the course of a few hours,
and, on this account, the wheat should be
sown immediately after being ])ickled ;
and as this danger exists, no more
should be pickled at one time than can
immediately be sown. The use of the
quick-lin>e seems merely to dry the ley
quickly, so that the grains may l>e easily
separated from one another in the act of
sowing; though it may eft'ect some chemi-
cal change serviceable to the purpose for
which it is employed.
2311. Sowing hy hand. — There is some
art in setting down sacks of seed-corn on
the field. It should be ascertained how
many ridges of the field to be sown are
containe<l in an acre — a fact which I have
recomniende<l to the attention of the stu-
dent in (571,) so that the sacks maybe
set down between so many ridges, as each
sack or row of sacks shall contain seed to
sow the ground between them at the sj)eci-
fied quantity of seed to tlie acre. Tiiis
instruction should be given to the plough-
man before he proceeds to the field with
the sacks, otherwise he may set them down
either too close or too wide. One row
of sacka is sufticient, when the ridges are
SOWING OF SPKING WHEAT.
537
just long enough for the sower to carry as
much seed as will bring him back again to
the sack, and the sacks should be set down
in the middle of the ridge ; when the ridges
are short, the sacks may be set down on
a headridge ; and when of such a length
as the sower cannot return to the sack by
a considerable distance, two sacks should
be set down on the same ridge, dividing the
length of the ridge equally between them.
The setting down of the sacks should be
begun from the side at which the sowing
commences, and this again depends on the
form of the surface of the field.
231 2. If the s»rface is level, it matters
not which side of the field is chosen for
commencing operations ; but if inclined,
then that side which lies to the left while
looking down, or to the right on looking
up the inclination, should begin the sowing.
The reason for this preference is, that the
first stroke of the harrows along the ridge
is most difiicult for the horses to draw; and
it is easiest for them to execute the first
stroke doicnhUl. This first action of the
harrows is called hreal-ing-in the land.
The sacks are always placed on the furrow-
brow" of a ridge, (738,) that the hollowness
of the open-furrow beside it may give ad-
vantage to the person who carries the seed,
to take it out more quickly and easily as it
sinks in the sack.
2313. The carrier of the seed is a field-
worker, and the instant the first sack of
seed is set down, she proceeds to untie and
roll down its mouth, and fill the rusky
fig. 201, with seed, and carries the first
quantity to the sower, who should be ready
sheeted awaiting her arrival on the head-
ridge at the side of the field. Her endea-
vour should be to supply him with such a
quantity at a time as will bring him in a
line with the sack when he wants more ;
and as the sacks are placed about half-
way down the ridges when only one sack
is wanted, this may easily be arranged ;
but when there are two rows of sacks, she
must go from sack to sack on the same
ridge, and endeavour to make the most
convenient arrangement for the sower, it
being her special duty to attend to his
wants, and not his to attend to her conve-
nience. This regular plan will give her
the least trouble, and supply the sower
always with the requisite quantities of
seed — for, otherwise, nothing can be more
annoying to a sower than to have his sheet
served too full at one time, and with a
stinted quantity at another ; and it loses
much time to him to be obliged to wait
the arrival of the seed-carrier, whereas she
should be awaiting his arrival. If the
sacks of seed are conveniently placed, with
one on a ridge, one active seed-carrier will
serve two sowers ; but when two sacks are
required for a ridge, and more than one
sower, two carriers will be required. Bet-
ter that the carriers have little to do than
that the sowers should lose time, which
they assuredly will incur when the car-
riers have too much to do.
2314. The rush/, or seed-basket, fig.
201, is usually made of twisted straw in
p.^ ^„. rows above each
"' ~ * other, fastened
together by
means of withes
.of willow. It
'^ is provided
with a couple
of handles suf-
ficient to admit
the ^joints of
the fingers, and
alsoarini round
the bottom, of the same material, upon
which to stand. In the Border counties
it is carried on the head of the seed-
carrier when full ; in other parts in the
arms, with the bottom rim supported by
the haunch. It should be filled each time
with just the quantity of seed, and no
more, which the sower requires at one time.
The mouth of the sack should always be
kept rolled round upon itself, that the seed
may be easily and quickly taken out, for
little time is usually at the dis-posal of the
carrier. The carrier should be careful not
to spill the seed upon the ground on taking
it out of the sack, otherwise a thick tuft of
corn will unprofitably grow upon the spot.
2315. As one sack becomes empty, it
should be taken by the carrier to the
nearest sack, and as they accumulate,
should be put into one, and thus carried
forward out of the way of the harrows. It
is too common to see the sacks allowed to
lie upon the ground where they are emp-
tied, and flung aside as the harrows come to
them, and thus are not unfrequently torn.
THE SEED-CORN RUSKV.
538
PRACTICE— SPRING.
231(1. The sower is habited in a pecu- years. Tlie difficult point is to nia^e tne
liar manner — lie puts on a sotcitii^-s/ieet, sowinsr-sheet fit the sower on the top of
Tlie most convenient form of the left shoulder, where the greater part of
fijr. 202.
Fig. 202.
tlie weight of the corn rests ; and, in at-
tempting this, the principal tiling to he
considered is, to make the stra]i, whitli
goes over tlie shoulder, broad enough, and
take the slope of the top of the sliouhler
from the neck downwards. The gather-
ings of the cloth on each side of the slioul-
der-top should bo as neatly executed as in
a shirt, and a couple of tapes should be
drawn through a slot-hem, to be tied tight
in front of the sheet across the breast. Fig.
202 shows very correctly the manner in
which a well-made sheet should be put on
and held.
2317. A irts/?-^^ of wicker-work, such as
;,^^«5^- in fig. 203, is very commonly used in Eng-
"!^<^*^ land for the sowing of seed. It is sus-
^>^ Fig. 203.
THE METHOD OF PUTTING ON THE SOWING-
SHEET, AND OF HAND-SOWING.
one is that of the semi-spheroid, made o.
linen sheeting, having an opening large
enough along one side of its mouth to
allow the head and right arm of a man to
pass through, and the portion passed under
rests upon his left shoulder. On distend-
ing its mouth with both hands, and on
receiving the seed into it, the superfluous
portion of the sheet is wound tight over the
left arm, and gathered under it into the
left hand ; by which it is firmly held, while
the load of corn is thus securely supported
by that part of the sheet which passes over
the left shoulder across the back, and under
the right arm. The right arm, which
throws the seed, finds easy access to the
corn from the open side of the mouth of the
sheet, between the left hand and the breast
of the sower. A square sheet, knotted
together in three of its corners, and put on
in a similar manner, is sometimes used as
a sowing-sheet ; but one formed and sewed
of the proper shape, and kejjt for the pur-
j)ose, is a much more convenient article.
Linen sheeting makes an excellent mate-
riiij for a sowing-sheet, and, when washed
at the end of the season, will last many
THE ENGLISH SOWING BASKET.
peuded by girths, fastened to the two
loops shown on the rim of the basket, by
passing the girth from the left-hand loop
over the left shoulder, behind the back to
the other loop — or from one h^op to the
other, round the back of the neck ; and the
left hand holds the basket steady, by the
wooden stud on the other side of the rim.
Such an instrument, no doubt, answers the
purpose of the sower, or it would not have
been so long in use ; but, for my part, I
much jirefer the comfortable feel of the
linen sheet to the hard friction of the
wicker basket.
2318. Both these utensils for sowing
seed are intendetl for the use of one hand
onlv, but some sowers throw the seed with
both hands, and then the instrument must
be made to suit the jiractice. Such a one
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
5S9
is a basket, or box made of thin deal,
the nearest side curved to suit the front of
the body. It is suspended by girths fast-
ened to loops on the side next the sower,
and passed round the back of the neck.
A strap and buckle fastens it round the
body ; and the further side is suspended
by straps slanting to the shoulders of the
sower, and fastened to the strap buckled
round behind his body. A more simple
form of sowing-sheet for both hands is a
linen semi-spheroidal bag, attached to a
hoop of wood or of iron-rod, formed to
fit the body, buckled round it, and sus-
pended in front in the manner just de-
scribed. Both hands are thus at liberty to
cast the seed.
2319. In sowing with one hand, the
sower walks on the third and fourth fur-
row-slices from the open-furrow, which he
keeps on his right hand. Taking as much
seed as he can grasp in his right hand, he
stretches his arm out and a little back,
with the clenched fingers looking forward,
and the left foot making an advance of a
moderate step. When the arm has attained
its most backward position the seed is be-
gun to be cast, with a quick and forcible
thrust of the hand forward. At the first
instant of the forward motion, the fore-
finger and thumb are a little relaxed, by
which some of the seeds drop upon the
furrow-brow and in the open-furrow ; and
while still further relaxing the fingers
gradually, the back of the hand is so also
turned upwards, until the arm becomes
stretched before the sower, by which time
the fingers are all thrown open, with the
back of the spread hand uppermost. The
motion of the arm being always in full
swing, the grain, as it leaves the hand, and
partaking of its momentum, receives such
an impetus as to be projected forward in
the form of a figure corresponding to the
sweep made by the hand. The forward
motion of the hand is accompanied by a
coresponding forward advance of the right
foot, which is planted on the ground the
moment the hand casts forward the bulk
of the seed. The action is attempted to
be represented by fig. 202. The figure
which the seed describes, on falling upon
the ground, is like the area of one end of
the longer axis of a very eccentric ellipse,
having one angle resting on the open-fur-
row, and the other stretching 2 or 3 feet
beyond the crown of the ridge, the broadest
part of the area being on the left hand of the
sower where he walks. The moment the
seed leaves it, the handisbroughtbackto the
sowing-sheet, while the left foot is advanced
simultaneously, and the hand, thence re-
plenished, is stretched back for a fresh cast.
Thus the right hand and right foot move
regularly and simultaneously/, while the
left hand and left foot move also simul-
taneously, but alternately with the right.
2320. The seed ought to be cast equally
over the ground. If the hand and feet do
not move regularly, the ground will not be
equally covered, but a strip left almost
bare between the casts. When the braird —
that is, the young plants — come up, they
will show themselves in stripes like the
steps of a ladder ; and hence this species
of bad sowing is named in the country
laddering, or happergaivin. This error
is most apt to be committed by a sower
with a stiff elbow, who always casts
the grain too high above the ground. The
arm should always be thrown well back
and stretched out, though, in continuing
the action, it will become painful in the
inner part of the elbow joint. If the hand
is opened too soon, too much of the seed
falls upon the furrow-brow, and the crown
will receive less than its proportion. This
fault young sowers are very apt to commit,
from the apprehension that they may re-
tain the seed too long in the hand. If
the hand is brought too high in front, the
seed is apt to be acted upon by the wind,
and tossed in a diff'erent direction from that
intended. High casting is a very common
error with sowers, and is unsafe in practice
in windy weather. When the wind be-
comes strong, the sower is sometimes obliged
to walk on the adjoining ridge to the wind-
ward, to sow the one he wishes ; and a sower
who casts high will never make good work
in such a case. In casting high, the hand
is elevated above the ordinary level of the
elbow, whereas it should always sweep
below that line. The hand should be kept
low, the arm stretched out, and the seed
made to fly ofi" in a curve in front, by a
sharp turn up of the back of the hand, and
a free opening of the fingers near the end
of that action, the nearest parts of the seed
falling within two paces of the sower. Seed,
when so cast, will be little aftected by even a
strong wind. Some sowers take long steps
540
PRACTICE— SPRING.
and fill their band with the seed as if in a
shovel, and make long casts, causing some
of the seed to reach across the ridge from
open-furrow to open-furrow. Such a sower
will spill the seed behind the band, and
make bad work in wind. The step should
be short, the casts frequent, and the seed
held firmly in the hand, when the whole
work is under complete command. The
sower should never bustle, and try to hurry
through his work : he should commeiice
with such a steady pace as be will be able
to maintain during the day's work. Some
conceited sowers always sow a whole
ridge with one cast, and if they do it well,
it must be by mere chance ; for, while they
are obliged to walk on the side of the crown
of the ridge, they must cast high before the
grain can reach from one open-furrow to
the other ; and, with the least wind mov-
ing, there is no chance of making good
work. And even in a decided calm, the
side of the ridge on the left hand must
receive the cast in the opposite way from
the other side — that is, from the crown to
the open-furrow ; while the correct way is,
to receive it from the open-furrow to the
crown — because, when any stray grains fly
away from the cast farther than they should
do, they will fall near the crown, where the
thickest part of the soil is to be found on
the ridge; whereas, in the other case, the
stray grains will fall into the open-furrow,
where they are not wanted, and where
they will most probably perish.
2321. A sower with one hand only at-
tempts to sow half a ridge with one cast.
When the ridge is single, fig. 20, he keeps
the open-furrow on his right hand ; when
it is double, that is, cast together, fig. 22,
he goes first up and down the ridge, round
the crown, and then up and down on the
furrow-brows, keeping the open-furrows
on his right hand. When the land is
ploughed two-out-and-two-in, fig. 25, a
mark of some sort, such as a feering-pole,
fig. 18, at both ends of the ridges, will be
required to keep him in the proper line
between the crown and opeu-furrows ; but
when two sowers work together, they
guide one another in the position to be
kept on such ])loughed land.
2322. A sower with both hands makes
the casts alternate, the hand ami foot of
the same side moving simultaneously, and,
moving along the crown of the ri<lge, casts
the seed from the crown towards tlie open-
furrow on both sides— thereby violating
the rule of good sowing in throwing the
stray grains into the open-furrow." A
man who sows in this manner mu.st cast
high, to avoid striking his hands upon the
seed-basket, and in a windy day has no
command over his work. I can see no
advantage attending this mode of sowing
over the other; but, on the contrary, a con-
siderable risk of scattering the seed un-
equally— for, however dexterous an ambi-
dexter sower may become, his left arm
will not make so perfect a cast as his right,
if he is a right-handed person. In calm
weather, he may get on tolerably well — as
also with the wind direct in his face or in
his back ; but a side-wind must puzzle him,
for, while adjusting himself to it for one of
the hands, he places the other in the most
disadvantageous position. In short, he
ought not to sow with both bands in wind.
2323. The mode I have seen in Ireland
of sowing is to make a step, then stand still,
and cast the seed with two short and one
long swing of the arm. This is slow work.
The process seemed very similar to what
I have witnessed in nursery grounds, in
the sowing of the seeds of forest trees and
shrubs.
2324. Pickled wheat annoys the sower,
the caustic lime acting upon the skin of
the sowing hand, and shrivelling it. It
also rises in impalpable dust, and adheres
to the eyelids and lips, and even sticks
upon the face when in a state of perspira-
tion. It is scarcely possible to avoid this
annoyance, especially when a gentle wind
blows upon theback — the face is then almost
smothered in the eddy. To prevent future
bad consequences of the lime, the hands
anil face should first be washed with milk,
and the milk then washed clean oil' with
warm water and soap; and, lastly, the
eyelids, lips, and back of the hand,
anointed with cream or butter.
232:5. It is obvious that, in sowing with
the hand, the corn is scattoretl j.romiscu-
onsly;and, in whatever arrangement the
jdants may come up, depends on the
form of the ground— whether in lines along
the common furrows, or in drills. In the
latter case, the drills are formed by the
SOWING OF SPRJNG WHEAT.
541
corn falling into the hollows of ribs made
by the small plough ; and in the former,
the seed falls into the hollow of the com-
mon plough furrows, and the plants would
come up in narrow irregular drills, but
that their arrangement is made broad-
cast by the action of the harrows after the
sowing.
2326. Sowing with machines. — Seed
is sown with machines as well as by the
band, and the machines sow it either broad-
cast or in drills, according to the fancy of
the farmer. A material difference exists
in the utility of these two classes of
machines : the broadcast one sows grass
seeds as well as grain, while the drill
machine cannot sow grass-seeds, and the
adoption of the one or the other by the
farmer is partly a question of expense.
Another material difference between them
is, that the broadcast machine deposits
the seed upon the surface of the ground,
and is in fact a direct substitute for hand-
sowing ; and as it deposits the seed A'ery
regularly — more so than is done by the
majority of sowers by the hand — this
machine is now much used, and will pro-
bably ultimately supersede hand-sowing
altogether. The drill machine deposits
the seed at once at a specific depth under
ground in rows, and at such distances be-
tween the rows, and with such thickness
Fig-
in the rows, as the will of the farmer may
decide. The seed being left by the broad-
cast machine on the ground like hand-
sowing, is buried in the soil, more or less
deep as the harrows may chance to lake it,
whereas the drill machine deposits the seed
in the soil, at any depth the farmer chooses,
and all the seed at the same depth, thereby
giving the farmer such a command over
the position of the seed in the soil, as no
broadcast machine or hand-sowing can pos-
sibly do. I shall describe in general terms
both classes of sowing-machines, and then
we shall be the better able to judge which
is the most useful and perfect.
2327. The Broadcast soicing-machiite.
— There are various forms of this machine ;
but the one I have chosen for an illustra-
tion is one manufactured by Mr James
Slight, Edinburgh, because I think it ex-
hibits the machine in the most perfect form,
not only doing the work easily and well,
but is so constructed that its long sowing-
chest is divided into sections, the two end
ones of which can be folded upon the central
division, whereby the machine may pass
through any field-gate without having to
remove the sowing-chest, which is neces-
sary to be done in all other similar machines.
Fig. 204, is a view in perspective of the
entire machine, as it appears at work.
The carriage is marked aba; the hind
204.
THE BROADCAST SOWING-MACHINE.
wheels are c c ; the nigh-side wheel is fixed
dead upon the axle, carrying the axle round
with it to give motion to the pitch-chain,
at a in the centre, where it is seen as if
entering the chest; the off-side wheel runs
loose. The front wheel, seen partially at
J, is usually of cast-iron, and is supported
on cast-iron shears, and turns on a pivot
in an effectual swivel carriage. The horse-
shafts are n n, and the splinter-bar is m.
2328. The seed-chest o o is 18 feet in
length; a part of the cover of the chest
forming a hinged flap. The two extreme
segments of the chest are supported by tho
light tension chain i" i' i' i", which passes
642
PRACTICE— SPRING.
over tlie two upright iron stanchions k k\
the tops of which i' i' form the suspending
fulcra for the chain, while its extremities
are secured at the points i" i" with adjust-
in*' nuts. These chains support the two
ends of the chest, which is divided in three
pieces.
2329. The soicing-geer of the machine
is connected with the main axle of the
carriage hy the pitch-chain a. Shafts
extend the entire length of the chest,
coupled at the junction of the segments
of the chest by means of small clutch
couplings attached to the ends of the shaft,
and these engage or disengage of them-
selves when the segments of the chest are
let down or folded up. The shafts are
armed with the seed-wheels, 32 being re-
quired for an 18 feet chest. The wheels
are of cast-iron, of very light fabric ; their
points being slightly rounded, to adapt
them to the concave groove or cup that is
formed in the back of the chest around
each discharging orifice.
2330. Corresponding to each seed- wheel,
a discharging orifice is formed in the back
of the chest. The position of the seed-
wheels, in relation to the bottom ?< of the
cliest, is such as to make the teeth turn
at about one quarter of an inch clear of
the bottom. The seed orifices are de-
femled by iron plates, the fixing of which
recjuires some attention, in order that the
orifices may exactly coincide with those
of the slides ; without perfect coincidence
in these two parts, the sowing will be un-
e(jn;il. To effect the precise adjustment
of tlie orifices, the slide is made in two
halves, and, at each end of the chest, an
adjusting screw v acts in a nut attached
to tlie end of the chest, the point of each
screw being brought to bear against the
end of the slide ; and their sliutting is
eli'ected by moving the slide still further
to the right hand, by means of the levers
«c, until the orifices are entirely closed.
Both ends of the chest having undergone
this operation, which is done in an instant,
but in reverse directions, the machine may
go to any distance without discharging a
grain ; but whenever it has been turned
into the next ridge, the levers w are
thrown in the o])p(isite direction, moving
the slide towards the adjusting screw v ;
and this being done at both ends, the ori-
fices will have attained precisely the same
area as before ; and thus the shutting and
opening again to the same area, and of
course the same discharge, is effected for
any number of turns, without the smallest
variation, so long as the screw v remains
unaltered. The sowing-geer of this ma-
chine has undergone a variety of changes.
In the example before us, the pitch-chain
is employed to communicate motion from
the first mover — the carriage axle — to the
seed-wheels. It is simple, but it keeps
the seed-wheels constantly in motion,
whether sowing or not, which is supposed
to have a tendency to injure the grain that
lies in contact with the wheels; but to
avoid any apprehension on this score, a
gearing may be employed, which disen-
gages the seed-wheels from the first mover
by means of a lever.
2331. For the purpose of e((ualising the
distribution of the seed over the surface
of the ground after it has left the dis-
charging orifice, the bottom-board of the
seed-chest is made to project beyond the
back of the chest, forming an apron on
which the seed is first received from the
orifice, and, being thus checked in its de-
scent, is thereby more uniformly scattered
over the surface. Another precaution is
taken, the better to secure a uniform dis-
charge, in the case of sowing on ground that
has a high inclination. In sowing up hill,
in sucli situations the weight of the seed is
thrown more upon that side of the chest
from which it is discharged, tending there-
by to increase the discharge. On sowing
down hill, on the other hand, the effect of
pressure is reversed, and the discharge
will be less. To obviate these incon-
veniences, a tilting motion has been intro-
duced to the seed-chest, but which of
course renders the machine a little more
costly.
2332. As the seed-chest is 18 feet in
length, and it may sometimes be desirable
to reduce its breadth of sowing to 16 or to
15 feet, to suit ridges of these breadths,
the reduction is eficcted by stopping two,
three, or more of the seed-orifices at each
end, by means of a flat swing-clasp turn-
ing upon a pin.
2333. In using this machine, it is fre-
quently drawn by one horse; but it forms
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
543
a rather heavy draught, and is, therefore,
more frequently the work of two horses.
The chest is filled from end to end with
the seed-corn, and, the horses walking in
the furrow, the machine sows the half
ridge on either side. When the chest has
been filled, and the machine brought to
that position which places the horses in
the furrow, — the sower having previously
determined the degree of opening in the
orifices that will deliver the desired
quantity per acre, he throws each slide
outward against its graduating screw,
which will produce the proper opening ;
and, this done, the horses are driven for-
ward. On arriving at the farther end of
the ridge, and before entering upon the
head- ridge, the slides are withdrawn to-
wards the centre, closing up the vents ;
the machine is then turned round on the
head-ridge, and takes up a position on
the next furrow, "when the process is re-
peated, and so on till the field is sown all
over, the head-ridges being the last por-
tion of the work ; and here the blinding
of the extreme orifices come frequently
into play, if the head-ridges are of less
breadth than the single ridges of the field,
wdirch they should never be.
2334. The eye of an experienced sower
■will, on passing over a few yards with
the machine, by simple ocular inspection,
be able to judge of the quantity of seed
he is bestowing upon the soil. If ex-
perimental accuracy is required, the sower
may then put into the chest as much grain
as will just cover the seed-wheels, and
then measure in one or two bushels, and
proceed to sow this until as much remains
as will just cover the wheels again, so that
the measured quantity is found to have
been discharged. By now measuring the
number of yards in length that have been
sown with two bushels, he will ascertain
by calculation the proportional <piantity
required for an acre. Thus, let the in-
tended quantity to be sown ujmn an acre
be 3 bushels, or any other number, and
that 1 bushel has been sown in the experi-
ment, which has covered 276 yards of a
15 feet ridge, or two half-ridges equal to
15 feet, or 5 yards. The imperial acre
contains 4840 square yards, and this
divided by 5, the yards in the breadth of
the ridge, we have 968 as the number of
lineal yards in length of a 15 feet ridge
to make up an acre ; and one-third of
this, or 322*66 lineal yards, is the extent
that should have been covered by 1
bushel of seed-corn. The machine having,
as supposed, covered only 276 yards, it
follows that the sowing is about one-
seventh part of the bushel too thick — the
graduating screws, therefore, must be
turned forward a little, and the experi-
ment repeated, if thought necessary. It is
seldom, however, that such experiments
will be required in the hands of a practical
sower.
2335. In reference to the inconvenience
attending the great length of the seed-
chest, when it is in one length, it may be
observed, that the method by which it is
shifted is this : — In its working state, the
chest is kept in its bolsters by means of
two quadrants attached to the lower part
of the chest, one being on each side of
the carriage : these are formed concentric
with the curvature of the bolster, and a
bolt, over which the quadrant slides,
is screwed into the side of the carriage,
and this retains the chest in its place.
When it is found necessary to move the
chest, the two bolts are unscrewed, which
sets the chest at liberty ; it is then lifted
from its bolsters and laid longitudinally
on the carriage. In this operation, how-
ever, the pitch-chain, when that medium of
power is employed, has to be disengaged
by withdrawing a coupling-link from the
chain ; but when the lever is emjjloyed,
there is nothing required but the unscrew-
ing of the quadrant-bolts, to set the chest
at liberty. It is then lifted and laid longi-
tudinally on the carriage as before.
2336. The price of these machines ranges
from £10 to £12. Being a machine neces-
sarily composed of many parts, it cannot be
constructed at a small cost ; but it cannot
be regarded as a costly machine, when it
sows all the species of the cereal grains
equally well, as well as the grass seeds.
2337. The Common or £^ast Lothian
DrUl-aotcinci machine, is here taken to illu-
strate the principles of the drill machine.
Though it may be deficient in some points
as compared with those of Berwickshire and
Roxburghshire, yet its extreme simplicity
and cheapness has brought it into very ex-
tensive adoption, not only in East Lothian,
544
rRACTICE-SPRING.
but in otlier districts where the diill
system is followed. Fig. 206 is a view
ill persnective of this inacliine, having drills
to sow .six rows, which is the size most
generally used, chiefly because it can be
drawn hy one horse; hut also, in the event
of its being employed along swelling
ridges, its covering hut a small breadth
secures a nearly equal depth for the depo-
sition of the seed, which cannot be easily
done under the same circumstances if the
machine is mounted with agreater number
of coulters. But it follows from the jie-
Fig.
culiarity of structure, tlie coulters being
permanently fixed in position for the depth
to whici) they penetrate the soil, that the
machine is best atlapted for sowing across
the ridges; and hence it is almost invari-
ably worked in that direction, though,
when worked in the direction of the ridge,
the breadth covered by the machine is
ecjual to nearly one-third of a 15 feet
ridge.
2338. In the construction, a is a bed-
plank, across the ends of which are bolted
205.
THli EAST I.OTHIAN GRAIN DRILL-MACHINE.
the tw-o side-bars b b, which are crossed in the upper side of the bed-plank, from
by the bar m m, bolted to the side-bars, which it })asses down the tubes ii into the
serving a special purjK)se. to be afterwards sheatlis of the coulters, by which it isdepo-
noticed; and tliese four parts form the sited into the rut formed by the sheaths.
simple frame-work of the machine. The
seed-chest c is placed between the side-
bars b, and attached to those and the
bed- plank. The chest is mounted
similar to the broadcast machine, (2328,)
excej)t that, in place of the apron on
which the seed falls in tlie broadcast, the
2339. From the construction and action
of this machine, and the resistance of the
soil to the passage of the coulters through
it, there is a constant tendency, produced
by the traction of the horse when the ma-
chine is in action, to elevate the extrcinity
orifices deliver the seed directly into a of the handles; and by thus swinging upon
small hopper-shaped aperture formed in
the bed-j)lank. The axle of one of the
carriage-wheels is J, coupled to the small
shaft of the seed-wheels, thereby giving
them the requisite motion, their revolution
coinciding with that of the wheels, and
the axle of the wheels, the coulters are
withdrawn from their action on the soil,
and from forming the rut for the reception
of the seed. The tendency thus jn-oduced
being greater than a man is cajiablc of
ccmtinuing to contend with, is counteracted
the o])posite wheel d turns upon an axle by the application of a balance-chain,
fixed permanently upon the bed-frame, producing a change of direction in the
The horse-shafts e are jointed to the bed- line of draught, and of the point of attach-
plauk. The coulters ^- /t are furnished at nient of the draught. When the chain is
the lower end with a pointed sheath of brought under ^Mision, and the shafts
sheet-iron. The seed, on leaving the ori- borne up by the horse, the resistance to
fices, falls into the funneb shaped receptacle the coulters is transferred to the back of
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
545
the horse. The marker n n is another
appendage to the machine, which, although
not so necessary as the bahmce-chaiii, is
yet generally applied to tliis drill-niachine,
especially when sowing across the ridges.
It consists of the bar mm, and the nuirk-
iug-rod m n. The use of the marker is
to trace a line on the surface of the ground
parallel to the direction in which the ma-
chine travels, and at a distance from the
middle point of the surface covered by the
machine, equal to the entire breadth, so
covered ; hence, on returning to sow the
next breadth, the horse should walk ex-
actly upon the line drawn by the marker.
In sowing with the machine here described,
the distance from line to line will be 4
feet 6 inches; the distance between the rows
being 9 inches. The wheels are usually set
54 inches apart, measuring at the point
where they rest on the ground ; or their
distance in any machine may be found by
multiplying the number of coulters by the
number of inches given to the interval
between the rows or coulters ; thus six
coulters at 9 inches of interval, give
6 X 9 = 54 inches. From the construction
of the machine it is found, that when the
balance-chain is under tension, the coulters
are drawn to the ground, and the handles
also drawn downward; but on releasing
the chain, which is done at the land-ends
and turnings, the conductor must support
the handles, to keep the coulter from the
ground, and in this state, if the handles
are let go when the machine is standing,
the coulter will pass forward, and the
handles will fall to the ground. To pre-
vent this last inconvenience, a crutch is
usually appended to the marker-bar, which,
on stopping, is allowed to drop to a per-
pendicular position, resting on the ground,
and tlms keeps the machine upon a level.
This appendage, not being of much impor-
tance, is left out of the figure. The price
of this machine varies from £6 to £lO.
2340. New Lever-drill sowing-ma-
chine.— This drill sowing-maciiine was
introduced to public notice, a few years
ago, by Mr James Slight of Edinburgh.
Mr Slight having been impressed with the
superiority of the improved English lever-
drills, but seeing at the same time the
difficulty, or impossibility, of introducing
such an expensive machine into Scottish
practice, was induced to make the attempt
of ingrafting what appeared the better
VOL. I.
parts of the English machine upon the
more simple machinery of the Scottish one
— the one just described — thus producing
a maciiine little, if anything, inferior to
the original, at one-third of the price.
The results appear to justify the expecta-
tions, for the new lever-drill has now been
tested in the hands of a number of prac-
tical judges, and found to give entire
satisfaction, either sowing grain alone, or
depositing granulated manures along with
the seed in any required proportion. The
figure here given of the machine repre-
sents it without the manure-chest, which,
when adopted, isplaced immediately before
the seed-chest, making very little change
in the appearance, and adding little to the
apparatus, except the cheat itself.
2341. Fig. 206 represents this machine
in perspective. In the construction of this
drill, the bed-frame a a consists of two
side rails with three principal cross rails,
besides a minor rail, forming the bearing
or platform of the seed-funnels. The
entire width of the bed-frame for a Q-rovr
drill is 4 feet 7 inches over all, and the
length over the rails is 4 feet 3 inches.
The seed-chest b is constructed and
mounted in every respect similar to that
of the broadcast machine, fig. 204, ex-
cepting again the projecting apron, which
in the drill-machine is not required, and
in the mode of communicating motion l^o
the seed-wheels. The carriage-wheels
are c c. The fore-wheel is mounted on
sheers, and e is one of the two pillars of
the swivel-plate, to whichthe splinter-bar
J is attached. The shafts are g g. The
remaining parts of the fore-carriage are
precisely the same as in fig. 204 for the
broadcast sowing-machine. The sowing
geer in the lever-drill consists of a wheel
fixed upon the inward end of the nave of
the carriage-wheel, on the nigh side ; of
a second wheel k, placed intermediate
between it and the third wheel I, which
last is mounted on a continuation of the
seed-wheel shaft. The intermediate wheel
k is supported upon a stud in the end of
a bent lever, the handle of which is seen
below the roller p; by means of, which
the wheels is withdrawn from the wheels,
to stop the motion of theseed-wheelst The
discharging apparatus of the seed-chest
is precisely the same as in fig. 204, with the
slide A, lever i, and adjusting screw. From
the orifice in the slide, the seed falls into
2 m
546
PRACTICE— SPRING.
telescope funnels k, m m, the uppermost
beinf fixed to tlie bed-frame, and the
lowermost to the lever nn. To the quad-
rant 0 the levers n n are jointed upon a
rod of iron, which extends from side to
side of the bed-frame. Tlie levers are
Fig. 206.
slight's new levkr-drill sowing-machine.
forked at the end, and diminish gradually
to the extremity n, which is turned up to
prevent the weight from being dropt off.
The weight is a block of cast-iron of from
3 to 7 lbs. weight, of which there may be
several sizes, to be applied according to
the state of the land, its purpose being to
press the coulter into the ground. The
point of the coulter, sinking 1 inc)) deeper
than the sheath, gives the seed a more pul-
verised bed than can be produced with a
coulter that is level below, A wooden
roller^, furnished with a ratchet, is sup-
ported in a light iron standard at each
end, upon the side-bar of the bed-frame.
A light chain q from each lever is attaclied
to. the roller, and a cross r being fixed upon
the right hand side, the roller can thus be
turned round by means of the cross-arms,
the chains wound up to any desired ex-
tent, and the coulters lifted from the
ground. This operation is found conveni-
ent at the turnings, or at any time when
the machine is not sowing, and the roller,
chains, and levers, are held in the desired
position by the pall s falling into the rat-
chet uheel. The coulters are represented
nearly out of the ground, and when let
down to the working level, they penetrate
to the depth of 2 or 3 inches. The dis-
tance between the wheels, where they rest
on the ground, is equal to 54 inches, as in
the common drill ; one of the wheels,
therefore, will always fall into the track
of the former round, whicli may serve as
a marker to the conductor of the machine ;
but, though not shown in the figure, a
marking bar, similar to that of the com-
mon drill, is usually fitted to it as a mov-
able appendage.
2342. From the construction of this
machine, with its fore-wheel and with its
lever-coulters independently movable, its
motions are more steady and its man.-ige-
ment more easy, while the freedom of
vertical motion in the coulters gives it the
advantage of sowing on any kind of sur-
face, on ridges however round, at equal
depths for every coulter, and either across
or along the ridges with equal facility.
The price of these machines ranges from
i^lOto£l8.
2343. To render the expensive English
drill-machines more generally useful, it
is not an uncommon practice in England
for the owner of one to travel the country
with it at seed-time, and undertake to sow
the fields of any farm, where the farmer
may choose to employ him. The charge is
usually 2s. 6d. per imperial acre, the farmer
supplying the requisite number of horses
to work the drill, and undertaking to
deliver it at the farm on which it is to be
next employed.
2344. The land, whether sown by hand or
with either sort of Tuachine, must be har-
rowed ; but the time of using tl)e harrows
difierson the sort dfmacliine used forsowing
the grain. When the grain is sown by hand
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
547
or with the broadcast machine, the harrow
is used after the grain has heen sown ; but
in sowing with either of the drill machines,
the harrow is first used to put the land
into the proper state for the machine, and
it is used to the extent required to give the
land such a proper degree of harrowing as
the nature of the crop to be sown requires.
I shall first describe the harrow before
directing the manner in which the land
should be harrowed.
2345. " The Harrow — considering the
operation it has to perform," observes Mr
Slight, "• in covering the seeds that have
been cast upon the surface of the soil — is an
implement of no small importance ; and
yet its effects are apparently rude and un-
certain, while its construction is of the
simplest order. So simple, indeed, is this
construction, that at a very remote period
it appears to have taken that form which,
in so far as the simple principles of its ac-
tion are concerned, JS almost incapable of
further improvement." The dimensions of
the rectangular barrows are, on an average,
3 feet 9 inches in breadth, measuring over
the bulls, and 3 feet 10 inches in length
over the slots.
2346. The improved form given to the
harrow, as above alluded to, changes the
rectangle into a rhomboid, and this, when
duly proportioned, gives to the implement,
as has been supposed, as high a degree of
perfection, in point of form, as it appears
capable of attaining. Fig. 207 represents
a pair of the rhomboidal harrows in the
Fig. 207.
THE WOODEN RHOMBOIDAL HARROWS
working position. The frame of these
harrows consists of the same number of
parts as the common sort, above alluded
.to, four bulls a a a «, and four slots 6
h b b. The breadth of the frame over the
bulls, at right angles. to them, is 3 feet 6
inches, and in the same manner over the
slots the length is the same ; but the bulls
extend at each end 4 inches beyond the
slots, making their entire length, including
the obliquity, about 4 feet 6 inches. The
WITH THEIR YOKE OF SWING-TREES.
dimensions of the parts vary a little, ac-
cording to the quality of the material
employed. In each liarrow is an iron bar
c c, having a number of holes punched in
it, for the attaclinuMit of the yoke. Each
bull is divided into four equal parts, and
at each division the bulls are bored with
an auger for the reception of the tines.
The length of the tine is about 10 inches,
of which 6 or 7 iuches project below the
bulls.
548
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2n47. There is one point in the im-
provement of this liarrow tliat appears of
even more importance than the rhomboi-
flai 8liai)e — it is the joints or hinges d d.
In tlie one harrow, tlie tail of the double
joints of the hinge is prolonged into a bolt
d e, d e passing through all the bulls, and
secured with screw-nuts at e e. The single
joints are in like manner prolonged into
the bolts f g-, f g thus serving to add
greatly to the strength as well as to the
efficiency of the harrows. The loose
joints d f, d f have been found to answer
their purpose much better than the well-
fitted joints originally given to them, by
their allowing a great freedom of ac-
tion, and the double joints d d are there-
fore now usually made as in the figure.
The eye of the single joint / has great
freedom to play upon the joint-bolt.
2348. From the figure of the rhomboi-
dal harrow, when duly constructed, it can
only perform its maximum of effect when
drawn forward with it-s slots at right
angles to the direction of its motion, and
this is effected by the master swing-tree
A. This tree, for harrows of the dimen-
sions here described, requires to be 4 feet
8 inches in length between the points of
attachment, and it is connected to the
harrows by means of the 8 hooks and
shackles at c c. The balance of draught
of the harrows is adjusted by shifting the
shackles into the different holes of the
bars c c, until the harrows are found to lie
at right angles to the draught wiien in mo-
tion ; and this, be it observed, is not
attained by having an equal number of
tines on each side of the centre of the
swing-tree k, for there is found to be a
greater resistance to the forward motion
of the implement on the left than there is
upon the right side, arising, it is supposed,
from the tines presenting a broader sur-
face to resistance on that side than on the
other. The other ])arts of the yoke, i k l^
are the common plough swing-trees, fig.
6. Wooden harrows cost £2, 15s. per pair.
2349. The extensive application of iron
has of late years brought the use of that
material to the formation of the harrow as
well as of the plough, and iron harrows
are now coming very generally into use,
both in the rectangular and the rhoml)oi-
dal form. Fig. 208 represents the malle-
able-iron rhomboidal harrow, as commonly
Tai IRON RHOMBOIDAL HARROWS, WITH THUR TOKB OF 8WIN0-TRSK8.
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
549
constructed, and its dimensions are the
same as already given for those of wood.
The arrangement of tlie parts are some-
what different, and, from the nature of
the materials, the dimensions of the parts
differ also more materially. Thus, the
bulls a a aa are swelled out where the
mortises for the slots are formed, and also
for the tines, their ends projecting only 2
inches beyond the slot. The slots are
b b b, and there being only three of them,
the middle one is so placed as to be free of
the middle row of tines; while the end
slots are elongated towards the meeting
sides of the pair, and are there formed
into the hinge-joints f/ J, as formerly de-
scribed for the wooden harrows. The
bars c c are inserted in the projecting ends
of the first and second bulls, and the master
swing-tree k is attached to them by twisted
S hooks. The swing-trees i k I are the
same as described for the wooden harrows.
The construction of the iron harrow is so
similar to the others, that it is unnecessary
toenter into further details regarding it; but
it may be remarked, that, from the almost
imperishable nature of the materials, as
compared with wood, there seems every
reason to expect the iron implement will
entirely supersede the wooden ; and though
the price of the iron harrows is conside-
rably above that of wood, the additional
first cost is more than repaid by the greater
durability of the iron. There is good
reason also to believe, that, by a construc-
tion more adapted than the present to the
nature of the material, the price may yet
be considerably reduced.
2350. The form of the tines is that
which has its cross section forming an
exact square, and inserted in the bull with
its diagonal pointing in the direction of
the progressive motion. This form and
position of the tine, however -nell adapted
to the soil, caimot, with propriety for safety
to the implement, be used in the wooden
harrow from the powerful tendency it has
to split the wood. In the iron implement
this difficulty does not exist ; and as this
form of tine is in every respect best adapted
to the intended purpose, it should never
be omitted in the iron harrow. Whatever
be the cross section of the tine, in that
part which passes through the bull, the
projecting part is tapered towards the
point, not uniformly but a little barrelled.
and terminates ir> an obtuse point. In all
wooden harrows the tines are simply driven
firmly into the wood after it has been bored.
In most iron harrows they are fixed in
the same manner ; but as the tines are
sometimes liable to become loose, when
simply inserted and driven down by the
hammer, they are, when a more perfect
construction is followed, fixed by being
driven from below, and secured by a screw-
nut above.
2351. The dotted parallel lines in figs.
207 and 208 represent the lines which the
tines make in the ground in the act of
harrowing it ; and as they are at equal
distances, it follows that the harrows, as in
the figures, are set in the proper manner
fur working. They are wrong set when
these lines are not at equal distances.
2352. The harrows follow the sowersj
each sower keeping 2 pair of harrows em-
ployed when the land receives a double tine
— that is, backwards and forwards on the
same ground, that is, on the same ridge,
which the breaking-in of the seed should
always receive. I have said that, on
inclined ground, for the sake of the horses,
that end of the field should be first sown
which gives the horses the advantage of
breaking-in the ground down hill (2312.)
If the sowing commences at the top of the
declination, the harrows start at once for
the breaking-in down the hill ; but if it
commences at the foot of the inclination,
the harrows will have to go an extra land-
ing to the u})per side of the field and
begin there. Two pairs of harrows work
best together, their united breadth cover-
ing the entire ridge, and lapping over the
crown where the soil is thickest. One
pair takes the lead, by going on the near
side of the ridge, while the other pair
follows on the off side, but the leader
usually takes that side of the ridge which
is nearest the open field. Each pair of.
harrows should be provided with double
reins, one rein from each horse ; and every
ploughman should be made to walk and
drive their horses with the reins from be-
hind the harrows. If a strict injunction
is not laid upon them in this respect, the
two men will be found walking together,
the leading one behind the harrows, the
other at the head of his horses, with their
attention more engrossed in talk than the
650
PRACTICE— SPRING.
work ill liaiid. Indeed, in some i)arts of
the country, the ploughman who drives tlie
hindmost pair of harrows does not think it
requibite to employ reins at all, so sure is
he of leading his horses by the head ; and
the leader, to give himself less trouble
than using his voice, only guides the near
horse with a single rein. It is the con-
stant use of the single rein which renders
horses, in those parts of the country, more
easily hied than hupped, (692, 693.) The
double rein, on the other hand, enables the
ploughman to hup his horses with ease;
though, doubtless, the horses will turn
more naturally towards their driver than
away from him.
2353. To draw the harrows as they
should be drawn, is in reality not so light
v/ork for horses as it seems to be ; and,
when the tines are new sharpened and
long, and take a deep hold of the ground,
the labour is considerable. To harrow
the ground well — that is, to stir the soil so
as to allow the seed to descend into it, and
bring to the surface and pulverise all the
larger clods — requires the horses to go at a
smart pace ; and not only for this, but on
all occasions, harrows should be driven
with a quick motion.
2354. If the men owe the steward a
grudge for his sharp discipline, spring-
wheat sowing is a favourable time to take
advantage of him, when the land is natur-
ally friable and the horses are quite fresh,
and also when the lime of the pickle is
sure to annoy the sower's face, and he is
unable to walk quickly on the rather soft
land. If they keep the harrows close at
his heels, for very shame he must sow hard
to keep before them ; and should he be a
slow sower and a heavy walker, he will
get a good heating. It is always prudent
in a sower to start the sowing as soon as
the first sackful of seed is set down, to get
in advance before the sacks are all set
down and the harrows yoked. Indeed,
he must have one ridge sown before the
harrows can commence their work. I
never saw a man sowing with his coat on
but a wish arose to see the harrows kept
close at his heels to punish him for the
lazy trick.
2355. In conducting the harrowing after
the seed, the mode must be guided by the
circumstances of the case. If the harrow^-
ing commences at the foot of the inclina-
tion, the ridge next the fence should be
ascended by both the pairs of harrows;
and on gaining the top of the inclination,
tlie second ridge is descended, to break-
in the seed; and hieincf both the horses at
the foot, the first ridge is again ascended,
which finishes its double tine ; and though
both tines have been given on it in tlie
same direction, the anomaly 'should be
submitted to, in order to gain a favourable
point for the horses to break-in the seed.
Hieing the horses again on the upper
head-ridge, the third ridge is broke-in ;
and hieing again on the lower head-ridge,
the second ridge is ascended, and is thus
finished of its double tine. Thus by hie-
ing both pairs of harrows at both ends,
one ridge is brokc-in on going down, and
another receives the double tine on coming
up, and this is a simple and easy mode of
working the horses. Suppose the harrow-
ing had been begun at the top of the
declivity, the breakiug-in will then com-
mence at once on going down hill, and
to preserve the advantage, the harrows
come up the same ridge and finith it
with a double tine; and soon with every
succeeding ridge. As there is little room
for 2 pairs of harrows to turn at the end
of one and the same ridge, the leading
harrows are driven straight forward upon
the head-ridge, and the horses are hied so
as to make them move round upon the
far side of the head-ridge, and still hied
round, they take up their place on the
same side of the ridge they had come down ;
while the hind harrows are hupped so far
at the end of the ridge as to give them
room to tnrn by the far side of the head-
ridge, and then hieing, take up their posi-
tion on the same side of the ridge they had
come down, in rear of the leading harrows,
which by this time have gone on to their
side of the ridge, and are moving onwards.
The entire movement is easily and quickly
managed with double reins; but with a
single rein, or with the voice alone, this
mode of turning at the end of a ridge is
apt to create confusion. If the inclined
field is begun to be sown at the opposite
side, the same arrangements as I have
just described for easy breaking-in of
the seed for the horses, and according as
the harrowing is begun at the foot or top
of the inclination, should be followed ; but
SOWING OF SPRIKG WHEAT.
551
in following them here the horses will have
to be hupped instead of hied^ because now
the open side of the field is on a different
hand. I have recommended the hieing
because it is more easy for the horses,
they being more accustomed to it; but
instead of always hupping^ wliich this last
mode imposes, there is a plan of avoiding
the inconvenience — and it is this: Take in
a division of 6 ridges, and the harrowing of
tliem is begun on the last-sown ridge, and
continued over the six in the same manner
as if the first of them had begun the pro-
per side of the field ; the effect is, that the
harrowing proceeds in the opposite direc-
tion from that in which the sowers are
walking, instead of proceeding in the same
direction. When onedivisi(m of six ridges
has received a double tine of harrowing,
another is taken in, until the entire field
is finished being broken-in.
2356. After the appointed piece of
ground, whether a whole field, or part of
one, has been sown and broken-in, the
land is cross-harrouced a double tine, that
is, at right angles to the former harrowing,
and to the ridges ; but as, in tiiis oj)eration,
the ground is not confined within the
breadth of ridges, the harrows cover as
much of the ground as they can, and get
over it in less time than in breaking-iu ;
besides, any second harrowing is easier for
the horses, and they can of course walk
faster.
2357- The harrowing is finished by
another double tine along the ridges, as in
the case of the breaking-in ; but this last
operation is both easily and quickly jier-
formed, the soil now being free and uni-
form in texture.
2358. To judge of the harrowing of land,
the sense of feeling is required as well as
that of sight. When well done, the friable
}X)rtion of the soil seems uniformly smooth,
and the clods lie freely upon the surface :
the ground feels uniformly soft under the
foot. When the land is not enough har-
rowed, the surface appears rough, the clods
are half hid in the soil, and the ground
feels unequal under the foot — in some parts
resisting its pressure, in others giving way
to it too easily.
2359. The well harrowino; of land is a
point of more importance than seems ge»a-
rally to be imagined. Its object is not
merely to cover the seed, but to pulverise
the ground, and render it of a uniform
texture. Uniformity of texture maintains
in the soil a more equal temperature, not
absorbing rain so fast, or admitting drought
so easily, as when the soil is rough and
kept open by clods. Whenever the tex-
ture becomes uniform, the harrowing should
cease, though the appointed number of
double tines have not been given ; for
it is a fact, especially in light, soft soils,
that more harrowing than is necessary
brings part of the seed up again to the
surface.
2360. Should the spring wheat be sown
early in the season, that is, in January or
near to the end of February, the ridges
should be water-furrmced, in order that,
in case of much rain falling, or snow melt-
ing, it may find opportunities of running
off the surface of the ground by the water-
furrow in every open furrow between the
ridges. What of the spring wheat is sown
late in the spring, that is, in the last of
February and beginning of March, the
water-furrowing need not be executed
until after the sowing of the grass seeds
has been finished — and these are usually
sown immediately after the sowing of the
wheat — but the actual determination of
doing so depends upon the relation which
the last-sown break of spring wheat bears
to the whole extent of the field. Should
the last sowing embrace the last portion
of the field, then the grass seeds will be
sown not only over the last break of the
spring wheat sown, but the entire field,
and the water-furrowing will be given
after the sowing of the grass seeds ; but
should there still be another break to sow
of spring wheat, the grass seeds will be
delaj'ed in their sowing until the whole field
shall have been sown with the wheat ; and
in that case the last break of the spring
wheat should be water- furrowed immedi-
ately after it has been sown. Should the
last break of the spring wheat sown be as
late as is prudent for the season to sow
any more, and there be still a portion ot
the field to be ploughed, that portion will
be reserved for barley, and the grass
seeds will be delayed in the sowing until
the barley is sown, and then the entire
field, including all the portions of it sown
552
PRACTICE— SPRING.
with spring wbeat, will be sown with the
grass seeds at one time.
2361. Water-furrowing is the making
of a plough-furrow in every open-furrow,
for tlie purpose of forming channels by
which the rain-water may flow ofl^ the
surface of the land. It is executed with a
common plough and one horse, or with a
double mould-board plough and one horse ;
and as the horse walks in the open-furrow,
tlie plough following obliterates the horse's
foot-marks. The double mould-board
plough is a better implement for making
water-furrows than the common plough,
because it forms a channel having equal
sides, and the furrow-slice on eacli side
cast up by the mould-board is small, and
cannot prevent the water reaching from
the ridge into the water-furrow, whereas
the common plough casts up a rather large
furrow-slice on one side, and makes a sharp
hollow furrow on the other. Either plough
is used simply in going u]) one open-furrow
and down another until the field is finished,
the horse being hied at the turn into every
open-furrow. The water -furrowing of
spring wheat is always done after the har-
rowing, and finishes the work of the field
for the time.
2362. The double mould-hoard plough.
This is an implement not only useful in
water-furrowing any kind of soil after it
has been sown with grain, but is an essen-
tial one in the cultivation of the potato and
turnip crops. When duly constructed, it
is highly etficient in the formation of drills
or ridgelets for the potato or turnip crop,
setting up at each turn the half of a ridge-
let on each side; while the common plough,
so much used for this purpose, sets up only
a half ridgelet at each turn, doing, there-
fore, but half the work. In a variety of
farms, also, it is much employed in summer
in the earthing up of the potato and tur-
nip crops, for which purpose it is frequently
made of wood, but in all cases the iron
plough is to be recommended.
2363. Fig. 20.9 is a representation of a
common double mould-board iron plough^
Fig. 209.
THE DOUBLE MOULD-BOARD PLOUGH.
equipped for the purpose of water-furrow-
ing or earthing-up. The frame-work of it
is pretty much in form of the common
plough, except that the beam a lies right
in the central line of the whole plough.
The bridle b is variously formed accord-
ing ta the taste of the nuiker, but always
po:-sessing the properties of varying the
point of draught upward and downward
as well as right and left ; the breast d
forms part of the body-frame; the share
e is plain on both sides, spear-pointeil, and
is set upon the head of the body- frame;
the right and left mould-boards are /",/;
the handles are g. The length of this
plough is 1 0 feet. The mould-boards of
such ploughs are liable to great variation
in their form : some of them Lave little or
no twist, and others variously contorted.
Tiiose of the present figure have been
selected as possessing all the requisite
qualifications for an earthing-up plough.
2364. The land being thus sown and
harrowed, I give in fig. 210 a representa-
tion of a field in the act of being sown by
hand, as a record of a practice which wiil
probably soon become obsolete : a is the
sower with his hand swung back, ready to
make the cast with the seed — he is fur-
nished with a sowing-sheet; b represents
the sower after he has made the cast, and
the seed has entirely left his hand, and is
partly lying in the ground and partly fall-
SOWING OF SPKIXG WHEAT.
553
ingfrom hisIiantl,forniiiigtlie section of the occupied by the sowers, who are each
ellipse at c, as formerly described (231.9;) M-alking ou the third and fourth furrow-
d is the op-'U furrow between the ridges slices from the open furrow — this distance
Fig. 210.
\^^
THE SOWING OF CORN BY HAND.
allows the seed to fall as much towards
the open-furrow as it should do, while it
places the sower as far upon the ridge as
enables him easily to cover the half of the
ridge entirely with seed; e is the field-
worker who carries the seed — she is in the
act of returning to the sack % for more seed,
taking the rusky with her, after she has
served both the sowers with a fresh
supply ; i is the sack containing the seed
placed upon the furrow-brow of the
ridge, and there is yet as much seed in it
as will supply the sowers until they shall
have passed it; /is the leading pair
of horses, drawing the leading pair of
harrows ; g shows the harrows as they
cover the ground from the furrow-brow
over the crown of one side of a ridge, and
from the crown to the furrow-brow of the
other side ; h is the leading ploughman,
driving his horses with double reins, and
the following-man at g is also behind the
harrows, having the double reins in his
bands, and not going at his horses' heads in
a line with the foremost ploughman h.
There are only two pairs of horses shown
in the figure, which can only serve one
sower, although two sowers are shown ;
the other pair of horses may be supposed
to be following these, ou the ridge immedi-
ately beyond the one they are harrowing.
2365. Another method of sowing spring
wheat, very different from what I have yet
described, remains to be mentioned, namely.
after grass. In this case spring-wheat
takes the place of oats. It is a very unusual
practice to sow wheat after grass at all in
Scotland, though it is very common in Eng-
land, and its success there attests the supe-
riority of the English climate. Another
circumstance, perhaps, that promotes the
culture of spring wheat on lea in Eng-
land, in preference to oats, is, that the
climate is too dry, and too warm
in the southern counties, for the perfect
growth of the oat ; and oatmeal not being
wanted for food to the people of England,
may also direct the efi'orts of the agricul-
turists there to the growing of as much
wheat as possible, which efforts the
drought and heat of the climate second
very materially. The very opposite of
these circumstances operate to encourage
and maintain the culture of oats in Scot-
land. The climate is humid, which is
congenial to the growth of the oat plant;
and it is not so warm, even in summer, as
to stint its perfect development, while oat-
meal has long been a favourite food of the
work-people. Xow that wheat bread
is more used by the labouring population
thau it has hitherto been, it is worthy of
consideration whether more wheat, and less
oats, might not be raised in Scotland. The
only way I seeof substituting the one crop
for the other is by sowing spring wheat
on lea; for spring wheat, after turnips, is
as extensively cultivated as the nature of
the weather in spring permits every year;
554
PRACTICE— SPRING.
and ev©n now it is not in every season
that spring wheat ripens in this country,
though this remark refers only to its culture
after turnips, instead of barley; and it may
prove to be a fact that spring wheat will
thrive better after grass than after turnips.
Its culture after turnips has long been tried,
and experience rather dissuades from ex-
tending it; and as that after grass is but
of recent origin, experience cannot yet
guide the Scottish farmer in the matter.
The chief obstacle to sowing wheat in
spring is the peculiar effect of the two
principal classes of soil on the growth of
that plant. Clay soils are too inert in this
climate to mature the growth of wheat in
a few months ; and the lighter soils,
though more promotive of quick vegeta-
tion, want stamina to support the wheat
plant, which really requires a somewhat
clayey soil to bring it to maturity : and
the lighter soils, besides, are too easily
affected by drought in early spring ; and
it is no uncommon circumstance to ex-
perience a severe drought in Scotland in
March, in tlie prevalence of the E. wind
iu spring which causes it.
2366. As to sowing wheat on lea in
autumn, several circumstances deserve con-
sideration before such a practice, exten-
sively at least, can be adopted. Wheat
cannot safely be sown in Scotland after the
end of October, which is about the time it is
sown after potatoes, and that is considered
as late as it can be sown in safety until
spring arrives. To plough up lea before
October would be to sacrifice the aftermath,
which is not only good feeding for stock,
but the want of it would throw the stock too
early upon the turnips, and make too long
a winter. One misfortune for Scotland is,
that no forage plant exists fit for the use of
stock in autumn but the aftermath. The
only alternative, therefore, is, to devise a
means to consolidate the lighter soils, so as
they may be enabled to withstand the inor-
dinate drought of spring, and support the
wheat plant until it attains maturity ; and
the only meaus, it would appear, we have
of doing this is the use oi the presser-roller.
2367. The Presser-roUer.—The chief
object of the application of the presser-
roller is to produce consolidation in the
soil over a narrow space, in which space
the seeds of plants are to have root ; hence
its effects are applicable only to the drill
system of culture, and that only under the
particular circumstance of a consolidated
soil whose ordinary texture is too loose
and friable for the continued support of
the wheat plant, and close contact in the
furrow-slices of the soil on being ploughed
from ffrass for a seed-furrow.
2368. Thepresser-rolleris represented in
its most common form by fig. 211, which is a
view of the machine in perspective, and is
of extremely simple construction. The
Fig. 211.
TilK PIIESSER- ROLLER.
carriage consists of a rectangular frame distance apart, though 9 to 10 inches is the
a a. A pair of horse-shafts f/, are bolted usual space. The axle carries also the
upon the frame, on the nigh side. A cast- light carriage-wheel «. The off-side shaft i,
iron bracket c, su])ports the frame upon is .snpporte<l by the iron stay- rod/; and
the axle — this axle carries the two press- two iron-scrapers ff, are attached to the
ing-wheels d d, which are provided with hind bar, for the purpose of throwing
the means of being fixed at any desired off any soil that may adhere to the wheels.
WING OF SPRING WHEAT.
556
2369. Fig. 212, is an edge-view of the
two pressing wheels detached from the
carriage, in which a a is the axle, b b are
the two pressing- Avheels as they appear
edgeways, their weight being about 2 cwt.
Fig. 212.
/T#
/ -/• /
ACTION OF THE EDGE OF THE PRESSING-WHEELS.
each. The pressing-wheels are held at
the required distance by the square collars
c c c : d d represents a transverse section
of the ground undergoing the pressing
process : the shaded part of the section
exhibits the state of a soft loose soil when
pressed by the roller; and the dotted lines
ef\ e/, that of the newly ploughed lea
undergoing the operation of consolidation.
2370. As explained above, and with
reference again to fig. 211, the pressing-
wheels are to be understood as running
always upon the last turned-up furrows
but one ; while the carriage-wheel e runs
always upon the solid land, where the
horse also walks, the shafts being placed
at that side. But the presser is now being
more advantageously used as to time, in
the consolidation of soft soils by beino-
constructed \\\i\\fom% six, or more press-
ing-wheels ; and in this form the carriage-
wheel is not required. In using the presfjer
of this construction, the field must be
ploughed for the seed-furrow all over,
eitlier entirely or in part, before the press-
ing is begun ; and the field is regularly
gone over by the presser, which, from its
now increased weight, will require two
horses. In this form, with six pressing-
wheels, and with two. horses, the machine
will press-roll from 8 to 9 acres in a day.
The entire weight of the six wheel rollers
amounts to about 12 or 13 cwt. The price
of the two-wheeled presser is about £6,
10s. and for each additional wheel, with
its mounting, jBl, 12s.
2371. The presser is used in this man-
ner for pressing the soil after lea. It is
most economically used in conjunction
with two ploughs, by following the last
one, and moving the pressing-wheels upon
the two furrow-slices they had immedi-
ately laid over. It not only compresses
the slices into less bulk, but indents a
groove on each of them, which receives
the seed when it is sown. With 1 presser,
2 acres of ground can only thus be com-
pressed in the course of a day, and, where
a considerable extent of spring wheat may
be sown, this rate of compression would
be too slow. Either the number of
pressers should be increased, or a consi-
derable extent of land pressed before it is
sown ; as it would be tiresome work to
sow only two acres a-day of a large field,
which might require a fortnight of 2
ploughs to plough. As the weather in
spring is precarious, and the season for
sowing spring wheat limited, the most
convenient plan for most farmers would
be to have 2 pressers in operation, and
sow the ground compressed every two
days — that is, 8 acres — which would be a
large enough sowing of spring wheat in
one day upon a farm that worked 5 pairs
of horses ; or, on farms employing a smaller
number of horses, the better plan would
be to have one of the larger pressers which
covers more ground, and is worked by a
pair of horses. The former plan, as re-
gards time, may be followed with perfect
safety to the wheat crop, as a double tine
along of the harrows is quite sufficient to
cover pressed spring wheat ; and it should
receive no more, unless perhaps a single
tine again along, in case the surface is
not yet sufficiently fine ; but cross-harrow-
ing would discompose the seed that had
fallen in rows into the grooves made by
the pressers. Another plan is to plough
and press the lea early in winter, when it
would consolidate still more, and then
sow an entire field with wheat in spring,
when the weather is favourable; and should
it prove not so, the ground would be ready
for oats. This last plannught be followed
on light soils, which are in a rich enough
condition for spring wheat : or the lea
might be ploughed in winter and not
pressed until spring before being sown.
556
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2372. This same instrument may be
beneficially eniploj'ed in compressing light
turnip-land when ploughing into ridges, to
render it more fit for spring wheat ; and in
using it for this purpose it might be em-
ployed in the same manner as on lea.
2373. But the pressor may be employed
on even strong lea, and the crop of wheat
consequent thereon increased to a sensible
degree, as the following case will testify: —
" A very striking instance of the utility
of this machine," saj's Mr Hugh Watson,
Keillor, Forfarshire, " was exhibited on a
field belonging to my friend Captain Bar-
clay Allardyce of IJry, who last season
(1832) broke up a piece of grass land
near his mansion-house, supposed to have
lain out about 100 years. It was a strong
soil, and required 4 horses to work the
plough, and it was followed by the presser,
leaving the work in such a finished state
that, although Captain Barclay's intention
was to sow the field with oats, after the
preparation of a winter's exposure, he was
induced to try a crop of wheat, and suc-
ceeded beyond his expectation, having
reaped 50 bushels per imperial acre ; while
the probability is, that, if the field had
been sown in spring with oats, they would
all have rotted I have used the
presser," continues Mr Watson, " for two
seasons, and can with confidence recom-
mend it on all light soils with every sort
of corn crop."* It would thus appear
that the use of the presser is almost of
general application, and that the ground
may be ploughed a considerable time before
it is sown, which renders it of use on a
winter furrow. Farmers, both in Forfar and
Fife shires, I am aware, have used this
instrument for several years, and, from
what I can learn, with success.
2374. As regards the probability of
success in raising spring wheat in Scotland
after lea, theory wouhl commend the prac-
tice, provided the presser were used in
preparing the soil. The oat jilant grows
very well in ploughed lea without the as-
sistance of the presser, and why should
not wheat? This is an obviuus question
for a person to put who looks no deeper
than the surface of the ground. The
root of the oat plant is chiefly fibrous, and
extends in fibres around near the surface.
The consolidation which the ground re-
ceives, as far as the tines of the harrows
reach, is sutficient for the oat ; but not so
for the wheat — as, besides the fibrous
roots which it also pushes around near the
surface, it sends a strong tap and other
roots downwards, which, on finding no
sufficient hold in the void spaces so nume-
rous under the furrow-slices of ploughed
lea, but where it is necessary to afford
requisite anchorage to the plant, they are
constrained to descend still farther, until
they reach the undisturbed subsoil under
the line of the ph. ugh draught, where
they no doubt find sutficient stability, but
insufficient support. The range of the
roots of the wheat and the oat plants are as
different as that of those of the oak and
the Scots fir. Let the soil, however, be
compressed by the presser, and the wheat
I)lant then finds the requisite security for
its roots ; and the decomposed vegetable
matter of the lea supports it, as well as it
would the oat plant in the same place.
Wheat is grown after lea in England with-
out pressing; but I suspect the practice is
chiefly confined to good clay land ; and we
know, besides, that the furrow which the
English ploughman gives to the lea is
shallow and flat, so that the roots of the
plant find no difficulty in pushing through
it, and establishing themselves in the sub-
soil, which is comparatively much nearer
the air and manure of the soil than in
Scotch lea-ploughing. I suspect also that,
were wheat sown after rye-grass lea, it
would no more succeed in England than
in Scotland, where there is no otlier species
of grass to i)recede it, there being no pure
clover leas or old pasture to prepare for
wheat.
2375. With regard to the varieties of
wheat which ought to be sown in spring',
I cannot advise with confidence. The
unintelligible classification of wheat by
botanists, into beardless in winter, and
bearded in spring, in .as far as it aflects
agriculture, is apt to mislead tlie farmer;
and were he so far to rely on the opinions
of botanists as to try these two distinctions
of wheat in the season said to be t^uitable
to each, he would certainly be disap-
pointed, and the results would probably be
Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, yo\. iv. 545.
SOWING OF SPRING WHEAT.
557
the very opposite anticipated. For this
reason I quite agree with Mr Lawson in
what he has said on the subject. " Botan-
ists," he states, "generally divide the com-
mon beardless and bearded wheats into
two distinct species, terming the former
Tr'iticum h'lbernum^ or winter wheat, and
the latter Triticum cestivum^ or summer
wheat. But the propriety of the distinc-
tion may well be questioned, more parti-
cularly as the chief distinguishing character
between them consists in the varieties of
the former being beardless, or nearly so,
•while the awns of the latter are generally
2, 3, or more inches in length ; and it being
an established fact, that the awns or beards
in grasses form by no means a permanent
specitic distinction, and that in many cases
they do not even constitute a variety, so
much does their presence or absence de-
pend upon the effects of climate, culture,
soil, &c But the principal
objection to the names commonly used is,
that they make no proper distinction be-
tween the two great classes — winter and
spring wheats. For instance, under Triti-
cum hibernum are included several of the
earlier, and, without doubt, the best sorts
of spring wheat; and under Triticum
cestivum are included several bearded
wheats equally hardy, and requiring as
long time to arrive at maturity as our
common winter sorts."* Colonel Le
Couteur falls into the same error when
treating of the classification of wheat, by
dividing all wheats into the two un-
meaning distinctions of " beardless or
winter wheats " and " bearded or spring
wheats," as I have formerly remarked in
(I844.)t
2376. Although the subject is thus
rendered, by botanists and writers on the
cultivated varieties of wheat, sufficiently
puzzling to the farmer, yet some consider-
ations may direct you in the choice of
spring wheat. I may premise that you
cannot make a mistake in regard to a
winter wheat ; for, however early may be
the habit of the variety sown, the very
circumstance of its having been sown in
autumn, when sufficient time is not given
to the plant to reach maturity before winter,
will convert it for that season into a winter
variety. The wheat plant is a true annual,
but when sown late, and the progress of
its growth is retarded by a depression of
temperature, it is converted for the time
into a biennial. It is therefore highly
probable, that, as the nature of wheat is
to bring its seed to maturity in the course
of one season, any variety sown in time in
spring would mature its seed in the course
of the ensuing summer or autumn. I be-
lieve this to be a fact ; nevertheless, cir-
cumstances may occur to modify the fact
in thisclimate. Under the most favourable
circumstances, the wheat plant requires a
considerable time to mature its seed ; and
a variety that has long been cultivated in
winter, on being sown in spring in the
same latitude will not mature its seed that
season, should the temperature fall much
below the average, or should it be culti-
vated on very inferior soil to what it had
been accustomed ; so that, in practice, it
is not safe — at least in so precarious a
climate as that of Scotland — to sow every
variety of wheat in spring. Wlieat from a
warm to a cold climate, will prove earlier
in the latter than the native varieties,
and, in so far, is better suited for sowing
in spring; and if you can ascertain, besides,
that the same variety is an early one in
the warm latitude— bringing its seed to
maturity in a short period, perhaps not
exceeding 4 months — then you may safely
sow it as a spring wheat, whether it be a
red or white coloured — a bearded or a
beardless variety.
2377. In my own experience of spring-
wheat, the old Lammas red, and another
old variety, which I have not heard of for
many years, the Cobham red, were con-
sidered excellent varieties of spring wheat.
Of the Lanmias red, I have seen a field of
35 acres sown on the 8th March, and
cut, an excellent crop, on 26th August,
in that memorable year for all kinds of
good crops, 1815. The variety exists at
the present day, and is still, I believe, a
favourite with many farmers, and de-
servedly so.
2378. A late variety of spring wheat
was introduced into culture a few years
since, under the name of fern wheat, and ia
now termed April wheat, because it may
be sown as late as April, and yet be cut
Lawson's AgrictUturist^s Manual, p. 1-2.
t Le Couteur On Wheat, p. 78-9.
568
PRACTICE— SPRING.
down ripe at the termination of the ordi-
nary harvest. By an experiment made in
1833, and related by Mr Lawson, the
fern wheat, on being sown on the 26th
March, along with common white and
Essex red wheat, was cut on the 2Tth
August, after having been only five months
in the ground, while the others were not
cut until the 30tli September, and their
comparative produce and weight were as
follows : —
Produce per acre. Weight per boshel.
qrs. bus- lb.
Fern wheat, 4 4 6.'JJ
Essex red wheat, 3 6 62^
Common white wheat, 3 3J 60i
The April wheat very much resembles a
wheat grown in North America, under
the name of the Italian, from whence it
probably found its way to this country.
2379. It is awned, the spike very long,
6 inches, and is red coloured. The grain
is small, elongated, with the median line
well marked, opaque, somewhat tlinty, and
lively red colour. The produce in East
Lothian has frequently been .5 quarters
per imperial acre, and the weight from 60
lb. to 64 lb. per bushel. It is well liked
by the bakers, and its price rules about the
same as other sorts of red wheat of the
same weight. The straw is tall, and softer
than that of the winter wheat. It requires
to be carefully pickled before being sown,
being much given to smut; and it should
not be allowed to stand until too ripe, as it
is liable to shake out of the chaft'. Whether
it will pay better than barley, in ordinary
years, remains to be seen; but, as it is gain-
ing in repute, we may conclude that it does
so in many cases.*
ON THE DRILLING UP OF LAND.
2380. While the ploughing and sow-
ing of the turnip land with sjiring wheat
may be progressing in the early spring
months, whenever the weather is favour-
able for the operation, preparation should
be making for others of the earliest spring
crops, the earliest of which may be re-
garded the bean and the pea. Beans and
pease are usually cultivated on strong
land, having a considerable tenacity by
means of the clay it contains; and as this
sort of land is not in a state to be worked
in spring, but only when the weather ie
dry, unless it has been thoroughly drained,
or is incumbent on a porous subsoil, it is
not in every season that the bean and
the pea can be cultivated. Beans and
pease may also be cultivated in lighter and
naturally dry soils, provided they are well
manured. Whatever may be the state
and quality of the soil, one mode of culti-
vating the bean and the pea is upon drills,
in the same manner as the potato and the
turnip ; and it is therefore requisite that
you understand the method of making up
the land into drills, before proceeding to
the details of the cultivation of the bean
or the pea in that particular manner.
2381. i)ri7^i«9.— Drilling is a form of
ploughing very different from the ordinary,
but not unlikeinappearance to that mode of
ploughing stubble in some parts of the coun-
try, named rib-])loughing, fig. 30, and which
I noticed only to condemn. The principal
reason for my condemnation was, that
while it professed to turn up the soil to
the action of the atmosphere, it left un-
touched by the plough and buried more
than the half of it, thus in a great mea-
sure frustrating its avowed object. In so
far as the drilling is concerned, it also
leaves a large proportion of the soil be-
tween one side of the drill and the other
quite untouched by the plough ; but then
the part untouched now had been ploughed
and cleaned previous to being drilled up,
otherwise it could not well be subjected
to that operation ; so that drilling affects
only the operations directly in connexion
with the manuring of the soil and the
sowing of the seed. On this account
drills ought not to be formed on land in a
hard state, as the object of nuiking them
at all is to afford a sufficient quantity of
loose soil to cover the manure deposited
in them, and the roots of plants sufficient
freedom to roanj in search of that manure ;
and also to afford an opportunity, notwith-
standing the presence of a crop, to clear the
land of weeds, by stirring it occasionally
with the proj)er implements. There is no
way of effecting all these objects so eflec-
tually as by drilling. Accordingly, all
crops intended to meliorate and clean the
ground are cultivated in drills, and these
• Lawson's Agriculturist's Manual, p. 18.
DRILLING UP OF LAND.
559
are beans, potatoes, turnips, mangold-
wurzel, &c.
2382. On entering upon the subject
of drilling, the remarks shall be made
without reference to the special case of
sowing beans, though that lias given rise
to the subject at present, but rather in re-
ference to the ordinary operations which pro-
vide and render the soil in the best state for
being elevated into drills. The specialities
connected with drilling will be stated when
we come shortly to treat of the culture of
the bean. After the land has been much
ploughed and harrowed, and rolled, to
render it friable, it becomes flat, whatever
may have been the form of ridge in which
it had before been ploughed ; and it is in
the best state for being ploughed into
drills when flat. Yet heavy land which
is constantly retained in ridges of a round-
ed form, such as twice-gathered- up, fig.
26, will exhibit the ridged form even after
it has been well pulverised by ploughings,
harrowlngs, and rollings; it will still ap-
pear as if gathered up from the flat, fig.
20, and had been harrowed and rolled fine
on the surface. Light soil with the same
work will appear quite flat, and of a uni-
form surface throughout, though not with
that levelness which implies that every
portion of its surface was in the same plane.
2383. This distinction in the appearance
of ground that has been ridged and not
ridged, should be kept in view, as it will,
in a great measure, determine the width
of space that should be left between the
drills. This distinction is entirely occa-
sioned by the different form in which the
different sorts of soils had been previously
ploughed. Strong soil is always kept
round by repeated gatherings up, fig. 20,
or gatherings up based on casting with
gore-furrows, fig. 23, which imprint even
npon a wrought surface a flatness across
the top of the ridge, but with an evident
mark along the open furrows; whereas
the lighter soils are usually only once
gathered up, fig. 20, cast together without
gore-furrows, fig. 22, or ploughed two-
out-and-two-in, fig. 25, which, after being
wrought down, give a flatness across the
ridges with a slight waving indentation in
the open furrows.
2384. In whichever state the surface
may be, whether completely flat or exhi-
biting a slight indication of rounded ridges,
the drills are made of the same form, and
in various ways. They are made by one
landing of the plough, when they are said
to be single, or they are made with a bout
of the plough, when they are called double;
and both single and double drills are made
either towards ox from ihefeering. The
ultimate form of the two difi'erent modes
are apparently the same, but that which
makes them /rom the feering is the truest
drill, as I shall show.
2385. In beginning to make drills, let
us take one of the simplest cases that pre-
sent themselves, namely, a field having a
straight side at its farthest end, and hav-
ing the forms of ridges still visible ; and
as it is requisite in strong land to preserve
a form of surface which will keep it as dry
as possible, the drills should be so made
upon the ridges as to be accommodated
between the open furrows. If the ridges
are 15 feet in width, 6 drills of 30 inches
apart will fill up the space between the
open furrows; and if IS feet wide, 8
drills of 27 inches will answer the same
end. When the ground is flat, the width
of the drills may be adapted according to
will. I have seen it stated in cases of
drilling land for turnips in England, that
18 inches was a good distance to be pre-
served between drills ; but what good can
be obtained by adopting a space too nar-
row for the free operation of the imple-
ments required to keep the ground clean,
I cannot imagine.
2386. Suppose, then, that the ridges
present a form of 15 feet in width on
strong land, the drills should be made 30
inches wide, and they are made in this
way. Begin at the end of the field farthest
from the gate, and where the fence runs
in a straight line; and set up 3 feering
poles, fig. 18. in a straight line upon the
higliest furrow-brow of the second ridge
fr(jm the fence, and 15 inches from the
middle of its open furrow. Split out the
feering along the line of tite poles, turning
over the furrow-slices first to one hand
and then to the other, like the furrow-
slices m and n, along the feering k I, fig.
ly. The reason that the first feering is
made on the furrow-brow is, that when
the drills are afterwards split to cover the
560
PRACTICE-SPRING.
dung, or whatever else is put in them, the then become the hollow between the drills
place which the hollow of the feering fur- occupying the furrow-brow of both ridges.
row now occupies will be tilled up into a
drill, and the present open furrow will 2387. In fig. 213, suppose a i to be the
Fig. 213.
THE MODE OF PLOUGHING SINGLE DRILLS.
feering in the furrow-brow of the ridge, upon the firm ground. Hieing the horses
On passing up from a to &, the plough lays again, the plough goes up byy?, forming
over the furrow-slice c d, and, the soil hav-
ing been pulverised, it crumbles down in
a round-toppctl narrow heap upon the
firnrer land under it. On gaining the
head-ridge at tlie other end of the feering,
the horses are hiirL and the plough comes
down tlie same furrow from b to a, laying
over a similar furrow n o upon the firm
land, which of course assumes a similar
form to c of. A similar feering is made in
the furrow-brow of the 6th ridge from the
last, and so ou upon every 6th ridge across
the field ; but ere the field is all feered
for drilling, some of the drills are begun
another drill like the others, and comea
back by r, forming another drill. The
ploughman does not measure off the width
of every d7-ill he makes in this manner,
his eye being able to keep him right for a
number of drills, across whicli he then
lays his plough-stafl', to ascertain how he
is proceeding, whether the drills are too
narrow, or too wide, and then again pro-
ceeds with the work. It will be observed,
from this description, that since the mak-
ing of the feering in the furrow a b, one
drill is formed every time the plough goes
up in the direction of ef^ and another in
to be formed between the feerings, that coming down in that of i t. In this way
the operations may be proceeded with for the horses h\e round the feering a b, and
which the land is drilled. the jdough makes 2 drills every bout till
2 ridges on each side of the feering a b are
2388. To proceed, then, with the drilling drilled up, and the last drill is made close
at the first feering : a distance of 30 inches, beside the fence-
previously determined on as the width of
the drill, is measured oft' from a to e, and
this the ploughman does with his plough-
staff", fig. .5, upon which the different
breadths of drills executed on the farm
should be notched oflf. The plough then
proceeds from e to y, preserving a paral-
lelism with the feered furrow a b, laying
over the furrow-slice g h upon the firm
ground, upon which it crumbles down as
did the former furrow c d. On hieinq the
2389. When this takes place, the plough-
man goes to the next feering, where he
finds two furi'ows split out for him as at a
/y, and he forms drills around it in the
same manner, till 2 ridges on each side are
also drilled. Two ridges having thus
been drilled to the right and left of the
first feering, and two to the right and
left of the second, and as six ridges inter-
vene between the feerings, two riilges of
horses at the other end of the drills, a the six have yet to be drilled, upon which
similar distance of,30 inches is marked off" the drills are formed by hupping the
from b to i, the plough passes down from horses from the first set of drills to the
» to <, laying over the furrow-slice / m second, still turning the furrow-slices upon
DRILLING UP OF LAND.
561
and towards the firm ground. But, in
doing this, caution is requisite to make
these latter drills of the exact width of 30
inches, that the last formed one, into the
open furrow at the junction of the two
feerings, shall just be no more, and no less,
than the 30 inches in width. The caution
is exercised by the ploughman applying
his plough-stafi" frequently to ascertain the
breadth of the ground to be drilled, as
well as the width of the drills themselves;
and should he find- that he has more or
less ground than he should have for the
number of drills he has yet to make, he
must modify the width of each drill, so far
as that the whole number may be as near
the width as possible, and not put any
surplus or deficient ground entirely to
the last drill. Another caution, of no less
importance, is to ascertain if the ground
for the last drills is of equal breadth at
both ends at the head-ridges ; for, if this
particular is not attended to, the last drill
may run out to a point at one head-
ridge, and be too broad at the other. In
closing every feering, therefore, the great-
est caution is required to preserve the ex-
act breadth of the drills throughout their
entire lengths. This a skilled ploughman
will execute with great accuracy.
2390. This is one way of forming single
drills, and the following is another : In-
stead of splitting out the feering a h, fig.
213, as just described, the ploughman lays
the two furrow-slices together, and forms
a finished drill on the line of feering, in
place of a hollow furrow ; and this he does
by hupping the horses instead of hieing
them, as in the former case. Still hupping
the horses, and measuring ofl^ the width of
the drill as formerly, the next drill is made
in the direction oife, by laying the furrow-
slice towards the drill made up(m the line
of feering, the outer edge of the furrow-
slice sending its crumbled earth to the edge
of the plough track, left in making the
drill in the feering. The next drill is
made in the direction of t i, again laying
the furrow-T-slice towards the plough-track.
in forming the previous drill. The drills
are thus formed around the first feering
over the 2 ridges on each side, then over
the 2 ridges on each side of the second
feering, hy hupping the horses; and the
space of the 2 ridges between them is closed
•with drills, accompanied with the precau-
VOL. I.
tions noticed above, and by hieing the
horses.
2391. The distinctive difference betwixt
the two methods is, that the one is the
exact opposite of the other. In the firsts
the furrow-slices are laid over from the
feerings towards the unploughed land, and
the horses are first hied^ and then linpped
when closing the two feerings. In the
second method, the furrow-slices are laid
over towards the feerings and the ploughed
land, and the horses are first hupptl^ and
then hied on closing the two feerings.
The treatment of the horses may be re-
garded as alike in both cases; but the land is
differently treated. In the second method,
the furrow-slice being laid over towards
the open track left by the plough in mak-
ing the previous drill, should the land be
at all cloddy, when it is strong, or stony
when it is light — the clods and stones will
roll down the crumbling furrow-slice, and,
having acquired an impetus by the action
of the ear of the mould-board, find their
way into the hollows between the drills ;
and this is actually found to be the case.
When the width of the drills is as much as
30 inches, this inconvenience is less likely
to happen than when it is 27 inches, when
I have seen it occur to a considerable
degree. The immediate inconvenience
occasioned by the clods and stones is, the
interruption they give to the progress of
the bean-barrow when the land is drilled
for tlie bean-crop ; and as they occupy
the best part of the drill, where the dung
is deposited, they are covered up with the
dung, remain amongst it, and form obstruc-
tions to the roots of plants which push
themselves into the manure in search of
nourishment. At all events, they do no
good there.
2392. In the first method, this inconve-
nience and every other are entirely avoid-
ed. No clods and stones can roll into the
furrow when the land, in making the drills,
is laid over upon the firm ground ; and the
next passage of the plough not only sweeps
away every clod and stone, but leaves a
small stripe of clean ground between the
former furrow-slice and its own track, as
between t and o, &c., fig. 213, and which
track is thus left clear and open, ready
for the bean- barrow, or the dung that may
be deposited in it. These advantages are
2n
562
PRACTICE— SPRING.
so obvious tliat no argument in support of
them seems necessary ; and they warrant
the ailuption of the method as an invari-
able practice.
2393. When the ground is flat — that is,
when tlie ridiies are not remarkably promi-
nent— the drills are made the common width
of 27 inches — some persons make them 28
inches— and their feering is conducted in
the same way ; but in setting oiT breaks of
feering, when there are no ridges to mea-
sure the proper distances, care is requisite
to make the breadth of the feering such as
to contain a determinate number of drills
of the fixed width, otherwise an error will
inevitably occur at the closings of the feer-
ings. Thus, if the drills are 27 inches in
width, in a feering of 30 yards broad, 6
ridges of 15 feet, which is a very conve-
nient breadth of feering, the number of
drills will be exactly 40.
2394. For making double drills, the
feering is made in a different manner from
that for making the single. Suppose,
again, that the ridges are visibly marked
in the ground, the first feering is taken on
the furrow-brow of the ridge nearest the
fence, at l/i inches from its open furrow
space, and, setting up a straight line of
poles, split out the feering by ploughing
up and down in the same furrow. Sup-
pose this furrow to be represented by the
line cf in fig. 1 9, then set up a square-
table at d, and mark off therefrom a line
with poles at right angles in the direction
of the arrow through * to t. Removing
the square-table to_<7, set off a similar and
parallel line in the direction of the other
arrow through it to v. Split out these lines
with the plough lightly, as straight as the
ploughman can, and the bottom of the fur-
rows will form a guide to set off the exact
breadth of the feering at right angles to
the first feering.
2395. Ploughmen expert at drilling are
apt to contemn such guides in forming
double drills, because they conceive they
can preserve the widths sufficiently well
by the eye. And, no doubt, ploughmen
are to be found who drill with precision,
and I have met with such, though very
few in number ; but the generality of them
cannot be intrusted to drill without a guide
of some sort, and there is none more simple
and effectual than the one I have described
and recommended ; and where si//y/<' drill-
ing is to be executed on land on which no
ridge is visible, it is imjxissible for the
most expert driller to set off the feerings
with sufficient accuracy. Ploughmen, I
know, try to do it, and I have seen good
ones nearly succeed in it, but never witness-
ed one who was not obliged to modify the
width of the drills at the closings, when
he had no such guide as the above.
2396. Strict accuracy in regard to drills
is not required in some crops, such as in
the bean and potato ; but with regard to
the turnip, which is sown with a machine
set to a given width, unless the drills are
very nearly alike in breadth at both ends,
the sowing must be imperfectly performed.
The means of attaining accuracy being so
simple — merely drawing two or throe fur-
rows across the field — it is culpable to
neglect them. There will be, I am cer-
tain, more time spent by the ]iloughman in
measuring the width of the drills with his
plough-staff, at every closing over a field,
than he would sj)end in drawing a few
cross-furrows at first ; and, after all the
adjustments, his mind is not entirely satis-
fied of the accuracy of the work. Nay,
with all the assistance cross-furrows can
afford him, he will still have to measure
the widths of the drills with his plough-
staff at every closing ; but he is much less
likely to err in the measurements, while
having the cross-furrows certainly to guide
him at right angles to the direction of the
drills, than in measuring them at a sup-
posed right angle. This is so self-evident
that the most obstinate ploughman must
allow that the cross-furrows afford much
assistance.
2397. The double drills are formed in
this way ; and first on the supposition that
the ridges are visible at 1.5 feet asunder.
After the furrow-slice c d, fig. 213, is laid
over at the feering of a h along the nigh-
side furrow-brow of the ridge nearest the
fence, as directed above, the horses are
hupped^ and the plough is made to come
down at the prescribed width of drill of 30
inches, along the line/r, and to jtut a fur-
row-slice against the feering furrow-slice
cd, in doing which the drill receives a
somewhat sharp-pointed crest. At 30
inches this ciest is never very sharp, but
DRILLING UP OF LAND.
568
at 27 iucbes it may be made as sharp as
you please, by making tbe plough go
a little deeper. Then, hieing the horses,
tiie plough again goes along ef^ at 30
inches from cd, and lays over the large
furrow-slice g h on the firm ground. Hup-
ping again, the horses come down p, and
lay a small furrow-slice to complete the
drill hg ; and so on, one drill after another.
No breaks of feerings are required in this
mode of drilling, as every drill is finished
as it is formed ; and the precautions re-
quired are, that the proper widths of the
drills are preserved throughout their
lengths, in which they may be easily
checked by the assistance of the cross-fur-
rows. This method of double-drilling is
analogous to the first mode of single-drill-
ing, (2388,) which lays the furrow-slice
towards the iinploughed ground.
2398. The other mode of double-drilling
is analogous to the second mode of single-
drilling (2390.) After the feering-poles are
set up, as in the former case, the ploughing
is commenced from the other headridge,
and the first furrow-slice n o '\s, laid over
while coming down b a. The horses are
then hied, and the plough is passed up the
same furrow in the opposite direction a b,
and, having little earth to lay over, only
a small furrow-slice is laid towards c d.
Hupping the horses, the plough is then
brought downfe, which being a fresh fur-
row, the furrow-slice d cis large, and com-
pletes the drill d c. Hieing the horses, the
plough again passes along the last furrow
in the opposite direction e /, and, hav-
ing little earth to take, lays over the
small furrow-slice towards g h ; and then
hupping again, a large furrow-slice is laid
over from /?, and completes the drill h g,
and so on, one drill after another, at the
requisite width.
2399. The same difierence exists in the
two modes of making these double drills,
as in making the single. Thus, in the
first method, the large furrow-slice is laid
over upon the firm ground, and the drill
is finished by the second and smaller
furrow-slice ; whereas, in the second
method, the smaller furrow-slice is first
formed, and the larger one is laid towards
the already drilled land, and upon the
smaller furrow-slice which was first turned
2400. On considering carefully both
modes of drilling, it will be observed that
the two sides of a double drill cannot be
equal. The side which receives the furrow-
slice raised from the firm land receives a
larger quantity of earth than the one
which receives the small furrow-slice de-
rived from the same, though rather wider
track, out of which the former large
slice had been taken. The immediate
consequence of this inequality of earth
upon the two sides of a drill is to give it
the form of an unequal triangle, and its
effect on the growth of any seed deposited
within the drill, is to cause the germ of
the plant to grow out at the upper part of
the side, between the meeting of the two
furrow-slices, instead of the top of the
drill. This effect is palpably shown by the
sloping direction in which a strong stem
of beans or potatoes pushes itself out of
the drill; and, to obviate any deformity in
the future growth of these plants, the tops
of the drills are lowered by harrowing as
much as to allow the stems to grow up-
right.
2401. The inconvenience of the unequal
form of the double drill attends both modes
of making them, but, of the two, the one
which lays the large furrow-slice ujjon the
open land possesses two advantages over
the other : the first, that no clods, large
or small, can roll from the top of the drill
into the hollow: and the other, that the
finished drills are less trampled by the
horses in making the succeeding drills.
This last circumstance may be explained
by referring to fig. 2 1 3. When the plough,
for instance, goes up e f to commence a
new drill, it cuts the firm ground along
that line, laying the furrow-slice g h upon
the firm ground on the right, and leaving
on the left a small sjjace of firm ground
c e and df, between the line of the plough
/ e and the crumblings of the previous
large furrow or unfinished drill c d. In
doing this, the furrow-horse walks up the
hollow of the former made drill a b to
guide him in the exact line he should go,
and the other goes up on the firm ground
by the side of e/.- On returning, the
furrow-horse comes down e f, while the
other comes by /?, while the plough is
making uj* the small side of the drill d c;
and in doing this the footsteps of the horse
that went up the finished drill a b are left
M4
PRACTICE— SPRING.
untouched. Tliis may be considered by
some a matter of little importance, as,
from the generality of the practice in
parts of the country, it seems to be re-
garded of little importance ; and in the
case of some horses which walk neatly
and narrowly in a drill, the impressions of
their footsteps may be almost unobserved
in its bottom ; but in the case of a horse
which walks wide behind, and of all weak
horses which stagger under their draught,
both sides of the drills are much trampled;
and, in strong land, the foot-prints injure
the soil by holding water.
2402. The foot-marks may be obliter-
ated in this way: Instead of perfecting the
drills one by one in succession, let an in-
termediate drill remain unfinished between
the one that is finishing, and the other that
is forming. For example : Instead of
finishing the second side of the drill h g
by returning down the hollow/ e, let the
drill remain unfinished until the new drill
P is formed so far as to lay over its first
furrow on the firm ground. Then let
the plough come down h a, having the
furrow-horse before it, and it will oblite-
rate its footmarks, and let the other horse
come down the new-formed furrow p.
There is another advantage attending this
mode — that one of the horses goes in a
hollow of a drill formerly made to guide
it in the proper line of the drill. With
regard to the mode which lays the large
furrow-slice towards the drilled land, it
seems impossible but to leave the finished
drills trampled. For example: When the
plough comes down/e to lay over the large
furrow towards, and to finish the drill c (/,
the furrow-horse comes down h a, and
the other upon the firm land by//?; and
again, when the plough passes up e /,
to lay the small furrow-slice towards g
h, the furrow-horse passes np a b, and
leaves it trampled.
2403. When the ground is quite flat,
double drills may be made 27 inches wide,
and the same width may be adopted when
ridges of 18 feet are visible. A feering
of 6 ridges of 18 feet exactly includes 64
drills of 27 inches, so that where drills
are desired at 27 inches in width, tlie
land should either be in 18-feet ridges, if
ridged, or it should be flat, otherwise 27-
inch drills on 15-feet ridges will place
some of them in the open furrow, which,
in strong land, cannot fail to prove inju-
rious to the turnips on them in winter.
When the soil is thorough-drained, it is of
no importance where the drills are situated;
but, until that operation is performed, it is
necessary to attend to the safety of tiie
crop, which is done by avoiding having
drills in the open furrow on strong un-
drained land.
2404. It may have occurred to you to
inquire, that if a perfect drill cannot be
formed by a bout of tlie common plough,
why should it not be formed by one land-
ing with a double mould-board plough ?
The inquiry is a natural one, and can
receive a satisfactory answer. Were a
drill perfectly formed, its vertical section
would give a triangle whose height ia
equal to half the length of the base. The
height to which a conmion plough can ele-
vate the crest of a drill is that of the ear
of itsmould-board, which, in Small's plough,
fig. 2, is 12 inches; and tiiis heiglit con-
forms to a drill of only 24 inches in width
as regards the depth it can go. Such a
plough, therefore, to make a drill of the
usual width of 27 inches, will either leave a
flat space on its top of 3 inches in breadth,
or it will leave a tiny sharp-crested drill
of 3 inches in breadth at the bottom of the
hollow of the drill. A common plough
varies in width, from the ear of the mould-
board to the landsiile. from 18 inches
(Wilkie's) to 20 inches (SmalTs.) A bout of
Wilkie's plough could thus, apparently,
make a drill 36 inches, and that of Small 8
40 inches inwidth in a bout, were it pluugh-
ed to the full breadth either was capable of;
but the plough cannot lay over two fur-
rows in breadth equal to twice its own
width, because the open track of the for-
mer furrow would not afl'ord sufticient
earth on the land side to resist the pres-
sure of the plough, and not having which,
it could not raise a second furrow equal to
the first. The second furrow, therefore,
must be taken by the plough nearer the
side of a drill than in the middle of the
hollow between two drills ; and it is this
expedient which gives every drill one
sloping and one more perpendicular side.
2405. A double mould-board plough,
constructed as it ordinarily is, would make
drills as wide as are required ; but wh^n
SOWING OF BEANS.
565
its mould-boards are set to make 27-inch
drills, it is found that they are too wide
below to allow the plough to go as deep
as to give the drills their proper elevation
of 13^5 inches. But the mould-hoards of
the double mould-hoard plough have been
so modified in construction as to allow the
plough to go as deep as is requisite to
form a proper drill, or rather to form two
halves of two drills at one landing. This
eftect has been attained by simply cutting
away the under part of the mould-boards.
2406. Where the double mould-board
plough is employed for forming drills, the
mould-board is made to fit the shield a, fig.
214 ; it then stretches away to a length
of 2 feet 6 inches along the upper edge,
Fig. -214.
THE DOUBLE .MOULD-BOARD PLOUGH FOR FORMING DRILLS.
the point b being at a height varying from
11 to 14 inches above the sole-line. At
this point the depth of the mould-board
is only 6 inches, so that the lower edge
runs off at a considerable elevation, and
the surface having not more than 3 inches
of twist, it is the lower edge only of the
board that eflects the purpose of laying up
the earth to form the drill.
2407. The sock c should be double-
feathered, to take a firm hold of the ground.
2408. In working the plough, for the
purpose of forming drills, there is fre-
quently a marking-bar jointed to the beam
immediately before the breast a; the bar
folds to either side, and, having an adjust-
able double-edged scraper fitted to it, a rut
is drawn on the surface at the proper dis-
tance for the centre of the next furrow.
ON THE SOWING OF BEANS.
2409. The best season for sowing beans
is February. The plant taking at least
seven months to bring its seed to maturity,
unless the seed is sown early, time will
not be afforded the plant to arrive at
maturity. A very favourable season, in-
deed, may hasten the plant through its
course of vegetation in a shorter time; but
an unfavourable one, on the other hand,
may so retard that course, when even the
seed had been sown in its proper season,
as to prevent the formation of the seed
altogether. Both effects are frequently
experienced; and so much, as is well known,
does the bean crop depend on the state of
the weather, that it is no uncommon cir-
cumstance to raise a superabundant crop
one season, whilst in the very next the
crop may almost be an entire failure. No
dependence, therefore, can be placed, in
Scotland, on the result of the bean crop,
and on that account it is not cultivated so
extensively as it is entirely for the sake
of the bean itself, as for that of a crop of
excellent fodder from the stravv% which is
of itself valuable in every farm which
rears live stock. Though the crop should
fail as a seed-producing one, it never fails
in the same season to produce good fodder.
A dry season may stint the growth of the
haulm, but will produce beans of fine
quality, and a wet one may prevent the
production of the seed, but will afford a
large crop of fodder.
2410. Beans are raised most in accor-
dance with their nature, and with most
profit, on clay soils suited to the culture of
wheat ; and in these soils they may be
raised without manure, provided thev fol-
low a manured crop or a single cereal
566
PRACTICE— SPRING.
crop. And they may also be raised on
lighter soils, provided manure is directly
applied for their special use.
2411. The portion of ground occupied
hy the bean crop is not arbitrarily chosen,
but follows in a regular course of cropping,
succeeding a cereal crop which is not laid
down with grass. The ground, therefore,
allotted to the bean crop was in stubble in
autumn, and, the crop requiring early at-
tention in spring, its ground in stubble
would be ploughed early in winter, (774.)
In England the bean, in some cases, is
raised on lea, and succeeds, of course ; but,
in such a course of cropping, the bean is
put in immediate comparison with the
cereal crop which should have occupied
the lea, and in a wet season it will stand
the comparison very poorly as regards
produce.
2412. The particular culture practised
for raising beans is not dependent on the
nature of the soil, but is meant to suit the
nature of that plant's growth, and the
state of the soil in reference to cleanliness.
From the structure of the plant, which
bears fruit-pods on its stem near the ground
as well as at the top, it should have both
light and air; and its leaves being nearer
the top, and its stem comparatively bare,
space is aiforded near the ground for weeds
to grow. The plant possessing these pro-
perties, unless the air is admitted below,
and opportunity afforded for removing
weeds, the crop will not be luxuriant, nor
the land be cleaned.
2413. Now, one plan only exists by
which both these objects can be secured,
which is, to place the plants in roirs or
drills. The air will then reach both sides
of every row ; and if the rows are placed
as far asunder as to allow the horse to
Work between them, the two objects of
vigour to the plant, and cleanliness of the
Soil, will be attained.
2414. Beans were wont to be sown
broad-cast; but though the jilants had
stood as far asunder as to afford them
sufficient air, it was almost impracticable
to destroy the weeds by hand-hoeing, at
least those which grew after the beans
were a little advanced. There are farmers
iu clay land districts who still sow beans
broadcast, though their reason for persist-
ing in the practice is not very obvious,
even were the laml quite clean — which
it certainly is not, and never will be, under
the broadcast culture. Be the reasons
of the preference for sowing beans broad-
cast what they may, the practice is now
limited compared to the drill-method.
2415. If you look at figs. 27 and 28,
you will find that the winter-furrows given
to land of strong character are cleaving
down without and with gore-forrows.
The gore-furrows keep the land dry all
winter, and it is as good a device for the
purpose as is known ; and where beans are
desired to be raised, the stubble-land would
best be ploughed iu autumn, with gore-
furrows, tig. 28. Suppose, then, you find
the land in spring cloven down with gore-
furrows, the first operation is to harrow
down the furrow-slices across the ri(h]es,
in doing which, the land being strong, and
lying in a rougli state, the harrows will
take a firm hold of it, and tear it to pieces
in a contrary direction from what it had
been cut by the plough in autumn ; and the
immeiliate effect will be, the filling up of
the open furrow h, fig. 28, and also of the
gore-iurrows a a : the surface of the
land will, in fact, be nearly flat. If the
land, however, has become very much
consolidated in winter, by reason of snow
or rain, and little frost, a cross-harrowing
will have little effect. It might then be
harrowed along the ridges, which may
even j)rove of little service ; and, in such
cases, harrowing may altogether be dis-
pensed with. When the land is pretty
dry, early as the season is in February, it
will harrow well if it has been ameliorated
by frost ; but should it not be so dry as to
bear the horses without sinking, it had
better be let alone for a few days, or even
a week or two. Dry land and dry weather
are both requisite for good harrowing ; and
in its turn harrowing exposes the land to
drought. Every draught of horses should
be put to the harrows, to get it done as
quiikly as possible. Perhaps one double
tine will suffice altogether — at all events,
it should suffice for the first day ; and
should the weather continue dry, and
the land require it, next day it should re-
ceive a second double harrowing in an
opposite direction, when it will be in a
much better state for receiving it after the
SOWING OF BEANS.
short interval, than harrowing ever so often
at one time.
2416. For strong land a stronger harrow
than the common one is employed in some
quarters, called the brake-harrow, which
is only an enlargement of the common im-
plement, wherein every part is increased
in size and weight, for the purpose of
breaking down and pulverising rough and
stubborn land. Brakes are made of vari-
ous forms, such as rectangular, rhomboidal,
and triangular ; and every form has its
advocates, the preference being given fre-
quently to that which accident had thrown
in the way of the experimenter ; and,
without taki!ig measures to compare its
effects with those of other forms, the imple-
ment is marked as the most perfect of its
kind. There appears no good reason for
concluding that any one of the above forms
is better than another, provided proper
weight is put on the implement, and the
tines be of proper length and number, and
disposed in a manner that, with a duly
applied draught, will make an equal dis-
tribution of its pulverising effects over the
surface which it covers. The extended
application of draining appears in a great
measure to be superseding the brake-
harrow.
2417. But when the land cannot be
sufficiently impressed by the harrows, re-
course should be had to the grubber, which
is a much better implement, in every re-
spect, than the brake-harrow. Fig. 21 5 is a
view, in perspective, of Kirkwood's grubber.
Fig. 215.
kirkwood's grubber.
which I consider a good implement of its
class, as well in the execution of the
work done by it, as for the facility with
which the tines are taken out and let down
again into the soil. This grubber may be
considered as consisting of two parts, the
tine-frame, and the carriage with its wheels
and handles, the two being connected by
means of the apparatus for elevating the
tine-frame, and by a joint-rod which is
common to both, the whole being con-
structed of malleable iron, except the wheels.
The tine-frame \s, a a; the muzzle a" is
provided with several holes, in which the
draught shackle and hook can be attached,
to regulate in some degree the tendency to
earth. The beam b h is bent upwards at a',
above the frame a, for the purpose of receiv-
ing the bridle u u'. The tines, of which this
form of the implement contains 7, h h, &c.
are bent at the point as in the figure, with a
slight tendency to earth, and are flattened
out at the point ; and they are secured at
any required degree of earth by an iron
wedge to each tine.
2418. The carriage consists of the axle
d d, on which are mounted the two handles
or levers c c. The levers are perfor?ited
for the joint-rod g, the position of which
in the tine- frame is such as just to allow the
extremities o to pass the axle when the
frame is being raised or depressed. The.,
levers extend backward, and terminate
in sockets into which wooden helves are
inserted. The carriage is supported on
the hind-wheels//; and the fore-part of
the frame on the castor-wheel i, with its
shears k I, and crank-lever / n. The
connexions between the carriage and
frame also form the elevating apparatus,
by which the tine-frame is moved up and
down in positions always parallel to the
horizon.
568
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2419. In working tlie machine, it is re-
quisite that tlie conductor have it in his
power to regulate and preserve a uniform
depth for the tines, and to be able to with-
draw the tines from the earth. To ac-
complisli this part, the connecting-rod i
lias small mortices in it, to the number of
6 or 8, at very close intervals. A nut or
slide-box 1/' is fitted to slide easily upon
it; and it can be fixed at any point by
dropping a pin through this and any re-
quired mortise. The bridle u u' consists
of two similar parts, Tlie handle v x tc
is made of such length as will bring the
eye w within reach of the conductor — but
it can be shortened or lengthened at plea-
sure; and this is done to make the cross-
head fall in behind the end of the connect-
ing-rod when the tines are in the ground,
which thus lock them that they cannot
rise out of the ground, although, from any
malformation of the tines, they might have
a tendency to do so were this lock not
applied. But while the tines preserve their
due form, the lock is not required. A pro-
longed screw-nut at p is also put upon the
handle ; and when the tine-frame is raised
out of the ground for travelling, the nut is
adjusted to fall in before the checks of the
stays at/), and thus keeps up thetine-frarae
without the continued aid of the con-
ductor.
2420. Ducie's Grubber, or cultivator,
the production of Earl Ducie, is based, in
its construction, on the improved form of
Finlayson's and of Kirkwood's grubbers.
In this cultivator we have the high wheels
raising the tine-frame to a height above
the surface of the ground that must greatly
jjrevent the choking of the tines in foul
land, by the accumulation of roots about
their neck ; and this is further secured by
the curvature which they possess. The
castor-wheel in front, being double, is an
improvement on the crank-lever and
shears, and decidedly superior to them;
and the apparatus for elevating the tine-
frame exhibits a fine mechanical taste,
though the ap])lication and arrangement
of the screw, the wheel and axle, and the
levers to effect the purpose, is perhaps an
example of too much elaboration for the
particular case.
2421. Fig. 216 is a view in perspective
of this implement. It consists of a frame
a a, which carries five tinea b b, &c., with
Fig. 216.
THE DUCIK CULTIVATOR.
which the machine is armed. The frame
thus constructed is mounted on two high
wheels d d, which support the body of the
tine frame ; and the front or a])ex of the
frame is supported on the double castor-
wheels e e, which are mounted on a re-
versed T-form axle, to the stem of which
h, the draught-shacklo p is applied in a
permanent position, so that the shackle
and stem shall turn together, and, by con-
sequence, the wheels also, forming thus a
castor-wheel of the most perfect descrip-
tion. The elevating and depressing of the
tine-frame is accomplished by a very
SOWIXG OF BEANS.
569
beautiful combination of parts. When the
tine-frame is to be raised, the winch-
handle m is turned, by a sufKcient num-
ber of revolutions of the screw I ; and by
reversing the motion of the winch-handle
m, the frame is low^ered— and these move-
ments will be made with perfect accuracy,
preserving to the tine-frame a correcti}'
horizontal position at any height within
the range of its lift. An index is attached
to the main axle as seen at p, which is
divided in the proportion of inches in
depth of the penetration of the tines ; but
this is one of its least important points.
2422. The weight of the cast-iron grub-
bers may be averaged at 10 cwt., and
their price at ,^15.
2423. The action of any of these grubbers
in the soil is to stir it effectually as deep
as their tines descend, and at the same
time retain the surface soil in its exist-
ing position — an operation which bestows
the softuess of a ploughed surface, whilst it
preserves the original upper surface dry,
which the plough cannot do. This advan-
tage is especially appreciated in early
spring, when it is precarious to turn over
the soil with the plough ; and should rain
follow, the land would be easily made much
wetter, and worse to work with any suc-
ceeding implement, than if it had not been
ploughed at all.
2424. Should the circumstances be un-
favourable— that is, the time limited, the
land raw and not very clean, and the
weather precai'ious — the grubber will put
the land into a state for harrowing, of
which it should receive at least one double
tine along the ridges, the grubbing hav-
ing been given across them ; and, should
this not be sufficient to reduce the clod
to a moderate size, another double tine
should be given across the ridges, when
the land will be ready to be ploughed for
the seed.
2425. Should circumstances be in the
most favourable state — that is, with plenty
of time, with the soil suited to the crop,
the land clean and dry, and the weather
fair — instead of using the grubber, the land
should be ploughed, and in the reverse
order in which it had been ploughed in
autumn. It should then be harrowed a
double tine along the ridges, and a double
tine across them, when it will be ready to
be ploughed for the seed.
2426. In one of these two states the soil
will be found in the spring; and after the
above treatment, according to the state of
the soil, the ploughing is conducted on the
determination whether the land is to be
manured or not, and whether the seed is
to be sown in drills or broad-cast.
2427- If the seed is to be sown broad-
cast iCithout manure^ a ploughing is
requisite in spring — a grubbing will not
suffice — and the furrow should be the op-
posite of the one ploughed in autumn.
2428. If the seed is to be sown in rows
on the Jiat^ a ploughing is also requisite,
and the furrow should also be the reverse
of that ploughed in autumn.
2429. If to be sown in drills, each drill
should be formed in the single way (2388,)
when the land is nearly in a clean and
tolerably friable state ; but if somewhat
foul and waxy, the drills should be formed
double (2397.)
2430. If the seed is to be sown broad-
cast, tvith manure, the manure may be
spread upon the stubble and ploughed in,
in autumn, which will much expedite the
labour in spring. In that case plougliing is
requisite in spring, and the furrow should
be the reverse of that given in autumn.
The manure, however, can be applied in
spring, and should be so upon the surface,
formed by the ploughing in autumn, pre-
ceded by a double harrowing should the
surface still be rough and cloddy, and
after being ploughed the land will be ready
for the seed.
2431. If the seed is to be sown in rotes
on the fiat, the manure may be also conve-
niently spread ujion the stubble and
ploughed down in autumn ; and the furrow
given in spring should be in the reverse
order it was ploughed in autumn, when
the surface will be ready fur the seed.
2432. Thougli the seed be sown in
drills, the manure may still be spread
broadcast upon the stubble, and ploughed
down in autumn, and, on the land being
870
PRACTICE— SPRING.
double drilled in spring, it will be ready for
the seed. But should the manure be applied
in sprinir, tlie drills should be of the single
form (2388,) in the first instance, the
manure deposited in them, and then covered
with the double drill (2397,) when they
will be ready for the seed.
2433. As this last method is the one in
which I think the bean ought always to be
sown, I shall describe the remainder of the
operation more in detail. On the supposi-
tion that the manure is to be applied in the
spring, it is taken either from a dunghill,
into which the dung has been wheeled,
and not trampled down, such as is men-
tioned in (2013,) or from the dung-shed
in the field in which the beans are to be
sown, into which it had been wheeled
when taken from one of the courts in the
course of winter, and forked up into a
dunghill without being trampled. Hav-
ing been brought out in winter, when little
fermentation goes on, and being applied
only in spring, the dung will be in a good
state for spreading on the beau land. On
the land being drilled up in the single
Fig. 217, form, as directed above, the
dung is taken by the tilt
cart, fig. 175, along the
drills, the horse occupying
the centre hollow of three
drills, and each wheel going
into the hollow of the drill
on each side. The horses
are led from the dunghill by
field -workers, while the
ploughmen remain at the
dunghill filling the carts.
The steward takes off the
back board of the cart, and
slips it on edge upon the
nave of the wheel, to carry
it, and keeps it there by put-
ting the ])in w Inch fastens
it usually into the slit of the
stud ordinarily occupied by
the pins. He then tilts the
cart-body a little up in
front, which depresses the
THB DfNG-DRAG. hiuilcr jiart as much ; and
taking the dung-drag, fig. 217 — which is
5 feet long, and may have two or three
prongs — he ])ulls out a small heap of dung
into the hollow of the centre drill, and so
on, heap after heap, until the cart is emp-
tied, the horse being led along the drill
I
by the field-worker who drives him. The
moment the heap of dung is pulled out of
Fig. 218, the cart, and the horse haa
advanced ai few steps, a
field- worker divides the
heap into three, putting an
equal portion into the hol-
low of each drill on each
side of the heap, with a
small graip like fig. 82; and
then 3 field-workers follow,
one in each hollow, having
each a small three-pronged
graip, fig. 218, which is 3^
feet long, by which she
divides the heap left by the
preceding field-worker, and
spreads it along the drill
until it reaches the next
heap dragged out by the
steward, who is the sole
judge of the quantity of
manure to be applied.
THE THREE „.„, t i-,i ,i .
PRONGED DUNG 2434. Immediately that
GRAIP. three drills are thus man-
ured by the cart, and spread by the
field-workers, a man wheels along the
top of the dung in each hollow, the bean
drill or hean-barroir, and sows the seed
with it. The bean- barrow is one of the
simplest in its construction. It is made in
a form resemlding a wheel-barrow, and
hence its name. Fig. 219 is a view in
perspective of the machine in its most
common form ; a a I c are a pair of stilts,
that, when joined to form the bed-frame
of the barrow, has the portion from I to c
parallel ; while the parts from b to a spread
out to form the handles of the barrow.
The portion from c to dis open for the re-
ception of the wheel e. A small axle car-
ries a small chain-wheel/. The principal
wheel e also carries a chain- wheel g upon
its axle, and the pitch-chain /^(7 is stretched
over the two wheels, by which means the
progressive motion of the machine on the
wheel e gives motion to the seed-cylinder
on the axle of /. A seed-chest b d h i is
raised upon the bed-frame, and is some-
times covered with a jointed lid, but this
is not essential. A spout k, is attached to
the bed-frame, for the purpose of directing
the seed to the furrow in wliicli the machine
is moving; and the legs / I are attached to
the handles to prevent the latter from fall-
ing to the ground when the barrow is
SOWING OF BEANS.
571
stopt. The pincbiug-screw m is applied
to the purpose of adjusting a slider placed
■within the chest, for the more correct gra-
duation of the discharge ; and the slider is
for this purpose armed with a tuft or brush
of bristles, that comes in contact with the
Fig. 219,
THE BEAN DRILL OR BARROW.
seed cylinder. The entire fabric is gene-
rally of very slender and light construc-
tion.
2435. Besides the method here exhi-
bited, of driving the seed-cylinder by
means of a pitch-chain, there are other
modes of effecting the same purpose. One
of these is by attaching short cranks to
each end of the axles of the principal
wheel and the seed-cylinder, the pair on
each axle standing at right angles to each
other ; and a light connecting-rod passes
from the one to the other on each side of
the machine. This forms a very perfect
communication of the motion from the
principal to the minor axle, and is very
certain in its operation, but it is more ex-
pensive than the pitch-chain. The same
is also effected by employing two pairs of
small mitre-wheels; but it is equally ex-
pensive as the cranks and connectinij^-rods.
Common chain may also be adopted, along
with acutely grooved pulleys ; but the
action of this is less certain than either of
the others.
2486. On the seed being sown, the
ploughs split the drills formerly made into
two, covering the dung with their mould,
and finishing the work with the drills in
the double form.
2437. When it is determined to man-
ure the land in spring, and sow the seed
in rows in the flat, the harrows are first
sent over the surface a double tine if it
is rough and cloddy, and has not been
reduced by the winter's frost, and then the
dung is spread broadcast upon the surface.
The dung of course has been prepared in
the same manner as related for that used
in drills. The dung is ploughed in ; but
as the largest and rankest portions of the
dung may not be easily buried by the
plough, it is proper to make a field-worker
follow each plough, and press down the
prominent portions of the dung into the
plough-track with the small graip, fig.
218. At every tJdrd furrow, a man sows
the seed along it with the bean-barrow,
fig. 219; and the most convenient and
expeditious mode to keep the barrow at
work in sowing, is to cause three ploughs
to go before it, one following the other at a
short distance, and turn over the three
furrows ; and as ihe furrows are about 9
inches in breadth, the three furrows will
place the rows of beans at 27 inches
apart. This ploughing finishes the ope-
ration.
2438. An apparatus for sowing beans
in drill is attached to one of the ploughs
employed in giving the seed-furrow. It
consists of a seed- cylinder, placed in a
small case or frame, having an axle passing
through the case, which last is surmounted
by a small hopper to contain the seed.
This apparatus is attached to the plough
immediately behind and within the line of
the mould-board — in the bosom of the
plough, as it is termed — havinga conductor
or spout, from the seed-cylinder to the
572
PRACTICE— SPRING.
bottom of tlie furrow, to conduct tlie seed
to its bed. Tlie motion of tlie seed-cylin-
der for tlie delivery of the seed, is produced
in two different ways ; first, the axle of
the cylinder may be extended from the
case to the land-side handle of the ptough,
or tail of the beam, where it will have a
bearing in which it turns round. Upon
this extension of the axle, a light iron
loop or shears is loosely fitted, and in the
shears is placed an iron wheel, whose axle
is borne at both ends by the shears. A
grooved pulley is fixed upon the end of
this axle, and a corresponding pulley upon
the prolongation of the axle of the seed-
cylinder, while a chain or band encircles
the two pulleys. The iron wheel, which
is so placed as to run in the bottom of the
furrow, will thus, when the plough is in
motion, be made to revolve by its contact
with the ground, and, through the pulleys
and chain, will also cause the seed-cylinder
to revolve and discharge the seed as the
plough advances; and this will continue
as long as the iron wheel remains in con-
tact with the ground. In order to pro-
duce a cessation of the sowing process,
when required, a cord is attached to the
hind extremity of the shears, and is passed
backward between the handles of the
plough, till it comes within reach of the
ploughman, who, by pulling the cord, and
hooking it upon a stud provided for that
purpose, raises the iron wheel from the
ground, and thus stops further motion of
the seed-cylinder, and consequently the
sowing process. When the plough has
again reached the third furrow from the
la^t sown — and this plough should be the
hindmost of the three mentioned above —
the ploughman relaxes the cord, when the
wheel again settles down upon the ground,
and the sowing process proceeds as before.
2439. The other method of giving mo-
tion to the seed-cylinder is accomplished
by giving the extension of its axle a uni-
versal joint, and continuing tlie extension
a few inches to landward of the land-side
of the plough, but without a bearini,' upon
it. Upon this extremity of tiie extended
axle the iron wheel is placed, which in
this case will be required of larger diam-
eter, so that the axle may run clear of the
tail of the plough-beam. By this arranire-
nient the wheel will run upon the unbroken
land. It will also require a stay of rope,
or of light iron rod, extending from a col-
lar upon the axle, forward to an e^'e-bolt
attached to the side of the beam, near the
coulter-box. From the collar on the axle
also a cord extends backward to the hand
of the ploughman, whereby he has the
same command over the wheel in this
position for setting on and off the sowing
process, as just described for the first
method — the universal joint in the shaft
serving in the present case the same pur-
pose as the shears in the former.
2440. When the land is to be manured
in tlie spring and the seed sown broadcast,
the dung is prejiared as in the two modes
formerly mentioned, and spread broadcast
upon the surface, the future part of the
operation depending on the state of the
weather. Should the weather promise to
be fair until the bean-sowing is finished,
the dung maybe ploughed in, a field-worker
burying the prominent portions with the
small graip as described above, the seed
sown upon the ploughed surface, har-
rowed in with a double tine, and the ridges
water-furrowed. Should the weather
seem precarious, which is its ordinary state
in spring in this country, the safest plan
is to sow the seed broadcast upon the
spread dung, and plough in both seed and
dung together, when the surface will be
safe from further danger.
2441. The ordinary sort of bean culti-
vated in the fields is the horse bean, shown
bv fig. ISO. I have seen a small white
bean, called the Heligoland, tried in the
fields, and it might answer as to yield in
favourable seasons ; but the straw is defi-
cient compared with that of the horse bean,
which is an important consideration in a
crop whose fodder is valuable, and the
yield of whose grain is precarious.
2442. The quantity of beans usually
sown is 5 bushels per acre. On inferior
soils a little more is allowed, say 6 bushels;
and it is considered that the broadcast
mode of culture requires more seed tlian
the drill system.
2443. I have said that as the drills, when
made up in the double form, are necessarily
unequal in their sides (2400.) the germ of
the voiingbean plant would find its way to
the air through the upper part of the side
SOWING OF BEANS.
573
of the drill instead of the top, were it not
relieved by removing that portion of the
mould which causes the inequality in the
drill, and this is done by the harrow, which
should be made to pass over the drills a
single or a double tine, according as the
ground is in a rough or smooth state.
About a fortnight after the sowing is a
good time for harrowing the drills, if the
surface is at all dry ; and if wet, it should be
delayed for a few days, and the first period
of a dry state of the surface taken advan-
tage of. The common harrow, fig. 207,
is what is best suited for harrowing the
groimd that has been ploughed flat with a
common furrow, whether the seed be sown
in rows or broadcast, and it is even used
for harrowing down drills ; but a better
implement for harrowing drills is the drill-
har-row, of which fig. 220 is a geometrical
THE DRILL-HARROW.
plan of one of the rectangular form. This
harrow is always worked in pairs; and, to
render it applicable to its intended purpose,
it is made of an arch form, partially em-
bracing the curvature of the drill ; and on
this account it is best fabricated of iron.
The two leaves of the pair a a are con-
nected by two coupling-rods k /, which are
formed to expand or contract to any re-
quired width of drills ; and each leaf is fur-
nished with a chain i i to which a draught-
bar or swing-tree n is attached, and to
■which, again, the horse is yoked at h h.
The bar and chain, iu this mode of yoking,
serve, by their weight, to produce such a
catenarian curvature as to make the verti-
cal line of traction leave the harrows nearly
in a horizontal line, giving them thus the
fullest effect on the drill.
2444. The harrows are 26 inches
from centre to centre of the outside bars
or bulls, the length 33 inches, and the
number of tines 15: they will draw streaks
on the surface at equal distances of Ig inch
nearly. The middle bull e of each harrow
is prolonged a little forward at y, for the
attachment of the shackle of the draught-
«74
PRACTICE— SPRING.
chain. The tines are about 4 inches in
length bekiw the bars, and tapering to a
bhmt point. The pair of harrows are
drawn by one horse, walking between the
drills ; the weight of the pair, with the
mounting, is about 90 lbs., and the price
from 30s. to 35s. complete.
2445. Fig. 221 shows a cross section, at
the front bar, of both the leaves of the
Fig. 221.
THE SECTION OF THE DRILL-HaRROW.
harrow, of the arched form and direction
of the tines, and the adaptation of their
form to the drills. In the front bar^^^, the
right hand tine may be left out, as its place
may be taken up by that of the third bar,
leaving 5 tines. In the second cross-bar
there are also 5 tines, and in tlie third, 5.
The two leaves are connected and kept at
due distance by the coupling-rods k, which
may be placed wider or closer if thought
necessary. This construction of the coup-
ling-rods affords the means of adapting
the harrows to any width of drills.
2446. Triangular drill-harroics are
considered by some farmers as superior in
effect to the rectangular form ; with due
attention to the division and jilaceuient of
the tines, they may no doubt he rendered
equally effective, and probably more so,
but the advantages are not prominently
marked.
2447. When land intended for beans is
foul, it should certainly not be dunged in
autumn, unless there is time to work and
clear it with two plough ingsaTid harro wings.
Land not well suited for beans, and un-
able to be dunged in autumn, on account
of its state of foulness, or in spring by
reason of wet weather, should not be sown
with beans for that season.
2448. Cro'js-ploughingbefore winter is approved
of by some, as a preparation of tlie land for beans,
under certain circumstances. Thus the late Mr
Brown, Markle, East Lothian, after intimating
tliat the first furrow in early winter, for beans,
should be a deep one, proceeds to say that " the
first furrow is usually given across the field,
which is the hcst method when only one spring
furrow is intended ; but as it is now ascertained
that two spring-furrows are highly advantageous,
perhaps the one in winter ought to be given in
length ;" and Professor Low's opinion bears
a similar meaning, on light land, when he says,
" When the bean is to be sown in spring after
a corn-crop, the land should receive a deep
ploughing before winter, generally in the direc-
tion of the former ridges, so as to keep the
land dry. Sometimes, in case of dry land, the
pluughin^i may he across the ridijrs ; and
then the plough, passing along the former
open farrows, is to form new open furrows in
the same place. In either case, care is to be
taken to prevent the stagnating of water on any
part of tlie surface."* I would deprecate the
permitting any sort of land to lie in the cross-
furrow all winter, and especially that of such a
character as might bear a crop of beans. Hav-
ing little fear of the consequences, I cross-
ploughed a field of "25 acres of haiel loam, rest-
ing on a moderately retentive clay subsoil, im-
mediately after harvest, with the view to ridge up
the land again before the winter, and to forward
the spring-work for the potatoes and turnips,
for both of which crops the soil was well adapted.
But the weather completely changed, and, instead
of being ridged up, the land was only water-fur-
rowed in the open furrow of every ridge, and
gaws cut where requisite, in the hope that it
would lie in a safe state all winter. In this,
however, I was mistaken ; it worked very un-
kindly for the potatoes and turnips, and it never
forgot, during the whole course of the rotation,
the souring it had received in the cross-furrow ;
and yet the land was of so pleasant and light a
character that 1 should never have thought of
sowing beans upon it.
2449. I cannot agree with Mr Brown, when
he recommends sowing beans in every third
furrow, instead of in drills, when the season is
unfavourable, because, if land cannot be drilled,
neither should it be ploughed, nor will it become
so soon dry after common ploughing as after
drilling. Nur do I agree with him that inconve-
* Low's Elements of Practical Agriculture, second edition, p. 267.
SOWING OF PEASE.
675
niences must be submitted to in adverse seasons,
because I would change my mode of culture to
suit the season.* Instead of practising ques-
tionable modes of culture, after the land had
received a good furrow before winter, I would
decline harrowing, and immediately drill it in
spring with even one horse, which would be quite
able to make such a drill as would cover the
beans sown by the barrow ; and both land and
seed might remain in this state for some time
without harm. This plan possesses the farther
advantage of being in time even after the oat-
seed is finished, as the land will require no
harrowing to lighten the earth upon the seed,
which is no more than covered ; and the seed,
being so situate, will vegetate 14 days earlier
than if it had been ploughed with the ordinary
furrow. When dry weather ensues, the land may
be worked to advantage, while the crop is grow-
ing. Such an expedient may be adopted on
land suitable for beans and in clean condition,
rather than the crop should be mistimed.
2450. It was an observation of the late De
CandoUe, that " it is remarkable that the botani-
cal character of the Lepuminosce should so strictly
agreewiththe propertiesof theirseeds. Thelatter
may be divided into two sections, namely, the first
SarcolobcE, OT those of wliich the cotyledons are
thick, and filled with fecula, and destitute' of
cortical pores, and which, moreover, in germina-
tion do not undergo any change, but nourish the
young plant by means of that supply of food
which they already contain ; second, the Phyl-
lolobce, or those of which the cotyledons are
thin, with very little fecula, and furnished
with cortical pores, which change at once into
leaves at the time of germination, for the pur-
pose of elaborating food for the young plant.
All the seeds of the sarcolohce are used as food
in difi'erent countries, and none of those of
phyllolobcE are ever so employed."
2451. The ancient Greeks had some strange
notions regarding the properties of the bean.
Thus Didymus the Alexandrian says, " Do not
plant beans near the roots of a tree, lest the tree
be dried. Tiiat they may boil well, sprinkle water
with nitre over them. Physicians, indeed, say that
beans make the persons tliat eat them heavy ;
they also think that they prevent night dreams,
for they are flatulent. They likewise say, that
domestic fowls that always eat them become
barren. Pythagoras also says that you must not
eat beans, because there are found in the flower
of the plant inauspicious letters. They also say
that a bean that has been eroded becomes whole
again at the increase of the moon : that it will
by no means be boiled in salt water, nor, conse-
quently, in sea-water," &c. f
ON THE SOWING OF PKASE.
24.52. Pease are sfiwn to a iimcli less
extent than they were some years ago,
the change being effected partly from pea-
meal having become less an article of food
of the labouring population, and partly
from a nicer sense of cleanly culture en-
tertained by our farmers. It is a matter
of general observation, that annual weeds
are much encouraged in growth amongst
pease ; and the pea being a precarious
crop, yielding a small return of grain, ex-
cept in fine warm seasons, the mere cir-
cumstance of a good crop of straw is in-
sufficient to afford remuneration for a
scanty crop of grain, accompanied with a
foul state of land. Hence turnips have
been generally substituted for the pea.
2453. The pea, for a long period, was
only sown broadcast; but seeing their
tendency to protect weeds, and observing
that drill-culture rendered the land clean,
it was conjectured that pease sown in drills
would admit of the land being cleansed in
the intervals. In practice, however, it
was found that the straw by its rapid
growth soon creeps along the ground, and
prevents the use of the weeding instru-
ments.
2454. But the more common practice
now is to sow pease and beans together,
their seasons of growth coinciding. The
stems of the bean serve as stakes to sup-
port the bines of the pea. The proportion
the pea bears to the bean when thus mixed,
is as 1 to 3, or sometimes only as many
pease are sown as their straw shall serve
to make bands to bind the beans in sheaves
at harvest.
2455. It is somehow considered of little
moment how the land shall be ploughed
when the pea is to be sown by itself.
Sometimes only one furrow after the stub-
ble is given ; and when the land is tender,
and pretty ciean, a sufficient tilth may be
raised in this manner to cover the seed,
which requires neither a deep soil for its
roots, which are fibrous and spreading
near the surface, nor a deep covering of
earth above them, 2 inches sufficing for
the purpose. But the single furrow does
no justice to the land, whatever it may do
for the crop. The land should certainly
receive one furrow at least in spring, after
* Brou-u Oil lianil Jjjairs, vol. ii. p. 57-59.
+ Owen's Geopoyiika, vol. i. p. 82.
576
PRACTICE— SPRING.
the winter furrow; and that furrow may
either he a douMe drilling or an ordinary
furrow, according to the mode of culture
adopted, or it should receive at lea^t a
close gruhbiug.
24:56. Pease are sown bv hand when
cultivated broadcast, and with the barrow
when iy rows, in every third, or more
commonly in every furrow. When sown
with beans, they are deposited by a bar-
row ; when sown on drilled land by the
band, the seed falls to the bottom of the
drills, and is covered by the harrows being
made to pass across the drills.
2457. Like beans, pease are sown on
ploughed lea in some parts of England.
In Scotland, the farmers know their in-
terest better than to bestow good grass
land, which will yield a luxuriant crop of
oats, on so generally thriftless a crop as
the field-pea. On lea, the pea is dibbled
in on the face of a flat lea furrow-slice,
the holes being placed about 9 inches
asunder. When varieties of the white
pea are cultivated in the field, as in the
southern counties of England, these various
modes of sowing them by themselves may
deserve attention ; and also in the neigh-
bourhood of large towns, where the garden
pea may be cultivated in the fiehi. and sent
in a green state to the vegetable market; but
in other respects they are inferior to rais-
ing them in comjtany with the bean.
2458. Since the pea can be cultivated
along with the bean, it can grow on strong
soils; and its spieadinir roots enable it to
grow on thin clays, where the bean does
not thrive. The pea thrives best on light
soils. In clay, it produces large bulk of
straw, a!)d the production of grain de-
pends on the season being dry and warm ;
and as these are not the usual character-
istics of our climate, the probability agrees
with the fact that the pea yields but an
indifferent crop. On light soils, its straw
being scanty, though the yield of grain
is large in proportion, it is not usually
prolific. Sir John Sinclair states that the
pea does not yield a crop above once in
tea years.*
2459. Dung is never given to the pea
when sown by itself, it having the effect
of producing much straw and little grain.
2460. Of the varieties of the field-pea
I have shown one, the partridge gray pea,
in fig. litO. It is suited to liirht soils, and
late situations, and is considered of ex-
cellent quality, and prolific when the crop
is full. It is superseding the gray Hast-
ings, which were sown in similar circum-
stances. The pea least adapted to clay
soils, and late in ripening, is the com-
mon gray pea, which, taking the same
time to ripen its seed as the bean, is suited
to sow with the bean, when both sorts of
grain are cultivated together. Its haulm
is considered excellent fodder, better than
that of the early varieties.
2461. Pease are sown thick, 4 bushels
per acre being the common allowance
when sown in rows and drills, and 4j
bushels when sown broadcast.
2462. When pease and beans are reaped
together, they are separated when thrashed
simply by riddling, the j>eas passing
through the meshes of the riddle, while
the beans are left on the riddle.
2463. Many varieties of the garden pea
are cultivated in the field in the neigh-
bourhood of large towns, for the supply of
the vegetable market. This species of
culture is chiefly conducted in the neigh-
bourhood of London, and in the counties
of Middlesex, Kent, and SuflTolk. The
early Charlton pea has long been in cul-
tivation and is prolific. The pearl, and
blue and white Prussian pease are very
prolific. The Carolina, blue scimitar, and
blue and green tall and dwarf imperial
are also good. It is a pity that the Dan-
zig pea yields so poorly in this country,
for a more beautifully round, small, bright
3'ellow coloured, transparent pea cannot
be imagined. It is imported, however,
for splitting and boiling whole.
ON THE SOWING OF TARES.
2464. As it is very desirable to have
tares ready for cutting as a forage crop
for horses in the time of harvest, and as
* Sinclair's Code of Agriculture, p. 384.
SOWING OF PE-ASE.
577
harvest may be early in any season, it is
prudent to sow early a small extent of
ground with tares ; and althougli the har-
vest may be delayed longer than expected,
and it continue longer than will allow the
horses to enjoy the tares before they have
become too old, the crop will nevertheless
not be lost, as the pigs will be delighted
to eat them, when confined in the courts
before and during the harvest.
2465. For this reason, tares should be
sown as early as the beginning of March,
and successive sowings should take place
until May, when the crop will continue
until the commencement of the consump-
tion of the turnip. In doing this, it should
be borne in mind, that the periods of cut-
ting will approach nearer each other, as the
sowings approach the summer; so that the
farther the season advances, the greater
intervals of time should elapse between the
sowings, and the larger the space of ground
sown at each time.
2466. Tares thrive admirably well on
all kinds of soils, and on ploughed lea
•without even manure ; but, in this case, it
should be remembered that it displaces
an equal extent of the oat crop — an unde-
sirable competition, if carried to the ex-
tent of several acres.
2467. They will also grow well upon
the unoccupied ground or fallow break,
but not without manure. The manure
may be spread upon and ploughed down
with the stubble in autumn ; but if the
manuring is delayed till the spring, the
culture is precisely that of the pea when
sown broadcast.
2468. Tares are almost always sown
broadcast ; and as the plant, when growing
healthily, is succulent and unable to sup-
port itself, a few oats are mixed with the
seed, whose stems serve to support the
bines of the tare. The Hopetoun oat
is the best for this purpose, as possessing
the strongest stem ; and next to it is the
potato oat. Wheat could support the tare
better than even the oat; but stock dislike
wheat when mown as forage, so that the
plant would be wasted, whereas the oat
plant is a pleasant forage.
2469. From 1^ to 2 bushels of tares
TOL. I.
and 1 bushel of oats per acre will suffice
for seed when the land is good, and has
been well manured; but on a light soil,
though manured, from 2 to 2^ bushels per
acre will be required o^ the tare, the plant
not growing there so ;rank and strong.
When sown alone, which some farmers pre-
fer, from 3 to 4 bushels of seed will be re-
quired per acre. I have seen a large pro-
portion of a crop of tares destroyed by
rotting on the ground, when too thickly
sown, in a season that happened to be
moist and warm ; and therefore a sprink-
ling of oats sown amongst them is a wise
precaution to support the crop and pre-
vent the rotting.
2470. Tares are cultivated for seed as
well as forage, and the culture, as far as
the soil is concerned, is quite the same.
It is recommended to sow beans amongst
tares intended for seed, to afford thera
support in climbing; and the proportion
the beans should bear to the tares is as I
to 4 of measure of the seed. Tares for seed
are also cultivated with the bean, sowing
the tares in the projjortion of 1 to 4 of
beans in measure. The tares are easily
separated from the beans by riddling.
Tares intended for seed should be sown
as earl^ in spring as the state of the
land will permit the work to proceed.
Both the pigeon and poultry are fond of
the seed of the tare.
2471. The tare belongs to the natural order of
Le<jumiiwsoe, of the system of Jussieu ; the order
and class Diadelp/iia Decandria of Linnseus; and
in sub-class iii. Per'ujynous Ej:o<iens ; alliance 42,
JRosa/es ; order 209, FabiacecK ; tribe 3, Vicia
of the natural system of Lindley. The cultivated
tare or vetch is named Vicia satixa. In the
wild state it is a native of Europe, in corn or
cultivated fields ; plentiful in Britain ; also ia
North America, about Fort Vancouver. Flower
purple. This is a very variable plant in the
form of the leaflets, in the size of the stems, and
in the colour and size of the seeds. The Vicia
Nurbunensis, Narbonne vetch, and the Vicia
serrati/ulia, serrate-leafleted vetch, are cultivated
on the Continent. Dr Anderson has recom-
mended the culture of the Vicia sepium, hedge-
vetch ; and a writer in the Bath Papers advo-
cates that of the Vicia cracca, tufted vetch. All
these are eminently beautiful native plants, but
are too tiny in the leaf and attenuated in the
stem to render them probably profitable in cul-
tivation. There are 108 described species of
Vicia — a name said to be derived from vincio, to
bind together, because the species have ten-
drils by which they bind themselves to other
plants.
2o
578
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2472. The white-flowered or Hopetoun tare,
Vkia satira, jlore albo, is a variety of tare which
" bids fair," as Mr Lawson says, " in a short
time to supersede the old summer tare. It was
selected from a field a few seasons since by Mr
Patrick Sheriff, late of Mungoswells, East-
Lothian, tiie originator of the Hopetoun oat, and
several other improved varieties of cereal grains,
who, in the beginning of winter 1838, kindly
sent to the Highland and Agricultural Society's
Museum about 12 seeds of this new vetch, several
of which were sown the following spring ; and
the produce, both in seeds and bulk of haulm,
compared with any of the other varieties which
were grown alongside, was fully double. Its
seeds are of a light bluish or green colour, and
possess little of the strong taste peculiar to
the common tare; so that, in addition to its other
properties, these may become at least useful with
the white-seeded variety, or Canadian lentil, for
culinary purposes."*
ON THE ROLLING OF LAND.
2473. The common land-roller is an
implement of great simplicity of construc-
tion, the acting part of it being a cylinder
of wood, of stone, or of metal. Simple as
this implement appears, there is hardly an
doubtful position as to fitness. This
brings us to cast-iron, which is undoubt-
edly the most appropriate of all materials
for this purpose. It is unnecessary here to
enter into the inc^uiry as to the most ad-
vantageous diameter fi»r a land-roller; the
subject has already been elaborately dis-
cussed : t let it suffice to say, that expe-
rience has proved that a diameter of 2 feet
is, under any circumstances, tlie one that
will produce the best effects with a mini-
mum of labour from the animals of draught ;
the weight being of course proportioned
to the force usually applied, which is
in general 2 horses. The weight of roller,
including the frame corresponding to this,
is from 12 to 15 cwt. ; but it is belter that
the roller itself be rather under the
weight, and that the carriage be fitted up
with a box, in which a loading of stones
can be stowed, to bring the machine up to
any desired weight. Such a box is besides
useful in affording the means of carrying
off from the surface of the ground any
large stones that may have been brought
to the surface by the previous opera-
tions. In a larire and heavy roller, in
article of the farm in which the farmer is one entire cylinder, the inconvenience of
turning at the headlands is very conside-
rable, and has given rise to the improve-
ment of having the cylinder in two lengths ;
this, with a properly constructed carriage,
produces the land-roller in its most perfect
form.
2474. Fig. 222 is a perspective of the
land- roller constructed on the foregoing
principles : a is the carriage-frame,
crossed by the horse-shafts b. The cylin-
der c is in 2 lengths of 3 feet to 3 -feet 3
inches each, and 2 feet in diameter; the
thickness of the metal is according to the
Meight required. The axle, in conse-
quence of the cylinder being in two
lengths, requires to be of considerable
strength, and of malleable iron ; upon
frequently employed for the formation of this the two sections of the cylinder re-
land-rollers, may be considered as least volve freely, and the extremiiies of tlie
adapted of all materials for the purpose; axle are supported in bushes in the senn-
its deficiency of weight and liability to circular end-frames. Two iron stay-rods
decay renders it the most objectionable of pass from the end frames to the shafts as
all others. Stone, though not deficient an additional sujqwrt to the latter. Tlie
in weight, possesses one marked disad- prico of the land-roller, fitted uj) as here
vantage, liability to fracture ; tJiis of itself represented ami described, is, according to
is sufficient to place stone rollers in a weight, from £ 10 to £14.
* Lawson's AgricuUurhVs Manual, Supplement, p. 48.
t Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol.i. p. 700.
more liable to fall into error in its selec-
tion. From the nature of its action, and
its intended effects on the soil, there are
two elements that should be particularly
kept in view — weight and diameter of the
cylinder. By the former alone can the
desired effects be produced in the highest
degree, but these will be always modified
by the diameter. Thus, a cylinder of any
given weight will produce a greater pul-
verising effect if its diameter is one foot,
than the same weight would produce if
the diameter were two feet ; but then the
one of lesser diameter will be much worse
to draw ; hence it becomes necessary to
choose a mean of these opposing principles.
In doing this, the material of the cylinder
comes to be considered. Wood, which is
KOLLING OF LAND.
Fig. 222.
57»
THE I,AND-ROLLER.
247-5. In using the roller, the 2 horses
are joked in the same manner as in
the double horse-cart, shown in Plate
III. Tiie rolling is always effected across
the line of ridges, for otherwise the open
furrows would not receive any benefit
from it. Although the dividing of the
cylinder into two parts facilitates the turn-
ing of the implement, it is not advisable
to attempt to turn the roller sharp round,
as part of the ground turned upon will be
rubbed hard by the cylinders ; and where
young plants grow upon tliose parts, such
as young clover, the probable effect would
be to kill them. The rolling is executed
in feers of 30 yards in width, hieing the
horses one half of the feering, and hupping
them in the other half, the same as in
ploughing ridges, two-out-and-two-in, fig.
25. It is not necessary to carry the feer-
ing-poles to the field for making these
feerings ; the first line of the feering be-
ing easily kept straight across the field
by placing clods or stones in the line.
When the ploughman becomes fatigued in
walking, it is quite allowable for him to
sit on the front of the framing, for which
purpose a space to sit upon is either
boarded or wrought into a seat with hard-
twined straw-rope, and thence drive the
horses with double reins and whip. With
such an indulgence a frail plouglunan, em-
ployed mostly in ploughing, could take a
day or more at rolling, when urgent work
was employing at the time the stronger
horses in the cart. Wqre a 6-feet roller
to proceed uninterruptedly for 10 hours,
at the rate of 1\ miles per hour, it would
roll about 18 acres a-day ; but what with
the time spent in the turnings and the
marklngs-off of feerings, 14 acres a-day
may be considered a good day's work —
7 acres at each yoking. When the we.ither
is favourable, and a large extent of ground
has to be rolled, it is a good plan to ap-
point 2 pair of horses to work the roller,
from dawn to night-fall, each pair working
4 hours at a time. In this way, 16 hours'
constant rolling, from 4 in the morning
to 8 at night, may be obtained in the
course of 24 hours, and 33^ acres rolled
within the day with one roller. This
roller is an instrument used not so much
to crush clods as to render the surface of
the ground smooth ; at least it effects the
latter purpose much better than the former,
which is best executed by a class of im-
plements named clod-crushers, to be after-
wards described ; and the roller should (mly
be used when thesurface of thegroundisdry.
ON THE TRANSPLANTING OP TURNIP BULBS
FOR PRODUCING SEED.
2476. It is quite easy for every farmer
to raise as much turnip-seed every year as
to serve the wants of his farm.
2477. As 3 lbs. per acre is the most
that is required f(jr seed to sow a crop of
turnips, and as 30 bushels the acre is a
very moderate crop of turnip-seed, at the
weight of 50 lbs. the bushel, the small
sj)ace of 10 square yards of ground will
su[)ply all the seed required for every acre
of turnips grown on the farm. It is neces-
sary to keep the jtlants producing the dif-
ferent sorts of turnips at a considerable
distance from each other; because, if planted
580
PRACTICE— SPRING.
near, it is not only quite possible, but highly
probiible, that one variety will be impreg-
nated by another ; bees and other insects
carrying the pollen of the flower of one
variety to the flowers of the others.
2478. Let a piece of ground be selected
for each of one or more varieties of seed
to be raised — and spare spaces and corners
of ground exist on most farms, which may
be converted into nurseries for such a
purpose : — let the ground receive a little
dung ; and the best mode of procuring a
friable mould ujjon it is to turn it over
with the spade, bringing off the stones
and weeds that may be found in it.
2479. Then select the best-formed bulbs
of the different kinds, such as those in fig.
88, one kind after another, in the fields in
which they are growing : take them up
carefully, preserving the roots and fibres
in the bulbs as entire as possible, and
removing the shaw nearly close to tlie
bulb. On carrying each kind to its re-
spective piece of ground, a trench is made
in a line, deep enough to contain the bulb
with its root. The bulbs are inserted at 12
inches apart, and as deep as to leave
their tops only above the ground, when
the earth has been returned into the
trench. It is generally recommended to
place the rows of the plants at 1^ foot
asunder, but I should say 3 feet asunder,
not only for the sake of obtaining as much
air as possible for the plants, but for the
purpose of affording room to a person to
pass between the rows to watch the seed,
when it is near ripe, from the depredation
of small birds, which are very fond of
turnip-seed. More space will of course
be required for the rows placed thus wide
apart, but the plants will be stronger, and
tliey will be the better guarded against
the birds, which will drop amongst the
jdants within a yard of the person watch-
ing them.
2480. The best time for transplanting
turnips is about the beginning of March,
before symptoms of spring growth appear
in them.
2481. In large and more open pieces of
ground, such as a part of the fallow field,
the plough may be employed not only to
turn over the ground, but to form the
trenches for the transplanting, and the
harrow may also be employed lor rc<iucing
the ground into a mould.
2482. This mode of transplanting the
bulb takes a part of the crop of turnips
from the animals ; and on this account,
were it desired to raise turnrp-seed on a
large scale, it is evident that it could not
be done but at the cost of a large pro-
portion of the growing crop. In such a
case it is quite possible to raise the seed from
seeds instead of bulbs, and this method
will be described in its proper season.
2483. It may be proper to caution the
young farmer that the ground thus occu-
pied for raising tuniip-seed should be pro-
tected by a fence against stock, other-
wise the crop will sutler severely.
O.N THE SOWING OF OATS.
2484. Ploughed lea ground is always
sown with oats in Scotland, except where
spring wheat and tares may be sown to a
limited extent ; though in England, wheat,
whether in the autumn or spring, is very
frequently sown upon it. Besides on lea,
oats are sown in Scotland, in the more
elevated districts, on land after turnips, in
lieu of barley.
2485. After what has been said of
ploughing lea ground (780 ;) of the mode
of sowing seed by the hand, fig. 202, and
by machines, fig. 204; of the properties
of different kinds of oats cultivated in this
country (1925, &c.,) little requires to be
added here on the sowing of oats, but only
on the manner in which that operation is
Jinifhed.
2486. Beans and spring wheat are not
sown upon every species of farm ; the
former being most profitable in deep strong
soils, and the latter is only to be com-
mended after turnips, eaten off by sheep,
on land in good heart, situate in a favour-
able locality for climate ; — but oats are
sown on all sorts of farms, from the strong-
est clay to the lightest sand, and from the
highest point to which arable culture has
reached on moorland soil, to the bottom of
the lowest valley on the richest deposit.
The extensive breadth of its culture does
SOWING OF OATS.
581
not, however, imply that the oat is natur-
ally suited to all soils and situations, for
its fibrous and spreading roots indicate a
predilection for friable soils ; but its
general use as food among the agricultural
population, and its ability to support the
strength of horses, have induced its uni-
versal culture in Scotland ; and it is a
remarkable fact, that this plant has adapted
itself admirably to the various circum-
stances in which it is cultivated, most pro-
bably owing to its receiving its favourite
food everywhere, namely, the decomposed
grasses which enrich the soils it grows
upon.
2487. All the varieties of oats cultivated
may be practically classed under three
heads, the common^ the improved, and the
Tartarian. The common varieties in-
clude all those having a pyramidal spike,
soft straw, elongated grains possessing a
tendency to become awny, and late in
reaching maturity. Among the named
varieties are the following in common use
— early and late Angus^ Kildrummie^
JBlainslie, white Siberian, fig. 184, Cum-
berland, sandy, and Dyock, (which two
last are recent varieties,) and others. It
is unnecessary to point out the character-
istics of each variety, as, in the respective
districts in which they are sown, each is
considered best suited to the locality in
which it is cultivated, — an opinion which
may safely be disputed. The four last
named are in high repute at present, owing
to their recent introduction ; and it is pro-
bable that every recent variety will answer
best for a shorter or longer period. All
common oats are sown on tiie inferior soils,
and in the most elevated fields of farms,
and the best season for sowing them is the
beginning of March.
2488. Of the improved varieties, the
potato oat was long cultivated as the
only one, fig. 185 ; but, of late years, the
Hopelotiyi oat has been added to the list.
Before it, the Georgian was intro<luced, but
did not succeed. Both the potato and Hope-
toun oats have long strong straw, large
pyramidal spikes, come early to maturity,
and are cultivated on the best and lowest
lying ground. The gi'ains are very similar,
the Hopetoun being distinguislied by a
tinge of red on the bosom. These oats
are sown a fortniirht after the common.
2489. The cultivation of the Tartarian
varieties, both hlack and white, is chiefly
confined to England, for the use of horses,
and are there caWed/ecd oats. I am sur-
prised that this oat continues to be culti-
vated, being so coarse, as well as disagree-
able in the barn with its long hygrometric
awns. Its panicles grow on one side of
the rachis, fig. 186.
2490. The ploughed lea-ground should
be dry on the surface before it is sown, as
otherwise it will not harrow kindly ; but
the proper colour of dryness should be dis-
tinguished from that imposed by dry hard
frost. It will not be proper to wait until
every spot of the field is alike dry, as
thorough-draining even will not insure
that; though spottiness shown in spring
is a good criterion whether land has been
enough drained, or where it most requires
draining.
2491. Should the leahave beenploughed
some time before, and from young grass,
the furrow-slices will be found to lie close
together at seed-time ; but when recently
ploughed, or from old lea, or on clay land
in a rather wet state, the furrow-slices
will not lie close together, but be as far
asunder as to allow a good deal of the
seed to drop down between them ; and
when this happens, the seed is lost, as oats
will not vegetate from a depth of 6 or 7
inches. In all such cases, the ground
should be harrowed a single tine before
2492. When oats are sown by hand
upon dry lea-ground, the grains rebound
from the ground and dance about before
depositing themselves in the hollows
between the crests of the furrow-slices,
and thus accommodate themselves to the
form of the ground, and are not so liable
to form happergaicin in sowing as other
grains. Were the ground only harrowed
along the ridges, so as not to disturb the
seed in the furrow-slices, the crop would
come up in regular rows as if sown by
drill; butastheland is also cross-harrowed,
the braird conies up broadcast.
2493. The quantity of common oats
usually sown is 6 bushels to the acre ;
and in deep friable land in good heart, 5
bushels of potato oats.
^92
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2494. A man does a good day's work
if he sows broadcast 16 imperial acres of
ground in 10 hours, that is, scatters 80
bushels of potato oats and 96 bushels of
common oats in that time. Some men can
sow 120 bushels of common and 100 of
potato in the time, that is, 20 acres ; and
double-handed sowers can sow even more
than this latter quantity.
2495. Two sowers keep one seed-carrier
fully employed, and if the sacks are not
conveniently placed (2311,) one will not
be able to supply them both, but 2 seed-
carriers will easily supply 3 sowers ; and
every sower employs 2 pairs of harrows
breaking-in after him, with a double tine;
so that the number of sowers is regulated
by the number of pairs of harrows that a
farm can furnish. The arrangement of
the labour for sowing an oat-field may be
seen in fig. 210, where 2 sowers and 1
seed-carrier are represented, but the har-
rows of 1 sower are only shown in view.
2496. The tines of the harrows should
be particularly sharp when covering in
seed upon lea. After the land is broken
in with a double tine, it is harrowed across
with a double tine, which cuts across the
furrow-crests, and then along another
double tine, and this quantity generally
suffices. At the last harrowing the tines
should be kept clean, and no stones
should be allowed to be trailed along by
the tines, to the injurious rubbing of the
surface. On old lea, or hard land, another
single turn across or angle-ways may be
required to render the land fine enough ;
and, on the other hand, on free soil a single
tine along after the double one across
may suffice. In short, the harrowing
should^ be continued as long and no longer
than the ground feels uniformly smooth
and firm under the foot, there being no
hard places, or sinkings by the pressure
of the foot. The head-ridges are harrowed
by themselves at the last.
2497. The laud, after oat-seed sow-
ing, is always icater-furrowed in every
open-furrow (2361.)
2498. It should also be rolled (247-5,)
according to circumstances ; that is, the
young braird on strong land being retarded
in its growth, when the earth is encrusted
by rain after rolling, it is safe to leave the
rolling until the end of spring, when the
crop has made a little progress, and the
weather is usually dry. Light friable"
land should be rolled immediately after
the seed is sown and harrowed, if there is
time to do it ; but the rolling of one field .
should cause no delay to the sowing of
others in dry weather. There will be
plenty of time to roll the ground after the
oat-seed and other urgent operations at
this season are finished, when rolling can
be so speedily performed as described in
(2475.)
2499. The cutting of ^a?f* shonld never
be neglected in finishing off an oat-field, to
carry off water along hollows or by the
open-furrow along the lowest head-ridge,
as particularly described in (779.) In
the best drained fields, gaws may be
required in peculiarly hollow spots.
2500. Oats are sown broadcast by
machinery as well as by the hand. The
machine is the same as is used for sowing
spring wheat, and seen in fig. 204. As
at first constructed upon two wheels,
this machine, when loaded with a full
complement of oat-seed, was too heavy
for a horse's back, especially on going down
hill; but the addition of the third wheel
disposes of the objection, and I believe the
machine is now extensively employed in
tiie sowing of corn. The land is harrowed
after the seed is sown with the broadcast
sowing machine, the same as after sowing
by the hand.
2.501. Oats are also sown in rows by
such drill-machines as are represented in
figs. 205 and 206. In using a drill-ma-
chine, the land should first be harrowed,
a double tine along, and then a double tine
across the ridges, and again a single tine
along. The drill then sows the oats across
the ridges, and the land is finished by
harrowing a single tine also across the
ridges. The water-furrowing and rolling
should be executed in the manner just
recommended for broadcast sowing.
2502. The drill seems to me not well
adapted for s<jw m^ corn on /m-ground.
The coulters cannot pass through the soil,
even after it has been well cut with the
harrows, with the facility they do through
SOWING OF OATS.
583
ground in otber states ; and on hard ground
and upon old lea, it is questionable whether
the coulters can penetrate so far as to de-
posit the seed at a depth to be out of reach
of birds and drought ; and every stone in
such soil being firndy imbedded, will be apt
to cause tlie drill to go out of its proper
course, while the risk of partially displac-
ing the still uncorrupted turf will be im-
minent. The turf would be less disturbed
were drills made to sow the seed along the
ridges, as fig. 206. In all these latter cases
I would recommend the broadcast machine
ox the band in preference to the drill ; and
I would confine the drill to the sowing of
oats on tender land, as in the neighbourhood
of towns, where it is made tender by the
application of large quantities of street-
manure, and where drilling is advisable as
aftording a facility for clearing the land
of surface-weeds, a multitude of which,
and especially wild mustard, Sinapis
arvensis, are apt to spring up from the
use of street -manure. In England, how-
ever, where the drilling of grain is general,
it must be owned that their ploughing
with the wheel-plough and sowing with
the drill-machine, are so perfect in their
eflfect, that the seed is laid in the furrows
with certainty, and without at all disturb-
ing the furrow-slice. The soil of England
Fig.
is probably more generally smooth than
that of Scotland.
2503. At a time when a less rational system
of husbandry was pursued than now happily
prevails — that is, when land was allowed to be
overrun with surface-water ; when lea was
ploughed out of choice in a wet state, because
the labour of doing it was easier for half-starved
jaded horses ; when land was harrowed with
small, light, loose harrows, furnished with short
blunt tines ; when the lea-turf consisted chiefly
of the tough roots of perennial weeds — in these
circumstances lea-ground required a great deal
of harrowing to bring it to a tolerable degree of
tilth — eight or nine double tines being considered
no more than necessary. The great length of
time required to do this, obliged the oat-seed to
be begun early, so early indeed as Tusser recom-
mends it in January, and by the time the crop
was finished, every man and beast were almost
worn out with fatigue. The land being now
tender and fertile by draining, cleaning, and
manuring, oats have time to come to maturity
when sown long after January, and its harrow-
ing is now finished in one-third of the time, and
with one-fourth the labour it required then.
'2504. The oat-crop, when very young, that is,
when the plant has not pushed its leaves more
than 2 inches above the ground, is subject to a.
very severe attack of the grub or larva of a parti-
cular insect, the Tipulaoleracea,2feadotc-crane-
Jli/, attacking its roots, and causing the plant to
decay, and even to die when seriously injured. The
perfect female insect is represented of the natural
size at a, fig. 223, and which will at once be
223.
ttt'^THB LJRGE INSECT WHICH PRODUCES THE GRUB IN OAT-FIELDS— THE WHEAT-Ff,V.
684
PRACTICE— SPRING.
recognised as that well known by the familiar
names of Longlegt, Tailors, Jenny-the-fpinner.
Its body is nearly 1 inch long, of a brownish-gray
colour, and its wings pale-brown. In the female
the abdomen is thickest near the middle, from
which it tapers to a point at the hinder extre-
mity ; that of the male is thickest at the hinder
extremity, which forms a kind of club. " This
insect," says Mr Duncan, " is very plentiful dur-
ing the summer months in all parts of the coun-
try. Its long legs are of great advantage to
it in the places it frequents, as they enable it to
skip over the grass as if on stilts ; and it still
farther facilitates its motions while so doing, by
keepini; the wings expanded, to render it buoy-
ant. The female lays a great number of eggs,
which are very small in proportion to the size of
the insect, and of a black colour. These she
places at some depth in the earth, which she
pierces for the purpose with her ovipositor. The
insects may easily be seen performing this ope-
ration, and it will at ouce be known that they
are so employed by the singular position they
assume. The body is placed in a perpendicular
direction, supported on the hinder feet and ex-
tremity of the abdomen, while the wings are
expanded, and the anterior legs rest on the sur-
rounding plants. When a sufficient number of
eggs have been laid iu one spot, the insect moves
Oil to another, without changing the vertical pos-
ture of her body, merely dragging herself for-
ward by her fore-legs, aiding her movements
with her wings." It is in the larva state that
these insects injure crops ; meadow-grass not
being their only food, they attack different kinds
of corn, especially oats, the effects of grubbing
in which are well known to every farmer. When
full grown, the larvae are in the shape of an
elongated cylinder, somewhat suddenly attenu-
ated at both extremities, and are of a dull grayish
colour, and without feet. The head is furnished
with two hooks, one on each side. The pupa is
not unlike the chrysalis of some kinds of moth ;
and it is nearly of the same colour as the larvae,
the edges of the segments being furnished with
pretty strong hairs. The larvae reside generally
about 1 or 2 inches beneath the surface, mining
their way among the roots of the herbage, and
causing it to wither for want of nourishment.
They prefer a soil which has been long undis-
turbed by the plough ; and if it contains some
portion of peat-earth, it seems thereby better
adapted to their tastes. " In the rich district of
Sunk Island, in Holdemess, in the spring of
1813," say Messrs Kirby and Spence, "hundreds
of acres of pastures have been entirely destroyed
by them, being rendered as completely brown as
if they had suffered a three months' drought,
and destitute of all vegetation except a few
thistles. A square foot of the dead turf being
dug up, 210 grubs were counted in it ; and what
furni^hes a striking proof of the prolific powers
of these insects, last year it was difficult to find
a single one."* " After mentioning their exten-
sive devastations, it may occasion surprise," as
Mr Duncan well remarks, " to be told that many
gots eat nothing but the fiue mould they find at
the roots of plauts, and that the injury caused to
the latter arises solely from their disturbing the
soil, and preventing the rootlets fixing themselves.
Such was the opinion of Reaumur ; and the
generality of subsequent writers on the subject
have yielded to his authority. . . Mr Stick-
ney, who has published ' (Jbserrations on the
Grub,' made some experiments for the express
purpose of determining this point, and they con-
vinced him that the larva; devour the roots of
grasses. Indeed, unless this were the case, it
would be impossible to account for the herbage
withering to such au extent in places where the
maggots prevail ; for this could never arise from
such small creatures, even though very numerous,
burrowing in and loosening the soil. When
earth-worms are plentiful, they must produce a
considerable disturbance in the soil by their
winding galleries ; but these, so far from retard-
ing, have ahvays been regarded as promoting the
growth of plants. ' The grub of this tipula,' "
says Mr Stickney, as quoted by Mr Duncan,
" ' commits its ravages chiefly in tlie first crop,
after the breaking up of the grass-land, also
after clover and beans ; the fly from which the
insect is produced having deposited its eggs in
the soil amongst the grass, clover, or beans. . . .
On investigating the habits of this insect, I found
that it took tlie fly-state about the beginning of
the month of August; I therefore concluded, as
we got our clover-hay from the Jaud a little after
midsummer,that, if we ploughed theclover stubble
any time after that, and before the month of August,
it would be nearly free from the grub, as instinct
has directed the fly not to leave its eggs upon the
naked soil where no vegetable is growing. I
knew of no application to the land,' adds Mr
Stickney, ' that will in any way destroy the
grub; but we are much indebted to the rook, and
a variety of other birds, for keeping its depre-
dations within limited grounds. 'f The satura-
tion of the soil," concludes Mr Duncan, " with
some caustic fluid, seems the only way by which
this maggot can be destroyed. The perfect in-
sects are easily caught; but they are so generally
distributed, and usually so plentiful, that their
destruction in this way would be a hopeless
task."4:
2505. The TOok{CorTusfrugiIegus) may be seen
busily engaged in turning over every loose turf
clod on a grubbed field of oats, after the young
crop has evidently assumed an unhealthy hue.
2506. This hue should not be mistaken for the
yellowish tint exhibited by the plant when the
support derived from the seed is exhausted, and
before the rootlets have obtained sufficient hold
of the ground to maintain the plant. The grub
taint is of a bluish and reddish tint, and many of
the plants evidently appear to be dying, and the
consequence is, that large spaces are left without
a plant. The usual expedient employed by the
farmer is rolling the ground, especially in tlie
night; but this is a useless remedy. Crosskill's
clod-crusher would be a much more effectual
eminent observers are of opinion, that these mag
* Kirby and Spence's Introduction to Entomology, yo\. i. p. 181.
+ British Farmer'$ Magazine, vol. vi. p. 321. * Journal of ^Agriculture, vol
xi. p. 368-72.
LUCERNE.
585
instrument for this purpose than the common
roller. Holes have been recommended to be
made 9 inches in depth, and a few inches asunder,
with the dibble, into which the grub, it is said,
will fall, and they might then be destroyed by
pouring an acid upon them. The ravages are
generally committed in dry weather with an E.
wind, and when rain falls they cease.
2507. It is surprising how a field will recover
the effects of grubbing. One season a field of
mine, of fine deep hazel loam, after two years'
grass, was dreadfully grubbed, and after trying
the usual remedies to get quit of the- insects,
without effect, a rainy night silenced them.
Most of the field appeared bare after having
exhibited a beautiful braird, but on the plants
renewing their growth, they tillered out with
great force, and almost covered the ground as
thickly as desirable. At harvest the crop was a
very strong one, the straw being difficult for
women to cut with the common sickle ; the
spikes were very large and full; the stocks,
when set without hood-sheaves, stood about 6
feet in height, and the yield was not less than
60 bushels to the acre. On good soil I should
have no fear of potato oats tillering out after
being severely grubbed, sufficiently to afiFord a
good crop; but such a result should not be ex-
pected of common oats upon inferior soils.
2508- There are reasons for believing that, in
some cases at least, the withering of the wheat
crop in spring, which had been sown on lea in
autumn, was occasioned by this insect. Rolling
with Crosskill's clod-crusher has been tried, and
found at least partially successful in destroying
the grub, and relieving the crop.
2509. The spring treatment of the oat crop in
Germany is thus described by Thaer : — " Oats
are annually sown more thickly than any other
kind of grain, either because the bushel contains
fewer grains, or because oats do not grow so
bushy as other kinds of corn, excepting on very
rich soils. One half more seed than would be
considered as the proper quantity for any other
kind of grain must be sown in this case; and on
broken-up grass land, which has only had one
ploughing, the quantity had better be doubled, be-
cause all the seeds do not come up.
2510. " To insure the success of a crop of oats,
it is necessary that the seed should be plump,
fresh, and uninjured by fermentation. Oats
which have acquired an unpleasant taste or smell
while in the sack or store-house, certainly come
up from the ground like others, but they pro-
duce a weakly plant, which perishes at the
flowering season. I accidentally obtained proofs
of this during the period 1 was studying agricul-
ture. There is no grain, besides wheat, in which
this evil requires to be guarded against so much
as in oats.
April : in broken-up pasture land, they are sown
in the middle of March, if possible ; but where
the situation is warm, the sowing may be de-
layed as late as the commencement of June ; and
it is when thus sown that oats succeed best, pro-
vided that the weather is favourable : this is
occasioned as much by the soil having received
a better preparation, as it is by the destruction of
the weeds being more complete.
2512. "Oats do not germinate so easily as
barley, nor is the process of germination so uni-
form, excepting where it takes place under a
very favourable temperature. The crop does not
come up simultaneously, nor do the plants ripen
equally. Many weeds which germinate with
oats — as, for instance, the wild mustard and the
wild radish — tend materially to weaken the crop,
and should therefore be destroyed by harrow-
ing."*
ON LUCERNE.
2513. "In Britain," says Mr Lawson,
"a great deal has been said in favour
of lucerne, as an early plant, for yielding
fodder before the red clover ; and its cul-
tivation has often been attempted, and
attended with various degrees of success.
The climate' of Scotland has been con-
sidered by some as too cold for its growth ;
but the numerous failures which have
taken place may be more justly attributed
to an improper choice of soil than to any
other cause. The soils which appear to
be most congenial to it are those of a very
light sandy or dry nature; as, for ex-
ample, several places in the neighbourhood
of Musselburgh, near Edinburgh, where
it is found to thrive well, although exposed
to the direct influence of the sea-breeze,
and to be fit for cutting at least a fort-
night earlier than common rye-grass and
red clover. Provided, however, the sub-
soil be always dry, the plant penetrating
to a considerable depth with its roots, and
particularly if it be of a calcareous nature,
it is not indispensable that the surface
soil be very sandy, as lucerne, in such
cases, is found to grow freely on medium
black loams ; but lands wliich have a damp
.subsoil, or are of a tenacious nature, and
damp in winter, are totally unfit for grow-
ing it, even although they may be, in the
general acceptation of tiie term, very good
s^ls."t
2511. "The usual period for sowing oats is in 2514. The mode of culture may have
• Thaer's Principles of Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 438-9— Shaw and Johnson's translation.
•I* Lawson's Agriculturid's Manual, p. 159.
586
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2516. "This mode of cultivating this
useful plant will produce 8 tons of forage
per acre ; but it should be borne in mind
that, when so much is taken from the
ground, much manure will require to be
given in return. The broadcast plan is
very much preferable to drilling. I have
known many sow it in drills, and, after a
few years, give it up, in consequence of
the great trouble and expense incurred iu
hoeing and cleaning; but the broadcast
system saves all that trouble.
251 7. " I sowed my lucerne in 1 830, and
have continued mowing and manuring it
every year since ; and in some seasons I
have got as much as 12 tons per acre.
It is a hardy plant, and will endure cold
if cultivated in dry soil ; but it flourishes
best in a hot summer, when I have seen
it run to the height of 5 feet 5 inches,
though its usual stature is about 4 feet ;
and when all the other grasses were burnt
up, it has remained green and succulent.
It is particularly calculated for horses,
though pigs will greedily consume the
refuse that comes from the stable, and
thrive well upon it ; but it is too strong in
the stalk for cows, and by no means so good
for them as tares. If cultivated upon proper
soil, an acre will keep three strong cart-
horses for 6 months, from 1st May to Octo-
ber ; and after the first year may be mowed
twice or thrice, according to the seasons."
2518. The lucerne belongs to the class and
order Diadelphta Decandria of Linna?us ; to the
family Lefluminosce of Jussieu ; and to the sub-
class iii., Pcriiiiinous Exogeus; alliance 4'2,/?osa/«;
order 209 Fahiacece; tribe 2, Loteoe, and sub-tribe
3, Tnf'ji'nr, of the natural system of Lindley. It
is the Medicaqo satira ofbotanfetfe roots sub-fusi-
form, stem erect, flowers lar|^ an^^iolet-coloured.
Its name is derived from that given by Diosco-
rides to Median grass.
2.il9. Lucerne is said to have been brought
to Greece from Asia. The Romans were well
acquainted with its properties as a forage plant,
particularly for hurses. Hartlib endeavoured to
introduce it,s culture into England in the time of
the Commonwealth, but did not succeed. It is cul-
tivated in many parts of Europe in the fields ; but
"it is very remarkable that this species of forage,
to which so much importance was attacheJ by
the Romans, has alt^igether disappeared from
Italy. We are assured by M. Chateauvieux, that
not a single plant of it is now to be seen." *
* Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities — Art. A<}ricultura. New edition. This article,
by Professor Ramsay of Glasgow, gives the most correct aud satisfactory epitome of the agriculture
of the Romans I have seen.
some effect on the success of cultivation.
Mr William Pepper, of Falcon Lodge, near
Sutton Culdfield, in Warwickshire, cul-
tivates lucerne, and he decidedly prefers
the broadcjvst to the drill system ; and he
has kindly furnished me with these par-
ticulars. He says that " a light dry soil
should be chosen in the neighbourhood of
the farmstead, and the deeper it is the
better, as lucerne has a long root, which
I have known strike as deep as 6 feet.
The ground should be quite free of weeds,
and well covered with good foldyardmanure,
which should either be dug down 1 8 inches
deep, with a double spit of the spade, or
ploughed down with a double furrow, by
one plough following another. The best
time for sowing the seed is about the
middle of March, when it should be sowti
broadcast at the rate of 20 lbs. per acre, at
a cost of Is. 8d. per lb. It may be har-
rowed in with barley, upon laud that has
carried turnips, as being then in the cleanest
state ; but it may be sown after grass or
stubble, provided the laud has been pro-
perly laboured and cleaned."
2515. I may relate here, once for all,
Mr Pepper's entire culture of this plant.
" Towards tiie latter end of October, or
beginning of I^oA^ember," continues Mr
Pepper, " the lucerne should be covered
with light stable manure, to preserve it
from the frosts during the winter; and
towards the beginning of March, in the
ensuing season, it should be harrowed
with light grass-seed harrows, to remove
the few remaining weeds, and rolled.
After it has been mown in May for the
first time, it would be advisable to scatter
over it again a light dressing of manure,
in order to encourage the growth of the
second crop. When the ground is cleared
in the end of the season, it will be neces-
sary to apply harrows upon it of a heavier
descri])tion than tho.se employed in the
sea.son before, as early in the season as the
crop will admit; and continue to harrow
till the ground is free of all weeds, and
almost liki; a fallow, as the lucerne roots
will now iiave got so deep as not to be
injured by harrowing; and when immedi-
ately covered with manure, it will be
found free of weeds in spring.
SAINFOIN.
587
2520. As a successful instance of cultivating
the lucerne in drills, in the neighbourhood of
London, I may mention that a practical writer
recommends it to be sown in good, dry, deep
soil, well-manured, in drills at 6 feet asunder,
and to cultivate the intervening ground with
other crops, such as potatoes, savoys, cabbages,
carrots, &c.; and the principle upon which he ad-
vocates the wide drill system is the abundance of
air given to the plant above, and of room to the
roots below the ground, whilst the intervening
ground can be kept clean by the culture of other
useful green crops; and he maintains there is no
other mode of keeping the land permanently
clean, and that lucerne will not thrive amongst
weeds. He observes that " the quick progress
of lucerne, where it has room, is remarkable.
The first year, only 2 tons 4 lbs., the second, 8
tons 17 lbs., the third, 32 tons, advancing every
year to four times the quantity it produced the
year preceding. Another remarkable circum-
stance is, that the same plants produced the
third year almost four times the quantity that
they did the second, though cut but once more.
The second year they produced three cuttings,
and the third year but four, yet the produce of the
four cuttings was four times as much as of the
three. So much more numerous, larger, and
juicy were the stalks of these plants, when in
vigour, than in poor, cold land, assisted by cul-
ture only ; and hence some idea may be formed
of its extraordinary luxuriance on rich, warm
land, well cultivated, and also manured. The
results were, i'20, 16s. per acre per annum of
clear profit, from lucerne planted in this man-
ner for the first three years ; but after this, when
the leaves of the plants meet, will yield full crops,
and then the profits will be much greater — for
the value of the lucerne crops alone will be £30
a-year and upwards, and this with less trouble,
and much greater certainty, than any other tilled
crops in common husbandry. The value of the
"lucerne and the other crops," he admits, " will
indeed be much lower remote from London, and
other populous cities, and for fattening cattle
than if raised for sale at market ; yet they will
still be very profitable, and much beyond the
common profits of arable land."* Tf a near ap-
proach to these results be obtained, the lucerne
is worth the trial in the neighbourhood of the
large towns in Scotland, upon dry rich ground,
and I must own the mode of culture seems fea-
sible. This writer says that lucerne should only
be cut when in the bloom, and that, in convert-
ing it into hay, it loses three-fourths of its weight.
2521 . The variety of lucerne named the falcate
podded lacerne, Med ica(jo falcata, is said to be
the kind cultivated in Switzerland, the flowers
of which are usually pale yellow, which is the
most common colour of the tribe, but occasion-
ally violet and green. There are 81 species of
lucerne described by botanists.
2522. The ash of the lucerne contains the fol-
lowing ingredients according to Sprengei : —
Potash, .
Soda, . . .
Lime, . . .
Magnesia,
Oxide of iron, alumina, &c..
Phosphoric acid.
Sulphuric acid.
Chlorine,
Silica, . . .
Per-centage of ash.
1403
6-44
50-57
3-64
0-63
13-68
4-32
3-23
3-46
10000
9-55
2523. Lucerne seed weighs 62 lbs. the bushel,
and costs about 90s. per cwt.
ON SAINFOIN.
252-4. The sainfoin is a most valuable
forage plant in the poor, thin, dry, chalky
districts of England and France, where it
will crrow for eii^dit or ten years. Although
hardy enough, it has not extended itself
to the nortli of England, or into Scotland,
most probably from the want of cal-
careous matter in the soil, which it seems
to delight in. It does not thrive in
strong soils.
2525. It is preferred to be cultivated in
the broadcast style, and may be treated
precisely in the same manner as that de-
scribed above, by Mr Pepper, for lucerne.
" A very judicious method," as mentioned
by Mr Lawson, "•which is practised in
some parts of England, is to sow it with
about half the quantity of barley, or other
grain, usually sown for a full crop, which
gives it the advantage of being shaded, and
kept moist during the first summer, without
the chance of the plants being weakened
from the closeness of the corn crop. In
cases where the barley or corn is drilled,
the sainfoin should be drilled across the
field — that is, the drills running at right
angles to those of the corn crops." t
2526. The seed of sainfoin is large and
light ; so light that, in harrowing the
ground too much, it is apt to be again
brought to the surface. On this account
it had better be sown with a drill machine;
and in that case the crop should be in
drills, instead of broadcast.
2527. The plant comes to full maturity
The Improved Culture of Lucerne, p. 177-80. 1775. f Lawson's Agriculturist's Manual, p. 165
PRACTICE— SPRING.
of growth in 3 years; and, though it will
not hear to he cut so many times in the
year as lucerne, it makes an excellent
easily made hay, yielding from 1 to 2 tons
per acre, and a pleasant aftermath for
stock.
2528. It is possible to cultivate sain-
foin as a one or more years' crop of grass,
in rotation with corn crops, instead of red
clover ; hut in that case it would be better
to be accompanied with wliite clover and
rye-grass ; and, being a perennial, it would
have the advantage of red clover of re-
maining longer than one. year in the
ground, should it be desired to retain the
grass beyond that period.
2529. The sainfoin belongs to the class and
order Diadelphia Dccandria of Linnaeus ; to
the family Lejuminosoe of the natural system of
Jussieu ; and to the sub-class iii. Perigynous
Exogens ; alliance 42, liosales ; order 209, Fa-
biacece ; tribe 3, Vicice, and sub-tribe 3, Heyd-
sarecB of the natural system of Lindley. It is
the Onohrychus satira, the cultivated sainfoin of
botanists, roots sub-fusiform, stems erect, flowers
in spikes or long foot-stalks, of a beautiful pink
or flesh colour. Its generic name is derived from
the Greek, signifying plants grateful to the ass ;
its ordinary name is evidently from the French,
meaning consecrated hay — from its property of
producing an excellent sort of hay. The name
was doubtless derived from France along with
the plant.
2530. The intelligent practical writer whom I
quoted above, on the subject of the lucerne, also
treats of the culture of sainfoin, and he is a de-
cided advocate of the drill system. He recom-
mends sainfoin to be cultivated solely to be made
into hay, as being the most profitable mode of
cultivating it, and to be sown in double rows of
12 inches apart and 30 inches between the double
rows, or in single rows at 24 inches apart, and
the plants 4 inches asunder in the row. This
method admits of the land being thoroughly
worked, cleaned, and manured whilst the crop
is growing, and then the plants will meet in
the rows. And he makes the sensible remark,
that if we expect to reap a heavy crop three or
four times in the season, we must lay our account
to manure the soil well.
2531. The sainfoin yields by much the finest
quality of hay when cut before the blossom comes
out. " Tiiis hay, so cut before blossoming," says
Jethro Tull, " has kept a team of working store
horses, round the year, fat without corn, and
when tried with beans and outs, mixed with chatT,
refused it for the hay. The same fatted some
sheep in the winter in a pen, with only it and
water ; they throve faster than other sheep at
* TalVa Husbandry, p. 174-5,— 1 7(i2.
the same time fed with pease and oats. The hay
was weighed to them, and the clear profit
amounted to £4 per ton. They made no waste,
though the stalks Were of extraordinary bigness;
they would break off short, being very brittle.
This grew on rich land in Oxfordshire. The
second sort of sainfoin hay is cut in the flower ;
and though much inferior to the virgin hay, it
far exceeds any other kind, as yet commonly pro-
pagated in England ; and, if " it be a full crop
by good culture, may amount to above 3 tons on
an acre. This is that sainfoin which is commonly
made, and the larger it is the more nourishing
for horses. I have known farmers, after full ex-
perience, go three miles to fetch the largest
stalky sainfoin, when they could have bought the
small, fine, leafy sort at home, for the same price,
by the ton. The next and last sort of sain-
foin that is cut only for hay is the full-grown,
the blossoms being gone or going off : this also
is good hay, though itfalls short, by many degrees,
of the other two sorts. It makes a greater crop
than either of them, because it grows to its full
bulk, and shrinks little in drying." t
2532. — " The season for sainfoin hay," says the
former writer, " lasts from the end of April, or
beginning of May, to the first or second week
of October, or between five and six months ; in
which time, there is no doubt that from good land,
cultivated as above, 3 good cuttings will be ob-
tained, amounting to 7 or 8 tons of prime hay
per acre, or about 30 tons of green fodder.
2533. " It is no small commendation of this
plant that the occupier of any ordinary land may
raise good sainfoin upon it ; that will keep a dairy,
or fatten beasts and sheep, even upon land that
did not before produce tolerable pasture for them.
This is of inestimable benefit to hill farmers, whose
dry lands are of little profit to them, but, by the
proper cultivation of sainfoin, may thus be made
of almost equal value to the rich low lands in
dry seasons, and iu wet seasons superior to
them." X
2534. These commendations may not suit our
Scottish practice, in which sainfoiil is unknown ;
but now that red clover has become so precari-
ous a crop, and is at all events only an annual,
it is but right to look about for substitutes
which will answer for as long a period at least
as to postpone the return of the red clover for
a number of years, and allow the land, in tlie
meantime, to be rendered again fit to receive it.
But as to making sainfoin and such plants per-
manent retainers of the soil, Professor Low
makes these just observations. " If ground is to
be mown for successive years for forage in such
soils as are suited to it, scarce a better crop can
be cultivated than sainfoin, which is easily grown,
hardy, and productive. But, with regard to this
particular mode of cultivation, it cannot be at ail
recommended. It is not the most beneficial mode
of raising crops for forage ; for, independently of
the smaller produce, the keeping of land under
any one kind of crop, and manuring it upon the
t Improved Culture of Sainfoin, p. 251.
LAMBING OF EWES.
589
surface, is to deprive t!ie cultivated land of ma-
nure for an object whicli may be better attained
by other means." *
2535. The a^]l afforded Ly sainfoin contains
the following ingredients, according to two au-
thorities : —
Sprengel.
IJuch.
Potash,
•29-57
675
Soda,
6-28
21-46
Lime,
3i-55
31 -Ul
Magnesia, .
4-14
8-57
Oxide of iron, alumina, &c.,
0-95
1-74
Phosphoric acid
13-17
2(;-64
Sulphuric acid,
4-90
1-68
Chlorine,
'2-26
1-31
Silica,
7-18
110
10000
100-26
Per-centage of ash, 6-96
2536. It may be proper to mention that the
sainfoin seed ought to be new, or it will not ger-
minate. It weighs about 28 lbs. per bushel, and
varies in price from 40s. to 70s. per quarter,
according to the demand.
2537. Giant Sainfoin. — " The introduction of
this variety of sainfoin," says Mr Joseph Hine,
Newhaven, near Baldock, Herts, "was purely ac-
cidental: it was clearly a foreign species; but
although various purchases of foreign seed have
subsequently been made, in liopes of obtaining
the same variety, they have hitherto proved un-
successful. It was not until 1842 that my
father, who was the then tenant of the farm I
occupy, sufBciently overcame his sceptical no-
tions in reference to its peculiar properties as a
distinct species, as to induce him to give it a fair
trial; then, however, he procured of the intro-
ducer four bushels of seed, which cost him 80s.
per bushel. This was dibbled between the rows
of wheat sown upon a pea stubble; and the seed
being expensive, we endeavoured to drop one
seed in a hole, making them from three to four
inches apart, which carried it over nearly three
acres. The stubble of the wheat crop was left
upon the land during the winter, but beat down
and raked off in the spring. The crop was good
for a thin plant, and would have cut more than
30 cwt. of hay per acre; but my father, hoping
to get two crops of seed, let it stand, which was
injudicious, experience having proved that it is
very reluctant of going to seed in a maiden crop;
and the second crop, although it went to seed
again, was too late to be successful. In 1844 the
entire piece was sown for hay, and produced from
five to six tons, and early in September it was
mown again for seed, which produced about 20
bushels per acre; this was sown in 1845, upon a
red loam with a chalk subsoil, after beans and
pease, which had been well manured for the
same, at the rate of 2,, 24, and 3 bushels per
acre, upon 24^ acres of land, which has this sea-
son produced more than 50 tons of hay, the
thickest sown answering the best. In August it
was mown again for seed, and subsequently
produced a good eddish for feed. The s])ecie3
has now been tested in this and the adjoining
parish for 15 years, and the price of the seed has
varied during that period from 50s. to 803. per
bushel. It is quite clear that it will, like lucerne,
produce three crops for hay or soiling in one
season ; and the food in either case is much more
nutritious. I had 12 acres drilled last spring,
1846, upon pea stubble wheat, at 3 bushels per
acre; the wheat was very fine, and partially
down, but the plant of the sainfoin is good. I
shall now introduce it in regular course, sowing
about 12 acres in each season upon pea stubble
wheat, to remain three years, and then to break
up for wheat — by which method it will be per-
ceived that only the barley crop is sacrificed in
one round. In this way, if successful, I shall
obtain 36 acres for hay each year, and 36 acres
for seed, or second and third crop, as may appear
advisable. This will furnish me with all the
hay I require, leaving my clovers wholly for
sheep feed ; but whether this will prove the more
excellent mode of turning this peculiar variety
to the best account, experience alone can deter-
mine. I shall only add, that I have a very large
portion of my crop of hay remaining, 1847, and
a small quantity of the seed in an unthrashed
state, with 36 acres in plant." +
ON THE LAMBING OP EWES.
2538. The lambing season of Leicester,
and other heavy breeds of sheep, reared
in the arable part of the country, com-
mences about the llth of March, and con-
tinues for about the space of 3 weeks.
2539. There is no labour connected with
the duties of the shepherd which tests his
attention and skill so severely as the lamb-
ing season ; and a shepherd, whose un-
wearied attention and consummate skill
become conspicuous at that critical period
of the flock's existence, is an invaluable
servant to a stock farmer — his services, in
fact, are worth far more than the amount
of wages he receives ; for such a man will
save the amount of his wages eveiy year.,
when compared with the losses sustained
by the neglect of an unskilful shepherd,
and especially in a precarious season,
when, by treating the ewes and the lambs in
the most proper manner under the circum-
stances, the lives of many are preserved
that would otherwise have been lost. To
make my meaning more plain, suppose a
shepherd who, having attentively observed
* Low's Elements of Practical Agriculture, 2d edition, p. 416.
t Bell*! Weekly Messenger, for February 1847.
590
PRACTICE— SPRING.
the tupping, and marked the reckoning of
every ewe, puts the ewes in proper time in
a suitable place to Iamb in, — renders them
requisite assistance, and no more, at the
proper instant of lambing, and treats them
afterwards according to the circumstances
of the weather, — sees that the lambs
are supplied with milk, when mothers
happen to be unkind, or, the ewe want-
ing milk, feeds them with milk obtained
elsewhere, — knows how to afford relief to
the ewe in case of sickness and inflamma-
tion after lambing, and castrates the lamb
at the proper period of its strength, and
in the proper state of the weather, — knows
the manner how, and the time when, to
put an additional lamb to a ewe that has
abundance of milk, and take it from
another which has too little for a pair, —
suppose that by doing all this in a skilful
manner, night and day,until the lambing is
not only entirely completed, but the lambs
reared are beyond danger, he saves the
lives of 10 ewes worth 40s. each, and of
20 lambs, that will come to be worth 20s.
each, and this is no extravagant supposi-
tion in a large standing flock of 15 score
of ewes, it is clear that, in so doing, he
will save the amount of his wages, namely,
£40. Few shepherds are so successful,
although I have known two instances of
such success ; and no better proof need
be adduced of the scarcity of skilful shep-
herds, than the loss which every breeder
of sheep sustains every year, esj>ecially in
bad weather. I knew a shei)lierd who
bestowed unabating attention, but was
deficient in skill, and, being overanxious,
always assisted the ewes in hiiubing before
the proper time ; and as, in his want of
skill, he kept the ewes in too high condi-
tion, the consequence was that every year
he lost a large number of both ewes and
lambs, and in one season of bad weather
the loss amounted to the large number of
2G ewes, and I forget how many lambs,
in a flock of only 10 score of ewes. I
knew another shepherd who was far from
being solicitous about his charge, though
certainly not careless, yet his skill was so
certain that his success was eminent, and
the loss of a ewe or of a land) under his
charge was matter of surprise. Of these
two sorts of shepherds, the attentive and
the skilful, it woid<l appear that the skil-
ful is the safer, and of cour.se the more
valuable — evils will be prevented by skil-
ful attention, and cured by attentive skill;
but it is only by the union of both qualities
that a perfect shepherd is constituted. Such
a perfect shepherd I had the good fortune
and happiness to possess all the time I
farmed. I cannot assert that no deaths
occurred in the flock under his charge ; but
when a death ensued at any time, it was
more the fault of the times than of his :
the diseases of sheep were not so well
known as now, and no veterinarians were
established in practice in the country then,
as now. His acuteness perceived when
a sheep was affected long before any one
else could detect it ; but a remedy, however
early and well applied, will at times fail.
2540. In contradistinction to a skilful
shepherd, let me advert to some particulars
mentioned by Mr Price, occurring, appa-
rently as a matter of course, in the lamb-
ing season. He says that, in prej)aring
ewes for lambing, "■the ewes are driven
into a pound, and the looker takes them
singly, throiDS them doicn, and removes
with the shears the wool on their tail,
udders, and inside of their thighs." If
this is a common practice, think of its
barbarity, of throwing down ewes on the
ground on the eve of lambing, to remove
a trifling impediment to the lamb's suck-
ing, which can be removed at any time •
after lambing. But there is a reason, it
seems, for this treatment, called clotting,
and it is this, — "The removal of the wool
renders the part much neater-" (appear-
ances, it seems, being preferred at this
particular time to the ease of the animal,)
"and enables the lamber to see when theewe
has Itinibed, from a stain which generally
appears on the back part of her udder.
Were 7)ot this appearance to take place,
the hiinher would somct'nnes be at a loss,
as the young ewes frequently desert their
young, and endeavour to escape along with
the other ewes, grazing with as much un-
concern as if nothing had happened."
Observe the great skill of that shepherd
v/ho is at a loss to know whether or not
a ewe has lambed, or whether or not it
has strayed from, the pound without his
knowledge; and who even does not know
whether or not a ewe is in land), until he
has thrown her down to remove the wool ;
for "the barren ewes, or those which are
not pregnant, are distivguished^ at the
time of clatting, by not having any swel-
LAMBING OF EWES.
591
ling in their udder or belly, and by their
skipping about nimbly," Think also of
what sort of care is bestowed on a newly
lambed flock in a low country, when such
losses as these are incurred : — " I have
known thousands of lambs lost from being
drowned in a wet stormy night ; I once
beheld 30 or more lying together drowned
in a ditch. The ewes and lambs seek the
corners of pasture-fields during the con-
tinuance of severe weather; and when
the lambs get under these high banks and
fall in, it is utterly impossible for them to
extricate themselves ; besides, us there are
many huddled together, they often push
one another in." That lambing pound
must be a strange place which presents
such a scene as this : — " Lambing pre-
sents a scene of confusion, disorder, and
trouble, which it is the lamber's business
to rectify, and for wliich he ought always
to be prepared : some of the ewes perhaps
leave their lambs, or the lambs get inter-
mixed, and the ewes which have lost their
lambs run about bleating, while others
want assistance." It is no wonder that
such a shepherd cannot recognise the lambs
of ewes,and therefore they must be marked :
— " The twins are marked with a mixture
of tar and lamp-black, by means of small
figures fixed in an iron handle about 8
inches long;" "and the twin lambs are
easily separated, for the ewe very fre-
quently walks away with one lamb, leav-
ing the other iu the field, to the, confusion
of the laniher ; therefore they should be
marked as early as possil)le to prevent this
confusion." " The lamber must take the
lamb to its mother, which he will find out
by its number;" and yet the number, it
seems, will not always enable the lamb to
be found for the mother; for, if the lamber
finds a young lamb, and is not certain
which may be its mother, a circumstance
which sometimes occurs when ewQ^ drop
twins, and leaves one of them, he may
readily discover her by taking away the
lamb she is fostering, and i)utting the
doubtful one on in its stead, when she
will display evident tokens whether it
belongs to her." This method of trial and
error the shepherd will, of course, have to
make with every ewe before he discovers
the true mother; and, as he knows neither
mother nor lamb, the lamb may chance to
belong to a ewe which has a single lamb
as well as to one which has twins, unless
the single lambs are left unmarked ; or,
at any rate, he may present the marked
and known-to-be-a-twin lamb to a ewe
that has lambed only a single one, as
readily as to one that has lambed twins.
It will excite no surprise to learn, that
with shepherds so wretchedly disqualified
for their profession, as the above parti-
culars show, in " most years not more
lambs than one to each ewe " were ob-
tained ; and that out of 800 ewes of a
certain flock only ] 00 pairs were saved,
though it is stated by Mr Price, that with
more skill afterwards the number of pairs
increased to 200. Here, then, is an in-
stance where the improved skill of one
man saved the lives of 200 lambs, which
would come to be worth £200, equalling
the wages of at least 4 good shepherds.*
I would not have noticed tliese egregious
blunders, said by Mr Price to be committed
by shepherds in a low country like Rom-
ney Marsh, in Kent, so particularly, had
not the late Mr Youatt adopted the senti-
ments of Mr Price in the very particulars
quoted above, in his excellent treatise on
the history and diseases of sheep, t Were
a shepherd of a Leicester flock iu Scotland
so ignorant of his profession, he would
ttot only be quite ashamed, but no man
would hire him ; and neither would the
shepherds be of the hill country, who can-
not have so intimate a knowledge of every
individual of their flock, which occujues a
wide range of mountain land, as shepherds
tending flocks within limited bounds.
2541. Before the season of lambing
arrives, the shej^herd should have a small
paddock of 1 or 2 acres, or, where there
is no paddock, a sheltered corner of a grass-
field of small size, conveniently situated as
near the steading as possible, fenced round
with nets, and fitted up with sheds made
of hurdles set up in the most sheltered
part against a wall or hedge, and lined in
tlie inside and comfortably roofed with
straw. A shed of this temporary con-
struction may be seen on tlie right hand
of Plate VII., beyond the Leicester ewe
and lamb. Such straw-sheds form most
comfortable places of refuge for ewes that
lamb in the night, or have lambed in the
Price On Sheep, p. 115-26.
t Youatt On Sheep, p. 500,
592
PRACTICE— SPRING.
daj, and rcfiuire protection from frost,
snow, rain, or cold in the niL'lit, until the
ewes are j^erfectly recovered from lanibin*^,
and the lambs snfiiciently strong to bear
the weather in the open field.
2542. The lever hand tnrnip-slicer, fig.
48, will be found on such occat^ions a con-
venient in:?trument for cutting turnips into
such turnip-troughs a.s fig. 50, for the ewes
in the paddock, or into small boxes for
them in the shed
2543. Common kale or curly greens is
excellent food for ewes that have lambed ;
being mucilaginous and soluble, it is bene-
ficial in encouraging the necessary dis-
charges from the ewe after lambing. Ac-
cording to the late George Sinclair, 1 lb.,
or 7000 grains of green curled kale (Bras-
sica oleracea viridis,) yields 5680 grains
of water, 880 grains of woody fibre, and
440 grains of nutritive matter, which last
is all soluble in water. '^ In these respects
kale is better food for ewes after lamb-
ing than raw Swedish turnips, which become
rather too fibrous and astringent in spring
for the secretion of milk.
2544. A lantern, such as fig. 8!>, is a
great assistant at night to a shepherd;
and he should be provided with his crook,
to catch a ewe quickly should she be
troublesome, — which some are apt to be
■wlien the pains of lambing are coming upon
them.
2545. As foxes are apt to snatch away
young lambs at night, even close to the
lambing-houses, I have fnund an eflectual
preventive lo their depredations in setting
a sheep-net, as in fig. 44, directly in front
of the lambing-houses, leaving a sufficient
space for a few ewes with their land)s mak-
ing their lair within the net. When thus
guarded, with the lantern burning outside,
the fcixes are afraid to enter the net, being
apprehensive of a snare. Such an exj)e-
dient is even more necessary in the comer
of the field chosen for the lambing ground.
Besides alarming the fox, tlie lantern will
be found a useful assistance to the shepherd
in showing him the ewes as they evince
symptoms of lambing. A net and lantern
are also good safeguards against foxes at
night in the grass-field occupied by the
ewes and lambs, and where they should be
gathered within the net every night. This
expedient of net and lantern I was induced
to try, after losing, for a year or two,
.severid lambs by the fox ; and such was
its efficacy in deterring that nightly
prowlerfrom visitiiigthe lairoftheewesand
lambs, that not a lamb was lost ever after.
A fox will not meddle with a lamb above
a month old.
2546. Being thus provided with the
means of accouimodation, the shepherd,
whenever he observes the predisposing
symptoms of lambing in as many ewes as
he knows will lamb first, — and these
symptoms are, enlargement and reddening
of the parts under the tail, drooping of the
flanks, patting the ground with the feet,
and desire for separation from their com-
panions,— he jdaces them, of an afternoon,
within the enclosed lambing ground in the
paddock, and provides them with cut tur-
nips. The more immediate symptoms of
land)ing are — when the ewe stretches her-
self frequently ; separating herself entirely
from her companions ; exhibiting restless-
ness by not remaining in one place for any
length of time; lying down and rising up
again as if dissatisfied with every })lace ;
pawing the ground with a fore-foot ; bleat-
ing as if in quest of a lamb ; and appear-
ing fond of the lambs of other ewes. In a
very few hours, or even shorter time, after
the exhibition of these symptoms, the im-
mediate symptom of lambing is the expul-
sion of the bag of water from the vagina,
which, when observed, the ewe sbouhl be
narrowly watched, for the pains of labour
may be expected to come upon her im-
mediately. When these are felt by her,
she presses or strains with earnestness,
changing one place or position for another,
as if desirous of relief. Up to this time, not
a hand should be put u2Jon her, nor until
the yellow hoofs of thefore-feet of the lamb
and its mouth lying upon them, are dis-
tinctly seen to ])resent themselves in the
passage.
2547. The natural presentation of the
latnb is the same as that of the calf, de-
scribed in (2204.) When time has been
ffiven to observe that the ewe is not able
• Sinclair's Hortut Gramineus W<^urneniu, p. 407, edition of 1824.
LAMBING OF EWES.
593
to expel the lamb by her own exertions,
it is tlie duty of the shepherd to render her
assistance, before her strength fails by un-
availing straining. The exact moment
for rendering assistance can only be known
by experience ; but it is necessary for a
shepherd to know it, as there is no doubt
that a hasty parturition often superinduces
inflammation, if not of the womb itself, at
least of the external parts of the ewe.
When assistance should be rendered, the
ewe is taken hold of as she lies, and laid
gently over upon the ground on her near
or left side, with her head up the hill,
where the ground has an inclination ;
and, to save her being dragged on the
ground when the lamb is being extracted,
the shepherd places the heel of his left foot
against the lower part of the belly of the
ewe, and kneels on his right knee on the
ground, pressing against her rump, having
the body of the ewe below his own body,
between the heel and knee. Having
Lis face towards the tail of the ewe,
and both his hands free, he first proceeds
to push outfrom him, with both hands, one
leg of the lamb and then the other, as far
as they will stretch ; then seizing both legs
firmly, above the fetlock joints, between
the fingers of his left hand he pushes the
legs from him rather downwards from the
ewe's back, with considerable force, whilst
by pressing upon the space between the tail
of the ewe and the head of the lamb toirards
him, with the front side of his right hand,
he endeavours to slip the vulva of the ewe
over the cantle of the lamb. The action of
both the hands must be made simultane-
ously with the strainings of the ewe, only
to assist her, and keep good what is obtained
at each strain, and not to tear the lamb from
her prematurely by force. Whenever the
lamb's head is clear, the shepherd seizes
the upper part, of the neck behind the head
with his right hand, and pulls out the body,
which will now slip out witii comparative
ease. The lamb is then placed at the
ewe's head, for her to lick and recognise,
which she will instantly do, if her labour
has not been severe ; but if so, she will
likely become sick, and be careless of
the lamb as long as the sickness continues,
which is evinced by quick oppressed
breathing. Ifthepains have been sharp, and
this her first lamb, and she is not overcome
by sickness, the ewe may probably start
to her feet, and run away from the lamb.
VOL. I.
The attempt at escape must be prevented,
and the end of the tail of the lamb put
into her mouth, to make her notice it.
If she continues to lie on her side, her
abdomen should be felt, to ascertain if
there is another lamb to come ; and if there
is, the pains accompanying its passage
may have been the cause of her careless-
ness for the first lamb ; and if the second
lamb is in a natural position, it will most
probably, by this time, be showing itself
in the passage, which if it be, the best
plan is to take it away at once in the same
manner as the first, and the ewe, feeling
the attempt, will at once assist on her part
by straining. The existence of a second
lamb is worth attending to immediately
on another account — some ewes become so
engrossed with the first lamb, that the
pains attending the second are neglected
for a time. When a second lamb is found
in her, she must be watched, that whenever
it comes into the passage it may be taken
away ; but unless it actually makes its ap-
pearance there, it should not be attempted
to be taken away. Should it not make its
appearance in a reasonable time, it maybe
suspected that the lamb is either dead, or
not in a natural position, and examination
should be made by the fingers into the
state of the case. In all cases of twins, exa-
mination should be previously made that
they present themselves separately. A
dead lamb is easily known by the feel, and
sh(mld be extracted immediately, as it can
aff"ord no assistance of itself ; but should the
lamb be alive, it may be necessary to in-
troduce the hand to ascertain its position.
Before the hand is introduced, it should
be smeared with goose-fat.
2548. The extraction of a lamb, as de-
scribed above, is performed by a shepherd
who has no assistants ; but when he has
them, he adopts another and more easy
mode for the ewe and himself. An assis-
tant holds the ewe upon her side, in any
way the must easy for her and himself, to
prevent its body being dragged along the
ground while the shepherd is extracting
the lamb ; and in doing this, the shepherd
places himself behind the ewe, and, on
ascertaining the position of the lamb,
pulls its legs towards him, whilst the
assistant endeavours, by the pressure of
the side of his hand below the tail, to
make the vaginal skin pass over the
2p
AM
PRACTICE— SPRING.
lamb's head, which when accomplisheJ,
the sliejilienl seizes the back of the neck
by his left hand, and holding the legs
Still in hi;; right, takes away the lamb as
quickly as he can, and places it before
the ewe.
2549. There is great difTerence in the
disposition of the ewes themselves to assist
in the lambing. Some, when they find
thev are assisted, give themselves little
trouble; others strain with vigour from
first to last ; and some only strain at
long intervale. A ewe that strains strongly
and continuously, will become sooner ex-
hausted than one that takes the matter
more leisurely ; and in the former case
there is greater danger in neglecting to
make examination of the presentation in
time, before the ewe has become exhausted.
I remember of seeing, on a friend's farm,
a lamb's head alone hanging out, and,
being allowed to remain in that state too
long, the lamb was strangled to death.
This was a case of neglect, as the head
should not have been allowed to come out
without one accom[>anying leg at least.
I remember of another case in which there
was no appearance of a lamb, though the
ewe had strained for a considerable time.
On examination, it was found that the
mouth of the womb was closed up. In-
flammation had probably at one time ex-
isted, and a discharge of lymph had
caused the adhesion. The shepherd, no-
thing daunted, very ingeniously introduced,
with his smeared hand, a pen-knife between
the middle and fore-tingcrs and thumb, and
cut an incision across the pursed mouth of
the womb, and liberated two lambs, the
ewe not being the least the worse for the
operation.
2550. "When lambing has taken place
in the day, in fair weather, the ewe with
her lambs are best at liberty within the
enclosed area of the lambing ground ; but
in rain or snow, and at niglit, she should
be taken into the shed to lamb, and kept
there for some time until the weather
proves better, or she is recovered from the
effects of the parturition. In the day, it
matters not for lambs how cold the air is,
provided it be dry. It is considered a
good sign of health when a lamb trembles
after birth. The cleansings or placenta
generally drops from the ewe in the course
of a very short time, in many cases within
a few minutes after lambing. It should be
carried away, and not allowed to lie upon
the lambing ground. The lamb is fondly
licked by the ewe at first, and, during
this process, makes many fruitless attempts
to gain its feet, and it is truly surprising
how very soon after an easy birth it will
stand ; and the moment it does so, its
first effort is to find out the teat, express-
ing its desire for it by imitating the act
of sucking with its lips and tongue, utter-
ing a plaintive cry, and wagging its still
wet long tail. There are various obstacles
to its finding the teat at first, — the long
wool on the ewe's flank hides it, — that on
the udder interferes with it — and, what is
still more tantalising, the intense fondness
of its mother urges her to turn herself
round to it, in order to lick it with her
tongue, muttering affectionate regards,
while the wheeling about has the effect
of removing the teat, the object of the
lamb's solicitude. When at length a hold
of it is obtained, it does not easily let it
go until satisfied with a good drink. When
a fond ewe has twin lambs, one can easily
obtain the teat, while she is taken up in
caressing the other. This is the usual be-
haviour of strong lambs ; and on once
l^eing filled with warm milk, they increase
in strength raj)idly, and are soon able to
bear very rough weather.
2551. But after a protracted labour,
the first lambs of young ewes are so
weakly at first as to be unable to reach
the teat by their own strength, when they
must be assisted — and the assistance is
given in this way: Turning the ewe
over upon her rump, the shejtherd kneels
upon the ground on his right knee, and
reclines her back against his left leg,
which is bej^ Removing any wool from
the udder ly the finger and thumb, which
is all that is necessary, he first squeezes
the wax out of the teats, and, taking a
lamb in each hand by the neck, opens
the mouth of each with a finger, and ap-
plies the mouth to a teat, when the suck-
ing proceeds with vigour.
2552. A young ewe or gimmer is apt
to be shy to her first lamb, but after she
has been suckled, either in this or in the
natural way. she will never forsake her
offspring. When the lambs do not sue-
LAMBING OF EWES.
595
ceed at once in sucking, it is the best plan
for the shepherd soon to give the lamb
its first suck in this way, which not only
saves it much trouble, and gives it strength,
but affords himselfa favoural)le opportunity
of examining the state of the mlder, whether
it is well, or feels hard, or is inflamed.
Giinniers generally have so scanty a sup-
ply of milk, that it is expedient for the
shepherd to support their lambs partially
on cow's milk until thev have the requisite
supply, which will be ituluced partly by
suckling, and partly from increased
nourishment from the new gra^s.
2553. When the shepherd has lambs to
support for a short time, he should supply
them with the cow's milk at regular hours,
such as in the morning and evening, im-
mediately after the cows have been milk-
ed, and see the lambs suckled by their
mothers during the day, and thus endea-
vour to bring on a sufficiency of milk.
The dairy-maid should put the cow's milk
for the shepherd in bottles, wdien the cows
are milked in the morning and evening,
and he should feed the young lambs while
the milk is warm from the cow, — and he
feeds them in this way : Sitting down, he
takes a mouthful of milk from a bottle,
and holding up the mouth of the lamb
open, he lets the warm milk drop into it
in a small stream from his mouth, which
the lamb drinks as fast as it comes ; and
thus mouthful after mouthful until the
lamb is filled. The auxiliary supply of
milk should be withheld whenever the ewe
can support her lambs, for cow's milk is
not so good for the lamb as that of its own
mother.
2554. The ewes are kept on the lamb-
ing ground till they have recovered from
the effects of lambing, the lambs have
become strong, and the ewes and lambs
have become well acquainted with each
other. The time required for all this de-
pends on the nature of the lambing, and
the state of the weather: the more severe
the lambing has been, and the more broken
the weather, they are kept the longer in
ward.
2555. When quite recovered, the ewes,
with their lambs, are then put into a field
of new grass, where the milk will flush
upon the ewes, much to the advantage of
the lambs. It is generally a troublesome
matter to drive ewes with young lambs to
any distance to a field, as the ewes always
turn round upon and bewilder the lambs.
A dog more frequently irritates the ewes
than assists the shepherd in this task. I
believe the best plan is to lead the flock
instead of driving it, by carrying a single
lamb, belonging to an old ewe, by the fore
legs — which is the safest way of carrying
a lamb — and walking slowly with it before
the ewe, and she will follow bleating close
at the shepherd's heels, while the rest of
the ewes will follow her. If the distance
to the field is considerable, the decoy lamb
should be set down to suck and rest, and
another taken for the purpose.
2556. With plenty of food, and a safe-
guard of net and lantern at their lair at
night, to keep off the foxes, the flock will
thrive apace. Such a safeguard is rarely
adoj^ted. To know whether the fox has
attacked a lamb, he always seizes it by
the neck behind the head, and, if scared
at this moment, distinct holes made by
the teeth will be found on each side of
the neck ; whereas a dog seizes any part
of the body, and worries by tearing the
under part of the neck. The fox, if not
immediately disturbed, carries off his prey,
whilst the dog leaves behind him what
he does not eat. Some ewes will fight
off either dog or fox, and be able to pro-
tect a single lamb ; whilst others become so
afraid at once by an attack, that they
know not whither to flee for refuge. After
such an attack, the bleatings of the ewes
and lambs in search of each other — aa
unusual occurrence at night — will soon
acquaint the shepherd at a distance of the
disaster that has happened to his flock.
2557. In unnatural presentations, if the
head is bent back, it must be brought for-
ward, and if one or both legs be folded back,
they must also be brought forward, one
by one, into their proper position. In
short, all the unnatural presentations
offered by a lamb require the same means
to be used to place them in a proper posi-
tion as with the calf ; but with the Leices-
ter ewe is the additional difficulty over
the cow, of two, and even more lambs
at a birth, and the increased chance of
mistaking a leg of one lamb for that of
another.
596
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2558. The preceding cases ()f lambing
are all easy to the shepherd ; but others
occur which put hia skill to the test.
Malfiirmations of the body of the lamb
create difficult parturition, and endanger
the life of the ewe. It is almost impos-
sible to bring the head of a wry-necked
lanib into the passage of the womb, but it
must be done before the entire body can
be extracted ; and, if it cannot be done,
the head of the lamb should be taken oti'
rather than the ewe should lose her life.
2559. Sometimes twin lambs die in the
womb several days before the period of
lambing; and as they cannot present them-
selves in the berth, they must be extracted
by force, or even cut away in pieces ; and
when corruption has proceeded a consider-
able length, they may be pulled away in
pieces. In such a case the placenta will
be corrupted, and it may be a considerable
time before it is entirely got rid of by the
straining of the ewe. I have seen it so
corrupted as to come aw^ay in small dis-
charges as black and viscid as tar.
2560. A breech presentation is a diffi-
cult one, and the extraction is impracti-
cable until the hind legs are first brought
out ; and in extracting by the breech, the
o{)eration should be done quickly at the
last to prevent the lamb drowning in the
licjuor amni. In all cases of extraction,
it should be made a point to have the back
of the lamb next to the back of the ewe.
To obtain these ends, it may be necessary
to place the ewe upright upon its shoulder
on the ground and its tail uppermost,
to cause the lamb to retire into the womb
while the shephenl introduces his hand to
arrange and bring forward the hind legs
in tiie proper jiosition. Such an opera-
tion should be done quickly, though with
all gentleness, in case of setting up an
infianimation. A small hand is of great
advantage to a shepherd.
2561. Much trouble is imposed on
8be])herd3 when the ewes will not take
their own lambs. In every case of a ewe
refusing to let her own lamb suck, the shep-
herd should particularly examine the state
of the udder, and ascertain the cause of un-
easiness; and,if itbe inflammation, remedial
measures must be used to reduce it, but if
well the ewe must be put under discipline.
2562. The discipline consist.'* of imme-
diately putting her into the siied, and con-
fining her to a spot by a short .ttrin;: tied
above the fetlock joint of one of her fore
legs, and fastened to a stob driven into
the ground, or to the hurdle. As she
endeavours to leave her lamb, the string
pulls her foot off the ground, and while
her attention is taken up struggling with
the string, the lamb seizes the teat and
sucks in the mean time. The stratairem
often rej>eated, makes her take with the
lamb. It is surprising how soon a lamb
learns to steal a suck from the ewe ; if it
cannot approach by the flank, it will seize
the teat from behind between the hind legs.
When a ewe will allow but one of her
twins to suck her, she should be held till
both do it, and in a short tinie she will
allow both.
2563. It is not surprising that one ewe
should refuse to take the lamb of another ;
and yet it is necessary when a lamb is left
an orphan, or hajipens to be a supernume-
rary, to mother it, as it is termed, upon
another ewe. When a gimmer that has
little milk has twins at a time when
another ewe that has plenty of milk i»ro-
duces a single lamb, it is for the benefit of
one of the ewes and two lambs, that the
ewe which has plenty of milk should bring
up two lauibs ; and the transference is
easily accomplished while all the lambs
are still wet, and two of them are j)laced
before the ewe at the same time ; but when
a ewe does not die till two or three days
after she has lambed, it will he difficult to
make another ewe that lambs a single
lamb, at the time the other ewe dies, take
the older lamb along with her own. The
usual j)lan is, to rub the body of the older
lamb with the new dropped one, before
the new lambed ewe has hatl an op])or-
tunity of recognising her own lamb, and to
place both before her at the same time, and
she may take them both without scruple;
but the probability is, that she will reject
the older one. She should then he put
into a dark corner of the shed, and confined
in it by a board placed across the corner,
only giving her room to rise up and lie
down, and to eat, but not to turn (|uickly
round upon the stranger lamb to box it ;
while rultbing itself against her wool, and
sucking her against her inclination, it will
acquire the mlour of her own lamb, and
LAMBING OF EWES.
597
ingratiate itself in her favour. If she
persist in refusing the lamb, the discipline
of t^'ing the leg must be resorted to.
Anotlier troublesome case is, when the
lamb dies at birth and the ewe has plenty
of milk, while another ewe has twins
which she is unable to support. The
expedient is to let the ewe smell her own
new-born dead lamb, and then to strip the
skin immediately off it, and sew it upon
the boxlv of one ot the lambs belonging to
the other ev.-e, and present the foster-lamb
to her. It is possible that the dark corner
will require to be used before a cordial
reception be given to the fuster-larab.
2564. Should all the above expedients
fail to mothrr the lambs upon the ewes —
and they tnay all fail, though with a skil-
ful shepherd they seldom do — the lambs
should be taken away and brought up as
pets on cow's milk.
2565. A fat ewe has always a small
Iamb, though plump and lively, and she
runs a great risk in lambing, of inflamma-
tion in the passage of the wamb. A lean
ewe bears a lamb with large extremities,
and til in and weak body. A very old
ewe's lamb is both small and weak. A
gimmer bears a small lamb, and not having
sutlicient milk to rear it, it continues small.
A hogg's lamb is still smaller and weaker,
and generally requires to be brought up
as a pet.
2566. The best mode of managing ewes
for rearing good lambs, is to keep them
in fair condition until they have lambed,
after which they should have the best grass
the farm can afford. New grass always
produces abundance of milk, and it is
ready earlier than ohl. In case of snow
covering tlie ground in spring, when the
ewes are heavy in lamb, they should get
a few turnips and plenty of hay — clover-
hay if possible — until the ground is again
clear; but in open weather in winter,
there is nothing better for them than grass
which had been kept rough for the pur-
pose in autumn. Whiie confined on the
lambing-ground, the ewes should have
turnips and hay to support them ; before
lambing and after lambing, nothing is
better for them than cabbage or kale,
and in lieu a little oil-cake will encour-
age the necessary discharges and purifi-
cation of the womb. New grass also oper-
ates medicinally on the system of the ewe.
2567- It is necessary to say a few
words on the rearing oi pet lambs. These
consist of orphans or supernumeraries, and,
in either case, are deserted creatures w hich
would die were they not reared by hand.
As a remarkable instance of lambs being
obliged to be made petsfrom supernumerary
births, I remember one season, in a small
flock of 50 Leicester ewes, 48 of them
had twins, and 2 trins. The two Iambs
which formed the trins were properly
taken away to relieve the ewes, and
brought up by hand as pets. When ewes
die it is scarcely possible avoiding having
pets, on account of the improbability of
ewes lambing single lambs just in time to
receive those wiiich have become orphans.
Pet lambs are supported on cow's milk,
which they receive warm from the cows
each time they are milked, and as much
as they can drink. In the intervals of
meals, in bad weather, they are kept under
cover, but in good weather they are put
into a grass paddock during the day, and
under shelter at night until the nights
become warm. They are fed by hand out
of a small vessel, which should contain as
much milk as is known each can drink.
They are first taught to drink out of the
vessel with the fingers like a calf (2276,)
and as soon as they can hold a finger
steady in the mouth, a tin tube, about 3
inches in length, and of the thickness of a
goose quill, should be neatly and firmly
covered with folds of linen, and used as a
substitute for a teat, and with this they
will easily drink their allowance of milk.
A goose quill would answer the purpose,
were it not that it is easily squeezed
together by the mouth. When the same
person feeds the lambs, who ought to be
the dairy-maid, the lambs soon become
attiiclied to l.er, and will foUow her eve y-
where; and to prevent them bleating m
her absence, and annoj'ing her during the
day, an apron or a piece of cloth hung
upon a stake or bush in the paddock, will
content them and keep them together in
quietness.
2568. It is a common practice with the
shepherds of Leicester sheep, when they
wish to catch a ewe to give a weakly twin
lamb a suck, or to examine the state of
598
PRACTICE— SPRING.
her udder, to stoop down and run in
upon her from behind and seize lier by a
liinJ le". This is a safe mo<le of catching
a sheep when dexterously done ; but when
it fails, by the captor not keeping himself
out of view until be seizes the ewe, slie
will start and run off, and alarm the other
ewes beside her — and every alarm to a ewe,
whether lambed or about to lamb, is in-
jurious, and at any rate cannot do any
good. In the circumstances, a crook does
the thing quietly and securely. It consists
of a round rod of iron, bent in the form
shown in fig. 224, and terminating at one
end in a knob, and at the other end in a
Fig. •_>24. socket, which receives and
is fixed to a wooden helve,
5 or 6 feet long, accord-
ing to fancy. The hind
leg is taken in at o, from
behind the sheep ; and as
its narrow edge fills up the
narrowest jjart beyond a,
it has plenty of room to be
free in the looped space in
wliich the animal is se-
cureii, and its foot easily
slipped through the loop.
Some caution is required
in using the crook, for
should the sheep give a
sudden start f jrward to get
away, the inunieiit it feels
THE sHKPHKRi.'s ^'le crook touch its leg, it
cRoiiK. may forcibly draw the leg
through the narrow part, and strike the fore
edge of the bone with such violence against
the bend of the loop as to cause the animal
considerable paiu, and even occasion lame-
ness for some days. On quietly embracing
the leg, at first from behind the ewe, the
crook should be quickly drawn towards
you, so as to bring the bend of the loop
against the leg as high up as the hock,
and to lift the foot off the ground, before
the sheep is aware of the movement ; and
being thus secured at once, its struggles
■will cease the moment your hand seizes
the leg. The cro<^)k is held in the figure
to catch the near or left hind leg.
2569. "When the male lambe, not to be
kept as tups, attain the age of from 10
days to a mouth, i\\Qy sltq castrated. Some
breeders a<lvocate castration in a day or
two after birth, whilst others will not
allow the operation to be performed until
the lamb is one month old. My opinion
is, that both these periods are extremes.
A lamb of a day old cannot be confirmed
in all the parts and functit)n8 of its body,
and in many instances I question that the
testicles cau then be found. At a month
old, on the other hand, the lamb mav be
so fat and the weather warm, that the
castration may be followed bv fel>rile
action. I prefer the operation being per-
formed from 10 to 1.3 days, when the
lamb has attained some strength, and yet uo
part has had time to become rigid.
2570. Great caution is required in cas-
trating lambs ; it should not be done in
rainy, cold, or frosty weather; nor should
the lambs be lieated by being driven be-
fore the operation. It is best performed
early in the morning, in fresh weather,
with a westerly breeze. The ewes and
lambs should be driven gently to a corner
of the field, not by the dog, whose duty
is only to prevent a ewe breaking away.
One assistant sliould catch the lambs, and
another bold them while the shepherd
operates. It is not easy to catch the leg
of a lamb with a sheep's crook, their smalj
active linibs easily escaping through the
loop, but it may be effectually use<l in
hooking the neck, when the captor rushes
in upon the lamb and secures it. Where
there is a bught or open shed in a field,
the lambs an<l ewes may be driven loosely
in and the lambs captured there. Hill
lambs siiouKl be driven the night before
they are castrated into a l»ught or enclosure,
where they will be ready and cool for the
operation in the morning.
2571. Castration is performed in this
way : Let the assistant hold np the back
of the body of the lamb against his left
breast and shoulder, and with each hand
raise a hind leg towards the body, securing
them by the shank; while, to prevent
farther struggling, a fore leg is held
firmly in ccmnexion with a hind one
of the same side. The effect of this
arrangement is to exhibit the scrotnm to
full view, as represented at a, in fig. 22.5.
The shepherd with his left hand tlien causes
the testicles to make the point of the scro-
tum a smooth; and cutting through the
integuments of the scn)tuni, with a knife
in llie right hand, first to one testicle and
then the other, he pushes out both testicles
LAMBING OF EWES.
699
into view with both his hands, and first
seizes one with his teeth, and draws out
the spermatic cord until it breaks, and
then the other in the same manner, when
the operation is finished.
Fig. 225.
THE MODE OF HOLDING LAMBS FOR CASTRATION.
2572. The old-fashioned mode of cas-
trating lambs, was to cut off the point of the
scrotum, andextract both testicles tliroiigh
the large opening caused by the amputa-
tion ; but the extensive wound thus made
took a considerable time to heal, whereas
the simple incision now made almost
always heals by the first intention.
2573. Advantage is taken of the oppor-
tunity to dock the tail, which is left from
€, fig. 225, as long as to reach the meeting
of the hams. In performing docking, the
division siiould be made in a joint, otlier-
wise the portion of the vertebra which has
been cut through will have to be sloughed
off before the wound can heal. The lamb,
after being docked, is let down to the
ground by the tail, which has the effect, it
is said, of putting the parts rigiit after the
castration. Ewe lambs are also docked
at this time, but they are not held up in
tliis manner for the operation, being merely
caught and held by the shepherd between
his legs until it is done. In England,
docking is performed at the third joint,
which leaves a mere stump of a tail. The
object of docking is to keep the sheep
clean behind from filth and vermin ; but as
the tail is a jjrotection against cold in
winter, it should not be docked so short in
Scotland as is done in England. Tup-
lambs are allowed to retain their full tails
until a year old, in order to strengthen the
back-bone.
2574. The opportunity is taken to mark
the ears of lambs ; and in the case of stock
on hill farms, where it is not easy to gather
the flock frequently, the operation is very
properly performed now ; but as Leicester
lambs are not marked in the ear at this
time, I shall defer describing that operatiou
until its proper season in summer.
2575. The scrotum does not bleed in
castration, but the tail often bleeds in dock-
ing for a long time in two minute and for-
cible streams, though usually the bleeding
soon stems. Siiould it continue as long as to
sicken the lamb, a small cord should be
tied firmly round the end of the tail; but
this must not be allowed to remain on
above 24 Iiours, as the point of the tail
Tvould die by the stoppage of the circula-
tion of the blood, and slough off.
2576. In some cases inflammation en-
sues, and the scrotum swells, and even
suppurates, when the wound should be
carefully examined, the matter discharo-ed,
and the wound soon heals. The advan-
tage of performing the operation in the
morning is, that the several cases may
be observed during the day; an<l should
the weather have changed for the worse
towards the afternoon, the ewes, with
the lambs that have just been cut, should
be brought under shelter all night. Be-
sides the state of the weather, one cause
of inflammation is the scratching of the
wound of the scrotum by the points of the
stubble amongst the new grass, and this
irritation is most likely to be induced when
the castration has been performed by cut-
ting off the point of the scrotum. To
avoid this source of irritation, the new-cut
lambs should be put into a field of new
grass, where the stubble has been mown
short, or into a field of old grass, for a
few days. The practice of applying tur-
pentine to the incision on the scrotum
gives unnecessary pain, and serves no good
2Jurpose.
2577. Sometimes one of the testicles
does not descend into the scrotum, in
which case the lamb becomes what is
called a chaser, that is, one which con-
600
PRACTICE— SPRING.
stantly follows the females of the flock,
wheu near him, from insatiable desire.
2578. Ewes and lambs are subject to
these various risks, until they may be
said to be beyond danger ; and when
tliey have passed through those several
triads in safety, the shepherd may cal-
culate on the result of his success, — he
may then endeavour to ascertain whether
he has increased the breeding part of his
flock in the pnjportion it should have in-
creased. He should not be satisfied with
his exertions, unless he has preserved one-
half the nuniberof ewes with twin-lambs,nor
should he Congratulate himself if he has
lost a single ewe in lambing. I am aware
these results cannot always be commanded ;
but I believe an attentive and skilful
shepherd will not be satisfied for all his
toil, night and day, for three weeks, if he
has not attained those results. The ewes
may have lambed twins to greater number
than the half, and yet many pairs may
have been broken to supply the deficiencies
occasioned by the deaths of single lambs.
The death of single lambs is a vexatious
matter to a shepherd, as it not only breaks
the pairs, but imposes very considerable
trouble on him in viothcrivg the lambs of
broken twins upon the ewes which bore
the single lambs; and yet the trouble
must be undertaken, to retain the ewes in
milk that have lost their lambs, and also to
maintain them in a breeding state for
future years.
2.579. In fine steady weather, the shep-
herd proceeds with his labour in comj)ara-
tive ease ; but when stormy or wet
weather prevails, or comes at unexpected
intervals, the number of lambings are not
only accelerated, but every ewe most
probably creates some trouble, even in the
day-time. " Daylight has many eyes,"
and permits him to observe casualties in
time to remedy their eflfects ; but at night,
in bad weather, with glimmering light,
difficulties increase tenfuhl ; and so sensibly
have I witnessed such dirticulties myself, I
am convinced every farmer of a large flock
would find it repay him at the end of the
lambing season, in the increased number
of {)reserved lambs and ewes, to afl'ord the
shepherd assistance at night in the most
busy period of the lambing season, accord-
ing to the circumstances of the case.
2.580. In regard to the yield of lambs
of the Cheviot breed, it is considered a
favourable result t« rear a lamb for each
ewe; with South-downs a little more;
and with Black-faced ewes, 18 Iambs out
of the score of ewes is perlia]>s one as
favourable. Cheviots yield a few pairs.
South-downs a few more, Black-faced
very few, and half the nuniberof Leicester
ewes should have twin lambs. The Che-
viot and South-down ewe sometimes
requires assistance in lambing, the Black-
faced seldom, the Leicester always.
2581. The state of the new grass-fields
occupied by ewes and lambs reijuires con-
sideration. Ewes bite very close to the
ground, and eat constantly as long as the
lambs are with them ; and as they are
put on the new grass in the latter end of
March, before vegetation is much ad-
vanced, they soon render the pasture bare
when overstocked, in the most favourable
circumstances, and especially when the
weather is unfavourable to vegetation.
In cold weather in 8i)ring, bitten grass
soon becomes brown. Whenever the pas-
ture is seen to fail, the ewes should be
removed to another field ; for if the plants
are allowed to be bitten into the heart in
the early part of the year, the greater part
of summer will pass ere they will recover
from the treatment. In steady growing
weather there need be little apprehension
of failure in the pasture. Of the sown
pastures, consisting chiefly of red clover
and rye-grass, the clover is always accept-
able to sheep ; and in the early part of
the season young shoots i>f rye-grass are
much relished by ewes. On removing the
ewes from the first to the second field, it
is better to eat the first down as low as it
safely can be for the j>lants, and then
hain it — that is, leave it unstocked for at
least a fortnight, to allow the young plants
to spring again, which they will do with
vigour, and with a much closer bottom —
than to pasture every field for a longer
time with fewer stock. Such a field,
eaten down to the end of May, or beginning
of June, and then hained and allowed to
spring afterwards in fine growing weather,
will yield a heavier crop of hay than if it
had not been pastured in spring at all. Al-
though the wiiole of the young gra-^s on a
farm, pastured lightly with ewes and lambs
in the spring, were to grow as the season
LAMBING OF EWES.
601
advances more rapidly than the ewes could
keep it down, it will never produce the
fine sweet fresh pasture which field after
field will yield that has been eaten down
in succession, and then hained for a
time. But in removing ewes and lambs
from a short to a full bite of grass, consi-
derable caution is requisite in choosing the
proper time for the removal. It should be
accomplished in dry weather, and in the
afternoon ; because, continued damjj or
rainy, or cold wet weather, renders new
grass so succulent and fermentable as
almost certain to produce the green skit in
the lambs, although that sort of weather
increases the milk of the ewes. In the
after part of the day the ewes have not
time to eat too much grass before night-fall.
2582. Carse farms have neither a standing
nor a flying stock of ewes, and consequently
have no lambing season ; neither have farms in
the neighbourhood of large towns, nor dairy
farms, nor pastoral ones for the breeding of
cattle alone ; so that ewes and Iambs are only
found on pastoral farms devoted to the breeding
of lambs, and on farms of mixed husbandry.
2583. But pastoral farms rear breeds of sheep
very different in their nature from the breed
whose lambing season we have been contemp-
lating, — a portrait of a ewe and lamb of
which may be seen in Plate Vll. On our hills
the Cheviot and Black-faced, or Heath sheep,
were long the only inhabitants, but now the
valuable South-down is added to the list. The
Cheviot and South-down thrive in semi-upland
green mountain pastures, such as the Downs and
the green hills of Cheviot, in England, and the
green hills of Ochils, Sidlaw, and Lammermnir
in Scotland ; while the Black- faced are found on
the highest mountains, not only as far as a plant
of heath can grow, but even beyond it, iu the
region of the cryptogama.
2584. In as far as the assistance of the shep-
herd is required to be given to ewes in lambing,
the observations I have made in reference to the
lambing of Leicester ewes will apply to those
of the Cheviot, South-down, and Black-faced
breeds ; but the ewes of these breeds do not
require assistance nearly to the same extent as
Leicester ewes, the lambs of the latter being
generally larger in proportion to the ewes, and
more square-built in form. Single lambs of the
other breeds are usually brought forth without
much assistance, and twin-lambs are so few that
the ewes bearing them may be singled out for
particular attention. A Cheviot single lamb
soon gets on foot after being lambed, and its
acute instinct as soon directs it to tlie teat.
The Black-faced lamb is fully more active after
being dropped, gaining its feet in a few minutes.
and its rough coat of wool serves to protect it at
once from the weather.
2585. Placed in shelter derived from one of the
many natural inequalities of the ground com-
mon in a pastoral country, both these breeds may
easily be tended in the lambing season during the
day; but the constant attention required of the
shepherd limits his ability to superintend, at this
particular period, a lambing flock beyond a cer-
tain number : 400 ewes are as many as one
shepherd can superintend in the course of the
day, to render them the assistance they may
stand in need of ; to place the new-lambed ewea
and lambs in shelter until they have both per-
fectly recovered, and are able to take to the
pasture ; and, in case of bad weather, to supply
them with turnips and hay, to enable them to
support their lambs until the weatlier becomes
favourable. If one shepherd fulfils these duties
in the day, he does quite enough; so that it will
be necessary to have an assistant for him in the
night, to gather the ewes into shelter at night-
fall, and to take a weakly lamb, or all the lambs
that have dropped during the night, into sheds
erected on purpose as a protection against bad
weather. To ascertain the state of his flock, he
should go through them with a lantern, at least
every two hours, and oftener if necessary. Lord
Napier recommends the construction of a " lamb-
ing park," for the use of ewes, and gives the cost
of making one to compreliend 25 acres of ground,
which shall accommodate 200ewesfortwo months,
with 2 stells and 2 stell-houses, and hay-racks, at
£.90, which, at 7 per cent interest, with repairs
of racks, &c., will incur an annual cost of
£7, 5s. 8d.* Such a placeof shelter and of enclo-
sure would, no doubt, be useful to a certain ex-
tent, but only to a limited extent ; for such a park
can only be formed in one part of the grazings,
where at times it will no doubt be exposed to
the weather, and as 25 acres would only contain
one-fifth of the flock at a time, in stormy wea-
tlier the rest, whether already lambed or yet to
lamb, require shelter as well as ewes expected
to lamb ; and the dividing of the flock every
day to get the 200 ewes with their lambs out,
and other 200 driven in, would make a serious
commotion amongst the ewes at a very cri-
tical period. I cannot help thinking that a
chosen spot selected to afford shelter, accord-
ing to the circumstances of the weather, to all
the ewes yet to lamb within a given time, and
where they could be partly supported on arti-
ficial food, whilst those which have lambed could
occupy at night a sheltered part of the best por-
tion of the pastures, would disturb lambing ewes
far less than a lambing park which was not con-
stantly occupied by all the ewes. It should be
remembered that hill sheep cannot be so easily
shifted from one place to another as Leicester
sheep, and especially in a grazing which has few
or no enclosures.
2586. Small pieces of English blanketing, to
be kept dry when not in use, to wrap round
and keep warm a weakly lamb in the shed, until
• Napier On Practical Store Farming, p. 155.
602
PRACTICE— SPRING.
it becomes strong by the effects of its mother's
milk, or of warm cow's milk admiuistered by
the shepherd, will be found useful articles by
every shepherd, and may be the means of pre-
serving the life of many a lamb. Many a lamb
I have seen recruited by this means, when it
would have otherwise perished of inanition.
2587. The period of lambing, in hill sheep, ia
longer than that of Leicesters, because the
gimmers are not tupped in the autumn until a
fortnight after the ewes, and, of course, do not
begin to lamb in the spring until a fortnight
later. The ewes begin to lamb about the 20th
April, and the gimmers a fortnight after.
2588. To strengthen the gimmers, and to bring
a flush of milk upon them, they are separated
from the ewes about a month before their lamb-
ing time, and are supplied with turnips to the
amount of a double horse-load, say 15 cwt., to
every 100 or 120 gimmers. About a fortnight before
the ewes lamb, they get the same quantity of
turnips for every 160 ewes. In mountain farms,
where there are no turnips, hay should be sup-
plied in the same manner to the gimmers and
ewes. A quantity of hay, expended at this
time, will be more than repaid in the safety of
the lambs and the vigour of the ewes, especially
in unfavourable weather.
2589. A few observations by Mr Little oq
the qualifications of a kill shepherd, are worth
your perusal, as containing much good prac-
tical sense. " Much," he says, '* of the suc-
cess in sheep-farming depends on the skill and
application of shepherds, as well as on the
judgment of farmers. As the situation of a
shepherd is one of considerable trust, he ought
to be honest, active, useful, and of a calm tem-
per ; for if at any time a shepherd gets into a
passion with his sheep, it is attended with great
disadvantage in herding, or in working among
them. I have known a hasty passionate man,
with a rash dog, give himself double the trouble
in managing a hirsel of sheep, besides abusing
the sheep, that a calm good-tempered man, with
a sagacious close-mouthed dog, would have had
in the same circumstances. The qualification
required in taking care of a hirsel of sheep, is,
not in running, hounding, and training dogs, nor
in performing a day's work of any other kind;
but in directing them according to the soil, cli-
mate, and situation of the farm, in such a manner
as they shall obtain the greatest quantity of food
at all seasons of the year. Their health and
comfort ^hould be carefully looked after by the
shepherd : and if his exertions are made with
judgment, they are of very great consequence to
the farmer. It is not by walking much, and
doing a great deal, that a shepherd is a good
one ; but it is knowing tchere to walk, so as to
disturb the sheep the least, and by doing at the
time whatever is necessary to be done. There
is not an experienced shepherd, who has been
any length of time on one farm, who does not,
as soon as he rises in the morning, and observing
the state of the weather, know almost to a cer-
tainly where to find every sheep on the hill, and
will accordingly take his course to the places where
he knows his presence is most wanted. The object
in looking over a hill every evening and morning,
is to ascertain if there be no trespassers nor dis-
ease among the sheep which require looking
after. If any of your own or neiglibour's sheep
have trespassed, it is very fooli^h to dog or abuse
them, for the more gently you can turn them
back the better. If the boundary should be on
the top of a height, to which sheep are apt to
draw at night, it is better to turn your own a
little closer to the boundary in the afternoon,
than to turn back your neighbour's, and it will
answer the same purpose ; and if the two flocks
are gently divided in the morning, without dogs,
they will become so well acquainted wiih their
own side, that at the very sight of the shepherd
they will take to it without farther trouble.
Those shepherds who dog, force, and shed much
about a march, I consider them as bad herds for
their masters as for the neighbouring farmer. If
the boundary be a brook or low ground, where
the sheep graze in the middle of the day, and if
trespasses are likely to be consideraLle, the
same plan of turning the sheep should be taken
as on the height, except that they are to be
turned down in the morning, and set out in the
afternoon. When a sheep dies on the hill, or
any disease appears among them, the dead or
diseased sheep should be removed immediately,
but particularly so if the disease is of an infec-
tious nature. Looking regularly over a hill is of
great consequence, also, in case of any sheep
falling into a ditch, or lamb losing its mother, or
when they are annoyed by flies or maggots, or by
foxes or dogs worrying them, or when tliey fall
on their back and cannot get up again. All
these incidents an active shepherd with a good
eye will soon discover, however much a flock
may be scattered over a farm. ... In good
weather tKe shepherd may possibly do all that
can be done among the ewes in the lambing sea-
son; but in bad weather it is tlie farmer's inte-
rest to afford every necessary assistance, for the
want of which, serious losses have often been
incurred. . . . Knowing sheep by head-mark
often saves a shepherd much trouble, particularly
in the lambing season, and at all sortings of the
slieep; yet there are many good shepherds who
do not know sheep by head-marks, and there are
some very ordinary ones who have a talent in
that way. Every individual may be kuown by
the stock mark. To possess the knack of count-
tMij sheep readily is of no small service to s
shepherd, for he ought always to be able to count
his flock when he makes his rounds on the hill.
There are few shepherds who accustom them-
selves to count sheep, who cannot, wherever
they meet with them on a hill, count 100 going at
large, or even 200, and it seldom happens that a
greater number than 200 will be found together
in an open hirsel. To know the number in the
different lots is of great use in case of a hasty
blast, as you can, in that event, know alnio?t to
a certainty wlietliir or not any sheep are awant-
ing, and from what part of the farm. A shep-
herd ought likewise to be able tv do ant/ kind of
ttork nbuiit a slie>p t'nrni, such as cutting himbs,
smearing, slaughtering, dressing for the market.
LAMBING OF EWES.
603
repairing stone-dykes, dlfeaning out drains, mow-
ing grass, making hay, casting and winning
peat-turf for fuel, &c.; but he ought at no time
to neglect the sheep for such work. Shepherds
are generally accounted lazy; but those who
really care fur their sheep will not be so. Much
walking unfits a man for hard labour, as much
as hard labour unfits a man for much walking;
but labourers will generally be found more lazy
on a hill, or among sheep, than shepherds at
field-work."*
2590. Slipping of the lamb. — Ewes in lamb
are liable to abortion, or slipping of the lamb,
as it is termed, as well as the cow, but not so
much, nor is the complaint considered epidemical
in the sheep. Various causes produce it, such as
severe weather in winter, having to endure much
fatigue in snow, leaping ditches, being frightened
by dogs, over-driving. It is stated by Mr.
Youatt, that too liberal use of salt will produce
abortion. The wool is apt to come off in spring
after abortion. It is scarcely possible to predi-
cate abortion in sheep, on account of their woolly
covering, but its immediate effects of duluess on
the ewe, and of a redness under the tail, will be
symptoms notices! by an observant shepherd.
" The treatment after abortion," observes Mr
Youatt, " will depend entirely on the circum-
stances of the case. If the foetus had been long
dead, proved by the fetid smell of it, and of the
vaginal discharge, the parts should be washed
with a weak solution in water (1 to 16) of the
chloride of lime, some of which may also be in-
jected into the uterus. If fever should super-
vene, a dose of Epsom salts, tiraeously adminis-
tered, will remove the symptoms. If debility
and want of appetite should remain, a l.ttle
gentian and ginger, with small doses of Epsom
salts, will speedily restore the animal. Care
should be taken that the food shall not be too
nutritive or too great in quantity."
2591. Labour of eices. — In protracted labour,
when the ewe is becoming weak, she will be
much relieved by receiving a table-spoonful of
brandy and sweet spirit of nitre in equal parts,
•with a drinking-horn. To produce pains in a
ewe when she becomes apathetic in lambing,
2 table-spoonfuls of a strung infusion of the er-
got of rye, repeated in a second dose in a quar-
ter of an hour, will produce pains and ease the
labour. In cases where it is impossible to ex-
tract the lamb, and the life of both lamb and
ewe is in danger, the Coesarian operation — that
is, extracting the lamb from the womb by an
incision made in the side and in the womb of the
ewe — has been performed with su;;cess. " la
some lambs that are born apparently dead, the
vital principle is not extinct, but it would soon
be so if the little animal were suffered to remain
on the cold damp grass. Every lamb that is
found in this situation should be carefully exa-
mined, and if there is the slightest degree of
warmth remaining about it, the shepherd should
blow into its mouth in order to inflate the lungs:
many a little one has tiius been saved. The
shepherd need trouble himself very little about
the expulsion of the placenta or cleansing,
although a day or two may pass before it is
detached. A couple of ounces of Epsom salts,
with a little ginger, may be given if there should
be a longer delay, or if symptoms of fever should
be exhibited; but the farmer would do well to
avoid the rough barley or the misletoe, or ia
fact any stimulant, for there is at this time suf-
ficient disposition to fever, without its being
artificially set up."
2592. Inflammation. — " The inflammation of
the womb, after parturition, usually comes on
between the first and the fourth day, and es-
pecially when any violence has been used in
extracting the lamb. It is a most fatal disease,
and speedily runs its course. The treatment
should be bleedings and purgatives of Epsom
salts. Connected with this disease are after-
pains or heaving, to which ewes are subject, and
which are frequently severe and destructive.
They are apparently the same pains, but con-
siderably stronger, which nature uses to expel
the lamb. It is evidently produced by the ewes
being too well kept during their pregnancy. It
cannot be too often repeated, that it is a fatal
error to overfeed the ewes at this period, with
the view of giving them strength to support their
approaching labour. It is a most unscientific
and injurious practice, and severely does the far-
mer suffer for it. But there is some epidemic
influence at work, or the constitution of the
sheep is at that time irritable almost beyond be-
lief."
2593. Purging in lamhs. — Young lambs, as
long as they are dependent on their mother for
food, are subject to few diseases. A change to
new luxuriant grass in damp weather may bring
on the skit or diarrhoea, and exposure to cold
may produce the same efiect. As long as it feeds
and plays, there is little danger; but should it
appear dull, its eyes watery and heavy, and its
joints somewhat stiff", remedial means should
immediately be used. " A gentle aperient is
first indicated in order to carry off" any offensive
matter that may have accumulated in and dis-
turbed the bowels; half an ounce of Epsom
salts, with half a drachm of ginger, will consti-
tute the best aperient that can be administered.
To that must be added a table-spoonful of sheeps'
cordial, consisting of equal parts of brandy and
sweet spirit of nitre, housing and nursing." But
there is a species of apparent purging, which is
a more dangerous disease than the skit. " In
the natural and healthy state of the milk and
the stomach, curd produced by the gastric juice
gradually dissolves and is converted into chyme;
but when the one takes on a morbid hardness,
and the other may have lost a portion of its
energy, the stomach is literally filled with curd,
and all its functions suspended. The animal
labours under seeming purging, from the quan-
tity of whey discharged, but the actual disease
is constipation. It is apt to occur about the
time when the lamb begins to graze, and whea
Little's Practical Observations on Mountain Sheep, p.^9-8(J.
604
PRACTICE— SPRING.
the function of the stomach is naturally some-
what deranged. Chemistry teaches us, that
while a free acid produces coagulation of the
milk, an alkali will dissolve that coagulum.
Magnesia, therefore, should be administered,
suspended in thin gruel, or ammonia largely di-
luted with water, and with them should be com-
bined Epsom salts to hurry the dissolved mass
along, and ginger to excite the stomach to more
powerful contraction. Head's stomach-pump
will be found a most valuable auxiliary here.
A perseverance in the use of these means will
sometimes be attended with success ; and, the
little patient being somewhat relieved, the
lamb and the mother should be moved to some-
what better pasture."
2594. Contiteneas in lambs. — Besides loose-
ness, lambs are at times subject to costiveness in
the bowels. In the first few days of its exis-
tence the foeces they void has a very viscid
consistence, which, when it falls on the tail, has
the effect of gluing it to the vent and of stop-
ping up that passage. On the removal of the
obstruction by scraping with a knife, the symp-
tom will also be removed. A worse species of
costiveness is, when a few drops of liquid fceces
fall occasionally to the ground accompanied by
straining, as it is generally accompanied with
fever that may be dangerous. Half-ounce doses
of Epsom salts should be administered every 6
hours until the bowels are evacuated, after
which both ewe and lamb should be turned into
more succulent pasture, as the cause of the com-
plaint is to be found in bare pasture in dry
weather.
2505. Fnerin lambs. — In cases of fever, which
may be observed from the duliiess of the lamb
and its quick breathing, the administration of
tolerable doses of Epsom salts will generally
avert the malady at its commencement.
2596. Udder - clap. — After recovery from
lambing, the only complaint the ewe is subject to
is inflammation in the udder, or udder-dap or
garget. Of this complaint Mr Youatt gives a
good idea of its origin and of its treatment in
these words : — " The f^hepherd, and especially in
the early period of suckling, should observe
whether any of the ewes are restless and exhibit
symptoms of pain when the lambs are sucking,
or will not permit them to suck at all. The ewe,
like the cow, or oftener than that animal, is sub-
ject to inflammation of the udder during the
time of suckling, caused either by the hardness
or dryness of the soil on which she lies; or, on
the other hand, by its too great moisture and
filth, or by some tendency to general inflanima-
tiun and determination to the udder by the bumps
and bruises, sometimes not a little severe, from
the head of the lamb. If there is any refusal
on the part of the ewe, or even disinclination, to
permit the young one to suck, she must be caught
and examined. Tliere will generally be found
redness and enlargement and tenderness of one
or both of the teats, or sometimes the whole of
the udder, and several small distinct kernels or
tumours on different parts of the bag. The
udder should be cleared of the wool which sur-
rounds it, and should be well fomented with
warm water, a dose of Epsom salts administered,
and then, if there are no large distinct knots er
kernels, she should be returned to her lamb,
whose sucking and knocking about of the udder
will contribute, more than any other means, to
the dispersion of the tumour and the regular flow
of milk. It may occasionally be necessary to
confine her in a pen with her little one, in
order that he may have a fair chance to suck.
A day, however, having passed, and she not per-
mitting it to suck, the lamb must be taken away,
the fomentation renewed, and an ointment, com-
posed of 1 drachm of camphor rubbed down
with a few drops of spirit of wine, 1 drachm of
mercurial ointment, and 1 oz. of elder ointment,
well incorporated together, must be rubbed into
the affected part, or the whole of the udder, two
or three times a day. She must also be bled,
and the physic repeated. If the udder should
continue to enlarge, and the heat and tenderness
should increase, and the knots and kernels be-
come more numerous and of greater size, and
some of them sliould begin to soften or evidently
to contain a fluid, no time must be lost, for this
disease is abundantly more rapid in its progress
in the sheep than in the cow. A deep incision
must be made into that part of the udder where
the swellings are ripest, the pus or other matter
squeezed out, and the part well fomented again.
To this should succeed a weak solution of the
chloride of lime, with which the ulcer should be
well bathed two or three times in the day. When
all fetid smell ceases and the wound looks
healthy, the friar's balsam may be substituted for
the chloride of lime. The progress of disorgani-
sation and the process of healing are almost
incredibly rapid in these cases, and the lamb
may sometimes be returned to the mother in the
course of a few days. There are particular sea-
sons, especially damp and warm ones, when there
is a superfluity of grass, in which garget is pecu-
liarly frequent and fatal. Without warning, the
udder swells universally with hardened teats,
which sometimes bring on great inflammation,
and if that is not stopped in the course of 24
hours, part, if not the whole, of the udder mor-
tifies, and the mortification rapidly spreads, and
the sheep dies."*
2597. In case of an individual ewe, of a large
flock of a pastoral farm, straying a considerable
distance from the shed erected to :ifford shelter
to ewes, or has suft'cred in hard labour, or has a
weakly lamb, or has twins which are apt to stray
from her or she from them, or has been over-
taken by a rude blast immediately after lambing,
a contrivance to afford such ewes temporary
shelter, especially under night, having been used
by Mr Nicholas Burnett, Blaik Iledley, near
Gateshead, with success, seems to deserve atten-
tion. It consists of an enclosure of boards, or a
box, as seen in fig. 226, whereof a is the front,
which removes by hooks at the sides to admit the
Youatt On Sheep, p. 497-515.
LAMBING OF EWES.
605
ewe'and her lamb within, and where she is pro-
vided with a manger 6 to contain sliced turnips
or oil-cake, and a rack c for hay, to fill both of
which access is obtained by the lid d, movable
on its hinges. I have been assured by Mr Bur-
Fie. '226.
2599. A snojr-harrotr and a snoir-plovqli will be
found useful implements for the purpose, and
those recommended by Mr Hepburn of Cul-
qnhalzie seem to possess every re<iuisite. The snow-
harrow is represented by fig. 227. It consists of
a single bull a b, 45 inches square, and 6 feet
THE EWK-HOUSE.
nett, that in using this contrivance, which, being
a light implement, can be easily carried to any
spot, he has had the satisfaction of using it as a
means of saving the lives both of ewes and
lambs which would have otherwise perished from
exposure. The size of the ewehuusc, as it is
called, may be made to suit that of the sheep
bred on the farm, and as it is not costly, any
number can be made to be used at a time ; but a
useful size will be found to be the following : —
Length 5 feet 6 inches, breadth 3 feet, height 3
feet, breadth of the covered part d, 2 feet 7
inches, and rise of the slope at d, 7 inches. The
fork e leaning against the side of the ewe-house
may be used to grasp a ewe's neck, while lying
on the ground, and to fasten it down, while the
shepherd is lambing her without other assis-
tance ; but the method of holding a ewe between
the heel and knee, which I have described above,
(2547,) renders such an instrument of little use.
2.'598. One of the greatest sources of loss
among lambs on hill farms is a fall of snow at
the lambing season, or a continuance of snow to
that period, Ground rendered wet by the melt-
ing of new-fallen snow is in a worse state for
lambs than when made wet by rain, as in the
latter case the temperature of the air is higher,
though wet ground of every kind is inimical to
the safety of new-dropped lambs. In such a
case, the driest part of the farm, combined with
shelter, should be chosen for the lambing ground,
though it may be inconvenient in some other
respects ; but should the best lambing ground be
covered with old snow, especially in sheltered
spots, and the temperature of the air be gene-
rally above the freezing point, could the snow be
stirred by any means, it would melt much faster
than it would of itself.
THE MOUNTAIN SNOW-HARROW.
long; and in the middle of which, on the under
side, apiece of li-inch plank c, 3 feet long, is
s ink flush transversely, for the attachment of
the draught-hook c, and the stilt rf to steady the
motion of the implement. In the bull are fixed,
by screw-nuts at intervals of 10 inches. 7 cutters
e«, &c., 9 inches long and 1| inch bruad, sabre
shiped, with their points turned backwards, so
as to be less liable to be arrested by obstacles on
the surface of the ground. Between these cut-
ters are fixed 6 shorter ones/, &c., 3 inches long,
having their points turned forwards. This im-
plement, dragged by one horse ridden by a boy,
and the stilt held by a man, cuts the frozen snow
into stripes of 5 or 6 inches broad, which are
easily pulverised by the feet of the sheep, or di-
vided by the snow-plough. The severe snow-
storm of 1823 lay on the hills from February to
May ; and the protracted snow-storms of 1837-8,
with repeated falls and alternatioas of frost and
thaw, caused the death of many a sheep before
and at the lambing season. The snow became
so compact in the latter year, that the common
snow-plough was unable to penetrate it, and the
common harrow to break its glazed surface.
2600. With the view of obviating both these
inconveniences, Mr Hepburn contrived the snow-
harrow described above, and also the snow-plough,
of which the following is a description in Mr
Hepburn's own words:— "The severity of the
winter of 1837-8 in mountain sheep-pasture, led
me to attempt the snow-plough, with or without
the aid of the snow-harrow, for being applied in
such situations. To enable the plough to clear
tracks for the sheep along the hill sides, it is
necessary it should be made to throw the snow
wholly to the lower side. To efi'ect this I caused
to be fitted to the plough a, fig. 228— the body
of which forms an isoceles triangle whose sides
are 7^ feet, and its base 6 feet in length, the
depth of the sides being 15 inches — a shifting
head 6 c d, with unequal sides; one, 6 c, being 18
inches, the other, b d, 30 inches long, fixed by
iron pins passing through two pairs of eyes as
seen at c, attached to the head and to the sides
of the plough respectively, so as to bring the
point of the attached head of the plough nearly
into the line of its upper side, or next the bill.
9M
PRACTICE— SPRING.
The Btilt g at the same time was made movable
by a hinge-joint at its anterior extremity, fixed
to the bottom of the head from the post/, so as
to be capable of being fixed to the cross-bar or
Fig. 228.
THB MOUNTAIN TURN-WRIST SNOW-PLOUGH.
Btretcher e, either in the line bisecting the
angle, as at e, which is the position for level
ground, or in the line, alternately, of either of
the sides, 6 a or 6 c, when to be used on a decli-
tity. The draught-chain is fixed, not to the
shifting head, but to the upright frame-post /, in
the nose of the plough, which rises 10 or 12
inches above the mould-boards. When the
plough so constructed is to be worked along a
declivity, with the left hand towards the hill, the
shorter limb of the shifting head is fixed on the
left side of the plough, near the point, and the
longer limb on the right side, towards the mid-
dle ; and the stilt being fixed in the left extre-
mity of the cross-bar, nearly in a line with the
temporary point, the plough is necessarily drawn
in the direction of its left side, so as to throw
the snow •■vbolly to the right down the hill.
When the plough is to return across the declivity,
with its right side to the hill, the movable head
is detached by drawing out the linch-pins, is
turned upside down, and fixed in the reverse
position ; the shorter limb being attached to the
right side, and the longer to the left side of the
plough, while the stilt is brought to the right
extremity of the cross-bar. The plough is then
drawn iu the direction of the right side, and the
snow is thrown wholly to the left, near the lower
side. Should the lower side of the plough show
a tendency to rise, it may either be held down
by a second movable stilt, fixed to the middle «
of the cross-bar, or a block of wood, or other
ballast weight may be placed on that side of the
plough. The plough will be found to remove
considerably more than its own depth of snow.
When a plough of 1 foot high passes through
snow 18 inches or 2 feet deep, very little of the
snow falls back into the track, and what does so
fall is easily cleared out by the plough iu return-
ing."*
2601. In lowland farms the snow remains
around the fences long after the middle of the
fields are clear. A speedy means of getting rid
of the snow is to cut it with the common plough
repeatedly. Had I not adopted this expedient
in the spring of 1823, the oat-seed would not have
been begun for a fortnight later than it did.
2602. In regard to the treatment of sheep on
turnips in spring, they are managed in the same
way as in winter, until removed to grass, which
they are whenever the turnips fail.and are kept on
for a short time until the weather becomes mild
enough to have them shorn of their wool, and
then sold to the butcher ; but other farmers pre-
fer selling them fat in the rough state off the tur-
nips, that is, before the wool is clipped off them.
The circumstances which regulate these different
cases will be explained iu Summer.
ON CROSS-PLOUGHING LAND.
2603. Immediately after the sowing of
the oats is finished, preparations are made
for sowing such of the turnip land with
harley as has been made bare by the
direct removal of the turnips, or the
eating them off by the slieep, after the
time for sowing the spring wheat has
expired; and the first preparatiim of the
soil for the barley seed is the ploughing it
across, or at right angles to the future
ridges. This operation I shall describe,
not merely in reference to the preparation
for the sowing of the barley, but to other
operations.
2604. I have already stated in (768,)
that the object of cross-ploughing is to
cut the furrow-slices into small pieces, so
that the land may be the more easily pul-
verised; and I have alsoshown that the land
is feered and the horses directed for cross-
ploughing, in the same manner as for
ploughing two-out and two- in ; and have
indicated thestate in which the land is left by
thatoperalion — a state in which it wouhl be
very improper to leave it all winter (2448.)
2605. The surface of the ground, as left
by the sheep on eating the turnips grow-
ing on it, is in a smooth state, presenting
no clods of earth but numbers of small
round stones, when the soil is a dry grav-
ally loam. The larger of these stones
should be removed with carts filled by the
field-workers before the cross-jiloughing is
even begun to be feered. These small
stones are useful in filling any drain that
niav be near at hand, or they may be
broken in a convenient place for metal to
rei)air a iarm road. A plough then starts
and feers the ground for cross-ploughing,
and the rest of the ploughs cross-plough
the land as described in (?68.)
Prize Efsays of the Ilighland and Agricultural Society, vol. xiii. p. 191.
''^.■•■>*^
CROSS-PLOUGHING LAND.
607
2606. The reason that the land is cross-
ploughed for barley, and not for spring
wheat, after turnips eaten off by sheep, is
that wheat thrives best when the soil is
somewhat firm, and not too much pulver-
ised— whereas the land cannot be in too
pulverised a state for barley ; and, besides,
if the turnip land were not cross-ploughed
after the sheep have left it, their manure
would not be sufficiently mingled with the
soil, and the consequence would be that
the barley would grow irregularly in
small stripes, corresponding to the drills
that had been manured for the turnip crop.
2607. During the time the land is
gradually preparing for the barley seed,
as the sheep clear the ground of the
turnips, the stubble land, which had been
ploughed early in winter, and which is to
bear the green crops in the ensuing season,
should now be cross-ploughed as oppor-
tunity offers, after the oat seed is com-
pletely finished upon ploughed lea-land ;
for iu high districts, where barley is not
sown, oats are sown on the turnip land
after sheep ; and, where this is dune, the
oats are treated in the same manner as
barley. The portion of the stubble land
first to be cross-ploughed is for the cul-
ture of the potato.
2608. The first thing to be done in
preparing any winter-ploughed field for
cross -ploughing is to render its surface as
free of large clods as possible ; and this is
effected by harroicivy. The winter's
frost may have softened the clods of the
most obdurate clay-soil, and the mould-
board of the plough may he able to pulver-
ise them fine enough, and the lighter soils
may have no clods on them at all ; from
all which circumstances, it may be regarded
as a loss of time to harrow the ground
before cross-ploughing it in spring, and,
for these reasons, I believe, some farmers
do not then practise harrowing; but it
appears to me to be tiie most certain plan
of pulverising the soil to harrow it before
cross-ploughing the winter furrow; because
you cannot be sure that, even in the
strongest soil, all the clods have been
softened to the heart by fiost ; and should
any liap[)en to be buried by the cross-
furrow while still hard, they will not
afterwards be so easily pulverised as when
lying exposed upon the surface of the
groundHo the action of the harrow ; and
in the lightest soils, the harrows not only
make a smoother surface, but assist in
intermixing the dry frost-pulverised soil
of the surface with the moister and firmer
soil below, at least as far as the tines of
the harrows can reach.
2609. There is not much time lost in
harrowing before cross ploughing ; for
although the harrowing should require a
double tine, to pulverise the clods, or
equalise the texture of the ground, the
harrowing should be across instead of
along the ridges, that the open furrows
may be filled up with soil as much as pos-
sible, whether the land had been ploughed
with gore-furrows, fig. 23, or not. The
most obdurate state of ground can be har-
rowed in a short time.
2610. Two pairs of harrows s])ould be
set to cross-harrow together, as being the
best method of harrowing efl'ectually in all
cases; and, when unconfined by ridges
in cross-harrowing, will cover at least 16
feet in breadth, and proceeding at the
rate of 2 miles per hour, for i) working
hours, will give 19 acres of ground a
double tine, without interruptions ; but,
as much time is lost in turnings, as you
have already seen (721,) and as time for
taking breath must occasionally be given
to the horses, that quantity of land cannot
be cross-harrowed a double tine at that
rate of travelling; but say that" 16 acres
are cross-liarrowed in the course of a day,
a half day's harrowing will make room for
a number of ploughs.
2611. If time presses, the feerings for
cross-ploughing may be commenced to be
formed by one plough almost immediately
after the harrows have started; and if the
harrows cauTiot get away before the plough,
it should take a bout or two in the first
feering, till the han-ows have reached the
next feering, or the harrows may pass along
the line of each feering, preparing each line
for the plough, and then return and finish
the harrowing of the ground between the
lines of feerings. Thus, in fig. 229, after
the line of feering <?/ across the ridges has
been harrowed, the plough can either take
a bout or two around ef, till the harrows
have passed the next line of feering (; h;
or the harrows can fro alonir each line of
608
PRACTICE— SPRING.
feerintf, first ^ /, tlien ^ ^, then i k, and return and liarrow out tlie pround between
so al<)ng / m and n o, in succession, to e and {f, p and i, i and I, and /and rj. In
prepare tlie ground for feering, and then this way the harrowing, aud fcering, and
Fig. ^-Jf).
a
A FIELD FEERED FOR BEING CROSS-PLOUGHED.
the ploujrhins of the different feerinjrs, it is cratifving to the minds of labourers
may be proceeded with at the san:e time, to think that, as their work proceeds,
But if the time is not urgent, the systematic they approach the nearer home; wiiile it
mode is to harrow the fiehl across in a
continuous manner, beginning along the
fence a h from the gate at i, and proceed-
ing bv breadths of the harrows across the
field till the other side of it c </ is reached ;
or another equally effective mode is to
conveys to others the idea of a well-laid
[ilan, to witness the operations of a field
which have commenced at its farthest end,
and are finished at the gate, where all the
implements employed meet, ready to be
conveyed to another field. The irate is
step off feerings from a b, in breadths of like home, and in most cases it is placed
30 yards in succession, across the field
towards c d, which has the advantage of
giving a wider, and therefore easier turn-
ing to the horses at the landings.
2G12. Suppose, then, that all or as
much of the field to be cross-ploughed has
been harrowed as will give room to a
single plough to niake the feerings without
interruption. In choi sing the side of the
field at which the feerings should com-
mence, it is a convenient rule to begin at
the side farthest from the gate, and ap-
proach gradually towards it, and the con
on tiiat side or corner of the field nearest
the steading. In the particular case,
however, of the field represented in fig.
229, all these conveniences are not avail-
able, owing to the form of the field, which
is a very commfm one; and peculiarities
of form involve considerations in regard to
conducting field operations of more impor-
tance than mere convenience; and one of
these considerations is the imj'ortant one
of loss of time. It is always desirable to
commence a feering at a s(ral«//it side of a
field, whence but little risk of error can
irise in striking off the feerings to include
venience consists in not having to pass the jtarallel spaces of ground; and where this
ends of the finished feerings, and thus
avoiding the trampling of the ploughed
land to get at the unploughed. The con-
venience of this rule is felt not only in
cross-ploughing, but in prosecuting every
species of field-work ; and besides avoid-
ing the risk of damage to finished work,
particular is not attended to, much time is
needlessly spent in ploughing a number of
irregular pieces of ground. It is better to
leave all irregularities of ploughing to the
last ; an<l as an irregularity must occur,
at all events, along the side of a crooked
fence, it is a saving of time to throw the
CROSS-PLOUGHING LAND.
609
irregular ploughing to that side. In fig.
220 it so happens tliat the straighter side
of the field is nearest the gate at b^ and
the crooked fence, c to d, farthest from it.
In pursuance of the rule propoun<led, the
feering should begin along the side of the
straight fence a b, and terminate in an
irregular space along the crooked fence
c d. A straight feering could, no doubt,
be made at first near c </, leaving irregu-
larities between it and the fence ; but the
setting off that feering exactly parallel
with the straight fence « i, to avoid mak-
ing anotherirregularity there, would impose
considerable trouble, and take up more
time than the advantage would compensate
for avoiding the inconvenience of having
to pass the ends of the ploughed ground
along the side-ridge from d to b.
2613. Let the first feering, then, be
made about 7 or 8 yards from the fence
a b, or from the ditch-lij) of the fence
where there is a ditch. Some farmers
neglect the head-ridge in the cross-plough-
ing, and measure the feering from the
open furrow between it and the ends of
the ridges. I maintain that the head-
ridges should be ploughed at this time, as
well as the rest of the field, and if ne-
glected now, the busy seasons of spring and
of early summer will prevent attention
being paid to them, till, what with the
trampling of horses in working the land
for green crop, and the probable drought
of the weather, they will become so very
Lard, as to be found inipractical)le to plough
them at all, and they will then be deprived
of the ameliorating effects of the sun and
air in the best part of the year. Let them,
therefore^ be included in the cross-plough-
ing of the field, though they cannot be
cro5s-ploughed themselves.
2614. But if it be desired to plough
them with the side-ridges, which form the
head-ridges in the cross-ploughing, afcer
the cross-ploughing of the field has been
finished, and the side-ridges must be
ploughed before the crop, whatever it may
be, can be sown upon them, the first feer-
ing should then be struck at 7 or 8 yards
down the ridges from the side of the
liead-ridge. Suppose that this line of
feering isfe ; and as it is executed in the
same way as already described in feering-
ridges in fig. 19, where the furrow-slices
VOL. I.
m n are shown to be thrown out right and
left from the lines of feering k /, and o n,
I refer you to (742.) The next line of
feering is h g, fig. 229, at 30 yards' dis-
tance from /(?, and so on a feering is made
at every 30 yards' distance, to the last
feering o n. As each feering is formed by
the ploughman appointed to make them,
the rest of the ploughmen begin the cross-
ploughing at every feering in succession ;
and should all the feerings have been
finished before the ploughs have entered
the field, the ploughs can commence the
ploughing at once.
2615. The ploughing of the ordinary
feerings is all plain work ; but a difficulty
occurs at the last or irregular feering at
0 n — not that any intricacy is involved
in the ploughing of irregular pieces of
ground, but the loss of time incurred ia
considerable. This feering is ploughed
like the rest, till the nearest point to the
open-furrow of the iiead-ridge is attained;
and if the head-ridges have been included
in tlie feerings, the ploughing proceeds till
the ditch-lip or fence is reached by the
plough ; but if left to be ploughed with
the side-ridges, the last feering should bg
made across the lowest end of the ridges at
the head-ridge open-furrow, as o w, and
the ground included between the open-
furrow and the feering should be ploughed
out hj hieing the horses, with the ordinary
furrow above, o n, and an interrupted one
below it, the plough passing along the
head-ridge opposite to s, and leaving it
unploughed. This feering will take longer
time to plough than any of the rest, in
proportion to the quantity of ground turned
2616. Had the field been a true rect-
angle, like the space included within the
dotted lines a nt b, the feering might have
been struck from either fence, and there
would have been no loss of time in plough-
ing alternate long and short furrows.
Scarcely a more instructive estimate can
be made of the loss of time occasioned in
ploughing land of the same extent than be-
tween a field of irregular and regular form.
2617. The distances between the black
and dotted lines represent the single, and
those between the black and between the
dotted lines, double ridges.
2Q
610
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2G1S. The furrow g:iven at cross-plough-
ing is always deep, deeper than the one
given at the commencement of winter ; and
this is easily accomplished, hy the land not
having had time to consolidate by the
labour bestowed upon it, when the plough
passes easily under the old furrow, and
raises a portion of the soil below it. It is
requisite to go deeper to keep the plough
steady, otherwise the winter turned-over
furrow having in it still much unrotted
stubble, would affect its motion and i)re-
vent the maintaining of an equal depth of
furrow. Cross-jdoughing the first furrow
in spring is always an unsteady work, the
open-furrows presenting no resistance to
the plough compared with the land in the
centre of the ridge. Perhaps 9 inches may
be considered a good average depth in
cross ploughing with a pair of horses.
2619. But means are frequently used at
this season to cross-plough with a deeper
furrow than can be done by a pair of horses,
by employing 3 or 4 horses for the pur-
pose. The third horse is very commonly
yoked in front of the furrow horse of the
plough, and harnessed in the cart-traces,
as represented in the trace-horse of the
cart in Plate III, the hooks of the trace-
chain being passed into a link of the
plough-chains, behind the haims, of the
rear horse. A simpler plan is adopted by
using the plough harness, and lengthening
the plough-chains by short-ends, which
are short pieces of chain hooked in a
similar manner to the trace-chains just
described. Neither of these methods,
howeA'er, will bear a comparison, in point
of draught, ^'ith tl>e yoking of 3 horses, as
represented in fig. 8. I have an objec-
tion, however, to this mode of yoking,
which is founded, not on its principle,
•which is faultless, but on account of the
inconvenience experienced by the middle
horse, which becomes more heated in the
work than either of the other two. The in-
convenience may not be much felt in early
spring work, but at the time the largest
proportion of cross- ploughing is executed,
or in summer, the middle horse must
euflfcr considerably more than the others,
and I have frequently witnessed this in
places where 3 horses are still yoked a-
breast to the harrows. Three horses will
take adepthof furrowof 11 or 12 inches, ac-
cording to the texture and depth of the soil.
2620. A still greater depth may be at-
tained, by yoking 4 horses to a plough, 2
leading and 2 following, the 2 off ones
walking in the furrow, and the 2 near
ones on the firm land. Two convenient
and efficient modes of yoking 4 horses
may be seen in figs. 9 and 10. Yoked as
in fig. 9, the leading horses are best har-
nessed, as in the traces of the cart, Plate
III ; but, as in fig. 10, they are in their
usual plough harness, with the exception
of the chains, which are made for this
particular mode of yoking. The depth
reached by a 4-horse plough is, on an
average of soils, 14 inches. I have used
the 4-horse pluugh much, and stout, well-
matched horses have never reached less
than 14 inches in obdurate subsoils ; while
in freer soil and substratum, the plough
went to 16 inches of perpendicular depth,
and the work was most satisfactory.
2621. An ordinary stout plough will
answer for 3 horses, and so it may for
4, where no boulder stones are in the
land ; but where a considerable quantity
of 4-horse ploughing is desired to be exe-
cuted, it is better to have a plough made
for the purpose a little stronger than the
ordinary 2-horse plough.
2622. In a 3-horse yoke, one man may
drive all the horses by means of reins or
by the voice, though a boy, to assist the
turning of the leading horse, will save as
much time as will compensate for his
wages. Where 3 horses are yoked abreast,
one man may as easily manage the three as
two. In the case of 4 horses, one of the
ploughmen drives the horses, and this with
the whip instead of the reins, though the
near leader should have reins, and the
other ploughman holds the plough.
2623. Deep-ploughing is well executed
by two 2-horse ploughs following one
another in the same furrow ; and wiien the
substratum is free, this is a good way of stir-
ring up the soil to the moderate depth of
10 or eveu 12 inches.
2624. The 3 and 4 horse ploughs should
not be inconsiderately employed in cross-
ploughing in spring, because either mode
of ploughing occupying a considerably-
longer time with the same number of
ploughs, and employing more horses than
RIBBING LAND.
611
ordinary plougbing, cannot be prudently
employed on laud which is immediately to
be occupied by an early spring crop, such
as beans, though the time in which turnips
and fallow, and perhaps potatoes, when
cultivated to a limited extent, are respec-
tively tiuished, will afford sufficient leisure
to have the land for them deeply cross-
ploughed in the best manner.
2625. Deep cross-ploughing with a 3 or
4 horse plough should not be confounded
with trench-ploughing, which only deserves
the name when a 2-horse plough goes
before and turns over a furrow-slice, and
in the bottom of which the 4 horse plough
follows and goes as deep as it can. In
deep-ploughing the 4 horse plough goes as
deep as it can of itself; and it is rare that
it meddles with the subsoil, but, on the
contrary, it is the special object of trench-
ploughing to disturb the subsoil.
ON RIBBING LAND FOR THE SEED FURROW.
2626. A species of ploughing executed
with the small plough, in the same manner
as drilling in the single method, (2388)
and in form exactly resembling it on a
diminished scale, is named ribbing.
2627. Fig. 230 is a view in perspective
of an iron small plough, which,as isevident.
Fig. 230,
THE SMALL, OR RIBBING PLOUGH.
is exactly similar in construction to the
common plough, fig. 2, but in such smaller
dimensions and liirhtness as a single horse
can work it with ease. A single swing-bar
attached to the bridle is all the means of
attachment required for the use of the horse.
To afford the stilts the means of resisting
any cross-strain upon them, an iron rod is
fixed at one end to the inside of the land-
side of the plough, and on being brought
diagonally across the stills, is fastened at
the other end to the right hand or
little stilt, a little below the handle. The
other parts of the implement require no
particular description.
2628. Of the two modes of making single
drills, that made by this plough is neces-
sarily restricted to the one which lays the
furrow-slices towards the unploughed
ground, (2388 ;) because the ribs being
necessarily narrow, were clods and stones
to fall into ihe hollows, which the other
method would inevitably cause, the purpose
of the ribs forming a kindly seed-bed would
in a great measure be frustrated. The ribs
\?ith great pains can be formed as narrow
as 9 inches, and by careless ploughmen
they extend as wide as 14 inches, so that
1 2 inches may be considered a good me-
dium width. They are always formed on
the land after it has been ridged, being
only used for the seed-furrowing. The
best width of feering for making tliem ia
2 ridges, beginning on the furrow-brow
and laying the farrow slice into the middle
of tlie open furrow between the two ridges,
returning by the same furrow to the head-
ridge whence the feering was begun ; and
bv hieing the horses round this feering, the
furrow-slices will be laid towards the firm
land. By laying the furrow-slice into
the open furrow, the seed is kept out of it,
and retained upon the best parts of the
ridges. Kibs are thus formed on the entire
length of the ridges. Supposing the ribs
12 inches asunder, there will just be 30
ribs in every feering of 2 ridges of 15 feet
each.
2629. The object of making these riba
is this; when heavy rain happens to fall
between the ploughing of the seed-furrow
and the sowing of the barley, the land may
612
PRACTICE— SPRING.
be 60 much wetted as to have become too
consolitlated for barley seed; and were it
pluuirl'ed again in tlie ordinary way, a
tongli lieavy clod might be brought np
wliich would be difficult to reduce at that
season, particidarly if drought followed
the recent ploughing immediately. In-
stead of disturbing this waxy ground, it is
better to rib the land for the seed with the
small plough, which, only stirring the
upper surface to the depth of 3 inches or
so, a sufficient mould is at once afforded
to bury the seed, and that is all that is
wanted at the lime, the land having been
sufficiently ploughed before. A couple of
these ploughs will soon form a considerable
extent of ground with ribs.
2630. As the small plough only makes
one rib at a landing, and as only two
small ploughs are to be found on most
farms, and as it may be desirable, in some
seasons, to rib a considerable extent of
ground in a short time, an implement that
will do more work in the same time, and
in the same manner, should be preferable
to the small plough. Such an implement
may be found in the ribbing coulters, fig.
231, which is drawn by one horse, and
Fig. 231.
THB RIBBING COULTERS.
makes .5 drills at a time, of a sufficient
depth to Cover the seed. It consi-^ts of a
frame a a, bearing 5 coulters hb c c c, which
operate on the surface soil exactly as the
double mould-lx)ard plough, dividing it
with small mould-boards, into a narrow
furrow of mould on each side. Two coulters
b b, are placed in the foremost part of the
frame, and three c c c^ in the hindmopt part,
at intermediate dijitances, and ff)rming 5
drills, embracing four spaces of 12 inches
each in width. The horse is attached
by the hooks of the plough chains to the
eyes at d </, in the bar d d, which is
fastened to the frame a a by the chains
e e, which are 2 feet long, and, by their
weight, together with that of the bar d d,
give steadiness to the draught. The im-
plement might be rentlered more important
if requisite, by attaching two horses to it
by a shackle at /, to the swing-trees of
the common harrows ; and the framing
might also be mounted on an axle and
wheels.
ON THE SOWING OP GRASS-SEEDS.
2631. Any time after the beginning of
March, when the weather is dry, and is
likely to continue so, grass-seeds may be
sown.
2632. They are sown in company with
another crop, never by themselves, except
for a particular purpose, such as the laying
down of a lawn to grass ; and the crops ihejr
invariably accompany are cereal ones.
2633. The grass-seeds sown among one
and all of these crops are the same, and
they are few in number. They consi.st of
red clover, Trifoimm pratcnse, white
clover, Tri/olium repens, rye-graf^s^Lol i um
percnne^ and sometimes, on light soils,
the yellow clover, Medicajo lupulina.
2634. These, in common parlance, are
called the at-tijicial grasses, because they
are sown every year like any other crop
of the farm, whereas the other grasses occur
in a state of nature, and are jiermauent.
263.5. The quantities of these sown
vary but little over the country, and never
vary on the same farm. It is considered
that 12 lbs. per acre of clover-seeds are
SOWIXG GRASS- SEEDS.
613
sufficient. The seeds are proportioned
according as the grasses are to remain for
one year or longer. AVhen longer than
one year, the j>r()portion is from (i Ihs. to
8 lbs. of red clover, 4 lbs. of white clover,
and 2 lbs. of yellow clover, when that is
sown, per acre. One bushel of rye-grass
per acre is sufficient for all purposes.
When onlv one year, the proportion is 10
lbs. of red clover and 2 lbs. of wliite.
2636. The plunts possess different pro-
perties. The red or English clover has a
red flower, as its name indicates, the
spikes of which are dense, globular, and
slightly elongated, leaves three lobed —
hence its generic name — habit of growth
upright and branching, stem and leaves
juicy, and root subfusiforni. The plant
flowers in June and July. It is an annual
if sown by itself, but wl)en sown with a
cereal crop it is biennial, and conies into
use in the second year of its existence.
The plant grows to a height of 2 feet or
more, affords a forage much relished by all
sorts of stock ; is generally cut twice, and,
in favourable seasons, three times, and
yields a heavy crop of hay, which is
highly nourishing. The aftermath of the
hay forms excellent pasturage in autumn.
The j)lant only yields a crop for one year,
and then dies.
2637- The white or Dutch clover is a
name also derived from the colour of the
flower, which is white, tinged with light
pink. The flower is globular, surmounting
an upright stalk, destitute of leaves. The
leaves are small and three lobed, growing in
creeping stems rooting at the joints, pro-
ducing a thick close covering on the
ground. The plant flowers from .June to
autumn. It makes but little appearance
in the same year as the red clover,
but is conspicuous the year after, makes
a valuable pasture grass, and is peren-
nial.
2638. The flower of the 3'ellow clover,
as its name also imlicates, is yellow and
small, and very prolific of seed, which is,
consequently, snld much cheaper than the
seeds of the plants mentioned above ; and
I suspect this circumstance, more than any
other, induces farmers to cultivate it; for
although the crop is rather bulky, its stems
are so hard and wiry that both cattle and
sheep are not fond of it, either in a green
or dry state, and only eat it when mixed
with better fare.
2G39. The rye- grass may be divided
into two varieties, which are chosen
for sowing according to the nature of
the husbandry. If the grass is to re-
main only one year in the ground, the
common variety is sown, which can only
be depended upon to exist one year after
the cereal crop has been removed, and
thereby becoming a biennial, as the red
clover does. When the grasses remain
for a longer period than one year, the
l^erennial variety is chosen, of which there
are many sub- varieties. The seed of all
the varieties of rye-grasses is light in the
hand, because it is coated with two-valved ■
paie<F, which adhere firmly to it when
ripe.
26-40. The seed of the red clover, when
grown in England, is large, full, glossy,
and of bold purple colour ; weighs 64 lbs.
per bushel, aflords 2000 grains to 1 drachm
weight, and sells from 56s. to 75s. per
cwt. The red clover seed of Holland is
large, not well filled, with a yellow tinge
along with the purple, indicative of humi-
dity of climate. The seeds of French
red clover are small, plump, and highly
purple.
2641. The seeds of the white clover are
very small, and of a rich golden yellow
colour. They weigh 65 lbs. a bushel, sell
at 56s. to 75s. per cwt. and afford 4000
grains to 1 drachm weight.
2642. The seeds of the yellow clover are
large, and of dull greenish yellow colour.
They weigh 64 lbs. a bushel, sell at from
1 Ss. to 28s. per cwt, and afford 2600 grains
to 1 drachm weight.
2643. Of the seedof the rye-grasses, that
of the annual weighs 30 lbs. a bushel, sells
for 20s. to 2Ss. a quarter, and affor<ls 1712
grains to the drachm weight. The per-
ennial rye-grass seed weighs 1 8 lbs. a bushel,
sells from 24s. to 28s. a quarter, and aflords
2000 grains to the drachm weight.
2644. Other seeds have been recom-
mended to be sown alongst with these, to
suit the purposes for which the future
6U
PRACTICE— SPRING.
grass is intended. Among these is the
Italian rye-grasa, Lolittm Jtalicum,
which, possessing the valuable properties
of celerity of growth and sweetness of
taste, is well deserving of cultivation ; but
its remarkable quickness of growth ren-
ders it inconvenient to sow amongst grain.
The great disparity between its period of
gri)\vtli and that of the grains, as also that
of the other grass seeds usually sown, in-
dicates that it should be cultivated by
itself, although its growth is checked when
sown with grain. It places itself rather
among the forage plants, such as tares and
rape, tbau the hay and pasture plants.
2645. In the case of grass of one year's
duration, tliere is not much room for im-
provement in the proportions of the seeds
given above; but as regards pastures of
more than one year's standing, a greater
variety of seeds might be introduced with
advantage. On this subject Mr Law-
son makes these suggestions. " For 3
years' pasture on good soils," he says,
" the substitution of 2 lbs. of Dactt/fis
glomeratay the common rough cock's-foot,
for about 3 lbs. of the perennial rye-grass,
will be found advantageous; while in
sheep pastures the addition of 1 lb. per
acre of parsley-seed, Petroselinttm sati-
vu7n, would also be attendetl with good
results ; and in certain upland districts,
established practice will point out the in-
troduction of 2 lbs. or 3 lbs. of rib-grass,
Plantago lanceolata. In proportion to
the retentiveness of heavy soils, as well as
for those of a peaty nature, Phleum pra-
tensc, the meadow cat's tail, should be
added, to the extent of 2^ lbs. to 3^ lbs.
per acre." * The improvement of pasture
of 2 or 3 years' standing, not permanent
pastures, has received less attention from
farmers than it deserves. Had Italian
rye-grass been a perennial, it would have
formed a valuable ingredient in all such
pastures, both for sheep and cattle. Sheep
are remarkably fond of parsley, and will
not allow it to run to seed, but I suspect it
is only a biennial.
2fi46. The grass-seeds when sown
amongst the cereal grains arc notsownsepa-
rately, but mixed together. Having weighed
the respective quantities of seed required
for the size of the particular field to be
sown, they are mixed in this manner
upon the floor of the corn-barn. The rye-
grass seed is laid on the floor in a heap,
which is made flat on the top to receive the
clover seeds to be mixed with it. The
red clover, being the larger sized seed, is
put on first, and spread over the top of
the rye-grass; and the white clover is
poured over the red. The entire heaj) is
then turned over in the manner described
for pickling wheat (2309,) with 2 barn-
shovels, fig. 160. The turning is repeated
until the seeds, on being examined, appear
well mixed. Although the clover-seeds
are much heavier than the rye-grass, they do
not fall through it to the bottom of the
heap, on account of their smallne-ss, which
enables them to lie between the two valves
of the palcce of the ryje-grass seed. The
mixture is put into sacks, and taken to, and
set down upon one of the head-ridges of the
field to be sown.
2647. Grass-seeds are sown by hand
and with machines. The hand sowing is
now confined to small farms, while on the
larger ones thegrass-seetl sowing-machine
is universally used. The sowing of grass-
seeds by the hand is a simple process,
although it requires activity to do it well.
The sower is equipped, as represented
in fig. 202, and a carrier of the seed
provided with a rusky, fig. 201, ac-
companies him, and hejiroceeds to sow, by
grasping the mixed seeds between the fore
and middle fingers and the thumb, instead
of the whole hand, and makes the cast and
steps exactly in the manner dest^ribed for
sowing corn in (2319.) Clover and rye-
grass seeds being so very different in form
and weight, it is not possible to cast them
from the hand as that both shall alight on
the same spot. The sower has little con-
trol over the rye-grass seed,the least breath
of wind taking it wherever it ma}', and
the heavy clover leaves it to its fate; and
this istheca.se even in the calmest state of
the air. His object is to cast the heavy
clover seed equally over the surface, and,
as its smallness prevents it being seen to
alight on the ground, it is the more neces-
sary for the sower to preserve the strictest
regularity in his motions. In windy
weather, the clover maybe cast with pretty
• Lawson On the Cultivated Grasses, p. 53.
SOWING GRASS -SEEDS.
615
tolerable precision, and even more so than
corn, but the rye-grass must just alight
where it may. Most sowers attempt to
sow a ridge with 2 casts, taking a larger
grasp of the seeds ; but the surer plan,
for their equal distribution, is to take the
smaller quantity between the two fingers
and thumb, and give the ridge 3 casts, one
along each furrow-brow, and the third
along the crown. It is pleasant work to
sow grass-seeds by the hand. The load
is comparatively light, and the ground
having been harrowed fine, and perhaps
rolled smooth, the walking is easy ; and
although it may be tiresome to walk over
the same ridge three times, the quick step
in which the sowing is performed sustains
the spirits ; and particularly when 3 sowers
are engaged together and arrange the
work, so that two make the two casts
along the furrow-brows of their respective
ridges, while the third follows each alter-
nately along the crown of every ridge.
On making one of a party of 3, we sowed,
in one day, 72 acres, 24 acres each, witli
3 easts to every ridge of 15 feet in width.
This was in Berwickshire in 1817, before
the grass-seed sowing-machine was in use;
and the work caused each of us to walk
about 40 miles in 11 hours.
2648. But such feats cannot now be
performed, as the grass-seed sowing-ma-
chine suyjersedes the necessity of doing it
on large farms, where alone they could be
done. This is a most perfect instrument
for the sowing of grass-seeds, distributing
the seeds with the utmost precision, and to
any amount, and so near the ground that
the wind affects them but little. The ma-
chine is represented in fig. 204. Its
management is easy, when the ground is
ploughed in individual ridges. The horse
v,-hich draws it starts from one head-ridge
and walks in the open furrow, as in d, fig.
210, when the machine sows to the crown
of the ridge on each side, to a and b, the
driver walking in the furrow behind the
macliine, using double reins. On reach-
ing the other liPad-ridge, the gearing is put
out of acti<:n till the horse, on being hied,
enters the next open furrow from the head-
ridge, when the gear is again put on, and
the half of the former ridge is sown, com-
pleting the sowing of that ridge and the
half of a new one, by the time the horse
agaia reaches the head-ridge he started
from. And thus 2 half-ridges after 2 half-
ridges are sown until the field is all sown.
The seed is supplied from one of the head-
ridges, upon which the sacks containing
it were set down when brought from the
corn-barn. The head-ridges are sown by
themselves. But the half of the ridge next
the fence, on each side of the field, cannot
be reached by the machine, and must be
sown by hand.
2649. When ridges are coupled together,
fig. 22, the horse walks along the middle
between the crown and the open furrow,
the furrow-brow being the guide of the
line for the end of the machine to keep,
and 2 ridges are thus sown at every bout.
2650. Where ridges are ploughed in
breaks of 4 ridges, as on two-out-and-two-
in, fig. 25, the furrow-brow is the guide
in going and the crown in returning,
while sowing 2 of the ridges; and the
crown in going and the furrow-brow in
returning while sowing the other two
ridges.
2651. Were this machine to proceed
onwards, sowing without interruption for
10 hours, at the rate of 2| miles per hour,
it would sow 45 acres of ground; but the
turnings at the landings, and the time
spent in filling the seed-box with seed,
cause a large deduction from that quantity,
perhaps nearly two-fifths.
2652. After the grass-seeds are sown,
the ground is harrowed to cover them in ;
for which purpose lighter harrows are used
than for ordinary harrowing, which would
bury the clover seeds too deep in the
ground ; and being light, are provided
with wings, to cover a whole ridge at a
time, so that the sowing process may be
quickly finished. Fig. 232 is a plan of
grass-seed harrows, with wings, covering
a ridire of 15 feet wide at one stretch, and
difi"ering only from fig. 208 in lightness.
The harrows are represented with a com-
plete set of iron swing- trees, as fig. 7,
attached. Some dexterity is required to
drive the winged grass-seed harrows. It
is not convenient to move them from one
ridge to the other immediately adjoining,
as a part of the implement would then
have to turn upon a pivot, which would
injure them. Besides, it is inconvenient to
616
PRACTICE— SPRING.
ht^ the horses with these harrows. The
way to avuid the inconvenience is to hie
the horses at the end of the landings, round
an intermediate unharrowed ridge.
Fig. 232.
THB GRASS-SXED IRON BARROWS, WITH WINGS AND SWING-TREKS.
2653. The iron-tceb harrow is a late
invention of the ingenious and indefati-
gable Mr Smith of Deanston, for the
same purpose. It is formed of an assem-
blage of annular discs of cast-iron, of
the shape of the common playing quoit,
which are interweaved with iron wire in
a certain regular form, until the whole
forms a flexible web, in which the discs
have liberty to play and roll about within
small limits. The web may be 2 yards in
length by 1 in breadth, and is simjily
dragged over the ground, when it is said
to give the surface a finish superior to any
thing hitherto introduced.
2654. The land may be rolled or not,
according to circumstances, before the
grass-seeds are sown. If it is dry, even
strong land would be the better at this
season to be rolled, to reduce the clods
before they become very hard, and to form
a kindlier bed for the small seeds. On
this account the rolling should be perform-
ed before the sowing, an<l, of course, before
the harrowing of the grass-seeds ; because,
were the laud left with a smooth rolled
surface after the harrowing, and rain to fol-
low, succeeded by drought, which is a com-
mon state of the weather at this season,
the smooth ground would soon become so
battered and hardened, as to retard the
growth of the germ of the new-sown crop ;
whereas, were it rolled before it was sown,
the smoothed ground would offer a fine
surface for the small grass- seeds to spread
themselves upon, and when harrowed,
a small round clod would be raised upon it,
which would prevent tlie encnisting of the
ground by the rain. On light hazel loams
and turnip soils, it is better not to roll
until the land has been sown and harrowed,
because rain cannot encrust their smooth
rolled surface, while the rolling assists in
repelling the drought for a considerable
time. When strong land is in a waxy
state, between wet and dry, the rolling
had better be deferred, while the sow-
ing of the grass-seeds may proceed, if the
season, or the state of the croj), amongst
which the grass-seeds are to be sown, is
already sufficiently far advanced.
2G55. The cereal crops, amongst which
the grass- seeds are sown, are winter wheat,
spring wheat, barley, and oats, when the
last are sown in lieu of barley.
2656. The wheat, when raise<l on bare
fallow, grows generally so strong as to
smother the yoim;r plants of the grasses aa
tiiey come up before the wheat is reaped.
Hence, in the Carse of Gowrie. wheat is
seldom or never sown down with "jrass-
SOWING GRASS-SEEDS.
617
seeds ; but in other parts of the country,
where it does not grow so strong, grass-
seeds are sown amongst it.
2657. There is little danger of spring
wheat attaining to so mucli rankness of
growth as to injure the grasses growing
amongst it. Spring wheat, therefore, is
invariably sown down with grass-seeds,
and these succeed very well.
2658. Barley is always the chosen and
safest vehicle by which to introduce the
grass-seeds to the ground. Remaining
but a short time in the ground, it permits
the young grass plants to grow to consi-
derable strength before the approach of
winter, and they are then the better able
to withstand the vicissitudes of that season.
Barley, liowever, does sometimes grow so
rank aud thick as to endanger the exis-
tence of tlie grasses, when they sometimes
perish under the oppressive load of a heavy
crop.
2659. Oats, when treated as barley, re-
ceive the grass-seeds in the same way ; but,
for some reason or another, the grasses do
not thrive so well when sown with oats as
with barley, or even with wheat.
2660. We shall now take a survey of
the state of these respective cereal crops,
at the time the grass-seeds are sown
amongst them ; and first, as to winter
wheat. The state of tliis depends entirely
on tlie sort of weather it had to encounter
in winter and early spring. If the winter
has been open and mild, the autumn wheat
plant will have grown luxuriantly, and
have even become proud — that is, in a
precocious state of forwardness for the
season. When in this state in spring —
which is rarely the case in Scotland,
though not unfrequent in England — should
a heavy fall of late snow happen to lie
upon it for some weeks, it will rot a great
many of tlie plants ; and the rest will have
become blanched at the roots, pressed flat
to the ground, and will probably die.
Blanks, in consequence, are formed after
such a catastrophe ; but unless these are
of large extent, or the season be too far
advanced, the plants tiller out new run-
ners from the roots, and fill up the blank
spaces. When snow falls upon wheat in
the eai'ly part uf winter, aud covers it for
a considerable time, it protects the plants
from atmospheric injury, and prevents the
earth around them from cooling below 40°
Fahr. In this state the young plants re-
tain their healthy green colour, though they
do not grow much ; and whenever relieved
from the snow, grow rapidly, unless en-
countered by black frost, which changes
the green into brown, and kills many of
the plants ; but should no black frost en-
sue, the young wheat plant tillers closely,
and afterwards grows equally, to a full
crop. The most trying time for winter
wheat is in March, when sharp frosts fre-
quently occur at night, and bright sun-
shine in the day. The frost draws the
moisture of the ground to the surface, and
there freezes it ; w^ien the sun shines, the
ice melts very rapidly, and the consequent
evaporation produces such an intense de-
gree of cold as to kill the plants suddenly ;
and if they escape this destruction, the
damp ground, raised up by means of the
expanded ice, suddenly contracts by the
ice melting in the sun, and leaves the
plants, with their roots half drawn out of
the earth, ready to perish in the frost of
the succeeding night. It must be owned,
however, that this particular effect is pro-
duced on loamy soils, which rest on a wet
impervious clay subsoil, and never on a
dry subsoil, so that draining is the efl"ec-
tual remedy for this injury. Continued
rains upon winter wheat make it change
its colour to a bluish hue; and if the air
is cold, the plant sets up with red-pointed
leaves, as if determined to grow no more.
Continued drought in spring gives to win-
ter wheat a vivid green colour in fresh
weather ; but should an E. wind frost ac-
company the drought, and the sun also
shine, the points of the leaves will become
brown. Drought aud heat combined,
always promote rapid vegetation in the
wheat plant.
2661. The April wheat forms a valu-
able assistant in filling the blanks occa-
sioned in winter wheat by the snow and
frost in spring. When sown as late as
April, it will become ripe at the samatime
as the winter wheat. It may be harrowed
in when the blanks are extensive ; but,
if practicable, an iron hand garden- rake
may answer the purpose to cover it.
2662. In whatever state of forwardness
618
PRACTICE— SPRING.
the winter wheat is found in the latter
part of March, the grass-seeds should be
sown amongst it — that is to say, if the
ground is not actually covered with snow ;
and if the plant is strong, the common
harrows, fig. 207, should be used in giving
the grass-seeds a hold of the ground. If
the plant is small and weak, and the
ground tender, tlie grass-seed harrows,
fig. 232, may suffice. Winter wheat will
not be the worse, but all the better for a
good harrowing in spring, even though
some of the plants should be torn up by
the tines, as the harrowing loosens the sur-
face of the ground, compressed by the rains
of winter, and admits tlie air nearer to the
roots of the plants. After such a harrowing,
rolling will press the weak plants into fresh
earth, and induce an immediate tillering
from the roots. When the plants have
grown very rank before the grass-seeds
have been sown, the harrowing should
be given with the common harrow, hut
the rolling should be dispensed with, in
case of breaking the stems of the plants.
The difference in the effects produced by
rolling, in breaking and bending the stems
of plants, should be discriminated. Inde-
pendently of other considerations, a cereal
crop, on a rolled surface, affords great fa-
cility for being reaped at harvest.
2663. Many farmers used to sow grass-
eeeds without harrowing, trusting to the
small seeds finding their way into the soil
amongst the clods, and of being covered by
their mouldering — and the omission, I be-
lieve, is still persevered in ; but the safer
and more correct practice is to cover every
kind of seed, when it is sown.
26G4. Although double harrowing
across prepares the land on which spring
wheat has been sown for the gra>s-seeds,
it should not be imagined these are sown
whenever the wheat is sown, because the
latter may be sown at any time during
winter or early spring when the state of the
weather and soil will allow ; but when
sown at the latest period of the season, the
grass-seeds should not only be sown, but
also amongst the spring wheat previously
sown ; ' as also amongst the winter wheat,
should there be any in the same field.
It is worthy of consideration, in fields in
which wheat has been sown at different
times, that the latest sown should first be
sown with grass-seeds, tben the next latest,
on to the winter wheat; because it is de-
sirable first to finish the land which has been
most recently worked, in case the weather
should change, and prevent the finishing
of the grass-seeds over the whole field.
2665. Frost injures clover seeds, and
will even kill them when exposed to it, so
they cannot safely be sown very early in
spring; but they run little risk of frost
being so powerful in March as to injure
them when harrowed in.
2666. After harley, or oats when taken
in lieu of barley, has been harrowed a
double tine across, the ground is ready to
be sown with the grass-seeds, and these
are then best harrowed in with the grass-
seed harrows, fig. 232. The ridges are
then water-furrowed, fig. 209, and the
laud rolled across, fig. 222, when the bar-
ley-seed sowing is finished. If the land
is rather strong, the water-furrowing had
better be done after the rolling, if the roll-
ing has been executed ; but on light soils,
the water-furrowing before the rolling
always makes the most beautiful finish.
If rolling cannot be executed when the
grass-seeds have been sown amongst the
barley, on account of the raw state of
the land, it should be executed as soon,
thereafter, as the state of the ground will
allow, — it being of vast importance to have
a smooth surface in reaping the crop.
2667. Should barley have still to be
sown on the same field, it will be better
to defer the sowing of the grass-seeds upon
the %\ heat until the whole field is sown;
and the new-sown spring wheat should be
water-furrowed, and put past danger. If
the winter-wheat in the same field is far
advanced, it and the spring wheat should
be sovvn with the grass-seeds at the same
time, and the barley-land sown by itself,
when the barley-seed is finishing.
266S. When the land, being strong, is
suspected of being waxy when ploughed, it
is better for the barley-seed, as al;^) for
the spring wheat-.«eed, that it be ribbed
with the small plough, fig. 230, than
I)loughed with the common plough ; and
after the barley has been sown on the
ribbed ground, a double tine along the
ridges is sufficient to cover the seed, in
SOWING GRASS-SEEDS.
619
the ribs ; for cross-harrowing would de-
range the grains deposited in the drills
into broadcast, and bring up a large pro-
portion of the seed to the surface.
2669. The clovers belong to the class and order
Diadtlphia Decandria of Linnreus ; to the family
oi Leguminosce of Jussieu ; and to the sub-class
\\\., PerigynoHS Exogens ; alliance 42, Rosales ;
order 209, Fabiacece ; tribe 2, Lotece, sub-tribe
3, TrifoUce, genus Trifotium, of the natural sys-
tem of Lindley. The generic name is evidently
derived from the triple leaves of the plants.
2670. This tribe includes the most valuable
herbage plants adapted to European agriculture,
the white and red clovers. Notwithstanding
what has been said of the superiority of lucerne,
and of the excellence of saiiifuin in forage and
hay, the red clover for mowing, and the white
for pasturage, excel, and probably ever will, all
other plants. The yellow clover, and the cow
or meadow clover, are inferior to the white and
red clover.
2671. The soil best adapted for red clover
is deep sandy loam, which is favourable to its
long tap-roots ; but it will grow in any soil pro-
vided it be dry. Marl, lime, or chalk, promotes
the growth of clover. The climate most con-
genial to it is one neither hot, dry, nor cold.
Clover will be found to produce most seed in a
dry soil and warm temperature ; but as the pro-
duction of seed is oidy in some situations an ob-
ject of the farmer's attention, a season rather
moist, provided it be warm, always affords the
most bulky crop of herbage. Red clover-seed is
imported into Britain from France and Holland,
where it is raised as an article of commerce.
What has been obtained from those countries has
been found to die out in the season it has been
cut or pastured, while the English seed produces
plants which stand over the second, and many of
them the third year ; thus remaining, in the lat-
ter case, 4 years in the ground from the time of
sowing.* Some prepare clover-seed for s-owing
by steeping it in water or in oil, as in Switzer-
land, and then mixing it with powdered gypsum,
as a preventive to the attacks of insects.
2672. Trifolium prateme perenne, perennial
red. This variety bears a great resemblance to
the biennial sort in its general habits and appear-
ance, and diifers from it only in having rather
more woolly leaves, in being mure durable, and
in coming later into flower. The seed is more
costly than that of the red clover, and it is ques-
tionable that its permanency should counter-
balance the greater cost of seed.
2673. Trifvlium medium, meadow trefoil, or
cow-clover. I suspect that this true cow-clover
has been confounded with the perennial variety
of red clover above, otherwise so worthless a weed
would never have been recommended as a valu-
able constituent for our permanent pastures on
light soils, where it never fails, by its obtrusive
character, to destroy the more valuable pasture
plants around it. Indeed, Mr Sinclair owns, that
"the Trifolium medium is inadmissable in alter-
nate husbandry, on account of its creeping roots,
constituting what, in arable land, is termed
twitch;" and the twitch is most abundant, and
therefore most troublesome, in light suils, not only
in arable fields, but in pasture, where it usurps
the place of better plants ; and yet Mr Sinclair
says, that " for soils of drier nature and lighter
texture, the Trifolium medium offers great ad-
vantages."+
2674. Trifolium repens, creeping trefoil, Dutch
white, or sheep's clover, is the white clover cul-
tivated in this country. It is a native of Europe,
is plentiful in Britain, and is now cultivated in
Jamaica. Mr Curtis affirms that a single seed-
ling covered more than a square yard of ground
in one summer. White trefoil is generally called
Shamrock, but the Oxalis acetogella is supposed
to be the true Irish shamrock.
2675. Trifolium ht/hridum, hybrid trefoil, Al-
sike clover, is a species possessing the properties
of the red and white clovers, and on that account
was considered by Linnseus a hybrid between
them. It is a native of the south of Europe ;
but has been introduced into the agriculture of
Germany and of Sweden, and, in the latter country,
it is cultivated to considerable extent in the
district of Alsike. The late Mr George Stephens,
after seeing the success of Mr Lawsou in raising
some plants in 1834 and 1835,:}: procured about
2 bushels of it in Sweden the year following,
which were somehow lust on the voyage. Far-
ther experiments were thus checked in Scotland
with this promising clover, which, from its dis-
similarity to the red clover, by itsi£brous roots
and perennial existence, may very likely be found
to thrive in such soils as are termed clover-sick;
and if so, it would be a most valuable acquisi-
tion.
2676. Trifolium incarnatum, flesh-coloured-
flowered trefoil, is a native of the south of Europe,
and is not yet naturalised to the climate of Scot-
land. It may make good food for cattle, as Mr
Miller thinks, but, being an annual plant, it will
only suit as a forage one.
2677. Trifolium Alexandrinum., Alexandrian
trefoil. Flowers pule yellow. Furksall says
that this trefoil is universally cultivated in
Eirypt, being the best, and indeed the principal
fodder for cattle in that country. It is sown
only in the recess of the Nile, and, where the
fields are too high to be inundated by that river,
they are watered by means of hydraulic engines,
the seeds being committed to the earth while it
is wet. The produce is three separate crops,
the plants growing each time about half an ell
* Sinclair's General Report of the Agriculture of Scotland, vol. i. p. 537.
t Sinclair's ifor««s Gramimus Woburnensis,p. 222, edition of 1824.
J La.wson^s Agriculturist's Manual, f. 153.
620
PRACTICE— SPRING.
in hcicht. After the last crop, the plant dies.
When this trefoil is wanted for seed, it is sown
along with the wheat. Both are gathered at
once by the hand, not reaped or mown, and are
thrashed out together, the trefoil seed being
aftervvanls separated by a sieve. This species
of clover being so important in its own country,
may be worth the notice of British agriculturists,
and may, perhaps, be naturalised in this country.
2678. Tnfollum procumbent, procumbant tre-
foil, yellow clover, or hop trefoil. This species
of clover seems to be confounded with the pro-
cumbent lucerne, Medicagu lupuliiia. Its flowers
are yellow. Its name of /io;'-trefoil is bestowed
on it with much propriety, the heads being larger
and more resembling the hop than any of the
best of the species. It is common on the borders
of fields in dry gravelly soils. In .some meadows it
forms a considerable part of the crop, and makes
excellent fodder; and it is now very generally
Used for pasture, with or without white clover.
2679. These are all the species of clover that
seem to deserve special notice, out of 166 de-
scribed by botanists.*
2680. " Some years ago," says Mr Babbage,
"a mode of preparing old clover and trefoil seeds,
by a process called ' doctorinij,' became so preva-
lent as to excite the attention of the House of
Commons. It appeared in evidence before a
committee, that the old seed of the white clover
was doctored by first wetting it slightly, and then
drying it in the fumes of burning sulpliur ; and
that the red clover-seed had its colour improved
by shaking it in a sack with a small quantity of
indigo ; but this being detected after a time, the
doctors then used a preparation of logwood, fixed
by a little copperas, and sometimes of verdigris ;
thus at once improving the appearance of tlie old
seed, and diminishing, if not destroying, its vege-
tative power already enfeebled by age. Suppos-
ing no injury had resulted to good seed so pre-
pared, it was proved, from the improved appear-
ance, its market-price would be enhanced by
this process from 5s. to 2os. per cwt. But the
greatest evil aro>e from the circumstance of these
processes rendering old and worthless seed in
appearance equal to the best. One witness tried
some doctored seed, and found that not above I
in 100 grains grew, and that those which did
Tegetate died away afterwards ; whilst about 80
or 90 per cent of good seed usually grows. The
seed so treated was sold to retail dealers in the
country, who, of course, endeavoured to purrhase
at the cheapest rate, and from them it got into
the hands of the farmers ; neitherof these classes
being at all capable of distingni>hing the frau-
dulent from the genuine seed. Many cultivators,
in consequence, diminished their consumption of
the article ; and others were olili;^ed to pay a
higher price to those who had skill to distinguish
the mixed seed, and who had integrity and cliar-
Acter to prevent them from dealing in it." t
2681. Clover seeds are not imported into this
country from France and Holland to any great
extent. " The entries of foreign clover-seed for
home consumption, at an avera:;e of the three
years ending 1831," says M'Culloch, "were
99,046 cwt. a-year. But for the high duty of 203.
a cwt. there can be little doubt that the impor-
tation would be much more considerable." J
2G82. Since then the duty has been much
lowere>l. By the customs tarifi" of 1847, Vic-
toria 9th and 10th, cap. 2.*^, the duty on clover-
seed imported from foreign countries was fixed
at 5s. the cwt, and from a British possession, 2s.
6d. a cwt.
2683. As regards clover in the agriculture of
Germany, Von Thaer observes that, " this plant
is usually sown amongst corn ; formerly it was
always mixed with the spring grain, but at
present it is commonly mixed with the autumn
grain, and in most cases witli equal success, pro-
vided the sowing be performed with proper
attention. Clover is not sown at the same time
as the autumn grain, but at i-uch a time that it
may germinate after the winter season. It is
sometimes sown amongst pease, and certainly
shoots forth with great vigour among the stubble
of those plants. But if the pease are soon laid,
and do not ripen quickly, the clover may be com-
pletely choked by them ; its growth will then be
very unequal, presenting large vacant spaces
liere and there. We are, however, acquainted
with two plants which are altogether favourable
to clover sown among them — these are flax and
buck-wheat. These plants favour the germina-
tion and early growth of the clover, and allow
it, much better than corn, to thicken and esta-
blish itself uniformly on the lan<i. Fh-.x is no
longer sown, except in rich and well-prepared
soils ; it is cleared of weeds, an operation which
is productive ot benefit to the clover. The latter
is not injured by the pulHng of the flax, if this
operation be performed with proper care. But
amongst buck-wheat, 1 have seen cluver growing
thickly even on a soil which was not well suited
to it. Close by its side, and on a somewhat
better soil, there was a crop of oats growing,
mixed with clover; and thus 1 had an oi)ponu-
nity of convincing myself, in the most positive
manner, of the great difi'erence between the two
crops of clover, and the superiority <.f that
whieh grew amongst the buck-wheat. This su-
periority was maintained during the whole of
the following year. I would, therefore, recom-
mend the cultivator who wishes to li.-ive a thick
crop of clover, and does not think his hmd very
well adapted to it, to sow his clover among the
buck-wheat. It appears to be indiflerent whether
the buek-wheat be allowed to rijien, or mown to
be con.sunied as green meat. Clover also thrives
well among colza."
2684. " Harrowing in spring," observes Von
Thaer, " when the clover begins to shout forth, is
* Don's General Smtftn of Gardeninp and Botany, vol. ii. — Lc'pnninoscB.
+ Babbage On the Economy of Mach'nury and Manufactures,^. 102.
X M'Culluch's L'ommercial Dictionary — art. Clocer.
SOWING BARLEY.
621
a very useful operation, and well repays the ex-
pense wliich it occasions. The more forcibly this
harrowing is performed, the greater is the benefit
wliich it confer.'' on the clover."* Here it would
seem that the clover-seed had remained in a qui-
escent state in the ground all winter.
ON THE SOWING OF BARLEY.
2685. The ordinary sorts of spring
wheat n)ay be sown as late as the middle
of March in ordinary seasons, and tlie
new sort of spring wheat, named April
or fern-wheat, may be sown until the first
week of April ; but after that it will be
safer to sow barley.
2686. It may be laid down as an axiom,
that land which has borne turnips that
have been eaten off by sheep, should re-
ceive two ploughings of some sort before it
is sown with barley. I have seen the ex-
periment tried of sowing barley on a single
furrow on land rangingfrom clay to gravelly,
and the result was a manifest deficiency of
crop compared to what had received two
furrows ; and such a result is not surpris-
ing, as barley requires a deep, well pul-
verised soil to grow to perfection ; it is
impossible to make any soil that has been
trampled firm by sheep, after bearing a
heavy crop of turnips, so with a single
furrow. Strong land, with a single furrow,
turns over with a tough waxy clod, un-
genial to the growth of barley; and light
turnip land, with a single furrow, exhibits
the barley growing in drills corresponding
with the drills in which the turnips had
been manured. The least difierence in the
crop after one and two furrows is observed
on fine hazel loam ; still the superiority ac-
companies the two furrows. Let it there-
fore be laid down as a rule, that turnip
land for barley shall receive two furrows;
and the only question is, in what form these
should be ploughed, bearing in mind that
the land must be deep ploughed and well
pulverised.
2687. On clay loam in good heart, it is
not improbable that some of the turnip
land that. had been ploughed for spring
wheat, had been, by the bad state of the
weather, prevented from being sown with
that grain, and, of course, it must now be
sown with barley. Whether the land had
been gathered up from the flat, fig. 20, or
cast together, fig. 22, it should be seed-
furrowed in the same manner, for the bar-
ley to retain the ridging of the whole field
uniform ; because the ploughing for the
spring wheat being the seed furrow, and
the ridges having been formed with a view to
permanency, it would be impossil)le to re-
plough them with one furrow only of the
common plough, without disturbing their
complete form in relation to the field, by
making the two side-ridjres only half the
w^iilth of the rest. Such ridges, then, must
either be ploughed ticice with tlie common
plough, to bring them back to their ex-
isting form, for which there may not be
suHicient time, or they may be stirred
with the grubber, fig. 215, or ribbed with
the small plough, fig. 230, and retain their
form.
2688. A choice from these various modes
may be made according to circumstances.
If the ridges have consolidated in conse- j
quence of being long ploughed, or of much
rain having fallen upon them,aud if the soil
itself be naturally firm, two furrows with
the common plough will put the land in
the best state for receiving barley. If the
ridges are somewhat soft,Vitli perhaps too
much moisture below, though capable of
affording a fine surface with the harrows,
the grubber is the most proper implement
for making a deep bed for the barley-seed,
and keeping the dry surface uppermost.
If the soil is dry and loose on the surface,
and tilly below, the surface would be best
preserved by being ribbed with the small
plough.
2689. Putting such particular ridges
thus into the best state for the barley-seed,
there will be no difficulty in plouiihino-
the rest of the bailey land. The firs^t fui^
row, and in the best direction, should be
to cross-furrow the barley land, as feered
in fig. 229. Although the land may not
all be so cleared of turnips as to allow the
cro.ss-ploughiiig to extend from side to
sule of the field, any porticm should be
ploughed and sown wliile the other is being
cleared, and may be cleared by the time
the sowing of the first part is completed.
After the passage of the harrows a double
Thaer's Principles of Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 623.— Shaw and Johnson's translation.
«22
PRACTICE— SPRING.
tine along the cross-ploughed land, the
land shoulil be feered and ploughed into
rid"es, and the usual form of the seed-fur-
row is eitlier gathering-up from the flat,
fig. 20, or yoking togetlier, fig. 22. Every
plough should be employed in ridging up
the "seed-furrow, and both the cross-
pKuigliing and the ridging should be deep
ploughed. The cross-ploughing should be
turned up with a broad, stout furrow-slice,
but the ridging should be ploughed with a
deep narrow furrow slice, in order to sub-
divide the former furrow, to pulverise the
soil as much as possible, and to make the
crests of the furrow-slices numerous and
narrow, so as to disseminate the seed among
them equally, whether sown by the hand
or with the machine.
2690. The sowing of barley on a fine
pulverised surface requires strict attention,
inasmuch as on whatever spot every seed
falls, there it lies, the soft earth having no
elasticity like the firm furrow-slice of lea,
to cause the seed to rebound and settle it-
self on another spot than what it first
struck. Hence, of all the sorts of grain,
barley is the most likely to be happergawed
in sowing by the hand, and on that ac-
count every handful should be cast with
greater force, and more completely spread
from the hand, than other sorts of grain.
The walking on soft ground in sowing bar-
ley is attended with considerable fatigue,
and as short steps are best suited for walk-
ing on soft ground, so by small handfuls you
are best enabled to grasp plump slippery
barley. The broadcast machine, fig. 204,
is used for sowing barley as well as oats.
The grain drills, figs. 20.> and 20(), are used
to sow barley in drills, and this is best
effected by sowing across the ridges after
the surface has been harrowed.
2691. When the surface ha-s been grub-
bed for the seed-furrow, the seed is best
sown with one of tlie drill machines, as
they afford the seed a hold of the ground,
independent of ploughing.
2692. When the surface is ribbed with
the small plough, the seed is best sown by
the hand, or with the broadcast sowing-
machine, and, on reaching the ground, it
falls into the hollows of the ribs, out of
which the young plants arise in drills
' Brown On Rural
almost as regnlal- in line as if the seed had
been sown with a drill machine, provided
they have not been disturVied in the ribs;
and the surest way of not disturbing them,
is to harrow the ground a double tine only
along the ribs, and not at all across them.
2693. Barley may be sown any time
proper for spring wheat, and a^ late as the
end of May; but the earlier it is sown the
crop will be better in quality and more
uniform, though the straw will be shorter.
2694. The average quantityof seed sown
broadcast is three bushels to the acre;
when sown early less will suflice, and when
late, more is required ; because there is
then less time for so quick a growing grain
as barley to tiller and cover the ground.
When sown with the drill, two bushels suf-
fice. Mr Brown makes some sensible
remarks on this subject : — " Amongst the
farmers," he says, " it seems a disputed
point, whether the practice of giving so
small a quantity of seed (three bushels per
acre) to the best lands, is advantageous.
That there is a saving of grain, there can
be no doubt ; and that the bulk may be
as great as if more seed had been sown,
there can be as little question. Little
.argument, however, is necessary to prove
that thin sowing of barley must be at-
tended with considerable disadvantage;
for, if the early part of the season be dry,
the ]>lants will not only be stinted in their
growth, but will not send out offsets ; and if
rain afterwards falls, an occurrence that
must take place some time during the sum-
mer, often at a late jieriod of it, the plants
then begin to stool, and send out a number
of young shoots. These yt>ung shoots,
unless under very favourable circum-
stances, cannot be expected to arrive at
maturity ; or if their ripening is waited
for, there will be groat risk of losing the
early part of tiie crop, — a circumstance
that frequently happens. In almost every
instance an unequal sample is produced,
and the grain is for the most part of inferior
quality. By good judges, it is thought
preferable to sow a quantity of seed suHi-
cient to insure a full crop witlu)Ut depend-
ing on its sending out offsets. Indeed,
when that is done, few offsets are jiro-
duced, the crop grows and ripens equally,
and the grain is uniformly good."*
Affa'xTi, vol. ii. p. 45.
SOWING BARLEY.
623
2695. No grain is so easily affected by
weatlier at seed-time as barley : a dash
of rain on strong land will cause the
crop to be thin, many of the seeds not
germinating at all, whilst others burst and
cannot germinate; and in moist, warm
weather, the germination is certain and
very rapid. Indeed it has been observed,
that unless barley germinate quickly, the
crop will always be thin. I have seen
the germ of barley pierce the ground only
36 hours after I had sown it myself, when
the ground was smoking by the evapora-
tion of moisture, caused by a hot sun in a
close atmosphere. I have also traced the
germ of barley to its root to the depth of
9 inclies below the surface ; and this shows
that land may be ploughed deep for
barley.
2696. The harrowing which barley land
receives after the seed has been sown
broadcast is less than oat land, a double
tine being given in breaking-in the seed,
and a double tine across immediately after.
When the seed is sown with the drill
machine, the land is harrowed a double
tine along, and another double tine across
the ridges, before the seed is sown. When
the seed is sown on ribbed land, the only
harrowing given is a double tine along the
ribs, just to cover the seed, as the ribs
afford a sufficient hold of the ground.
2697. The grass seeds are then sown
with the grass-seed sowing-machine, fig.
204; the land harrowed a single tine with
the light grass-seed harrows, fig. 232;
water-furrowed, fig. 209 ; and finished by
immediate rolling, fig. 222. On strong
soil, apt to be encrusted on the surface by
drouglit after rain, the rolling /^/YaW^js the
sowing of the grass-seeds^ and tlie work is
finished with the grass-seed harrows: but
on all kindly soils, the other plan is best
for keeping out drought, and giving a
smooth surface for harvest- work.
2698. The head-ridges are ploughed
and sown by themselves.
2690. Barley is sown after potatoes
and beans in the spring, but never when
the weather will permit the sowing of
wheat in the autumn. When intended for
barley, the land is gathered up for the
winter, water-furrowed, and gaw-cut, to
prevent water standing upon it; and in
spring it is cross-ploughed and ridged up
for the seed-furrow.
2700. Barley is sown also at times after
wheat or oats, and the sample in such a
case is always fine coloured; but the prac-
tice is bad farming, and should never be
pursued. It is practised in the Carse of
Gowrie, because, as is alleged, the wheat
grows too strong for the grass to be raised
amongst it, and the succeeding barley is
made to receive the grass-seeds. Such
expedients are an excuse, but no justifica-
tion of the practice.
2701. Barley is never sown in Scotland
after lea, but might be after the land had
received a partial fallowing in spring.
2702. When sown in autumn, barley
does not stand the winter well in Scotland,
though it does on the warm calcareous soils
of tlie south of England. Winter barley
is always early ripe, but is seldom a pro-
lific crop; and when it tillers late in spring
to cover the ground, the produce exhibits
an unequal sample, and contains a large
proportion of light grain.
2703. As an instance of 'sowing very
late barley, I may relate what has fallen
under my own observation. The late Mr
Guthrie of Craigie, near Dundee, one
season had early ploughed the greater part
of a field of strong soil after tnniijjs, and
much rain had afterwards consolidated it.
Being desirous of giving the land another
furrow before sowing it with barley, he
found the plough bring up large waxy
clods, unfit to form a seed-bed for that
grain. lie consulted me, and I advised
him to rib the land that had just been
ploughed with the small plough, fig. 230,
while the remainder of the field, about
two acres, the old ploughed land, were
I^louglied in tiie ordinary way. His men
never having seen hind ribbed, I showed
them the way, and saw the ground sown
and harrowed with one double tine along.
The sowing took jilace as late as the
26th May, in 1819, and the ribbed land
produced 10 bushels the acre more
barley than that plougiied with the com-
mon plough, — so essential it is to have
mellowed soil fur the reception of the bar-
ley seed.
624
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2704. The spring treatment of barley in Ger-
many is thus de.--cribe(i by Thaer : — " All species
of barley require a li!;ht, rich, loamy soil, which
retains nii>i.stiire, without, liuwever, suffering
from damp — a soil which contains from 50 to G5
parts in a hundred of sand, and the rest chiefly
clay. If, having the former of these proportions,
it is situated in a dry position, and having the
latter, in a moist one, it will be rendered still
more adapted for the production of barley.
This kind of grain, however, thrives wonderfully
well on more clayey or stiffer soils, where there
is a sufficient quantity of humus to prevent the
land from being too tenacious ; in short, in land
which may be classed among good wheat lands.
If the clayey soil contains a certain quantity of
lime, and the proportion of clay in it is suffi-
ciently diminished to render it light, without
ceasing to be consistent, it will then be pecu-
liarly adapted for barley ; and the more so, from
the lime jmrging the soil of its acidity, which
latter qii:ility militates against the success of
barley. On the other hand, in moist summers,
barley will be found to succeed very well on land
in which sand is the predominating ingredient,
and where it is found in the proportion of from
70 to 75 piirts in a hundred ; provided, however,
that the soil is in tolerably good condition. But
during dry snmmers, the crops of barley would
fail on such lands ; consequently its produce can
never be depended on. A poor, tenacious, moist,
cold, acid soil, is by no means proper for barley,
nor will that grain often succeed when sown
upon it.
2705. " Land in which barley is to be sown
must be thoroughly loosened and pulverised.
When, as usually happens, it is sown on the
stubble of autumnal grain, the laud must be
ploughed at least three times for its reception ;
but where the soil has been thoroughly loosened
during the preceding year by weeded crops, one
ploughing will be quite sufiicient.
2706. " If those crops by which the barley
was preceded have not left a sufficient, or, indeed,
a considerable quantity of nutriment behind, an
ameliorative compound of manure, which has
undergone fermentation, must be bestowed upon
the soil. The tender nature of the grain renders
it necessary that the nutrition intended for it
should be easy of digestion, and properly pre-
pared for and adapted to its organs.
2707. " All those kinds of barley which are
usually sown in the spring, support and require a
tolerably thick covering of earth ; they may be
buried by a shallow ploughing of three or four
inches deep ; and, in fact, wlien sown on a very
light soil, must be placed at this depth beneath
its surface. The land, however, must always
first be allowed to get thoroughly dry, as
nothing is more conducive to the success of this
grain than a period of dry weather succeeding to
the sowing.
2708. " Perfect ripe seeds, which haye not be-
come heated in the granary, will always produce
healthy plants ; they must, liowever. be care-
fully sifted and washed, to separate them from
those seeds of we»'ds which usujIIv grow so fast
among barley. When this has been done, and
the seed sown early, 12 or 14 metzen per acre
[1 metzen = 3^ lbs.' or 141 of a bushel] will
answer as well as 20 or 22 would otherwise do,
especially when large barley is sown.
2709. " Barley becomes very thick and bushy
where it has sufficient space, but when crowded
the plants are weakly. Small barley may be
sown much more thickly, as the plants are u«ver
so full and bushy as those of large barley.
2710. "Should heavy rains, which harden the
ground, come on after the seed has been sown,
a harrow must be passed over the soil as soon as
it becomes dry, and before the barley begins to
spring up, in order to break the crust, which
otherwise often impedes the growth of the plants,
being too hard to admit of their piercing their
way through.
2711. " After the barley has begun to appear
above ground, it is often very dangerous to
make use of the harrow, as the plants are as
brittle as glass. This operation, if performed at
all, must be very carefully managed, a light
wooden harrow used, and the latter part of the
day or the evening chosen for the purpose."* It
would be better not to use the harrow at all in
such circumstances.
ON THE TURNING OF DUNGHILLS.
2712. Tlie ordinary treatment of dung-
hills of farm-yard manure is very simple,
— the principle upon which it is fountled
is quite consonant to reason, — and the
results of the application of their contents
are quite satisfactory in the crops pro-
duced. The treatment is, to sprea<l every
kind of straw used in litter, and every
kind of dung derived from the various
sorts of animals domiciled in the steading,',
uniformly in layers, as supplied, o\or tlie
area of the respective courts ; to take tliis
C()mj)ound of straw and dung from the
courts at a proper j)eriod, and form it into
large iieaps in the fields where tiiey shall
be needed ; to prevent fermentation of the
heaps by compression until the manure is
wanted; and to turn tlie heaps over in
such a way, and at such a time, as the
manure they contain shall he ready as a
uniform compound, to be applied to the
Th&er's Principles of Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 425-7.— Shaw and Johnson's translation.
TURNING DUNGHtLLS.
625
soil when wanted. The result is, when
the manure so treated is applied to the
soil, that it is the most valuable of any
known manure for every purpose of the
farm.
2713 You have been told how the courts
should be littered, and how it is best done
in (1086) and (2005.) You have seen how
those courts are emptied of their contents,
and the proper time for emptyiug them
(2006.) And you have witnessed how
those contents are disposed of in heaps in
the fields in which they shall be required,
(2009,) and the reasons why they are
formed in the manner recommended,
(2010.) My purpose now is to inform you
how those heaps should be turned to bring
on them that degree of fermentation best
suited for making them into good manure.
2714. Potatoes, as a crop, require a
large quantity of farm dung. It is the
practice of some farmers to drive the dung
for potatoes direct out of the court, in its
compressed state, and before it ferments
at all. On strong soils, naturally unsuited
to the growth of this plant, by reason of
their heavy and tenacious character, long
dung may be used, as it assists to relieve
the pressure of the soil upon the young
plant. Indeed, on such soil, I have seen
a drill of potatoes manured with the dry
twisted straw- ropes of the coverings of
the stacks, and produce as good potatoes
as good dung. So, also, potatoes may be
raised on soils of that character with horse-
dung in a state iA fire-fang. In all other
sorts of soils the use of hmg dung incurs
imminent risk of a deficiency of crop, and
therefore dung should be fermented for
potatoes to be raised on true potato soils.
271 5. There is one objection to unfer-
mented dung for potatoes, which seems to
me insuperable; and that is — it is impos-
sible to have the straw thrashed by the mill
absolutely so clean as that not a grain of
corn shall be found in it, or the seeds of
weeds which have been sifted from the
corn when winnowed, and thrown upon
the litter in the courts ; and as it is impos-
sible to destroy the vitality of those seeds
without fermentation, it is as impossible to
prevent them springing up with the crop
when carried there among unfermented
dung. They will spring up amongst the
VOL. I.
potatoes, not in the intervals between the
drills, where they might easily be removed
by the horse-hoe, but actually amongst
the potato-plants, growing with them, and
deriving as much nourishment from the
dung as the potatoes themselves. I have
frequently seen such an intermixture of
potato-plants and weeds at various places,
and very dirty and slovenly farming it
makes. Having a piece of ground trenched
from an old plantation, and being com-
paratively clean, I was desirous of raising
potatoes upon it for the first crop ; and
having no dung ready prepared for this
extra space of ground, what it required
was taken from the court in which the corn-
barn was situated, and the result was that
a considerable number of stalks of corn
grew amongst the potatoes. No doubt,
the weeds that thus spring up amongst the
potatoes may be removed by the field-
workers w«th thedraw-lioe ; but the labour
of removing large plants, and especially
when forced in growth by powerful man-
ure, is considerable, and the weeding can-
not be accomplished without removing a
considerable part of the useful soil around
the young potato plants. It is certainly
much better farming to have no plants to
remove from such a position, than to have
them to remove.
27 16. A dunghill which has been placed
on the field as formerly described (2009,)
and which is intended to be applied to the
potato crop, should be turned about a
fortnight before it is to be used; and,
before commencing to turn it, it should be
considered from which end it will be most
convenient to take the dung and lay it on
the land. On the supposition that that
end is nearest the headridge, and that the
dung for potatoes requires only one turn-
ing, it should be begun to be turned at the
end farthest from the headridge. The
unturned dung-heap slopes a little at both
ends, but the turned dunghill should be
made of the same height throughout. A
dunghill is turned over, in a succession of
breadths or daces as they are called.
The usual width marked off on the dung-
heap for the breadth of the dace to be
turned is 3 feet, which affords sufficient
room for people to work in ; but the first
few spaces upon which the first daces of
the heap are laid, should be made nar-
rower than S feet, until the desired height
2r
626
PRACTICE— SPRING.
of the turned dunghill is attained at the
end. which is done by throwing up the
turned dung to a greater height than that
oftlieend of the dunghill. Tlieeffect of this
arrangement is, as the turning approaches
the middle of the dung-heap, where it
is of the greatest height, the space upon
which the dung is turned upon will be
more than 3 feet in width, and the addi-
tional width will be required at the middle,
and on both sides of it, that the extra
height of the dung-heap there may be
reduced to the level of the new ends. After
the middle has been passed, the spaces
turned upon should be gradually lessened
in width towards the end at which the
turning is finished, where, as at the com-
mencement, the turned dung will have to
be thrown to a greater height than the
dung-heap, to attain the medium height of
the turned dunghill. There is more of good
management in attending to these particu-
lars of turning a dunghill than at first sight
may seem necessary, because the turned
dunghill will not ferment equally through-
put, when it is of different heights. 'The
greatest heat will be at the highest part,
where the dung will become comparatively
short and compact, whilst at the shallowest
parts it will continue crude and unpre-
pared : and those different states of man-
ure will have of course very different
effects upon the soil. In ordinary practice,
miscalculations are continually niade as to
what will be the uniform height of the
dunghills, and the consequence is, thev
are always lower at the ends than in tlie
middle ; and if an endeavour is afterwards
made to equalise the height, it is done by
throwing the dung off the middle towards
the ends — the effect of which expedient is,
that no union takes place between the
dung which was turned over in the regular
manner with what is thus afterwards
thrown upon it ; they remain in different
states, and rise differently to the graip
when removed into the cart; and the
miadle j)art having been trampled upon
■when the dung from it was placed on the
ends, it becomes much harder than the
ends, and consequently presents a differt-nt
degree of fermentation.
27 1 7. Laying down these rules by which
dunghills should be turned, the mechanical
part of the operation is executed in the
following manner : — The people required
to do this work are a man and a few field-
workers, according to the size of the dung-
hills; and of this latter clai«, women are
by far the best hands at turning dung-
hills, because, each taking a smaller quan-
tity of dung at a time upon a smaller graip
than the onlinary one fig. 82, the dung is
more intimately mixed together than when
men are employed at this work, who take
large graipfuls, and merely lift them from
one side of the trench they are working in
to the other, without shaking each graip-
ful to pieces.
2718. Turning dung is not a cleanly
work for women, their petticoats being
apt to be much soiled in the trench by the
dung on both sides ; but the plan which
the Berwickshire women adopt of keeping
this part of their dress clean, is to tie the
bottom of the petticoat with the garters
just below the knee.
2719. The man's duty is to cut the dung-
heap into daces of 3 feet in width, across
the breadth of the heap, with the dung-
spade, fig. 191, in the manner described
in (2012.)
2720. The drier portions of the dung
are put into the interior of the dunghill,
and, when different sorts of dung are met
with, they are intermingled in small graip-
fuls as intimately as possible. Each dace
of the dung-heap is cut off, and turned
over from the top to the bottom. When
the bottom of the dace is reached, the
scattered straws, and the earth which has
been damped by the exudation from the
dung-heap, are shovelled up with the
square-mouthed shovel, fig. 83, or the fry-
ing-pan shovel, fig. 233, and thrown into
the interior. When straw-ropes are met
with, they should be cut into small i)ieces,
and scattered amongst the dampest parts
of the dung-heap. Though the dung-heap
is cut into parallel trenches, the dung from
the top of one trench is not thrown upon
the botion) of the former one, but upon the
breast of the turned dung, so that the
turned dung slopes away from the work-
people. The utility of this mode of turn-
ing is, that when the dung is carting away,
it not only rises freely with the giaip, but
the dung is intimately mixed, and not in
separate loose trenches. When a dung- heap
is thus turned over, and its form preserved
TURNING DUNGHILLS.
627
Fig. 233.
as it should be, it constitutes a parallelo-
pipedon, and is agood-looking piece of work.
2721. Fig. 233 represents the frying-
pan shovel, which is
so named by its simi-
larity to that culinary
utensil. It is also
called the lime shovel,
as being well adapted
for the spreading of
lime, upon the land ;
the raided back pro-
tects the hand from the
lime while the sharp
point passes easily
under the lime, mak-
ing way for the sole
to slip along the bot-
tom of the cart. The
use of this shovel is
chiefly confined to
the Border counties.
When mounted with
a helve, and of the
medium size, it costs
3s. lOd.
THK FRYING-PAN OR
LIME SHOVEL.
2722. Unless much rain has fallen
from the time the dung was led out
of the court until the heap is turned,
the dung will not be very moist, and
not at all wet, thou'gh in a free work-
able state, with a slight degree of heat in
it, and evaporation would be observable
from it, were the air cold at the time of
turning. Very little moisture will have
come from the heap. After this turn-
ing over, shaking up, and mixing to-
gether, which should be finished in the
same heap as quickly as possible, that the
whole mass may have the same time to
ferment, a considerable degree of heat
may be expecte<l to show itself in the
dung in the course of a few days. There
is no danger of this first fermentation pro-
ducing a great degree of heat, as the air
is still cool at night, and the largest pro-
portion of the heaps consists of the dung
of cattle, which is slow of fermentation at
all times, and particularly in the early
part of the season. Tiie first external
symptom of fermentation is the subsidence
in the bulk of the heap, which, in the course
of a fiirtnight, at this season, may contract
1 foot of height. Aperceptible smell will
then arise from the dung, accompanied with
a flickering of the air over it, which is
occasioned by the escape of vapour and of
gases. By inserting a few sticks into the
heap here and there, a heat considerably
above that of the hand will be felt on
them, the relative heat of diiferent parts
ascertained, and the greatest heat may be
expected at the side opposite from whence
the wind comes. The substance of
the dunghill becomes more consolidated
in consequence of the fermentation, and
also more uniform ; and a black-coloured
liquid will ooze from its sides, at the
ground. If the soil upon which the dung-
hill stands was soft when the dunghill was
formed, the oozing will be absorbed by it,
and exhibit but little wetness at the sur-
face ; but if the soil was firm, the moisture
will remain on the surface, and form small
pools in the ruts of the cart-wheels or in
the open furrows. All the leakage, if
collected in even one pool, would afford
but a trifling quantity; indeed much mois-
ture cannot exude from a dung-heap
derived from courts in which the cattle
are supplied with as much litter as will
keep them both dry and warm.
2723. The turnip dunghill receives a
somewhat different treatment, but still
conformable to the purpose for which it is
destined. It is turned twice, and on this
account is begun to be turned at the
oi)posite end to that for potatoes, or at the
end nearest the headridge ; but the same
mode is practised in turning it, as that
just described for the potato dunghill.
After the turning, it is allowed to ferment
for about a fortnight. At the second
turning, which is given about a fortnight
or ten days before the dung is used, the
operation is commenced at the end at
which the former turning terminated, and
is more easily performed than the first,
inasmuch as the substance is more easily
cut with the dung-spade, more easily separ-
rated and shaken with the graip, and less
care is required to retain the rectangular
figure formerly given to the dunghill.
2724. The weather at the second turn-
ing will be warm, and the fermentation,
of course, rajjid ; so that apprehension may
be excited that it will proceed to a degree
injurious to tlie materials composing the
dunghill. A spitful of earth thrown
upon the top of the dunghill, will
628
PRACTICE— SPRING.
check rapid fermentation to a certain
degree. Fur raising turnips, however,
there is little dread of the fermentation
pntceediug too far, aa it is matter of ex-
perience that the more effectually the
fermentation has run its course, the dung
becomes the more valuable for the nourish-
ment of the turnip plant, as is well known
to every turnip farmer. When in this
valuable state, heat has almost entirely left
it, it has become like soft soap, and rises
in lumps wiih the graip, and would almost
cut iuto pieces with the shovel. It is
sappv, cohesive, greasy, heavy, and of a
dark brownish-black colour. The larger
the mass in this state, the more valuable it
is for turnips.
2725, It is supposed by many farmers
who grow Swedish turnips largely,that dung
cannot be made into this state in time fur
Swedish turnips, which ought to be sown
before the middle of May ; and, in ordinary
seasons in Scotland, the observation, I dare-
say, is correct. To obviate the want of so
valuable an ingredient as old muck, it is
the practice of some farmers to keep dung
on purpose over the year. This would be
impracticable on farms which depend en-
tirely on their own produce for the manure
applied on them ; but let a sacrifice be
made for one year, of collecting farm-yard
dung from external sources, and forming
it into a dunghill for the succeeding year,
or of purchasing other manure to a large
extent for one year, to raise the crop of
turnips, and reserve the farm-yard dung
for the Swedish turnips of the next year,
and the object is gained. I have known
farmers attain this object to a partial
extent, but no one whom I have observed
practised it to so great an extent as Mr
Smith, when he was at Grindon in North
Durham, where he possessed a fine stock
of short-horns. The dung of the year was
made fit for white turnips, which were not
sown for a month or so after the swedes,
and then heat and time combined to bring
it to a proper state for use.
2726. This mode of preparing farm-j-ard
manure is now decried as being wasteful
of the most valuable part of the manure.
No doubt some waste of the dung-heap
takes place ere the dung is converted to
the state just described ; and, were means
available to prevent the least waste, while
the object of procuring the manure in the
best state was secured, those means would
be a desiralde attainment. But the same
necessity for having the dung in that state
does not exist now as it did then. One
infallible means has been pot into the
power of farmers to raise a good crop of
turnips, and this is the sole object wliich
the old plan had in view. It is now fuund
that the use of a little guano secures the
health and growth of the turnip plant at
the early stage of its existence; and the
farm-yard dung having been relieved from
this necessary and essential care, and most
onerous part of its duty, it may safely be
consigned to the ground before reaching
the state described above, and there, instead
of in the fermenting dung-heap, become
prepared for supporting the turnip plant at
a more advanced period of its existence.
This happy change serves to preserve
some of the bulk of the farm-yard manure,
and to extend it over a larger space of
ground.
2727. This being the case, let ns attend
to the dung-heap, as proposed to be treated
in the new or improved mode, and which
is represented in fig. \92. In pursuance
of the amended plan, the dung intended
to be used for the potato crop should be
allowed to remain in the court, until about
a fortnight or three weeks before it is to
be used, when it should be taken out to
be fermented — for fermented it ought to be
before it is used — and the place it should
be taken to be fermented is the dung-pit
in the field, fig. 192, into which it should
be carefully shaken with the graips by the
field workers ; and as the above mode is
the most convenient for a dung-heap to be
thrown by the graip into the cart when it is
wanted fur the field, so the dung, as it is
brought from the court, in the carts, to
the dung-pit, should be turned and shaken
into regular daces, one after the other, in
the dung-pit, beginning at a given point,
and throwing up the dung upon the face
of the dace with a sloi>e, until the height
is reached which the turned dung-heap
should have in the dung-pit.
2728. The dung, which has been kept
in an uncompressed state in a particular
court at the steading, as formerly noticed
in (2013,) becomes sufficiently fermented
for potatoes, where it is, and may be driven
PLANTING POTATOES.
629
directly to the potato-field when wanted,
without further fermentation.
2729. The dung for the turnips was
led out to the field at the proper season,
(2019) and placed in heap in fig. 192 to
await its further treatment, and that time
will have arrived whenever the dung-pit
has been cleared of the dung for the
potato crop, on the supposition that tlie
potatoes and the turnips are to be raised
in the same field. In case the potato-
planting should be delayed from some
cause, it will be well to arrange to take
the white turnips in the same Held with
the potatoes, when the dung for them will
have plenty of time to be prepared ; but
the dung-pit for the dung intended for
swedes, should be occupied by the be-
ginning of May at latest.
2730. The turnip dung-heap, occupy-
ing its site d, in fig. 192, receives this
treatment in preparation for the sweiles :
The dung-heap is begun at one end to
be wheeled on barrows, fig. 87, into the
dung-pit, where it should be thrown up
with the graips by the field-workers in a
regular manner, dace after dace, beginning
at one end of the dung-pit and progressing
backwards towards the other end. If the
height of the turned heap is above the
reach of the throw the field- workers can
easily make, two or three planks should
be laid down parallel to the dace they
are working at, the dung wheeled upon
them from the dung-heap, and they will
afford a footing to tliose turning the dung,
and from tliem the dung can be thrown
to the requisite height. Tlie dry straw
around the ends, and sides, and top of the
dung-heap should be carefully scattered in
the dung-pit among the sappiest portions
of the dung, and covered up by tlie same.
In this way the entire dung-heap may be
transformed from tlie stance in the outside
to the inside of the dung-pit. The field-
workers will wheel the barrows as well as
men, one man only being required to cut
the dung-heap into small pieces with the
dung spade. The ground on which the
dung-heap stood should be carefully shov-
elled clean as the dung is wheeled away,
and the shovelling should be performed
by the man, alternately with the cutting of
the dung. After the entire dung-heap has
been turned in the dung-pit, the shutters
should be put on the open spaces serving
in the meantime as doors, and the dung left
to ferment until it is wanted.
2731. Long sticks should be stuck in
all dung-heaps undergoing fermentation,
that a knowledge may be gained of what
is going on in the interior. The degrees
of heat, and the consistency of the manure
heap, will indicate whether the former is
proceeding to too high a degree for safety
to the heap, and the latter will exhibit
unequal sinkings in its mass in those places
which had been either insufficiently
loosened, or its component parts irregu-
larly mixed. On this account it is of great
importance to exercise a constant superin-
tendence over the turning of dung-heaps.
ON THE PLANTING OF POTATOES.
2732. The potato crop is cultivated on
what is called the fallow division of the
farm, being considered an ameliorating
crop for the soil. Following a crop of
grain, whose stubble is bare in autumn, the
land for the potato crop is ploughed early,
that it may receive all the treatment
which winter can exercise, to make it ten-
der ; and as potatoes affect a dry and light
soil, the land for them may be ploughed
early in spring, and even then partially
cleaned. The time for cleaning land is
very limited in spring, and ought not to
be depended on — so the cleanest portion of
the fallow -break should be chosen for the
potatoes to occupy.
2733. The stubble land will either have
been cast, fig. 22, in autumn, or cloven
down without a gore-furrow, fig. 27, ac-
cording as the soil is strong or light; and
having been particularly provided with
gaw-cuts, to keep it as dry as possible all
winter, it may probably be in a state to
be cross-ploughed, fig. 229, soon after the
spring wheat and beans have been sown,
if either of these crops is cultivated on
the farm ; and if not, the cross-])loughing
for potatoes constitutes the earliest work
in spring after the ploughing of the lea.
2734. After the cross-ploughing, the
land is thoroughly harrowed a double tine
along the line of the furrow, an.fJ a double
tine across it ; and any weeds and stones.
€30
PRACTICE— SPRING.
that may have been brought to the surface
by the harrowing, are gathered off.
2735. If the land is clean, it will be
ready for drilling, if not, it should receive
another ploughing in the line of the ridges,
across the cross-furrow, and ridged up by
casting, fig. 22, and then again harrowed
a double tine along and also across, and
the weeds again gathered off. Should the
surface be dry on harrowing after cross-
ploughing, and the weather appear not
likely to continue dry, the grubber, fig.
21.5, will be a better implement for stir-
ring the soil, under tlie circumstances, than
the plough, as it will still retain the dry
surface uppermost, and bring to the sur-
face the weeds that will entangle them-
selves about the tines. The time occupied
in doing all this, as the weather may per-
mit, may be about a month, fnmi the
middle of March to the middle of April,
when the potato should be planted. As
the land cannot receive more ploughing in
early spring than it should, to make it still
more tender, the drills for the manure
should be set up in the double mode,
(2307.)
2736. "While the land is preparing for
the potato crop — and it will not be pos-
sible to prepare it continuously, as the oat-
seed, and the early part of the barley-seed
will have to be attended to — the potato-seed
should be prepared, which is the special
duty of the field-workers. The potato-pit is
opened by removing the thatch and earth,
and the potatoes are taken into a barn.
2737. The state of the potatoes, when
taken out of the pit, will depend on the
temperature of the weather in spring, and
also on the state they were pitted in au-
tumn. In cold weather, they will not be
much sprouted in the pit by the time they
should be planted ; but should they have
at all heated, in consequence of the wet
state they were pitted, or the unripe state
they were taken up, they will inevitably
Laveheatedaiidsprouted. Whenthesprouts
are long, they shouhl be removed, as it
will be impossible to preserve them entire ;
but if the quickening of the tubers is evi-
denced only by mere buds, these should
be preserved, as they will push above
ground several days sooner than the sets
which had not sprouted at all. It should
be borne in mind, however, that sets with
long sprouts, and sprouted sets that have
been long kept after being taken out of
the pit until planted in the field, are apt to
set up puny plants. In selecting tubers,
therefore, to cut into sets, the middle-sized,
that have not sprouted at all, or have
merely pushed out buds, will be found the
soundest ; and wherever the least softness
or rottenness is felt, or any suspicious-
looking mark as regards colour, or any
other peculiarity is observed, the tuber
should be entirely rejected, and even its
firm portion should not be used for seed.
The small potatoes should be picked out
and put aside to boil for poultry, and pigs.
2738. Potatoes are either planted whole,
or cut in parts into sets. Large whole
potatoes create waste of seed, and small
sets give rise to puny plants.
2739. Small whole potatoes make good
seed. One season, happening to have
fewer sets cut than would plant the ground
tlie dunghill allotted to the potato-land
manured, some of the small potatoes, which
bad been picked out for the pigs when the
sets were cut, were planted to finish the
land with potatoes, and they actually
yieltled a better crop than the rest of the
■field.
2740. The usual practice is to cut a
middle-:^ized potato into 2 or 3 sets, ac-
cording to the number of eyes it may con-
tain, and unless two eyes are left in every
set, the chance of having a plant will not
be great, as one of them may have lost its
vitality. The sets should be cut with a
sharp knife, be pretty large in size, and
taken from the rose or crown end of the
tubers ; the
other heel, or
root end, may
^ ^ be kept for the
pigs or poultry,
b AVhen fres'ii, the
tubers cut cri.-p,
and exude a
good deal of
moisture, which
soon evapo-
rates, and leaves
the incised parts
dry. Fig. 234
represents a po-
HOW A POTATO MAT BX CUT
INTO SKTS.
PLANTING POTATOES.
631
tato divided into sets, having each at least
two eyes : what is above the line a a is
the crown, and what helovv the line dd
is the root end, and should be rejected
for seed. A potato may be cut in this
manner, and in many parts, as through b b
and c c, if large enough ; and it may be
cut through the middle between b and c
horizontally or perpendicularly, provided
always that at least two eyes arc preserved.
2741. A very common practice prevailed
to heap the cut sets in acorner of the barn
until they were planted ; and had they been
prepared or exposed to drought prior to
this treatment, they might have remained
there uninjured, but if heaped up immedi-
ately after being cut, and while quite moist,
the probability was that those in the heart,
and near the bottom of the heap fermented,
evolved a considerable degree of heat,
and never vegetated. I believe much of
the injudicious treatment which the sets
of potatoes have received, arose from
inconvenience of accommodation in the
apartment in which they were prepared.
The potato sets were locked up there. The
straw-barn cannot be appropriated to them,
as the cattle-man and ploughman must
have daily access to it. The corn-baru
is occupied at this particular period with
a part of the barley-seed which had been
thrashed in quantity. The implement-
bouse is but a small apartment, and affords
but little room — besides the many small
articles which it contains. The only
alternative is to heap tlreni in a corner
of the corn-barn. Hence the utility of
sucli an outhouse as^', Plate II., in every
steading. The sets required to plant an
acre of land will fill 24 bushels ; so, to
plant only from 5 to 10 acres of land, a
large bulk of sets are required, and to give
them room, by spreading them thin, would
occupy a large floor; and all tiie sets
should be prepared before the planting
couimences, there being no time for the
tedious process of cutting them when the
planting is in progress: extra hands would
require to be engaged for the purpose, at
a season when they would be obtained with
difficulty.
2742. To insure the vitality of the sets
in the ground, even when planted under
adverse circumstances, it has been recom-
mended to dust them with slaked lime
with a riddle, immediately the potatoes
are cut, and the sap, on exuding from the
incised part, will be immediately absorbed
by the lime, which, on forming a paste,
encrusts itself on the incised surface.*
Others recommend to dip the sets in a
thick mixture of lime and water, which,
on drying, envelops them in a coating of
plaster. This latter plan 'would be at-
tended with some trouble, and seems to
offer no advantage over the former, which -
is easily done, and can do no harm. It W>
has also been recommended to sprout the
sets prior to planting them, in order to
test their vitality, by spreading them on
the ground 2 or 3 inches thick, covering
them with a thin coating of earth, and
watering the earth frequently until they
are all sprouted ; but the potatoes which
have sprouted in the pit, if cut into sets
and planted immediately^ should be in as
favourable a state to grow in the drill as
when subjected to this process; and
however easily it may be conducted on a
small scale, I consider the suggestion as
unfit to be practised on a large one on a
farm ; and especially when dry sets are
planted, they are found to vegetate more
equally, provided they have retained
their vitality. It has also been recom-
mended to dip the sets in diluted sulphuric
acid.
2743. Since the prevalence of the dis-
ease among the potatoes in all soils and
all situations, numerous expedients havo
been devised to prepare the seed, with the
view of warding off another attack of the
disease; but hitherto all expedients have
proved unavailing. So the treatment of
the seed, as given above, is perhaps just as
likely to be good as any that has yet been
devised.
2744. The potatoes not required for
seed, firm and of good size, whether in-
tended for sale or for use in the farm-house,
should be placed in an outhouse, until dis-
posed of or used, the apartment having an
earthen floor, kept in the dark, with access
to the air, and water thrown upon them
occasionally, to keep them crisp, but not
to make them moist, and they should be
Prize Essays of the Highland and Agricultural Society, vol. xiv. p. 144.
632
PRACTICE— SPRING.
carefully examined as to soundness when
tlie sprouts are taken off.
274.5. Having drilled up as much land
as will allow the planting to proceed with-
out interruption ; having tnmed the dung-
hill in time to ferment the dung into a
proper state for the crop ; and having
prepared the sets ready for planting, let
OS now proceed to the field, and see how
operations should be conducted there, and
in what manner they are best brought to
a termination. Tiie sets are shovelled
either iuUj sacks like corn, or into the
body of close carts, and placed on a
headridge or headridges or middle of the
field, at convenient distances, according to
the length of the ridges. When the drills
are short, the most convenient way to get
the sets in the field is from a cart; but
J when the drills are long, sacks are best
^ suited for setting down here and there
along the middle of the land.
2746. A small round willow basket,
Fig. -235.
A POTATO HAND-BASKET.
with a bow-
bandie, as
fig. 235,
should be
provided for
every per-
son who is
to plant the
' sets ; and as
a consider-
ablenumber
of hands are
required for
the operation, boys and girls mayfind em-
ployment at it, over and above the ordi-
nary field-workers.
2747. The frying-pan shovel, fig. 233,
with its sharp p)int, is a convenient in-
strument for taking the sets out of the
cart into the baskets. Single-horse carts
take the dung from the dunghill to the
drills. Graips, fig. 82, are required to
fill the carts with dung ; small dung-
graips, three-pronged, fig. 218, are most
conveuieut for spreading the dung in the
drills, and a small common graip to di-
vide the dung into each of the three drills,
as it falls into the middle drill from the
cart. The dung-hawk, fig. 217, is used
by the steward for pulling the dung out
of the carts. Boys, girls, or women, are
required to lead tbe horses in each cart to
and from the dunghill to the part of the
field which is receiving the dung. The
ploughmen, whose horses are employed in
carting the dung, remain at the dunjrhill,
and, assisted by a woman or two, fill the
carts with dung as they return einjity.
The steward drags the dung out of the
carts, and gives the land dung iu such
quantity as is determined on beforehand
by the farmer. Three women spread the
dung equally in the drills with the small
dung-graips, while a fourth goes before
and divides it with the common small
graip into each drill as it falls in heaps
from the carts. Women plant the sets of
the potato out of the basket upon the
dung. Ploughs follow, and split in the
drills and cover in the dung and sct.s as
fast as the planting is done, and they
finish the operation of potatc) planting.
It willbe observed from this enunieratiim
that potato planting requires a lar^'e
number of people and implements to
accomplish it effectually.
2748. If the drills have not all been set
up previous to starting the subsequent
work, a plough continues working them up
in the double method, until as much
land has been drilled as is desired U>
I)lant with potatf>es. After he has finished
drilling, he assists the other ploughmeo
in splitting in.
2749. The preparations for planting
being thus ready, the first thing done is to
back a cart to the dunghill /, fig. 236, to
be filled with dung; and it is usually not
quite filled, the dung being heaped as near
the back-end of the cart as is convenient
for the draught of the horse, that the man
who drags it out may have the less labour.
The carts are filled, and the bottom of the
dunghill shovelled clean by the ploughmen
whose horses are employed in carting the
dung ; the men are usually a.ssisted by a
field-worker or two, to detain the carts
the shorter time at the dunghill. When-
ever the load is ready, the driver f starts
with the horse and cart ^7, and walks them
along the headridge until they arrive at
the undunged drills, down which they go
until they come to the steward, who places
the horse and cart into their proper place
in the drills, removes the back-l)oard of
the cart, places it upon its edge on the nave
PLANTING POTATOES.
633
between the body of the cart and the near the dung easily. When the carts are
wheel,as explained in (2433), and then tilts tckole-hod'ied, the steward proceeds, after
the body of the cart as far up as to get at the back-board is removed, to drag out
Fig. 236.
POTATO PLANTING.
the dung. The wheels of the cart and the
horse occupy 3 drills, as at j, the horse
being in the middle drill between two.
The steward k, with the drag in both
hands, pulls out a heap of dung i upon the
ground, and it invariably falls into the
middle drill. The horse is then made to
step forward a few paces and to halt again,
by the voice of the steward, who then
pulls out another heap of dung. An
active man, accustomed to this sort of
work, does not allow the horse to stand
still at all, but to walk slowly on whilst
he pulls out the dung. When the cart is
emptied, the steward fastens down the
body of the cart, if it is a coup one, puts
on the back-board, and the cart again
proceeds by its driver to the dungliill.
When the distance to the dunghill is short,
the carts are as slightly filled as to dis-
pense with the back-board altogether ;
and when it can be wanted, the work is
considerably expedited.
2750. After the cart has proceeded a
few paces, and deposited a few heaps of
dung, the foremost of the band of 4 women
k, who spread the dung, divides the
heaps, as at m, with her small common
graip into other two heaps, I and n, one
in each of the drills beside her; and from
7?i she goes to the next heap i, and divides
it into other two heaps, and so on with
every heap of dung. The 3 field-workers,
71 op, bavins each a small dung-graip, fig.
218, then takes each 1 of the 3 drills
occupied by the horse and cart-wheels, and
all spread the dung before them equally
along the bottom of the drills I m n, each
taking care to remain in her own drill
from the one end of the field to the other,
shaking to pieces every lump of dung, and
teazing out any that may happen to be
ranker than the rest, trampling upon the
spread dung as she walks along and keep-
ing it within the limits of the bottom of
the drill. The spreading should always
be kept close to the cart.
2751. Immediately that a part of 3
drills are dunged and the dung spread, the
potato planters, after having plenished
their baskets with sets from the cart t
up(m the headridge, proceed to deposit
tiie sets upon the dung along the drills, at
from 9 to 1 2 inches apart, according to the
size of the sets. Some women prefer to
carry the sets in coarse aprons instead of
6S4
PRACTICE— SPRING.
baskets, because tliey deem tliem more
convenient. As setting requires longer
time tlian dung spreading, tliere should
be two bands of planters, as at r and *, to
one of s|)readers, wliicli makes G planters
to 4 spreaders. One band of planters, as *,
go in advance of the other r, till the latter
comes up to the place where the former
began, and then the band r goes in ad-
vance, and so one band after another
goes in advance alternately, each filling
their baskets and aprons as they become
empty, but all confining their labour to 3
drills at a time. This plan gives the
advantage of planting the 3 drills quicker,
thereby giving less time to the dung to
become dry, and preparing the ground also
more quickly to be split down by the
ploughs.
2752. Whenever 3 drills are thus
planted, the ploughman u commences to
split the first, and cover in the dung and
sets in the double way. The drills are
split in the same way as they were set up;
that is, as the ploughman a turns over the
first furrow of each drill upon the firm
ground, stretching from a to c, so the
ploughman m, in splitting the drills, turns
over the first furrow upon the dung towards
the planters r and s; because the first
furrow being the largest, it should have
complete freedom to cover the dung and
potato-sets.
2753. The ploughman u should ' not
leave a single drill uncovered in the even-
ing when he gives up work. If he cannot
split all the drills in the double way, he
should cover up the dung and sets of the
few last drills in the single way ; and he
should receive assistance from tlie plough-
man a, who is making up new drills,
to split them completely, if the weather
exhibits symptoms of rain or of frost.
And, even at loosening from t'.ij fore-
noon yoking, every drill should be covered
in, although the ploughman shmild work
a little longer than the rest of the
•work-people ; and for this he may be as
long of yi/king after them in the afternoon
yoking. In dry hot weather he should
make it a point to cover in the drills at
the end of tJie forenoon yoking in a com-
plete manner, as dung soon becomes
scorched by the mid-day sun ; and in such
a state it is not so useful ; not so much
on account of the evaporation of any valu-
able material from it, that being chiefly
water, but because dry dung does not in-
corporate with the soil for a long time, nor
so well as moist; and when soil and dung
together are rendered hot and dry by ex-
posure, their incorporation becomes very
difficult. If all the ploughs cannot cover
in the drills within a reasonable time after
the hour of loosening has arrived, especially
at night, much rather give up the dunging
of the land and the planting of the sets a
little sooner than usual, than run the risk
of leaving any dung and sets uncovered.
2754. Potatoes always receive a large
quantity of dung, being a fallow crop, when
the ground ought to be dunged, and they
are considered to take more nourishment
out of the soil than to return materials to it
— yielding no straw but a few dry haulms,
and the largest proportion of the crop
being sold off the farm. A large dunging
to potatoes always seems great, as time is
wanting to make the dung short, and "
reduce its bulk. About 20 single-horse
loads, or 15 tons the acre, of farm-yard
dung, is as small a dunging as potatoes
receive. In the neighbourhood of towns,
street-manure, to the extent of 30 tons
and upwards, is given ; but there the crop
is forced for an early market, antl the
street-manure has not the strength of farm-
yard dung, and is not so well suited for
them as for turnips.
2755. This is identically the same pro-
cess of applying the dung as was explained
in dunging the land for beans (2433;) and
I liave resumed the subject more parti-
cularly here, in order to show, by the
graphic fig. 236, all the parts of the opera-
tion, which should be well understood,
as reference will again be made to them
when dunging the land for turnips as well
as for bare fallow.
2756. You will obsx^rve that the process,
as represented in fig. 236, is composed of
a variety of actions, which, taken individu-
ally, are ecjually important, and none of
which can be carried on without the assis-
tance of the others, and all of wliich, if
not proportioned to one another, would
produce confu;-ion. Thus, the plou;,'hing
of the drills, the dunging of the land, the
spreading of the dung, the planting of
PLANTING POTATOES.
635
the sets, and the splitting of the drills, are
all equally important operations in potato-
culture. Not one of them would be of any
use without the others. There would be
no use of making drills unless they were
to be dunged, nor would the planting of
the sets avail unless the dung were spread ;
nor would the planted sets be safe, even on
the spread dung, unless the drills were
split to cover the whole from the weather.
But if these separate operations are not
proportioned to one another, the whole pro-
cess goes into confusion. Suppose the
ploughman «, while making double drills,
cannot move on as fast as the party who
is spreading the dung, it is evident that,
besides themselves, every party behind
them would be detained by his tardiness,
and made to lose time. Instead of the
delay continuing, a remedy should be
devised to remove it. The remedy
obviously is, that the ploughman should
have as many double drills made before the
dunging commences, as never to be over-
taken, or he should make single drills ; or
another ploughman should be sent to assist
him to make double drills. The first is
the best remedy, because the same man is
kept at the same work until it is finished,
and the second is the worst, because it
does not sufficiently plough the land.
Suppose, again, that more dung is con-
veyed from the dunghill than the steward
h can possibly drag out, or the 4 women
k n 0 p possibly spread — the result would
be, that the steward and women would
be overworked, while the horses in the
carts, and the people at the dunghill, would
be comparatively idle, and throw away
time. The remedy is either to diminish
the number of carts, or that of hands who
fill the carts at the dunghill. Suppose
there are fewer planters at r and s than
can keep out before the ploughman w,
time would not only be lost in covering
up as many drills as might have been
covered, but the dung spread would lie
exposed to the desiccating action of the
sun and air between the planters of
the sets and the spreaders of the dung.
Were the planters of sets too many for
the spreaders of the dung to move on
before them, the planters would be compara-
tively idle, and so would the ploughmen
behind them. The remedy is, to increase or
diminish the number of the planters of sets,
for the number of the hands who spread the
dung, cannot be altered. Suppose, lastly,
that the ploughman u cannot keep up
with the planters, who, nevertheless, do
not go faster than the dung is spread,
the effect is, that the spread and planted
dung becomes dry before it can be covered
up. The remedy is, either to employ
another ploughman to split in drills, or to
make the foremost ploughman cover the
dung with one furrow, and let the others
behind him finish the drills.
2757. I have dwelt the more fully on
these particulars, because the dunging of
land in this manner is one of those great
operations which is made up of a variety of
cimstituent labours that must all be per-
formed simultaneously, and when so done,
the result is obtained in the quickest and
most complete manner, and with the great-
est harmony. Wherever this harmony of
parts is seen to exist, it is satisfactory
proof that the person who has so arranged
the working coustitueuts possesses the
talentof combining varieties of field- labour,
and displays knowledge of his profession
of a superior order.
2758. A very common mode of dung-
ing potato-land, is to drag the dung from
the cart for 5 drills instead of 3, and
have three, or even fewer, women to
spread it over them. In doing this, each
woman's attention is not confined to a sin-
gle drill, but extends over the whole 5, when
she spreads the dung from the large heap
she takes possession of; and it stands to
reason that she cannot possibly spread
dung so equally, nor 50 well, over 5 drills
as along 1 ; and the work would not be
done better, though faster, although all the
3 women were employed to sj)read from
the same heap, as each would still have the
5drdls to attend to. Besides, when dung
is dragged from the cart for 5 drills, it is
laid in large heaps at considerable dis-
tances of from 5 to 10 paces apart, thereby
increasing the difficulty of spreading. A
larger space, too, is thus manured before
the few women can spread the dung; and
by the time it is spread, and the sets plant-
ed, the dung becomes dry. This plan is
inexcusable on even a small farm, where
labourers are few; because no advantage is
gained bv spreading the dung over 5 drills
instead of 3, and itmiist be a verysmall con-
cern that cannot afford to employ 3 spread-
636
PRACTICE— SPRING.
era; but even 2 women will spread dnntj
over 3 drills better than 3 women over
5. On a large farm, tiie plan indicates
slovenliness, encourages carelessness in
work, and evinces a confusion of ideas
in making so loose an arrangement. It
removes the responsibility for bad work
when 3 women have to spread the dung
over 5 drills, whereas every woman is
responsible for the drill she manures when
confined to it.
2759. It is no uncommon sight, even on
large farms, to see the dung carted out and
spread in one yoking, and the sets planted
and the dung covered in another, by the
same people and horses — doing, no doubt,
a great extent of work in each yoking
and during the day ; but the result would
be far more satisfactory were the work
finished as it proceeded.
2760. A large number of dunge<l drills
are usually begun to be planted with sets
at the same time, instea<l of confining the
planters to setting a few drills at a time,
and have theui covered as soon as possible
with the plough. In short, there is no
end to the many ways in which field-work
is actually done in a slovenly manner ; but
there is only one best way of doing it.
27fil. Drills of potatoes are recom-
mended to be made at 30 inches apart,
instead of 27 inches, which is the usual
width for turnips, because the large stems
of the potato-jtlant growing vigorously
require plenty of air. Even 3 feet apart
is recommended by some cultivators, and
in deep rich soils this width may not be
too great; but I observe in the neigh-
bourhood of large towns, where the great-
est extent of ground is occupied by pota-
toes, that the drills seldom exceed 24
inches, owing partly to the great value of
land, and partly because the early varieties
of potatoes having small stems, and being
most profitable, are cultivated in that loca-
lity. The drills for potatoes are not set
up with the same exactness in widtii as
for turnips, potato sets not being planted
with a machine.
2762. As to the varieties of the potato
whi'^h I would recommend to be culti-
vated, it wo aid seem that different varieties
affect different soils and situations ; and it
seems also not improbable, that the multi-
plication of varieties has arisen, in some
measure, from the influence of soil and
situation on the living plant, independently
of the means purposely used for obtaining
new varieties, such as the importation of
tubers from other countries, or the raising
of tubers from the seed. From whatever
causes the varieties of the potato have in-
creased, they are now extremely numerous;
upwards of 100 varieties of field- potatoes
alune having been described by Mr Law-
son,* and as many experimented on by
Mr Howden, Lawhead, Ea-st Lothian. f
All I can do in regard to noticing any of
the varieties in particular, is lo mention
those chiefly cultivated in the neighbour-
hood of Edinburgh, and elsewhere.
2763. The most common varieties cul-
tivated in the fields are the Dons, very
plentiful in the Edinburgh market. It is
round, and an early variety ; that is to
say, the stems decay by the time the
tubers are fit for use. It produces about
16-fold of the seed, and yields 576 grains
Troy of starch from 1 ib. of tubers. The
Dons are useable whenever taken out of
the ground.
2764. The Buff is a mealy and superior
flavoured jiotato, yielding about 15-fold,
aiul 466 grains Troy of starch from 1 lb.
of tubers. The Buffs are best to use in
spring.
2765. The Perthshire Red, an oblong
flat potato, is largely cultivated for the
London market. It yields about 15-fold,
and affords as much as 777 grains Troy of
starch from 1 Ib. of tubers. This variety
is extensively cultivated in the neighbour-
hood of Perth, whence there used to be
shipped for London uot fewer than 300
cargoes every year.
2766. Of the late varieties, the foliage
of which, in ordinary seasons, does not
decay until destroyed by frost, and wlK)se
tubers require to be kept for bonie time
before being used, the Staffald Hall, or
Lawson's Agriculturist's Manual, p. 21()-2-l, and Svpplfment, p. 52-5.
+ I'rize Essat/s of the Highland and Agricuitural iiucifltf, vol. xi. p. 85 and 95.
PLANTING POTATOES.
637
Wellington, as It is sometimes callerl, is to
be preferred. It is rejjresented to yield
22-fold, and affords 813 grains Troy of
starch from 1 lb. of tubers.
27G7. The Scotch Black potato has
long been cultivated in Scotland ; and it
seems to suit strong soil better than light,
where it yields as high as 16-fold of in-
crease, and affords 522 grains Troy of
starch from 1 lb. of tubers. This variety
has long been, and is still, cultivated in the
Border counties, where it is used in spring.
In those counties potatoes are not raised
for the market.
2768. Of the late varieties for field-cul-
ture suited for cattle, the Irish Lumpers
and Cups are prolific. The Lumper is a
white oblong potato of very inferior
flavour, but yields 421 bushels, and 3118
lbs. of starch per acre ; and the Cups are
an oblong light red, coarse potato, yield-
ing 47y bushels, and 3539 lbs. of starch per
acre.
2769. The small American white potato
was extensively cultivated in the midland
districts of Scotland more than 2U years
ago, but has yielded to more prolific
varieties. For the table, however, when
raised in hazel loam — the true potato soil
— there are few varieties cultivated su-
perior to it in flavour, richness, and beauty
as a dish. It is still raised in the
garden.
2770. The finest flavoured and most
beautiful potato I ever saw on the table
was a light red, small, round variety,
raised a few years ago in the sandy soil of
the parish of Monifieth in Forfarshire. It
had quite the nutty flavour of a fresh
Spanish chestnut — a state of that fine
fruit unknown in this country.
2771. A remark of Thiier's that "some
potatoes put out long filaments into the
soil; others press their tubers so closely
together, that they show themselves above
ground," suggests a consideration in the
selection of the variety of the potato, for the
particular soil in which it is desired to be
raised, which I suspect is never attended to
by farmers when in search of seed potatoes.
On selecting seed, the tuber alone is regard-
ed, without reference to the habits of the
growth of the plant; and those who pro-
fess to describe thi,se habits, seem to direct
their attention solely to the characters of
the plants exhibited above ground, in their
stems, foliage, and flowers, while their
habits under ground, in their roots and
tubers, are deemed unworthy of notice,
and are entirely neglected. Now, when
it has been established that one variety
"puts out long filaments into the soil,"
surely it would be improper to plant that
variety in strong soils, which necessarily
oppose the penetration of tender filaments
through them, when a light soil would at
once encourage that peculiarity of growth.
The impropriety of the want of discrimi-
nation in this matter would be the more
evident, when varieties exist which "press
their tubers closely together," — thereby
indicating that they possess a property
which renders them the most proper to be
selected for planting in strong soil. It is
therefore desirable that observers would
take the trouble of investigating experi-
mentally the nature of the growth under
ground, of the several varieties of the
potato plant which are most generally
cultivated, since their entire value depends
upon tlieir enlarged increase under ground.
2772. There are other ways of culti-
vating the potato in the field besides the
one I have described. When light soil, in
which the potato thrives, is clean and in
good heart, it is frequently dunged on the
stubble in autumn, and ploughed with a
deep square furrow by casting wi th or with-
out a gore-furrow, figs. 22 and iJ3. Abun-
dance of gaw-cuts are made to let off the
superfluous surface-water in winter. It
is then cross-ploughed in spring, har-
rowed a double tine, when it is ready to
be drilled up in the single form, the sets
planted, and the drills split in the double
form, to complete the operation. In the
neighbourhood of towns this is an expe-
ditious mode of planting a large breadth
of potatoes in spring on light soil, but it
requires the land to hsLW^long heen in eery
good heart. I have tried it at a distance
from a town, on good potato land in
middling condition, but could not succeed
in raising much more than half the crop
on dunging the same land in spring with
the same quantity of dung.
2773. A modification of this plan may
638
PRACTICE— SPRING.
be practised in very light soil, by cross-
ploughing and harrowing in spring, and
then ridging by casting without gore-fur-
rows in the opposite way it was cast in
autumn when the dung was ploughed in ;
and at this ploughing two women f»jllow
tiie plough, and plant the sets in the bot-
tom of every third furrow. If the furrows
are 9 inches broad, the distance between
the rows of potatoes will be 27 inches ; and
if 10 inches, the rows will of course be
30 inches apart; so that this plan admits
of the rows being made wide enough.
2774. A sub-modification of this method
is to spread the dung over the smooth har-
rowed ground after the land has been cast
into ridges in spring, instead of applying
it on the stubble in autumn. The dung is
raked in and spread evenly along the bot-
tom of every third furrow by a woman
with the small dung graip, fig. 218, fol-
lowing the plough, and immediately pre-
ceding the planters, and another plough
follows the planters and covers up the sets.
In both these modes the potato plants come
up in ro?cs upon the Jlat ground at the
eame distance as in drills, and after the
stems are grown up in summer, the earth
is either ploughed up towards them, which
converts the flat ground into a drilled sur-
face, or allowed to remain flat.
2775. Another mode of the field-culture
of the potato is in lazi/-heds, which is more
generally practised in Ireland than in any
other part of the kingdom. The system
on arable lantl is becoming less general,
though on lea-gronnd and undrained bogs
there cannot ]ierhaps be a better one pur-
sued. " In bogs and mountains," says
Martin Doyle, " where the plough cannot
penetrate through strong soil, heds are the
most convenient for the petty farmer, who
digs the sod with his long narrow spade,
and either lays the sets on the inverted
sod — the manure being previously spread
— covering them from the furrows by the
shovel ; or, as in parts of C<mnaught and
Munster, he stabs the ground with his
lot/ — a long narrow spade peculiar to the
labourers of Connaught — ^jerks a cut set
into the fissure when he draws out the
tool, and afterwards closes the set with the
back of the same instrument, covering the
surface, as in the case of lazy-beds, from
the furrows. The general Irish mode of
culture on old rich arable lea (a practice
very common in the county of Clare, and
elsewhere among the peasantry who pay
dearly for old grass land,) is to plough the
fields in ridges, to level them perfectly with
the spade, then to \vLy the potato sets upon
the surface, and to cover them with or
without manure by the inverted sods from
the furrows. The potatoes are afterwards
earthed once or twice with whatever
mould can be obtained from the furrows
by means of spade and shovel. And after
these earthings, the furrows becoming deep
trenches, form easy means for water to
flow away, and leave the planted ground
on each side of them comparatively
dry." " The practice in the south of Ire-
land is to grow potatoes on grass land from
1 to 3 years old, and turnips afterwards,
manuring each time moderately, as the
best preparation for corn, and as a preven-
tion of the disease called fingers and toes
in turnips. In wet bog-land, ridges and
furrows are the safest, as the furrow acts
as a complete drain for surface water ; but
wherever drilling is practicable it is de-
cidedly preferable, the produce being
greater in drills than in what may be
termed, comparatively, a broad -cast
method."*
277G. The spade-culture of potatoes is
appropriate fur small farmers and cottars,
but is far too expensive on a farm where
horse-labour is employed.
2777. The potato plant is subject to a
disease at a very early period of its exis-
tence, not only after it has developed its
stem and leaves, but even before th' germ
has risen from the set. This disease is
called the curl, from the curled or crumpled
appearance which the leaves assume. The
puny stem and stinted leaves indicate
weakness in the constitution of the plant,
and, like weak animals affected with con-
stitutional disease, the small tubers pro-
duced by curled potatoes, when planted,
propagate the disease to the future crop.
The experiments of Mr T. Dickson show,
that the disease arises from the vegetal)le
powers of the sets planted having been
exhausted by over-ripening; so that seta
Doyle's Cydopoedia of Practical Husbandry — art. Potato.
PLANTING OrATOES.
639
from the waxy end of the potato produced
healthy plants, whereas those from the best
ripened end did not vegetate at all, or pro-
duced curled plants. It is the opinion of
Mr Crichton, " tbat the curl in the potato
may often be occasioned by the way tlie
potatoes which are intended for seed are
treated. I have observed," he says,
" wiierever the seed-stock is carefully
pitted, and not exposed to the air, in the
spring the crop has seldom any curl ;
but where the seed-stock is put into
barns and outhouses for months together,
such crop seldom escapes turning out in a
great measure curled; and if but few curl
the first year, if they are planted again, it
is more than probable tlie half of tliem will
curl next season." * The curl is so well
known by its appearance, and the curled
plant so generally shunned as seed, that the
disease is never willingly propagated by
the cultivator.
2778. But, of late years, a disease has
affected the potato with so much virulence
as almost to destroy the entire crop, and
"with so much subtlety as to baffle the in-
genuity of the philosopher as well as of
the farmer, to discover even its nature.
It was first called the taint, then tlie
failure, then the murrain, as its viru-
lence increased ; and now it is simply the
potato disease, because no one can now
venture to define its characteristics with
any degree of accuracy. Its ultimate
effect is to reduce the tuber to a complete
state of putrefaction, and this is effected as
well in the ground as in the pit. Its
earliest appearance in the tuber is indi-
cated by discoloured blotches in the sub-
stance on the removal of the skin ; and so
loathsome is the feeling attending the
discovery of this state of the tuber,
that hunger itself cannot tempt a human
being to eat the tainted part of a potato.
2779. Conjectures have been formed as
to its ca\ise, and many remedies proposed
for modifying the mode of cultivating
the tuber. The former are accepted
or rejected according to the predilec-
tions of the individual ; the latter have
been adopted in innumerable ways; and
while one may have succeeded in one plan
it has failed in another, and has failed in
the same place in the succeeding season.
Cut sets, large and small — whole potatoes,
large and small — moist weather and dry
weather — early planting and late planting
— strong soil and light soil — high situation
and low situation — northern exposure and
southern exposure — shelter under trees and
by hedges, and exposure in open fields —
with manure and without manure — ma-
nure applied directly to the sets and in-
directly to the sets — one kind of manure
and another kind of manure — cutting and
pulling off the stems, and letting the stems
remain — picking off the blossoms, and en-
couraging their growth — pulling off the
seed apples, and encouraging them to ripen
— weeding the ground clean, aud encou-
raging the growth of weeds around the
potato plants — earthing up the rows, and
allowing them to remain flat — ripening
the tubers in the ground, and taking them
up before they are ripe — taking them out
of the ground, and allowing them to remain
in the ground all winter — trying one va-
riety and anotlier variety — a late variety
and an early variety — old varieties and
new varieties, just raised from seed —
smearing, dusting, and steeping the sets
in various mixtures and ingredients, and
potatoes brought from South America, the
land of their origin : one and all of these
expedients have been industriously and
anxiously tried, not only in the British
isles, but on the continents of Europe and
America, and the greatest attention be-
stowed in applying them with the utmost
care,and in the best way that ingenuity and
skill could devise ; and all have failed to
produce a single conviction that we are
acquainted with the nature of the disease
better now than we were at its first outbreak.
Perplexity has i reased every year; hope
has urged the culture, year after year,
until every expedient should be exhaust-
ed. A respite from disease in 1847 inspired
a ccmsiderable degree of returning confi-
dence; but the serious failure in 1848 has
decided the fate of the potato culture.
2780. I <lo not say that the culture of
the potato will be abandoned for the future,
for that will never be ; but the crop will
not again be so extensively cultivated,
nor confidence reposed in it, until there be
entire immunity from disease for several
Memoirs of the Caledonian IlorticuUural Society, vol. i. p. 55 and 440.
MO
PRACTICE— SPRING.
years in succession. Whether such expe-
rience awaits it I cannot foretell, but 1 ilo
not expect it; for I take this disease to
be somewhat analogous to every severe
epidemic which overtakes the human frame
for the first time in a country, that, after
it has once run its course through the
human constittition, it never fails to leave
a testimony of its existence, more or less
evident, ever after.
2781. One of the expedients resorted
to for avoiding this direful disease in the
potato is the raising of new varieties from
the seed contained in the potato apple;
and although the new produce has by
no means escaped the disease, it may
be worth while to describe a mode of
raising new potatoes directly from the
seed of a size fit to be u.<ed at table.
I wish to retnark, that the new varie-
ties of potatoes, which have not been ex-
empted from the disease, may have been
produced from the seed of diseased plants.
We have no evidence that the potato
apples gathered for the purpose of raising
new plants had been the produce of sound
plants. The plants may not have exhibited
symptoms of disease, nor the tubers from
the same plants have indicated any disease,
and yet the embiyo of disease may have
been in them, ready to be developed under
favourable circumstances. 'We have no
security now that we can select a single
plant of the potato free of the germs of
the disease; and if the probability is that
it contains disease, whatever be the result
of the exfKjriment it can conduct to no
safe practice.
2782. A successful mode of obtaining
good- sized potatoes from seed seems to
have been followed by Mr John D. Peters,
Gastron. He says, — "I have divided
my manner of proceeding into two parts: —
l.Tlie manner of obtaining the seed 2. The
manner of treating the sowing and plant-
ing. The seed apples must be carefully
collected when the potatoes are dry, be-
cause those apples which fall oS of their
own accord produce the best seeds. The
apples are then suffered to remain until
they begin to rot. Then they must be
pressed, andagainallowed to remain in their
jelly or slime, until the latter, by decom-
position, be changed Into water. And now
the seeds, as in the case of cucumber seeds,
may be washed out clean, but previous to
this not a drop of water must be added.
2783. " From the middle to the end of
March, according to the favourable state
of the weather, a bed is to be prepared in
the following manner, — Let a space be
levelled, about 12 feet long and 4 feet
broad — sufficient plants can bereare<l upon
this sjtace to plant out 80 square rods ; put
horse-dung upon it to the depth of i) inchefl;
then cover this dung with about 6 or 8
inches of mould, previously run through a
sieve. The space is to be enclosed by
common frames, with suitable glazed cover-
ing. After the mould has been thus laid
over the dung, make it smooth and even,
and then draw cross-furrows, of about half
an inch in depth, with a fine rake, and
sow the seed therein ; after which, with
the back of the rake, again smooth the
small furrows, but without raking the
ground again. The earth or mould is to be
watered by means of a small watering-
pot, and great care must be taken to keep
the bed mould always of e»pial moisture.
The slides may only be moved to admit air
when the plants shall have made their ap-
pearance, which occurs after the space of 10
or 12 days. Care must likewise be taken
not to let the plants be choked by weeds.
2784. " After the plants have attained
a length of 6 inches, they are then to be
planted out at the same distance that po-
tatoes are usually planted. The plants
must be put into the ground at such a depth
that two-thirds of the plant be covered.
They are then watered a little. The future
treatment of the plant may now be con-
ducted exactly in the manner of potatoes
which have been planted out.
2785. " If this process be strictly at-
tended to, the first year's crop will yield
potatoes of the size of a hen s egg, and
a much richer harvest may be expected
than any crop from cuttings could yield.
I have actually had plants which iiave
yielded upwards of 100 potatoes, some of
the size of a hen's egg, many as large as
walnuts, and all the others sufficiently
large for planting. " *
* Hatnburg Corrapondenten of Norember 30, 1846.
PLANTING POTATOES.
641
2786. M. Zander, gardener to Coniit
Arnini at Boitzeiiburg, near Berlin, raises
potatoes from seed in a similar manner to
that of Mr Peters, and with equally good
euccess
2787. A good potato is neither large
nor small, but of medium size; of round
shape, or elongated splieroid ; the skin of
fine texture, and homogeneous ; and the
eyes neither numerous nor deep-seated.
The habit of growth of its stem is strong
and slightly spreading, and colour ligiitish
green. I believe that the intensity of the
coh)ur of the flower is in some degree an
indication of the depth of the colour of the
tuber; and I believe also, that white
potatoes are generally fit to be eaten when
taken out of the ground, but that red ones
are the better for being out of the ground
for a shorter or longer time, according to
the fineness of their texture, before being
used.
2788. The intrinsic value of a potato,
as an article of commerce, is estimated by
the quantity of starch it yields on analysis;
but, as an article of domestic consumption,
the Jiavoiir of the starchy matter is of
greater importance than its quantity. Al-
most every person prefers a mealy potato
to a waxy one, and the more mealy it is
usually the better flavoured. The meali-
ness consists of a layer of mucilage imme-
diately under the skin, covering the starch
or farina, which is held togetlier by fibres.
Light soil raises a potato more mealy than
a strong ; and I suppose every one is aware,
that a light soil produces a potato of the same
variety of better flavour tlian a clay soil.
Thus soil has an influence on the flavour,
and so has culture ; as potatoes, whatever
may be the variety, raised from soil which
has been dunged for some time, are higher
flavoured than those grown in immediate
contact with dung.
2789. Mr ITowden, Lawhead, discovered
a curious effect which moist and dry soil
comparatively had upon the sprouting of
the potato, and on the constitution of the
sets. He says: "On the 28th June I
selected from a store which had been re-
peatedly turned ajid kept 5"or family use,
70 potatoes of the old rough black variety.
I divided this number into 5 lots, sizing
them, so as each lot of 14 potatoes weighed
TOL. I.
exactly 4 lb. I made on that day one lot
of 14 into starch, and obtained 9 oz. On
the same day I put 14 potatoes whole, and
14 cut into 5G sets, into a deep box filled
with dty mould. The remaining 14 whole
and 14 cut I put into another box filled
with moist earth, and whicii was watered
from time to time. At the end of three
weeks, with the exception of five sets, all
the plants made their appearance. All
this time the dry box had been kept from
moisture. On the 21st July, however, I
allowed it to be moistened with heavy rain,
and on the 28th July, I took up and ex-
tracted starch from the wdiole. Before
doing so, however, I weighed the several
lots: and what seemed to me curious was,
that each lot of the trhole potatoes had
gained 8 oz. ; while each lot of the cut
ones had lost 6 oz. of its weight, and of
their number ten did not vegetate. The
sprouts from the ichole potatoes weighed
4 oz., and those from the cut only 2 oz.,
yet the starch from the 28 cut potatoes
was only 2 oz., and that from the 28 tchole
potatoes 9 oz., being exactly the produce
in starch of half that number, namely, 14,
which was made into starch at the com-
mencement of the experiment."
2700. I mentioned the effect which the
unequal formation of tiie double-drill had
in causing tiie plants of beans (2443,)
germinating within it to grow out of the
side instead of the top of the drill, and
the drill has the same effect on potato
plants. To evade the injury that would
accrue to the jilant from tliis cause, the drill
is harrowed down flatter in eight or ten
days after the potatoes have been planted,
and tiie harrowing is best eflected by the
drill-harrow, fig. 220. Of the two forms
of drill-harrows, the rectangular and tri-
angular, tiie triangular is safest in its
action after the germ of the potato has
])ierced throngli the ground, as its outmost
tines work between the tops of the drills
across thei r hollow, whereas the rectangular
harrow rides upon the tops of the drills.
2791. The common harrows are passed
either along or across the drills, according
to the nature of the soil. Strong soil bears
the harrows along tiie drills ; and in verj
hard land, particularly in dry seasons, they
may be pased along a double tine, but
otherwise a single tine will suflSce. Har-
2s
642
PRACTICE— SPRING.
rowing across, with well-worn tines, will ing between Belladonna and Conium ; according
have the least chance of disturbinc: long *f ^^^ V^^""' '^ '=* particularly servioeable in
1 1 r 1 • * . -.„ chronic rheuraatisra.aud painful affeitioiis of the
rnaiM.re when used for .lunging p-.tatoes, stomach and uterus. ... . The common
a8 tiie coming drill which first receives potato in a state of putrefaction is said to give
the fore part of the harrow supports it and out a most vivid light, suffiiient to read by. This
prevents the tines penetratini; too deep; was particularly remarked by an officer on guard
but the walking across <lrills^ is irksome V- Strasburg, who thought the barracks were on
nre, in consequence oi the light thus emitted
from a cellar full of potatoes."*
but the walking
botii to man and beast, so that the liarrow-
iDg is most easily performed along the
drill. The common harrows are however
a harsh imjilement for harrowing drill.--,
compared to either of the drill harrows.
2792. A wooden roller of a form to
embrace two drills, is recommended to
be used to crush the clods, often found
on strong land in dry weather after wet,
upon the tops of the drills, or to push
them down from the top to the bottom of
the drills.
2793. The potato belongs to the class and or-
der Pentandria 3Iono<jynia of Linnaeus ; the
family Solanece of Jussieu ; and to class iii.
Periqynovs Exogens; alliance 46 Sotaiiales; ortier
2.''8, Sulanaceie ; tribe 2, Currewhurce ; genus
Solatium, of the natural system of Lindley.
2794. On this remarkable family of plants Dr
Lindley observes that they are " natives of most
parts of the world without the arctic and antarc-
tic circles, especially within the tropics, in which
the mass of the order exists in the form of tlie
genera Solaniim and Physa/is. The number of
species of the former genus is very great in tro-
pical America. At first sight this order seems
to offer an exception to that general correspon-
dence in structure and sensible qualities which is
so characteristic of well defined natural orders,
containing as it does the deadly nightshade and
.henbane, and the wholesome potato and tomato ;
but a little inquiry will explain this apparent
anomaly. The leaves and berries of the potato
are narcotic ; it is only its tubers that are whole-
Bome when cooked. This is the case with other
suclulent underground stems in equally dangerous
families, as the cassava among siturgeworts ; be-
sides which, as De Candolle justly observes : —
' II ne faut pas perdre de vue que tons nos ali-
mens renferraent un petite dose d'un principe
excitant, qui, s'il y etait en grande phis quantitc
pourrait 6tre nuisible, mais qui y est necessaire
pour leur servir de condiment nature!.' The
leaves of all are, in fact, narcotic and exciting,
but in different degrees, from Atropa Belladonna,
which causes vertigo, convulsions, and vuniiting,
tobacco, which will frequently produce the first
and last of these symptoms, henbane and stra-
monium, down to some Solanunis, the leaves of
which are used as kitchen heibs. . . . An
extract of the leaves of the common potato,
Solatium tuberosum, is a powerful narcotic, rank-
2795. " The name is given by Pliny, but the
derivation is uncertain ; some derive it from
Sol, the sun ; others say it is l^ulanum, from
Sus, being serviceable in the disorders of swine;
and others from Sotor, to comfort, from its sooth-
ing narcotic effects. All these conjectures are,
however, improbable. Solatium tuherofuin, the
common potato, has roots bearing tubers ; stems
herbaceous ; leaves unequally pinnate ; leaflets
entire ; pedicel articulated. It is a native of
South America, on the west coast every where.'"t
2796. The Solanaceoe or Nightshades, comprise
900 species, of which we have only five in Bri-
tain. The genus Solanum has only two British
representatives, Solatiutn didcnmam, a pretty
climbing shrub, found occasionally in hedges, and
iSolanum nii/nini, with an herbaceous stem. Both
these plants, like the rest of the tribe, are strongly
narcotic. The .*(//flKM»n t/M/camara, bitter-sweet,
or woody nichtshade, has a purple flower and
bears red berries; the Su! an urn tiiijrum, or garden
nightshade, bears white flowers and black
berries. These plants can only be identified
botanically by an examination of the leaves and
berries. The active principle in both is an alka-
loid, So/ania, which is itself a poison, although
not very energetic. Two grains of the sulphate
killed a rabbit in a few hours. According to
Liebig, this poisonous alkaloid is formed in and
around the shoot of the common potato, when
it germinates in darkness ; but there is no evi-
dence that the potatoes are thereby rendered
injurious. Their noxious qualities are probably
due to other causes.
2797. Having been so long familiar with the
potato in a cultivated state, it is interesting to
be acquainted with its appearance in its native
localities and unaltered condition, the more es-
pecially as recent events have given us some
reason to fear that we may have again to re-
cruit our. present varieties by having recourse to
the original stock. " The wild potato," says
Mr Darwin, "grows on these islands, the Chou'is
Archipelago, in great abundance in the .*an<Iy,
shelly soil near the sea be:ich. The tallest pKint
was four feet in height. The tubers were gene-
rally small, but I found one, of an ovnl shape,
two inches in diameter ; they resembled in every
respect, and had the same smell. a« F^nt'li'-h
potatoes ; but when boiled they shrai.k much,
and were watery and insipid, without any bitter
taste. They are undoubtedly here incligenous ;
they grow as far south, according to Mr Low, aa
• Lindley's VeijdalJe K'mijdom. p. 6\9-2].
+ Don's Oeneral Syttetn of Botany and Gardening, yoL iv. p. iQQ— Solanacece,
•
PLANTING POTATOES.
6i3
l»t 50®, and are called Aquinas by the wild
Indians of that part : the Chilotan Indians have
a different name for them." " Professor Henslow,
wlio has examined the dried specimens which I
brought home, says that they are the same aa
those described by Mr Sabine from Valparaiso,
but that they form a variety which by some
botunist^ has been considered as specifically dis-
tinct. It is remarkable that the same plant
should be found on the sterile mountains of Cen-
tral Cliili, where a drop of rain does not fall for
mure than six months, and within the damp
forests of these southern islands."*
2798. " The potato CSofanum tuberosum) was
generally cultivated in America at the time of
its discovery; but it is only a few years since its
native country has been ascertained with cer-
tainty. Humboldt sought for it in vain in the
mountains of Peru and New Granada, where
it is cultivate<l in common with ChenopodiuMi
Quiiwa. Before his time the Spanish botanists
Ruiz and Pasou were said to have discovered it
in a wil.j state at Chancay on the coast of Peru.
This fact was doubted after the journey of Hum-
boldt and Bonpland, but it was re-assened by
Caldcleugh, who sent spontaneous plants from
Chili to tiie Horticultural Society of London ;
and latterly Mr Cruikshanks confirmed it in a
letter to Sir William Hooker, in which he says,
' This wild potato is very common at Valparaiso;
it grows chiefly on the hills near the sea. It is
often found in mountainous districts far from
habitations, and never in the immediate vicinity
of fields and gardens.' There is little doubt,
therefore, that Chili is the native country of the
potato ; but Meyer affirms that he found it in a
wild state, not only in the mountains of Chili,
but also in the Cordillera of Peru.
2799. " It is asserted that Sir Francis Drake
introduced the potato into Europe in 1573 ; but
this is very doubtful, since it has also been
ascribed to Sir John Hawkins in 1.^63 ; it is,
however, certain that Raleigh brought it from
Virginia to Eu>iland in 1586 ; and it appears pro-
bable, from the learned researches of AI. Dunal,
that the Spaniards had established its cultivation
in Europe before this time. It was first culti-
vated extensively in Belgium in 1590, in Ireland
in 1610, and in Lancashire in 1684. It is not
much more tlian a century since it was known in
Germany. Between 1714 and 1724 it was in-
troduced into Swabia, Alsace, and the Palatinate;
in 1717 it was brought to Saxony ; it was first
cultivated in Scotland m 1728 ; in Switzerland,
in the canton of Berne in 1730 ; it reached Prus-
sia in 1738, and Tuscany in 1767. It spread
slowly in France till Parmentier, in the middle
of the last century, gave it so great an impulse
that it was contemplated to give his name to the
plant ; the famine in 1793 did still more to ex-
tend its cultivation.
tion from 9,800 to 13,000 feet ; which is nearly
the same elevation to which barley attain', and
about 9,800 feet higher than wheat. , ,i the
Swiss Alps of the canton of Benie, the potato
reaches, according to Kastoffer, an elevation of
4,800 feet.
2801. "Towards the north of Europe, the
potato extends beyond the limits of b- ley, and
consequently that of all the cereals ; thus an
early variety has been introduced into Iceland,
where barley will not grow. The potato degene-
rates rapidly in warm countries ; yet the Eng-
lish ha succeeded in cultivating it in the moun-
tainous regions of India ; but it is doubtful if it
will ever succeed in the intertropical plains of
Africa and America, where the temperature
varies less than in Bengal. An elevation of at
least 4,000 feet seems to be necessary for the
growth of the potato in tropical regions."+
2802. Phillips says that Gerarde in his Her-
bal, which was published in 1597, describes the
true potato under the name of " Batatta Vir-
g'mi'ina sive Virginiarum et Pappus, potatoes
of Virginia." After an accurate description of
the plant and flower, he adds, " The roote is
thicke, fat, and tuborous ; not much differing
either in shape, colour, or taste, from the com-
mon potatoes," meaning the sweet potato, which
was common in his time, " saving that the rootes
hereof are not so great nor long, some of them
round as a ball, some ovall or egge fashion, some
longer, others shorter." " This palladium against
famine," continues Phillips, who, when he used
this phrase, little thought that the object of his
eulogy would itself be the cause of famine and
consternation, " was not cultivated in Scotland
until 1683, and was then confined to the gar-
dens. In 1728, Thomas Prentice, a day-labourer,
first planted potatoes in open fields at Kilsyth,
and the success was such that every farmer and
cottager followed his example. Potatoes were
scarcely known in the East Indies 30 years ago,
but they are now produced in such abundance
that the natives in some places make considerable
use of them. Bombay is chiefly supplied with this
excellent root from Guzerat. And though the cul-
tivation of this root is much increased in France
within these last few years, the poor of that coun-
try cannot yet be prevailed on to eat it."+
2803. It may prove interesting to those who
possess farms in the neighbourhood of a large
town, to know the reasons why the street-manure
of towns is not so suitable for raising potatoes as
stable or byre dung. A paper on the subject by
Dr Madden gives the explanation; but to enable
you to judge of the nature of street-manure,
the table below will show the chemical diffe-
rence between it and hurse and cow dung. The
sum of the chcmic^il nature of the three sub-
stances used in raising potatoes is, that sP'bl^
daiuj is the most heating, but not so durable —
that 6i/'"«-dung is cooler, and much more lasting
— and tliat s^r^rf-manure is very inferior to both
2800. " According to Humboldt, the potato is
generally cultivated in the Andes, at an eleva-
* Voyaije of JI.]\[.S. Beagh round the World, ^. 285.
+ Jt)iniston's Physical Atlas, — Phytology, map No. 2.
J Phillips' History of Cxdtitated Veg^tableSf vol. ii. p. 81-104
644
PRACTICE— SPRING.
in CTery respect, and, in fact, would be little better
than soil, were it nut for the highly azotised
nature of its organic matter, and probably
alsso for the presence of a considerable quantity
of lime : —
Water, &c..
Organic iMatter —
Soluble iu Water, .
Soluble in Potassa, .
Destroyed by Heat, .
Saline Matter, . .
MANURKS.
Stable.
Byre.
Street.
136
11-5
15-9
1333
45-77
45-7
90
12-6
21-8
10-9
26-4
1-4
1-0
11-2
60 0
10000
100-0
100-0
2804. The effect of applying this street-
manure to the soil is : " When any quantity
of it is ploughed into good soil, the following
changes take place, — The ordure and carbonate
of lime, which are evidently the most powerful
ingredients of this manure, will react upon the
less decomposable organic matter, both of the
soil and of the manure itself, and thus bring the
whole into a state of fermentation, the extent
and intensity of which will be regulated by the
quality of these active ingredients, especially the
ordure. This action depends upon the fact that,
when any organic substance in a state of fermen-
tation is brought into contact, or mingled with
any organic matter capable of fermenting, but
not at present in that condition, the whole mass,
after a time, undergoes the same series of
changes, which are always accompanied with the
escape of various gases, and the formation of
certain soluble compounds, which latter consti-
tute the chief food of plants. Moreover, it has
long ago been proved, that substances rich in
azote are always the most prone to decompo-
sition, and likewise are capable of exciting fer-
mentation to a far greater extent in others of a
less putrescible nature. Again, it is well known
to farmers that chalk or carbonate of lime
possesses the power of increasing the putrescent
tendency of many vegetable substances, so that,
when applied to soils, it renders them richer.
But what is curious enough, at the same time
that it causes the production of soluble matter
by promoting putrefaction, it renders less soluble
those portions already in a state of solution, by
entering into chemical combination with them.
On these accounts, therefore, and especially from
the ordure being a very highly azotised substance,
street-mauure will be capable of exciting putre-
faction to a greater extent, considering the small
quantity of organic matter which it contains,
than one at first sight would be led to suppose.
It must, however, be remembered, that as the
putrescent effect will only be produced in the
immediate neighbourhood of the active ingredi-
ents themselves, and as, moreover, these are
mixed with a large quantity of other compara-
tively inert matters, their action is very liable to
be confined to certain spots. Owing, likewise,
to the presence of cinders, a certain portion of
the soluble organic matter will be absorbed by
them, and thns, for a time at least, removed
beyond the reach of the plants. Bit, on the
other hand, it will be ubser«ed, thai, t'loni the
highly azotised nature of its organic r ntenti,
the fermentation will be rny'id nt the fift, ;iiid,
consequently, the manure will be hot in pr. (por-
tion to the quantity of real manure whicli it
contains."
2805. As to the actual effect of this manure in
raising potatoes being one-third inferiur to stable
and byre dung, the following explanation of its
inferiority is offered by Dr Madden. "* In the
account of the culture of the potato, ^iven iu
Professor Low's excellent Elements of i'ractical
Agriculture, we find the following expressions,
— " Dung will in all cases act most quickly upon
young plants when it is well prepared, but ex-
treme preparation of the dung is tiot requind in
the case of the potato. It is enough that it
should be in such a ttate of fcrmfntaUon at that
it titiiy be readily covered by the pUmjh,'' — thus
proving that this plant does not require an in-
stant supply of a considerable part of soluble
matter. And, moreover, it is clear that, as the
useful part of this plant is produced during the
later periods of the growth of ihe crop, the
greatest supply of food will be necessary at that
time. But we have already shown that street-
manure, from the nature of its constituents, fer-
ments very rafidly at frgf, and, consequently,
its ijreatest effecis will be iu the very early periods
of the growth of the crop. The next sentence in
Professor Low's work comiueiices thns, — 'The
potato requires a lariK fufifily of manure.' But
we have already shown that street-manure does
not contain one-third as much real manure as
either that derived from dairies or stables. And
a little below the above quotation occurs the fol-
lowing sentence, — 'Lime does not appear to act
in a beneficial manner, and is rarely applied
directly to this crop.' But our analysis ha«
proved that lime exists in considerable quantities
in the street-manure of Edinburgh ; and as it
Las been exposed to jireat heat— for it is evi-
dently derived from the ashes — it will, of course,
be in the same state as tnild lime when it is
applied, and will, most probably therefore, have
the same effect, which, according to Professor
Low, is ' not beneficial.' The potato possesses a
spreading root, and, consequently, must require
a uniform manure, in order that all its parts may
be equally supplied with soluble organic matter.
But we have before shown that street-manure is
yarlial. The potato requires the greatest
quantity of azote at the later p, riod$ of its growth,
because the tubers contain considerably more of
that substance than the leaves. But street-
manure, from the nature of its organic constitu-
ents, will ferment rapidly, and allow most of its
azote to escape during the early periods of the
cultivation of the crop."
2086. As a general rule for the application of
manure to potatoes, " We may hence argue," aa
Dr .Madden remarks. " that a manure, to suit
well for the potato-crop, should possess the fol-
lowing qualities, — It must be spread equally
through the soil, so that the spungioles, at the
PLANTING POTATOES.
645
termination of all the spreading fibres of its roots,
may be supplied with nourishment." And surely
there is no way of spreading dun" so equally as
along only three drills at a time, and by spreaders
keeping to their own drills. " It must yield azote
during the whoie period of the growth of the
plants ; in fact, rather more is required during
the later periods than prior to the development
of the tubers ; for, from M. Boussingault's an-
alysis, it appears that they contain ygg per cent
more of this substance than the leaves. In an
economical point of view, therefore, the best
manure for potatoes would be one which con-
tained plenty of azote, but still did not decom-
pose very rapidly, — cow-dung, for example." *
2807. What inorganic substances ought a
potato manure to contain, and in what propor-
tions * is a question which " it will not be very
difficult to answer," observes Dr Fromberg; " for,
knowing the average composition of the ash of
sound potatoes, (1257,) and proceeding upon the
principle that, in manuring a crop, we do nothing
more than mix up with the different proportions
of those substances of wliich the crop itself con-
sists, we need only to recalculate the table pre-
senting this composition in a hundred parts.
In how fur the excess of one ingredient will do
harm, when all the others are present in sufficient
quantity, it is almost impossible to say, although
it cannot certainly be great ; but when there is a
deficiency of any ingredient — potash for instance,
and an excess of another, such as lime — then it
is likely that the plant will assimilate the latter
instead of the former, or rather, the acids that
are in the plant requiring to be neutralised, will
combine with lime in such proportion as there is
a want of potash. It may be that the quantities
of those inorganic ingredients appear trifling,
considering that of them altogether there is only
about one per cent present in potatoes, and there-
fore of little consequence ; yet there are reasons
to think that these small quantities, and their
exact proportions, within certain limits, are of
essential importance for the proper performance
of the functions of tlie several organs of the
plants The substances that ought
to be in a potato manure are the following,
arranged according to ih&'ir several pro fwrtions iti
tons : —
/Potash, . . 1180 lbs.
T, J Magnesia, . . 87 ...
liases. < g^^,^ ^ _ _ ^j-
VLime, . . .50 ...
I^ Sulphuric acid, . 416 ...
Acids. < Phosphoric acid, . 23.5 ...
(Chlorine, . . 195 ...
Oxide of iron and silica are present in every soil,
and the organic acids are produced within the
plant itoelf."+
2803. Thaer mentions a few particulars n the
cultivation of the potato in Germany which seem
to us peculiarities, and, I must add, are no im-
provement on our own mode. He says, " As
early as possible in autumn, I break up the soil
to the depth of two inches lower than before,
and then pass the harrow over it. In winter the
dung is carted and uniformly spread. At the
beginning of spring, this dung is buried by a light
ploughing ; and the harrow passed over before
the seed-time ploughing. I like to have a portion
of the manure brought up to the surface by this
operation, because a greater quantity is then col-
lected around the roots of the potatoes. . . .
The potatoes are set in furrows as follows :— by
means of the markinij plough, lines or small fur-
rows are traced at right angles or obliquely
to the direction which the plough is to take.
Four persons are then stationed at equal dis-
tances on the line of the plough, each having
assigned to him the space which he is to plant.
One plough traces the first furrow, which is im-
mediately set with potatoes. Two other ploughs
then follow, and the potatoes are set in the fur-
row traced by the third. It will be understood
that the persons who set them have to go from
one side to the other, each one keeping within
his allotted space. Each potato is set at the
point of intersection of the line traced by the
marker, with the furrow formed by the plough.
It is of importance that the potatoes be set as
close as possible to the perpendicular side of the
furrow, and not on that where the slice has been
turned over ; for, in the former position, the
potato is most likely to remain in its place, and
not to be disturbed by the horses' feet. The best
ploughmen must be employed to trace the furrow
in which the potatoes are set : first, to insure
that the furrow may be of a proper and uniform
depth, three inches in a heavy, and four or five
in a sandy soil ; secondly, to enable him to cor-
rect any errors which the others may have made
in the width of their furrows. The first plough-
man always traces the first furrow in commen-
cing a new bed. The width of the beds must be
measured at the two extremities, and poles set
up there, in order to preserve as much as possible
the parallelism of the beds. If the labourers are
well practiced, three ploughs and five planters
will finish eight acres per day, or six at the least.
Each planter must have his sack of potatoes
within his reach. A week after the setting the
ground is harrowed, an operation by which a few
weeds are destroyed. Great numbers of them
afterwards spring up. Nothing more is, how-
ever, done to get rid of them till the potatoes are
about to spring up, and some of them just begin-
ning to show their leaves above ground," J
2S09. Rooks are very destructive to the potato-
crop just as the germs of the plants are penetrat-
ing the ground, and they seem to possess an
exquisite sense of smelling to find out those sets
which are most palatable to their taste. They
steal very quietly into potato-fields, and are there
pretty well hidden amongst the drills ; and in
this respect their tactics differ from what they
pursue when in search of grubs in lea, when it is
being ploughed, which they do openly ; or even
* Prize Essays of the Uighland and j4griciiltural Society, vol. xiii. p. 359-70.
+ Transactions of the Highhuid and Agricultural Society for March, 1847, p. 685.
J Timer's Principles of Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 577-8. — Shaw and Johnston's translation.
646
PRACTICE— SPRING.
when iligliting amongst growing com, which
they do in large numbers. Nothing but gunpowder
will deter tlrem from a potato-field ; they soon
find out the innocuous character of a scarecrow —
that sorry semblance of humanity, a tattie-dtxJie,
being despised by them. One cannot always be fir-
ing amongst crows with the gun, but an occasional
sh^>t does good, aided by that effectual check to
their visitation of any field — the burning of gun-
powder matches here and there, and now and then,
alunu the windward side of the field, the fumes
of which sweeping across the face uf the ground
being smelt by them, put them in constant tre-
pidation, and at length to flight. Some people
will tell you that the rooks are doing no harm in
the potato-field, as they are in quest of insects,
and these they will remove from among the
potato sets. This may be true; still if they in-
jure a single sound set, while in quest of insects
feeding on unsound ones, they do harm. At all
events, the devouring of an unsound set — one that
will not grow — by insects can do no harm to the
farmer; but how happeus it that crows dig a hole
by the side of the strongest germs to get at the
sets I This act evidently proves that the carrying
off one set which has sent up a shoot to the day
destroys the existence of one entire young plant.
2810. Dr Fromberg analysed the sprouts or
shoots of one kind of potato, a white variety from
East Lothian, at four different periods of its
growth from the 26lh April to the 20th June, to
ascertain the amoant of protein compounds afford-
ed by that part of the plant ; and as the results were
irregular, 1 only give the mean of the four kinds.
Nitrogen per cent, . . . O-.'^Jl
calcnlated dry, . . .3-21.5
£qaal to protein compounds per cent, 3-20.3
... calcnlated dry, . . 20-223
" The increase in the protein compounds is here
not regular," observes Dr Fromberg, " which may
partly be attributable to the shoots having been
taken from various specimens, although of ihf
same variety. But the large quantity of these
compounds in potato shoots, compared with that
in the tubers themselves, appears to be one cause
why the vital powers of the latter are so much
weakened by sprouting. This fact will cease to
appear strange, if we bear in mind that the
shoots derive both their nitrogenous and non-
nitrogenous constituents from the tuber; and
that, when they take a smaller proportion of the
latter, the former must predominate in them."*
2811. "Vegetable matter," says Dr Taylor,
** when eaten in a state of decay, is capable of
exciting pain, vomiting, purging, and other
symptoms of poisoning. Potatoes, carrots, tur-
nips, and other esculent vegetables, in a state
of decomposition, may thus excite serious symp-
toms, which might be referred tomineral poisons."
Amongst other cases of poisoning from decayed
vegetables having been eaten, which he quotes, I
shall only select one : " In a series of cases re-
corded by Dr Peddie, where a family had snb-
the surface of fields, the symptoms were sercre,
and in two instances death en>ued. Tlie pota-
toes were of a green, and of a deep purple
colour, and had an exceedingly bitt»-r and dis-
agreeable taste; so much so that no mode of pre-
paration rendered them p^ilatableto the destitute
family which suffered from their effects. In a very
few days after using them, the whole family were
seized with severe griping pains in the bowels, fol-
lowed by diarrhoea of a green watery kind. These
symptoms continued, with short intermissions,
during the whole of the time that the potatoes
were used for food. Two of the children died.
2812. " It has been supposed that Salamine
exists in potatoes, and confers on them poisonous
properties, but tht- re is no direct proof that this
is the case. According to Liebig, sab mine 13
generated in the shoot of the potato when it is
allowed to germinate in the dark."+
ON PARING AND BURNING TUE SURFACE.
2813. As the term implies, paring is a
removal of the surface of the grduntl, with
what mav he growing upon it at the time ;
and burning i.< the leductiun by 6re to a
state of powder, of what ha.-; been pared off.
2814. The object of the process is to
obtain possession of the soil pared for
arable purposes, sooner than could b6
obtained bv common ploughing and har-
rowing ; and paring and burning will
certainlv in.sure a crop in advance for one
season at least.
2815. The reason that common jdongh-
ing and harrowing cannot make tlie s<iil
available at once, is, that the rough herb-
age antl small ligneous plants which grow
npun the surface, are of too obdurate a
nature to be reduced into friable mould in
the course of a short time, and these ojiera-
tions alone would neveraffect their reduc-
tion, which would require to be greatly
assi.-tetl by the agency of the atmosjdiere
through seasons of alternate rain, frost,
thaw, and drought.
2816. There would be no n.«e of em-
ploying e.xtraordinary means of changing
the state of the surface, could it bp done by
the common plough ; and when the comiiion
plough cannot do it, the extraordinary
means are chiefly manual labour, though
horses may be employed to assist in many
such cases.
sisted six weeks on refuse potatoes, picked up on
TrautaetiomM cftht Hujkland and Aorictihuritl .Sx-iV/y for March, 1847, p. 667.
t Taylor, On 'PoitoM, p. S31-X
PARING AND BURNING.
647
2817. The common No. 5 garden spade,
fig. 237, with a sharp edge and its cor-
Fig. 237. ners a little worn by work,
removes the roiio-h herbage of
the snrface very well, and
the soil can be set up at the
same time by the workmen
to be dried ; but the labour of
paring and burning in this
manner would be expensive,
and is therefore seldom in-
curred, though the spade
might be usefully employed
in some cases in assisting the
other means, and its work
would then be economical.
2818. A more efficient and
expeditious implement for
this purpose is a spade of a
different form, fig. 238 ; the
THE COMMON ^^^^ ^^ wliich is angular and
SPADE. sharp, the blade 9 inches
broad and 15 inches long ; the right-hand
and straight side of which is turned up 3
Fig. 238.
THE FLAUCHTER-SPADE AT WORK.
inches with a cutting edge in front ; the
helve is 5 feet long and flat, provided vvith
a flat cross-handle 2 feet long, with its
plane at right angle to that of the helve.
The blade of the spade is set at such an
angle witli the handle, as to permit the
latter to be elevated to the height of a
man's haunches, vvlien the blade rests on
its sole, when at work, flat upon the ground.
28 1 9. The mode of using this instrument
is this: As its use is attended with con-
siderable labour, the workman is provided
■with a sort of leather api-ou containing two
pieces of board fastened into it, which are
placed iu front of the groin, and the apron
is buckled round the waist and the upper
part of the thighs. The blade of the in-
strument is laid flat on its sole, and ita
point is made to enter the ground by a
push of the body upon the handle placed
against the boards in front of the groins,
and there held by both the hands. The
body gives successive pushes, longer or
shorter, as the nature of the ground ad-
mits ; and the point is made to dip deeper,
keep level, or move upwards, by the direc-
tion of the hands, according to the thick-
ness of the surface to be removed. At each
push the point cuts in front, while the
cutting edge severs the removing turf
from the solid surface, and after a turf
has been cut of a foot or two in length,
according to the nature of the surface,
but never exceeding three feet in any
case, it is turned upon its back or side
as the case may happen, by a sudden jerk
of the handle, given by both hands, upon
the pared surface on the left hand of the
worker. The edge of the spade is kept
sharp with a scythe-stone.
2820. This instrument is called in Scot-
land the flauchter-spade, from the Teutonic
verb to flauch or take off the skin ; and
the mode of using it will at once show
the impropriety of the English term of
the breast-plough, the breast of the worker
never touching it.
2821 . The thickness of the turf removed
with this spade depends much on the
strength and skill of the workman, but it
seldom exceeds 2 inches, even in the soft-
est parts of the ground, and more often 1^
inch on ordinary surfaces.
2822. It will take a man a week to turn
over one acre of ground, and he will require
2s. 6(1. or 3s. a-day for such hard work, or
15s. to iSs. an acre.
2823. A more expeditious mode still of
removing the surface is with the horse and
plough. The share of the common plough
cuts a furrow-slice at most 10 inches
broad, and its depth is 4 or 5 inches in
lea. As the turf in paring requires to be
no thicker than will remove the herbage,
it need never exceed 3 inches in thickness,
and the plough will scarcely be held steady
at less depth ; and as that depth would be
easy work for the horses, agreater breadth
*m^
648
PRACTICE— SPRING.
of slice may be turned over than tlie
share of the ordinary form can do. The
only mode of causing the share to do more
work is by extending tlie feather out-
wards to 12 or 15 inches, as desired for
the breadth of the turf. Fig. 239 repre-
eents the share of the common plough,
Fig. 239.
where at a
the breadth
of the com-
mon fea-
ther is 10
inches, but
on welding
a wing 3
THE PARING SOCK. inchcs in
breadth, and having a sharp edge upon
the outer point a of the feather, the paring
face may be increased to 1.5 inches in
breadth, from c to the land side of the
share. When the paring has been accom-
plished the wing c can be cut off, and
the share is again fit for ordinary use.
2824. The mould board will not lay
over so broad a furrow-slice in the same
regular manner as it does an ordinary one
in lea; the slice will be partly rolled over
upon itself, which will be in its favour for
drying. The most land that a plough is
expected to turn over in ordinary circum-
stances is an acre, but in work of this
nature, when many interruptions may
occur from thaws and frosts, and irregula-
rities of the groimd, perhaps half that extent
is as much as may be turned over even
with the facility afforded by the broader
share for going over a greater extent of
ground. Even at half an acre a-day for
each plough, its use is less than half as
costly as the flauchter-spade.
Fig,
2S25. When the ground is even, this
share may be able to turn over the entire
surface,but when uneven and much iiroken,
and where stones abound, it cannot be
used, and the (lauchter-sj)ade should bo
employed on sucii places ; while the com-
mon spade may be used in small deep
hollows, or among thick masses of herbage.
Thus all these implements may co-oper-
atively complete what one alone could not
accomplish so well.
2826. When the turf is laid over by the
sjjade, the workmen might slip them off
and set them up one against the other,
though not so effectually as by the hand.
The flauchter-spade taking up a long
thin turf, cannot get quit of it without
either laying it flat or setting it partly on
edge. The broad continued turf laid over
by the share of the plough must fall flat
upon the ground, and be set up by the
hand to be dried.
2827. The paring-plough used in parts
of England in the fens, pares the turf by
means of two angular shares with the
wings facing each other, and just cross-
ing the centre line, one being a little before
the other, and they are attached to shanks,
placed in front of the mould board, upon
which the turf is raised in a manner similar
to the furrow-slice in ordinary ploughing,
and is set on its edge upon the jjared
ground, ready to be dried, as neatly as if
done by the hand.
2828. A better paring-plough fig. 240,
has recently been manufactured by Mr
Thomas Johnson, engineer, Leicester. Its
peculiar parts consist of a small wheel a,
240.
TlIK l.KlCliNTER I'AKINO I'LOUGH.
attached to near the heel, to support the wheel c moves upon the pared surface,
sole along the pared ground. The near By the adjustment of these two large
wheel b moves in front of the coulter rf, wheels, the thickness of the turf to be
apoQ the unpared surface, while the off pared is determined. The coulter d cuts
PARING AND BURNING.
649
the turf, and the mould-board e sets it
upon its edge, curled up to be dried. It
cuts the turf 14 inches in breadth, and from
1 to 2 inches in thickness. On good lea
a man and a boj, and a pair of horses,
will pare, it is said, 2^ acres a-day. The
cost of the impleiueut at the work is
£o, 10s
2S29. Paring may be executed any
time during the winter and spring, but
perhaps it is best and most easily done from
February to April. It is difficult to do
when the ground becomes dry and hard,
while in boggy land it is best executed in
dry weather. While the land is very wet,
it cannot be done in boggy ground, as the
fooling would be insecure, and the soil
is then soaked in water ; nor in clay land,
as the upper surface would soon become
poached.
28r50. The sods are set up on edge or
against one another in the best way, to
expose the largest surface to the air, to be
dried in the quickest time for the next
process they have to undergo, which is the
burning. The long continuous turfs turned
over by the ploughs, before being dried,
will require to be cut in convenient lengths
with the spade. In dry weather they
may be ready to be burned in about a fort-
night.
2831. In burning, the fires must first be
begun with some combustible materials,
as wood, chips, shavings ; and at first
they must be well attended to, in order to
have the first turfs well dried, and after
these have begun to burn, to surround them
■^ith fresh sods, so as to keep the fire in a
smouldering state, and never to get into
flame or to burn fiercely. A number of
fires should be lighted one after the other,
and then the field-workers could be em-
ployed in carrying the turf a short distance,
and supplying the fires with fresh sods, plac-
ing them thickest on the side the wind
blows against, to keep down the force of
the fire. This being the object, it is evi-
dent that the turfs should not be too dry
before tiie burning begins. The heaps
should be suj)plied with turfs until they
attain a large size, capable of containing
from 10 to 15 cart-loads of ashes, and the
larger the heap is the less will the air
afiect its interior to consume the ashes.
The dried and burning turfs of one heap
will supply fire to begin the burning of
other heaps. In case of the fire bursting
into combustion through the night by
reason of the wind, the heaps should be well
covered with fresh sods in the evening, part
of which may be removed in tiie morning.
If the fire is dull, a hole opened in the
windy side, or even a few holes punched
into the heap with a stake, will set itagoing.
In a large heap there is no fear of tlie fire
going out, or that it is out, although the
heap show but little symptoms of activity
on the outside. A heavy rain will not put
out the fire of a large heap. When a heap
has attained a sufficient size, and it is in-
convenient to carry the sods to it beyond
a reasonable distance, it should get leave
to smoulder and cool, and the unburnt sods
on the outside should be carried to the
heap nearest at hand.
2832. To obtain good results, the burn-
ing of the heaps should not be conducted
in a thoughtless manner ; but ought to be
done according to a plan previously fixed
upon. A good plan is to begin to burn
one row of heaps after another, and to
begin the first row at that side of the field
on which it will be most convenient to
plough the ground ; and having gathered
the turfs on both sides of the line of each
heap as will serve their purpose, a con-
siderable space of ground will thereby be
cleared of turf; and as one line of heaps is
constructed, let another be begun from the
end the former one was finished at, and
thus proceed until the field has all been
heaped. In proceeding thus, the charred
turfs of the previously formed heaps will
be easily carried across the ground to those
about to be formed. The time taken until
the burnt heaps will be cold, will depend
on the state of the weather, but it will
take a considerable time if they are al-
lowed to cool of themselves. The ashes
may be spread abroad to cool, if they are
required soon ; but should wind arise after
the heaps have been broken, the ashes
will be scattered about in all directions,
and those from the outside of the heaps
may be blown oft' the groimd altogether.
Caution is thus requisite in conducting this
operation.
2833. When a thick turf has been laid
over by the plough, it will afford moi-e
(550
PRACTICE— SPRING.
aslies tlian the ground will require, or
should rcicive at one time. To avoid such
an occurrence, some jjcrdons, when they
determine on paring with the jdough, pare
as much turf in stripes as will just supply
the nuautity of ashes wanted. To efl'ect
this, the ear of the feather of the share
will require to be turned up with a cutting
edge. But when the herbage is rough,
the part thus left on is as difficult to
reduce as it would have been without the
burning of any proportion of it. What
I think a better plan is, to pare and
burn all the surface, and carry off the
portion of the ashes not required to
another field, which is to bear green crops;
and as the carrying away of ashes implies
robbery of the land which has supplied it,
a substitute for them should be provided in
the shape of farm-yard or other manure.
2834. The burning the heaps of ashes
in line clears a large proportion of the soil
for the plough, which may be employed
between the heaps, to plough the land in
any form of ridge desired ; and, as the
lan<l is ploughed, the ashes should be spread
upon it in the quantity determined upon,
the breadth of space occupied by the heaps
receiving the ashes before being ploughed.
This is the simplest mode of applying the
ashes ; for if they are not applied until after
the dung for the turnips has been laid
on, as some writers recommend, the ashes
will have first to be carried entirely off
the field, and then brought on again when
wanted.
2835. The ashes need not be immediately
harrowed in, as exjiosure to the air will do
them no harm, but the contrary. "There
are two methods, one tospreail and plough
in immediately, the other to spread imme-
diately, but to have them exposed to the
atmosphere some months before turning in.
Mr Wedge, on the thin sautl soil on a chalk
bottom of Xewmarket-heath, had in one a
treble experiment ; part was jtared and
burnt in the spring, and the ashes spread
and exposed till ploughing in tlic autumn
for wheat; part pared and burnt late, the
aslies left in heaps, and spread just before
plouirhing the wheat ; the thinl pared and
not burnt at all, by reason of bail weather.
The first was by far the best, the second
the next, and the third beyond all com-
parison inferior." ■'^
283G. The land can thus be prepared
for any future crop, and its cost has beea
estimated to amount in some cases to £2
per acre. We have seen that the cost of
removing by the flauchter-spade is 18s.,
and the burning has been estimated at
from 10s. to 15s. the acre, but in eoine
cases the removal of the turf has cost 25s.
the acre. Notwithstanding such a cost,
paring and burning thin chalk soil in Kent,
on chalk rock, worth Is. an acre of reul,
has realised good returns.
2837. I would prefer turnips to any
other crop after paring and burning ; and
there is plenty of time to have the land
prepared for them at the latter end of May
or in June, if the paring begin as early in
S{)ring as it could. On strong land, which
must be thoroughly drained before the
paring and burning, swedes may be raised
with dung along with the ashes. On light
land, turnips of any kind will succeed, and
especially the white varieties, to be eaten
off by sheep. On heathy and boggy land,
I woultl prefer rape to turnips, to he eaten
on the ground by sheep; and the rape allows
rather longer time for the jireparation of
the land, which the boggy land, though
drained, may require the first season.
2838. ^luch diversity of opinion exists
as to the propriety of paring and burning
land at all. No doubt, benefit has been
derived from it in many instances, as in
chalk soils and deep and rather damp
alluvial soils, where slugs and insects
aliound in the older pastures. I think it
may be beneficially practised under two
circumstances, — in the case of drained
bog, and of heathy moorish soil on a clay
subsoil; because the coarse and rough vege-
tation covering both these sorts of ground,
is difficult to reduce by ordinary decom-
posing exposure to the air; and to think
of reducing the whole of it in cnm]>osts,
mixed with fermentary ingreilient.s, would
involve such an amount of both m.inual
anil horse lai)our, and occupy 8uch a length
of time, as would exhaust the patience of
any man. If paring and burning, there-
fore, would get rid of such troublesome
* PotVa BrU'ush Farmers' Cyclopedia — art. Variiuj and Burning.
PARING AND BUJRNING.
651
surfaces, and at the same time bestow the
means of raising a crop of turnips in the
^ same season, a great object will certainly
be gained.
2839. The other case I would try paring
and burning in, is that of coarse, rough,
luxuriant old herbage, growing upon
swampy clayey ground. After such land
has beeu drained, it is very difficult to
break up with the plough, whether with
two or four horses, and much time is lost
in waiting for such herbage to rot in the
furrow, as I know from experience. To
attempt to rot the sod with a crop of oats
•would be merely to throw away the seed,
beside the risk of breaking tlie horses' legs
between the furrow-slices in the harrowing
of it. Now, since this herbage can be gut
rid of by paring and burning, and the land
under it made arable the first year in such
a state as to raise a crop of turnips, or
even to have it for bare-fallow, is an
advantage worth purchasing at some cost.
2840. Beyond these two cases, which
can only happen in particular places, I
would not sanction paring and burning ;
and in tliese cases only once, for as to
treating land which is already in an arable
state in that manner, I quite agree with
Professor Low, — " when any kind of land
is for the first time made arable, a reason
may perhaps exist for this method of
rendering it as soon as possible productive.
But after land has been brouglit into a
state of regular culture, it is ditficult to
believe, notwithstanding the authority of
so many farmers in England, that paring
and burning are good as a regular system.
Great crops are doubtless raised in the
fens, and other parts, where this system
prevails; but greater crops still are raised
in tlie north of England and in Scotland,
on inferior soils, and with a less favourable
climate, where the system of paring and
burning is unknosvn.''*
2841. As to the rationale of paring and
burning, the best account of its probable effects
upon the soil I have seen, is that given by the
late Rev. W. L. Rham. " In burning vegetable
matter in an open fire," he observe.-, " the whole
of the carbon is converted into carbonic acid,
and flies off, leaving only some light ashes con-
taining the earthy matter and the salts which
the fire could not dissipate. These are, uo doubt.
very powerful agents in promoting vegetation,
when they are added to any soil ; but they are
obtained at a very great expense of vegetable
matter, which, by its decomposition in the earth,
might also have afforded food for vegetation. If
the earth which is burnt with the sods is of a
cold, clayey nature, the fire will change it into a
kind of sand or brick-dust, which is insoluble in
water, and corrects the too great tenacity of
clays by converting them more or less into loams.
This is so well known that clay is often dug out
of the subsoil to be partially burnt. On stiff
clay soils, therefore, there is a double advantage
of paring and burning — that of the vegetable
ashes, and of the burnt clay. When the fire ia
so managed that the vegetable matter is only
partially burnt, the oily and inflammable por-
tions being converted into vapour by the fire
without being destroyed, and absorbed by the
earth, the effect produced is only to impregnate
the earth with minute particles of matter nearly
converted into the constituent parts of vegeta-
bles. Tiie earth is the mere recipient of these
particles, which are held in its pores, as water in
a sponge, ready to be let loose to any substance
which has the power of attracting them. The
moisture which the dry earth will also absorb
from the atmosphere, if no rain should fall, is
retained and increased by the effects of the salts
with which it is impregnated. It is uniformly
observed that turnip seed, which in most soils
will not vegetate without heavy dews or rains,
if sown in dry weather, scarcely ever fails to
spring up in the ashes of a soil that has been
pared and burnt. May not this be ascribed to
those particles which have been taken up by
the earth in the operation of slow combustion,
absorbing moisture from the air, and giving it
out to the seed which has been sown 1 It does
this better than a heavy shower would : a heavy
shower soaks the ground for a short time, and
swells the seed ; but if it is succeeded by a hot
sun, the water evaporates so rapidly that the
seed loses its moisture, and vegetation stops. The
earth which attracts moisture from the air keeps
it, its absorbent nature preventing the evapora-
tion ; and it furnishes it gradually to the seed as
it is required. The wonderful effect of peat ashes
on young clover may be explained on the same
principle, and probably also that of gypsum.
Tiiere can be no doubt, then, that considerable
advantages may result from the paring and
burning the surface of clays. But what is lost
and destroyed in the operation 1 All that escapes
in the shape of gas or vapour. The gas will
probably be carbonic acid ; for this is formed by
the combustion of charcoal. We know that hot
lime has a very strong attraction for this sub-
stance, which it fixes in a solid state, forming
a carbonate of lime ; and we have no reason to
think that it parts with it to the roots of plauts.
But either earths may absorb carbonic acid, with-
out having so great an attraction for it, and let
it loose to water, which is known to con-
tain it in certain proportions, and to be thus car-
ried into the vessels of growing plants by the
attraction of the roots. If this should prove to
Low's Elements of Practical Agriculture, p. 181.
662
PRACTICE— SPRIXO.
be the case, we may account for the great effect
of burnt souH in promoting vegetation.
28-1 "2. " It is very easy to ascertain whether any
soil will he improved or not by paring and burn-
ing. A few sods may be taken and exported to
heat in an iron pot closely covered over, or in a
large crucible : the heat should not be so great
as to produce light, but should be kept up for a
considerable time, till the sods are consumed. If
the a>lies are red, and the whole is a fine powder,
witli particles of charcoal in it, the soil from
which it was taken may be safely pared and
burnt, especially if it forms a mud with water,
and the earth is not rapidly deposited. But if it
feel gritty, lets the water readily through, and is
soon deposited when mixed with it, burning will
be <iisadvautageous. This is the evident results
of the principles laid down before."*
ON THE FARROWING OF SOWS.
2843. It should be so managed, where
there are more than one brood-sow on a
farm, to have one to bring forth pigs early
in spring; but it should be borne in mind
that young pigs are very susceptible of
cold ; and when exposed to it, though thev
may not die, their growth will be so stinted
as to prevent them attaining to a large
size, however fat they may become. Even
the most comfortable housing will not pro-
tect them from the influence of the exter-
nal air, any more than it does certain con-
stitutional temperaments in spring, when
the E. wind blows. From March to
September may be regarded as the period
of the year when young pigs thrive best.
2844. Whenever a brood-sow shows
symptoms of approaching parturition —
that is, when tlie vulva is observed to be
enlarged and red — it is time to prepare the
sty for her reception, for she will keep
her reckoning not only to a day, but to
an hour. The period for gestation of a
BOW is 112 days, or 16 weeks,
2845. The sties for the brood-sows in
the steading are at h' b\ Plate II. They
consist of an outer-court 18 feet long by 8
feet broad, enclosed by a tloor, as in fig.
12.5, and an inner apartment 8 feet by fi,
roofed in. The courts are provided with
li4uid manure gratings .r, and troughs for
food. This is the usual form of a sty for
BowSjbut another more convenient for over-
looking the state of the sow and her pigs
is, when a numV»er of single apartuients
are placed togetlier, in a roofed house,
shut in by a door, and built by itself, or
constitutes one of the out-hou.-cs of the
steading. Such an apartment, divided
into sties, is represented by fig. 241, where
abed are four apartments, two of which,
Fig. 241.
STIES FOR BROOD SOWS UNDER COVSR.
a and i, are 7^ feet by 1 2, and two, c and rf,
74 feet by 8, divided from each other by
wooden partitions e,Z feet in heiglit. The
doors of the sties are all near /"/"; the feed-
ing troughs are represented bv g //, the
area from which all the pigs can be over-
looked and fed is h, the outer door is k,
and window /. Drains may jirocecd from
all the sties to the nearest lifpiid-manure
drain; and such an a])artment maybe ren-
dered perfectly comfortahle by having the
ceiling and walls jdastered, a ventilator,
such as fig. 81, placed on the roof in con-
nexion with the ceiling, and the entire
floor made of pavement.
2846 The litter allowed the brood-sow
should be scanty and short, such as cut
straw, or dried leaves of trees — young pigs
being apt at first to creep among long
straw, and get smothered or s<|ueezed in it
by the sow. When a sow has liberty be-
fore she is about to pig, she will carry
straw in her mouth, and collect it in a
heap in some retired corner of a shed, and
bury herself amongst it before littering,
and the chance will be, that some of the
pigs will be smothered in it by herself; but
when seen by her, she will carefully push
them aside with her snout liefore lying
down. Some sows have a habit of wan-
dering away to litter in aquiet place, such
as in a field of corn, in a plantation
• Rham's Dictionary of the Fam},~art. Paring and Burning.
FARROWING OF. SOWS.
653
amongst underwood, or in a dry ditch at
the root of an old hedge or tree. I re-
meinher of a sow being missing for up-
wards of a fortniglit, not a person having
seen her go away, or been able to discover
her retreat. At length she reappeared one
day craving for food at the kitchen-dour,
bearing evident signs of iiaving littered
and suckled pigs. iSiie vvas tracked to her
hiding place, though jealous of being dis-
covered, which was in a secluded part of a
dry ditch, at the root of an old thorn-hedge,
about 300 yards from the steading, where
she had formed a lair with the straw
gathered from the adjoining field of wheat.
She had subsisted some days upon the
corn, but hunger at length drove her to
the house in search of food. Had she been
allowed, she would no doubt have come
to the house every day for food ; but
means were used to have the pigs conveyed
to the steading — and this was a work of
some difficulty, as the sow herself was per-
fectly savage when any one approached
her young ones; and these were so wild
in their habits that they eluded capture
for a long time among the standing corn.
At length, by the assistance of the shep-
herd's dog, which seemed to enjoy the affair
as a sport, they were all caught, a fine litter;
and, on being put into a large basket, the
sow followed her young ones to the steading.
I remember of another sow taking up her
abode in the bottom of a pea-stack,
in which she left a small hole for an en-
trance, and had formed a large chamber in
the interior. It was impracticable to dis-
lodge her from her stronghold, she keeping
every man, and even the shepherd's dog, at
bay, and he was too knowing to fight with
her ; so she was let alone, and produced
her young there, and kept them until they
were able to run about, food having been
set down for her. I mention these in-
stances of the peculiar habits of some do-
mesticated sows, merely to show you the
propriety of securing the brood-sow that
is about to farrow, in a proper sty, some
time before the period of her reckoning,
and particularly those which are given to
wander abroad in quest of a lair.
2847. Knowing the day of her reckon-
ing, she should be attended to in her sty
pretty frequently ; not that she will pro-
bably reqjjire assistance in the act of par-
turition, like a cow or a ewe, but to observe
that all the pigs are safe, and to remove
every one immediately that may be dead
when farrowed, or may have died in the
farrowing. I have known the case of a
sow in high condition which died because
the second pig, on coming by the breech
presentation, had a hind-leg folded back,
which could not be put right by the sow
herself in straining, ami, having been ne-
glected, her parts swelled very much.
Her life was attempted to be saved by the
Caesarian operation, and the pig was ex-
tracted and lived ; but the others in her
womb were dead, and she herself did not
survive above an hour, having been com-
pletely exhausted before the operation was
attempted. I do not know whether it ia
generally the case, but I have frequently
noticed pigs born by the head and breech
presentation alternately, not uniformly so,
but most frequently.
2848. The first-born pigs are the
strongest, and the last the smallest and
weakest, in a large litter, though the dif-
ference is scarcely observable in small
litters of 6 or 8. The small weak pigs
are nicknamed tcri(/s or pock-shaklngs,
and are scarcely worth bringing up; still,
if there are spare teats for them, they
should not be destroyed.
2849. Sometimes more pigs are littered
than the sow has teats. I have seen as
many as 19 pigs when there were only
1 2 teats ; and I remember of a sow that
never littered fewer than 17, though she
had only 14 teats, which are two more
than the usual number. Such a number
of extra pigs may be brought up by hand
on cow's milk, but, being very weak, they
ijenerally die off in the course of a day or
two to the number of teats. Should there
be only one pig more than there are teats,
it must take its chance of obtaining a teat
after the others are satisfied.
2850. A young pig soon gets to its feet
after birth, and as soon finds its way to
the teat; but it can find no sustenance
from it until the sow pleases; so that until
the parturition is accomplished, and the
sow entirely recovered from it, there is no
chance of the pigs getting a suck.
2851. Many sows are very sick during
parturition, and for some time after; so
654
PRACTICE— SPRING.
much so tliat the skin of their mouth be-
comes bleacl)ed and |)arche(l, iind the
breathing ijiiick. To those unaccustomed
to see a sow in that state, it would seem
tiiat siie must die; but a little rest re-
covers her, and she then betakes herself
fondly to her young.
28.52. It is necessary, as I have said,
to remove the pigs as they die, when any
die, as some sows have the abominable
propensity of eating their own pigs when
dead, whether the death takes place at the
birth or immediately after, or whether it
happens by smothering or squeezing the
pigs by the sow herself. Mr Youatt advises
the pigs to be removed as they are pigged,
and to be returned after she has recovered;
but there is no necessity for their removal
if the sty is large enough, and the sow is
attended to as long as she is a-pigging.
I remember of a sow that was never sick
at farrowing; and such was her propensity
to eat every pig that dietl, or was smothered,
that even during parturition she would
get up as every pig was born, to ascertain
whether it was dead or alive, and, if dead,
would have eaten it instantly, had she been
allowed.
2853. The afterbirth should be removed
whenever it comes away, which it will do
in a few minutes after parturition.
2854. A peculiarity is exhibited by
young pigs, ditt'erent from the young of
other domesticated animals, in each always
using the same teat in sucking.
2855. It is generally observeil that the
pigs supported at the foremost teats be-
come the strongest.
2856. Sows require coaxing before they
will give their milk. The pigs make loud
entreaties, and rub the uthler with their
noses to induce her to lie down, which,
when she does, every pig takes its own
place, and nuzzles at the udder with the
teat hehl in the mouth. After a good
w'hile of this sort of preparation, the milk
begins to flow on the sow emitting a fond
sleepy sound, during which the milk is
drawn steadily and qnieily till the pigs
are all satisfied, and they then not unfre-
quently fall asleep with the teat in the
mouth.
2857. Young pigs are lively happy
creatures, and fond of play as long as they
are awake, but are great sleepers. When
a week old, their skins are clean, hair soft
and silky, and with plumi* bodies and
bright eyes, there are few more beautiful
young animals to be seen in the farm-yard.
Those of a white colour seem the most
delicate and fine.
2858. The food given to the sow after
she has recovered from parturition, which
will be longer or shorter according to her
constitutional temperament, is a warm
drink, consisting of thinnish gruel of oat-
meal and luke-warm water, which serves
the double purpose of meat and drink. If
she is thirsty, which she is likely to be on
recovery from sickness, the gruel may be
again offered in a thinner state in an hour
or two afterwards. The ordinary food
may consist of boiled potatoes, with a
mixtureof barleymeal and oatmeal amongst
water, administered at a stated hour at
morning, noon, and night, with such re-
fuse as may be found in the farm-house.
This food supports her well while nursing;
and it shonhl be borne in miinl that, as
long as she is nursing, she should receive
abundance of food if it is desired she should
rear </oo({ pigs. Should the weather be
frosty, or otherwise cold, the water may
be given a little warmed ; but in fresh
weather, or in summer, cold water is most
acceptable to her. The mess should not
be made so tfiin as to be sloppy, and take
a Ions time to drink nji ; or so thick as to
be cloggy in the mouth ; but in a state of
gruel — meat and drink at the same time.
Wliaiever food is given to her shonhl he
cooked^ and not in a raw state: the vege-
tables should be l/oi/ed, and the meal
should first be made into brose with hot
water, and then mixed with the vegetables,
au'l the whole mess made thin as gruel with
cold water. The trough out of which she
receives her food should be washed every
two or three days in cold, and every day
in warm weather. I believe it is the com-
mon practice never to give pigs salt
amongst their food, because it is said to
encourage the soib. A large quantity of
salt may have this efl'ect, but 1 never saw
a little salt prodtice any harm. When
a sow leaves food in the trough, it should
not be j)resentcd to /ter again, but given
to the older young pigs. Bean meal is
FARROWING OF SOWS. J[||k 655
stated to bring a great flush of milk upon should not be easily upset, as there will
sows. inevitably be a struggle which to get first
at the milk, and one or more will be sure
2859. Both male and female pigs are to jump into the dish. This practice
gelded, tlie few that are kept for breeding should be checked.
forming but a small excejjtion. They
should be gelded on the milk at from 2861. Pigs are very commonly wean-
10 to 14 days old. The males are cas- ed at 6 weeks old, but it is better to keep
trated on being held between the knees, them on the sow for 2 months; though,
and the scrotum cut through to each tes- in the latter case, she will require to be
tide, which is removed by tlie pressure the better fed. Mr Youatt gives these
of the finger and thumb, and the sper- instructions for weaning pigs: — '•'They
matic chord separated by the knife. The should not be taken from the sow at once,
she-pigs are treated in a difl'erent manner, but gradually weaned. At first, they
Being laid on -a chair bottom or table, on should be removed from her for a few
its far side, the pig is there held by an hours each day, and accustomed to be
assistant ; the operator cuts an upright driven by hunger to eat from the trough ;
inci.sion into the flank, of about 2 inciies in then they may be turned out for an hour
length, and introducing a linger, brings out without her, and afterwards shut up, while
the ovary of the womb, and separates she is also turned out by herself. Subse-
it by the knife. He then closes the quently, they must only be allowed to
incision by a stitch or two with a needle suck so often in the twentj'-fours — per-
and thread, and the operation is finished, haps six times at first, then four, then
■There is very little danger attending the twice, and at last only once; and, mean-
operation to either sex. In the case of while, they must be proportionally better
rupture or hernia in the male — and some and more plentifully fed, and the mother's
breeds of pigs are very liable to this disease diet in like manner diminished : thus will
when young — it is necessary to stitch up the weaning be accomplished without dan-
the incision of the scrotum, and the tes- ger or evil consequences to either. Some
tide at castration should, in such a case, persons have advised that the whole litter
be removed with care, in case of produc- should not be weaned at once ; we do not,
ing inflammation in the intestines. The however, agree with them, unless it should
incisions in both the male and female happen that one or two of the young ones
generally heal by the first intention. The are much weaker and smaller than the
gelder should use the precaution of clean- others. In such case, if the sow remains
ing his knife before every operation. The in tolerable condition, they might be
usual charge for gelding pigs is 2s. 6d. the allowed to suck for a week longer; but
litter, whatever number it may contain, such a mode of proceeding should he an
Young pigs are not gelded when intended exception, not a general rule. But let it
to be killed while on the milk. be understood that, while we would en-
force the necessity of good and ample
2860. It is seldom that any complaint feeding, we highly deprecate all excess,
overtakes the sow on littering, though she and all stimulating, heating diet, such
maybe carried off by puerjieral fever, and I tending to vitiate the animal powers, often
susjject there is no remedy for this disease to lay the foundation of disease, and never
in her case. The j igs which she leaves to produce good, sound, well-flavoured
may be very well brought up by hand on flesh. A little sulphur mixed wiih the
cow's milk, as they will soon learn to drink food, or a small quantity of Ejtsoui or
out of a dis;h, in which the milk should be Glauber salts, dinsDlved in water, will fre-
given to them warm frou) the cow, and as quently prove beneficial." *
often, and even oftener, than the cows are
milked. It is surprising how small a 2862. A sow is not allowed to take the
quantity of milk a pig will drink at a time, boar until after the pigs are weaned, hut as
and on this account tliey should get it fre- soon after as pojssihle — in a week or two;
quently; and the dish in which it is served and, to bring her into season the sooner, she
* Youatt On the Pig, p. 121.
656
PRACTICE— SPRING.
»houI<l l>c fed with oats or oat-meal until
elie take the boar. The syinpt<nis of sea-
son in a sow are a rednes-s and enlarge-
ment of the vulva, which, when observed,
the boar should have access to her; and
ehould there be a boar on the spot, the
meeting will be easily accomplished, and
one embrace, wliich is usually a protracted
one, is quite sufficient for securini: a litter
of pi<^s. Wiien there is no boar on the
farm, the sow is sent to him in a cart,
not driven on foot, and she remains a few
days with him to secure her impregnation.
2863. A sow that can bring up 10 pigs,
and has 5 such litters in the course of 2
years, is a profitable animal, and deserves
to be well maiutained and taken care of.
Even at 10s. a-piece, which is the lowest
sum a farmer should take for a pig — for he
should keep it until it is worth that sura
rather than part with it at a lower price —
such a sow will return £25 in the course
of 2 years.
2864. As it is considered by fanners inconve-
nient to keep beyond a certain number of pigs
in the farin-itead, it is necessary to determine
what that number should be ; and as it is diffi-
cult to fix its amount for every particular case,
a few hints on different modes of managing
litters, after they are weaned, may prove useful.
Before investigating this point, a few particulars
may be stated which you may regard in the
light of majcitns on this subject. A sow should
always be either with young or giving suck, for
{fallowed to run about in season — that is. seeking
the boar — she will loose flesh instead of gaining
it. A sow should always be kept in good con-
dition, whether with young or supporting young,
because a lean sow never brings forth or can
nourish string pigs. Every breeder and feeder
of pigs will find it his advantage never to allow
them to go to bed with a hungry belly. A sow
that brings forth the largest number of pigs of
the be^t quality, proves the best nurse, and is
most careful of her young, should always be
preferred as a brood-sow. When a sow gets old,
she is apt to become careless of her pigs, so that
after 3 or 4 years may be a proper time to feed
off a brood-sow. Pigs, though on grass during
the day in summer, should nevertheless receive
a drink of water, and meal or potatoes, or of
whey, every morning and evening.
2865. There are just two ways of rearing pigs
on a farm : one is to have a large number of sows,
and sell the pigs as they are weaned, at 6 or 8
weeks old; the other is, to have fewer sows, and
rear the pigs until they are fit for the pork-
curers — and the adoption of either plan depends
on the nature of the market in the locality. If
there is a demand for young pigs just weaned,
the larger number of sows will be the most pro-
fitable, because the pigs will not have to be
maintained on food independently of their
mothers; but it is one att»'nded with much
trouble, inasmuch as a large quantity of food
will have tA> be daily cooked for the sows while
supporting their young, and the market for piga
will be confined to those of one age.
2866. In the other plan, the sows are only sup-
ported on special food as lJ>ig as they suckle the
pigs, and tliere is choice not only of the market
for weaned pigs, but for those of various ages,
suited to the tastes of pork-curers. Suppose,
then, that 2 sows are maintained, in pursuance
of the latter plan, and that they bring forth 20
pigs twice a year. Retaining 4 of these for ham,
and other 2 for pickled pork, for the use of the
farm-house, there will be 34 pjgs to dispose of
every year ; and as these meet with a ready
market when 4 or 5 stones each, at 6s. a-stone,
will make them worth each from 24s. to 30s., or
from L.40 to L.50 a-year for pigs. It should be
borne in mind that these 34 pigs, when running
about the courts in winter, eating a few turnips
or potatoes, or grazing in the grass-field in sum-
mer, do not cost much to rear them to the weight
most desiderated by the curers of pork, and in
their ordinary state they should be fat enough
for the purpose, and will make wholesome meat
2C67. On a farm of 500 acres, 2 brood-sows
could thus be easily maintained ; on a larger farm
3 might be kept, and on a smaller I may suffice :
but circumstances must regulate the proper
number. Where dairy -husbandry is practised,
more sows may easily be kept. A remark of
Mr Henderson's on this subject is worthy of at-
tention, in regard to the timing of sows in bear-
ing their litters of pigs. " Whenever," he says,
" farmers have an opportunity of selling pork at
all seasons, they do not think it necessary to
make the sows bring their litters at a particular
season, as they wish to have a lot of a certain
age to go off regularly at least every month,' in
autuiun, winter, and spring. " They make them
ready f^r the market, with little expense, only
giving them close feeding 2 or 3 weeks previous
to their being sold." Pigs intended for pukled
pork merely do not require even this feeding,
though those sold for making hams are the b.-tter
for a little extra and hardening feeding. " They
have very little trouble in selling them," conrUnles
Mr Heniiersoii, " as there are jobbers contiinialiy
travelling through the country, purchasing swine
of all descriptions, who receive them and pay
the money at the farms."
2868. The omnivorous disposition of swine
is well known, and it is this property which
makes them so easily maintained, and service-
able on a farm. ''Swine, though exceedingly
voracious," observes Mr Henderson, " will feed
almost on anything. In miry and marshy ground
they devour worms, frogs, fern, rush, and hedge-
roots. In drier and woody countries they feed
on haws, sloes, crabs, mast, chestnuts, acorns,
&c., and on this food they will grow fleshy and
fat. They are a kind of natural scavengers ;
will thrive on the trash of an orchard, the oat-
FARROWING OF SOWS.
657
casts of the kitchfin, the sweepings of barns and
granaries, tlie offals of a market, and most riclily
on the refuse of a dairy. If near the sea, they
will search the shores for shell-fisli, in the fields
they eat grass, and in great towns they are sup-
ported chiefly by grains. It is evident that tlie
facility of feeding them everywliere at a small
expense is a material benefit, more especially in
a country where people are accustomed to eat
flesh daily, or, on the other hand, where there is
60 ready a market for bacon and pork as we
have. It is no less observable that, notwith-
standing the facility of feeding, and the multi-
tude of swine maintained, they seldom fail of
coming to a good UKirket. Swine ought to have
hard feeding two or three weeks previous to their
being killed, to give firmness to the flesh. This
practice ought to be particularly attended to by
those who feed at distilleries on burnt ale and
grains, as the fat of pigs thus fed raelts almost
wholly away in boiliug or roasting ; peas and
beans are excellent for the purpose, and acorns
are still better. Where oak plantations are
near, they will resort to them in autumn, and
there remain until this their favourite food is ex-
hausted. The late Sir James Colqnhoun of Luss,
I have been lold, was in the habit of sending his
pigs to one of the islands of Loch Lomond, where
there is an oak plantation, that they might pick up
the acorns, whicdi issaid to have given a surprising
degree of delicacy to the flesh. Those who have
woods of this kind, and orchards, ought to allow
their pigs liberty to rauge among the trees, to pick
up shaken tVnit and seeds."* The hogs of Ger-
many enjoy the droppings of the oak and chestnut
forests, and it is supposed that it is this species of
food that imparts ihe very superior flavour which
the hams of Westphalia are known to possess.
That all the hams sold in this country for West-
phalian are genuine, I have doubts, after having
become acquainted with their true flavour in their
owu country. I remember of passing through a
forest of sweet chestnuts of about 3 miles in
length, near Bellinzona,in the canton of Ticino,
in Switzerland, in autumn, when the fruit was
dropping from the trees ; and into this forest the
peasantry, I was informed, turned the pigs every
year at that season to get fattened. Pigs are re-
markably fond of the earth nut and the roots of
the common and garden mint.
2869. liirnjin^.— Swine should not be allowed
to enter a field of any kind without a ring in
the nose. Their propensity to dig for worms
and roots makes them turn up the soil with their
noses, and when a grass-field is thus treated, it
presents a scene of havoc. The best material
for making the nose-jewels of swine is horse-
shoe nails, they being both durable and ductile.
As the heads of the nails are of no use, they are
Kanimered into a point The nail is inserted into
a hole, formed by an awl or other sharp-pointed
instrument, through the supplemental or snout
bone aiid the proper nasal, and its points are
twi.-ted firmly together. A new hole can be
made and another nail substituted, when tlie old
hole and nail have become worn. Mr Youatt
Bays that it is a far better mode of proceeding,
* Henderson's Treatise on the
VOL. I.
when the pig is young, to cut through the car-
tilaginous and ligamentous prolongations by
which the supplementary bone is separated from
the proper nasals. The divided edges of the car-
tilage will never unite again, and the snout always
remains powerless.
2870. Fvhe.—The beating of the heart of a
pig may be felt on the left side, whence also the
pulse may be taken ; or from the femoral artery,
which crosses the inside of the thigh in an ob-
lique direction. In swine in good health, the
pulsations are from 70 to 80 in a minute.
2871. Bleeding. — "The common and vulgar
mode of getting blood from the pig," observes
Mr Youatt, " is by cutting off a portion of the
ears or tail ; but these modes of proceeding should
only be had recourse to when local and instant
blood-letting is requisite. The jugular veins of
swine lie too deep, and are too much embedded
in fat, to admit of their being raised by any
ligature about the neck ; it is therefore useless
to attempt to puncture them — we would only
be striking at random. Those veins, however,
which run over the interior surface of the ear,
and especially towards its outer edge, may be
opened without much difficulty : if the ear is
turned back on to the poll, one or more of them
may easily be made sufficiently prominent to ad-
rait of its being punctured by pressing the
fingers on the base of the ear near to the conch.
When the necessary quantity of blood has been
obtained, the finger may be raised, and it will
cease to flow. The palate veins, which run on
either side of the roof of the mouth, are also
easily opened by making two incisions, one on
each side of the palate, about half-way between
the centre of the roof of the mouth and the
teeth. The flow of blood may be easily stopped
by means of a pledget of tow and a string, as in
the horse." Tlie plate vein, in the inside of the
fore-leg, may be raised by a ligature tied firmly
round the leg, just below the shoulder.
2872. Cntcltirifj or holding. — Hurtel d'Arbo-
val reconvmends the following means of getting
hold of jiigs : " Fasten a double cord to the end
of a stick, and beneath the stick let there be a
running nooze in this cord ; tie a piece of bread
to the cord and present it to the animal, and
when he opens his mouth to seize the bait, catch
the upper jaw in the noose, run it tight, and the
animal is fast." Throw a sack or cloth over the
head of the pig, and in his endeavours to get
rid of it, seize him by the hijid-leg. Mr Youatt
says that, in the violent efforts usually employed
to catch swine, their struggles to escape will
often do them more mischief than the disease
we seek to investigate or remedy would effect.
Pigsin these struggles will rupture blood-vessels,
which may cause instant death, or bring on ia-
flammatiou and subsequent death.
2873. Drenchivg. — Whenever practicable, the
medicine to be given to pigs should be mingled
with a portion of their food, and thus cheat or
coax them into taking it ; but where this cannot
Breeding of Swine, p. 41-5.
2t
668
PRACTICE— SPRING.
be done, the following is the best method of ad-
ministering a drink :— " Let a man get the head
of the animal firmly between his knees — without,
however, pinching it — while another secures the
hinder parts. Then let the first take hold of the
pig's head from below, raise it a little, and in-
cline it slightly towards the right— at the same
time separating the lips on the left side, so as to
form a hole into which the fluid may be gradu-
ally poured, not more being introduced into the
mouth at a time than can be swallowed at once.
Should the pig snort or choke, the head must be
released for a few minutes, as he will be iu dan-
ger of being strangled."
2874. Diarrhoea. — " It consists in a freqnent
discharge of the ftccal matter in a thin or slimy
state, but not actually altered, and arises from
inflammation or congestion of the mucus lining
of the intestine. What we conceive to be an
attack of diarrhoea is often only an effect of
nature to throw ofi" some offensive matters, and
will close of itself in the course of twenty-four
hours ; but where it goes on for any length c(
time, it must be taken seriously in hand, as it
will otherwise weaken the animal, and impair its
Talue. The best remedy for it is the compound
commonly called calves' cordial, tIz., —
Prepared chalk, . . 1 oz.
Powdered catechu, . , i
Powdered ginger, . . 2 drachms.
Powdered opium, . . A
mixed and dissolved in half a pint of peppermint
water. From half an ounce to an ounce of this
mixture, according to the size of the animal,
should be given twice in the day ; and strict
attention paid to the diet, which should consist
as much as possible of dry farinaceous food."
2875. Mr Youatt mentions in a note that " our
friend and fellow-practitioner, Mr Hursefield of
Wentworth, informs us that sucking pigs kept in
piggeries having stone pavements are apt to
have the white flux, a bowel complaint very pre-
judicial to their growth. To prevent or ease
them of this malady, let there be plenty of fresh
earth strewn for them in the inner piggery, which
they will eat with avidity, and thus be kept clean
and in good condition." There must be something
else than the stone pavement connected with the
production of this disease, for my brood-sows
brought up tlieir young ones in sties of no other
construction, and I never saw a single instance
of the disease referred tofor all the years Ifarmed.
2876. Fecundity of Swine. — " In one year two
sows will breed ten each, of which we shall as-
sume that one half are females, and so proceed
on that assumed equality : —
The first year there will be males and
females,
From which take the males, .
And we have the result as breeders, .
At the second year then, we may fairly
take the same ratio of time to each,
20
10
10
10
Leaving consequently for the
Third year breeders,
Fourth year breeden,
Fifth year breeders,
Sixth year breeders,
Seventh year breeders,
Eighth year breeders.
Ninth year breeders,
Tenth year breeders.
50
10
2)500
250
10
2)2,500
1,250
10
2)12,500
, 6,250
10
2)62,500
. 31,250
10
2)312,500
. 156,250
10
2)1,562,500
. 781,250
10
2)7,812,500
3,906,250
10
And it gives a hundred males and females, 2)100
Tenth year males and females, 39,062,500
I hope my friend has brought his pigs to a good
market ; but to equalise the supply, 1 shall for
the present purpose take only the male half of the
pig population for food, leavin'j the breeders to
go on. In this way we can kill and eat 10 the
first year — no bad increase from two sows recol-
lect ; the second year 50 ; the third year 250 ;
the fourth year 1250; the fifth year 6,250 ; the
sixth year .'51,250, pork in abundance now ; the
seventh year 1. 56,250 — still more abundant ; the
eighth year 781,250 ; the ninth year 3,90,6,J50 ;
and the tenth year, also decided in like manner,
the enormous number of 11*,531,C50 for food,
without interfering with the breeders.
I shall close this paper with the sensible practi-
cal observations of my friend in reference to this
subject, as, after all, it is in practice only that
the benefits open to all are to be received by
any. In the county of Kent he informs us there
are 31,000 agricultural families or farmers. It
is a very easy matter for each to keep two
breeding sows, which in three years wuuld pro-
duce, in round numbers, 15,000,000 of pig-*. In
the 52 counties of England, he al^o adds, the
number of agricultural families is 760,000 ; -o
that, by the same mode of calculation aa fiT Kent,
of every farmer keeping two sows, the produce
would be in the like period, 380,000,000 pigs.
One good breeding sow to each would conse-
quently produce 15,000,000. As 1 hare said,
and say again, is this all true! for if so, what
prevents the immediate use of the same bene-
HATCHING OF FQWLS.
659
ficial proceeding to every one, not even omitting
the allotment tenant."*
2877. " The breeding of swine," says Arthur
Young, " being one of the most profitable articles
in the whole business of a farm, the husbandman
cannot pay too much attention to it. I shall, in
as few words as the subject will admit, give an
account of the best system to be pursued in this
branch of his business. The farmer who could
make a considerable profit by hogs must deter-
mine to keep a proper number of sows, in order
to breed many pigs ; but this resolution ought
to be preceded by the most careful determination
to prepare crops proper for supporting this stock.
The proper oues for that purpose are barley,
buck-wlieat, beans, pease, clover, potatoes, or
carrots. In the common management, a farmer
keeps only a sow or two, because his dairy will
do no more ; but in the system of planting crops
properly for swine, a different conduct must
necessarily be pursued. Potatoes, carrots, Swed-
ish turnips, and cabbages must be provided for
the sows and stores from October until the end
of May, by which time clover, chicory, or lucerne
should be ready to receive them, which will carry
them till the stubbles are cleared; so that the
whole year is filled up with these plants, and
the common offal of the barn-door and of the
corn-fields. When the sows pig, meal must be
provided to make a wash, by the mixing it with
water. This iu summer will be go,od enough for
their support ; and in winter it must be mixed
with boiled roots, oats, and pea-soup for the
young pigs. If cows are kept, then the dairy
wash is to be used in the above mixtures. Upon
this system a farmer may apportion his swine to
his crops, or his crops to his swine ; and he will
find that, for the whole year, he should have
about an equal quantity of roots and grass, and
half as much corn as potatoes. For carrying the
profit to the highest advantage, the sows should
pigbut twice a-year — that is in April and August,
by which means there will never be a long and
expensive season for rearing pigs before they
are put to the staple food of clover or potatoes,
&c. : but this circumstance is much removed by
the provision of crops raised expressly for the
swine. Upon this plan the annual sale of lean
hogs should be in October, the litters of April
sold then as stores, and those of August kept
till October twelvemonth to sell for breeders, if
the farmer feeds them himself. Tiie stock upon
hand this month will therefore be the sows and
the pigs littered in the priceding August, all
which should have roots from the store, and even
at the same time in the farm-yard, for shacking
the straw at the barn-doors. In proportion to
what they find in thi.s, you must supply them with
roots, giving enough to keep them in growth."t
ON THE HATCHING OF FOWLS.
2878. Spring is the busy season of the
feathered inhabitants of the farm. I shall
endeavour, in as few words as the clear
elucidation of the subject will admit, to
describe the mode of hatching and rearing
every sort of fowl usually domesticated on
a farm, to show you that it is not so dif-
ficult or troublesome an affair as the prac-
tice which generally prevails would seem
to indicate. This I am enabled to do by
observing and assisting in a system which
was invariably attended with success, and
which only observation of the habits of
domesticated birds, and punctual atten-
tion to their wants, will enable any one
to follow, and to produce and rear plenty
of excellent poultry on a farm.
2879. In my observations on the man-
agement of hens in winter, I mentioned
that the early-hatched chickens of the
former spring were the best to treat as
laying hens during winter (1708.) These
same young hens, being in fine condition
in spring, will prove good layers through
the ensuing sunmier, and should therefore
be kindly treated for that purpose, and
discouraged from becoming sitters on eggs,
which they will do, if allowed to wander
in search of food, and find out nests of their
own to lay in. I also mentioned, there
was no difficulty of bringing up chickens
in winter, if it were thought expedient to
do so ; and should any have been nursed in
winter (1616,) they will now in spring be
in good condition, and be valuable birds, fit
to make a handsome dish of roast or boil.
2880. ff ens.— As soon as the grass
begins to grow in spring, so early will
cared-for hens delight to wander into
sheltered portions of pasture, in the sun-
shine, in the warm side of a thorn-hedge,
and pick the tender blades, and devour
the worms, which the genial air may have
warmed into life and activity. With
such morsels of spring food, and in plea-
sant temperature, their combs will begin
to redden, and their feathers assume a
glossy hue; and even by February they
will begin to chant — and this is a sur©
harbinger of the commencement of the
laying season.
2881. By March, a disposition to sit
will be evinced by the early laying hens;
but every hen should not be allowed to
Youatt On the Pig, p. 83-124.
+ Young's Farmers' Calendar, p. 20.
660
PRACTICE— SPRING.
fiit ; nor can any lien eit at her own dis-
cretion, wliere the practice is, as gliould be,
to ^tlier the Qggf every day as they are
laid. It is in your option, then, to select
the hens vou wish to sit to bring out
chickens. Those selected, if young,
should be of a quiet social disposition,
not easily fri^'htened, nor dJsj>osed to
wander afar ; and they should be large
and full feathered, to be able to cover
their eggs well, and brood their young
completely. Those which have proved
themselves good sitters and brooders,
neither carelesss, nor too solicitous of their
broods, should be chosen in preference to
others ; but it is proper to make one
young beu or so, every season, sit for the
first time.
2852. The e/jQS intended to be set
should be carefully selected. Every esg
proposed to be hatched should have the
date of its being laid written npon it.
If thfise of a jorticular hen are desired to
be hatched, they should, of course, be kept
by themselves, well preserved, and set
after her laying time is finished. In
selecting eggs, they should be quite fresh
— that is, laid within a few days — large,
well-shaped, truly ovoidal, sinjrie, not
seeming as if two small ones were joined
together; neither too thin nor too thick,
but smfK»th in the shell : their substance
should almost entirely fill the shell, and be
uniform and translucent when looked
through at a candle, which is the best
light for their examination.
2853. It is said that the position of
the cell that contains the air in an eg?
deteriiiiiies the sex of the chick that will
spring from that egg — that is, if the cell
occupies the exact apex of the end. which
is always the large end, the chick will
be a m:ile, and if <m one side of the apex,
it will l)e a female. I believe there is
truth in this ob!^ervation, but to what ex-
tent, and what experitnents have been
made to determine the point, I have not
leametl ; but there is no doubt of this,
that the lont'er an egg has been kept with
access to the air, until it becomes addled
or dead, this cell increases in size, by the
absoryuion of air through the shell, and,
of cour^e, by absorption also of the sub-
stance of the egg, which makes room
for the air. I have heard it remarked
that this air cell is a positive indication
that the hen which lays an egi: with one
must have been with the cock. This
I do not believe, for I am sure I have
seen such cells in eggs from hens that
could not possibly have even seen a cock.
The matter of tlie sex of the egg is of
no importance on a farm, as a good chicken
of one sex is as valuable, as an article of
food, as a good one of the other.
2884. Either 11 or 13 eggs are placed
under a hen; the former number, 11, is
more likely to be successful in being en-
tirely hatched than the latter, as few hens
can cover as many as 13 large eggs suf-
ficiently. A notion prevails even at the
present day, of the propriety of setting an
odd number of eggs under a hen. This
may have arisen from the ideathat, allowing
I egg to be rotten, an even number, or so
many couples of chickens, will still l^ ob-
tained in the hatching ; and, accordingly,
it is considered a good hatching if 10
chickens are brought out of a setting of
I I eggs, or a dozen of one of 1 3 eggs.
2885. As essential a matter as select-
ing the hens and eggs, is the Tnakinfr a
proper nest for the sitting hen. This
should consist of a circular hassock of
soft straw-ropes, or it may be a box, or a
basket. Tiie object of tliis foundation is
to raise the nest sufficiently off the gnmnd
to keep it diy, and to give it such a
hollow as none of the eggs shall roll out
by any mischance. A box or bai-ket is
a convenient receptacle for a nest, but
in using either it will be requisite to
stuff the corners, as well as the bottom,
firmly with straw, that the eggs may not
drop into the comers, or the young chicks,
as they are hatched, fall into them. The
nest iti^lf should be of soft short oat straw.
It should be ma<Ie as large as to afford
the hen ample room, not only for her body,
but also iier tail. If the tail is bent while
sitting, the hen will always feel uncom-
fortable. The nests are commonly made
too small. The hollow directly occupied
by the body of the bird should not be
larger than she can fill ; but the sides and
base of the nest should spread out to give
room around the hen, and elevation above
the floor.
2886. Places should be cbosen for the
HATCHING OF FQWLS.
661
sitting hens, for the hen-house, as G, Plate
II., coniniun to all the laying liens, will
not answer, the perpetual commotion in
it disturhing the sitting hens. Hatching-
houses, such as c' d! e' f\ Plate TI., should
contain one hen at a time ; but as many
may he accommodated in it as there are
partitions to separate one hen completely
from another, as hens are jealous of each
other — and especially so when sitting, when
she will sometimes endeavour to take pos-
session of the nest and eggs of the other
laying ones, or drive them away from their
eggs. Other places may he selected for
sitting in — such as an out-house, a loft, a
spare room in the farm-house, or even the
back-kitclien, when warmth is required for
an early brood.
2887. The hen selected for sitting having
been accustomed to lay in the hen-house,
or elsewhere, will feel annoyed at first on
being transferred to her new quarters ;
she will have to be coaxed to it, and even
after all may prove obstreperous, thongh
exhibiting strong symptoms of clucking,
in which case she must be dismissed and
another chosen, ratiier than run the risk
of spoiling the entire hatching by her
capricious conduct. A couple or so of old
eggs should first be put into the nest, upon
which she should be induced, by meat and
water beside her, to sit for two or three
days, to warm the nest thoroughly, before
the eggs she is to hatch are placed under
her. After she shows a disposition to sit,
and the nest has become warm, the old
nest-eggs are taken away, and the selected
eggs are put into the nest — 11, as I said
before, being quite enough — and the hen
allowed to go upon them in her own way,
and to manage the eggs as she chooses ;
which she will do with her bill and body,
and feet, spreading herself out fully to cover
all the eirgs completely. The time chosen
for setting the hen should be in the even-
ing, when a natural desire for roosting
and rest is evinced ; antl by next morning
it will be found that the hen has taken to
the nest contentedly.
2888. It is not unusual, with some
people, to set a hen at any time of the
day, even in daylight, when she is almost
certain to come ofi'and desire to wander;
and, to curb the disposition, a tub is placed
over her to keep her in the dark. The con-
sequent fright, upon such treatment, not
only prevents her attending to the eggs,
but some of them may be broken in her
attempts to get out of confinement. In
the desire to keep the creature in the dark,
it might suggest itself to a considerate
person, one should suppose, that darkness
is more easily and naturally found at night
than in the day, and that natural darkness
is better than artificial.
2889. While sitting upon her nest, the
hen should be looked at regularly every
day, and supplied with fresh food, corn, and
clean water. She will not consume much
food during the time of incubation, which
is 3 weeks. Every two or three days, the
dung, feathers, &c. about the nest and on
the floor should be swept and carried away,
and the place kept clean and dry.
2890. In about 3 weeks a commotion
among the eggs may be expected ; and
should the hen have proved a close sitter,
and the weather mild, it is not unlikely
that the heads of 2 or 3 chickens will be
seen peeping out below her feathers before
that period. The hen should not be dis-
turbed during the time the chickens are
leaving the eggs, or until they are all fairly
out and dry. Any attempt to chip an ^gs^
infallibly kills the chick; and every at-
tempt to remove pieces of a chipped ^g'g
causes the chick to bleed.
2891. Cock chicks, just out of the &^^
may be distinguished fnmi hen chicks by
their larger heads and stronger legs.
2892. A good plan is to give the
chickens, when fairly out, a drink, by
taking them one by one and dipping their
bills in clean water. Food is then set
down to them on a flat plate, consisting of
crumbled bread and oatmeal, and a flat
dish of clean water. The hen's food con-
sists of corn, or thick oatmeal porridge,
boiled potatoes, and water. The chickens
should be visited every 3 hours, and a
variety of fresh food ])resented, so as to
induce them to eat it the more frequently
and heartily — such as picks of hard oat-
meal porridge, crumbled boiled potatoes,
rice, groats, pearl barley; taking care to
have the food always fresh, and the water
clean, however small the quantity may
be taken. The hassock, or b(jx, or basket,
662
PRACTICE— SPRING.
should now be removed, and the true
neht :?ct down on the floor, with a sh>pe of
straw frotii it, that the chickens may walk
up to the nest to be brooded at night.
In the course of 24 hours after all the
chickens are on foot, the hen will express
a desire to go out, which she should l>e
indulged in, if the weather is dry, and
especially when the sun is out ; but if it
rain, she had better be kept within doors,
unless a convenient shed is near, in which
she may remain with her brood for a short
time. Visited every 3 hours during the
day, and supplied with a change of food
such as I have mentioned, and clean water,
for about a fortnight, or rather until the
feathers of the tails and the wings begin
to sprout, chickens may then be considered
out of danger, and, of course, become less
of a charge.
2893. During the remainder of the sea-
son, the chickens should receive food 3
times a-dav, consisting of porridge or boiled
potatoes, as long as they last. When
potatoes fail, hard-made oatmeal porridge
is the best food for fowls at any time, when
given in small bits at a time.
2894. It is not expedient to set a
number of bens at one time, but in suc-
cession every 3 weeks or a month ; for
a few chickens, ready for the table in
succession, are of greater value than a
large number of the same age.
2895. As the season advances into
summer, hens, as they become fat by pick-
ing up food in the fields, have a predilec-
tion to select places in them for nests to lay
eggs, and bring out chickens. And it must
be owned that this is a most natural pre-
dilection ; but no dei>endence can be placed
in it for a regular supply of young fowls.
The weather may not suit hens sitting in
the open air ; and the hens have not the dis-
position to sit in the most desirable periods
of the year, namely, at an early and a late
period. It is impossible to obtain a regular
6U{)ply of eggs or chickens, unless pro-
vision is made for collecting the one, and
hatching the other, in a systematic manner.
2896. Chickens go 6 weeks with their
mother. A good hen that has brought
out an early brood will become so fat while
rearing them, that she will soon begin
again to drop egga, and of conrse again
become a clucker, and may then be em-
ployed to bring out a late brood.
2897. Turkeys.— The hatching and
rearing of turkeys is universallv said to
be a difficult matter to accomplish ; an
opinion I am not disjK)sed to acquiesce in,
and I maintain they are as easilv reared
as chickens. When a turkey-hen is seen
disposed to lay, a nest should be made for
her in the hatching-bouse. It may con-
sist of the same materials as the hen's nest,
but, of course, of a larger size to suit that of
the bird. A box or basket is an excellent
thing, w^ith the corners filled up.
2898. When once the turkey-hen lays
an egg, and a nest-egg is placed in the
est, she will use it regularly every time
she requires it, which will be once in
about 30 hours. As the eggs are laid,
they should be removed, and placed gently
in a basket in the house, in a dry place,
and turned with caution every day.
2899. When she has done laying, which
may not be till she has laid 12 or 13 or
even 15 eggs, she will be disposed to sit,
when the eggs should be placed under her,
to the number of 11 or 13, the former
number being the most certain of succeed-
ing, as a turkey cannot cover a greater
number of her own eggs than a hen can of
hers; and a brood of 10 poults is an
excellent hatching. A turkey need not
be confined within the apartment she
occupies, as she is not disposed to wander,
nor is she jealous, like a hen, of another
one sitting in the same apartment with
her. A turkey sits 4 weeks, and is pro-
verbially a close sitter. During the incu-
bation, corn and water should be supplied
to her fresh and clean daily, and the dung
and feathers removed from the nest every
two or three days.
2900. When the poults are expected to
make their appearance, the turkey should
be frequently looked at, but not disturbed,
until all the poults are fairly hatched.
2901. It is, I believe, a common prac-
tice to put a peppercorn down tlie throat
of every ponlt a short time after it is
batched. How the practice originated, I
cannot say ; but as turkeys, when at
HATCHING OF FOWLS.
663
liberty, Lave a great relish for ants, and
seem to possess an instinctive faculty in
discovering tlieir hills, and so has the
pheasant, it is possible that the peppercorn
may operate as a substitute for the ant.
It is known that ants yield a peculiar acid
called formic acid ; and it is not impro-
bable that the pungency of the peppercorn
may act as a stimulant on tlie stomach in
the same manner as the acid in ants. Dr
Thomson, in speaking of the nature of the
formic acid, says, that " it is secreted by
the Formica riifa or red ant, and is the
liquid that renders the bites of these insects
so painful. It was first publicly noticed
by Mr Ray in the year 1670. . . .
Mr Fisher had stated to Mr Ray, several
years before, that ' if yon stir a heap of
ants so as to rouse them, they will let fall
on the instrument you use a liquid which,
if you presently smell, will twinge the
nose like newly-distilled oil of vitriol.'
Mr Fisher farther stated, that ' when ants
are distilled by themselves or with water,
they yield a spirit like spirit of vinegar,
or rather like spirit of viride ceris. It
dissolves iron and lead. When you put
the animals into water, you must stir them
to make them angry, and then they will
spit out their acid juice.' Margraaf ob-
tained this acid in 1749, by distilling ants
mixed with water, and rectifying the liquid
that came over. The acid obtained had a
sour taste and smell.''*
2902. While referring to this acid, I
can hardly fail, in the circumstances, noti-
cing the constitution of pepper. " Piper
nigrum is the name of the plant which
produces common pepper. It is a shrub
which grows in India. The seeds are
berries, round, hard, having an aromatic
smell and a. hot acrid taste. These berries
constitute pepper. The unripe berries are
tlie common black pepper; while the ripe
berries, deprived of their epidermis, con-
stitute white pepper. . . In 1821 M.
Pellctier published an elaborate examina-
tion of pepper. He showed that it con-
tained the following constituents : —
Piperin.
A svlid very acrid oil.
A balsamic volatile oil.
A gummy-coloured matter.
Extract similar to that obtained from legu-
minous seeds.
Malic and tartaric acida.
Starch.
Bassorin.
Ligiiin.
Earthy and alkaline salts in small quantities.
M. Pelletier showed that piperin did not
possess alkaline characters, as Oestedt had
supposed, but that it was a peculiar prin-
ciple. He found, too, that pepper owed
its peculiar ta^te to a volatile oil. This I
had shown many years before,'' adds Dr
Thomson. t From this account of it, it is
not im{)robable that the solid and very
acrid oil in the pepper may affect the
stomachs of turkeys in a similar manner
as does the formic acid in ants; and this
may form an excuse for an old practice for
which a satisfactory reason cannot be given
by those who follow it.
2903. After the peppercorn is given
— and it may be given or not as the per-
son who has charge may choose, and I
know it does no harm — the poults get a
drink of water, and are returned into
the warm nest, where the mother re-
ceives them with characteristic fondness.
But before leaving the turkey for that
night, the box or basket in which the nest
is formed should be taken away, and the
nest formed with a sloping face towards
the floor, to enable the young poults to
gain the nest. For 24 hours the poults
will eat nothing, though the turkey her-
self should be provided with corn, firm
oatmeal porridge or potatoes, and water.
Next morning the young creatures will
be quite astir and ready to eat food,
which should now be given them. Tt
should consist solely of hard-boiled eggs^
yolks and ichite shredded down very
small, and put on a flat plate or small
board.
2904. In one respect turkey-poults dif-
fer in their nature from chickens, inas-
nmch as they are more apt to purge for
the first fortnight of their existence, and
when purging does overtake them, it is
difficult of cure, and generally proves
fatal ; but hard-boiled eggs, forming an
astringent and nourishing food, entirely
prevent purging, better than some other
things T have seen tried. For the sake of
experiment, firm oatmeal porridge was
Thomson's Chemistry of Animal Bodies, p. 7.
+ Thomson's Chemistry of Vegetables, p. 895.
«64
PRACTICE— SPRING.
given instead of lianl-boiled eggs, and in
a short lime two ponlts took the flux and
died, tlie rest having been saved by a re-
turn to the egg. With c<:g not a single
death lias occurred among two hatchings
every year for upwards of 20 years, and
that is sulHcient experience to justify the
reooniniendatiou of any practice.
290.>. Let the poults be visited every 3
or 4 hours, supplied with hard-boiled egg
and clean water. Let this food be re-
moved after the poults are served, other-
wise the turkey will devour it ; for she is
a keen feeder, and not so disinterested a
bird in regard to food as a hen. Let them
remain two nights and a day in the house,
and afterwards let them go into the open
air and enjoy the sun and warmth, of
which, it is hoped, there will be plenty in
the month of May. In wet weather, they
fihould be confined to the house, or allowed
to go into a shed. When the birds become
strong and active in the course of a few
days, let the turkey be placed in a coop
on tlie green to curb her wandering pro-
pensity, until the poults can follow her,
which they will be able to do after they
have been supported on hard-boiled eggs
for a fortnight. This should be put upon
a plate on the green beyond the reach of
the coop, and where the poults can help
themselves; whilst the food of the turkey
is placed within reach of the coop, con-
sisting of corn, porridge, boiled potatoes,
and water. After the feathers in the tails
and wings of the poults have fairly
sprouted, the egg may be gradudUi/ with-
drawn, and hard-boiled picks of porridge,
with a little sweet-milk in the dish, to
facilitate the swallowing of the porridge,
should be given them at least 4 or 5 times
a-day at stated hours ; which wholesome
food will support them until the mother
can provide insects, and other natural food
for them, as a variety along with it. They
will now thrive apace, and grow amazingly
fast as the weather becomes warm. Should
the grass be <lamp, let the coop be j)laced
on the gravelled walk or road, as damj)-
ness is injurious to all young birds of the
gallinaceous tribe, especially in brood-
ing. After the egg is withdrawn, the
poults are fond of a little shredded cress
and mustard, and, when at liberty, will
pick the tender leaves of nettles with
avidity. The predilections for ants, cress,
and nettles, show that turkeys enjoy sti-
mulating condiments with their food.
2906. Turkeys are sometimes extraor-
dinary layers. One season a hen-turkey
of my own, after bringing up 1 1 poults
till they were 8 weeks old, made a nest
in the middle of a large bush of nettles at
the edge of a young plantation, which she
visited by contriving to slip away un-
noticed from her brood to lay an cggetery
day. The nest was soon discovered, the
egg taken away every day ;us it was laid,
and a nest-egg left in it, and tiius she con-
tinued to visit it daily till she had laid
the extraordinary number of 90 eggs.
The consequence of this oviparous fecun-
dity was, tliat the turkey did not moult
till the depth of winter, and the moulting
was so very bare that she had to be con-
fined to the house ; and whether the mis-
fortune which befell her before spring was
owing to the severity of the late moulting
I do not know, but an inflammation and a
consequent swelling seized one of her eyes,
and she was dei)rived of its sight. By
spring, however, she recovered from the
moulting, Avas furnished with a comj)letely
new plumage, the wound on the eye healed,
but she died a short time after.
2907. Turkey-hens are most watchful
protectors of their young, and are j)articu-
larly wary of birds of proy, which, when-
ever observed, even at the greatest height
in the air, they will utter a peculiar cry,
which the poults understand, and will hide
themselves instantly amongst the longest
grass and other plants within reach.
2908. Another peculiarity affects the
turkey-hen; one impregnation from the
cock fecundates all theeggsof the ovarium;
and, on account of this property, I am told
it is not uncommon in spring in Ireland
for people to carry about turkey-cocks
and ofl'er their services at farm-steads,
as those of a stallion are profl'ered. It is
perhaps to this peculiar constitutional
habit of the turkey that make^ the cock
so regardless of his own progeny, and
which leads the hen voluntarily to shun
his attentions as long as she has charge of
the brood The brood goes with her for
an indefinite length of time.
2909. Geese. Geese make early pre-
HATCHING OF FOWLS.
665
paration for incubation. They, however,
seldom lay eggs in Scotland till the end
of February.
2910. The goose and gander cannot
embrace but in water, and if the pond
which they frequent be covered with ice,
it should be broken to allow them to get
to the water, as every egg requires a sepa-
rate impregnation.
2911. An attentive observer will know
when a goose is desirous of laying, by her
sitting down amongst straw and picking
up and placing one on this side and one
on that side of her, as if making a nest.
Whenever this is noticed, or an embrace
on the water with the gander, a nest
should be made for her to lay in in the
batching-house, and to which she should
have easy access, for she cannot leap or
fly up with the niuibleness of a hen or
turkey, though her nest may also be made
in a box or basket, of a size to suit the
bird.
2912. It is improper to confine a
goose a long time before laying her
first egg ; but when symptoms of laying
are observed, she should be caught in
the morning, when let out, and the lower
portion of the soft part of the abdo-
men felt, where the egg may be easily as-
certained to be in a position to be imme-
diately laid; and if it feel hard, she should
be put in her nest and confined until she
lays the egg in the course of the day, after
which she is let out, the egg taken away,
kept dry in a basket, and turned every
day, until the entire number laid are
placed under her.
2913. Every other day after the first,
the goose will visit her nest and lay an
egg, and the number she may lay will
seldom exceed 12, ti)ough 18 have been
known to be laid ; so, by the time she is done
laying, it will be about the end of March.
Considerable diS'erence, however, in this
respect, exists amongst geese, they laying
on Slime farms considerably earlier than
on others. This may arise from the nature
of the soil, as it is pnibable that a dry,
sharp, early soil for grass and grain, will
promote the functions of poultry, as well
as the vegetable economy, loan earlier de-
velopment.
2914. After the goose has finished lay-
ing her eggs, she will incline to sit, and
she should receive her eggs ; and the best
time for placing them in the nest, as I
have said of the hen, is in the evening,
that, by the arrival of the morning, the
nest will be so wanned and made comfort-
able, as to induce her to keep possession
of it. The number of eggs given to be
hatched should be 11, which is as many as
a goose can easily cover. The goose plucks
the down off her body to furnish her nest
with the means of increasing its heat ; and
one great use of the down is, that when
she leaves her nest at any time she covers
them with it, and thus eftectually prevents
the external air cooling them. A little
clean water and a few oats are put beside
her while she is sitting ; but she will eat
very little food all the time she sits.
2915. A feed of good oats, such as is
given to a horse, will serve a sitting goose
for a month ; yet this little handful is ac-
tually grudged the poor patient goose,
and, instead of good corn, the lightest corn
blown from the fanners, only a degree bet-
ter than chaff, is allowed her by many
farmers who consider themselves good
rearers of live stock.
2916. Some will not allow the goose to
go abroad as long as she is sitting; but
this is imposing an unnecessary constraint
upon her. Let her go off whenever she
plmses, and there is no fear but that she
will return to her nest in tiuie to maintain
the heat preserved by the down. Most
people will not then allow her to go to
the water at all, alleging, that if she re-
turns wet upon the eggs, they will become
addled ; but this is a mistake. Let her go
to the pond if she wishes to wash hei'self,
and depend upon it, she will not continue
longer there than merely to refresh herself.
The feathers will not become icet ; it is
not their nature to become so ; and after
the relaxation she evidently so much en-
joys, she will sit the closer.
2917. Geese are liable to become cos-
tive while sitting and eating nothing but
corn, and, to counteract which tendency,
they should be supplied now and then with
a little boiled potato in a dry state; and
every fowl, while sitting, should receive a
little of this uieful iugrtdient.
666
PRACTICE— SPRING.
29 1 8. The fjander usually takes up with
one iiKite, hut if theie are only two geese,
be will pay attention to both ; and his re-
gard for his mate is so strong, that he will
remain at the door of the hatching-house
like a watch-dog, guarding her from e\eTy
danger, and ready to attack all and sundry
that a[»i>roach her sanctuary.
2919. At the end of a calendar
raonth the eggs may be expected to be
hatched ; and during this process the goose
should be left undisturbed, but not unob-
served.
2920. After the goslings are all fairly
out of the shell, and Iwfore they are even
dry, they may be taken in a basket with
straw to a sheltered dry spot in a grass
field, the goose carried by the wings, and
the gander will follow the goslings' soft
whistling. Here they may remain for an
hour or two, provided the sun shines, and
in sunshine goslings pick up more strength
in one hour than from the brooding they
receive from their mother for a day. The
goslings will endeavour to balance them-
selves on their feet and pluck the grass : the
goose will rest beside them ; and the gander
wiil proudly protect them all. Watershould
be placed beside them to drink. Should the
sky overcast, and rain likely to fall, the
goslings should be immediately collected,
and carried with the goose to the nest ;
for if they get their backs wetted with
rain or snow in the first two or three days
of their life, they will lose the use of
their legs, never became strong, and will
inevitably die. Should the weather be
wet, a sod of good grass should be cut and
placed within their house, beside a shallow
plate of water. In setting down a com-
mon plate to goslings, it should be pre-
vented from upsetting, as they will put
their feet upon its edge, and spill the
water. After two days' acquirement of
strength, in sunny weather, the goslings
may venture to the pond to swim ; but the
horse-]K)nd being frequented by so many
kinds of animals, is too dangerous a place
for tlicm as vet. A ])ond in a grass-field
woiihl be the best place for them. For
the first few days after goslings go about,
they should be particularly observed ; for,
should they fall upon their backs on the
grass, or into a hardened hoof-print of a
Lorse, or a wheel-rut in the ground, they
cannot recover their legs, will be de-
serted by their dam and all the rest, and
will certainly perish. After three or four
days, however, in dry sunny weather, and
on good grass, they will become so strong,
grow so fast, as to be past all danger. It
is surprising how rapidly a young gosling
grows in the first month of its life.
2921. After that time they begin to
tire of grass, and go in search of other
food ; and this is the time to supply them
daily with good oats, if you wish to have
a flock of fine birds by Michaelmas; any
other grain will answer the pur}»ose, as
rice and Indian corn, let it be but com,
though oats are their favourite food. Even
light com will be better than none ; and
if they get corn until harvest, they will
have passed their fastest growing period,
and will then be able to shift for them-
selves, first in the stack-yard, and after-
wards on the stubbles.
2922. The sex of the gosling may be
easily ascertained after the feathers
begin to sprout — the ganders being white,
and strong in the leg, head, and neck;
the geese gray, and having a gentler
asjject.
2.92.3. Goslings go with their parents
for an indefinite length of time.
2924. Geese are in general close sitters;
but sometimes they are capricious enough
to forsake their eggs after a number of the
goslings have been hatched. I have wit-
nes.'^ed an instance of this sort of desertion.
A goose after hatching five goslings, de-
serted her nest, and would no longer sit on
the other six eggs to bring them out,
though one of them was chipped. Fear-
ing that the deserted eggs would perish
from cold, my housekeeper — who took the
charge of all the poultry, cows and calves,
besides the house — brought the eggs into
the house, put them in a basket amongst
flannel "And wool, caused the oven to be
gently heated. j>laccd the ba.-sket with the
^izg> in the oven, and continued the heat
in it night and day until all the goslings
were hatched, which they were one by one,
excepting one in which the bird had <lied.
They occupied some days in leaving' their
eggs, and longer than they would have
done under the goose. They were care-
HATCHING OF FOWLS.
667
fully attended to, and were taken out to
the grass in the best part of the day, kept
warm in the house at night, and, when the
weather was such that they could not get
out, a grass sod was brought to them into
the house. The goose refused to take this
part of her own brood when offered to her,
after they had gained sufficient strength
to go about ; which being the case, they
were brought up without her aid, and be-
came as strong birds as the rest of the
brood. I consider this as a remarkable in-
stance of the resources of a humane mind,
and of a disregard of personal trouble ; and
it is an encouraging example of persever-
ance in the preservation of the lives of use-
ful animals under unfavourable and even
provoking circumstances.
2925. Ducks — Ducks begin to lay eggs
early in the season, as early as January, so
it is possible to obtain an early hatching of
ducklings, if desired ; but early ducklings
are not desirable, as, during an unnatu-
ral period for them, they do not acquire
much flesh, even with the utmost care ;
their bills and bones growing disproportion-
ately large, and they never become fine
birds. It is early enough to set duck eggs
in Scotland by May, and by April in
England. It is customary to place duck
eggs under hens, owing, I believe, to the
difficulty of making a duck take to a nest
she has not herself made.
292fi. Hens make tolerable foster-
mothers to ducklings, though, in becoming
so, the task is imposed upon them of a
week's hmger sitting than is in conformity
with their own nature ; and, after all, the
natural plan is for ducks to bring out their
own kind ; and there is no doubt that,
when a duck does choose a nest for her-
self, lines it with her own down, and brings
out a brood, that the ducklings are better
than any reared under the care of a hen ;
the instinct of the duck being more con-
genial to ducklings in leading them to
places in search of food peculiar to their
tastes, as well upon land as upon water.
Still the entire production of ducklings on
a farm should not be left to the chance of
ducks setting themselves on eggs, for they
are proverbially careless of where they
deposit their eggs, and on that account
hens must be employed to hatch at least a
few broods of ducks.
2927. As in the case of her own eggs,
a hen can only cover 11 duck eggs with
ease ; and she requires the same treatment
as when sitting on her own eggs. A cal-
endar month is required to bring out duck-
lings ; and during the actual hatching, the
heu shouhl be left undisturbed until all
the brood comes out.
2928. Ducklings should be kept from
water for a couple of days, until their navel
string is healed ; and the food which they
receive should be soft, quite the opposite
of that given to turkey-poults — such as bits
of oatmeal porridge, boiled potatoes, bread
steeped in water, barley-meal brose, and
clean water to drink in a flat dish in which
they cannot swim. On this treatment, 3
or 4 times at least every day, they will
thrive apace, and become soon fledged over
the body, when they are fit for use ; but
their quill-feathers do not appear for some
time after. In this state wild ducklings,
under the name oi Jiaffers, make excellent
sport.
2929. A great number of ducklings are
bred and reared every year in the Vale of
Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, for the
London market, by people of the poorer
class. The eggs are hatched by hens, and
3 or 4 broods are put together into one
division ; whilst other divisions contain
them in a different state of growth, some
half-grown, others full fledged, and all are
fed alike. In this way one person has
SOO or 400 ducklings feeding about the
house, and perhaps under the same roof
with the family. A great many are
housed in little space, and never allowed
to go at large ; but permitted to wash
themselves every day in a pond made on
purpose near the house. They are fed
three times a-day on potatoes, barley-meal,
bran, greaves, &c., and receive as much as
they can eat ; and it is stated that they
eat an incredible quantity of food while
thus forcing for the market. When full-
feathered they are sent to London, where
they find a ready sale, at from 6s. 6d. to
8s. a pair. As the season advances, prices
fall, till they reach 3s. a pair, when the
breeding is given up for the season. Those
people allege that they are not remunerated
for their trouble even at the highest prices;
and yet I have seen it lately stated on the
testimony of a poulterer, that J30,000
668
PRACTICE— SPRING.
are annually sent out of London for the
purcliajc of Aylesbury ducka.
2030. Pea-fotcls. — Pea-hens, in tlieir
liatcliing, will not be subjected to control,
Tlie lieu selects a secluded spot for her
nest, not unlikely in a garden, wbere she
feels herself secure from the attentions of
the cock, whom she avoids at this season
with marked assiduity. She takes care
that he shall not know, not only where
her nest is, but when the pea-fowls come
out; and it is alleged, that the cock de-
stroys them. A pea-hen in this country
seldom brings out more than three or four
birds, though usually laying five eirgs ;
and these she tends with great care, taking
them to places where wild food can be
found in greatest abundance, such as in-
sects of various kinds and in different
states ; and, besides this, thev are fed as
3'oung turkeys are. She continues her care
for her young for the greater part of the
year.
2031. Pigeons. — Pigeons, when their
dove-cot is favourably situated for heat,
begin to lay in February, and will con-
tinue to do so until December.
2032. They make their owa nests, which
are of the simplest materials and rudest
conr-tructi(m, and the same nest will be
used by the same pair season after season,
if permitted, even after it has been much
elevated by the dunjri.f the young pigeons.
A fine ne^t is not required by pigeons,
which only laying two eggs at a time,
one of each sex, the hen can easily cover
them ; ancl to afford to them stijl more
heat, she pushes them below her with her
bill, amongst the feathers.
29o3. What I have said on the mode of
hatching the different s<»rts of fowls usually
reared, is suitable to every sort of farm,
and may be acquired by any domestic of
the farm house ; and that it is quite prac-
ticable, my own experience of it for years
has proved. Other schemes are recom-
mended in books, and large establish-
ments, consisting of buildings and ponds,
and spare ground, are erected and laid
out in the parks and farm-courts of coun-
try gentlemen ; but let any other plan be
what it luav, and its erections and ajipli-
ances of whatever magnitude, there is no
one. I feel confident, will afford poultry at
all tiiiies in a higher degree of perfection
and health than the simjile one I iiave
just described, and recommended for your
adoption — and exf)erience is the Itest
test to which any plan can be subjected.
I do not say that it is a very cheap plan,
that it will suj)ply pood })ouliry for the
table at little or no cost — the idea of cheap-
ness entertained by farniers, when tliey
condescend to cast a thought on the poultry
of their farms. I do not believe that fowls
can be reared upon the refuse of the pro-
ducts of a farm more than any other sort
of stock ; and when I see that the best
oats, the best turnips, and the best grass
that a farm can raise, are required to rear
such horses, cattle, and sheep, as pur-
chasers desire t<> have, I must also believe
that poultry require the best food to make
them as acceptable ; but this I can say
for the plan, that as a practicable tne for
an ordinary farm, it requires no costly
buildings, and that it will assuredly yield
poultry in good condition at all seascms, in
return for the food and trouble bestowed
upon them — and w hat more can a reason-
able farmer desire (
2934. Poultry in toirns. — Fowls are kept in
towns in places quite uiisuited to their liabits ;
most frequently in a small court, surroumied by
a high rail except on the side in which ihe hen-
house is situated ; and this consists of a flatti^h-
roofed out-house, pervious to rain and redolent
of moisture,— a condition the very worst for
fowls. The floor ot the court is generally covered
with dirt, aiil the small vessel which is intendeJ
to contain water is as often dry as pleuished with
clean water, while llie food is thrown upon ihe
dirty court floor. Add to these sources of dis-
comfort, the sun, probably, never shines upon the
town heu-house, or only for a few minutes in the
afternoon, when the fowls are about to retire to
roost. Ducks are treated in even a ]e^s cere-
monious tnanner than hens ; having no water,
theirfeathersbecome begrimed with dirt,and their
food is given to them iu a state little else than
a dirty puddle. It is, of course, impossible tliat
fowls can thr'tre in such circumstances ; and, in-
deed, a sight of the poor creatures excites nothing
but commi^eration for their fate. What c:ia in-
duce people to keep animals in such a state of
filth and discomfort, 1 cannot conceive.
29.'?5. One cause of sufi'ering to hens in such
situations, is the want of sand or gravel to assist
the tritnritioH of food in the stomach. It is
found tliat gallinaceous binls require a -upply of
quar'zy sub-tau<-e — and these they find on any
farm, as al>o calcareous matter, such as liiue— to
assist in the formation of the t-hell of tie ci:g]
without which, hens will lay what are called
HATCHING OF FOWLS.
Kind eggs, that is, eggs without a hardened sheW.
In tlie case of the fowls on board a certain
East Iiidiaman getting unwell iu their ooops,
notwitlistanding the attention daily bestowed,
and tlie good food allowed them, it was dis-
covered by the surgeon, on dissection of some of
the birds which had died, that tlie cause of death
was the want of gravel to assist tiie digestion of
food. A supply of stones to beat down small
was obtained at a convenient port, and the fowls
becajne healthy, and continued so afterwards.
Auother source of suffering of a similar nature
to hens, is the want of dust to burrow in, and to
scatter it amongst their feathers, in order to de-
stroy the vermin which annoy their skin ; and the
ducks suffer equally much from the want of
water to wash in and clean themselves.
2936. The Greeks exhibited much superstition
and absurdity in the management of their poultry.
" When we wish fowls to lay, we are to set
clean straw under them, and to lay an iron nail
in it, for this seems to be of service against everj'
evil. Columella mentions the same thing. More
than 28 eggs are not laid under a good hen, and
fewer under one that is not a good one, according
to the natural power of each bird. (Columella
recommends 2] eggs — Varro went so far as to men-
tion "25 — which might not seem so extraordinary
in a warm climate, and when we know that, even
in this country, hens will bring out as many as
20 chickens, in nests provided by tliemselves in
the fields.) The number must always be uneven ;
and you must set them under the hen when the
moon is increasing, that is, after the new moon,
to the fourteenth day of its age. Those, indeed,
that are set before the new moon become abortive.
It is also necessary to set the eggs chiefly that
were laid from the blowing of Favouius to the
autumnal equinox, that is, from the 7th of Feb-
ruary to the 22d of September ; wherefore you
are to set them apart in the breeding season,
that a young brood may be raised. But you are
not to set the eggs laid before this season or
afterwards ; and all the first-laid eggs are not to
be set, for they are stale and imperfect. Let the
keeper turn the eggs every day, tljat they may
be equally cherished on every side. It is also
proper not to set one hen only the same day, but
three or four, and you are immediately to take
the chickens that are hatched from every hen,
and to bc't them under one that has few: and you
are to divide the eggs that are not hatched be-
tween the hens that are still sitting, that being
cheri.~lied by them they may come to life ; but
you are not to set under a hen that has a small
brood more than 30 chickens. Cold is inimical
to the race of fowls.
2937. " You will thus prove if eggs are good :
put them in water, for one that is faulty swims,
as being useless, but that which is fully perfect
will sink to the bottom ; nor is it proper to shake
the eggs in proving them, that the vital principle
in them may not be destroyed ; and as some per-
sons set heterogeneous eggs under domestic fowls,
you are to know that a hea hatches the eggs of a
pheasant in the same manner as its own in 21
days, but the eggs oi" a pea-fowl and of a goose
in 29 days. (Varro says in 27 days, and Pliny
from the twenty-seventh to the thirtieth day.)
Calculate, then, and set these according to those
already mentioned, that they may be hatched 7
or 8 days afterwards. But there are in Alexan-
dria, belonging to Egypt, hens called monosyri,
from which game cocks may be raised, which
sit on two or three sets of eggs successively,
so that chickens that are hatched are taken
away and bred apart, and the bird sits 42 or 63
days.
2938. " The chickens being indeed first put
in a basket, are suspended over a little smoke,
but they take no nourishment during two days.
Secure the vessel from which food is given them
with cow-dung. . . . The house is also fumi-
gated with one of the things that drive away
reptiles. . . . There have indeed been found
certain antidotes wliich preserve hens. If rue is
tied under the hen's wings, neither a cat nor a
fox, nor any other noxious animal, will touch
them ; and especially if you give them food with
which the gall of a fox or of a cat has been
mixed, as Democritus positively afiirms."*
2939. Few eggs are worth the trial of hatching
if more than a month old ; their condition, how-
ever, is greatly influenced by the season and the
state of the weather. An egg retains its freshness
longest in moderately cool weather ; very hot
weather destroys vitality in a few days ; and
an egg having been frozen is also useless for
hatching. Failures in hatching arise from want
of impregnation in the egg — from age, commonly
called staleness, whereby life has become extinct
• — from weakness of the vital energy of the eggs,
produced by age, lowness of keep, or ill health of
the parent, in which cases the chick partially de-
velops itself, but dies before the full period of
incubation. Eggs may be brought to life, but
unless the process of incubation be properly exe-
cuted, the birds will be weakly, ill-conditioned,
and die in a short time afterwards. To prevent
the yolk of weak eggs from settling by its specific
gravity, and adhering to the shell, it is useful to
pass the hand over tl)em, so as to change tlieir
position every 24 hours. The egg of a strong
healthy bird, at the time of its protrusion from
the body, is completely filled with yolk and albu-
men. If examined a few days after, by hoMiiig
it toward the liiiht, a small cell of air will be
discoverable at the larger end, which increases
with the age of the egg. This waste of its in-
ternal substance is occasioned by absorption of
the atmosphere, through the pores of the shell,
of the more volatile parts of its contents. When
the cell is large in any egg, 't is unfit for incu-
bation ; nevertheless, in a good egg, as incuba-
tion proceeds, this cell becomes considerable,
produced probably both Irora evaporation by
heat, and the vital action going on within the
shell. It al.>o serves an important purpose in
the economy of this mysterious process. An egg
will not hatch in vacuo.
• Owen's Geoponika, vol. ii. p, 167-72.
«70
PRACTICE— SPRING.
2940. The progressive series of phenomena,
daily observable during the process of incuba-
tion in the egg of a common fowl, are curious and
instructive. In an impregnated egg, previous
to the commencement of incubation, a small spot
is discernible upon the yolk, composed of a mem-
branous sac containing fluid matter, in which the
embryo of the future chick swims.
1st day. — At the expiration of 12 or 14 hours
after incubation has commenced, the
matter within the embryo evidently
bears a resemblance to a head — vesicles
assume the shape of the vertebral bones
of the back.
2d day. — In 39 hours the eyes make their ap-
pearance— vessels joiu together indicate
the navel — the brain, spinal marrow,
rudiments of the wings, and principal
muscles — the heart is evidently pro-
ceeding.
3d day. — At its commencement the beating of
the heart is visible — some hours after,
two vesicles containing blood appear,
one forming the left ventricle and the
other the great artery — the auricle of
the heart is next seen, and pulsation is
evident.
4th day.— Wings assume a defined form — the
brain, the beak, the front and hind parts
of the head visible.
Sth day. — Liver seen — circulation of the blood
evident.
6th day. — Lungs and stomach distinguishable —
full gush of blood from the heart distinct.
7th day. — Intestines, veins, and upper mandible
visible — brain becomes consif^tent.
Sth day. — Beak opens — formation of flesh on the
breast.
Sth day. — Ribs formed — gall bladder per-
ceptible,
loth day. — Bill formed — first Toluntary motion
of the chick seen.
11th day. — Skull becomes cartilaginous — pro-
trusion of feathers evident.
12th day. — Orbits of sight appear — ribs per-
fected.
13th day. — Spleen in its proper position in the
abdomen.
I4th day. — Lungs enclosed within the breast.
1.5th day. "
16th day.
17th day.
18th day. — Audible sign of life outside the skull
— piping of the chick heard.
") Increase of size and strength — yolk
19th day. j eucl..sed within the body — chick
20th day. i- liberates itself by repeated efi"orts
2l8t day. i made by the bill, seconded by mus-
J cular exertion of the limbs.
2941. The embryo of the chick is not in every
egg placed precisely in the same situation, but
varies considerably. Generally it develops itself
within the circumference of the broadest part of
the egg ; sometimes it is found higher, sometimes
lower; and when held before a strong light, has
Mature state approached — yolk of
the egg still outside of the body.
an appearance, when a few days old, somewhat
resembling the meshes of a spider's web, with
the spider in the centre. As it increases in size,
the bulk of the contents of the egg decrease, so
that when the bird is completely matured, it has
ample space to move, and to use its limbs with
sufflcient efiect to insure its liberation. The po-
sition of the chick in the shell is such as to occupy
the least space. The head, which is large and
heavy in proportion to the rest of the body, is
placed in front of the belly, with its beak under
the right wing ; the feet are gathered up like a
bird trussed for the spit, yet, in this singular
manner, and apparently uncomfortable position,
the bird is by no means cramped or confined, but
performs all the necessary motions and efforts
required for its liberation with the most perfect
ease, and with that consummate skill which in-
stinct renders almost infallible. The chicken,
when it breaks the shell, is heavier than the whole
egg was at first.
2942. In regard to the original formation of
feathers in the chick of a bird, M. Raspail has
the following observations : — " If we examine,"
he says, " the epidermis of a fparrow, as it comes
from the egg, we shall find that we can isolate
each of the small bottles, which the vesicles that
form the rudiments of hairs assume the shape of,
as well as the nerve of which it seems to be the
terminal development. It might almost be sup-
posed that the object viewed was the eye of a
tnoKusca, with its long optic nerve. The summit
of this vesicle is open, even at its early period,
to afford a passage for a cylindrical bundle of
small fibres, which are also cylindrical, and which
are nothing else than the barbs, as yet single, of
the feather. If, afterwards, we examine a feather
at a more advanced period, we may, by a little
address, satisfy ourselves that its tube is formed
and grows by means of spalha;, one within an-
other, of which the external ones project over
the inner ones, so that the tube seems as if
divided by so many diapliragms. The inter-
stices of these diaphragms are filled with a fatty
liquid, which condenses in them gradually, as
the summits of the spathae approximate and
adhere to each other."*
2943. The hatching of fowls naturally leads
the mind to the curious artificial system of hatch-
ing which the ancient Egyptians practised, and
which afforded them an immense supply of poultry
every year. It is unnecessary to detail the an-
cient mode of hatching, as it is unsuited to this
country, our climate being much too unsteady for
the purpose ; but particular accounts of it may
be found detailed by authors.f The modern
Egyptians still practise the system, and as the
results exhibit some extraordinary facts, I am
tempted to give the following account of it from
Mr Mowbray : — " Sicard," he says, " gives an idea
of the immense quantities of chickens hatched in
his time in Egypt. The number of oveus for
hatching the eggs, dispersed in the several can-
tons of the country, was no less than 38ti. The
• Raspail's Orcjank Chemistri), p. 283.
t Wilkinson's Manticrs and Faslnvns of the Ancient Etfyptians, vol. i. p. 134.
HATCHING OF FOWLS.
671
business seems to be monopolised by the Agas or
government, and therefore cannot be varied in
extent but by their permission. Each mamal or
oven has one managing Bermean, a native of the
village of Berme in the Delta, by whom the art
of managing it has been retained, and is taught
to his children. These managers cannot absent
themselves from duty but with leave obtained
from the Aga of Bernie, never obtained but at the
expense of 6 to 10 crowns. The Aga constantly
keeps a register of these fees, which to him is a
sort of rent-roll. The above number of ovens is
kept at work in Egypt annually during 4 to 6
months, allowing more time than is necessary to
hatch 8 successive broods of chickens, ducks, and
turkeys, making in the whole, yearly, 3088
broods. The number in each hatching is not
always equal, from the occasional difficulty of
obtaining a sufficient number of eggs, which may
be stated at a medium between the two extremes
of 40,000 and 80,000 to each oven. The Ber-
mean contracts to return in a living brood to his
employer, two-thirds of the number of eggs set in
the oven; all above being his own perquisite, in
addition to his salary for the season, which is 30 to
40 crowns, exclusive of his board. According to
report, the crop of poultry thus artificially raised
in Egypt was seldom or never below that ratio,
making the enormous annual amount of 92,640,000.
It is obvious that the apparent grand difficulty of
obtaining a sufficient number of eggs must sub-
sist chiefly or entirely in the infancy of such an
undertaking, and that its progress must infinitely
extend that supply, as has been the case in Egypt,
where the breeding stock has been so multiplied,
and where, in consequence, the commodity is so
cheap from its superabundance, that, in the time
of Sicard, 1000 eggs were sold for 30 or 40
medims, making 3s. or 4s. English money. In-
deed, the chickens were not sold from the stores
by tale but by measure ; according to Raumeur,
by the bushel ! And it appears, from travellers
of the present day, to be the custom in Egypt to
purchase chickens by the basketful."*
2944. M. Ilaumeur,underthe French Academy,
instituted experiments to prove that eggs could
be hatched in France as well as in Egypt; but it
was soon discovered that the two countries were
placed in difi'erent circumstances in regard to
climate, and the project was abandoned as being
impracticable. Plans of artificial hatching were
tried with better success by M. Bonuemain, by a
system of supplying heat from hot water in pipes;
but the French Revolution put an end to the
experiment. It is worth observing, in passing,
how strange it is to hear of the circulation of
hot water in pipes, as a steady source of heat,
recommended at the present day as a rwveltt/.
" The theory and practice of hot water circula-
tion," observes Dr Ure, " were as perfectly un-
derstood by M. Bonnemain fifty years ago, as
they are by any of our stove-doctors at the pre-
sent day. They were then publicly exhibited at
his residence at Paris, and were afterwards com-
municated to the world at large in the interesting
article of the Dictionuaire Technologique, entitled
Incubation Artificielle."
2945. M. Felgeris, proprietor of the baths at
Chaudes-Aigues, (Cantal,) followed the plan of
hatching eggs by means of hot mineral waters, as
recommended by M. d'Arcet. " Tins consists of
putting tlie eggs into a small basket, suspending
it in one of the stove-rooms heated by the hot
mineral water, and turning round the eggs every
day. The very first trial was attended with
success, and no failure was experieuced in four
repetitions of it."t
2946. To supply the inhabitants of Great
Britain and Ireland with fowls as the Egyptians
are — namely, at the rate of 46 J- fowls to each per-
son every year — the number required to be
hatched would be 1,109,000,000 of fowls !
2947. Some years ago a machine for hatching
eggs, called the Eccaleobion, was in operation in
London where I saw it. It was the contrivance
of Mr William Bucknell, who published an in-
teresting statement of his experience on the con-
dition of the eggs, and his observations on the
habits of young chickens. The machine I saw
was capable of containing 2000 egg-, open to
sight through glazed doors, in different states of
incubation, from the first hour in which the egg
was deposited in the machine, until the last
when the bird left the shell. The sight was
highly interesting, and I could have spent hours
in observing the gradual mutation assumed by
the egg. I presume the cost of supporting the
heat in the machine had not been repaid by
the sale of birds, as I have heard nothing of
its existence for several years.
2948. At present, in 1848, is a machine in
operation in London, named the H}dro- Incu-
bator, belonging to Mr Cantelo. I do not know
the particular construction of the apparatus, but
presume from its name, that the heat required by
it is generated by warm water. Mr E. Hulme
of Clapliam, says, in regard to this machine —
" the first thing 1 saw in July last, was a four-
tray incubator in operation. One of the trays
was taken out, and I could hear numbers pecking
at their prison-walls. Next was the drying nest,
with numbers of chicks hatched that day. I felt
the degree of heat on the under side of the water-
proof cloth, and thought it admirably adapted. I
next saw the different broods with their hydro-
mothers, from a day old until they ranked as
roosters. Next were the out- door runs, where
there were hundreds of full-grown fowlj, and
the whole, from the smallest, looked in perfect
condition. Yet it struck me, that the place out-
doors was altogether unsuitable for the fuU
development of the system." J
2949. I lately saw an advertisement from
Norfolk, offering for sale an i«c«6u^yr of so small
* Mowbray's Practical Treatise on Domestic Poultry, p. 81-90.
t Ure's Dictionary of the Arts and Manufactures — art. Incuhation, Artificial.
1 Gardener's Chronicle for 21st October 1848.
672
TRACTICE— SPRING.
dimensions. that it could stand in any room, and
not only there liatch et'K?, but brood and rear
chickens. Such a machine bids fair to outdo
the feats of hatching actually accomi)li?hed by
James Sandy, the bedridden cripple of Aiyth, by
the heat of his own person.*
2n50. Mr Fortune Pay?, in reference to the
hatching of ducks in Ciiina, " One of the greatest
lions in Chusan is a:i old niinaman, who every
spring hatches thousands of ducks' eggs by artifi-
cial lieat. His establishment is situated in the
valley on the north side of the city of Tinghae,
and is much resorted to by the officers of the
troops, and strangers who visit the island. The
first question put to a sight-seer who comes here,
is, whether he has seen the hatching process ; and
if he has not, he is always recommended to pay
a visit to the old Chinaman and his ducks. , . .
The Chinese cottages, generally, are wretched
buildings of mud and stone, with damp earthen
floors, scarcely fit for cattle to sleep in, and re-
mind one of what Scottish cottages were a few
years ago, but which now, happily, are among
the things that were. My own friend's cottage
was no exception to the general rule ; bad fit-
ting, loose, creaking doors; paper windows, dirty
and torn ; ducks, geese, fowls, dogs, and pigs,
in the house and at the doors, and apparently
having equal rights with their masters. Then
there were children, grand-children, and, for
aught I know, great grand-children, all together,
forming a most motley group ; which, with their
shaved heads, long tails, and strange costume,
would have made a capital subject for the pencil
of Cruikshank.
2951. " The hatching-house was built at the
side of the cottage, and was a kind of long shed,
with mud walls, and thickly thatched with straw.
Along the ends, and down the sides of the build-
ing, are a number of round straw baskets, well
plastered with mud, to prevent them from taking
fire. In the bottom of each basket there is a tile
placed, or rather the tile forms the bottom of the
basket; upon this the fire acts— a small fire-
place being below each basket. Upon the top of
the basket there is a straw cover, which fits
closely, and which is kept shut while the process
is going on. In the centre of the shed are a
numberof large shelves, placed one above another,
upon wiiich the eggs are laid at a certain stage
of the proces.s. When the eggs are brought, they
are put into the baskets, the fire is lighted below
them, and a uniform heat kept up, ranging, as
nearly as I could ascertain by some observations
which I made with a thermometer, from 95° to
10"2'; liiit the Chinamen regulate the heat by their
own fei-lings, and, therefore, it will of course
vary considerably. In four or five days after
the eggs have been subject to this temperature,
they are taken carefully out, one by one, to a
door, in which a number of holes have been
bored nearly tlie size of the eggs ; they are then
held against these holes, and the Chinamen look
througli them, and are able to tell whether they
are good or not. If good, they are taken back
and rej'laced in their former quarters; if bad,
they are of course excluded. In nine or ten
days after this, that is, about fourteen days from
the commencement, the eggs are taken from the
baskets, and spread out in the shelves. Here no
fire heat is applied, but they are covered over
with Cotton, and a kind of blanket, under which
they remain about fourteen days more, when the
young ducks bur-t their shells, and the shed
teems with life. These shelves are lari.'e, and
capable of holding many thousands of eggs :
and when the hatching takes place, the sight is
not a little curious. The natives who rear the
young ducks in the surrounding country, know
exactly the day when they will be ready for re-
moval, and in two days after the shell is burst,
the whole of the little creatures are sold, and
conveyed to their new quarters. "+
2952. " If chickens about 2 months old and
upwards," says Mr Bucknell, " are turned in
among a brood of young birds that have no
mother, they will sometimes take to brooding
and tending them with the delight of natural
parents. The gratification being quite mutual,
the young chicks run after and strive with each
other for their favours whh the most untiring
perseverance. Although, probably, it is simply
the pleasurable sensation derived from the genial
warmth communicated by the yonng birils nest-
ling under them which induces them to do it, it
is nevertheless a striking and highly interesting
picture to witness these mimic mothers acting
the part of foster parents with so much ajiparent
satisfaction, yet with the awkwardness with which
a girl, in similar circumstances, fondles her doll."
1 never witnessed such an instance of afiectionate
regard, possibly because I never saw a brood of
chickens deprived of their mother, but the senti-
ments conveyed in the following sentence I have
frequently seen realised, and can testify to the
accuracy of observation and the correctness of
the conclusions of Mr Bucknell : — "There is no
difficulty," he says, " in teaching the yonng of
the various tribes of gallinaceous fowl to eat and
drink ; they perform these operations spontane-
ously, or from observation, as appetite prompts
them. Are not the facts of the extraordinary
fecundity of these tribes, their requiring no assis-
tance in hatching, and their being self-instructed
in the manner of taking their food, abundant evi-
dence that an All-wise Providence ordained these
peculiarities expressly fov man's advantage ; nS
in all those families of birds not so fitted for his
use they do not exist, and consequently cannot
be rendered by artificial means available for his
benefit I Food is not necessary for the chick
until 12 or 24 hours after leaving the shell.
Sickly and badly hatched birds seMom can be
induced to eat, and die from inanition. Birds
but a few hours old recogni.-e the person who
feeds them ; and in a few days evince so many
and such ple.nsing traits of confiilence in her as
their protector and friend, following her steps,
and clamorously repining at her absence, as must
* Mention is made of this extraordinary mechanical genius in the Nfte StatiMicnl Account of
Scotland. — i*«t/isAir<r, p. 1117. f Fortune's Wanderingt in China, f. 80.
HATCHING OF FOWLS.
673
Induce in the most callous breast a delightful
sensation of regard for their welfare."
2953. It is of some importance to farmers to
have the question answered in a practical sense,
Whether the hatching and rearing of chickens is
profitable ? Mr Bucknell's answer to this ques-
tion, in reference to artificial hatching is tliis —
" Mr Mowbray, in his standard work, gives the
consumption of food by birds in the highest state
of condition as follows: — ' By an experiment made
in July 1806, a measured peck of good barley
kept in a high style of condition the following
stock, confined, and having no other provision :
1 cock, 3 hens, 3 March chickens, 6 April, and 6
May chickens, during 8 clear days, and one feed
left.' Here, then, are 19 birds, varying in age
from 2 months to their full size, consuming I peck
of corn in 8 days, which, at Is. per peck, gives a
cost of Ig halfpenny per head, which, however,
is considerably above the cost of chickens for the
first 8 weeks of their existence. But, taking it at
this high average, it gives an expense of each
bird of 9d. all but a fraction for 14 weeks' keep,
at which age they are in the highest perfection,
being the most delicate and easy to digest of all
other animal food. Where they can enjoy the
advantage of a good run, the expense would still
be lessened perhaps one-third. Now, what is
the price at a poulterer's, or in the London
inark-^ts, of a fine fat chicken 14 weeks old of
nearly its full size ? Never less than 2s., and for
6 months in the year, or during the dear season,
4s. or 5s. ; which, adding to 9d. an additional
3d. for the value of the egg and extras, gives the
enormous profit of from 400 to 500 per cent,
divided between the trader, the middleman, and
the retailer. It need not be wondered at that
such is the case, nor can it be otherwise while
tlie present system continues. A poulterer whose
sale is not more than 10 dozen per week, must
keep a man and a horse and cart, and attend the
different markets for his purchases. All these
things, with incidental expenses, will amount at
least to 2 guineas per week, which 2 guineas
must be spread over the 10 dozen birds before
he derives any profit for himself. Upon any
artificial system, these expenses would be saved,
and tlie 2 guineas thus thrown away would keep
1000 birds, averaging all ages, 1 whole week.
Buildings and machinery, and other necessary
apparatus being provided, no objection exists as
to the expenses of hatching. An eccaleobion
machine might be constructed, only requiring
regulation once in 24 hours, capable of hatching
throughout the year 10,000 eggs per month, (a
week being allowed for removing and refitting,)
while the cost for hatching during the month
would probably be a half chaldron of coke at £1
per chaldron, which would be the one-twentieth
part of one farthing per bird. The expense for
artificial warmth during the time the birds might
'•equire it, would be somewhat more — perhaps 1
farthing per bird."
2954. Diseases of Poultry. — With the diseases
of chickens or other young fowls, such as the pip
or chip, I am not acquainted, not having seen
any such disease after an experience of many
years in rearing every species of fowl on a farm;
and am therefore inclined to maintain, that were
others to follow a similar course to the one I
have described above, they would be equally un-
acquainted with diseases amongst their poultry.
1 am corroborated by a writer on the rearing of
domestic poultry, whose experience I know is
considerable, — who^e attention I am sure is un-
remitting,— and whose good sense is evident.
" Of the diseases of which poultry are liable, we
are practically ignorant," says the writer, a lady
of my acquaintance, "having been for many
years here so fortunate as to experience few or
no instances of disease among our stock ; and we
attribute the health of our various animals in
the farm-yard entirely to strict attention to clean-
liness, diet, and rational treatment. Those who
listen to the advice of the ignorant and the preju-
diced, nay, they who seek from books remedies
for disorders which may appear among their
live-stock, will have to contend with monstrous
absurdities, excessive ignorance, and barbarous
cruelty, in the quackeries recommended. Nature
will generally efi'ect a cure, if her efforts are
seconded by simple means on our own part.
Calomel, sulphur, rue, pepper, and gin, are all
absurdities, though all recommended for the ail-
ments of poultry." Another writer thus ex-
presses himself on the same subject : " With
regard to medical treatment applied to the dis-
eases of poultry, but little regarding its efficacy
is known. The nostrums and mode of treatment
adopted throughout the country, together with
the greater part that has been written upon the
subject, is a farrago of nonsense and absurdity.
If shelter, irarmth, food, and cleanliness, congenial
to their habits, icill not preserre them in health,
hit little reliance can be placed upon medicine.
Most good wives, however, possess an insatiable
itching to be considered skilful doctors. From
among some thousand birds that have come under
my observation, / ncrcr could discover that com-
mon and universal disease called the ^ pip.' Yet
show any farmer's wife a sickly chicken, and she
immediately opens its moutli,and with her needle
tears ofi" the cartilage from the under part of the
bird's tongue, to sjiow it is afflicted with it !
When will the light of knowledge banish these
absurdities ?"*
2955. Thp former writer, however, alludes to
an ailment among chickens which I have never
seen, arising, it would appear, from their being
hatched at a particular period of the year. After
adverting to the tender state of chickens super-
induced by both early and late hatching, the
writer particularises the period of the year when
the disease alluded to makes its appearance . —
" There is yet another time, during which it is
absolutely indispensable that hens be prevented
from sitting, and that is the month of June. Close
observation (after having suffered at that season
numerous failures most unaccountably) enabled
* Bucknell's Eccaleobion, p. 1-17.
VOL. 1.
2v
67-1
PRACTICE— SPRING.
us to discover the cause, and thereby Terify the
truth of ail old saying, which we have since met
with —
Between the sickle and the scythe.
What you rear will seldom thrive.
We had noticed that chickens which were hatched
during the month of July, were almost all at-
tacked about the time of their first moulting (a
period always attended with much suffering to
them) with a fatal disorder, the symptoms of
which are unvarying. The chickens appeared to
collapse, and moved about wiih difficulty, as if
their joints were stiffened, or rather as if the
skin liad become tight and tender; their feathers
became rough and stood out ; their wings drooped
and dragged on the ground ; they refused suste-
nance ; and becoming more and more weak and
torpid, they, in a day or two, died off in great
numbers. Every rational means were resorted
to in order to arrest, or even account for the dis-
order ; at length it was discovered that they
were in a high state of fever, and that the ex-
treme redness of the skin was caused by the irri-
tation of hundreds of that minute pest, the har-
vest-bug. Some — very few — were recovered by
anointing them all over with oil and vinegar
(which is also the best, nay, the only remedy for
the annoyance which human beings experience
from the same source ;) but the receipt is too
rough for little delicate creatures already endur-
ing the pain attendant on the season of moult-
ing. It became obvious that the period during
which harvest-bugs are most numerous and tor-
menting, must be inimical to the rearing of
chickens; and that if hens were not allowed to
sit in June, or rather, if the chickens were either
strong enough to cope with the evil, or were not
hatched until the season for the pest had passed
by, the destruction might be prevented; and so it
has proved."*
2956. Harvest-bu^.^Thia is a short account
of the harvest-bug. " You have already, per-
haps, been satiated with the account given of our
enemies of the Acarvs or mite tribe," says Mr
Kirby or Mr Spence ; " there are a few, however,
which I could not with propriety introduce here,
as they do not take up their abode and breed in
us, which nevertheless annoy us considerably.
One of these is a hexapod so minute, that, were
it not for the uncommon brilliancy of its colour,
which is the most vivid crimson that can be con-
ceived, it would be quite invisible. It is known
by the name of the harvest-bug {Acarut aiitum-
nalis, Shaw,) and is so called, I imagine, from
its attacking the legs of labourers employed in
the harvest, in the flesh of which it buries itself
at the roots of the hairs, producing intolerable
itching, attended by inflammation and consider-
able tumours, and sometimes even occasioning
fevers. "t
2957. Capong. — Capons of the common fowl are
formed both of the cock and lien chickens, when
they are fit to leave the hen, at about (5 weeks old.
Chickens are transmuted into capons by de.-troy-
ing the testicles of the male and the ovaries
of the female. The testicles are attached by a
membrane to what is called the hack b(/ne of the
carved fowl. They are destroyed by laying the
bird on its near side, keeping it down, removing
a few feathers, and making an incision through
the skin of the abdomen, and, on introducing the
fore-finger through the incision, first the one and
then the other testicle is obliterated or removed
altogether by it. In the case of the hen, the
ovary is nipped off by the thumb-nail, or cut off
by a knife. The incision is stitched up with
thread, and little danger is apprehended of the
result. The effect of castration is enlargement
of the body of the fowl, an increased delicacy of
its flesh, but its flavour is in no way improved,
at least in none of the capons I have tasted.
Time was when capons were more plentiful at
the table than chickens, so that even kain-rent
was paid in them ; but the conversion of
fowls into capons is now abandoned iii S<'otland,
as an unnecessary and troublesome operation,
and will not probably be resumed as long as a
well-fed delicate chicken can be procured with
little trouble, although the London market ia
always well sujiplied with them.
2958. Pou/lards. — Turkey poults are con-
verted into pouUards by the same operation as
described above, to convert the common fowl
into a capon, and it produces similar effects upon
the turkey.
• Quarterly Journal of Agriculture, vol. viii. p. 515-2.3.
+ Kirby and Spence's Introduction to Entomology, vol. i. p. 103.
END OF TOLCMB L
APPENDIX TO SPKING.
BY JOHN P. NORTON, M.A
PROFESSOR OF SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE IN YALE COLLEGE, NEW HAVEN.
The first weeks of this season, in the
climate of the New England and other
Northern States, are not ordinarily of such
a nature as will permit the farmer to pursue
his various avocations in the open air. In
these latitudes on our continent, although
they correspond nearly with the Soutli of
France, where the climate is almost tropical,
winter continues its reign far into the spring
months. Snow often lies on the ground until
April, and in some seasons much later. Even
when the severity of the season rcl:i.\es in
Miirch, it is but for a brief period ; frowns
and dark storms soon obscure the smiling
face of nature, which seems to have trenche-
rously allured birds from their southern winter
residence, and caused little early plants to
show their budding flowers, only to over-
whelm them by the severity of a second
winter. A warm, open March, in the
Northern States, generally indicates a back-
ward, stormy April.
S'.ill these are interesting months ; for it is
delightful to watch the struggles of the com-
ing summer with the reluctant departing
winter. It is pleasant to see, that amid all
its apparent reverses, spring miikes a steady
and sure advance: now it is proclaimed by
the charming song of the first bluebird,
breaking forth when some hour of sunshine
lights up the yet wintry landscape, with a
warmer glow than the pale beams which
have before seemed to harmonize vvith snow
and ice : now by the mezereon and the
crocus showing their blossoms hardily from
beneath a sudden dash of snow, as if they
felt that its reign was almost over, and its
power to freeze their vitals gone.
When the final triumph of spring does
come, it is sudden and beautiful, even glo-
rious, in the quick development of luxuriant
verdure. Often within the space of a single
fortnight, the great majority of the trees burst
forth into full leaf: flowers bloom on every
side ; and it is difticult to recall the wintry
aspect of a few days before, when, looking at
nature under the inflaence of a gloomy day,
scarcely any progress seemed to have been
made. But, in reality, the preparations for
this seemingly almost instantaneous change
have been long maturing : for weeks before
the final time of opening, careful observers
might have discerned a gradual increase in
the size of the leaf buds, and a loosening of
their outer envelopes : for weeks before this
even, an incision into the trunk would have
sliown that the bosom of mother earth was
beginning to throb again, to send the life-
blood — the sap — once more through the
limbs of her children ; thus connnencing
anew a series of mysterious eii.-iiige.s, to
result as always before, in the fulfilment of
the promise, " that while this w<>rld lasts,
seed-time and harvest, summer and winter,
shall not faW
It is at this early period, when the sap first
begins to ascend, that the making of innple
sug.ir commences in the Northern States.
Twelve or more species of the maple are
indigenous to the North American continent,
but of these only the Acer Saccharinum
(common sugar maple), and the Acer Ni-
grum (black sugar maple), yield a sap sufB-
ciently saccharine for manuiacturing purposes.
This sap vaiies in strength, but is generally
considered to contain about half as much
sugar as the sap of the sugar cane. The sap
begins its upward flow in the latter part ol
February, or early in March, while the frosi
is still severe, and snow on the ground. It
runs most freely when the days are bright
and sunny, with sharp, clear, frosty nights.
The trees are not usually tapped regularly
until they are at least thirty years old. Many
are accustomed to do this by cuiting out a
kind ot bo.\ wi h an a.\e, but, as ordinarily
managed, this puts an end to the life of tho
tree much more quickly than any other way.
The |ilan generally recommended is, to bore,
according to the size of the tree, one, two,
three, or four small auger holes, and into
these insert tubes, which conduct the sap
into wooden buckets or troughs placed
beneath. These small auger holes soon
fill up in the t atural growth of the tree, and
many instances are known of such tapping
during a period of thirty years without per-
ceptible injurious effects. It is, however,
supposed tiiat the trees last longer, and
yield better, for an occasional year of rest
82
A^rERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
When the trees stand closely topether, as
in the forest, about 4 lbs. of sugar per tree is
considered the average yearly product ; but
where tliey are more widely separated, as in
pastures, the average is often as liigli as 6 or
7 lbs. When a large tree is tapped in many
places, a mueii greater product is often ob-
tained. An instiince is recorded of 22 lbs.
from a single tree, and anotlier of ISG lbs.
from twelve trees. Sucli a draught as this is
too much, and no tree can endure a repetition
of it for many years in succes-ion.
The process of maiiuficture is not unlike
that pursued with the juice of the sugarcane,
and with proper care a sugar may be obtained
fully equal in every respect to the finest cane
sugar. There are some fanners in Vermont
who make three or four tons annually. The
Patent Otlice Report for 1«48 estimates the
maple sugar crop of the Union at 30,000,000
pounds. There is scarcely any branch of
agriculture more worthy of attention tiian
this, in many portions of our Northern States.
When the trees are once planted, and grow-
ing, very little further attention is required.
They may be grown on rough, otherwise
unprofitable, land, and with proper manage-
ment will last a century.
If we allow one tree to each square rod,
or 160 to an acre, and 4 lbs. of sugar from
e^icli tree, we liave 640 lbs., — worth, when
well made, 864:— 8-0 would fully cover the
expense of manuficture, leaving 8-i-l :'s profit.
This, too, is from land that as unimproved
pasture, would do little more than pay for
fencing. The labor comes at a season when
the farmer has little else to do.
Old maple orchards, well cared for. usually
produce more than 4 lbs. to the tree. The
Patent Office Report for 1845 mentions a
product of 1500 lbs. from 250 trees, or 6 lbs.
per tree. During the first ten or fifteen ywirs
the value of the land for pasture would
scarcely be diminished : indeed, if very poor
previously, it might improve by the annual
top-dressing of leaves.
2137 to 2141. The phenomena of easterly
winds are as well known on the eastern por-
tions of this continent as in Scotland. The
character of this wind is, however, diflferent
here. To Scotland the east wind comes over
tlie continent of Europe, and consequently is
a dryer wind than any that they have, for in
all other directions the winds come oft" from
the broad Atlantic — charged, of course, with
vapor and moisture.
Here our west winds proverbially bring
fine weather, and are dry. With us also the
easterly winds, in spring, seem for a time to
diminish the force of the westerly currents
which prevail at other seasons of the year.
In par. 2140 is mentioned the fact that the
north-east and south-west are the two lead-
ing currents of the globe. In the region of
the Northern States then, if this be true, we
are in a minor current, for our prevailing
wind is nortli-west.
A Report of the Regents of the University
of the State of New York for 1843 nun-
tions, as the result of a table compiled from
observations during seven years, in fifty
towns, that tlie prevailing wind of the State,
during each of tliose years, was nortli-we?t.
The southerly and easterly winds are, on
the eastern side of the North American con-
tinent, the only winds that bring ram, with
the exception of passing showers from other
directions. The fact then, that the north-
west wind is a land wind, and that it is the
prevalent one, seems to explain satisfactorily
the great number of clear days which we
enjoy in every season.
In consequence of the general clearness of
our atmosphere, we are accustomed to con-
sider our climate dry in comparison with that
of Great Britain, and without doubt we are
correct ; yet it is a singular fnct that the mean
amount of water which falls here as rain,
snow, or hail, considerably exceeds the me^ui
estimated for England and Wales, by Dr.
Dalton. He gives 34 inches per annum, and
Dr. Kane mentions the same depth as the
mean for Ireland.
Observations during a period of sixteen
years at Yale College, Newhaven, Ct., indi-
cate the total amount of water that has fallen
during that time as 712ifo inches. This gives
the very high average of 44,^ inches. The
largest quantity in any one year was 51 inches.
The depth of snow v;.ried still more than that
of rain water. In the winter of 1846-7 the
quantiiv measured was 61 inches, in that of
1847-8" but 20 inches. The depth of water
obtained by melting the snow seldom exceeds
6 or 7 inches.
In the Stiite of New Y'ork an average is
found a trifle lower than that of Great Britain.
This is shown by a mean of the observations
made during a period of ten years, at fifty
different points. The mean thus obtained is
35;^ The lowest mean of any single year
was SO,"^ in 1833, and the highest 44,t in
1827. At one place the fall for a single year
was as high as 55," inches ; at another, as
low as 17,0).
Tl\e State of New York may be considered
an example of the inland or middle States, its
extent of territory being about the same as
that of the island of Great Britain. The
annual fall in Newhaven probably does not
vary greatly from that in most parts of the
New England States that border on the sea.
In some sections of Ohio the annual fall of
rain is more than 40 inches ; the mean of the
State, however, for a series of years, is con-
sidered to be about the same as that of New
York.
But though our mean amount of rain is thus
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
23
shown not to be in any case niat'erially less,
and often mucli more than that of Great
Britain and Irehmd, our chmate and soils are
really much dryer, for the reason that our
rains fall in a different manner. The same
amount of rain vvhicli falls in the United
States in tlie space of two or three hours,
or at most in half a day, in England spreads
itself leisurely over perhaps a fortnight. Our
rains are usually heavy, but not of long con-
tinuance. Excepting the periods of the equi-
noctial storms, and in some particular locali-
ties, rain storms seldom conjinue more than
from twelve to twenty-four hours — rarely so
long as the latter period. Tlie meteorological
reports of New York for 1842, from forty-
four points, show, in about half of the reports,
a decisive preponderance of the clear days
over the cloudy ; ordinarily not much more
than half of these cloudy days were rainy.
On an average, snow or rain would seem to
have fallen in greater or less quantities during
from 80 to 100 days of the year. It is to be
remembered, also, that the rain on very many
of those days was merely in the form of pass-
ing showers.
If we compare this statement with the num-
ber of days in England that are rainy during
the year, as mentioned by Mr. Stephens —
178 — it becomes quite plain that the popu-
lar opinion as to the superior dryness of our
climate is correct. The rain falls heavily, but
then the sun comes out and dries it up, so
that the soil is in most cases soon freed from
its surplus water. Early in spring, and
usually till July, showers and rains are fre-
quent ; but at or about that period we gene-
rally have some weeks of fine clear weather,
frequently almost uninterrupted.
2170 and 2171. The recommendations' as
to cottage gardens are well worthy of atten-
tion. Whenever a laboring man can procure
a small plot of ground for his own cultiva-
tion, no labor that he expends will afford him
so much gratification. It is not to l)e expected,
however, that a taste for gardening should
become very wdely diffused, until the farmers
themselves, as a class, show more interest in
the subject than they do at present. In tra-
velling through our country villages, we here
and there see a neatly-kept garden, with a
fine show of fruit and flowers, and bearing
evidence of care. But the great majority of
the so-called gardens are neglected looking
places, where, in the early part of the season,
are planted a few potatoes, squashes, and
beets, some hills of sweet corn, and perhaps
a root or two of dill and fennel. Here and
there may perhaps be seen a few common
lilies or poppies, memorials of some transi-
tory visitor, or of some passing hour of floral
enthusiasm. Towards the close of summer,
the weeds, which were at first partially kept
down, obtain the advantage, and finally be-
come the prominent feature of these gardens.
It is actually the case, that the inhabitants of
many country villages can scarcely be said to
enjoy the luxuries of the country. Their
strawberries, raspberries, peaches, plums,
grapes, »fec., are neither so fine, so abundant,
nor so cheap, as in the large cities. There
are hundreds of formers' families where fruit,
excepting a])ples, and perhaps wild berries, is
almost unknown.
This is simply because they will not devote
the small amount of time that is required for
the cultivation of good fruit. It is astonish-
ing how little exertion is necessary : three or
four hours during each week, early in the
morning, or just at dusk, will keep a family
amply supplied with delicious fruit, thus add-
ing most materially to the comfort and the
attractions of their home. Even if profit is
the only object, a small space of ground care-
fully cultivated in fruit will pay better than
many a large farm, exhausted by constant
drafts upon its resources with small returns.
I have seen farmers in the country who had
large, rich gardens, neglected and overgrown,
eagerly paying handsome prices for fruit to
some one who had the enterprise to pursue a
different course, and attend to a species of
cultivation which they probably con^'id-.-red
beneath them, or had not sufficient energy to
undertake.
2176. The advice here given, as to the im-
provement of every moment in winter, and in
early spring, for the advancement of work,
will apply to the milder climates only of this
country : in the whole northern part all that
can be done is, to finish threshing and every
species of in-door work, and to see, as before
advised, that every tool, implement, harness,
cart, wagon, &c., is in order for the approach-
ing season of activity.
2181 to 2244. The remarks and directions
by Mr. Stepiiens, relative to the calving of
cows, and the accidents and diseases to which
they are liable at this period, constitute an
important practical treatise, which will be
attentively studied by the owners of particu-
larly valuable animals.
The system pursued is, it will be seen,
much more defined and elaborate than any-
thing known in this country. So far as my
experience and observation go, cows in calf,
when their milk fails, are placed with the
young stock on some distant pasture. The
general intention is to bring them home a
few days before the time of calving; but it
often happens that the calf is born in the
field, and nothing known of its appearance
for some time. If it is in a wild mountain
pasture, the cow is almost sure to hide her
calf, and does this so skilfully that I have
occasionally known many days to pass be-
fore it could be found. In most cases, or at
least in very many cases, when at home, the
24
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
cow is left to the unnssisted operation of
nature, and instnnces of fatal results are, I
think, rare. In times of difficulty, a council
of villajje authorities generally devises some
means of relief.
The subject of milking, also included under
these paragraphs, is doubtless deserving of
more attention than it has ordinarily met
with in this country. Tnis important opera-
tion i-. frequently kft at night to hired men,
who have already done a fatiguing day's
work, and who. under such cireurastanee*,
hurry through with the business as rapidly
as possible, oft*n losing their good temper,
and abusing the cows, thereby rendering them
in many c;ises permanently wild and vicious.
2252. The milk pail. Fig. 197, does not
seem to me of so convenient a pattern as the
common pail, with a movable handle to fold
down upon the top. The upright handle
would be often in the way, and is extremely
inconvenient when it is necessary to carrv
the pail full of milk. It would be excessively
fatiguing to carry two pails of this kind at
the same time for any distance. Tin is very
commonly used in tiiis country, and is per-
fectly convenient : it is light, easily kept clean,
free from all taste or injurious properties,
and, with care, quite lasting.
2268 and 2269. The operation mentioned
in these two paragraphs is one which is novel
to me, but which is recommended by a high
authority as practicable. In many cases, as
for the supply of families, for the purposes of
city dairies, &,c., cows of th!s kind would be
extremely valuable.
2302. The sowing of spring wheat. This
follows soon after the disappearance of snow,
whenever the ground is found to be in a fit
state for working. This period extends from
the 1st of April into May. The culture of
this variety of wheat has become quite ex-
tended in this country ; but the quantity
is still very small, when compared with that
of winter wheat ; on soils where this latter
variety succeeds, spring wheat is rarely culti-
vated. Tlie advantage which it has over the
autumn-sown grain, is that of escaping the
alternate freezing and thawing of winter,
always so destructive on many soils, and
which occasionally cuts off a great portion of
the crop in the best wheat districts. It also,
in most cases, escapes the Hessian fly and
other dangerous insect enemies.
On the other hand, the crop is not usually
so large as that of winter wheat, nor the flour
of so handsome quality. It has much gluten,
and makes excellent bread, but is of too yel-
lowish a tinge for superfine flour. The crop
is also very liable to rust in some sections.
These reasons have been sufficient to
banish it from many farms, where it was first
in high favor, and 1 am inclined to think that
its culture is not increasing.
The districts where it has been principally
sown, are the northern part of the State of
New York, the States of Vermont, of Maine,
and of New England generally.
There is a great number of varieties ; those
most prominent are the Italian, the Tea
wheat, or Siberian bald, and the Black Sea.
2327. The broadcast sowing machine, Fig.
204, and the drill machines, Figs. 205 and 206,
will not, in the Eastern States, supersede
hand sowing for a long time to come ; but in
the Western States, where a farmer sows
immense fields of grain on level mellow land,
they are adapted exactly to his use, and have
indeed already begun to make their appejir-
ance. I have noticed specimens of such ma-
chines at agricultural fairs, and have found
that a conviction of their value was gradually
spreading. Those that I have seen have
been close imitations of some English or
Scotch machines, though somewhat more
simple in form, and much cheaper in price.
The practice of drilling wheat and grain
generally, is, I think, decidedly gaining in
favor ; the results of a trial commonly being
quite satisfactory. Some fiirmers, indeed, I
am happy to s;iy,are even beginning to think
of weeding wheat in connexion with drilling
it. A few years ago, and even now in many
places, the mention of weeding a grain crop
would have excited the most unmixed ridi-
cule and contempt to be poured upon the
unlucky innovator.
2345. The wooden rhomboidal harrows,
Fig. 207, recommended by Mr. Stephens,
have become very generally known in this
country; they have, to a great extent, dis-
placed the rude triangular and square imple-
ments, with six or eight huge teeth, wiiich
may still be seen in many places, caricaturing
the process of pulverization by harrowing.
I am not aware that the iron rhomboidal har-
rows. Fig. 208, have been introduced to any
extent ; indeed, while wood is so cheap, and
will make so durable an implement, this
variety is not likely to prove successful.
Wiihin a few years, a new description of
folding harrow has met with very general
favor. It is known as the Geddes harrow,
from the name of its inventor, Mr. George
Geddes, of Onondaga Co., New York. Cuts
of it may be found in all of our leading
agricultural papers.
This implement appears to posse&s several
advantages over the rhomboidal harrows
1. It draws easier; bi'cause the line of
draught passes through the centre, and there
is none of the hitching vibrating motion which
the double rhomboidal harrow always lias,
particularly in rough ground.
2. It is also more readily cleared from any
foul stuff, as either side may be easily lifted
while the harrow is in motion.
3. It accommodates itself more completely
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
25
to unevenness of surface ; and on new land,
where there are stumps and stones yet re-
maining, its shape permits it to ghmce off
without being entangled or broken. In some
cases, it is almost impossible to accomplish
anything with other double harrows in such
places.
The teeth of this liarrow are usually made
so as to track two inches apart, from centre
to centre ; on new rough land, tlie distance
should be about four iiiclies. Some farmers
use a single rhomboidal liarrow, or a simple
square drawn by one corner. These must be
made large to do much work, and being all
in one piece, are consequently heavy and
cumbrous. Being perfectly stitl" and unyield-
ing, they cannot accommodate themselves to
inequalities of surface, and only work well
wh'Te the ground is very smooth and mellow.
Where there is much foul stutf to clog
their teeth, or where there are stones, stumps,
and roots, the management of them becomes
extremely laborious, and their operation
quite imperfect.
2353. In this paragraph is a hint well
worthy of notice. It is quite obvious that a
quick motion of the harrow will pulverize and
stir up the soil more effectually than a slow
dragging one. For this reason, horses usually
make better work in harrowing than cattle.
A thorough and complete performance of this
work is, as Mr. Stephens says, of more im-
portance than is generally uuagined ; and in-
creased attention to the harrowing is always
to be seen on farms where the work of im-
provement has commenced in earnest.
2367. The Presser Roller, Figs. 211 and
212. This is an implement highly approved
of in England and Scotland, and doubtless
is of much value for light land. I doubt,
however, if it, will be introduced here to any
extent, in the present state of our farming;
there are many more important improvements
for us, which will be adopted first. Such
slow and expensive operations will never pay
on land that has not previously been well
manured and enriched. All the pressing in
the world cannot make a poor worn out soil
produce a heavy crop. It may, in conse-
quence, yield more than it would otherwise
have done, but the increase will not be
enough to pay for the extra expense. We
must bring up" our soils to a fair state of fer-
tility, before we launch deeply into what may
be called the /Ma-Mnes of farming.
2380. I can add nothing in the way of di-
rection to the fall instructions and descriptions
given here.
This point of particidarity and of finish in
ploughing has met with much attention of
late, ''and" in consequence, the improvement
has been very marked and encouraging. The
character of our ploughs, and of our plough-
ing, compared with what both these were hut
a few years ago, is sufficiently decisive as to
the change that has taken place. All of our
reasonable and inquiring farmers have become
convinced, that ploughing does not mean
simply turning up the surface of the soil in an
irregular and slovenly manner, with a plough
that" bobs in and out of the ground a dozen
times in the course of each furrow ; but that
it is an operation to be performed with a good
implement, and with great care ; the intention
of which is, to leave the field in a thoroughly
lightand pulverized state, to as great adepth as
possible or advisable.
On reading such directions as these, evi-
dently drawn from everyday practice on the
best "farms, we see, that notwithstanding
our great advance, we have still much to do.
I am inclined to think that, in the extrenie
Northern States, the drilling of land to lie
through the winter, although beneficial, is not,
owing to the difterence hi climate, efficacious
to the same degree as in Great Britain. There
the ridges are exposed to successive frosts
and thaws during the whole winter, so that
tlie lumps and clo\ls are, by the alternate ex-
pansion and contraction, thoroughly broken
and crumbled down : here the frost, once set
in, often remains unrelaxed till far into the
spring, so that its action upon the land ia
comparatively quite limited.
The double mould board plough, Fig. 214,
must be an excellent implement for forming
drills, and worthy of adoption.
If the cultivation of root crops, as turnips,
carrots, &,c., gain ground in this country^
drilling will become a more important opera,
tion than it is at present, particularly where
the portable mannres, as guano, poudrette,
bone dusL &e., are used. Many fanners are
now practising drilling in their potatoes after
the Scotch fashion. All those who have
ti-ied this, will perceive from the result of
their own experience, fh;it the precautions and
the nicety of work recommended here are not
superfluous, but absolutely necessary to
insure a full and even growth of the crop.
The great dltficnlty in most fields of drilled
potatoes that I have seen among us, has been
irregular covering, so that the crop came up
unevenly. This, of course, is only to be
obviated by following these very direction*
iust referred to, which may have seemed at
first ridiculously precise and notional.
2407. Beans, of the kinds grown in Great
Britain so extensively as a field crop, are
almost unknown in this country, for the
reason that both beans and bean meal are
scarcely ever fed to stock. They are, as
analyses already cited have shown, an ex-
ceedingly nutritious food for working animals ;
but while we can grow Indian corn with so
much greater facility, it is not probable that
we shall find any advantage in their cultivar
tion on an extended scale.
96
AMERICAxN APPENDIX— SPRING.
The small white bush bean, grown so ex-
tensively tor the table, and which is capable
of flourishing on the poorest lii'ht soils, is an
entirely difl'erent crop. The English horse
bean rtn^uires, as mentioned in par. 2410, a
rich mellow soil. It has a strong straight
upright stalk, requiring no support, and these
stalks, under the name of be;in straw, are,
mnlike any ot ours, valued for foilder.
The powerful grubliers. Figs. '215 and 2 1 6,
may very probably be viewed with much
astonisliment and suspicion by many nf our
farujers : indeed, Fii:. 216 looks like a new
variety of locomotive engine, that would work
of its own accord, and tear up everything in
its path. I can say, from personal ob-ervii-
tion, that these machines make excellent
work: but think that, like the presser before
meniiuned. they belong to a higher stage of
cultivation than has been attained on mosr of
our land. Strong as they are, they would not
bear the work of newly cleared forest land,
even if a team powerful enough to draw them
through could be found; and the long cleared
farms must be brought up by cheaper means,
before we can afford to employ machines
costing about S"5 each, and requiring very
heavy teams to drag them even at a slow
motion.
The operation of these large grubbers, it
will be perceived, is a sort of subsoiliiig ; it
being intended to stir up and mellow tiie
lower soil, without affecting the upper. The
tines are so shaped in both tigures, that roots,
bunches of weeds, &.C., will gradually work
their way up to the surface, and be left there.
They are, indeed, sometimes used for the
especial purpose of cleaning land that is
foul.
It would be very difficult to work them on
land that had not been already ploughed
deeply and subsoiled ; at least they could not,
on most soils, be worked under such circum-
stances to their full depth.
2433. An implement like Fig. 218 would
be quite useful for the purpose which is here
assigned to it, of spreadiii? the manure in the
bottom of the drills. It is far inferior to our
more elegant and convenient fork for all
other purposes, and in fact is quite as heavy
as one of the largest sized six-tined forks now
used here. The siiort siraiirht stilf prongs
are, however, very useful for the purpose re-
ferred to above.
2434. Implements like the drill barrow
here figured. Fit'. 219. have been largely in-
troduced. The difficulty with most of them
is, that they will only drop seeds well in a
continuous stream. They also, for the most
part, are found defective when ii is attempted
to sow large seeds, such as corn, or beans, or
peas. With seeds that are rough and rather
bristly, such as those of the beet, they almost
invariably fail, I have seen a number of
them tried with beet seed, but never knew
one succeed in dropping them evenly. With
the small .«eeds too. such as those of turnips,
there are few of them that work well. They
are apt to drop the seeds irregularly, now
leaving blanks, and then dropping twenty or
thirty at a time. The dis;ippoiniment in the
turnip and other crops, arisiiiij from the u>»'
of thest^' imperfect drill barrows with which
the country nas been overrun, has led many
farmers to entire discouragement in the culti-
vation of roots.
Another obstacle to the very extensive
use of drill barrows, is the fact that few of
them will drop seeds otiierwise than in a con-
tinuous line. The favorite way, and probably
the best way of planting Indbn corn, is in
drills, and therefore most of the barrows are
useless for this exceedingly important crop.
The drill here figured would not answer such
a purpose, nor do any of the common ones of
other constructions that I have seen.
There is, however, one barrow to which mv
attention has been lately called, the principle
of which is evidently valuable and correct. I
have seen it under the name of ~ Page's Im-
proved Seed and Corn Planter." but there
may be other names and other inventors of
the same principle. The part which drops
the seed is an endless belt with cups on it at
certain distances, of different sizes for differ-
ent seeds. In planting corn, each of these
cups, in passing through a reservoir of seed,
takes up five or six kernels, and drops them
at intervals, regulated by the rapidity with
which the maciiine is driven, and the distmce
between the cups on the belt. A small
coulter runs ju^t before the tin tube into
which the cups discharge their loads. This
excavates a furrow deep enough for the seed
bed, and a broad rather heavy wheel running
behind, covers the seed when dropped. It is
said that one of these barrows will plant ten
acres in a day, but I have no experience as to
the accuracy of the statement. There is no
doubt but it would go over the ground : but I
should fear that with so swift a motion as
would be necessary, the work might be im-
perfectly done.
The principle of this barrow is unques-
tionably a good one, and capable of being
brought to great perfection. There is no
liability to choke, and there are no small
holes to be stopped by a sudden rush of seed.
Tlie upper part of the belt, too, may be left
uncovered, so that the person who has the
handles can always see if the cups are running
full, and if they discharge themselves pro-
perly. The conducting tube can be made so
large at the bottom, as to obviate all danger
of its choking there. I suppose that belta are
made for this barrow in sets, leaving different
sizes of cups for the various kinds of seeds
tliat are to be sown.
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
27
2436. Iilonot see that any particular advan-
tage \v\iuUl ari>e from attacliin<^ a seed sow-
ing apparatus to a plough ; as described here,
it would embarrass and hinder the plough-
man in various ways, and I should think that
the consequence of adding so much ma-
cliinery would be, that neither the sowing
nor the ploughing would be etiectually done.
I have, however, never seen tliis apparatus at
work, and it may go better than I have
thought.
2443. The drill harrow, Figs. 220 and 221,
is an implement that I have never seen or
heard of in this country, and I am inclined to
think tliat it is by no means universally em-
ployed, even in Great Britain. I have, how-
ever, seen it there on many farms, and heard
it highly spoken of. The form will at once
explain its object ; it is intended to run
lengthwise on the drills, and by its semicir-
cular shape to embrace and pulverize every
portion of them, the sides and hollows, as
well as the tops. It is run along the drills of
potatoes, as well as beans, soon af;er they
first come up. One mi^'ht naturally suppose
tliat injury would be done to the young
plants, but on the contrary, they seem to
flourish under this rough treatment. The
earth around them is thoroughly broken and
loosened, and weeds are also in a great mea-
sure destroyed. A work is thus done by
this harrow which could not be done by a flat
one, the use of wliich, under such circum-
stances, would be destructive to a great por-
tion of the crop.
2452. Peas are a much more common crop
in the United States than beans, but still have
not usually been considered of suflicient im-
portance for insertion in the Patent Office
Reports, among the statistics of other crops.
A variety called the cow pea has been
much recommended at the South and West
for fodder. It is often cut green, and stacked
in layers of about one foot in thickness, with
some dry straw or common fence rails be-
tween each layer; a plentiful sprinkling of
salt is necessary at the same time. It is
almost superfluous to state that the rail prac-
tice is not recommended where straw can be
had. If great care is not taken in the curing,
when this is attempted to be done in the
ordinary way, the leaves drop off, and nothing
but dry stalks remains. When cut at ihe right
time, and properly saved, it is a fodder of
much value, and the produce per acre is very
large.
This plant is also extensively employed as
a fertilizer at the South, where the summer
heat is too intense to allow the growth of
heavy clover crops. Its vine berftg large and
long, a great bulk of organic matter is added
to the soil when it is ploughed in. Two
crops may be turned under during a single
season. Some planters pasture stock upon
the second crop. The increased weight of
the animals while feeding is thus lost to the
land, but, on the other hand, the vines are
trampled down and consolidated, so that they
are more easily covered by the plough : the
droppings of the stock also constitute a dress-
ing of manure immediately available for the
next crop.
In the North, a favorite mode of cultivating
peas is to sow them with oats, in the propor-
tion of one third to two thirds. A variety
which has a light vine should be selected, as
that is not so likely to overrun and bear
down the oats.
When peas are cultivated alone, they are
got into the ground as early as the season
will permit. From three to four bushels per
acre is the quantity usually sown. Small
light ploughs, sometimes arranged in echelon,
or gangs, are preferred for covering them.
When it is attempted to cover so large a seed
with the harrow, many are unavoidably left
upon the surface and lost.
In the statistics of the State of New York
for 1846, I find that, while the whole number
of acres under cultivation in the State was
11,737,276, there were 117,379 acres in peas,
and but 16,232 acres in beans. The largest
crop of peas per acre was 66 bushels, the
largest crop of beans 114 bushels The
average product of all the acres si/wn to both
crops was small. There are, in fact, very few
cultivators who do justice to either of these
crops; the bean particularly is sown upon
land which will scarcely bear anytliing else,
and which, therefore, goes by the opprobrious
name of white bean land. Under these cir-
cumstances the crop is naturally small and
insignificant. If the treatment were such as
has been described to be the practice in Great
Britain, and some of their varieties tried, the
result would doubtless be very difleient ;
and the crop would rise into more estima-
tion, as one to be occasionally grown with
advantage.
A mixture of peas and beans, sown as
recommended in par. 2455, would doubtless
be successful. I should like to see this crop
tried, and the whole mown and cured like
hay, while the stalks were yet quite green,
and the seeds um-ipe. I am inclined to think
that such hay would prove extremely nutri-
tious, and that the produce per acre would be
quite heavy. The stalk of both the bean and
the i>ea, cut in the state just mentioned, would
doubtless be rich in nitrogen, and also, as we
know from examinations of their ash, in the
most valuable inorganic substances.
Probably the cow pea of the South, noticed
in a preceding paragraph, furnishes a hay
much similar to what this might be. In sow-
ing for such a purpose, it would be better to
sow broadcast than with the drill barrow : as,
in the first case, the stalks, growing thickly,
28
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
would run up tall, and thus furnish a ^eater
bulk of fodder.
As to the varieties of peas sown in field
culture I can say little, and I sutiptct that
there can be little said by any one, as all
evidence of any pure variety has long since
been lost from the samples that we ordinarily
Bee, although they frequently have some local
name.
2464. Tares are little known in this coun-
try, although the purpose to which they are
applied, that of summer forage, is one which
should command the attention of our farmers.
We all know that during the last months of
midsummer there are very commonly a few
weeks of dry weather, during which the
pastures dry up, and feed of every dcf^crip-
tion becomes scarce. The cows give little
milk, as the best pasture is necessarily
reserved for the working cattle and horses.
In many cases these last have to be even fed
on grass from the meadows, which should
have been made into hay for the winter's
supply. It is well worth considering, if a
small plot of ground in a convenient situa-
tion, sown with tares, or some other prolific
green crop of the same nature, and which
came into its full size at about the proper
period, would not pay very handsomely for
the trifling investment which would be neces-
sary. Tares are said to be an extremely
nutritious food, and, when given with a little
grain, will keep stock in excellent order. The
oats that are recommended to be sown with
tares as a support, are in themselves, when
cut green, a highly valuable article of food.
I am not aware how far this plant would
flouri.sh in our country, but .sliould think it
Worthy of a fair trial, among other green
crops intended to serve the same purpose.
To some of these I shall call attention in
connexion with their proper paragrapiis.
2473. The roller is an implement which
has long been known in tiiis country, and
extensively used upon fartns scattered here
and there; still the full extent of its bene-
ficial effect is not even yet known as it ought
to be.
On all light land it is valuable for the pur-
pose of consolidation ; the earth is rendered
80 compact by its pressure, that it affords a
firm support to the roots of i)lants. If seed
has already been sown, it presses the whole
of it beneath, or at least even with, the sur-
face, and compresses the earth around each
seed, so that it is kept moist, and takes root
speedily. On stiff soils the same effect is to
be perceived, although in a less marked
degree, as they are naturally compact. The
chief good on such soils is the crushing and
pulverizing of hard lumps, which would
interfere with the growth of plants, and with
every subsequent process of cultivation. The
best time to use it upon such ground, is as
soon as possible after ploughing; the lumps
are then not too wet, and have not att;iined
the degree of hardness which they afterwards
do, under the heat of the sun. On land that
is to be seeded down to grass, a rolling after
the grass seed is sown is of great iniiiortunce,
both in the in)mediate consequences connected
with the taking of the seed, and as to the na-
ture of the surface for mowing and raking
during haying. The small stones are pressed
down even with the surface, the little inequal-
ities are smoothed, and the scythe can be
laid close to the ground without fear of injury.
For this same reason it is well to roll meadows
in the spring, as soon as they become hard
after the frost is out of the ground. This
operation presses the soil firmly around the
roots of the plants that have been thrown out
ty frost, or disturbed in any way — benefiting
the solidity and evenness of the turf, and its
subsequent growth. It also in this case
smoothes the surface and presses down small
stones, as mentioned before. Every pr.nctical
mower will recognise the advantage of this
procedure, for there are few who have not
execrated the small stone, or j)rojcction of
earth, whicli has dulled their scythe effec-
tually, perhaps in the very first swathe ; and,
if there were no grindstone near by, condemned
them to labor all day with a disabled tool.
The wooden roller, although cheap, has
still other objections than those nientioned
by Mr. Stephens: it soon wears uneven and
splintery, and in consequence, whenever the
ground is rough, dogs badly with dirt. This
renders it hard to draw, and at the same time
interferes niateriallv with its beneficial action.
The iron roller can W arranged with a scniper
running close to its surface, so as to take ofT
all of the dirt as it revolves. This would
wear away a wooden roller too rapidly.
The iron rollers are now made and sold in
this country at very reasonable rates. Some
of those I have seen are too great in diameter
to produce the best effect: the diameter of
two feet, given by Mr. Stephens, has been
well established as the best under most cir-
cumstances. The frame built over the roller,
as in Fi<r. 222, has an advantage in permitting
the weight of the roller to be iiidetinitely in-
creased by loading, if necessary. This plan
is vastly superior to one which I have occa-
sionally seen, of having a box in front of the
roller, bearing upon the tongue, and conse-
quently upon the horses. The weight of the
driver, also, in Fig. 222, may be added to the
roller without distressing the team. The
cast-iron rollers made here have all, I believe,
from two to four segments. That these are
necessary, all will believe who have seen the
hole mac^e by the near end of a long undivided
roller when turning a .short corner in the field.
So far as my knowledge extends, the horses
are always driven abreast in a roller, and not
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
&*
as in Scotland. I cannot discover any advan-
tage in attachinir the iiorses one in front of
another to the roller. They require more
attention to make them draw evenly, more
room to turn in at the ends, and are not by
any means so easily manajjed, particularly if
the driver sits upon the roller.
2476. A remark or two is suggested by
this and succeeding paragraphs, relative to
the care which is shown by farmers abroad
in the selection of seed, and in its preserva-
tion when they have obtained good varieties.
How often do we see here a season's labor in
a considerable degree lost, owing to the use
of bad or imperfect seed! When the dealers
in seeds are honest, tiiey may not grow all of
their seed themselves — indeed they rarely do
so — and are, of course, liable to injure tiieir
customers by selling a bad article uncon-
sciously. If the farmer, on the contrary,
grows his seed carefully on his own land,
watches its ripening, and cuts it at the proper
time, — afterwards takinu due care for its pre-
servation, he is sure of his crop, so far as the
important item of good seed is concerned.
There is another point, too, that may be
brought into the account. It is not every
farmer who undertakes it, that will or can
exercise the care, perseverance, and skill,
necessary to produce uniformly reliable seed.
Whenever a man can establish a reputation
on this point, his seeds will meet with a ready
sale at high prices, and thus prove a remune-
rating article ; indeed, scarcely anything
would pay so well. Seed wheat, seed corn,
seed oats, seed peas, of good and fure varie-
ties, known to be such, are always readily
sold far above the market prices. A person
who wishes to succeed permanently in this
business must not deal in foncy seeds, with
long tlourishing names, but confine himself
to varieties of known excellence ; never lend-
ing his name to a variety because it is new,
but trying everything for himself. In this
way a reputation may be built up which
would inspire confidence among the farming
community, and lead to their purchasing from
such a person at his own prices, in preference
to all others. It would require time and
patience to accomplish this, but such a repu-
tation once established would Inst.
2484. On the sowing of oats. Oats con-
stitute one of the most important crops in
the New England and some other Northern
States. After Indian corn, in those States
where wheat is not a leading crop, comes
oats. In going south their quahty deterio-
rates, and in many places their weight is said
to be no more than from 20 to 25 lbs. per
bushel. The reasons for this deterioration
I have already given, so far as my opinion
goes. The climate seems to be too dry and
hot, and the trrowth too sudden, for the full
and perfect development of the seed as we
find it in Great Britain. This difference may
probably be lessened, certainly in a degree,
by more care in the selection of varieties and
of seed — perhaps by importation frequently
of heavy samples. I have known instances
where one or two crops at least, grown on
good land from a heavy English variety,
equalled the original seed in weight.
As to the varieties of oats ordinarily used,
there is not much to be said; for the seed
usually sown, if selected at all, is simply
bcause of its being a good sample. By far
the greater proportion of the oats sold in our
markets is without a name, except perhaps
that of the district whence they come. Im-
proved varieties are now being gradually
introduced, and are gaining some favor. Tliey
will doubtless be preferred when their merits
come to be understood. This point demands
attention, and is, at present, more worthy the
consideration of skilful farmers than any
other in the cultivation of this grain. If we
can gain a few pounds' weight per bushel,
such oats will soon command a uniformly
higher price than the lighter samples, and so
will compel a general efibrt .at improvement.
Many of the choicest English varieties have
already been brought to this country, but, as
a general rule, they soon become mixed and
lost. The potatoe, barley, and a kind called
the imperial oats, have been much ncom-
mended ; also, the horse mane, or black and
vvliite Tartarian. The last seem to have
found much favor in some parts of New
York, although they are fast becoming mixed.
This mixture is in many cases intentional.
I notice one account of a premium crop,
where black and white oats were sown in
equal proportions. One or two varieties of
skinless oats were grown to a certain extent
a few ycnrs since, but I believe that they
were not found an advantageous variety for
general purposes, and that they have now
almost, if not wholly, disappeared.
2487. My remarks as to the probable ad-
vantage of introducing new varieties, are
supported by the opinion of jMr. Stephens
in this paragraph, as he thinks that the oats
at present in highest favor in Scotland, are so
because they are recent kinds, and therefore
more luxuriant, hardy, and productive.
Oats are got into the ground in this coun-
try, at as early a period as the season will
allow ; that is, as soon as the fields are in a
proper condition for working. One good
ploughing is generally thought sufficient. The
seed is sown broadcast, and three bushels an
acre has ordinarily been considered quite
enough. Many excellent practical writers
are now recommending three and a half to
four bushels ; and in some reports on pre-
mium crops I have lately seen it stated, that
rather more than five bushels were sown.
This approaches nearly to the quantities
30
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
mentioned by Mr. Stephens, par. 2493 — five
to six Itushols.
I ;iin iiifliiicd to think that such heavy sow-
ing would prove injuri<nis rather than bene-
ficial on viTV liiJfht land, or on exhausted
soils, where little manure had been applied,
much of this crop being unfortunately grown
upon such land. In these c.-ises there is not
Buflicient strength to mature so many stalks
of full growth as come up; consequently at
harvest the straw is short and slender, while
the grain is thin and scanty. On rich land,
thick sowing as above would succeed ; thin
sowing of oats there would not answer so
well as thin sowing of wheat ; the time occu-
pied In the growth of the former crop is so
short comparatively, that there is little oppor-
tunity, except in the case of some particular
varieties, for tillering, or throwing out more
than one shoot from the same root The
potato oats, and some other kinds, are said
to tiller on rich land almost as much as
wheat.
Mixtures of oats with other seeds have
lately come much into vogue in many parts
of the country: oats with barley, oats with
r}'e, oats with wheat, &c. Oats with peas
have already been mentioned. Some of the
agricultural societies give premiums for these
crops, and they seem, particularly in some of
the Eastern States, to be gaining in public
favor.
2501. The broadcast .nnd the drill so^\•ing
machines alluded to here, have already been
noticed. I may mention among those that
have been introduced more or less exten-
sively, Pennock's Patent Seed and Grain
Planter, Sinclair and Co.'s Patent Grain Drill,
and Peir-son's Patent Seed Drill. As I have
before observed, neitlicr these nor the broad-
cast sowing machines difier materially from
tlie Scotch and English machines. Machines
of a construction so simple and efficient as
those described by Mr. Stephens, will soon
find their way to the farms of our most enter-
prising improvers. In the east, where farms
are small, or rather the breadtJi cultivated in
grain is small, they will probably travel from
one iarm to another — a single machine suffic-
ing for the sowing of a dozen, or at least
for a number of farms.
Their use will, however, be limited, until
ihe farmers get into the habit of finishing and
clearing the surface more perfectly tlian they
do at present; unbroken clods, bunches of
grass or roots, and fixed stones, interrupt and
render imperfect the action of all machinery
for sowing. Until such obstacles are removed,
it is probably more economical, and certainly
less trying to the patience, to sow by hand
entirely. I have myself seen enough machines
tried upon rough and poorly cultivated land,
to comprehend the many vexations attendant
upon their almost invariable failure, and to
understand the feelinp of mingled mortifica-
tion and relief with which the f^irmer returns
to his old methods, amid the ridicule of his
less enterprising neighbors. Tlie fact is, th.at
no one should attempt to use a machine until
his land is thoroughly prepared ; until it is
mellow and smooth in every portion of its
surface. The mention of six harrowings by
Mr. Stephens, in Par. 2496, shows the care
which is taken in this respect abroad ; the
liint about sharp teeth to the harrows is also
well worthy of notice. It should, moreover,
be remembered, that the mere use of the
machine will not produce a good crop upon
poorly manured, exhausted land, let it be ever
so finely cultivated. If all these points had
been attended to in the instances mentioned
above, the laughter and ridicule might have
been transferred to the other side, and the
farmer would have soon seen his neighbors,
one by one, silently following his example.
2504. I am not aware that the Jleadow
Crane Fly, the insect figured here, ever effects
any such injury in this country, as is ascribed
to it in the above paragraph. If not the same
insect, we have one of the same family, and
much resembling this ; but it is not very
abund.int, and never seems to do any notice-
able liarm, either in the perfect or the larva
state. No mention is made of it in our agri-
cultural reports, and I am inclined to think
that we are exempt from this insect enemy.
2512. The wild mustard (Raphanus Rjv-
phantstrum) is not so common in our grain
fields as the charlock (Sinapis Arv» nsis),
which is very abundant ; in some parts of the
countrj- it seems to cover whole fields when
in tlower. Perhaps the method here men-
tioned for destroying the wild mustard would
prove equally efti'ctual in the case of charlock.
2513. Of Lucerne. It is said by some ot
tlie best English authors that their cUinate is,
with few exceptions, not sufficiently dry and
warm for Mie cultivation of this plant, which
is supposed to have originated in the south
of Europe. It is a deep-rooted pereimial,
with tall stems much like clover, and fiowers
ill violet-colored spikes.
It requires a mellow, rather light soil, with
a dry subsoil, and of very good quality.
When s6wn broadcast, as recommended in
par. 2516, there is much less trouble in keep-
ing it clean, but Loudon says that the yield is
not by any means so great. It is throe or
four years before it comes into full bearing,
but al\erthat it lasts for a number of sea.sons
with very little diminution. It may be cut
five or si.x times in a season, and yields an
immense weight of fodder, which is very
nutritious.
I find in the Albany Cultivator, and divers
other agricultural periodicals, .accounts of the
cultivation of Lucerne in various parts of this
country with success : in New York, Massa-
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
31
chusctts, Ohio, and Alabama. Most of those
wlio have tried it speak well of it, and the
dry warm climate of our country must be
adapted to its growth. Its cultivation, how-
ever, does not spread, and it is very uncom-
mon to see even a small field of it. The
rea-ons for this are probably to be found in
the fact, that the ground, to insure success,
needs careful preparation and enriching, and
frequent doses of manure afcrwanis, to keep
up the production. Then it is also a long
time in coming to its full size, and requires
much labor to keep it clear from weeds.
True, the crop, when once obtained, is heavy ;
but the same labor and manure bestowed on
other crops that fall better into a rotation,
would prohably produce f;;r greater returns.
From the operation of these causes, the cul-
ture of Lucerne has not extended itself
greatly, and probably will not do so. It
may, at the same time, be found highly
advantageous, where soiling is practised at
all, to have from half an acre to an acre in
some convenient place near the farm build-
ings, where a free application of manure
would produce a supply of excellent green
food on all occasions during the summer.
When sown broadcast, the quantity of seed,
according to Mr. Stephens, is 20 lbs. to the
acre : when drilled, it requires but about half
of that weight.
Loudon says that there are no varieties of
Lucerne, besides the Medieago Sativa, that
are worthy the adoption of the cultivator.
He mentions three or four other varieties
which are known in Switzerland and the
south of France, but seems to think that
they have no properties of great importance.
One of these is Medieago Falcata, named in
par. 2521.
2524. Sainfoin is another deep-rooted pe-
rennial, with branching spreading stems, and
very showy red flowers. The appearance of
a field of it, when in bloom, is very beautiful.
It is said that light calcareous soils are best
for this plant, and that upon such soils it will
yield well, in situations where it is almost
impossible to produce good clover, or good
pasture of any other kind. It is mown and
made into hay like clover, and is well worthy
of a trial among us in suitable land, as it is said
to be remarkably nutritious. It does not
seem to require so much care as Lucerne,
and comes quicker into a condition for use,
although, unless under very high cultivation,
its produce per acre is not so large. It will
last from eight to ten years, if necessary, in a
profitable state ; although, I suppose, it would
need occasional top-dressing during that time.
This crop, so for as I can learn, is entirely
unknown to the farmers of this country.
In Europe a variety of other crops are cul-
tivated for forage, which are not mentioned
here by Mr. Stephens. The coamion broom
(Spartium Scoparius), parsley (Apium Pe-
troselinum), Semadilla, and many others,
have been occasionally introduced, and with
good success. Their culture, however, has
not extended greatly, probably for the reason
that they possess no especial advantages over
some plants already in cultivation.
Si)urry (Spergnla Arvensis) is a small
annual plant, which is much sown on poor,
dry, sandy land in some parts of Europe. It
will grow where scarcely anything else will
flourish at all. It is said to be more nutritious
than any other variety of forage, and may be
sown and cut within the space of eight or ten
weeks. Several crops of it may be obtained
in the course of a single season. For very
poor, light soils, this seems to be a valuable
crop, as it will afford good pasture upon tliem,
and if turned under, may bring them into a
condition to bear more profitable crops.
2538. Of the lambing of ewes. The period
for this event, on the farms of England and
Scotland, is generally much earlier than that
considered advisable by our best farmers in
the Northern States. The spring is so much
later here, that an abundance of fresh succu-
lent food for the ewes cannot be relied upon
before May. The early lambs are also ex-
posed to sudden storms and cold weatlicr,
which result in much injury, even when not
absolutely fatal. Many endeavor to defy
the season, and to produce early lambs for
market, by providing warm close sheds, and
by feeding the ewes on succulent food, such
as turnips, potatoes, &c. This will answer
where a ready market and high prices can be
obtained ; otherwise, and particularly with a
large .stock, it is so expensive and trouble-
some, that the majority of farmers prefer to
have their ewes lamb in May, as most conve-
nient, and at the same time most profitable.
The care of ewes previous to lambing, and
all of the necessary precautions so fully de-
scribed here, indicate a degree of care and
watchfulness on the part of the shepherd
which is seldom seen in America, but which in
a valuable flock would doubtless, here as well
as there, amply reward the owner.
As to any comparison of the number of
lambs produced by difl'erent breeds of ewes
in this country, it is, on a very extended scale,
almost entirely out of the question, so great
has been the intermixture of the several
varieties. The Merinoes and the Saxons seem
to have been most abundant, and these are
to be found in every grade of perfection and
purity, as well as in every grade of imperfec-
tion and impnrily. The two last words, I am
inclined to think, should be applied much more
often than the first. It is owing to the pre-
ponderance of these mixed and neglected
breeds, or rather crosses, that mutton has
been considered such an inferior kind of meat
in this country. Now, however, there is a
32
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
rapid chanpe going forward in this respect.
Within a short period nearly all the best
Erij.'^lisli breeds have been infrodueed : the
Coiswoldd, the Leicesters, the South Downs,
and the Seotch Cheviots. These are finding
tiieir way over the country, and are highly
prized wlierever the production of mutton is
an ohjeet of importance.
Wliere fine wool is most profitable, the
Sa.xons and Merinoes will continue to pre-
vail. Of these breeds we have had for many
years celebrated Hocks, kept in the utmost
purity, and from time to time improved by
irosh importitions. It is said that some flocks
of Merinoes now in this country are equal, in
every point of excellence, to the finest flocks
of Spain.
Our sheep districts are usually hillv and
bleak, and good shelters for the flock during
the winter, are indispensable to their well-
being ; these same shelters, if properly con-
structed, are found amply suflicieiit for the
breeding ewes in spring. The farms not
being so extensive, nor the flocks so large,
as in Great Britain, it is practicable to drive
them every night, or at least always in bad
weather, to these indosures, and to place the
feeble tender ones under a warm close shed.
Thi-; is particularly necessary for tlie fine
woolled varieties, the lambs of which are deli-
cate, and subject to injury from inclement
storms.
It will be perceived th.it the condition of
flocks in this country at the time of lambing
is quite diflferent from that of those described
under this head in the present work. Our
flocks, being ordinarily small, are easily kept
toirether near home, and arc consequently
more easily sheltered and attended to in every
way. As sheep husbandry extends itself into
the uncultivated regions of the north, and the
wide prairiesof the west, flocks will be larger,
and then the neces>ity for such instructed
careful shepherds as are here described, will
become more apj)arent than it is at present.
]Men will be needed who have studied this
business as a profession, and who will devote
themselves wholly to the care of flocks.
In addi'.ion to the methods recommended
by Mr. Stephens, for making the ewes take
strange lambs, I have seen another noticed as
worthy of attention in such cases. It is sim-
ply to sprinkle fine salt over the lamb; the
ewe, while licking this, will soon, it is said,
become familiarized with the stranger. Rulv
bin;,' the laiirb thoroughly with warm milk
is also a prescription add to be eflicicious.
Figs. 2-27 and 228 represent implements
which would be of little use to the American
sheep farmer. By the time th.at grass has
attained a sufticient height in his pa.stures to
justify turning out the sheep, all danger of
Lnsting s- ows is over. In case of a squ.dl
covering the ground for a day or two, the
easiest plan is to bring the flock back to the
barn and sheds.
2G15. This paragraph, and Fig. 229, to
which it refers, are especially worthy of
notice, as showing the evil of irregularly-
shaped fields. The one here drawn is, how-
ever, remarkably regular in its outline, when
compared with many that may be seen diiily
on farms in almost every nei^diborhuod.
The time lo.st in ploughing crooked, triangu-
lar, and rounded lands, becomes quit*; a serious
item in the year's work ; but the evil does not
cease with the ploughing. If it is a crop in
which the culiivator or any other horse imple-
ment is used, the same dilfieulty recurs con-
stantly; the turnings cannot be made without
delay and injury to the crop at, or near, each
extremity of the rows.
2623. This is a very good method for exe-
cuting a species of suostdiiiig If the second
plough be a large and heavy one, with tlie
mould board taken ofl!", it will answer very
well for a subsoil plough. On much New
England land, as I am well aware, the pro-
gress of the second plough would soon be
stopped by stones; but still there are many
districts where such obstacles do not exist,
and where this operation is perfectly prac-
lieable. There are light subsoil ploughs now
made, for a pair of horses or single yoke of
cattle, which would be precisely suitable to
use in this way.
2G30. The ribbing coulters. Fig. 231, are
evidently upon the same prineiple jis our eulti-
v.it^irs. These latter would do the same work
when spread to their full extent, and all fitted
with such coulters as are figured here. They
would, I think, be more convenient in every
respect.
2631. Of sowing grass seeds. When grass
seeiis are sown, either with oats, barley, wheat,
or any other cereal crop, the white and red
clover, and the J'imothy or cat's tail (Phleum
Prati nse), are almost universally employed.
This last is also extensively known under the
name o{ herd's grass. It is a prolific and h.irdy
gra>.s, making excellent hay for every kind of
stock when mixed with clover, and the various
other grasses which find their way naturally
into almost every meadow.
This was one among some fifty gras.sea
experimented upon at Woburn in England.
These experiments were made with great
care, having in view the determination of
numerous points relative to the various
grasses ; such as their prolific qualities, the
soils and climates ♦o which they were adapted,
the quantity of imtritive matter aflbrded by a
certain bulk of each, &-c.. &c. They were
very elaborate, and have become quit^' cele-
brated.
Timothy was assigned a high rank by the
Woburn experiments, as being among the most
prolific for hay, and being, aa to its imtritive
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
33
value, comparatively very excellent. Wlien
growii alone, or wi;h but a small proportion of
other grasses, its hay is in request for iiorses.
In Pennsylvania, and the middle States gene-
riilly, there is a grass of the family agroslis,
also known by the name of herd's grass, but
in reality quite ditlerent.
I am of opinion that our fanners might,
with good prospect of advantage, try the
experiment of introducing some of the
stiuidard English varieties into tiieir perma-
nent meadows and pastures. Where one or
two years" grass only is desired before break-
ing up again, perhaps tiie present system will
an>^wer as well as any change.
The orchard grass, or cock's-foot grass
(Dactylis Glomerata), has become somewhat
known. It is very highly spoken of in the
Woburn experiments, both as nutritious and
extremely productive. Some cultivators con-
sider it coarse, but the general voice is in its
fiuor, particularly for pastures.
The perennial rye grass (Lolium Perenne)
has also been tried occasionally here, but I
am uiclined to think that there are better
grasses for our climate. Its yield of hay is
not so great as that of our known grasses,
nor, according to some experiments, is this
hay remarkably nutritious. its growth is
over, I should think, too early in the season
for the purposes of our pastures. It grows
freely on almost any tolerable soil.
The adaptation of grasses to soils should
also be studied. Timothy, for instance, is not
adapted to dry and light soils, but clover may
be made to flourish perfectly well in such
situations. Then also for hay, care should
be taken to sow varieties that ripen about
the same time.
The red top (Agrostis Vulgaris) is by many
considered a good mixture with clover and
Timothy, altiiough it is not very highly
esteemed by many of the English autliors.
The varieties of the fescue grass (Festiica),
and the meadow fox-tail grass (Alopecurus
Pratensis), are among tlie most esteemed
of British grasses, for both dry and wet
meadows.
The xVmerican spear grass (Poa Pratensis)
is included by Loudon among what lie consi-
ders six of the best British grasses, and aUo
stands well in the Woburn experiments. This
is a natural grass in most of our best perma-
nent meadows.
The sweet-scented vernal grass (Antho-
xanthum Odoratum) is also found naturally
in most meadows, and communicates its well-
known delightful odor to the hay. This
flourishes best on deep, rather moist soils, and
is valuable in such situations for early pas-
ture. Its hay, however, is not of the first
quality. I have had samples of this grass sent
in, whh the inquiry if it was a good grass
for cultivation alone, and have for the above
reasons returned a negative answer. There
may be one exception in the case of bogs, or
wet land, where other grasses of a more
valuable nature will not grow.
The quantities of grass seed sown per acre
vary so much in ditlerent parts of the country
that it is almost impossible to mention any
fixed weight or measure. Our best farmers
fully come up to the weights mentioned by
Mr. Stephens, and often exceed them : but in
many parts of the country by far too little is
sown, and the natural result of this false
economy is poor crops of grass.
The proportions of clover and Timothy are
equal, or varied according as one or the other
is desired to predominate. Red clover is in
more common use than white ; the latter
finds its way naturally into good pastures.
Where it does not come in of its own
accord, there should be a small quantity
sown.
Machines for sowing grass seed are as yet
little known among us, though in the east
there are few farms of such extent as to
demand their employment, but in the south
and west they will probably soon be used
with advantage. It is common in sowing
grass seed to mix ashes with it ; the ashes
in still weather show the space of ground
covered by each cast, and are at the same
time a beneficial top dressing. The small
quantity of seed being as it were diluted
by the ashes, is also more evenly distributed.
When land is seeded to grass on winter
grain, the seed is frequently sown on the melt-
ing snow in spring, and wit h very good success.
On the white surface of the snow it is easy
to see if the sowing is even.
Some farmers, instead of sowing the grass
seed after the first harrow ing of spring grain,
recommend the practice of wetting the grain
thoroughly before it is sown, and then of mix-
ing the grass seed with it. Some of the dry
seeds adhere to each grain, and thus a pretty
equal distribution is obtained. I have never
seen this plan tried, but should thitik that it
would save little time, if any. and that the
work would not be so well done as by the
connnon way.
In place of employing a light haiTow as
represented by Fig. 232. for covering grass
seed, this is usually done by means of a thick,
flat evergreen, about ten feet in length by
eight or ten in width. Where a single one
of sufficient size cannot be found, three or
four smaller branches are fastened together
by a cross-piece. If tiiis brush is carefully
selected, it does very good work, and leaves
a handsomely finished surface, on gr(»und that
has been previously well prepared. It is a
humble imitation of Mr. Smith's iron web
harrow, described in par. 2653.
2683. The ophiions hen' given as to the
superior advantage of sowing clover with
34
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
buckwheat, are worthy of notice by farmers
who have ditlioulty in niaki:i<j clover talie,
when sown in spring with the u^ual grain
crops.
It does not seem necessary to say much in
addition to the account Mr. Stei)lieMs lias
given of tJie different varieties of Trifoliaj or
Clovers. Must of tliose described by him are
sub-varieties, of worthless, or comparatively
worthless, character. We often see in our
periodicals ditl'erent kinds of clover men-
tioned, but ill many cases the fancied diifer-
ences are owing to variations of soil or
climate, and after all, tlie true old red and
white still maintain their superiority over the
new comers.
2685. Of sowing barley. This has never
seemed to be a favorite crop in the United
States. The principal demand has always
been for the purpose of malting, but the total
abstinence movement has so greatly dimi-
nisiied this demand, or at least has prevented
its increase in any degree corresponding with
that of the population, that in many States
the quantity grown is scarcely worth men-
tioning. I have consulted the Patent Office
Report^ and find there tabular estimates of
the crops in all the States of the Union,
extending over a period of several years. In
no year does the crop of barley amount to
one fifih of the rye crop, or to more than half
of the buckwheat crop.
The State of New York grows more barley
than all the otiier States together, and it is
largely e.vported from thence. Its use, as
food for man, is exceedingly limited; but in
some districts considerable quantities are fed
to stock with advantage. Our agricultural
papers usually say little about this grain, and
i]i many districts one may travel for days
without seeing more than half an acre of
barley in a piece, and frequently without
seeing any at all. In fact the only reason
for wishing its more general introduction is,
that it might occasionally be substituted with
advantage for some other grain in a rotation.
Perhaps, after all, we attain the same end
more profitably by the cultivation of Indian
corn — a much more valuable crop, and one
which deprives the soil of the same class of
substances.
The Chevalier barley, and various other
famous English varieties, have been sown in
tJiis country with success. One ploughing is
generally thought sufficient for barley, but I
think there is little doubt that on most land
the crop would be greatly the better for two.
From three to four bushels of seed per acre
are used, the latter quantity being considered
preferable where the land is in fine order.
When the season will permit, it is well to
have the land prepared, and the seed sown,
before May.
2712. Of the treatment of dunffhills. The
remarks under this head, in paragraphs 2714
and 2715, will doubtless recall to tiie minds
of many farmers, as they do to mine, fields
overrun with weeds from the use of long
manure. This is particularly apt to be the
case with the potatoe crop. In the early part
of the season the weeds are usually kept
down, but after about the second hoeing
they begin to be neglected. The potatoes,
unlike Indian corn, do not shade the land
sufficiently to keep down weeds ; as soon as
a pause in cultivation takes place, the little
weeds which have escaped notice among the
potatoes commence growing vigorously : as
the potatoe tops begin to die they flourish still
more, and hence we often see on farms, other-
wise in good order, fields of potatoes in
autumn quite overgrown by weeds.
The proceedings in making up and turning
dunghills are much the same in this country
as those recommended by Mr. Stephens,
except that they are scarcely so methodical,
and that the loomen would be highly indig-
nant at the idea of their taking a share in
such an employment, even if they were to be
allowed the privilege of the Berwickshire
females with regard to their petticoats.
!Men must become few in number, and defi-
cient in energy, before American women are
driven to turning over our dunghills as a
means of earning their bread. I can see
women employed in some light and neat
work in tiie hay field or corn field with more
patience, though not even then with approval ;
but such an occupation as this seems to me
calculated to destroy all remains of feminine
delicacy, and all of that natural womanly
refinement which we expect to see even in
the wife and daughters of the humblest cot-
tager, and which in every station is invaluable
for its softening and civilizing influence upon
the other sex. If our women are to become
as coarse and masculine as our men, which
must be the result of engaging constantly in
such employments, we may bid farewell to
that remarkably high degree of cultivation,
propriety, and intelligence, for which ■ the
poorer classes in many of our States are so
justly distinguished.
The practice among many of our best
formers of carting weeds, vegetable mould,
leaves, earth, &.c., into their yards, and spread-
ing them over the surface before winter sets
in, has been already alluded to. These ma-
terials, during winter and spring, become
thoroughly mixed with the straw and manin-e
which accumulate, and also soak up a great
portion of liquid which would otherwise liave
escaped, and run away from yards having no
tank. If a portion of the manure is carted
out to make a heap in spring, this earth, &,c.,
is of further use to check too rapid fermenta-
tion. A layer of fresh earth may with advan-
tage be applied upon the top of the heap for
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
35
the same purpose, and also to absorb ammo-
nia, wliich might otherwise escape during
fermentation. A little gypsum or plaster of
Paris, mingled with the outer layer, will ma-
terially aid this action. It would be found
an excellent plan to pump or pour the liquid
from a tank, or from hollows in the barn
yard, upon the surface of such heaps.
Tliey ought to be located so that their
di'ainings could not run away from the land.
Many tarmers make the top of their compost
heap quite flat, or even a little inclining from
the circumference to the centre, in or(Jer that
the rain which falls may soak in rather than
run off. In the climate of Britain this would
probably make the heaps too wet ; but here,
where we have so much dry sunny weather,
after the period at which sueli heaps are made
up. I do not think that any injurious result
arises from such a practice.
Where dmig is thoroughly fermented in
heaps, unless great care be exercised, there
will be a veiy considerable loss during the
process, both by drainage and evaporation.
This decrease is to the amount of nearly half,
unless a portion of the escape is in some way
intercepted. The various methods already
indicated will preserve mucli of it, and, of
course, increase in an equal degree the avail-
able resources of the farm. Manure will not,
oa much of the land in this country, bear to
be applied in as long and unfermented a state
as might be proper and advisable in Scotland
or England. The climate there, as has been
explained, is damp and rainy, and for this
reason the fermentation and decomposition
of manure goes on during the whole season
in tlie soil. Here, on the other hand, if long
manure be buried at tlie usual depth, particu-
larly if it is dry w'nen applied, it will fre-
quently in most soils remain almost entirely
unclianged through the whole season, particu-
larly if the land is light. On heavy land such a
result need not usually be apprehended ; but for
light land in this climate, yard manure is most
economically and advantiigtously applied in a
decomposi'd condition. Tiie crop then re-
ceives the benefit of its application imme-
diately, and thus it is plain that tlie unavoid-
able loss which must, with every precaution,
occur during fermentation, is after all, under
certain circumstances, profitable.
This distinction between tlie action of dif-
ferent soils on rnnnure, rendering it advisable
to apply it in different states of decompusi-
tioii, is worthy of more attention than our
farmers have hitherto bestowed upon it. In
close connexion with this subjecl is also to
be studied, with prospect of advanfcige, the
state in which manure is best adapted to tlie
several crops. Much information upon both
of these points is to be found in various parts
of the prasent work.
The degree of care in the preparation of
manure, described in paragraphs 2727 to
2730, is cci-t:iLnly for beyond anytiiing that
we see in this country, and is, I rather think,
some degrees beyond tlie majority even of
British farmers.
2732. On the planting of potatoes. The
old system of planting potatoes which for-
merly prevailed, and does still prevail in many
districts, was — to excavate a h.rge hole with
the hoe as the first step ; into this a fork full ^
of manure was dropped, the potatoe deposited '
on the manure, and the whole then covered
with the hoe again. This way of planting is so
tedious, and so slovenly, that it ouglit at once
to be abandoned wherever any oilier mode
is practicable. I am aware, at tJie same time, "
that on much of our newly-c'.iared land —
abounding with stumps, roots, and stones —
the highly-finished methods described under
this head cannot be adopted. I liave repeat-
edly seen attempts at such methods fail,
owing to the impossibility of covering the
potatoes properly and equally.
Even on very rough land, however, a modi-
fication of the Scotch process may be prac-
tised with advantage. A single deop furrow
may be ploughed, into the bottom of which
the dung and potatoes are dropped, and then
covered with a hoe. The soft earth from
the upturned furrow renders the covering
both quick and easy work. On mellow, clear
land, the Scotch method is now in common
use. I have never seen it carried out in such
perfection of detail as is shown in Fig. 236,
but have no doubt that such an arrangement
and subdivision of work might advant^:ge-
ously be practised for planting on a large
scale, always substituting men and boys for
women and girls.
Shice the almost universal prevalence of
the potatoe disease, it has not been the pr ic-
tice to manure very highly for this crop. The
general opinion seems to be that tlie most
luxuriant crops are particularly liable to suffer.
Many farmers substitute various mineral ma-
nures, for a por.ion of the whole of that wiiich
they have been accustomed to apply from their
barn yards. Some have thought that in this
way they had discovered an infallible remedy,
and accordingly, lime, gypsum, cliarcoal, com-
mon salt, &c., (fcc, have all been strongly
recommended. These substances do, in cer-
tain cases, seem to exert a modifying influ-
ence; but it is none the less estibli.-hed that
they all have failed, not only once, but many
tunes.
It would be of no service to enter further
upon this much vexed question, as, aftex all,
we must end with tlie confession, that our
knowledge of it is quite imperfect. We have
been for a time comparatively free from its
r;'.vages, and may hope that it will not afgain
become generally prevalent.
2738. The practice of cutting seed potatoes,
36
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
when of fair size, is almost universal, but there
are many who are tempted to sell otf all that
are marketable, and reserve only the very
small ones for seed. It is true that Mr.
Stephens pives an instance where such plant-
ing was quite successful, but I think that the
ex])L'rience of farmers generally would be
against him on this point, and would decide
that it is with the potatoe as with other crops,
— poor seed cannot be depended upon for
good crops.
2741. It is quite common to defer the cut-
ting of seed potatoes until the very day of
planting ; indeed this p;irt of the work is fre-
quently done by an old man or a boy in the
field itself I think that such a practice causes
the loss of many j)lant8, the freshly cut sur-
face afl'ording a ready lodgment for decay.
This evil influence is particulnrly felt wlien a
cold, wet season after planting, retards vege-
tation, as then the decay has more time to
spread. Even when it does not quite prevent
the young shoot from putting forth, and ap-
pearing above the surface, it renders the sub-
sequent growth sickly and stinted, because
of the scanty nourishment which is received
at tirst from the p.iriially decayed parent
tuber. When the |>otatoes are cut a few
days before planting, and spread as recom-
mended in par. 2741, the water evaporates
from the freshly cut surface, and leaves a
white coating of starch. This becomes so
thick as to almost equal the real skin of the
potato in its protecting powers; and the cut
piece may often be taken u]) with it unbroken
at tlie end of the season, when the crop has
ripened.
I believe that it is universally conceded at
present, that the rose, or the crown end, of
the potatoe, is that which is by far the most
valuable for planting, and that the usual way
of cutting is to divide the potato lengthwise,
rather than as marked in Fig. 234.
2742. It seems necessary to enforce Mr.
Stephens's caution as to the use for seed of
potatoes that have already sprouted. I have
had some experience with such seed myself,
and have frequently seen others fall into the
same error. Seed potatoes, and in fact all
others, should be kept in some place where
the temperature is so low as to prevent them
from sprouting, and growing together, in such
masses as may frequently be seen. It is not
uiiconnnon, in some cellars, for this growth to
proceed so far that newpot;itoes of small size
are found among the old on removing them.
In such cases, while tearing the masses of
potatoes apart, in cutting them, and finally
transporting them to the field, these long
shoots are so bruised, broken off, or wilted,
that they will not grow. But their produc-
tion has been a drain upon the substance of
the potatoes. Tliey are no longer firm, but
soft, and as if withered ; a portion of their
first and best vital energies has been c.t-
E ended, and a considerable time must elapse
efore there is sullieient strength to put forth
new shfiots, if indeed they accomplish this at
all. Every one who has seen the (juantiiy of
shoots and roots that are removed from a
bushel of potatoes, when they have grown
badly before taking out to plant, will under-
stand that the loss suffered in this way is of
a serious nature.
It is rather a favorite practice in this coun-
try to plant potatoes on the first breaking up
of new ground, and also on the first plough-
ing of tough sward, or of old grass land.
The cultivation of potatoes, and the peculiar
natural growth of the crop, leaves sueh land
in a fine mellow state. In some cases ma-
nure is spread upon the turf, and then turned
under by the plough. Sometimes the manure
and the potatoes are placed in the bottom of
every alternate furrow, and then covered as
before. Very good crops are often obtiiined
on turf without the use of manure, and the
potatoes grown in this way are frequently of
excellent quality. I have seen notices of fine
crops where the furrow slices of turf were
laid over quite flat, and the potatoes then
planted in holes made between the edges of
the furrows, so that they were actually laid
under tiie turf. Crops grown in all of the
foregoing ways are apt to be very grassy and
weedy, and are moreover extremely difficult
in many cases to clean.
A practice pursued in some of the Southern
States is, to plant the potatoe in the usual
way, covering it very lightly, and then to
strew the soil with straw, or young fine
branches, to a depth of several inches. It is
said that the potatoes produced by means of
this singular method are abundant. No cul-
tivation of any kind is required after the
planting and covering is over, as there is no
opportunity for the growth of weeds.
In the Northern States some farmers pur-
sue a practice slightly analogous to this, in
placing the manure above the potatoes, and
then covering lightly with earth.
These methods both derive a considerable
degree of theoretical ])lausi])ility from the
fact, that tlie growth of the potatoe tubers
seems to be rather towards the surface than
downwards. The original tuber or set planted
is usually quite as low in the earth as any
that have grown from it. Every fixrmer knows
that when his crop is heavy, it is frequently
difficult to prevent entirely the protrusion of
some of the potatoes above the surface. In
an account of one of the southern methods
before described, I have seen it related that
the new potatoes were nearly all found abotp
the inverted turf, while the original set had
been planted brlotv it.
It does not, therefore, seem unreasonable
to suppose that there may be an advantage,
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
37
when planting, in placing at least a part of the
manure above the potatoe. Another reason
why this practice may be a good one in dry
soils is, that the manure or turf above tlie
seed is more ethcacious in keeping it always
moist during the enrly part of its growth, and
until the plant is large enough to shade the
ground for itself
2752 and 2753. The care manifested in
these and other paragraphs, relative to the
speedy deposition of the manure and cover-
ing of the seed, after the drills are opened,
may well be copied among us ; for witiiout
doubt the growth is likely to be more ra])id
and vigorous when the potatoes are planted
in a fresh warm soil, before the manure has
time to dry up and lose a portion of its value
by evaporation.
It is very extensively the custom to dust
over each hill of potatoes with plaster, often
mixed with ashes, soon after the young shoots
appear above the surface : this is certainly an
excellent application. On most soils the con-
stituents of gypsum (plaster), and of ashes
also when those are used, are directly avail-
able for the inorganic part of the potatoe.
Where these chemical ingredients are already
present in the soil, this addition upon the sur-
face is still of use by attracting moisture,
thereby keeping the earth immediately around
the tender plant in a mellow and soft condi-
tion.
Nearly all of the improved varieties of
foreign potatoes have been introduced into
this country, and we have besides these an
immense number of kinds resulting from seed
in our own soil.
Perhaps no variety has been more exten-
sively cultivated at the north than the Mercer,
or Clienango, or Neshannock potatoe. It is a
rather long, white, and flat tuber, yields well,
and is excellent for the table. It has proved
on many farms more than usually liable to
the attacks of disease. The Carters are con-
sidered unsurpassed for the table.
Tlie Early Shaw, or Mountain June, or
Early June potatoe, is a somewhat celebrated
early variety, of remarkable excellence for
eating. It is not a great bearer, but is said
almost invariably to escape the attacks of
disease.
The Long Red, or Long John potatoe, also
called the Merino, attains often to a very
great size, and is extremely prolific ; but, like
most large potatoes, not remarkable for the
table. It has a very long tuber, with nume-
rous eyes, often deeply sunk.
The Cow Horn, Lady Finger, and Western
or Buffalo Red potatoes, are not very gene-
rally cultivated, nor are they very desirable
varieties for ordinary cultivation.
Beside these may be mentioned the Long
Whites, the Blue, White, and Red Kidneys,
the Pink Eyes, the Blue Points or Blue Noses,
&c.,-&c. Many of these are standard varie-
ties, but I can only mention their names
here.
The coarse varieties are not general favor-
ites. A French potatoe of this description,
called the Rohan, will be remembered by
many. It was extremely productive, and
caused a great sensation. Single tubers, or
even slices with one or two eyes, were sold
at high prices for a time; but the quality was
soon found to be very inferior, and it was also
discovered that, after all, its ca[)acities did not
extend to the production of large crops on
poor or unmanured soil. The excitement
consequently died away, and the name of
Rohan potatoe is now seldom heard, unless
coupled with some epithet of disapproba-
tion.
2780. I do not think that any such degree
of despondency as is here expressed by Mr.
Stephens, is felt in this country. The dis-
ease among the potatoes has prevailed exten-
sively, it is true, but never so extensively or
so universally as in Europe, excepting, per-
haps, some limited sections. For several
years its prevalence seems to have been
rapidly decreasing, and from many States we
hear nothing of it. Alarm seems to have
subsided in a great degree. It is true that we
may be attacked again, and even moi'e fatally
than before ; and yet there is good reason
to think that our knowledge of the causes
and phenomena of disease has become so
extensive, that we can hope to combat it a
second time more successfully than at first.
Our tarmers at present, from anything that
I can perceive, cultivate the potatoe crop as
extensively as they have ever done.
2797. It has been supposed by many, that
the potatoe became diseased from the effects
of too long cultivation in very rich soils, and
that by returning to its native country, and
bringing thence a new stock, we might go on
again with the crop vigorous and healthy for
a number of years. In several instances
potatoes have been brought from South
America; but I have been unable to learn
that these in any case have proved more free
from disease than the varieties originated
here.
The same result seems to have uniformly
attended the efforts to raise disease-proof
varieties from the seed. In numerous cases
new and seemingly hardy varieties, produced
freshly from seed, have failed quite as badly
as any others.
2805. The general remarks in this and the
preceding paragraph, as to the inferiority ot
street manure to good yard manure, are
doubtless correct ; such an inferiority is
what we shotild naturally expect, from our
knowledge of the nature and origin of the
two manures. I do not, however, agree with
the following quotation from Professor Low .
38
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
" Lime does not appear to :icf in a beneficial
manner, and is ran-ly ;ij>plied directly to this
crop."
The best analyses of the potatoe tops, leaves,
and stems toj,'elher, siiow that they eont^iin a
very considerable proportion of lime : hence,
althou<;h there is not a large quantity m the
tuber, this substance is valuable for the
growth of tiie stem and leaves. From its
action upon these parts of the potatoe result
the good effects spoken of by Professor
Johnston, as known to be produced by liming
the potatoe crop after it is above ground, and
before it is earthed up. Much of the benefit
arising from the application of plaster in this
country, probably arises from tlie lime which
it contains. It is also on many soils e.\treniely
valuable for the potatoe crop, on account of
the decomposing influence which it exerts so
powerfully upon every kind of vegetable
matter. This is especially true when pota-
toes are planted upon cold, sour, imperfectly
drained land. Here lime sweetens the soil
by neutralizing the hurtful vegetable acids,
and forms with these acirls combinations
that ;ire actually nutritious for the plant.
•j810. Tlie quantity of nitrogen here said
to e.xist in the potatoe sprouts is to be noticed
as bearing upon what I have already stated,
relative to the injury suffered by allowing the
shoots to grow long, and to be broken oft'
before planting.
281.3. On paring and burning the surface.
The flancliter spade, Fig. 238, I have never
seen in this country, but think that it might
be used occasionally with advantiige where a
plough could not do the work. Thus, in
draining a bog, where the surface is covered
with bunches of bent grass, and otlier sour
wiry grasses, the hummocks forincd bv t!ie
roots of which are almost imlestructiijle. it is
necessary to dispose of these obstacles to
successful cultivation as speedily as possible.
If the bog is deep and soft, it is not probable
that the drains will dry it sulHcienlly during
the first season for the access of cattle and
ploughs ; in that case an imjilement of this
kind would save much time, by cutting up
the lumps and bogs, so as to pnpare the land
for ploughing at an early period in the next
season. These bogs, after drying, when piled
in lii-aps, will burn as di-rcriUci by Mr. Ste-
phens. The asiies, spread over the surfice,
and finally ploughed in, form one of the best
vju-ieties of manure for the amelioration of
sucii boggy, peaty land. I have seen cases
in Scotland where this burning was repeated
year afier ye;ir, until the surface of the field
iiad been lowered several feet, and a fine rich
soil formed from the mixed peaty substance
and the ashes. In other cases they take off"
several crops after the fir-t burning, and then,
when its effects begin to fail, burn again.
When a bog is formed of vegetable muck,
the first biirning, destroying the bents and
bogs on the surface, will be found siithcient ;
for this material comes very speedily into a
state fit for cultivation, after it is laid dry.
Put where a real peat has formed, repeated
burnings may be necessary, for peat nsists
all decomposuig influences with great obsti-
nacy, particuliirly when once dried. If it has
lain in the sun for a time, no amount of soak-
ing seems competent afterwards to soften or
dissolve it. Among stones, unless great care
were exercised, this flancliter spade would
sjieedily become dull and useless.
I do not think that in our climate such an
expensive implement as that shown by Fig.
240 is at ail necessary. Any plough which
would turn a wide thin tiuf on edge \vould
answer the purpose, and in the last days of
summer the whole surface would soon be-
come as combustible as tinder. In fact some
bogs can be burned pretty deeply in diy sea-
sons, by merely setting fire to the untouched
surface.
In most situations it does not seem to me
advisable to do more than merely bum the
surface parings, because by iroing deeper we
destroy organic matter, which, if not valuable
in its original situation, might be used with
great advantage in forming composts, &c., for
other land.
On land which can be cultivated without it,
as is said in par. 2840, burning should not be
employed at all. It is, I think, only to be
advised in this country under the circum-
stances already de.>^cribed.
2842. I must confess that the test men-
tioned here is a strange one to be applied in
all cases, and diubt if it will aflord results
which are so infallible as the author seems to
consider them.
2843 to 29.58. In addition to these con-
cludin:,' paragraphs of spring, embr.icing the
farrowing of sows, and the various points
connected with the hatching and rearing of
fowls, I can s;iy little. The latter is a sub-
ject which is now engaging much attention,
particularly among amateur farmers, who ftre
importing all of the finest foreign varieties,
and are making improved breeds quite com-
mon in the Eastern States. 'J'liere has been
such a number of works issued within the
last few years, to meet the wants of those
who are new in the management of this
feather d stock, that any observations from
me would seem ut'erly superfluous. I cannot
help thinking, however, ot the horror and dis-
belief with which many fowl fanciers will
read pjir. 2954, wherein Mr. Stepliens cou-
rageously asserts that the pip and other like
diseases that chickens are heir to, are a spe-
cies of popular fallacy, and actually calls them
absurdities. I am convinced that .sundry
zealous advocates will immediately tiike up
the cause of the pip, and mauitain it as stoutly
AMERICAN APPENDLX— SPRING.
39
as certain of our farming friends do the trans-
mutation of wheat into chess, perhaps with
more truth.
Any notes, however brief, upon American
agriculture, would seem incomplete without
at least a few words relative to the cultiva-
tion of our greatest national crop — Indian
corn. This is a chief article of produce from
north to south, and from east to west. The
varieties cultivated in Canada, and the North-
ern States generally, while less imposing in
appearance, produce equally well with the
large southern varieties, having stalks from
twelve to sixteen feet in length.
Indeed tlie premium crops at the north are
usually larger than those that we hear of at
the soutii, while the average product per acre
of New York, Ohio, and other Northern
States, is, to say the least, quite as higli as
that of Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, and
the other great corn growing States of the
south. The aggregate amount of the crop
for the whole Union is enormous, being pro-
bably near 600,000,000 of bushels in a favor-
able year.
April and May are the months for planting
corn at the north. It is seldom that much is
done before the 15th of x\pril, and it occa-
sionally runs rather far into June. The pre-
\ious cultivation should not differ materially
from that previously described as best for
potatoes, the great aim being to secure a
deep and mellow soil. The land is generally
ploughed during the preceding autumn, and
then cross-ploughed in spring. Many, how-
ever, prefer planting immediately upon the
turf, turning it over flat, and harrowing until
a good depth of tine mould is secured. Ex-
cellent crops may be grown in this waj% but
if the turf is not turned entirely over, or if it
is disturbed by the harrows, the tield is apt
to be very grassy and weedy. On the western
prairies a boy is sometimes set to follow the
plough, and drop seed in every other furrow;
the next furrow is turned over upon it, thus
layhig the grass side on the corn. This is
called a sod crop, and could only be success-
ful, even in an ordinary degree, upon land
naturally very light and mellow. In some
places it is the practice, when ploughing grass
land for Indian corn, to turn two furrows in
opposite directions, so that they meet together
and form a broad ridge, leaving the turf under
them undisturbed. Tlie corn is planted on
these ridges, and is often quite good, but the
practice is extremely slovenly. The crop is
inevitably grassy, unless the greatest care is
taken in cleaning, and that is not to be ex-
pected from farmers who pursue such a
system: a portion of the ground, nearly half
in fact, is left undisturbed, so that the roots
only penetrate it with difficulty, if at all.
The custom of manuring corn in the hill,
after the same manner that I have mentioned
unde? the head of potatoes, is happily fast
becoming obsolete. The manure is now
either spread broadcast before ploughing, or
placed in drills, the former being the preva-
lent mode. Heavy manuring is essential to
this crop on most land : but where the soil is
already very fertile, there is some danger of
forcing too luxuriant a growth of stalks and
leaves, so that the ears are small and ill
ripened. This is particularly to be feared on
such land when highly nitrogenous manures
are added; inorganic manures might, at the
same time, prove beneficial.
It the land is poor, and not well manured,
a distance of three feet between the hills
seems advisable. In the opposite case, two
feet and a half in one direction by two in the
other, is not uncommon : although three feet
between the rows seems better, as admitting
light and air more freely, and also the passage
of a cultivator between the rows in one direc-
tion. It has even been planted at distances
of a foot in the rows, and very heavy crops
have been thus obtained, but only by the use
of a variety having a small stalk, upon a
remarkably rich soil, and with the concur-
rence of a very favorable season. In all
ordinary cases, such thick planting only pro-
duces a great burden of stalks and leaves,
with little corn, pnd that of an inferior
quality.
Two and a half feet in the rows, and three
feet between them, seem proper distances to
recommend for good soils at the north ; the
southern varieties are so large that three,
fonr, and even five feet, are always left
between the hills in each direction.
Marking the rows with a marker is fast
becoming universal ; the appearance of the
crop is not only neater, but its cultivation
easier and more effective, for the reason that
all horse implements pass readily through tiie
rows at a gauged width, the only care being
to keep the horse in a straight line.
I have already, under the proper head,
mentioned the necessity of a good machine
for dropping corn in hills at equal intervals,
and have described one which seemed well
adapted to the correct performance of this
operation.
The soaking of Indian corn, for twelve
hours before planting, promotes the rapidity
and certainty of its vegetation. If left in
water so long as to sprout, there is danger
of its perishing in case a few days of dry
weather succeed the planting. Various steeps
have been found beneficial. Nitrate of potash,
or saltpetre, a little common salt, or a small
proportion of sulphate of iron or copperas,
have been frequently used with marked efiect;
muriate of ammonia is another good ingre-
dient of this steep. An excellent practice is
to roll the seeds, while }n:it moist from the
steep, m plaster of Paris; some also recom-
^^
40
AMERICAN APPENDIX— SPRING.
mend a covering of tar pre\-iou8 to applnng
the plaster, in order to keep off crows. There
is some danger of making a thick, hard coat-
ing in this way, tliat will prevent the seed
from sprouting, being both water and air
proof.
A small quantity of plaster, or of plaster
and ashes mixed, also occasionally a little
lime, is often thrown upon each liill of com
after the first hoeing, in the same manner
and with the same effect that has been men-
tioned under the head of potatoes. About a
gill is applied to each hill.
Care is well bestowed in the selection of
seed for this important crop. For this pur-
pose early and well formed ears, from stalks
having at least two each, should be selected
in the field, picked, and kept by themselves
in a dry place, until required for use. The
seed com should then be taken from the
middle of the cob alone, leaving that which
covers an inch or two on each end as inferior.
This latter fact has been proved by a variety
of experiments.
As might be expected, the varieties of corn
are verv numerous. I shall only notice a few
of tliose that are most prominent
At the north, yellow varieties greatly pre-
dominate, while at the south, we find more
commonly the white, having seeds of superior
size. Many varieties are only designated by
the number of rows on the cob : there is the
eight-rowed white flint, the eight-rowed yel-
low flint, the six-rowed, the twelve-rowed,
(See. : some kinds even go as high as sixteen
rows, but in this case the seed is small, and
the cob very large in proportion.
Other kinds are named from the shape of
their seed. Tlius, a number of varieties of
gourd seed corn are in great repute at the
south and west. These have a remarkably
lar?e seed, lighter and more farinaceous than
the flint varieties generally cultivated at the
north, making also a whiter and more taste-
less meal.
A variety called the China tree com has
been highly spoken of at the south, but I
liave never seen iti It is said to produce a
\ct\- unusual amount of leaves, and is there-
fore valuable for fodder. The small Canada
com has been extensively introduced at the
north, but it is too diminutive a variety to
compete with others almost cquallv hardy
and early in ripening, and which are at the
same time far more productive : such are the
Button and the Brown.
The Dutton corn is extensively cultivated,
but seems, in many districts at least, to have
passed the acme of its popularity. Its cob is
verj' large, and to this is doubtless to be
ascribed a part of its present disfavor. These
large cobs are difficult to dry tlioroughly
when the com is stacked before husking, or
piled in the crib before shelling.
In bad seasons tins peculiarity prevents its ^
early drv'ing, and frequently causes it to
mould. I think the deterioration in this
variety is owing in a good degree to care-
lessness in the selection of seed, and to mix-
ture with inferior kinds. It is probable that
careful cultivation for a few years would
restore much of its original celebrity, as I
have visited many farms \diere it does not
seem to have lost ground at all.
A variety which has gained much favor in
some sections within the last few years, has
been called the Brown com, from the name
of its originator, a drmer on one of the
islands in Lake Winipissiogee. It was pro-
duced by careful cultivation in a high lati-
tude, and for successive years, of selected
seed from the common eight-rowed yellowcorn.
The butt ends of the cobs are small, and
the poiivts entirely covered with kernels. The
ears are from ten to thirteen inches in length,
the stalk medium size, and prolific. More
than a hundred bushels per acre have been
grown. From all tliat I have seen and heard
of this variety, I am inclined to tliink that we
have few that surpass it
The Oregon and the Baden varieties have
been cultivated with success at the soutli.
The Golden Sioux, the King Philip, and the
Yellow Dent, are northern vellow varieties.
The Rhode Island white flint and the Tus-
carora, are two of the few wliite kinds that
have found favor at the north. The Dutton
corn is said to be an improved variety of the
Golden Sioux.
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