mmi. ■'^j'/ V ■■'=. ■■•- , '}! -i-r ■ : v;?^ -sr>;a-s^??/.l^a%:;.»^^i;'s»^ow;''^;a2i^^' MASSACHUSETTS STATE COLLEGE I i~^^-~J — ' 4 THE EAEMEE'S MAGAZINE. VOLUME THE EORTY-EIFTH. THIRD SERIES. JANUARY TO JUNE, MDCCCLXXIV. LONDON rURLISHED BY ROGERSON AND TUXFORD, 265, STRAND. :.LVY BE ILVD BY ORDER THROUGH ALL BOOKSELLER?, LONDON FRINTEU BY WATSON AJfD HAZELL, 265, STRAND. INDEX. Agricultural Associations: — Formantine, 27 Kincardineshire, 495 Kingscote, 311, 357 Vale of Alford, 305 West Suffolk, 501, 517 Agricultural Chemistry, 526 Agricultural Children Act, 246 Agricultural Hall Company, 323 Agricultural Reports, 516, 539 Agricultural Returns, 100 Agricultural Societies: — Bath and West of England, 211, 312, 410 Boroughbridge, 177, 388 Highland, 11, 140, 346, 411, 504 New South Wales, 354 Royal Agricultural Society of England, 81, 121, 221, 323, 407, 476, 505, 552 Royal Agricultural Society of Ireland, 77 Agriculture in South Australia, 124 A Model Farm and Agreement, 387 Arbitration and Farmers, 433 A Shorthorn Ox (Description of Plate), 91 Ayrshire Cattle, 490 B. Ball and Sons' Prizs Plough (Description of Plate), 91 Barley : Its Cultivation and Taxation, 226 Beer-tax v. Malt-tax, 317, 321 Beet as a Farm Crop, 145 Bengal and its Census, 402 Blood-poisoning, 490 Breaking-up Muir Land, 302 Brewers' Licence Duties, 291 C. Capital and I^abour, 154 Cattle-breeding, 354, 439 Cattle Trade Reviews, 86, 182, 276, 467 Chambers of Agriculture : — Banbury, 236 Cambridgeshire and Isle of E4y, 368 Central, 75, 313, 447. 508 Cheshire, 37, 207, 321 Devonshire, 181, 390 East Suffolk, 1 1 7 Essex, 104 Gloucestershire, 42 Hampshire, 233, 487 Herefordshire, 418 Lancashire, 390 Leicestershire, 3 6 Norfolk, 80 Nottinghamshire, Scottish, 31 Shropshire, 212 South Wilts, 201 Staffordshire, 181 Surrey, 128, 345 390 Warwickshire, 139 Worcestershire, 181 Yorkshire, 390, 401 Christmas Club Meetings, 13 Cirencester College Club, 85 Comedy in Agriculture, 37 Commerce and Agriculture, 186 Compensation in Ireland, 172 Cornish Farming, 79 Corn Trade Case, 332 Cora Trade Reviews, 87, 182, 277, 373, 467, 533 Cottage Homes of England, 562 County Financial Boards, 260 County Franchise Extension, 103 Course of Cropping, 445 Critics at the Smithfield, 15 Crops of 1873, 95 D. Dairies in America, 144, 254, 324 Development of Agriculture, 364 Diseases of Lambs, 450 Diseases of Cattle, 531, 555 E. Emancipated Negroes, 341 English Labourers in Canada, 338 Experiments in Corn-growing, 426 F. Fairs, 276, 465 Farm Buildings, 21 Farmers' Clubs . — Ayrshire, 497 Ballarat, Victoria, 137 Blandford, 5 21 Botley, 246, 298, 359 Carmarthenshire, 197, 561 Central, 1-13, 186-196, 281, 370, 4G9 Cork, 453 Croydon, 23, 526 Dorchester, 153,240, 426 East Lothian, 25 Framlingham, 105, 229 Hexham, 172, 364 Inverness, 34 Ixworth, 133, 226 Kelso, 253 Lavenham, 216 Maidstone, 450, 523 Manchester, 559 Midland, 107, 243, 519 Morayshire, 38, 56 1 Newcastle, 302, 412 Penrith, 410, 439 Smithfield, 225 Staindrop, 21, 557 Stowmarket, 245, 348, 4S1 West Cumberlant), 443 Wester Ross, 445 Winfrith, 17, 351, 540 n Field Experiments, 157-167 Food Adulteration, 23, 305 Foxes and Farmers, 454 French Trade since the War, 16 Friendly Societies, 532 Future of Farming, 167 G. Game-Laws, 128, 430, 537 Gardeners, 52o Geology in Agriculture, 109 Grain Currencies, 88, 184, 27S Grasses and Fodder Plants in Australia, 419 Green Crop and Fallow, 257 Guano, 553 Guardians' Duties, 132 H. Haras Institutions, 289 Herds and Flocks of South Devon, 98 Highway Legislation, 429 Hop-pickers, 140 Hornchurch Sewage Farms, 399 Horse Breeding, 27 Horses, 240 Horses' Feet, 245 Household Suffrage, 554 I. Improvement of Land, 395 Impurities in Cattle Food, 481 Indian Corn, 92 Irish Shorthorns, 436 Irrigation, 443 J. Japanese Agriculture, 274 John Smith's Shanty, 333 INDEX, Kentish Farming, 538 K. L, Labourers, 1,416, 497, 500, 536 Labourers' Homes, 375, 386 Lady Flora, 279 Land Laws and Lawyers, 91 Landlord and Tenant, 34, 116, 207, 358 Land Questions, 216, 469, 476 Land Transfer in Ireland, 120 Law of Farm Buildings, 424 Leases v. Tenant-Right, 38 Le Bon (Description of Plate), 409 List of Shows, 275 Local Business and Government Officers ,487 Local Taxation, 201, 412 Lock-out in Cambridgeshire, 434 Lock-out in Lincolnshire, 553 London Cattle Markets, 480 Lord Bateman's Agreement, 250 Lord Shaftesbury on the Labourers, 1 19 M. Malt-Tax Repeal, 368 Malt Trade Case, 372 Management of Stock, 348 Meetings of the Half-year: — Abingdon, 71 Biggai', 345 Birmingham, 65, 342 Dublin, 455 Falkirk, 345 Glasgow, 345 Manchester, 542 Oakham, 70 Perth, 367 Rugby, 74 Smithfield Club, 50, 65 Stirling, 345 York, 72 Michigan Farming, 263 Milk Analysis, 49 1 Milk — Its Supply and its Adulteration, 280 Modern Farmers, 466 Moles, 97 Monday's Market, 125 Murray's Plough (Description of Plate), 279 National Grange in the United States, 327 Nitrogen, 523 O. Obituary : — Mr, Robert Overman, 356 Occasional Notes, 152, 200, 239, 264, 294, 304, 504,514 Old Smithfield, 432 " On Mark-Lane," 104 Ordinaries for Farmers, 274 Organic Matters and the Soil, 391 Owners of Land in Scotland, 496 P. Parasites, 17 Parliament and the Farmers, 250 Peruvian Gnano, 14 Picturesque Cottages, 541 Policy of Farmers, 92 Politics and Farmers' Clubs, 0^\ 376 Porcine Intelligence, 115 Poultry at the Crystal Palace, 26 Poultry Breeding, 107 Potato Culture, 243, 403, 519 Potatoes for Exhibition, 1 96 Potatoes — Their Diseases, 259, 295 Presentations : — Mr. Hope, 85 Mr. Lovell, l7l Mr. Mechi, 136 Price of Horses, 559 Prizes for Labourers, 180 Progress in Agriculture, 232 R. Rabbits and Farmers, 454, 484, 539 Rates and Rents, 151 Restrictive Clauses in Leases, 253 Eoyal Agricultura. Benevolent Institution, 16 Saddlery and Harness, 572 . Sale of Cows on Warranty, 370 INDEX. Ill Sale of Scotch Polled Stock, 549 Sainfaiii and Clover, 54 0 Scarcity of Horses, 359 Science and Agriculture, 557 Seed Corn, 133 Sensation (Description of Plate), 1 Sheep Mauapement : B3' the Northern Farmer, 336, 394, 485 Sheep Rearing, 299, 351, 529 Sheep Sales; 273 Shorthorn Breeding, 3S8 Shorthorn Breeding in the United States, 32S Shorthorn Sales: — Aylesbury, 543 Beaumont Grange, 4G3 Beckintrbam Hall, 54G Bingley Hall, 342 Brampton, 459 Bran.isby, 461 Burghley Park, 45S Churchill Heath, 543 Coleby Hall, 54 4 Eastwick Park, 550 EiJenhani, 4Gl Hargrave, 547 Langton, 462 Ledbury, 273 Little Barton, 551 Middle Farm, 460 Northern Sale List, 464 Sittyton, 462 "West Wiatting, 545 Shorthorns at Siddington, 2u3 Shorthorns in America, 142 Sidney on the Horse, 258, 337 Smithfield of Old, 432 Smithfield Shon- Champion Pen of Sheep (Description of Plate), 185 Smithfield Shovr Cup Pen of Pigs (Description of Plate), 375 Soils — Light and Heavy, 105 State of Agriculture, 45 " Summer Leaze" and "After Grass," 200 Sutton and Sons' Seed Establishment (Descrip- tion of Plate), 1 T. Taxes on Food, 293 Temperature of England, 535 Tenant-RiKht, 42, 118, 137, 177, 197, 212,232, 239, 259, 311, 393, 401, 521, 561 Thrashing Machine Accidents, SO Thrift as^the Out-door Relief Test, 26-3 Turf as Manure, 126 Turkish Farming, 404 Two Rabbits, or Two Pounds per Acre, 288 Two-year-old Beef, 357 V. Victoria : Government Prize Farms, 330 Votes of Censure, 515 W. War and the Farmer, 401 Waste Lands in Ireland, 41 Weather-wise, 486 Weeds and their Extirpation, 229 i THE EMBELLISHMENTS Sensation : A Prize Carfc Mare Sutton and Sons' Seed Establishment A Shorthoin Ox Ball and Sons' Prize Plough Sunithfield Show Champion Pen of Sheep Lady Flora Murray and Co.'s Double Plough . Smithfitld Show Cup Pen of Pigs . Le Bon . , . Page 1 1 91 91 135 279 279 375 469 y : No. 1, Vol. XLV.] JANUARY, 1874. [Third SmuEs. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, AND MONTHLY JOURNAL J Of THE ACIEICULTUEAL INTEEEST. IBelruatetr TO THE FARMERS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM. LONDON : PUBLISHED BYROGERSON AND TUXFORD, 265, STRAND. PRICE TWO SHILLINGS. WATSON AND HAZBLL,] [PRINTERS, 866, STRAND. '••^MBWW i'n*Jiii mn |''»WWP— P SIX MEDALS AWARDED TO JAMES GIBBS & COMPANY, SOLE MANUFACTUKEES OF THE PATENT AMMONIA-FIKED GUANO- Has produced equally as good results as the uufixed Guauo, and is 30s. per ton cheaper. Recommended for all crops for whicli Guano is used, and is found superior to it for Potatoes, Mangold, Beet Root, &c. In districts ^vhere the rain-fall is above an average, we recommend it for turnips. It is not onlj^ cheaper, but also much more effective than Nitrate of Soda, as Top Dressing, and its effects are more lasting, as may be seen by the after Crops. Patent Ammoniated Phosphate. Dissolved Bones, Superphosphate of Lime. Bone Manure for TurniDs. Blood Manure for Roots. Blood Manure for Corn. Special Manures for Manq^old, Barley, Grass, and Potatoes. JAMES GIBBS & COMPANY have turned their attention specially to the manufactiu'e of these Mamircf-', which contain all the elements necessary to promote the growth of Potato and Turnip crops. The results have given universal satisfaction, and prove the Manures to be the cheapest yet sold. The " condition " of the above is made a matter of special care. They are all sifted before delivery, to ensure theii' being fit for the dry or water-drill. VITRIOL AND MANURE WORKS, VICTORIA DOCKS, LONDOIT, E., AND CATTEDOWN, PLYMOUTH. OFFICES — 16, MARK LANE, E. C, THE ROYAL FARMERS' INSURANCE COMPANY, 3, NORFOLK STREET, STRAND, LONDON, W.O. CAPITAL. — Persons insured by this Company have the security of an extensive and wealthy proprietary as well as an ample Capital always applicable to the payment of claims without delay. LIFE DEPARTMENT. — BONUS. — Insurers of the participating class wUl be entitled to four-fifths of the profits. ASSIGrNMENrS. — The Company grant Policies payable to the Registered Holders, whereby much expense and inconvenience are prevented. Stamp Duty paid by the OflSce. FIRE DEPARTMENT, - 1st Class — Not Hazardous Is. 6d. per Cent. 2nd Class — Hazardous 2s. 6d. „ 3rd Class — Doubly Hazardous 4s. 6d. „ BUILDINGS and MERCANTILE Property of eveiy description in Public or Private Warehouses. — Distillers, Steam Engines, Goods in Boats or Canals, Ships in Port or Harbour, &c. &c., are Insured in this Office at moderate rates. SPECIAL RISKS. — At such rates as may be considered reasonable. PARMINO STOCK. — 5s. per cent., with liberty to use a Steam Thrashing Machine without extra charge. Nearly FIVE MILLIONS Insured in this Office. SEVEN YEARS' INSURANCES may be effected on payment of Six Years' Premium only. RENT. — The Loss on Rent while Buildings remain untenantable through fire may be provided against. HAIL DEPARTMENT.— (Crops and Glass.) Policies to protect parties from Loss by the destniction of Growing Crops or Glass, by Hail, are granted on Moderate Terms. LOSSES. — Prompt and'liberal settlement. AGENTS WANTED. Apply to JOHN SHARP, Esq., Secretary. X ■.^h%VM were hoeing out turnips, and they did it very well, and with a cer- tain amount of dexterity and manly pride, thus setting a most excellent example. But m'c found at the end of the field a large jug of beer, which we were told had bad to be replenished several times in the course of the day (laugliter). We may do with less labour. 1 have myself, witli 400 acres of land this year, notwithstanding the advance of wages, manage to shorten my labour account by £100,* and those who have tried agricultural labour find that it is not the excessive toil that many would make us believe. Before I depart from this sub- ject, I would enter my protest against the conduct of certain * I have been asked to state publicly how I saved tlie £100. Simply, by not doing the work. Hedpres are un- ti iminod, roads unscraped, stones ungatherwl, aod^H sorts of neat fai-ni .loljs arc leff und'inc, A3 THE FAKMER'S MAGAZINE. landlords wlio liave come down to our agricultural meetings in our rural districts and given the farmers what they call a bit of their mind. Now I will give them a bit of my mind (laughter). From what a safe and elevated position do these gentlemen look on this question ? They have let their farms at full rents, probably on long leases. They or their ancestors have pulled down the cottages on the farms and driven the labourers into the adjoining parishes. They do not seem to realise the fact, that if we make an ad- vance of no more than a shilling a-week, that would be equal to an increased rent of some 2s. or 2s. 6d. an acre. They say " Oh, look cheerful ! pay your men better." Well, it is uncom- monly easy to be generous with other people's money (laugh- ter). It is all very well to curry popularity vv'ith a class who may liave the franchise soon ; and I would say further, that it is an easy way of playing the part of the good Samaritan without the expenditure of the oil and of the two-pence (cheers and laughter). We now come to the poor-law, and I contend that the re- lations of the agricultural labourer with the poor-laws re- quire revision. I am obliged to trouble you with a little bit of history, not for the purpose of trying to weary you, but many people seem to think that what has been must be for ever, and they fancy that the present administration of the poor- law as we have it, is a thing that cannot be improved. Now, previous to the Reformation the poor were supported entirely by charity and by the church, and as the church then pos- sessed one-third of the land I think they were in a position to support the poor. But on the abolition of the laonasteries the revenues passed into private hands ; the poor then began to beg, and the clergy were instructed to collect alms and to incite their parishioners to the giving of alms. But the alms did not come in, and they passed a compulsory Alms Act. You will say that is a contradiction, but I do not think it is more contradictory than a celebrated bill we have before Par- liament called the Permissive Prohibitory Bill. Well, in the year 1600, the celebrated Act of Elizabeth was passed, on which our poor-law is founded. That Act enacted that every man was to contribute in the parish according to his ability. This Act lasted 122 years, I believe without any amendment, and under it out-door relief might be given, but every one was to work for it. Then we had a system which lasted 73 years, when a bill brought in by Sir Edward KnatchbuU was passed authorising the purchase or hire of workhouses to keep, maintain, and employ every poor person, those who refused to go there having no relief at all. We then came to the disas- trous period of our poor-law, which lasted 39 years. In 1795, Sir William Young's Act was passed. This was followed by Gilbert's and by East's Acts in subsequent years, by which it was provided that the justices and the parishioners should give relief to poor persons in their houses. Forty years afterward we had what was termed then and is now termed still, the New Poor-law, by which relief to able-bodied la- bourers was abolished. Now, just mark the peculiar effect these Acts had on the expenditure for the relief of the poor. A hundred years ago the poor-rates amounted to £700,000 a- year. Thirty years afterwards, when they began to give out- door relief it wss i'2,000,000. In fifteen years afterwards it had risen to £8,000,000. In 1831:, you passed the New poor- Jaw and abolished out-door relief, and it dropped in three years to £4,000,000. You then began your lax and indiscriminate administration of the law, and what was the result ? Why, in 1868 the expenditure had risen to £7,500,000 (Hear, hear). Now the case of the peasant under the old poor-law was certainly a most wretched and degraded one. They were all paupers. A man had really to sell all he had before he could get employment, because the labourer generally had his wages supplemented by the rates. He w*s bound to his parish ; he seldom had continuous work ; his wages were very low, and if he had any idea of saving, why he could not, for everything was against him. Young unmarried men were not paid iu the same ratio as married men, and the more children a la- bourer had the more relief would he or his master get from the parish. I am quite ready to admit that the case of the manufacturing operative was not much better, for the weaver then did not get more than nine shillings a week, and there were many iu my district who I am told did not earn more than seven shillings or eight shillings a week, and they were often out of employment. Now, contrast that with the present condition of the labourer. The law of settlement is abol- ished ; he may go wherever he pleases ; he may emigrate to foreign countries, or he may go to large towns in the North and find two or three masters begging him to take employment. But still the indiscriminate administration of out-door relief has kept him in a state of semi-pauperism, and he looks upon the union as a sort of benefit club, and when he is sick he goes there. Almost the last time I was at our board of guardians a man who was the local secretary of one of these unions hurt his leg on the Monday and he applied to the relieving officer on the Tuesday, and the case came before the board. I ventured respectfully to suggest that I thought it was a premature application, and the case was passed over. On the following Saturday night there was a meeting of the labourers' union, and the guardians were one and all con- demned for depriving the poor man of his rights, and they unanimously voted this poor sufferer the sum of twelve shillings as compensation for the bad treatment of the board (laughter). Then a good many la- bourers fancy that when they are sixty years old they can look to the Poor-law Union for a pension. And I must say that the way in which we administer the poor-law does not do much for the providence of the people, but most certainly favours the improvident. The consequence is that the wages, of the young men especially, are all spent, and you have improvident early marriages, and 1 do not doubt that even at the present moment, notwithstanding the comparatively large amount of wages which he receives, the labourer with a large young family is not very well off. Neither is a curate at £100 a year, nor a clerk at £50. When you have your quiver full your pocket is generally empty (Hear, hear, and laughter). We can- not go on paying higher wages and higher rates. You must apply the house test ; and you may do it with very great advantage not only to yourselves but to the labourers. See what is done in the Atcham Union ! And I have here the report of the Brixworth Union, published in the last report of the Poor-law Board. I see my lion, friend the member for Leicestershire here, and I will give you one or two of the recommendations they put forth as the principles to guide the guardians in the ad- ministration of relief. And here I would say that I think it a very good idea indeed to have some fixed principles to go upon, and not to let your private interest or your charity or your Christian benevolence come into play so much wlu-n you are at the board of guardians. They recommend that u" outdoor relief be granted in any of the following cases : To non-residents ; to wives deserted by their husbands ; to wives or families of convicted prisoners ; to single women with ilk- gitimate childien ; to able-bodied widows with one child oniy ; THE FAEMERS MAGAZINE. to wives or families of militia men doing duty ; to persons having relatives capable of maintaining them (I should like to liiid out who those persons are ; I could never lind them) ; and their last recomniciulation is, that you should not give relief to persons living in cottages or premises reported by the sanitary officer as unfavourable to health. And the report goes on to say : " As to the argument wiiich, perhaps, may be urged that they are recommending a very hard course for the board to adopt, they would reply (in the words of Mr. Wodehouse, one of tile poor-law inspectors), that guardians should remember that tliey are not dispensers of charity, but trustees of a fund compulsorily levied and falling very heavily upon those per. sons whose condition is but little removed above those to whose relief they are compelled to contribute, that a prodigal system of out-door relief will in the long run defeat the object which they have in view, and increase the misery they wish to alleviate. And further, that every case in which out- door relief is granted destroys the last feeling of independence which may yet remain in the mind of the applicant, whilst it lias a direct tendency to encourage others to apply." The poor-law is no doubt a very good thing indeed to prevent a revolution. It is a great English charter that no man in England need starve ; but I think it is a still sounder maxim, and one for which we have a higher authority, " if a man work not, neither should he eat." By work I mean not only providing for the wants of the day, but also for those changes and chances in this mortal life to which we may be subject. I am told that in Germany labourers are bound to provide for sickness and old age, and that a certain amount of their wages are stopped for this purpose, and in this country that applies to the police, railway servants, and a portion of the Government officials who are mulcted in the same way, and I hope that in an indirect manner the agricultural labourer will in the course of years be forced to do the same. Now, with regard to emigration, I will not run over the different schemes which have failed. Those to foreign countries, and particularly to South America, have been most disastrous. There were two families who went from my neighbourhood ; one of them has never been heard of since they went, but the wife of the other labourer has written home in the greatest poverty and distress, hoping and wishing that they might have the means of returning to this country. She adds, in a post- script, " rum is a penny a glass, and there is enough for all" (laughter). My idea is that New Zealand and Australia are the best countries for a man to emigrate to, but it is a long bit of water that separates us from those colonies. When Mr. Arch went to Canada I was glad to hear it, because I have said for years that it is desirable to stem the tide of emigration that pours into the United States ; but as three-fourths of the people who go there from this country are Irishmen, that is the way of accounting for it, for wiien you consider that some of the necessaries of life are 100 per cent, dearer there than they are here, and that the commer- cial panic they have just got rid of is attributed to the extra- ordinary wages they have been paying there (the wages are much lower now), I cannot understand why the tide of emi- gration still flows to the United States. But Mr. Arch went to Canada. You know that in America they have line au" tumus. You have heard of the Indian summers : lie wa** there then ; but he saw nothing of the five months' winter He talked when he was there as if he did not like the coun- try, and now that he has come back he seems as if he were desirous of returning. Mr. Clayden, his secretary, thinks emigration should be made easy, and that people should go to Canada as to the promised land, where they are to inhabit houses that they did not build. But I should like to recal to the meeting what Mr. Clayden wrote home when he was there. Of course, I cannot understand how it is these gentlemen tell two different tales. Here is one of the impressions he had of the labourers : " Anything more desolate than tha'' wild tract through the forest, I cannot conceive- The hundred acres of land given to settlers are a sort of white elephant to the unfortunate recipients. The donation drags them down to the very verge of barbarism. The truth Is none but the hardiest and most persevering men can do any good in these wild regions, and tiiey must lay their account for years of ' roughing it.' I am driven to the conclusion that if men in England were to work as hard, and to live as hard, and to abstain from strong drink, as they do, and must do, to get on abroad, very few of them would need to leave their old homes. Those poor villagers of my acquaintance in Berkshire, Oxfordshire, and Wiltshire are rich by com- parison with many of these hundreds of acres. They have social comforts and advantages which I look in vain for among the scattered shanties of these Canadian forests. The truth is that the voluntary hardships of Canadian settlers are far greater than any of the voluntary ones that are imposed on the English labourer." Then he says : " The comfortable, jolly-faced farmers of old England need not grudge these Cana- dian farmers their rent-free domains. Verily, there are worse things than rent-audits. I have seen more haggard-faced farmers since I have been in Canada than I have during a forty years' residence in rural districts at home. And never have I seen during the same period such miserable-looking, lank and hopeless labourers as the few whom I have seen i^ the service of these terrible taskmasters." There is no doubt that in new countries there are many natural advantages enabling the labourer to rise. Some may become, as you see, landowners, which is a very grand sounding thing in this old country, but perhaps there is not so highly appreciated. But I am told that when he becomes a landowner he has to work harder than he did when he was a labourer ; and perhaps it is there just what Mr. Charles Howard said of a small farmer in England, that if he wishes to get on he must do the work of two labourers, and live on the expenditure of one. But there are in England many ways of investing. You have your Post-office savings' banks and your friendly societies, and building societies, and I contend that any young labourer in the present day may, if he likes, have his own cottage. Take a young man from seventeen years of age to twenty-seven. You will say, I am (juite sure that, at the present rate of wages, any young man could save three shillings a week, which, in ten years and three months, at four per cent, compound interest, would come to £100, and there are a good many sonud societies that would give him a bonus of ten per cent, upon that. And with that capital, he could buy a cottage or two acres of arable laud, if he thought proper. Then if you come to talk of benefit societies and clubs, surely it is the duty of every farmer now to take more interest in them, and see that they are sound and reliable. They are often constituted on the idea that the sick pay will bo supplemented by parisii relief. 1 say to the farmers, join them, not for the purpose of meddling with their fun and frolic wliicli they have oucc a year, but to see that they are founded on just and rational principles. And I say, do not let the societies become too large. We are suffering iu agri- cultural districts by these societies being extended to great towns. The sick clubs are perfectly sound in principle, but the rate of payment in the towns is not sullicient to compen- sate for the continued amount of sick pay in cities and great towns. 1 say this most advisedly, that you should not have a 6 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. Society larger than your county. And then tlicre is just one other point on the subject of these frieuilly societies from which T tliink there is a great national danger, and that is, some of these trades' unions being also ^reat friendly societies. What are they doing? They put the whole of your contributions into hodge podge. You do not say what portion of it should.go to the sick society, and what portion is for tlie purpose of defending the interests of the trade, and the consequence is that you may have the whole of the money expended in promoting strikes, and leave the members in their old age thoroughly destitute. Friendly societies have not formed yet a portion of the programme of the Agricultural Labourers' Union, but we are promised that they shall be so in a very short time. There is one point that I would glance at brielly, and this is the Education Question. It may be timt in former days the labourers have been under- educated. In years to come we may be quite sure that they will be over educated ; at all events, that is my opinion. You may, perhaps, say to me, " Why, then, did you help to pass the Agricultural Cliildren's Act?" I will tell you : Parlia- ment had said that the children of the country should be edu- cated, and I wished it to be done in the agricultural districts in the cheapest and best way, and at the least possible incon- venience to the farmers. I also wished to protect them from that bugbear of mine, the Education Rate. For the farmer to pay a rate for education is exactly the reverse of his income. You demand your sharp boys not for the farm but for the towns, and if a boy on a farm is a clever boy, in a short time he goes otf to augment the class of poor clerks — people who live by their heads instead of their hands. I say that it is our duty — we of the middle class — to bring up some of onr sons as skilled artisans rather than lean so much to poor gentility (cheers), and making them miserably paid clerks, and people of that sort — I say we ouglit to try and restore the balance somehow (Hear, hear). Tliere is one other question which I will, with the permission of the meeting, touch upon. It is a dangerous one, but I do not think I should be doing right unless I said something about it — I mean tlie franchise. I am not going to talk about it politically, I am not 'going to say whether every seven years this constitution of ours wants to be reformed or amended, but I put it to you as a not improbable thing that the agricultural labourer Mill receive the franchise. We farmers have had the franchise forty years, and I am the only English tenant farmer in the House of Commons now. For these forty years, I do not hesitate to say, no act of Par- liament has been passed in favour of the farmers (Hear, hear). We have now a householders' parliament. Tlie householders have sent representatives there who have increased the rates considerably, and they have not yet sent one working man there. Suppose the agricultural labourer has a vote, and sends representatives of his special interest ? Well, they may, per- haps, alter the Master and Servants Act, they may alter the legislation in reference to trades' unions ; but, aa farmers, we are told that they will help us to get a Tenant-Right Act, and that they will abolish the Game-laws for us. I do not doubt but that they will get rid of the Malt-tax (laughter) ; but, I would ask youthis. Is it atall likely that the material prosperity of the labourer will be improved, that his condition will be elevated, and that additionsjwill be made to his'horae comforts ? And when Mr. Arch says that he, with his 600,000 labourers, will take possession of Palace Yard, and knock for admission at the door of Parliament, I do not think that such tall talk is at all likely to advance his cause (Hear, hear). I am not one of those who think that higher wages will in the ^eud be spent badly. I believe it is a common thing that when people have had short commons, and then obtain plenty, they will in- dulge themselves a little. ] was told by the keeper of a beershop in an adjoining parishthatsincethedaysof strikes and unions he had drawn one barrel of beer extra in a week. But I do not believe that the working classes — especially those of a rural po- pulation— are either "venal, drunken or corrupt." They are not at all more drunken than the upper and middle classes were 50 years ago. We do not consume now more than two bushels of malt to the population per annum, and 100 years ago we consumed four bushels and a-half. And when we have paid for the whole of the drink consumed by the population it is only 2d. per head per day for the population. I believe on the other hand tliat the sound sense of the agricultural labourer will lead him in the end to spend his money well, and to increase liis substantial comforts. He may ask for better cottages, and he has a right to have them (Hear, hear), and in ray opinion he will become fairly provident ; but you must not expect the English labourer to save money like the French peasant (Hear, hear). It is as easy for the Celtic or the Gallic peasant to save money as for a fish to swim, but it is exactly the contrary in the case of an Anglo-Saxon. Either here or in America if he earns good wages he is sure to spend them liberally, lie is a capital customer to the merchant and trader, and above all to the farmer, I cannot, however, go quite to tlie length of the excellent writer of this little book — " The Agricultural Labourer, by a Farmer's Sou," when lie says, " Farmers have nothing to fear in a pecuniary point of view from the movement now going on among the agricultural labourers. Tiiey cannot be losers by it. They may be the first sufferers, and some of them may be ruined. They may suffer for a time, but in the long run they cannot suffer from it. If labour is made more costly other people must pay for it." That is exactly the same argument as that which was put forward in the time of the cattle plague, but the fact that some persons are now getting lOd. a pound for their becl is no consolation to the Cheshire farmers who were ruined by that visitation (Hear, hear). Allow me to testify most heartily to the good conduct of the men on strike (cheers). I must say that, if I contrast that conduct with that of the Luddites, in 1830, when, as I am told, they went to the farms and broke machines, or contrast it with the conduct of the Sheffield trades' unionists. They may be a little disagree- able to an unpopular farmer ; some may write silly letters to newspapers, and a few women may make foolish menaces — ■ women will talk foolishly ; but these are isolated cases, and, taken as a rule, though their conduct has been defiant and sulky, on the other hand, it has been quiet, orderly, and peaceful. And this is the more to be won- dered at when we consider the advice their leaders have given them. I have read articles in the newspapers which were revolutionary, incendiary, and infidel, and the abuse they have heaped upon the poor unfortunate farmers, if one-tenth of it was true, would crush them to earth. But tliey have overdone it, and it reminds one of a certain angry old Pope : He cursed him living, he cursed him dying ! Never was heard such a terrible curse ! But what gave rise to no little surprise, Nobody seem'd one penny the worse. The agitators will not seek reason, they will not hear argument ; and when there was a conference proposed in the West of Eng- land the first question they decided that should be discussed was "To whom does tfee land of England really belong?" Well now the miners are tolerably advanced in their views, but I never heard that the first question they discussed at their meeting! was " To whom does the mines of England belong P" and considering the enormous prices we have had to pay for coal in the last few months I think they would have been rather more excusable in putting such a question. It is wonderful the amount of outside assistance this movement has evoked. Why there is that great and kind man, Mr. Samuel Morley, who gave them £500, and he told me that lie gave it for the purpose of assisting poor labourers to mi- grate to places where they might better their condition. Whether the money was so expended he is the best judge. I agree with a writer who says " No man of sense tliinks the peasant a criminal because he asks for higher wages ; but, on the other hand, I cannot see why he should be praised for the demand as if he were doing something specially heroic. A wish for more pay is common and legitimate, but not meri- torious or holy. There is no sacred, natural, or ordained rate ot wages. The question is one of business, not of senti- ment. The price of labour is as much a purely economical question as the price of eggs." Everybody thinks that strikes are all very well unless they happen to interfere with their 3wn business. The press of Loudon who supported tlie abourers' movement the moment tiiere was a threatened .strike among the bakers and the gas-stokers were the first to denounce it. They did not care two straws whether the corn rotted in the fields and the bread was spoiled there, but they said a combination existing which would starve London, and deprive it of its bread, and put it in darkness for even a few hours must be resisted if necessary by some new enactment. And now I have really done. I thank you most cordially for the kind and patient attention you have given to my longa 1 1 rambling address. You may say to me, " What definite con- THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. elusion have jou arrived at ?" Well, we do not pass resolu- tions in this room — I beg your pardon, we do not pass resolu- tions of this Club, happily ; therefore, I do not want to put my sentiments, my experience, and my feelings in the shape of a resolution. But I have tried honestly to put the case fairly before you, and to balance interests as well as I could. I leave you to draw your own conclusions. Tliere are some gentlemen who fondly fancy that the worst is past. I thought so a little time ago, but I do not now. I find that the or- ganization is so great, and that the leaders of it are so ex- ceedingly irate, that I fear mischief must eventually come of it. But on tlie other hand, I say to you, that if there should be a return of confidence on the part of the agricultural la- bourers, do not in any way repel it, but be considerate and kind. Maice allowances for men who have been so wrongly advised and so cruelly deceived. I am confident on this point, that with the great majority of agricultural labourers a treat- ment that shall be courteous, and at the same time firm ; friendly, but not fa niliar, charitable without cant and con- descension, will command their trust and respect (cheers). But there is a minority, an increasing minority, but still I am happy to say only a fraction of the agricultural labourers to whom this old adage will apply : Tender handed stroke a nettle, And it stings you for your pains ; Grasp it like a man of mettle, And it soft as silk remains. 'Tis the case with common natures, Treat them kindly, they rebel ; But be rough as nutmeg-graters, And the rogues obey you well, i— (loud cheers). Mr. Pell, M.P., said he rose to say a few words on the sub- ject which had been so ably introduced by his friend Mr. Read. He would first allude to what his friend had said about the condition of the agricultural labourer during the last ten or twelve years. He could fully endorse what fell from him on that point. Speaking from his own experience as an occupier of land in the Midland district, he said without hesitation that the rise of wages before this agitation commenced was as remarkable as, if not more remarkable than that wliich had occurred since (Hear, hear). He agreed with Mr. Read that the increase was not to be attributed solely to the dictation or advice of those who thought it their duty to try and better, as they phrased it, the condition of the agricultural labourers. He also agreed with Mr. Read in regard to the early proceedings of the Labourers' Union. Having been present at the meeting at St. James's Hall to which Mr. Read alluded, lie testified from observation that the men who were then taking a leading part in the organization of the Union had departed very materially from the principles which they enun- ciated at that time. A friend of his, who was then in London, had told him that not long ago a number of labourers were obtained by him from the South for some ironworks in the North of England, the increase of wages being much more than equivalent to the increased cost of living. Last spring, there being a strike among the people of his district, he sent an agent down to the West of England, to the district with which Canon Brereton was connected, to obtain men. The wages of labourers there being ten or eleven shillings a week, he uaturally expected to obtain men from that over-peopled district ; but he found himself anticipated by the emissaries of the Union, who persuailed the agricultural labourers not to go to the North, where they were wanted, and where wages were double what they were receiving (Hear, hear). That was cer- tainly contrary to the principles which were laid down when the organization was started. He was sure that none of those present were so unreasonable as to wish to check the free in- terchange of labour between one part of England and another, or to oppose the somewhat speculative ambition of the labourer who wished to be better otT. He believed he had Union men on his own farm, indeed lie knew he had, but lie did not concern himself very much as to who were Union men and who were not, provided they adliered to the ordinary rules whicli were laid down, with decent civility and in a fair manner, and were willing to assist when they were wanted, instead of following tliat nonsensical rubbish which assumed that cows would al- ways calve at a certain time and corn would always ripen at the same period, matters which of course farmers could not control. As to the rate of wages, if labourers lived in a district where within two hours they could transport themselves by railway to a place where they could get five or six shillings a week more than they were receiving, no combination of farmers could keep them where they were, nor was any induce- ment on the part of a Union necessary to make them remove. What farmers ought to do was, he tliought, to show their labourers that if they were to be independent, they must be independent at all points,aud that it was vain for them to expect as a matter of right all that they had been receiving in the form of indiscriminate charity and assistance, whieh would not be good either for the community or for themselves. Mr. Read had referred to his (Mr. Pell's) experience as a member of the Board of Guardians of the Brixworth Union. He had before expressed the opinion that in districts were charity was very freely given, labourers, instead of being better off, were much worse olf than in other districts. The effect of that state of things was to attract the poor to the neighbourhood. There were great houses, perliaps, which were in the habit of pensioning off the old, the result was that the old stuck to the spot in the hope of obtaining such assistance ; while the young, whom farmers did not want to leave, went away. An unusual number of old, imbecile, and half-worn-out people who were not fit to cultivate the land remained in such places. Wages were in consequence lower than in other places, and it often happened that the recipients of the wages discounted them long before they received them. And what was true with regard to voluntary charity was also true with regard to enforced and regulated charity — in other words, the relief administered under the poor-law. He would like to tell the employers of labour, whom he was glad to see present in such large numbers, the result of the application of the principles as set forth in the report quoted by Mr. Read, which he advocated in his own union. He would not dwell on the money part of the question, because that was really not to be thought of so much as the improvement of the people, which was sure indeed to be followed by economy. They had reduced the pauperism exactly one-third in seven months. The effect of the course pursued was in fact most striking. The greatest cures had been wrought. Palpitations of the heart, which had resisted all the skill of tlie physician, backed by the care of the squire and his wife, had suddenly ceased, and some of the sufferers had been able to earn 2s. 6d. a-day in getting iron stone (laughter). The comparatively blind had been able to see much better than they used to do. And old people, finding that they would otherwise have to go to their relatives and children, were getting good wages (Hear, hear). As regarded benefit clubs, many persons seemed to think that they were the things to help the labourer out of all his difticulties. He did not believe they would, unless they were very good. No club would be really efticient if it made only a half-provision for its members. One of the first rules of some clubs was that when a man became ill an application should first be made to the poor-law guardians, and that if he could not get anything from them he should come to.the club. That was a positive inducement to the managers of clubs not to make an adequate provision for the members, and so long as clubs were subsidised out of the poor-rates they were not likely to be eflicient. Then,'with regard to medical assistance, he had found that the indiscriminate giving of medi- cal orders from the union had produced a most injurious effect upon the club and upon individual members requiring assis- tance. He thought Blr. Read was quite riglit in linking toge- ther the agricultural labourer and tlie poor-law. He (Mr. Pell) did not wish to see any harsh administration of the poor-law, but he felt certain lliat upon a wise and proper ad ministration of it depended in a great degree the future of the agricultural labourers (Hear, hear). Canon BKERJiTON (Norfolk) wished first to correct a mistake made by Mr. Pell, who had mentioned liis name in speaking of the West of England. Jlr. Pell said he begged the reverend gentleman's pardon, he meant Canon Girdlestone (laughter). Canon Breueton said he should be very sorry if any gen- tleman in that room went away with a wrong impression on that point. He had been much longer resident in North Devon than Canon Girdlestone had, having been tliere nearly twenty years, and though he knew very well that there was a great deal there which admitted of improvement in the con- dition of the labourer as well as in that of the farmer, yet he had found that an offer of 12s. a-week did not draw away many I labourers while he lived tliere, the real value of the wages 8 THE FAEMEK'S MAGAZINE. and of what was received m addition being at least tliat amount (Hear, hear). In his opinion the farmers of that part of the country were very much maligned by the supposition that tliey paid only 7s. (Hear, hear). In the parish where he resided, and for some distance round, a large part of the farm labour was done by relatives of the occupier, who had a family interest in tlie matter, and the average amount of weekly wages did not at all represent the real value of labour in that district. In the census of 18(51 it was remarked by the Registrar-General that the great diminution of the population observable in the parish of Ilalberton before Canon Girdlestone resided there, was owing to the fact that there had been a con- siderable emigration, and that being the case it was clear that the farmers there must have been unable to tyrannise over labourers or force their own prices upon them in the manner represented (Hear, hear). With regard to the administration of the poor- law and beuelit clubs, it seemed to him that they ouglit to reflect upon what Mr. Pell had said about a stricter administration of the poor-law having in his union reduced the cost by one- third. Mr. Pell : I said it would reduce the pauperism by one- third. Canon Breretox continued : Mr. Read lemarked that, owing partly to a lax administration of poor-law relief the rates amounted to something like eight millions. Now, supposing that by a strict administration of the law the permament rates were reduced by three millions, the question would arise, Who was to receive that? If £3,000,000 of the permanent poor- rate should ever cease to be paid, the landlords would thus gain three millions a-year, which represented a capital of £100,000,000, and the labourers were aware of that. The labourers believed that they had a claim upon their parishes, and he should like to see whether some of that claim could not be converted into something for tlie benefit clubs. If those clubs had £100,000,000 at their back, they might become all that could be wished ; and he for one did not see how anyone could suffer from that. Of course no one should receive assistance from a club who was not really sick or aged ; but he thought that if a labourer were provident he should also receive the value of what was in one sense his inheritance in this great country, viz., a reserve fund for the sick and destitute. The property of this country had been charged from time immemorial with provision for the sick, the aged, and tlie destitute, and what he desired was, that it should be received by such persons as club pensioners and not as paupers. Mr. J. Trask (Orcheston, Devizes) said he should not have risen but for the question just raised by Canon Brereton. The reverend gentleman seemed to think that the £3,000,000 which might be saved by an improved administration of the poor-law, would belong not to those who paid it, but to the poor; and that this £3,000,000 a year should be capitalised for their benefit. That was a most extraordinary view of the matter (Hear, hear). Previous to 1834< the expenditure was £8,000,000, and threatened to swallow up the wliole rental in some districts (Hear, hear). In many parishes the rates amounted to 16s. in the pound, or more, and he believed that in a few isolated cases the burden exceeded 20s. By improved administration the gross amount was reduced to about £4',000,000, or by something like 4-0 per cent. ; and did the Canon really mean to say that in point of honesty and fair dealing, the poor of this rountry were entitled to all that? (Hear, hear). For some years past there liad been great complaints of the burden of the poor-rates, and in his opinion those complaints were well founded. He could point to many parishes where great impositions were practised, and the question had arisen, whether such things were to continue. If they had got into a rotten system, were they never to adopt a better ? If any saving was made, those who have been, and are still paying a great deal too much, should have the benefit. He maintained that the poor of this country had no right to anything out of the rates except when they were suffering from destitution. Canon Brereto>' : I say they have no right to it unless they are destitute ; but the question is whether in destitution they are to have relief from their unions or from their clubs. Mr. J. Traisk said he contended that, when the guardians had relieved the destitute poor they had done all that they were legally called en to do. On the otiier hand jiersons who were not destitute ought not to liave relief. Some years ago an old woman in a union with which he was acquainted died after having received relief year after year. The relieving odicer asked (he l)oaid of guardians tor the ubual order for burial. It was granted, and the friends of the dead then had a grand funeral for her, hiring coaches aud issuing printed cards announcing her death. In fact, it was clear that her friends were well able to support her; and it was a scandal that such a person should have been receiving relief. Of course no poor-law administration could be perfection, but lie believed that at present for one case of extreme hardship there were forty cases of imposition. Agreeing as he did with Mr. Read, that labourers had a right to combine for their own ad- vantage, he must say that if they have a right to leave their work without giving proper notice, so that the crops which are growu for the food of the people are spoilt or injured, they exercised a power that is not possessed by any other class of the community. Farmers could not all at once throw up their farms and stop their business (Hear, hear). Friendly societies would be much more useful if established on a better basis, and he hoped the Royal commission appointed to deal with the matter would make a report which would lead to some legis- lation for their improvement. Mr. H. Neild (The Grange, Worsley, Manchester) said he was much impressed with Mr. Read's remarks about the great increase of material wealth in this nation, as one great cause of the rise in the wages of the agricultural labourer. How was it that the increase of the wealth of occupiers of laud did not keep pace with the general increase ? (laughter). He would advise all occupiers to adopt the practice of paying by task or piecework. That would be one good mode of checking the evils of unions, of which they had had consider- able experience in Lancashire. Another mode of doing that was to get past-emigrant labourers, who had been fortunate enough to get back to England, to relate to labourers their experience abroad. He had in his employ a clear-headed Irishman who once had a fit of emigration. That man, having landed at New York, examined thoroughly into the prospects of emigrants, and, having spent twelve days there, he returned to England, and he was now in his service. When any man talked about emigrating they always referred him to " Old Jemmy," as that man was called, and he (Mr. Neild) had not had a single emigrant from his farm for some years. As to the suggestion of Canon Brereton respecting the reputed three millions as saved by an improved administration of the poor-law, being appropriated as a benefit fund for the labourers, he hoped that that generous idea would now receive its quietus for ever (laughter). Mr. R. II. Masfen (Pendeford, Wolverhampton) said he should not have occupied any of the time of that meeting but for the remarks of the rev. gentleman on his left (Canon Brereton), at which he for one felt considerable surprise. If the Canon wanted to know what was to be done with the £3,000,000, he begged to tell him that he for one wanted £25 a-year out of it, the poor-rate having since he entered upoii his farm increased by that amount. The rev. gentleman seemed to forget that such was the state of things in 1834, that it was necessary to pass the present poor-law, to ameliorate the condition of the agricultural body and of the rate-payers generally. He apparently considered that the labourers had a right to have the £3,000,000 per annum capitalised or in- vested for their benefit. Men of moderate education were unable to fathom the depths of such ideas as that (laughter). For his own part he must say he was completely dum- founded at the suggestion ; and when he heard gentlemen of high station propounding such views, he was not surprised that persons of inferior station were so often misled. As to the views of Mr. Read, speaking generally, he thought they would be endorsed by all present. As to the principle of supply and demand, there was one great ditt'erence between the posi- tion of commercial men and that of farmers. It was impossible to shut up farms for six or twelve months because they were unremunerative ; but when great pressure was put upon manufacturers or upon ironmasters, the former could shut up their mills aud the latter could blow out their furnaces, and by so doing they could briug to reason men who by demanding an extortionate rate of wages tended to briug about such an unfortunate state of things as now existed on the other side of the Atlantic. Anotlier important question was what position the agricultural labourer was likely to occupy at liome in cou- .sequence of his becoming better educated and better able to form an opinion as to the position in which he was placed. There was nothing, he beheved, which had so great a hold on the mind of the labourer as the possession of a comfortable cottage. T^HE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. it was essential tliat landowneis bUouid provide the necessary cottage accommodation for labourers where it did not exist, so that men need not be compelled to go a considerable distance, as many had been compelled to do, to obtain a dwelling for themselves and their families. He trusted that Mr. Read had taken a darker view than need be taken of the general position of the Labourers' Unions. Let them all pay their labourers a fair remuneration for their work. He agreed with Mr. Neild that task-work was preferable to day-work. He also thought that that consideration which was always due from one man to another, would produce good results, and that in proportion as labourers became better educated would they better appre- ciate any good feelings which were manifested towards them. He felt sure that neither Mr. Read nor those who acted with him wished to crush agricultural labourers (Hear, hear). On the contrary, they wished to see them in a better position, and for that reason tliey asked tliem to reflect before taking any steps which might tend to their injury instead of their advan- tage (Hear, hear). Mr. G. Street (Mauldeu, Ampthill) said he was one of those who thought that the altered circumstances of the times justified a demand for a fresh incidence of taxation and an altered basis of rating. There was a time when the poor of this country looked upon their parish as their liome, and scarcely ever went outside it to seek for employment ; but in times of railway communication, increased intelligence, and an increased demand for labour, the youths of their|village3> instead of lingering about the village green or some frequented corner, or instead of meeting together in a public-house to plan some poaching affair, were found at a railway station taking a ticket for some place where they could get better remuneration for their labour. The question naturally arose whether, under these altered circumstances, industries which competed with agriculture for labour ought not to pay a share of the rates levied for the support of the poor. When the poor-law sys- tem was established no one cuuld foresee that altered state of things. Moreover, additional burdens in the form of rates liad been imposed on farmers within the last few years. It was quite right that men should be called upon to keep their premises in a decent state, and in such a state that they would not be a nuisance to their neighbours ; but all that involved expense. The same remark applied to the new Education Act ; and he wanted to know whether the present system of rating was fair (cries of " Question"). With regard to the spread of education he rather differed from Mr. Read as to its probable effect upon the poor. At present the most intelligent youths in the rural districts migrated from them, but when all had been raised to one standard of education there would not be so much inducement to a few picked boys to go out as clerks and take situations on railways and elsewhere away from their native place, and that those would come to the conclusion that the healthy and pleasant homes of the village were preferable to the close dwellings of large towns (Hear, hear). One word iu reference to Mr. Arch's idea of Irelandising this country. He found that since he returned from Canada Mr. Arch had recommended that in order to keep agricultural labourers among them they should let each man have about five acres of land — iu other words, that the land of this country should be cut up into a second Ireland. He (Mr. Street) wanted to know of what use the labourer would then be to the farmer (Hear, hear). It was found already that when a man had more than a rood, or at all events half an acre, of land he wanted raoie time for it than could be spared. Mr. J. Tii\SK (Northington Down, Alresford), thought they were much indebted to Mr. Read for pointing out as he had done in his able introduction that the fact tliat agricultural labourers were in the receipt of such high wages was an additional reason for a careful administration of the poor-law, the funds raised by poor-rates not being intended for those whose wages enabled them to provide against times of need. He was glad to hear from Mr. I'ell, speaking as Chairman of the Brixwortii Union, that the pauperism of that union had been so much dimiuisiied ; and he believed that a similar result would follow in most other unions if the guardians attended more to the duties of their office and were less influenced by their feelings. As regarded Labourers' Unions, he did not wish to be iiard against anybody, but someliow or other he could not feel kindly towards many who belonged to them. Farming, as he did, pretty largely, lie had a good many labourers. Before last Michaelmas some of tiiem were union men, and finding that iu an adjoining parish the labourers were acting under the order:, of the great leaders of strikes, he told his men that they must decide whether they would serve him or the secretary of the National Labourers' Union. One of them elected to serve the secretary, after having been in his employment for 7 or 8 years, during which time he had re- ceived at least a pound a-week. Having received 7s. to take him and his family a distance of 70 miles, he stayed where he was, and was now employed iu stone-breaking. They hardly knew who were and vvlio were not Union men among those whom they employed. During the heavy periods of the hay and corn harvest, the Union leaders might choose to order that men should cease working at 2 o'clock on Saturday and not begin again before 7 o'clock on Monday morning, and it was necessary for them to set their faces against that, as men of business, and men who had a great deal at stake. Mr. Read justly said that in some districts farmers had more to fear from their brother farmers than from labourers. They had also much to fear from little squires and chattering parsons and he might add that he had known cases in which after men had left a farm they had gone to the neighbouring mansion and obtained employment at higher wages than they received before. He did not know how farmers were to meet things of that kind, or how they were to combine ; but, at all events, let them be true to themselves (cheers). He entirely concurred in the opinion that the poor-law reatdrtd a much stricter administration. He could not helpJPrerharking that he had known cases in which when the servant of an ex-oflicio gnardian became ill, there was an immediate application to the Board for relief ; and he hoped that aU Boards, while dealing tenderly with proper cases, would be careful to discriminate far more than had been customary. Mr. J. Treadwell (Upper Winchendon, Aylesbury) said Mr. Read alluded in his admirable address to the necessity of benefit societies being established on a good sound basis. That question had in his opinion a good deal to do with the solution of the vexed poor-law problem ; and what was espe- cially wanted was, lie thought, benefit societies which would be'able to secure to the labourer in return for what he sub- scribed a sufficient amount for his support if any sickness or accident befell him, without having to come upon the rates. He was one of those who thought that if societies could not get a sufficient guarantee fund without that the Government ought to come in to enable the poor man to provide for him- self in times of adversity (Hear, hear). As to Canon Brere- ton's remarks he thougnt the reverend sjentleman made a mis- take, and that what he meant to say was that the £3,000,000 of w liicli he spoke should be given to the farmers ; in which case they might perhaps all agree with hira (laughter). He fully concurred iu all that had been said about the administra- tiou of the poor-law. Mr. Duncan, the chairman of the New- port Pagnell Union, could state that in that union the expenses had been reduced by nearly one-half. Mr. J. Nash as an employer of labour for upwards of forty years wished to observe that in his neighbourhood the masters and men had formed a sort of benefit club between them, and during the whole period he had mentioned there had not, he beheved, been an instance of a member of the club applying for poor relief. He felt certain that if benefit clubs were properly managed that would give an immense relief to the rates. The Chaiuman then said : Gentlemen, in closing this very interesting discussion I will only observe that after the very exhaustive address of Mr. Read and the many excellent speeches which have followed, you can hardly expect lue to do ijiore than tender my meed of praise to Mr. Read for the able manner iu which he introduced the subject (cheers). Mr. Read will now say a few words in reply. Mr. Read then replied. Alluding to the remark of Mr, Street that the spread of education was likely to raise all la- bourers to the same high level, he said that gentleman seemed to forget that at the school where lie was himself educated there were dunces and dolts who benefited very little and who probably did not make much use of their education afterwards (Hear, hear). The greater part of the criticism in tiie discus- sion was, happily for himself, directed not against his remarks, but against those of Canon Brereton ; and he must say that that criticism seemed to liiiu perfertly just. He, like Mr. ^lasfen, thouglit that farmers ought to have some of the money that was saved. He had occupied his present farm only about eight years, and whether it was owing to the improvements 10 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. wliichJiad been made in the neighbourhood, or whatever might be the cause, he paid considerably more in the form of rates tlian wlien he entered upon his occupation. If anyone ought to benefit by reduction it was surely the tenant (Hear, hear). On the motion of Jlr. Br.ujshaw, seconded by Mr. T. HoRLEY, a cordial vote of thanks was given to Mr. Read for his introduction of the subject. Mr. Newton said that as that was the last occasion on which they could have the pleasure of seeing Mr. Thompson in the chair he wished to propose a vote of thanks to him for the admirable manner in which he had discharged the duties of his office (cheers). Mr. James Wood seconded the motion, which was carried by acclamation, and this terminated the proceedings. THE LABOURER'S CASE ATTHE FARMERS' CLUB TO THE EDITOR OP THE MARK lANE EXPRESS. Sir, — The rules of the Farmers' Club did not allow me an opportunity of remonstrating against the mistaken view which some of the speakers had somewhat impa- tiently taken of my remarks on capitalising for the security of benefit clubs some portion of the present permanent poor-rate. ]\Ir. Pell had made a statement that in a cer- tain union the pauperism had been reduced within a few months one-third of its ordinary amount by a stricter ap- plication of the workhouse test. I ventured to use Mr. Pell's statement as an illustration of what would be the eflfect if a real improvement in the labourer's condition by higher permanent wages should prove to be established, and if, for instance, one-third of the amount he has hitherto depended on as poor-rate should uo longer be re- quired for his sustenance. It is clear that the charge- able property would be relieved to the extent of the capi- talised value of that reduction. If in all England it should amount to £3,000,000 annual reduction, the capital value of that reduction would be about £100,000,000. And I put it to the meeting to reflect whether, if anything approaching that capital could be transferred from pau- perism to provident clubs, the result would not be to place the English labourer in a position which uo country in the world could rival, and this without injury to any one or confiscation of a single individual's property. The speakers who followed me jumped at the conclusion that I meant to claim for the labourer their property, and said plainly, " Oh, we mean to put any savings we can effect on the poor-rates into our own pockets ; and you, chat- tering parson, are making it difficult for us to do so by putting in a claim on the labourer's part." Now I quite acknowledge that there is an economy to be very beneficially exercised, the savings of which very properly should go to the ratepayers ; and I doubt whether there was one man in the room who, in proportion to his income, would derive more real relief from such economy than myself. But I was not thinking about this margin of extravagance and superfluity, within which the ratepayers have a right to expect relief, as they undoubtedly do sufi'er severely from carelessness. But I was going to the point to which it seemed to me both Mr. Read's subject and his excellent address must have brought all our minds, viz., the future relationship between the agricultural labourer and the poor-law. And I maintain that as soon as you can see your way to effect a reduction of the permanent charge, yeu are bound, as protectors of public property, to see that one class alone — the owners of charged property — do not reap all the benefit. Not that I would grudge it them if they were really in a position to claim it, and there were no alternative. I heartily wish to see the land and houses of England not deteriorated but im- proved as the best and most substantial investment for that valuable class of Englishmen— the permanent residents. I should be delighted if such a time should come that the landlords of England were able to say, " We held our lands subject to the condition that uo one should starve. This condition deteriorated the value of our pro- perty for two or three centuries from 10 tc 20 per cent. At last, by the prosperity of the whole community, desti- tution has been so reduced that the charge upon our pro- perty is, and is likely to be for the future, only 5 per cent. We claim the full benefit of this happy state of things." But such a time will never come. The English labourer will not forego his claim. The more spirited and inde- pendent will rise out of the class or emigrate ; but the breed of paupers will continue, unless with the consent of their own class by degrees some portion of this pauper fund, which has obtained in the popular feeling, if not legally, all the essence of a public fund, is transferred to the support of sickness and old age, on the principle of mutual insurance and common contribution of those who are to participate in the benefit. With your permission I will on a future occasion re- sume this subject. My unpremeditated remarks were misunderstood, and, I must add, misrepresented, though perhaps I was the chief offender against myself. But I feel sure that the object of these remarks, being nothing else than the permanent improved position of the honest agricultural labourers who wish to stay in their English homes, will be appreciated by no class so generously as the English farmer. I have the honour to be, sir, yours faithfully, J. L. Brereton. Halted Uiiwersiti/ Club, Pall Mall East. THE ANNUAL DINNER. The annual dinner took place on the Tuesday evening in the Show week, at the Salisbury Hotel, and was attended by upwards of 100 gentlemen. The chair was taken by the pre- sident of the Club for the present year, Mr. John Thompson, of Badminton, Chippenham, the vice-chair being filled by the president-elect, Mr. Major-Lucas. The dinner itself was of the best kind, and its substantial attractions were increased by the present of a stag heavier from his Grace the Duke of Beaufort. After tlie toast ot " The Queen," the Chairman proposed " His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, the Princess of Wales, and the rest of the Royal Family," and in doing so reminded the company that the Prince of Wales was a constant exhibitor of stock at the Smithfield Show and other agricul- tural meetings. In proposing " The Army, the Navy, the Militia, and the Volunteers," the Chairman said he felt confident that our soldiers on the Coast of Africa would show the indomitable pluck that British soldiers engaged in active service always had shown, adding that the English army led by gentlemen would go anywhere (cheers). Sir G. Jenkinson, M.P., in responding as a former officer of the army, said if ever there were a moment when a com- pany of Enghshmeu were bound to pay sucli a tribute as that to the army the present was such a moment, seeing that part of our gallant troops were now employed in a service which could produce neither honour, emolument, nor profit, when they had to wage war against a set of savages who knew not the arts which regulated warfare between civilised nations, and, what was worse, were exposed to the most deadly climate in the world (Hear, hear). Whatever might be the result of the deliberations of the Royal Commission on the purchase system, the officers of the army might always be relied upon to do their duty to their Queen and country (cheers). The Chairmai^ then proposed " Success to the Farmers' Club, and thanks to those gentlemen who have read paper* THE FARMER*S MAGAZINE. 11 during the past year" (clieers). He said it was a matter of great gnitilitatiou to liim to be able to slate that at no former period had the Club been in so prosperous a condition as now. Fifty-nine new members had been elected in the course of the year, and the financial position of the Club had also consider- ably improved. Still, it often struck hiia as remarkable that comparatively so few of their own class of agriculturists availed themselves of the obvious advantages of the in- stitution. He feared, indeed, that tenant-farmers were rather too exclusive in their habits, though it was a fault which he hoped was becoming gradually less apparent than formerly, for he felt sure that people, whatever their occupation, who con- fined themselves to one locality, acijuired contracted ideas; in other words, their minds did not expand with the advance of the times wc live in. The discussions during ths past twelve months had been important. They had embraced the educa- tion of the farmer, the large and the small-farm system, the progress of steam cultivation, the storage of water, the diseases ol cattle, and the condition of the labourer. All these ques- tions had been introduced by gentlemen who had paid a great deal nf attention and devoted a large measure of ability to their consideration. The advantages of the Club, however, were not confined merely to its discussions ; for the social inter- course and the intercommunication of so many minds collected from different parts of the country must also have been pro- ductive of valuable results. The advantages were such, indeed, as they could not obtain by confining themselves to their local clubs, howevsr good they might be ; and he himself, after eighteen years' membership, was willing to bear his testimony to the kindness with which he had always been received, and the valuable information he had accumulated by associating with the members of the Club (loud cheers). The toast having been drunk with great cordiality, Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., rose, amid cheering, to respond. He said, on behalf of those members of the Clnb who had read papers during the past year he returned their sincere and hearty thanks for the kind manner in which their services had been acknowledged. He supposed he had also to return thanks to them for their drinking their own health (laughter) — tliat was to say, " Prosperity to the Farmers' Club." He was very glad indeed to hear so good a report from the chair- man. It was pleasant to be informed that the finances were in such a good state, and to be reminded how useful the Club was. He fully sympathised in the wish of the chairman that there were more tenant-farmers in the Club, and he would also desire to see a more general attendance of members in that building, as he often found his breakfast there rather soli- tary. At previous annual dinners he had taken the liberty of alluding to one or two prominent subjects which had occupied the attention of Parliament relating to agriculture, and, with their kind permission and indulgence, he would do so on that occasion (cheers). He would just glance at one or two topics. And first, he would mention the abortive and unfor- tunate result of the inquiry into the operation of the Con- tagious Diseases (Animals) Act. He was quite sure they would all agree with him that although the committee made one or two good recommendations in their report, yet, in its main features, that document was adverse to the agricultural interest, and it appeared to him that instead of what was suggested keep- ing foreign diseases from their stock, those diseases would still come into the country as they had hitherto done. The recent Order for the slaughtering of cattle affected with pleuro- pneumonia seemed to him most one-sided and unjust. The Government still admitted stock from countries on the Conti- nent where disease was raging ; and, moreover, they admitted cattle from Ireland, and they in England hai the pleasure of slaughtering them when they had come over (Hear, hear). In the county of Norfolk they had recently had a quantity of Irish cattle affected after having been in Norfolk a few weeks, clearly proving that they did not catch the disorder in tliat county, but contracted it at their homes in Ireland. The Privy Council ought to have been aware that it was impossible to levy rates in Ireland to compensate owners of stock before they thought proper to issue an Order which must prove very costly to the ratepayers of England, and which, till it was made universal over the whole of the United Kingdom, could not be made beneficial to agriculture (Hear, Jiear). Anotiier matter which he wished to mention was the strange fate that be fel their Tenant-Right Bill. He had been ronghly handled in the press and by some very kind writers, who thought that on that occasion he shirked his duty. He had the authority of his friend, Mr. James Howard, who had generously backed him up as regarded his conduct, for saying that on the occa- sion when the bill was withdrawn he did all that he could be expected to do, and he hoped that the members of the Farmers' Club would endorse that opinion (cheers). They were aware that the bill was put down for a second reading on a Wednesday. Two bills preceded it. It was not till the night before that he knew that one of those bills was to be withdrawn. Then he received from his friend, Mr. Howard, a telegram stating that he was so unwell that he could not possibly be in his place in Parliament to move the second reading of their bill. Now, what was he to do? He was not prepared with a good long speech to introduce the bill ; but he held himself in re- serve to answer any objection that might be urged against it. It was said that he could not have seconded the motion for the second reading of the bill, and replied to objections. That was easily done. After the proposer had made a speech, the member who seconded had nothing to do but take off his hat, which was not a very difficult operation, and if he did not say anything at that time he might make a speech in the course of the debate. That was what he intended to do, and he hoped that he should prove equal to the occasion. But replying to objections to the weak points of the bill was a totally different thing from advocating its main provisions and setting forth its good points (Hear, hear). They might rely upon it that he had plenty of courage, but discretion was sometimes the better part of valour. There was on the paper a most insi- dious amendment, which, not being well up in Parliamentary tactics, he should not have known exactly how to meet. Had it been simply a proposal that the bill be read a seconi time that day six months he would, notwithstanding the imperfect manner in which he had prepared himself, have gone on ; but when there was a rigmarole sort of amendment, setting forth the advantages of freedom of contract and matters of that kind, he felt that he had need of the tact of a Tallyrand to deal with such a proposal as that of Lord Elcho. He should like to know what amount of obloquy he would have had to endure if he had proceeded and failed. As it was he had suffered rather sharply, but if he had faced that amendment and been defeated he would have deserved all the censure that could be heaped upon him. He must say he was not sorry that the bill had to be put off, for he was not very well pleased with the sort of outside influence which was brought to bear upon it. He should much prefer landlords, land- agents, and farmers managing a matter of that kind among themselves, without the interference of people who would perhaps do the thing in a different way from that in which they desired to have it done, and who would, he was quite sure, in the end make a muddle of it (Hear, hear). Before free- trade we were continually being told by people that it would not signify a straw if we did not grow a bushel of wheat. Now they were going on a totally different tack, and saying we did not produce half enough. In his opinion they were right now in a certain degree, but they had taken too visionary a view of the subject. He felt bound to enter his protest against the idea which prevailed in this country outside the agricultural interest, and which appeared to be shared by some of the political leaders of the nation, that the land of England might be made to double its present amount of produce (Hear, hear). It was a much easier matter, he said, to produce fer- tility than to maintain it ; and his serious conviction was that it was much easier to get a farm into a good state of cultiva- tion than to maintain its fertility afterwards. It was the first pound of manure that paid best, and the last shilling that often spoiled the lot. Land would not always answer to the whip the second or third time as on the tirst. He was astonished, therefore, to hear so painstaking, careful, and thoughtful a statesman as the Earl of Derby saying that it was liis delibe- rate opinion that the laud of J'lngland might be made to double its present produce, and, still more, that Lord Leicester should back up that opinion. He (Mr. Read) would not say anything uncomphmentary to the Holkham tenantry, but he was pre- pared to assert tliat on three-fourths of the estate no more corn was grown now than twenty years ago. It was farmed really well then, and had been farmed right well since, but there was no increase in the produce. The other fourth, which had been indifferently farmed, might liave been brought up to a higher yield ; but he contended that, after reaching a certain point of perfection, witii their limited knowledge of chemistry and science generally, all their science failed them, and when they had passed a certain limit they could go no further. Then 12 THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. it was constantly said, "See what your landlords' laws have done for you ! Vou do not grow one-half tlic wheat that you ouglit." Well, it was not for him to defend either the laud- lords or the landlords' laws ; but it so happened that, notwith- standing they were so exceptionally bad, this country was growing more corn than any other under heaven. We raised double per acre the corn that was grown in Trance, and as a rule we were ahead of the most productive portions of Europe (Hear, hear). Before sitting down he had a very pleasing task to perform — he had to propose the health of the chair- man (cheers). They had in tliat case the right man in the right place. He was an excellent judge of stock, having just recently acted at Birmingham and Islington, as he was also one of the judges of farms for the Royal Agricultural Society at Hull; while he was well known in the district where lie lived as a just, intelligent, and liberal land-agent, and he served a right good master in the noble duke (the Duke of Beaufort). Tlie chairman expressed a wish that there were more tenant- farmers in that Club. He (Mr. Read) was sorry that there were not juore land-agents. As a class they wanted educating quite as much as tenant-farmers (laughter and cheers) ; and if they came tliere, besides hearing something to their disadvan- tage, they might also hear something to their advantage (cheers). He now asked them to drink — and he was sure they would do it with great cordiality — the health of their chairman, 31 r. Thompson (loud cheers). The toast having been drunk very heartily, The CNA.IRMAN brielly returned thanks, thanking the Com- mittee and the Secretary for the able assistance he had received from tliem in the discharge of his duties, and adding that he sliould always remember with pleasure the time when lie pre- sided over that Club. Mr. Pell, M.P., in proposing " The Royal Agricultural Society of England, the Highland Society of Scotland, and the Koyal Agricultural Society of Ireland," said no one there could doubt that those societies were beneficial in uniting to- gether the agriculturists of the three kingdoms, and were doing a great deal of good. Mr. Treadavell, in responding, said while they occasionally saw a very good Shorthorn from Ireland they also saw a great deal of disease from that country which they could very well dispense with. This country obtained a large quantity of good beef from Scotland, but he did not think very much of Scotch sheep, and he thought that if |Scotchmen came to England for sheep they might effect considerable improvement. With re- gard to the Royal Agricultural Society of England he wished to express his opinion that with the funds at their command the Council miglit do a little more good (cheers). Mr. II. Tretiiewy had great pleasure in proposing the health of the vice-chairman on that occasion, and the chairman elect, Mr. Major-Lucas, of Aylesbury (cheers). That gentle- man was known to most of them, and held a very high position in the neighbourhood in which he resided. He was a large occupier of land, and was placed in the happy position of occupying his own land. Mr. Reid remarked, in effect, that that Club was as good a school for land-agents as for tenant- farmers. As a land-agent himself, and as one who had been a member of the Club from within three years after its formation (cheers), he cordially endorsed that opinion ; and he believed it would be better for all — for agents, for tenants, and also for landlords — if there were more general and frequent communi- cation between them in that Club (clieers). He now proposed the health of Mr. Major-Lucas (cheers). After a cordial response to the toast, Mr. Major-Lucas, in returning thanks, said, like his pre- decessors in office, he should, when he had entered in the duties of the chair, rely on the support of the committee and members of the Club, and on the excellent advice and assistance of their Secretary, Mr. Corbet ; and remembering what able men had passed the chair, he was sensible how necessary those aids would be to him. He had now to propose " The Smithfield Club," an institution which had forcibly illustrated some of the chief characteristics of the people of this country ; and he had great pleasure in coupling with tlie toast the name of Mr. T, L. Senior. Mr. T. L. Sekior, in returning thanks, was quite sure they would all agree with him, that the present show was one of the most successful shows that they had had for many years (cheers). The system of giving £100 prizes at Birmingham to_ tlie first four breeds in the catalogue, which was tried this year for the first time, had worked admirably, and he ihought the Smithfield Club should adopt it. Though defeated himself this year, he was not extinguished ; but as regarded the champion prize, he now saw that a Lttle bullock had no more chance than that black bottle. Mr. Crouch proposed " The Committee of Management." The higli position to which those gentlemen had raised the Club in the estimation of the country entitled them to the gra*^itude of the members, and everyone who had watched the proceedings of the Club must feel that it had a most efficient body of men at the head of its affairs (cheers). After a hearty response, Mr. H. CiiEFiiNS, in returning thanks, observed that the members of the Club had that ^day shown their confidence in the committee, by re-electing all who were eligible ; and it was a great satisfaction to them to know that the members felt that they had done their best (cheers). The Chairman said, the next toast was one which he felt sure would have a hearty reception from all of them — the se- cretary, Mr. Corbet (cheers). The Club was particularly for- tunate in having as good a secretary as was possessed by any society ; but perhaps only those who held the position which he then occupied, as chairman of the Club, could fully appre- ciate Mr. Corbet's merits (Hear, hear). He was very glad that it was during his own chairmanship that the committee had been able to show their appreciation of his services in a substantial manner, and he hoped the Club would have the benefit of those services for many years to come (cheers). They all esteemed him not only in connection with his duties, but also for his warm-hearted friendship, and they all knew his honesty and integrity (cheers). The toast having been drunk with three cheers, Mr. H. Corbet, in returning thanks, said there once lived in a remote part of France a worthy priest who, amongst the arduous duties which he performed in the course of each year, had to deliver an address on the merits of the patron saint of the district. But as each anniversary came round that good man found, alas ! that neither his genius nor his inventive powers increased with the occasion ; and so, when another came, he addressed his congregation some- what in this fashion : " My brethren, since we last met I have not been able to discover anything very novel or strange in the history of him whom we are met to-day to honour You know as well as I do how deservedly he occupies a high place in the calendar ; you know as well as I do how his earthly career was attended with every good and every useful quality, and you know as well as I do that we are exceedingly happy in coming here to do honour to him. If I were to say more I miglit only weary you, or, as the day is very warm, and your seats are very comfortable, I might send you to sleep." And so he concluded his discourse. If tiiey would allow their imaginations to travel for a moment so far, he would ask them to suppose him (Mr. Corbet) to be that holy man (laughter). Since they last met, he had not been able to discover anything very novel or strange in the history of the Society which they were all there to honour. They knew as well as he did how useful and meritorious its career had been, and they, he was sure, liad had equal pleasure with iiimself in coming there to do honour to it. If he were to say anything more, as the room was rather warm, and as he hoped tiieir seats were very com- fortable, he might not only weary them, but perjiaps send them to sleep (laughter). Tiierc he might very becomingly stop ; but he would, with their permission, say a few words more, as, unlike his rev. prototype, he could not expect to have all the talking to himself, lie had the honour to sit at the council table of two or three other societies, where, wJien the annual dinner was in prospect, there was always immense difficulty in selecting a chairman outside the society — a prince or a duke, a lord or some great man ; but in the Farmers' Club there was no such difficulty. Following tlie example of a well-known comedian, they took the chair themselves (laughter) ; and the chief recommendation of the man who presided at their annual dinner was that lie was essentially a farmer (cheers). They happened on one occasion to have a member of Parliament in the chair, but he was, if possible, far more appreciated as a tenant-farmer than as a member of Parliament ; as the great object of that Club was to teach men farming. There was once a Prime Minister of this country who, being a Scotchman, would not patronise any man unless he were also a Scotchman. It happened, however, that somebody had done something so very meritorious that the great man in return was obliged to do something for him, when he said, " Weel, what shall I THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 13 niak' you ?" to which the reply was, " I think you had better try uuj make me a Scotehmau " (hiughter). lu like | inauuer, they tried iu the lirst iustauce to make a uiau a ' farmer ; and he believed that more good iu the way of farming was taught in that very room than on the tented field of the Koyal Agricultural Society, iu the fatted stalls of Smithfield, or in the studios of Cirencester (cheers). It was recorded in the chronicles of the Pickwick Club, that Mr. Weller, when called as a witness, was found to say as little as possible about the case and as much as possible about everything else. He would follow that illustrious example, and, beyond thanking them for the manner in which they had received his nauie, and for the attention with which they had listened to his remarks, would sit down, after saying as little as possible about the Secretary, and as much as possible about anybody else (cheers). The toast of " Tlie Visitors " followed, and w:-is responded to by Mr. Head, of the firm of Ransoraes, Sims, and Head, who bore witness, from his own experience, to the superiority of English over foreign farming. The company then separated. THE GENERAL MEETING. This annual meeting was also held on tlie Tuesday, Mr. John Thompson iu the chair, when the following report from the Committee was received and adopted : The Balance-sheet for the past year is altogether one of the most satisfactory which the Committee of the Farmers' Club has ever been enabled to offer. Tested by such main points as the acquisition of strength and the possession of funds, the result is alike encouraging. I'ifty-nine new members have been elected ; the amount of subscriptions re- ceived exceeds that for many years previously ; there is a larger available balance iu the bank, and the general assets of tlie Club show as favourably in comparison. Under these cir- cumstances the Committee has been enabled to make an in- crease in the salary of the secretary ; while one item on the expenditure side of the account is rather beyond the customary charges appearing iu such a place. This stands as a grant of £20 to tlie [loyal Agricultural Society of England, a vote ac- corded as couveyiug some tangible approval of the course adopted by the Council of the Society iu promoting tlie analysis of manures and feeding stuffs, and upholding the acts of its ollicers. Iu the Report for the year 1872 it was stated that a Special Committee had been appointed to consider and report on the Tenant-Right Bill, which Mr. James Howard, M.P„ backed by Mr. Sewell Read, M.P., proposed to bring before Parliament ; the progress of the principle with which the Farmers' Club has so long been identified being thus very be- comingly left in the care of two members of the Club. This Special Committee had subsequently several sittings, and a copy of the bill, as ultimately approved by the Special Com- mittee, together with the report adopted by the General Com- mittee of the Club, appeared in the CIpIj Jour mil for March. It is much to be regretted that Mr. Howard from illness was unable to proceed with the bill, but the many discussions over its several clauses have done much to extend information and remove prejudice as to the iuteutions of the measure. The Committee cannot but think that the subjects standing on the card for the year have been very well timed for consideration ; as the Education of the Farmer, the Relative Size of Farms, the Progress of Steam Cultivation, the Management of our Water Supplies, the Losses of Stock, and the lease of the Labourer probably never commanded more attentiou than at the time when they came in turn before the Farmers' Club. The Committee has only to hape that it may be as fortunate in the arrangement of the next card ; as with so much new- blood recently introduced it is very desirable that the younger members of the Club should take their part in suggesting sub- lects or preparing papers. Mr. E. M. Major-Lucas, of Mercer's House, Aylesbury, has been elected Chairman of the Club for the year IS?-!'. The following members of Committee, who went out by rotation, were re-elected : Messrs. G. M. Allender ; T. Browu (Elwyn) ; W. Brown (Triug) ; H. Cheffius ; L. A. Couss- maker ; VV. Eve ; J. K. Fowler ; E. Little ; R. Marsh ; G. Martin ; B. P. Siiearer ; J. Thomas, (Beds) ; and J. Trask ; and Mr. Owen AVallis was elected a member of the Com- mittee in the place of Mr. M. Reynolds, who was ineligible for re-election from not having attended two meetings of the Committee during the year. Messrs. T. Willsou, N. llix, and the Reverend E. Smythies were re-elected auditors, and a vote of thanks passed to them for their services. The proceedings closed with a vote of thanks to the Chair- man. THE SMITHFIELD SHOW WEEK. The sad story of the Smithfield Club is told out in another part o f our Paper, while nothing could have worked better than the opening day. The miserable wrangle of last year over the adjudication of the Champion prizes was avoided by the adoption of the system which immediately after the close of the show in 1873 we insisted on as the only means by which the recurrence of so unseemly a squabble could be guarded against. This was, that each set of judges should bring into the ring for the final issues only the Champion animals of their own classes, although, strange to say, one of the stewards strongly resisted so manifest an amendment! The result, however, will no doubt quietly settle him into a minority of one. Beyond the nomination of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales as President of the Club for 1875, the chief feature at the General Meetiug was the election by vote of eight new members of Council from some nineteen or twenty nominated, the final state of the poll showing Mr. Sewell Read to be the most popular man here, as he probably would be if tried by such a test at any other Agricultm-al Society iu England. The number of votes polled, however, were not declared, the names of the successful candidates being merely given iu the order iu which they stood on the list, and against this omission Mr. Wilmore has entered his protest; as there can be no question but that in an eleeitiou determined by votes, the numbers mvM be given before the return can be regarded as complete. Only imagine the " row" which would ensue if at a county, a borough, or a school board contest, the successful candidates took their seats on the mere word of the returning officer ! The phalanx of reporters which faced the " popular member" of the Smithfield Club, when on the preceding evening bespoke at the Farmers' Club on the agricultural labourer, told of how much interest is now taken iu this question beyond the class ranks of master and man. Iu a speech as admirably studied as etiectively delivered j\Ir. Read exhibited a grasp of very statesman-like character. If wages become permanently higher as they promise to do, the landowner must look to this as a home question in the way of rents and cottages. If the men combine it were better that the farmers should not combine against them hy refusing to employ I'liion men, or " nursing their wrath" in other ways ; while the labourers themselves must be prepared to do more work for more money, or iu other words to have their value estimated by the piece and not by the day. The address itself should set men of all grades a-thiukiug of how they may helj) each other, but the subsequent discussion was hardly worthy of it, and some attempted personalities singularly out of tone with the calm, comprehensive, and ever genial manner of the introducer of the subject. It is very noticeable that no agricultural dinner has ever really succeeded in London but that, of the Farmers' Club, and 14 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, this was a greater success thaa ever, what with a large company, a prosperous year, and a chairman quite in his place. Indeed, as Mr. Sew ell Read (again) showed, the Club or its committee has been very happy in developing merit in this way, for INIr. Thompson has, during his year of office, been also distinguished by kindred societies of similar standing. Thus, at the instance of the Royal Agricultural Society he acted as one of the judges over the Yorkshire farms, and on the day preceding the dis- charge of his duties in Salisbury Square was one of the judges for our most fashionable breed of stock at the Smithfield Club. As at that of the Farmers' Club there was nothing of much moment going on at the general meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society, where the attendance was small and the proceedings for the most part formal. As, however, we suggested at Hull, a Temple of Victory is to be erected at Bedford, an advertisement in itself which may possibly bring many a firm again into competition, a sentence in the report running thus : " The experiment of a parade of the prize implements on the first two days of the show was made at Hull ; and as it appeared to give wide-spread satisfaction, it is proposed next year to erect a special exhibition shed for this purpose in a pro- minent part of the show-yard." If the Council will only, further, set the judging at Bedford for nine instead of eight o'clock, then people will have time to come in on the opening morning from the " adjacent" towns, about the handiest of which would appear to be London. A very lengthy report of the Council meeting on Wed- nesday, embracing a number of sub-reports from the several committees, necessarily stands over. It is with much regret, however, that we notice the withdrawal from all active duties of Mr. H. S. Thompson, con- sequent on declining health. No man ever worked harder in Hanover-square than Mr. Thompson, and it was purely an omission at the general meeting on Thursday when his name was not associated with Mr. Pusey, Mr. Handley, and Mr. Holland, as commoners who had filled the President's chair with so much honour to themselves and so much advantage to the Society. Far among the most important information which came out at the meeting on Wednesday of the Central Chamber of Agriculture centred over the auditor's report, which went to show that the Chamber was virtually in a state of insolvency, members and local Chambers being alike heavily in arrear of subscription. Our reports of the meet- ings must be here left to tell out the story of a remarkable rather than an eventful week. THE SUPPLY OF GUANO. What is to be done to supply the place of Peruvian guano, the source of which appears to be fast working out ? " Find other deposits, of which there are plenty in many parts of the world," is the reply that would be made to the question. But the quality of the Peruvian article, which rendei'S it so exceptionally valuable to the farmer, is due to the almost entire absence of rain in that country. A shower fell a few yeai's ago to the amazement of the inhabitants, those under seventeen years of age having never seen such a phenomenon in their lives, an interval of that extent having elapsed since the previous shower. Copious night-dews are the substitutes provided by Providence to supply the j)lace of rain ; but it must be evident to any one that the absence of rain must have a powerfully conservative effect upon the materials or elements of which Peruvian guano is composed, and which are peculiarly liable to the deteriorating influence of water in the shape of rain falling upon it from time to time. This alone causes the difference existing between the properties and, conse- quently, the increased value of one — the Peruvian — over all other kinds which have hitherto been discovered ; no other possessing the amount of azote or of phosphates of llie Peruvian, and we believe there is no hope of discovering any country in which the absence of rain is coupled with the immense and marvellous clouds of sea birds which are the immediate producers of the guano. However the stock is so reduced in the Chincha Islands that the pur- chaser must now be satisfied with a simple guarantee that the guano is delivered pure and unadulterated. Such is the present condition of the Peruvian guano trade, which during the few years that it has lasted has produced almost a revolution in the application of manure to the laud, and helped, by the collateral operations arising from it, to spread a general knowledge of agricultural chemistry and of \he application of its principles in the management of the land. It will be evident |that any scarcity of the more valuable article, will leave a wide opening for practices, which, in fact, are known both in the United Kingdom and QR the European contiueat, specially in France, where there are numerous manufactories of guauo, as so called. Several articles on the subject have appeared in the Echo Af/ricole, from which we learn that certain manufacturers are taking advantage of the dear- ness of guano to foist upon the public spurious compounds under the same form, or as near it as they can produce it, for which twice, thrice, or four times the in- trinsic value is charged. M. Corenwinder, the founder and president of the Agricultural Committee of Lisle, has, with other members of that body, thoroughly investi- gated this subject, aud been the means of exposing the frauds that have been palmed upon the agriculturists. Some of the sellers of worthless articles declare that J,hey have improved upon the real Peruvian guano, by taking from it the volatile azotes and the phosphates, which they allege are dissipated immediately they are spread upon the land, and have substituted fixed sub- stances which, in fact, are fixed enough to do neither good nor harm, being quite unavailable to any crop whatever. A colouring matter is given to this mixture similar to the colour of genuine Peruvian guano, so that without an analysis it is impossible for an ordinary purchaser to de- tect the fraud except by its results upon the crops, or by a previous close analysis, which the purchaser has not always the opportunity of employing. The Echo Jr/ricole gives the analysis of several samples containing various proportions of azote. Thus, an artificial guano containing 2.17 per cent, of azote is sold at 25f. per 100 kilos, (or £11 per ton), worth only 6f. 25c. (or one-fourth) per Ion. Another containing only 2.43 per cent, of azote is sold at 20f. (or 16s.) per 100 kilogrammes (or £3 Ss.) per ton, worth 7f. per 100 kilogrammes, or less than £3 per ton. We give one more — American guano. This is composed of 4.74 azote, 7.27 phosphate of lime, 11.43 water, and the rest per cent, of various auimal matters. The price of this compound is 31f. (or £1 4s. lOd.) per 100 kilos., worth 14f., or £6 3s. per ton. Such are the frauds upon the French farmers, who, generally speaking, are but little qualified to detect them, nor disposed to expend any money in analyses, which they do not understand sufficiently to have aug coulidence ia, Jt is otherwise with the Euglisl^ THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 15 farmers, who have for many years beeu in- doctrinated in the value of chemistry and its appliances in the analysis of matters employed in the fertilisation of the soil, and have moreover reliable men of science within reach to undertake the operation. The exposure of sundry frauds attempted here has put the farmers upon the alert in their pnrchases, and few of them would now buy the article without having previously a sample for the purpose of an analysis to ascertain its intrinsic value. The sample given, as offered in France, was sold at 33f. 15c.," and sent to M. Corewinder direct from the cargo im- ported, without passing through the hands of any agent or purchaser who could adulterate it before the analysis was made. This will be some guide to the buyer ; but it is to be hoped that other deposits will yet be discovered, and that the supply will not be absolutely cut off by the exhaustion of the present stores ; as it is, indeed, understood that immense quantities have been found in the mountains that bound the Chilian and Peruvian States on the East ; and a list of 4G diflerent islands and places on the mainland has beeu published by the Peruvian authorities as containing deposits more or less in amount, and of different qualities. Whether the climatic conditions of those mountains are as favourable to the properties of the guauo is a question we cannot speak to ; but we hope it will be thrown open to the access of the European traders, so that the farmers who have learned its value may not be wholly deprived of its aid iu the renovation of the soil. THE CENTRAL CHAMBER AND ITS ORGAN. Notwithstanding the untoward circumstances under which the great Carnival of Agriculture has just been celebrated, it is satisfactory to see that the Societies asso- ciated with, and, as it were, the mouthpieces of the pur- suit, flourish exceedingly. Try them as we may, by ths meetings they held or the reports they offered, the Royal Agricultural Society of England, the Smithfield Club, and the Farmers' Club were never more prosperous than they are just at present. To this rule there is of course one remarkable exception : the most pretentious of all these bodies, the Central Chamber of Agriculture, has, accord- ing to its auditor, £40 in hand wherewith to meet some £70 of liabilities ; or, in other words, the Central Cham- ber was last week in a position to pay a little more than ten shillings in the pound. And the auditor went on to say, naturally enough, that " it was disgraceful such a Society should stand in such a position," as he dwelt on the heavy arrear list which he found. Here, it is manifest, the point of the story centres ; not only do in- dividual subscribers decline to go on subscribing, but some of " the Local Chambers throughout Great Britain," of which the Central Chamber calls itself the head, have neglected to send any further tribute. This is the more noticeable as, if the executive of the Central Chamber has displayed any particular energy in doing anything, it has been in asking for money. Under some excuse the hat has always been going round, or the begging-letter circu- lated, until one begins to think the renowned i\Ir. Joseph Ady must have taken the financial department nuder his control. People may have very possibly got sick o»f this sort of thing ; but in any case the actual facts are so damaging that a copy of the auditor's report was not to be obtained at the meeting, while, although it is stated in a kind of preface to the pamphlet of reports issued that " the statement of the financial sub-committee, with the report of the auditor, is appended," neither of these otrR-ial papers are to be found in the copies with which our representative was supplied ! The falling away of the Local Chambers could only have beeu expected from all that has been occurring for some time past. One Chamber protests against the irrelevant nonsense talked at the Central Chamber ; another asks when they are going to work iu earnest at head quarters at questions which really affect agriculture ; expression is given at a third to a hope that rejjorts over whicli the Central committees are busied may never be finished ; and a fourth, at Gloucester, only the other day, declares that these Central Reports (on Tenant-Right) give very little information, as that which they do give about Gloucestershire is not to be trusted. Six weeks or so pjune we yeatured to charaeterisQ this said report, so far as it went, as " a melancholy rigmarole proclaiming failure in every line of it." The plain truth is that the Central Chamber of Agriculture has from the fli-st beeu a mere job, worked with little ability and proportionate success ; as it has now arrived at this grand epoch iu its career : — it is bound hand and foot to the landlords over Local-Taxation ; it is shirking instead of organizing any movement against the Malt Tax at the coming election , and it has shelved, so far as it had any power to do so, the Tenant-Right cry by the stale trick of appointing a committee, which was never wanted, and which has failed miserably in the outset. "With such a glorious consum- mation can we wonder at its actual possessions reaching to as much as ten shillings in the pound, or at one of its own officers characterising this as a disgraceful position? From the fu-st, when almost altogether unsupported, we never hesitated to express our opinion as to the con- duct of the Chamber of Agriculture, and we have suf- fered accordingly whenever a broken link in our armour was thought to oft'er an opening. Thus, only a fortnight since the Organ actually devoted a leader of more than two columns to the merits of the Birmingham Champion Ox of the previous week, quoting with peculiar compla- cency Tlie Times, and itself on " the grandest beast in the show," and with little mercy gibbeting us after this fashion : " Tlie Mark Lane Kcpress turns up its nose at such a specimen of prize oxship. It says : ' The very winner hardly looks like a tlioroughbred one, but is simply a great mountain of beef of not very prime quality, while lie begins with a poor, plain, mean head, and has as little style about him as any beast which ever took so high a place'." And then the Organ, although it jjrotests against our "off-hand manner," proceeds iu a very olf-haud man- ner to settle the question in this way: " Of course, the beast is a grand one, or else all the dilFercnt sets of judges must have beeu woefully wrong, and Tin; Mark Lane Krpress right." Still our critic would " like to know who is wrong and who is right," and by the next Monday he is thus answered by " A Midland Judge" iu his own columns : " Having h&d the privilege of viewing the four animals w-hich were by their previous triumphs in their several classes selected to compete for the further honour of the best iu the bovine classes exhibited, I had a better opportunity of judging them as they were led up and down the avenue than those who merely saw them tied up, and I then thought that he was the least worthy of the high distinction — an ojiinion in which I was, upon a closer in- spection, fully confirmed. That he had a great carcase, moderately evenly covered with Hesh, is beyond question. He had a fine tpble back, good spring of rib, and con9e» 16 THE FABMER'S MAGAZINE. queiitly a good middle piece ; but I failed to distinguish that tine rich touch which all Shorthorn breeders so much aim at — in fact, my opinion is he lacked quality. His character, too, was anything but that which my eye recog- nises as that of the pure-bred Shorthorn, and I fully en- dorse the following words of one of your contemporaries : ' lie begins with a poor, plain, mean head, and has as little style about him as any beast which ever took so high a place.' His neck was mean and weak in the extreme, his shoulders badly covered, his brisket by no means what it should have been ; his flank, purse, and rounds w'ere the worst I ever touched for an animal of such pretensions, to say nothing of a badly set-ou tail and patchy rump." This very moderate beast, according to a man who ex- presses himself like a judge, the u-orst of the four was Mr. Wortley's champion ox, which commanded the "high praise of The Times, and was by the Organ " the grandest beast of the show ;" whilst the contemporary whose de- scription the Midland Judge " fully endorses" is The Mark Lane Express. How thoroughly do the Dogberry of The Times and the Verges of the Organ in the cha- racters of muddle-headed watchmen observe the behest to write each other dowu an ass. At Leeds this " grand beast" was beaten by ^Ir. Reid's heifer, in turn since beaten by another Birmingham entry, so that the Here- ford ox, for which we went in the outset and which " A Midland Judge" also prefers, was, probably alike for looks aud quality the best animal this year in Bingley Hall. It is only right to add that we knew nothing of the Midland Judge's letter until it was published, nor do we now know the name of the author. With one sentence, however, in this suicidal leader we heartily agree : " Clearly there are some editors or re- porters who either do not examine the beasts they are going to write about, or, if they do, are imcompeteut to perceive and appreciate the merits and deficiencies in form, quality, and character in the specimens before them." Clearly there are, and with permission we will illustrate this by " the leading Journal," or, in other words, by the practice olThe Tunes reporter — who before now has given very complimentary descriptions of animals, which unfortu- nately were not present at the meeting he was writing about — who only at Hull proclaimed, with all the " high praise" at his command, a young Shorthorn to be the first prize bull, though his chief merit was in standing in the next stall to the first prize — and who, at Birmingham, two or three years since, wrote up a " superb" Devon as the best beast in Bingley Hall, which never took any prize what- ever at Islington iu the following week. Clearly " there are some editors or reporters who either do not examine the beasts they are going to write about," or very possi- bly never see them at all ; and who are " competent" for little better than being crammed by a butcher or a very disinterested owner. The Organ must have had some such an editor or reporter iu his eye when he passed this severe sentence. THE KOYAL AGRICULTURAL BENEVO- LENT INSTITUTION. At the December meeting of the Council, Mr. C. S. Cantrell in the chair, it was announced that Mr. Donald Nicoll had withdrawn his name from the Council of the Institution. The receipt of a legacy of £100 was reported. The deaths of two pensioners were reported. It was decided that in the case of candidates perma- nently disabled the qualification age should be reduced from 45 to 40 years of age. Some complaints advanced against the quality of the food supplied to the children at the schools ^ere con- sidered unreasonable. It was resolved iu future to hold the December meeting of the Council in the Smithfield Club show-week, as sug- gested in Tl^e Mark Lane Express. FRENCH TRADE SINCE THE WAR.— la the recent de- bate on the Budget of the Minister of Agriculture and Com- merce in the French Assembly, the minister made an interesting statement as to tlie development of the French export trade since the war. The fact to which he called attention is one which has justly attracted some previous notice, viz., that the exports of France iu the present year exceed by £20,000,000 the exports in 1869, which, as the minister puts it, was the most flourishing of the ref/ime which preceded the present. The minister recognises that much of the iucrease is due merely to a rise of price ; but there is, nevertheless, he asserts, aa enormous progress, on which the French people have a right to cougratulate themselves. The minister also draws attention to the fact tliat the increase takes place under regime of competition, and is in no way m protected indus- tries, the only new advantage which French industry enjoys, as compared with former periods, being the absence of taxes on raw materials. The following is a list of the more impor- tant items in which the iucrease has taken place : — Tissues of silk £3,000,000 wool 2,680,000 cotton 400,000 Works in Leather, \c 2,400,000 Jewellery and Gold work 880,000 Watch raakiug 160,000 Tools and other works in metals 3,000,000 The principal increase is thus in articles of manufacture in which France has had a pre-eminence, that is, France has been able to develop her characteristic industries, hut the minister remarks as to the last item, that it is customary now in France to purchase articles for which recourse was formerly had to England. Such is the account of the French minister, and it is certainly a remarkable one considering the shock which must have been given to France trade by the uuhappy war of 1870-71, the fact that tiiis has been a year of crisis iu several countries with which France deals, and the additional circumstance that the France of 1873 is smaller by two manu- facturing provinces witli a population of more than two millions than the France of 1869. There are only two possible qualifications to the account, to which we think at- tention may be drawn, without questioning that the account, should be substantially satisfactory to the French people. One is that to some extent the apparent exports of France may have been increased by the loss of two provinces — what was formerly a home trade between one part of France and another becoming a foreign trade, aud so swelling the totals of the latter. Is there any means of telling how much the diminished France of to-day exported to the lost povinces, as the amount, if it can be stated or guessed at, clearly falls to be deducted in a comparison with the former period, a con- trary rectification being also made iu the former accouut in respect of the share which the lost provinces contributed to the former exports of France ? Tlie other (lualification is that some of the increased exports may indicate no real iu- crease of the industry of France, but may be a sign merely of diminished wealth. France must export more because of the large debt which she has contracted abroad as the result of the last war, and the interest of which she must pay. I)oes she pay the amount without any diminution of liome cun- sumptiou, or does the new debt abroad actually take some- thing from the people which they formerly enjoyed ? Tliere is a suspicion that the latter may be the case, as the imports have certainly not increased as well as the exports, and it would be desirable to have the statistics of French trade aud industry carefully analysed to see whether any weight is to be given to this qualification of the miuistei's account — Economist. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 17 WINFRITH FARMERS' CLUB. PARASITES. The opening meeting of the winter session took place at Wool. Mr. O. W. Farrer, the Recorder of Wareham.was set down in the programme for a lecture on the Sanitary Act, but his place was taken by Mr. George Bennett, of Winfrith, whose indisposition had prevented his presence at a meeting fixed for October. Mr. J. J. Bates, of Lulworth, occupied the chair. Mr. J. Bennett then read the following paper " On Para- sites." "When asked a twelvemonth since to take this subject little thought that it was one of such extent, interest, or im- portance. Unfortunately for me, I have not been able to ob- tain a vast amount of information that I had wished to have access to, as I am unable to read the German language, and this particular subject seems to me to have been treated i/i extenso by our German sacans. Such being the case, I hope you will pardon me if I fail to set before you this evening a very learned and wise discourse upon a subject that at first sight does not commend itself to people generally, but it only requires to be slightly investigated and I am sure an interest will soon arise. I saw some very good advice a short time siuce, which I mean to adopt as far as I can. I have had to do with a lot of hard names and long scientific words ; these I mean to leave out and expunge as far as possible. The ad- vice was simply this — " In particular arts beware of that affec- tation of speaking technically, by which ignorance is often disguised and knowledge disgraced." In the first place I think it will be as well to come to some understanding as to wliat a parasite is, and what is meant by the terra. I shall simply de- fine it as a plant or animal which attaches itself to and lives in or upon another. We find them in the animal and vegetable kingdoms. These creatures are found to exist in almost every living being ; and, not only so, but in all parts of their bodies, such as the viscera, muscles, brain, skin, and even eye. Some appear to have no appreciable efi'ect upon the organisation or on the subject, whose body they may occupy for years without giving rise to a suspicion of their existence, whilst others cause death in a short period. Again, in the vegetable world almost every plant has its own special parasite in the form of either a vegetable or animal, and that to such an extent that some- times whole fields of grain, tubers, or hops are nearly destroyed by them. It can hardly be supposed that these creatures are altogether created to be a pest to the world ; it seems rather more probable that where they exist in due limitation they have a beneficial effect in cleansing and purifying those parts of the animal and vegetable bodies on which they feed ; and tliat they only become specially injurious when they become extremely numerous, and suck away the very life-blood of the creatures that sustain them. Por of their numbers in special cases, such for instance as in what is some- times called the cotton worm, or disease of sheep, where the whole mass of flesh becomes white the cotton with an infinite number of little thread-like worms — in this and other cases, I say, their numbers are beyond all calculation. And, indeed, we may say of parasites in general, the law with them is to increase rapidly. Of animal parasites we may say their varieties are incalculable, some being very conspicuous and large, while others on the contrary are so small that it requires a powerful microscope to see them at all. If it be true that nearly all animals, small and grear, are more or less infectected with parasitical companions, it naturally follows that they must be of all sizes — a truth which Dean Swift has beautifully, though humorously, expressed in his well known lines : — The little flees that do so tease. Have smaller fleas tliat bite 'era ; And these again have lesser fleas, And so ad bijlnifiim. Let me draw your attention to the disease in sheep, caused by a parasite called a flute or liver fluke. On wet lands there is perhaps no parasite from which the farmer suffers more than from the liver fluke. Dr. Cobbold says that the ravages of this disease have been of the most disastrous and extensive character, A writer in the Edinburgh Velerinarij Review says, that in the season of 1831 and 1832 the esti- mated deaths of sheep from rot was between one and two millions. Supposing the number to have been one-and-a-half millions, this would represent a sum of something like four millions sterling. Scores of cases have occurred where far- mers have lost from three to eight hundred sheep in a single season, in many casesjcausing their complete ruin. The number of flukes inhabiting a sheep's liver is sometimes very consider- able. The eggs of a fluke may be numbered by thousands, as found in tlie bile contained in the liver ducts. Though of comparatively rare occurrence in the human subject, it is in an indirect manner extremely injurious to man. By its pre- valence in the lower animals it cuts off a large supply of healthy food, at the same time producing a quantity of meat unfit for the market, but which, nevertheless, is largely eateu by our poorer inhabitants. The liver fluke is not ouly ex- tremely destructive by carrying off thousands of our sheep, but it also affects our larger cattle. The disease therefore is of great importance, as it cannot fail to prove highly preju- dicial to our social interests. Outbreaks occurred in the years 1809, 1816, 18ii4., 1830, 1853, and 18(J0. A wet season seems to further the multiplication of parasites, and on the other hand a fine, dry, open season tends to check the growtli and wanderings of the larvfe, thus rendering the flocks compara- tively secure. Long continued wet. and a succession of wet seasons, seem particularly favourable to this disease. Slieep feeding in salt-water marshes seem to be exempt. The mixing of salt with our sheep and cattle food serves as a preventive and curative agent. Moisture being essential to the growth and development of the fluke larvae, sheep cannot be infected as long as they remain on high and dry grounds, and even in low pasture they can scarcely take the disease as long as they are folded and fed on hay, turnips, and fodder procured from drier situations. Por rot-affected sheep my opinion is that the only way to treat them is by the free use of salt, transference of the rot-affected animals to dry ground, good shelter, supplying them with beans or peas, and the fodder constantly changed. Prom this ravaging disorder in sheep caused by parasites, allow me to direct your attention to other disorders in domestic animals that have their origin in the presence of parasitical creatures. Pirst, as to giddiness in sheep. This disorder is caused by the presence of hydatids on the brain, and their presence there may be recognised by the restless and wandering habits of the sheep so afl'ected. The parasites causing this disorder are supposed to be produced from eggs taken in the food, and afterwards reaching the brain through the channel of the blood. When they become large or are numerous they are the means of gradually absorbing the braiu,thus causing very alarming symptoms. The disease is diflicult of cure. Trepanning has been tried, and also passing a wire up the nostril, but probably it is the wisest thing to kill tiie animal. Allow me in passing to refer to a less im- portant disorder than the one last spoken of — namely, the gape disease in fowls. This is caused by a particular kind of worm belonging to the order of Sclerostoma. The remedy adopted by some is to strip a feather and remove the worm by pushing the same down the throat. Some people apply turpentine externally. In the case of partridges bciug afl'ected change of food and place is recommended, with an infusion of rue and garlic, instead of plain water to drink. I will now pass on to the subject of tape-worms. The human subject is affected by no less than ten distinct species. Tiie tape-worm inhabitiug fish exhibits very distinct characteristics from those of birds or mammals, inasmuch as tiiey are furnished with special hook appendages employed as supplementary organs of boring and anchorage. Though dogs and many of our domestic animals are often passing tape-worms, they do not seem to suffer severely from their doing so. It is only when the length of the parasite becomes very great, and requires a corresponding quantity of nourishment to support it, that it begins to sap the constitution of the animal in which it is lodged. Though lookiug like a worm of many yards in length, when more closely examined it is found to 1)6 a compound animal, resembling very much a chain, 18 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. where every liuk is a distinct creature, but so united togetlier as to look like one lengtliened-out worm. Cestoid jwrasites are found in the ox, althougli to no great extent. The larv;e of tape-worms abound in cattle, while the cestoids in their adult condition are of less frequent occurrence. The beef raearie, although unknown in England, is frequently found in India whilst serving out the meat rations to the troops. It is a larval parasite or tape- worm in an immature state, like that which infests tlie human body. Experiments have proved that the ox is equally as liable as the pig to certain tape-worm larvtc within the substance of their flesli. If a calf be induced to swallow ripe eggs of tlie humau tape-worm, the ova there introduced will in time transform into measles. Swine will undergo a large amount of parasitism wishout ap- parently exhibiting so much sutferiug as other animals. Measly pork is more often detected than measly cattle, the reason being that in the latter the appearances are few and far between. The measle disorder (called cestode tuberculosis with equal propriety) occurs in the sheep, pig, ox, or other animals. To discover this disease a microscope, or at all events a strong magnifying glass, is required. When properly developed the beef measle is \ incli in diameter, this being much smaller than the cystercus of the pig. But there are other diagnostic signs of greater value. We may justly say that of all the forms of animal life parasites are possibly the lowest. They are deficicut of many of the organs that are possessed by those that are above them. Thus we say of internal worms, or eiitozoa in general, the organs of sense, &c., seem to be limited to that of feeling. In some the diges- tive organs are altogether wanting, the nutriment penetrating the tissue as in a fungus or confervte. No breathing ap- paratus is required, living as they frequently live, in cells and cavities. These worms are produced by budding, spontaneous division, or by eggs. The embryo developed from the egg does not always grow up immediately into an animal similar to its parent. It transforms itself into a larva, capable of giving birth without fecundation to other larvae, which are alone capable of becoming animals similar to the parent worm. Tiiese larvre are generally found in the tissue of animals very dilTereut from the one iu which the perfect worm exists, so that before one of them can complete its development it must be transported into another animal's body. Thus the white cell or vesicle, causing a fearful disease in pigs, developing very rapidly in the muscular tissue, transforms itself into tape-worm iu the humau intestines. One kind of worm, liaving five mouths, lives in the pulmouary cavities of the rattlesnake, another iu the bladder of frogs, and another in the skin of a common worm ; tlius we have "A worm upon a worm." Among the parasitical creatures that are a great annoyance to our farm stock may be also noticed here flesh Hies on sheep. They deposit their eggs on some damp place in the wool, which soon arrives at the maggot state, causing great inconvenience and loss. Ticks, too, are very trouble- some to the flock, yet they tend to cleanse away impurities from the skin. And the maggots of the lot, residing iu the frontal sinus, are also friglitlul enemies to the sheep. Causing them to sneeze has been known to bring the maggot from the nose. If sheep could be induced to become snuff-takers they would never sutler from the hot. What shall I say of bugs ? No doubt they are fierce parasites, Without respect for person ; If one a tender thin skin bites, Another bites a coarse one. Yet, independent of their evil propensities for biting, I read iu the Saiiird:i'j Majazine that they used to be a favourite medi- cine with doctors for colic. An old writer says : " Truly it is a remedy not to be despised, but it is no new remedy ; it is a certain cure, inasmuch as a governor of Zurich was so helped by tlieiruse that he would have liked to have written a commendition in their favour." If I try to soften down their bad prop,;rties, and to bring into prominence their good ones, I am only following the example of a great authority ; 'or Shakespeare, in speaking of parasitical men, calls them Most smiling, smooth, detested parasites. Courteous destroyers, atTable wolves, meek liars. I now bring before your notice another parasite. Think of our blood vessels, and the blood vessels of other animals, being the channels through which insect parasites are flowing in countless numbers, like fish iu great rivers and all tlieir smaller branches. Tlic hematazqon, a blood parasite, infests the hura.tn blood, and this lias been now proved by Dr. Lewis. It is l-6tli of an inch in length, and as broad as one of the red blood discs. Nothing as yet is kuown of its organs. As our knowledge of eutozoa extends we may find other at present obscure diseases associated with the presence of some such parasite as this. The discovery of its dwelliug- place is of course the first step to its removal. For the sake of variation in our subject, I would here briefly refer to the beneficial uses of parasitical life. In the fertilisation of the yucca plant there has been found a great ditficulty to obtain seed in this country. This arises from the fact that the yucca, being an insect loving plant, a certain small moth collects the pollen and inserts it into the proper receptacle, and with the pollen deposits a few eggs ; the larvae of the insect feed upon tlie seeds when matured. And, indeed, it almost seems that the plant and the insect are inseparable. Not having this particular insect in this country, we are unable to procure the seed of this particular plant. Para- sites, if not deriving nutriment from the animals on which they are found, must be a great annoyance, and must cer- tainly retard the flight of birds and insects. We owe a debt of gratitude to a large and important class of flies of the ichneumon family that are true parasites, and that live on other insects, enemies both in the ovum, worm, and clirysalis state. Parasites, as a rule, begin life in the egg form, passing from that into the larvte or caterpillar state, and then into the third or proper state ; but sometimes this arrangement is somewhat altered, and, as a French naturalist named Faber has noticed, some insects have to pass through what may be termed intermediate states ; that is to say, not only eggs larvEe, and pupa, but modifications of their states ; this he terms hypometamorphosis (this is the case with one of the bee parasites — the oil beetle). Bees are afflicted with a parasitical worm inducing disease. These creatures feed oa the fatty tissue, pass through their usual change, and then exchange their living quarters for the water, where they lay millions of eggs, which are again ready to be taken up by any animal frequenting the moist localities in which they are found. And, whilst speaking of bees, there is a uiicroseopic fungus called raucor mellitophorus that infests bees, filling the stomach with an immense number of microscopic spores, that greatly weaken the insect. The tachiuaj, an insect that causes immense damage to bees, is the means of a disease called the foul brood, analogous to typhus fever in the human subject. It lays its eggs in the larvte of the bee, and tlie perfect insect shortly comes to maturity ; the young bee is killed, and its decaying body causes a poison similar to typhus fever to arise in its immediate neighbourhood or brood. There are two facts that I had almost forgotten to mention ; the first is that dogs, when troubled with a certain kind of fleas, by biting and gribbing at them, the fleas find their way into the stomach, from hence the embryos are set forth by the gastric juice, giving rise to parasitical worms. Secondly, Dr. Cobbold nientious the curious fact that he calculates that about 4,000 people are affected with tapeworm in the metro- polis ; and, supposing that eacli day one of the two segments of the living worm pass into the sewers, causing 40,000 eggs, the sewerage is then placed over the land, and these eggs may be swallowed by cattle, the covering of the eggs pre- serving them from atmospheric influence. As the crea- tures of the parasitical animal are so numerous, I might have drawn your attentiuu to more than I have done ; but as there is still a further branch of our subject un- touched — namely, vegetable parasites, I must hurry on to that, concluding my remarks on animal parasites with some brief information regarding their development. The science of helminthology or eulozoology, makes us acquainted with the forms, habits, structure, development, distribution, and classi- fications of a large number of invertebrate organisms which take up their above at one or more periods of their life-time in or on bodies of man or other animals. Dr. Cobbold says that the happiest and perhaps after all the most truly philo- sophic way of studying the entozoa is to regard them as a particular fauna, destined to occupy an equally particular territory — that territory is the wide-spread domain of the interior of the bodies of man and other animals. Each animal or host may be regarded as a continent, and each part or viscus of his body may be noted as a district. Each district has its special attractions for particular parasitic forms ; yet at .the same time neither the district nor the continent are suitable localities as a permanent resting place for the invader. No^e THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 19 of the internal parasites continue in one state; all have a tendency to roam ; migration is the soul of their prosperity, change ot residence the sine qadnon of their existence ; whilst a blockade ia the interior, prolonged beyond the proper period, terminates only in critilieatiou and death. I now venture to draw your notice to various disorders iullicted on the higher lornis of animal life, as also upon various trees and plants, and dilfereut sorts of crops, by parasitical fungi and other forms of vegetable life, as well as the ravages created in crops by worms, Hies, and so forth, members of the parasitical family. The bean parasite, the Aphis i'aba or the Black Doiphin, arrives with an east wind, and is most destructive to the beau crop. It is supposed to derive its nourishment from the sap of the plant. Its powers of re- production are enormous. KoUar states that it multiplies after the rate of 7^9 millions in one season. This blight (so called) is arrested by topping the plants ; and some persons assume that by this means the poda of the bean become enlarged and more fully developed. A check to this parasite is the larvre of the ladybird, ichneumon, and maggots of other insects. And here I may notice that the larvre of certain parasitical flies feed upon some ol our insect enemies, and thus destroy them, as seen in the case of of the bugs and beetles found amongst tlie beans. A plan sometimes adopted is to grow beans and peas together ; this is done for more than one reason, firstly, the bean serves as a support to the pea, keeping it off the ground, and giving it air and light. Secondly, in case of an affection of the green or black aphis, one stands a chance of saving one of the two crops, the black affecting the bean being especially favoured by an east wind, and the green aphis by the south-west wind. Why this should be I cannot venture a reason ; and on this point I should wish for information from any member of the club. Mouldiness in bread is frequently developed. It arises not from germs in the atmosphere, but from inferior flour kept under wrong conditions. It is stated that excess of salt added to the bread prevents the production of this parasitical fungi. The potato disease, the Perouospora infestans, no doubt arises from a parasitical fungoid. It cannot be traced back to its beginning, nor can the first appearance of typhus or any other malignant fever. The fungus that produces such dire results amongst this most valuable vegetable is not only found on the potato, but also on the night shade of our hedges, and very commonly on the fruit of the tomato; nor does it confine itself to the same natural order as the potato, but is found on plants of other orders, to wit, the Sciophulariaciie. A curious fact may be here mentioned — that the mycelium of a fungus is a great incentive to the production of the green colouring matter of the leaves, thus accounting for the extreme healthy appearance immediately preceding tiie attack or after the germination of the spores. The parasite never appears on the upper side of the leaf, but always on the under surface. In perfecting itself it destroys the matrix on which it grows, and causes the leaves to dry up and putrefy. The fungus really stops the breathing apparatus of the leaves by filling up file stomachs or mouths; by this means the stem and leaves become surcharged with moisture, producing rot and decay The spores when ripe are given off by the fungus, and, by means of the wind and showers, the disease is spread with alarming rapidity over large districts. Besides the germ or spores other bodies are also found called oospores, or a secondary sort of fruit of the potato fungus, which do not germinate or perish at once, hut remain for a whole season, until circumstances of a favourable character occur, when they reproduce their parent forms. The fungus of the potato fruit affects the leaves, then the stem, and lastly the tuber. It ap- jiears that the fungus penetrates from the exterior or cuticle to the interior, the eyes being the last to succumb; audi ipiestion very much ifplauting tiie eyes is not a sure way of spreading the disease. Destroying tiie liaulra immediately h 13 sometimes been recommended to stop it, but if delayed the fungus soon gets to the tuber. Wiiei the disease occurs in a field where the resting spores have been developed it docs so from beneath upwards ; these plants soon affect tiie lujalthy ones in an opposite direction, that is from the haves downwards, and so the crop perishes. Early planting of early sorts, I opine, is the best preventive. Amongst animals that suffer from vegetable fungi in the shape of parasites we may name the horne. Thus we read in The Timrs newspaper, April 3, 1873 : "The vegetable origin of the horse disease is the subject of a paper in The American Na/ura/kt, by Mr. Moorhouse, of New York. He examined the matter exuding from the nostrils of the affected animals, and, besides the regular pus, found no less than three kinds of vegetable or- ganisms, all in states of vigorous development. Ocs was a species of minute lichen, known as Urceolario scruposu. These were in every form of development, there being hundreds of fragments in a single drop. Another was an unknown species of Aspci'jillus, also giving evidence of propagation and growtli. The third form was an unknown species, not hitherto described. In order to prove that these spores were floating in the atmos- phere, they were caught on moistened glass in the atmos- phere in the vicinity of the disease. This is regarded as bringing the atmospheric and vegetable origin of this disease nearer to demonstration, but yet not as proving it, as the at- mospheric vegetable spores may have simply found a favour- able nidus in which to germinate in the mucous matter given off by the disease." Parasites in plants are most numerous in tiie tropical regions. Sometimes a tree may present various kinds of foliage, arising from the different kinds of parasitic intruders. In Britain only a few species are known. I will here mention the dodder. It has been described " as a non- pareil, having no leaves, but red tlueads, and after it has fastened its claspers or small tendrils on the lime, thyme, nettle, madder, or such like, it quits the root, and, like a cohering parasite, lives upon anotiier's trencher, and, like an ungrateful guest, first starves and then kills its entertainer, for which reason indigenous clowns curse it by the name of ' hell-weed,' and in Sussex by the name of ' JJevil's Guts' " Gnrarde also describes it as a strange herb altogether, without leaves or root, like unto threads very much snarled or wrapped together, confusedly winding itself about bushes and hedges, and sundry kinds of herbs. Dodder, when first produced, lives as an ordinary plant in the soil, the roots deriving nutri- ment from the same. It then puts out a tendril, and, if fortu- nate enough to attach itself to a becoming plant, it soon pro- duces more tendrils, v^hich continually wind themselves round the plant, piercing its texture and deriving nutriment from it. Its own roots after a time wither, and from this time it is entirely independent of the soil. One peculiarity of the dodder is that it can mature its seed in the capsule, and Ijy so doing, it becomes a parasite at once. Dodder germinates from seeds like our ordinary plants, and must be sown with the clover seed ; but it has the power of remaining in the soil without germinating for a longer period than the clover. The dodder soon becomes like the polype, so that if cut up into many fragments, each one becomes a separate plant, so that harrowing or tearing abroad is of no nse to rid the plant. The only eU'ectual way is to dig up the soil and burn thoroughly. Some people have recommended a weak solution of sulphate of iron to be applied with a watering-pot, but this remedy can only be adopted wlieu tiie plant has not made muck havoc. De Candolle recommends the way to get rid ot this troublesome pest is to mow sucli portions of tlie crop as are infested before the seed is fallen, and, if this has taken place, to replace the crop by some sort of grass that has not tlie, privilege of being affected by tliis plant. Flax is soiuetimes affucted with it. Brown rape is again another parasite which attaches itself to the clover roots, and is most probably sown with the cloverseed. It is a leafless plant tiiat attaches itscl f to the ends of the roots, causing thein to swell, and from this swelling they derive their nutriment. In some countries tliis parasite is often found, and the mode adopted for its extirpation is to steep the seed in an alkaline solution. It is supposed that the seeds attach themselves by a kind of oil which floats to the surface, and are then poured ofT with the water. 1 am inclined to tliink that lichens do not procure their sustenance from the essential juices of the plant or tree on which they are found, but from decaying portions of tlie bark and from the atmosphere, although they add very much to the pieturesque appearance of the aged monarchs of the forest glen. Mistletoe in severe winters is cut from llie apple-tree and given to siieei)-, wliich eat it readily ; it is said to preserve them from r jt. This plant is found on the oak. lime, black poplar, willow, pear, and almond tree in Trance and Spain, and sometimes on the olive tree about Jerusalem. The old Druids used to consider this plant most sacred, probably from its scarcity. The seeds have a peculiar way of germination. They send out a rootlet that bends over uutil it reaches the body of the substance to wliich the seed has been attached; having reached this the root swells out and extends between the inner bark and the soft wood. As growth advances the roots become embedded iu 20 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. the solid wood, but do not by their own account penetrate. When several plants are nourished from one branch it often causes not only the death of the particular brauch but also their own death from want of nourishment. It is therefore expedient to free orchards from this undesirable pest. Smut is a paiasitical fungus that destroys the centre of the flower, feeding on the ileshy mass that it produces, and materially interferes with the yield of wheat, although it does not so much interfere with the quality as the quantity. Bunt, on tlie other hand, confines itself to the mature wheat grain, and may be recognised by the offensive smell when crushed. Tlie diseased grain remaining in the crop of wheat spoils a large bulk, as, unlike the smut, it remains until harvest, and does not get dispersed previously. It will not here be probably out of place to mention the reason that we adopt a solution of bhie vitriol to steep our seed wheat in, or the use of lime. It is simply this — that the germ of the bunt fungus is covered with au oleaginous substance which, when mixed with an alkaline body, as lime, becomes saponified, or, on the other hand, mixed with a styptic metallic salt solution, it destroys the germ, which, being deprived of its covering, ceases to ger- minate, and rots in the soil, and thus prevents the occurrence, of the disease. For ray own part I prefer the use of vitriol. Oii tills point I should like the opinion of those present. Steep, iug grain in a metallic solution serves also to destroy the ger minatiug power of sickly wheat grains, which are only a fit receptacle for some of our numerous insect and fungoid ene- mies. With regard to lichens a diversity of opinion exists. Some contend that they are the means of attracting moisture to the trees on which they grow, and thus assist in their nu- triment and growth ; others, on the contrary, contend that they are detrimentul to all timber trees. My own impression is that to a certain extent they are injurious, inasmuch as they derive for the support of their thallus an amount of in- organic substances from the bark on which they are found, these substances not being contributed by the atmosphere. I may here mention the new vine disease, the Phyloxera vas- tatrix. This peculiar parasite in all its threefold states, whether covering the roof, clinging to the branches, under side of the leaf, or when flying, is a particularly obnoxious and dangerous enemy. It seems to prefer the vine to other plants, although it is by no means certain that others are not similarly affected. Although the insect is not of itself difficult to kill, the best plan as yet found out is to buru both vine and soil, not forgetting to destroy the roots of the vine, which may become affected if allowed to remain. Even at the risk of being tedious I will bring before your notice a very remarkable way in which parasites make themselves of use in beautifying the ladies. If they sometimes create great ravages among the silkworms, and in this way make the ladies' silk dresses all the more expensive, they seem to try to make up for it by assisting the mussels and oysters ill the structure of those beautiful pearls that add so much to the charms of the female sex. I will read to you an extract from the Lancet on this subject : " In a late number of the journal of the Linnaan Society there will be found some in- terestiug remarks by Mr. Garner, F.L.S., ' On the lormatiou of British Pearls and their possible Improvemuet.' Every one is aw.ire that an oyster or a niusst'l, as tiie case may be, when irritated by a foreign body, not liaving the means of scratching itself, is reduced to the necessity of toning down the annoy- ance of the inevitable presence of the intruder by shedding around it, through the agency of its ' mantle,' layer after layer of lovely ' nacre,' or mother-of-pearl. Such is the origin of those pearly concretions which may be found adherent to the inside of the shells of the above-named molluscs. The rounder and more valued pearls are said to be formed in the soft parts only of the animal, of which a good example may be seen in the educational series in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons, in the shape of a round pearl embedded in the foot of a nnio, or a fresh-water pearl mussel. Mr. Garner has found rea- son to abandon the generally received idea of the grain of sand which plays the part of the crumbled rose-leaf to the muUus- cous sybarite, and concludes, from observations made on the marine mussel {iinjlilns) — his conclusions being supported by tlie independent researches of Signor Antonio Villa, in Italy — that the exciting cause is no inorganic particle, but is actually a minute parasitical entozoon (a species of dis(oma) in the mytliliis ; while in the ««0(/6i«, or fresh- water mussel, it is a minute mite, acarus {Atax) — in fact, an itch insect. The presence of such parasites as a nucleus he has proved by treat- ing the pearls with a dilute acid. Mr. Garner then hints at the possibility of setting on foot a king of pearl-nursery, so to speak, where the cultivation of this precious ornament may be carried on, citing the Chinese as an example, who, as is well known, not only introduce metallic figures of ]3uddha between the shell and mantle (there to be pearl-washed by the mollusc for the ultimate benefit of the faithful), but even go so far as to bring about what may be termed a ' margaritiferous' diathesis, by contaminating the water inhabited by the mussel. With regard to such diathesis, it may be interesting to mention a theory of a celebrated French zoologist, M. Lacaze Duthiers, put forward some years ago by the 'Annates des Sciences Naturelles' — that a mollusc so affected is in the condition of a calculous or gouty subject, its blood being highly charged with the material which goes towards the secretion of pearly substances; the excess of which over and above what is re- quired for the nacreous lining of the shell is precipitated in the form of a pearl, much as in the analogous case of a mau a calculus is formed in the kidney or bladder, or a concretion of urate of soda above the nuckles. The reader of Sheridan's ' Critic' may remember how that the raving 'Tilburuia' cries ' Can an oyster fall in love ?' But an aldermanic mussel is well-nigh as ludicrous in conception as an amorous oyster, especially when it simulates humanity, as far as to be actually laid up with gout in the foot." I am afraid, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, that iu this discourse I have been prosy and tedious, but please to bear with my imperfections, for I liave laboured under various difficulties in gathering together a simple repast to gratify your scientific appetites. If I ha\6 done nothing else, I hope I may have spurred up some to look into natural history more than they have liitherto done, for it is a large, a wide, and an interesting field to labour in. I have drsvvn your attention to a few parasitical forms, such as most concern us ; but the few I have referred to bear no more com- parison to the whole army of these creatures than a handful of sand bears to all the sand banks in all the seas. Wherever the Great Creator has laid up a store of food, in all parts of the vegetable and animal kingdom, as well on dry land as in the sea, in the chill regions of the north as in the sunny south, there He has created some animals to feed upon it There are decay and waste going on in every created being, and there are other created beings formed to pick up and turn to use that waste, so that no crumbs of feeding matter may be lost. As some of these strange parasites are liable to increase and multiply to a pestiferous extent, it is our advantage and our duty, as lords of creation, to seek out for the ways and means of keeping them under control, of bringing them into the sub- jection of man. As we have been able to bring the wild beasts of the forest under our sway and to tame them, so may we hope, by sifting into the causes of the ravages of parasites, looking out for counterbalancing influences, if we do not entirely eradicate them, we shall at least greatly diminish their injurious tendencies. The lecture was illustrated with microscopic parasites mounted on small glass slides. The President asked whether it was definitely settled amongst scientific men that the disease in sheep originated ia the feeding of the animal or from internal causes ? Mr. Bennett answered that it was from feeding — that was the latest theory. There must exist the larva ; the germ must be taken into the body. Mr. Marke mentioned a case of some sheep which were sold on the understanding that they were free from the malady ; it turned out, however, that they had it and were therefore unsound. They were driven from seller to buyer, a distance of three or four miles. The business men, called in as arbi- trators in the matter, said, " You must find oat who drove those sheep, and the road over which they were driven." This was done, and it was proved beyond doubt that they were driven over a certain road where other sheep had taken the same disease. Mr. Bennett had referred to the blight in peas and beans, recommending the two to be sown together. Some five or six years ago he (Mr. Marke) was induced to adopt that plan. The beans came up in beautiful bloom, but a bligbt took them, the flowers falling oil', and what few under-pods that were formed coming to nothing at all. He had not a yield of as many beans as he had sown, but he considered that the fact of his growing them with the peas saved the latter to d very great extent. Mr. Bennett asked Mr. Marke whether he used lime or vitriol for steeping wheat before seeding. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 21 Mr. Maiuce rc[)lieJ that he used vitriol for some years ; but there was a certain amount of smut one season, and then lie went back to the old-fashioned system of lime and salt ; he added salt to the water until it floated an egg and tlieu he applied the lime. Mr. T. Kaxu.vli, supposed the lime was to dry the wheat. Mr. Marke said " yes ;" it dried wheat as much as any- thing. In acknowledging a vole of thanks, Mr. Bennett said he was convinced that farmers, as a rnle, were not sufficiently in the habit of making observations on natnral history and carrying out investigations in that science. He was sure that the babit was not only interesting but also pecuniarily profit- able. They should know more of these things than tliey did at present. If they devoted a little time to going round their fields and investigating, if for even only live minutes each day, they would be increasing their store of knowledge and benelit- ing the community at large. STAINDROP FARMERS' CLUB. FARM BUILDINGS, At the last meeting, Mr. W. T. Scarth in the chair, Mr. R. S. Baini'.ridge read the following paper : Farm buildings, as best suited for economy of space, food, manure, and construction may be divided into four classes. 1st, tlie old-fasliioned fold yard witli its covered lair at one end. 2iul, the byre system. 3rd, tlie box system, which, however, I will consider in connection with tlie 4th class ; and 4th, tlie the modern, and as yet seldom met with, covered homstead, under a series of roofs, and witli but four ouler main walls. Before treating of the different classes, with tiieir several advan- tages and disadvantages, I would wish to lay down tlie follow- iug axiom, viz., Tliat a beast is here treated as a meat-pro- ducing machine, and that warmth and comfort are food saveis. Folds (open), 1st class: The fold-yard system with its eating- tronghs, generally ranged around the sides, present the following advantages and disadvantages : Advantages — On a large straw-producing farm it offers a ready means of treading down a large amount of straw into manure, and should the stables, byres, and piggeries adjoin, it forms an easy vehicle for mixing the cold manures with those of a more lieating character, and if properly spouted, so that no more water mixes with the manure than wliat falls directly on to it, no great deterioration accrues to such manure, and if of not too large a size, say to hold half-a-dozen beasts and with a south aspect, the animals will thrive and do well in tiiem, more especially in the spring, and if water is then supplied to them in properly-constructed troughs. The disadvantages of the fold system : Straw, we know by chemical analysis, con- tains a portion of feeding matter, and tlie fold system is waste- ful in the extreme as regards straw — too much trodden under foot, and too little passing through the animal. 2nd, in how- ever well sorted a lot of cattle some will be the masters, and deprive the otliers of their fair share of food, and this, in a fold containing a large number of animals, is a serious draw- back, more especially in the present day, when a much larger proportion of artificial food is used than was ever dreamt of in the olden times, and not seldom is a beast actually laniea by the knocking about it incurs from its stronger mates, and no more dismal a sight is to be seen on a cold wet morning than a lot of beasts standing with their backs up, in an open fold, de- vouring lialf-frozen turnips, chilling their bodies, and disturb- ing their te.Tipers by the process, to the no small detriment of their weaker brethren. I raay here remark that the sharp edges of all folds should be rounded off. Class 2, Bjrcs : The byre is greatly in use in this neighbourhood. Its advantages are many. Ibt, a great saving of straw, easy food attendance, a constant dry lair, and each animal receiving its fair share of food, and the largest number of animals housed in a given space. Disadvantages : The manure must be constantly re- moved, entailing labour, and when this manure is thrown to the door, into unspouted yards (as far too large a percentage of tlie yards in this neighbourhood are), a large jirojiortion of valuable and costly properties are washed out of it ; and, in passing, I would remark tliat when one sees these dropinng eaves on a wet day, washing the manure, and rotting the foundation* of the buildings themselves, one is reminded of tlie old adage of the ship lost for the want of a lialf-penny wortli of tar. 2nd, the animal cannot lick itself, and tliis non- use of nature's brush and comb is no small loss to the health and well-being of the animal (I am here speaking of feeding cattle never released from the stall). Many feeders use both brush and curry-comb to their tied-up animals, but this entails labour — a costly item. 3rd, standing in one position is unna- tural, and iu the case of bullocks the stall is apt to get wet and uncomfortable, unless with a very good fall, but this requires tlie animal to stand unlevel. Boxes : These raay be treated in connection with the next class, but as far as b3xes are in- dividually concerned, they are the best of all for comfort to the animal. Covered buildings : Advantages— 1st, economy of space : The largest number of animals can be accommodated for the least outlay per head, owing to less walling_ being needed, and easy subdivision, the greatest cost being iu the roofs. 2nd, food : No waste need, or ought ever to occur in a covered homestei>d, in either straw, food, or manure. We know tliat to keep up the heat of the body a certain proportion of food is consumed as fuel ; if, therefore, we can provide a proportion of heat, artificially so to speak, to the animal, less food will be needed for fuel, and thereby go to produce beef instead. If on the contrary, the animal be kept too warm, we waste its food in the opposite w ay by sweating, and the system that will hit the happy medium (all other things being borne in mind as well) must, and ought to be the proper one to fol- low. Straw: No more is needed for bedding than that required for absorbing the actual excrement of the ani- mal. Manure: Tiie valuable salts contained in well- made manure are all retained. Disadvantages of covered homesteads : Liability of infectious diseases going thiough the wliole herd. Lung disease might easily be transmitted throughout, as also foot-and-mouth disease, and the above diseases actually occurred to the writer of this paper iu such a building, though the diseased animals were at once removed to the infirmary boxes that were care- fully walled oil' from, the rest of the buildings. The diseases were, liowever, of a very mild kind, and in tlie case of foot- and-mouth disease many of the animals were not olf their food for more than three days, or even less, which may be attributed to the comfort the animals enjoyed. Another draw- back is in the ease of fire, as the whole of the cattle might perish from tlieir being all together, so to speak. This, however, is mainly a matter of extra insurance. Draughts : Some covered steadings have been constructed without a due regard to avoid draughts. This, however, is an error in con- struction, and not the fault of the system. I will now pro- ceed to describe a covered farm-steading which contains the fold (but covered in), the byre, but without its water-washed yard for the manure to go into, and the box system all in one. The steading stands on a natural slope, and tlie ground work of the building consists of two terraces, a divisional wall separating them, the lowest being a large fold-yard for store cattle ; and the full width of the building under a series of four roofs. These are supported on metal pillars, which are hollow, to convey the water from the gutters of the roofs into the drain below. The fold is capable of holding 40 head of cattle, and easily divided by rails fitting into grooves in the pillars, which are some 10 feet apart. Ou one side of this fold, and comninnicating by small doors, are the pi^'geries, which are two or three feet above tlie level of the fold. By means of these floors the manure is thrown out. Along the top of this large fold, and raised some four feet, runs a pas- sago, and in*o this passage open the stables and byres, whence the manure is conveyed into the lower fold and spread about, and by this means the several kinds of manure are well mixed. The boxes (both single and double) are langed iu three parallel lines in the north side of the upper terrace, liaviag feeding passages between them, and are sunk four feet below the level of tlie passages. The byres come next, a passage di- viding them from the yard boxes, containing four or five lieasts each, iu the intermediate state of wintering and feeding. All 22 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. this upper terrace is open, only iliviJed by rails, except in the case of the byres, where therein a light wooden hoarding, six feet high, before their heads, to preveuirthem seeing the cattle feeding iu the boxes. At the head of the boxes and byres, and running parallel with them, stand tiie barns and turnip-house, from the latter of which runs a line of rails, comraunicating witli all the feeding passages by turn-tables. These turnip- truck rails being simply T-iron, nailed on to horizontal wooden sleepers, are cheap, and easily repaired. The stable is merely partitioned off from the raid-feeding boxes by a wooden lattice work, between the roof-supporting pillars. A liarness room rurs the full length of the stable, and coramuni- cntes by three doors, also through a wooden lattice, and in front of the horses runs a passage for feeding, the hay-house being midway down this passage, and corn-bin as well ; this latter being connected with the granaries by a spout to convey the corn without needing to be carried. The slates, both in the stable and rest of the building (except the granaries), are un- poiiited, and this, together with the opening in tlie roofs hereafter described, makes the stable very cool, not to say cold ; but the horses were always healthy, though apt to be rough in their coats. The whole building is watered from a raised tank, into which the water from the higher roofs is conducted. The roofs are slated with blue slate (into which are inserted glass slabs in sufficient numbers to give plenty of light), and are unpointed. Three-fourths of the way up, there is an overlapping roof, pitched three inches above the lower, and giving ventilation along the entire range, and so pure and cool is the air in the whole building from this mode of ventilation, that the difference of temperature between the inner and outer air was found to be only about three degrees, as taken by thermometer on several occasions, at a height of eight feet from tlie ground ; and the ventilation being so far above the level of the animals, prevents tliat m©st undesirable drawback, a drauglit ; and this cool temperature does away with the objection sometimes raised against covered steadings for store cattle, viz., that of making the animals' coats too fine for grazing. The pig-sties, cart-sheds, and implement houses are under a fifth roof, the granaries being above, and are walled off from the rest of the building by a single-brick- tiiick wnll. AVe have here economy of food, from the cattle being kept dry and comfortable. Economy of straw : Tlie animals need no more bedding than their own excrement recpiires to keep all dry and clean ; and in the case of the lower folds, the straw that comes from the stable is found nearly suthcient to keep them supplied. Economy of manure" None washed away, all preserved, and from the undeteriorated salts of ammonia, &c., preserved thereby, it was found to be positively iajurious to turn the manure, as it heated to such an extent, and this saved all that extra labour, and was quite short enough from so little bedding being used. Existing buildings can never be altered to equal a well considered and properly constructed covered steading, but still given the old fold- yard, with its surroundings of barns, and stables, &c., by roofing in the open space with a series of roofs, supported simply on metal pillars, the number being according to the size of the yard, we have then a dry comfortable lair, easily converted into anything desired, be it loose box, calf crip, pens for ewes and lambs at lambing times, or anything else, by simply dividing the covered space with a few hurdles, or rails ; and no one who has ever tried the covered system for one year, I believe, ever disliked it, thus proving tliat preju- dice against it arises only from inexperience. Cost : All depends on the locality, but from the absence of expensive divisional walls, it need not exceed ordinary farm buildings, and if the manure is one-fourth better than that made under the old system, and I believe it to be more, we have here an estate improver, well worthy the consideration of all land-o\iners. But in building all farm steadings it should be remembered that the expense of the buildings should be in proportion to, and not exceed, the requirements and size oj the farm, and should always be placed as nearly as possible In the centre of the farm, as the loss of time to the draughts on a farm ill- planned as regards position of buildings, would, if put together at the year's end, amount to something enormous, and in the present state of the labour market, a serious drawback to the value of such a farm. In conclusion, it may be fearlessly stated that an efficient, and labour economising steading is the handmaid to high farming ; without it, both food, manure, and labour, are wasted daily throughout the ye.ar, and no landlord can now either plead poyerty, or having but a life interest in his property, as any excuse for not having good buildings on his estate, as tlie Lands Improvement Com- pany are now always ready to advance the requisite capital, which becomes a rent charge on the estate itself for a certain number of years. If that man may be said to be a benefactor to his country who makes two blades of grass grow where (Tne grew before, how much more that landlord who provides effi- cient and economical farm buildings, instead ot the ill-con- structed homesteads too often to be met with, whereby thousands of pounds are yearly, nay, daily wasted ! The time is at hand when the nation will demand that no longer shall its natural resources be wasted, and the price of bread and meat thereby increased, either by crops being devoured by an undue quantity of game, or by insecurity for tenants' capital, from the want of a broad based common-sense Tenant-Right, encouraging the free investment of capital in the land, and for the economical use of such capital the farm-steading must be so constructed as to become a meat and manure making manufactory. The Presidknt thanked Mr. Bainbridge for his good paper, and thought farms must have good steadings, as the loss was great in time, labour and food without proper buildings for the stock ; he himself had experience of good buildings, although belaboured under tlie disadvantage of their being made out of old buildings. II there are draughts, (hat is the fault of the architect having constructed them badly, as the cattle should be free from wet or draughts ; a great economy of food is made, as cattle are spoiled in open sheds, so also is the manure which water deteriorates, and he considered manure made in covered places worth more than twice that of open yards, as from the beginning of November to that of March, the rainfall lessened the value of the manure considerably, and left little more than rotted straw. Landowners could resort to the Loan Companiei for money to erect buildings, the tenants paying interest, which they would be willing to do ; of course the buildings should be made suitable to the size and food producing powers of the occupation. Covered buildings will pay anyone, and they can be built at a less cost than open ones, and they give a good supply of water Irom the roots if collected into tanks. Mr. R. Kay, jun., thought bullocks should be in boxes, and the beasts tied up in stalls; young cattle he would not put into covered places, nor could all the straw be consumed in them. Mr. J. Hawdon was quite of opinion that young animals should not be kept in covered sheds, as they retained their coats much better in open ones. In covered houses the manure heated under the beasts. Perhaps the manure was better under covered buildings, but all should be spouted. The labour in cleaning out covered places was greater, and he had often found bullocks that had open courts to go to lying out- side in the curtain. Mr. Sutton observed that farms ouglit to have suitable buildings. Open ones consumed too much straw, whereas the covered ones economised it. ]\lr. Bruxskill thought the paper would by goinj to the public do good, and induce the landlords to erect new, and im- prove the present buildings. Covered buildings must enhance the value of the manure, as rains wash out the various salts. The lieaitn of the animals will be better, and they will never look behind them. He thought there had teen great improve- ments in this neighbourhood. Mr. J. Harrison thought that large farms were for covered in buildings, as the expense was too great for small ones. Mr. S. Powell testified that he had listened to a very practical paper. He quite agreed with Mr. llawdon and Mr. Kay about young cattle being in open folds. As for tlie ob- servation of the previous speaker he thought it was only necessary to make smaller buildings for smaller farms. Mr. T. Jackson agreed with what had been said. He liked covering in all stock, old or young. Calves when starved turned out very lousey. Their own breed of cattle would not do when turned out, although perhaps Irish animals might ; but aU were better in than out, as they had no comfort. Mr. MuLVEY observed that stabling had not been taken up so far. He was of opinion that it wanted looking after. He saw the bad effects of unroofed ventilation every day, that being the cause of much disease, and had often seen the poll evil caused by the doors being too low. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 23 Mr. K\\ thonglit the subject had boen brought before tlicm in ;i very able manner. Tlie point with him was wliicli description of buildings would pay the best. In cattle feeding this country would compete agaiust tlie world. They had the best cattle and accommodation, whereby the most meat could be made from the food given. He knew a farm at Kall'erton where the onstead covered 7,i acres of ground, which was carrying things to an extent. Good ventilation was very necessary, and he liked open courts for young cattle, as they exercised themselves and kept all right. Manure was all very well, but the health of the animal was more so. Economy of food was a great point, but he thought bought food the best as to economy. Standing on the manure was a disadvantage. Wlien animals were tied up the manure was taken away, and the food given at regular times, and each beast got what was for it. lie considered draughts were bad, but there should be plenty of ventilation. Places were enclosed without sufficient attention being paid thereto, and the giving the food with the least labour. The straw and turnips should be in the centre of the building, and the roads outside. Warmth is food, and open courts give ventilation. Extra water falling upon the manure is bad, all should be properly spouted. Mr. Bmnbriuge, in commenting on the remarks made, said Mr. Scarth tiionght the manure made in open yards only rotted straw, but that was going too far. He could not agree witli Mr. Kay and Mr. Hawdon in tlieir ideas of managing young cattle. He quite agreed with Mr. Brunskill that cattle were kept liealthy under covered buildings, and the food was economised. In the stables he mentioned tliey were as light as any house, having glass slabs in the roof, there was no disease, and though the coats of the horses were rough, there were no veterinary bills. The President maintained that young cattle did best when kept from winds and rains, than otherwise. Open yards were bad for cattle, young or old. He was of opinion that covered buildings properly built were the best, as food was economised, and beasts gained weight the fastest. The ventilation should be both in tlie ridge and also the roof. CROYDON FARMERS' CLUB. THE ADULTEUATION OF EOOD. At the last meeting, Mr. Robt. W. Fuller, the president, in the chair, reminded the members that the show of the Bath and West of England Society in 1S75 might be held at Croydon. He alluded to the liberal response which had been made by the gentry and tradesmen to the appeal for subscrip- tions for defraying the necessary preliminary expenses. He did not wish it to be thought that there was any lukewarm- ne'ES, F.C.S., then iiroceeded to deliver the first of a series of three lectures on Tlie Adulteration ot the Food of Man and Beast. The lecturer's table was improvised as a small laboratory, and his remarks throughout were illustrated by experiment. He commenced by saying that the adulteration of food was a question which at tliis particular time was of the utmost importance to all classes, and he should treat the matter more particularly with regard to substances connected more or less with agriculture. The Adulteration Act of 1873 placed in our hands the power of remedying existing evils, and he hoped the time was not far distant when the means of carrying out tlie Act would be more fully and satisfactorily developed. At present the district analysts were fettered for the want of proper remuneration, and men of solely medical attainments were in many instances appointed, instead of those whose whole time was devoted to the study and practice of analytical chemistry. The demand for some of tlie articles of daily consumption, more particularly milk, was often far greater than tlie supply, and that was one of the principal causes of adulteration, not because there was any direct extra profit attending it, but because the vendors were thus enabled to secure a greater number of customers. The adulteration of food was more extensively carried on in the poorer districts, where tlie rates would not admit of proper remuneration for the labours of analysts and others concerned in the detection ol eases. The fee of 3s. 6d., 5s., or at most lOs. Od. was fear- fully inadequate remuneration for careful scientific labour, un- less accompanied by a compensating annual stipend. Those who framed the Act could not have had the smallest conception of the labour and care necessary for the detection of adulte- ration, even in its simplest forms. Adulteration nowadays was not of the dangerous character it used to bo, but con- sisted principally ot the substitution of ciieaper ingredients for a portion — often the greater jioition — of the genuine arVicle. Perhaps no snbttance was more adulterated than rail k,but the adulteration was gi m rally confined to the harm- less ingredient, water. A great revolution had lately been ell'ected in this matter, and the late numerous prosecutions had bad a most salutary elfcct, at all events on the Jjoudon supply. Milk might b(! regarded as a compound cd' every su.bject necessary (for the young especially) for the develop- ment of the human frame. The lecturer produced a tabulated statement, showing the elements of which milk was composed, and the percentage of the several elements in the milk of difl'erent auimals, from which it appeared that the quantity of fatty, caseine, and albuminous matter was the greatest from a bitch. In mares' milk there were only traces of fatty matter, and only 1.7 of caseine and albumen, as compared with 16.8 in bitches' milk. It might be inferred, therefore, that if foals were fed on bitches' milk they would become extraordinary animals. The nourishing properties ot women's milk were so nearly related to those of cows' milk that the latter was gene- rally given when the natural food of the mother failed. The composition and quality of milk were, of course, subject to variation from difi'erent causes, such as age and condition of animal, nature of the food, &c. In lecturing the Club last year upon the composition of wheat and cereals generally, it would be remcmbrred that he arranged their constituents in the same order as he had shown in the table before them in the case of milk — namely, fat producers, and muscle andboue- formers. lu the cereals we met with oil, sugar, and starch as the fat-forming substances ; then gluten, Jcc, as muscle- forming ; then phosphate of lime, magnesia, &c., as bone- forming ; and one could not but be struck with the similarity in the composition of all these aud the composition of manures. In manures we have three groups jf substances — first, the mineral port'on, consisting chiefly of phosphate of lime and magnesia, or bonvearth ; these contributed to the solid struc- ture of the plant, and formed its backbone. Next came the organic portion, which might be subdivided into, first, the nitrogen, composed of 6uch substances as ammonia, salts, and mineral matter, corresponding to the nitrogenous portion of food ; and, second, the carbonaceous portion, or that which is deficient in nitrogen— this part corresponding to the starch, gum, sugar, and oil, or fat-f6rmiug substances of food. Tliua there was a wonderful relationship between the composition of manures, food, aud animals. And why sV)uld there not be? fordid tliey not contribute to one another? and were they not convertible, the one into the other? All scientifi.; farming was based upon this relationship. For example, a farmerWislied to grow wheat. He required, first, Wu: sub- stances which form tlie principal ingretlienis of wheat, viz., the nitrogenous, the carbonaeeoiix, and the mineral ; secondly, the proportion in which tiiey exist in wheat, vi/., water, I. "i parts ; husk or fibre, 15 ; starch, gum, and sugar, 55 ; fat, li ; gluten and other nitrogenous or muscle-forming substauees, 10 ; mineral matter (piiospliatcs), 2. Thus it would be seen lliai phosphates would be required, and nitrogenous manures (such as ammonia salts), to form the gluten ; and the soil .should therefore contain these substances in large quantity. Suppose; a farmer wishes to produce clieese from his milk. Mow, cheese i-s pre-eminently a nitrogenous substance, and is made from the coagulum or caseine of the milk. It is therefore necessary that a nitrogenous kind of food should be supplied 1 to his cows, such as beans, peas, vetches, aud clover, with oil. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. cake. Beans aud peas give large quantities of legumin, a substance almost analogous to caseine. If a person wished to produce butler from the milk instead of cheese, then a purely carbonaceous and oily food should be employed. Mr. Jones having shown the difference iu the composition of the milk of a cow when fed with different kinds of food, he proceeded to consider the means of testing the purity of milk. When milk was examined under tlie microscope, it presented itself as a clear liquid, with myriads of tiny globules floating about in it. The globules were thin-skinned balloons, filled with oil, and, when the milk was left at rest, the greater portion of these globules, being much lighter than the rest of the milk, rose to the surface and constituted the cream. In the process of churning, the globules or balloons were burst, and then the oil flowed out, the whole settling into a solid, oily mass, called butter. Much had been said about the lactometer as a means of detecting adulterations in milk, but he had not much faith in it. He produced one of these instruments, and showed the method of using it, but he considered it was a fallacious test, which it would be extremely dangerous to depend upon, for a dishonest tradesman would soon find a method of making up the density of milk that had been over- dosed with water. He then exhibited his own metJiod of testing milk, which was to evaporate it to perfect dryness in a porcelain or platinum dish, and weigh the residue. Good milk ought not to yield less than 5 per cent, of cream, which was a fair average, and a cow fed upon oilcake would often give milk with 25 per cent, of cream. The lecturer went on to demonstrate that caseine was separated from milk which had been previously skimmed by the addition of an acid, and he explained that the peculiar action of rennet upon milk was supposed to be due to the pepsing contained in the rennet. The sugar of milk, or lactose, was made from milk in Switzerland in large quantities during the manufacture of a certain kind of cheese ; and this sugar, like other sugars, was capable of being converted into alcohol by fermentation. In- deed, this process was carried on in Tartary to a considerable extent with mares' milk. It seemed rather an extraodinary idea that a man might be enabled to get intoxicated from milk, but the thing might thus easily be done. Milk was sometimes adulterated with chalk, but this was probably only to neutralise the acid when the milk was on the turn. Flour was also sometimes added to milk, but its presence could be detected by a very simple test. In the analysis of milk, the amount of bone-forming matter must be ascertained by simply incinerating the dried residue from the evaporation, and wtighing tlia ash, which consisted chiefly of phosphates and other bone-forming matter. In the s>ame manner the amount of the mineral portion of any organic substance could be as- cpitained. He pointed out that milk yields on an average about a half per cent of mineral matter. Ten gallons of milk would therefore yield about half a pound of bone phosphates ; and if a cow gave twenty quarts of milk a day she must take about 21bs. of bone phosphate from the soil each week, which must be returned to the land in order to reproduce a like quantity. Thus we seemed to be at work in a circle ; ''or there was no more bone phosphate in the world now than there was i'l tlie time of Noah, but as there was more need of it so was 1 litre a wider circulation of it. Like all other laws of nature, it \ras a law of mutual reciprocity ; for we returned to tlie earth that wliich we took from her, and what we sowed we reaped. The lecturer next referred to bread, and congratu- lated his hearers on the fact that the staff of life was now so little subject to adulteration. Formerly ground bone-dust was freely used, and possibly that fact had some connection With the old nursery rhyme, " I'll grind his bones to make me bread." This form of adulteration, however, was easily de- t 'cted by tlie same process as he iiad shown with regard to milk. He believed, however, that bread was rarely adulterated except by the addition of alum, water, potatoes, and rice or otiicr grain. The bakers said the alum caused the loaves to separate better, and certainly it made inferior flour appear whiter, for which reason adulteration with alum was made puni.sliable. The metliod of detecting the presence of alum iu Ijread was to extract it Ijy letting water soak through the bread, and then test the liquid and examine the crystals under the microscope. Some analysts professed to rely upon the ri'Mctiun tliat alum would give with tincture of logwood, but lie dfinonstrated that the test was unreliable, and said he had seen bread entirely free from alum give the same reaction. Tlie addition of potatoes to bread was harmless, except that they did not contain so much nutiitious matter as flour. The presence of potatoes was easily defected under the microscope, owing to the difference between the globules of potato starch, and those of flour. Whilst on the question of starch he would briefly allude to mustard, which was adulterated to a frightful extent, witli starch, turmeric, &c. Some mustard that had been sent to him for analysis had contained no mustard proper whatever, but simply turmeric and starch, the pungency being given by a little Cayenne pepper. He showed simple tests for detecting the presence of turmeric and starch, the princi- pal ingredients used in adulteration, and analysed a packet of " pure mustard" he had that day bought in Croydon. It turned out to contain no turmeric, but a large quantity of starch. The test applied in ascertaining the purity of mustard was potash. If turmeric was present the potash would turn the mixture to a deep orange colour, but it would have no effect on pure mustard. Mustard was like the Glenfieid starch, " If you want it pure, you must see that you get it." Refer- ring next to the food of the lower animals, he said tliey were better off than man. Inmost cases they got their food fresh from the hand of nature, and it was only when oilcake and other artificial foods were introduced that they shared man's misfortunes. The principal adulterating ingredient was starch ; it was so cheap that it was used in almost all artificial foods. He had found it in large quantities in oil cake, though pure oilcake should contain none at all Locust beans were also ground up and mixed with oilcake. He did not object to them as injurious to health, but when one asked for pure oilcake and paid the price for it, one had a right to have it. Tlie useless husk of cocoa was also used for adulteration. Pure oilcake was made from flat seeds. The oil was pressed from those seeds, and then the cake was sent to England. Rape seed, cotton seed, and even mustard seed, were also used in large quantities for purposes of adulteration, and he had known a cow die from the mustard so introduced to its sto- mach. Oilcake should contain 10 per cent, of oil and 6 per cent, of albuminous matter, and unless obtained from a respect- able house it should always be subjected to a chemical analysis, for, like mustard, it was nearly always adulterated. Starch was largely used, and indeed some starch vvas an advantage, but too much of it produced excessive fat, and was windy sort of food. Carbon was the chief element of sucli food, and the excess of it was given ofi' from the lungs in the form of car- bonic acid gas. Tlie bodies of animals are continually under- going a change ; all animals share alike in this universal l;iw. We are coustautly consuming, and our former selves pass away. Although we retain the same outline and the same features, yet we are gradually decaying. The decayed portions pass away, and their places are supplied by fresh elemcits. We are like some specimens of ancient architecture ; first one piece falls away, and then another, till nothing but the outline of the original is left. We are nothing but passing shadows, dissolving views, one substance melting into another, and the carbon, hydrogen, or other element of to-day becomes the food for the structure of to-morrow's plant. It is well that we have now a recognised system for the suppression of adul- teration of food. We have no more food-forming elements in the world now than we had when the world rose fresh from the diluvian waters, but those elements are now more freely circulated. The world now teems with life, aud the consump- tion of food has increased. Adulteration of food and nutri- tious food with inferior matter is calculated to degenerate the race. It is like tobacco and alcohol, as partial substitutes for food, stimulating, but not strengthening. The world is getting wiser as it grows older, suid science must some day be the universal study. Dr. Coles, as a vistor, alluded to the adulteration of milk, and said it was quite right that before a man got into ihe witness-box to swear milk was adulterated he should apply the tests spoken of by the lecturer, but those tests would be too long and too difficult to be carried out in private households. For private purposes he thought the lactometer and the test- tube combined were a sufiiciently reliable test. The lecturer had said 5 per cent, of cream was a fair average, but he (Dr. Coles) thought it rather low. Dr. Jones : I have found the cream in good milk as low as 3j per cent. Dr. Coi.es : I have tested specimens of Croydon milk and found the cream to vary from 10 to 3^ per cent. I thought the man who sold me the latter must be a rogue, but after what the lecturer has said it is possible I may have done him _ia- Me FARMER'S MAGAZINE. justice in tliinkiiigf so. There is milk sold in Croydon which only gives 3| per cent, of cream, but if the Adulteration Act is put in force I iiope and believe there will be less of it. In regard to the large amount of muscle and bone-forming matter intlie milk of the bitch, as compared with larger animals, Dr. Coles suggested it was due to the fact that a bitch gave birth to and iiad to feed so many more young at a time than other animals, and therefore refj[uired a greater amount of nourish- ment in the milk. That was only another proof of the omnis- cience of the Creator. Dr. Jones: I am much obliged to Dr. Coles for that ex- planation. It had never occurred to me before, but I think it is conclusive. Dr. SnoRTiiousEsaid the milk varied iu quality according to the time of year, and the nature of the cow. The milk, he believed, was generally poorest in May and best in August. He agreed witli the lecturer that cflicient analysts coiiM not be secured for the money offered by public authorities, and he ridiculed the iuconipeteucy of some men who had been ap- pointed public analysts. Mr. Walkeu, differing from Dr. Shorthouse, said the cows never gave better milk, and more butter was never churned than in the mouth of May. Dr. SuoRTiiOUSE : I was only alluding to cows fed ou grass. Mr. Walker siid his experience of cows went to show tha'' if fed on poor food the milk would not yield more than 3^ per cent, of cream, but if fed on more nutritious food a much larger per centage of cream would be obtained. A vote of thanks to the lecturer having been passed, the meeting terminated. THE EAST LOTHIAN" AGRICULTURAL CLUB. At the last monthly meeting at Haddington, Mr. R. Scot- Skirving, Campton, in the ciiair, the subject for discussion was, " Whether a tenant who has a right to grow potatoes during the last years of his lease has a right, where the straw is entirely steelbow, to take straw ad liLilum for the storage tiiereaf." The Chaikman said that before introducing the subject for discussion he wished to say a word about a matter in which the county was very much interested. There was to be a meeting of the road trustees on the 21st of this month, and he was sorry that he could not attend it, as he had an engagement in London on that day. At that meeting a proposition was to be made, and he had no doubt it would be strongly supported, to borrow a considerable sum of money to put the roads in better order, and all the officials wished to have that money borrowed. Mr. M'Connell strongly advocated it, and he (the Chairman) rose to say that he hoped the whole of their repre- sentatives would be in their places at that meeting to oppose this proposal with their utmost power. Who was to pay that money were it borrowed ? Tliey knew who paid the last. It came on the trading community. The money that was bor- rowed was paid ultimately by the tolls or by private subscrip- tion. If they borrowed money just now, the farmer would have to pay two-thirds, to begin with, on the assessment ; and as the proposed plan was to pay off the borrowed money iu a given number of years, it would follow that a man with a few years of his lease to run would have to pay about two-thirds, or perhaps three-fourths, more than the owner of the land whicli was to be permanently benefited. One lionourable baronet talked loudly of the patriotism and generosity of the farmers ; but he wished to see gererosity, like charity, begiu at home, and he thought the proprietors should pay an equal sliare with the farmers. If they did that, they would have sullicient funds to keep all the roads in proper order. At pre- sent the roads were certainly not what they should be, parti- cularly iu the west. This arose from the increase of mineral trafiic, and he thought the farmers should petition Parliament to bring in a bill for Scotland on this subject. A bill was in- troduced last year by the member for Eife, which contained a wise provision, to the effect that the owners of mines and minerals should be put in this position, that when a petition was made to the sheriff of the county they could be charged twice, thrice, or even up to four times. It would not be fair to charge all mines at the same rate, for there were some which did not cut up the roads at all ; but he tiiought it would be fair to lead evidence regarding each particular mine, and that the proprietor of a mine who cut up the roads ex- cessively should pay at a greater rate than a mere agricultural subject. lie had just to say, in closing, that he thought the borrowing powers under existing circumstances should be opposing, and that they should petition the Government to bring iu a bill to deal with the subjects, because he was afraid no private member would be able to carry tiirough the bill. Mr. DURIE (Barveymains) said there would be plenty of money to keep the roads in proper order if the landlords paid in the same proportion as the tenants. Mr. lloBERTSO>f (Newmains) said there seemed to he some- thing radically wrong with tliis business, for while they col- lected £3,000 of assessment, fully £1,100 were swallowed by the expenses of maaagement. The Chairman then introduced the subject which had been chosen for discussion at the present meeting. He did not think it could he doubted that the tenant had a right to take straw to cover any legitimate amount of potatoes. Whea*', barley, oats, and beans were in the same position. They must have straw to cover them from the weather, just tlie same as for potatoes, and, as nobody ever questioned the covering of their barnyard with the straw of the previous crop, he did not see why they should not cover their potatoes with straw also. Mr. Smilh (Stevenson Mains) said that if a tenant had liberty to grow potatoes, the:e was no doubt he was eutitleU to protect that crop until such time as he could dispose of it in the market. He had been called upon to act as arbiter in such cases, and he had always decided that the waygoing tenant was entitled to protect his crop in the usual manner, and could therefore take the steelbow straw. Mr. Wylie (Bolton), while agreeing with the previous speakers, said that if the straw were taken to cover jiotatoes in a field at the extreme end of a farm it was but reasonable to say that the tenant should cart it back to the barnyard. Mr. Douglas (Atiielstaneford) said it was manifest that if a tenant had a right to grow potatoes during the last years of his lease, he had just as good a right to protect his potato crop as to protect his grain crop by thatching. Although a tenant drove the straw to protect the potato crop in the field where they had grown, he did not think it followed that he was bound to drive back that straw to the barn. Mr. Wylie took exception to Mr. Douglas's statement, and said the rule was that the tenant should leave the straw at the barn, Mr. Harvey (Whittingham Blains) said that if a tenant had a right ta grovv a reasonable quantity of potatoes, he should get a reasonable quantity of straw to cover them, and he thought the outgoing tenant might be well pleased to cart the straw to the barnyard or some depot. He would not allow a tenant, if he had a very large quantity of potatoes, to say, " You must give me straw." lie would say to sucli a one, " No ; you are getting a certain quantity ot straw, but you will not get any amount you may ask." In regard to the quantity to be used, he thought il required about a stone of straw to cover a boll of potatoes. Mr. lloiiERTSON (Newmains) did not think an outgoing tenant had the right to demand straw to cover his potatoes from the incoming tenant. He ought to make provision out of a former crop, and not to take advantage of the straw be- longing to the incoming tenant. It would be well, he said, to have any right of tliis kind properly defined in their leases. Mr. KiciiAUDSON (Mainshill) was of opinion that the straw of a previous crop ought to be preserved to cover the potatoes. By his lease, he had a right to the straw, and a corner of the field for pitting his potatoes, but he was bound to drive the straw back to the barn. After some further remarks. The Chairman said he thoui^ht the mind of the meeting was embodied in the following resolution, which he begged to propose: "That an outgoing tenant, liaving power to grow a given amount of potatoes during tiie last year of his lease, has also a right, from use and wont, to protect the crop witli straw." 26 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. Mr. DuKiE seconded the motion, wliich was carried. Mr. Hakper (Snawdon) said their chairinan had recently visited Kansas, iu coujunction with otiier agiicultiirists from Scotland and England, at the request of Mr. Grant, who had bonght a large tract of territory in that State, and he was cer- tain the members of the Club would esteem it a privilege if Mr. Scot-Skirvinjf would state his opinion of the value of that land for agricultural purposes. The Chairman said he was not prepared at this time to make more than a few desultory remarks about the agriculture of Central America, but he hoped by-and-b3-e to brtng before the public in various ways some of the strange and beautiful and exciting scenes which he witnessed iu America. He had always been fond of travelling, and it had been his goud for- tune to have this propensity gratified. He had travelled a great deal in Europe, Asia, and in Africa, and he gladly em- braced the proposal to travel over a great part of America. It was perhaps necessary that he should say something about the origin of this expedition. Mr. Grant was a native of Aberdeenshire. He was born in humble circumstances, but he went to London and made a large fortune, lletiriug in great measure from business, he travelled for pleasure in America, and it was while passing over the vast regions in Central America that the thought struck him, although he was not an agriculturalist, that this was the most wonllerful country he had ever seen. He accordingly bought a piece of this land, in size about as large as tbe couuty of Mid-Lothian. It was purchased not for the purpose of farming it, but as a speculation. Mr. Grant wished to cut it up into square miles, and sell it to other people, and iu order to advertise it, as they might say, he invited half-a-dozen gentlemen from Scotland, England, and America to visit his great estate, which had been named Victoria, in honour of iler Majesty the Queen. To these gentlemen Mr. Grant said, " I have picked you gen- tlemen out as persons who know something of agriculture Come and look at this country, and tell the people what you think about it. If it is a bad couutry, say so. You are not to say one word that you do not thoroughly believe." Ee (the chairman) went on tliese terras, along with two other gentlemen from Scotland, two from England, and one from America — six in all. In travelling over America one could not help being struck with the enormous extent and also the ilatness of that country. Although tiie United States had a Dopulation exceeding that of Grenl Britain and Ireland, the people were so scattered, that after one proceeded a short dis- tance from the Atlantic he got into a virgin country. The fertility of the soil was shown by the gigantic vegetation which everywhere met the eye. Wheu the deputation visited Kansas, it was in the worst time of the year — the middle of August. He was told that in sprinsc the plains were covered with the most glorious verdure; but when they arrived the grass was burned up, and his first impression was that it was tlie most wretclied place iu the world, where neither man nor beast could exist. He found, however, that on this dry prairie grass, cattle, sheep, horses, and other animals grew perfectly fat, A report was drawn up by tlie deputation, in which they stated that Mr. Grant's property was possessed of extraordinary resources, and offered a very inviting field for agricultural pur- poses ; and that the land might be most profitably cultivated, and was capable of producing almost every kind of crop. He confessed that it went against the grain with him to do any- thing to aggrandise the Yankees. He would rather like to see people go to the British colonies. In Shetland he be- lieved a young sheep-farmer would make money. Canada had its buffalo grounds to compete with Kansas; but it was his candid opinion that a young man who went to Canada should not be a farmer, for the ground there contained multitudes of tree roots, and was covered to such an extent with boulders that the labour of working tlie soil was perfectly overwhelm- ing; In Kansas, on the contrary, the plough went through the prairie lands as smoothly as iu the best cultivated fields of East Lothian. In Victoria there were two East Lothian far- mers ; and lie would recommend young men with a capital of from £1,000 to £2,000 to go out to that country. Eor his own part he would not go out there, for he would not live under a Ilepublican Government like that of the United States; but there were other men with less strong prejudices and feelings ; and besides they might go out and " spoil the Egyptians." They should go out and make money, and then come back to spend it in this country. It was useless for a young farmer to pay £3 per acre for a farm in this country when he could get a whole farm to himself for ever for £1 an acre in Victoria. A farmer whom he " interviewed" gave him the following as his experience : " Laud costs from 5 to 10 dollars per acre. To build a house and dig a well costs from £80 to £150, the house being a good dwelling, witii four rooms, a kitchen, and other conveniences. Taxes ;ire nominal. If a slieep stock is kejit, Missouri ewes cost about 4- dollars ; but while I was at Victoria I saw a letter offering good young ewes at 2^ dollars. The produce cannot be taken at more than one lamb a year, and the clip averages olbs. all over. Deaths are variously estimated at from 10 to 15 per cent. There are no insect pests which attack sheep (so I was as- sured), but scab is not unknown. English rams should cer- tainly be introduced, which would greatly improve the breed. Cows can also be had in any number, and breeders should get bulls of English breeds." The account given by another far- mer was as follows : "He ploughed his land by hiring men, who provided everything necessary, and did the work, the first ploughing of prairie grass costing three dollars per acre. The ground is then sown with Indian corn, the only crop suitable for the first year, and if the farmer chose he may go on sowing corn after corn for many years witiiout manure, only going a little deeper each year to turn up new soil. The following are the statistics of the first year's crop — Ploughing, 1st year, 3 dollars ; Indian corn seed, 15 cents ; putting in seed, 1 dollar ; harvesting, 1 dollar; cobbing and carting, 1 dollar — total cost, 6 dollars 15 cents, lleturn — Average crop, iO bushels (though there might be 70 bushels). The produce sells readily on the spot at CO cents per bushel, which, at 40 bushels per acre, is 2i dollars. If we deduct the 6 dollars 15 cents, or say 7 dol- lars, there is a clear profit of 17 dollars per acre, which, tak- ing the greenback at 3s. 6d., is 59s. Gd. Wheat, oats, or bar- ley may follow the Indian corn tlie second year. The wheat is sown either in autumn or spring. Millet can also be grown. Wheat costs about the same to produce as Indian corn, only the seed costs a little more. A crop of wheat not far from Victoria yielded 37 bushels this year. It was trodden out by oxen, the old, wasteful plan of the East. Flails should be got while the place is in its infancy. Barley averages 30 bushels, oats from 50 to 80. I should have said a common herd can be got for 20 dollars a month, hut 40 dollars would require to be paid for a shepherd, with a lodging." The chairman went on to say that Victoria was one of the healthiest places on the face of the globe. It was a liabitable country, altiiough it was too hot in summer and too cold iu winter, just as other parts of America. In New York he saw the barometer at 104 degrees in the shade in summer, and he was told that in winter the frost penetrated four and a-half or five feet into the soil. He concluded by saying that Victoria offered a capital field for healthy young men with a capital of from £1,000 to £2,000. At the close of the address a vote of thanks was passed to Mr.Scot-Skirving. THE CRYSTAL PiVLACE POULTRY SHOW.— There is no such place for a poultry show as the Palace at Syden- ham, and the entries here of fowls ran up to 2,200 peus, with 1,200 of pigeous, and 150 of rabbits. Some of the better sorts like the Dorkings, Braraahs, and Ilaraburgs were very generally good, while many of the Game were still light and leggy — a more perfect bird being the Game Bantam, a very model of compact framing and liandsome appearance. The geese are getting more and more extraordinary for size and weight, and Mr. J. K. Fowler's champion gander is a very wonder in this way. There can surely be nothing much more nasty in the shape of sight-seeing than a cat show, and next to that we should put a rabbit show, although the Palace is so lofty, and its avenues so wide, that even a collection of rabbits is not a nuisance ; but these fancy articles like rabbits and pigeons should form a separate section, where they would no doubt attract " the nice young men," who, according to the old definition, " keep tame rabbits and kiss their sisters." THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 27 THE BREEDING AND MANAGEMENT OF AGRICULTURAL HORSES. At the annual meeting of the Forraartiue Agricultural As- sociation Mr. Cassie, V.S. and farmer at Woodeud, Straloch, read a paper on the above subject. jMr. Cassie said good horses cannot, as some would seem to think, be bred by chance, and to produce tbera every breeder must see to it that all the qualities tliat go to constitute good- ness are present in botli sire and dam. Many farmers seem to think that if they can secure a good stallion it matters little whether the mare he is put to be so or not. Tliis is a great mistake ; for if tlie one be not as nearly perfect as tlie other, disappointment is almost sure to follow, it being quite common for either sire or dam to transmit defects to their offspring. On the other hand, a sire aad dam may themselves be all that could be wished, and yet tiieir stock will often show numerous imperfections. Instances of this sort are generally set down to the inscrutable action of some mysterious law in nature, but if they were more closely studied their mystery would often vanish when it was seen that, though absent in immediate parents, these imperfections could be traced to similar ones possessed by more ancient ancestors. What class of horses ought we to breed, which, when reared, will always command a ready sale and a good price ? At present, anything of the horse kind that can decently move on four legs will sell, and sell well too ; but the tide may soon turn when the demand will cease, except for certain classes, and one of these is saddle or harness horses. Now, a good hoise of this class (for such we should always aim at) should have a nice small head, witli a fine mouth, bright eyes, and active sharp-pointed ear, neither too small nor too far apart. He should also have a longish neck, fine at the throat, full and crest-shaped above, but not too fleshy below. His withers should be high, his back not loo short, bis loins broad, and liis quarters long. His hind limbs should be strong in tlie thighs, but fiue as they approach the hocks. His hocks should have well-developed bones, and be free from all puffiuess, curbs, and spavins. Below the hocks his legs should be clean, and broad when seen on tlie sides. His pasterns should be rather long, and his feet not too big, but well-formed and strong. The lltinks of such a horse should be light, but also plump and round. His chest should be deep and full behind theshonlders. From the withers his shoulder- blades should incline forward, and be well covered with muscle. His fore-legs should not be too far apart, nor too far under his body. They should be full on leaving the trunk, but go tapering towards the knees. His knees should be broad when looked at in front, with the tendons " untied" behind. Like the hind, his fore-pasterns should be long, and his hoofs sound, well-shaped, and strong. Tiiey should be wider in the soles than those of the hind, and be placed so that a line running from the centres of their toi's, through the middle of tlieir heels, would lie parallel with tie length of liis body. In a horse of this class, a good form is not the only good quality required ; he must also be a good goer — good as regards both speed and action, and when these are all combined in one of a good colour a nd a fair size, they will generally force a long price out of him when he appears in a market. Now, many farmers could breed horses of this stamp. By putting nice, rather under-sized, light-made cart mares, when they possessrd such, to thoroughbred stallions, they could do it. From such a union, judiciously made, a valuable, and at all times much sought for, lialf-bred, which, by-and-by, might come to form one of a two-hundred-guinea pair in some gentleman's carriage, might fairly be expected. Among sires, there may be but few a breeder can get to choose from ; but among dams lie must reject all with big ugly heads, long listless ears, thick fleshy necks, short heavy bodies, busby manes and tails, thick iiairy ill-formed legs, or large flat feet. He should also avoid all that are not sound, or at least they should be free from all hereditary disease, such as splints, spavins, and others that are apt to produce incurable lameness, or otherwise unfit them for duty. Again, those who attempt to breed running horses Irom mares that want spirit, or have bad tempers or bad action, will must likely be disappointed with the result. Another class of horses which might be profitably bred by farmers are those used for lorries and heavy vans. No special race is reared for them, but good strong animals with a "tip of breeding iu lliem" would suit well. In describing such animals, it might be said that they are rather light-bodied, long-backed, and leggy ; hut the fact that they are such will not make them bad beasts, if their legs are good, their back strong, and tiieir bodies round. Besides having a good carcase, back, and legs, a good horse of this sort should also have a nice head, bright eyes, and active ears, or he will want spirit. He should also have deep shoul- ders, strong loins, and fleshy quarters, or he wUl be devoid of strength. To these must be added sound limbs and good feet, with the ability and will to move them, nr action will be wanting with him. Besides being useful for the machine spoken of, horses of this sort would also do well for farm work. Many of the horses presently used on farms are too heavy for the nature of the work required on them. When the soil is wet, their own weight so sinks them in it that tliey cannot get along with that ease and activity which those with larger legs and ligliter bodies would. Active horses are of great im- portance to farrrters iu a bad harvest or a late spring, and ani- mals with this quality should never be wanting for them. This class of animals would be obtained from strong, active, clean- limbed cart mares and large-sized, half-bred stallions. Well- bred horses of this stamp would not only be handsome to locjk at, but there would be found combined in them a more than ordinary amount of activity, strength, and endurance. Heavy draught horses are a third class which farmers might profitably breed, and they are the class which the major. ty of Aberdeenshire farmers do breed. At present, it cannot be said that their doing so does not pay, for it is nothing uncommon to hear of £100 and upwards being received for good heavy one.-, of this variety. These long prices might have been more general had greater attention in the past been given to the breeding of them. Any fanner knows a strong horse, but many (tho^e of this company, of course, excepted) do not know a good one. As applied to horses of this class, the term has respect solely to form, size, and soundness. A good one should be at least IG^ hands high, with a pretty large head, a pleasant face, a thick neck, a wide breast, and heavy upright shoulders. He should also liave a broal and short back, strong loins, deep chest, round and i'ull flanks, broad and well-rounded quarters, muscular thighs and forearms, large and clean hock and knee- joints, stout leg bones, with full tendons behind, short strorg pasterns, and deep sound feet. His forelegs should be v.ell apart, and well under his body, from which they should descend in a perpendicular direction when he stands at ease. This diss of horses are in this district generally bred from what is said to be pure Clydesdale stallions and strong mares of, I may say, any and every breed. Wiiatever they are bred, the parents of such should be selected with care, and it should especially be seen th^.t both have healthy constitutions, good tempers , and sound limbs. Side bones are particularly to be guarded against in breeding animals of this class — they are the great bane of the race, and it must never be forgotten that a dispo- sition to them is transmissible from parents to progeny. Side bones and ring bones, which are analogous iu nature, often produce lameness that will reduce an animal iu value to li't'o more than half what he would have brought without tliem. The high condition in which many stallions are kept, makes it often dilficult to detect weak points in them, but an effort should always be made to use stallions full on the points the mares they are put to may be defective in. In choosing sires, farmers should specially avoid those that have Roman noses, dull eyes, and drooping ears, as tlin stock by such are often sulky, sleepy, large brutes. Colour is a quality that should not be altogether overlooked in breeding horses. Bays, blacks, browns, and chesnuts are, by dealers at least, (irefcrred to light greys and whites. The latter will not with them so long re- tain their youth, while the former are often kuowu to regain it in their hands, and hence they will give a better price for them when advanced in years. It is always well when the time of a foal's birth is at hand to commit its mother to the care of some faithful and experienced person, and also to place her in a box by lierself when not at work. Till the foal is born, it is best when in the box, to have the mare tied to a lorner of it, which will prevent her from lying down in an THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. Hwkward position, as she might if untied wlien labour comes on lier. A uevv-burn toal requires some atteutiou till I'airly mounted on its legs, after which, wlien it is seen to be well, it may generally be left to the care of its mother. When ihe weather is mild, and grass to be had, tiie pair will do besi in the fields, where, alter a time, they may be left entirely to themselves. Wheii foals are being weaned, whicli should not be done under five months old, they should never be puc into a field where wire is used for a fence, or where dangerous ditches surround, as ill tlieir desperate efforts to get at i heir mothers they frequently dash themselves agaill^t such a fence or into such a ditch, and thereby inflict upon themselves in- juries tJiat may last with their lives, or, it mny be, entirely destroy them. If when being weaned, foals are shut up in a liouse, they should be supplied witii soft green food, such as clover and tares, otherwise they may cram themselves witli dry ood, and thereby produce complaints of a serious and often fatal nature. Weaned foals, if they have not been accustomed to corn before taken often their mothers, should now be in- duced to eat it, otherwise they will speedily fall off in condition, which at this period of tlieir lives should be specially guarded against. Our forefather farmers used to tliink it undesirable to let the " foal beet" off their young liorses, and that idea might with profit be ac'ed upon in the present day. Some farmers say tliat young horses are none the worse to lose condition in winter, tbey soon make it up again in spring and summer. This to appearance maybe true; but if a sys- tem of coinc-and-go wiili the condition of young horses lie in this way established, their owners will perlia[)s Audit continue to work in the winters of tlieir alter years, when its operation would rather not be seen. With colts that are starved in winter, it is often seen that in addition to their being stunted in size, they also turn out to be " soft," or as it is sometimes ex- jiresse.'l, to be beasts with no " bottom" ia them. A few handfuls of corn and a wisp of hay or straw given to young liorses in the morning before they are turned to the field, in winter the same when they are housed at night, will always be found a safe investment. It is good for them to have freedom in a field for some time daily during good winter weather ; but it is a bad practice, when tliey have no shelter, to keep them out all day, as some do, when it is cold and wet and stormy. Their shaggy coats in wet days get filled with rain, and when they are so they have mucli tlie same effect on tbem as a drenched suit would have upon their master, some of whom would do well to conceive what they would do were they as tlieir colts often are, forced to stand ;i wliole winter night in a filtiiy hovel, through which tbe wind could blow in all directions. Cold and dirt are conditions in which horses, young or old, do not thrive, and as tliis seems to be a law iu nature with them, their owners must comply with it or reap the consequences. When rising three years, before it can be said that they are fully reared, horses bred on farms are usually made to work upon them. There would be nothing wrong in this if too much of it were not demanded of them. It happens, liowever, tliat before they are six years old many horses are ruined by hard work, and have got so dispirited, crushed, and broken as to render them prematurely stiff and old. Apart from their frames being naturally raw and flabby, and unfit for work while in a growing state, this unfitness is increased by the fact that at this time horses often do not feed well from the soreness of thtir moutlis during the shedding of their teeth, which alsvO happens at this period. A horse begins to shed his teeth at about t.\o and three-quarters years old, at which period lie drops the middle nippers above and below, and also tlie first and second grinders in each side of each jaw, and by the time be is little more than three years he has 10 new teeth up and in wear. At a year after this he sheds the next pair of nippers and also the third pair of grinders in each jaw, whicli, in about three months after, are replaced by new ones. About this time the sixth pairs of grinders, which, like the fourth and fifth pairs, are never shed, appear. Iu the course of tli2 following year he gets the corner nippers renewed, after which the horse is said to have a full mouth. It will thus be seen that for two whole years a young horse has trouble in his mouth from teeth, and often feeds but indilTerently in con- sequence. This should be remembered by those who own liorses of this age, and should induce them to deal as gently witli them in regard to work as possible. liorses on farms may be said to consist of two classes, a supplementary and a working — the latter forming part of the working plant of the farm. As regards the first-class, it is to the farmers' Interest that they lie managed so as to bring tliein to tbe greatest value possible, at tbe least possible expense ; and as regards the second, to make them serve his ends as long and as cheaply as he can spare theiu, and dispose of them to the best advantage. The value of young horses, in addition to their size, quality, and soundness, is determined by their quietness at work. To aid in effecting this last, they should be early handled, and when foals made handy to halter, lead, and bind, and as they advance in years their acquaintance with these should be kept up. When tiiey are to be trained for work they should be committed to the care of men in whom the " bumps " of patience are well developed, and even witli such it may be enjoined ttiat tlieir whips be left at home during not a few of their early " yokings." If they cannot be saved from hard work it will be best to do it on the principle of " gang aft and load light," for one extra pull may do damage that can never be repaired. The state of their harness has often to be looked after. Ill fitting collars often spoil the slioulders of young horses, and make them more rebellious when at work than otherwise they would be. In spring time, when liorses get thin, what was once well-fitting collars got t JO big for them, the draught gets too low, and they roll about upon their shoulders, often causing painful sores, which lay tliem aside from work for weeks. Grooming cannot with im- punity be neglected. Wlien the grass season gets late and the weather cold working horses should be housed at night, for exposure then is olten the cause of tlieir heavy coats. Grooms should have good implements sup]>lied, and at this season should use tiiem well. Clipping is of much value to running horses, and so is a half-clip to many farm ones. Their work is done with far more comfort to tliemselves afterwards, and tliey thrive better. Wiien horses come wit into their stable they should be well rubbed down ; and if the stabl", is a liigh- rool'cd one they should be covered with a rug alter. Stables should be well ventilated, and should also have plenty of light in tbem ; the latter prevents the accumulation of filth by urging to its removal. The feeding of horses is another im- portant point in the management of horses. Many farmers would be great gainers by paying more attention to this matter. Some servants wlien they have access to the corn bin give the horses they have in charge too much corn. Many of them have tbe erroneous notion that the more corn their horses get the fatter tliey must be, and instances are not uncommon where more th»n six bushels a week are given to a single pair. Too much corn indisposes liorses for eating other provender, and occasionally subjects them to serious disease. Four bushels of good sound oats weekly, along witli a few Swedish tuiuiiis or other roots, and plenty of good straw, will keep a pair of healthy farm horses in good order through the winter, even thougli they be pretty hard wrought. If, then, such an allowance be sullicient for a pair, it is folly and waste to give them more. Hay may have to be substi- tuted for straw, but no more corn will be necessary to sustain tbem, even when they have to go " their ten hours " in the busy spring season, if sound and healthy horses that are doing only fair work do not keep in good condition with these supplies the master may inquire whether the carelessness of the groom be not to blame for it. Servants that carefully feed their horses would be a gain to many masters, even though they paid them £1 a half-year of extra wages. Some horses are nice feeders, and need to be coaxed to eat. A careful horseman will keep his eye on such, and will, by giving small and oft-repeated handfuls, constrain them to eat enough to keep themselves in good order, whereas a careless one, by inattention, would soon let them be run down " to skin and bone." Horses that are greedy feeders, or tliat swallow their corn wliole, should have it bruised or ground. A little chaff mixed with corn helps to make horses chew it — and well- chewed corn is of far more importance than many think. Unless it be well ground and mixed witli saliva in their mouths it is but imperfectly digested in their stomachs, and without perfect digestion there its full benefit is not obtained. A full drink of water immediately after being fed should never be allowed to horses. When water is drunk by them the bulk of it goes directly to their large intestines, and little of it is retained in their stomachs. In passing through them, how- ever, the water carries considerable quantities of their contents to where it lodges in the intestines. If, then, the contents of horses' stomachs are washed out of them before they are di- gested, they are in a manner lost, no nourishment being de- THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 29 rived from thera. Colics in horses frequently arise from ll, if they did not give tliem water too early after feeding. AVhen they gave liay to the liorses, a great deal of it wasted, being seut to the dunghill. To avoid that, he cut his hay and mixed it with straw, putting it iu a close manger. As to travelling horses, he thought they should be sent out a fortnight or three weeks later, so that the foal might be weaned by the middle of September, when they generally began to lead an ordinary crop. He was of opinion that a good deal more de- pended upon having a good mare than horse, for obtaining a good foal. He had bred a good many horses, and had seen a mare tliat never had a bad foal, while he had seen a good liorse that never had a good foal. A great deal depended upon the mare, especially in breeding cart horses. He did not think it paid farmers to breed shells. Tliey were so liable to so many tilings that they were not worth the trouble or risk. And unless they were trained well, they were comparatively worthless. With a farm horse it was different, and a farmer had a good chance of making a job of it. The farmer should breed the horses that pay, and not fancy animals. If they could make good heavy horses p;iy better than light ones, there was no use keeping the light horse. If they had a heavy horse and a light one, if they kept the heavy animal tliey had more money on their farm. Some farms were better to have light horses, but so far as he was concerned, he would never breed one, and, if he could avoid it, he would never buy one. Mr. C.\ssiE briefly noticed some of the 'remarks that had been made. Ue did not mean that a farmer should breed light horses in preference to heavy ones. What he meant was only to suggest the best tiling to do iu case a farmer found himself vvith a light mare — have a foal after a bred horse, and it would likely prove profltable. He never meant farmers should train these half-breds. If they were handled a good deal by some cauuie laddie, it would go a good way to assist in their management. lie did not advocate light horses on the farm ; he would have three parts of the cart horse, and a part of breeding, just to get smartness. Mr. Manson spoke of tliem getting thick in the legs, but he did not anticipate that. He did not approve of Mr. Stephen's plan of dividing the feed. If he wanted to prevent hasty eating, whicli was promoted by a deep trough, he would put the feed into a broad bottomed trough and spread it, so that the animal had to take it up in small quantities. It was tiien mixed well with saliva, which was necessary for digestion. As to Mr. Coch- rane's remark about horses being ill on Mondays, one way to avoid that was not to give anything during the houra in which the animal was at work on week days. Mr. CocHiiA>'E followed with some remarks about the practice of sending stallions out too early. Farmers had themselves to blame. The shows were held at an early date, and the horses being put in condition for tlieiu were sent out immediately after. He referred to the practice in Ayrshire and Lanarkshire, where the foals were not dropped till the spring work was done, and were only suckled for four months. He would never serve mares till about the end of April, and the horses would be sent out whenever they were wanted. Mr. Walker (Tillymauld) directed attention to the inti- mation by owners of stallions as to an intended increase of rates, and the discontinuance of the practice of paying a re- duced rate when no foal was left. Tliere was some little dis- cussion on the subject, and the opinion of the meeting seemed to be that, as the farmers had one side of th.e bargain to make, they could make it to suit their views. THE SCOTTISH CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. At the general meeting in the hall of the Chamber, India Buildings, Edinburgh, Mr. J. C. Shepherd, President, in tlie chair. The Secretary, Mr. D. Curror, submitted to the Counties' Committees — which met an hour before the Chamber to pre- pare the business — reports from the various affiliated county meetings : " At the Kincardineshire meeting a motion had been adopted condemning past and prospective legislation upon such a paltry subject as small birds as unnecessary, uncalled- for, and contemptible. While Parliament coulJ find no time to deal with the very important measure alfecting the law of conveyancing introduced by the Lord Advocate, they had mis- spent tlieir time in legislating about sparrows and pigeons. Ayr. — That in the opinion or this meeting, the land of this country will never be cultivated in such a way as to make it produce all that it is capable of doing, until a law is passed giving fair and reasonable compensation to the tenant when he leaves his farm, for all unexhausted improvements and manures as will add to the value of the farm. And, on the other hand, when a tenant, through his negligence and bad farming, deteriorates the natural fertility of tiie soil, let him be compelled to pay his landlord for all such deteriorations. Dumfries. — Calls ' attention of the general meeting to the mustering of the Scottish Borderers — a regiment drawn from Dumfries, Kirkcudbright, lloxburgh, and Selkirk — during the harvest montlis, and the consequent hardships entailed upon employers of labour ; and remits to the general meeting the consideration of the advisability of the Chamber memorialising the Government on the subject, in order, if possible, to pre- vent iu future tlie calling out of any Scotch regiment of militia during harvest.' Forfar. — The meeting regrets to see tliat there is so large an amount of arrears, and recommends that defaulters be struck olF the roll of membership, and that a corrected list of members be published for the year lS7-i. With regard to Mr. L)uu's motion, this meeting entertains great doubts wiiether the principle of voting by proxy is ap- plicable to a deliberative society like the Chamber of Agricul- ture, but syiupalhising with the oiqect which Mr. Hun evi deutly has in view of ascertaining the I'celui^ of the whole members on special questions, they consider that that object would be better attained by the Chamber sending down such questions for the opinion of the counties' committee." In accordance with the recommendation of the Counties' Committee, Mr. M'Neel Caird, Stranraer, was elected presi- dent for the ensuing year ; and Mr. A. Dickson, Hermiston, and Mr. R. M. Cunningham, Shields, Moukton, Ayr, vice- presidents. The new directors appointed were Mr. Johu Wil- son, Cockburnspath, Chapel Hill, Berwick ; Mr. M'Cracken, C'-aiglemine, Whithorn, Wigtown ; Mr. D. ]M. Nicoll, Little- ton, Kirriemuir ; Mr. George Hope, of Bowlands ; Mr. J. C. Shepherd, Cleghoruie. Mr. D. Curror, S.S.C, was re-elected secretary. The Chairman then delivered his retiring address. He said the question of a public road bill was daily assuming more threatening importance, and it was one in which they were all seriously interested. The meeting held at Edinburgh the other day approved unanimously to all appearance of the bill introduced last session by Sir Robert Austruther, which liid the burden of upholding the public roads on the landward districts and parishes, and by which the tcfwns were to have the free use of those roads without any expense whatever. They proposed generally to keep up the bit of street — each opposite liis own door ; and seemed to think that if they did so much they had done enough to entitle them to the free use of all country roads whatever immediately around Edinburgh and Lcitli. Mr. M'Lareu alluded to the vast population of these towns coinpired to the rural division, and stated how, within a short jieriod, the town population of this county liad increased 100,000. And who knew what it miglit soon ex- tend to? Did it not occur to Mr. M'Lareu, who took the lead in pleading for this bill, that he proposed laying a very serious burden on the shoulders of the small county popula- tion, by compelling them to keep up and maintain roads for all the enlarginij city hosts he spoke of? Three-fourtiis of the assessment for tlic county, they were told, was collected at the toll-bars near the city, and in all the other country districts only oue-fiiurth. The needs of the county places tor the use of the roads were comparatively a small matter — the towns 32 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. needed the roads a great deal more tliaa the thialy-peopled landward districts. Yet, Mr. M'Laren would lay the whole expense of road repairs on those lonely localities. Edinburgh and Glasgow might grow as large as London, still no help or hope was held out for the country places. In time this tax might eat up the half of the rental by the tear and wear of such nations of people rushing forth. In short, a more in- sane, unjust demand was never made. They all knew and acknowledged that nothing was more strictly national pro- perty than the public roads, and the question was who ought to maintain these ? The answer surely ought to be those who were benefited by them. There was not a town nor hamlet in the laud where the property was not increased in value by them ; where the trade was not more or less sustained by them ; where the means of livelihood was not cheapened and facilitated by them. Good roads were essential not only to the comfort, but to the very life of the nation. If the towns expected to make progress with the question, they musl begin equitably. Let them all say that they were willing to be assessed in common with the nation generally, and they would not need to wait long for a road bill. He left it to Mr. M'Laren to tell them whether a penny or twopence added to the income-tax would be sufficient to give us all free roads. But that their maintenance must be provided for by some such universal impost if they wanted to get altogether quit of the toll system there could be no rational doubt. The proposal to burden oppressively a particular class for the benefit of tlie great and wealthy majority ought to be frankly and at once abandoned. Speaking to the point who ought to have the management of the roads, he said the county in which he lived liad got quit of tolls ; but the roads could not be said to have been improved. There were complaints of all kinds, and par- ticularly there was a constant squabble as to what divisions of the county stood most in need of the .assessment being spent on them. He had long had the impression that instead ot the power being lodged in competing local interests, there ought to be a much wider and more impartial trust. There were many reasons which might easily be adduced to prove that Government could manage the public roads with greatly more enlightened plans and at far less expense than was required by the preseut fragmentary mode of working. Following the example of India and some other countries, much of the ne- cessary work might be done by convict labour, and the military might do a good deal of it. Mr. Shepherd then referred to the Game-law8, and said that the farmers had been told by certain wriiers that they had themselves to blame, for they had the power by union to protect themselves, and to prescribe conditions to their landlords. It was easy to reply that there ought to be no enactments conferring on landlords the power of ruining the tenant, and that not by individual acts of cruelty, but simply by a little negligence. He often wondered at landlords subjecting themselves to so ugly a suspicion as this retention of power implied. It was needless for landlords to insist that they meant nothing bad. Although they were sincere, how did they know what their successors might do ? AVhy retain in force laws which went directly to create two opposing and inconsistent rights to the same crops — that of the tenant to grow them and save them for sale and livelihood, and that of the landlord to eat them up and devour them ? It was sad to think that any person was found persistently to defend them. Wearisome nonsense was reiterated ad nauseam about possible trespass. Where there was no game there was no need for fearing wanton and destructive tres- pass. He saw no middle road to relief; that could only be secured by total repeal. He need not say that he had read with pleasure the announcement by a Minister of the Crown, that the change of these cruel laws was acknowledged to be both necessary and urgent ; and he hoped that the Ministry whicli liad already carried through so many and great reforms would also have the honour of relieving the long-vexed and burdened trade of the farmers of England and Scotland. In conclusion, he referred to the loss which agricultural literature had sustained in the death of Mr. Charles Stevenson, who had long attacked the wicked Game-laws. In tliose days the present editor of the Scotsman was one of their strorgest and most influential friends. It was needless to say that they re- gretted his change of opinion. Mr. M'Laren, M.P., said he had listened to the address with great interest. In regard to the Game-laws, he would say only one sentence. He iiad been one of the few who had always voted with his friend Mr. Peter Taylor for the total repeal of these laws. In regard to road reform, he thought their chairman had made some mistakes as to matters of fact and a good many in matters of argument and analogy. The opinion he had arrived at was one that would not be very generally accepted in this room or in any other room in Scot- land— that Government would he the best and the most economical managers of all the roads in the United Kingdom. Every man that he (Mr. M'Laren) had heard speak of Govern- ment management — who was entitled to any attention at all, had declared it to be the most wasteful and improvident mode of management that could be devised. His impression was that if the Government were to take the roads into their own hands in place of sending down skilled men like their present inspectors whom they chose themselves, it would be a question of who had most influence with the Government to get an appointment with a big salary. And they would, perhaps, find in the county of Edinburgh an ex-colonel of Dragoons, and in another county, perhaps, a half-pay admiral, and in others men who had aristocratic influence, but who had no knowledge whatever of the subject. In fact, they would not even do the work ; they would depend altogether on their assistants ; they would be big men, too big men for their place, but drawing big salaries. It seemed, however, that the chairman was en- titled to the compliment of great patriotism, because, as a large tenant and ratepayer in Haddington, he had been a party to the abolition of tolls in that county ; and if any Edinburgh people wished to visit that county, they might do so without paying any tolls, Tiiey wanted to return the courtesy, and allow the chairman to drive over the county of Edinburgh free from tolls, but he would not have it. This might be patriotic, but it was not wise nor logical. He (the chairman) had assumed that all that was asked of the people in towns was to keep up the bit of road opposite their own doors. Now,'if the whole of the roads in the city of Edinburgh Leith, Portobello, and Musselburgh were placed, as the lawyers said, hotch-potch, along with the roads in the county, Edin- burgh would save money by the transaction. At present the city of Edinburgh paid 5d. per £ on the rack-rent of every house witliin jthe city, and a lower rate on shops. About £20,000 was spent last year in keeping up the streets, of whicli £1,500 was contributed by the county for the keeping up of twenty miles of roads within the toll-bars. The same remark applied to Leith, whose Parliamentary boundaries extended from Granton on the one hand, and to near Portobello on the other. He found from the accounts of the Road Trustees for the last two years that they were divided into two sections, — one called the ordinary repairs and maintenance, and the other extraordinary payments. If they deducted from the ordinary maintenance of the roads in the county of Mid- Lothian — first, the cost of collecting the money and keeping up the toll-houses, and second, the salaries of surveyors, and the interest of money on debt — which, however, was now practically cleared off — and then if they deducted the £1,500 paid to the city of Edinburgh for the maintenance of the twenty miles of roads within the toll-bars, the result would be that the whole ordinary expense of keeping up all the roads of the county of Mid-Lothian — which extended to about GOO miles — was £8,500. Look at the wasteful expenditure tiiat was required to collect and pay this £8,500. Wages to toll- keepers and for repairs on toll-houses amounted to £1,9G0, and the expense of the surveyors and clerk was £l,G60, or £3,600. He ttiougiit no one would say that that was not a most waste- ful expenditure. Then by the proposed plan all the tolls levied at the entrance to the towns, such as the causeway mail of 2d. on each cart with certain kinds of goods, and the com- mutation duty of Id. per cart on every kind of goods, were proposed to be abolished. Who got the benefit of these tolls just now? The Iload Trustees got the causeway mail and the Town Council received the commutation duty ; both amounted to something under £4,000, but thd expense of col- lecting was £1,007. They might as well throw that £1,007 and the £1,960 of the expense of tolls into the sea. About the great question of making the 70,000 people in the county pay the rates for the roads which were used by the inhabitants of the city, he might mention that on looking over the printed valuation roll of the county he found 4d. in the £ of rental in Mid-Lothian would give £9,600; and the whole ordinary expenditure for each of the last two years was only to the extent of £8,600. He found very large sums appearing in that valuation roll that had nothing to do with landed pro- perty. One wcrk near Mid-Calder. for instance, was assessed THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 33 at £4,000 a-year, and there were paper- works aad works of (ill kinds assessed for large sums of money. Then it included the towns of Dalkeith, Penicuik, Bonnyrigg, and West Calder, all of which would have to pay the 4d. per £. The Chairman said that by the,bill it was only tlie landward districts that were to pay. Mr. M'Laren said that was a mistake, and the Chairman had misread the bill. It never was proposed to do anything so unjust. The several Parliamentary burghs had by the bill to keep up the whole roads within its boundaries, and all towns that were not Parliamentary burglis would be assessed as part and parcel of the county. If they were to put on another penny for extraordinary expenditure, that would get an additional £3,000 a-year to spend. Even then they would not be paying so much as Edinburgh, in which the rate at present was od. ; but when they abolished causeway mail they must have a substitute for it, and that would be in another penny added to the rate, which would then be 6d. for tlie or- dinary keeping up of tlie streets. His friend had talked of the injustice of the county keeping up the roads for the towns ; but he seemed to forget that when he came to Edinburgh in liis conveyance that the toll he paid did not go to maintain the streets over whicii he was going to ride, but it went backwards into tlie county, and he could use the streets both for the con- veyance of himself and his produce and never in his life ,pay a farthing for all the benefits be had received. He held that there never was a greater mistake than to suppose that the abolition of tolls would be a hardship to agricultural interests ; and he spoke not without book that the general opinion of the agricultural interests throughout Scotland was strongly and decidedly in favour of the abolition. Mr. George Hope (Bordlands) said |,that this Chamber Lad petitioned again and again in favour of the principle of abolition of toll-bars. The Chairman had thrown out peculiar opinions upon it ; but he did not think that they were likely to be shared in by the members of the Chamber, and he was glad Mr. M'Laren had answered him so well. Mr. Melvin (Bonnington) supported the views of the Chair- man. He thought it was a very hard thing that the tenant- farmers of Mid-Lothian should be made to pay for the build- ing of the city of Edinburgh, seeing that nearly all the stones were quarried in the county. Mr. David Dun (Baldinnies) brought forward his motion that Rule XX. should be altered to the effect of permitting voting by proxy at meetings specially called for special pur- poses. This excited a good deal of discussion, several amend- ments being proposed, but ultimately, on the suggestion of Mr. Harper, Snawdon, the subject was left to the directors to con. sider and report. The remit from Perth meeting as to Mr. Barclay's bill and game legislation generally was laid on the table. Mr. William Goodlet (Bolshan, Arbroath) said he was sorry he was obliged to differ from his friend Mr. Barclay on this question. His first impression on reading his bill was rather favourable than otherwise to it, but on further consi- deration he had come to the conclusion that it was not a bill that should receive their support, and he was justified in saying that even Mr. Barclay himself had not now the same confi- dence in its satisfying the requirements of moderate and rea- sonable men that he once had. The clauses in his bill against trespass in pursuit of wild animals were, in his opinion, tan- tamount to a new Game-law. It had been said that the late John Stuart Mill's views on the game question were substan- tially the same as those embodied in Mr. Barclay's bill. He thought Mr. Mill's dictum, rightly understood, was that all wild animals really should belong to the consuming public, at whose expense, indirectly indeed, they were fed ; but assuming that Mr. Mill was right when he said that practically the game belonged to the occupier of the land on which it was taken and killed, that afforded no support to Mr. Barclay's bill, the principle of which was that it ought to belong to the occupier and owner of the soil. Mr. Mill was of opinion that it was not necessary to enact a new law of trespass ; the more rigid enforcement of the existing trespass laws, he said, would sutiice. But Mr. Barclay's bill contained a new tres- pass law, and in this respect also it was at variance with Mr. Mill's views. He was satisfied that the Chamber should not commit itself by approving of it. There was very little chance of Mr. Barclay being able to carry it though Parlia- ment in its present shape ; indeed, if they might judge from what he had said at the Muir of Ord and other meetings, it was doubtful if he would even attempt it. In short, Mr. Barclay's bill was yet to make, and he did not think the Chamber ought to give itself much trouble about it. They ought to still adhere to their resolution in favour of total repeal. Any bill, to be effective, must be brought in by the Government, and he would much prefer to wait its advent than to countenance Mr. Barclay in his present compromise. He moved that the bill be not approved of. Mr. W. RiDDF.LL (Ilundalee, Jedburgh) seconded the mo- tion. It would be a stultification of the Chamber to recede from their former position ; and he trusted there would not be a division on the question at .all. Mr. Betuune (Blebo) thought Mr. Barclay's bill was a bad one. There was a large minority in the Chamber who did not agree with the total abolition of the Game-laws, and he was one of those who believed that the total abolitionists were playing a baa game ; but as they had waited for so many years, let them wait a little longer, in the hope that Govern- ment would bring in a good bill dealing with the question. Mr. Barclay's hill was just their old friend Mr. Loch's bill in a dill'erent shape, and it he strongly opposed from the first. Mr. Melvin thought the Game-laws were totally opposed to the reciuirements of the time, and that there never would be a settlement of the question until they were abolished. Mr, T. M. NicoLL (Littleton, Kirriemuir) objected to Mr. Goodlet's motion, because it committed them before the country to a policy of "no comprimise." Mr. Goodlet's views might unquestionably be sound, but at the present, and for many 'years ,to come, they would be impracticable ; and their wisest course was to accept as much as they could get in the meantime, on the principle that half a loaf was better than no bread. IMr. George Miln (Rosehill, Arbroath) said that the policy of total abolition was a most mistaken one, and he objected to it on two grounds. First, because it went too far, for it interfered not only witii animals on cultivated grounds which caused mischief, but with grouse in highland districts, where the grouse moors formed valuable property. Second, because the policy of total abolition would not be an effectual protection against game, inasmuch as preservation by those who were determined to have game would necessarily take a much more irritating form than at present, and the result would be that landlords would set themselves keenly to turn off their properties even the most harmless tourists in common with poachers. The general public would not endorse such action, and most likely there would be a return to aggravated Game-law legislation. Covert preservation, if the laws were totally abolished, would also likely lead to more bloodshed than at present. Assuming, therefore, total abolition out of the question, did Mr. Barclay's bill not contain the principles of a sound measure, which they would be well advised in adopting ? It gave the tenant equal power with the landlord to destroy all animals which injured the crops; and if they thus got half what they wanted, that would not prevent them from perhaps getting the whole afterwards. He moved " That, without committing ourselves to all the details of Mr. Barclay's bill, we recognise it as a measure embodying general principles on which legislation may proceed, and that w« agree to petition Parliament in its favour." Mr. Wm. Smith (Balzendie) said that the principle of Mr. Barclay's bill was simply that of the present law of England, with the practical difference that it made tiie right of the tenant inalienable. Mr. Barclay did not interfere with game in coverts ; he said to the farmers, " You can kill game on your farm, but your laird can keep as much as he chooses next door." Mr. Barclay had been sent to Parliament as a farmer's representative, and therefore he insisted it was in- cumbent on tiie farmers to protest against his bill. Mr. Andrew Potts (Lewinshope) moved that the bill lie on tiie table, because it was said that ]Mr. Barclay intended to modify it, and before pronouncing decisively upon it they should see the modified bill. Mr. George Dun said that Mr. Miln's remarks were just a thrashing out of a large quantity of old straw with little result. He approved of total abolition. Mr. George Horn seconded Mr. Pott's motion, Mr. MiLN withdrew his motion in favour of Mr. Potts', and a vote was then taken as between it and Mr. Goodlet's resolution disapproving of ]\Ir. Barclay's bill. The latter was carried by a majority of 14 to 12. Mr. George Hope said he quite agreed with the county 3t THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. repoit from Kiucardiucsiliirc that the recent small bird legis- lation was uDnecess;iry, uncalled for, and contemptible. He liad seen on n field of turnips in Enst Lothian from 1,100 to 1,200 linnets killed in one day without apparently diminishint; the nuiiiber. Tiie CiiAiUMAN said that legislation was not only con- tcmptil.'le, but pernicious. Jlr. H. Morris Alexaj;t)ER (Denoou, Glamis) thought the Chamber should work unceasingly to get the repeal of the Act. If the small birds of the country were to be pro- tected, they would sulfer more real damage fiom tlieai than IVom game. No matter what happened, he would kill all the birds and de>-troy all the nests which he could. He would soouer have seen the Act passed for the cultivation of rats tlian the Small EirJs Preservation Act. He moved that the Chamber should not cease agitating till they had secured the repeal not only of the Small Birds Act, but of the Act im- po.siug the Gun-tax. Mr. Wm. SjiiTir seconded the motion. Small birds were already very well protected without a special Act. The Gun- tax, the present .system of game preserving, and the destruc- tion of birds of prey all protected them. Indeed they received more protection than \yas given to mankind. The motion was unanimously adopted. Tiie resolution from the Ayr county meeting and Mr. Howard's bill aneut the Laud Teuaucy Laws were remitted to tiie directors to consider and report. It was remitted to the directors to petition Parliament that no militia force should be called out for drill iu agricultural districts during corn harvest. It was also remitted to the directors to purge and revise the roll of membership. 'J'he Secretauy read the following letter, received from Mr. Mat'iie, M.l'., which was remitted to tlie directors i'or onsideration : University Club, Edinburgh, 11th Nov., 1873. My dear Sir, — I gladly avail myself of the encourage- ment you have given me, and now jiut in writing tiie tvio subjects I mentioned as probably deserving and claiming the attention of the Chamber. 1. The Partnersilif Laws. — Do they not, as now con- stituted, offer opportunities altogether and injuriously neg- lected for the finding of capital by farmers, and the securing desirable tenants and terms by landlords? 2. Colonial Lajids. — Western Australia. That colony has an area of nearly two-fifths of the whole of the inland continent of New Holland. Unless the Government reverse the thoughtless policy of late years, that area, the merest fraction of wliicli is now occupied, will be transferred to the actual residents, 21,000 to 25,000 only in number, \vithout a consideration — without conditions ami obligations — uithout reasonable prospect of its being utilised. The land is the inheritance and property of the British people at home as well as of the handful who are on the spot. It presents a noble field for the future residence aud labour of our teeming population, who ought to be encouraged ijy a wise adminis- tration of our jiublic lands to settle within the empire. What better for tenant-farmers aud farm labourers than to have that grand reserve available (vihicli it would not be if transferred). At present, if a farmer has sons, tlicy must either cease to larm, or pay rents higher than tlieir neiglibours to "out" them, or emigrate. The last is the best for them and for the empire, as well as for present tenants. Far better give away sucli lands to ourselves, to our sons, than to the handful wlio occupy Western Australia. At any rate, let the lands be sur- veyed and reported on, that we may know what we have. Tiiere has beeu no survey. The accounts I get from many quarters, however, show it is a colouy with noble harbours, fisheries, forests, and fertile soil. Yours faithfully, 11. A. Maceie. P.S. — I call attention to Western Australia for two reason.'. 1. Almost nil our other waste lands have already beeu preci- pitately alienated. 2. Alienation uf these is on the cards. If (Ustrlhidcd., then each colonist would get a present of about 25 or near 30 square miles of land. The sales would go to lessen the balance, or more than extinguish taxes iu the colony. TENANT FARMERS' GRIEVANCES. At the diuuer of the Inverness Parmcrs' club — Mr. Mundell, Gollanueld, in the chair. — Mr. Mundell read a paper on the grievances affecting tenant farmers, aud the best means to be adopted for their removnl. He said the form of lease would be very short and distinct. Tlie proprietor sliould engage to let the tenant, his h-irs and assignees, the particular lands in question with the houses and fences thereon, aud the roads leading thereto, for nineteen years at a fixed sura of yearly rent payable out of the frui's at the first term after they are gathered — the condition of the land aud erections to he reported on by men mutually cho.sen at entry, and again at issue, aud the difference in their state from wiiut tliey were at entry, ordinary decay excepted, to be paid by the landlord or tenant according as tiiey are better or worse. Eurther, if there were any subletting I would hold the original tenant still liable, except when the landlord expressly consented to accept the substitute. He adhered to his well known opinion respectiug the total abolition of the Game-laws and of the Law of Hypothec, and argued strongly in favour of tenants receiving compensation for unexhausted improvements on the principle embodied in the bill brought in last year by Mr. Howard and Mr. Read. He said the recep- tion given to Mr. Fordyce's bill relating to farm servants' cottages was a great mistake, the bill being a step iu the right direction, though it did not go far enough. Mr. Eraser, Balloch, secretary of tlie Society, also read a paper deprecating political agitation by farmers as likely to j)roToke unnecessary ill-feeling in society. He argued that the Game-laws required modification, so as to preserve the advantage they gave to the monied classes for obtaining recre- ation with as little injury as possible to others. He did not think that the abolition of tlie Law of Hypothec, or of the Law of Entail, would improv* the jiosition of the tenaut- farmer or of tlie country. Scotland, -.is a nation, may have suffered some loss from quiet subscription to political injuries, but we iuive gained much more by attention to our business, and we have made a comparatively poor country rich, and an example to our richer neighbours. Let us look at Ireland, where a political grievance is never wanting, and we will see a fine rich country, comparatively a great waste, its people iu poverty, and their time lost in listening to political agitators, while too many of its inhabitants are obliged to leave their country for others not half as good. Tlie high price of land in this country resulted from fair competition. He thought landlords should employ their gamekeepers in destroying crows and other birds ; and touched on the necessity for compensation being given for unexliausted improvements. Mr. Anderson of Lociidhu tiiought tenants' grievances were a good deal iu tenants themselves. They took tlieir farms at a great deal too high rents. That was their own fault. If they were proprietors themselves, they would take the highest rout they could fro:u good nieu. No doubt labour was much higher now than it was ten or twelve years ago, when leases were entered upon ; hut as they liked their servants to make out their twelvemonths' engagements, so tiiey ought to make out their own engagements. Earmers, he thought, should have the ground game, and as for the winged game, they had no time to take up their heads with it. As Balloch had mentioned, sport brought down many people from the south, perhaps with more money than wit — and the money came to many of them indirectly. He thought if they abolished the Law of Hypothec they would have harder lines to come against. Its abolition, perhaps, would be a very good thing for tlie ricli tenant, but industrious, hard-working tenants would have no chance if they had to provide a fore- hand rent, and find security for nineteen years. If one could find security in i)r.".sent circumstances that he would stock his farm, tiiat was all tliat was wanted. The proprietor looked alter hi;uself — but he did not want long security nor a fore- hand rent. As regards buildings, it was very hard tiiat pro- prietors should take buildings erected by tenants without com- pensation. Eew of the proprietors would do so. (" Oh, they all do it.") No, they all did not, but some did, and it w,i-> perfect robbery when they did. The proprietor should pay THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. 35 for tliera at valuation, or if tliey were not required for the farm the tenant should be allowed to remove them. As re- gards unexhausted improvements, it was a very hard thing that a tenant should make tlie most of the land, lime it, and manure it heavily, and at the end be turned out of it without eompensation. Still he kuew some proprietors who acted fairly. Not long ago a tenant on Cantray failed, a large amount of money liad been laid out in improving the farm, and the proprietor said, " 1 am not entitled to the surplus rent. I will give it to the parties whose money went to make the improvement." (Mr. Mundell — "Give another case," and laughter.) I'he landlord was just entitled to get his money to the end of the lease, and the rest ou^ht to go to the man's heir or his ereditors, whoever they might be. He might, just as a little bit of fun, tell them an anecdote. He liimself once went into a farm — a very poor place— and paid £180 for it. He brought it into good condition, and his friend, Mr. Mundell, said to anotlicr friend— " That's a capital firm yonder ; you should go and take it ; it will suit you well." He had no feeling against Mr. Mundell on the subject; but the man look the farm, paying £350 for it, and he (Lochdhu) lost part of tlic £2000 or £3000 he had laid out in fencing, draining, &c. He Miould have been remunerated in some way for that — which he was not. He advised them all to go into llie contracts with their eyes open — "make your bed well before you go into it." The C'li.viRMAN said Mr. Anderson had mentioned one gentleman who gave up liis privileges to the creditors, but he had failed to mention another. Mr. Macandrew- — I can tell you another case that I settled. The CiiAiK.MAN would just quote the poet in an altered form : — Hypothec, oh for mercy spare it ; The landlord's robe, oh dinna tear it. He had no objection to the Law of Hypothec, provided the landlord was his tenant's banker ; but if any other person had given that tenant money, the thing was in the land. LociiDiiu mentioned Lord Cawdor and Lord Moray as having done acts similar to that of Cantray. Mr. Macandkew said the remarks of Mr. Eraser and Mr. Anderson appeared to him to contain what was the common sense of this question. There were two classes of grievances, those caused by legislation, and those arising out of the customs of the country. It was quite right that tlie Legislature should be asked to remove grievances which its own measures had caused; but they would require to make out a very strong case before asking the Legislature to interfere in reference to customs and matters in wiiich the remedy lay in their own liands. Nothing had hitherto been brought forward in rela- tion to 'game, so far as it had to do with agreements or customs in letting land, which Parhament could be asked to remedy without sometliing amounting to a revolution. He pointed out that the Game-laws, so far as enforced in this country, were trespass laws. They dealt with trespass in pursuit of game ; and if they were abolished, some trespass law would require to be enacted, and what law ? People would not submit to a penalty for simply walking over a field or moor. The practical question was really this — how shall we arrange so as to protect both the game and the agricultural tenant ? Mr. Mundell admitted that there were different kinds of property in land — minerals, woods, and such like — which the landlord had a right to reserve; things that were not a matter of agriculture, and to which tlie agricultural tenant had no claim. Mr. Eraser had mentioned another kind of pro- perty— sporting property — which brought in £50,000 a year in tliis county. By the law of the country the property be- longed to tlie landlord. It had been bought and sol I, liundrcds of thousands of pounds paid for it, and purely for the value of the game. Nobody could seriously propose to destroy that property witliout compensation ; no Legislature, unless carried away by revolutionary fanaticism, would think of such a tiling. Were the tenant farmers prepared to compensate the landlords? He did not tiiink they were. The question then resolved itself into a very small matter. There were two kinds of property in game and agriculture, and the tenant took the land with his eyes open. The law was perfectly just. If gauie increased during the currency of a lease, the tenant was entitled to compensation for damages. But the diliiculty lay iu proving the increase. He had tried his hand at proving it, and found its dillicully from experience. (A Voice—" A Held of turnips would soon prove what damage game can do.") Mr. Eraser, Eaillie — Mr. Macaudrcw is a young farmer yet he will feel the difference next year. Mr, Macandrew said he had taken more trouble to prove damage by game than perhaps any man in the room, and there- fore knew the difficulty. He did not mean that farmers had no grievance ; they certainly had a gricfance, and what they wanted was a practical remedy. In a great degree the matter was in their own hands. If they made bad bargains, he did not think they were entitled to call on the Legislature to Jielp them ; but he did think the law could give a speedy remedy in the absence of express stipulation. Say that the lease contained only the ordinary reservation of game, without any express stipulations; then the law sliould hold the teuart entitled to compensation for any excess of damage, sny beyond 5 per cent, on the rental. That would give them a fixed point from which to start in trying to ascertain damage ; and though the valuation might be difficult, practice iu such investigations Would soon overcome it. He agreed with Mr. Mundell that deer forests should be fenced. This was an exceptional use of property ; and he thought there could be no objection to imposing a special tax upon forests. There was as much justice iu that as in taxing a man for a carriage or a pony, or keeping a dog. As to the succession in leases, the law there simply was that the farm went to the eldest son, like other heritable property ; but it was a common stipulation, and quite in the power of the tenant, to provide that this lease should fall to any other member of the family. As to unex- hausted improvements, that was a matter for which he thought tenants should stipulate ; and iu the absence of such stipula- tion, it might be quite reasonable that the landlord should pay compensation. He mentioned a case that came txnder his notice in Nottinghamshire where the tenants were small, none having over 150 acres, or perhaps not so much ; and by the leases the teuani was entitled to receive on outgoing the first year after applying manure four-fifths, the second yearthree- ftftlis, and so on. With regard to artificial feeding supplied to cattle, the tenant received one-half of that for the year preceding the removal. That was a custom w^hicli he thought would satisfy Mr. Mundell. (Mr. Muudell— " Quite so.") Tliose farmers were not nearly equal in intelligence and wealth to those whom he saw around him there; yet it did not require a law to bring this about — it was a matter of adjustment betv.een landlord and tenant. As to huildings, it was most unjust tliat any- thing should be taken from the tenant without payment. But the erection of buildings was also a matter of contract; only, he would say, if the tenant erected buildings for which the landlord would not pay, then he should be allowed to remove them. But the far better plan would be to refuse to take a farm unless all the buildings, and fences, and ditches were provided for. He agreed with Lochdhu that tenants had no special ground for complaint against the law of hypothec : if they got longer credit from the landlord they personally had no leason to consider the claims of the manure mereliant. The question was a public question, and it came to this— Bid the law conduce to the successful cultivation of the land, and the advancement of people skilled in that, who might want capital? He thought it desirable that there should be en opening for men of skill rising to be tenant-farnu rs. Many persons had risen iu that way, and, to a considerable extent, this was due to the existence of the Law of Hypothec. In this aspect, farmers were interested in mainliining the law. It was a great matter that there sliould be a ladder lying be- tween the tenant-farmer and the labourer, by which the lower class might rise. It tended to diminish those broad dis- tinctions between class and class, of which there were too many already, and which were doing ninch more injury to tenant farms than the Law of l]y[)olhec, or even game. If they could increase the possibility ol these men rising, they would be doing more good than by abolishing Hypothec, perhaps lowering the rent of land a little, shutting those people out from conipctition, snd enabling the man of capital to get the land on his own terms. Mr. Eraser (Eaillie) said the last speaker had given, as lie always gave, a very able speech, but it was the speecli of a special pleader. It was quite evident to him, and must liavc been to everyone acquainted with the laws allVcting the tenancy of land, that Mr. Maeandn^w really knew very little upon the subject (" Oh," and laughter). c2 36 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. Mr. ]\Iaca.ndeew : Tliat is polite at all events. Mr. Phaser said EaDoch had also given them a very ahle disquisition, but he really could not find out what he would be at, and Lochdhu seemed to liini to be looking both ways. There were without doubt grievances affecting the tenancy of I-iud, and the principal one, to his mind, was the Law of Hypothec. He had heard some curious arguments in its de- fence ; and he was surprised to find so acute a man as Mr. Macandrew arguing that the law enabled landlords who were incliued to be generous to aid their weaker and smaller tenants. Mr. Maca:\-drew : I did not say anything of the kind. Mr. Fkaser : That was my view of it. Mr. Macandrew : Yes ; but it was not what I said. Mr. Trasek : Will Mr. Macandrew allow me ? We listened to him patiently. Mr. ilACANDREW : Well, leave me personally, and deal with the subject. Mr. f RASER said that generally when people wanted to be- friend poor and weak men they did it at their own expense. The landlords gave all the risk to the other creditors, and were themselves perfectly safe. He believed hypothec was very hurtful to farmers. It had no Parliamentary sanction until very lately, and it arose when rents were paid in kind — when landlords and tenants were in a sense co-partners, and pro- perly enough, neither could dispose of the subject until his partner's share was delivered. In course of time rents came to be paid in money, and the right of landlords to interfere with the produce ought to have ceased. Now it must be plain to every one who studied the operation of the law, that it operated much more severely against the smaller and weaker tenants than against the larger and wealthier. There was, he believed, more competition for small farms, and the smaller tenants paid in proportion bigger rents, mainly owing to the law of hypothec. They were generally hard-working and industrious men, aud commencing poor and back-rented, they went on from hand-to-mouth, barely able to keep soul and body together, to the end of the chapter. Occasionally perhaps, from favourable circumstances, a poor industrious tenant did become comparatively wealthy, and then, of course, the law of hypothec must get the credit of it. As to forehand rents, he had no objection if landlords preferred them. A good many adopted them at present ; he had been paying forehand rents for the last twenty years. But as to security, it humbly appeared to him tliat, apart form hypothec, the law afforded landlords ample protection, for it enabled them, if a tenant ran into arrear for a year's rent, to compel him to find security not only for the arrears, but for the rent of five future years, or else to remove. That security, though objectionable on several grounds, he would leave them ; only he thought security for the past year and for a year to come should be sufficient. Nest, considering the way that farms were let to the highest bidder, the power of landlords to turn out tenants who fell into arrear, or com- pelling them to give security, it was liard to see why leases should not be assignable like other property. Tlie result of their not being so, in cases of death and bank- ruptcy, was often painful and uujust. Some proprietors, to their honour, refused to take the advantage the law allowed them, bat the change was required for others who acted with less justice. The law of entail had always been a dead weight upon the nation. It had been brought in nearly 200 years ago by Lord Stair, a man whom it was the fashion to laud as the greatest of Scottish lawyers ; but in this he liad done more in- j ury to Scotchmen and more to retard progress in Scotland than any Scotchman that ever lived. His labours were now being abrogated, and perhaps by 1885 they would entirely disappear. He was not in favour of the total abolition of the Game-laws — but he would have some very serious changes. The red deer of the Highlands were noble animals, but they were never in- tended to be of much use to the people as food. The afforesting of large portions of tlie country, which were well fitted for pro- ducing good blackfaced sheep and black cattle, was more a na- tional than a farmer's grievance ; and if proprietors of the soil wished to dispose of their land in that way, and it was the will of the nation that a few of the wealthy should have sport ratlier than that the people's food should be increased, so be it. Farmers as such would have little ground to complain, pro- viding always their crops and swck were protected from destruc- tion and damage. Hares aud rabbits wlien not elfoctually en- closed should be treated as vermin. Winged game was also in some places a .'giievance. When they took to eating corn it was extraordinary the damage they did in a short time* Some wise people told them corn was easily protected, and that a little boy with a tin rattle was aU that was required. [The Chairman : " He was a rattle-skull who proposed it."]. The birds in his part of the country were a good deal wiser than that. He tried a boy with a tin rattle, and they simply flew to one part of the field and flew back again as he approached them. Nothing would effectually drive them off but the smell of powder, and that tenants were not entitled to give them. In connection with the game grievance, he might mention the dog and gun taxes, which were fit to be put on a par with the great lucifer match tax ; and if not intended to be, they certainly were very effective aids to the Game-law system which culmi- nated in the notorious Poaching Prevention Act of 186 1. Mr. Inkson took the same view as Mr. Macandrew, Balloch and Lochdhu. Mr. Macpiiail (Cnlaird) had notintendsd saying anything, but he could not help making a few remarks. Mr. Fraser, of Balloch, told them that they heard of nothing but decay, aud saw nothing but growth, and Lochdliu spoke of the scarcity of farm labour. Now, lie would j ust put it to the secretary whether there was not a decay of labour ? Were not the cottages getting demolished on the hill-sides, and the people driven away, thus causing a scarcity ? That was certainly a sign of national decay — men getting scarce — even if wealth did accumulate. He had lieard au extraordinary remark from Mr. Macandrew — with whom he was certainly not going to measure swords —that they could not tell when gamelincreased. Mr. Macandrew : I said it was very difficult to prove the increase. Mr. Macphail said when they saw twice the amount of damage done to their turnips this year over last [A Voice : " Four times "], it was surely clear that game was increasing. The Law of Hypothec was constantly brought forward as in the interest of the skilled labourer or poor farmer. But if a labourer had nothing but his skill— if he had no money — what was he going to do with a farm ? How was he to get a horse to pull his plough, or a cow io give milk, or seed to sow his land, or manure to help him ? He obtained them at the expense of other people to make the landlord's interest secure. Was that fair ? Did that show any generosity in landlords at all ? There should be no law for the protection of landlords that was not applicable to others. The Chairman said there were too many lawyers against him, but he wanted a word about the Law of Hypothec. Under that law a man with £100 could enter into a farm of £500. He meant not £500 of rent, but a farm it would take £500 to stock, and a man had usually some friends to assist iiim. These friends signed a bill for £100 or £200. He had to pay 5 per cent, on that to the bank, and went on renewing it till he was obliged to succumb. The bank had its security, the landlord took the rent, the poor man might have nothing to pay the manures, and he walked out without a penny. It was stated that there were 4,000 tenants in Invernessshire under £50 rent. Did the landlords care for hypothec on their account? No, it was on account of big tenants; and these big tenants did more to support poor tenants than the pro- prietors. He was not sure but they were as independent as a heap of the proprietors who were so big and bragging. He did not see bow he was going to sum up this when they were so much divided. THE CONTAGIOUS DISEASES (ANIMALS) ACT.— At a meeting of the Leicestershire Chamber of Agriculture of Saturday the report of the Select Committee of the House on Commons on the Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act was generally approved, but the meeting strongly recommended the adoption of the two rejected resolutions by Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., first, " That should stringent measures be taken in the United Kingdom for stamping out pleuro-pneumonia, foreign cattle coming from all countries in which that fatal disease exists shall also be slaughtered at the port of landing, as the meeting is satisfied that no inspection can guard against the introduction of a disease which lias so long and uncertain a jjcriod of incubation ; secondly, that all Irish cattle be rested six hours and fed and watered before they are sent inland by rail." A committee was also appointed to fill up returns as to the late custom of tenant-right in |Leicestershire, the present custom of tenant-right being in a transition state through the formation of a tenant-right associ.ttiou, who were determined to alter the injustice which prevails. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 37 CHESHIRE CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. THE COMEDY OF AGRICULTURE. At tliR aunual t^pneral meeting nt Crewe, Sir IIakry MArNWAUiNG referred to the fith clause oi'tlie sclieiiie fur compensation to tenants by landlords, passed in April last, concerning ths eradicating of old hedges. The tenants were to have full power to eradicate old hedges and cut down trees, and the landlords were to have the privilege of paying the costs. He remembered a farm in Gloucester- shire where the liedges were all new, and tliere were no trees. In one field there was a lot of large Shorthorn Imllocks looking thin and ill, all sutfering more or less from (iphthaimia, caused by the absence of shade and exjiosure to tlie dust. Some of them were quite blind, several had lost one eye, and the eyes of all were streaming down with water. Having cut down the trees the owner was putting up sheds, that the cattle might creep into them out of the heat of the sun. He mentioned this to a friend, who suggested a very valuable contrivance, that each cow should carry a jiarasol, and if the parasols were of different colours the elleet would be very pretty. As his friend, Mr. Fair, had destroyed a larger number of beautiful trees and hedges tlian any other man, and had consequently exposed his cows to the heat of the sun, he (Sir Harry) ventured to present him with a model for the parasols for his cows. (Amid much laughter Sir Harry carefully unfolded a parasol ot a light drab colour, together with a piece of wood about a foot long, in the mid- dle of which the parasol was to be stuck, and there was a hole at each end for the tijis of the animal's horns.) lie hoped, when he nfxt saw Mr. Fair's farm, to see all the animals carrying parasols. They might think that silly, but it was not half so silly as pulling up hedges and cutting down trees. He therefore hoped that clause 6 would be eradicated, and if all the clauses were eradicated there would be no great cause for lamentation. lie had read letters on draining, and the very men who had so successfully drained farms were now recommending the building of rain-water tanks at every farm house. The old Cheshire farmers liad been laughed at and ridiculed, but those men who had taken large farms into their own hands, and farmed according to their own theories, liad given up farming. He had read speeches by eminent theoretical agriculturists of the modern school, who would recommend that the old Cheshire pastures should be ploughed up — that parks like Windsor Park, Tattou Park, Dodding- toa Park, and Cholmondeley Park should be brojieu up, so that more food might be produced for the people. Others recommended the extermination of hares and rabbits in order, as he [supposed, thatjraeat might be raised from Is. to 2s. per pound. He liad read speeches and pamphlets by those furious men who said that a man's land was not his own property — and that had been said in that room — and he liad read the evidence of those men who sought to lead or mislead the House of Commons — the Government who in- tended to legislate for them. These speeches, reports, and evidence to which he referred, were to be the groundwork of compulsory legislation, to effect what was called agiicultural improvements ; and all were to be bound by one compulsory lease, whether they held ten acres or ten thousand acres — ■whether the land was dry and chalkey, or wet and clayey — whether they grew corn or milked cows. He remem- bered a valuer from Surrey coming to value a farm of strong undrained land, aud his report was to the effect that the tillage laud was excellent, but as to the grass land he never saw such bad land in his life. At that time forty cows were kept on the farm, and each cow was producing milk making upwards of five cwt. of cheese, said to be the best in Cheshire. Since then the farm had been drained, and the milk of each cow now made only two cwt. of cheese. These were the valuers, who were to draw up leases to teach them to farm. Modern agriculturists were like the projectors described by Dean Swift in Oul/iver's Travels, cue of whom had a scheme in hand for extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers, another for converting sewage into food, another for dispensing with ploughing on a very ingenious plan, viz., planting acorus and chesnuts six or eight inches deep, and then letting loose a drove of pigs into the field where tiiey were planted, to root them up. In short, tiiere was not a town in the country visited by Gul- liver where there was not a chamber of agriculture, with professors, who were contriving new methods of agriculture, very much like our times, when there were new implements being continually invented so as to enable one man to do the work often, the only inconvenience being that none of them were brought to perfection. He regretted his friend Mr. Latham was not present, and recommended him, aud other gentlemen like those to whom he had referred, to take a lesson from Gulliver and plough with pigs instead of horses. If they were wise, however, they would not be taken in by clever Scotchmen, who were anxiois to persuade weak Eng- lishmen that they could sow the Grampian hills with wheat, nor would they be deceived by sewage farmers who fed their cows on sewage-grown grass, and sent the poisonous milk to Manchester aud other towns. As to agreements between tenant-farmers and their landlords in Cheshire, he thought that where a tenant-farmer took a large farm of 400 acres, and was prepared with a capital of £10 per acre, he might ask for a long lease ; but that in cases where the farm was small and the tenant had not above £5 per acre, he was entitled only to an agreement from year to year. Leases were very numerous and very various, and he did not know that he ever saw two alike. It was very desirable, however, if practicable, that a form should be drawn up which would be suitable to the \a hole of the county. In all he had seen there were generally two omissions : Power should be given to the incoming tenant to enter upon the land on the 2nd of February, and to the landlord to enter the house and building on the 1st of May. To remedy this three suggestions had been made : First, that Parliament should legislate ; second, that that chamber, having already arbitrated between land- lord and tenant, so far as regarded compensation for unex- hausted improvements, should arbitrate on this matter ; and, thirdly, that the landlord should require of the tenant two bondsmen, who should be answerable for the fulfiiment of the agreement in every particular. As to legislation by Parlia- ment, he objected to it ; but upon the other points he would like to hear discussion, as he wished to know whether the chamber were willing, if they had tlie power, to arbitrate ; because if they were, and would draw up a lease or agreement that would work well between the parties, they would deserve the thanks of tiie whole of the county. The present system in the Ducklow Hundred was this. A man took a farm of 200 acres, and brought forty cows and seven horses ; ploughed 107 acres, and sold all the saleable hay and straw, and mixed the rubbish with turnip pulp for his cattle. The manure from that was poor, and so it had to be supplemented by bone dust and guano, which the landlord was asked to jiay for if the tenant had to leave. Surely the money obtained for the hay and straw ought to go against that ! Surely the rules required amendment on that point ! Sir Henry Holland, in 1808, published a valuable work entitled, " A general view of the Agriculture of Cheshire," which he (Sir Harry) strongly recommended them to read. THE FAMINE IN BENGAL.— Calcutta, Dec. 7.- The Press, especially the native papers, warmly thanks T/ie Times for its articles upon the subject of the famine. Tho Viceroy urges husbanding fodder. Advances are offered for preserving cattle. Sir G. Campbell is encouraging vegetable cultivation, and offers advances for the constrnction of wells and storehouse buildings. Steamers are to ply with emi- grants to, and rice from, Rangoon. The Tirhoot peasants are storing their grain. Prices in the interior are higher than iii 1865. In Calcutta they aree([ual to those rates. Insects are attacking the spring crops. Tiiere are 1,000 labourers cm- ployed on the relief works ; but few peasants will offer them- selves while harvesting proceeds. Tlie Viceroy leaves for Oucjr to-morrow, to visit the relief works. THE FAllMEE'S MAGAZINE. MORAYSHIRE FARMERS' LEASES VERSUS TENANT-IUGIIT. OLUB. At the Quarterly Meeting, Mr. Walker, Altyre, in the chair, Mr. MACDOJf-VLD, secretary, read the following letter : Gordon Castle, Fochabers, iNov. 6, 1873. My Dear Sir, — I had hoped to have attended the meeting of the Morayshire Earmers' Club to-raorrow, but regret I am unable to do so, as I Hud it is proposed to discuss a question intimately connected with tlie relations between landlord and tenant, and upon which great dillereuce of opinion may pre- vail. The subject of Tenaut-Kight, as it is called, is one which to my mind cannot be discussed at a social meeting such as the dinners of the Morayshire Earmers' Club used to be. I am aware that a resolution was come to in the early part of the year, allowing members of the Club to discuss matters of politi- cal interest at their meetings. I regret extremely that such a step should have been taken, as 1 consider it to be wholly at variance with the objects of the Club, and the principles upon which it has hitherto been conducted. I should be quite pre- pared, on a fitting occasion, to state my views upon unex- hausted improvements, labourers' cottages, forms of lease, and other matters of this kind, but I venture to think that the dinner of the Morayshire Farmers' Club is not a convenient time to enter upon such discussions. May I ask you to read this letter to the members of the Clnb at their meeting to- morrow ? — Yours faithfully, Riciiiio:cD. The Chairman said that, on hearing of the letter from the Duke of llichii'ond, he called upon the Secretaries for the resolution of tlic Club, and found tliat his Grace was under a slight misapprelieusiou as to tlie terms of the minute referred to. A draft minute had been prepared anent the sub- ject as follows : " The meeting instruct the Secretaries to en- gross his Grace's letter in to- day's minutes, and to acknow- ledge receipt of the letter, thanking his Grace for his courtesy in so candidly stating his views to the Club. At the same time, they think it proper and necessary that an extract from the report of the Committee adopted at the anniversary meet- ing of members in February last, should be sent to his Grace, from which it will be seen that it was simply subjects bearing on agricultural questions of the day which this Club had in view for discussion — questions of purely party politics being altogethei excluded." Tlie draft minute was approved. The subject annjuuced for discussion was: "What is the opinion of members as to compensation to be given by proprie- tors for unexhausted improvements in agricultural subjects, especially as regards building, draining, and enclosing ?" The Chairman opened the discussion, and said : I regret that I cannot congratulate the Committee of Manase- ment of this Club on their selection of a subject of discussion to-night. The subject, if not identical, is, in its principal fea- tures, a repetition of the question which was nuder considera- tion, and in which the members of this Club gave a deliverance at tiieir meeting in May last. Although I think it of the ut- most importance that at our meetings questions affecting the interests of agriculturists should be discussed in a straightfor- ward, independent manner, I consider it equally prejudicial to our interests wlien we persist in the reproductiou of a subject — more particularly when it was the very last question discussed by this Club — hinting at a tendency to overreach on tlie part of our landlords, and at the inaptitude of tenants when adjust- ing their leases or contracts. Such insinuations, in so far as the majority of landlords and tenants are concerned, appear to me to be the phantoms of fertile imaginations. The subject for discussion points especially to buildings, draining, and en- closing. These I shall deal with separately and in order. The question of buildings was so fully and fairly discussed at our May meeting, that I will not trespass on your time respect- ing the arguments then brought forward, but hold that point as settled by the deliverance of the Club thereanent. Then as to draiuing. The argument that, during the currency of a lease, circumstances may crop up vvliich, fcr the proper de- velopment of the resources of a farm, would render a ciiange on the agreed-on system of management necessary, which could not be forseen when the lease was being negotiated, cannot be broi^'it to bear on this case, as the merest tyro in agricultural matters can surely estimate when looking over a farm, with a view to rent the same, what portion thereof is dry land, and what is wet, and requiring drainage. This, therefore, I hold, can be made without difficulty or doubt a matter of contract under the lease. In regard to fencing, it also can without difliculty be forseen and agreed on l)y tiie contracting parties. But, presuming that a tenant, during the currency of a lease, irrespective of the landlord, should fence a farm at his own expense, in many c^ses it would be unfair to compel a landlord to pay for such fences at the termination of a lease. Tt may happen that the latter, when reletting, would find it for his own interest to straighten marches with or add the farm to an adjoining one. Tiie fields fenced off for the smaller holding would be totally unsuited for the proper culti- vation of the larger, and the proprietor would be thus forced to pay for what was of little value to him. Now tliat wire fencing is so largely used, a tenant, if not compensated, can remove and sell it. The question is therefore reduced to very narrow limits, viz., the compensation to be given by proprie- tors for unexhausted improvements in agricultural subjects. This is such a vague and indefinite subject that T may safely predict that whoever endeavours to frame a legislative mea- sure which will provide satisfactorily for all the claims that can be raised by an out-going tenant, and that in the face of a written lease, \\\\\ be himself exhausted most tiioroughly before the matter is brought to a successful issue. In cases where leases are not granted, I admit that an improving and generous tenant should be protected against summary eviction, and compensated for unexhausted improvements ; but where leases exist, I hold that any attempt at legislation which would override existing contracts would render confusion worse confounded. As middleman, occasionally acting between outgoing tenants and the landlord or incoming tenants, I have found it the most difficult and disagreeable part of my business to adjust equitably claims which were not provided for in the lease, and to keep clear of litigation. Indeed, the negotiating parties' interests are so diametrically opposite that, if legisla- tion wliere attempted where a lease existed, in the m;ijority of cases the outgoing tenant would find himself the possessor of one shell, the landlord or incoming tenant of the other shell, and our friends the lawyers the possessors of the oyster. In theory it is often argued that, in the absence of compensation for unexhausted manures, the outgoing tenant of a farm has iuducemeuts to exhaust his land, and the community suffer along with him from diminution of produce ; but in practice, the result should lead to a very difi"erent conclusion, for the most profitable course an outgoiug tenant can follow is to en- deavour to raise the heaviest way-going crop possible, and thus reap increased proceeds, not only from extra quantity and qual- ity, but from tlie increased rate which his neighbours — willing to assist him — would be induced to give for a full crop of straw or grain, as compared with a meagre one. At the same time, the outgoing tenant can now-a-days attain this end by tlie use of manufactured fertilizers, which will riise the crop, but will leave little in the land to benefit the next crop. Viewing, therefore, the negotiation for the lease of a farm as a purely commercial transaction, I cannot see how legislation can be brought to bear to overrule written contracts ; and I see little necessity for such in so far as this county is con- cerned, of which my knowledge and experience are pretty ex- tensive. I feel satisfied that, if tenants, when adjusting their leases, would state in a straightforward and fair manner their requirements, stipulating for the deletion of objectionable clauses, they will be and have been readily met by their land- lords ; and thus little doubt need arise at the issue of a lease on such subjects as are embraced in the question for discussion to-night. Major CuLBAKD : This subject was partly taken up at last meeting, when we had under consideration Mr. Eordyce's Bill anent Labourers' Cottages, That having been a political question, I took the liberty of expressing an opinion upon it. As the subject is brought before us to-night, it is more of au agricultural question, and I have not that experience which would enable me to give an opinion. But I think that any THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 39 iKgislatioii which interferes with contracts must lie erroneous At the same time, we have heard many farmers complain ; but ihcy liad no right to erect any buildings which tlicy could not j:-! comi)ensation for. Mr. Hunter (Dipple) : I tjuitc agree with the Cliairmau's remarks on tlie question. Mr. Macbey, land surveyor : I shall be very glad to give you my experience as a tenant farmer during the last nineteen years. When I entered Woodside nineteen years ago, the steading of houses on the farm were in a rather dilapidated state, and it was arranged that, within a very short time after I entered, the proprietor was to put them in a proper state of repair. When they came to be dealt with, however, the factor, then Mr. Walker, considered the houses so far gone that it would be far more profitable, both for landlord and tenant, to put up an entirely new steading. It was agreed that this should be done, I paying 5 per cent, interest on the amount expended, and doing all the carriages gratis. During the lease, entirely at my own expense, I fenced the whole farm with wire thorough drained about one-fourth of the farm, and trenched some land then under wood. My lease has now expired, and the proprietor, wishing to have a resident tenant, I did not get a renewal of lease. In that case, I applied to the proprietor, through the factor, Mr. Lawson, for some compensation for tlic improvements I had done upon the farm, having expended between five and six years' rent upon these permanent im- provements. The matter having been considered, it was inti- mated to me that all I requested was to be granted — namely, the wire fences should be taken off ray hands at valuation, and that 1 should get payment to the extent of one-half of ray out- lays in draining and trenching, but the whole amount for these not to exceed a year's rent. I consider that I was in tint way liberally dealt \Titli, seeing that I was not entitled to any com- pensation for the permanent improvements, except at the pro- prietor's pleasure. I think if tenants would have the same confidence in the proprietors as I had, and go on with their improvements in a proper way, they would be treated as well as I have been. My own opinion is, however, that it is not a good thing to tie up a tenant's capital in these permanent im- provements during nineteen years, when it can be spent more profitably on the farm otherwise, and seeing tliat proprietors can get money eitiier upon entailed or unentailed properties to advance to the tenants with which fo carry out improvements. I happen to act as one of Her Majesty's Inspectors under the Drainage Act, the Improvement of Land Act, and also as one of the Inspectors of the Lauds Improvement Company, the Scottish Drainage Company, and the Landa Loan Enfranchise- ment Company. These all advance money to projirietors at 6j per cent, on loan for 25 years : that is the proprietor pays 4 per cent, of interest, and 2| per cent, to wipe olf the loan during that period. At present I have inspections in Aber- deen, Eanfl', Mora}', Nairn, Inverness, Argyll, lloss, and Caithness-shires, and I think in connection with liiese I have acquired a pretty good idea of how tlie matter of permanent improvements can be dealt with as between landlord and ten- ant. These Companies advance money for building, trench- ing, draining, enclosing, road-making, and in fact for all sorts of permanent improvements. In some cases the tenants pay 4, 5, 6, or 7 per cent., but as a general rule I lind that 5 per cent, is a sura most willingly paid by tenants, who also undertake to do the necessary cartages free, which may be stated to bo generally worth from one to two per cent, on the amount expended. It is far better, I consider, to carry on improvements in that v/ay, when they are are not specially stipulated for in the leases, than to tie up the tenant's capital, even though he would be entitled to remuneration at the end of the lease. While it is a good enough bargain for the tenant, it is also profitable enough for the proprietor, seeing he gets the money he lends at 4 per cent. The Chairman : You would make it a matter of contract ? Mr. Macbey : Yes ; you can make it a matter of contract when the necessity for tlie improvements is seen on entering upon a lease ; but they are often found to be necessary during the currency of a lease, such, for instance, as in the case of a tenant starting with half worn houses, which during the lease fall into decay and require to be renewed. The tenant then must cither expend his money in patchfng up tlie houses or have them rebuilt, and it is tiettcr in all interests that the pro- prietor, if he has not the capital to expend, should get it ad- vanced, and that the tenant should pay a reasonable interest. Where, however, the tenant does spend money, he should be repaid for what he leaves at tlie end of the lease, that is to say if the improvements ujion which the money has been expended have been sanctioned by the proprietor. I certainly would not have tenants to spend money simply to suit themselves, and then make a claim, but if the proprietor agrees that the im- provements are desirable, then there should be compensation given to the extent of from one to five years' rents, according to the circumstances. Mr. Brown (Westertown) : I quite agree with the remarks made by Mr. Walker, on the subject. Compensation entirely depends upon the matter of contract. JMr. Geddes (Oiblibton) said he was rather at a loss to understand the question, being, like others to whom he had spoken, of opinion that their leases afforded the best security for the return of money laid out on the land. There ought to be a good feeling ana understanding between landlord and tenant before the expiry of a lease, but, in any circumstances, he thought any tenant would be a fool and unfit for his busi- ness who could nor protect himself by preparing for the end of his lease, lie tliought their leases were their guide, and by their leases they should march, more particularly in that county where they found a class of men as their landlords, who were ever ready to meet them with very good feeling, and who weie ever inclined to give full advantage to the tenant. He was of opinion that, in eases of insolvency, leases should be available to the creditors to get what benefit they could under them ; and that in the case of the decease of a tenant, his family should be entitled to compensation for any unexhausted im- provements which may have been made. They were aware that had not been the presumption hitherto. So far as re- gards the claims of creditors, he had liad little to do with them ; but, so far as regards families of deceased tenants, he had known a great many cases where they had been treated with the utmost liberality by the landlords. Mr. Harrls (Earnhill) said some of the remarks that had been made hinted a great deal at legislation, but in the ques- tion before them there was no mention of legislation. They might as well say they were to legislate upon the growing of turnips, because they discussed the question of how best to grow turnips. He looked upon the question as a means of eliciting opinion as to the best terms for a contract between a landlord and tenant. He never could believe that they would legislate about paying people for unexhausted manures. He pointed to England, where leases were not the rule, and where Tenant-Right was almost universal. There custom had made it law, and it was quite understood ; and he did not see why that should not be the ease in Scotland. He thought it very unjust, at the termination of a lease, that a man should go out of a farm and leave any considerable portion of unexhausted improvements in it. He thoughtjit still worse that a man's creditors should lose the money tlicy had put into the farm ; and equally unjust that the children of a deceased tenant should not get his means out of the farm. But as to legislat- ing upon the subject, he did not understand that there was any necessity for that. Mr. MuNRO (Covesea) thought that question was not at all suitable for discussion. Every man had lo make his bed, and he could just lie upon it. Mr. Bruce (Newton of Struthers) quite agreed with the chairman that a lease — and they all sat under leases as farmers in that county — was sufficient as a guarantee or obligation during a nineteen years' tenancy. To speak of unexhausted improvements in these circumstances was to speak of a myth. A man had to make a contract on entering a farm. If tliore was to be a contract, it must be stuck to ; for if it was departed from, it was no longer a contract. During the currency of the contract certain exigencies might arise. A tenant might come to think he shouhl have a certain amount or description of accommodation for his stock, or upon his farm, and might build according to his ideas. But at the end of his lease a great many people might not see that he ever needed the ac- commodation he had provided. Where was the coiupensation in such a case to begin and end? How could they make any arrangement at all in sucli a case P If they were to go in for becoming tenants at will, then it might be right and proper to make some provision to meet cirumstances which would inevit- ably arise ; but so long as they had leases, and made conditions for nineteen years' occupancy, it was improper to speak of sucli a thing as compensation for unexhausted improvements. Mr. llu.\X0N (Inchbroom) said the question had not altoge- 40 THE FAHMEK'S MAGAZINE. ther been properly looked at. Without any reference to legis- lation, he thouglit tlie opinion of the members of the Club were asked as to improvements wliich might be necessary to liave ill leases. He quite agreed with some of the speakers. Mr. Macbey had painted a very fair picture, a picture which spoke very well for the landlords of that county. But there was sometimes an opposite view. He had known cases were tenants had spent large sums of money, and had gone away without receiving one penny in return. He thought the present presumption was wrong, and that if changes came about that were required, farmers generally could keep larger stocks of cattle. It was ratlier an extraordinary thing that a tenant should be obliged, for his own convenience, and for the good of the farm, to build accommodation for his stock, and in the event of there being no arrangement, he should get no compensation at the end of the lease. He thought the pre- sumption should be that the subject belonged to the tenant. Farming was rather ditferent now from what it; was some years ago. It was quite understood that a tenant had a very much larger capital to expend than formerly. Before a person could stock and manage a farm efficiently and well, the capital re- quired was double what it would have been some years ago ; and he thought the tenant had some right to be heard on these subjects. He was sure the proprietors of that county would be very willing to hear their opinions ; and he was only sorry that the question had been misapprehended. Mr. YooL (Coulard Bank) : The subject set down for dis- cussion is one which has been much under notice at the va- rious iarmers' clubs throughout the country, and in my humble opinion is one, the proper solution of which is of no little im- portance to the future of agriculture. The Land Tenancy Laws, more especially those by which all improrements made by the occupier of laud become the property of the landlord at the termination of the lease, are in my views injurious to good husbandry, as well as very much against the interest of both landlords and tenants and the welfare of the public. Every- thing that tends to stop the flow of capital into farming pur- suits, and to check the enterprise of tenants, necessarily mili- tates against the general prosperity. That the present state of the law with reference to unexhausted improvements has that effect requires, I think, very little demonstration. Before a man really embarks his capital, he must have some certainty that what he sows that shall he also reap. Capital is a coy, shy maiden, and only to be moved through the medium of good security. How stands the case with a t(nant-farmer who embarks his capital in improving another man's land by building, improving, &c. ? Has he any certainty that he will get his capital back at the end of the lease? The very reverse. Under the present law, the whole of the improvements he has made become the property of the landlord, and that without compensation. This, on the face of it, is unfair. The legal presumption should be that the buildings and other permanent improvements should belong to the man whose capital has created them, and at the end of his occupation he should be entitled to fair value for all improvements created by his capital, which is calculated to add to the value of the subject he is about to quit. At the very least, as regards buildings and fences, he should be entitled to remove them in the event of the proprietor or incoming tenant being unwilling to take them at valuation. That is one side of the question. On the other side I would say that if the tenant is to have a legal claim for unexhausted improvements, the landlord should also have a claim against the tenant where deterioration has taken place through his neglect or bad management. Compensation lor unexhausted manures is another branch of the subject which is daily becoming of more importance, and at this we need not be surprised, when we take into consideration the enor- mous increase in the use of artificial manures and feeding stuffs which have taken place of late years. The amount spent on manures and feeding stuffs exceeds in many cases the an- nual rent of the land, and to maintain production they cannot be dispensed with. It they are dispensed witli, it is only at the expense of the food supply, and a diminution in that sup- ply cannot, I think, be contemplated with satisfaction by any one, considering the fact that, of our teeming millions, nearly one- half are supported on foreign corn, and that yearly the num- bers so supported are rapidly increasing. Under the present arrangement the tenant, when he approaches the termination of his lease, attempts to save himself to a certain extent, by withholding the supplies of manures and feeding stuffs, and endeavours to extract as much as he can of the capital which he had previously put into the soil. This is a raiseraLle, wasteful system, opposed to the interest of the tenant in the event of a renewal, injurious also to the interests of the land- lord, and by causing a diminished production of food for seve- ral years before, and for several years after the termination of the lease, injurious to the public welfare. All this can be ob- viated by giving outgoing tenants compensation for unex- hausted manures. They would thus be encouraged to keep up the fertility of their farms to the last, much to the benefit of all concerned. Who, let me ask, would be tlie loser? Would the landlord lose by having the productiveness of his land increased ? If its productiveness is increased, the tenant will be able and willing to pay more rent. The increase of produce will benefit the country at large. And when were the tenants and the country prosperous that landlords did not amply share in that prosperity ? The great question of the future seems to me to be the providing of food for our rapidly in- creasing population. That the soil of this country does not produce anything like the amount of food that it is capable of doing must be patent to all who know anything of the subject. It must also be patent to everyone that the more we have to depend on foreign countries for our food supply, the greater the danger of this country in the event of any national disaster. Therefore, I think it behoves everybody concerned to do what in them lies to remove the impediments which stand in the way of an increased supply of home-grown food. It seems to me that the more effectual way to do so is to endeavour to attract capital, to^the cultivation of the soil, by offering it security through a reasonable measure of compensation for unex- hausted improvements. Some may say that it would be diHi- cult to estimate the value of these improvements. There never was anv change proposed to which difficulties could not be started, but it they are fairly faced I have no doubt they will be overcome, as they have been overcome in many other cases. Where work has to be done, you may depend upon it you will find men capable of doing it, and I see no more diffi- culty in estimating the value of unexhausted improvements than in estimating the other matters between outgoing and in- coming tenants, which are at present generally settled by ar- bitration. If there is the will to do it, I have no fear but that the way will be found. Mr. Mackessack (Ardgye) said that what was for the good of the tenant was lor the good of the proprietor. There was a very great difference between taking a lease now and nine- teen years ago, because he must be able to keep a much larger stock of cattle, an i consequently must have good houses and fences. It was a very hard thing for a tenant to provide these necessary works, and at the end of the lease not to reap a penny for them. He said it was for the benefit of the proprietor as well as of the tenant that the latter should be paid for such improvements. As to unexhausted manures, that was a very difficult question. One man might put in ammonia and soda, and another man bones and dissolved bones, and how could they distinguish so as to compensate the person who put in the right and durable stuff. The Hon. T. C. Bruce said : I must excuse myself for not having answered when my name was first called upon, but the fact was that I had come to this meeting with the view of being instructed, not with the ^view of in- structing others, and I was much more anxious to hear what you, gentlemen, had to say on this subject than to trouble you with any observations I had to make myself. I may also say that you are perfectly aware that my presence in this assembly is not owing to any persoual interest 1 have in the agricul- ture of Morayshire, but to the fact that I represent a noble lord who is one of the largest proprietors in this county. 1 wish myself specially to say that any remarks I may make, however valueless they are, are entirely my own, and do not in the least degree involve the responsibility of any other gentle- man with whom I may happen to be connected. The question which has bean raised to-night has been raised in a form that appears to me rather objectionable. It enters on a branch of a very large question, and confines it to only one feature of it, so that we are not able in the form in which the discussion is raised perhaps to go so fully into it as we might have done in other circumstances. The question as to the right of the tenant to improvements and to unexhausted manures is one which touches the whole question of the relations between landlord and tenant, which is very much larger than that which is put down in this paper, and it is a little difficult to treat the one without at all encroaching on the other. Now, my THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 41 own feeling — I speak merely my own personal opinion, and of what I liave heard from those gentlemen who liave spoken here — my own feeling is that the olijcclious to these condi- tions, the compensation for perniaueut improvements, and the compensation for things which tiie tenants iiave to do on their farms — the really strong objection is tiuit I do not think these are things that the tenant ought to do at all. 1 think tliat, as between landlord and tenant, permanent improvement, and those things whicii are to increase permanently the value of the estate, ought properly to be done by the landlord and not by tlie tenant. I tliink that legislation tending to give the tenants rights of compensation, or to encourage the practice of their laying out their capital upon permanent improvements of that description, is in itself objectionable, because 1 tiiink it is against the tlieory of the principle of the position in which tenants ought to stand towards the owners of land. The fact is, if 1 may use a simile whicli is perhaps more familiar to me than it may be to some others here, I tliink tiie landlord and the tenant stand in the same relation which in our railway language we would call the capital account to revenue. That is to say, those works which are adding per- manently to the value of the estate ought to be carried out by the person who has the permanent ultimate ownership of tlie estate ; and that the tenant's capital is the trading capital, is the capital whicli ought to be turned over every year, or nc;irly every year, and ought to be available for the stocking of the farm, for tiie working of it, and that these are the leading purposes for which he is to use it. I think, therefore, that so far from it being desirable to encourage tlie tenants in laying out money on permanent improvements, I think their laying out money in that way is a mistake and loss to them, and ought not To be done ; and tiiat those improvements which are necessary should come from the landlords, and not from them. Of course, all these general principles are subject to modification in individual contracts, in dealing with indi- vidual cases. It is impossible to lay down general rules whicli will be applicable to all cases ; but 1 think the tendency of these claims, or whatever you choose to call them — these arguments in favour of the tenants having a right or power to lay out money are in themselves a mistake, because it is encouraging tenants to do that which should not be done by them at all, but done by the landlords. Then, with reference to the question of unexliausfced manures, really I am not com- petent to give an opinion, and I must leave it to the resolu- tion of this meeting, in which we have one or two agricultu- rists of experience who say that you cannot estimate unex- hausted manures, and we have one or two others who say that you can. I am not at all in a position to say which is right, or which is wrong. I think in any case the tenants who are obliged to give up their leases during their currency — I think it is only fair to them, and so far as my own experience goes, it is the practice in this part of the country — that when a man gives up a lease for any reason which is not his own cause, he should assign the lease, or get such compensation as will recoup him for what money he has spent, and of which he has not got the advantage. That I think is but fair. A.S to the question of the tenants getting compensation at the end of the lease, that appears to me to be as much a matter for the tenant as for the landlord, because we all know that the tenant who has a nineteen years' lease can recoup himself for his manures at the end of the lease; and if he knows his business, he will take care not to spend money which he cannot get payment for. But it is a question if, in the event of farms falling out of lease, having to be renewed, the tenant who is leaving should be placed in such a position as to make it his interest to run his farm out, and make it of less value. The form of this discus- sion does not tend to any legislative interference in the rela- tions of landlords and tenants, and I am glad to hear from those gentlemen of knowledge and experience on the subject that sucli interference would be nndesirhljle- 1 think tiie proper management of the laud, both on the ])art of tiie tenants and on the part of the proprietors, is a thing that is constantly changing. We all think we can manage land very well now, but 1 have no doubt that in a few years we siiall think we could not manage at all now, and wonder how wc got on at all. Therefore, I do not tiiink we should tie our- selves down to rigid rules of any kind, but it is very desirable that we should understand each other ; that I, as representing one of the proprietors, and you, representing the tenants, should understand each other, and say what we wish, and see what we can do for our mutual advantage. It is your advantage that the land should be brought to the highest slate of cultiva- tion. So is it ours. Our object should be the same, cvcu alllu)u;;li wedilfer now and again as to the way in which we are to carry it out. I tliink it extremely satisfactory that we should now and again have discussions, and that we should bear each other's o)iinions as to what we can do, and what would be for the uomraou good. I think the tendency of the age is to show tiiat in order that the land of this country shall be brought into a proper state of cultivation, there would re- quire to be a considerably larger capital laid out upon it. I think that the capital in all cases of perniaueut improvement, should come rather from the landlord than from the tenant, and i( from circumstances the landlords are not able or not willing to do the part which i.s assigned to them, they should make arrangements with their tenants which would be satis- factory to both parties in carrying out the cultivation of their farms to the highest possible pitcli. That is the way, I think, in which the question stands, audi think the discussion of this question, and the ventilation of it in meetings and by the press, and by otiier means, is very benelicial in bringing both parties to an understanding of what is desired, and what it is necessary for them to do. I do not tiiink our position will be in the least improved by any legislation, but I think it will be very much improved by an understanding betweea ourselves as to what both of us wish to do. If tliat niulerstanding is come to we can carry it out The Chairman very mncli feared he would fail at ar- riving at a proper finding as to the result of their discussion, but he would submit what seemed to him to be tlie general opinion of the meeting, utiniely, that the question ought to torni a matter of contract, but where by unforsern circumstances the lease may lapse, the representatives or creditors ouglit to be put in possession to recoup themselves foi' the outlays of the tenant. Mr. Harris (Earnhill) begged to move an addition to the effect that it would be beneficial to the agriculture of tlie country if these coiitracts ensured remuueratiou to the tenant for permanent or uuexliausted improvements upon the expiry of his lease. Mr. Walker said he did not think that was the general opinion. The Secretary then read the following, which was accepted as the finding of the meeting — " That any legislation in this matter would be nnadvisable ; that tlie question ought to be matter of agreement between landlord and tenant ; that in any contract or lease provision should be made to ensure the tenants payment for unexhausted iinprovenipnts." WASTE LANDS IN IRELAND.-Tlie Saumhri, Fm - man Belfast Newslelter, and other Irish temporaries, liberal and conservative, advocate the improvement of the wiste lands of Ireland by the Government purchasing, diaining, road- makiug, and then selling or leasing in lots. They say that out of four and a half millions of acres of waste lands — bogs^ moors, swamps, and heather, at least two millions would be improveable, and that the average annual value of these would be one shilling per acre, or if purchased by the State the cost would be about thirty shillings. The reasons they giTc for State interference and purchase are that the estates are very large ; that since ISI'5 Government have offered loans, repay- able in twenty-two years, principal and interest, at G^ per cent., and in thirty-live years at 5 per cent., to induce the pro- prietors to improve, which they have not done ; that when Acts of rarliaments enable railways to acquire land when wanted for the ]iublic interest, so should they with waste lands wlien the owners are unwilling to do their duty. We still think many would be willing to sell to the State. Tlie sur- plus church funds would be suflicient for these and other Irish reproductive works. If our (Jovernment requires an example, the Netherlands has set it in the drainage, reclamation, and im- provement of Haarlem Mecr, which they afterwards sold in es- tates of 40 up to COO acres. 42 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. T II E TENANT-RIGHT BILL. At a nieetiug of the Gloucestershire Clianiber of Agricul- ture, at Gloucester, Mr. D. Long, presiJent, in the chair, snid tliey had deputed Mr. Clement Cadlo to represent the Chauiher on the Teii.int-llight question, and a report was to have been sent them to-day from the Central Cliamber as to the result of their investigation in connection with compensation for unexhausted improvements, but the Secretary had written to say that the report had not as yet been drawn up. Mr. Caule said he attended a meeting of the Central Chamber in the early part of October, but there v.as a small attendance, and only a few reports had been sent iu from the district chambers, to whom u set of questions had been sent to be filled up, with answers. The explanation was that the papers had been sent out just btfore harvest, and therefore there had not been time to fill them up. lie believed, how- ever, that a large number of reports had since been sent in, and that the committee of the Central Council would make a short report on Tuesday, and ask to be allowed to send in their formal report at a future time. It certainly would have been ridiculous to have attempted to have drawn up a report from the forms sent in, for the simple reason that they did not represent onc-ten(h of the different chambers. The P^^,ESIDE^■T was rather surprised that the business com- mittee should have put tlie subject on the agenda for discus- sion, because he hardly saw how they were to discuss a report which did not exist. However, every one must admit that the question of compensation for unexhausted improvements, or security for tenants' capital, required legislating upon, and as there was ample room for discussion he proposed that they proceed. Mr. J. E. YoracE, M.P. : It certainly is to be deplored that we should be called upon to discuss a report which lias not yet been issued, because the discussion will have to be conducted without being directed to any specific poiut ; and no doubt the question as to what are tlie customs of the different counties is a very impoitaiit item in the «hole matter, and v.ithcut having the rejiort we are not in a posi- tion to do iiuch good. I had an opportunity the oilier day, when many gentlemen here were present, of stating some of my views on the question of compensation for unexhausted improvements. It is obviously uufair^and this is the broad principle upon whicli we are all agreed — that any teuaut wiio lias invested capital iu his landlord's land should be exposed — wliether he leave his farm for reasons of hid own, or be- cause he is turned out by his landlord — to the liability of losing the value of the improvements he has made, whether they be temporary, durable, or permanent, according to the classification of the bill introduced last session. The question is, How far can we provide by legislation agaiast occasional liardships of this kind — for occaiioiial only I believe them to he — without, on the other hand, going too far in the way of interfering between landlord and tenant in the arrangements they may choose to make as independent men on both sides ? No doubt there is a danger in the present day — a danger which many ot us in the House of Commons have had oc- casion to observe very frequently — of attempting to do too much by legis^lation. If we are to be always calling in the law to interfere between labourers and their masters, between landlords and tenants, and between man and man, in every relation of life, we are iu danger of making the position in- tolerable ; and the only people who will benefit Irom such a system in the long run will be the lawyers, because we sii.all be continually int"roducing litigation into all the daily ailiairs of life, which when conducted between sensible men are very much better treated without the interference of the law. In the present day, too, when we hear so much about the difficulties between labourers and their employers, we ought to be par- ticularly careful how we introduce principles of this kind, because it is quite possible if we are to prescribe by law to landlords and tenants the exact terms on which they are to conduct the business in which they, and they only, are con- cerned, hereafter we shall have attempts made to introduce a similar state of things between the tenant-farmers and the labourers. And I suppose every one will agree that it would be very disagreeable if it were proposed to dictate, by legisla- tion, to the tenant-farmer as to what amov.nt and kind of labour he should employ on his farm, as to what machines he should be allowed to introduce, as to what shall be the rota- tion of liis cropping, or what shall be the character of the accommodation he sliall provide for his labourers, desirable as it is in many counties that that accommodation should be ample and suificient. All these things are very much better managed, as far as possible, between man and man, without bringing in the Legislature at every step to dictate the exact terms and the particular manner iu which their arrangements sliall be carried out. I have been very much convinced since I have been retumed to the ilouss of Commons as a member for this county that we are in danger of going too far iu thnl direction, and I observe that that impression is not only very prevalent on the side of the House on which I sit, hut that many other members independent of party organisation, such as Blr. Vernon llarcourt, and otiier men of distinguished abilities, have made strong remarks iu the same sense. There- fore, I think we should be careful — nnd I repeat it because I feel very strongly on the matter — not to push legislation too far. At the same time there is no doubt that under the present state of things occasional hardships are suffered ; and even wliere hardships are not suffered, it is, I think, an un- sound state of things that gentlemen who have invested their money in the improvement of the land they hire should ae in- debted only to the forbearance of their landlords that they are not unfairly dealt with. It is all very well, of course, to say that in the great majority of instances men of sense and intel- ligence and men of liberal minds, such as most of the land- lords of this country I hope are, would shrink from pushing their rights to an extreme, but a state of dependence and the goodwill of others is not a proper business position for the tenants of this country to be in. It is much better that a definite principle should be laid down, and that a distinct rule should be established ; then the relationship between landlord and tenant would be put on a sound business footing, and there would be no danger when there is a change of landlord, v.liether owing to the land descending from father to son or to a collateral lieir, or from its being put into the market and sold, of the tenant suddenly finding himself in a very different position from what lie had hoped to be. ¥or instance, a man may take a farm under a liberal and intelligent landlord, but the person who succeeds him may be of a different ciia- racter, and then the tenant does not know the position in which he may find himself, so long as the law continues as it is at present. Therefore I think that in all cases, as has been laid down by the Central Chamber, where there is no written lease or agreement, snd where the custom of the country is not sulhciently defined as to give the tenant such protection as he is entitled to, tlie law should step in and say, " Th(f tenant shall have a definite claim for tlie value of the improve- ments he has made in the land." Then the question arises with relereuce to Messrs. Howard and Read's Bill — How far does that carry out the intention of the resolution passed by the Central Chamber P And how far does it carry out the intention of the promoters of the bill, who always professed to have drawn it up with the view of carrying out the resolution of the Chamber, without overstepping its limit. Well, we liad not the opportunity iu the House of Commons last session of hearing that bill discussed on the second reading, and thus we have lost a w liole year in the consideration of the question. I had hoped we should have had that opportunity of discuss- • ing it, and that the bill would then have been referred to a Select Committee, who would, before the end of the session, have considered the whole question in that thorough manner in which committees of the House of Commons are in the habit of sifting such questions. Unfortunately, however, we are now hardly more advanced than we were this time last year. So far as I know the only discussion of importance which has taken place on the subject, with the exception of those at the local chambers who have gone into it in some degree, was that which took place at the Central Chamber last year, when many excellent speeches were delivered ; and in the end, although a difference of opinion p^-evailed, a resolution was adopted with some degree of unanimity. A day or two ago I was looking over those speeches, and it appeared to me that it was considered that the custom which now prevailed in THE FARMER'S MAGAZmE. Lincolnshire was on the whole thn best to bo aJopted. I do not, however, pledge myself to that opinion, because until we have the materials for comparing the dilferent customs in the dilfereut counties wo are not in a position to (nrin an exact judifment; but there seems to be a good deal of evidence iu favour of the Lincolnsliire custom, and everyone who farms under it appears to be satisfied with its operation. I observe, too, that it is mentioned in Messrs. Howard and Read's bill as tlie typical mode, if I may so call it, of adjusting such mat- ters between landlord and tenant ; and another of the condi- tions of that bill is that any landlord who let-i a farm under llie Lincolushire eustom shall be exempted from the operation of tiie 12tli clause, as shall also the landlord who lets his farm for twenty years. That clause was a groat bone of contention, for it is provided that, with the two exceptious I have men- tioned, everyoie else wlien he lots a farm shall come under the operation of the bill. That excite! a ijood deal of discussion, aud it was considered by tlie promoters of the bill that the 12th clause was somewhat harshly worded, and they said they were ready to re-consider the phraseoloory which they had adopted. Until we have the draft of the new bill as it is to be presented next year, I do not know thnt we can go any further into the matter, because by that time the proniDters will have collected the opinions of those best qualified to judge of the subject, and then the bill will appear iu a fresh shape, with probably some of the cruicial clauses withdrawn or amended so as to meet the objections urged against them. I would suggest that as soon as the draft report of the new bill appears in its amended shape we should have a oiscnssion on the subject in this Chamber ; but, until that is the case, we cannot well do more than what I liave attempted to do on the present occasion — discuss the general bearings of the question, leaving for discussion the specific remedies to be adopted when we have before us the suggestions tlie new hill may contain. I will only reiterate the hope that we shall err, if we are to err at all, on the side of leaving details to be settled between the contracting parties rather tliau on the side of prescribing too minutely the conditions which shall be binding on those contracting parties, because I think we ought, so far as in us lies, tn endeavour to keep up the present system, which, in the arge majority of cases, has worked so well, aud that we should not introduce into it more alterations than are absolutely necessary to protect the tenant against what we are all agreed is the liability to undeserved miscliief. The CUiViK.MA^^ then drew the attention of the Chamber to the fact that they had already passed the two following resolutions on this subject : '• That this Chamber considers it necessary for the proper security of tenants' capital engaged in husbandry (as well as for the encouragement of the pro- •duction of the greatest amount of home-grown food) that 'the outgoing tenant should be entitled by legislative enactment to compensatiou from the landloid or incoming tenant for the value of ids unexhausted improvements, such value to be ascertained by valuation in the usual way." And : " That the above resolution, and auy legislation that may take place thereon, shall be subject to previous cousent ol the owner in the case of buildings, drainage, reclamation, and other im- provements of a permanent character, and that at the same time the landlord should be paid by such outgoing tenant for dilapidation and deteriorations, the amount respectively due to be determined by valuation." Sir George Jenkixson, M.P., said : It is always edifying aud agreeable to me to see a county member going through his facings before his constituents, especially when I can sit by as a listener. The subject we are called upon to discuss is one in which we are ail learners, and from so able a repre- sentative as you have present we may all learn a great deal. Speaking generally, I agree with liim that at the presei.t mo- ■ment it is not advantageous that we should go into details, ■because they must depend iu a great measure on auy bill which may be brought before tlie House of Commons next session. I cannot conceive that any man of sense or honesty can doubt the justice of the broad principle that whatever capital a man puts into the soil of another person he is en- titled to reap the full benefit of; and that if from any accident, ■ design, or intention on the part of either of the contracting parties tlie tenant is turned out of his farm, he, or his repre- sentative, is entitled to the full benefit of any capital he may have invested in it. But I have always felt very strongly that it will be quite impossible to pass one measure which will apply ■to the varying conditions of every county, so different are tiic circumstances and condltiaus which prevail iu each county throughout this large kingdom. To attempt to make one measure to meet every case could only end in failure and dis- content, because that whicli would suit Lincolnshire, Norfolk, and SulTolk, vast plough counties, would not suit a great dairy county like Gloucester. The capital required for a farm of a thousaud acres in Norfolk, Suffolk, or Lincolnshire, would not be required for the small dairy farms of this county. Here a man is not called upon to lay out so much capital : he merely has his grass land on which he keeps his dairy cows, and when he goes out of iiia farm he takes his dairy cows with him, and there is an end of the matter. 1 am now putting an extreme case, and do not mean to say that it is 8o with all the farms in this county. I merely mention it to show that one measure cannot be made to apply to every individual case in each county. I myself have heard of such a case of hard- ship as this : A man occupied a farui several years, and then when the owner died it was sold for a great deal more money than when the tenant took possession. The cousequeuce was that he had to turn out, and the executors of the late landlord reaped the benefit of the tenant's improvements. ^ No one can doubt tliat was wrong, aud that such cases of injustice ought to be remedied by legislation ; but that might be done, and still leave the parties freedom of contract. If Messrs. Howard and Read's bill could be qualified by such words as those in- troduced into the resolution of the Central Chamber pro- viding for tlie security of the tenant's capital, no one could then object to its being made as stringent as possible ; but when an agreemeut, or the custom of the country, does make the tenant secure, I think it is of vital importance, in the in- terests of agriculture as well as for the good of both tenant and landlord, tliat you should leave the field open to them to make a fair contract between themselves. We know that such things occur as landlords not being flush of cash, and that whe-i that is llie case they let their farms upon what is called an improving lease. For instance, a landlord will say to a tenant, " Yon shall have such and such a farm for so many years, and you shall make such and such outlay upon it," and at the end of that term the benefit which has accrued to the tenant is supposed, as in Scotland, to indemnify him for the outlay. You see if you prevent the possibility of any fair agreement being made between the two parties for the outlay of capital by each of tiiera on certain stated and stipulated terms, you shut the door to a great many improvements which might otherwise be made, and you weaken the hands of men^ who may have capital and wish to lay it out with the view of recouping themselves by the long possession of a farm upon what is called an improving lease. I think practical men will see the truth aud justice of what I have said. But in making any alteration in the law, I only hope, as your v/orthy member has said, that iu so doing we shall not overstep the mark, and, by stringent legislation, prevent the outfiow of capital in those cases to which I have alluded. When the measure which, no doubt, will be presented to Parliament conies to be debated by the House, the party with which your member and myself are connected will be quite as anxious as any member on the opposite side of the House to treat it in the most fair and liberal spirit ; and I am perfectly sure, from what I heard last year when we expected the measure was to be discussed, that no spirit of captiousuess or unfairness will come from our side of the House ; and I sincerely hope the question may be treated entirely apart from any party feeling or party spirit, and that all those interested in agriculture will wish to see a measure passed which shall bouA fide be for the benefit alike of the tenant-fanner and the landlord, because you cannot do anything which would be liberal to the one and unfair to the other without its rebounding and doing injury instead of good. What you want is that the tenant should be recouped for the capital he puts into the laud, and that the landlord should be recouped if a bad tenant Icivcs his farm iu a bad state, either from the want of proper cultivation or froui preventihlc dilapidations. I believe both those points were kept in view by the bill of last session ; and if you allow any two men to make agreements for their mutual advantage, giving to each of them that protection you think they are eutitlol to, such a measure will be for the good of agriculture ani for the good of landlord and tenant. I hope to see such a measure passed next year; aud, if there is notiiing before the meeting, you cannot do better than confirm the resolutions already passed by the Chamber. Mr. Lawrence was of opinion that if they had a new bill u THE FARMEE'S MAGAZINE. without the 13th clause in Messrs. Howard and Read's bill they had better have none at all. Mr. Woodward said it seemed strange that in these days landlords and tenants could not be trusted to make their owu bargains. There was already in existence a law which made tlie landlord the first creditor, and tiiat, in his opinion, pro- duced an unnatural competition for farms, by bringing men with small capital into the market, aud who had not much to lose, while, if all went well, they liad everything to gain. He did not know if it would be better to go back to the natural state of things and make their own bargains for the future. That would involve the abolition of the law whicli made tlie landlord the first creditor, and he was not prepared to say that that would produce a desirable stats of things ; but it was quite certain that something must be done to secure to the tenant the value of his outlay. Mr. Lawrence read the 12th clause of Messrs. Howard and Read's bill, as follows : " Any contract made by a tenant after the passing of tliis Act, by virtue of which he is de- prived of his right to make any claim which lie would other- wise be entitled to make uuder this Act, shall, so far as re- lates to such claim, be void both at law and in equity." Sir GEOur.E Jenkinsox : I should like to ask Mr. Law- rence this question — Would lie prevent by law any tenant taking a farm for twenty years on what is called an improving rent if the landlord said to him, " My dear friend, I have no money ; I consider the land is wortli 40s. an acre, but as it is out of condition, wants drainiug, and other improvements, you sliall have it at 20s. an acre, instead of £3, its real value. You may do what you like with it, and recoup yourself?" I want to know if you would prevent two respectable and sen- sible men making such a bargain as that ? Mr. L:VWREXCE pointed out that under Messrs. Howard and Read's bill the tenant would be bouud to give up his holding before he had actually received the compensation to wliicli he was entitled, and might thus be compelled to undergo an ex- pensive process of law to recover. With regard to the 12th clause, lie said that without it the bill would be absolutely useless, because it would be easy for either landlord or tenant to contract himself out of it, and the great thiug to be secured was that no one shouhl have power to do that. In reply to the question put by Sir George Jenkiuson, as to the man with au improving lease recouping himself, the bill did not require that that should not be done. Sii George Jenkinsox: But under the 12th clause a man could not enter into such a contract. Mr. Chance submitted that the 16th clause answered Sir George Jenkinson's question. Sir George Jenkinson, however, maintained that the 12th clause was absolute, and overrode all the other clauses of the bill, aud pointed out that it would entitle attorneys to bring any number of very pretty actions ; indeed, the lawyers were tlie class of people who would be chiefly bene- fited by it. Mr. Lawrence was still of opinion that if tliey liad a bill which gave landlords or tenants power to contract themselves out of it they had better be without it. The law sliould be made quite as severe against bad landlords as against bad tenants. They all kuew that what was wanted was exactly what Messrs. Howard and Read's bill prescribed ; and why should they be afraid to do it ? Mr. YoRKE : We are afraid of tying our own hands beyond what is absolutely necessary, and thereby preventing the free circulation of capital for agricultural purposes. Mr. Curtis Hayward remarked that where an agreement was made between two parties who knew one another they were not likely to quarrel, nor would any great difficulty arise ; but the evil they had to meet was this : when a tenant hired a farm of a good landlord he was not very particular about an agreement because he knew his man, and so a sort of personal contract was entered into, which, between two honourable men, were perfectly binding; but when the good landlord died and the farm was sold, perhaps a person of a very different character would succeed him. The proposed bill would meet such cases, but he did not see why the landlord and tenant should be put in the difficulty of having to move in the exact groove prescribed for them by the law, and tlius be prevented maiung such agreements as would be most advantageous to both. With regard to the presumed hardship of the landlord having a prior claim for the payment of his rent, that arose from the lien which all people had over their property, while being used by other persons. For instance, if a man turned out his beasts to feed on another man's land, the owner of the land had a lien on the beasts, and could prevent the person to whom they belonged taking them away until he had paid the cost of their keep. The same thing happened if a man sent a cart to be mended ; if the owner did not pay the tradesman need not let the cart be taken away ; that was to say, he had a lienu pon it until the mouey was paid. Every tradesman had the same remedy as the landowner ; but there should be a limit to the time over which the landowner had a prior claim for rent, or injustice might be done to those tradesmen who had trusted the tenant not knowing that the landlord had a prior claim for a large sura. Twelve months was quite long enough, aud he was not sure that six months would not be liettcr ; but without violating a vital principle of law they could not reduce the landlord's prior right to claim rent for a less period than six months. Mr. S. Priday said that at present the landlord's prior claim was limited to twelve months' rent. The PuEsident thought Mr. Hayward had misappre- hended the purport of Mr. Woodward's remarks. He did not speak against landlords as creditors, but against the competi- tion for land. Supposing a man sought to take a farm re- quiring £2,000, and had only got £1,000, that would increase the competition for land. Sir George Jenkinson: Then how would you provide security for the landlords ? Mr. Woodward : I should provide that the landlord take his chance with other creditors, and then the competition for farms would be so much reduced that we should be able to make our own bargains. Mr. Curtis Hayward : I am afraid that if you took away the landlords' right as first creditors, you would find they would bind you down very tightly. Sir George Jenkinson : If Mr. Woodward's proposition were carried out it would operate most unfairly towards a very deserving class of men, who, although not able to compete with very large capitalists, can take small farms and work them to advantage, both for themselves and the landlord. Such men would be entirely driven out of the market. Mr. Woodward said that might be so, but it should be borne in mind that if large capitalists worked the land better results were likely to be produced. Sir George Jenkinson pointed out that according to the present law a man could take off the whole of his crops at the end of the harvest half-year, and if he were dishonest he could go off with the proceeds, leaving the landlord to whistle for his money ; but the tradesman iu selling his goods had the option of sayiug " You shall not have them unless you pay." Ou the other hand, the landowner's tenant was entitled to have six montlis' occupation and benefit before the landlord could demand his rent; aud then, just before the time came for doing so, what he had described might happen. There- fore the landlord and the tradesman could not be put on the same footing. After several resolutions and counter resolutions had been proposed and withdrawn, it was decided, on the motion of Mr. YoRKE, seconded by Mr. Lawrence, that the debate be ad- journed until after the presentation of the report by the com- mittee of the Central Chamber. Captain De Winton reiterated liis strong conviction that the tenant should be compensated for the unexhausted improvements he had made. The other alternative was no- thing more nor less than a simple robbery. Mr. Butt said that Mr. Howard had told him, when talk- ing about the land producing enough to support the popula- tion of the country, that he had made inquiries of several farmers as to the customs in various counties, and one of them said that the custom in his county was to crop the laud as hard as they could and leave it as foul as they could. Sir George Jenkinson : In what county was that? Mr. Butt : I think it was Buckinghamshire. Sir George Jenkinson: I should call that a system of pludering and blundering. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. i5 THE PRESENT CONDITION OE AGRICULTURE. At an adjourned quarterly meeting of the Notts Chamber of Agriculture held at Nottingham, the Duke of St. Albans, President of the Chamber, in the chair, said : Tlie business before the Chamber to-day is the adjourned debate on a paper read at Retford some weeks ago by Mr. llemsley, on the present position and prospects of the tenant- farmer. I telegraphed on tliat occasion a request that the dis- cussion might he adjourned, and [ believe that suggestion was generally agreed upon, in order that this part of the county sliould liave an opportunity of expressing their opinion on this important subject. I feel sure, although I had not the plea- sure of hearing Mr. llenisley's iiaper, hut 1 liave since read a report of it, that all members of the Chamber will agree with the vote of thanks passed to him for the interesting and prac- tical paper he read on that occasion. I feel certain that any criticisms that may he passed on the statements or suggestions he made for the improvement of the condition of the tenant- farmer will not be received as antagonistic on our part to his paper, but that in so doing Mr. llemsley will feel that we are carrying out his own view, which is to ventilate the subject. I have always thought that the farmer, in reviewing his posi- tion, should remember that though he may not expect those great profits which may attach to the more risky speculations belonging to commerce, yet liis occupation is a healthy and agreeable one, and he must not expect from such a healthy and agreeable occupation those larger profits which attach to those who engage in a less healthy and more risky trade. I need not say that it must be so. It was indicated, I think, that there must be a fall in rents, but 1 scarcely think that the rents on ourNottinghamshire larms can fairly he expected to be lowered. I will take a farm of from i5U acres of light land, at £300 a year, and will recall to your mind its original state, and sug- gest to you the outlay it required first to uuilil farm-houses and buildiugs, which can he scarcely less than £2,000. Tut- ting that at seven per cent, you have fl-iO a year, and taking the fencing and roads at two shillings per yard, and taking the year that the land must have been unproductive, I ask you fairly to consider whether there is a large margin left after those considerations for the original surface of tlie land. In alluding to rent of farms in England, I may mention that al- though in bad years English farmers may consider that rents in this country press heavily upon them, yet in Scotland the rents are much greater. If you will compare Scotch land with English you will find it rented at least double if not quadruple. I think Mr. llemsley is also wrong when he lays down the broad fact that farms are at a discount. I was told the other day by a friend of mine who has 50,000 acres to let in the year, that there was a perfect scramble for it when any question of letting it took place. In passing I may say, however, that I think English farmers are not behind their Scotch neigh- bours, and in proof of the statement that England is pre- eminent in agriculture, I may remind you that the foreigner comes to us to buy his stock, whether in horses, cattle, or sheep. Still, I think the farmers of England will do wrong if they pride themselves on having got to the pinnacle of the tree. I was referred to the quotation the other day from an ancient author, which I commend to the attention of those who think that we have got to the pinnacle of the tree, or that farming has reached an excess of excellence in these days that it never came to before. I was most surprised to find, and I have no doubt most of you will be surprised when I read to you this quotation, which was brought uuder my notice the other day, from an old Iloman author. I find that Pliny, in liis" Natural History," written in the year of the Christian era, says ; " As touching the manner of cutting down and reaping corn, there are diverse and sundry devices. In b'rance, where the fields are large, they use a jade into the tail of a mighty wheelbarrow or cart, made after the van, and the same set with knives and trenchant teeth sticking out on both sides (otherwise stakes or palisades on wheels). Now, is the same driven forward before the said beast upon two wheels into the standing ripe corn, contrary to the manner of other carts that are drawn after them. The said teeth and sharp knives fas- tened to the side of the wheelbarrow or car catch hold of the corn ears and cut thcni olf, yet so as they fall presently inlo the body of the wheelbarrow." I must express my regret, continued the noble duke, that the farmers of this country have not a more permanent interest in the persuit in which they are engaged. I tliink they should search by their indus- try and iutelligence bow they may advance their interests. I need not, perhaps, again draw your attention to those breeds of cattle which, by the intelligence of some agriculturists, have been so very considerably improved, and lately have made such enormous prices. I would, however, draw the attention of farmers to the care which they ought to bestow on all kinds of seeds, and on improved methods of cultivation. On this point I will read you an extract Irom Professor Owen, who says : " Experience aud analogy justify the hope and expectation that grasses may liave their nutritive qualities increased by methods of cultivation, and feeding in a degree analogous to the acqui- sition of the ])otato from the poisoiious So/irn/m tiibcrorum, or of the yams from the wild ' dioscoraea.' " I shall leave it to others to point out how improvements in practical farming may be carried out, I have not suHicient practical knowledge to touch upon tliat subject. 1 will now express my great pleasure at the liigh compliment Blr. llemsley paid to tlie agricultural labourers of this country. I agree tliat it is the interest of the landlords to attach this class to their occupation by building them good houses. It is, however, ruinous work building them, nor do 1 see why a farmer should be expected to house his men well, whilst no such moral claim is made on the manufacturer. We have the " friends of the clergy" and the " sons of the clergy," both rich corporations, but which had very small beginnings. Now I should be glad to see those energies which are directed to alienate and emigrate our agri- cultural labourers form themselves into societies, to enable them to settle permanently here. I should like to see them organise "The Friend of the Agiicultural Labourers' Society," so as to enable the labourer to benefit himself and better the future of his children. There is no reason why a moderate assistance should not enable a thrifty labourer to erect him- self a cottage on a good building lease, and if landowners, from a love of exclusiveness, are so blind to their own inte- rests and so deaf to public opinion, why some means must be found to force it from them. I think if anything is wanting to prove that the agricultural population of this country wish to improve their condition it must be the mission of Mr. Arch to Canada, and the reception he has met with at the hands of the distinguished nobleman who represents sovereignty in that dominion as well as his government. Let the agricul- tural labourer consider that, whilst trusting Mr. Arch, that Mr. Arch may have looked at the State which has welcomed him through the coulcur dc rose glasses the Canadians expect him to use. It has occurred to me that the labourer may be unwisely induced to undertake an uncleared piece of land of 200 acres, but let him consider how he is to live the first year, how he is to buy seed ard implements, aud how he is to exist generally till that seed and implements have produced their fruits. I shall now pass through the measures which Mr. llemsley has suggested as likely to benefit the tenant-farmer. I understand him to recommend a Minister of Agriculture, more Government attention, the abolition of the Malt-tax, and an exercise of the infiuence of Chambers of Agriculture. I am sorry to say 1 cannot agree with hira on the first point. I have never heard it said what good a Minister of Agricultsre will do. Is he to dictate to you the crops you are to grow, or what manure you are to use in growing them ? It is true that some continental countries have such a department, but 1 do not think those countries are better or even so well cul- tivated as our own. I do not suppose that political leaders would object to this extra patronage. There are occasions when an extra place is found not so very inconvenient. Eor ray part, however, I hope these chambers of agriculture will hesitate before they take up the appointment of a minister of agriculture. I think it is scarcely necessary to have a direct re()resentation ol land in the Government. If you look at the composition of any government, or cabinet, or parliament, there is every reason to suppose from the inca who compose them that the landed interests are very well looked after. We must not disguise from ourselves why successive governments seem to favour commercial interests. It is that they repre- sent greater wealth, a larger population, a more perfect com- 46 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. biaatiou, and perhaps a quicker iutelligence to piisli their own interest. I believe there is anotlicr reason which ouglit not to bo overlooked, and that is tiie general feeling that land and not agricultural interests are represented in Parliament. Wh.at would you think if the commercial interest of this country were entirely represented iu the Uouse of Commons by bankers with one exception in Ei'gland, and another iji Scot- laud ? Do you think Parliament and public opinion would look at thera as representing that internit ? Ye'i, it is so in agriculture. There are only two tenant-farmers in the House, Mr. Read, representing England, vnd Mi. McUombie from Scotland. I should be very sorry .0 see the landlord interest not largely represented. 'J'lia' would b(; equally imperfect, but there is plenty of room foi that, and yet to have more tenant-farmers as representative?. J am opposed to Mr. Read iu politic.", and can, therefore, witiiout bringing politics into ([ueslion, point to his case as to the usefulness of what I urge. I think no one can deny tlic weight he carries on agricultural subjects, both with the Government and every section of the House of Commons. Well, if the farmers are thus directly represented in Parliament, I tiiink they cannot object that agricultural labourers should be represented in the franchise. Hat here I will stop, because I fear I shall be treading on dangerous ground. As to the Malt-tax, I am very strongly opposed to its repeal. I have heard the opinion expressed by one of the largest and most successful agriculturists in this county that it is a sentimal rather than a real grievance. The answer to the cry for its repeal is that we cannot afford to lose twenty millions of revenue, and that if you untax beer in England you must untax whisky in Scotland, while the aboli- tion of import duties would leave farmers no better off. Now I am informed that the Malt-tax comes to about twopence a gallon on beer. How much is that of a glass, and who is likely to gain by that being taken olf ? I do not think that the consumer will get his glass cheaper, and I doubt whether the farmer will get more for bis barley. Mr. GouBER (Balderton) said his apology for rising at that early stage of the discussion must be the fact of his having moved its adjournment on the occasion of its introduction by Mr. Helrasley, at Retford. Concurring as he did in the views expressed by that gentleman on the occasion referred to, he was not about to criticise in au adverse manner his excellent paper, but rather to offer a few remarks by way of expressing his own views on that very important subject. They were all aware that there was a time in the history of their country, and that at no very remote date, when the treatment of the soil and the development of its productive powers excited but little interest amongst the community at large, but since the discovery and extraordinary development of our vast mineral resources, together with the gigantic growth of our manu- factures, the question of producing food for the people had become one of the great questions of the day. The gold fields of California and Australia had done much to enrich the nations, but it was th.eir coal and their iron that had revolu- tionised tlie world, contributing much to the advancement of civilisation and the development of science. They had now interests of such magnitude, mining, manufacturing, mercan- tile, railway, and others, that their agricultural one, although the most ancient, and they might say everlasting, had bccoiue dwarfed in the eyes of the people, and during the conilict that had been raging of late between labour and capital, some things bad been said and heavy blows iiad been aimed at the very b isis of their food-producing system. Men had not liesi- tatfd to declare, and that even through the public press, that tlio annihilation of the tenant-farmer would be a boon to the nation, but it sometimes happened that men, with whose opinions in general they did not all agree, uttered sentiments worthy of tlieir highest admiration. It was thus with JMr. Bright when that motley clique of Republicans sought his aid and influence. Mr. Rrighl's answer was, " Before you destroy one system it will be well to know that you have a better to put in its place." Those words would apply with force to those gentlemen who hold absurd and ridiculous notions such as those to wliich lie referred. He remembered, about twelve months ago, having a conversation with a German corn-merchant. In replying to his inquiries as to their system of farming, he said in Germany they were all small holdings, except a few estaies owned by counts, who also farmed them; but, said he, the land in Germany does not produce anythiug like the quantity produced by tlie laud in England, the laud in England being so much better farmed. But, notwithstanding the wild theories and absurd crotchets, of which we have heard so much of late, he (the speaker) would venture to predict that the day was distant when the principle and basis' of English farming, that of letting out the land, would be superseded by a system better adapted to meet the wants and necessities of the consuming population of this country. That system combines within itself a considerable amount of outlay and oversight on the part of the owner, together with a large amount of capital, skill, energy, in- dustry, and frugality on the part of the occupier. But tiiere was one fact of a most singular character, which was to him a great puzzle ; it was this, that notwithstanding the great prosperity and increased wealth of the country, land was year by year being called upon to bear some new burden. Solomon said there were three things that were ever crying " Give, give," but he should think Solomon was never a farmer, or he would have added a fourth, for such was the constant cry of the land. So numerous had become the takers away that to give back to the laud what was absolutely necessary to ensure its productiveness in the shape of labour, manure, &c., after this increasing number and enlarged character of the demands made upon it had been duly discharged, was a problem which that, or any other chamber, would find luo^t difficult of solu- tion. He quite concurred in the remarks made by Mr. Hemsley, in his excellent paper, that although deprecating discussing that question iu a grumbling spirit, and that not- withstanding the high prices which had prevailed of late, yet from some cause or other tenant-farmers were not iu a posi- tion to congratulate themselves at the present time. Farming had of late been passing through a trying ordeal. The cost of labour, manure, machinery, coals, Src, had greatly in- creased, seasons had been most unpropitious, extreme wet or extreme dry, much disease amongst cattle, &c. Although it was to be regretted that such was his position at the present time, regretted not only on his own account, but as a disad- vantage to the consuming public, inasmuch that his ability to develope the capabilities of the soil was thereby crippled, yet he felt bound to say that this state of things had arisen in part from causes beyond human control. But at the same time there were causes of a widely different nature, which affected in no small degree the position of the tenant-farmer. First, the bearing of the Legislature towards the land had not been of a character to encourage and facilitate the most per- fect development of the soil ; both the positive and negative action of the Legislature had been of such a character as to discourage and retard such development — charged vi-itli the maintenance of the highways, the relief of the poor, police expenses, the administration of justxe, builcTing of gaols, police stations, workhouses, lunatic asylums, bridges, educa- tion, and sanitary expenses — all these under the head of local taxation. Coming to imperial, they had land-tax, income- tax, house-tax, man, horse, ca.''t, gun, and dog-tax — taxes local and inqjerial iu every conceivable fashion and shape. Tiiat not being enough, the Legislature, as the guardians of the preat interests of the State, must perpetuate a tax of a prohibitory character upon one of the farmer's most impor- tant crops, so that he might not manufacture and give to his household, his labourer, or his cattle, au article of his own production until he had paid more than one half of its value in tax. On this question he was sorry to find that his opinion and that of the noble Duke were not in harmony ; but as the farmer was both a producer and a large consumer of malt, or beer, he thought that were that obnoxious tax repealed it would be a great boon to the farmer. He had now a word or two to say upon the negative action of the Legislature, and here again he was sory to find that, upon one point, his opinions vvere at variance with those of the noble Duke. They bad in this country no Minister of Agriculture, whose special preroga- tive it was to watch over so important an interest. Had they had such a minister, would the cattle plague have been per- mitted to sweep the country, as in 1866, of so many thousand head of cattle ? What had the supineness and inaction of the Government on that occasion cost the people of this country the last few years in dear meat, butter, and cheese ? Was it not also remarkable, that whilst agriculture v.-as left out in the cold, large sums v.ere given for the encouragement of horse-raeiiig, for the support of museums, picture galleries, parks, ornamental waters, and exploring expeditions from the wilds of Africa to the ice-bound regions of the north? But not a solitary thousand was olfered to induce men of scientific research to solve the grand problem of rescuing from waste THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 47 and miscliief iiiilliuiis of tons of highly fertilising miilter that was anaufilly fiUiug up and polhitiug our rivers aud streams. Was it not possible for that vast mine of wealth wliish, up to the present time was doing positive mischief, to be utilised and turned to the highest and besfaccount, that of euriching their lands aud increasing the food supply of the country ? Much more might be said upon that point of the subject, but he must pass on to notice the position of the tenaot-farmer with regard to his landlord, and upon this point he was bound to say that although rents had riseu consider- abl y during the last fifteen or twenty years, the majority of landlords had not taken undue advantage of that severe com- petition for hrad which had been the natural result of an in- creasing agricultural population upon a very limited area ; and from the fact of laud being so poor an investment, not on the average paying more than about 3 percent., and with so large a population upon so limited an area, there was little to expect in the shape of reduced rents. Upon that point he thought they would concur in the remarks made by Mr. Hemsley, at Retford, but there were ways in wliich the landlord miglit assist aud benefit his tenant ; first by giving greater security of tenure, with a guarantee that he should be compensated for unexhausted improvements. Second, by supplying him with a proper amount of cottage accommodation, and \ritli suitable farm buildings. Third, by relaxing some of those old restrictions as to the rotation of crops, chemical science hav- ing done much to render sucli relaxations both necessary and advantageous. Fourth, by the removal of all old and useless fences, trees, and banks upon arable land, the relics of crude aud bygone notions. Much as they heard about waste and destruction by game, it was nothing tj tlie loss occasioned by these old cumber ground fences. A short time ago he saw in the papers a letter by Mr. Mechi, in whicli he said he had had some conversation with a Devonshire land improver, who told him he had been throwing six fields into one ; in reply to the question as to the size of the field when thus enlarged he said it was six acres. And, said Mr. Mechi, the gent was quite offended because he laughed, saying there was a small parish near him which had 170 miles of hedges. There is no labour so unreraunerative as the keeping in decent repair those old and useless fences. They had lately been favoured through the press with some remarkable and ridiculous letters, recommending the grassing flown of arable lands. It was possible those spasmodic recojumendatious might inllnence a certain class of landowners of a non-practical cliaracter, but all men of practical experience knew full well tliat all weak and ordinary land that was not too tenacious in its working, would produce mucli mure food by corn, seed, and root crops, than it ever would in its natural state. They tlierefore could not fall in with those recommendations. Having touched upon the position of the State and of the owner, in relation to the land, he could not leave the subject without saying a lew words upon the labour question. Aud here he would have it understood tliat he was not an advocate for a low rate of wages as being advantageous to the fanner, but he believed tiiat during the recent agitatation they in this district iiad been called to account for the sins of other districts, where the rate of wages had for a long time been ranch too low. The recent agitation had done little in their district to advance wages, but it had done much to estrange aud dissipate tlie mind of tiic labourer. Upon the farmer, the landlord, the parson, the Legislature, and even the Sovereign, these reck- less agitators had heaped mountains of abuse, whilst they and the favoured publican fattened on the spoil. It would ulti- mately be found that those men had done incalculable mischief to the labouring class by teaching them to annoy and make themselves obnoxious to their employers. The fruit of such conduct was already appi^ariiig. Having an eye to tlie future, the farmer had gone in for a largo amount of machinery, so as to economise labour. Tliat had entailed upon him aJieavy cost for the present, which he would ccrt:iinly take back, in the shape of a reduced labour account. There was also an- other feature of the case bearing in tlie same direction. Many men of large capital and independent means had ceased tho occupation in conse([Ucnce of these i)erpetual annoyances. Their places would be filled by men of siiuiUcr means and with less ability to employ libour and produce food for the million ; but he hoped aud thuu-ht Ihere were signs of a better state of things. The labouring class were many of tlnwii waking up to the delusion; but, l.ikcn us a whole, the in- creased cost of labour through higlicr wages aud less amount of work performed, forcing the farmer as a protection for the future to expend considerable sums in additional macliiHcry, had forced upon him a crisis which it was desirable should not often be repeated. They were threatened with a whole- sale system of emigration. He was not opposed to emigra- tion ; it was a natural, a necessary, and a healthy outlet to every densely populated country. It was a natural safety- valve — a channel through which that elTervescing element whicli ever and *anon disturbs the surface of society might pass qtff. Mr. Arch, with all his enthusiasm, had not been favourably impressed with the appearance of those long- faced, long-houred Canadian farmers in their miserable shan- ties. They ajipear by his description to be men of the old league type — wliat their agitating friends in this country would call blood-suckers, They were told by some that they were their best men who emigrated. That was not his opinion. Many were led away with the idea of finding a country where they would not have to work, ilian which there could be no greater mistake. Looking, then, bot'i at the present and the future, the necessity for the tenant-farmer to rely upon his own exertions was as great as ever, and he would do well to prac- tice, in this age of extravagance, that frugality, industry, aud steady perseverance for which he had long been proverbial. True, modern science had strewn many advantages in his path. The steam thrasliing, and corn and grass cutting machines had been a great boon ; the steam cultivator bids fair to do good service, but was yet too costly for the small holder either to purchase or hire, in the latter case amounting to a second rent. Landlords would do good service to their tenants by purchasing and letting them out at a more moderate rate. But the great need of the tenant-farmer was more capital and, amongst other things, a better knowledge of chemical science, so as to temper the soil according to the particular requirements of the crop ; and further, a speedy relief from those unjust burdens which press so injuriously upon his occu- pation. Mr. Geo. Storer said when the subject was first put down for discussion it seemed to a great many as though it would be concerning all things, and a few more besides. They must all be aware, however, that Mr. Hemsley had treated the subject in the best possible manner. He had opened up many tilings for discussion, and he had made some sensible and per- tinent remarks, which they all felt they could more or less agree with. There might be a diversity of opinion on some minior points of detail, but the opinions expressed were, gene- rally speaking, such as would meet with the approbation of most tenant-larmers. The position of the teuant-farraer might be looked at from several points of view. In addessing them on the subject he would consider first the advantages which th?y possessed, and there could be no doubt they had several important advantages in the present day. They had increased education, a.id tlie advantage of greater science ap- plied to farming than was the case in former days. They had the benefit, also, of excellent machinery, although they had heard from the noble i)uke that the machinery was not new. Solomon told them there was nothing new under the sun, and it certainly seemed that the reaping machine was iu use in the time of the llonians. He rather doubtecl, however, whether their reaping machine was quite equal to one of Horusby's, or whether their agriculture was quite as well performed as that of the present tenant-farmer. Virgil in his Georgics gave them some excellent hints as to tho way of dealing with land, aud they must always allows that the farming of the present day was a lineal descendant of that wliich was practised by the Romans in this cuniitry. Tlicy were indebted to Cato and to other noble ilomaus for some useful maxims on agriculture, and the one which some farmers applied very much, was where he said the first thing in farming was to sell everything and buy no- tliing. H(! would not go further into the advantage of the present position of the tenant-farmer, but he miglit say that generally speaking they had had liberal and euliglitened land- lords, and perhaps a great amount of capital which had been accumulating in their families. \Mienever any gcntliMnan had accumulated a great deal of capital in any commercial pursuit, what did he do P If he made r^izors he wanted to farm ; if he made a fortune anywhere in the town he wanted to try if lie could not make a little more by farming, lie did not think such people generally succeeded — but at all events it kept bringing capital into the science and practice of agriculture. T'hcsc were some of the advanlaLres under which tenant- 4.8 THE FAKMER'S MAGAZINE. farmers flourislied iu this country ; but there were also disad- vautages, and it would be a most singular occupation if such was not the case. He thought they should have had greater competition for farms than they had now if there had not been many disadvantages, but still they seemed to him to be only such as might, generally speaking, be overcome by frugality and care. One of the disadvantages was said to be the Game- laws. Tbey^knew very well what were the furrent complaints and grievances whicli farmers were told they suffered under. There could be no doubt iu certain localities the Game-laws were a gieat disadvantage, and where the wretched battue system was carried on to such an extent that the crops were sacrificed to tlie game it was a great injury to the tenant- farmer. On the other hand, people should not blind tlieir eyes to the fact that a gentleman who is going to take a farm must be aware whetlier it is likely to be overrun with game or not, and if he did take it under these conditions it was en- tirely his own fault. I'arming was doubtless a healtliy occu- l)alion, but it had never been considered very profitable ; and now-?-duys foreign competition had reached such a pitch, that an occupation which was once supposed to yield 15 or 20 per cent., now barely yielded on an average more than from 5 to 10 percent. Of late years they had lost protection, and they did not ask for it back again. They only asked for even-handed jus- tice. Another great disadvantage that had arisen witiiin tlie last year, and which iiad been already alluded to by Mr. God- ber, was tiie increased price of labour, and the unfortunate agitation wliic'u had encouraged a war of capital against la- bour, lie thought, taking into consideration everything the farmer had to pay, few would oppose him when he stated that lie believed this was one of the most serious considerations of modern times which a farmer liad to take into liis calculation. They all hoped that the false, the specious, and the foolish liopes and estimates held out by the agitators to the labourers of tiiis country would be proved to be so utterly ridiculous that the labourers would in [time grow weary of contemplating them, and would retire from the position which some of them had taken up. At the present time the agitation was confined in a great measure to labourers of the worst class, and perhaps of the worst position ; but unfortunately the words said at the meetings, tlie treasonable and seditious language used by some of the agitators, was apt, starling at the beginning with the worst, to contaminate even tlie best, and to make a great deal of ill feeling between master and servant. I te cert-iinly could not see tliat Mr. Arch's exploration in Canada would lead to any great or gratifying result, lie had doubtless received a great ovation, but lie (the speaker) was not so hopeful as the noble Duke appeared to be. The Duke of Sr. Albans: My remarks were by wa of warning to the agricultural labourer not to look too much to the cotilcur dc rose statements which Mr. Arch might offer them. Mr. Storer quite agreed with such an observation, and he thought everyone who read the papers written iu Canada by the correspondent of the i^rt/Zy Affiw, who had accompanied Mr. Arch, must) be aware that unless some very great advan- tages were held out to him more than one could naturally ex- pect he would not be benefited, or at all better his position by going across the water. They were told the other day that of all the farmers in the world the most wretched and haggard looking men were the farwers of Canada, who worked from sunrise to sunset without any intermission, and expected tlieir labourers to do the same. Most people who studied the subject at all must be aware that unless very enormous sums of inouey were subscribed to aid this system of emigration, which Mr. Arch proposed, the labourers could not do at all. It was generally supposed that a man iu order to emigrate to Canada must pos- sess at least £100 before he started, in order to make himself comfortable and to pay his expenses there until he could re- coup himself, lie knew a gentleman who had been in Canada, and he told him that there was little work during the winter months, and the unfortunate Irish and other people who had gone in search of employment were huddled together in the large towns, and many actually died of starvation. Unless something could remedy this tlie labourers would And they were leaning on a broken reed, if they thought they were going to better their condition by going to Canada. With regard to other topics, that for instance "of the position of the farmer with respect to the probable increase or decrease of rent, he was not suflicieutly endowed with a prophetic spirit to say what might be the future of this country, but he thought these things wonld always find their own level. He had very great faith that if farming was found to be a much more expensive and diflicult science than it was now, if it was found that the remuneration was less and the expenses were larger the rents of course must naturally fall, and the landlord would be a loser as well as the tenant. He did not know whether this was going to be the case, but they certainly were aware that in some seasons, like those they had lately had, the production of corn left very little profit. The attention of the farmer liad consequently to be directed to the production of meat and wool. As to laying down land for grass, he agreed with Mr. Godber that it took a great many years to make a good grass field, and few farmers would be so ridiculous as to endeavour to lay down any great portion of their farms. I' it did happen that owing to emigration or to combination labour was to become very scarce or veiy dear, and they were to suf- fer also from bad seasons and the low price of corn, land would have to be cultivated — as he was afraid itwaseveunow in certain districts — in a worse manner than it had been for some years previously, and a good deal of it would then come rapidly into the ^hauds of the landlords. These were, however, purely commercial considerations, so long as there were young men rising up and seeking to be farmers it was not likely tlie land would be let below its real value, and the whole question therefore might be left to the great law of supply and demand, which must always rule the subject. Something.had been said about a Minister of Agriculture, and he agreed with Mr. Uerasley that a Board of Agriculture would be of immense advantage to the farmers and to the landed^interest generally. If trade required special representation in the ministry of this country, why not agriculture? He would remind the noble Duke that there was a Board of Agricalture in this country in the time of Arthur Young, and if there was one now they should not see such ridiculous conduct pursued by the Privy Council with regard to bringing foreign disease into this country. As it had been well said, great sums of money were lavished on other things to which the rate-payers had to contribute, but little indeed had been done by the Go- vernment for many years past to advance agriculture in any way or shape. The schools of design which had been insti- tuted were entirely for the advantage of trade and for the im- provement of manufactures. Many thonsands a year were annually voted for these purposes, and yet not one single penny was given towards any prize or any other matter that would t»nd to foster or to benefit agriculture. He did not know whether the noble Duke advocated the representation of agri- culture in Parliament by tenant-farmers, but be might men- tion the names of Mr. Pell, Mr. Head, and Mr. Howard, who were authorised champions of agriculture. Matters iu this respect were very different now to what they were a few years ago. At one time the landed interest had nearly the whole of the powers in Parliament, and they were often reproached with the stigma that the laws of the country were made by the landlords on behalf of the landed interests. This, however, could not he said at the present time, because there was in the House of Lords every interest represented. The banking interest, the nionied interest, and the coal interest were fully represented, but until lately there was very little re- presentation of agriculture in the House specially. He did not think it could be said now that agriculture had too much representation, and it would be for its benefit generally if some of those who went to the House liad a little more special knowledge on the subject. They could not consider the elder sons of noblemen who went into the House as a nice lounge, and as an agreeable club, and who always voted as they were told, could have much special knowledge on any agricultural question that might come before them. He was rather sorry to have heard some ad- verse remarks regarding the Blalt-tax. He had always taken a good deal of interest in that subject, and he did believe that if that tax was repealed it would be immensely to the benefit — not only of the tenant-farmers, but of the great body of consumers in this country. He did not consider this was the time and place to debate the subject, but generally speaking the more they could encourage home brewing of pure beer tlie better. It was a beverage that had been drunk by Eng- lishmen from the earliest times, and the noble Duke would recollect in the " Saxon Chronicle" where the boy was asked what was his usual drink, he replied, " Beer when I I can get it, and water when I can't." Unless they were virulent teetotallers none of them would deny the labourer THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 49 wliat lie very seldom got, uaiuely, liis quart per day of liouest home- brewed Ijoer. To abolisli the Malt-tux wouhl be K great step towards that eud. It migfTt be very well to say, as the uoblc Duke had doue, that it would be ouly 2d. a gallon cheaper, but he begged to mention that the beer whielL he brewed at home at present cost him 9d. a gallon, whilst if the Malt-tax was abolished he believed he could brew it for about 5d. ; not only that, he could atford to give his labourers malt to brew far themselves, for this reason that a great deal of barley which at present was hardly saleable for the produc- tion of fine Burton ales would make excellent malt at which no agricultural labourer would turn his nose up. Ho allowed his men five bushels of malt in a year, and he had always told them that when the tax was doue away with they should have eight. A farmer was a large consumer of malt, and also a forced consumer, because as tea, coffee, and cold water had not come into general use in the liarvest-lield, the raeu would drink beer. They could not grow corn without using so much malt, and they must either give beer or money. Farmers, therefore, in order to produce their crops, had to pay the Malt-tax, which amounted on a fair computation to some- thing like an Income-tax of 6d. in the £. This they had to pay in order to produce their corn, that corn at the same time coming into competition with corn grown on the Continent, the produce of whicli had no Malt-tax to ]iay. Those who advocated the repeal of the Malt-lax thought it would be to the interest of the labouring classes, and so did not think the arguments as regarded spirits was a good one, believing that a great deal of the misery existing in this country arose from a too free use of ardent spirits. They owed a deep debt to Mr. Ilemsley for the masterly way in which he had introduced the subject , and they were also indebted to his grace for having brought out other points for discussion. Mr. H. ¥. Walter, referring to the proposal to have a Minister of Agriculture, thought they had ministers enough already, who cost us a great deal of money, and he did not think they ought to add to tlieir number. lie considered the Board of Trade amply suilicient for agriculture, which was a branch of that department, inasmuch as they made tlieir return to it. He did not see what good a Minister of Agriculture would do, because he would not be able to give any further informa- tion than at present, unless they furnished him with the quan- tities they grew on their farms, to which he believed they ob- jected. As to the Malt- tax, Mr. Storer had said that the farmer was a forced consumer, but so was a manufacturer of the articles he manufactured. With regard to the importance of beer as a drink for the labourer he thought it was one ot the worst things he could work on in summer. He was speak- ing of such beer as the labourers got, but if landlords and farmers would provide really good sound bfer instead of the stuff poor people got in the country it would be different. Mr. Stoker : We want to find them malt. Mr. Walter asked what a labourer knew about turning inalt into beer ? lie mentioned a case of a farmer near Mans- field who allowed his men tea and coffee, and went on to say that his honest opinion was that this cry of the abolition of the Malt-tax was a piece of rubbish. If barley fetched a higher price the landlords would raise their rents. At present the Malt-tax was paid by the whole of the people of this country. If they were in Nottingham that niglit they would find the poor people paying the Malt-tax with the greatest readiness, and spending the only money whicli many of them paid to the national revenue of the country. If they gave up the Malt- tax they gave up the only tax the drunkard paid to the police and other rates. He recommended the tenant-farmers of this county to go in for a representative of their own class. Mr. Head represented him in Norfolk, and although he was opposed to Mr. Read in politics be should vote for him, because ho believed he represented the interests of agriculture in every way. He advised them to urge on their landlords a better system of compensation for unexhausted improvements, the destruction of hedges, and the bringing of game within- reasonable quantities, but not to such an extent as to deprive those living in the country of amusement, as was the case in France. He was botli a manufacturer as well as a tenant- farmer, and he could therefore speak from both points of view. He told them a year or two ago that the labourers would have to be paid better wages in all parts of the country, and this had proved to be the case, though he was glad to say the wages in this county had always been better than in some parts. He did not see how they could stop these men going about until there was a better rate of wages paid generally. Mr. Storeu said the Mall-tax was e(iual to an Income-tax of 6d. in the pound. With respect to the farmer who gave men tea and coffee he understood that he had since given up farming, and he (Mr. Storer) was not surprised to hear of it. They liad the authority of Mr. W. Sanduy and other eminent breeders for stating that malt might be used to a great extent in the feeding of cattle, and that therefore the use of it would tend to the production of more meat. As to the labourers not knowing how to brow, all his labourers did, or at least their wives did. Again, the fact of men not being able to get good beer at home made them go elsewhere for the horri- ble and poisonous kind of drink which intoxicated them and added to the police sheet. Mr. Walter had said the people who went out and drank at night paid this tax. Now he con- sidered that an objectionable way of paying a tax, but he might add that drunkards did contribute by the fines they paid. lie reminded Mr.'Hemsley thatTenant-Right and com- pensation for unexhausted improvements were things they went in for in this district. Mr. GODISER said, one great reason why they required a Minister of Agriculture was bec'iuse they oljjected to a divided responsibility, as was the case now in regard to the Board of Trade and the Vice-president of the Education Department. If there had been a responsible mi^jster the cattle plague would not have reached the dimensions il'had done. ^Ir. Hemsley then replied. With reference to what the Duke of St. Albans had said on farming being an agreeable and healthy occupation as compared with otlier avocations, he would remark that a little too much stress had been laid on that point. lie saw near to every manufacturing town delightful suburban villas, and he did not consider, under all the circum- stances, that farming was more healthy and agreeable than the life of a merchant and others having the same amount of capital. [Mr. Walter : The Duke said it was a life of amuse- ment]. Well, he (Mr. Hemsley) had not found it so lately. Farmers had had enough to do to keep their banking account square. If the farmer's was a healthy occupatiou, then the labourer's must be so— a point which some seemed to overlook. He thought it would be a very important point to find out what was the difference between the wear-and-tear of an agri- cultural labourer's life and that of a worker in a mill. He had heard it stated that the wear-and-tear of twelve hours on the part of an agricultural labourer was ouly equal to eight hours in a mill, where a man was in a confined atmosphere. He repeated that these things got overlooked, but what was sauce for the goose was sauce for the gander. As to rents, he stated in his paper that they could not expect a large amount of reduction as relief, but he put it forward as a matter for consideration whether they were not in many cases relatively too high. His grace had said there was a small amount of land unlet, but he had heard only that week tliat in the West of England there were whole parishes to let. He also knew that in this part of the country there was a great deal of land to let, and it was because it had been let relatively too high. With regard to the Malt-tax, they ex- pected under free trade to grow their corn on free trade prin- ciples, but this tax was ono of 5U per cent, on one of the farmer's chict products. A large amount was spent in condi- ments, owing to diseases in stock, which had not been known in former times ; and it was this malt (made from inferior barley), freed from this prohibitory duty, that he wanted as food to a very large extent for cattle food and condiment, and which would save the lives of many thousand lambs at this season of the year. lie said they were entitled to free trade, and it was the business of the Legislature to provide liow the revenue should be raised. He maintained that it was most unfair to the farmer to make an exception of him in this matter, and to tax one of his chief products. ^\'ith reference to the appointment of a minister of agriculture, there were innumerable subjects connected with agriculture entirely over- looked by the Board of Trade. There were fifty subjects which they could put forward had they the channc Suggested. [Mr. Walter: You are represented in Parliament. J But it was the executive to whom they ought to look. Ho wished them to refer to a statement made by the chairman at the last meeting (Mr- Foljambo) to the effect that the same thing ope- rated with a house and shop in the matter of local taxation as operated with the land. Now lie contended that if a trades- man of that description wanted to put £1 000 into his busi- D 60 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. ness, lie did so witliout paying a fartliiug more to the local rate, but if a fanner put the same additional aiiioimt of capital into his farm he was charged to the poor-rate to the whole amount, because he could not extend his business upon a given area. The same things might occur in towns. As he came through Nottingham he saw a large raft-yard. Now, the man who made, say £200 a-year out of that yard, paid much more largely to local taxation than the man who made £2,000 a-year out of a bank. It was such matters as these, great glaring auoraalies, that they wished to bring before a miuister of agriculture. The noble duke, however, seemed to ignore that the farmers were in any difficulties at all, and that they were not of that nature they, as farmers, found them to be. He reminded the noble duke that capital was going out of agricultural pursuits, and it was simply because they were uu- remuuerative. If a farmer had surplus capital beyond what was required for carrying on his business in an ordinary way, he would not put it to the land, but would invest it in the funds. The 10 per cent, to which he had alluded will, upon closer examination, be found to be nearer 12. And the reason he would not put the additional capital into his laud was because he had not sufficient security on the one hand, and was too, heavily rated on the otlser. " He wished to say, in conclusion that he commenced writinj^ his paper with every feeling of his inadequacy to grapple with the subject in a satisfactory manner. The difficulties were undoubtedly great at this mo- ment which arrested the progress of English agriculture, sur- rounded and threatened with great uncertainty. From a variety of circumstances, he had liad opportunities of knowing more about the difficulties of farming than many. These difficulties, and the conditiou of agriculture generally, were important to a high degree to probably two or three thousand men in this county, most of whom, by their individual exertions, are depending for their livelihood and that of their families upon the cultivation of laud — important to every owner and occupier of land in tliis once contented and merry England ; important to those who love, and who do not wish to be driren from, the quiet homesteads of their forefathers ; important to the teeming thousands of our populous districts ; important to manufacturers and traders in products which have to compete with other nations' products in almost every comer of the world, and who are greatly interested iu cheap food. Tliese interested parties, aad a powerful press, are con- tinually reminding us of increasing responsibilities with in- creasing populations. But, gentlemen, I ask you, do not these sentiments fall sadly upon our ears? And are we not tempted to treat all such as mere twaddle, so long as ours con- tinues an unremunerating business ? And are we not tempted to echo that cry of " Cultivation, increase of cultivation," by " Remuneration increased ?" Mr. Pate thought the noble duke did not sympathise with farmers so much as he ought to do. Now, they as farmers did symputhise with the labourers, and the same feeling ought to be shown by landlords to farmers. Look at the losses far- mers had sustained of late years, and especially by the foot- and-mouth disease, a friend of his having lost 1,000 of his flock last year. Landlords ought to sympathise with them, and that was all ihey required. Mr. Hall (Sibthorpe) said although they could breed far- mers they could not breed farms. The fact that farmers' sons were anxious to adopt tlie j)ursuit of tlieir forefathers accounted for the great competition there was for the land, whether worth the money or not. Mr. TiLLOTSox said that the first duty and responsibility of any good government, no matter of what politics, was t^* provide necessary food for the people ; and if they could b)' any means increase our productive power, it was the duty o' the government of a country like this to do so. Mr. Hemsley then moved a vote of thanks to the Duke of St. Albans for his services in the chair, and referred to the unbiassed view he took on the questions raised. Mr. GODBEK seconded the motion, and thought the Duke had sympathy with the teuaut-farmers. The motion was adopted unanimously. The following resolution was passed at this meeting : " That the Council of the Nottingham Chamber of Agriculture desires to expresss its deep regret at the melancholy and untimely demise of one of its most useful and active members, Mr. Michael Coltou, of South Scarle Hall, a gentleman whose ex- cellent personal qualities, affability of manners, and business habits, made him a very valuble member of this association. The meeting further desires to acknowledge the services ren- dered to the Chamber since its establishment by Mr. Coltou, both as a member of the Council and as a vice-chairman of that body, a position he held at the time of his death, and tlie members of this Council hereby record their sympathy with the widow and relatives of the deceased in their affliction." THE SMITHFIELD CLUB CATTLE SHOW. THE OPENING MORNING. The entries this season exceed those of last year by sixlr, the show being numerically the largest held for many years. It is, moreover, one of the best, therebeiuga really beautiful exhibition of Devous, which, for some reason or other, are ahvays better represented in Loudon than elsewhere; while the Shorthorns are also iu much force both for numbers and merits, there being close upon tn'enty more beasts of this breed than were sent in 1S7."3. The Sussex, again, are in most respects good, it being probably the largest show of the sort ever seen at Islington ; and the four prize Crosses standing all iu a row are all admirable ; as the Extra Stock is headed by two already- famous ani- mals, both " firsts " here iu 1872. The Herefords, save here and there, are not so remarkable, uor is there auy great difference iu the entry over that of last year, when whitefaces ran up to the shortest show known for some time. The most marked falling-off, however, is iu the Scotch classes, which, including Highlanders aud Polls, only reach iu all, to sixteen. The sheep show looks to be about an average for numbers ; but amongst the pigs the competition is very limited, with the llrst class of white pigs generally commended, and Mr, JIcNiven's champion pen of Dorsets wonderfully good ; but otherwise there is not much merit, aud two or three entries were " referred " on a question of age. The Devons were almost too good for the Judges^ or at any rate there was a deal, of discussion over some of the awards. Thus, in the first, a generally commended class, while every one went for her ^Majesty's clever llrst, it was dillicult to uuderstand how Mr. Taylor's broader aud apparently altogether better beast was put below the animals preferred as second best by the Judges — the more especially as they are precisely of the same age. The winner in the next class, also from the Royal farms, does credit to the judgment of Lord Bridport, who bought himhere'at thelast show, when also first iu the younger class ; while he has gone on capitally iu the interim, and, as we said last year, had always the makings of a good one about him. In the class of Devon oxen, Mr. Senior won with a capital beast, as, no question, he was at all points the best of his bread, and some soon talked of him as " the Champion," but ho was only second at Birmingham in 1873. ^Vith the Devon heifers many maintained that Mr, Senior should also have been first, but it was something of a question between beef and breed, Mr. Buller's home-bred one being the more blood- like. Mr. Kent's best cow is a very sweet one, but for the butcher Mr. Farthiug looked to have a better cow than the one bred in North Devon and fed in Sussex ; while the famous Flitton Lavender was for once nowhere iu her class. The Herefords, as we have intimated, do not make up a gregt show .; but Mr, Senior, who is trying his liau4 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, all rouud, sent a very admirable ox into the old class, which was far away the best for fashiou, quality, and true characteristics of the breed. He was really grand to meet and good all through ; while Mr. Heath's second is a useful beast, but rather patchy, and the short, flat-sided third never near the other two. In fact, the competition amongst the Herefords was but indift'ereut, al- though Lord Daruley won in another class, with a nice highly-bred steer. The best cow is the renowned Iving- ton Rose, thrice first at the Royal Society's meetings, and here, as it is to be hoped, terminating a glorious career at over nine years old ; Mr. James' best heifer, too, has been known about as possessing much merit, but with one calf to her credit, it would seem her fate is sealed. There were sixty-five Shorthorns entered beyond those sent into the extra classes, and from the time he first came out many good judges outside went for Mr. Bult's really grand ox as the best in the Yard, uniting as he does size and weight with a frame very levelly covered, and presenting altogether a very handsome appearance. His weight is something over 24 ewt., and his breed gives a cross from a bull of Mr. Rich's with a bit of Knightley. Mr. Heath Harris's second, bad in his rib and mean in his character, was a moderate second ; and the prize Shorthorn of last year sent away without notice. We intimated his fate some mouths back, but his story is worth telling over again, if only as a caution against the continuance of a practice now becoming but too common. There was, then, dropped at Ridlington, some five or six years since, a Shorthorn bull-calf, which its owuer, Mr. Edward Wortley, thought to possess the promise of a prize ox. Accordingly he was put up, and in the winter of 1871 took a prize at Oakham, and another in the Tenant Farmers' class at Birmingham. The steer, how- ever, was pronounced good enough to " go on with," and instead of being sold to the butcher was sent back to Uppingham for another year's high feeding. In 1873 he had a very successful career about the country, again winding up at Birmingham, where he was the first of his class and the best of the Shorthorns, when we thus wrote of him : " This well-known ox has not gone on in the way of making up, and we fancied him less than we saw him at Lynn in the slimmer." In fact, he looked to have had enough of it. His hour, however, was not yet come, for at four years and seven months old Tiie Count was purchased for it is said 100 gs. by Mr. Senior, a Buckinghamshire grazier, still to go on with ; and exhibited once more at Kettering last week, where he was merely commended, that is to say, as many as three other beasts were placed above the 100 gs. ox. According to one of our best judges, " he strikes you as being tired of rich living, and has lost that nice blooming appearance he once had. He has gi'own patchy, and not put on his flesh at all level, par- ticularly on his back and shoulders." Can anything tell a plainer story than this ? At five years and a-half old the Shorthorn is not by any means so good as he was at four off, as he has been declining for the last year and a-half, sick and surfeited with over-feeding. Of course, tlie only reason for his being kept on furtlicr was with a view to some of the champion premiums of the year ; and at the Smithfield Club show he will probably be ex- hibited— age 5 years and 7 months — a very marvel cer- tainly of earli/ maturity and clieap meat, of inofitahle and not ^.r(?(?M/ri? feeding. The two best beasts among the extra stock Lad also been kept over, but they have done well in the interim, and now went specially for the Champion plate as they were alike at the head of their respective classes in 1872. These are Sir William De Capelle Brof'ke's ox. beaten at Kettering in the aiituoitt by the Birmingham Champion of last week, and Mr. Kennard's white Oxford heifer, which was the next best cow or heifer in 1872, since when she has been purchased by Mr. Upson, and the pair were again early in the day de- clared superior to all their competitors. There were two well-filled classes of Shorthorn steers ; and Mr. Walter's first heifer would be quite a picture, but for her big knee, and altogether gouty looks ; while the best cow, and a sweet cow she is, also from (he same herd. There was no challenging the places of either, but some de- murred to Mr. Torr's white being put out for second place. Wiien the Judges had got so far, the pretty general opinion was that the Shorthorns would, at least produce one of the champion beasts. The Sussex looked to be a good " sorty " lot, but we did not see them out ; while Mr. M'Combie's black polled ox, the champion beast at Birmingham in 1872, has not ripened into anything extraordinary, as it was early ap- parent that the marked successes of last season were not to be repeated. The entries of Scotch, Irish, and Welsh were everywhere very short ; and the Scotch really made their mark with the three admirable crosses of the Short- horn with the Aberdeen cow, which stood, as we have said, together, and stood first, second, and third, with a son of the Noi'folk Devon, Old Wellington, fourth. The sheep were not equal in merit to the cattle, but Lord Walsingham has recovered his lead with the South- downs witii a beautiful pen, good alike for heads, necks, backs, and character ; as these, moreover, beat one of the best pens ever sent up from Goodwood, and of which the duke thought great things. Lord Sondes' winning pen of light weights were stylish, as well as cleverly sorted, and Mr. Rigden's next " all " Southdown in their looks and style. The Duke of Marlborough again furnished the best Oxfords in the face of very strong competition ; and Lord Chesham's good Shropshires were still the best of the class, but the entry against them was weak ; neither were the Leieesters, Cotswolds, uor Liucolns in much force. In a word, the show is a good one for the leading breeds of cattle, but not so remarkable for sheep, as decidedly inferior for pigs. DURING THE WEEK. "Few monarchs ever ascended the throne under more apparent advantages, and none ever encountered more real difficulties" — so writes the historian of Cliarles the First, and so may we write of the Smithfield Club, a very king of shows in its way. As already stated for legitimate attractions, as tested by numbers and merits, it was alike one of the best gatherings ever got together, while the very Hall itself has been so "lightened" and improved that the direction naturally enough counted upon a higher dividend from the week's results than had ever yet been attained. We may prove from our own tables that this was by no means au uni'easonable expecta- tion. Thus, for the last half-dozen years the entries have stood thus : 1SG& LSG9 41 24 50 23 23 219 172 55 446 1870 ~^ 43 45 20 28 237 182 55 474 1871 46 36 41 28 26 236 149 60 444 1872 33 28 43 21 24 201 167 56 426 1873 40 34 G6 25 ly 251 183 43 477 46 33 63 Sussex 33 Scots 16 Total entry of cattle ... Sheep, 249 188 Pigs 49 Total entry 486 [The other entries of cattle not euunierated were made up of otbev breed*, crosses wi,^ extra stock.] D 3 52 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. AVheti we have said agalu how there is a- really beautiful cxhibitiou of Devons; how the Sussex is not only the largest show ever seeu at Isliugton, but also iu most respects good ; how the prize crosses are all admirable ; how there were sixty-five Short- horns, agaiu one of the largest entries ever known, and that from the first it was seeu that at least one of the champion beasts must come from this section — and when we have supplemented such points by the fact which our tables demonstrate, that it was the largest, though not the best sheep show of the Club's experience, we have said all that can be said for the meeting. Some years since the members of the Club, who otherwise get as little for their money as the subscribers to even a charitable Institution, were after much pressure and with manifest reluctance admitted to an early or private view of their own show. Had this "concession," as we suppose it must be called, not been in force on Mouday, we shall be bold enough to say that they never could have seeu the show at all. From ^londay night up to the morning of the closing day London, and more especially that part of London in which the show was held, was in a state of miserable obscurity, as suffering from the effects of a fog, which, foi" endurance and intensity, is declared to be the worst ever known since the year 1814. We ourselves have known it to be as black for an hour or so, but we remember none so severe of anything like so long dura- tion. On Tuesday it was almost impossible to reach the Agricultural Hall, for the further you went only the deeper did you drive into the fog, as our cabman de- clined to go on ; while the chairman-elect of The Farmers' Club made two ineffectual efforts from Salisbury-square between ten o'clock and noon. Nevertheless, other people did find or grope their way to Islington, and the receipts for the day were but some £150 below the Tuesday of 1872. On Wednesday, however, despite the capital ventilation of the Hall, and the healthy condition in which Professor Browne found the stock generally on their admission, the atmospheric influences of fog and gas quickly told their tale, and before night over ninety beasts had been removed, killed, or died, as the list of victims was headed by the Champion Cup heifer and the best ox, both Shorthorns. Indeed, so soon as Professor Simonds arrived he unhesitatingly declared that the Shorthorns would suffer more than any other beasts ; and imquestionably they have, as the gaps through their lines were far more frequent than elsewhere, a better proof than any mere enumeration of numbers, the entry of this breed being so much larger than of any other. Still, a theory was started that animals like the Devons, which faced the door-way through which the condemned cattle passed, and so liad the benefit of a strong current of air, bore up better than any other sort ; while it is said that sixteen Loudon cow-houses, which are stocked chiefly with Shorthorn or Yorkshire cows, were suffering, if not so severely as the Hall itself. On Thursday the fog was not so dense, nor the atteudauce so large, and a few beasts which had been oi'dered out were brought back agaiu, but animals were still falling, and by the close of the doors, above one hundred had left ; the loss in re- ceipts to the Hall Company, so far as compared with last year's " take," being put at near upon £2,000. Noticeably enough, although badly placed under the galleries, but one sheep was invalided, and not a single pig quitted his pen. Some of the visitors, however, suffered, although Mr. Jacob Wilson, a stock steward, never deserted his post during the most trying time, but remained in the Hall throughout the whole of Wednesday night. With the beasts mostly down, and not caring to be put up, and with an atmosphere trying alike to the eyes and energies, we are not disposed to elaborate our last report, which gives the main points aud character of the show. Writing, as we then did, under the exigencies of the press and the post, before the Cups and Champion Plate were awarded, we see no reason to alter a word of all we then said. We went, certainly, "for JNIr. Bult's really grand ox as the best in the yard, uniting as he does size and weight, with a frame very levelly covered, aud presenting altogether a very hand- some appearance. His weight is something over 24 cwt. — the table since published puts him 21bs. over — and his breed gives a cross from a bull of Mr. Rich's, with a bit of Kuightley." Aud subsequently the nine judges declared this to be the best ox or steer iu the show, as he was the best of all at Plymouth last Christmas, although they would not go quite so far at Islington, " the glorious nine" determin- ing by vote that the Champion was ^Ir. Walter's Short- horn heifer, " quite a picture," as we wrote of her last week, " but for her big knee aud altogether gouty looks." Still the Shorthorn judges backed our opinion, for the three went for the ox, but had to give way on a poll being demanded. A particularly promising Shorthorn, to which we did not give a word iu our last number, is Mr. Sowerby's two-year-old steer, the youngest and best beast in his class, and one who may do better should he live to furnish and ripen. "The Devons" we reported as "too good for tht judges," and the more some of the awards over th« steers, cows, aud heifers were looked into the less wer« they liked ; but the Devon ox was " a very admirable one at all points the best of his breed, and some soon talked of him as the champion," the more especially his owner, both before aud, with questionable taste, after the award for the Plate was made. But the Devon, ouly a second best at Birmingham iu 1872, good beef as he is all over, rather lacks style, while he pulls down but a little more than Italf the weight of the Shorthoru pre- ferred to him as the best ox, and as his owner, un- wittingly but very truly said, stood about as much chance of winning the plate "as a black bottle." Indeed, for weight as well as appearance, jNIr, Bult's ox beat Mr. Wortley's "Brumagem" champion, which has just been beaten at Leeds by Mr. Reid's polled heifer, herself by no means a perfect animal, the award coming as a fine commentary upon all the fustian The Times' reporter has been saying when writing up his own writings iu another place. In fact, as we wrote of the Birmingham decision " any other set of Judges would very possibly put the awards about again," and many have gone for the Hereford, And this discomfiture of the llidlington beast reminds us that when giving the history of Mr. Wortley's other ox, two or three months since, we said : " Let us assume that his breeder resolved to get the steer up for show when he was somewhere about two years, or two years and a half old, and he will so have been more than three years iu the stalls. Let us assume, further, that his keep and attendance during that time have cost somewhere about a sovereign a week. It might not be quite so much at first, but it would be mor« towards the last ; and there is not ouly the food to be considei'ed but the constant attention demanded ; and it requires the services of a really smart man to ripen a show beast. And so by the time The Count comes to Islington he will, what with his early rearing, have cost the country some £200, aud be exhibited, as very possibly complimented, by a Society whose declared object is the supply of the cheapest aud best meat. There can be no doubt but that a grave question arises here, and one which will ask the careful consideration of the Smithfield Club." And now, that is during the past week. The Times reporter dilutes an attack on this abuse after the following fashion : ," What advantage is there in holding over for a second annual Show an animal already ripe enough to THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. stand well ou tbe prize list? It mny lie ii.teiesliiit; to know to what pitch au ox may he ialleil 11 ymi ;^ive him time and spare no expense; but should the slow feeding in the latter stages be encouraged, and might not judges well pay more attention to youthful attainments than is commonly assigned to them when balancing eomparativt merits in the ring '-" And then lie goes on to qualify all this by saying, "of course there is no pretcLice that the loni; fattening pays for the process, and, indeed, tin whole business is experimental and not eommereial." AVas there ever such nonsense ? as if everybody did not know that " the long fattening process" was continued with a view only to winning the Champion Plates and Cups at any cost ! Does anyone suppose that ]Mr. Senior gave lOOgs. for his magniticent failure when live years old with the idea of trying any other " experiment" than iinishing first with him at the Smithtield Club r There were one or two nice Hereford steers, but no glut in this way ; just half a dozen Norfolk Polls, and just as many entries of Irish and Welsh beasts, backed by a few " prime Scots," such as !Mr. ^I'Combie's blacks and Sir AV. Trevelyn's Highland heifer. The sheep show was mostly but moderate, although we have already spoken to the merits of the Southdowus, which very generally betrayed less "alloy" than we sometimes see ; and no question Lord Walsingham's pen, bred from rams reserved at the Merton sale, were rightly enough the Champion lot. The Oxfords were again strongly represeuted ; but only here and there, in the other breeds, as with Lord Chesham's Shropshires and some of the Lincolns, was the sample really superior. Leicester-Liucolas or Lin- coln-Leicesters, as we saw a few years back, are occasion- ally taken from the same Hock ; while, prized as they are by the butcher, the old joke declares that the Ilomney Marsh sheep have never been improved on since they came out of the Ark ; but they certainly never showed better than during last week. The small entry of pigs was still further thinned down by certain queries, which we believe led ou to disqualification, but surely the names of offenders should be published, both by the Smithtield Club and the Royal Agricultural Society, or the punish- ment is so purely nominal that exhibitors come to try the trick on again. LIST OF JUDGES, CATTLE. DEVOXS, IIEUEl'ORBt), AND SUSSEX. L. Groves, Binghams, Melcome, Dorchester. S. P. Newbery, Plymptou St. Mary. K. Woodman, Kingston, Lewes. SHORTHORNS, IRISH, AND CROSS. J. Thompson, Badminton, Chippenham. II. Lowe, Camberford, Tamworth. E. Paddison, Ingleby, Lincoln. NORFOLK AND SUFFOLK, SCOTCH, WELSH. T. Gibbons, Burnfoot, Carlisle. C Randell, Chadbnry, Evesham. T. Brown, !Marham, Downham, Norfolk. SHEEP. LEICESTERS, COTSWOLDS, LINCOLNS, KENTISH, CROSS- BRED LONG-WOOLS. II. Aylmer, West Dereham, Norfolk. T. Marris, The Chase, Ulceby. R. J. Newton, Caropsfield, Woodstock. SOUTHDOWN, HAMPSHIRE, RYELAND, MOUNTAIN. T. Cooper, Norton, liishopstone, Lewes. H. Ford, Gussagc, Cranbonrnc, Dorset. E. Little, Lanhill, Chippenham. SHUOl'SHIKE, OXFORDSHIRE, CROSSBEJED LONG AND SlIOin-WOOL. C. R. Keeling, Congreve, Penkridge. C. llobbs, Maisey Hampton, Cricklade. J. Evans, L'tlington, Shrewsbury. PIGS. II. Garland, Wargate, Wareham, Dorset. .T. S. Turner, Chington, Seaford, Sussex. J. Smith, Henley -in- Arden, Warwick. CATTLE. DEVONS. Steers, not exceeding i years and 6 months old. First prize of 120 to Her Majesty the Queen, Prince Consort's Norfolk Farm, AViudsor. Second of il5 to J. Ford, lUishton, Blandford. Third of £10 to W. Taylor, Glynleigh, Eastbourne. Reserved. — C. ^lacNiven, Perryslield, Oxted. The class generally commended. Steers, not exceeding 3 years and 3 months old. First prize of £30 to Her JMajesty the Queen. Second of £20 to T. L. Senior, BroH'T lARMERS' CLASSES. Shorthorn ox of any age. — First prize, £5, and the York Licensed Victuallers' silver cup, value 10 gs., W. W. Wilber- force, Fishergate, York ; second, £3, G. Kettlewell ; third, £1, M. and W. Boville, Walk Mill, Northallerton. Shorthorn cow of any age, or lieifer, not exceeding four years old. — First prize, £5, AV. Clarksou, Syke Farm, Nevvbald, Brough ; second, £3, H. Richardson, Cherry Hill, York. Ox of any other breed or cross, of any age.— First prize, £5, J. 11. Scoletield, Tadcaster; second, £3, J. D. Gowlaud, WidJ.ington Manor, Nun Monkton, York. Cow or heifer of any other breed or cross, tlie cow of any age, and heifer not exceeding four years old. — First prize, £5, J. Catt'ey, Stearsby, Easingwold; second, £3, J. D. Gow- land. SCOTCH BREEDS. Polled ox.— -Prize, £5 and Mr. Roper's silver challenge cup, value £20, W. and J. Lawson, Lessendrura, by Huntley, Aberdeenshire. Polled cow or heifer. — Prize, £5, J. Reid, Greystone, Alford, N.B. Horned Highland ox. — Prize, £5, Sir W. C. Trevelyan, Bart, Horned Highland cow or heifer. — First prize, £5,T. Francis, Skipton Bridge, Thirsk ; second, £3, J. Oiithwaite, Bainesse, Catterick. district PRIZES For tenant farmers residing within twenty miles of the City of York. Ox of any breed not exceeding four years old. — First prize, £5, T. Eastau, Newburgh Grange, Easingwold ; second, £3, 11. Kilby, Loudesborough Market Weigliton. Cow or heifer of auy breed, the cow of any age and the heifer not exceeding four years old. — First prize, £5, W. II. Woodward, Baxby, Easingwold ; second, £3, \V. and G. Lovel, Norton, Alalton ; third, £1, F. Rowntrte, 13randsby, Easing, wold. SHEEP. Three Leicester wethers, uuder twenty-two months old. — First prize, £5 and Silver Plate, given by tbe York Chamber of Agriculture, E. Usher, Water Wold, Pocklingfon ; second, £2, E. Usher. Three South or other Down wethers, under twenty-two months old. — First prize, £3, Earl of Zetland ; second, £1 10s., Earl of Zetland. Three horned Scotch or Moutain wethers. — First prize, £3, T. Lund, Monk Bar, York ; second, £1 10s , T. Lund. Three wethers, of any cross breed, of any age. — First prize, T. llobson, Crockey Hill, York ; second, £1 10s., iUrs. Agar, Brockfield, York. Sheep of any age and breed, not a rani. — First prize, £2, W. White, Full Sutton, Stamford Bridge; second, £1,E. Tindall, Knapton Hall, Rillington. PIGS. Pig, small breed, exceeding twelvemonths old. — First prize, £3, J. Bramlitt, Manor Street, Sheepscar, Leeds ; second, £1, Mrs. Agar, Brock lield, York; third, 10s., J. Morrcll, Rusby Place, Hungate, York. Pig, small breep, not exceeding twelve months old. — First prize, £3 and Society's Plate, Mr. Graliam, Blackburn's Buildings, York Road, Leeds ; second, £ I, C. Edwards, Collier- gate, York ; liiird, lOs., J. Dixon, Waliugate, York. Pig, middle breed, exceeding twelve months old. — First prize, £3, J. Cundale, Sycamore Grange, Copt, Hewiek, Ripon ; second, £1, J. Blake, Wartbill, York ; third, 10s , Lord AVeu- lock, Escrick I'ark, York. Pig, middle lireed, not exceeding twelve montiis old. — First prize, £3, J. Krainlilt ; second, £1, \V. Coiinell, llesiington, York; third, 10s., \V. Coates, Pavement, York. Three pork pigs, under twenty weeks old.— First prize, £3, Blrs. Agar; second, £1, Mrs. Agar; third, 10s., J. Cua- dde. u THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. Extra "Stock. — First prize, 5s., C. Edwards, juu. ; second, 2s. 6d., II. Ealkingham, Barker Hill, York ; third, 3s. 6d., J. Cundale. HOOTS. Si.\ specimeus of long mangold wurzel, any variety. — First prize, £15s., Hon. E. Lascelles, Middletliorpe Manor, York ; second, 7s. 6d., J. Naltou, Copraanthorpe, York. Six specimens of globe mangold wurzel, any variety. — First prize, 15s., Hon. E. Lascelles ; second, 7s. 6d., J. Dickinson, Holme Hill, West Rasen. Six specimens of Swede turnips, any variety. — First prize, 15s., T. Dickson, Langwith, York ; second, 7s. 6d., J. Snow- ball, Stockton Forest, York. Six specimens of common turnips, any variety. — F'irst prize, 15s., G. Harrison,iNewton-on-Derwent, York; second, 7s. 6d,, W. Kipley, Kirk Ilammerton. Twelve specimens of carrots, white or red. — First prize, 15s., F'. Thompson, Poppleton Hall, York ; second, 7s. 6d., F- Thompson. Twenty specimens of round potatoes. — First prize, 15s., R. Whitehead, Ileslington, York ; second, 7s. 6d., W. Kendall, Heslington. Twenty specimens of kidney potatoes. — First prize, 15s., J. Blake, Warthill, York ; second, 7s. Gd., H. E,. W. Hart, Dun- nington Lodge, York. Six specimens of ox cabbage. — First prize, 15s., not awarded ; second, 7s. 6d„ J. Milner, Skirpeubeck. BUTTER. Three rolls of butter. — First prize, £1, Mrs. Balderson, Bielby ; second, 10s., Mrs. M. Merrall, Burneston, Bedale ; third, 5s., Mrs. S. Robson, Deighton, York. Fancy butter. — First prize, £1, Mrs. M. Merrall (cow and calf) ; second, 10s., Mrs. M. Merrall (horse and foal) ; third, 5s., Mrs. S. Robson. RUGBY AND DUNCHURCH FAT STOCK SHOW. ppjr^Ti TTST JUDGES.— W. r. Bridford, Wyken Hoiise, Coventry ; H. Lowe, Curaberford ; J. Rooke, Welford Grange, Wansford. CATTLE. Fat steer under four years old. — First prize, T. and U. Major, Hillmorton ; second, R. Bolton, Flecknoe. F'at cow that has had a calf in 1872. — First and second prizes, H. J. Bromlield, Cawston. Bull of pure breed, above a year old. — Prize, M. W. Fur- ness, Clifton. Pure Shorthorned bull, above one and nndcr three years old, the property of a tenant-farmer. — Prize, T. and J. Major. Cow in milk at the time of the Show. — Prize, J. Beale, Wolvey. Pure-bred breeding cow, which has had a calf in 1873, and in milk at the Sliow, and bred by the exhibitor. — First prize, M. W. Furness ; second, C. Marriott, Cotesbatch. Heifer in milk, under four years old. — Prize, C. Marriott. Heifer in calf or in milk, under three years old. — Prize, M. W. Furness. Yearling heifer.—" Prize, C. Marriott. Pair of yearling steers. — Prize, J. Beale. Commended: J. Haswell, Rugby. HORSES. Hunter, under nine years old, the property of a farmer, wliich has never run in any Open Handicap Steeple or Hurdle Race. — First prize, J. Gilbert, Swinford Lodge ; second, Mr. Montgomery, Bourton. Mare for agricultural purposes, in foal, or with a foal at its foot. — Prize, J. Beale. Commended: T. J. Johnson, Willoughby. Cart colt, or filly, for agricultural purposes, uuder two years old. — Prize, Mr. Major. SHEEP AND LAMBS. Three fat shearlings, of the long- wool breed. — Prize, H. and J. Brierley, King's Newnhara Hall. Three cross-bred shearlings. — First prize, Messrs. Brierly ; second, Mr. Major. Three long-wool breeding ewes, which have suckled their Iamb or lambs up to the 1st July, 1873, and are in a fair state. — Prize, W. Cowley, Watford. Three short-wool breeding ewes, which have suckled their lamb or lambs up to the 1st July, 1873, and are in a fair breeding state. — Prize, S. C. Pilgrim, Wantage. Three long-wool theaves, in a fair breeding state. — Prize, W. Cowley. Three Shropshire breeding theaves.— Prize, S. C. Pil- grim. Pure-bred long-wool tup lamb, bred by the exhibitor.— Prize, W. Cowley. Pure-bred short-wool tup lamb, bred by the exhibitor,— Prize, S. C. Pilgrim. Three long-wool wether or ewe lambs, bred by the exhibi- tor.— J. A. Beale, Brokhurst. Three short-wool wether or ewe lambs, bred by the exhibitor. —Prize, S. C. Pilgrim. PIGS. Sow or yelt, of large breed, with its farrow of pigs under twelve weeks old. — Prize, J. Downing, Cawston Grange. Three breeding pigs under six months old. — Prize, J. Crofts, Lawford Hill. EXTRA STOCK. Best beast, as extra stock, which has been the property of the exhibitor sis months preceding the show. — Prize, Mr. Cropper, Rugby. Commended : H. J. Bromlield. THE CHIPPENHAM AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION. PRIZE LIST. JUDGES.— R. J. Newton, Woodstock ; T. Horley, jun., Leamington ; T. Morris, Gloucester. CATTLE. Bull, cow, and offspring. — First prize, J. Stratton, Alton Priors, Marlborough ; second, R. Stratton, The Duffryn, New- port. Highly commended : J. A. Muiuford, Brill House, Thame. Commended : I. Cox, Whatley, I'rome. F'at steers, above three years old. — First prize, J. Stratton, Manniugford ; second, J. Stratton, Alton Priors. Fat steers, uuder three years old. — First prize, T. li. Ferris, Mauningford Bohune ; second, J. A. Mumford. Fat cows. — First prize, F. H. Baker, Foxley ; second, T. H. I'erris. Dairy cows of any age.— First prize, U. White, Stanley ; second, J. Smith, Bynoll. Dairy cows under four years old. — First prize, J. Stratton, Alton Priors ; second, J. Smith. Heifers under thirty-six months old.— First prize, J. Strat" ton, Alton Priors ; second, R. Stratton, The Duffryn, New- port. Heifers under twenty-four months old. — First prize, J. A. Mumford ; second, O. Viveash, Strensham, Tewkesbury. Commended : R. Stratton. Heifer calves under twelve months old. — First prize, R. Stratton, The Duffryn ; second, J. Stratton, Alton Priors. Bull calves under twelve months old. — First prize, T. Hewer, Inglesham ; second, O. Viveash. Bulls under two years old. — Prize, J. Stratton, Alton Priors. Bulls above two and under three years old. — Prize, R. Stratton, The Duffryn. SHEEP. Four fat short- wool wethers. — Prize, C. Rich, Sutton Benger. Long-wool breeding ewes. — Prize, W. Limbrick, Horton. THE FAEMEH'S MAGAZINE. 75 tight cross-bred breeding ewes. — First prize, Mrs. 1', Blanche, Iron Acton; second, J. C. Fry, Oldfield, Marsh- field. HORSES. Two years old cart gelding or filly. — A. Gregory, Forest Gate Farm. Mares and foals. — rrize, \V. Archer, Wotton Bassett . Weight-carrying hunter.— Prize, J. Keevil, Shaw, Melk- sham. PIGS. Boars. — First prize, J. Downing, Stanton, St. Quiutiu ; second; H. Brinkworth, Stowell, Corsham. Breeding sows. — First prize, W. Spencer, Chalfield ; second, 11. Spackman, Broughtou Gifford. Two fat pigs of one litter. — First prize, W. Spencer, Chal- field ; second, II. Spackman, Broughton Gifford. Highly com- mended: E. Little, Lanhill. Pat pigs of any age, — Prize, E. Little. EXTRA STOCK. Four fat short-wool wethers. — Prize, C. Rich, Sutton Benger. Heifer. — Prize, \V. Redman, Coulstone Filly.— Prize, I. Clark, Heddington. CENTEAL CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. On Wednesday, December 10, a Council meeting and the an- nual meeting of the Central Chamber of Agriculture were held at the Salisbury Hotel, Sir H. M. Beach, M.P., in the chair. The Council meeting commenced at two o'clock. After the usual preliminary business, Mr. WiLLSON, in presenting the auditor's report, said he wished to call attention to the fact tliat the arrears of members' subscriptions had very mucli increased during the last year, and at the same time to observe that the 30th rule of the Ciiainber suggested the remedy for that evil. That rule said that no members should be entitled to vote, or to hold office, if liis subscription were unpaid, and that tlie Council sliould have power to strike off the list of members persons whose subscriptions were in awear two years, and that no member should be readmitted till the arrears had been paid. He would suggest tliat the secretary should be instructed to make au application for immediate payment of the arrears, and to call their atteution to Rule 30. At the present time the liabilities amouuted to £67 4s. 3d., and they had only £40 to meet them. It was really disgraceful that a Society like that should stand in such a position, when so much money was owing, viz., £189. Mr. Neild: What is the amount of the deficiency of the cliarabers ? Tiie SECRKTARy : £74, £63 of it being for this year. On the motion of Mr. Willso:\, seconded by Mr. Clay, it was resolved unanimously that the secretary should make ap- plication for the immediate payment of ihe arrears, and at the same time call attention to Rule 30. The Secretauy, after reading some communications from Associated Chambers, read the reply of the Chancellor of the Exchc([uer (Mr. Gladstone) to tiie letter, asking him to re- ceive a deputation respecting the Malt-tax, before the meeting of Parliament. In this reply, which has been previously pub- lished, the right hon. gentleman consented to receive a depu- tation after the opening of the next Session. Mr. Jasper More in(j[uired whether any arrangement had been made for ensuring a discussion of the tjuestiou in the House of Commons in the next session. Unless some mem- bers were pledged m the matter the Chamber might be placed in the ridiculous position of having sent a deputation to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and of that not being followed up by any discussion in Parliament. The Chairman said if Mr. More had been present at the last meeting of the Council he would have heard the question fully discussed (Hear, hear). Mr. Jasper More observed that every one knew that unless a day for introducing a subject were balloted for when Parliament first met there was no chance of introducing it. He thought they should know who would undertake to in- troduce it before they went to the Ciiancellor of tiie Ex- checjuer ; otherwise the interview might be fruitless. Mr. Arki:ll said tiierc were three members of Parliament who were supposed especially to represent the farmers, and he thought it should be arranged that one of them sliould ballot on the first night. Mr. J5IDDELL concurred in this view. Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., said some misapprehension appeared to prevail with regard to tlie rules of tiie House of Com- mons respecting notices of motion. A notice of motion could not be kept on the paper for more than a montii ; and lie did not think it at all desirable that tiiere sliould be a discussion and division on the Malt-tax in the first month ot the session. when probably many of their friends would not have arrived in town. The case was quite different witli regard to bills. There was a general wish on the first night of the session to put them down in order to secure some Wednesday during the session. lie cordially "agreed with Mr, Jasper More that Parliament ought not to be dissolved without a discussion and a division on the Malt-tax, so that previously to the general election they might know who were their friends on that question (cheers). Ultimately it was resolved, with only one dissentient, on the motion of Mr. Jasper More, seconded by Mr. T. Orton, that before the deputation waited upon Mr. Gladstone the chairman of the Central Council should take steps to ascer- tain whether Colonel Barttelot, or, if not Colonel Barttelot, any other member of Parliament, would engage to bring the question of the Malt-tax under the notice of the House of Commons next session. On the motion of Mr. G. F. Mui^TZ, seconded by Mr. D. Long, it was resolved " That in lieu of the present practice of supplying Parliamentary Blue Books and Papers, the Sec- retary be instructed to forward to all chairmen and secretaries of Associated Chambers in future a copy of the bill or bills before Parliament which concern the agricultural interest as soon as printed ; and that he be instructed to enclose with the circulars announcing the ordinary Council meetings a list of all Bills and Blue Books published in the month preceding, with the information printed thereon that he will forward these if requested at the published prices, and that a copy of this resolution be sent to all the associated chambers." The Council then agreed to the annual report to the Cham- ber. The next business being the selection of subjects for future meetings of the Council, Mr, Neild observed that in his opinion it was very desir- able that they should confine themselves to questions that were especially interesting to tenant-iarmers, especially as they were very deficient in the support of tliat class, p.irtly, he believed, because they had directed their attention to legis- lative matter instead of matters whicli had a direct bearing on agricuture. He had honed that the Business Committee would recommend that their atteution should first be directed to the question of compensation for unexhausted improvements. While almost every industry in the country was progressing, and there was a great increase of national wealth, the tenant- farmers seemed to be rather retrograding in their position, owing to the heavy burdens which were imposed upon tiiem. What the patriarch said about Issachar being " a strong ass couching down between two burdens" seemed to liiin to be most applicable to the present position of the tenant-farmer (laughter). The CiiAiujiA?) : Do you propose that subject tlieu ? (great laughter), Mr. Neilu : 1 propose liie subject of compensation for unexhausted improvements. Mr. Read, J\i.P., suggested tiie subject of thrashing ma- chines. j Tiic Chairman then laid before the meeting, and moved the adoption of, the cightli annual repart of the Council, I whicii described tlie progress made in strengthening the or- ganisation, whicli for seven years had endeavoured to provide the owners and occupiers of land with centres for conference I and discussion, witii means for securing a uniform and simul- taneous [expression of opinion, and with a ready agency lor 76 THU FARMER'S MAGAZINli. combination and concertect action ttirougliout tlin kingdom upon questions aflectiug agricnltural interests. It also re- corded tlie proceedings of the Council with regard to Local- taxation, compensation lor unexhausted improvements, con- tagious diseases of aniiuals, Malt-tax (respecting wliich Mr. Gladstone has promised to receive a depatation from the Chamber early after the opening of the Session of Parliament in i'cbruar}), the Agricultural Children's Act, poor-law relief, aud middle-class education in rural districts. In conclusion it es[iresscd satisfaction that although few great victories had yet been won, though the ratal grievance was still unre- . dressed, improvement of land still discouraged by oppressive and exceptional taxation, the Malt-tax still an exceptional burden on industry, the property of the farmer in live stock still left a prey to prevcntible diseases, his crops still insecure from the ravages of ground game, and (»ave in exceptional instances) his capital invested in high cultivation still without the security of law or custom, progress was being made to- wards a settlement of some of these leading questions now before the associated ciiambers. The combination of owners and occupiers to promote and defend their common interests and to rectify their mutural relations was gathering strength, and the importance assigned both in the legislature and the public press to the expressions of opinion m the chambers of agriculture, and especially to the ultimate decisions of tlic representatives of those chambers in the Central Council, proved that the organisation had become a power in the state, and encouraged members of the chambers to earnest and stre- nuous exertions in the future. After some discussion it was determined that the first sub- ject discussed by the (Council should be Compensation for Unexhausted Improvements, and that the three following should succeed in such order as the Council might thereafter decide upon — Thrashing Machines, Highway Dristricts, and Local-taxation. The business of the Council meeting being coucluded, the annual meeting was then held. The annual report of the Council was then presented, and on the motioa of the Chairman, was adopted, being taken as read. Mr. WiLisoN, having presented the auditor's report, and it having been adopted, On the motion of Mr. Neilb, seconded by Mr, Fokd, tiianks were voted to Mr. Willson, and he was reappointed auditor. Mr. Thomas Rigby, of Wiusford, Cheshire ; Mr. Thomas Willson, of Biggen Grange, Oundle, Northamptonshire ; Mr. Thomas Horley, of The Fosse, Leamington, Warwickshire ; Mr. James Webb, of Spring Hill, Fladbury, Pershore, Wor- cestershire; Mr. Thomas Arkell, of Peniiill, Swindon, Wilts; and Mr. C. M. Caldecott, of Ilolbroek Grange, Rugby, War- wickshire (six of the eiglit retiring members of the Council), were re-elected; Sir J. Pakington, M.P., and Mr. Bowen Jones being ciiosen to fill the places of Colonel Tomline,M. P., and Mr. Genge Andrews, the other two. The report of the Select Committee of the House of Com- mons on the operation of the Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act, 1869, together with tiie existing orders of the Privy Council for the regulation of the cattle traffic in Great Bri- tain and Ireland, was next brought under the notice of the Chamber, at a special general meeting appointed to consider the subject. Mr. Stratto:n moved a series of resolutions recording the profound disappointment of the Chamber that the commitfee had come to a decision adverse to any stringent aud systematic attempt to deal with foot-and-mouth disease ; also reiterating the conviction of the Chamber that it was most desirable, in the interest of both producers and consumers of meat, that foot and-raouth disease should be adequately dealt with ; further, pointing out that at a time like the present, when the disease had from natural causes readied a low ebb, it would be easy to adopt adequate restrictive measures without seriously interfering with the cattle trade ; claiming, too, for the Cham- ber, as a representative body, the right of expressing on behalf of the agricultural interest a perfect readiness to submit to snch restrictions as niigiit be necessary to eirectually keeping foot and-mouth and otiier diseases in check ; and, whilst recognis- ing the efforts which are being made to enlarge the supply of foreign dead meat, declaring that for the safety of home stock it was desirable that the importation of foreign live animals should beconyerted into a dead meat trade. Professor Gamgee, who seconded the motion, spoke at some length in support of these resolutions. He criticised the action of the Veterinary Department which he censured as equally ignorant and incfhcicnt. He also observed that since wu had had foreign importations of live stock aud a Veterinary Department there had been a great increase of disease whilst there was no augmentation in the amount of supplies. If meat were brought into this country dead there would be no foot-and-mouth disease. The farmers of Aber- deenshire had voluntarily adopted the system of carrying their meat dead. The most distant port from which supplies were obtained, Cuxhaven, was not so distant from London as Aber- deen, and arrangements were being made there by which, in the course of a year or two, the German cattle might be brought dead to Londun, rin Harwich, in 24 hours. By the surround- ing of dead meat with an atmosphere of 45 degrees only, it might be preserved for three weeks. The SECRETAra' read communications on the subject from associated chambers, which were in general accordance with the resolutions moved by Mr. Stratton. Mr. WiiiTAKER believed that farmers generally would be willing to submit to almost any restrictions for the prevention of disease, provided only such restrictions were not more strin- gent than tiiose which were placed upon foreign cattle. Mr. T. Dui KiiAM thought some allusion should be made to those parts of the Report of the Parliamentary Committee of which they approved. It recommended the adoption of a uniform system throughout the United Kingdom, and it also recommended that there should be a more hberal rate of com- pensation in cases of compulsory slaughter (Hear, hear). Mr. Pell, M.P., observed that a laore liberal compensation depended very muih on the view of the local authorities (Hear, hear). Under the Act and the Orders in Council it was possi- ble to give the full value of the animal. There was nothing to prevent the local authority from allo:ving the owner to take the whole of the salvage, besides which, the Act permitted the magistrates to give him half the value of the animal ; and the two would perhaps make up more than the value of the animal before it was taken ill. Of course in practice that was not done. Mr. Storer believed that extended compensation would do more than anything else to stamp out the disease. Mr. Neilu said the law required to be definitely settled. There was great jealousy of any interference with free trade, but justice must be done to the owners of cattle compulsorily slaughtered. ,. Mr. EGERTO^|concurrcd_in the opinion that slaughtering was the only efTectual method of stamping out disease. Mr. KiELE, from China, who was invited by the chairman to address the meeting, read a paper tending to show that rin- derpest is as truly endemic in the Chinese empire as in the steppes of Russia. After entering into minute details respect- ing the slaughter of animals at Shanghai aud other oriental ports, he suggested that Her Majesty's Government should be requested to enter into communication with the Chinese Go- vernment on the subject, in order that they might at all events be induced to prohibit dead meat being thrown overboard in Chinese ports and harbours. After a few remarks from Mr. Waller in support of the motion, the resolutions were adopted. The business havingjterminated, Mr. W'illso:n said, as that was the last occasion on which the chairman would preside he begged to move a vote of thanks to him ; and he was sure they would all agree with him that Sir Michael had been a most excellent chairman during his year of ofiice (cheers). After being seconded by ^Ir. Adkins, the motion was carried by acclamation. The Chairman, iu returning thanks, said when he took of- fice he expressed his determination to do all he could to ensure that the Council should not lose in position or influence during his presidency, and that it had not lost in those respects was shown by the power it had exercised both in the country and in Parliameut in reference to such important questions as local taxation and compeusation for unexhausted improvements. It was a very dillicult task to preside over the deliberations of such a body, and if anyone had any ground of personal com- plaint against him he tendered him his best apologies, as- suring all of them at the same time that whatever he had done in his capacity as chairman was done with the best in- tention (cheers). He was to be succeeded in the chair by a gentleman who was thoroughly competent through his know- THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 77" ledge, experieuce, and ubility to fill it, aud he was confident that the Cliatnber would continue to progress under that gen- tleman's guidance. For himself, he would only add that, it he lived, he should cherish for many years to como pleasureablc reminiscences of the period during- which he acted as their chair- man and of the many friends that he made in that position ; aud it would ever be his wish to attempt to forward, whether in public or in private, the interests of tlie Central Chamber of Agriculture (cheers). The meeting then separated. HIGHLAND AND AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF SCOTLAND. At the monthly meeting of the directors, held on Wednes- day io Edinburgh, Mr. Mitchell in the chair. The anniversary general meeting was iixed for the 21st of January, IST-t, being tiie third Wednesday of the month, aud the usual day for holding the meeting. The Secretary, in submitting a statement of the funds ;it tlie close of the linaneial year on the 2t)t!i ult., reported that the books and voucliers had been placed in the hands of the auditor, Mr. Kenneth Mackenzie, C.A. Tlie report by the committee on office-bearers for 1874; was given in, and the secretary was instructed to communicate with the noblemen and gentlemen suggested to fill the vacancies which occur in January next before publishiug their names. Inveness Show-, 1874'. — At the last meeting of the board it was remitted to the Committee on General Shows to con- sider and revise the increased scale of premiums, as formerly arranged. The committee held meetings on the 19tli Novem- ber and ~iid December, and have suggested premiums to the amount of £2,022, being an increase over what was olfered at Inverness iu 1865 of £722, and about £250 more than what was awarded at Stirling this year. The list was approved of, and will be submitted to a meeting of members to be held in the Caledonian Hotel, luverncss, ou Friday the IDtli current, at one o'clock. Glasgow Show, 1875. — The classes for the proposed show at Glasgow in 1875, as suggested by the Committee ou General Sliows, was submitted to the board previous to being laid before a meeting of members to be held in the Queen's Hotel, Glasgow, on Wednesday, the 10th current, at one o'clock. Tiie committee in charge of the district shows held a meeting on the 26th of November, when it was reported that the Society's premiums and medals had been in operation iu Sl-i districts of Scotland during the past year. The com- mittee, taking into consideration the suggestion made at the general meeting in Jauuary last, by Sir Tliomas Gladstone, that the grants to local sliows nhould be extended, recom- mended that for 187-1 the number of cattle districts should be increased from 8 to 10; of the districts for horse premiums from i to 6 ; and of sheep districts from S to 10, adding a medium silver medal to the first prize, aud giving a money premium, in place of a minor silver medal, as a third prize. This, with some additional districts for medals, will make the amount to be olfered about £1,100, or nearly £315 in excess of what it was this year. The report was approved of. Tiie Committee ou Cottages held its meeting on the 2Cth of November, when it was reported that the Society's money premiums aud medals had been offered in forty-six parishes, and that reports had been received from upwards of tiiirty. A number of new applications were added to the list tor 1875, making the sum to be olfered upwards of £130, being an in- crease ou the sum olfered this year. The report was adopted. Stirling Show, 1873. — Ti-'uil of lieupcis : The board, on a report by the Local Committee at Stirling, awarded a me- dium gold medal to J. and F. Howard, Bedford, for their European reaper; a minor gold medal to Samuelson and Co., Banbury, for their lloyal self-raking reaper; and a similar medal to W. A. Wood, London, for his combined reaper aud mower. IWal of Pulalo Uhjcjcrs : The Local Committee having selected three potato diggers invented by Mr. Corbett, and made by Corbett and Peele, I'er-ieverance Ironworks, Shrews- bury, and exhibited by A. and J. Main, Edinburgh and Glas- gow ; Kemp, Murray, and Nicholson, Stirling ; and J. P. Cathcart, Ayr, the board awarded the Society's medium gold medal to Corbett and Feele. Tfiii/ of Mj'-Bdlccrii Reapers : On a report by the Local Committee, the directors awarded a medium gold medal to J. and F. Howard, Bedford, for their International reaper ; a minor gold medal to Samuelson aud Co., Banbury, for their Royal self-raking reaper ; and a silver medal to W. A. Wood, Lon- don, for Ilia Champion reaper; a silver medal to J. Bisset and Sons, Blairgowrie ; aud a medium silver medal to J. D. Allan and Sons, Culthill, Dunkeld, for their back-delivery machines. A letter was submitted from Messrs. Macgregor and Ross, S.S.C., sending copy of the warrant for the affiliation of tlie new Veterinary College of Edinburgh with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. The Special Committee on an inquiry into the Potato Dis- ease having considered the memorial to the Board of Trade and their reply, recommended that no further proceedings iu the matter should take place until the result of the premium offered by the President of the English Society was made kuown, which was approved of. ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF IRELAND. At the last monthly meeting of the council of this Society, held at tlie oHice, U|iper Sackville-street, Dublin, Sir George Hodson, Bart., iu the chair, it was agreed to request Earl Fitxwilliam to allow himself to be appointed president of the Society for the ensuing year. The CiiAiKMAN said the first matter to be disposed of was the notice of motion of JSlajor Borrowes, which was as follows: " It shall be a fundamental rule of the Society that no (jues- tiou shall be introduced or discussed at any of its meetiugs of a political tendency, or which shall refer to auy matter to be brought forward or pending in either House of Parlia- ment, which is not />///v7y (hk/ aiw///// (iijririilliirdl, and spoken to from an (lyricnllnrnl poiut of view alone." In reference to the rules, he ascertained that matters of this kind required to be discussed, and decided a month previous to the stated meeting, aud as the next general meeting of the Society would be held in December, he took it for granted that they could not take the motion into consideration that day. Mr. Owen said the subject hud been already very fully dis- cussed, and it was the unanimous wish of the council that Major Borrowes should give the notice of motion which then appeared on the paper. The Chairman believed the (lue.slion was. Could they then taki! the matter into consideration, and discuss the rule bearing on it ? IMr. Owen remarked that the matter had been fully dis- cussed on the last day of meeting; but if the chairman ruled that it was irregular to bring it forward in the absence of Major Borrowes be would move the adoption of the resolu- tion. The Chairman said, as the matter was of great import- ance, he would like to take the sense of the meeting ou it. j\lr. Owen intimated that, if necessary, he would move the adoption of the resolution, b,'can:*e its terms had met with the approval of a very large meeting of the council. At the re- (|uest of the council, Major Bonowes liad framed the rt solu- tion according to their views. Lord Talhot LIE JMalahiue thought it was very desirable that they should make the proposed change. With reference to stopping people's mouths, it was an exceedingly dlfficultthing 78 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. to prevent politics from being touclied upon at public raeelings. The fully expressed resolution of the council and of the Society showing tlie course that was intended to be pursued, would, lie believed, have a great effect in future ou most gentlemen who got up to speak at the meetings of the Society. There were many questions of a non-political character which it was most desirable the Society should have the power of discussing. Lord POWERSCOURT then moved, in the absence of Major Borrowes, that the resolution which the last-named gentleman liad placed on the notice paper should be substituted for rule twenty-two. Mr. OwEX seconded the motion, which, on being put from the chair, was unanimously adopted. The Chairman announced that tlie next matter for con- sideration was the notice of Mr. Charles Cannon, to the effect that he would call attention of the council to tlie report of the select committee of the House of Lords appointed to inquire into the condition of the country with regard to horses, and its capabilities of supplying any present or future demand for them ; and, further, that he would move that a committee of the council should be nominated to consider the same, and to advise the council thereon at tlieir subsequent monthly meeting. Mr. Cannon said lie would have been very diffident in in- troducing this subject, but that he was under the impression, when tlie report was made by the committee of the llouse of Lords, that it was not absolutely before the llouse at all. He was bound to express bis own view, lest it might be supposed that he desired to thro'ft' an apple of discord into the council. Before he went into the subject, he wished to observe that he felt, as a junior member, the matter should liave been intro- duced by an old member of the council. In bringing this matter forward he would leave the report of the committee of tlie House of Lords to the consideration of the members. He would offer no suggestions upon it ; and although in the words of his notice of motion he proposed moving the nomi- nation of a committee to advise tlie council, lie would leave it to them to say whether or not this course should be carried out. He held in his hand the blue book which contained the evidence taken and the report of the committee. It was a large and weighty document, but every point contained in it would be found to be grave, and worthy of deep considera- tion. He desired in the first instance to call attention to some of the evidence and several paragraphs in the report, in order to make out a case as to whether or not the committee should be appointed. The House of Lords seemed to think, from the scarcity of horses in this country, that a committee should be appointed to inquire into the causes which led to this, and accordingly the Prince of Wales and other distin guished personages were nominated ou the committee. Thirty eight witnesses were examined. Mr. East, a job master iu London, deposed that he employed a thousand horses, and that he found those procured from Ireland worked longer and paid best. Lord Stradbroke, in his evidence, thought the best thing would be for the Government to encourage the keeping in every county good thorough-bred sires ; and Cap- tain Stack, another authority in this respect, threw out some vahiable suggestions on tlie same subject. Major-General Wardlaw likewise recommended that the Government ought to put good stallions in different parts of the country, the result of which would be to improve the breed generally, and that the offering of prizes by.agricultural societies would be desira- ble, with certain advantages attached. No less valuable sug- gestions were thrown out by Colonel Price and Colonel Baker. Earl Spjncer, who was also examined before the committee, tliouglit it would be very desirable that stallions should be kept in Ireland by the Government, and let them out, as was done in England. His Excellency also recommended that prizes should be given at the different agricultural sliows in the country. He was asked — " Do you think it would be very advisable to encouiage agricultural societies, by giving prizes for good stallions P" to which his Excellency replied, " I do." Witli regard to the report made by tlie committee, the third suggestion approximated to the only recomraenda tion made by them, and was as follows : " It seems practica- ble that the Government should give or add to tlie prizes of agrieultnral shows for stallions." He felt it to be his duty to bring this matter before their notice. He would be sorry that it should be suppoRcd that he wished to alienate tlie at- tiBtiou of the agrieultiui^tsof ifelftfidiftom theit \mf\i pur- suits in husbandry, because he did not think it was the pro- vince of the Society to seek to induce the occupiers of land to sow where they could not reap : it was desirable that tliis pur- suit should be carried out in the most scientific and best in- formed manner. Knowing, as they did, from the report which lie held in his hand, that nineteen cavalry regiments in the British army were; remounted solely in Ireland, it was the province of the Society to ventilate this subject, and discuss every matter which tended to advance the material interests of the country. In conclusion, he submitted that this was a matter for the consideration of the council, as to whether they would appoint a committee to go into more carefully the ample report, and see in what way they could sustain the ob- servations that iiad been made by Earl Spencer, as head of the Irish government. Erora his Excellency's remarks as to giving tlie agricultural societies some assistance, it might be desirable if they could devise means to fortify his view, if it was likely to conduce to the benefiting of the interests of the country. Mr. Owen observed that the subject brought forward by Mr. Cannon was a most important one, for which he deserved the thanks of the council. In the evidence given there was a suggestion thrown out in the way of aiding agricultural societies in offering prizes for the improved breed of horses. If Mr. Cannon concluded his proposition with these words — " That the attention of the premium-sheet committee and showyard committee be requested to this pressing and import- ant matter" — he would second the resolution. The proposer of the resolution was himself a member of the premium-sheet committee ; and they could not better comply with his request, which had at present a strong claim on their attention, than by referring it to that body to which he (Mr. Cannon) belonged. Mr. Cannon said he merely brought the matter forward in the interests of the Society, and he would be very glad, in- deed, to receive any suggestions from Mr. Owen or any otiier member of the council. He had liimself some experience arising from tlie vicissitudes of horse breeding, so that he was enabled to say that it would be desirable that gentlemen should be selected to act on the committee wlio had their attention directed to the breeding of horses. Mr. MacEarlane said he would second Mr. Cannon's resolution, in order to bring it regularly under discussion. There was no doubt but that the subject was a most important one, and he would mention what the Society had been doing, which would assist the council in deciding what steps they should take in the matter. Having been the chairman of the horse- breeding committee, appointed some years ago, he was in possession of what occurred. In 1863 there was a committee formed to consider the whole question, before the committee of the House of Lords was appointed, and they piit before the country the matters referred to in the report. In 186-t a re- port was brought up and adopted, when it was agreed tiiat tliey should, at the request of tlie Society, continue to act as a committee. Tiiat committee adjourned until they should be again called together by summons. Tliey had never since me so that this fact might solve the difficulty which Mr. Cann appreliended presented itself. Lord Talbot de Malaiiide asked if that was not a joint committee ? Mr. MacFarlane said not. It was a committee of the Royal Agricultural Society. Tiie next step taken was to make preparations for holding a horse show, which took place on the premises of the Koyal Dublin Society, This was the origin of the horse shows now being held under the auspices of the lloyal Dublin Society. Subsequently some communi- cation took place with the Government, which terminated in the appointment of the committee whose report Mr. Cannon had brought tiiat day before the council. In his opinion, it would be well to appoint the old committee, or so many of the members of it as were alive, and add others who would be selected for their well known experience in the breed- ing of horses. Mr. Young tliouglit, before any further prizes were offered by tlie Society, as the Government wanted remounts for their cavalry, they should call upon them to assist them. Mr. MacFarlane replied that tliat would be a matter for future consideration. When the Society offered prizes for thorough-bred stallions, he was aware that the members had to subscribe out of their own pockets, and not out of the funds of the Society. Mr. Cannon then proposed the appoiatment of g coramitte? to eousider and report oft the question; THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 79 Mr. MacFarlane suggested that tlie committee should be selected out of the entire members of the Society. Mr. Cannon replied that a committee so selected would be too large aud unwieldy. The council had iu itself huihcient capacity to take tlie whole question into consideration. The reiiolutiou was then put from the chair, and accepted unanimously. The following noblemen and gentlemen were placed on the committee : Lord Talbot de Malahide, Lord Mouck, Baron de Robeck, Sir Percy Nugent, Bart., G. A. Rochford-Boyd, Hans H. Woods, J. L. Naper, N. M. Archdall, W. L. Burton, R. Cosby, W. O'Malley, Thomas Franks, John La Touche, Major Borrowes, Charles Cannon, H. J. MacFarlane, the Rev. R. W. Bagot, Richard Chalouer, Sir Allan Walsh, Bart., William Owen, James Robertson, Dawson A. Milward, Edward Pur- don, J. M. Royse, Phineas Riall, Sir Robert Paul, Bart., Charle Uniacke Townshend, Lieutenant-Colonel C. C. Vesey, Seymour Mowbray, and Leopold Cust. The Chairman submitted the draft half-yearly report, which was, after some discussion, adopted. Mr. Robertson, in pursuance of notice wliich he had given, moved that tlie Society's show at Wexford be held at a convenient date between the Bath and West of England and Royal of England's meetings. He said he had been induced to give this notice of motion by many members of the Society, and persons who intended to be exhibitors. There was no doubt.that it was desirable to hold the Society's shows at an earlier period than heretofore. Owing to the late period at which the shows were held, most of the local gentry had left the country ; the farmers were too busy in getting in their crops ; judges could with difficulty be got over from England ; and manufacturers from the sister country would not send over their implements in time. For his own part, he did not see any reason why their shows should not be held at an earlier period than usual. From communications which he had re- ceived from judges, exhibitors, and others who generally at- tended the shows, he ascertained that the great majority of them were in favour of his proposition. Having regard to the English fixtures, he was decidedly of opinion that the most desirable time to hold the Wexford show was from the 24tli to the 30th of June, and he concluded by moving a reso- lution to that effect. Mr. Bagot, in seconding the resolution, observed that if tlie holding of the next show was an inconvenience to any one, he believed it would be a great convenience to the far- mers who usually attended such displays. The Waterford show of last year prevented the farmers, as well as the imple- ment manufacturers, from attending in as large numbers as could be desired, and it would be more convenient for all of them to have the gathering next year somewhat earlier. At all events, it could do no great harm if they tried it for one year, if it suited the Wexford people. By holding it in the last week in June, they would have it come off between the two great shows of England. The locjl shows were rising very fast in Great Britain, so that it made it the more difficult, once they commenced, to get implement manufacturers to come over to this country. Unless some strong arguments weie put forward, he hoped the council would give their sanction to have the next show held earlier than usual, especi- ally as, he understood, Mr. Robertson had been in communi- cation with various parties in Wexford, who intimated that the period named by him would suit them. The Chairman said before auy definite conclusion was rrived at, there should be some direct communication with he people of Wexford. Sir Allan Walsh thought it was a serious thing to jump back from August to June. If the proposition were carried out, there was one class of exhibitors which it would knock on the head altogether, and that was the sheep breeders, a great many of whom brought their rams to the annual shows in order to dispose of them, which they could not do if the meeting was held so early in June. The sheep were not in a condition to bo exhibited so early, and he would suggest that the show should be held on the week commencing tlie 22iid July. INlr. Bagot said that would practically exclude every Eng- lish exhibitor from attending. Sir Allan Walsh, from conversations which he had with various leading persons connected with W^exford, believed that tlie people of thu eouuly were in favour of iiaving the 9h9\r \\i\i AbQut tli^ 9(((l of July qt tbf) l)egi[taiu(i; ol' August, Alderman Purdon remarked that when attending shows in England he had repeated conversations with various persons, who complained that the annual gatherings here clashed with those on the other side of the channel, and that it was highly desirable that some alteration should take place — that they should be held at an earlier or a later period than usual, so as not to clash with the Highland, the great Yorkshire, and other shows. The last meeting of the Yorkshire was, he believed, as large and as important as that of the Royal Society itself. Mr. Owen was opposed to holding the show so early as June, iu which opinion many persons with whom he had been in communication concurred. July was early enough, and in the minds of not a few individuals too early. Alderman Purdon observed that whatever conclusion was arrived at by the council, the people of Wexford should be informed as to tlie days on which the different shows in Eng- land were held. Mr. Bagot, perceiving so much diversity of opinion on the subject amongst the members of the council, moved that the secretary be directed to write to the local committee and iu- , tending exhibitors, asking them for their opinion as to the period on which the Wexford show should be held, and iu the meantime hold over the resolution to the next meeting of the council. The resolution, having been seconded, was adopted. Sir Allan Walsh hrought up a report from the premium sheet committee, the only feature of importance connected with it being a recommendation that the 14th section of the rules, as regards the entrance fee required for sheep entered for competition, should be omitted. The report was adopted, Mr. Owen dissenting. Sir Allan Walsh reported that the committee — after having had an interview with Mr. Barlow Smythe, Dr. Came- ron, and Mr. Sproule, in reference to the offer of Mr. Smythe, as chairman of the Beet-root Sugar Company, to place one hundred guineas at the disposal of the Society, to be given in prizes for beet-root grown in the vicinity ot their works — had come to the conclusion that there was not sufficient informa- tion before them to justify them in recommending the council to accept the offer contained in that gentleman's letter. The following gentlemen were balloted for, and unaui- mously admitted members of the Society : The Hon. Gerald Normanby Fitzgibbon, Mount Shannon, Lisnagry ; Captain E. R. Bailey, J. P., Mount Talbot, Roscommou ; Arthur W. Shirley Ball, (High Sheriff Co. Longford), Geraldstown, Navan; and John Talbot Power, M.P., D.L., Ederraine, Enniscorthy. The council, having disposed of some ordinary business, adjourned. SPEAKING OUT.— At Bodmin Mr. R. Olver said that though they had spoken against pampering, the judges had given the first prize to a pampered animal. Having tried both plans, he was convinced that high feeding was neither profitable to a farmer or to a butcher. A wonderful change had come over farming in the last ten years. It now took £2,000 where £1,000 would have done. The price of horses had doubled, rents had increased, and whereas labourers could be had for Os. a-week when he first engaged in farming, they now had to pay I3s. for inferior men, with every probability of having to pay more. Then, farmers had to farm more highly because of the larger sum they had to raise. They had to grow heavier crops, use rather more artificial manure, consume the corn with oilcake on the farm, and turn out a greater lot of good stock. With these extra expenses, and with taxation increas- ing, they had a right to ask the landlords to give them en- couragement by acceding Tenant-Riglit. There were hundreds of farmers in Cornwall that could keep half again as many cattle if only (he tenants had security for the outlay. People were talking of getting meat from America and Australia, but English agriculturists could grow it all. If landlords would only give proper facilities, farmers could produce enough mutton and beef and corn to feed half as many people again as there were in England. The fault was with the landlords, and not with the tenant-farmers, who could not do as they would like. Often the landlord took the highest rent and go the worst man, whereas if he would be content with a little less rent be would have his farm improved, and much more food would be prodiieinl. They wanted legislation on this jpoiut, au4 if faruiera did not get it front the TurieR the^ vfo\\\i 80 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. from the Liberals, as tlie townsmen seemed to be waking up I owner's interest would be to get tlie best and most respectable on the subject. They could beat the A.niericans in corn- | fanner, instead of the one who would promise to pay the growing, but it could only be done by growing heavier crops. I highest rent. Unless this were done iu a very few years land- Mixed up with the Tenant-llight they must have the present lords would have great difficulty in keeping the best farmers, law of distraint, which should be so reformed that the laud- | The present leases were altogether out of date. ACCIDENTS FROM THRASHING MACHINES. At a meeting of the members of the Norfolk Chamber of Agriculture held in Norwich, for the purpose of considering the provisions of a bill introduced into I'arlia- ment last session, for fencing drums of thrashing machines ; and also the question of compulsory highway districts, Mr. C. S. Read, the President, was in the chair. Tiie Peesibe^'t explained that the Bill iu question was introduced on July 38th, 1873, and he moved that it should be considered tliat day three months. He did this because he was sure tiiat legislation iu the harum-scarum way which must have taken place in August would iu all probability have done a great deal more harm that good. The bill provided that the drum of every thrashing machine intended to be driveu by any other power than manual labour should be pro- vided with a fence sullicient to ])revent accidents when such machine was in use. Messrs. Clayton and Shuttle worth had sent him a design of a " self-acting safety slide." When a man was not feeding the machine, a slide covered up the drum. But that was no fence. The fence wanted was something to prevent the people slipping into tlie drum. Another design sent liim by Messrs. Clayton and Shuttleworth was " Wilder's patent self-acting feeder for thrashing machines." This was something like the straw shakers at the other end of the machine. It was driveu by power. The man instead of delivering the corn into the machine, threw it upon the feeders which conveyed it into the drum. No doubt such a raachiue would prevent many accidents, still it did not fence the drum. Sometliing iu addition to that would consequently be wanted. But though this seemed the most reasonable way of getting over the difficulty, in another way it was unreasonable, for it could not be applied at all to small raaciiines, while to make it applicable to others would cost something like tweuty guineas, which was more than the majority of macliine owners would like to spend upon it. He had also received a simple design from Mr. C. Burrell. It was to put a small eight-inch board round three sides of the drum. No doubt this would effectually prevent persons falling off the board into the drum ; but it was not so pleasant to have to hft 100 quarters of corn in a day over a board though it migiit only be eight inches in height. Mr. Burrell wrote to him to the effect that some years ago he was struck witli the dangerous appearance of the drum being quite open and unprotected. Since then he liad a simple board six or eight inches deep, just round the feeding mouth, which was quite sufficient to prevent accidents whicli might occur from a man's foot slipping. The board could be lifted up for a few minutes while sweeping out the machine, and then again dropped into its place. Unfor- tunately the bill provided that the person in charge of every thra.shing machine should, while it was in use, take care that the fence provided for the drum was fixed, and not removed at any such time as the machine was in motion. He proposed the following resolution : " The Norfolk Chamber of Agricul- ture considers the language of the principal clauses of the Thrashing Machine Bill to be vague and undefined, and is of opinion that before any law is passed upon the subject of agricultural machines, an inquiry into the question of the number and circumstances of accidents arising from the use of all farm machinery should be instituted, with a view of ascer- taining whether any legislation is necessary." He had tried in vain to obtain a return ot accidents caased from thrashing machines. But his experience was that there were only few. Other machines in use in agriculture were more dangerous ; for instance, the horse-gears of chaff-cutters, of which a boy often slipped among the wheels and had his toes bitten off. Mr. Howard, M.P., was of opinion that no chaff-cutter that went by power ought to be allowed to be used unless it had a spring clutch to take it out of gear. This could be easily adapted to all cliatf-eutters, and it was now generally used. Mr. J.Everett seconded the motion. Mr. G. Hoi.iiES (of the firm of Holmes and Son) said the arrangements that would, he thought, meet the case was mainly a circular hood covering the front of the feeder, extending t\'. elve inches on each side of the feeding hole. This would prevent any man slipping his foot in, or if he slipped a little liis side would catch against the lop of the cover, and liis going into the machine would be prevented. It would not prevent his feeding barley or wheat sheaves. This could be added to the machine at a cost of 30s. or £3. Accidents could not be entirely prevented, but if what he had suggested were added to a macliine it would be found to be a great safeguard and au arrangement which would ratiier be accepted than any elaborate self-feeding apparatus. JMr. CuAMUERS tliought that Mr. Holmes' plan, if it would not fence the machine completely, would go a great way to- wards it. It was the careless boys who walked about the drum rather than the feeder who were iu danger. Mr. Cozens- Hakdv asked Mr. Holmes what was his real objection to Wilder's plan. Mr. Holmes said he had really no objection to it. What was wanted was something simple, that could be applied at once. Tliough self-feeders would eventually come in, yet it should not be made compulsory upon maclr'ne owners to have Wilder's patent apparatus. He entered at length upon what could and coull not be done witii the self- feeder ; and Mr. G. Day said he considered that what Mr. Holmes had said as to the self-feeder proved the uselessuess of the bill. At the conclusion of the discussion. The PiiESiDEjiT said the conversation which had taken place showed that a fair sort of guard to prevent avoidable accidents might be applied to machines at a trifiing cost. If tiiat were so he was sure the agriculturists of England would be glad to have it provided, if it did not interfere with the efficiency and ready working of the machine. This was a question that might engage the attention of agricnitural societies. Prizes were oft'ered for many implements tliat wanted no encouragement ; and he asked Mr. Chambers of the Norfolk Agricultural Society, and Mr. Aldous of the Hoyal Society, when they considered the prizes for the imple- ments for the coming year, to see whether it would not be possible for them to offer prizes for the best, cheapest, and most efficient guard for a thrashing machine. The resolution was adopted. The subject next taken was Compulsory Highway Districts. The PuESiDE^T said it had been discussed on several pre- vious occasions. The resolution passed on the 39lh of Juu", 1870, the Council suggested should be again submitted to the Ciiamber. It was : " Tiiat the compulsory extension of the new Highway Act would fail to secure better roads iu Nor- folk without a considerable increase iu the present highway rates ; but should the Act be made general, tliis {Chamber suggests that the cost of repairing the roads should be borne by the common fund of the district, and not as at present by separate parishes." In the discussion which followed Mr. Lombe mentioned that in the Mildenhall district, where the Act had been adopted, the roads were excellent, while the rates were not more tiian two-thirds what they were formerly. Mr. R. Smith said Norfolk was rather difierent to Suffolk ; where highway districts had been formed in Norfolk they had been dissolved. The Norfolk roads were generally in a very good state. Mr. R. T. Gurdon said the Act had been carried out in Somersetshire and Gloucestershire, and Sir William Miles had over and over again told him that it worked there per- fectly well. Mr. G. W. Lely said in Leicestershire the rates were positively 8 per cent, less than they were previously to the system being introduced. Mr. J. Hill remarked that in Dorset the Act was adopted, and tiie result was au enormous increase in tiie expenditure ; and Mr. Everett, formerly diair- man of the Docking Highway Board, added that the adoption. THE FAKMEil'S MAGAZINE. 81 of the Act was followed by an increase in the expenses. The President having commented on the varions points raised, Mr. Gurdon suggested tiiat the motion had better be split up into two, for while some could not agree with the first clause, all would support the second. The resolution was then divided, as suggested ; but both clauses were adopted, there being to the first only four dis- sentients. The Cliamber then adjourned. EOYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. Monthly Council: Wednesday, Becemher 10. — Present: Earl .Cathcart, Vice-President, in the chair; the Duke of Bedford, the Duke of Richmond, K.G. ; the Earl of Lichfield, the Earl of Powis, \'iscouut Bridport, Lord Chesham, Lord Kestcven, the Hon. Wilbraham E^ertou, M.P. ; Sir Watkiu Wynn, Bart., :NLP. ; Sir. Barthropp, Mr. Booth, ]Mr. Bowly, Mr. Cantre]l,Mr. Dent, M.P. ; :Nrr. Edmonds, Mr. Evans, JNIr. Braudreth Gibbs, Mr. Horley, !Mr . Hornsby, Mr. J. Bovven Jones, Colonel Kingscote, M.P. ; Mr. Masfen, Mr. jNIilward, Mr. Pain, ^Ir. Randell, Mr. Rigden, Mr. Shuttleworth, Mr. Geor2;e Turner, Mr. Jabez Turner, :Mr. Wakefield, Mr. Webb, :Mr. Wells, M.P., Mr. Jacob Wilson, Professor Simonds, and Dr. Voelcker. The following members were elected : — Blackwell, Richard, Gold Hill Farm, Southwell. Boustead, John, Armathwaite Hall, Cockermouth. Burd, Henry, The Laurels, Shrewsbury. Cheavin, George, Boston. Cobb, H. M., Higham, Rochester. Colegrave T. E., Gosforth Grove, jN'ewcastle-on-Tyne. De Trafford, John Randolphus, Croston Hall, Croston, Lan- cashire. Haifenden, Rev. John Wilson, Homewood, Tenterden, Ashford. Herbert, Hon. Auberon, M.P., Ashley Armwood, Lymington. Marshall, William, Gaston House, Bedford. Peach, Edward, Oundle. Pochiu, Henry D., Barn Elms, Barnes. Rincon, Manuel Ceferino, Espiritu Santo 4-7, Madrid. Robinson, Tiiomas, Westoning, Woburn. Samuda, Joseph D'A., ]\LP., 7, Gloucester Square, W. Sapwell, Benjamin Beckham, Aylsham, Norfolk. Sharpe, William Taylor, Baumber Park, Horncastle. Smith, William, the Laurels, Olfeuham, Evesham. Snowden, J. I)., Doncaster. Southern, John, Culclieth, Warrington. Start, C. W., Pobmarsh, 13ures, Essex. Tattersall, William, Charlton Place, Bishopsbourne, Kent. Thackwell, John, Witten Place, Uymock. Watts, George James, Monkhams Hall, Waltham Abbey. AVilliams, Captain George Griffiths, Wallog, Aberystwith. Yeld, Edward, Moss Hill, Leominster. Yorkshire Agricultural Society, Secretary, of York. Finances. — Lieul. -General Viscount Bridport (chair- man) presented the report, from which it appeared that the secretary's receipts during the past month had been examined by the committee, and by Slessrs. Quilter, Ball, and Co., the Society's accountants, and found correct. The balance in the hands of the bankers on November 30 was £1,111 2s. 6d. The committee re- commended that the names of ten members in arrear of their subscriptions be erased from the list of members, and that instructions be given to the solicitors of the Society to take legal proceedings against those members whose subscriptions arc four yeavs and upwards in arrear. — This report was adopted. The following letter was then read : Kirby Hall, York, Dec. G. My lords and gentlemen, — It is with great regret that I have to recpiest that at the reconstitution of committees, wliich takes place next week, you will not place my name on the list of members then appointed, as my health will not permit me to attend any business meetings at present. After taking an active part in the afl'airs of the Society for 35 years this sudden severance causes me deep disappoint- ment, but my illness is too serious to be trifled with, and I take tills opportunity of oftering my best thanks to all my col- leagues on the Council for the kindness and courtesy which I have received from them from the original formation of the Society to the present time. I am, my lords and gentlemen. Your faithful servant, H. S. TiioJiPsON. To the Council of the Royal Agricultural Society. The following resolution was thereupon moved by ^lajor- General Viscount Bridport, who testified to the great value which he had always attached to Mr. Thomp- son's services to the Society : — The Council cannot accept the resignation of Mr. Thomp- son as a member of its committees without expressing their sincere appreciation of the valuable assistance he has rendered not only to this Society, but to agriculture in general. The regret which the Council feel at the loss of his valuable services is deepened by the cause of his retirement ; and, in accepting his resignation, the Council beg to assure him of their sympathy with him in his illness, and of the grateful recollection that those who have worked with him will always entertain of his earnest and eminent labours in the service of the Royal Agricultural Society." The resolution was seconded by Mr. Randell with the greatest possible cordiality, who expressed his appreciation of ^Ir. Thompson's services as President of the Society, Chaii'man of the Journal Committee, and writer of essays of the highest and most practical value. His regret at the prospect of the cessation of such services was much increased by the cause of Mr. Thompson's retirement. Mr. Dent Dent, M.P., who had been acting as Chairman of the Journal Committee during Mr. Thompson's illness, expressed his complete sympathy with Mr. Thompson and his concurrence with the resolution. Ho i-eferred to xMr. Thompson's services in connection with the Jonnuil since Mr. Pusey's death in 1855, and to his great interest in all questions connected with agriculture, even now when weakened by illness. The Duke of Richmond, Earl Cathcart, and other members of the Council having similarly expressed their views, the resolution was carried unanimously. JouRNAJj. — Mr. J. Dent Dent reported that the com- mittee had met ten times and made eight reports to the Council. They had received a letter from the Colonial Office, enclosing one from the Governor of Victoria, ask- ing that the publications of the Royal Agricultural Society may be forwarded to the Department of Agricul- ture at Melbourne in exchange for the papers of that Department. The committee recommended that the volumes included in the Second Series of the Joarnal and all future numbers be forwarded to the Department. In accordance with a previous vote of the Council, the committee recommended that the secretary expend a sum not exceeding £25 in the purchase of books of i-cfcreuce for the library. A letter was read from Jlr. Thompson, resigning his seat on the committee; and the committee, accepting with regret the resignation of their chairman, proposed that Mr. Bowcn Jones and Mr. Rawlcucebe new members of the committee, and that the other members be re-elected. — T'his report was adopted. Che.mkal. — Mr. W. Wells, M.P. (chairman), reported 82 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. that the committee had met seven times and made seven reports to the Council. He also presented the annual report of the Consulting Chemist, of which the following is an abstract : A marked improvement has taken place in cake transactions, tlie greater number of the 181 samples analysed having been found pure. The practice, however, of selling as genuine linseed cakes which are made from badly-screened linseed still continues ; the committee, therefore, recommend to purchasers that they should insist upon a written guarantee that the cake is pure linseed cake, in good condition, and made from well- screened ground linseed only, containing not more than 1|- per cent, of sand. Rapeseed cake of good quality is becoming scarce, and all he samples made from Indian seed being found to contain too much wild mustard to be a safe food for stock, it is advisable for purchasers to buy none but green German rape, or Rubsen cake, this being generally free from pungent and injurious seeds. Attention is directed to cocoa-nut and olive cakes, two com- paratively new feeding materials, which, though useful for feeding purposes, are neither of them equal in value to the best Euglish palm-nut meal. Reference is made to the analysis of locust-meal, which, containing about half its weight in sugar, is a very fattening fold, of which good use can be made if it be blended with decorticated cotton-cake or other food rich in albuminous compounds, in which locust-meal is rather deficient. A larger number of artificial manures, belonging to the class of piiosphate manure, represented by superphosphate, were analysed than in any preceding year, and most were found to be of good qualities, and worth the money at which they were sold. The term dissolved bones appears to be no longer applied, as it ought to be, to a manure composed of bone-dust and acid, but to mixtures of mineral superpliosphate with small quantities of bone-dust, rarely exceeding 30 per cent. Dr. Voelcker therefore recommends farmers to buy mineral super- phosphate and bone-dust separately, to wet the bone-dust, and to mis it in the proportion of one to two of superphosphate, to put the mixture in as compact a heap as possible, and to turn it over after a lapse of three or four weeks. The samples of nitrate of soda, sulphate of ainmouia, bone- dust, and guano sent for analysis by members of Society in 1873 were all genuine. The quality of Peruvian Government -guano has not im- proved since last year. Dr. Voelcker directs attention to the injurious effects which brown-coloured sulphate of ammonia produced in gasworks is found to produce when applied as a top-dressing to cereal crops, or to grass land, and points out that the injury is due to the presence of extremely poisonous cyanogen compounds. He recommends that all gas refuse materials whicli are employed occasionally for manuring purposes should be carefully tested for cyanogen compounds before use. Reference is made to the communication from the Consul at Leghorn to Lord Grenville on the subject of the application to the laud of nigiit soil in Italy. Dr. Voelcker reports that he has lately visited the sewage works at Boudy, near Paris, where the solid contents of the cesspools of Paris are converted into " poudrette," a portable artificial manure ; and arrangements are now in progress to extract ammonia by distillation from the liquid portion, and to convert it into sulphate of ammonia. A large number of drinking waters have again been sub- mitted for examination. Amongst them several have been found contaminated with drainage products, and unfit for use. Dr. Voelcker reports on the occurrcuce of ergot in the case of grass which has beeu allowed to run to seed— his attention having been directed to certain instances of injury to marea in foal, kept in pastures where the grass had been allowed to run to seed, the grass, on examination, being found to be attacked by ergot. In accordance with the resolution passed at the last meeting of Council, Dr. Voelcker made an analysis of a specimen of iron slag, produced by a new process, aud brought under the notice of tile Chemical Committee by Lord Cathcart. Tiie result of his examination shows that it may be usefully apphed to moorland and peaty soils, as a cheap and eflicacious substi- tute for lime. The quarterly report of the Chemical C!omraittee was re- ceived, and the Committee were authorised to prepare it for publication in the usual agricultural newpapers. Joint Botanical and Journal Cojijiitxee. — Mr. J. Dent Dent, M.P., reported that the committee had received, and to lay upon the table the report of the judges who were appointed to award the prize offered by Earl Cathcart for the best essay on the potato disease and its prevention, and after considering the recommenda- tions made in that report, they begged to give notice that at the next Council they would ask for a grant of £100 to carry out the first recommendation of the judges. They proposed that a special committee consisting of Lord Cathcart, Mr. Whitehead, Mr. Jabez Turner, IMr. Wake- field, Mr. Brandreth Gibbs, Mr. Boweu Jones, Mr. Al- gernon Clarke, and Mr. Carruthers, be appointed to con- sider suggestions 2 aud 3, and, if they think it desirable, to draw out in detail a scheme for farther investigation into the growth of the Potato, and the incidence of the potato disease, and to submit such scheme to the Coun- cil. The committee further recommended that the Royal Agricultural Society of England should carry out its own independent investigation, but as far as possible in con- cert with the other national societies. — This report was adopted. The following is the report of the judges on the com- peting essays : The judges appointed by the Council of the Royal Agricul- tural Society to examine the essay competing for the prize of £100, offered by Earl Cathcart, for the best essays on the po- tato disease and its prevention, have the honour to report as follows : They have examined ninety-four competing essays, and have carefully re-examined twenty-three selected from the total number. They are desirous of expressing their recognition of the great pains bestowed upon the preparation of some of these essays, especially in the collection of facts relating to the history of the potato disease, and to the various theories that have been promulgated as to its cause and prevention. The theories most frequently advanced by the essayists, either for atfirmation or contradiction may be stated as follows : CAUSE. I PREVENriON. 1. Degeneration of the tu- Use of new sorts for plaut- ber. I ing. 2. Fungus on the tuber. 3. Wet i weather, and gene- rally superabundant moisture. 4. Peronospora infestans at- tacking the foliage. 5. Electricity. Steeping, or kiln-drying the tuber previous to planting. Use of lime as manure. Clumping, tumping, or hil- lock-growing. Bending haulm downwards, clear of the tubers. Tying haulm upright to stakes, or growth of sorts having erect stalks. Dressing hauhn with sul- phur, chlorine, &c. Cutting off tops on appear- ance of disease. Sowing disease-proof sorts (either specially mentioned, or generally, as very early and very late vigorous sorts). Use of lightning-conductors of various modes of constrction. Avoidance of the use of cer- 6. Plethoric, or succulent, or diseased condition of the , tain manures, plant caused, by the use of j specific manures. '■ A number of other theories are also advanced, but it is not necessary to particularise them. Like the foregoing they have, probaly without exception, been for many years familiar to those acquainted with the practice of potato growers, or with the literature of the subject. Amongst the 9i essays abun- dant evidence may be collected, both in support and in contra- diction of any of the foregoing theories ; and it is especially noticeable tliat the essayists generally consider it sufficient to assign a cause and a mode of prevention of the potato disease, without giving any scientificaUy accurate theory of their pro- THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 83 posed remedy, or sufficient experimental proof of the accuracy of their statements. The judges are, therefore, unable to admit that any essayist has established the truth of his theory, par- ticularly as the first coudition attached to the offer of the prize IS, that " all information contained in prize essays shall be founded on experience or observation." Like the theories of the cause of disease, the practical sug- gestions made with a view to its preveutiou do not go beyond those with wliich agriculturists and horticulturists were pre- viously familiar ; and, as regards the botanical part of the subject, it must be confessed that all the essayists appear to be in arrear of the present condition of scientific knowledge. The judges have, therefore, but with much regret, come to the conclusion that, in accordance with one of the conditions (the judges are not bound to award a prize, unless they consi- der one of tiie essays deserving of it), on wiiich the prize was offered, they must recommend the Council not to award it to the writer of any one of the essays that have come before them. The judges have autiiority to say that Lord Cathcart hopes the Council will apply the amount of his intended prize in any manner that in the interests of agriculture may seem most ad- yautageous. Power having been given to the judges to report as to the advis.\bility of a grant being made for further investigations into the incidence and prevention of the potato disease, they have carefully considered this question. They are much impressed with the national importance, as well as with the difficulties, of the subject. Therefore, while considering the Society might, and probably would, confer a great benefit on the community by inaugurating a sufficiently extensive inquiry, they feel it tlieir duty before recommendiug a course of proceeding, to specially call the attention of the Council to the fact that no reliable results can be expected un- less experiments are made simultaneously at many different /places, aud continued for some years in succession. Presuming that the Council is willing to grant the funds necessary for sucli aa investigation, the judges have drawn up a scheme, which they have based ou the follow- ing facts : (1.) The natural history of the potato fungus, from the time it attacks the foliage until the potatoes are harvested, is now well known ; but the history of the fungus Irom the potato harvest until its reappearance the following year is at I'resent entirely unknown, and therefore ofl'ers a suitable field for investigation. (3.) The potato fungus does not usually attack the foliage of the potato until an advanced period in the growth of the plant ; and it has been confidently asserted by several essayists, as well as previously in the public press, that certain sorts of potatoes are what may be termed " disease proof," on one or other of the following grounds : («.) That the haulm dies down (aud the potatoes arrive at maturity) before the period at which the potato fungus commonly 'makes its appearance. (b.) That certain late kinds also are, as the result of ex- perience, beheved capable of resisting the attacks of the potato fungus, (c.) That certain new varieties are also able to resist the attack of the fungus. The judges therefore recommend : (1.) That a sura of money (say £100) be granted for the purpose of inducing a competent mycologist to undertake the investigation of the life-history of the potato fungus (I'erou- ospora iufestans) in the interval between the iujury to the Ijotato plant and the re-appearance of the fungus in the following year. (3.) Tiiat valuable prizes be offered for («.) The best disease-proof early potato. (4.) The best disease-proof late jiotato. The judges appointed to award these pri/(^s should he allowed three years to experiment witli the competing potatoes, and with the produce of those kinds wliich may be found to resist disease, in reference to their cropping, keeping, and cooking qualities. (3.) That in order to encourage in the meantime the pro- duction of new varieties, which may have the qualities already indicated, the Council should offer prizes for disease- proof potatoes of new varieties, to be sent in for competition in the year 187S, on terms aud conditions similar to those already recommended. The judges are of opiuiou that although all the experi- mental trials with the competing potatoei should be under the supervision and control of one and the same committee, yet that the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, the Royal Dublin Society, aud the Royal Agricultural Society of Ireland, might be invited to aid in an investigation of such magnitude, on the ground that the interest of Scotland and Ireland in the prevention of the potato pisease does not yield in gravity to that of England and Wales. (Signed) Charles Whitehead, John Algernon Clarke, William Carruthers, n. M. Jenkins. Botanical. — Mr. J. Dent Dent, ISLP., reported that tiie committee had met twice, and made two reports. He also presented the following report of the cousulting botanist for 1873 : The principal work of the Consulting Botanist during the past year has consisted in the examinatiou of seeds, chiefly with the view of determining their gfirmiuating qualities, and their freedom from impurities. By his advice, some members of the Society have been prevented from introducing the bane- ful dodder into their fields. The report on the present state of scientific knowledge in regard to the potato disease was published in the JuKrnal for the year, as well as an account of the nature of dodder, and of its injurious action on plants, in connection with its attacking a crop of Swedish turnips. The Consulting Botanist is at present engaged in inves- tigaJng, in its botanical aspects, the injurious effects produced by grasses aft'ected by ergot on brood-mares belonging to a member of the Society, and he proposes to publish the results in the next volume of the Journal. (Signed) William Carruthers. This report was adopted. House. — Major-General Viscount Bridport reported that the committee had met twice aud made two re- ports. They recommend that the front of the house should be re-painted in the spring. — This] report wa3 adopted. Ijiplement. — Mr. T. C. Booth reported that the committee had met seven times and made six reports. He also presented the following recommendations of the committee : 1. That tines for the uou-exhibitiou of im- plements be abolished, as the exhibitors are now charged for all show-yard accommodation aud for the entries iu the catalogue. 2. That a hue of 2s. 6d. per reference card be imposed on exhibitors who do not comply with the general regulations concerning them. 3. That the trials of implements at Bedford commence on Monday, July 6, 1874. 4. That roots, hay, and straw be pro- vided for the trial of carts aud waggons at Bedford. 5. That 50 acres of old sward and 15 acres of clover be requested for the trials of 1875. — This report was adopted. Stock Prizes. — Mr. Milward (chairman) reported that the committee had revised the Bedford prize sheet, and made several alterations. They had met twice and made two reports to the Council. — This report was adopted, and the following alterations were made in the rules printed in the prize-sheet : To be omitted. — No 3rd prize will be given unless at least six animals be exhibited, and no 2ud prize will be given unless at least three animals be exhibited, aud in Sliortliorn classes no 4'th prize will be given unless at least ten auiraals be exhibited, except on the special recommendation of the judges. To be added. — The Council reserves to itself the right of determining all disputed cases as to qualification, S:c., and the decision of the Council shall be final in all respects. The exhibitor of any animal at the Society's country meeting shall be required to prove the correctness of his certificate to the satisfaction of the stewards, if called upon by them to do so. L^^ntil the required proof has been furnished, the prize may be withheld, and the exiiibitor may, on the recommenda- tion of the stewards, be prohibited by the Council from ex- iiibifiug at the Society's country meetings. A letter was read from Mr. Edward Pease, otfcriug for 84 THE farmi:r's magazine. the shows of 1874 aud 1875 prizes for mules and asses to the same amouut aud iu the same classes as those offered by the same j^eutlemau at the Hull country uieet- iug. Alter the Earl of Fowls aud the Hon. Wilbriiham Egerton had advocated the expediency of offering prizes for these animals, it was decided to accept Mr. Pease's offer with thanks. Genekal Bedford. — Lord Kesteveu reported that the committee recommended that the agreement with the mayor and town clerk of Bedford be signed and sealed by the secretary ; that the special prizes offered by the Bedford local committee be added to the stock prize- sheet ; and that Lord Charles llussell's offer of a cup, value £50 with a purse of £50, as a prize for the best farm in the county of Bedford, be accepted, with thanks to his lordship. — This report was adopted, and the Council decided to offer a second prize of £50 to bear the expenses of adjudication, and to arrange the conditions of competition. The Journal Committee were also in- structed to appoint the judges aud arrange for a report on the competition. Selectiox. — Colonel Kingscote (Chairman) reported that the committee had met five times and made four reports to the Council. Educatiox.— Colonel Kingscote reported that the committee had met six times, "and made six reports. A letter from the head-master of the Bedfordshire county school, suggesting alterations in the educational scheme, had been laid before the committee, and they had directed the secretary to communicate with .Mr. Morris, in order that the subject may be brought before the congress of head-masters of county aud other middle-class schools, to be shortly held in London.— This report was adopted. Showyard Contracts- Mr. Randell (chairman) reported that the surveyor had the authority of the local committee for saying that the levelling, draining, and removal of fences would be completed by the end of the present month, aud that there is no probability of any difficulty with regard to railway sidings. The Showyard Contracts Committee had met eight times, aud made as many reports to the Council.— This report was adopted. Veterinary.— Mr. W. AVells, M.P., reported that the committee recommended that the grant of £150 to the Royal Veterinary College be paid for the current year in two instalments, as usual. During the year they had met twice, and made two reports to the Council. They had received from Professor Simouds two reports, one on the parasitic lung disease of lambs, and the other on the health of the animals of the farm, iu addition to a previous report on the latter subject already published iu the last number of the Journal.— Tln^ report was adopted. The following is a summary of Professor Simond's report : Health or Animals of the Farm.- The chief occur- rence o( importance since the date of the last report has been the outbreak of some remarkable cases of blood-poisoning in the western counties. Iu tlie first case, some sheep died from blood-poisoning as far back as last August. The carcases were skinned and opened in a field adjacent to the premises, and a considerable portion of the flesh, wliicli was preserved tor the dogs, was subsequently eaten in the same pasture. In close proximity to this field and also to the farmstead is a pond 0. stagnant water, which receives the drainage of the stables and yards, and also the surface-water from the field in question, -Eleven horses were on the farm at this time ; and on Aug. 23 a four-year-old, which was at pasture iu the field already men- tioned, was taken suddenly ill, and died in about 24- hours. Ihe carcase was opened in the straw-yard, about 10 yards irom the pond, and the viscera were buried in close proximity to it. On October 3 a five-year-old horse was attacked, and died in about three hours, the carcase being similarly dealt with as in the preceding case. This death was followed by others; so that by October 27— the day on which the matter was brought to the notice of the College — four horses were dead, and others reported to be rapidly sinking. Two pigs, a dog, a cat, aud two ferrets, which liad eaten of the same flesh, were also dead ; aud a labourer, who had removed the carcase of the horse which died on October 3 to an adjacent village, to be boiled down for pigs' food, died under circumstances so peculiar as to lead his medical attendant to believe that his death was a consequence of that proceeding. By November 1 seven horses had died, and it was shown un- mistakably that death, in the last case, had resulted from blood-poisoning. All the horses which had died had drunk regularly of the pond watf^r, but only one of the four which escaped. The facts of the case all pointed to the pond water as the source of the mischief, and steps were at once taken to prevent any further injury being done. Professor Simonds also describes three other cases (one of which is still under investigation) and a number of experiments ; but at present no conclusions can be safely arrived at, beyond the deadly nature and easy transmissibility of blood diseases from animal to animal of different species. Parasitic Lung Disease of Lambs. — A list of questions was issued last year to members of the Lincolnshire Agricul- tural Society, with a view of ascertainiug uuder what con- ditions this disease is most prevalent, aud various experiments have been had recourse to for the purpose of throwing further light on the development of the worm or worms which are tlie cause of the malady. These experiments cannot be said to have been very successful. It is, however, now satis- factorily ascertained that more than one variety of thread- worm finds its way into the air-passages of the lungs of sheep . Of the " long-strongle" of Dr. Cobbold (Gordius of Dr. Crisp) even less is known, with reference to its natural history aud development, than of the Strongylus filaria, or common lung- worm. Both species are believed to undergo imporant developmental stages out of the body of the sheep during this time in the soil, or in the plants of ordinary pasturage, or in artificially-cultivated clovers and grasses. On farms on which the disease exists the greatest care ought to be exercised to keep lambs from pastures, and from clover and other layers which had been fed with sheep at an earlier part of the year. Experience lias shown that lambs dropped on turnips aud allowed to run before tiie ewes, aud later on fed on tares and similar green food, and on cabbages specially cultivated to come iu about weaning time, are comparatively free from attacks of the lung-worm. It lias also been observed that tiie disease is kept active when the system of renewing the flock of ewes from lambs bred and reared on the farm is adopted In Lincolnshire during the summer the ewes are fed on per- manent pasture and new seeds, after harvest on the stubbles and clover and other eddishes until they are broken up (or wheat, when they go on turnips, following the hoggets ; in many instances the tups are put to the ewes while they are feeding on new seeds. Ewes and lambs are soon removed from turnips to the new seeds and pastures, where they remain until weaning time, when tlie lambs are put on the pastures " until they become settled," when they are removed to the clover eddishes, or to the clovers grazed previously witli the ewes and lambs, or occasionally to white clovers grazed two years in succession. The young animals are thus, during tlie most dangerous periods of their lives, kept ou land and on food the most likely to infest them with the parasites, which having, in the form of ova or embryonic worms, been coughed up by infected sheep, have undergone a further development fitting them for dwelling within the respiratory organs, the habitat in which they become sexually mature, and give rise to organic diseases of the lungs by their enormous multipli- cations. It also appears that the lambs, which are diseased to a serious extent, are changed about from pasture to pasture, both natural and artificial, and thus distribute broadcast myriads of ova and immature worms over the whole farm, to become iu due time the cause of disease in lambs which are yet unborn. The standing committees for the year 1874 were appointed. A letter was read from the editor of the Norfolk and Sufolk Red-polled Herdbook, asking the Council to adopt a " standard description" of that breed ; and the secretary was instructed to reply that it was a question for the judges at the country meetings to decide whether the animals exhibited were duly qualified for competition iu the classes in which they were entered. .THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. A letter was read from the Belgian Minister, enclosing a copy of the prize-sheet of the International Exhibition of Breeding Animals and Agricullnral Implements to be held next year at Brussels, eommeuciujj; on June 27. Communications from intending exhibitors should be addressed to the secretary, M. Parisel, Hue Verte, No. 66, Brnxelles. The report of the Council to the general meeting was prepared. On the motion of Mr. Wells, M.P., the usual Christ- mas holidays were granted to the secretary and clerks, aiid (he Council adjourned until Wednesday, February 4, 1874. At a special Council meeting, licKl at liie rising of the monthly Council, in accordance with the bye-laws, the report of the Stock prizes Committee was received and the prize-sheet for the Bedford meeting was adopted and ordered to be printed. THb: ROYAL AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE CLUB. Tlie annual dinner was held at " Tlie London," on Tuesday in the show week, vvl\ea a large party of old Cirencester collegians assembled under the presidency of Mr. Jacob Wilson, the vice-chair being occupied by the honorary secretary, Mr. C. G. iloberts. The same subject, " What are the con- ditions which render it desirable to lay down Arable Land to Gass ?" wliioh had been partially discussed at the meeting of the Club in Hull last July, was now resumed. In his opeuine; remarks the Chairman dwelt upon the increasing demand for animal food and the scarcity of labour in this country as rea- sons for converting from arable to pasture much of our poorer clay land. Sir. T. Arkell spoke of the subject as connected with the increased use of steam cultivation. Mr. Randkll held that light land should never be laid down, that a greater amount of meat would be obtained by a proper succession of greeu crops even on heavy land, and tliat in the midland counties of England the laying down land to grass is often an unprofit- able work. Mr. EiNi.AV UuiVN pointed out that although the cost of labour might be reduced from 40s. to 5s. an acre by tlie substitution of grass for arable laud, yet with energetic management the return of prolit would be greater on well- farmed land under the plough. Mr. J. Coleman considered high fanning as much more common upon arable than ou grass laud ; that in the comparison of protits the latter often is unfairly depreciated. The aspects of the question as affected by temperature, latitude, and rainfall were next considered by Messrs. Bootii, Jenkins, and others. After the customary loyal toasts, the Chairman proposed Prosperity to the Royal Agricultural College Club, and gave a short sketch of its first formation at the Warwick meeting in 1858. Since that time it had seen some vicissi- tudes, but was now in a very llonrishiug condition. Its mem- bers, by their associated and individual ell'orts, had been able to much for the advancement of agricultural science. In replying to the toast Mr. Roberts referred to the plea- sures ot maintaining college friendships in after-life, and hoped that the younger members would carry on with vigour the series of tield experiments that have now been conducted by a succession of members for many years. Mr. J. CoLEJiAN proposed The Royal Agricultural So- ciety, and Mr. Randell replied ; Mr. EI^aAT Dunn, The Royal Agricultural College, and Mr. E. Bowly replied for the College, and gave t!ie health of the Chairman, a most valuable member of the Council- of the Royal Agricultural Society, and an illustrious example of the value of the college system of mental culture. Mr. Edward Holland's health was proposed by the C'ifaik- MAN, with much regret aud sympathy for the domestic tri;il that caused bis absence from the board. The health of the visitors was proposed by Mr. Bowstbad, and responded to by Mr. Jabe/ Turner and Mr. Jenkins, who acknowledged the many contributions to the Journal of the lloval Agricultural Society received from members of the Club. Professor Wrightson was appointed President of the Club for the year 1874. MR. GEORGE HOPE'S PORTRAIT. A number of gentlemen connected with East Lothian as- sembled last week in the Corn Exchange, Haddington, for the purpose of presenting Mr. George Hope, late of Fentonbarns, with his portrait, as a testimony of their appreciation of the services which he has rendered to the cause of agriculture throngbout the countr\. It will be remembered that in May last, when it became known that Mr. Hope was ([uitting Fen- tonbarns, a feeling was generally expressed in tlic county that some practical proof should be given of the admiration which the gentlemen and farmers of tlie district felt for Mr. Hope's iiigh qualities, as well as of sympathy for him in the circum- stances in which he was placed. A committee was formed, consisting of the leading proprietors and farmers in East Lothian, and steps were taken for Ibe purpose of presenting Mr. Hope with bis portrait, and also of inviting him to a public dinner, at which the presentation could be made. Jlr. George Reid, of Aberdeen, was the artist into whose hands the commission was placed, whose prior engagements, however prevented him from completing the painting until the end of the year, and acoordiugly, at a public banquet to which Mr. Hope was iuvitcd in April last, the chairman — Mr. A. Kin- loch, of Gilmerton — intimated that it was tlie intention ot the gentlemen of the conuty to present him witii ids portrait as soon as it was executed. A few weeks ago Mr- Rcid com- pleted the painting, and tlie subscribers accordingly met for tlie purpose of formally presenting it to Mr. Hope As the meeting took place immediately after the market had been held, there was a very large attendance of the farmers of the district. Mr. George Hauvey, Wbittingbame Mains, the chairman said : They had met to do honour to an agricultural friend, who for many a day was one of the most respected gentlemen in the county, and one who had added honour and dignity to the profession of farming. When he presided at the displen- ishing sale at Fentonbarns, — one of the largest and most un- precedented that had ever taken place in East Lothian — be said about all he had to say regarding Mr. Hope; and they would perhaps excuse him for not making another speech at this time. He would only, therefore, express the very great pleasure it gave him to be the instrument in conveying to Mr. Hope the presentation portrait which had been subscribed for by his friends and neighbours of the county. Mr. Hope was as well known te the most of them as he was to himself. He was glad to see such a most respectable body of the sub- scribers present, and he hoped they would consider the por- trait a faithful likeness, which would do credit alike to the artist and the gentlemen who bad selected the artist to exe- cute the work. The portrait having been unveiled, the chair- man said be thought it looked remarkably well, aud they might congratulate Mr. Hope upon the striking likeness which the artist bad succeeded in providing. He hoped Mr. Hope and his fmuily would be long spared to each other. He begged to propose "Long life, health, and happiness to Mr. Hope." The toast was cordially responded to. Mr. Hoi-E, who on rising to respond, was loudly applauded, said he could assure them that it was not a mere figure of speech when he said that he was at a loss for words adequately to express his great sense of their kindness. For a private person to receive a portrait of himself from bis friends aud neighbours was a very great honour indeed ; aud to be in that 86 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. position was very pleasiug to him at this time, when he was leaving East Lothian. His friends assured him that it was a very faithful likeness, and he had been informed by gentle- men well capable of judging that it was an excellent piece of art altogether. He should take it with him as a certificate of character from them, and it was known that such was coming, he believed it had had some influence in making his reception by his friends and neighbours in Peebleshire remarkably kind. He need not tell them how sorry he was to leave this county. He believed it was in human nature to cling to places and to associate places with persons ; and that was peculiarly the case with himself. He admired East- Lothian more than any other county in Scotland, and he liked the parish of Drem and Eentonbarns in particular. He should long retain a warm interest in this district. Notwithstanding this, he was daily acquiring a liking for his new home. It had, to be sure, a different soil and climate from East-Lothian, and wheat could not be grown there so thoroughly as it could here ; but they were to be engaged in rearing stock, which promised to pay tolerably well. After a rather cold and sunless summer tliey had a very fair harvest last season. It might not have been altogether up to the mark, but it was very much superior in- deed to the harvest of 1872, which was the worst in all his experience. He trusted there were better times in store for them as well as for others. If tenants did not thrive in East- Lothian, he did not know where they would. The labour question was generally considered to be a rock a-head, and that might be so to a certain extent ; but if adequately luet, he for one would not be at all frighted about it. A very great deal could yet be done in the way of farming ; but in the first place the tenants required to get greater freedom. He believed, if they had the privilege of cropping their laud pretty much as they might find it to be their interest to do so, it would be the better for both landlords and tenants. It re- quired a large amount of capital to farm well so as to make it pay at all ; and they must have security for their capital. He trusted they would speedily obtain that ; and if they did so, it would perhaps enable them to meet the increased rate of wageswhich they might be called up^onto pay. He was glad that his friend Mr. Harvey was in the chair on this occasion ; he had been a friend in need ; and such a one as they knew was a friend indeed. He begged again to thank them most kindly for such a valuable portrait ; and he could assure them it would be highly treasured by himself and his family. The CiiATRMAN then proposed the "Health of Mrs. Hope and Family," a toast which was cordially pledged. Mr. Peterkin Hope thanked them most sincerely for the kind manner in which they had remembered his mother on this occasion. The great kindness which had been shown to the family to-day vvould long be remembered by her and by them all. It was, perhaps, not for him to criticise the por- trait, but he could not help saying that Mr. Reid had not only given Ithera a faithful likeness, but it seemed as if he had taken his father's very soul out of his body and put it upon the canvas. Mr. Hope proposed the health of the artist, and Mr. Jas. Douglas, Athelstaneford New Mains, the health .of the Chairman. The cost of the portrait has been over £120. Along with it Mr. Hope receives a gift of silver plate, which was not, however, presented in public. We believe that upwards of £200 was subscribed towards the testimonial. REVIEW OF THE CATTLE TRADE DURING THE PAST MONTH. The feature of the month, so far as the cattle trade has been concerned, has beeu the holding of the Annual Cliristmas Market for the sale of fat stock. Considering the numerous advantages that graziers and breeders have en- joyed during tiie season, the show cannot be said to have exceeded anticipations, if indeed it came up to them ; never- theless, a full average supply of stock was exhibited, including some good useful animals, the receipts from Scotland being especially fine in quality and condition. In the general course of the trade nothing of interest has transpired. Busi- ness has not been brisk, but a fair amount of steadiness has prevailed, and prices have been maintained. Eor the best Scots and crosses 6s. 8d. per 8 lbs. has been the extreme quotation, Gs. 'td. to 6s. 6d. being the general top quotation. Tiie receipts of foreign stock, now that the Tonning season is closed, have been extremely small, and have been confined to a few arrivals from Spain and Holland, which although they have not attracted active competition, have been disposed of at full prices. Ireland has contributed a rather large supply, but a considerable proportion has consisted of old cov^'s. From onr own grazing districts a moderate supply has come to hand, but the general condition can hardly be said to have come up to the average. This is a matter of some surprise as the abundant hay crop, the plentiful supply of grass in the pastures, and the large yield of roots have been of great benefit to the breeder and grazier in rearing and fattening liis stock. The sheep market has been only moderately supplied. The show of choice home breeds has been limited, but the condition of the Downs has been very good. Form abroad a fair number of German animals has come to hand. The trade has not been active, but it has been tolerably steady, and the best Downs and Half-breds have occasionally made 7s., the general top quotations being 63, 8d, to 6s, lOd, per 81bs, Calves, of which a moderate supply has been on offer, have changed hands to a fair extent, but prices have been irregular. The pig trade has been dull, and prices have been without change of importance. The following table shows the imports of cattle into London during December, 1872 and 1873 : 1872. 1873. Beasts 2,24.8 2,590 Sheep 22,970 19,111 Calves 1,284 1,551 Pigs 175 1,405 The following table shows|the_arrival of beasts from our own grazing districts, as well as from Scotland and Ireland, during December : 1872 1873 Norfolk and Suffolk 1,800 800 Lincolnshi>-e, Leicestershire, and Northamptonshire 4-,100 7,5G0 Other parts of England 6,000 3,960 Scotland 1,700 1,441 Ireland 2,500 2,100 The annexed figures show the total supplies of stock ex- hibited and disposed of at the Metropolitan Cattle Market during the month; 1872. 1873. Beasts 24,185 22,340 Sheep 73,080 76,506 Calves 1,630 1,540 Pigs 530 885 Boasts have sold at 4s. 4d. to 6s. 8d., sheep at 4s. 8d. to 78., calves at 5s. to 6s. 4d., and pigs at 3s. lOd. to 5s. 4d. per Slbs. sinking the otfal. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 8? REVIEW OE THE CORN TRADE DURING THE PAST MONTH. After cousiderablc changes in the aspect and tempera- ture of the last month we are brought to the close of the year iiiuler very favourable circumstances. There were dense fogs for about a week, an^ a frost of 12 degress on the second week, but it soon gave place to very mild weather, which has continued, and the principal feature of the season has been the comparative absence of rain. To this humid country, where a strong soil predominates, this has been a great good. Vegetables have continued their growth, aud been plentiful. The potatoes have kept better than expected. The cattle have been saved from severe exposure in the meadows, which have helped to keep them. Wheat has been abundantly planted, and the earliest sown almost everywhere looks well, excepting some local damage by wireworm and slugs. In France, where the soil is lighter, the want of rain has been some- what complained of, as endangering the young plants in the event of severe frosts, as it would serve to settle them more firmly in the soil. In Germany the rain has been more abundant, but not excessive ; and in Hungary the prospects for the young corn have improved. It is of no small importance that we thus commence the season after a generally short yield of wheat ; for whatever stocks may be gathered it is pretty certain every bushel will be wanted. A good yield in 1 S7i is most desirable. The range of prices being high, with a short period of double discount from the want of gold for the Prussian coinage and the financial difficulties of the United States, there was little room for increase during the month which has come and gone, with only a steady consumptive trade, at the previous rates. But as these are early times yet, they are no test of the ability of foreign lands to make up the heavy deficiency in this country, which is everywhere acknowledged as not likely to prove less than 13,000,000 quarters in wheat and flour. As so much was actually provided for last season's wants, so let us hope that the same supply will not fail ns. Some expect 9,000,000 quarters from America alone, and should it come, the remaining four need not be a matter of uneasiness, espe- cially as we now find a change much for the better in Southern Australia, whence they hope to be able to send 600,000 quarters. This season we have had no inconsider- able supplies from India ; but with a probable famine in those vast regions, it will be vain to expect much corn, or even rice. But all the nations are the servants of Providence, aud while we would not take a crust from the famished Hindoo, let us hope that He who makes the corn to revive, so that every heart is filled with gladness, will remember how Israel was fed in Egypt, and satisfy the wants of every living thing. The following rates were recently paid at the several places noted : Best white wheat at Paris TOs., red 6Gs. ; white at Bordeaux 07s. ; white Spanish at Marseilles C9s. 6d. ; winter American at Havre 66s. 6d., spring 64s. 6d. AVhcat at Liege 66s., at Louvain 68s., Rostock wheat at Ilambro' 64s., fine high-mixed at Danzig 71s. c, f., and i. ; red at Berlin 57s., at Cologne 62s. Pine heavy wheat at Pesth 65s., at Valladolid 50s., Barletta at Naples 52s., at San Fran- cisco 67s. c, f., and i. ; at Adelaide 503. f. o. b. ; red spring at New York 53s. per 4801bs. The first Monday in Mark Lane opened on very small supplies of English wheat, but there was a heavy arrival of foreign, chiefly from America. The show of fresh samples on the Essex and Kentish stands was moderate, aud the condition generally poor. The samples that were really fine and dry went off pretty freely, at an improvement of Is. per qr., but there was no advance on inferior sorts, and only a dull sale. The heavy arrivals of foreign, how- ever, found the trade rather in favour of sellers; aud x\.merican spring sorts, notwithstanding their plentiful- ness, were quite Is. higher. With liberal arrivals oft" the coast, prices were also Is. dearer, and a ready sale. The London advance of Is. was followed in several places, as at Alford, Gainsborough, Louth, Leeds, Rotherham, Sheffield, &c. ; but in the majority of instances no change of value was noted, and Barnsley was rather lower, aud though Liverpool gained Id. to 3d. on Tuesday, 2d. was lost on the following Friday. Edinburgh and Leith were without change, but Glasgow improved Is. per qr. At Dublin home-grown wheat was dull, and foreign only firm. On the second Monday there was but a small supply of English wheat, but the foreign arrivals exceeded the abundance of the previous week, mostly from America aud Russia. The show of fresh samples from the near counties was limited, and again generally in bad condition. The driest lots about maintained the previous prices, but low sorts were cheaper to sell. The foreign trade, af- fected by the continued heavy arrivals, was generally dull, aud American sorts lost the advance of the previous week, but fine Australian were rather dearer, from a foreign inquiry. Cargoes afloat being also plentiful, there was less briskness in the sales at Is. decline. The wheat trade this week in the country was dull, St. Ives and a few other places noting a decline of Is. per qr., but an upward tendency was evinced in some localities. Liver- pool gave way 2d. per cental on Tuesday, and subse- quently recovered. At Edinburgh, Leith, aud Glasgow no change of value was noted. Irish wheat remained dull at Dublin, and foreign was very firm. On the third Monday there was the usual small supply of home-growth, with a great falling-oft" in the foreign arrivals — say to one-fifth of their previous magnitude. There having been a sharp frost, samples of English were much improved in condition, aud sold more readily at fuU prices, in some instances obtaining rather more money. But the foreign trade was more decidedly im- proved for all qualities, more especially red American spring, to the extent of Is. per qr. Floating cargoes also were improved as much. Business in the country this week was quiet from the near approach of the Christma s holidays ; but wheat, though a slow sale, was generally without any change, and in a few instances a rise of Is . took place. At Liverpool the former rates were main- tained on Tuesday, but on Friday prices were Is. per cental lower. At Edinburgh the wheat trade was dull, but firm at Leith, Glasgow being 6d. to Is. per qr. dearer. Dublin had but a small attendance, with a quiet trade, not only for wheat, but all kinds of grain. On the fourth ^londay there was a short English supply, but plenty of foreign, more than half being from New York. The show of fresh samples on the Essex and Kentish stands was limited, varying in condition. Such samples as were dry and fine were held at the pre- 88 THE FABMEH'S MAGAZIliTE. viou3 rates ; the others were extremely (litiicult lo clear off. The market, so near Christmas, being thinly at- tended, and of a holiday character, very little was done in foreign, but holders generally were firm in maintaining the prices of the previous week. The floating trade was dull, with prices rather easier. With a sudden change to very mild weather in the country, and the arrival of Christmas, the wheat trade was generelly quiet, but without reduction in prices. Liverpool was unaltered on Tuesdiiy. The Scotch markets were in calm. The price both of native and foreign when) at Dublin was fully maintained. On the fifth ^louday the supply of English was very scanty, and the foreign arrivals good. The number of fresh English samples exhibited was small, the condition still showing some variety. The best lots were slowly taken at the rates of the previous week. In foreign l)u o Pm P^ P^ el;?inm ; a mountain chain which cropped up in the county of Somerset, and again in the Ardennes, and was buried under our chalk formations. If ever we got coal in Suffolk, we should get it along that mountain chain, whose slopes were covered by our chalk for- mation. At Harwich this mountain chain had been struck Upon at a deph of 1,200 feet, formed of rocks, which had been found to be coal-bearing rocks. The formation of tliis •Strata was in a basin-shaped trough, containing the London clay, tiie depression of tlie basin extending from Suffolk to Kent, where it cropped out again in the Woolwich beds. London clay formed the lower heavy lands of Essex, and it gave to the marsh lands of that county tlieir character. It contained ingredients which made it a valuable top-dressing. By itself it was too close and tenacious, and it required lime and sand to make it more porous for general treatment. It was, undoubtedly, a marine deposit, and in some parts of Suffolk it formed the basis of tlie gravel of the valleys. At Bentley, near Ipswich, it was so near the surface that the dikes were cut into it, but it was generally left along tlie banks, when it might be made very valuable as a top-dressing. The London clay also cropped out at Brook's Hall brick-yard, near Ipswich, where there was a bed of it, in which could be seen innumerable remains of fossil plants, trees, and fruits, now changed into sulphite of iron, or iron pyrites. London clay was also fouud in the peninsula between the Orwell and the Stour. Here it was intersected with bands of cement stone ; carbonate of lime was the base of this. The origin of these bands of nodules was undoubtedly caused in the same way as the flint nodules in the chalk, by chemical segregation, or a running together when the mat,ter was in an oozy con- dition. The London clay, was in fact, when formed the bottom of a sea, and at the time it was formed the dry land in this part of the world was enjoying a tropical climate. Enormous fishes existed in the sea, and the sharks with teeth six inches long and four inches wide at the base, so that their mouths must have been eighteen feet round them. The London clay was exceedingly rich marine habitat. All sorts of shell fishes lived in the sea, and wiien they died the harder parts went into the mud, and the softer parts which were rich in phos- phorous, sulphur, and nitrogen were also deposited, and were now to b(i fouud in the coprolites which were so abundant in Suffolk. These represented the segregation of the organic matter of the creatures, who lived at the bottom of this ancient sea, just as the cement stoue nodules represented the segre[;ation of the carbonate of lime in their inorganic parts. Mr. Taylor also showed the composition of the red crag of Suffolk, and said that the red colour was due to the presence of the iron in the phosphatic nodules, which, when the sea bottom was raised became dry land, were subjected to the in- fluence of the atmosphere and the wear and tear of rivers. The red colour was in fact due to the chemical changes pro- duced by the action of the water and the atmosphere on the sulphite of iron. The surface of Loudon clay was covered with the remains of animals which were now extinct in England, such as elephants, lions, tigers, tapirs. On the flint nodules or boulders found here were barnacles on the upper side, which showed tiiat the sea in which they were deposited must have been a quiet one, and other signs showed that the conditions must have been similar to those of our shallow seas in the present day. The coraline was the oldest of the cragbeds, aud was so called because it contained over 60 different kinds of fossil corals. There were about 320 dif- ferent and distinct species of shells found in the coraline crag. The bed, originally deposited as a continuous sheet, was broken up by marine action, and in its re-disposition the shells were broken up, so that the crag in some places resembled bran, or the husk of Wheat, and in others, as at Aldeburgh, it was re-cemented, or run together in blocks, in which form it was used as building materials. The red crag came over the corraline crag, and there were evidences that the red crag sea was a turbulent one. Of the 324 species of shell found in the coraline crag less than one-third were found which were still living, but of the 250 species in the red crag more than half were living. This, he argued, showed a gradual drawing on the present condition of things. The existing specimens were also some of them in British seas and some of them still further North, showing that the climate was getting colder us the red crag was formed. Mr. Taylor then described the Norwich crag as a later formation, and gave examples of its being fouud near Aldeburgh and Leiston. In this there were iIO rpesiss of shell, many of which were living off the coast of Greenland, / and were also found in the Dogger Bank. A very small pro- portion of these shells were extinct. These facts proved that a colder climate was coming over this region ; and the crags were the connecting links between the warmer and tropical period of the London clay and the colder or arctic period which followed the crags. The formation of the Chillesford clay was also alluded to. It extended to Wroxharn, nine miles on the other side of Norwich. It was a very valuable clay for brick- making, and was worth more than a gold mine wherever it was found for brick-making. There were shells found in con- nection with the Chillesford clay, which cropped o\it in a stackyard close to Chillesford Chnrch,of the same kind as were now found in Arctic seas, showing that the climate was still colder when this clay was formed than it had been in any of the previous formations. Overlying this was the Weybourne crag, which had shells in it which were still to be found in the North seas, and one of fhem was called the Tdliiin Jln/fira from its being found in great abundance in the Baltic Sea. In fact, a geologist could tell the age of a deposit by the shells just as well as they could tell the trees of an orchard by look- ing at the fruit. The Chillesford clay would form a rich loam owing to the ready manner in which the atmosphere would act upon it. About Wroxharn there were some of the richest soils in Norfolk ; he believed this was simply due to the fact that 106 THE FAKMER'S MAGAZINE. this clay cropped out in the sides of the valleys over a large expanse of the country, and was washed down and reduced by the action of the rain and the atmosphere. Mr. Taylor next alluded to the liprht lands, such as were seen at Westletou Heath, and said that the pebble beds in the sands of the sub- soil there were, in some cases, 40 feet in thickness. These pebbles were small and well rounded, showing how each one must have been worn by the water. Each of these was once a fragment of rock, and as there must have been much waste material in the rounding process, where had that gone ? It had gone to form the basis of our light lands. There were no remains of shells in these pebble beds or their accompanying sands. The water found its way through tliese sands and pebbles so easily that the "iron pan" found at *^he bottom of them was caused by the action of the water, which so per- colated through the beds, carrying witli it whatever iron there was, and cementing the lower soils together with a sort of chemical action. The pebble beds were the foreshore of a sea, which retreated in a Northerly direction. They formed the hungry soils on which, perhaps, the only tree that could be grown with any profit vvas the Austrian pine. They might possibly be made to pay for growing rabbits, if rabbits sold at Loudon prices, 2s. 6d. each. These " pebble beds," as they were traced into Norfolk, were found to alter their character, until near Cromer they found them passing into a blue clay, in which were large boulders of rock. Enormous masses of rock, some of them 200 feet long, and t masse. In defiance of all law, the rabbits and hares are protected by individual agreement. Looking at it in that light, we are never safe. The administration of the Game-laws and the abuses arising therefrom is a great point for those who wish to see the law repealed, but I don't intend to enter into that part of the question ; but all gentlemen who are in the habit of attending the law-courts must know that the administration of the Game-laws has been the subject of tiie greatest animadversion. After some further observations of a general character, Mr. Harrison went on to say that history has always pointed out that the Game-laws were originally made for the benefit of a grasping and overweening aristocracy. I should like to ask at whose wish and for whose benefit are they kept up now ? Is it for the tenants ? I think not. Is it for the benefit of the public, who, instead of getting food by these laws, have their food lessened ? I say no Is it for the labourer ? The idea is preposterous. Then who are they kept up for ? I don't wish to use any hard words; but I will say this— they are kept up for the benefit of an overbearing aristocracy. These are hard words; but they are true. Some of you here present might, periiaps, be afraid to use the expressions that I have done, however much you may be convinced of their truth ; but I hold it to be our duty when we speak on such matters as these to declare the truth, and to declare it boldly and fearlessly. I am reminded of a noble earl, who has said, in referring to our aristocracy : Let trade, let commerce, arts, and science die, But give us still our old nobility. You would hardly believe that such words could have been uttered in the last century ; but tliey were uttered, and I be- lieve the man tliat produced them must have been a great ad- vocate of over-preservation of game. He ought to have lived in the good old times, before we farmers had degenerated so much as to dislike to be gobbled up, stock, lock, and barrel, as we sometimes are by game — The Chairman : Wouldn't it be better if you were to be a little more moderate ? Mr. Harrison : Of course I shall pursue any course that the chairman desires me to do, and I iiave no desire to use any immoderate expressions. 1 don't think I have done so. But to proceed. We are told that the agricultural interest is very strongly represented in Parliament. Well, upon most questions we are. But here in this Game-law question we have a subject on wiiich our interests and the interests of our landlords and representatives unfortunately clash. It would be a mockery to pretend that they do not do so, and I do not 130 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. believe we shall ever have this matter remedied till the agri- cultural interest is represented separately from the landed in- terest. What I mean is, that on this question the landed interest, meaning tlie landlords, is represented in Parliament ; but the agricultural interest, meaning the farmers, is not. I will now conclude my remarks, and, in doing so, I must beg the indulgence of our cluiirman if I have been a little too warm ; still, there is nothing like getting warm to your sub- ject, and I feel now as if I could speak for an hour. I am pleased to see so many farmers here, for I hear it said on all sides that the farmers can't have auy grievances, or they would take the trouble to make an effort to get them r -dressed. If the farmers won't come to the Chamber, and hear the rest of us make fools of ourselves, that is their own fault, and I can only deplore their apathy. Why, in a county like Surrey, this room is not crowded with farmers to-day, when such an im- portant matter, affecting so nearly their best interests, is under discussion, 1 am sure I am at a loss to imagine, unless it is that Surrey farmers are more forgiving than 1 am for one, for every farmer must at some time within the last twelve months have been just in the proper humour to come to the Chamber, and ventilate his grievances under the Game-laws. Mr. P. Arthur said he had much pleasure in seconding the resolution. He was sure that the farming community laboured under a serious grievance, and it was a grievance that ought not only to be remedied, but remedied at once. Mr. Napper expressed an opinion that the matter in hand was purely a landlord and tenant question, and he thought it might be met in a very simple way. The solution of the difficulty appeared to him to be to give instructions that in the premium lease the matter of game should be provided for. Tlie question was one, however, with which he was not imme- diately concerned, as he was neither landlord or tenant. Mr. John Ellis said: I think this question of the Game- laws is the most proper question to which the attention of this Chamber could be directed. I have very strong feelings on this subject, but in Ihe course of my remarks I shall en- deavour to guard against any expression of opinion which may be offensive to any person present, or any landowner in the county who may be absent. It is very much to be re- gretted (and I would hardly allow myself to explain ray own ideas of the cause) that there is not a larger attendance of landowners and tenant-farmers of the county here. I should have thought, and in fact I had hoped that all the landowners of this neighbourhood would have been present to-day, as f hey ought to have been. The question is one so momentous and so important, and one which so nearly concerns the welfare of the tenant, that the landowners would have shown their good sense, one and all, to have put in an appearance ; to have met the farmers face to face, and to have discussed the relationship that exists between tlie two classes in their several positions. I shall not allow myself to express myself too strongly on this occasion, but I will say that the Game-laws, existing in their prsent state, and inducing, as they do, an over-preservation of game in this county, and in many counties other than Surrey, are a blot upon our statute book and a disgrace, and one of the greatest curses of our country. I can't express myself more strongly, and this statement of mine, all farmers, if they had the courage to do so, could substan- tiate. No question has a nearer relation to us than this, except it may be the tenure of land. When we started this Chamber we considered the subject of the tenure of land somewhat at length, and we went into the question of unex- hausted improvements. I won't say that we have come to any definite conclusion on that subject, for although we have passed certain resolutions what has been the good ? What is the permanent, real, and substantial good that is likely to emanate from resolutions passed at this Chamber unless we call upon those gentlemen who represent us in Parliament, and ask them to take these measures and resolutions in hand, and submit them to the House of Commons, and to represent our interests in the House, All our meetings, unless we do that, will liave very little real effect. Of that I am positive, and I say again that I quite agree with the remarks of Mr. Harrison, that the agricultural interest in this county is an interest that has never been represented in the House of Commons, it has never been represented, nor is it likely to be, till we do as every other class of the community are doing, send men from our own class to represent our interests. It may be said that the aristocracy — and I have no desire to say the least word, of disparapjement of that uoble bodv— J say with all due respect, that the aristocracy do not, and cannot, and never have done, and never will represent to any great extent tlie interest of the tenant-farmers. It is not reasonable to expect them to do so, for if we, as farmers, went to Parli- ament, we should represent our own interests, and not the in- terests of other classes. But I will not enlarge further on this point. I start from this position — that the Game-laws, inducing as they do an over-preservation of game, are, as they stand, a blot upon our statute book, and ought to be repealed. We know why they are a disgrace, and we know to what a great extent the produce of the country is diminished in con- sequence of them. I see thousands and tens of thousands of acres that do not produce one-third of what they would do were it not for these iniquitous Game-laws. I have been a surveyor and valuer for 35 years, and how many instances have come under ray immediate observation of tenant-farmers and their families being ruined by trusting in their landlords, who promised they should never be injured by game ? I have many times seen families, industrious, hard working, honest, striving families so ruined. I declare that I do not overdraw the picture when I say that there have been many cases where the Game-laws and nothing else have caused men to become the occupants of lunatic asylums. Our chairman, as a magis- trate, knows of the convictions that are being daily recorded, not so much, however, in our county as in others. He knows how much these Game-laws help to fill our gaols and our workhouses ; no one knows better than he does that such is the case. Then there is another important point to be con- sidered, and that is the amazing cost of carrying out these laws. Having touched on this point Mr. Ellis went on to express an opinion that if the laws were not altogether re- pealed they ought to be re-arranged. After saying that they were often told that an agreement between the landlord and tenant should be sufficient, he proceeded to deal with that point. He said : I have known numbers of cases where men have made contracts that if any damage was done they should be remunerated and reimbursed. But what was the result ? I have been employed to adjudieate in these cases, sometimes on the part of the claimant and sometimes for the landlord, and I have never known anyone instance in my whole life in which I believed an adequate compensation was given to the tenant or anything approaching an adequate compensation. And the result is that a man sees his crops destroyed before his eyes — his corn and his roots, and is powerless to prevent it. If the corn crop is damaged, the evil does not rest vi'ith the mere destruction done to the crop. In the first place the grain falls short ; then there is no straw, and if we have no straw, where is our manure to come from ? and the result was to, not only impoverish the farmer, but to demoralise and pauperise the labouring classes. These lavvs demoralised the labouring classes because they very frequently offer the first inducement to crime, by which the number of occupants in our gaols and unions is greatly augmented. Gentlemen, we know that this is not an overdrawn picture that I have placed before you. These are aU matters of fact, and things that come under our daily notice. Suppose a man enters into an agreement with his landlord and let him enforce his claims vigorously, is there any peace for that man witli his landlord in future ? A friend of mine, and a very able man, has said on this subject, " I don't know what may be the hereafter of that man, but it is certain that if a man puts himself in a position of antagonism to his landlord, that man is tabooed." There is no peace for the future in his relationship with his landlord for the tenant on this side the grave. I am exceed- ingly pleased that this question has been brought forward, and I repeat my former expression of regret that the land- lords are not present in greater numbers. I should have thought they would have been willing and glad to have met their tenants, and discussed a question like the present witli them. I can assure you that till we have more Clare Sewell Heads in the House of Commons we shall never be really re- presented in that assembly. Our labouring men will very soon, indeed, send their representatives to Parliament, and good and clever men too. Tiiey are coming to tliat fast, while we are what I call napping and depending on a rotten stick. I feel very strongly on the question of the Game-laws, for I have seen as much of the evils which tiiey work as most men, and I hope that I have not expressed my feelings any further than is consistent with the facts and truth of the case, and I can say that I have endeavoured to speak ray views without any .stretch of the triitli whatever. There are meii THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. 131 who pretend to encourage agriculture, but are doing all they can to stay its progress by game and hedge row timber, but I hope they will not think I meant any of ray remarks to be offensive to them, i feel it right that we should in this Chamber express our feelings in a manly and straightforward manner, without fear, or favour, or regard to any ultimate personal results. With results of that kiud we have notliiug to do. We must do our duty to ourselves aud the class to which we belong, expressing ourselves honesty and strongly, and leave " results to take care of themselves." The speaker sat down amid loud applause. Mr. WiiiTEiiEAD (a member of the committee of the Anti- Game Law League) proceeded to lay a heavy indictment against the Game-laws. Among other tilings, he said they had the effect of making landowners selfish, and mentioned that a former Lord Derby and the Earl of Sefton opposed George Stephenson's railway from Liverpool to Manchester because it would interfere with their preserves. George Stephenson, that glorious engineer, was thereby compelled to take his railway across Cbat Moss, an undertaking declared to be impracticable by many eminent engineers at that time. Thus, lie said, the selfishness of these two lords, caused by the Game-laws, was very nearly knocking the railway scheme on the head, and preventing the innumerable advantages which had followed its adoption. He complained that the matter ■ had not been discussed more in the light of its effect on the food supply of the people, as he understood the Chamber was instituted for the benefit of the general public in this respect. Mr. W. Baker, affirmed, as one of the prime origi- nators of tlie Chamber, that its object was, iu the first place, to further the interests of landlord and tenant, the good of the community at large being merely a " collateral issue." He wished to deny Mr. Whitehead's statement that the Chamber was instituted for tlie good of the public, and he did this with some authority, as he was the first man to write to the local papers suggesting the formation of the Chamber. The primary and chief object of the Chamber was to promote a tetter feeling between landlord and tenant. Mr. Whitehead was understood to say that if that was so he would leave the association. He had thought that the Chamber was instituted for a nobler, a higher, a more gene- rous and patriotic object. After some further remarks had been made by Mr. Whitehead, wlio had come fully equipped with papers aud statistics, attention was called to the fact that the speaker had exceeded the allotted time of ten minutes, and considerable impatience was manifested by the Chamber. Mr. Whitehead concluded by moving an amendment to the efi'ect that a petition be presented to Parliament for the " entire abolition" of the Game-laws, aud that Lord Hatherley and Lord Raleigh be requested to take charge of the petition in the Upper House, and the lliglit Hon, John Bright and Mr. P. A. Taylor in the Lower. He then proceeded to read the petition which he proposed should be presented. The amendment found no seconder. Mr. Baker said they had had history quoted, and Mr. John Ellis had gone thoroughly into the question of repre- sentation in the House of Commons, but he (Mr. Baker) re- gretted that from a body of English farmers he had heard so little of evidence to the injurious effects of ground game [A Voice : " We have not had time yet"]. Two years ago he was requested to meet a friend in one of the western counties to look over a large farm which his friend had an idea of taking. His friend first showed him a field of eleven acres composed of thorougli good loamy soil, capable of growing something like four quarters of wheat or five of barley. He was informed, and it was a fact within his knowledge, that that field had not been cultivated for the last seven years. He asked the reason and the reply was " Sir, do you see you little covert P Well, that is so full of luires and rabbits that the last tenant never secured one sack au acre from this field." Another friend in a different county asked him to look over a farm under similar circumstances. He had a good landlord, but the damage done by tlie ground game was something tremendous, yet he had to submit. Mr. Salter said that if Mr. Baker thought it necessary to go iuto details, he could give him plenty of them. Mr. Wliite- head had touched upon one point with great efi'ect, and tliat was with regard to the food supply of the people. Mr. Jno. EUis had grappled with the subject most fearlessly, and the gentleman who had introduced tlie resolution did the same He (the speaker) had not gone iuto tlie question a.t all, becaus it was so complicated and mighty that he feared the Chamber would not deign to give him the time requsite for him to ex- press his views upon it. The question involved other points besides the arrangements between landlord and tenant — for instance, tlie augmentation or decrease of the food supply of the people, aud the moral influeuce which it had on the kingdom generally. The latter question was perhaps one of the most important at present existing in the kingdom. Their chairman, as chairman of a bench of magistrates, knew very well that although this was not a game-preserving county, yet two-thirds of the crime in county towns and villages might be traced to the Game-law^s. The crime emanating from the Game-laws was something fearful. It was not the mere conviction for offences against the Game-laws, but what they led to, for, if a man went out to get game, and did not get it, he would steal a sheep. A man went out to get game one night, and did not succeed, and so he stole one of his fat sheep, for which the man got six months ; but that did not compensate him (the speaker) for the loss of the sheep. After referring to the advocacy of Mr. Clare S. Read, the speaker proceeded to instance cases in support of the alleged ravages of ground game. He said he knew a farm which let for £400, and which had ruined more than one farmer who had taken it. If that farm were freed from ground game it would let for over £1,000, and a farmer would get an excellent living. He knew another farm which adjoined a farm which he used to occupy in Norfolk, and which also joined the farm of Mr. Clare Sewell Read, who was his next neighbour, which con- tained 300 acres of arable and 200 of pasture land. Tiie rent was £550 a-year, and the man had valued to him over £700 for damage done by game. The speaker mentioned one or two other instances, and went on to say that no one com- plained of pheasants and partridges ; but nothing on earth had caused so much bad feeling between landlord and tenant as the Game-laws. It was not done directly by the landlord ; there was a go-between in the shape of a gamekeeper. A Voice : You mean a promoted poacher. Mr. Salter : I don't know what they are before they are gamekeepers. Another Voice : I can assure you it is so. Mr. Salter asked how it was the railway interest and the iron interest got on. Why, they sent forty or fifty members to Parliament to look after their interests, and the farmers were, he said, great dolts that they don't do the same. He wished the tenant-farmers would all do as they had done in Norfolk, and send men like Mr. C. S. Read to Parliament. If they did so, they would soon hear of land tenure, and there would soon be au alteration. He asked, with Mr. John Ellis, why is the tenant-farmer not represented ? Their interests were not represented except by some half-dozen members — by one or two particularly, and the rest moderately. Unless they adopted some principal by which they could be represented, they had better leave off talking, and shut up shop. He denied that a proper agreement was sufficient, and condemned the Legislature for turning policemen into gamekeepers. He concluded by asking whether it was just that these policemen should be paid out of the rates to protect game, when game paid no rates at all. The Chairman, Mr. Chandler, who had succeeded Mr. Bradshaw, said the time was very sliort, but, as a landlord, he should like to say one or two things. He would venture to say one thing, which was that although they and he might differ, they would not respect him the less if he gave them his own iuiiii-jidc opinions very shortly. Now, he had said over and over again in his life, "Perish Game-laws, perish game, and perish every other thing that will make crime." But lie would say that with his experience at the bar and as a magis- trate, his view was that they would not get that diminution of crime which some people appeared to expect by the mere abolition of the Game-laws. He only wished he could think so. If he could he would, if he had his will, abolish tiiem to-morrow — he would abolish them that very day — because what were their amusements compared to the good of the public iu general ? A man must be a very bad man indeed who could place a mere amusement before the wellare of his fellow-creatures. He would abolish the Garae-laws to-day, and never shoot off a gun agaiu, if he thought that by so doing he could benefit his fellow-men. After some further remarks, the Chairman went on to argue that it' a man liked to keep a sparrow ou his ground, aud anyone took it away, lliat person was just as guilty of felony us if he took a 132 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. cUickeu. Was lie to uuderstaud that the word preservation iu tlie resolution meaot over-preservatiou P Mr. Salteii explained that the resolution did not go in for the abolition of ujame. Tenant-farmers did not want that, for they like sport as well as anybody. The Chairman proceeded to say that liowever they might differ on some points, there could be no difference on the justice of landlords giving their tenants a reasonable pro- tection against game. A Voice : They don't, sir. The Chairman hoped he always gave his tenants an agree- ment that afforded them that reasonable protection ; at any rate, for twenty years he liad never received a complaint. He should be very glad if he could do any thing that would assist in doing away with the feeliug that these laws were made solely to ensure the amusement ot the rich, and to inculcate a feeling tliat the law was made equally for the small as for the great. The resolution, with a little alteration, would suit his views. Mr. Salter had said that if a man could not get game he would take a sheep. Well, if they did away with phea- sants, what would they do then ? Mr. Salteii : You must not argue on false premises. We don't want to do away with pheasants. The Chairman continued that, of course, he was under a diihculty, as he was not present at the earlier part of the pro- ceedings. He remarked that he was told outside that some liard things had been said about the landlords, and he replied, " That is the very reason I should go in directly, and if any of these hard things are true, I'll endeavour to amend them." Mr. Carter said some gentleman had mentioned that phea- sants were not injurious. He denied this statement, and men- tioned the case of a man who farmed his own land who had suffered great loss from pheasauts. Mr. Haumswortii, in the course of a brief speech, con- tended that the principal object of the Game-laws was to pro- vide sport for the aristocracy. Mr. John Ellis suggested to Mr. Harrison that the first clause in the resolution would be sufficient. Mr. Harrison consulted his seconder, after which he said he should prefer the resolution being put in its entirety. The resolution Was then put and carried with only one dissentient. THE DUTIES OF GUARDIANS. The tinrd central conference of chairmen and vice-chairmen of boards of guardians from the various counties in England and Wales was held at the rooms of tlie Social Science Asso- ciation, Adam-street, Adelphi, to discuss subjects connected with the administration of relief generally, either by way of poor law or charity, and the public health in connection therewith. Mr. Dickenson, M.P., was in the chair. The first subject discussed was opened by Mr. T. B. Baker, " On the Systematisation and Circulation of the Keports of Con- ferences," and was spoken to by Mr. W. Portal, of Hampshire ; Mr. Bosanquet, of the Charity Orgauisa*)ion Society ; Mr. Plowden, of Coventry ; Sir Charles Trevelyan, and others ; and an opinion was expressed that inasmuch as any special preparation of reports would be expensive, it would be ad- visable to leave tlie ventilation of analyses of such reports to reporters of local government boards. Mr. Storr suggested the formation of a committee to consider the subject. Sir Baldwin Leighton then read the following paper upon the duties of Guardians in relation to the Public Health Act : The paper which I have been requested to prepare for this meeting is the result of my own experience as chairman of the Rural Sanitary District of the Atcham Union. Eor any one practically in contact with the question the better way to consider it would be under such heads as the following ; but I should repeat that it is from the experience of a rural not an urban district that these deductions are drawn : 1. Drains. 2. Water supply. 3. Structures. 4. Infection and epidemic. 5. The existance of aggravated nuisances injurious to health. 6. General practical suggestions. 1. Brains in rural districts, and more especially for the poorer class of houses (because I take for granted that at the better sort of tenements some arrangement suggested, perhaps, by the inspector, would be acted upon by the tenant or landlord). It appears to me very questionable how far a sani- tary authority sliould recommend closed drains for detached cot- tages, and my own opinion is against them. There will be cases, isolated cases, in whicii there is no garden or ground attached to the house, where some short drain is almost necessary ; but the proper application of all house refuse is to the soil or the ash-pit, and the sooner it gets there without going through a drain the better. If you put it into a drain you only bottle up your enemy against future evil, for it must go somewhere, and probably becomes a nuisance. As to making sewers, that is closed drains, for carrying off all refuse without high-pressure water-service, that seems to me most unadvisahle and dangerous, and there is always some risk of any closed drain you put becoming a filthy sewer. If a drain has to be made it should be so constructed as never to hold stagnant water or refuse near a house, and it should, in my opinion, be open. The cases would be rare vrhere in rural districts the sanitary authority would be called upon to undertake drainage works. It appears to me, further, that the sanitary authority in recommending drainage to be applied to houses must undertake the full responsibility of such recommendation, and see by their inspector that the work is properly done, or else warn the persons concerned that it is not sufficient. It has been urged that the Local Government Board will hold the sanitary committee respon- sible if they neglect to have these drains made, espeeially when recommended by the health officers ; but will the Lucal Government Board take the responsibility of what may arise from closed drains neglected,]or even not neglected ? I, for one would not. There are cases of blocks of cottages, not supplied with gardens and abutting on a road, which partake of the character of urban tenements, and yet have no supply of water from a main. In these cases I should recommend an open gutter down the road-side with a good supply of water from a pump, or otherwise, to keep it flushed, and the pump might be placed at the head of the gutter where practicable. 2. Wafer Supply. — This is a diflicult question in rural dis- tricts, and one requiring caution and knowledge. Sometimes, especially iu detached cottages, the expense of sinking wells and pumps might be too great to advise ; and then something may be done, as in parts of Berkshire, by storing the water of the roof in cemented tanks, or catching it in waterbutts and filtering it, as is often done. It would be impossible to lay down an arbitrery rule as to what constitutes a sufficient water supply in isolated habitations, but when three or more cottages are together, some arrangement ought to be made. It would be almost impossible, except in very aggravated cases, for the sanitary committee to set about sinking pumps in a village and charging it on the rates ; the expense of the legal machinery would probably amount to 50 or 100 per cent, of the cost. The necessity of water, however, in a sanitary point of view, cannot be too much impressed upon all, and it is possible, in the event of illness or epidemic, that the want of water and consequent Wbut of cleanliness might be a cala- mity. At the same time those who urge very drastic or sudden measures are not aware of all the conditions or circum- stances of a rural population. I am inclined to believe in persuasion doing a good deal in this way gradually. As re- gards the purity of water, a very important point, the great infectant seems to be animal matter. If pigs, for instance, were fed on flesh, as they sometimes are, and any refuse from the styes percolated to the water supply, it might be found to infect it ; but if they only fed on vegetable matter, it might not be so injurious. I believe at least that that is the sura of the scientific opinion on the subject, though, of course, 1 speak on that point with all deference. Regarding pigs, a question arose in our district as to the keeping of them near the roadside ; and although the Act seems to give the power to the sanitary authority to prevent such an arrangement, it was thought by the committee that the power should not be THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 13J used except in cases where they were very offensive. That great sanitary reformer, Moses, certainly did prohibit the keeping of pigs to the Jews, but it is well understood now that it was on account of the Eastern climate which made them, if kept in an ordinary way, injurious to health. 3. Siructures, that is to say buildings, either from their want of space or from their dilapidation, unfit for human habitation. It is of course well-known by any one conver- sant with the Act that th^ Sanitary Committee have no power to close any house, much less to touch a single brick of it ; they can only apply to the Court of Petty Sessions of the Hundred to close it, or to put a penalty on the non-execution of repairs. These considerations should influence the Sanitary Authority perhaps in making application or taking this legal step. 1. Is the building capable of being made fit for human liabitation ? There are cases of squatters' huts standing on tlieir own ground, with no garden or surrounding, which are manifestly incapable of improvement. 3. Are young children being brought up in them, or are they merely inhabited by ased persons who have become accustomed, almost attached to the tenement ? The first case is obviously far more urgent tiian the last, and there are instances where the tenement should, perhaps, be left during the occupancy of present tenants or an understanding that they are to be pulled down afterwards ; that is, in cases where improvement seems out of the question, or the site undesirable. 3. Is the occupation a nuisance to the neighbourhood ? or is there fear of an epidemic fastening on such habitation ? If so, action should be taken by the Sanitary Committee. This matter is not, however, by any means free from difficulties, as wholesale evictions are quite out of the question ; and it will be found, as in other cases, that some private or personal representation to landlords may effect more than any direct action of the Committee. For this reason it is desirable that the chair- man should have some personal influence in the district. In all these cases, namely, of necessity for drainage, a water supply, or habitations unfit for human habitation, il is most (lesirnble, he/ore any steps ore taken, that the chairman or some capable member of the Sanitary Committee shoidd visit personally the locality. It is in my experience impossible to form a judyment xvithout doing so. 4. Infection or Epidemic. — Here it is desirable that the Sanitary Committee should take immediate and energetic action to prevent the spread of it ; and, in such cases, the re- moval of nuisances, which might in ordinary times be more easily overlooked, siiould be peremptorily enforced with all the powers of the Act. 5. The existence of a Nuisance injurious to Health. — That is, some clironic cause of illness, as a filthy, stagnant pool or ditch close to habitations : the Sanitary Committee should take immediate steps for its removal. It will generally be found that by making private representations to those con- cerned, more may be done than by any legal proceedings. 6. To sum up generally, it will be found desirable, whenever legal action has to be taken by the Sanitary Committee, that the greatest moderation and consideration should be shown, because persuasion will be of more avail than compulsion in most cases, and it is desirable to have the inhabitants as allies, not as recalcitrants ; also, the Sanitary Committee, as represen- tative of the ratepayers, is perhaps not justified in adminis- tering any harsh or severe policy, except in extreme cases, where life is really in danger. The act appears to me a good and practical one, but not sufficiently compendious to be understood by any ordinary guardian, who cannot devote himself to the study of it. It might be amended, I think, by giving power to the Local Government Board to charge im- provements on the smallest possible area, namely, the houses henefded, tjy the improvement , as private improvements now are in boroughs. I think it would thus be more workable, and the parish rates might be still given as collateral security. Tlie science of the subject seems, if even understood by professional mind, to be still far above popular capacity ; and a great deal may be done quietly by the inspector and the medical officer, as well as by the chairman and members of the committee, in gradually educating the people up to sound economic views as to health and life. Mr. Baker congratulated Sir Baldwin Leighton on having followed the footseps of his father in identifying himself with sanitary reform in the rural districts. In the discussion which followed the difficulty of working the recent Act of Par- liament was dwelt upon. Modified opinion prevailed that earth closets were desirable in rural districts. A vote of thanks was passed to Sir Baldwin Leighton for his paper. The other subjects entered for discussion embraced " The Best Means by which Guardians can Utilise Voluntary Efforts," and " Con- tagious Ophthalmia, as Influenced by the Arrangements of Workhouses and Pauper Schools." A vote of thanks was accorded to Dr. Carter for his paper. The reading of Colonel Gardener's paper, on the subject " How the guardians can best utilise voluntary efforts," was posponed, and the meeting broke up, IXWORTH FARMER S' SEED CORN. CLUB. At the last meeting, Mr. Mansfield in the chair, Mr. GoLUSJiiTii, of the firm of Goldsmith Brothers, read the following paper : The subject which I have the honour of introducing this eve- ning is no new one, recurring as it does with the seasons ; but I think you will agree with me that it is a most important one, and one which has hitherto not had that attention paid to it which it deserves. Fortunes have been spent in improving the breed of horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs ; much labour has been devoted to the selection of your stocks of roots, but hitherto the breeding and selection of seed corn has been treaded as a matter of minor importance. When we consider that rents increase, the cost of labour increases, but the acres unfortunately do not, and that harvest conies but once a-year, it certainly appears important that when it does come, it should bring wilii it the best possible crops that the energy, the forethought, and the experience of the farmer can pro- duce. The old adag(! is that " a bad iiorse costs as much to keep as a good one ;" I may add that a bad crop costs as much as a good one. The improvement of our cereals is a subject which has been studied by many intelligent men, and they have started theories of their own, and attained results very various, and far too elaborafe to be more than glanced at in a paper like the present ; but all appear to agree on one point, viz., that our cereals are but the developed species of an iti- ferior race of grasses, which by cultivation and selection have gradually attained the perfection in which we find them ; and this has induced them to try how far further the development may be carried, and results have been obtained which leave no doubt ill our minds that much has yet to be discovered. Perhaps the most successful of the experimentalists is Major Hallett. I will therefore give you a general outline of the results of his experiments extending over twenty years. They are as follows : 1. Every fully-developed plant, whether of wheat, oats, or barley, presents an ear superior in productive power to auy of the rest on that plant. 2. Every such plant contains one grain which upon trial proves more productive than any other. 3. The best grain in a given plant is found in its best ear. 4. The superior vigour of this grain is transmissible in different degrees to its progeny. 5. By repeated careful selection the superiorty is accumulated. G. The improvement is first rapid, is gradually after a long series of years diminished in amount, and eventually so far arrested, that, practically speaking, a limit to i«ipiovement is reached. 7. 15y still con- tinuing to select, the improvement is maintained, and, practi- cally, a fixed type is the result. He says that throughout his experiment he has found only three instances recorded in which there were two ears on a plant containing an equal number of grains. In every other case where the plant pre- sented an ear containing GO grains and upwards, the next best ear was of less contents than the finest one. The superior power of one grain over another may consist in a greater num- ber of ears upon the plant it produces, or in their individually containing a greater number of grains, hut the latter is tlie 134 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. more sure indication of productive power. One ear also pos- sesses superiority over tlie others in respect of the quality of the "-rain producfd. The grains also ia the same ear differ in other qualities — such as stiffness of straw, power to resist dis- ease, power to resist cold, &c. His system of " Pedigree" has, as you are aware, been conducted on the principal that a plant cannot be fully developed unless it has sufficient space allowed it both above ground and under ground, and that whatever quantity of seed we sow per acre from one peck to four bushels, we can only obtain a given number (about one million), per- fect ears per acre, and as the number of ears cannot be in- creased, the only thing practicable is to increase the contents of the ear, and this he states that he has effected by his system of selection, by means of which he has doubled the contents of the original ears witli which he started. The grains should be planted singly and the space allowed must de- pend upon the time at which it is sown as the larger the space it has to fill, the longer time it will require to perform it, or, in other words, the later you sow the more thickly you must sow, and that if you plant one, two, or three grains in a hole, you will get a larger return from the one grain than from the three. Now, gentlemen, you must take Major Hallett's system for what it is worth ; I know many practical farmers ridicule the idea of such thin seeding as he advocates, and certainly where ground game abounds it does appear to be running a risk ; on the other hand, he gives you certain results, and facts are stubborn things. For myself, I certainly must think that if no other benefits result the system of pedigree is one most likely to secure you a true stock, and that appears particularly desirable in the case of barleys, where so much depends on their ripening together, and producing, as far as possible, an uniformity of colour and condition ; but if, as Major Hallett states, the length of the ear, and conse- quently the yield, can be so much increased, surely the sooner the system of pedigree becomes more generally practised the better ; at least let it have a fair trial before it is condemned. Before leaving this part of the subject I will give you one in- stance of the many prejudices against which he has had to con- tend. Some years ago, a gentleman about to purchase some of the original pedigiee wheat, asked the steward of an agricultural baronet if he had tried it. " Yes ; but the millers don't like it." " What sort of a crop did you get ?" Steward : " Oh, it yielded very well, we had niue quarters to the acre." In doubt his hearer remarked, " You mean nine sacks?" "No, we had 27 quarters on three acres." " Really ! but that was pretty well, wasn't it?" Steward: "Ah! but the millers don't like it." " What did you do with it then ? " " Oh, we sold it to a miller at 43s. per qr." (best red wheat worth 4ts. that year). " £19 7s. per acre, with wheat at 44s. per qr., pretty well, too, eh?" Steward: "Ah, but the millers don't like it." We now come to the choice or selection of seed corn, suitable to jour soil and climate, and it would appear that a very g>-eat deal depends on this. It has been proved that the finer varieties of wheats can only be grown snccessfully on warm and good land, and that in cold clay soils, and exposed situations, the coarser sorts of red wheats are better adapted. Again, steary oats, on poor, cold soils, will degenerate, and if their growtli be persisted in, your land will eventually be found full of the wild oat, from which our cultivated oats originally sprang, and which, from its early ripening and shedding its seed, is a most troublesome enemy to get rid of. Some soils are so well adapted to the growth of barleys of fine malting quality, that no expense should be spared in obtaining the finest varieties in cultivation, while other soils are so unsuited that it becomes a question it barley should be grown at all, and if it be, the farmer should give up all idea of growing barley suitable for malting, and should select some such variety as the common here winter barley, which, although very in- ferior in quality, w-ill produce a very large return in quanty, with a fair weight per bushel. Wliatever be the soil or situation, no one sliould be better able to judge of its require- ments than the man who farms it ; it is, therefore, sometimes a great mistake to recommend your friend a particular variety of seed, because you have found it answer extremely well in your own case, and it may happen tliat his soil and situation are essentially different from your own ; again, it appears to be a mistake when you have found a variety which you be- lieve will answer your requirements, to go largely into its growth until you have tested its merits, or should the season be exceptionally wet or dry, to give it up without another trial. Fashion, evidently, reigns as supreme with the farmer as it does with the milliners. As an instance, if Mr. Smith grows Rivett's, and has a good crop, Mr. Brown follows suit, the next season Messrs^ Jones and Robinson follow, until you find every one growing Rivett's. Five years pass away, and not one of the above-named individuals grows an acre of Rivett's. How is this to be accounted for ? It should be the aim to get as large a money return per acre as possible. Nine times out of ten quantity beats quality ; but, in some districts, the farmer can produce as much of the finer varieties of wheat as he can of the coarser. In the neighbourhood of Guildford, for instance, I doubt if the farmers would sow Browick if you gave it them. Their finest wheats are worth 36s. per coomb in the market at the present time, and they would teU you, that on an average of years, they can grow as much fine wheat as coarse. I now come to " change of seed," and, firstly, let us consider the probable extra outlay, because many of our friends make this a great consideration. Now, assuming that your seed corn costs you 4s. per coomb above the value to the miller or maltster, we find that on Per coomb. Extra cost per acre. Wheat at 30s, Barley at 20s Oats at 12s... 2s. 6d. 3s. Od. 3s. Od. Extra quantity which must be grown. Ij pecks. 2| pecks. 1 bushel. — I thiuk you will admit that the above is a very liberal estimate, and that corn could be brought some distance, and a liberal profit allowed to the merchant for an extra outlay of 4s. per coomb. I think I have shown that the extra outlay is not such a very formidable affair after all. Corn grown on a poor soil, and brought to a still poorer one, will degenerate in quality, and it has been generally admitted that it is desirable to procure your change of seed from land colder and poorer than your own, so as, if possible, to improve its position rather than the reverse. Much advantage has been derived by procuring corn from poor thin chalks, vvhere it has, no doubt, acquired a strength of character and a power of resist- ance, which when it is placed under more favourable circum- stances, enable it to take advantage of its improved position. Thin and second-rate seed corn appear to be a mistake. If we breed cattle, we select healthy and well-bred parents, and why should we make a difference with our corn ? If we desire a healthy and vigorous growth, which shall the better resist the effects of an unfavourable season, or other adverse circumstances to which it may be exposed, we must select fully matured and developed grain ; for, as in nature, " like pro- duces like," if we sow goqA. seed, we may the more surely expect good results. I have, on more than one occasion, observed that some farmer, visiting a friend, say, in the North of England, has been induced by him to try a particular variety of grain in his own county, the result is so satisfactory, that he, in turn, persuades his 'neighbours to try it. Five years pass away, and one of them having lost his stock applies to the original introducer. " Oh ! " says he, " I have given up growing it ; I found it did not answer." Now, how does this occur ? I argue that it was the change of seed at first gave such satisfactory results, and after that had died out he found that the variety itself was no better adapted to his requirements than others he had grown previously. Change of climate also has its beneficial effect in change of seed, and this is particularly borne out by the very large quantity of barley and oats annually brought from Scotland, especially for seed, and also the great demand for seed wheats wiiich reaches us from France. On the other hand, in moving seed from a warmer climate to a colder, an adverse effect is experienced, which is, however, gradually overcome by ac- climatisation, and this is especially shown,in the ease of foreign red clovers aud sainfoins, although foreign Italian ryegrass appears to be an exception to this rule. I should be glad if some gentleman would account later on for the almost entire giving up of alsike in this country, where a few years ago it was so popular and commanded so high a price ; is it another instance of that fashion which rules us all, or how do you account for its disappearance ? Hybridisation has been suc- cessfully practised by artificial means and with good results. In 1851 Mr. H. Raynbird obtained the prize medal at the International Exhibition forahybrid wheat which he obtained in this way, and which for some time was a great favourite with both farmers and millers ; the latter are very partial to a good THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 135 sample of red and white wheat grown together, and it is a ques- tion whether'_the good qualities possessed by such a sample are not in a measure brought about by natural hybridisation|during theblooming season,|by which the good qualities of two distinct varities of wheat become blended. With regard to judicious feeding, as much care should be gi^'cn as in the grazing of stock. The corn crop requires different kinds of food to sus- tain it and bring it to maturity. It is useless to buy a high- priced horse and then starve him, and I cannot help thinking that this subject (although perhaps not coming under the head of " seed corn " ) is also deserving of more attention than it has hitherto received. Certain cliemicals, snch as nitrate of soda, produce straw, but it is not always found that a heavy crop of straw necessarily means a heavy crop of corn, and I doubt if any manure has been positively found to assist the plant at the proper time in producing corn. Major Hallett would no doubt tell us that we don't get corn on our straw because we crowd it and do not give the plant room to per- form its fuuctions. In conclusion, great results, whether in farming or any other business, are only to be obtained by much care and forethought, many experiments and many failures, and I should suggest that the most practical way of arriving at a sound conclusion would be not merely by atten- ding at such meetings as the present, hearing various theories advanced, and taking no trouble to ascertain if there be any truth in them; but let each and every one here present go home and commence some few experiments himself. You can most of you fiud some suitable place as a trial ground, and if you arrive at no satisfactory results you will at least have found amusement ; and if, ou the other hand, you should make some grand discovery, I am sure we shall be all pleased to hear of it at some future meeting of the Ixworth Farmers' Club. And I will venture further to suggest that if any gentleman will make it his business to start as a grower of seed corn, and will secure the best cereals in cultivation, taking care that nothing is allowed to interfere with the purity of each stock, that he will be conferring a boon on his fellow farmers wliich will be so far appreciated by them as to render the undertaking sufliciently remunerative for his time and trouble. Mr. Goldsmith added an expression of his opinion that some corn was cut much too green, saying it did not measure nearly so well as if it was allowed to stand a longer period. Mr. J. Booty had not tried many experiments, and he had not been very successful with the few that he had attempted. He rather inclined of late to the view that change cf seed was desirable, and he thought it preferable to obtain seed from tlie North rather than from the South. As to thin sowing, he approved of what had been said on that subject, and he had himself grown more from a bushel per acre than he had from two or three bushels — in fact, he grew the largest crop of red wheat he ever had iu that way. He had always found that his land was too heavily seeded with ten pecks per acre, and consequently he had had a great deal of smallcorn. His experience in reference to barley was that in sowing it year after year the quality was not so good, and he had been told that he had some excellent barley land, but he did not get so much by 2s. or 3s. a coom as some of his neighbours. The Chairman : Have you changed your seed ? Mr. Booty : No. I grew what is called " The Miller's Delight," but I find that now they don't delight in it all. It is my intention to chauRe the seed, and if Mr. Goldsmith will get me some from the North I will try it. The Chairman : Have you ever grown alsike, Mr. Booty ? Mr. Booty : I attempted it twice, but failed. Mr. W. Matthew's man has grown it very successfully. Mr. T. GoLDSJiiTu, alluding to the question of putting the seed singly into tlie ground, said when he first commenced farming he used to dibble every acre of wheat. He had eight pairs of dibbles, but it was impossible to get it done now. Mr. Eaton GoLDSMmr said Major Hallett had little cups which would hold one seed and no more. The CiiAiRJiAN : If you had the opportunity of dibbling your wheat would you do it now ? Mr. T. GoLDsjiiTii : Certainly, every acre ; but you cannot get it done. We liave now got into a different system. There is not the population, or if there is they do not care to do the work- You could get the dibblcrs, perhaps, but not the droppers. Mr. A. C. WooDARU : Rather an argument against the Education Act. The Chairman : Why would you dibble ? Because you would use less seed per acre ? Mr. T. Goldsmith : I used to grow better crops and better corn. The seed was put in singly, as near as possible. You could not get the droppers always to put one seed, but you could get it done far nearer than you can now willi the drill. Mr. G. Goldsmith, in answer to the Chairman, said he would not return to the dibbling system again if he could. Mr. J. Booty remarked that there were now excellent implements for pressing the land down. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith pointed out that farmers did not allow their turnips to grow in bunches, and surely it was not right to" plant more than one seed at a time. Mr. J. Booty -. I like to see my wheat look bunchy in the spring, otherwise I do not get a good crop. The turnip is different to the wheat, and merely runs up. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith pointed out that the wheat plant must liave a certain extent of ground to get its food frora- Major Hallett said that as the plant developed above ground so it developed under ground — when it sent up a shoot there was a root to correspond. Mr. G. Goldsmith observed that there was a great difference in soils. On some soils if the seed was planted very thin the wheat grew luxuriantly, tumbled down, and never came to maturity, but in other soils it would branch out and do better. Mr. Gates said he thought all farmers would be ready to admit that a change of seed was beneficial. When he first went to Feltwell, Norfolk, he found that there had not been a change of seed for years. He took some seed off another farm, and he could grow much more barley and better quality than his neighbours. The consequence was that everyone wanted his seed. He stated this to show that a change of seed was all that the land required. He thought the long ears referred to in connection with Major Hallett's system was probably produced by thin seeding. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith : That is his system, but then he speaks of results per acre, which cannot be disproved. Mr. Gates said frequently with only half a plant the ears were long, whether the seed had been good or indifferent. If it was thinned with the vi-ire-worm or other means, the ears were generally large. People had, in fact, grown great crops from dross corn. One thing he had noticed about a thin plant was that on the land he formerly farmed, which was liigh land and good land, it was more subject to mildew than a good plant. He rather doubted whether it was wise to carry out thin seeding to the extent Major Hallett recommended ; but, on the other hand, lie thought it was planted a great deal too thick as a rule. Mr. W^oodard said it had been contended that wheat planted very thick would, after a time, turu to the grass from, which it was originally derived. He had noticed that at those spots wliere the drills became unblocked, and wliere, conse- quently, a great deal of seed was allowed to drop into the earth, there was a large amount of a sort of grass and but few ears. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith : Rather a strong argument in favour of Major Hallett's system. Tiio Chairman said he had received a letter from the President (Mr. Green), in which he spoke of the subject dis- cussed this evening as a very important one, and added that, with high farming, the only way the crops could be increased was by having grain which would produce fine kernels with more of them in each ear. He (Mr. Manfield) thought there was no one but would agree with that remark, but the diffi- culty was to know how tliey were to produce this kind of corn. Thoy were much indebted to Mr. Eaton Goldsmith for having introduced the subject this evening. It was an important subject, and he (Mr. Manfield) could not help thinking that from the seed they sowed depended very much the character of the crop they obtained. They ought undoubtedly to sow the very best seed they could obtain, and money was well spent in procuring seed of that kind. Major Hallett's system had doubtless very much to recommend it ; but he (the chairman) did not think it would do for all to sow the very small quan- tity that Major Hallett did. He (Mr. Manfield) believed he grew as much if not more corn from thiu sowing as he did 156 THE FAllMER'S MAGAZTNIl. from thick sowing, if the plant from the thin sowing was a Rood one. He well remembered planting some barley. He put on only a bushel to the acre, because he had planted the laud with lucerne, but he got quite as much barley as he did when he used 10 pecks. As to the remark that i'arraers paid as much attention to the fashion as the milliners did, he had himself noticed that if a certain plant was grown by one far- mer, others would copy it, uutil it gradually died out for the time being. He thought it a bad plan to follow the fashion, it being better not to imitate their neighbours to a very great extent. With reference to alsike, it had, as had been re- marked, gone out of fashion, but why he could not exactly understand, seeing that it was admitted to be a very remunera- tive crop. There was one matter which was well worth knowing, and tliat was, the comparatively few ears that came to perfection. It had been estimated at one in ten. If that were so, it became farmers to economise their seed. If only one spikelet out of ten came to perfection, there was no doubt but that as a general rule the seed was planted much too thick. They might not like the look of their plant so well in the spring, but it seemed from experience that it would do <|uite as well. He would ask if there was no kind of manure that would assist in producing more corn. He believed nitrate of soda was verygiiseful. Mr. Eaton Gq^smitii said Mr. Lawes had contended that nitrate of soda acted more as a stimulant than anything else. The Chairman : It has the effect of making the plant look well. Mr. T. GoLDSJilTH : But when there is a sharp frost, how then ? The CiiAiRJiAN continued : No doubt one argument against a thin crop was, that it was more liable to mildew. As for the growth of seed-corn, it would hardly pay so well as breed- ing pedigree Shorthorns, seeing that there would not be the extraordinary prices which were sometimes realised for Short- horns. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith : You would not make such an extraordinary outlay. My belief is that it would be found of comparatively more benefit than breeding Shorthorns. The Chairman continued : As to cutting tlie corn green, it seemed to him to be the choice between two evils. If it was cut early, no doubt there was a loss in the measure, but, on the other hand, if cut late^^a good deal of it was left on the laud, and the question was, which plan was preferable. In conclusion, the Chairman intimated tiiat Mr. Goldsmith was ready to answer any question that might be put to him. There was no man who had had more experience of the difficulties of farmers than he had, as he had been connected with a great seed farm for many years. A desultory conversation followed, in the course of which reference was made to the necessity of picking the ears so as to get a good stock. Mr. T. Goldsmith said he did that one year, and the pro- duce he planted, and obtained an excellent crop of wheat. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith remarked that it had been proved beyond doubt that the disease in corn was hereditary. If red- dust appeared in wheat, it would show itself again if the wheat was used as seed, unless some strong chemicals were used to prevent it. It was therefore very important to keep clear of red-rust, smut, and other diseases as much as possible. He did not remember at the moment any disease to which barley was subjected. The Chairman said he had seen a number of black ears in barley. Smut in wheat might be propagated, but he was not aware that red-rust could. Mr. G. Goldsmith said he looked upon smut as one of the greatest mysteries that farmers had to contend with. When he commenced business he had some seed which had been wetted. He planted a portion of the field, but the headlings he left for a few days, till, in fact, there was a shower of rain, and he then planted the seed which had been wetted at the same time and in the same manner as the other. That which was planted then was full of smut, but there was not the slightest trace of it in that which was planted first. He had heard it contended that it was beneficial to the corn to remain after it was wetted. The Chairman said reference had been made in the paper to the deterioration of corn if grown under certain circum- stances for a time. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith said he had understood that it was possible to continue the growth of wheat year afteryear till even- tually it got back to the grass from which it originally sprung. Major Hallett had stated that if wheat was sown too thickly it produced nothing but grass. If there was deterioration on the one hand, why should there not be improvement on the other hand ? Rather more than double the number of kernels had been produced in the ear by improvement, and the subject was well worth consideration, to ascertain whether the im- provement could not be carried further. With regard to other corn, it had been said that if oats were grown year after year upon strong land they would return to the origiaal wild oat from which they sprang ; and wheat, if it was grown year after year under adverse circumstances, and too thickly seeded, it would go back to the original grass from which it sprang. Mr. T. Goldsmith : I have known it grown for 18 years in succession, on a piese of land at Walsham. The Chairman : And it did not deteriorate ? Mr. T, Goldsmith : No. Mr. Booty instanced the land belonging to Mr. John Law, who grew wheat 19 years in succession. The Chairman -. It was planted IS different times, and there were 18 different crops P Mr. T. Goldsmith : Yes. The Chairman said that was rather different to the case put by Mr. Eaton Goldsmith, who referred to corn planted much too thick. Scientific men had said that wheat cut oflf several times till late in the spring, and then allowed to grow, would come to something different to what it should be, that it would actually become barley or oats. He should like to have heard something said about wild oats, why it was they ap- peared in such vast numbers one year, and the next there was scarcely any to be seen. Mr. J. Booty : You plough your land deeper sometimes than at others ? The Chairman said he did not think that that had ranch to do with it. Mr. Eaton Goldsmith said Professor Buckraan tried a variety of experiments at Cirencester. He started with the wild .oat, and grew it in succession six aud seven years, and on one plant he got distinct varieties of the very oats which farmers now grew, thus showing that the oats in cultivation were simply an improved variety of the wild oat. As by cul- tivation the wild oat could be made so useful, so by deteriora- tion by putting the oats on land which was unsuitable, on cold clay land, it would again assume the form of the wild oat, which sheds its seed earlier than the other, creating a pest which it was very diSicult to ret rid of. He was rather anxious that the practical gentlemen should have informed him as to whether there was any thing in these theories. It was no use to meet in this way and talk over these matters unless they tried experiments at home. A vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Goldsmith fo'^ his admirable paper. Mr. Goldsmith, in acknowleding the vote, said he would offer, on behalf of himself and his partner, two guineas as a prize at next year's show for the best collection of cereals, or to be devoted in any way the president thought best. THE VIENNA EXHIBITION.— The Emperor of Aus- tria has conferred the Cross of the Imperial Order of " Iraiz Joseph" upon Mr. Walter A. Wood, of Thames-street. PRIZE CATTLE TRUCKS.— The models sent in by the competitors for the prizes offered are now on view at the Indian Court, National Portrait Gallery, Exhibition-road, South Kensington, and are over fifty in number. A TIPTREE .TESTIMONIAL.— Some unknown friends and neighbours have presented Mr. Mechi with a Christmas box, in the shape of a pony, with his harness complete, as " an evidence of their friendship, regard, and esteem." THE HULL SHOW.— In the miscellaneous awards it ap- pears that Mr. George Cheavin's name was misprinted Leavin, but the address was correctly given, and the name itself in the hst of exhibitors. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 137 THE BALLARAT FARMERS' CLUB. THE TENANT-RIGHT MOVEMENT IN AUSTRALIA. At tlie last monthly meeting, Mr. Bacchus, Presideut, iu the chair, amongst the letters received was one from tiie Secretary for Agriculture stating that application had been made to Mr. EUery, the Government Astronomer, for the supply of me- teorological instruments for the Ballarat Farmers' Club, and that Mr. Ellery had replied to the effect that a rain gauge could be supplied, provided that a monthly record of tiie rainfall vras forwarded to tiie Observatory, but no instruments were available. On the motion of Mr. M'Clure, seconded by Mr. Jopling, the offer was accepted. A letter from Mr. Robert Bell, referring to the offer of a premium of £500 Ijy the Agri- cultural Society of South Australia for the invention of a wheat-cleaning machine, stating that he could demonstrate the way wheat could be produced at a cost of from Is. to Is. Gd. per bushel, but not stating how, was read, and on the motion of Mr. M'Dowall, seconded by Mr. Jopling, laid on the table, and directions given that all future communications from Mr. Bell be merely laid on tiie table. Mr. J. M. Main moved the following motion standing in his name : " That in the interests of landlords and agricul- tural tenants iu this colony, and in the interests of the colony itself, it is desirable that legislation should be brought to bear on the relations between these two classes, and that the Minister of Agriculture should be memorialised to introduce a Tenant- Right Bill with as little deliy as possible ; and, con- tingent on the necessity for such a measure being acknow- ledged by this club, that a memorial be prepared for presenta- tion to the Minister of Agriculture in accordance witli such acknowledgment ; and that copies of this resolution be for- warded by the secretary to all the known agricultural societies in the colony, requesting their earnest consideration of same, and their cordial support of it, if approved." In connexion with this motion Mr. Main read the following paper : The great mass of argument that might be used to support and oppose my views on this subject would occupy so much more time than can possibly be devoted to it here, that I shall abstain as much as possible from going into details now, and will limit my remarks to a brief notice of the basis on which such a bill should receive general support, leaving the fuller discussion of the details to the consideration of the Press and kindred societies, and to some future meeting of the members of this club. Although I have designated the proposed mea- . sure a Ten ant-Right Bill, I mean that the measure should contain provisions for the protection of landlords as well ; that while the interests of tenants should be protected from the rapacity or stupidity of landlords, the property and interests of the latter should be equally protected from ignorant or evil- minded tenants. Much discussion has taken place on this subject throughout Great Britain during the last year, and I saw in a number of The Mark Lane E.ij)ress of January last (1873) the drafts ot two bills that had been prepared under the auspices of what was termed the Central Chamber of Agricul- ture, the principles of which had been approved by that Chamber, and by other agricultural authorities. Considerable difference of opinion has been manifested on the subjecet, but so far as I can see, a large majority of the people at lioine is in favour of a measure of the kind. Some people contend tliat the relations between the landowners and their tenants may be safely left to special agreements between the parties. In this I would willingly concur if all men interested in agriculture were equally honourable and liberal ; but as we never find an instance of human perfection, and very rarely an approxima- tion to it, among any class of men, I tlunk it would be to the advanUige of both parties if the Legislature insisted on certain conditions on either side. We have already Acts of Parlia- ment to enforce certain conditions between landlord and tenant in the matters of insurance, repairs, inspection, and subletting of buildings, between masters and apprentices, between mas- ters and servants, between shipowners and seamen, and many others imposing certain conditions on various trades, for pro- tection fronr fraud or injury ; and what then can be the objec- tion to an Act for the mutual protection of members of, per- haps, the mokt important class of persons in the colony ? Wliile 1 should like to be able to dispense with such a measure, I maintain that we cannot, or rather tliat we should not, if we desire to advance the colonial agricultural interest. A bill that will enforce certain deflned conditions of lease on either side will do a great deal to extend and improve agricultural pursuits ; landlords and tenants w'ould then have confidence in the law if not in each other, and a spirit of mutual confidence and independence would be established between them rapidly. Unfortunately for Victoria, the evils which the proposed mea- sure is intended to remedy are not confined to private land- holders and tlieir tenants, but are the more rampant, and much more disastrous, among the Crown tenants, large num- bers of whom have been for years, and still are, engaged in the constant deterioration, if not in tlie actual destruction, of our landed capital, under what is ironically called our " liberal" Laud Acts — ruinous laws that should be either swept from the Statute Book, or [administered more to our national, and less to our individual, advantage. But for the disastrous aliena- tion of nearly all our best lands, Victoria might to-day have been the greatest country in the world of her age and size — a country with free trade, with free ports, no taxes, and an accu- mulated revenue from Crown lands rentals, equal to all our requirements, for the extention of our railways and the intro- duction of population ; but since the introduction of responsi- ble government, there has not been a Parliament, nor a Ministry, that has not proved disloyal to the people on tiiis momentous question of the disposal of the public lands. If our landed capical must be sacrificed to meet our necessities 1 would certainly like to see it done under a really liberal Land Act, embracing the principles of free selection, deferred pay- ments, and fair value ; but I think the very loose manner in which these principles are now being carried out is more per- nicious to the advancement of agriculture, and more obstructive to the true progress of the colony, than if they did not exist at all. The present system is, in fact, a continuous destruction of national property to which we have too long conveniently closed our eyes, but to which they may yet be opened when nearly, if not quite, too late. The alienation of our land capital should be at once stopped. The boasted " liberality" of our land laws is, at the best, that of the spendthrift, v\ho, instead of living on the interest, squanders his principal, and trusts for the future to chance. What chance will bring us may be a struggle neither light nor bloodless. I have long viewed the boasted liberalism of our land laws as a national calamity, very seriously affecting the legitimate agricultural interest ; for I have reason to believe that in very many cases the lands pur- chased or held under lease or licence by that class of bastard farmers who have been overrunning the colony like locusts, have been partially, if not wholly, destroyed before they were paid for in 'full. In fact, many of these unskilled men of small means were, and are, no better than Crown tenants, paying 2s. per acre per annum for laud which, if it were private property, would cost them os. to 30s. per acre, while they would be compelled to make more expensive and more sub- stantial improvements than the State requires, and without the remotest chance of them ever acquiring the fee simple of the land for which they would be paying the highest rental. Tliey are thus placed in a most unduly favoured position to compete against those farmers who have bought or rented tlieir holdings at much higher rates, while there seems to be no tie to bind the most of tiiem to these cheap lands, nor any deter- rent penalty to prevent a desertion of them. As soon as they have worked all the virtue out of one piece of land they sell it for what it will fetch (if they have kept it long enough to acquire the right of sale) to the first siiuattcr or huuljobber that will buy it, or perhaps they abandon it to take care of itself, while they remove to some new selection to exhaust it in precisely the same way — a system of land liberalism that demands condemnation and prompt abolition. We shall shortly be on the, eve of a general election, and, speaking individually, I should like to see no man elected who would not pledge himself to lock the door of the land sales otlice, and to throw away the key. I think I iiave said enough to show the urgent necessity that exists for a great ed'ort being made to conserve what ia left of the land capital of the colony, to 138 THE FAKMER'S MAGAZINE. place the lessees of both Crown and private lands on a juster footing towards each other, and to establish better relations between their respective landlords and themselves. I think, while we continue to submit to this alienation and deteriora- tion of the public lands, to the existing mismanagement of tlie public railways, to the crushing of the mining interest, and other grievances, we shall be doing a great deal to prove the soundness of Mr. La Trobe's opinion of us — that we are not fit to govern ourselves. I wish now to observe that I think a great deal of valuable information in support of the position I have taken up would be gained, if some member of Parliament would obtain a return of all lands alienated from the Crown by direct purchase, or indirectly, by lease or licence in the first instance, since, say 1860, with the names of the original purchasers, selectors, or licensees ; the prices paid for them, the period of time and the extent to which they were cultivated, tlieir present con- dition, the names of the present proprietors, the date at which the latter became possessed, the purposes to which these lands are now applied, and their present value. The disease is des- perate, the remedy must be the same, but we need skilled doctors, not quacks, to apply it. And as I have before said, it will be undesirable now to enter into a discussion of the mass of details to be considered in the preparation of a Tenaut- Eight, or, perliaps, more properly speaking, a Land 1'enure Bill. The length of leases, the variety of improvements, em- braced under the heacis of temporary, durable, and permanent, the value of unexhausted improvements in the shape of ma- nures, are all matters that can stand over for future discus- sion ; my present object is to test the opinion of this Club and of kindred societies throughout the colony, as to the desi- rability of getting a bill passed to place private landholders and tenants on a better footing, to check the destruction of our Crown lands under the existing pernicious system, and to better equalise the positions of the Crown and private tenants. If it be deemed undesirable to get such a bill passed, there will be no occasion for any further discussion on matters of detail. Since the foregoing remarks were written, I have seen the copy of a letter from the late Mr. J. S. Mill, to a Mr. Ross, in Mel- bourne, which was published in the Ai-fjiis of the 1st July, iu which he says : " I am glad to see the progress of the Land Tenure movement in Victoria. Now is the time to stop the alienation of public lands, before the great mass of them is granted away." I need not say tliat I should, and do feel proud of having unknowingly run in the same groove, witli, though a very long way behind, so illustrious a thinker and writer. On the motion of Mr. M'Dowall, seconded by Mr. Bath, a vote of thanks was passed to the essayist. Mr. Main's motion was not seconded, but a sub-committee, consisting of the president and Messrs. Main, M'Dowall, and M' Arthur, was appointed to take the matter referred to in the motion and essay into consideration, and to briug up a report upon the subject at the next meeting of tlie Club. Hedges and Y£>.'ces. — Mr. B.vccniis, the president, read the following paper : Hedges and shelter trees will probably not be much thought of by the farmer who works his land from hand to mouth ; at first the quickest made and cheapest fence will be resorted to, but when the farm becomes a regular source of income, the owner will find that a certain sum of money laid out in planting live hedges and, in open country, screen plantations will be more to his gain than he at first might suppose. Will it pay ? is the query usually asked when a new scheme is indicated. After a little" trouble at first the ready answer will be in most cases. It is paying well. Hedges and trees are like children, requiring a good deal of attention in infancy, which properly given enables them in after years to look out pretty well for themselves, and do credit to those who had charge of their youth. Stone walls are uudoubtedly the best of all fences, tliey give some shelter and arrest, if they do not stop, the progress of bush fires, and are the most durable. Posts and rails, however good at first, decay and must be renewed at some time ; but, on average soil, a live fence properly made and attended to during its early growth, in the end is the cheapest, most useful, and handsomest of all fences. A live hedge bristling with prickles possesses a threefold ad- vantage as a fence, a screen, and to keep stock apart ; two lots of cattle cannot so easily fraternise, fight, or communicate infection across a tliick hedge as they may across a fence of wire or post and rails. A hedge pleases the eye ; unlike a fence of timber, every year it grows adds to the value of the land it helps to enclose, at the same time it affords a refuge to small birds, which do no end of good by eating insects, seeds of thistles and weeds, and affording them winter food iu the berries, they will make of it " a local habitation and a home." Some persons may be deterred from planting out hedge plants and trees on account of the expense of purchas- ing from a nursery ; ". hem I would say — raise your own plants and trees in a nursery at home. The Messrs. Ander- son, of Barkstead, and others have been very successful in doing this on a large scale. A great number of plants may be grown on a very small piece of land ; anyone who has not tried it will have no idea of the quantity of cuttings and trees that may be grown on such a small plot. Let a commencement be made and I venture to say that a home nursery will soon become a point of attraction to most of the members of a family ; as the things grow so will the interest be increased. Let fruit trees be raised there ; some member of the family could perform the operations of grafting and budding ; it is a useful and interesting accomplishment which no one will regret having learned. A lavender hedge through the garden is soon made; the flowers are sought after by the bees and are in de- mand by perfumers, and housewives who like their linen scented. The nursery should be in a sheltered situation ; a row of artichokes on the north and west sides would make a temporary screen. For garden and shrubbery shelter fences I would recommend the English laurel and Euonymous Ja- ponica, they grow quickly and make a high, close evergreen fence, and shelter ; also the Ceonothus and Alaternus. The arbor vitte makes a pretty screen fence inside a garden. In New South Wales the lemon and olive make excellent close fences ; the climate about Ballarat is too cold for the former, but the olive grows here and makes a high, close fence. The white acacia, or locust tree, might do ; it grows quickly, and is disliked by stock. There are several native shrubs well adapted for hedges, and others, such as quicks, &c., which you see commonly in fences ; visit the principal nurseries where the plants are growing, and judge for yourself. A few plants of New Zealand flax will be found very useful, giving material for tying all sorts of things. The poplar is one of the quickest growing and perhaps as good as any tree for a break- wind or screen. For this purpose it has been used at Lang's nursery ; it grows readily from cuttings, which may be put out in rows a foot a part, and nine inches between each cutting, which in two-and-a-half years from the time of planting ought to be over six feet high. Suppose you wish to plant a quarter of a mile (MO yards) alongside another fence, plough a strip three feet wide, not under eighteen inches deep, plant the young trees in the centre, two feet apart ; in four years the trees will be safe from slock, and each alternate tree can be taken up and made use for rails for the fence. There wiU then be a good break-wind of trees four feet apart, becoming denser each year. The interstices may be filled up with stones and brambles, such as the American blackberry or dog rose. A good many brambles, grown in the nursery from seed, may be planted ; cattle are not so fond of rummaging in places where they get their noses scratched, or a piece of thorny bramble included in a mouthful of green stult from the hedge ; or you may plant or sow seeds of such shrubs between the poplars as will grow under the shade of trees. A very common native thorny shrub, yielding abundance of seed, a sort of myrtle called, I think, Eugenia myrtifolia, does well as a hedge plant, and thrives under higher timber, and is well suited for planting between the poplars or other large trees ; to fill up, the Acacia armata, Undulata hakea, or some other indigenous shrubs may do as well. These native shrubs have long, penetrating tap- roots, and are not much put back by a drought. Two rails from the intermediate trees taken up, aud a wire fastened by long staples to the growing trees, if considered necessary, being added, and you have a sheep-proof fence and breakwiud combined. This plan might be carried out with other large growing trees, the hornbeam or sycamore for instance, but I have chosen the poplar as it gets sooner out of the reach of stock, and it thrives in most sorts of soils and climates. I know from experience that poplars grow well when planted only two feet apart ; in Italy and other parts of the Continent of Europe they are so planted. To protect the young trees another fence must be put up, say 20 feet from the old fence. The space between the two may be utilised by sowing it with grass for hay, from which two cuttings may be obtained yearly. This fence may be removed in three or four years, when the trees are well grown. The greatest cost would be that THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 189 of the temporary fence, but it would be worth half the outlay when no longer required. Raising the poplars from cuttings, brambles and shrubs from seed, ploughing, planting, enclosing, wire.and staples.&c, accordingto ray estimate, would cost about £70 a mile, including expense of the temporary slieep-proof fence. Care must be taken to keep sheep from tlie 3'oung '■rees at first, as there is a poison communicated by the contact of sheep with young trees, fruit trees especially, which often kills thera, and always retards their growth. There are many native shrubs and trees which neither sheep nor cattle are likely to injure. The gum trees growing along the sides of tlie road between Ballarat and Buninyong grow closely together, scarcely touched by the stock. The same thing is apparent in the adjac( nt unenclosed country. I tliiuk it may be quite possible to make a screen fence of such trees without enclosing it ; to make the fence close some management of the branches would be necessary when the trees had grown about six feet higli ; this process, called pleaching, is well understood by liadgers in the old country. In this way a similar screen fence as described for the poplar, including cost of collecting seeds, might be made for about £2i a mile ; no rails or wire would be required, the ground to be ploughed as before mentioned, and the seeds sown in two rows say a foot apart. Farmers in the BuUarook and other dense forests appear to wage war unsparingly against every sort of tree ; in a few years they may find it expedient to plant more, and regret the destruction of a few blackwood, cherry, and shady gum trees, which cannot be replaced. When clearing a piece of laud, why not leave some of the most shady trees? A few trees left on the north side and in the corners of paddocks will be of use for shade and shelter. I will conclude this paper with an extract from Loudon's " En- clypicdia of Agriculture' : " When farm lands are exposed to high winds, interspersing them with strips or masses of planta- tion is attended with obviously important advantages ; not only are such lands rendered more congenial to the growth of grass and corn, and the health of pasturing animals, but the local climate is improved ; the fact that the climate may be thus improved, has in very many instances been sufficiently esta- blished ; it is indeed astonishing how much better cattle thrive in fields even but moderately sheltered than they do in open, exposed country ; and in instances where iields are taken by the season for the purpose of fattening, those most sheltered never fail to produce the highest rents, providing tlie soil is equal to that of the neighbouring fields not sheltered by trees. Trees[and'shrubs properly disposed in a bleak situation, improve the land in three ways, by giving shelter to stock, by breaking the currents of winds, and communicating a degree of warmth and softness to! the ^i'"' I'l winter living trees communicate actual warmth to the surrounding air by their shade ; in sum- mer they make it cooler." On the motion of Mr. Vaughan, seconded by Mr, Jopling, a vote of thanks was passed to the essayist. THE WARWICKSHIRE CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. At a meeting, Mr. J. Scott in the chair, Captain Townsend called attention to the provisions of the Agricultural Children Bill respecting the attendance of children at schools recognised by the Government as efficient, and said the restriction was productive of considerable inconvenience in certain districts. Such was the ease in his own parish, where there was a good school, centrally situated, and gene- rally used by the labourers, but not recognised as efficient by Government, while the Government school was at some dis- tance from the village, and only just within the limit of two miles prescribed in the Act. Tlie consequence was that the children had to walk the two miles, because the attendances at the village school were not counted, notwithstanding that a good education was imparted there which gave satisfaction to their parents. Lord Willougliby de Broke thought there would be no difficulty in getting efficient schools recognised. Captain Townsend rejoined that the misfortune was that such schools were not now recognised accordingto the requirements of the Act, so that the attendances at an unrecognised school would not count during the present year. It was decided that a terse summary of the salient provisions of tlie Act should be priuted, and that special prominence sliould be given to the fact that the attendance of children must be at some recog- nised Government school, in order to qualify them to be employed in agricultural pursuits next year. The Secretary was directed to forward copies of the publication to the various members of the Chamber, for distribution amongst agricultural labourers in their respective districts. The subject of the Animals' Diseases Act was introduced by Sir llobert Hamilton, who stated that the expenses incurred in connection with the working of the measure in Warwickshire liad never been separated from ,the ordinary county finances. In compliance with a request from Mr. Ilorley and others, he had selected all the items from 18G9 to the present time, and found that the total amount was just under a halfpenny rate. It was not until the Act of 180'J came into force that the expenses incurred under its provisions were ordered to be shared between the landlord and tlie tenant, and tlierefore there ap- peared to have been no very great liarra or injustice occasioned by the accounts not having been kept separate, as specified in the Act. Mr. Kewfon tliouglit that if tlie rate did not amount to a halfpenny in the pound, it was hardly worth dividing. jMr. lord said that as the Act directed the expenses to be equaly divided between the landlord and the tenant, he did not see how they could possibly avoid compliance with it, no matter how small ;he amount. JMr. Muiit/ agreed witli Mr. Ford, and said the question was one of principle, not amount. Mr. Ilorley mentioned that ho had written 1o Sir llobert Hamilton Rud Mr, Caldecott, who were members of the local authority, calling attention to the specific provision of the Act in this respect, and suggesting the propriety of steps being taken in future for the separation of the cattle disease accounts from the ordinary finances of the county, the payment to be equally divided between the landlord and tenant. Mr. Robbins men- tioned the cape of Mr. Bray, of Shilton, in which compensation had not yet been paid for animals slaughtered several months ago, and complained of the hardship to which persons who had suffered loss for the public good were thus subjected. On the motion of Mr. Ford, seconded by Mr. Hicken, it was ulti- mately resolved, ?/fw. CO//., that a memorial, pointing out the provisions of the Cattle Diseases Act, 1869, with respect to the division of expenses between landlord and tenant, and request- ing that in future that course might be adopted in this county, should be presented to the County Finance Committee. The Chairman, Mr. Muntz, and Mr. Ford were appointed a com- mittee to draw up the memorial. Lord Leigh mentioned that at a special meeting of the local authority, held a few days ago, it was resolved to present a memorial to the Finance Com- mittee, also asking them to keep the accounts separate, and to evy a special rate for cattle disease purposes. He had no doubt the matter would receive careful consideration at the hands of the Finance Committee, of whicli he himself was chairman, and that the decision at which they would arrive would meet with the approval of the Chamber. Mr. Muntz urged the importance of all claims for compensation being promptly settled. It was not only of mouu-nt to farmers who suffered loss, but was also of public importance, as uncertainty when a claim would be paid was calculated to make persons conceal the existence of disease amongst their stock. He sug- gested that the Chamber would render a service to members by circulating information as to how claims for compensation should be made, and when and how tliey would be paid. Mr. Horley mentioned that the local authority had great discre- tionary powers as to the compensation to be allowed for slaughtered animals. He had always felt that, as cattle were slaughtered for the imblic good, without the consent or even concurrence of the owners, they should be dealt with liberally. The utmost money compensation they could get was oue-lialf of the value of the animals slaughtered, but the local autho- rity could also give the owners the salvage, wjiicli, in cases of pleuro-pnenmonia, occasionally amounted to something con- siderable besides. He thought it was for the public good tliat owners should be dealt witii liberally, as tliere would then be less disposition to conceal the existence of the disease. He urged that in every case the whole of (he salvage should be given to the owners of animals comimlsorily slaughtered. Mr. HoRLFY said the meetings of the Chamber were usually lield ou the Saturday before the Tuesday on which the Central K 2 110 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. Chamber met. He had frequently noticed when any question of importance was brought forward there was no time to^com- municate with anyone where it was desirable to do so ; and though he was not then prepared to propose any alteration in the day for the meetings of the AYarwickshire Chamber, he thought that an alteration would in some respects be certainly beneficial. Mr. Munt?. said he had noticed the same inconve- nience. Mr. Horley intimated that he would oq a future occasion bring the subject regularly before the Chamber. HIGHLAND AND AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF SCOTLAND. The January meeting of the directors of this Society was held in their Chambers, No. 3, George IV. Bridge, Edinburgh, Professor Wilson in the chair. The following resolutions were unanimously agreed to : " That the directors of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland desire to express their deep regret at the loss which the Society has sustained by the death of Sir Jaiies Colquhoun of Luss, Bart., and their sense of the cordial as- sistance rendered by him as an extraordinary director. That the death of Mr. Cliarles Lawson, late of Borthwickhall, having been communicated to the directors, they feel it most justly due to his memory to express the deap sense entertained by the Society of the great zeal, assiduity, and interest uni- formly evinced by Mr. Lawson during the long period of liis connection with the Society as seedsman, conservator of the museum, and latterly as a director of the Society ; and to express the great regret at ths loss which the Society has sustained by his death." The remit contained in the directors' minute of 5th Novem- ber was brought before a meeting of the Special Committee on Steam Cultivation on tlie 17th of December, when the committee resolved to report — (1) That an exhibition of steam cultivators should be held under the auspices of the Society ; but as autumn is considered a more suitable time than spring, and as the present season is too far advanced, the committee recommend that the exhibition should not take place till November, 187-i : (~) that tlie exhibition shall not be com- petitive, but that each exiiihitor shall liave an opportunity of showing the full working jiowers of his apparatus ; (3) that the exhibition shall be held in the vicinity of Edinburgh ; (4) that the Society shall pay all working expenses at the exlii- bition ; (5) that the Scoiety shall present a gold medal to each exhibitor ; and (6) that a descriptive report of the various systems represented shall be drawn up for publication in the Society's Transactions. The report was approved of, and it was remitted to the committee to make the necessary arrange- ments for the proposed exhibition in November next. A proposal by Mr. Glennie, Feruyllatt, to offer a premium to be competed for in the season 1874-75 by the owners or companies owning steam-cultivating machinery, was referred to the Steam-Cultivatioa Committee. THE HOP-PICKER. At the annual meeting of the Society for the Employ- ment and Improved Lodging for hop-pickers held at Maidstone, the Earl of Darnley presided. The report stated that the committee had addressed a letter to the Local Govern- ment Board as to evils relating to the lodging of hop-pickers, the remedy for which must be sought in the amendment of the law. A correspondence subsequently arose between your com- mittee and the Local Government Board, and there is reason to believe that the law will be altered in such a manner as to bring lodgings of hop-pickers under the supervision of the sanitary authorities. At the conference of the Poor-law Guardians of the South Eastern District of England held in August last at Maidstone, the follovping resolution was unani- mously carried : "That in the opinion of this conlerence it is desirable that such bye-laws with regard to hop-pickers as are suggested in the report of Mr. Murray Browne to the Local Government Board should be entrusted to sanitary authorities." Your committee respectfully appeal to peers and members of Parliament who have directly or indirectly supported the efforts of the Society to render their aid in passing such measures tiirough Parliament as may repress such part of tlie evils relating to the lodging of hop-pickers as cannot be dealt with by merely moral suasion. The committee desire to thank the Hon. Edward Stanhope for advice and suggestions relating to the state of the sanitary law. The number of hop-pickers supplied this year was 856 as against 812 last year. The Chairman said : From a return issued by the South- Eastern Railway Committee it appeared that during the pre- sent year there were 14,G64 hop-pickers conveyed by special down trains, and 16,933 returned by special up trains. In 1872 the numbers were — down, 15,947 ; up, 17,233. Tlie Mayor, in moving the adoption of the report, said he was pleased to see that the Society was progressing. The previous year (1872) was, as they all knew, a very heavy hop year, and consequently a large number of pickers was brought down in excess of what had generally been necessary to meet the requirements of the district ; but although a less amount of labour was required this year than in the year before, he perceived that the Society had supplied a large number of pickers, the number being 859 against 812 ; consequently they would suppose from tliat that the influence of the Society was extending. He thought there was a great work for this Society still to do. He believed that during the few years it had been in existence it had very much improved the means of travelling and the accommodation of the poor people who came down for the hopping season. One was pleased to see that there were fewer persons hanging about the town at that period, not knowing where they were to be employed, than there were a few years ago. Time was when they saw poor people walking about the town, having no engagement, and not knowing wiien the hopping would begin. Now, through this Society, it was known when picking would commence, and that must be an accommodation to the poor people. With regard to the hop-pickers' lodgings there had been an improve- ment in that respect. He had noticed a growing desire among the farmers that these persons should be better accommodated than they had been, but he did not think they should alto- gether lose sight of the fact that the accommodation to which these people were accustomed in London was of the worst kind, and he had no doubt that a great many of the pickers were far worse off in the houses in which they resided in London than in any which they obtained in the hop districts. He believed that very few of them went back worse than they came. Looking at the alleys and courts of London, and the wretched condition in which these persons lived, he thought that their sojourn in this neighbourhood, although they were what might be considered badly lodged, must be an improve- ment to tiiera. With regard to the remarks which were made as to fever and cholera being engendered, he was not at all sure that it was not more the fault of the food tiiey obtained than the lodgiugs iu which tiiey lived. One could see fiom reports iu the newspapers, and from personal observation, that a very great deal of the food supplied to these people was of a very bad description, and he thought that this Society, through their agents, would be doing a good work if they would pay some little attention to this matter. The Society liad gone on doing good, and he hoped that God would grant them success and increased funds, and he was sure that the committee would lay them out well. The report was adopted, the officers were re-elected, and the committee of management re-appointed. The Rev. J. Y. Stratton said that with regard to what the Mayor of Maidstone had said relative to the inspection of food, he might say that the committee found that was already provided for by the sanitary authorities, and that a very great change had taken place under the efficient inspection of the officers appointed by the unions in this district witii reg£^rd tg l^HE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 141 the food sold to hop-pickers. With respect to lodgings for hoppers, he always felt very strongly that the fact of their being worse otf somewhere else did not release persons in this neighbourhood from the responsibility of giving these poor people such protection as might not only secure them against the inclemency _of the weather, wliich was sometimes bad enough during the liopping season, but they should give them such lodging as would at least tend to secure morality and decency. Anyone who supposed that because poor persons were accustomed to huddle together, that they were careless about morality and decency, made a great mistake, as was shown by the arrangements which these people were desirous of making when encouragement was given. An influence of a healthy kind had been beneficially exerted on the hop-growers by the publications which had been issued by the Society. There were, however, some people — not only hop-growers — who did not care a snap for public opinion, and it was most likely that in many cases tlie conduct of those persons was not of much importance ; but with regard to farmers, he thought it was desirable that such persons should be influenced by law. He was glad to say that tlie committee backed up this feeling. It was thought that by the Sanitary Act tliey had all tliat they wanted, but it was not so, and an amendment of the Act was required to make it safe for an inspector to go into a hopper house for the purpose of inspecting it. At present an action might lie against him or his employers if he did so. A cor- respondence had taken place which had led to a report upon this subject being sent to the Local Government Board by one of its inspectors, and they were given to understand tliat the Amendment Act w-ould be brouglit forward next session. Under these circumstances he thought that the appeal which was made in the report to peers and other members of Parlia- ment was fully justified, and he trusted that they would give their attention to the amendments to the Sanitary Act when the subject came before Parliament. A cordial vote of thanks having been passed to Lord Dakn- LEY, the noble earl, in responding, said that he observed that the result of the correspondence was tliat the Local Govern- ment Board had referred Mr . Stratton to the report o f their assistant-inspector, Mr. Murray Browne, whose recommenda- tion was that a permissive clause should be inserted, leaving it to the sanitary authority to make bye-laws if they thought proper to do so. He (Lord Darnley) must say that he was against permissive legislation. Some parties with whom this permissive legislation rested might be the persons who had neglected to provide proper accommodation for their hop- pickers, and he would rather see legislation in tliis matter made compulsory. At the same time, if they cuuld get that which had been recommended it would be a great gain, and better than nothing. The following particulars are from the report of the above Society : Total acreage returned as under hops in each of the years 1873 and 1873, to the Board of Trade : 1872. 1873. Acres. Acres. Hants 2,847 ... 2,771 Hereford 6,106 ... 6,044. Kent 37,927 ... 39,040 Surrey 2,152 ... 2,207 Sussex 9,738 ... 10,174 Worcester 2,632 ... 2,573 Other 524 ... 467 England 61,926 ... 63,276 Wales 1 ... 3 Scotland 0 ... 0 Total 61,927 ... 63,278 In the latter part of the year 1872 the llev. J. Y. Stratton opened a correspondence with the Local Government Board in reference to tlic improved lodgings of hop-pickers, and as the Board requested that the alterations in tlie law contemplated by the Society might be specified, the following resolution was forwarded, by desire by the Committee of Management of the Society for the Employment and Ira- proved Lodging of Hop-pickers : " That tlie Local Govern- ment Board be requested to obtain an amendment of the Sani- tary Act, 1866, s. 35, in order that the regulations for common lodging-houses may be extended to country sanitary authorities in the several unions visited by hop-pickers, and that power to inspect hopper-houses, barracks, slieds, tents, wigwams, and other places in which immigrant hop-pickers are lodged may be given to inspectors of nuisances in the unions." Eventually the Board referred Mr. Stratton to the suggestions as to future legislation contained in Mr. Murray Browne's report. This report states that the quality and cha- racter of the accommodation provided for hop-pickers differs greatly upon different farms. In every district there are district, however, satisfactory in its general character, there are farms where the accommodation provided is estates where no interference is required ; and in every most insuflicient and discreditable. In Kent the character of tlie lodgings appears to be generally improving ; but it is agreed on all bauds tliat on many farms in every district the accommodation is still seriously and often scandalously de- fective ; that over-crowding of the most serious description is common, ann that the lodgings are often very filthy ; that interna divisions are constantly neglected, although without them, in the larger huts occupied by many persons of both sexes, de- cency is impossible, and morality must be endangered ; that some buildings (the thatched hurdle houses) are fright- fully exposed to danger by fire, against which no provi- sion is made (six children were burnt to death in this manner last September) ; that privies, which are needed at least for the women, arc comparatively rare, and fire-places, which are required for cooking and for drying the wet clothes of the children, ^:c., are very iusufliciently furnished ; tliat no wash- ing accommodation is supplied, and.that although the e8"ects of this state of things are largely counterbalanced by the gene- rally healthy character of the employment (at least in fine weather), yet that results injurious to health do not unfre- quently arise, while the injury to decency and morality is of the most serious description. This matter concerns also the resident inhabitants of the district, who are exposed to infec- tion should disease break out among the pickers. Replying to the allegation that the pickers are of so depraved a cliarac- ter as to be incapable of availing themselves of decent accom- modation if it were aflbrded them, Mr. Murray Browne says that bad as the pickers generally are they are not so bad as to be devoid of the primary instincts and habits of a civilised population, and tliey will prefer decent lodgings to those which are not decent if the choice is offered them. Public opinion may do, and has done, a good deal, but there are some hop- growers who set it utterly at defiance ; and it may be thought that public opinion has already had full scope for its operation, and has effected as much as it is likely to do. Direct compulsory legislation is in many respects to be pre- ferred, but it would be difficult, from the nature of the case and the varying circumstances of different districts, to apply it at present. It would, perhaps, be better, therefore, to follow the suggestion made by Jlr. Lambert, and to give power to each sanitary authority concerned to make bye-laws upon the sub- ject. This course is recommended by the precedent of the Common Lodging Houses Acts, and appears to be in accord- ance with the views of others. Mr. Stratton gives the follow- ing suggestions as the result of his long experience : The following regulations should be obligatory : 1. That the lodgings, whatever the materials, should be weatherproof. 3. That a minimum space of 16 square feet should be secured to each adult, two children to count as one adult. 3. That such screens or divisions should be used as are necessary to protect occupants from indecent exposure. 4. That a sufficient number of cooking houses and of privies should be provided. o. That where the hopper-house is used for other purposes at other times of the year, it should be cleaned, and the ground adjoining made free from any oifeusive matter. 6. That sufficient water should be provided. To the above 1 would desire to add that where sheds are used composed of hurdles and straw, lanterns should in all cases be provided to diminish the risk of fire. The above details would, however, be left to the local sanitary authority when framing its proposed bye-laws. I would only suggest that, following as closely as possible the precedent of the Common Lodging Houses Acts, a clause might be inserted in any future Act of Parliament emanating troin the Local Government Board to the following efl'ect : " Any sanitary authority within wliose district hops are cultivated may from 142 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. time to time make regulations respecting the houses, sheds, tents, or other habitations within its jurisdiction in which the persons employed about such cultivation at the time of hop harvest are designed to be lodged, for all or any of the following purposes ; that is to say, for the inspection and registration of such habitations, and for providing that the same be weather- proof, for fixing the number of persons who may be received into the same, for promoting cleanliness and ventilation therein, for the well-ordering of such habitations, and the provision of such screens or divisions as are necessary to pro- tect occupants from indecent exposure, for the provision of cooking houses, fireplaces, and privies, and sufficient supply of water, and for providing against damage by fire. Provided always, that the regulations made under this section by any sanitary authority shall not be in force until they have been confirmed by the Local Government Board." Sussex. — I have fonud but little information as to this county, and have had but little success in my endeavours to collect the same. That little, however, is of an unfavourable character. It appeared, from inquiries which I made at a meeting of the Board of Guardians of Rye, that any internal separation in the buildings was very rare, and that privies were considered quite unnecessary. And here I may advert to a point already touched upon i.e., the great danger of fire in that not uncommon class of hopper-houses, which consist entirely (both walls and roofs) of hurdles thatched with straw. Six children were burnt to death last summer in this manner in the Rye Union, and many others barely escaped with their lives. In this case the hopper- house, which was covered in with canvas over the straw, seems to have been ingeniously constructed so as to admit the wind and rain, and to afford every possible facility to a conflagration, while it effectually prevented the escape of those who happened to he inside at the time- Prom the published report of the proceedings at the coroner's inquest it appears that " it was the practice to have a naked caudle to go to bed by," and " to tie the candle to the end of the hurdle above the straw." On this occasion the coroner and the jury intimated a not unreasonable opinion that lanterns should be provided for the use of the pickers. It appears that there have been similar fires in the same neighbourhood, aud it cannot, I think, be denied that if the use of this sort of shed is still to be permitted, it should be made compulsory upon the grower to furnish lanterns for the ixse of the inmates. THE SHORTHORN IN AMERICA. TO THE IDITOR OF THE MAKK LANE EXPRESS. Sir, — 1 expect my last article -will make quite a stir amongst the Bates men, aud 1 am anxious to see if any of them can deny the facts therein stated. You know, Mr. Editor, that I always said that Mr. Bates was not Avhat I should call a scientific breeder, nor do I believe he ever knew ffood quaUtij. He always advocated flabby handling, such that I considered could never get ripe, nor did the symmetry of his own breeding ever come up to what I should call perfection. I have never seen anything to induce me to alter my opinion, notwithstanding the constant puffs that have appeared in this country. It was this constant run of bravado of Mr. Bates and his pet men that induced me to controvert the erroneous statements made. As The Country Gentleman is on your exchange list, I think you could not but perceive that this paper has been the organ to praise Bates and his tribes of Duchesses at all hazards since the introduction of his cattle into this country. Mr. A. B. Allen, then editor of The American Agricul- turist, was the first to visit Mr. Bates, who received him with open arms, feeling that his soul was wrapped up in prize cattle, and that his paper was the instrument to bring them into notoriety. When he returned to America, he said in his paper that " Mr. Thomas Bates, of Kirk- levingtou, was the only breeder of any note in England." The junior editor of The Country Gentleman was the next visitor who w^as as much at home iu the house of Bates as his predecessor, and, by this means, succeeded in gaining the good opinion of the noted breeder. Thus the mania for the Bates stock began. Both these papers were prepared, for the two editors had gained all the information they wanted to know about Shorthorns; they could write the history of them, with the assistance of Ambrose Stevens, Lewis F. Allen, Francis Rotch, George Vail, John R. Page, P. S. Chapman, taken as their fancy scribes. This was the body that first started the Duke and Duchess mania, and they swelled the current to an overwhelming state. Not a stone was unturned to bring this noted tribe and the breeder of them into notoriety. They talked of their sweet heads, beautiful eyes, tapering noses, slopinr/ shoul- der-points, thin hides, and beautiful soft handling. Not one of them knew the true quality by the hand ; nor could one of these Dukes or Duchesses claim anything higher than third-class character, and but very few of them could maintain even that. " They were bred by Bates " was sufficient for them to command atten- tion aud win the admiration of novices. By referring to " Bell on Bates," you will see that Mr. Bates presented the bull Duke of Cambridge to an Ameri- can gentleman, treated him with the utmost hospitality, and made a coniidaut of him. This gentleman was at the head of the writers. Francis Rotch went as far as he could. Part of Mr. Tail's correspondence appeared in " Bell on Bates." Mr. John R. Page chimed in occasionally with the extreme excellence of the Duchesses, and made his most flattering pictures of them to correspond, and to take their rounds iu the agri- cultural press. This was done under a load of flesh ; their top aud bottom lines were even made straighter iu such condition : many of the originals were anything but straight. The object was toj attract the novice ; but the practical man was not caught. The flesh, put on with great care and expense, was attraction enough for him, without the addition. All could not make them perfect eveu in imagination. These portraits, extremely overdrawn, were pleasing to those concerned. This was the beginning of the Dukes and Duchess mania. The fii'st bull heralded aud noised about was the Duke of "Wellington. His importer, Mr. G. Vail, claimed for him the jmre Bates, if not quite pure Duchess. The editor of the American Shorthorn Herd Book hired him ; and iu the advertisements of this gentleman the Duke Avas the most prominent feature. He was the exalted sire of the young ones, and the numerous praises he received from the Bates meu can be better imagined than described. I will give you my opinion of this noted bull. He had a small head, thick neck, and a very deep brisket ; shoulder-points ragged, aud his shoulder-blades uncovered ; his waist was extremely light, his paunch heavy, his rumps tolerable, his twist half way up to his high tail. This is the exact description I gave of him in the " Live Stock Journal," and in a few weeks after Mr. John R. Page endorsed it, but disputed his pedigree, I think Mr. Thornton will remember this. His get were much like him. His son. Meteor, although portrayed iu many papers, was coarse and uusymmetrical. Had 1 been one of the judges I should not have considered him worthy of a prize ; but he was Bates blood, and he triumphed over others much better, to exalt the Bates tribes. Welling- ton was a roan ; but his son. Meteor, was white. 'Phen came the Duchesses from Earl Ducie's sale. These were THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 143 better, but not at all comparable to the fuss made about them. The scribes were full of flattering speeches, and they were all endorsed by The Country' Geiitleman ml ArjricuUunst, and Tlie Ohio Farmer. Many violent rotestations were made against other breeds, and in oing so attention was called to the beauty of the tribe. Softness in handling was the cry of Mr. Bates ; and this was the cry of his followers. We all know that softness is the reverse of good handling when the animal is ripe — and the Duchesses have to be loaded withllesh, if not ripe, to make them passable — and that is put on with a great deal of care aud expense which a man of me- dium capital cannot sustain. Those who forced for notoriety did it at the loss of constitution and to create barrenness, and the more scarce Dukes and Duchesses become from such treatment, the higher price they obtain, aud thus some breeders out of a false persuasion of merit would sooner pursue their own will than reform ; for they studied what was fashionable in preference to what was perfect. Some of those long legged, coarse, unsymmetrical bulls called Dukes of An- dries were changed on paper into straight lines. These coarse creatures were pampered almost to barrenness, but still had the credit of superiority, and were honoured by claiming the calves, and there was no visible reason why this claim should not be allowed. The stock bull in the dark might be a cross from the Galloway, "West Highlander, or descended from the white cattle from Chillingham, and none but those in the secret would be any the wiser. There are many ways to bids these outward crosses, purposely to make consanguinity conspicuous before the people. Tell me, Mr. Editor, whether some of your readers, if they know no blush, will not feel a little conscience stricken when they meditate upon this plausible scheme in the art of breeding. I contend that this darkness has been the means of the improvement, notwithstanding the secret ke])t is hardly excusable, while the forcing system is responsible for much that is evil. A little more about the the New York Mills sale in comparison with the Provincial Show of Shorthorns at London, Canada. Here I met the auctioneer, Mr. John E. Page, and found him among the Shorthorns in all his glory ; although none of the Duchesses were there to dazzle him with high-sonnding names. I was very much amused with the remarks he made to me and others, and I think a short sketch of them may be amusing to your readers. All who know John R. Page have noticed the dimensions of his shirt collars, are aware of that peculiar gaiety in his walk, aud that smile on his face, as he wags his head with a knowing air, sticking his thumbs into his waistcoat armholeswhile playing imaginary tuues with his fingers on his chest. After a few preliminary remarks, I said, " Well, Mr. P., what do you think of the show of Shorthorns here?" "A great show, sir; a great show, sir." '" How does it compare with those sold at New York Mills." " Well, sir," he said, with his hands on his hips, aud his elbows a-kimbo, " I told them at Guelph that the cow sold for 40,800 dollars would not have taken a twelfth prize here." " I fully agree with you, Mr. P. ; I could see nothing in that cow to warrant a prize at a county fair." " No, sir ; she never was a show cow." " Then her fame and her value rested upon her name aud fashionable pedigree." " That might be so, sir. That was a great sale, sir ; an extraordinary sale, sir. Such a sale that we shall never see again, sir. I always said that I could outsell Strafford with the Duchesses, and I have done it, sir." This was said with much emphasis. When I visited Mr. Campbell's herd T wrote a descrip- tion of it for the Mlckiijan Farmer, and in that said that the West Highland cross Avas as plain to be seen in a great portion of the herd by a practical man as the nose on his face ; therefore I ventured to ask Mr. Pag his opinion on that subject. " You were right about that Mr. Sotham," he said ; " Strafford, with that peculiar twinkle in his eye, always told Mr. Sheldon what cross was in his cattle. You were right also about the two heifers from Belinda, Col. Lewis T. Morris bought them, and they were considered as good as any in the herd by good judges." " That is gratifying," said 1, " to be endorsed by the lion of auctioneers in the best tribes of Shorthorns, and one of the best judges and breeders in the State of New York. I hope that is not intended for flattery." " Oh no, sir ; it is so. You aud I have had many sharp passes at each other, and- you have never taken a drink with me, suppose you do it now. I own a very nice little farm, aud have it stocked with Shorthorns ; though not Duchesses, they are good ones." I expressed my pleasure at his good success, here and we parted. I was very much gratified with the Provincial Show at London. There were many fine animals. Messrs. Sue 11, Stone, Miller, Bertie, and Craig were the principal exhibi- tors, the former gentleman being the most success- ful one. There were some splendid animals in each herd. I was very much pleased with two heifers im- ported and exhibited by Mr. Simon Beattie, bred by the late Mr. Game. I saw nothing in the New York Mills herd that could compare with them for symmetry, quality, and compactness, and these were beaten by Mr. Snell. Such were the kind shown at London, and well up in the Booth blood. Since writing the above I have read the letter of Lord Dunmore, and was as much surprised to see his denial of purchasing those two heifers of Mr. Alexander, as he was to see the error in my communication. Breeders all over the country fully believed him to be the pur- chaser, and I shall have much pleasure in denying this emphatically, knowing from whence the denial comes. Not only that, I will have his letter published as widely as I can. I know the heifers were sold to go to England for the price named, as I heard it from Mr. Broadhead, Mr. Alexander's steward, and both were published in the agricultural papers, the purchaser not given. I will try and get the name of the purchaser, and have more to say on these high prices in another communica- tion. Wji. Hy. Sotham. Cass Hotel, Bee. 22, 1873. THE FARMERS' CLUB.— The following subjects have been selected for discussion during the present year : Introduced by Feb. 2.— -The Commercial Principle, I Mr. J. J. Meclii, as applied to Agriculture J Tiptree Hall, Kelvedou, March 2,— Milk : Its Supply audi Dr.Voelcker, Adulteration J Salisbury Square,E.C. April 6.— The Farmer's Interest at ) Mr. James Trask, the next Election ) Orchestou, Devizes. May 4.-Land Laws and Landlords { EJgecunibe,' Tavistock. November 3.— Our Villages: their 1 Mr. J'lmes Howard, Sanitary Reform J M.P., Bedford. ^ , „ „, „ , f r Mr. Herbert J. Little, December 7. - Tiie Future of I Coldham Hall, Wis- I'^n-ni'Dg L bech. THE RABBITS AND HARES.-At the Duke of Rox- burghe's rent-day an intimation was made to all the tenants tluit licncel'ortli tliey should have an equal rij^lit with the laud^ lord to the hares and rabbits on their farms. The giving up of hares aud rabbits is regarded by some tenants as virtually settling the game grievance. lU THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE-, THE AMERICAN DAIRY. At the annual meeting at Sinclairsville of the State Asso- ciation, the proceedings were opened with an address by Presi- dent WiLLARD, reviewing in brief the advancement and condi- tion of the dairy interest. Among the signs of progress were the extensive associitions by dairymen. County organiza- tions are springing up through all the dairy districts, and State associations have been established in Massachusetts, Vermont, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnsota, Canada, and New York. The present season was regarded as unfavourable. Two months of drought in the early part of the season, he estimated, had cut short the cheese crop from 40,000 to 60,000 pounds of cheese for every 700 to 800 cows ; and from early shrinkage and short feed the fall crop was put at one fonrth less than the usual amount. The injury done to the farmer's revenue by the drought has been felt as heavily in the winter keep, as in the summer's yield. The forage-crop is one-third short of the needs of the coming winter. This deficit must be made up by a heavy cost of grain or hay — the latter being now worth 25 dollars per ton at the barn, or a loss suffered in disposing of stock at very low rates. Some dairymen preferred the latteralternative, and were selling good straight young cows for 15 dollars per head, and such animals as needed to be culled from tlie herd, from 5 dollars to 8 dol- lors. The panic, by which farmers usually suffer less than other citizens, is responsible in a measure for depressed prices. The future looks better than the present. The consumption of cheese is increasing. A iialf million of emigrants yearly finding a home within our territory are large consumers of cheeie, and our own people, who are rapidly increasiug, con- sume more freely than in the past. This, with tlie increasing export demand, which is estimated for the year at £85,000,000 gives promise of a future demand that will keep pace with the extension of the factories, and the enlarged production of the future. Tor relief in present emergencies he urged a reduc- tion in the price of farm labour, a better selection of milk stock, and increased care and attention to its feed and comfort. The Hon. Hakkis Lewis, of Frankfort, N. Y., spoke at some length on " Adaptation." After considering the extent ' of his topic, the perfect adaptation in nature as exhibited in the distribution and production of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, and the adaptation of man to his peculiar relations to mind and matter, the salient points of his reriarks referred to what he considered adaptation in the business of dairying. The first step which should be taken by the young dairyman toward adapting himself to the business of his choice Mr. Lewis contended, was to select a companion adapted to his vocation as well as his taste. A dairyman is not adapted to his calling without a wife possessed of some business talent. She should have sufficient intelligence and skill not only to perform her part, but to lend a helping hand and assutae the direction of affairs iu she absence of her husband. Less de- voted to fashions than their future welfare, she should mingle her counsels with his in the selection of a home and all tiie essentials of life. A proper regard for taste is essential to adaptation. The wife of the merchant or the millionaire may be excused possibly for adapting herself to the ever-changing fashions and the marvellous freaks in dress. The wife of a dairyman must suit herself to her business. A three-foot trail or an absorption into her apparel of so much of the modern press as to impede her passage through a common door is not a good sample of adaptation in the business of dairying. This would be as inappropriate as to fill in the place of an enter- prising farmer with a quack doctor, a poor lawyer, or a defunct merchant. The dairyman should select a farm suited to his speciality, and his herd should be adapted to tlie particular line of business to which he proposes to devote liimself. No one need ever expect to get rich by selling milk by the quart or by making cheese from Devons or Jerseys. He must also adapt the food of his herd to their necessities. The food of the dairy must contain tiie material the cows are called upon to secrete. To expect golden butter from tlie pale fat of dead ripe hay, bleached straw or stale corn-stalks was not consistent. Nor did he think that to expect a bountiful yield from the stalks of green fodder corn, from which lie had been able to evaporate 92 per cent, of water, was much more consistent. Strong statements were made in regard to dry corn meal as a food for dairy cows, to which several members took exception. Mr. L. urged that grass was the proper food for the dairy cow in summer, and dried grass her food in winter. He further urged that adaptation could not be found in any single species of grass — a variety was better than any single sort. Lastly, the dairyman does not appreciate the full measure of adaptation if he does not possess himself of the best modern implements and the highest skill known to his calling. The profits of his business lie in the excellence of his goods. Poor goods give poor returns. By reason of the modern improvements in dairy products, the standard of public taste is all the time rising, and he who fails to bring his goods to the demands of the times, fails in the most essential part of adaptation. The evening of the first day was occupied with the delivery of the annual address by the Hon. John Stanton Gould of Hudson, whose subject was " Cleanliness," upon which he placed all the stress that Demosthenes did upon action. He considered milk unclean that contained anytliing not belonging to the necessary elements of milk. He stated that average milk consisted of — Water..86.00 | Butter..4.1 1 Sugar..5.2 1 Casein..3.9 | Ash.0.8 Milk that contains anything else is filthy. Tiiese elements are all that is necessary to the composition of perfect milk. They are exactly in the right proportions and conditions for the purpose of nutrition, and anything whatever that was added to them, must be regarded as foreign. It is not even necessary that something should be added to make milk unclean. He had often examined milk with a microscope, and had never failed to find foreign matter mingled with spores of cryptoga- mous plants — fungi — those identical with the active agency in rennet were always present, and others of a more offensive character. The tender aflinities by which the compound ele- ments of milk are held together are torn asunder by the growtli of these cryptogamia ; they feed upon the substance of the milk and change its condition unfavourably, or otherwise. There is such a thing as natural filth. These seeds are found alike in the milk of tlie wild and domestic cow. The evidences of native filth may be found at the factories where milk is condensed. The highest standard of milk is received at these factories. If any one will place his nose at the point where the vapour of the condensing milk passes out, he will be sur- ' prised at its extremely offensive character. It has the mingled odours of the cow's breath and her stable. Mr. Gould spoke somewhat fully in regard to the nature and effects of these I germs. He exhorted dairymen to make themselves acquainted ! with this class of plants, as all the changes in milk and cheese i are produced and moulded by them. They determine aU the I modifications by heat, explain the mysterious tliickening in covered cans, and are the cause of the ripening of milk so often spoken of by manufacturers. The peculiar composition of butter, and how changes were wrought in it by foreign agencies was explained at length, and listened to with interest and profit. He showed that filth may be cultivated as well as introduced. Things otherwise cleanly and desirable became unclean in milk. The otto of roses became filth in milk or its products. The contaminations tliat occur in milking and handling milk, the absorption of cryptogamous plant seeds from cellars and currents of foul air, from whey vats, and adjacent hog pens, was made clear. The necessity of making the study of milk more full and complete, so that the operation of the dairy can be conducted with somewhat of scientific exactness, was urged. A commission of scientific and practical men to investigate the laws and facts which avail in producing various changes in manufacturing dairy goods was suggested. The necessity of tests at every stage to know the exact progress made is desirable. The possibility of doing tliis was demon- strated at the close of his address by exhibiting one of Twitch- ell's acidometers and testing the amount of acidity in a sam- ple of vinegar in the presence of the audience. Prof. E. J. WicKSON of T/ie U/ica Herald gave a lecture upon " feeding at a mark," explaining by diagrams the com- pound nature of food and the various changes it undergoes in passing through the different stages of elaboration in the THE FARMBS,'S MAGAZIi^E. 14S aniraai's body. He s'nowecl the farmers in a plain and simple way the necessity of studying more closely than they now do the composition of their cattle food, and of feeding less by guess, and at a great loss, as mucli of the feeding is now done. He sliowed how feeding for special purposes may be accomplislied without waste, if the feeder understands the com- position of food at his command. Tile subject of cross-breeding for improving dairy stock was takea up by the Hon. J. Shull of llion, and a full discussion by the speaker and the audience was had. A variety of opinions prevailed in regard to the subject. The salient points in the consideration of the matter were that the stock of the country is already well crossed. The so-called native stock is made up wholly ot crosses, and the only native cow in tlie country is the bullalo. Mr. II. Farrington of Canada, a dairy- man of ovei 40 years' of large experience, had found the most profitable milking stock in the common eows of the country, and the sentiment of the majority seemed to accord with Mr. Harrington's experience. The milking strains of blood in the Shorthorns, tlie Alderneys, and the Ayrshires, were discussed and tiieir advantages for special purposes noted. The possibihty and propriety of establishing a breed of milking stock in Cliautauqua county was commented upon by several. The excellent pasturage for milk production in the county was considered a favourable condition for cultivating the habit of a large yield. The necessity of more attention to developing strong and permanent milking habits received general assent. Where crossing is to be done it was agreed that thoroughbred bulls from milky families with good milkers of common stock was the reaaiest way of making the first improvement. Mr. L. B. Aknold, Secretary of tlie Anierican Dairymen's Association, discussed the application of heat in the processes of cheeseiuaking. All the changes in milk that occur in cheesemaking are carried on by the cryptogamous plants des- cribed by Mr. Gould. The action of heat, up to a certain degree, hurries up their action. It is important that this action should be entirely uniform, else all parts of the mass will not be alike. The present method of ripening curd in the cheese vat is imperfect, and can only be accomplished by a high degree of skill derived from long experience. It changes the temperature from SO to 98 degrees. The ditiieulty lies in making this change uniform through the whole mass, as the heat is applied at the bottom and sides of the vat. To assist in distributing the heat evenly, the curd is divided. To cut and work the curd in such small divisions as to ensure an even heating, is to occasion waste ; to make the division in coarser pieces, the outside and inside of the pieces will not be atfected alike, and the ripening be unequally done, to the injury of the cheese. Another difficulty arises from making the divisions of unequal size — cutting fine and coarse in the same vat. The circumstances stated are what make the manufacture of cheese such a dillicult art. The remedy suggested by Mr. A. was to make the cheese with less variation in temperature, setting higher, with less rennet, and guarding more etfectually against loss of heat on the top of the vat, after applying the rennet. By preventing any loss of heat in any part of the vat, it was suggested that the whole work of ripening the curd for the press miglit be carried ou at a perfectly uniform temperature, and obviate entirely the necessity of cutting the curd, and the loss of richness and weight that occurs from that operation. Mr. A. referred to cheese which he had seen, which was made ou this plan, that was of good quality. The suggestions at- tracted the earnest attention of the audience. Mr. E. W. Stewakt, of The Live Stock JoimiaJ, spoke on feeding for milk production, urging the necessity of feeding the dairy all the food |they can consume. Feeding is the thrice important thing in milk production, as Mr. Gould urged tiiat cleanliness was in the manufacture of it. If there is any profit in converting catt'e fond into milk, the more the animal can so convert the greater the profit. He pointed out with much minuteness how the rations of the cow should be made up to feed without waste of material, giving the composition of the foods in common use, and showing how they may be compounded to the best advantage. The improvement made upon the digestibility of certain kinds of food by cooking, and under what circumstances it can be done profitably, were ex- plained. He had proved by experiments continned for months in succession, that some varieties of food are improved one- third by steaming. Mr. S. explained how the manner oi feed- ing meal might alfect the results to be derived from it. When fed alone and dry it passes at once into the fourth stomach and derives no benefit from digestion in the other divisions. If wet and mixed with cut straw or other coarse food, it will adhere to it and be carried into the first stomach or paunch and thence through all the other divisions, and receive a more complete digestion. In feeding the many thousand tons of meal which are to be consumed the present winter, the saving in cattle food which could be effected by this improved mode of feeding would amount in the aggregate to an important item. The lecture was replete with interest, and was listened to by the appreciative audience to the very last. At about i.SO p.m. the assemblage dispersed, after an un- abated crossfire of questions for au hour or more, aimed at Messrs. Arnold, Lewis, and Stewart, which showed the deep interest that the novelty of a Convention in an extreme corner of the State had excited, and the determination of a wide- awake people to make the most of it. SILESIAN BEET AS A FAEM CROP. At a meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society of Ireland, a lecture ou the above subject was delivered by Professor C. A. Cameron, Lord Talbot de Malaliide in the chair. The CiiAiiiMAiM said the question which they had before them was a very important one, if it could be carried out. It was not the first time he had given his attention to the subject- He perceived Mr. Sproule present, who, in conjunction in some degree with himself, had worked up the subject many years ago, but there were so many dilliculties in the way that the results were not successful, although there was a manu- factory established in Ireland for the purpose. The present raovemeut, he hoped, would be a most successful one. Dr. C.VMERON then proceeded with his lecture : The term sugar is a general one, applied to several compounds of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen (carbo-hydrates), all of wliich possess a sweet flavour. Of the various sugars, only four are of import- ance, namely, cane sugar (sucrose), grape sugar (glucose, or starch sugar), fruit sugar (fructose, inverted, or uucrystalliKable sugar), and milk sugar (lactose, or lactine). Cane sugar occurs abundantly in the sugar cane, the sugar grass (Sorghum saccharatum), several varieties of the maple, ia beet roots, mangels, carrots, turnips, pumpkins, cliesnuis, and many other plants. Grape sugar is found in fruits, especially when they liave been dried and kept for some time ; and it is the sugar produced from starch by the action of sulphuric acid, and during the germination of seeds. Fruit sugar, or fructose, is found in a great variety of fruits, and cane sugar is converted into this substance by prolonged boiling. Treacle consists of a mixture of 50 parts uon-crystallizable sugar and a little grape sugar, ~5 parts water, and 25 parts of saline matter. The quantity of starch sugar manufactured for sale is trifling but enormous amounts of this saccharine substance are inci- dentally produced in the manufacture of malt liquors and al- cohol. Cane sugar, as a commercial product, is at present obtained from only three sources, namely, the sugar cane, the beet, and the maple. The consumption of sugar is rapidly in- creasing, not only in the United Kingdom, but throughout the civilized world. Last year the enormous quantity of 1U,U0U,0U0 cwts. were imported into the United Kingdom, and of this amouiit l^i million cwts. were entered for home consumption. Of the sugar cousiimed last year in these countries, only 5,22i',4'70 cwts. were iiiipoited from British possessions, and of the balance of t)| millions of cwts. more than one-third was beet root sugar, and came from the Continent. I'rance alone in 1872 exported into the Uuited Kingdom, for iiome con- 146 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. siimptiou tkerem, uo less than 2,238,811 cwts. of sugar, con- sisting, no doubt, nearly altogether of the produce of the beet. Even in America the beet sugar industry is extending ;|and one sugar company (Alveredo, California) produced last year l,000,0001bs. of sugar and fed 350 cattle on the pulp. The consumption of sugar in the United Kingdom has now reached the high proportion of about 501bs. per unit of the population, and it is therefore a question well worthy of serious consider- ation, whether it is desirable to produce this valuable food in our own land or to continue to import it from foreign and co- lonial countries. The sugar in beet is worth 2Jd. per lb., and experience has shown that from 1:^ to 2^ tons of sugar may be produced from a statute acre of beets. Except in market gar- dens, there is hardly a food crop cultivated in this country which realises from £35 to £60 per statute acre, the values of the variable quantities of food produced from a statute acre of beet roots. Wo doubt, the whole value of an acre of beet sugar does not go to the farmer— it is divided with the manu- facturer ; but the profits of each are sufficiently ample. The late rapid spread of beet root cultivation throughout so large a portion of the Continent, and the yearly increase in the num- ber of European beet sugar factories, unmistakably prove that the growth and treatment of beet sugar must be operations amply remunerative to those engaged in them. Walkhoff in his Pradkche Ituhcnzucherfahrihint, page 7, gives the follow- ing account of the state of the beet sugar industry : Number of Manu- factories. Quantity of Beet- roots used In c%yts. Quantity of Sugar extracted. In cwts. Average consump tion per manu- factory. In cwts. 296 434 300 212 108 18 4 51945494 82850000 42400000 42300000 14200000 2143000 770000 4319640 5800000 3792000 3100000 1000000 150000 61600 172619 190915 141334 199530 131482 Holland 119060 192500 1370 236158494 18523240 172380 A Prussian cwt. is equal to 113-4261b3. English. In 1827 there were only 39 sugar factories in France, and in 1850 the amount of sugar produced was only 64-,000 tons ; last year the quantity manufactured was 400,000 tons. Only a few years ago there was not a beet sugar factory in Russia ; now that empire promises to rival Germany in this great in- dustry. Mr. Pauw in his excellent pamphlet on the beet sugar manufacture in Ireland states that in Holland the dividends from the beet sugar factories vary from 8 to 16 per cent. The mangel wurtzel, the common garden beet, and the white Sile- sian beet are all mere varieties of one plant, Beia vulgaris. The composition of all the varieties of this plant is essentially the same, but one kind— namely. Beta alba, or white (Silesian) beet — contains a larger amount of sugar than is found in the other varieties. By caieful selection of seed and other means, the growers of beet have succeeded in producing varieties very rich in sugar ; and it is these kinds that are chiefly cultivated when the roots are intended for the sugar manufacturer. Payen has minutely analyzed the white beet, and according to him, its composition is as follows : 100 parts contain Water "Sugar Cellulose (woody fibre) ... Albumen, caseine, and other nitrogeneous substances... Malic acid, gummy substances, fatty substances, aro- matic and colouring principles, essential oil, chloro- phyll, aspararaide, muriate of ammonia, slHcate, ni- trate, sulphate and oxalate of potash, oxalate and phosphate of lime, phosphate of magnesia, oxalate of soda, chlorides of sodium and potassium, pectates and pectinates of lime, potash, and soda, sulphur, silica, oxide of iron, &c. 83-5 10'5 0-8 1-5 3-7 100-0 Since Payen made his analysis, the composition of the beet has been greatly improved. The sugar in the beet is pure sucrose (cane sugar), neither inverted nor grape sugar being present. Formerly not more than half the amount of sugar present couid be practically extracted in a crystalline condition; but by means of certain improvements — notably the diffusion process — from 80 to 85 per cent, of the sugar can be extracted. Those roots which are not less than one pound, nor more than three pounds in weight, contain most sugar. When the spe- cific gravity of the juice of the root exceeds 1,070, they are pretty certain to be rich in sugar. Excessive luxuriance of foliage exercises an injurious effect upon the quality of the beet root, as indeed it does upon the common mangel. The practice of growing enormous roots of any kind is undoubtedly open to serious objections. Monster roots are almost always very watery, and they do not store well. As a larger number of small roots can be grown than large ones, and as the former, weight for weight, contain more actual nutriment, I have no doubt that a crop of moderate-sized mangels or turnips is more valuable than one composed of overgrown roots. Though the farmer may have a very large quantity of roots to cart in from his field of monster mangels, yet it should be borne in mind that the extra weight, as compared with a crop of moderate- sized roots, is merely water. F. Sestini and G. Deli Torre have recently experimented on the growth of sugar beet, and they state that the gross produce or weight of each is the same with both thick and thin sowing, but that the amount of sugar is greater when the roots are small. It is clearly, then, an advantage to sow thickly. The produce of Silesian beet per statute acre varies very much, according to conditions of climate, soil, manure, and tillage, and depends to a great extent upon the kind of seed sown. It is found that the beets rieli9st in sugar produce seeds from which plants rich in sac- charine matter can in time be developed. J3y attention to this point, as well as to some others, beet growers — notably M. Vilmorin — have succeeded in producing roots containing from 13 to 18 per cent, of sugar. It is not difficult to procure the seed of the varieties of beet richest in sugar ; and I cannot understand why other kinds, containing only from 6 to 9 per cent, of sugar, are still largely cultivated even in France and Germany. In the early part of the century the yield of beet was very small on the Continent : only 8 tons per acre were obtained in France ; whilst at the preient time, according to Mr. Barruchson, 16 tons is about the average yield. In the " report of inquiry into the composition and cultivation of sugar in Ireland," by Sir Robert Kane and Messrs. Sullivan and Gages, a table is given, showing the quantity of sugar beet obtained per acre in various parts of Ireland. The beet was sown in 18 districts, and the produce in roots varied from 12 to 52 tons per statute acre. On the farm of Lord Talbot de Malahide the yield was from 4-8 to 52 tons per statute acre, and 12 tons of leaves were also obtained. The crop had been manured with 45 tons of farm duug per acre. Out of the 18 crops one yielded 2^ tons (this crop failed, it was stated, because it had been sown late), one gave 16 tons, one 18 tons, seven from 20 to 30 tons, and eight from 3I| tons to 52 tons. In the 3Lirk Lane Express for October 4, 1852, Mr. James Reeve, of Leatherhead, Surrey, states that he obtained 38 tons 17 cwts. 96 lbs. of Silesian beet per acre ; whilst the orange globe gave him a crop of 30 tons 10 cwt. 9 lbs. ; and mangel- wurtzel a crop of 32 tons 13 cwt. 6 lbs. per acre. It is stated that by judicious management 40 tons of beets per acre may be obtained ; but this is a very high estimate. There can be little doubt as to the suitability of Ireland as a root-producing country. Larger crops of mangels are more frequently obtained in Ireland than, ceteris paribus, in England or Scotland, and in this respect Ireland is far superior to France and Germany. As the beet is a close congener of the mangel, and may be properly grown under almost identical circumstances, it is evi- dent that very large crops of white beet could be grown in Ireland. The mild and moist climate of this country is favour- able to the culture of the beet. In most parts of the Continent where this crop is cultivated it sometimes fails from spring and early summer droughts, and occasionally from premature frosts. In Ireland there is usually abundance of rain in the early summer months ; and frost seldom appears until Christ- mas or later. This mildness of climate permits the growth of the beet to go on until December if necessary, and favours the conversion of the non-saccharine carbo-hydrates of the root into sugar. It is quite a fallacy to think that brilliant sun- light and tropical heat are necessary factors in the production THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 147 ot sugar. They are, iudecd, wheu llic sugar is developed iu the foliage, but they lesseu or prevent the production of sugar in the roots. Beet roots carefully protected from the solar _beams contain far more sugar than is found in those roots which are partly exposed to direct sun-light. Dr. Voelcker found iu that portion of a beet root which lay conapletely below the soil S|^ per cent, of sugar, and only i per cent, in the portion of the root which grew above the soil. In Ireland the summers are not hot, but that is uot a disadvantage, but rather the contrary in the case of beet culture ; for although this plant grows indigenously iu Portugal, it does not thrive as a sugar-producing crop in very warm cli- mates. A company has recently been established in Dublin for the purpose of introducing the manufacture of beet sugar into Ireland. It has secured a large farm at Bodenstown, county of Kildare, whereon it proposes to grow beets and manufacture beet sugar. It also proposes to pur- chase beets from the neighbouring farmers, for which it offers £1 per ton. As it is important that only the varieties of beet richest in sugar should be grown, the company decided to make some experiments with the view of ascertaining the kind which it could cultivate with most advantage, and which it could recommend to be grown by the farmer. Accordingly, 10 kinds of seeds were sown in the demesne-farm of Mr. Hamilton, at Abbotstown, county of Dublin, which was kindly placed at its disposal by that gentlemen. The crops were manured with thirty tons of dung, some bone superphosphate, and 2 cwts. of kainit (crude potash compounds) per statute acre ; the land was well limed. The results of this experiment are given in the following table : tn c~ oo 22 COOr-IC)rH(«OOOr-H 00 r-H G s M S o C5r-100COOO"3C-t~r-IQO l-H r-H ^ rH r-l 0 i-H O Soo i S si O500«eO»«O-*«t-00«D ^ 1— l:-li-1rHr-fr-l(>«rHr-li-( S'-' Hi _^ >i TS t^elioi— i>ooot-Otf*>o s (5 (?»OOi-HOi— l-^rH^OOOr-l Sh «0l01Ot0lO^t-iOU5lO 10 P « i s ^• <::> <^ oi n3 ia-^oiiaoir-it^-^-^Oi ^:* 2 n>n'*0'T<'tirH CO 0 0 s I/> s c« a pH i-H r-H r-l 0 i-l « « i-H lyi C-H 0 < H 0 "3 0000000000 0000000000 0 ^ 05 0 0 05 10 (N OS rl TO C«D CO OJ C* >5 1— I 0' r-i i-i 0 r-I r-J 0 rH pH i-l Q S^ inr-<-#(«ooej^e>j5 rH 0 i-iC~0«Mr-lrftO»C-C^«? t^ 0 5£5lOC3«6rHU3lAeiic<5"> in 0 PhjS ^'1 CS Ou3.*OiOOi- C-l 03 eS -»1 0 H a „ . d C-lOOOCOMOO-JllOt- CO'.flCOOJr— (COOOO&lin 0 CO id <.2^^ r- '0 <1 0 a Si's £ t-cg^S^ o-r t0>^6Ofl«cS=Sg=SJ r< ^ i^ii^g •§ 2 £ 0 :. H 0 s 0 g^^cS "^ "s 1 rH«CO-*lQCDt^00O5C 12; 0 Tlie analysis of each kind of beet represents the av composition of three roots ; the average weight of each was as follows : AVERAGE WEIGHT OF ROOTS. erage kind No. 1 2 3 4. 5 6 7 8 9 10 « j3 .0 CO ji £ ^ j^ ^ ^ ^ S" mn r-H f-H l-H Hid r-l rH l-H 1—1 -1* These results are very satisfactory. If the three best kind of beets (Nos. 7, 8, and 10), as shown by these experiments, be grown, the yield of sugar will be from 2 tons 1 cwt. 44 lbs. to 2 tons 10 cwts. and lO'J lbs. of sugar per acre. The Rev. I'rofessor Jellett has determined the amount of sugar in Irish grown beets, by means of his new saccliarometer, and fouud the proportion to vary from 11.02 to 12.59 per cent. The Bret as a ruRHLY farm CRor.— The white beet is a well llavonred root, and is largely eaten by cattle. The non- nitrogenous substances wliich it contains are cliicfly sugar, a food material probably more valuable, aud certainly more palatable than starcii and pectose, which constitute the greater part of the nutriment of the animals of the farm. ,The sole 148 THE FAEMEU'S MAGAZINE. object of couvertiug barley into malt to be used as a cattle food is to change the starch of the grain into sugar — an operation attended by expense as well as waste of material. Some ex- pensive articles, such as locust beans and molasses, which are often ir/ven to cattle, are valuable only for the sugar which they contain. If it be desirable, then, to feed cattle on saccharine food, wliy not produce [it on the farm? Why not grow the Silesian beet, wbieh contains from 8 to 13 per cent, of |this valuable aliment? If there were never to be esta- blished a sugar factory in Ireland, it would clearly be to the interest of the stock feeder to grow a crop yielding him a couple of tons of sugar per acre, and in cultivating which he need not in the slightest degree interfere with his usual system of cropping. Not only does the beet crop enable the farmer to grow immense quantities of that which Mr. Banting terms the most fat-producing of all foods — namely, sugar — but it also takes out of the soil and air a greater quantity of absolute nutriment of dry matter — than a turnip crop does, and a much larger amount of absolute nutriment than a potato crop. In the following table the amounts of solid food yielded by the Imperial (the true Keaner), acclimatised in France, and by an average of the 10 kinds of beet grown at Abbotstovvn (some of which ought not to be cultivated), are contrasted witli the amounts of dry food furnished by an acre of Swedish turnips, of mangel-wurtzcl, and of the potato : COMPOSITION OF ROOTS AND TUBERS. Imperial Beet acclimatised in France. Average of ten kinds of Beets. Swedish Turnips. p bo 6^ d 79.72 82.416 20.28 17.581 91 Si) 75 Solid Matters 9 1 11 25 Produce per statute acrf Amount of dry food per 100.00 Tons. 22.85 4.63 100.00 Tons. 18.05 3.17 100 Tons. 30 3.30 100 Tons. 24 2.16 100 Tons. 8 2 Professor Wilson, in his '' Farm Crops," vol. 1, page 309, states that the average yield of swedes in 37 farms in Moray- shire during five years was 21 tons 19 cwts. 7 lbs. per acre, and he considers that 20 tons constitute a fair crop, and indi- cate good cultivation. I may have under-estimated the yield of common mangels ; but if from 40 to 50 tons per statute acre are attainable by good management, abundance of manure, &c. we must bear in mind that by good management it is also possible to produce proportionately large crops of the sugar beet. The soil for the growtli of the sugar beet may comprise every kind of land suited for root crops generally, except boggy on moory soil The sugar beet resembles the carrot or parsnip in the manner of its growth rather than the turnip or common mangel, which are so much above ground : the lighter soils are therefore unsuitable. The clayey loams constitute the best soils for the sugar beet ; the heavier soils, when not too stiff to admit of pulverization, producing the best roots. In the growth of the sugar beet quality is equally im- portant with gross weight, and for manufacturing purposes it is still more so. Ordinarily this consideration has been too much neglected ; and hence, by heavy manuring, the farmers have ssuglit to grow large crops, altogether irrespective of quality. Direct applications of farm-yard manure in large quantity are always injurious in this respect. This manure is best applied in the autumn, before the first ploughing of the land intended for the sugar beet. Unless lime exists in the soil it should be applied during the preparation of the land for the crop, as it is an essential ingredient for the proper de- velopment of the beet plant. At the time of sowing it is ad- viasble to use a liberal supply of bone superphosphate, as that substance not only pushes forward the young seedling plants at a time when they are peculiarly susceptible to injury, but it also forms a most suitable manure for the crop afterwards. The quantity must depend on the state of the land, but may usually be about 4 or 5 cwt. to the statute acre. As the beet is very rich in potash salts, it is advisable, in most cases, to apply 1 or 2 cwts. of kainit to a statute acre of this crop. The soil for the sugar beet should be naturally fertile, or have been enriched by previous applications of manure, rather than direct applications for the crop, beyond that of the superphosphate just indicated. The place in the rotation may be tliat of the ordinary root crop, a portion of the land which would otherwise be in Swedish turnips or mangels being reserved for the sugar beet ; or it may follow Swedish turnips or potatoes with great advantage — the pre- vious preparation and treatment of the land for these crops forming an admirable preparation for tiie beet. The prepara- tion of tiie land consists of deep and minute pulverization. A much greater depth of tilled soil is required for the beet than for the turnip, on account of the former growing in the soil and the latter on it. The sugar beet must not, in fact, be grown over-ground under any circumstances, and this condi- tion shows the necessity of deep tillage. The preparation of land for root crops generally is so well understood by our farmers that it is quite unnecessary to enter into minute de- tails ; besides, the number of ploughings, harrowings, and cleanings must be regulated by the condition of the soil to be operated on. Pulverization, though absolutely essential to the proper development of the roots, is not more necessary than proper cleaning of the land from weeds in the prepara- tory stage. Unless this be done, the young beet plants are liable to be injured by the weeds growing up vigorously amongst them ; and without due preparation of the land in this respect, it is expensive and difficult — indeed, almost im- possible— in wet seasons to keep down the weeds during the growth of the crop. These considerations show the advantage of making the sugar beet follow a manured crop wherever it may be practicable to do so. The due exposure of the soil to the atmosphere in winter is also well known to our farmers as essential in the preparation of the land for root crops. The most approved mode of cultivating the sugar-beet is on the flat surface, after the soil has been duly prepared by the necessary plonghings, harrowings, grubbings, and rolhngs, in rows sixteen to eighteen inches apart — distances quite wide enough to admit of the action of the drill grubber between the rows during the growth of the crop. These distances would not suffice for raised drills, in which farmyard manure is to be applied, but, as before observed, no liberal application of farmyard manure can be made without proving detrimental to the quahty of the roots. Hence, on soils exhausted by cropping, however suitable the kind of land, sugar-beet should not be grown, as heavy, direct manuring must not take place. Where raised drills are determined on, they will rarely be less than twenty to twenty-four inches apart, and, in such cases, eight to ten tons of well-rotted faimyard manure may be used in the rows, though any application in this way is not to be commended, for the reasons already explained. A greater depth of pulverised soil is obtained by using the raised drill, and it may have some advantage over the flat surface in very wet seasons; but, under ordinary circumstances, the latter is to be preferred. The proper seed time, as in the case of all farm crops, must depend a good deal on the character of the season. In the sugar-producing districts of the Continent every matter connected with the production of the beetroots has become so much the object of attention that the seed time there is frequently determined by the temperature of the soil at the depth of a few inches, as indicated by the thermometer. But farmers generally will not trouble themselves with miniitiiF, of this kind. Observation, founded on long experience, enables them to determine with sufficient accuracy when seed operations should take place. In the case of biennial plants, like the beet and the turnip, they have a tendency, if sown too early, to throw up the flower-stem during the first year, instead of the first season being altogether devoted to the development of the roots, which thereby have stored up the recjuisite supply of nutriment for the development of the seed stem in the following year. As a rule, however, the beet tribe are sown earlier than any of the turnips, and, in fact, as early in the season as the proper germination of the seed can be reckoned on. The state of the soil at the time of sowing is of much more importance than a few days earlier or later seedtime. In wet weather, as a rule, the seed cannot be safely sown on account of the injury done to the pulverisation of the land by working it when wet. On the other hand, if the soil be very dry at the time of sowing, and drought con- THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 14?> tinue for some time, germination may so imperfectly take place as to lead to failure. The last week in April seems to be the most approved seed time in this country for the sugar beet, as far as tlie weather will permit. Moistening the seed is frequently practised to hasten germination. When the seed time has beeu unduly delayed, a gain of some four or five days may in this way be had ; but should the sowing be further delayed by unfavourable weather, the moistened seed may be irretrievably injured. When the soil is dry at the time of sowing, and rain does not soon follow, the effect of damping the seed will be to stimulate vegetation without the circum- stances beiug available for nourishing the young plants, by which they will become stunted in their growth, or perhaps be destroyed ; whereas, without damping, the seed would have remained inert in the soil without injury till moisture would be available. The moistened seed must not be placed in heaps, where it would heat before sowing. Dilute liquid manure of the farmyard is reconimended for the purpose, and ashes or fine mould should be mixed with the seeds before sowing, to pre- vent theni from sticking together. Tlie seed is sown con- tinuously in the row, or dibbled in at the distances apart at which the plants are eventually to remain : in either case, good results may be had. On a large scale, the latter system will scarcely be practicable, on account of the very con- siderable amoMut of manual labour which it entails, though even this would be to some extent compensated for by the saving of seed. If sown continuously in rows, about 12lbs. to lilbs. of seed to the statute acre will be required. The depth to which the seed is to be covered is an important consideration ; but this, again, depends a good deal on cir- cumstances, cliielly the amount of moisture present in the soil. In damp weather the covering can scarcely be too light, but in dry weather it should be at least one inch. The seed may be sown by the sowing machine or by hand, with both of which methods our farmers are acquainted. The quantity of seed mentioned may appear to many persons to be excessive, and there can be no doubt that a very much smaller quantity would suffice were it not desirable to guard against the etfects of large numbers of the seeds not germinating, through defective cover- ing in the soil or from some other cause ; and the sacrifice of a few pounds extra of seed is small compared with the advan- tage of securing a proper supply of vigorous plants. The after culture of the crop of sugar beet presents little peculiarity from that of root crops generally. The intervals between the rows is to be kept pulverised and free from weeds, and if the crop be on raised drills the final tillage will consist of earthing up the plants, so that the crown of the roots only may be ex- posed to the sun. The thinning of the young plants will be performed iu the ordinary way. The distances apart of the plants in the rows may be about eight inches, which distance, with the rows eighteen inches apart, would give 43,.560 plants to the statute acre. With roots only 1 lb. each, this would give in round numbers 20 tons to the acre ; but as the roots will range from 1 lb. to over 3 lbs. each, it will be seen that by careful tillage under favourable circumstances 25 tons to the acre would be a moderate crop. When the beet is grown for the purpose of feeding cattle on the farm, the substances which it takes from the soil will be returned to the latter in the form of manure, minus the amount carried away in the carcases of the animals sold off the farm. Under these circumstances, the influence which the beet exercises upon the soil differs but little from that produced by other root crops. But when the beet is sold to the sugar manufacturer, a large amount of phosphates, and a still larger quantity of potash, are taken altogether away from the farm. The question, therefore, na- turally arises. How is the fertilising matter withdrawn from the farm by the beets sold to the sugar manufacturer to be restored to it? It is not difficult to reply satisfactorily to this question. Sugar, as I have already stated, is composed merely of carbon and the elements of water ; it does not contain nitro- gen, phosphates, or potash— the tliree manurial agents which are of any value. Tlie beet as a whole contains nitrogenous matters, phosphates, and potash, but these ingredients are not what the sugar-maker wants ; and when he separates them from the sugar they constitute incidental or bye-i)roduct8, namely, pulp and molasses. The pulp is too bulky an article to admit of its being transported to a distance greater than that from which the beets arc brought to the factory ; conse- quently the natural destination ot the pulp is the farm on which the beets that produced it are grown. On the Conti- nent the farmer brings his beets to the factory, and he returns home with beet pulp. As the pulp contains nearly all the nitrogen and a large proportion of the mineral matter originally present in the beet, it is evident that if it be returned to the farm, the fertility of the latter will be fully maintained. The molasses produced at the sugar factory contains a large propor- tion of the potash originally present in the beet : if it be also consumed on the farm, then everything which is of manurial value goes back to tlie soil. If the waste products of the beet sugar factory be consumed on the farms that supply the roots — and that is the natural and usual course of events — the farms certainly cannot decrease in fertility. The amount of plant food in the soil is practically inexhaustible ; but only a very small proportion of it exists in an immediately available condition. Tillage adds to the stock of effective nutritive mat- ter in the soil, and tillage is therefore a substitute for manure. Messrs. Lawes and Gilbert, of Rothamstead, have been growing grain crops every year in the same field for more than a quarter of a century without any manure, and the crops show no sign of a diminished yield. Every year's tillage sets Iree from the stony fortresses of the soil adequate supplies of phosphates, potash, and other food of plants. In growing the beet, the mechanical operations to which the soil is subjected add to its stores of effective fertilizing matters. Of these a portion is removed iu the beet crop, but it is returned to it again as pulp, either directly, or indirectly in the form of animal manure. The large foliage crop produced by the beet is also a valuable source of manure. The farmer who sells milk, cheese, meat, and grain, and especially potatoes, sends off his land a greater amount of phosphates and nitrogen than he usually applies to it iu the form of manure. It is clear, theu, that a beet sugar factory must necessarily increase the fertility of the district in which it is situated ; because it keeps iu the farms on which it depends for roots, the phosphates, potash, and nitrogen — sub- stances which ordinary crops remove iu great part from the soil. At present it is found impossible to extract from beets all the sugar which they contain. A portion of it, the albu- minous substances, pectose bodies, cellulose, and some other matters, remain after all the sugar that can be obtained is ex- tracted from the roots. Tlie residue, termed pulp, has been analysed by Voelcker and other chemists, all of whom have reported most favourably as to its nutritive properties. The following analyses of the pulp have been made by Voelcker: COMPOSITION 01' BEET KOOT PULP (rROMTUESUGARFACTORY), 100 PARTS CONTAIN : Belgian Beet Pulp one year old. French Beet Pulp. English Beet Pulp (Lavenham Factory). Moisture 70.00 2.43 18.67 6.48 2.42 70.88 2.38 6.59 16.43 3.72 70.11 Albuminous compounds... Sugar, pectose, digestible fibre, &c 2.25 20.45 Woody fibre 5.33 Mineral matter 1.87 100.00 100.00 100.00 The amount of dry matter in a ton of pulp is nearly equal to that contained in two tons of fresh beets ; therefore, not- withstanding the large amount of cellulose contained in the pulp, it is evidently the more nutritive food of the two. This is the general opinion amongst the farmers who grow beets for the sugar manufacturer. In Belgium and some parts of France, fattening beasts are chiefly, sometimes solely, fed on beet pulp. Dr. Voelcker considers that beet pulp would be a cheap food at 12s. per ton, but I think if farmers sell beets at £1 per ton, they would do well to buy pulp even at 15s. per ton. Pulp is easily kept in good condition for a year or two by placing it in trenches, and covering it with earth. Mixed with palm-nut meal or decorticated cotton-seed cake, a valu- able and concentrated food would bo the result. Although inverted, or uncrystallisable sugar does not occur naturally in the beet, this substance is formed from cant, sugar (sucrose) during the boiling, &c., of the beet juice. It con- stitutes a large proportion of the molasses or portion of the beet juice which remains after the separation of the crystal- lisabie sugar. Molasses is an excellent fat-forming food for stock, and is much used for that purpose in many parts of 150 THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. England, especially in Norfolk. It is mixed with roots, and sometimes with meal or chopped straw. Beet molasses is not so palatable as that obtained from the sugar cane ; but it is easy to render it fit for even human use, by successive treat- ment with a little sulphuric acid and chalk. Molasses contains potash salts, and if this substance and the pulp be sold to the farmers who supply the roots, then every substance of manured value takeu from the land will be restored to it. COST OF ■WOKKi:VG A BEET 3UGAK FACTORY. A factory capable of working from 120 to 150 tons of beet a day would employ from 110 to 120 hands per 24 hours, in- cluding— £ s. d. 1 Manager, salary per week ... ... ...8 0 0 3 Employes, salaries, 1 at £G, and 1 at £3 10s. 9 10 0 2 Men for diffusion ... ... ... ... 5 0 0 2 „ filters 3 0 0 1 „ attending to animal charcoal ... 1 10 0 3 „ „ carbonation 3 0 0 2 Engineers, 1 at 32., 1 at 25s. 2 1? 0 The workpeople would consist of men, boys, and girls, and be paid at the rate of Is. Cd. per day, making for 110, at IDs. per week ... 55 0 0 Fuel 87 0 0 Lime and animal charcoal ... 35 0 0 Sundries 4 13 0 "Weekly expenses ■ ... £215 0 0 Say for 20 weeks, vyould make 4,300 0 0 Labour for working up the 2nd and 3rd produce 700 0 0 Total £5,000 0 0 which makes for 12,000 tons an expense of 3s. 4d. per ton> and the working of an additional 3,000 tons of roots can be effected by about the same number of hands, only retpiring more coals, animal charcoal, and lime. Ck. 840 tons of sugar, at £23 per ton ...£19,320 3,000 tons of pulp, it 15s, per ton ... 2,250 300 tons of molasses at £5 per ton ... 1,500 Other products, say ... 500 Dr. 13,000 tons of roots at 20s. ... ...£12,000 Expenses of working, including fuel, la- bour, charcoal, and necessaries of all kinds, 10s. per ton of roots ... Rent, taxes, and insur- ance Allowance for depre- ciation, &c Net profit from manu- facture 0,000 500 1,000 4,070 ^23,570 £23,570 In the foregoing estimate the expenses of working are stated at 10s. per ton of the beet roots ; but from the detailed list of the items of tlwj actual expenses of a factory of the size men- tioned, when the most liberal provision is made in every de- partment to secure efficiency, the actual outlay per ton of roots will be about 8s. 4d., instead of 10s. ; the difference amounting exactly to £1,000 on the £12,000 tons worked up in the season. In concluding this paper, I beg to thank the Royal Agricultural Society ot Ireland for its kindness in per- mitting me to read it before it. The subject matter of it, however, appears to me to be of sufficient importance to bring it under the notice of a society which aims at the improvement of agriculture, for I truly believe that the establishment of beet sugar factories in Ireland would react most favourably upon the husbandry of this country. To use the words of A well-known French writer, M. Basset, this industry would be a source of riches to the agriculturalist who produces the raw material, the foundation of honourable fortunes to those who cultivate it as a business, and an element of general national prosperity. The Chairman wished to ask Dr. Cameron what was the mode of cultivation practised on the Continent, with reference to beet root? Did they usually manure the ground before they planted it ? Dr. Cameron replied that he had had some experience with reference to pulp. When the manufacture of this article was being carried on, he ordered several casks of the pulp, which he gave to his steward for the stock. They ate it, and he believed they improved upon it. However, at first they did not appear to relish it at all, inasmuch as it had rather an offensive smell, and he was impressed with an observation which fell from his steward, when he asked him how the pigs liked it, to which he replied that they ate it " indignantly." Mr. Bagot inquired of his lordship if he remembered what he paid for it ? The Chairman said he could not remember exactly, as it took place some years ago. He could not say that it was a paying speculation, as it was a mere experiment. The pro- moters of the project did not grow any beet themselves for manufacturing purposes, and he did not think the price they offered for the beet was sufEcient to induce farmers to raise it as a speculation. They did not offer more than 10s. or 12s. a ton. From what had fallen from Dr. Caraerou, the promoters of the present company proposed to give £1 a ton. Well, that would be a greater inducement to farmers to grow it. For his own part, he had no doubt, that the system pursued abroad for cultivating a considerable quantity of this article was the strongest and safest one that could be adopted. Mr. Bagot said the great difficulty he apprehended in in- ducing farmers to grow this article would be the impossibility of bringing back the pulp to the farm, unless it was grown from within a short distance from the manufactory. It would not, in his opinion, be advisable for farmers to sell off their roots, unless they could introduce some substitute. Dr. Cameron, in his lecture, mentioned that the refuse which would be sold w^ould be worth 15s. a ton. Dr. Cameron : Not for manure, but for food. Mr. Bagot asked if a ton of turnips would not be worth a ton of the refuse ? With regard to the price, he found that in the neighbourhood where the sugar factory was about being established, roots had been increasing in value. On the previous evening he met a gentleman who resided within six miles of Sallins, who informed him that he got as much as 24s. a ton for his mangels. If roots maintained this price, it would be in his opinion better and more profitable for farmers to grow mangels. No doubt, it required heavier manure for mangels than for the growth of beet, but this was a matter which the farmers would alone determine by experi- ment. The company would find it difficult to induce farmers to change the cultivation of a district. Under all the circum- stances, he did not think they had enough of data before them to enable farmers to grow one or two acres of beet. Dr. Cameron observed that it would answer on any land except moory soil. Mr. Baggy thought it was well to have the difficulties as well as the advantages resulting from the project put before the meeting. Personally he had no wish to throw obstacles in the way, but he would not advocate a course which would induce farmers to sell roots off their farms. Dr. Cameron — Do they sell their potatoes off their farms? Mr. Bagot observed that there were one or two large potato farms in his district where the owners grow extensively, but they were able to replace them with Dublin manure. In his opinion, the best portion of the Professor's paper was that which stated that as the crop was likely to be consumed on the farm, it was likely to be more paying than turnips and mangel. In the neighbourhood where the factory was about being established, the ground was getting what was called " turnip sick," and for the last six or seven years the difficulty of growing turnips was increasing. If the doctor was certain that the growth of sugar beet would be a suitable substitute and a good thing for the farmers, in place of turnips and mangel, the paper would be a most invaluable one. A vote of thanks to Dr. Cameron was put to the meeting, and passed unanimously. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 151 RATES AND RENTS. It is to be hoped that the correspondence which is now passing Jthrough our pages ou the Case of the Labourer, has not escaped that attention it deserves ; as, indeed, the couti'oversy lias already been taken up elsewhere, the more especially by our local contemporaries. For our own part, we are sanguine euough to believe that this after- discussion may not be without some collateral effect in demonstrating to the farmer his actual position with re- gard to the question of Local-Taxation. Thus, in the outset, let U3 graut to Canon Breretou the first of his premises, that any real improvement in the labourer's condition by the establishment of higher permanent wages might diminish by a third the assistance which he has so far required from the poor-rate. And, then, without proceeding to the proposal for the use of these savings, we may let the Canon show how any such de- crease would act, or those it would benefit : " The poor- rate proper has become a permanent charge in this sense — that if it were to cease to-morrow, the chargeable property would rise in value at once to the full amount of the cancelled rate, and the owners would not be re- lieved of a burden, but rather presented with a bonus, which would be equal to the full capitalised value of an equal amount of net rental. Roughly speaking, the cessation of pauperism would add 10 per cent, to the value of real property in England." There can be no denying the soundness of this principle, although Mr. Sewell Read in answering Canon Breretou, says he will " not stop to discuss the old question whether the occu- pier or owner pays the rate." To us, however, it seems utterly impossible to carry on the discussion without touching on this " old" but still very material question. Very noticeably. Canon Brerelou's argument rather tends to put Ethe tenant's interest out of court here, and, in accordance with the rules of political ecomy, to confine the question of ady advantage arising from a decrease of rates to the owner of the land who pays, and to the working man who receives. But here the Canon does not go far enough, as the assumption is that the labourer will require less aid from the rates just in proportion as he is paid more for his work. And from whose pocket does this increase of pay come ? In the first instance, as Mr. Brereton's opponents are not slow to show, from that of the employer. "The farmer has within the past thirty years paid the increase, and I believe would pocket any reduction for many years to come. But sup- pose the landlord should eventually secure the whole saving. If farmers are to continue to pay higher wages for less or even for the same amount of work, they can- not long afford that extra drain upon their present small profits. Consequently the rents of arable land will fall." So says Mr. Sewell Read, who here, whether he will or not, is discussing the " old" question of how as the burdens increase the rents must fall. Then, Mr. James Trask propounds what he manifestly thinks a very awk- ward question, when he asks " If ' it is clear,' as Canou Brereton asserts, that the 'chargeable property' will be re- lieved to this extent, I should be very much obliged if he will point out from what source the ' higher permaueut wages' to be paid to the labouring classes is to come from. Will it drop from the skies ? or will none of it have to be got out of this ' chargeable property' ?" Of course it must in common justice be got out of the property which would reap the main benefit from the change. Wage? like rates must in n degree be a matter of rent, and any permanent rise will have to be considered in this way ; although at first the farmers themselves were not inclined to regard the " agitation" in such a light. Mr. Read believes that the employer would pocket any reduction for many years to come ; whereas we believe that the landlord would avail himself of any sensible reduction at the first opportunity, by the close of an agreement or the end of a lease ; as llr. Read himself shows us that the landlords as a class are not to be trusted over this business of rates, for they have systematically cleared their estates of cottages, no matter at how much detriment to the employer or the employed, IMr. Masfen, again, will want £25 out of any money saved, his rates having increased to that amount since he entered ou his farm. This is not much ; but let there be auy tangible decrease, say of £50 or more, and we shall be bold to say that the owner would soon be quite as sensible of this as the occupier. Whether it be over Game, Rents, or Rights, the tenant is always dealing with a stronger power, who at this very moment has his ener- gies directed to the diminution of rates— with what ultimate object but to increase the rental value of his property ? A leading agriculturist in Norfolk thus writes on Saturday last in The Norwich Mercury -. " We think that Canon Brereton's proposal was scarcely compre, heuded by the meeting, for we are not at all sure that it would not answer the purpose of the owners of laud- who will really be the recipients of any saving in the rates, to use the money so acquired in forming a benefit fund for the sick and aged labourer which would assist him in providing for those certain events, and, while it relieved their property still further from rates, would improve both the moral and physical condition of the working man. This, we understand, to be the Canon's idea, of which, we think Mr. Read and others scarcely took in the full scope, judging from his reply to Canon Brereton's explanatory letter." Our own impression when we heard Canon Brereton speak was, that he did not make himself clearly understood ; at the same time the majority of the farmers would scarcely seem to clearly understand their own position here ; for, as is shown in the above extract, written by one of their own order, " the owners of land will really be the recipients of any saving in rates," while they must throw back something in rent, as they should do something in re- turn for the man who has thrown back the rates. One thing is manifest enough : , if they raise rents, as they will do in proportion to the decrease of rates, then they must lower rents in proportion to the increase of wages. In fact, when fairly adjusted, the question, as Canon Brereton puts it, is mainly one between the owners and the labourers. " Three modes have been proposed for raising Local- Taxation : first, on income; second, on pcrsoual pro- perty ; and third, the existing one of taxing real ])ro- perty. Taking tlie first, a tax on incomes ; is it likely that this great trading and commercial country will sub- mit for the benefit of the proprietors of laud and houses to the imposition of a second inquisitorial Income-tax? Why, it is only necessary to mention it to dispose of it. Tlieu, as to the x'ating of personal property, I have never yet seen any plan proj)ounded which is at all feasible. Take stock-iu-t rade, for instance. Would the tradesmen and manufacturers, yea, would the farmers of the country submit to a Government official coming round period!- im THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. cally to take their stock-in-trade or tlie value of it to sasses it for Local-Taxation ? And further, is it possible iu this nation of shop-keei^ers to carry out this system ? I think not. Where would you begin ? You would have to assess the stock-in-trade of many of the nobility — for many of them are traders, and some of them trade even in game. I believe the proposition is perfectly Utopian and chimerical. Local-Taxation is iu principle a tax upon property and not upon occupation, and therefor, although at times in practice it is levied on or paid be the occupier, I believe that the principle — and I dou't think that principle can be disputed — is that local rates are rates upon property, that is upon land, houses, and manufactories, and therefore should be payable by the landlord. I believe if this principle were adopted, and it is partly adopted in Scotland, the agitation, or much of it, would cease." So said Mr. James Howard at Bedford the other day, illustrating his argument with " a very glaring case," and declaring that " evtn in this relormed House of Commons the interests of the tenant are very little looked after in comparison with those of the landlord." A year or two since there was a proposal made at the Central Chamber of Agriculture to look up stock-in-trade, but ready as the Chamber has been to make a catspaw of the tenant, they dropped this stock- in-trade notion like a hot potato. The simple truth is, that farmers, or some of their leaders are fighting the land- lords' battle a deal more resolutely than their own ; but the sooner they come to understand the actual bearings of Local-Taxation, especially in the way of rates and rents, the better prepared will they be for the next election. A correspondent of T/ie Stamford Mercury thinks they are really awakening to their own interest, for speaking of the financial condition of the Central Chamber he says : " I look upon it as the most whole- some sign of the times. Taken in connection with Mr. Read's address at the Farmers' Club and the bit of his mind which he gave the landlords, I conclude that the tenant-farmers of the Chamber have had enough of sub- scribing money to strengthen the hands of Sir Massey Lopes in his career of landowners' statecraft, through which course tenant-farmers have been used for party purposes, and not for the good of themselves or the nation." We have pointed out all this often enough in the course of the last two or three years. MASTER AND SERVANT.— A spscial meeting of the Howdensliire Chamber of Agriculture has been held to consi- der the propriety of taking the opinion of the Court of Queen's Bench by a special case, on the decision of the justices of the llowdenshire Petty Sessional Division on Saturday se'nnight, in the case of Banks o. Crosslaud. The justices decided a parol contract of service or hiring for a period exceeding one year from the time of making thereof is not valid as an agreement, but must be put into writing to be binding. Mr. J.S. Lookwood, who was in the chair, said they had no wish to reflect iu any way upon the magistrates, who, they were confident, had con- scientiously administered the h\w iu giving their decision. If, however, there were defects in the law, as he believed there were, they must seek ts liavethem remedied. Hirings, as now conducted, would be worthless, and tliey would be compelled to make written agreements, whicli servants generally objected to sign, or to have the hirings in Martinmas week, so as to bring tiie time of contract under rather tlian above the year ; but tliis would be attended with great inconvenience both to employers and employed, lie should be glad to hear tlie opinion of the Chamber as to the best course to be taken. Mr. W. Brown, of Highgate-house, said the question was one of vital importance to all tenant farmers and employers of labour, and it was essential that prompt and vigorous action should be taken in tlie matter. Mr. J. Pepper, of Yorkfleet, said the relations of master and servant had for some time been a vexed question, and if the present state of things continued, the in- terests of agriculture would be very considerably damaged The servants were as much bound to carry out their part of the contract as were the masters, and they wished to deal with them in a fair and honourable manner. If the law bearing on the point were incomplete, they must seek to get it amended. Mr. Sowby suggested that counsel's opinion should be taken, and Mr. James Banks said he had gone into court on the ques- tion on public grounds, so that the points at issue might be thoroughly tested. Mr. Pepper proposed, and Mr. Pratt seconded, " That Mr. Green be instructed to carry tlie case to the Court of Queen's Bench, and that the Chamber of Agii- culture agree to pay any expenses incurred by him in so doing." The resolution was carried unanimously. PARTNERSHIP FARillNG.— It will be remembered that more than a year ago the Right Hon. Henry Brand, M.P. for Cambridgeshire, and Speaker of the House of Commons, pro- posed to the labourers on his estate in Sussex to become part- ners in his farming projects. Lord George Manners, senior member for the county, has, since Michaelmas, 1873, taken the labourers on his Ditton Lodge farm noleiis rolens into partnership. He does not expect them to contribute anything during the years in which he may farm at a loss, but he is satisfied willi five per cent, interest on his capital, and five per cent, as profit, dividing the surplus amongst the labourers and himself in two equal proportions. The share of the labourers for the year ending Michaelmas last is £36 18s. 3d., which will be about £3 a-head. Lord George has paid his labourers their ordinary wages, the item for labour being £675 8s. 3d, His lordship anticipates that in an unfavourable year his losses will be nothing like so great as they would be but for this arrangement. THE RABBIT EVIL IN THE WEST.— The encourage- ment and increase of rabbits in the northern parishes of this county is a matter causing much dissatisfaction among the tenantry and loss to the public. Prom one property alone it is said that rabbits to the value of £15 per month, fed off the tenants^ crops, are sold for the benefit of the landlord. Now, if we reckon that every rabbit consumes and damages five times its worth (a very low estimate), and that those still alive do equal damage to the rabbits killed, we have an annual loss to the tenants on the property referred to of £1,800 per annum! There is great indignation on the part of the suf- ferers, and a correspondent informs us that tliere is a firm and growing determination on the part of the tenants to use the power which the ballot will give them, and refuse to support any candidate for the future representation of this division of the county who will not pledge himself to an alteration of the law, permitting rabbits to be treated as vermin, and ignoring all contracts giving the right over them to the land- lord.—7Xtf IFest Briton. INDIAN CORN. — A merchant in Cincinnati having ad- dressed a letter to the Right Hon. John Bright, urging the importance of introducing Indian corn as an article of food for the people of this country, received the following reply : Dear Sir, — I duly received your interesting letter of 28th April last, and I have submitted it to Mr. Buckmaster, who has been giving lectures on cookery at South Kensington, and have asked him to consider how far anything can be done on the subject of the use of Indian corn in this country. Hitherto nothing has been done, and there are difficulties in the way which it will take time to overcome. The greatest difficulty is that whicli attends all new things — the indisposition of the people to give a favourable or even an impartial attention to what is new. The chief hindrance to the use of Indian corn has always been the want of knowledge as to the various modes of cooking it. 1 speak now of those who are favour- ably disposed towards it. There must be men and women in this country who are familiar with this branch of cookery as prac- tised with you, or, if not, it would not be difficult to engage some American man and woman cook who would undertake to instruct in it. I shall probably see Mr. Buckmaster again when I go up to London, and I shall urge him, and those with whom he is associated, to arrange for some provision by which all that is known in the States with respect to Indian corn may also be known iu this country. We have always to import a large portion of our food, and it seems very strange hat an article of such great consumption with you should be o very little favoured or known among us. I cannot say more on the subject now, but I will not forget it or your letter upon it. — Yours respectfully, Joh:>j Bright THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 163 THE DORCHESTER FARMERS' CLUB. THE CAPITAL AND LABOUR OF AGRICULTURE. At the first meeting of the year, Jlr. Richard Gauge in the chair, Mr. G. Wood Homr read the following 'paper : It is now some years since I liad tlie houonr of introducing at your Club shortly after its foundation the discussion on " The Relationship of Capital and Labour, particularly as applied jto Agriculture." Although that is so pxtensve a subject that it was impossible to exhaust it, nevertheless it was discussed comprehensively, and I should not again bring it forward were it not that late years have been productive of many new theories respecting the liolding and cultivation of land It may well become us, as a Club, to review these tiieories of modern growth, in contrast with older principles, and endeavour to draw conclusions as to whether they combine the essential qualifications of true progress and strict justice. In the discussion this evening we may treat the subject of " Tlie Capital and Labour of Agriculture" as a sequel to our former discussion to which I have referred ; we shall tlius be saved from retraversing well-worn ground, and no further reference need be made to great general principles than may be required in order to make our subject intelligible. Capital admits of the simple division into fixed and floating. Eixed capital com- prises lands, buildings, roads, railways, &c. Floating capital consists of coin and other iutercliangeable commodities. The best form of national wealth is in land, and the improvements effected upon it and in the minerals wliich are found beneath the surface. These being almost irremovable are secure to a country. Unavoidable causes may at any time lead to a great diminution in the floating ciipital of a nation. It might have been thought that the immovability of land would have made it an undesirable private investment, and kept it at a low price in proportion to other securities ; but such is far from being generally the case. The immovability of land lias made it the safest of properties, and, together with the politi- cal and social advantages which its possession is supposed to confer, has raised its value to the highest point amongst inter- changeable commodities. Tlie ownership of land has thus become a luxury to be enjoyed by such only as can att'ord to receive a very small annual return from their capital. " What the eye cannot see the heart does not rue" is an old proverb which is not applicable to land. We hear of " The sea, the sea, the beautiful sea," but few there are who cannot see far more beauty in the endlessly changing varieties of landscape. Well, gentlemen, whether from " envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness," whether from a sincere aud honest belief thatunder its present 1 oldingthe land is not applied to the best use, or whether to raise a revolutionary cry easy to be understood, and which is likely to find favour with that numerous class who would rather steal from others than work themselves, it is not my duty to inquire ; but the fact remains that there isin this country an agitation in progress for an alteration of the laws respecting the holding and sale of land. Now those who are thus agitating admit of division into two parties, the one having far more advanced views than tlie other. The programme of the more moderate party is the abolition of tlie laws of primogeniture and entail and a sim- plification of title and transfer. That of the extreme party seems to be " a curtailment of private rights in land," which, carried to its necessary result, means that the State must assume the ownership of all lands. Compensation to the pre- sent owners is a question not hardly deemed of sulficieut account as to deserve consideration. In order rightly to undertand the ownership of laud it may be necessary to trace back its history to remote ages. The primary and necessary wants of mankind are very simple. They are embraced under the four heads of food, lodging, clothing and education. In a savage state the first of these four necessities is the all im- portant one. The lodging is tiie bamboo hut or the hollow tree. Education is confined to learning the arts of war, of hunting, and of simple cookery, aud as for clothing — well, it is here unnecessary to lay bare the naked truth. Civilization and accumulation are the two powers which have changed nl this, the former creating the demand, and the latter supplying the means for the enjoyment of higher luxuries. It is here worthy of remark how these two powers, civilization and accumulation, go everywhere hand in hand ; with the reclamation from the savage state there arises a desire to store up surplus production, and this leads to the accu- mulation of wealth. To have all things in common may be the beidi ideal for those who are educated up to tiie proper state of perfection, but to ordinary mortals it means a return to the regions of barbarity. The natural productions of land are thorns and thistles, and wild and inferior fruits, and such like. These suflice to supply the wants of the savage, but the necessities of civilization aie tliat these natural productions be supplanted by those of better worth. Hence the necessity for cultivating land. In treating of land it is necessary to bear in mind tliat there is a wide gulf between the wilderness and the fruitful field. Tlie latter shows the transformation ett'ected upon the wilderness by ages of toil. Look at the beautiful valleys of irrigated meadows now worth their three or four pounds per acre in annual value, aud remember that these were originally bogs, morasses, and stagnant pools, fruitful of eels, and the pleasure grounds of innumerable herons. On many of those sloping fields of arable land there was originally little or no surface soil ; such has been produced by working with Nature — by exposure to the action of frosts and sunshine of the original beds of gravel, fiint, and limestone, together with tlie application of suitable manures. On the flatter fields production has been stimulated by deep cultivation and sub- terranean waterpipes. In order to give the necessary stimulus for the reclamation and improvement of land it has been found necessary iu all countries to pass the ownership from the com- munity to which it originally belonged into private hands. Take, for example, the instances of America, Australia, and New Zealand. They each iiave their wilderness acres in abundance, and what temptatiou do they hold out to attract settlers ? Come and have so many acres for your own. Thus the land, oricrinally a national property, has been converted pro bono publico into a private property. It has been urged that a nation, as she advances in education and civilization, has a right to reconsider and reconstruct ; to pass frem tlie old state of things for which the present generation is not responsible, into "one more consistent with modern ideas of progress; that the resumption by the State of the ownership of land, minerals, &c., would be one such necessary measure of reconstruction. This opens the question of public as against private rights. Tiie true position appears to be that, in case of necessity private rights must give way to public convenience, full and lilieral compensation being made for public interests. The principle has been admitted in the case of highways, railways, and otlier public works of the first im- portance. It would be easy to prove that no necessity exists for the resumption of the lands by the State, and fnrtlier that such an operation would be impolitic and ruinous. Notwith- standing the great outcry which is made as to tlie high price of human food, it is very questionable whether it is not cheaper now tlian it was half-a-century ago, taking into consideration the fall in the value of money, and the rise in the price of labour. See the great improvements which arc constantly being carried out on land. In my own neighbourhood I know of a new river having been cut and water meadows relaid at considerable cost. Not far otf I have seen a poor desolate heath country of some hundreds of acres drained, broken, and manured, and thus converted into arable land. On a cold hill I have lately seen land cleansed and subsoiled at an expense of about £8 per acre. This is a small specimen of what is being done by private enterprise throughout the country. Would improvements progress in tliis way under State owner- sliip ? Englishmen have seen enough to know that the small line of red tape means stagnation. It would be easy to prove that the financial operation involved would, if not totally 154 THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. impossible, be impracticable and ruinous. Take all the interests of country |life from the capitalist class, and much will have been done towards inducing them to spend their time and their incomes in other lauds. Although I have been treating of the State purchase of land as if it were a possible policy of the future, nevertheless I do not believe that with all the mad schemes and propositions of the present day this will ever be seriously entertained. I have entered on it rather to clear the way for the proper consideration of the schemes of the more moderate school of land reformers. The objects sought to be accomplished by this party are — 1st, the simplification of title and transfer ; 2nd, the abolition of the laws of entail and primogeniture. There are few objects more deserving of the attention of the statesman than the first of these. Circumstances make it of national importance that land should be changing ownership, and yet the State throws every impediment in the way of such changes. You may in- vest £2,000 or £20,000 in foreign stocks ; the operation is completed by receiving the bonds in exchange for your money ; but if you purchase but one small field, there must be investi- gation of title and bundles of stamped papers of imposing appearance — in fact, the vendor of land is generally mulcted of 5 per cent , and the purchaser of 10 per cent, of their respective capitals under the present system of legalised robbery. Is such a state of things a just and right one ? Only a few antiquates could be found to defend it. Will no wise statesman arise to rid land of this most unnecssary bur- den ? The law of primogeniture, as a manifest injustice, should be abolished. In all cases where the late owner does not signify his will with regard to his landed property it sliould be treated as personality, and equitably apportioned. It is true that this might sometimes lead to the division and breaking up of large lauded properties, but I cannot see that such would be an injury to the State. On the contrary, do not policy and justice alike demand the change ? The law of entail is of much more importance, as it has a bearing on a large proportion of 1 he land of this country. It cannot be denied that great evils result from this law. Witness the case of a poor overgrown estate, heavily mortgaged, yet strictly entailed. Expenses of maintenance are constantly on the increase, and rent-rolls of such properties are non-elastic. The position of the owner is not enviable. With only a life interest and a decreasing income, he lias no incentive to im- provement, and the repairs executed are often of the most temporary character. It is true that money may be borrowed to effect improvements at G or 7 per cent., repayable in about 30 years ; but few improvements on land will repay this annual charge, and in such cases the property becomes in- creasingly involved. On a property in such a case every cottage wall and roof will bear the stamp of entail. Evil as are the effects of this law it would be gross injustice by abolish- ing it to leave the present owners in absolute possession. Advancing years may already have made sons' or nephews' interests of more marketable value than that of the present possessor. It must not be forgotten that the law of entail is closely connected with our system of government, llereditary rulers without hereditary property would mean hereditary paupers. It appears to me tliat many difficulties would be overcome and much good efl'ected by allowing the present pos- sessors, under some necessary restrictions, to sell a portion of an entailed property, investing the proceeds (still subject to modified entail) in Government securities. The present owner would increase his income by exchanging into a better-paying security, less exiieuse would attend the management of the property, the stimulus given by the improvements which would probably be effected by the new owners of tiie realised part would often cause a rise in rentable value on the retained portion of the property, the evils of entail would be mitigated, and more land would be offering for sale. These advantages might all be secured without inflicting injustice on anyone. As tending to unfetter the capital of agriculture such a mea- sure well deserves support. Passing to another part of the subject I would call your attention to the burdens which rest upon land in the form of local and imperial taxation. The question has arisen whether the land is not taxed far too heavily in proportion to otiier properties of the country. It has been urged tliat some of these are hereditary to land, that it has been bought and sold subject to them. True, this is the case with regard to the poor-rate, but, I ask, has this principle received any attention in recent legislation, when it would nave told the other way ? iSmall parishes and some other properties had always been bought and sold, comparatively free from poor-rate classes, but being now full contributors to the common fund of the union, pay the same proportion as other parishes. Amongst imperial taxation, the income-tax may first be noticed, tinder Schedule A the landowner pays tax upon the income which he receives from his land In the form of rents. Under Schedule B the occupier pajs upon his assumed income. From no other class is this tax so strictly and fully collected. I have heard of protestations against the income-tax, and of propositions for abolishing it altogether coming from other classes, but I never knew a landowner or occupier object to this tax. It cannot be that threepence or sixpence out of every pound makes less difference to a land- owner's or occupier's income than does the same amount out of incomes derived from other sources, but may it not be that the income-tax appears insignificant in comparison with the many weightier charges thrown upon land ? The Malt-tax is one of these, and it presses with peculiar hard- ship upon the farmer. It prevents him from feeding his cattle on corn of inferior quality to the best advantage, it lowers the price of the best barley to the maltster, and it charges the farmer with a heavy tax on that portion of his produce which he has malted for the use of his labourers in the hay and harvest seasons. Take, as example, a farm of five hundred acres rented at £700 per annum. At least 20 sacks of malt would be required in the year. The duty on this would amount to about £11, equivalent to an addition of 7|^d. in the pound to the income-tax of the farmer. But im- perial taxation is light compared with that which passes under the misnomer of local taxation — misnomer, I say, for the taxes are imposed by the Imperial Government, and the local authorities have merely a nominal control over the expendi- ture of them. The land-tax, though small in amount, must be named. The oldest form of local taxation is that of the poor-rate, but into this have been gradually engrafted the charges for lunatics, for militia stores, for police, for the repairs of bridges, for the administration of justice, and for other purposes. The rates for these objects are upon the average about Ss. in the pound. A rate of 3s. in the pound upon a house may amount in the course of a year to a con- siderable sum, but is probably a small affair in the income of the occupier. Three shiUings in the pound upon a farm is equivalent to an income-tax of 6s. in the pound to the occu- pier. But this was not enough. Better roads were required for public use, the Highway Act was passed, and another 6d. in the pound added to local taxation. Doubtless it was neces- sary for the national good that there should have been in- creased facilities for education throughout the country ; it was by no means necessary that this should liave been effected at the cost of the temporary occupiers of land. The occupiers of land owe no good feeling towards the Government by whose instrumentality this injustice was perpetrated. In many small parishes the charges for educational purposes will amount to 6d. in the pound, equivalent to an increased income- tax of Is. in the pound to the occupiers of land in those parishes. Gentlemen, time has permitted of my alluding only to the most flagrant features of this local taxation question, but I have said enough to show tiiat it is a matter of the most pressing interest to all who are connected with agricul- ture. This question will not meet with a satisfactory settle- ment whilst some of those who are the most deeply interested remain apathetic. It should not be forgotten that a general election of members of Parliament is approaching. Now is the time for the agricultural interest to make itself once more felt as a political power, and, making local taxation the stand- point of the day, endeavour to bring this question to a fair and satisfactory settlement. This part of the subject would not be complete without referring to the tithe rent charge. In the form tithe was taken before the passing of the Tithe Commutation Act it was most objectionable, a bar to all im- provement and good farming ; in its present form it is far less so. To the occupier it now forms part of his rent, rising and falling with the corn averages. I have now to speak of the relationship of landlord and tenant. The proposed bill of last session to regulate this relationship has been so lately brought be''ore you, and in such an able manner, that it is unnecessary for us to discuss it farther. As this bill is, it is said, to be re-introduced next spring, I wish to say only a few words as to clause 12. Proposed in good faith in the interests of the tenant-farmer, it contains a direct blow at the rights of property, and doubtless as such will receive the hearty THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 166 support of Radicals and Revolutionists. Hearty as is my sympathy with every measure which tends to clear the course for good farming, yet never will I support a measure which bears on the forefront the impress of robbery. On a former occasion I brought to your notice the wonderful way iu which the letting value of land had increased from time to time. Sis hundred years ago sevenpence per acre was the higiiest ever paid. Two hundred years ago rent ranged from two shillings to ten per acre, and from then, until within the last two or three years, there has been an almost uninterrupted rise. This, however, must be discounted by the heavy outlays which have been incurred in the erection of farm-buildings, and in other permanent improvements, no matter whether effected by landlord or tenant. I have now to mention a somewhat different state of things. In the last two years there has been a considerable fall in the letting value of land, amounting from 10 to 20 per cent. The principal causes which have led to tliis are the following : A succession of bad crops, particularly of wheat ; disease amongst stock ; the in- creased cost of labour ; and the heavy capital which it is now necessary to employ on a farm. It might be supposed that the high price of live stock would have compensated agri- culturists, but such has not been generally the case. It must be remembered that live stock has not hitherto been re- garded as profitable on arable land, except as manu- facturers of manures. It is only within the last year or so that cattle and sheep have repaid the cost of the foods grown and purchased for them. All the expensts connected with tlie farm have enormously increased. Coal and iron, of which farmers are considerable consumers, have doubled in value. E.\.tensive machinery means expensive repairs. Two thousand pounds extra capital must mean one hundred per annum more to the net returns of the farmer, and ought to mean two hun- dred. It has been urged that more capital is required than is generally to be found in employment ou the land. If this were true the cry comes with a bad grace from the party who are seeking by every means in their power, by making the capital now employed unprofitable, to drive it from the land. But I do not admit that under present laws and regulations much larger capitals can be profitably employed. There is abundance of wealth in this country ready for investment in Russian Loans, Hungarian railways, or Venezuela mines, but it flows not to our own soil. The reasons are plain. The risks are great, the business is troublesome, and the returns are small. The farming business which turns but half its capital in the year disgusts those accustomed to the better re- turns from manufacture and merchandise. Joint stock com- panies have been brought out for carrying on nearly every description of business, and have generally paid remarkably well — not the shareholders, but those who have organized them. Farming on the joint stock principle has not yet been at- tempted in this country. When it is tried I do not expect to find tlie shares at a very high premium. A late number of Fraser's Magnzine has propounded the scheme of mapping out England into large square farms of some thousands of acres each, and some one else proposes to divide it into small four acre farms. If all England was level land, if all soils required the same treatment, if all seasons were exactly alike, if hedges were not required for shelter, if everything on a farm could be moved ashy clockwork, if employes required no supervision, if the profits were sufficient to allow of the employment of thoroughly efficient men as bailiffs, and if shareholders only required a very small per ceutage upon their investment, then the former scheme mi^ht be a success, but under no circumstances could the latter succeed. Of the four acres at the least forty perches would be occupied with buildings and fences, leaving three- nnd-three-quarters acres for cultivation. A cottage, cow- house, pig-sties, and store-room, and all fences and gates would probably cost about £250. It is true tiiat by spade husbandry large quantities of vegetables could be produced, but this would be useless, as there would be no market for them. It would be necessary to grow those articles for which there is a demand, such as grain, dairy produce, or meat. The latter could not be advantageously produced under such circumstances. Of grain and dairy produce under favourable circumstances the land might produce £13 per acre, or £45 per annum. Deduct £8 for rent, rates, tithes, &c., and £15 for interest at £6 per cent, on the i'250 expended in buildings, together £23 ; the balance left for one year's labour and all other expenses would be but £22, The whole proposition is ytopian ; carried put it would be a revival of the worse days of Irish land tenure. A labourer with his spade has no more power of competing with the capitalist occupier than has the hand-loom weaver with the great steam-power manufactories of the present day. I now approach the subject of the rela- tionship between the capital and labour of agriculture, between the employer and the employed. In briefly noticing this branch of our subject my object is not to utter angry protests or fierce denunciations ; it is simply to put before you if pos- sible some practical views of an important question. The great ditt'erence existing in the relationships of the capital and labour employed in agriculture as compared with those employed in manufacture must be at once apparent to you. In a manufactory situated in the midst of a thickly populated town the labourer is brought into contact with his employer only during the actual iiours of labour ; after working hours all connection between them ceases. In agriculture such is not the case. The labourer generally resides in a house found for him by his employer, is often his nearest neighbour, and living in the country, perhaps a considerable distance from a town, is de- pendent upon liim for many little civilities and assistances. The labourer may have the care of stock which will some- times require attention by night as well as by day ; his ser- vices are sometimes required at uncertain aul irregular hours, and, to be of any value, they must be cheerfully given. The question of work and wages is not the only one between a farmer and his labourers. It is often a bond of mutual ob- ligation ; it ought to be one of mutual confidence and trust. This relationship has been rudely shaken by the events of the last two years. In some instances many years of constant in- tercourse, yes, and of friendship, have been counted as nothing, and confidence between employer and employed has been destroyed. I am not saying such is universally the case ; in my own experience it is quite the contrary. Whatever may be the agricultural labouring classes, an utterly selfish dis- regard of their employers' interests cannot generally be im- puted to them. There is also a considerable love for old associations, and as much honesty as is to be found amongst other classes. After the first excitement to which I have re- ferred was over, it was confessed by some who had in- considerately severed old connections that they had since passed the most miserable time of their lives. They had discovered, as many have before them, that pecuniary advantages are purchased too dearly at the cost of dis- honesty and dishonour. The principle of union is good if the end to be accomplished is also good. Agriculturists have formed unions, commonly called agricultural societies, for the purposes of improving the races of cattFe and sheep, for stimu- lating the production of efiicieut machinery, and for the en- couragement of clever and deserving labourers. The Agricul- tural Labourers' Union appears to be formed for the purpose of coercing farmers at busy seasons of the year to pay more wages than they can really afford — in fact, to rob them of a portion of their business capital. It is claimed for the Agri- cultural Labourers' Union that it has already done good service by raising wages, but it must be a doubtful good which in- creases an income by £5 per annum, and increases the price of the necessities of life by an equal or greater sum. Is it wise, is it considerate to tiiose most deeply interested, to raise a state of things in which all employers would rather spend 20s. in seeding or manuring .than 10s. in the employment of labour? I am not impugning the motives of the principal movers in what is called the labour movement. The ultimate object which they have in view may be good ; but, like other enthu- siasts, they have been able to see only one side of the question, and have consequently come in collision with the great inexo- rable law of supply and demand. Tirm as a rock stands that law regulating the price of every marketable commodity. It is true that by diminishing the supply you may cause a tempo- rary rise in value ; but — wheels within wheels — the higher price diminishing the demand causes a return almost to former prices. If less labour be employed in agriculture there must be less production ; all produce will lose in value, and the agriculturist will be recouped. It is only in the expectation of receiving a fair return for your capital that you employ it in agriculture. If agriculture as a business has passed from tlie pleasant list into the doubtful or bad list, tlie risks being greater, there will be less capital seeking investment, and yours must command a comparatively higher interest. But I have no fear of the great^evils which some predict coming upon our country. Whilst the supply of coal holds out Great Britain will be a prosperous nation ; and afterwards, w iih all her eiior= 156 THE FAEMEK'S MAGAZINE. mous accumulation of wealth, she may fairly retire iu compe- tence from the cares of business life. Wliilst still in active health her appetite is enormous. Tlie present period forms a crisis iu the history of agriculture. The question is whether present prices will further improve, admitting of still heavier expenses being met, or by retrogression compelling the adop- tion of the policy of retrenchment. Prices will tell which is to be the policy of the future. It may be found most profit- able to cultivate by steam and to employ skilled mechanics, to keep increased numbers of live stock fed abundantly upon the best of cake and corn. On the other hand, it may be found necessary to lay many acres of the arable land to pasture, les- sening tlie demand for machinery and labour by 75 per cent. These are eventualities which may possibly arise, and I doubt not that agriculturists will be found ready to meet them. Depend upon it that agriculture, as the oldest occupation and the most important to daily life, will continue to be carried on until the world has arrived at that state of perfection when daily food will be no more required. Gentlemen, the subject is in your lumds. I have endeavoured, as well as the short time which private business has allowed me iu preparation, to place before you a brief outline of the position of agriculture, an epitome ol its burdens and its cari s, an expression of views with regard to some political changes wliich are needed alike in the interest of agriculture and of justice. May we not look with confidence to the future? Public opinion is aroused as to some of the worst evils of the present system, and remedial legislation may be expected. I thank you for the attention with which you have listened to these remarks, and, in con- clusion, I can only express my earnest hope that in the future capital and labour may learn more justly to appreciate each other, and, in the establishment of mutual good feeling, derive therefrom mutual pleasure and prosperity. Mr. R. N. Howard took the club back to the old feudal days, and the struggles which had taken place, and the Acts of Parliament passed for tiie possession of land — contending that in the present day the trade and commerce of the country demanded that land should be free, and the freer laud was made the better. He looked upon the laws of entail and primogeniture, not as revolutionary, but as obstructions to this free possession of land. Glaiiciug at what camraerce had done fur the agriculturi,->ts, he called to mind the hundreds of millions spent ou the coustruction of railways. Speaking on capital, he showed the difi'erence between fixed [and circulating — the more there was of the latter the better for everybody. He urged that towns — tlie centres of commerce — were as heavily rated, and in some instances more so, than the country- Giving a local illustration, .he mentioned iliat while thcuuiou poor-rate valuation amounted to about £1(J1-,000 Dundiester (including I'ordington, £9,000) stood at Jt21-,00U, or nearly a fourth of the whole. At Wey- mouth an extra rate of 2s. in the £ had been imposed for the drainage of the town. It might, he said, be taKen as a general principle that it was a necessity from the gro ^ h of nations that certain properties should change. Therelore, the agricul- turists must not cry out against being particularly rated. Mr. Henry Lock, clerk to the Dorchester Union, who was appealed to as an authority on a point under discussion, said the rateable value of the union was about £101,000, between one-fonrth and one-fifth of which was collected within the four parishes of Dorchester. But, then, as far as two of these pa- rishes were concerned, Eordington and Holy iViuity, a large portion was of an agricultural character — lie should think one- half of the former and a-th.ird of the latter, aid, taking this fact into consideration, the proportion would be reduced from one-fourth or oue-fiflh to about one-sixth. Mr. J. G. Homer pointed out that an immense tract of land, including the whole of Frome parish, was connected with the town of Dorchester, and that throughout the union the same rate of assessment was levied, houses in the town being as- sessed on the rentals the same as farms. He, therefore, could not see that the town was paying more than its propor- tion. Every acre of laud in the union was assessed. After further comments on tiiis point by Mr. Lock and Mr. Howard, Mr. HoMfcR added that while trade and commerce were not assessed to tlie poor-rate the capital of the agriculturists, being invested in the land— and laud was comparatively worthless without capital— was thus assessed. Townspeople only paid upon their houses as individual^; they paid nothing upon their capital, their income from their professions or busi= nesses was not, as in the case of agriculturists, taken into ac- count. Mr. K. D.VMKN showed that the poiut under discussion re- solved Itself more into a question between real and personal property. Regarding the lecture itself, it was so comprehen- !-ive that he (Mr. Damen) could not protend to do anything like justice. Reference had been made by Mr. Wood Homer to the Landlord and Tenant Bill, which was likely to be in- troduced during the next session of Parliament, aud some of the probable clauses of which had been already discussed by this Club. In the allusion to the 12th clause it was intimated that any man who supported it must be a Radical, Cr some- thing of that sort. Now he (Mr. Damen) did not pretend to be of any politics, although he took, he must admit, some in- terest in agricultural politics. But he felt strongly ou one point, viz., that if the law was essential it was important to render it binding on the people. To pass a law from the obli- gations of which any one might he exempt seemed to him to be contrary to tlie spirit of all law. He considered that, if the law question were wanted at all, the I2th clause was required. Respecting the labour question, it had been already discussed, but much, he thought, remained to be said thereon; it was not yet settled. Reference was made in the course of the lec- ture to the amount of land the labourer should have. Now he (Mr. Damen) considered that a small portion would be an immense benefit to the poor man ; that to send him across the Atlantic for a bit of land instead of providing it for him in this country was not a wise course to adopt ; a bit of land here might be a great benefit to him, and nnght satisfy him. Regarding the law of primogeniture, upon which the lecturer had touched, he (Mr. Damen) had previously had his say else- where, and all he had heard this evening on the subject did not alter his opinion one iota; he contended that the law of primogeniture aud entail had been to the advantage of the great middle class in this country ; it was impossible that class could be supported in town and country without pretty good sized holdings, and it would be reduced to the same level as tliat of France if the land were divided aud subdivided as in that country. Mr. Alfrei) Pove suggested that too much importance had been attached to the law of primogeniture, inasmuch as it was only called into action where a person died intestate. Not above once iu a hundred cases did this law step iu and say the eldest son should be entitled to the property, to the exclusion of the other children. In reference to the expenses involved iu the transfer of land, it was said that the cost to the vendor in stamps and duty amounted to about 5 per cent, on the pur- chase money, while tlie purchaser incurred about 10 per cent. Now he thought this was something about which any vendor or purchaser would reasonably grumble ; Ij or 2 per cent, was as much as he (Mr. Pope), as a professional man, could get. Mr. CiiARjiAN Saunders proposed a vote of thanks to Mr. Wood Eonier, who, he considered, had read them an ad- mirable paper, and deserved their warmest thanks. There seemed to be a little diversity of opinion ou several points. Respecting the transfer of land, it perhaps may be made a little easier ; yet he agreed with Mr. Damen that the lavv of primo- geniture ought not to be abolished. To render tlie transfer of land easier might be to the advantage of the agriculturists, and indeed the general coiumuuity. Agriculturists looked to their own interest, aud so they ought, for it must he admitted they had burdens of which, to a considerable extent, they should be relieved. To the great commercial people, alluded to by JMr. Howard, they were doubtless much indebted ; and they ought to come forward and help to bear some of the burdens at present borne by the laud. He thought I\Ir. Howard would agree with him that the agriculturists were willing to bear their lair share, but they objected to do more than that, for they had to attend to the improvement of their stock aud other matters. In conclusion, he thought they were all pleased with the paper, and ought to thank Mr. Wood Homer. Mr. Andrews, hou. secretary, seconded the vote of thanks, which was carried unanimously. The President concurred iu thanking Mr. Homer for the care and attention which he had devoted to the suliject ; every- body, he said, must allow that tlie paper displayed great ability, aud, he might add, also great common sense. lie thought Mr. Homer had advanced very few arguments to which exception might be taken. Mr. Damen had criticised his opinion ou small holdings, but he might be reminded th9.t on the occasion THE PARMER'S MAGAZINE. io7 bf the Irish famiUe it was asderiaiiied that 25 per cent, of llie farms iu Ireland were under seven acres. JNlr. Genge consi- dered that to cut up the farms of England into divisions of four or five acres each would tend to the ruin of the country. He said they ought to tliank Mr. Howard for the ze>t which his opinions — however much the chib might difler from them — imparted to the discussion. They differed from liim very considerably, but must thank him for tlie candour and ability with which be expressed his opinions. For instance, he (Mr. Genge) disagreed witii him on the question of free land. What did Mr. Howard mean by free land ? H lie meant freeing it from all its burdens, tlien he (Mr. Genge) entirely agreed with him. Mr. Howard had directed attention to the feudal laws ; but let him look back to the time when the feudal system was at its height: what otiier state of government would he have had ? Did he find fault with the holders of land for improving their position ? He (Mr. Genge) thought that was a subject for congratulation rather tlian censure. Then reference had been made to the struggles of agriculture. But he (Mr. Genge) thought the struggle now was between the agri- culturists and another great party which had arisen in the country ; he alluded to the manufacturing interest. When the agriculturists began to iucrease in power their cliildren were sent out into the world, and the arts and sciences were increased and developed. Tlius a great party arose in the State, and that party possessed now, he should say, rather too much of the wealth and political power of the nation — too much, certainly, for the good of the agricultural interest. He opined that by the argument as to free land was meant that the manufacturing party to which be had just referred were not content to have a large portion of the wealth of the country, but they wished to get the land also— which he (Mr. Genge) hoped would never be the case. He attri- buted much to the supineness of tlie lauded interest, of which the manufacturing class were not slow to take advantage ; but he hoped that the good sense of Englishmen would prevail, that the manufacturing interest would be moderate in their views, and that they would be satisfied to " live and let live." Mr. Damen explained that he would by no means advocate the same system of parcelling out land as adopted in Ireland. Tiie expression he had used was ■' bit of land" — which it, migh be advantageous to allow the labourer for cultivation. He had not for one moment advocated the Irish system. Mr. Wood Homer in reply said Mr. Howard attributed tlie increased size of farms to the elTorts made on the part of trade, whereas he (Mr. Homer) attr'huted it to the introduc- tion of machinery. No man had done more to increase the size of farms than Mr. John Fowler in inventing the double plough system ; anyone who bought one of his sets could as easily cultivate tiiree or four thousand acres as two or three hundred. Steam cultivation would tend to the extension of farms. With regard to the money expended on railways, as referred to by Mr. Howard, he (Mr. Homer) did not think it was with a view to helping agriculture, but rather to a return of some six, seven, eiglit, or ten per cent, into the po'-kets of those who invested it for their own private ends ; and in thus seeking to benefit themselves they had, no doubt, benefited tlie whole community. If the large amount thus spent could be drawn from trade and manufacture it only showed that trade and manufacture were more prosperous thau agriculture, those who followed which could not invest such money. In reference to the drainage rate, to which Mr. Howard had referred, the speaker urged that the drainage was for the ex- clusive benefit of tlie town, and that it was only fair everyone whose property was benefited should be equally assessed. But, he asked, was land exclusively benefited by the establishment of the various systems of local sanitary inspection, education, and other such matters? Regarding another point, he be- lieved the labourer should have sufficient land in cultivation to grow potatoes for his own family use ; further than that, his services would be more profitably employed in other ways. His own plan was to allow iiis men with families half-an-acre of land, in some cases more — that was as much as they cared about. (Mr. Chapman Saunders : Too much.) Mr. Homer touclied on the salient points on the land question in the speeches of the Secretary of State for War and the Solicitor- General. He agreed with the president as to the supineness of the landed interest, referring as a striking example to the meagre support accorded to the Dorset Chamber of Agricul- ture. FIELD EXPERIMENTS IN 187-2 AND 187 3. At the monthly meeting of the Cirencester Chamber of Agriculture, Mr. H. J. Marshall in the chair, Professor Wrightson said : It is close upon two years since I presented jou with a report upon the experimental department of this Chamber. 1 see by the advertisement that I am to (iiriiish you with some account of the agricultural ex- periments for 1872 and 1873. I must at once say that owing to a variety of circumstances the results of the experiments of 1872 must occupy a very small portion of our attention. Previously to the present year we had undertaken experiments upon roots and cereals for five consecutive seasons. It was only, however, during the past year tiiat we were able to con. duct these experiments in a manner which appeared quite satisfactory to me, so far, at least, as root crops were con- cerned. The great difficulty to be met was the proper distribution and application of the manures, and since no ordinary drill is constructed for the sowing of definite quan- tities of manure equally over a small plot of land, we were obliged to resort to the somewhat laboured, and as it turned out ineffective method of applying the manure by hand. Year after year this systnin was adojited, and the manures exerted their effect with more or less power, and we were en- abled to come to some conclusions embodied in my reports of 1869 in the Eot/al Jgi-icultii.ral Society's Journal, and in 1872 in a pamplilet reprinted from the Wills and Gloucesiershiic Standard. The hand-distribution of manure evidently pre- vented the manures from exerting their full effect, as was at once evident upon comparing our experimental plots with ad- jacent land sown with the water or with tlie dry drill. Some impulse was given to the experimental energies of this Chamber by a paper read last spring by my friend and col- league Professor Church, in which he pointed out the advan- tages of agricultural stations as centres, where scientific work in connection with agriculture might be performed. It was resolved that by way of commencing such an ex- perimental station at Cirencester we should enlarge our capabilities with reference to field experiments, and other directions were also indicated in which the new agricultural station might be developed iu connection with the Cirencester Chamber and with the lloyal Agricultural College. Not to detain you with further particulars, I may remind you that the work of experimenting was lighteucd by the outlay of a little money. With the assistance of Messrs. lleeve, of the Brattou Iron Works, Westbury, I contrived a liquid manure drill adapted for onr purpose. It, in general form, resembles the ordinary drill, but by some three or four alterations we are enabled to sow more exact quantities, and to clear the drill completely out upon every plot of one-twentieth part of an 158 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. acre, and this without auy delay or difficulty. A suitable man was found to undertake the work of drilling the swedes upon every farm, so that by the use of this implement, travelling as it did from farm to farm, we were enabled to secure a more uni- form method than if each farmer had been left to follow his own devices. Messrs. Proctor and Kylnad, of Birmingham, were also communicated with, and courteously offered to supply their own manufactured manures free of cost, and others, which they did not manufacture, at prime cost. These manures were mixed, weighed, numbered, labelled, bagged, addressed, and forwarded to the various gentlemen who were willing to un- dertake experiments, and hence a regular system was intro- duced, thanks to the liberality of subscribers, which enabled us to start upou a new and improved footing. A circular was issued inviting attention to and co-operation with our scheme, and this was responded to by the gentlemen whose names will be presently brought before you. We still adhere to the prin- ciple which has always been our motto, viz.. Repetition and Control. Perhaps the high expectation, which I at least at one time formed, has been a little damped, but in any true investigation we must accept the true answer which Nature makes to our questions, even although ap- parently these answers may be contradictory. It might have been agreeable to have told you that in this district a certain and absolute effect always followed the use of a particular dressing or a particular treatment. Such is not the case, and the tendency of our investigation is more and more to doubt the utility of those general recommendations to a certain course of practice with which agricultural periodicals and journal! teem. First let me claim for this Chamber the solu- tion of an important problem. I venture to assert that in this neighbourhood at least the experimental results obtained by any one agriculturist cannot be safely adopted by his neigh- bours. Published reports of experiments, however interesting in themselves, and however satisfactory as showing an appre- ciation of science on the part of the experimenter, must be looked upon with a degree of suspicion when they are pre- sented before us as guides for our practice. Such an opinion may have presented itself to the minds of members of this Chamber. But the experiments which we have now con- ducted for several years give definiteness and clearness to it, relieving it from tlie stigma that it is rooted in ignorant pre- judices. Our results have, to my mind, clearly placed agricul- tural experiments upon another and new footing. They cease to appear in the light of general guides for the agricultural public. No longer must we examine tables of experiments with a view to finding the best manure for swedes, wheat, or clover — no longer must we rely upon the testimony of our market acquaintances and farming friends for prescription for manures. Each for himself must endeavour by strict ex- periment to find the best fertilising substances for his own particular farm. What, then, becomes of our own particular system of conducting agricultural inquiry, viz., that of frequent repetition and control ? Firstly, it enables us to come to the above important conclusion ; secondly, it affords the interesting spectacle of simultaneous effects, and those exhibit to us the varied character of the soils which surround us ; thirdly, re- petition alone can bring out t}*ose marvellous effects of season, which will in one year frequently reverse the verdict of the preceding one ; fourthly, does it not open up a question of deep importance, requiring much more delicate investigation than is possible to agriculturists alone, and which requires the aid of agricultural chemists ? I allude to the inquiry into reasons why such extraordinary differences, as I shall have to point out to-day, exist. Why do we find one soil able to give 15 tons of swedes without manure of any sort, while another can only produce its 17 cwt., albeit with a regular plant ? Why do we find a decrease from the use of superphosphate in one instance, compared with an overwhelming increase from its use in another case ? Why do we find the clear dictum in favour of one manure furnished by one series of experiments completely reversed by another ? The answers to these ques- tions are perhaps beyond our knowledge, but they are bom fide questions, founded upon true experience, cannot be doubted for a moment by those who follow me through the results of past and previous years. I must here express my sorrow that, owing to absence from this country. Professor Church is not with us to-day, as his deep knowledge of che- mistry, coupled with the great attention he has given to these experiments, might have enabled him to have thrown some light upon the points just raised. It is well, however, that you should have the plain statement of the resiilts obtained as early as possible, and if the interest of the Chamber is sufficiently awakened, I hope that the present report will not stand in the way of a future and more elaborate one, in which the experience of agriculturists will be blended with the theo- retical explanations of an accomplished chemist. Our experi- ments also show us the difficulties which must beset the practical solution of the question of Tenant-Right, for how can we assign a general or universal value to a particular fertiliser, when perhaps this fertiliser, while exceedingly effective on one farm, is without effect upon another? Lastly, at the risk of repetition, I must enforce from experience the importance of each farmer testing the value of artificial manures upon his own farm for himself. Such ttests are quite essential, for it seems altogether unrea- sonable that you should spend hundreds of pounds upon arti- ficial fertilisers, and that upon laud which could well afford to do without them. On the other hand, such tests would frequently stimulate the purchase of still larger quantities where a marked defect was observable. While we find these varying and even contradictory results brought out by our experiments, we are also able to trace certain effects which ran througli the entire series of trials made during the last season. When such is the case you have evidence of extra- ordinaiy strength, which may be taken as a guide for future practice. At first sight it may appear disappointing that all our experiments do not bear each other out upon every point ; but i have endeavoured to show that both the varying results obtained upon some points and the unanimous verdict upon others, may alike be turned to your advantage. With these preparatory remarks, I pass on to point out the lessons which oar experience of the past year has taught us. First, I will ask your attention to the unmanured plots, S-i in number, and distributed over various parts of the district. They give a general or average yield of 8 tons 8 cwt. 74 lbs. per plot. Some of these have received moderate dressings of farmyard dung. The season being propitious, and the plant being for the most part regular, this yield may be taken. as fairly iu- dicative of what land without the help of artificial fer- tilisers will yield. Taking 25 inches as the width between our drills and 15 inches as the distance between our plants, we ought to find 836 plants upon each plot of one-twentieth part of an acre. The average number of plants was actually 731, and hence we may say that allow- ing for difference of space in hoeing, the plots carried a fair plant. The immense difference which exist(!d between the yield of these plots is well worthy of attention, and is shown by the following table : table i. — results obtained without artieicial ma::^ukes. Tons. cwt. lbs. No. of plants Mr. Smith obtained ... 15 3 4 without dung ... 828 Mr. Swanwick „ ... 13 0 4 „ „ .,. 766 Rev. T. Maurice „ ... 1 10 80 after wheat dunged 157 Mr. lies „ ... 5 16 18 without dung ...803 Mr. Marshall „ ... 8 9 102 „ „ ... 960 Mr. Price „ ...14. 9 53 with dung 683 Mr. Price „ ... 9 0 75 without dung ... 893 Mr. Edmonds „ ... 4 0 30 „ „ — In all these cases the same seed was used and the same climatic conditions existed, and the extraordinary differences we must consider as due to the inherent qualities and agricultural con- dition of the soils. May we not naturally conclude that land which can grow good crops without manure is in good condi- tion? If so, we must come to the inevitable conclusion that land in good condition is much less influenced by artificial ma- nures, than land which is in poor condition. The knowledge that such extreme differences exist in a favourable season with the same seed and with the same regular plant is certainly worth having, and alone shows us the importance of our ex- periments. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 159 OT ri« eilro •* J3 CO C-J o 00 10 CO CO t~ fajO*^ «u — • o< C5 ( OO > ~! tao Sf 60 SP i-i 60 i-l 60 bc ^1 ■got- 2oo C5 00 2^ ^ C5 t^ r— 1 Tjio 2o< CDO 2=0 00 00 2oo 000 2^ rH 00 2t~ r-i 0) — 1 > r-l (U 0 IB > 0 > rH OJ rH > b , • CS lO 0 CO «lj CO nrH<-0 CO 00 «!j C- «D t-.«! 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W)c* CT CT ^"CT CT^ ^rH rL| (fj bOrH • S t-< 2 2 t-l 10 c:) S J>- COCO Sco . CD lO > LO 0 en > ■# 00 CO >o tr^t^ > t^ CO CO > C5 in CO S C3 ^S^-^S int~^^ m CO ^ CD o3 00 ^ 1 — 1 00 c~^ 00 CT -iH ^CO CO CO ^ CD t-CT <^ C5 OS CO .5 '■•o Sl?S •— ' '"'5 S TjH CO gJco •* CO W)co c» cj M)ci CT CO '^v:: CT CT ^6i CT CT ^CT CT CT bCcT CT CT IjOct U< ^ 1^ f-> i. CT rH " C^ CO CO " 00 i^'S • t^-*! S 0 CO l>- > in !-rH Sic. •VOi gcD 0 rH > in CD CT " tP Soo .0 10 0 , CO cj in p. t^ CO in S rH t^CD |rH CO CO > in ^rH gicO iCCT |co CTO >CD CT Tp ^ CO 0 CO 10 ^ CD ^ LO in ^ 10 CO 00 --I CO m in ^ m B^^ CO -^2 ^cbcb stdb 2 • ^ 00 " t~ M CO Moo in CT > CO CO CT Spci CO CO CO Mcb IH CO t^ > r-H CO CO ^cb t-^ > in CO CO 5P=b 2 CO 00 > CT CT CT bCcT 2 rHO S>n cq C3 -^ ^ CD CO CD ^ CD CO C~^ CO ^Jg-^S 0 t- J eo S ^ 0 •o S J= 0 l-^ CO 3 J3 fl "S. i-T ■£■«" <£ fe-b oj -: a3 ■£ ; nominated the following gentlemen to be members of the Club : Captain Charlton, Ilesleyside ; IVIr. E. Woodman, Newton ; Mr. Robt. Dinning, Nilstoue Ridge; Mr. Wm. Martin, Blanchland ; Mr. George Hudson, Burnside, Matfen ; Mr. W. Hunter, Parmently Hall ; Mr. AVm. Parker; Mr. Thomas Stephenson, Newbiggeu ; Mr. Benjamin Wilson, Bingfield; Mr. Wadland, Hexham; Mr. Wm. Hare, Vale View House ; Mr. Wiu. Gates, Causey Hill ; Mr. Robt. Reuwick, Whittington ; Mr. James Ridley, Merry- shields ; Mr. Septimus Harrison, Hedley Park ; and Atr. Wm. Hindmarch, Ovington Lodge. Mr. W. Cook seconded the nominations, which were carried unanimously. -Mr, Grey, the chairman, then read his paper on " Com- pensation under the Irish Land Act, compared with English Tenants' Claims for Unexhausted Improvements," as follows : No attempt to interfere by legislation witli the freedom of contract between landlord and tenant has as yet been success- ful', u England, and the necessity for such interference in Ire- land by the act of 1870 was supposed to be justified by the helplessness of Irisli tenants, aud their inability to make bar- gains for themselves, as well as by the fact that, without the autliority of Parliament, a custom actually existed by which tenant-farmers were allowed to sell their interest in their farms, though the law really reserved to the landlord tlie power to evict a tenant after sis months' notice, without any com- pensation. There was, no doubt, much justice and truth in this, for land has been held for very many years by tenants trora father to son, without any interruption, for several gene- rations, so much so that there have not been wanting for many years advocates for fixity of tenure. These advocates profess to allow that the tenant should still pay " a fair rent," but how such rent could be ascertained without competition, it would be ditlicult to understand. There were very many cases where whole districts were let during the last century in large farms of several hundred acres each for long leases ; and these farms, owing to the absence of, or the inability to, embrace prohibitions to sub-letting, and owing to the passion for holding laud, and the great increase of prices at the end of the last, and beginuing of the present century, were sublet at very high rents, aud in several subdivisions. The original tenants reserved only their houses and a portion of land, be- came "middlemen," with large incomes, after deriving a larger profit from the land than the head landlord, in many instances imitating the habits and extravagances of land- owners ; and when the famine came, and rents could not be collected, this class fell into great trouble, and their sub- tenants were generally in much worse case than the direct tenants of more wealthy landowners, who could affjrd to do without their rents for a few years, aud even to pay for the emigratiou of tenants who could no longer earn a livelihood by farming. It must be said, to the credit of Irish laud- owners, that when such leases fell out, they almost invariably adopted the actual occujiier of the hiud, and generally at lower rents than they had paid the middlemen, though they had an undoubted right to claim the possession of their land unin- cumbered by innumerable poor cotters occupying only a few acres each. It was not, however, to be expected that they should set about building a number of houses and farm offices on land which they had formerly let probably as a single grass farm ; and thus the occupying tenants, having been tacitly allowed during many years to make fences, and build houses aud olRces, such as they were, and to do other things which they called improvements, acquired an equitable claim at least not to be evicted from their holdings without com- pensation for their labour. In my experienoe, gained during a number of years of intimate connection with estates in tlie South of Ireland, I heard of very few cases of such tenants being disposed without either being compensated by the land- lords or being allowed to sell their goodwill as well as their " improvements " to a tenant approved by the landlord. The cases of injustice which came within my knowledge were generally on land owned by some of the extreme advocates of TeuantRight in Parliament or tlieir friends. The fact, how- ever, of the landowner having this power over the ten^int was a grievance, and Parliament decided to do away with it. The principle on which Parliament seems to have gone is that what may be called large farmers should receive compensation for such improvements resulting froju their own labour or outlay as are unexhausted on their quitting their farms, and as are beneticial or suitable to the holding. But the very small farmers, on the supposition that when put out of farms they have nothing to fall back upou but emigration, shall receive compensation for " disturbance." Tenants wlio can claim for disturbance under the act of 1870 are those wliose farms are valued under the Poor-law valuation under i'lOO a-year, this valuation being frequently 20 or 30 per cent, under the letting value, wliether they are yearly tenants or have leases of less than 31 years. For 20 years Irom the 1st of January, 1871, tenants taking leases for less than 31 years of farms valued at less than £50 a-year, are precluded by the act from contracting themselves out of this claim. A laudlord can thus ])rotect liimself against this claim by offering his tenant a 31 years' lease at " a fair rent," and any difference about this fair rent is settled by the chairman of the county, who holds a court embracing most of the duties of our quarter sessions, county courts, and bankruptcy courts. There are several minor details in this part of the act with which I need not take up your time. The act prescribes a maximum of compensation under this part, which is as follows : A tenant whose farm is valued at or under £10 may be awarded seven years' rent; so that a tenant who pays £15 rent, a very com- THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. m mon case for land rated at £lO, may be awarded seven times £15, or £105. A tenant who is rated at from £10 to £30 can claim only five years' rent ; but as this would in some cases be less than if he had been rated below £10, he is allowed to : 1 aim the maximum of the lower scale : thus, a tenant rated at £13, but paying £18, could claim only £90 in his own division of the scale, but he is allowed to claim £105 ; hut a tenant rated at £16, and paying £-24<, can claim £120. From £30 to £10 valuation, the maximum is four years' rent ; from £40 to £50, it is three years' rent ; and from £50 to to £100, it is two years' rent. In each of these cases tiie tenant may claim under the lower scale. If, however, a tenant quits a farm of his own accord, or is evicted for non-payment of rent, or breach of certain reasonable conditions, he cannot claim for " disturbance," nor if he subdivides or sublets his farm without leave in writing. There are some other ex- ceptions to this claim, such as for land held as town parks, land let to labourers as such, and some classes of purely grass farms on which the tenant does not live. Tiie above com- pensation is provided for by the third section of the act. The first section legalises the Ulster Tenant-Rigbt, which means generally the right of a tenant to sell his interest in his holding, but with certain restrictions for the protection of the landlord. The second section legalises the "usage" when it is proved to have prevailed on estates or in districts not in Ulster, similar to the Ulster custom. Tenants who can claim under either of these two clauses may choose to exchange this right for the right to claim under the latter sections of the act, but they cannot claim under both. The Ulster custom and the other usages vary so much, and are often so indefinite, that I believe tenants and landlords not unfrequeutly disagree about them. I have not gone fully into the details of the first three clauses, because they have not much bearing on what is commonly understood by the Tenant-Ilight in England, but the fourth clause embraces all that has hitherto been demanded by Edglish farmers generally as compensation for unexhausted improvements. 1 do not, however, include the demands made by political agitators, unreasonable partisans, or volunteer advisers who know nothing about farming. The section describes it as compensation for improvements and the claim is open to all tenants except those who claim under clauses 1 and 2, and may be made by those who claim under clause 3, in addition to their compensation for disturbance, and includes both tenants evicted and removed on the expiration of leases and those who quit on their own accord. There is, however, a difference between tenants who are put out of their holdings on notice to quit, or on the expiration of the term, and those who quit voliini.uily or are ejected upon non-payment of rent or breach of contract. In the former case the tenant's claim is direct against the landlord ; in the latter case, the landlord may free himself from the claim by allowing the tenant to sell his interest to another tenant. In this and all other cases, the landlord has a set-off for all arrears of rent in respect of any " deterioration " of the holding arising from t!ie default of the tenant, and for unpaid taxes. If a tenant is allowed to sell his interest, the landlord may alter the rent, but if he cannot get so much as he would otherwise do for his interest by reason of the rent being exorbitant, or, if he refuses to renew his lease because tlie rent is too high, the court has the power to decide whether it is a fair rent, and if it is, the tenant is treated as if he were voluntarily quitting, and has no claim ior disturbancs. There are some important ex- ceptions to claims under the section, which, stated shortly, are as follows : (n) Improvements made twenty years before the claim is put in, except, however, for permanent buildings and improvements of waste land. {//) Improvements prohibited by the landlord as being and appearing to the court to diminish the general value of the estate. ('•) Improvements made in pursuance of a contract for valuable consideration. {//) Improvements made in con- travention of a contract not to make such, (e) Improve- ments which the landlord has undertaken to make, ex- cept where the landlord has failed to make them. A tenant holding under a lease for 31 years or more cannot claim for any imjirovements except permanent buildings and reclamation of waste land and tillage and manures the benefits of which are (exhausted at the end of the term. A contract prohibiting a tenant from doing anything suitable to the occu- pation of liis holding or its due cultivation is made void, lint no such thing shall be deemed suitable or due cultivation which the court thinks tends to diminish the general value of the estate ; but this restriction on contract does not authorise a tenant to break up grass land or cut timber, though that might be an improvement to the particular holding of the tenant. In deciding on all or any of these claims it is directed that the court shall in reduction of such claims take into consideration the time during which the tenant shall have enjoyed the advantage of such improvements, also the rent at which such holding has been held, and any benefits which the tenant may have received from his landlord in consideration, express or implied, for the improvements so made. Section 5 provides generally that all improvements shall be deemed to have been made by the tenant until tiie contrary shall have been proved, but on estates where it has been customary for the landlord to do part of such improvements such presump- tions shall be modified accordingly. It was thought that in Ireland the landlord would be more likely to have records of outlay than tenants, and could therefore more easily prove who had made them. There are here again several important ex- ceptions. (1) Where the improvements were made before the estate was conveyed to the landlord by actual sale. (2) Where the tenant held under a lease. (3) Where the improvements were made twenty years before the passing of this Act. (1) Where the holding is rated at more than £100- (5) Where it is [proved to the court that it is the practice of the estates for 'the landlord to make such improvements. (6) Where from the entire circumstances the court is satis- fied that the improvements were not made by the tenant. Section 6 declares that where a tenancy is not determined either landlord or tenant who wishes to preserve evidence of improvements may file a schedule in the Landed Estates Court ; it also provides for due notice being served by one or the other for hearing objections and modifying such schedule and filling the amended schedule, this schedule is therefore to be admitted in evidence. Section 10 allows^ a landlord to recover possession of a limited proportion of a holding for building labourers' cottages on, and such shall not be consi- dered a disturbance, but merely be liable for improvements and to a fair reduction of rent proportionate to the value of the land. Section 11 enables a tenant who is rated at or over £50 to contract himself out of claims for compensation. Section 13 withholds compensation from a tenant who as- signs without leave or the landlord refuses to accept the assignee and the court deems such refusal reasonable. Section U enacts that an eviction shall not be deemed a disturbance of the tenant where the tenant persists in certain acts, such as anything not necessary to the due cultivation of his holding, or refusal to allow the landlord to exercise his right of taking minerals, timber, turf, game, or tish, or to make roads, drains, &e., or to view the premises. Section 12 exempts from compensation under section 4 all town parks, and purely grass farms on which the tenant does not live, and labourers' cottages and gardens and land let for any tem- porary purpose, such as one crop or a season's grassing. I shall now go to clause 70, which, besides the general de- finition of terms used in the Act defines more particularly the word ' improvements," and as tliis is very important I shall give it in the words of the Act. The term " improvements" shall mean in relation to a holding ; (I) any work which being executed adds to the letting value of tiie iiolding on which it is executed, and is suitable to such holding ; also (2) tillages, manures, or other like farming works, the benetit of which is unexhausted at the time ot the tenant quitting liis holding. Section 25 prescriiies the duties of arijitrators, when both parties are willing to submit to arbitration. It is often said that our law dcjiends more on the decisions of the courts than on Acts of Tarliament, and any person reading tliis Act care- fully must come to the conclusion tiiat there would lie the widest dilfcrfiice between the dilferent awards of arbitrators, till some comprehensive cases have been decided by the courts, and some leading principles have lieeu establisiied as guides to ascertain what may be considered the present value of perma- nent improvements made at various intervals of time, and what may be considered tlie unexliausted portion of tillage, manures, and otiier like farming works. Arliitrators, with the best intentions, will dill'er widely in their ideas of such value, and, unfortunately, there are many people wiih particu- lar notions, who by forwardness and vanity, with a certain amount of finency, force fiiemselves into pnlilic notice, and by their contiilent assurance command a certain luiiuber of aa- mirers. Such people are readily appointed arbitrators by those whose purpose it may suit. A very good illustration ot" 174 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. this will be found in a description of the evidence of some of the witnesses in an important case tried last year in Ireland, of which I propose to give an outline for compensation under section 4 of the A.ct. Section 26 defines "limited owners." Section 27 enables limited owners to charge their estates witli an annuity for 35 years at 5 per cent, for all moneys paid by them for compensation under this Act, having duly served notice on the remainder man before the claims for compensa- tion are heard. Section 28 enables limited owners to grant leases, subject to the following restrictions : (1) The term not to exceed 35 years. (2) It sliall not include mansions or de- mesne lands. (3) The rent shall be a " fair yearly rent" without taking anything in the nature of a fine. (4) The lease sliall imply a condition of re-entry for non-payment of rent. (5) The lease shall contain a clause declaring whether landlord or tenant is bound to restore or keep in repair build- ings. (6) The lease shall execute a counterpart covenanting for due payment of rent. The court may confirm, or refuse to con6rm, any such lease, and the confirmation shall be certified. I shall not take up your time with the other clauses of the Act, which relate to the proceedings to be taken by landlords and tenants, and to the rules of the courts. The " second part" of the Act relates to the sale of land to tenants, to whom Government advances money to pay for it, taking a charge on the land of 5 per cent. per annum over 35 years to pay both principal and interest. The " third part" directs how loans are to be made by Government for drainage works, buildings, &:c. "Part four" relates to legal proceedings in the Civil Bill Courts. " Part five" is miscellaneous, but a very important change is introduced in clause 65 in this part, which empowers tenants to deduct from their rent, when paying it, half the county rate wiiich they have paid during tlie time such rent accrued. This is in addition to half the poor rate, which they could previously deduct. All local rates are included in these two. The club is aware that I have always advocated the extension of this law to England. Landlords' rights in existing leases are reserved. From the general description of the " Landlord and Tenant (Ireland) Act, 1870," you will see that the part which concerns our present subject is the 4th and subsequent clauses in the first part, and section 70 in " Definitions." As an illustration of the working of this Act, I propose to give you a description as shortly as I can of a ease heard last sum- mer, in which eminent witnesses were examined, and in which, on appeal from the Court of Land Session to the Assize Court, the Lord Chief Justice of Ireland gave a decision which will no doubt go far to establish rules in future cases. The case was tried on June 20th, 1870, and subse- quent days, at the Athy Quarter Sessions, before Mr. Thomas Lefroy, Q.C., chairman of the county Kildare ; Henry Norwood Trye, claimant; the Duke of Leiuster, respondent. Mr. Trye, claimed £-l,t)02 10s. for improvements made on the " Heath J!'arm," which be had quitted in the previous March, at the end of a twenty years' lease. The Duke admitted his claim only for £184 3s., against which he had a set-off of £61, leaving £123 3s. to be paid to Mr. Trye exclusive of any sura the court might award for artificial manures of which the Duke's agent could not ascertain the value. The sum awarded by the court was £80 only, besides £170 for unexhausted manure. Eminent counsel were employed on both sides, and the case was argued in all its details. The Heath Farm, as its name implies, is not good laud, and is described as a rather light limestone gravel whicii grows very little if not well manured. It is 136a. Ir. 2p. Irish plantation, which is the measure used in this trial, and is equal to 220a. 3r. 34p. English or statute measure, and you may bear in mind that one Irish acre is equal to la. 2r. 19p. English, or nearly If. In the year 1842, it was taken by the Duke into his own hands in a wretched condition, and is described by his Grace's steward, Mr. Alexander, a very intelligent witness, who says the highest offer he had for it was 8s. the Irish acre. Mr. Alexander ma- naged it from 1842 to 1853 on the five course shift, green crops heavily manured with dung and Peruvian guano, barley with seeds, hay, pasture, and lea oats. He then went through two courses, leaving it clean and in good condition, having subsoiled the whole fifteen inches deep. In March, 1853, it was let on a twenty years' lease to Dodds, who, however, did not enter till summer, and I believe paid nothing for the tillage or crops growing or manure, which in this country we should consider an extravagant piece of generosity on the part of a landlord. The rent to be paid by Dodds was £136, being £1 the Irish acre or about 123. the English. The buildings were good and the tenant was bound in the usual way to good farm- ing, but was not prohibited from selling farmyard manure^ a strange omission. It appears that when Dodds died his executor was allowed to sell the lease to one Cameron. This man says he lost money by it, and from the evidence he or Dodds certainly reduced the condition of the farm very much, and in 1867 Mr. Trye came and gave Dodds £300, the valua- tion of tiie crops, and became tenant, Cameron paying all rent due up to his leaving. Mr. Trye then held the farm from 1857 to 1873, and as he refused to take it again at what the Duke considered a fair increase of rent — namely, 30s. the Irish acre, he left it. You must remember that 1853 was just after the famine, and rents were very low, and the increase re- quired by the Duke was considered to be the increased letting value of such land, and not from the improved condition of this farm owing to the farming of the tenant. I think both the chairman and the Chief Justice were right in concluding from all the evidence that the farm was in fair condition at the end, and much about the same as it was at the beginning of the lease. Passing over for the present the extraordinary claim of Mr. Trye, it was argued on his behalf that taking the farm field by field he was entitled to all the crop-producing power left in the land at the end of the lease over and above what it would have produced if reduced to a condition of sterility, this being apparently the literal interpretation of the words of the act " Manures and tillages, the benefit of which is unexhausted." This includes " tillages" as well as manures, and it was argued for Mr. Trye that the good state of the farm when he left it was owing to his tillage as well as manures, and so he puts in a claim for the cost of all his manures, in- cluding value of dung and all his hand labour and the value of all his horse labour during six years. The remarks of the Lord Chief Justice on this are very pertinent. He gives credit to Mr. Car- ton, Mr. Trye's counsel, for the skilful way in wliich he has mixed up " manures" with " tillages." He says, " tillages were not to be confined of necessity to preparing for sowing ; during the last year of the tenancy he (Mr. Carton) argued means the value to the incoming tenant, and the condition into which the laud has been brought by the treatment of the tenant. Now that argument is not unfair, but it involves the conside- ration of the question of how much better that farm is by that very treatment than it was by the treatment of Alexander?" I take this remark in the judgment in this case to be of very great importance, for we have many people here, as well as in Ireland, who appear to think that a landlord is to be always paying for every little benefit his land may receive, though in making it the tenant was well repaid ; but when land is un- fortunately run out and reduced in value the landlord must quietly submit to the loss. In closing his judgment the Lord Chief Justice says, " Tlie application of these manures (super- phosphates) yield large crops. Who got the crops ? They fatten sheep, who got the sheep ? Who got the oxen ? Not the Duke, and, therefore, I cannot alter the decree." The decree referred to is that of Mr. Lefroy, given on the 1st July, 1873. Mr. Trye made the following claims for unexhausted improvements : Manual labour for six years £1,900 0 0 Horselabour 1,200 0 0 Horse made manure 562 10 0 Artificial manure 447 0 0 Oilcake, &c., for feeding 455 0 0 £4,564 10 0 Repairing buildings £20 Making a road 30 Putting up iron gates given by the Duke. . . 10 Filling gravel pits 25 Repairing fences 3 Unconsumed manure 200 Ploughing in 1863 50 338 0 0 £4,902 10 0 but he quite omits to set off against this'outlay for sis years any of the receipts for crops and stock sold. The wonder is that he did not include the rent paid among the unexhausted improvements. Mr. Lefroy says truly, the first observation that occurs to any one is the startling fact that more than 36 years' purchase of the rent is claimed for six years' occupation. He of course disallows all the claim for labour of which the tenant enjoyed the fruit. The claim for repairing build- THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 175 ings was disiillowed, the tenant being bound by his lease to keep them in repair. Of the £30 for making a good road where an imperfect one had been he allowed £20, because he thinks it calculated to add to the letting value, taking off £10 for the time the tenant had enjoyed the use of it. He allowed the £10 for putting up the gates, though the Duke had given them. The £2o for filling gravel pits was disallowed because there were none on the farm at the beginning of the lease, and the tenant having made thera was bound to restore the land. Tlie curious claim of £200 for farmyard manure on the premises wasof course disallowed, because Mr.Trye had sold it off the farm for £56, though the Duke had offered him £79 for it ; and bear in mind this was tlie manure made during two years, none of which was applied to the land, but all laid up for sale, while superphosphates were used for forcing crops, and not only the price af these was claimed, but of the oilcake con- sumed in making this manure. The £50 claimed for ploughing and cleaning a fallow in the last winter was allowed. There remained thus only the claim for manures and cakes, and the evidence given on the value of these likely to be left in the farm unexhausted is extremely interesting. In the end the chairman allows £170 for this, making £250 in all. One of the greatest witnesses for Mr. Trye was a Mr. Robertson, a Scotchman, who has kept his name so constantly before the Irish public for many years by writing and speaking, and his own confidence in himself that many people now think him an au- thority, and he is just the man who will be sought as an arbi- trator by tenants. The chairman says of him that he took a view so extreme that he could not feel safe in acting on his testimony, and the learned counsel, Dr. Battersby calls him " ^ sort of prophet among the tenants." Mr. Robertson, withou knowing anything of the farm a few years ago, says he judges the outgoing tenant's claim by tlie crops he sees on the ground ; thus in one case where the tenant put £86 worth of superphosphates and no dung or other manure o& a turnip crop of 2S acres, and after that took a barley crop leaving the land in grass, the unexhausted value of his manure and tillage was £9 an acre or £252. After such astounding evidence no wonder Mr. Robertson is a prophet among the farmers, but unfortunately for them lus evidence will in future be likely to carry little weight. Mr.TempletonandMr. McCuUock both gave good, practical evidence, and they agree that after a green crop and a wiiite crop little or nothing is left of the value of superphos- phates, but bones they allow to extend over five years. On the hearing of the appeal Professor Cameron, of the Royal College of Surgeons, an eminent analytical chemist, gave valuable evi- dence, as did also Mr. John Bennett Lawes, wlioseuame is too well known by you to require any commendation from me. Their evidence is extremely interesting, and was apparently relied on by the Chief Justice. Mr. Lawes says, " If you manured with bones in 1871, and had corn in 1872, a residue would be appreciable in 1873, about a third of the value, but after superphosphates nothing ;" in fact, he says, " Selling the farm- yard manure off the land is exhaustion," and " the very stimu- lants to the land in 1872 would be more serviceable to the out- going than to the incoming tenant." Trora a consideration of the evidence of all the witnesses and the conclusions drawn from it by eminent lawyers, I think certain rules will be arrived at for the guidance of future arbitrators in Ireland, and may be made very useful in this country. It would not be doing "justice to Ireland" were 1 to omit telling you that Mr. Trye, whose name will be remembered as tlie first great claimant under this Act, is not an Irishman but an educated English- man, and, by all accounts, a very good and successful farmer. After having occupied so much time in describing and illus- trating the Irish Act, it would be impossible to enumerate even a few of the Tenant-Right customs that exist in different parts of England, nor is such necessary, as tiiese have from time to time been subjects of discussion at this club. You will see, however, that the decisions of the Irish courts are likely in future to agree pretty well with many of the usual allowances to outgoing tenants here ; for instance, that superphosphates leave nothing after a green crop, and it also agrees with the custom [in this country of allowing the outgoing tenant a corn crop after liis lease is out and he ceases to pay rent on land which he manured for green crops in the last year. I am doubtful about the pro- priety of our custom of giving the outgoing tenant an away- going crop off lea land. I think it would be better to let the incoming tenant have a claim to plough a certain quantity of grass. In leases on some estates here, and by the custom in some counties, bones are allowed for, divided over several years. When the manure has to be left on the farm, it is fair to allow part of the cakes used in producing it, and this is done both in leases and by custom. In the same way lime is allowed for divided over several years. It would be in- teresting, and probably useful, to make a complete code of all the Tenant-Riglit customs in England, and, it any such scale of allowances as those customary in Lincolnshire could be made applicable to all counties, it might be useful to legalise such custom in the absence of written contracts. That this would satisfy Tenant-Right agitators I very much doubt ; and, in changing the customs of a country, they should be careful not to ask Parliament to give them what belongs to others, and bear in mind that any return they can honestly ask for should be only what remains in the land in excess of what they, found there, or in excess of what they contracted to do. For instance, if a farm, dirty, and in poor condition, is let on lease on the condition that it is to be left clean, and in good order, the landlord and tenant have both to take this into considera- tion in fixing the rent, and the tenant cannot honestly turn round at the end and ask Parliament to break his contract for him, and require the landlord to pay him over again. The Irish judge expresses this clearly when he says that "a cove- nant to deliver up in good condition is a covenant for valuable consideration," and the Irish Act excepts improvements made for a valuable consideration. If, for instance, an Act were passed enabling an outgoing tenant here to claim the value of his dung, on the principle laid down above, he would only be awarded by a court the excess in its value over what he got without paying for on his entry. In the same way with arti- ficial manures and cakes. If it were not so, tenants would make capital out of the pockets either of former tenants or landlords, and any law enabling them to do so would be un- just. As permanent improvements are in this country nearly always made by landlords, there is not so much demand for security for tenants' capital on this score, but if a law should be passed giving tenants such security, no one farming on lease can fairly ask to be allowed to put up any buildings he likes, and then to be repaid for them. The tenant would build what he fancied would suit him at the time ; the landlord considers what is likely to be permanently useful ; and even then how often may he get wrong ! There are instances in this county and district of large home- steads and stables, not half occupied, owing to tlie changes in the price of corn, stock, and labour. These having been built at the cost of wealthy landowners, do not attract much attention ; but had there been a law enabling tenants to build them and charge for them, what a burden they would have been on each incoming tenant, who would have had to pay for them ! I am also satisfied, though you may not agree with me, that many more crotchets and fashions of the day in building would be adopted if the control of buildings were in the hands of tenants. In the same way witii draining and such works, I think these are best done by the landlord. Although arbitration is generally preferable to litigatwn, I think constant arbitration is subject to many abuses. Profes- sional arbitrators or valuers are apt to become like lawyers, extreme advocates on the side of their own clients. You must yourselves know some such men, and then it is a toss up lor an umpire.'and another toss up whether he will not just divide the difference ? If landowners generally would acknowledge that land-agency is now a profession that requires a special training, and were to employ qualified agents to settle all matters with their tenants, instead of using as agents men who are simply their servants or clerks, neither arbitration nor legislation would be required ; for the business of tlic land agent is to make such terms between the landlord and tenant as sliall best promote good farming as a permanence, and in doing this iu will secure the proiierty of the landlord as well as the capital of the tenant. No donbt wlien lie steadily keeps this object in view ho is looked on with suspicion by some few landlords, and with dislike by the extreme tenants whose violence he opposes ; and, iu the nature of the case, he must sometimes appear to be one-sided, for when consult- ing with the landlord lie must fairly lay before him the ten- ant's view, and when bargaining with the teuaut he is bound to argue against crotchets, erroneous opinions, selfish interests, and sometimes ignorance. I know many such men who honestly and impartially devote their lives to the good of the landed community, and, as I have brought the Duke of Leinster's case so prominently before you, I will instance his agent, 176 THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. Charles William Hamilton, tliau wliora there is, amongst parti- sans, no better abused man ia Ireland just how, but to whom might safel)- be left tlie decision of questions which require arbitrators, valuers, lawyers, and judges. If my views should ever become general, associations of land agents would be ranch more likely to arrive at a code of general rules for tenants' compensation than will ever be done by violent discussions at chambers of agriculture. I am not without hope that, as in other trades certain rules of dealing are established, the time will come when the dealings of landlords and tenauts will not be open to the outcry against tliem on account of a few cases of injustice and ignorance, and that this may and ought to be done without abolishing freedom of contract, wtiich in any other trade would be denounced as " not to be endured," I am satisfied. I wish, however, to give you on this subject an opinion which the shining lights of this club will not agree with, but which the older members will receive with some respect as being in the words used at this club by their late founder and first president, John Grey : " A communication has been placed in my hands by Mr. Shaw, well known for his connection with the London Farmers' Club. The club has taken up the question of what is called Tenant-Right, and, it seems, wishes to learti the sentiments of provincial clubs there- upon. For my part I will say at once that I do not think it by any means a lair subject for legislation. A tenant's rights are just tiiose which he can establish by law. [f any man is so absurd as to take no security for the money, and skill, and labour which lie lays out another man's land, he must suffer the penalty of his folly. He must see to it, tlierel'ore, before he expends his capital, that he has security for the adequate reward of his enterprise. He must look to himself — not to the Legislature. No legi-lation could embrace with suflicient nicety such a delicate subject. If the owner of the land has no objection to grant a lease for years, then the security must assume the form of compensation for unexhausted improve- mants ; all this must be a matter of individual arrange- ment. Legislation could not interfere with advan- tage. It would lead to everlasting disputes and arbi- trations— arbitrations that would often be decided on the most fanciful principles. No law could place the relations of landlord and tenant on an equal basis. Each must see to his own rights ; and no landlord who knew his own interest — his interest in lia\ing a good tenantry — would scruple to grant them proper securities." Mr. T. P. I)ous did not know whether it was usual for any discussion to follow the reading of the paper, or simply to proceed with the remainder of the toasts, but as he was not present at the meetings of the Club when they discussed a kindred topic, he wished to say one or two words on this matter. He thought he might say, generally speaking, he agreed very mucli with what the chairman had expressed in his paper. He did not know whether Mr. Grey really ap- proved of the Irish Land Act or not ; he did not know that he had exactly said he did. He (Mr. Hods) certainly thought it was necessary ; and assuming it was necessary, very lew men, even with able assistance, could have drawn an Act more to the purpose than the Irish Land Act. He thought, however, that the circumstances of England and the circum- stances of Ireland were widely different. The farmers of England and Scotland also, if not able, should be able to make their owu bargains for themselves, lie had had a good deal of correspondence with his friend j\lr. Howard in reference to this matter. They had turned it over and over; all the corners of it had turned up, but, he was sorry to say, he had not been able to persuade him, nor had Mr. Howard been able to persuade him, that his views on the question were wrong. 'a^He2(Mr. Dods) did not think that the Legislature should interfere and stop the freedom of contract in reference to hind any more than they should interfere to stop freedom of contract in anything else. If this matter was legislated on at all it should be to this extent. If there was no written contract to the contrary, in the absence of a special bargain between landlord and tenant, and the tenant went on farming thoroughly well, putting in, besides the farm- yard manure, large quantities of bought manure, and the manure from bought cake as well, he thought the Legisla- ture should enable tlie tenant to claim that, and they should have a court to decide the amount to be paid to the tenant for it. As to the claims in the Irish case, referred to by the chairman, they were so perfectly absurd he did not know how any Irishman could have thougiit of making them, let alone an Englishman. As to Tenant-Right, it was not a new thing in this country. Those who knew the terms on which farms were let in this county thirty years ago, and who knew the terms on which farms were let now, would see that Tenant- Right, that is, the just claim of a tenant for unexhausted im- provements, for real improvements, had greatly increased- Thirty or forty years ago such a thing was not known ; until it was introduced by the chairman's late father, there was not such a thing known in the North of England as a claim for unexhausted manures applied to land. Since the late Mr. Grey irtroducedit on tlie Greenwich Hospital estates, it had been introduced on many other estates in this country ; indeed on many estates in the northern counties they were approach- ing to the system followed iu Lincolnshire. People some- times said that they should do exactly as they did in Lincoln- shire, but the circumstances were not applicable. A Tenant- Right which was fair in Lincolnshire might be extravagance here. Why ? Because they had no away-going crop in Lin- colnshire. The tenant entered at March, and paid the out- going tenant for his feed and labour. Here no incoming tenant paid for work done, and seed that had been sown. There the tenant went out at the term, and had no further claim to the crop in the land, while in this county they had an away-going crop. Therefore, to give an out-going tenant in this county the whole of his cake bill would be extravagance. That was not so in Lincolnshire ; if a tenant there used a quan- tity of cake he did not get the benefit of the manure in any manner of way. As the Chairman had remarked, it would require a court of land agents, and he would put iu a lot of tenants along with them, to draw up a code of rules that would be applicable to the county in which they resided. With regard to arbitration, although there were many points which, could be best settled by arbitration, he had a great dis- like to amateur law, which they very often got in cases of arbitration. In concluding, Mr. Dods said he very much ob- jected to any compulsory clause in any Act of Parliament with reference to Tenant-Right. Mr. M. Stephenson, jun., said he rose with great pleasure to propose the next toast, "The Chairman, and success to the Club." It was always dithcult to praise a man in his presence, but without exceeding the rule he might fearlessly assert that the name of Grey had always been honourably connected with the agriculture of this district, and with the annals of this Club. During the time J\[r. Grey had held the presidency of the Club he had gained the goodwill and esteem of every mem- ber of it. He had not only ably ofticiated as their president, but he had introduced some of the most important papers they had had discussed, and which were not only read in this dis- trict but all over England. He had given these papers with his accustomed ability and moderation — moderation he thought other men would do well to follow. He gave them success to the Club, and he congratulated his friend, Mr. Trotter, on the attendance there that day. He was sorry to hear that Mr. Grey had resigned his position as president, but he hoped the nevv president would follow in the footsteps of his predecessor. He asked them to give the toast with three times three. The Chairman, in responding, said he felt extremely grate- ful for the kind welcome they had given to his name, which was associated with the toast. He felt and appreciated tho- roughly the kindness he had always received from the mem- bers of the Club, particularly at the annual meetings, when there were large gatherings, as well as at the smaller meetings, when papers were discussed, during the year. He could not be blamed by them for retiring from the presidency ; he had filled the office for several years, and it was only fair that other people should take their share of the responsibility, duties, and also the honour which they were pleased to award ; these things should be divided and not be monopolised by himself. He was very glad that they had appointed such a worthy person to fill this office as Captain Nicholson, a gentleman who had taken a warm interest in all matters connected with the Club. In all scientific discussions that gentleman would be especially useful, being himself a gentleman of great scientific know- ledge, whilst his ability to preside over meetings particularly qualified him for the office. As to the club itself, he heartily joined in wishing continued success to it. It has existed for a good many years, and in its time had done a great deal of good. At the present time literature was so much more extended, was so much cheaper, and wcut so much quicker into e>'ery one's house, and farmers were more inclined to read than when the Club was founded, so that many of the objects of the Club THE FARMEU'S MAGAZINE. 1'7? has been superseded by farmers beiug able to obtnia all the information upon the different subjects sitting at liome- Many farmers, who in former times went to tlie meetings, if asked to attend now, replied, " I will see it all iu the newspapers, and I will read it over my pipe at home." Tiiat was all very well, but it caused the intermediate meetings of the club to be very badly attended. He did not wisii to cast any apple of discord into tiie meeting, and witiiout saying anything unfair, lie miglit say he liad felt for some time that the farmers generally had abstained from attending the meetings. Tliere were a few — very few, regular attenders at the meetings. These were men of extreme opinions, who did not represent the feelings of the Club, and wlio so entirely differed from liis views on many subjects, that he had tbouglit it consistent with his own feelings of honesty, and liis. own dignity, for he thought he held a position in the county, to retire Irom the presidency of the Club. lie did not think it consistent on Ins part to act as chairman, and to be put forth as the mouthpiece, and have to endorse such extreme and improper views as had been entertained, lie wished to say fairly to the general members of the Club that unless subjects were discussed in whicli farmers could take part without bringing mischief to the Club, without causing tiie Club to be looked upon by the landowners as a nest of agitators, ttie Club would cease to be useful as a farmers' club. It might exist and might be useful as an organization for agitating political questions, but that was not the objects for which it was first started. Some of the persons who attended their meetings said the farmers were afraid to attend them. The Secretary said tliey were afraid to come to tlie meetings, to sit there to be looked at by their agent. lie must respectfully say that he did not believe that. He knew many farmers in the [county, and he knew mauy of then would speak the truth before him, and he might say that many of them whom he had no con- trol over refused to attend their meeting, and said the Club "was notliing but a nest of agitators ; who was going to go near them P " He wished to say that he did not intend to retire from the Club ; and he hoped to see it successful and useful. He trusted that ne.xt year the papers read would be more useful, the discussions more general, and the attendance greater ; and in every respect that the Club would be more useful next year than it had ever been before. Mr. Dky])on proposed "The gentlemen who have intro- duced subjects during the past year," adding that the papers liad beeu characterised by ability and terseness of expression. He begged to couple with the toast the name of Mr, John Hope, jun. Mr. Hope said that doubtless every gentleman who brought before them practical subjects elicited considerable difference of opinion, lie expected that in every discussion of practical and important subjects, llcferring to his own paper, he said he had endeavoured to follow the rule laid down for every honest man — "to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth." Mr. T. P. DoDs gave "The committee and secretary." He believed the committee had done their part diligently by looking after the interests of the Club. The secretary liad been very active both in getting parties to engage to read papers for discussion, in and beating up for fresh members. Mr. William; Tuottek, the Vice-Chairman, Secre- tary, and Treasurer, responded. He thanked Mr. Dods for the kind expressions towards the committee and himself. He had listened to the chairman's remarks with respect to some farmers being afraid to attend the meetings of the Club and give expression to tiieir views. Whatever he had told the c'lairman he believed it to be correct, and would stand by it. Certain members of the Club had shrunk from expressing their views, and he left the cause for them to conjure up in their own minds. Such was the fact, which had been told to him- self. Whether the Club had been conducted by a clique or not it was not for him to say ; but he was bound to say in his defence that he had been no party to any such clique, and every subject that had been discussed had first been submitted to the Committee, and had tlie Committee's approbation. With regard to political subjects the very gentleman who had denounced thera had brought them before tlie Club, such as papers on Local Taxation. If Local Taxation was not mixed up with politics he did not know what was. The security of tenants' capital was surely a question for tenant-farmers to discuss. If they, as a farmers' club, could not discuss that question, he did not know what they could discuss. It was impossible for tenants to get that security without bringing public opinion to bear upon landlords, and landlords, being human beings, were amenable to public opinion. It was only becoming and right tliat gentlemen who came before tliem to express their views, without simply endeavouring to gain the smile of those above them or fearing the censure of their equals, should have a fair hearing. Shut the mouths of the people as they did in Trance, and what would be the conse- quence ? why, they would have a revolution every twenty- four or twenty-five years. As Englishmen, they claimed the right of free speech, and so long as he was Secretary, he would fearlessly express his views on all matters brought before the Club. With regard to his position of Secretary, if he thought he had not their confidence, he would most certainly not wish for a moment to continue his services. He must strongly ob- ject to have his name branded in a censorious manner with those of political agitators (loud applause). BOROUGHBRIDGE AGEICULTURAL SOCIETY. At the quarterly meeting, Jlr. J. D. Dent, M.P., the pre- sident, read a paper upon " Tenant-Right as affected by Legislation." Mr. Uent stated that he did not propose to deal with the political aspect of the question. He said some persons spesk of Tenant-Right as being a wrong or disadvantage to the land- lord, an encroachment or iuterlereuce with his rights and privileges for the advantage of the tenant ; but for my own part I cannot conceive that any right, whetiier given by custom, agreement, or by law, which will encourage good farming can be otlierwise than good for all parties concerned in the cultivation of the soil. The landlord must gain if liis farms are cultivated up to tiie liighest point, especially when he has a farm to be let, because the dilliculty in letting farms is experienced when a farm which is poor falls vacant, and the landlord has cither to make a permanent sacrifice in reduction of rent, or a considerable temporary outlay to assist in replacing the condition which is wanting. The tenant must profit if he lays out the capital which is really requisite for good manage- ment, and thereby increases both his gross and net returns. The labourer must profit, because more cattle aud sheep, more turnips and corn, require more hands to wait upon the stock, more force to cultivate the turnips, and to gather in and thrash the corn ; and the ])ul)lic gain, because the greater our own production of meal aud corn, the less we have to pay for foreign produce, and the farmer and labourer having more money to spend, our own trade meets witli more of its best customers in the home consumers. 1 do not think that I can put what I desire in more clear and forcible language than was used by my friend IMr. Holland, who is this year president of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, in addressing a meeting at Evesham in 1S()2. He then said : " We wished the tenant to be placed in such a position as to be encouraged to farm well up to the last moment of his leaving his holding, and that when he does leave it, he shall be compensated for what he has put into the ground without deriving any benefit Irom it, and that by so doing he shall be enabled to pa>s the land in a high state of cultivation to the incoming tenant, and that there may be no stoppage in the cultivation to the incom- ing tenant, no risk of land getting foul, and the whole system may be beneficial to all concerned." This is all that I myself understand by Tenant-Right, and this I desire to see legally carried out. I need not expatiate to you on the necessity of our agriculture being as productive as possible; you, as farmers, know that the more you can produce the better for yourselves, while the records of importations assure us that however home production may increase, we must still rely for a substantial portion of our food supplies upon foreign sources. What, then, are the requisites in order that we may produce with profit more food from our own soil? Two things — skill and capital. The latter may be lavishly poured into the land, but if skill be wanting, the capital is wasted, and the return for 178 THE FARMEU'S MAGAZINE. expenditure is unieraunerative, and, on the other hand, the most careful and skilful farmer of our days cannot succeed if he be cramped and hampered by a want of means. The best farming does not offer such tempting returns as to attract capital at all risks; the man who expends his money in the cultivation of the soil must be content with a moderate rate of interest, and therefore has a right to ask for a reasonable security. Vou all know that in agriculture the processes are slow, that almost all your operations in the whole course of liusbandry are performed not merely for the immediate crop, but also for the future, and that a tenant who has to give up his holding for any cause at a six months' notice, may have to leave in his larm much of his capital, for the outlay of which he has not yet received any adequate return. The customs of Lincolnshire and of Nottinghamshire have attempted to remedy this evil, and the farming of both these counties is an example and proof of the security such custom affords. In Scotland, leases under which the tenant has a permanent occupation for a term of nineteen or twenty-one years, afford a similar security. The bill introduced by Mr. Howard and Mr. Read last session, and which they propose to bring forward again this year, is designed to enforce bylaw a system of compensation for capital expended by the tenant upon his holding, and for which, in the course of liusbandry, he has not yet received a return. The Devon Commission, in 1845, recommended such a measure for Ireland, and probably, if such a measure had been passed, then we should not have had to pass, in 1870, a Land Bill for Ireland, legalising payment for disturbance, and the Ulster system of Tenant-Right or goodwill, which enables the outgoing tenant in some cases to obtain a sum of money for his goodwill not far short of what the proprietor can obtain for the fee -simple. By tlie bill tenants' improvements are divided into three classes, tem- porary, durable, and permanent. It appears to me that the principal difficulty of the measure arises in the satisfactory determination of the value of the first class of these, viz., the the temporary improvements. These are defined to he " any outlay effectually and properly incurred by a tenaiit in the purchase and application of manure or fertilisers to other than corn crops, or in the purchase of cake, corn, and other feed- ing stuffs consumed by live stock upon the holding." It is proposed that the value of these temporary improvements shall be settled by arbitrators, who shall ascertain the amount of such outlay during the last four years of the tenancy, and who may award in respect of the unexhausted value of such outlay a sum which shall not exceed the average annual amount expended during the last four years, and from this shall be deducted the value of the manure, which would have been produced from any hay, straw, roots, or green crops sold off the farm during the last two years of the tenancy, besides which, as a protection to the landlord, the valuers shall make a further deduction of such sum as under all the circum- stances of the case they may consider just, if in their judgment the iioldiug of any part of it is in a foul or neglected condi- tion, arising from default of the tenant. The great difficulty about the compensation iu all these cases, wiiether given by custom, private agreement, or as is now proposed by law, is the getting a fair valuation of the unexhausted benefit which is left in land from the application of manures or the con- sumption of food. You can probably best arrive at the value of what has been done upon, and what is left in tlie holding by its condition. " Condition," says Mr. Lawes, " is a quality quite distinct from natural fertility of soil ; it is mainly de- pendent upon the amount of capital expended by the tenant in the purchase of cattle-food or manure, and .is, therefore, his property; it may be easily and rapidly reduced." My expe- rience is that it takes much time and expenditure to bring land of ordinary quality into high condition, especially if it be in grass, and that a very short period of bad management will destroy this condition, and, therefore, I am for encou- raging the tenants to maintain it. I wisli, however, to avoid another evil, and that is, that an incoming tenant may have too great a burden put upon him, and that he may find himself saddled with heavy bills |for cake and manure of whose com- position he knows nothing ; and in whose future effects he has very little confidence. Our friend and neighbour Mr. Thompson, whose illness is so serious a loss to the agricultural world, in one of his most able essays wrote — " The tendency of the present day is to make agreements extremely simple to allow an incoming tenant to be as httle hampered as pos sible by the operations of his predecessor, but to devote the capital, whose possession ought to be a sine fjiid /ton, to a thorough stocking and manuring of his farm, instead of bat- tling about tillages and half-tillages, and expending his capital in unexhausted improvements, the existence of which is in many cases highly problematical." I admit the force of this view of the case, and I am very willing to see the capital of the incoming tenant locked up, but I hope that with a proper system of valua- tion,-and competent valuers, the evil may be avoided. As I read these clauses, the arbitrators are not bound to award a fixed proportion of the valie on the manure bill, but after looking at the general conditton of the farm, at the manure left in hand, at the straw prodaced, at the root-crops grown, they are to allow such a proportion, not exceeding one year's average ex- penditure, as may meet what they believe to be the justice of the case. I cannot but think that if you have able men, who know their business as valuers, that in this manner substantial justice may be done. I have known instances myself of cake and manure bills of large amounts being paid under private agreements, where the farm has been decidedly ill-cultivated, and the crops grown so poor as to throw great doubt on the genuineness of the bills, as well as of the food and manure said to have been consumed. In such a case, if I .interpret their bill aright, the valuers would not be bound to award any part of tiie cake or manure bills as compensation, because they would find no unexhausted improvement ; hut on the highly- cultivated and well-managed farm they would have the power to award the average annual outlay upon manures applied to green crops or grass, and the cost of the food consumed by stock. They would have to look at all the circumstances of the case, and the condition of the farm, therefore, should be the first basis of valuation of unexhausted improvements, and the compensation must be limited by a certain amount of expenditure. There is the more necessity for recognising con- dition as the basis of valuation, because the bill, as drawn, does not provide any compensation for the consumption of ccwn the produce of the farm itself, and it would certainly appear that if compensation be made for purchased corn, an allowance should also be_ made for corn grown and consumed upon the farm. Mr. Lawes has suggested that the compensation to an outgoing tenant should not be based upon a fixed proportion of his purchased food bill, but rather upon the value of the manure constituents of the particular description of food actually employed. The second class of improvements men- tioned in the bill are called durable, and for these the compen^ sation may be made to run over ten years. And amongst the other restrictions is one of considerable importance, viz., that these improvements shall in the opinion of the arbitrators add to the letting of the holding. Durable improvements comprise " subsoiling, getting up, and removing stones, liming, chalk- ing, marling, claying, boning with undissolved bones, laying , down permanent pasture, or any other improvements which have a durable elfect in amending the land deepening the soil. From my own experience I think that probably the period of ten years goes back too far for most of these im- provements. I have tried liming, subsoiling, and to some small extent boning grass land with undissolved bones, and I confess that I think ten years appears too long a period for the compensation of any of these improvements to run. In laying down land also to permanent pasture the loss to the occupier is not so great during the first and second years, if the land be properly prepared and well manured, but rather during the four or five succeeding years, because at this time new grass generally requires most liberal and generous treat- ment in order to set a good skin upon it. And this cost would be partially dealt with by considering its condition iu dealing with the first class of improvements. At the same time there is no doubt that where a tenant has laid down land to per- manent pasture, and done it well on suitable land, the im- provement should rank amongst those that are called durable. The third class of improvements which are called permanent, includes what are properly the duties of the owner of the soil. These are reclaiming, levelling, warping, planting, otherwise than ornamental, draining, making or otherwise improving watercourses, works of irrigation, ponds, |wells, reservoirs, fences, roads, bridges, or the erection or enlargement of build- ings on the holding, or any other improvements of c permanent nature. The compensation awarded for these is guarded by certain restrictions. The outlay must have been made within twenty years ; it must, in the opinion of the arbitrators, add to the letting value of the holding, and must have been incurred with the written consent of the landlord or his agent, [except THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 179 la the case of such iraprovcmeiiis iu draining, or niakiug watercourses as iu the opinion of the arbitrators were neces- sary fortlie profitable cultivation, and suitable to the holding, and which the landlord, after written application from the tenant, had refused or neglected within a reasonable time to carry out. I consider that all the works here specified are properly landlord's improvements, and are part of the necessary equipment of the farm before it is delivered [over to 'a tenant. At the same time every one of us knows how much is wanting on even well-managed properties iu all these items. Thepoverty, and not the will of landlords, compels them to abstain trommany necessary works, and, doubtless there are tenants who would undertake to carry them out if tliey felt sure of receiving re- muneration for their outlay. It is objected that a tenant may have expensive ideas, and may wish to saddle his holding with unnecessary and costly buildings, or extravagant draiaage ; but this appears to me, in the main, to be guarded against by the necessity of the landlord's consent, and the stipulation that the improvements shall add to the letting value of the land. I should like to say a few words about drainage, for, however well executed it may have been at first, there are numerous natural causes which will soon impair its utility. I do not allude to the necessity and advantage of deep cultivation in order to assist its operations, but those who have had to over- look a large system of drainage, know that they have to con- tend witli many other difficulties. Outfalls give way or become choked up ; in some places the roots of trees penetrate for yards and completely stop up even six-inch pipes ; in other places you have ferruginous deposits ; in others, especially after such a season as that of last winter, sand will be washed into and choke up large mains, and in some fields even roots of water weeds will do the same. I find it necessary to keep a staff of three or four men constantly at work repairing defects and removing sucli hindrances ; and certainly no compensation should be paid for drainage, unless the drains be all laid down upon a map, in order that the arbitrators may be able practi- cally to examine them, and to be assured that they are in good working order. With respect to the buildings necessary for the housing of stock, or of labour, I do not see much difficulty in coming to a valuation, supposing all to be kept iu good and efficient repair. I have no doubt that the principles of this bill is right, but I admit there are dilficulties in the working details. Should it become an Act of Parliament, its success or failure will depend upon the judgment and skill of the valuers who have to carry it out. 1 will not detain you on the re- maining clauses of the bill, except to say that existing Tenant- E,ight customs, such as those which are in force in Lincoln- shire, are maintained. This I regret, for some of them, as in Surrey, and iu parts of the West Riding, which include tillages, half-tillages, and other acts of husbandry, are a heavy burden to the incoming tenant, and present no compensating advan- tage. 1 should prefer a simple and elastic rule of valuation as the basis of the measure, and an attempt should be made to assimilate the terms of Tenant-Kight throughout England. The great bugbear in the bill is the 13th clause, which prohibits a tenant contracting himself out of the operation of the Act. Can the bill be so framed that no fair-minded landlord would refuse to put its clauses into his agreements ? If so, why leave the careless and inert, the prejudiced and obstinate, to refuse compliance ? If we do not pass some such measure as this now, in a few years we may have a cry for the Irish system of payment for disturb- ance, and be compelled to recognise in the Tenant a sort of quasi-ownership of the soil. There is no more gratifying fact for a landlord than the retention of good tenants upon his estate, nothing which should be more satisfactory to hira than high cultivation and a prosperous agriculture. Tliis can best be attained by keeping up unimpaired the condition of tlie land that quality which goes beyond natural fertility, and wiiich you may see developed in even inferior soils by the judicious appli- cation of capital and skill. You will agree with me that there are many acres of laud with which we are acquainted tiiat arc not yet farmed up to the mark. The best cultivated land of our ueiglibourhood does not present much scope for improve- ment, but a great number of farms in this locality might be made to produce better crops, and feed more stock. Security for capital is not all that is needed ; skill, patience, and de- votion to business are also requisites. No law can give these qualities to men, but law may give security ; and if the law at present does not give that, we should welcome any honest attempts to amend the law, and should endeavour to bring our practical knowledge to bear to make such amendment as fair to all parties, and as thoroughly etticacious as possible. Mr. Jac OB Smith said that he had read the bill over two or three times, and had noticed the difficulties in it to which Mr. Dent had alluded, there being too much left to the arbitrators. It appeared to hira that it would be much better if some principle was defined upoa which the tenant should be paid, some element introduced which was not iu the bill. They need not discuss the necessity of Tenant-Right, for that was a point admitted on all hands. As so much more capital was now expended in the cultivation of the land, it was all the more necessary there should be adequate compensation and security. Why there should be objections to the bill on the part of laud- owners he could not understand, for the bill, as a whole, was as much in favour of the landlord as the tenant. The discussion of tlie bill had mainly turned on the 13th clause which, he thought, if left out would render the bill absolutely worthless. It was said the bill destroyed freedom of contract, but he did not see any special force in the objection. Mr. LoJiAS said that he could fully endorse the remarks of Mr. Smith, believing that if the 13th clause were expunged the bill would be nothing more nor less than a dead letter. Unless the bill was made compulsory it would be worthless. In its present form it was a kind of permissive bill, and he ob- jected to all permissive bills. He preferred a tvi'clve months* to a six months' notice and strongly objected to the system of " farming to leave," as it was termed, which was caused by the lack of Tenant-Right. Mr. Bennett concurred in the sentiments of Mr* Dent's paper, and said he was in favourof a large Tenant-Right, which would be an inducement to a farmer to keep his farm in a first- rate condition, though it might press them rather hard on an incoming tenant in the way of limiting his capital. He con- sidered it most desirable to cultivate well by the tenant up to the time of his leaving a farm, when he was recompensed for unexhausted improvements by the in-coming tenant. When he left his farm in Lincolnshire on I'JO acres of ploughing land he was allowed £1,670. Seven years were allowed for lime and bones. The farmyard manure and the manure of the last year's produce ought to belong to the outgoing tenant, and the in-coming tenant should pay the value of it. He had the advantage in that, for the manure would be ready to his hands to place on the land. Mr. Crow considered that Tenant-Right was necessary to keep up the cultivation of a farm, and he would take the aver- age of the last four years. He agreed with Mr. Bennett as to manures. Mr. Brogden was in favour of Tenant-Riglit, and was afraid it could not be had except by eompulsary legislation. He hoped that before long the bill to which so much reference had been made would become law. Mr. Scott considered the bill a fair and just one to both landlord and tenant. The only point for them as practical farmers to consider vvas the question of compensation, its extent and principle. He thouglit it better for the in-coming tenant to have to pay for the manure left on tlie farm and put it on the land himself, for then he derived a benefit. He was in favour of Tenant-Right for unexhausted manures and tillages, as in some districts, and then expressed the opinion that Yorkshire was far behind other parts of the country in this respect. Without a Tenant-Right there was a waste of farming for three or four years, which was a loss not only to landlord and tenant, but to the community at large. He ob- jected to a twelve months' notice, which might occasion a tenant having two farms on his hands at one time. He condemned the practice of " farming the leave," as one of the worst curses to the country. The point was how to regulate the amount of compensation to the out-going tenant by the incoming tenant. The Rev. C. H. Sale congratulated the chairman on his moderation. Mr. Gaunt condemned " farming to leave," as a tenant on quitting had been exhausting the soil for two or three years previously, and the incoming tenant was two or three years more in getting the laud into condition again, a great loss being thereby sustained by the country. Under these circumstances the main point was how could matters be so arranged between landlord and tenant that farms might be well cultivated up to the last moment when they were left and came into other hands. Mr. Crow was of opinion that if a good Tenant-Right bill IBO I'HE FARMER'S MAGA^^tNE. were passed, fhe agricultural iiroiluctlon of tlie county of York would be doubled. The CuAiRJiAN, in replying to the remarks on his paper, doubted the accuracy of the last remark. He did not think they could much increase the production in that neiglibourhood or that of the wolds and parts of Lincolnshire ; but there were many acres of small enclosures, badly-drained lauds, and a great extent of hedgerows alTordiug room for improvement. What was wanted was a greater expenditure of capital in these respects to put the land in a better condition. Many landlords either could not or would not carry out these important improvements, and if, by legislation, they could encourage the, tenants to improve the cultivation and condition of their farms, it would, as he had said, be a benefit to tlie wliole couimuuity. Adverting to the Irish Land Bill, he said he voted for it because he thought the landlords ot Ireland had not done their duty, but left the improvements to be made by the tenants, who had no security of tlieir lioldings. He did not, however, think that the English tenant wanted anything similar to the Irish Land Act. He was not alarmed at the bugbear of doing away with freedom of contract ; though he confessed that the tendency of the present day was to over much legislation. Tenant-Right was a (piestion that was neither Whig, Radical, nor Conservative, for Sir John Pakington and other Conservative landowners lield quite as strong an opinion on the subject as he did. PRIZES FOR LABOURERS. At a meeting of the committee of the Suffollc Agricultural Association lield in Ipswich, Mr. J. A. Ransome, the president in the chair, Mr. H.13ID11ELL said, with respect to the proposition to discontinue the premiums to labourers, |horse drivers, shep- herds, and servants, the sub-committee did not intend to re- commend that these premiums should be discontinued at once, but tliat the question should be discussed. They had not appropriated the money hitherto given in these premiums to any other purpose. The Fresidext said before it could be determined to do away with this class of premiums altogether, notice must be given as for an alteration in the rules, for it would really involve an alteration in the constitution of the society, and must be determined upon by a general meeting. Mr. Bo:ni), the Secretary, read a letter from Lord Strad- broke, in which he said, " 1 observe that our committee of the Agricultural Association, which is to meet on Tuesday, proposes to abandon the prizes to agricultural labourers. I am a great advocate for retaining them. The Society was established to encourage labourers and others to be faithful and attached servants, and I know that those who receive the rewards are proud of them. In tliese days, more than ever, we wish to cement friendship between master and man, and each ought to be dependent on the other." Mr. W. Long said he felt very strongly with the president that this was a question of entirely breaking up the constitu- tion of the society. One of the rules distinctly required that if a motion of this kind was to be brouglit forward it should be at a general meeting of the members of the Association, and that due notice of the intention to bring it forward should be given. He had taken a warm interest in the Agricultural Association, and had attended the greater number of the meetings, and the matter now before them really was one of very great interest to him. He held in his hands the reports ol the society for the years 1836 and 187^, and he wished to call their attention to certain points in those reports, but before doing so he would say that some were, perhaps, hardly aware of the extreme interest which the agricultural labourers took in the annual show of the society. In proof of this he mentioned that there had been three annual shows held at Hurts Hall, and it happened that the last was iield in the midst of a political crisis when the aristocracy of the country were in London and none could attend tlie show, but it was a remarkable fact that in that agricultural district, the popula- tion of which was poor, the number of visitors to the show was within two of the number who attended at Ipswich the year before, some 8,000 entering the show, whilst ten years before the number of visitors was 1,200, and it was a matter of the greatest possible interest to see the peasantry surround- ing the animals which were exhibited and the interest they took in them. He had taken out the numbers who competed for these long servitude and other similar premiums in 1836 and in 1873, and had found that in the former year the total amount given in tiiose premiums was £87, and the num- ber of prizes was 46. One would have expected tliat in 1873 there would have been many more prizes, but he found that they numbered 41, and the total amount was less than in 1836,'_being £71. This was a strong argument against with- drawing the premiums, for there was no doubt that many persons not only took great interest in the splendid animals exhibited at the shows, but regarded these prizes as a great social benefit to the labourers. He entirely agreed with what LordStradbroke had written, and was sure it would be a most inexpedient policy to adopt at this moment, and one which they would hereafter lament, to withdraw the prizes. He admitted that there was a difference of opinion on the matter. Those who dill'ercd from that which he had expressed did so on the ground that the Agricultural Society was extending and that farmers' clubs had taken up the improvement of the labourer. So far as he was acquainted with farmers' clubs the only point which they took up in regard to tiie labourer was that they encouraged hira in the improvement of his garden, but he did not find it 'general in such clubs to give prizes to good ploughmen, S:c. He felt that it would be a great disappointment to many members if the proposition were carried, and it would be equally so to the labourers, for he knew the pride with Mhicli those who had gained prizes pointed to the certificates, and said " Here am I who have been for so many years on tiie same farm, and 1 don't wish to leave the land." He hoped the committee would see botii the expediency and the desirability of withdrawing tiie pro- position . The President said as he understood the matter it came simply as a suggestion from the sub-committee, in order that it might at some subsequent time be discussed. It would have been competent for the sub-committee to have made alterations in the number and amount of the prizes if they iiad thought it desirable, and he was not sure that it was not desi- rable. For instance, he understood that it usually was the case that in the dairymaids' class there were not so many ap- plications as there were prizes offered, and he did not see why the classes of liorse drivers and agricultural labourers should not be amalgamated. Mr. 11, BiDDELL said something ought to be done. It was not right that prizes of £3 each should be given to 13 people for bringing up their families with the least amount of paro- chial relief and that only four of those twelve should not have been pauperised. Last year £34 was given in that class, and only four of the twelve recipients came before the committee as independent people having never had parish relief. The President said he had attended the meetings at which these prizes were awarded for several years, and when the re- cipients had received relief it was to very small amounts and in case of sickness only. Mr. BiDDELL : It is a fact that we did not get 13 applicants who iiad not been paupers. The President asked whether, in the case of a man who had 12s. a week and brought up 12 or 14 ciiildren, an afflic- tion of providence such as fever would not make it an essential matter for him to ask for a modicum of relief. Mr. A.J. Smith said the highest amount of rehef received by any of the 13 was 18s. 6d., and it was only in sickness. Mr. Long said he did not mean to say there were not abuses of tills as of every other philanthropic institution. He did not know whether the prizes to shoeing smiths, who were highly paid workmen, might not be discontinued. Mr. BiDDELL : Those prizes are offered for our own sakes. We are owners of horses, and it is to our interest that tlieir shoeing should be well done. Mr. Garrett said that remark would apply also to the prizes to labourers, but as an employer of labour he would say that he did not think if they doubled or trebled the amount of the premiums they would have one more agricultural THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 181 labourer ia the county. It Imd now become a hard and fast question of supply and demand. Tlie agricultural labourer was a totally different man to what he was ten years ago ; he knew his value, aud the farmers were bouud to pay it iu money. Mr. Hempson : And t here is no reason why we should not. Mr. G.VKRETT : So I say, and I think the time is passed for these prizes. I don't think they do any good to tlie employers of labour, and the agricultural labourer is quite able to take care of himself. It must be allowed to be an em- ployers' question. Is it an advantage to the employers of labour ? Mr. Long : That is not my experience. It benefits the labourer. IMr. Garrett said the sub-cominittee iu making this re- port were influenced in some degree by the fact that Mr. Bond had received letters to the effect that if this amount of money was to be given in the shape of rewards aud premiums to labourers tlie writers would withdraw from the Association. The Chairman said there was one letter to that effect. Mr. Garrett said there was a strong feeling among the tenant-farmers that the funds of the Association should have been applied to so large an extent in this way. Mr. Heiii\son said another light in which these prizes might be looked at was that it might be questionable whether they were appreciated now as when they were first instituted. It was a matter that required further consideration before they came to a decision, but it was a fair subject for discussion. It would hardly be worth while for the society to oiler a long list of prizes if they were looked upon in some measure with contempt, for the labourers were at the present time being- taught to look upon that kind of patronage with contempt. They had repeatedly heard such criticisms as this, " Oh, the Agricultural Society gives £10 to a fat pig, and £'2 to the labourer who hasserved his master 40 years." The President said he recollected as long as thirty years ago such remarks as that of which 3Ir. Hempson spoke had been made by the y/wii'^ aud other papers, but they had no elfect in reducing the attention paid by these societies to the labour- ers, and he could bear strong testimony to the extent to which these prizes were valued by the recipients. He repeated his suggestion that horse drivers might be classed with the labourers in competition for long servitude prizes. Mr. LOiNG said there was one point which they must con- sider. The poor man now was surrounded with enemies. There were persons who were lendering his position full of difll- culty. Just imagine these fellows going through the country holding meetings, aud addressing the labourers, many of them without learning, and unable to combat the arguments of these men, which were all delusive, but they were under the in- fluence of these persons, aud could not but be pitied. Though it gave great inconvenience there was no doubt that the labourers were much under the influence of evil counsellors, which was greatly to be deplored, aud anythiug that tended to a union between employer aud employed was of great adv in- t.age to all. It was resolved to discontinue the shoeing prizes, the ar- raugements for which are the cause of considerable expense without corresponding advantage. The premiums for long servitude, &c., it was resolved to leave unaltered, for the present year at all events. SHOEING PRIZES.— Why Mr. Garrett, of all men, should have moved to strike out the paltry £G, that I had so much diflicnlty in extracting three years since for shoeing prizes, I am at a loss to conceive. They produced great emulation, and no one who witnessed the smiths giving up a day's work and a day's pleasure, and toiling under the broiling sun of Bury, the drencliing rains of Beccles, and on the hot hill at Woodbridge, could say the mouey was not well spent, and well earned, and I cau speak from ifnifi/ experience of the good etl'ects our village Vulcan's have derived from Professor Varnell's in- structions. I hope the Committee will replace them, and think twice before they do away with the other labourers' pre- miums. Surely a time of growing disalt'ectiou between master and man is the time of all others to reward and encourage those who still stand steadily by us. Amend rather than abolish — letmit/ parish reliefbe a bore, but do not letthoscwho have struggled on without it, suffer for those who have ac- cepted it. — Major F. Barlow, in fyswich Journal, LOCAL CHAMBERS OF AGRICULTURE. At the annual meeting of the Devonshire Chamber of Agriculture after the report had been read, Mr. Wade mentioned that some of the members of the JNewtou Chamber thought that there should be but one Associa- tion, and that their establishment should be an offshoot of this ; probably something would be heard of this before long. The further discussion of the Rev. W. H. Karsi.ake's paper on Local Taxation was the next busiuess on the agenda paper, but the Ciiairman suggested that it should be further adjourned until they knew something of the measure the Government intended to introduce. — Blr. HoLLEY.iu support- ing this suggestion, noticed that Mr. Ivarslake regarded the maintenance of highways and the poor rates as permanent charges on real property, and admitted them not only to be legal claims, but those which by equity aud justice they ought to bear. Now he disagreed with the rev. gentleman on these points, for he contended that if it was fair to equalise the burden in one item it was fair to equalise the whole. And he did not think that they should ask simply for what some of them might think they would get, but they should ask for all. It seemed to hira that if the cost of high- ways and the poor went on increasing much more they would eventually swallow up the whole of the real property of Euglaiul. Mercantile and trading interests were extending, but there was no extension of acres. He did not see why a man with fifty thousand a year living iu a furnished iiouse iu London should be exempt from such charges as these. The highways were of as much or more use to those living in the town as to the agriculturists, and therefore they should con- tribute to the cost. — Rev. W. II. Karsi.ake said they must take care not to again come under the lash of those who had twitted them before now for being very general in their disevusions, and he thought the discussion on the subject of his paper had better take place when they saw what the Government were prepared to do ; then they conld take tlie Ministerial measure as the text of their sermon. The adjourn- ment of the discussion was then agreed to, and the meeting terminated. At the general meeting of the Worcestershire Chamber of Agriculture Lord Littei.ton moved : " That in the opinion of this Chamber, the present system of imposing taxation for universal objects on real property aloue is oppiessive and unjust, and calls for speedy legislative reform." He said he did not altogether approve the plan of throwing the burden on the Consolidated I'und, aud would like to see assistance given more in a local form. jMr. Gii,i,in(;iiam seconded the motion, which was unanimously passed. A resolution, expressing higti approval of tlie efforts of Sir Massey Lopes, and the Local Taxation Committee of the Central Chamber to obtain a reform of the present system, was passed on the motion of Professor Wii.i.is Bi'NO, second- ed by the Rev. J. Pearson. It was resolved that the t'liamber should contribute £.)0 towards the Local Taxation Fund. The chairman, Mr. Whittaker, anuouuced that he should also hand over £10 to the same fund. At the annual meeting of the Staffordshire Cbamber of Agriculture IMr. G. A. May moved: "That this Chamber unanimously approves of the principle of Messrs. Howard and Read's bill, viz., that legal security should be given equally to both landlord and tenant either for bad husbandry or compen- sation for unexhausted improvements, and believes it necessary for the future improvement of agriculture, and the amicable relations between landlord and tenant." The Rev. E. C. Perry seconded the motion, which was carried unanimously. 182 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. REVIEW OF THE CATTLE TRADE DURING THE PAST MONTH. There has been no feature of importance in the cattle trade during the past month. The supplies of stock have been about the average and have included some well-conditioned stock. The receipts of beasts have been tolerably good. The Lincoln- shire season has closed, and tliat of the western counties lias opened under favourable auspices. The arrivals from Norfolk and Suffolk have been about the same as in the corresponding month last year; but those from Scotland, although by no means extensive, have been decidedly large. Tlie foreign im- portations, as usual, have been restricted, being confined to receipts from Spain and Holland. The trade has at no time been brisk. Occasionally 6s. 4d. has been paid for the best Scots, but the price has been excessive, the general top quo- tation being Gs. 2d. per 8 lbs. As regards sheep, the arrivals have been rather more liberal than usual ; but, at the same time, the supply of English breeds has been by no means large. The receipts of foreign have been about the average. Prime small Downs have commanded attention, and have made 7s. per 8 lbs., but this quotation must not be taken as indicating the general top price, as it merely jefers to the clioicest small sheep. For prime heavy sheep 6s. 8d. per 8 lbs. has been accepted. Prime small calves have been in request, and have com- manded steady prices ; otherwise the market has been quiet. Pigs have been dull and without feature. The imports of foreign stock during the past month hava been as follows : Head. Beasts 2,606 Sheep 16,059 Calves 549 Pigs 1,299 Total 29,513 Corresponding period in 1873 19,889 „ 1872 17,850 „ 1871 10,298 „ 1870 21,727 „ 1869 12,214 „ 1868 20,000 „ 1867 24,084 „ 1866 25,838 „ 1865 16,952 „ 1864 9,967 „ 1863 11,893 „ 1862 8,783 1861 2,708 „ 1860 6,760 „ 1859 9,264 The bullock arrivals from our own grazing districts, as well as from Scotland and Ireland, thus compare with the three previous years : Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and ''''' ''^'- ''^'' ''''■ llCambridgeshire 7,650 6,350 4,000 5100 ttom Lincolnshire, Leicester- shire, and Northamptonshire 1,200 1,750 800 400 Other parts of England 850 2,950 2,020 3 000 ^'f^l^^ eiO 1,120 584 '909 ^''^^'''^ 301 1,730 1,855 1,000 fl '^Sr f *"*''!•. '"P'n'?., °''-»r'^°,'^ exhibited and disposed of at the Metropolitan Cattle Market during the montii have been as under : Jfasts 16850 ^"fP 82,260 Calves 1435 Pigs. 545 Comparison of St'prLiEs. Jan Beasts. Sheep. Calves. Pi^s 1873 14,940 64,300 1376 575 l^ll 1-J.028 73,840 314 365 1870 19,251 91760 1127 qrI 1869 19,880 94 930 654 1201 1868 17,620 86 220 620 1610 1867 18,150 82,400 756 1508 1866 24.620 89 390 1 754 o'225 1865 20,669 73,714 1095 2 370 1864 19,442 80,230 1019 I'tS 1863 20,455 83 422 I'eS? i'lll 1862 20,680 82,160 '853 ^850 1861 17,612 75 240 677 4oo I860 20,500 92 426 1067 ^045 1859 19,805 90,520 921 o'JJn 1858 20,312 80;742 l,l5s Vita Beasts have sold at from 4s. 6d. to 6s. 4d. • sheep s's to 7s. ; calves, 5s 6d. to 6s. lOd.; and pigs 3s. 8d. to 4s. lOd. per olbs., to sink the offal. *^ Comparison of Pricfs, Jan., 1873. Jan., 1872. s. d. s. d. s d s d Beef from 4 4 to 6 2 3 6 "to 5* 10 ' Mutton ... 5 8 to 8 0 4 4 to 7 0 5 6 to 7 4 ". 4 6 to 6 0 3 6 to 4 8 3 8 to 5 0 Jan., ]87L Jan., 1870. s- "■ s. d. s. d. <■ d Beeffrom... 3 6 to 5 0 3 4 to 5 ' 6 Mutton 4 4to6 2 3 4 to 5 10 X^aj 3 8 to 6 4 3 6 to 5 6 fork 3 8to5 -6 3 10 to 6 0 Veal Pork REVIEW OF THE CORN TRADE DURING THE PAST MONTH. The month of January has been characterised by uu- iisual mildness, there having been very few frosts, and those only at night. Some quantity of rain fell towards the close, though on the whole there has been very little interruption to labour in the fields. The young wheat generally looks well and forward, and all the v'egetation has been prematurely excited by the high temperature, with a proportionate risk of danger, as it can hardly be expected to go scot free at so early a period. The same sort of weather has ruled over the continent of Europe, and those northern latitudes which are used to snow as a protection, and have had none, yet very much regret its absence, and fear the consequence. Continuous exports have, therefore, been practicable in many place!} which are usually frost-bound, and Odessa has been sending ou supplies, more especially to Marseilles, as they "have arrived from the interior of Russia, and this has been against the upward tendency of prices with which the month commenced. Still as the last four months showed our receipts in wheat and flour to be 4, 167, GOG qrs., and as the estimated deficiency was about 13 milions'qrs., we shall want monthly to the close of August, about 1,104,000 qrs. to fill the void, and should the mild wea- ther cause au early break-up of the frost in America, we are more likely to obtain it than seemed probable a lit- tle while back. The issue of a tabulated statemeut of the crops by T//e 3farl- lane Hrpress confirms the first reports of a lar^fe deficiency, as out of 45^ ret«rn? THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 183 344 are " under average," this being about three- fourths of the whole ; but it must be remembered that our deficient crop of this year was sound, whereas that of 1873 was nearly all sprouted, the damage being fully 5s. per qr. ; we must therefore this season gain in the amount of flour about one-twelfth, which may equal one million quarters. But should our imports seriously diminish in consequence of the rival claims of France, Italy, and other countries, we have now no low-priced grain to use as a substitute for the principal crop, for all cereals have advanced materially — say rye and maize fully 10s. per qr., and nothing would next avail but grinding barley, which has recently risen to SSs. per qr. A disaster this season would therefore be one of magnitude, especially as our Indian Empire is partially threatened heavily with famine. Prices, therefore, we think, must rule high, should the season be ever so favourable, but with further failure would become oppressive. The following rates were recently paid at the several places named: Califor- nian white wheat at Paris 72s. ; American red spring 60s. Gd. ; Berdianski at Marseilles 68s. ; native white at Bordeaux 70s. ; Chili at Antwerp 68s. ; native at Courtrai 71s. ; wheat at Maestricht O63. ; Ghirka wheat at Zurich 71s.; Bessarabian 73s.; Saale at Hambro' 68s. ; wheat at Berlin 58s. ; at Cologue 62s. ; at Stettin 58s. ; at Danzig fine liigh-mixed 70s. to 73s., cost, freight, and insurance ; at Petersburg 55s. 6d. ; soft at Odessa 53s. 3d. ; Ghirka 49s. 9d. ; white at Valladolid 46s. 6d. ; heavy wheat at Pesth 66s. ; soft at Algiers 64s., hard 56s. 6d. ; white at San Francisco 67s., cost, freight, and insurance; red spring at New York 53s. 8d. per 4801bs. The first Monday in Mark Lane commenced on a small quantity of home-grown wheat ; but there was a good supply of foreign, principally from New York and Odessa. There was but a limited show of fresh samples on the Essex and Kentish stands, and the best dry lots obtained an advance of Is. per qr., but not very readily. The foreign trade was also improved to the same extent, and for fine Australian rather more than this was occa- sionally paid. Cargoes off the coast found also a more ready sale, with the turn against buyers. The advance in London was generally answered in the country by an equal rise of Is. per qr, ; and though some places were only firm, or slightly in favour of sellers, a few were Is. to 2s. per qr. dearer. Liverpool noted an impi'ovement of Id. per cental on Tuesday, and on Friday the market was brisk at previous rates. Edinburgh, Leith, and Glasgow all noted Is. per qr. advance on wheat, both native and foreign. Irish wheat at Dublin was firm, and 6d. to Is. per qr. dearer for foreign. On the secoud Monday the home-grown supply was still limited, and the foreign about equal to the preceding week, the quantity from America reaching ' to one-half. There was again but a small exhibition of fresh samples from the near counties, and this, with the improvement in the country markets, emboldened factors to further ask Is. per qr. on the previous rates. On the best lots this was eventually paid, but not very readily, and every- thing inferior was diflicult to place. The foreign trade was also again 1j. per qr. dearer, but the increased rates had the effect of checking sales. Cargoes ofi' the coast more readily obtained a like advance. At the quietest markets this week in the country the wheat trade was firm and against buyers ; very many noted an improvement of Is. per qr., as Birmingham, Hull, Leeds, Gainsborough, Newark, IMclton ]Mowbray, Manchester, jMarket Rasen, &c. ; while Brigg, Louth, Spilsby, Sheffield, and some other places were up Is. to 2s. per qr. Liverpool, however, made no change through the week. Edinburgh was Is. to 23. dearer, and Glas- gow 6d. to Is. per qr. Dublin noted an improvement of 6d. per barrel on Irish wheat, and Is. to 2s, on foreign. On the third Monday the English supply was again limited, and the foreign fell oft' to one-half the previous quantity. The show of fresh samples from the near counties was small, and the weather having been damp through the week the condition generally was very in- ferior. This circumstance, after the late advance, was against any farther improvement ; indeed, the trade in the best samples was only slow, and low qualities were next to unsaleable. It was a foggy damp day, and against a large business iu foreign, and the tendency of prices was rather downward for all sorts, except fine white Australian and Danzig qualities. Cargoes atlDat were held at unaltered rates. The country markets this week were for the most part dull, the weather being damp, but the rates of the previous week were generally maintained, Liver- pool, however, noted a decline of 3d. per cental on Tuesday, and on Friday red wheat was further down Id., though white was more firm. At Edinburgh and Leith the value of native and foreign wheat was scarcely main- tained, and at Glasgow there was a decline of 6d. to Is, per qr, Dublin was 6d. dearer for Irish wheat, and firm for foreign, though on Friday prices were a shade easier. On the fourth Monday the English supply was short, and the foreign much reduced. The show of fresh samples on the Essex and Kentish stands was limited, but iu rather better condition ; the few dry lots that could be selected were taken at about the previous I'ates, but inferior sorts were neglected. The foreign trade was limited in extent, and prices generally Is. per qr. below the previous Monday's rates, and floating cargoes went oft' heavily. The imports into London for the four weeks were 16,667 qrs. English, 71,338 qrs, foreign, against 15,700 qrs. English, 100,699 qrs. foreign last year. The im- ports into the kingdom for four weeks ending 17th Jan. were 3,508,119 cwts. wheat, 559,579 cwts. fiour, against 3,276,935 cwts. wheat, 601,297 cwts. flour in 1.873. The London exports were 3,511 qrs, wheat, 2,391 cwts, flour. The London averages commenced at 67s. lOd., and closed at 66s. lid. The general averages began at 61s. 8d. and ended at 62s. 6d, The flour trade all through the month has scarcely varied in its aspect, being more or less firm, as was the wheat trade. The top price has continued 57s., Nor- folks at 44s., and country households 47s. The best barrels 82s. to 33s., and Australian sacks 53s., the latter having been much in demand. Extra States at New York 27s. 7d. per barrel. The imports in four weeks into London were 72,120 sacks English, 7,806 sacks 28,419 barrels foreign, against 88,392 sacks English, 19,923 sacks 30,049 barrels foreign for the same period in 1873. Maize has risen considerably — say, 3s. 6d. per qr., but on the fourth Monday there was some reaction down- wards on even a very small supply, to tiie extent of Is. per qr. ; but for the best-mixed American 42s. was still asked, and 47s. for the best white. It is evident that the great rise has checked the demand, as beans and peas have become relatively cheaper. The four weeks' imports were, however, small — say, 28,077 qrs., against 42,220 qrs. last year. Barley has been rising iu value almost every market- day ; but was checked by the general dulncss of the fourth jMonday. Though prime lots of malting were still held at 50s., and ordinary grinding at 35s., we cannot help thinking these high rates unsafe, more especially for malting sorts ; but grinding may be kept up till the new imports of spring come plentifully to hand. The imports into Iioudon for four w^eks vvere 26,321 qrs, 184 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, British, 50,8:20 qrs. foreign, against 13,010 qrs. British, 67,844 qrs. foreign for the same time in 1873. The malt trade, in consequence of tlie advance in bar- ley, has been gracluall_v hardening:, and gained about 2s. in value during the month. The London exports have been 3,895 qrs. The oat trade from the increased demand constantly made has also been risiug, and gained about Is. to Is. Cd. for old on former rates. But the imports recently con- sisting mostly of new swedes and uudried corn, sucli have rather goue back from the extreme price, and 381bs. new, which were recently bringing 27s., have since been selling with less freedom at 25s. Cd., while old Russian sorts of the same weight are still worth 27s. fid., and higher weights, say 4blbs., 29s. to 29s. Cd. The Baltic still being open we may have a check for present rates by large supplies, but there seems no prospect of a serious reduction with the large Loudon and country demand. The imports into London for four weeks were 3,878 qrs. English, 2,348 qrs. Scotch, 100 qrs. Irish, 181,489 qrs. foreign, against 6,541 qrs. English, 153 qrs. Scotch, 70,311 qrs. foreign, for the same period in 1873. This shows a large increase of foreign, but it must be remem- bered that last year we had heavy stocks, and these are now reduced. Old English beans aud foreign have also im- proved in value fully 2s. per qr., and good hard new iibout Is., the rise in maize having made this grain rela- tively cheaper, and brought on an increased demand. Italian are worth about 44s., and Egyptian 42s. Old English Hari'ows 46s., line small 50s. to 52s. As im- ports from Egypt this season seem likely to fall short, ])rices will very prol)ably continue firm. The London im- ports for four weeks were 3,574 qrs. l]nglish, 10,508 qrs. foreign, against 4,307 qi's. English, 8,787 qrs. foreign in 1873. Boiling peas have not improved so much, from the unusual mildness of the weather, but their value has in- creased fully Is., fine being worth fully 46s., Canadian 45s. Hog-feed have continued scarce and firm ; duns 38s. to 40s., maples 46s. The imports into London for four weeks have been 2,485 qrs. English, 908 qrs. foreign, against 2,276 qrs. English, 3,596 qrs. foreign for the same period in 1873. Linseed, with moderate supplies, has kept very firm, but has not been quotably dearer. Cakes also have found a free sale at full prices. The Loudon imports this month were 39,309 qrs., against 16,713 qrs. in 1873. Jlore business has been doing in fine English red cloversecd, on rather better terms, as not much of supe- rior quality has appeared, but for medium and poor sorts there has been scarcely any demand, or for old foreign. Spring tares are beginning to be inquired for, aud worth 38s. to 40s. ^r qr., but so many of the winter sorts remained unsold that they are not likely to be much dearer when the season regularly begins, especially as some prefer them, even in sjiring, to loreigu. IMPERIAL AVERAGES — For the week ended Jan. 17, 1874. Wheat , 55 528J qrs 623. 6d. 46a. 2d. Barley 70^40C| „ Oats 5,141 J ,, 27s. 2d. COMPARATIVE AVERAGES. WHEAT. BARLEY. OATS, Years. Qrs. s. d. Qrs. 8. d. Qrs. s. d. 1870... 49,626i ... 41 1 56,8501 ... 36 4 3,862i ... 21 4 1871... 71,132 ... 52 9 75,130i ... 35 9 6,2851 ... 22 9 1872... 56,892i... 55 8 67,448 ... 37 2 5,608a ... 22 5,19l| ... 22 6 1873... 51,186J ... 55 9 57,836| ... 40 5 H 1874... 65.5284 ... 62 6 70,406| ... 46 2 6,141* ... 27 AVERAGE S Fob the Six Weeks BNDINQ Dec. 13, 1873., Dec. 20, 1873 Dec. 27, 1873 .Tan. 3, 1874 , .Tan. 10, 1874 Jan. 17, 1874 Aggregate of the above.... The same period in 1873.... Wheat. Barley. Oats. 8. d. 8. d. B. d. 61 11 45 0 26 3 61 7 44 7 20 3 61 8 41 0 26 0 61 8 44 4 25 5 62 1 43 11 26 1 62 6 46 2 27 2 61 11 44 9 26 2 56 1 40 8 22 6 LONDON AVERAGES. Wheat 2,503 qrs. 663. lid. Barley 2,597 ,, 42s. 9d. Oats — ,, — s. Od. CORN IMPORTED AND EXPORTED EOR THK WEEK ENDING JaN. 17. Imported into Engl'd. Scotl'd. Ireland. Exported. British. Foreign Wheat Cwts. 441118 112935 130601 22231 59655 160 Cwts. 47857 7028 2160 5553 f925 15284 Cwts. 345950 122932 Cwts. 8074 200 1723 209 30 Cwts. 2621 Barley.. ,.i Oats il7 Rye 108 Beana Indian Corn Buckwheat "go Total 766703 83812 468882 10236 2909 Wheat Flour Oat Meal 104391 40 28096 ; 510 196 1296 Ind'n Corn Meal Total 104931 871634 28096 111908 46B882 , 705 10941 704 1296 Grand Total.. Malt qrs. 4205 CURRENT PRICES OF BRITISH GRAIN AND FLOUR IN MARK LANE. ShUlings per Quarter. WHEAT, Essex & Kent, white new 54, fine 68 „ ,, red ,, 56, ,, Norfolk, Linclnsh., and York8h.,red,new 55 BARLEY 38 to 42 Chevalier, new 46 38 Distilling 78 brown .. Grinding 34 MALT, pale, new ...73 RYE OATS, English, feed 24 to 32 Potato 65 62 56 47 59 41 Scotch, feed 00 Irish, feed, white23 Ditto, black 21 BEANS, Mazagan ...80 Harrow 42 PEAS, white, boiler8.39 00 Potato — 29 Fine — .28 Potato — 43 Ticks 40 48 Pigeon 47 47 Maple 39 to 45Grey,new 36 FLOUR, per sack of 2801b8., best town households,., 50 Best country households 45 Norfolk and Suffolk 39 FOREIGN GRAIN. ShUUngs per Quarter WHEAT, Dantzic, mixed 62 to OS extra 70 to 73 Konigsberg 62 67 extra 62 72 Rostock 63 70 old — Sile8ian,red 68 62 white.... 61 Pomera.,Meckberg.,andUckermrk. ...red 63 Ghirka 57 to 62..,Russian,hard,54to 68 Saxonska 62 Danish and Holstein, red 63 65 American 60 ChiUan, white 60... Californian 69 ... Australian 70 BARLEY, grinding 32 to 35.. ..distilling 40 OATS, Dutch, brewing and Polands 27 to 32 feed 24 Danish and Swedish, feed 26 to 28....Stral8und... 26 Canada 23 to 26, Riga 27.to 28, Aj-ch.27 to 28, P'sbg. 28 TARES, Spring, per qr small ... 38 large — BEANS, Priesland and Holstein 41 Konigsberg 41 to 45. ..Egyptian 42 PEAS, feeding and maple. ..33 42. ..fine boilers 40 42 52 39 67 47 44 72 67 65 63 63 72 44 28 28 30 45 43 44 Printed by Watson and Hazell, 265, Strand, London,W.C. THE ROYAL FARMERS' INSURANCE COMPANY, 3, NORFOLK STREET, STRAND, LONDON, W.C. CAPITAL —Persons insured by this Company have the security of an extensive and wealthy proprietary as weU as an ample Capital always applicable to the payment of claims without delay. LIFE DEPARTMENT— BONUS.—Iasurera of the participating class will be entitled to four-fifths of the profits. ASSIGNMENTS.— The Company grant Policies payable to the Registered Holders, whereby much expense and inconvenience are prevented. Stamp Duty paid by the OflBce. FIRE DEPARTMENT, - 1st Class— Not Hazardous ". Is. 6d. per Cent. 2nd Class — Hazardous 2s. 6d. „ 3rd Class — Doubly Hazardous 4s. 6d. „ BUILDINGS and MERCANTILE Property of eveiy description in Public or Private Warehouses.— DistiUers, Steam Engines, Goods in Boats or Canals, Ships in Port or Harbour, &c. &c., are Insui-ed in thia Office at moderate rates. SPECIAL RISKS. — At such rates as may be considered reasonable. FARMING STOCK.— 5s. per cent., with liberty to use a Steam Thrasliing Machine without extra charge. Nearly FIVE MILLIONS Insured in this Office. SEVEN YEARS' INSURANCES may be effected on payment of Six Years' Premium only. RENT.— The, Loss on Rent while Buildings remain untenantable through fire may be provided against. HAIL DEPARTMENT.— (Crops and Glass.) . . • Policies to protect parties from Loss by the destruction of Growing Crops or Glass, by Hail, are granted on Moderate Terms. LOSSES. — Prompt and'liberal settlement. AGENTS WANTED. Apply to JOHN SHARP, Esq., Secretary. vm MARK LANE EXPRESS AND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL 18 THB LARGEST AND THE LEADING FARMER'S AND GRAZIER'S NEWSPAPER. PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY EVENING, IN TIME FOR POST. Office of Publication and for AdvertiscmentB, 2«6, Strand, London. May be had of all Booksellers and Newsmen throughout the Kingdom, price Scvenpence, or £1 IOb. 4d. per anilum. BRYANT& May's MATCHES. LONDON AND COUNTY BAINKING COMPANY. ESTABLISHED 1836. SUBSCRIBED CAPITAL... £3.000,000, in 60,000 SHARES of £50 EACH. PAID-UP CAPITAL... £1,196,880; INSTALMENTS UNPAID, £3,120 (£1,200,000). RESERVE FUND (paid up)... £598,440; INSTALMENTS UNPAID, £1,560 (£600,000). NATHANIEL ALEXANDER, Esq. T. TYRINGHAM BERNARD, Esq. THOMAS STOCK COWLE, Esq. FREDERICK FRANCIS, Esq. Joint General Managers- CHIEP INSPECTOR. W. J. NORFOLK, Esq. DIRECTORS. FREDERICK HARRISON, .Esq. WM. CHAMPION JONES,, Esq. E. HARBORD LUSHINGTON, Esq JATlIES MORLEY, Esq. WILLIAM McKEWAN, Esq, ami WHITBREAD TOMSON, Esq CHIEF ACCOUNTANT. ' SECRETARY. JAMES GRAY, Esq. GEORGE GOUGH, Esq, WILLIAM NICOL, Esq. A. HODGSON PHILLPOTTS, Esq, JAMES DUNCAN THOMSON, Esq. FREDERICK YOULE, Esq. HEAD OFFICE, 31, Manager— WHITBREAD TOMSON, Esq. | LOMBARD STREET. Assistant Manager— WILLIAM HOWARD, Esq. THE LONDON AND COUNTY BANK opens— DRAWING ACCOUNTS with Commercial Houses and Private Individuals, either upon the plan usually adopted by other Bankers, or by charging a small Commission to those persons to whom it may not be convenient to sustain ap agreed Permanent Balance. DEPOSIT ACCOUNTS.— Deposit Receipts are issued for sums of Money placed upon these Accounts, and Interest is allowed for such periods and at such rates as may be aio.) Still Mr. Chaplin explained that he was not opposed to legislation, only he would have legisla- tion without the force of legislation ; " in the Lincoln- shire custom they had no such thing as the 12th clause of the bill, because such a clause was not necessary." But surely Mr. Chaplin should have gone on to say that the bill itself was not necessary in Lincolnshire, nor any- where else where the right is recognised ; as in plain English he would let the custom extend itself " very gradually," and against " very stout" opposition of course. But this opposition on the part of the Lincolnshire landlords is no new thing, for five-and-twenty years since they were doing very much what Mr. Chaplin is now to prevent the extension of the principle, and when we wrote thus as to their contradictory course of action : ' As to the gradual spreading of Tenant-Right, look at the petition of the Lincolnshire landlords against the passing of any enactment lor ensuring it — unintentionally the best argument that was, perhaps, ever offered for making such an Act. Say the Lincolnshire landlords — ' We have Tenant-Right already ; we have long practised and profited to the full by its advantages. What then can be the use of enforcing by law what Ave do volun- tarily ?' Exactly so. The action of Tenant-Right has brought the bogs and fens of Lincolnshire from the worst to be the best cultivated land in the kingdom, and doubled and trebled its value to both landlord and tenant. This has been proved and known for many years, and has of course proceeded to this very natural consequence. Neighbours first, and their neighbours again, ad in- finitum, have gradually adopted so excellent a plan, until at length the whole country has learnt the secret of the men of Lincoln, and brought its acres to vie in produce with those of that once favoured district. Is it so ? and is any further inducement for following your example so entirely superfluous ? Or rather does not the Tenant-Right part (only) of the county of Lincoln stand out at this moment like an oasis from the north, south east, and west territory by which it is surrounded ? This famous protest — and it will be worth while to proceed with it a little further — is framed in defiance of the first principle of legislation. Laws, be it remembered, are required not to compel the just, but to restrain the unjust; in vulgar phrase, for rogues, not houest men. Now a good and just landlord who does his duty volun- tarily, and gives his tenant full recompense for all he may not have reaped, needs no enactment to induce him to this. Such a law could in no way affect him, for he does and has done all so provided for without it. The object is to make others follow his example, and ensure their doing that by law that many would hesitate, from ignorance, prejudice, or a worse motive, to do of their own free will. Thus, the answer to all who join in with the Lincolnshire landlords is plain enough : If, as you say, you have the Tenant- Right secured to you by the custom of your own district, our new Act will to you be as nothing, either good or bad ; all we want is to extend that custom." And that which we said five-and-twenty years since we say again here. The custom has not extended under the voluntary prin- ciple, nor will it, for it is still and has been " fought very stoutly against" by a class of landlords who would apparently rather receive two rabbits than two pouads per acre per annum for their land. As regards Mr. Chaplin's hostility, a startling anti-climax may encourage him to persevere. After ihe statements he had advanced and the dissatisfaction THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 289 with which these were received, two meu were actually found to propose and second a resolution requesting Mr. Chaplin to draw up another Tenant-Right Bill 1 It is scarcely necessary to add that this bit of bathos was displayed at a meeting of the Council of the Central Chamber of Agriculture. OFFICIAL HORSE BREEDING IN FRANCE. THE HARAS INSTITUTIONS. Of late years, there is no gainsaying it, France has become remarkably horsey. French sportsmen have not been satisfied with purchasing some of the best English blood, and accomplishing on their own turf un- questionable feats of good racing, but they have crossed the Channel with French-bred horses and won well- contested battles on English race-courses. Descending lower in the breeding scale, French draught horses im- ported direct from Normandy and Brittany are to be seen on most of the English farmsteads in the southern counties, and there are not wanting other tokens of a great movement on the part of the French with a view to improve as well as to increase their stock of horses. The fact is that, owing to the comparative scarcity and consequent dearth of horse-flesh in England, and the state of jealousy resulting from the late war in Germany, the supply of horses to the French army has become both difficult and onerous. The necessity has arisen now to pay increased attention to native production, as the only reliable source of a supply, which, owing to the fearful destruction of war horses in 1870 and 1871, is the most serious cause of anxiety in the minds of those whose duty it is to reorganize the armies of France. It cannot fail to be interesting to English readers to have an insight in the present state of horse breeding in France, and to be initiated to the great efforts which are now being made to increase, and, at the same time, to improve the production of useful horses, especially of those breeds that are best adapted to war purposes, both as draught and saddle horses. The French Government, with the view of improving the breeds of horses, has established an institution, which in England is exclusively left to private enterprise, but which in most of the Continental States either from lack of sufficient means or due attention, is a matter of abso- lute necessity as an immediate object of official interfer- ence, creation, and management. That institution is known under the name of Haias, which may be translated by the English word stud. That branch of civil service, which consists in the establishment and management of several stations all over France, where stallions of good blood are kept for the purpose of serving the mares of the districts, is rather a complex piece of administrative machinery. According to the new law which is to be voted shortly by the Assembly, and the substance of which I give, in preference to the existing one, as there is no doubt but it will be unanimously adopted, the Haras staff will comprise a director and general inspector, six general inspectors, twenty-two station directors, and as many sub-directors, besides a sufficient number of undcr-clerks to ensure the proper working of the depart- ment. There is besides a superior council of llaras, the members of which will be appointed by the President of the Republic. Their number will be twenty-four, nominated for nine years. One-third will go out of office in rotation every three years, but all will be re- eligible to office. The duty of that board will be to give their advice on the annual Haras budget, on the general regulations of shows and races, on the nature and im- portance of the encouragements to be given to horse- breeding, and all other questions that may be submitted to them by the Minister of Agriculture, to whose depart- ment they will belong, or by the director-general of Haras. It is further proposed that the number of stallions belonging to the State, and which is now only 1,077, shall be yearly increased by 200 until it reaches the effective quantity of 2,500. These stallions of various breeds and aptitudes will be divided among the stations according to the requirements of each district. It will be further enacted that the Haras school of Le Pin in Normandy shall be re-established, an imperial decree having some years ago closed it under the advice and influence of General Fleury. Independently of the credits voted every year for the races, the grooming schools, &c., the present allocation of £27,320 affected to the payment of premiums to pri- vate owners of approved stallions will be raised to £32,000, and successively by additional yearly credits of £4,000, until the total amount of credit affected to that object shall reach £60,000 a year. We shall see presently how that money is now and will be applied. It is in the last place proposed to re-establish at Pompa- dour, a Government estate situated in the neighbourhood of Limoges in the centre of France, a breeding stud of fifty brood mares of Arab and Anglo-Arab blood. Formerly there was snch a stud at Pompadour, but General Fleury, who was a most determined opponent to the Haras institution, prevailed on the late Emperor to do away with it, and it was closed accordingly. A herd of Shorthorns, the private property of the Emperor, was kept on the estate instead, which herd was sold after the down- fall of its owner at Sedan. The budget affected as ways and means to the Haras institution was of late years as follows : 1871 £141,100 1872 162,500 1873 164,840 With the view of increasing the number of state stallions from 1,077 to 1,300 the Minister of Agriculture had de- manded for the current year an increase of £62,160, this sum being intended as the purchase price of the 223 additional stallions, the cost of their keeping and the wages to the extra staff of grooms to take care of them. Unfortunately the French Treasury is already too much drained by more pressing wants to admit of that increase in the Haras budget, and the finance com- mittee of the Assembly, with the assent of the minister, have recommended that the budget of 1874 be the same as for last year, and do not exceed £164,840. Out of that sum, no less than nearly £40,000 are set aside for the purchase of stallions, not only to replace those that are worn out but to purchase others. The necessity of a carefully-selected stud of well-bred stallions is a fact which no one can deny in any country, but especially in Continental States like France and Ger- many, which are obliged to keep up large armies, and where the requirements for artillery trains and mounted cavalry are greatly in excess of those of the English army, for instance, taking the population, the area, and the stock of horses into consideration. In England the necessity of State interference does not arise, private enterprise, fostered by a national taste and powerful patronage from the wealthy classes, being quite adequate to all require- 290 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. ments. In France, the circumstances are very different, and if the production of horses were left to private action, it would very soon descend to the lowest possible condition ; for, even as it is, with the help of the Government, and not- withstanding the powerful exertions of a body of influential horse-loving men, who, within the last few years, have started into existence, and have already achieved great feats in raising the standard of taste and anxiety to obtain it among French breeders, the production of good and sound horses in France is still at a low level, generally speaking, as will appear from the following figures. The number of brood mares in France is calculated at 600,000. Now to serve that number of mares, there must be at least 12,000 stallions. We have seen that the number of stallions belonging to the State is only 1,077, and it appears from the report of the finance committee that besides that number there were only 6.39 other stallions belonging to private breeders. This gives a total of 1,716 good or commendable stallions, out of the 12,000 which must be used in France every year. This is, it must be confessed, a very small proportion, and it is owing to that deficiency that the existence of such an institution as that of Haras is not only useful, but it may be said indispensable. The Haras, then, have a double duty to perform : the first one is to supply as large a number of well elected stallions as the limite'1 budget placed at their disposal will allow ; and secondly, to select out of private studs as many good animals as can be found to supplement their own deficiency. To that effect they hold out the strongest inducement they can to private breeders to exert themselves in obtaining good blood, and to give easy and cheap access to it for all the mares of those districts where there are no State stallion stations. There are two classes of stallions belonging to private breeders which receive the Government bounty on the recommendation of the Haras. There are those that" are " approved," and which receive an annual bounty amounting to £36 if thorough-bred, and about £20 if only half- bred, provided they have served a certain number of mares in one season. There are others which are what is called " authorised." This latter qualification is only a re- commendation to public confidence, a kind of official certificate of merit given by the Haras inspectors. Out of the 639 private stallions approved and authorised in 1873, there were only 216 authorised, out of which 42 were thorough-bred and half-bred, the 423 others were cart-horses. From the foregoing facts and figures, on the accuracy of which there cannot be any doubt, it may be asserted that one-seventb only of the brood mares in France are served by commendable horses. The main bulk are left to the hap-hazard service of the rough lot of entire horses which prevail all through the country. It is a subject of general remark to Englishmen when they travel abroad, that most of the horses in ordinary use either for draught or saddle are entire, geldings being a A'ery rare exception. Under such circumstances it is no wonder the French Government should experience great difficulty in finding among the 300,000 horses which France produces every year even a fair proportion of the supply wanted for the army, and should consequently be under the necessity to make purchases in other countries. Vp to the last war, the Algerian colony supplied a good number of light cavalry horses, but the drain has lately been so «earching, coming especially after the famine of 1867-68, which destroyed 60 per cent, of the native live stock, that very few horses can now be obtained from Africa, and France is now compelled, notwithstanding her financial difficulties, to increase the Haras budget with the view of promoting greater care in horse breeding, and supplying to the wants of French agri- culturists a much larger number of good stallions. It has been calculated that the late war destroyed no fewer than 200,000 horses. It is easy to imagine, then, what are the difficulties encountered by the War Oftice in repairing such a fearful gap. On the other hand, the fa- cilities which existed formerly in obtaining a supply of horses in Germany and Hungary have been greatly ham- pered by late events, not only on account of international jealousy and animosity, but also on account of the great destruction of horses which occurred among the invading German hosts, their victory notwithstanding. In 1871 the sum proposed in the Haras budget for the purchase of stallions was £20,000, the assembly voted £23,400 for that object. Last year that amount was raised to £39,200, and the same amount is proposed for 1874. This is all the exhausted exchequer of France can possibly afford, notwithstanding the pressing needs of a better and more prolific horse production. It would appear from the statistics I have quoted that only one-half of the brood mares served in France brings forth and rears a colt. This seems a small per-centage, and surely some improvement is desirable in that respect. A glance at the existence of similar institutions in other Continental States will be useful as terms of com- parison. This will account for the greater number of useful horses to be found in Russia, Germany, and neigh- bouring States than in France, the area and population being considered. In the year 1869 the late Emperor of the French ap- pointed a committee of competent men to go and inquire about the various State Haras establishments in Russia, Prussia, and other German States, Austria and Hungary. This committee published their report, from which I abridge the following information ; Prussia. — Before the battle of Sadowa there were in Prussia three Haras stations — those of Neustadt, Graditz, and Trakenem, in which 2,100 brood mares and 322 stallions were kept. The State possessed besides thirteen minor stations scattered throughout the kingdom, con- taining in all 1,500 stallions, making a total of 1823 horses, and 2,100 brood mares. WuETEJiBURG. — In the kingdom of Wurtemburg there are two Haras, those of Shamhausen and Marbach, in which 110 stallions and brood mares are kept. Saxony. — The kingdom of Saxony possesses only one Haras, in which no less than 80 stallions are kept. The establishments of Hanover, Holstein, and Mecklenburg were not visited by the French committee, but from the official information they obtained they were able to ascer- tain that throughout the various States now forming the empire of Germany there were at the time of their visit no less than 4,000 stallions belonging to the States, be- sides those kept by numerous private breeders and large landed proprietors. Empire of Austria. — In Austria Proper there are four principal Haras : first, that of Fiber in Styria ; second, that of Radautz in Buckowine ; third, that of Kladrub in Bohemia ; and fourth, the Haras of Lipitza, near Trieste. The two first establishments are by far the most important. That of Radautz possesses no less than 5,000 horses. The two latter contain each about 60 stallions and 350 brood mares. Besides the above four breeding Haras, the empire of Austria has in its dif- ferent provinces five other stations, in which 1,500 stal- lions are kept. HuxGARY. — The kingdom of Hungary is, perhaps, the country of the world in which more horses are bred, the area and the population being considered. In 1869 there were in Hungary no less than upwards of two million horses, which gives one horse for every five inhabitants. In France there is only one for every ten inhabitants, THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 291 The State keeps iu lluugary three great Haras establish- ments : First, that of Kisberg, where chiefly pure Euglish blood horses are bred. Out of 220 brood inares there are 58 of pure Euglish breed. The secoud is situated at Baboliia, and is specially reserved for the breeding of pure Arab horses. There were in 1869 10 stallions "and GG brood mares of pure Arab blood, besides 84 half-bred mares. The third Hungarian Haras is the celebrated one of Mezoheges, near the town of Arad, at a dis- tance of about 180 miles from Pesth. This is by far the most complete and the largest stud estab- lishment in Europe. The estate itself comprises no less than 44,640 acres, in a ring-fence, and the number of horses kept varies between three thousand and seven thou- sand at the same time. There are 34 stallions of pure English and Arab blood, half-bredEnglish, Anglo-Norman, and Anglo-Arab breeds for serving the large stock of brood mares. This great establishment turns out every year from 130 to 150 first-class stallions, which are afterwards Bent of? to the various stations of the whole empire of Austria. Besides these three large breeding establish- . ments, there are in Hungary four stallion stations, pos- sessing, io the aggregate, 1,500 horses. In a country where horse-breeding is so powerfully patronised, it is not surprising to find that most of the large landed proprietors follow so great an example, and that the national taste is thoroughly biassed in that direction. Nearly all the great aristocratic families follow horse-breeding as a noble pursuit, and derive pride and gratification froni the splendour of their studs. Among these powerful private stud establishments of Hungary, thosa of Counts Karoly, Esterhazy, Paffy, Duke of Coburg, Archduke Albrecht, Baron Simon Sina, &c., Src., are the most remarkable. Some of these private studs consist of no less than five hundred horses. Russia. — There are iu Russia 20 million horses. The number of stallions kept at various stations throughout the empire amounts to at least 6,000. There are, besides, a great many private studs of great importance, and the Government was still increasing the number of the sta- tions and that of the horses. This state of things shows how inferior France is to her neighbours in respect of horse-breeding, whilst in point of natural resources suited to the production of good horses, she is second to no country in the world. Now her statesmen are compelled, by a dire necessity, to look closely into these branches of her economy, they may see how shallow was that appearance of prosperity and power which the enervating reign of the late emperor had laid over all her interests, both moral and material. At the first touch of a stern reality, the whole fabric col- lapsed into a heap of ruins, and people are now amazed at the rottenness of the props that kept it up. The work of those who have assumed the patriotic task of restoring the former grandeur of France on more solid grounds is, indeed, one of unexampled ditHculty. Let us hope, for the sake and credit of our common humanity, that success will ultimately reward their almost hopeless efforts. THE BREWER S' LICENCE DUTY. A deputation representing the country brewers — as dis- tinct from the London brewers — has waited upon Sir Staf- ford Nortlicote, at the official residence of the Chaucellor of the Exchequer, to request, as the share for " the trade" iu the surplus, tlie remission of the Brewers' Licence Duties, which amount in all to something over £400,000 a-year. While the deputation was waiting in the ante-room an attempt was made to induce the gentlemen present to delay tiieir visit until other deputations could combine with them, and it was urged upon them they "hadn't even got a member of Par- liament." It was poiuted out that there was a mistake iu this, as Mr. Wethered, M.P. for Marlow, was iu the gather- ing, and in the midst of the discusiion word came from Sir Stafford that he was ready to see his visitors, who thereupon decided at once to complete the duty upon which they had so far entered. Sir Fowell Buxton aud Mr. N. Buxton were present, though not strictly as a part of the deputation ; aud there were represented, the Berks County Brewers' Society, the Sheffield Brewers' Association, the Bucks Brewers' Asso- ciation, the Hampshire Brewers' Union, the Portsmouth Brewers' Association, the Manchester Brewers' Association, the Yorkshire Brewers' Association, the Bradford Brewers' Association, tiie Cambridgeshire Brewers' Association, the Halifax and District Brewers' Association, and the Brewers' Union. With Sir Stafford Northcote was Mr. W. 11. Smith. Mr. Wethered introduced the deputation, and said they came, by Sir Stafford's permission, to urge upon his favour- able consideration their claim for tiie remission of the Brewers' Licence Duties. The speaker thought the argu- ments they had to urge were irresistible in favour of the remission, and, moreover, it could be effected without mate- rially affecting the imperial revenue. The case of the brewers was tiius set forth in a memorial to Mr. Lowe last year, and the same facts were repeated. It said : " At present every brewer is furnished by the Revenue Office with a paper, on whicii he is required to enter twenty- four liours beforehand the date and liour when he intends to brew ; and two hours before he commences to brew he must complete the entry by inserting the quantity of malt or sugar he intends to use. He must also givetwenty-four hours' notice of the time when he proposes to complete the removal of the wort from the grains, so that the local officers may gauge the exhausted grains, and check, as far as practicable, the quan- tity of malt entered. If licensed to use sugar, he is also sup- plied with another entry-paper, on which he is required to enter an account of all sugar received into his possession for brewing purposes. The number of brewers in England is about 33,000, and about 1,000 are licensed to use sugar. To prevent or detect the use of substitutes for malt, and enforce the regulations referred to for seuring the duty on sugar and the present exorbitant licence duty, the whole of these esta- blishments are visited at intervals not exceeding fourteen days, but in practice at much shorter periods, aud not unfreqnently twice-a-day. Prior to the repeal of the bop-duty these visits extended to intervals of twenty days, and were unimportant for securing the then limited maximum licence at the large breweries. These regulations, admittedly necessary for the se- curity of the licence duty on the present scale, and as now levied, are of an exceedingly arbitrary and vexatious character, and expose the trade to the daily risk of heavy penalties for a mere clerical omission, from pressure of business or indis- position ; and although, in a great many cases, the Commis- sioners of Inland Revenue accept nominal penalties, and en- force the law with a judgment and discretion which temper its severity, we earnestly protest against the continuance of a system of charge which subjects honest traders fo vexation, annoyance, and pecuniary risk, and renders such discretion and forbearance necessary. As to the wilful omission of the entries, we would observe that, minute, objectionable, and restrictive as tiie regulations are, there is stiU great facility for fraud ; aud that, in a recent report of the commissioners, they admit tliat 'the regulations would not enable tliera. to secure a higher rate of licence duty.' On the quantities of malt aud sugar entered the licence duty is computed, it being assumed that every two bushels of malt, or 50lbs. of sugar, will have produced a barrel of beer, or nearly one-third more than the average general produce — a fact which can be verified upon oath, and which is, we submit, corroborated by the fol- lowing revenue statistics : Thus, in the four years preceding the repeal of the beer duty, the quantity of malt used by brewers was 85,264,581 bushels ; the produce, as computed at present, would have been 43,032,290 barrels, while the actual quantity charged was only 31,827,043 barrels. When the scale of duty was limited, this mode of computation, though unjust, was comparatively unimportant ; but, used as it now is as a basis for recouping the exchequer lor the loss of the 292 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. hop duty, the unjustness is aggravated as regards the trade as a body and individual brewers. When the repeal of the hop duty was proposed, it was intended to extend the licensing system to brewers for private use, but tliat portion of the scheme was abandoned, and consequently that class relieved to the extent of about £25,000 a-year, which they would have to pay as hop duty ; and thus an unfair competition was created between the public and the private brewer, to the disadvantage of the former. The unfair competition extends also to the licensed brewers, in proportion to the class of ales which they respectively produce, as the man who brews a low or medium class of beer, requiring from 61bs. to 81bs. per quarter of malt, is charged on the same scale as the man who uses 181bs. to the quarter." [A table was here given, showing that in the three classes of ale, bitter, ordinary, and common, the same quantity of malt produced 100, 70, and 100 barrels respec- tively, while 100 was presumed to be the produce of all three. The licence was £3 on each lot, first, second, or third class, and notwithstanding that only 70 barrels of the " ordinary " were produced. The hops consumed were stated to be 430l"bs. to the 100 barrels of " bitter," 1581bs. to the "ordinary," and 1751bs. to the " common," the former duty taxing the first £3 16s. 3d., the second 19s. 9d., and the third £1 Is. lO^d.] The paper went on to say : "The 'ordinary' forms a very large proportion of the ale brewed by general brewers. Again, long credit was allowed for payment of the hop duty, from which brewers received considerable advantage ; but the licence duty, however large in amount, is required to be paid in advance. A person commencing business, and incurring a licence duty of £500, is compelled at the close of the year to pay £750, and, at the expiration of four months, an additional £250; and as capital is worth, for trade- purposes, 10 per cent., the burden of tlie tax is thus, incidentally, materially increased." Mr. Sicn (Chiswick) then addressed the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and said the licence duties on brewers were im- posed in 18G3 by Mr. Gladstone at the loud call of agricultu- rists and hop-growers — in fact, they were taken off agricultu- rists and placed upon tlie brewers. The tax had been borne for 10 or 13 years, but the brewers could not get a penny in return in profit for the tax, and, in'point of fact, it liad been an additional income-tax more than anything else. The brewers came to ask for tlie total repeal of the duties. They could not see why a tax should be taken off the raw material and placed upon direct taxation, as this was ; and, moreover, they thought it was unfair that the shoulders of the private brewers should not have borne it at the same time. There was no doubt there was a larfje amount of private brewinsr, and when the beer privately brewed was given to servants in lieu of wages, it was for all intents for profit. Sir Stajford Northcote asked : Do not the brewers think they had some advantage from the repeal of the hop duties ? Mr. Sicii replied that they failed to find any advantage from that repeal, for hops had been dearer ever since. Sir Stafford Northcote : And, but for the repeal, would they not have been dearer still ? Mr. Sicii repHed that they could not argue on that point, but they had the fact before them that since the repeal, hops had been dearer. Mr. N. Buxton interposed with the remark that the brewers' licence duties formed the imposition of one unjust tax for another. Mr. SiMMONDS (Reading) urged that the tax was unjust, inasmuch as it was made upon the estimate that four barrels were got out of every quarter of malt, when, in poiut of fact, it wasnotso, only about three barrels of the "ordinary" ale con- sumed by the working classes being got out of the quarter, and that, instead of the tax being an equivalent for the hop duties, the beer which had the most hops was taxed the lightest. He complained strongly of the system, too, which compelled the brewer to pay in advance in January to the Excise, and so keep his capital without interest. Sir Stafford Northcote asked upon v/hat principle is the money calculated that is paid in advance. Mr. SiMMONDS said it was calculated upon the average of the last three years' trade. Mr. Bfntley then spoke, and stated that Mr. Gladstone had imposed the duties to make up the deficiency of revenue in 1863, saying that the brewers would get the benefit of the lower price of hops consequent on taking ofl the hop duties, but that had not been so, for hops had been dearer since. Then it was an injustice that the brewers' trade should be singled out for this exceptional taxation, for this was a tax upon the quantity of beer brewed, and ran from 12s. 6d. up to any amount. It made an extra Income-tax of Is. in the pound on the brewers' profits, and there was no other trade in the coun- try taxed in a similar way. The distillers' was a similar trade to the brewers' ; but the distillers only paid a ten guinea licence. They besides might put their spirits into bond, and so escape from spending their capital in paying duty, while the brewers had to pay beforehand. The tobacco trade was the only other trade beside the brewing trade which paid increas- ing duties ; but even in that trade there was a stop at £32. The principle of taxation in this country had always been that of equal justice to all; but it was not just that the private brewer should be exempted as at present and the public brewer taxed. Mr. Gladstone exempted the private brewei — he was certainly pressed to do so ; but this had been found to be unjust to the trade. Sir Stafford Northcote : But did not Mr. Bass urge that the private brewer might be exempted ? Mr. Bentley replied that Mr. Bass, who was then the only brewer in the House, was disinclined to incur the odium of sending the excise officer to the door of every gentleman who brewed his own beer ; but Mr. Bass had, the speaker thought, seen his mistake. Then, the speaker urged, the private brewer could use sugar without the duty which would fall upon the public brewer, and he proceeded to complain bitterly of the inquisitorial character of the tax and its manifest hardships in so interfering with the brewer's trade that he could not do brewing witliout giving notice, and could not alter the charac- ter of a brewing without subjecting himself to a penalty of £200 — a penalty, too, which in the eyes of the public seemed to be a disgrace, while, in point of fact, it might be through an error of a clerk. He pressed, too, on the Chancellor's consideration that the tax was one on trade, and that the brewers could not recoup themselves was proved by the fact that the price of beer, such was the competition in " the trade," could not be raised above what it was twenty or thirty years ago, and this, notwithstanding wages and material had risen about 33 per cent. Mr. Clowes (Manchester) also spoke strongly with regard to the inconvenience caused through the obnoxious regulations of the excise necessary in collecting the duties. Mr. Elatteley (Mancliester) pointed out that by the tax being charged not upon the malt, but upon the quantity of beer which was supposed to be brewed from a certain quantity of material, the lowest class of beers had to pay for the higher. On a former occasion the brewers had desired the then Chan- chellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Lowe, to impose the tax in some other form ; but as the revenue was now in a favourable position they asked that it should be repealed altogether. Mr. I Moore (Sheffield) said the hop duties were consi- dered a grievance, but the brewers now considered the licence duties an aggravated grievance. The hop grower used to have credit to pay the duty ; but the brewer had to pay his duty in advance. " The trde" contributed very much to the revenue, and the brewers thought they ought to be fairly dealt with, for this was an exceptional tax, it weighed very heavily upon the trade, both as regarded the money paid and the mode of collection, and he trusted the Chancellor of the Exchequer would see his way to relieving them of it. Sir Stafford Northcote, in reply, said : I have listened with great attention to all that has been said, and I feel that it is a very great advantage to have had the matter so well placed before me. With regard to the main subject of your request — namely, that the Government should make arrangements to take off these licence duties on brewers — you will, of course, not expect me to say anything about now ; but I may remark, with regard to the surplus with which the Government have to deal, that though it is undoubtedly a large one — that is, in itself it forms a large sum — yet it is not large when taken in compa- rison with the demands made upon it, for, I need not inform you, many classes are asking for remission of taxation, and all these demands and requests will have to be considered and compared together. But I will not go into that question. Full consi- deration of your case, in comparison with other claims for re- mission of taxation shall be given ; but there is one point on which I should like to speak to you, and it is on a matter which was brought before me by another deputation a few days ago. You will have seea that ft deputation waited upon THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. 293 me from the Chambers of Agriculture on the subject of the Malt-tax, and their representation to me was, that it might be desirable to alter the system now in vogue by substituting a tax on beer for the Malt-tax. This, it seems to me, would bring in, perhaps, a system like that in the Brewers' Licensing Act. Irrespective altogether of the question whether there should be any renission of the Malt-tax or whether beer could pay the tax, there comes the question — and this is what I de- sire to know at your hands — whether it is desirable that any alteration, in your opinion, should be made in the incidence of the tax ? I understand the claims of the Chamber of Agricul- ture are in effect that they desire the duty to be taken oflf Malt, the raw or nearly raw material, and they suggest, if the taxation should be required, it should be laid upon the finished article — beer. You would argue, I suppose, the reverse ? (General cries of Hear, hear.^ I want to understand, too, whether you think these restrictions and regu- lations of the Excise against which you have spoken, are inseparable from the imposition of these duties, or whether you do not think that these regulations and restrictions might be altered so as to make them less objectionable — tlie effective- ness of the collection to remain. As I understand tliera, tiiey are real grievances ; but those who spoke of them did not sug- gest any alterations which would give relief in the mode of collecting tlie duties. Mr. Fl\tterlky said it would be quite impossible to have any other system of collecting the duties — only this system or none. Sir Stafford Nortiicote -. And am I to understand that you would have any objection to a change of the Malt-tax to a Beer-tax ? Tliere was a general chorus in response, " Oh, certainly, sir, the strongest objection," and Mr. Bentley added that the change would entail great difficulty, especially to the Excise, and would cost more in the collection than the malt duty did. Moreover, he did not see what the farmers had to complain of, for the Malt-tax was not a tax upon barley, as the farmer declared, but was really a tax of 2d. a gallon upon beer, or from 15 to 20 per rent, upon all beer brewed. Of course it depended on the policy of the Government, whetlier it meant to abolish all indirect taxation, or maintain tlie policy which had obtained in this country for so many years — that of indirect and direct taxation ; but if indirect taxation was to be continued, this Malt-tax was a fair one to be paid by the working classes. They got their beer at 3d. the pint ; in some places at l|d., and that was quite low enough, and if they could not afford that they should go without beer altogether. The malt duty was fairly levied ; it did not cost more in collection than auy other tax would, and it did not press hard upon beer. He thought the Government would make a great mistake if the incidence of the Malt-tax were altered as suggested by the Chamber of Agriculture. Sir Stafford Nortiicote : I am very glad to have had the opportunity of hearing your opinion ; but on the subject of private brewing I think it was Mr. Bass himself who, oa the proposal to take off the hop duties, said of private brew- ing : " That's a small matter ; don't let that stand in the way." Is that not so, and is not the private brewing a small matter ? Mr. Bentley : Mr. Bass's object was that he should not send the Excise officer to the house of every gentleman who brewed beer ; but it is largely carried on. Sir Stafford North cote : Was it not the opinion of the trade that the change — that taking off the duties on hops — would more than compensate them for taxing the public brewing P Mr. Bentiey : Well, the brewers thought there would be a larger growth of hops as the result of taking off the duties on hops, and that they would be compensated by having them at a lower price ; but the plant is such an extraordinary one, that one year there is a failure and at another a small crop, and so prices go up and down ; consequently, the brewers have not got the benefit from the change they expected they should have got. Sir Stafford Northcote : Should you not ask yourselves what you would have had to pay under the present circumstances if the hop duty had been continued, and that, too, upon the larger quantity used ? Mr. Bentley responded to this question by the question— Wliy should we pay at all ? Mr. Flatteley added that the Chamber of Agriculture did not see that the malt duties were any benefit to the farmers, as, he contended, they were, and he denied what had been stated by the Chamber of Agriculture in repect to the sugar duties being 17s. against the malt duties of 2l3. The fact was sugar was 2is. against 21s. for malt. The deputation then informed Sir Stafford that there would have been a larger number present if a few days more had been given, as deputations from Scotland, London, and other places would have atteaded. They thanked the Minister, and then retired. THE TAXES UPON FOOD. A deputation from the Free Trade League waited upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer at his official residence in Dowuing-street, to urge upon him the desirability of the removal of all taxes from food. The deputation in- cluded members of the Working Men's Club and Institute Union, the Westminster Working Men's Association, the Labour Representation League, the Trades' Guilds of Learninff, and the Trades' Congress Parliamentary Committee. Mr. W. H. Smith, the Financial Secretary of the Treasury, was pre- sent, with Sir Stafford Northcote. Mr. G. Potter said the taxes raised upon the people's food through the customs and excise amounted to £46,000,000. Besides this, skilled artisans and professional men had to pay Income-tax, from which he considered working men in receipt of incomes of £100 to £180 and professional men in receipt of less than £.'300 a year should be exempted. As an example of the way in which taxation affected the working classes, he might state tliat if a mau with a wife and five children spent 30s. in the course of a month in tea, coffee, sugar, beer, and spirits, he paid, through customs and excise, the sum of 7s. He urged upon the Ciiancellor of the Echequer tliat the working classes, as producers, were entitled to special consi- deration, and that otiier nations should be "shown by example tlie undesirability of taxin? trade. It iiad been said that tiiere was a surpUis of £6,000,000, but whether or not that was tlie case they did not want taxes to be taken from food and im- posed ou sometiiiag else ; they wished ratiier to see the lavish expeaditure of the country reduced, and if that could not be done some other means of raising revenue ought to be found by the Government. Mr. Briggs said the Free Trade League had decided that sweeping reforms must be made in the taxation system of the country. The League considered that the effect of the Malt- tax was injurious to the production of food and the interests of agriculturists and farmers. Several other speakers having expressed their views upon the question, The Chancellor of the Exchequer said : Gentlemen, you will not expect me to anticipate prematurely what it will be the duty of the Government to lay before Parliament in a very short time. As you are aware, one of the greatest mea- sures to be brought before Parliament will be the budget for the year, and of course the financial ))olicy of the Government will then be discussed. All that I will venture to do now is, in the first place, to Ihauk you for the very able manner la which you have brought this matter under the notice of the Government. The Government are very glad to hear the opinions of different sections of the community, aud 1 wish to assure you all, and my good friend Sir John Bennett in par- ticular, that the Government would approach the considera- tion [of the financial settlement of this year, and, so far as tiiey are able to forecast, of the country generally, not in the spirit of party or of class, but with tlie feeling whicii animates us, aud which has, I believe, animated successive Govern- ments of the country for a very long period. They will approacii it with a desire to do what they believe to be the 2U THE FAKMER'S MAGAZINE. best for the general interest of the country. They will take into consideration what has been urged upon the revenue with a view to tlie adjustment of taxation in a national and a Uberal spirit. Of course interests of so important, I hardly like to call it a section of the community, but so very important a portion of the comraunity as that which you represent, must be very carefully considered in any adjustment of taxation. Further than this it would be very difficult for me to say any- thing without going into matters into which I ought not to enter. I should like to ask one question. I do not quite understand what is the extent to which you wish to carry this movement. I think I understood Mr. Potter to say that he thought all classes should contribute in proportion to their means towards the national expenditure, provided that the expenditure is of a proper character, and we know that a con- siderable portion of it is incurred directly for the benefit of the working classes. Ou the other hand, Mr. Briggs, I think, laid it down broadly that the principle of reforming the revenue system should sweep away all customs and excise duties, including, I suppose, the duties on malt, tobacco, and spirits. Suppose all these duties to be removed, iu what manner could those classes who are below the range of the Income-tax contribute to the revenue of the country ? Is it proposed that they should be exempt, or that they should be made to contribute in some other manner that may be devised ? Mr. G. Potter said tiie principle they went upon was that realised property should be taxed extensively. Mr. Briggs : I suppose that the question put by the Chan- cellor of the Exchequer is this : If the customs and excise duties were swept away how would the working classes con- tribute to the revenue of the state ? The Chajmcelloe of the Exchequer : Yes. Mr. Briggs : This is what we propose — Sir John Bennett asked the speaker not to say what " we" proposed, as the business of the deputation was to ask for the abolition of the duties on tea, sugar, and coffee. Mr. Briggs remarked that Sir J. Bennett was not a con- tributor to the Free Trade League. £34.,000,000 could be raised by means of a personal or household tax. The Chancellor of the Exchequer: I only put the question because what I alluded to raised rather a wider issue than the one which was first raised. All I can say is that the matter will be taken into lull consideration. The deputation then thanked the right hon. gentleman and withdrew. THE HEREDITARY BURDENS ON LAND.— In the question of hereditary burdens on land, there can be no doubt as to who would benefit by the remission. The beneficial owners of the laud of the country, whoever they are, would be the gainers. Their property would be relieved of a charge which seriously diminishes its selling value ; their incomes, if they do not sell, would be enormously increased. Say an estate in the country worth £5,000 a year, ou which the rates are 2s. in the £,, or £500 a year, has for its beneficial owner a man who has mortgaged it, or charged it, to the ex- tent of £S,000 a year. His net income, deducting the rates, is £1,500 a year, and this is the net income he would be able to sell at any time. If the rates were reduced altogether, he would have £2,000 instead of £1,500 a year, and he would have so much more income to sell if he did bring the pro- perty to market — both his income and his capital would mani- festly be increased enormously by the remission. Of course it must be understood that the man who is described as the real beneficial owner may not always he the same person as the nominal proprietor according to English law. Tenants, in some cases, if they are not rack-rented, and if a custom protects them, or if they have a long lease, may be in a posi- tion to receive the benefit of a reduction of rates ou the pro- perty they occupy. But such facts do not alter the principle. It is in their capacity as beneficial owners of some imperfect sort that tenants in the cases specified would benefit, and they would stand exactly iu the same position as any othef beneficial owners as regards the justice of the remission claimed. But what title have such owners to the remission ? Are they now unjustly taxed in respect of all or any portion of this hereditary burden ? Ou this point it was common to urge, some years since, that the owners of landed property should pay no more in respect of their property than owners of per» sonal property ; that they never ought to have paid more j and though Mr. Baxter does not push his own logic so far, w? observe that a friendly reviewer in Tke Standard has gono the length of saying as much. We are informed tliat "if we ar'S to go back into tiie past, the landowners are entitled to be recouped enormous sums of which they have bee.i cheated by the carelessness of collectors, the cunning of capitalists, and the connivance of Parliament. The fact tliat a burden has been long evaded is no reason why it should not be laid on the right shoulders at last ; and the fact that a wrong has been endured for a couple of hundred years does not justify its longer continuance." But such extravagance refutes itself, Ideal wrongs of this sort cannot be the basis of any practical legislation, or be set up to show that the existing beneficial owners of land are unjustly treated. Common sense tells us that a man who purchases land takes it with all its liabilities — considers only the net income which he buys — and it is almost grotesque to describe him as the inheritor of the grievances of former owners. It is the same with the fortu- nate descendants of former owners themselves, who owe the fact that they have inherited anything at all to the beneficent care of the State, and as to whom the only question can be whether the State iias not allowed too much to descend — has not improperly abstained from making a heavier charge on the privilege of bequest. But if existing landowners are not wronged, why should the tax be remitted ? The only plea for remission is one of equity ; and the condemnation of existing taxes on the ground of injustice implied by it is so extravagant as to prove to the common sense of mankind that it is un- founded. It is quite true that the plea is put forward to cover a much smaller practical claim for redress ; but, if the logic is good for anything, it is good for abolishing the entire here- ditary rates, and it would be mere child's play to abolish only the fractional part of so monstrous a grievance as is alleged. — The Economist. THE EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN IN AGRICUL- TURE. — At a meeting of the Parton (Lancashire) Board of Guardians the Clerk read a circular letter from the Clerk to the High Wycombe Union, petitioning Parliament for the repeal of those clauses of the Agricultural Act of last session of Parliament which prohibited the employment of children between ten and twelve years of age. The petitioners com- plained that the Act, as it now stood, would inflict great hard- ship upon parents of children employed in agriculture, as they would be deprived of the earnings of their children, which formed a large contribution to the support of the whole family. That the enforcement of the provisions of the Act would be detrimental to the interest of the growers of corn and feeders of cattle, and throw them upon the country at large as consumers of the produce. That the farmers of this country were already heavily burdened with taxation, iu addition to which their expenses were increased by the heavy rate of wages paid for labour. Mr. Neild knew of several children in his neigh- bourhood who could earn four or five shillings a-week in watching birds or tending lambs, which was a nice healthy exercise, and to which no work was attached. He thought as the law now stood it was a most obnoxious imposition. He would say that there were these conservations — though he was not seeking the slightest favour for farmers over that of any other business — that the peculiar nature of the employment of which he had spoken was healthy and desirable on all grounds. Mr. Waddington contended that the children to discharge the duties must be exposed to the weather. The Chairman said that as the country was looking to the education of her children, if they were so employed how were they to get edu- cation ? If children, by education, became more efficient ser- vants, if they were employed under the age of teu that educa- tion became nullified. He thought that children should have that education which would fit them for their duties in life ; and that as regarded competition, he thought children should be considered as well as the parents. No motion was passed upon the letter. THE PARMER'S MAGAZINE. ON A NEW SYSTEM OF CULTIVATING THE POTATO, WITH A VlliW TO AUGMENT PRODUCTION AND PREVENT DISEASE. A scientific old gentleman of somewhat primitive habits once declared that with a little more soil, otherwise dirt, lie could grow turnips on the top of his head ; while Mr. Shirley Ilibberd, in a really interesting paper which he read, or rather spoke from at the Society of Arts solves one of the difficulties of the day by grow- ing potatoes on the top of his tile: "la the year 18G4, having reasoned out the case, I prepared a plot of ground for an experiment, to test the value of my conclu- sions. I procured a quantity of common rootiug-tiles, laid them in lines on hard ground, laid potato sets on them, and then covered sets and tiles with prepared soil, so as to form a long ridge covering a shallow tunnel. The result was a remarkably heavy crop, the texture finer than the average, and without a trace of disease. I then re- solved "to improve on the plan, by providing a better tunnel than was possible with the nearly Hat roofing-tile. The result was the adoption of a tile made expressly for the purpose, and known to the few friends who have taken an interest in my proceedings as the ' Ilibberd potato tile.' It is a foot wide and fourteen inches long, the form that of a low, flat-topped arch, four inches deep in the centre. The best way to use this tile is to lay down lines four feet apart, on hard ground, aud as the sets are laid on the tiles, they are moulded over with earth from the intervening spaces. The result is a series of rounded ridges, so far separated that the potato plant enjoys abundance of light and air, lodgment of water is impossible, and in the event of a sudden lowering of tem- perature, when the tubers are ripening, the storage of earth-heat below the roots tides the crop over the time of danger, and prevents that engorgement of the tissues which constitutes the first stage of the disease and the nursery for the fungus. As a matter of course, the in- tervening spaces should be deeply dug and liberally manured, and planted with su';.i'.le crops. These must be such as will not rob the jiijtatoes of air or light. The cultivator will have no trouble in determining how to utilise the furrows." Of course this is a somewhat expensive processs, and after giving merely the price of the tiles per thousand Mr. Ilibberd very fairly left it to practical men to calculate the cost of laying, planting and otherwise cultivating the crop. The result, however, is the main point : "As a matter of fact, if the tile system is properly carried out, it will in a run of years produce full double the weight of potatoes that would be produced on the same land with- out its aid ; and it has this peculiar advantage, that by saving the crop in a bad season it provides the cultivator with something to send to market at a time when prices rule high, and potatoes are regarded as articles of luxury." And then the lecturer went on to demonstrate how in a good season as much as k.i'2 per acre might be re- turned in favour of the tile system. The discussion which followed was not worth much. Like the use of sewage, the potato disease would seem to have a tendency to occasionally weakeu the intellects of those who give their days and nights to such a study ; while, what with its weekly meetings, the Society of Arts is cursed like the Commons and other debating societies by the presence of people who are always ready to speak on any given subject. The point consequently of the after sitting rested with Mr. Ilibberd's reply, and Agricultural Society should n(jt at once abandon the pro- this was so striking that it is a question whether the lloyal motion of any otiicr experiuientsand devote its energies to the due development of the tile system ; even though, as we hear, some competition will come of the last move- ment in this direction. In America, as Mr. Ilib- berd quoted from market prices, certain varieties of potatoes were sold at 50 dols. a root, 180 dols. per bushel, and 5 dols. per lb., which was the price obtained for Early Hose in 1SG9 ; whilst in 1870, 300 dols. was re- fused for one peck of King of Earlies." Now 5 dols. i)er lb. was equal to £406 per ton," and so on, after the celebrated horse-shoe calculation, until Mr. Hibberd proved that he himself had grown potatoes at a gross return of little short of fen. thousand pounds per acre ! It is a common saying that you may make out or make up any- thing by the aid of figures ; but it must be understood, as will indeed be seen by the report of his address, that ^Ir Hibberd is no mere theorist but a thoroughly practical man ; and when he talks af ten thousand pounds per acre he says, "these are big figures no doubt, but they are strictly founded on facts." All this may be taken as from something of an American point of view, where with King Earlies at 500 dollars a peck, and Grand Duchesses at ten thousand pounds each, and Early Roses at ten thousand pounds per acre, trade must be rather smart. At a meeting of the Society of Arts, Lord Alfred Churchill in the chair, Mr. Suirley Hibberd read the following paper : So much has been written and said on the subject of potato disease, that I can only liope to obtain attention by announc- ing that I ara prepared to submit for your consideration and approval proposals which, I believe, will be regarded as tend- ing materially towards a solution of the puzzling problem the disease forces on our attention. I shall be compelled to go over old ground, but it will' be for the purpose of establish- ing new conclusions. Of the history of the potato, of the special characteristics of the fungus that accompanies the mur- rain, of the varieties and uses of the potato, I shall have no- thing to say, except, indeed, it may be incidentally, and for the necessary illustration of ray argumen In all the many inquiries and experiments wliich have bee j described and re- ported until farmers and gardeners were tired of them, one important point which I shall presently bring under your notice has been overlooked, and hence the majority of proposed preventives of potato disease are of an empirical nature ; they are, indeed, akin to what in connection with maladies that affect the human frame is usually denominated quackery. The essence of quackery is to consider the symptoms and neg- lect the cause of the disease, and in the case of potato mur- rain numberless plans have been devised, and have resulted in failure, because they were founded on a superficial cousidera- tion of the aspects of the case, instead of a clear perception of the real origin of the mischief. One advises that the plant be suddenly and violently robbed of every leaf and branch on the first appearance of the malady ; the result of this treatment is that growth is suddenly arrested, and tlie crop is usually not worth digging. The mycologists make the best figure among the potato doctors, for they deal with a reality which they understand in part ; but their microscopical and biological in- vestigations have led tiius far only to a more complete know- ledge of symptoms, and a good conjecture as to the cause of the disease ; for, as to the means of prevention, it appears that the more they know of the fungus, the more helpless they pro- fess themselves to arrest its ravages. I invite you, first, to con- sider the constitution of the plant. It is, as you know, a native of the warm temperate regions of the western conti- nent. It has never been found wild in either a sub-arctic or a tropical clime, and it would probably soon become utterly ex- tinct in this country if completely cast out of cultivation, and left to lead tiio life of a vagrant weed. Several species of wild potatoes are met with in Chili, IVru, ami Mexico ; from wliich of these the cullivatrd jiotalo has been derived it might lie diffi- cult to say, but this is certain, that tlw^y inhabit rouulries that are con.sidcrably warm.-r than great Britain, and therefore we begin with a plant that is not perferfly adapted to our climate. V 296 THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. The mean annual temperature of those parts of Peru where wild potatoes are found is 73 deg., the maximum 8i2 deg., the minimum 55 deg. ; the table lands of Mexico have a mean annual temperature of 02 deg., the lowest temperature in winter is 32 deg., and in summer the heat rarely exceeds 85 deg. As the mean annual temperature in London is under 50 deg., ,and the range of temperature during the summer months is considerable, it is evident that Solanum iiiberosiim is out of its element here, for it needs the best climates of the South of Europe, where, indeed, the disease is scarcely known, and the tubers usually grow to a prodigious size. In favourable sea- sons the potato is one of the most profitable of farm and garden plants in this country and the more northern parts of Europe. The liealth of the plant is iu no way affected by a severe or prolonged winter, as it would be if left to grow wild ; and, for the business now in hand, we need only consider the conditions to which it is subjected daring the five growing months from May to September. Yoxi do not need to be in- formed that this is a most uncertaiu climate, the consequence, no doubt, of our environment by the "melancholy sea." In seasons wlien the temperature approximates to the average, and is agreeably equable, with a moderate and timely rainfall, the potato prospers, and makes an ample return to tlie cultivator, by a plentiful production, wholly clean, or very slightly da- maged by disease. But in seasons characterised by a conside- rable range of temperature, or by a deficiency of heat, and an excessive rainfall, t be crop is damaged more or less, and everybody appears to enjoy a monopoly of wisdom on the subject of potato disease which leads to confusion and ends in nothing. I must ask your attention to a few facts. In the course of the forty- seven years ending 1872 the mean temperature at Ciiiswick of the five growing montlis was 59 deg. 27 niiu. In the same period the mean rainfall of the same five months was 11.13 inches. In the year 1845 (the year of the potato famine in Ireland) the mean temperature of the five growing months was 56 deg. 50 min., and the rainfall was 11.12 inches. In the year 1860, when the sun was obscured for months toge- ther by rain clouds, aud potato disease well-nigh extinguished the potato plant, the mean temperature of the five giowiug months was 55 deg. 63 min., and the rainfall 17.89 inches. These were the two worst years for the potato crop iu our time. Let us now compare them with the two best years. In the year 1868 there was a long-continued drought ; the pastures failed, the railway banks were everywhere on fire, and the potato crop was one of the cleanest ever known. The mean temperature of the five growing months was G2 deg. 67 min., and the rainfall only 6.95 inches. In 1870 auother drought occurred, but owing to the copious rainfall in the spring the resultant inconvenience was much less than iu 1868, and the potato crop was equally clean and considerably heavier. In the five growing months the mean temperature was 65 deg. 39 min., and tlie rainfall only 6.61 inches. An extended series of comparisons all tell the same tale, but less strikingly, and on the present occasion it is desirable to arrive at conclusions as quickly as pos.sible. It must be observed here that a statement of the mean temperature of any given period may altogether misrepresent the thermometrical con- ditions that have prevailed, for a period of excessive heat may he suddenly followed by excessive cold, aud the mean of the period may be altogether unafi'ected by the fluctuation. It 18 proper, therefore, to remark that potato disease usually makes its appearance a few days after the mean temperature has been considerably lowered, or alter a sudden and excessive rainfall, and is a quite common sequel to a period of electrical disturbance, so that "thunder weather" is commonly regarded as a precursor of the murrain. Tiiese facts being generally accepted, the ques- tion arises, What is the cause of potato disease ? By one, and, indeed, by many, we are told that the cause is electricity. Auother assures us that an insect lias punctured the plant— it may be the JpJiis vasiator, or the Colorado beetle, but au in- sect is the cause of it. Another explanation is that a fungus is tiie author of tlie mischief, and tiie particular fungus selected is the one now called Peronospora infestans, formerly B'jlryilsinfestuHS. In my opinion (aud I have been a student of the potato and potato-culture over twenty years), the only explanation worth a moment's attention is that offered by the mycologiat. Without doubt, the fungus is invariably asso- ciated with the murrain, but it is a mistake to say it is the cause, for, in truth, it is but an efl"ect : the cause is of a more subtle nature. If the disease invariably follows certain changes or conditions of temperature and humidity, and is unknown when such conditions do not prevail, why should we not regard the fungus as only a symptom, and accept the sug- gestion of facts, that the conditions which favour the disease are also favourable to the fungus ? W^here was the fungus iu 1863 aud 1S70? It was, comparatively speaking, unknown, for the plant was healthy. Iu 1845 and 1860 the fungus found the plant a ready prey, for the plant was weakened by a low temperature aud excessive humidity. The potato is here out of its element, and hence it prospers only in seasons that are better than the average, at least so far as the five growing months are concerned. I must now beg you to bear in mind that the potato is greatly influenced by sudden changes of atmospheric conditions wheu the crop is nearly full- grown and is entering on the period of ripening. It so happens that the ripening season — July and August — is also the season when atmospheric convulsions are most common, great heat being quickly succeeded by unsea- sonable cold, and the cold aggravated in its effects by a copious rainfall. If we are to save the potato we must find means to carry it through these periods of trial, and, as I understand the case, that is the problem now before us. The potato, more than any other plant in cultivation in this country, is dependent for its health on continued solar heat. If we could produce artificial sunshine above the surface of the ground, and artificial sun-heat below, we should save the crop at times when sunshine fails, and the ground is dis- astrously cooled by a heavy rainfall. You will not expect of me anything in the nature of a miracle, but I will endeavour to show how a substitute for sunshine may be secured by a simple method of procedure, and at a cost by no means extravagant, considering the results that may be anticipated. You are aware that iu heavy lands it is customary, at least iu gardens, to plant potatoes on ridges* in order that their roots may enjoy a maximum of ground heat, and be quickly drained of superfluous moisture by meaus of the troughs between the ridges. Now, it will be obvious that the advantage of the ridge and furrow system would be cousiderably increased were we to piece every ridge with a tunnel, for this would ensure beneath the roots of the plant a body of imprisoned air, the non-conducting property of which would render it a store- house of solar heat, maintaining the temperature of the soil nearly at the point it had attained before the weather changed, and while favouring the rapid escape of surplus moisture, acting medicinally as well as nutritively to sustain the health of the plant. I shall endeavour to show howthis may be done. In the year 1864, having reasoned out the case iu much the same way as I now place it before you, I prepared a plot of ground for an experiment, to test the value of my conclusions. 1 procured a quantity of common roofing tiles, laid them in lines on hard ground, laid potato sets on them, and then covered sets and tiles with prepared soil, so as as to form a long ridge covering a shallow tunnel. The result was a remarkably heavy crop, the texture finer than the average, and without a trace of disease. I then resolved to improve on the plan, by providing a better tuunel than was possible with the nearly-flat roofing tile. Tiie result was the adoption of a tile made expressly for the purpose, and knowu to the few friends wlio have taken an interest in my proceedings as the " Hibberd potato tile." It is a foot wide and fourteen inches long, the form that of a low, flat- topped arch, four inches deep in the centre . I obtained a supply of this tile from Messrs. Scales, of the Potteries iu the Green-lanes, Stoke Newington, in 1865. There was no stint of clay or fire in making them, aud they prove to be capable of v^ear-and-tear to a surprising extent, considering that they have to be roughly handled. The best way to use this tile is to lay down lines four feet apart, on hard ground ; and as the sets are laid on the tiles, they are moulded over with earth from the intervening spaces. The result is a series of rouuded ridges, so far separated that the pota:o plant enjoys abund«nce of light and air, lodgement of water is impossible, and in the event of a sudden lowering of temperature, when the tubers are ripeuing, the storage of earth-heat below the roots tides the crop over the time of danger, and prevents that engorgement of the tissues whicli constitutes the first stage of the disease and the nursery for the fundus. As a matter of course, the intervening spaces should be deeply dug and liberally manured, and planted with suitable crops. They must be such as will not rob the pota- toes of air or light. The cultivator will have no trouble in determining how to utUise the furrows. Iu the garden they THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, 297 will be fouud admiraljly ;iduptcd for celery, late dwarf peas, broccolis, and winter greens. In farm practice it would probably be best to leave the furrows open, because the sort of potatoes selected would profitably utilise the light and air, and in strong laud really meet across the furrows. Here, of course, we encounter the question. Will it pay ? It must be confessed that the Ilibberd potato tile is a costly thing, for Messrs. Senles cannot now produce it at a lower rate than from ^6 to £8 per 1,000, and, for the sake of a datum, we may reckon that the cost would be £7 per 1,000, or, if laid in lines four feet asunder, i'GO 3s. per acre. Tbe cost of the common ridge tile at the present time is £3 IDs. per 1,000, but tins is only 12 inches long, and the saving is less than appears. It would be good lu-actice, however, to lay these a yard apart, the cost ia tiiis case amounting to £51 Ds. Those wlio raise or speculate in new varieties, and who are familiar with tbe difEculty of obtaining a stock quickly, to ensure a high price in the market, will not regard the tile system as costly, provided only that it affords substantial help to save the crop in a bad season. As a matter of fact, if the tile system is properly carried out, it will in a run of years produce full double tbe wcighl" of potatoes that would be pro- duced on the same laud without its aid ; and it has this peculiar advantage, tliat by saving the crop in a bad season it provides the cultivator with something to scud to market at a time when prices rule high, and potatoes are regarded as articles of luxury. But we must test the tile system on tbe land of the man who grows potatoes for market. With a good season, good laud may be reckoned to produce potatoes at the rate of eiejlit tons per acre, which, at 120s. per tou, will he worth £48. If we estimate the crop on the tiles at sixteen tons, the total value will be £9G, from which we must deduct £6, being 10 per cent, of the cost of the tiles for in- terest on the iavcstinent, which reduces tbe value of the crop to £90. This shows a balance of £12 per acre in favour of the tile system. But suppose we estimate tbe crop at twelve tons, the value will then amount to £66, showing a balance of £18 in favour of the tiles. It will be observed that, in a hot and dry season like that of 18/0, the diiTerence in bulk and quality between a crop grown without and another with tiles will be trifling, so as to show the least advantage of the tile system ; while in a season characterised by a copious rain- fall, tbe difl'ereuce will be the greatest, for as a matter of fact, when disease prevails and there is said to be no crop, there is usually a prodigious production of tubers, and the misfortune is that the majority of them are worthless. It is in such a season tbe tile system will tell its proper story. The heavy rains that spread disease on every hand will benefit the crops that are protected by tunnels, and the enormous production that follows upon tlumder weather in the height of the season will be saved for our use, when, if not so aided, they would simply rot and make the very atmos- phere offensive. Let us then suppose that we have a forward, genial summer, occasionally interrupted by electric storms and days of tropical heat and rain. In such a season tbe potato crops on well-drained fertile sandy soils are usually great, while on tlie heavy lands they come to nothing. But if on these heavy lands we employ tiles, we may expect to dig twenty tons per acre. Tiie contrast in sucli a case may be put thus : Produce of one acre on the flat, nothing ; produce of one acre on tiles, 20 tons at 120s., £120. When a proper reduction has been made for interest on cost of tiles and loss by breakage, the balance will prove the potato to be one of the most profitable plants in cultivation. It remains to be said that the tile system will not make sunshine, will not create heat, and will not check tbe rainfall; therefore, it will not be always successful, and 1 am bound to confess that I iiave taken diseased potatoes from tiles ; but in a bad season, the tiles, with all their shoit-comings, have en- sured a crop when, without their aid, there would liavc been none. Wheat, maize, and potatoes are, in a peculiar sense, tbe products of sunsbine ; and in such a summer as that of 1800, wlieu tbe sun was obscured for months together, and the r.iinfiill of the growing season, from Way to September, f mounted to 18 inches, there could be but a small production of such things, no matter what the conditions and contrivances adopted by tbe cultivator. I make no pretension to the dis- covery of an infallible specific, but I am satisfied that all who are interested in the cultivation of tlie potato should give the tile system a fair trial during at least three consecutive seasons, to determine for themselves whether iu these remarks peculiari- ties and merits liave been fairly stated. Sir. W. J. Goui.TON (Retford) said he l;ad been growing; potatoes for the last twenty-five years, to the extent of 200 acres on tbe average. He was very glad to find that scientific men were taking up this important subject, and hoped some good would result from it. He wished to know if Mr. Hib- berd had made any calculation as to the cost of labour in using the tiles. Mr. BoTiA' made a speech. Mr. Amos Bryant exiressed his decided conviction that the disease in potatoes was produced by a fly, produced from a worm found in oak-galls, which were imported for tanning purposes. He had a powder which would exterminate tliis fly, and he would undertake to grow potatoes for anyone free from disease, without the expense of tiles, or to cure the disease if not too far advanced. Mr. Newton, having had considerable experience iu both agriculture and liorticulture, could confirm what Mr. Hibberd had said as to the value of drainage in the culture of potatoes, and, though he did not quite approve of the tile system now proposed, he believed he was the first to introduce drain tiles into Virginia. The potato was n sub-tropical plant, and required plenty of sun. Within tlielnst year be had seen two crops grown on the same land in Virginia without any ma- nure, simply because there was abundance of warmth to evapo- rate tbe water at the time the plant was forminot starch. Since the days of Dr. Lindley tbe potnto disease had been known in Great Britain, but no certainty had been arrived at as to its prevention, thougli efficient drainase seemed most promising. Tbe potato, being a sub-tropical plant, seemed to accommodate itself to its new home like tbe sub-tropical plants in Ilyde- park, which only throve when there was good drainage, and the soil was kept warm by means of air. He had tried many experiments, like Mr. Ilibberd, but did not believe there was any remedy for the disease. It simply came to tliis — if the soil were warm enough, and the sun sufficieut to evaporate tho moisture when tbe starch was forming, tlie disease did not appear ; and he, therefore, recommended the thorough draining of the soil, and the cultivation of early varieties, which would ripen before t!ie approach of tbe summer thun- derstorms. Mr. R. J. Lecky wished to know how manure was applied under the tile system. Having lived for many years on tho west coast of Ireland, he had watched this disease since ISiS, and thought a very foolish mystery had been made of it. It was really very simple ; tbe spores of fungi were constantly floating in the air, and whenever they found a suitable medium they would grow. In a damp, moist year there could be no doubt that these spores grew much more easily than in a dry year. Plants grown rapidly and well were less liable to disease than those grown slowly and badly, as they were not so mnch attacked by insects and parasitical fungi. It was all nonsense about electricity causing tbe disease. In his opinion the plant was attacked by the disease in the leaf first, as was constantly seen in every potato field ; it began with a little black spot in the leaf, which became brittle, and from there it extended to the stalk, which also became brittle. Sometimes a field would appear entirely free from disease one day, and then, after a foggy night, it would be all covered with it. That simply arose from the" rapid growth of the fungus, though what sort of fungus it was he could not say. It rapidly spread from the leaf to the rib, from tbe rib to the stalk, and then to the root, where it found its food in the starch. It had been often said, that when a field.' was at- tacked, if it were mowed down, the tubers would be saved, and he believed it was so ; there were too many examples for it to be doubted. No donbt Mr. Ilibberd's plan was a very good one, but it was rather expensive. Potatoes grew in all climates, in Normandy, in Iceland, and in the dampest parts of the west coast of Kerry, and the crop was very often good in that damp climate, tbe reason, no doubt, being that the tempe- rature was high during the important part of the year. At Valenlia the temperature during the five months referred to, seldom exceeded 70 degrees, or fell below 55 deg. to 00 deg. Mr. Hale thought it would have been well if Mr. Ilibberd had given the comparative results of growing tlie same kind of potatoes in the same soil with tiles and without. Mr. EA.REY asked what would be the result of the tile sys- em upon the crop, if during tlie chief growing season there 298 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. were a drought ; woulJ it uot be ratlier detrimental than otlierwise ? The CHAIKMA^' said he gathered from the discussion that there was a general concurrence of opinion that the disease was raerel)- a fungus which grew upon the potato, and which was engendered from its being grown upon cold, damp soils. Of course, the first remedy was drainage, the second, to pro- vide a warm soil, such as was natural to tlie plant. This being so, the method proposed by Mr. Hibberd seemed to answer, as far as his experience had gone, and it was certainly a rational one in every respect. His most powertul arguments were the statistics he had given, showing the different crops which had been produced in different years according to the meteoro- logical average taken'during the five mouths of the potato's growth, and proving that dry years produced the best crops. Looking at the enormous consumption of potatoes, it was most important that some mcaus should be devised, if possible, for producing a uniformly-good crop, and Mr. Hibberd seemed to have hit upon the right principle, because he had shown that the potatoes grown upon the tiles far exceeded in weight, quality, and value, those grown in the ordinary way. There was no doubt he was right in protesting against overcrowding, for harm was often done by attempting to fill the ground too much, one plant crowding out the other, and robbing it of its proper nutriment. Air was, undoubtedly, one of the most powerful non-conductors, and the air having been once warmed, would retain its heat for a considerable time, not- withstanding occasional thunder showers. The material of the tile also was a good retainer of heat, and therefore, though there might be cheaper materials discovered for enclosing the air, he did not think they would prove so useful as tiles in retaining the warmth. There was a heavy outlay at the heginuing, no doubt, but against that must be set the increased value of the crop. If this difficulty of cost could be overcome, no doubt the system would soon be largely extended, to the great increase of production. He had lately seen in the Gardeiier''s JLir/azine an article describing a beetle now preva- lent over some part of North America, which destroyed potatoes in a most marvellous manner, large tracts being quite devastated by it. It was necessary, therefore, to be particu- larly cautious in planting seed potatoes which came from America, lest this destructive insect should be introduced. In conclusion, he moved a cordial vote of thanks to Mr. Hibberd for his valuable paper. Mr. Shirley IIibueud, in reply, said his only object in coming forward was to promote potato cuhure on scientific principles. He liad not put down anything for the cost of labour, leaving such details to practical men who coufd deal with them ijuite as well as himself ; hut, according to hia own experience, the cost of laying down the tiles was very smull indeed ; it would hardly add anything to the expense. Mr. Newton, although not professing to approve his system, really did so, because he approved of draining, and referred to the sub-tropical plants in Hyde-park, which had only been suc- cessfully cultivated on this very system, though brick rubbish was used instead of tiles for the purpose of enclosing the air. Another gentleman had asked how the manure could be ap- plied. He miglit say, according to fancy. Sometimes on a nice sandy soil potatoes were planted on the manure, and then covered over ; and so with the tiles. They might be placed on the tile and then covered over with manure. And by this plan you might manure very strongly, because as the water was got rid of and the plant kept warm, it could assi- milate more food. He had m mured tlic ground after the potato was planted, digging it well, turning in plenty of guano and cheap potash salts, and then when it was all well chopped up, turning it over the plants. He was not particular to one particular form of tile, his object being to establish the prin- ciple, and leave every one to carry it out in the best and cheapest way he could. He had tried every possible experi- ment in potato culture, and could easily speud several hours in narrating his experience, but considered it hetter to keep to one point, and explain it thoroughly. Mr. Early had put a very excellent question, and no doubt this plan would not be so advantageous in time of drought ; but then in a light porous soil the tiles were not required, and in a heavy clay soil the drought would not effect the potato much on the tile ; in fact, in 1868, he had a beautiful crop. It served to store up the sunshine against the time of bad weather. That was the vital principle. He himself did not grow potatoes for the wholesale market, but he would conclude by a few facts, showing the value of the system to a potato fancier. He then quoted several American journals to show that certain varieties were sold at 50 dollars a root, 180 dollars per bush., and 5 dollars per lb., which was the price obtained by Messrs. Bliss for " Early Rose" in 1869 ; whilst in 1870 the same firm refused 500 dollars for one peck of " King of Earlies." Now 5 dollars per lb. was equal to £466 per ton, and at 8 tons per acre, that was between £4,000 and £5,000. He himself had grown " Early Rose" at the rate of 20 tons per acre — by a costly system no doubt, with a beautiful soil, fit to grow calceolarias or fuchsias, and with every care taken in the handling to put the potatoes the right way up — but at the same rate of 5 dollars per lb., tiiat was equal to £9,3-20 per acre. These were big figures, no doubt, but they were strictly founded on facts, and were sufficient to show that the cost of tiles was not always a matter of very great ira« portance. BOTLEY AND SOUTH HANTS FARMERS' CLUB. THE BREEDING OE SHEEP. At the lust monthly meeting held at Botley, Mr. W. Warner, the president, in the chair, the subject was " The advantage of cross breeding in sheep, particularly the Cots wold sheep," in- troduced by Mr. Smith, of VVestend. Mr. Smith said : When I was asked to read a paper on the difi'ereut breeds of slieep I readily consented, as it would give me an opportunity of describing my own breed of sheep, and also an introduction to some of my brother farmers. lam not come so much to teach as to learn, and there is often more in- formation to be gained from the discussion than from the paper read. I hope no gentleman will hesitate in asking for an explanation on anything I say. Tliat is the only way to get full information on the subject. I commence with the Cots- wolds. The Cotswold sheep are supposed to derive their name from the " cotes " or sheds from wiiich they were fed in win- ter, and from the "wolds "or open hilly grounds in which they were pastured in summer. I believe them to be the original breed of the long wool sheep, as they are continually spokeji of from the earliest times wl>en no other sheep are noticed. I find that Gloucestershire was the earliest trading district for native wool in England. Gloucester had its trade compaiiics and Guildiiall long before one was established in London. lu tlie tliirteentii century Cirencester had two markets — one on Monday for corn, and one on Friday for wool. The monumental brasses in the church at Cirencester and at North- leach were paid for in Cotswold wool to foreign artists. That attests the importance of tiie wool trade at that period. A part of Northleach Church was built by Henry Forty, a wool dealer, who died in 1400 at Cirencester. One of those interest- ing brasses is to the memory of Robert Page ; he also was a wool dealer, and died in 1434. The immense quantity of wool grown in the county of Gloucester is apparent from the fact that in the reign of Edward III. thirty thousand sacks of native Cotswold wool was the annual quantity granted from that county for the king's household. In the fifteenth century both sheep and wool were largely exported. In 1437 Don Durantee, King of Portugal, applied to Henry VI. for per- mission to export sixty sacks of Cotswold wool to manufac- ture certain cloth of gold for his own private use. At that time the wool of the Cotswold sheep stood unrivalled in point of excellence, and bore a higher price than any other kind of wool. It is said to have been worth 4-3. per pound at the pre- sent value of money. It continued nearly a century to realize that price in consequence of the great demand for the manu- facture of the beautiful fabrics, such as cloth of gold, Stc. Cotswold sheep were undoubtedly considered the best animals England could produce at that period, as a proof of which I miglit say that it one monarch made a present of animals to another it would be what he considered the best in his king- dom. In 1464 a present of Cotswold sheep was made by tHE FARMl'lR'S MAGAZINE. 299 Edward IV. to Henry of Cisfilp, and in IIGS anotlier lot of Cotswold slieep was seut to Jolm of Aragon, bolli designed to improve the Spanish breed of sheep. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth tiie C'otswok! sheep are described as acoarse, hxrge bone, long wool sheep. They have undergone a great change and improvement since that time. Notwithstanding the improve- ment in most breeds of sheep the Cotswold holds by far the pre-eminence. Their beautiful and immense frames, their fine countenance, and fullest fleece give Iheni a grand majestic appearance, such as no other breed of sheep have ever yet at- fciined. I think them the best sheep in existence, and will pro- duce more mutton and wool for the food they consume than any other breed of sheep. The Cotswold, although large sheep, have big backs and little bellies, and will not consume so much food as some smaller sheep that have little bucks and great bellies. The Cotswolds are entirely in the possession of tenant-farmers — not pushed into public estimation by noble- men, as some other breeds are, but have risen and spread thenaselves all over England, and to most other countries from their own just merits, without the assistance of the great men. Nearly fifty years past the Cotswold ram-breeders all used a Leicester ram. That greatly improved their flocks, giving them better symmetry, Better quality, and more aptitude to fatten. Before the introduction of the Leicesters, many of them were grey, but arc since mostly white. I have always used grey sheep, but pure Cotswold. My flocks are the Cots- wold greys. A good Cotswold sheep has a large, wide frame, with abundance of valuable wool, a large head, eyes wide from each other across the forehead, not long from the eye to the nose, jaw deep and tapering to the mouth, ears long and fine, the head well covered with wool, a grand arched neck, set on high feeding up to the ears, ribs well sprung out from the back and chines, shoulders well set back into the ch'ues, a prominent, full, expanded chest, deep foreflanks, wide back and loin, rump nicely lormed all round from one loin to the other, hea»fy leg of mutton, good and full in the twist, iiioderate- siied bone, feet small, clean and upright in the posterior, or fetlock joints. I think that description will bear me out in calling the Cotswold sheep a grand, majestic animal. [^Ir. Smith here referred to two oil paintings of a Cotswold ram and ewe, both splendid animals, especially the latter, in order to give an idea of what his flock were.] Next take the Lei- cesters. While the origin of the Cotswold sheep is veiled in the obscurity of long-past ages, history can point with cer- tainty to that of the new Leicesters. In 1750 they were coarse, large bone, heavy woolled animals, seldom fit for the butcher before th°y were three years old. At that age they weighed from ' w i ;, -live to thirty pounds per quarter. The wool was lull.; and coarse in the staple, and weighed about ten pounds per fleece. Soon after that time Mr. Robert Bake- well, of Dishley, directed his attention to the improvement of his flock. In what way he did it I do not know, or from what motive he acted, but it is certain that he kept himself aloof from public discussion. The only autiientic written produc- tion he has left behind him is an angry correspondence with another breeder regarding some alleged unauthorised inspec- tion of each other's flocks. So close was the veil of secrecy he threw over his proceedings that it is stated his own servants, with the exception of one man whom he thoroughly trusted, were entirely ignorant of wiiat was going on. Either from Bakewell having directed iiis principal attention to the per- fecting of the carcase, or from his system of in-and-in breed- ing, his sheep soon became deficient of wool, that appearing a secondary value to him, he, perhaps, regarding a fleece as de- tracting from what was his great aim— a ready disposition to fatten. When the new Leicesters were first introduced the breeding of rams was confined to a few individuals, who alone with Mr. Bakewell established the Dishley Society. Their object was to make a complete monopoly of the business. The letting of rams appears to have been unknown before the days of Bakewell. When he first introduced the practice in 1760, he let his first ram (or 17s. 6d., and for several seasons he could not make more than two or three guineas encli for his best sheep. As the public became convinced of the superiority of his breed they gradually rose in pries. In 178 1 he let one ram for 100 guineas. The desire to possess his sheep became so great- that in 178!) he made 1,200 guineas with three rams, and 2,000 guineas with seven others, lie also received 3,000 guineas more from the Dishley Society for the use of the remainder of his rams that season, making together 6,200 guineas. Mr. Bakewell let one ram another season to two breeders at 400 guiueas, each reserving to himself a third of the ewes put to him, rating that sheep at 1,200 guineas for the season. Such was the success that Mr. Bakewell achieved, and so selfish was he that when he had shee)) to sell he turned them for a time into his meadows to rot them, so that no one should breed from them. Mr. Buckley was second to Bakewell. lie had a ram let for 1,000 guiueas. I went with my father and purchased two grandsons of the 1,000 guinea sheep. At that time my father kept Leicesters, and my fiock descended from them. The Leicesters have undoubtedly done great good by crossing others. All the best flocks of Leicesters at the present day are crossed eitlier with Cotswolds or Liu- colus ; I know some with a great share of Cotswold in them. Those that are not crossed (if there are any now) are nearly all fat and very little flesh — the worst sheep there are for tlie butcher. We want all animals full of mnterial flesh. They have stronger constitutions than light-fleshed animals. I now come to the Lincolns. These sheep, before they were crossed witli Buckley's or Bakewell's Leicester, were ugly animals. They had a long, thin carcase, hen back, great paunch, coarse bone, slow feeders, and coarse-grained mutton. They were kept principally for their wool, of which they grow a heavy weight, with a beautiful lustre upon it. I find that the lustre so highly prized in the Lincoln wool does not belong entirely to the Lincoln sheep, but partly to the district or climate, as Lincolns taken to other districts partly lose that lustre the next year, and other sheep taken into Lincolnshire obtain that lustre to a certain extent the second year. At the present time few, if any, of the old Lincolns are to be found. They are greatly improved by being crossed with the Leicesters, giving them better symmetry, more aptitude to fatten, and better qmlity of mutton, but they grow less wool. The Ox- fordsliire Downs are a cross with the Cotswold and Down, and good sheep they are. In 1858 they gave them tlieir name to establish them as a breed. To my sorrow they were my best customers. The year previous twenty-one of my rams were purchased at my sale to be used by the Oxfordshire Down ram breeders. I am of opinion that cross-bred sheep will be made more profitable than Oxfordshire Downs, as a man may use his judgment and put a long wool, short wool, or cross-bred ram to his ewes — which he thinks will be the best cross. Some persons must keep pure breeds to cross with. We hear many persons when they want a ram for Down ewes say either will do, as it is only for cross-bred lambs. If like begets like, should not good rams be used for crossing ? If I did not breed rams, I should keep a cross-bred flock. I think it requires more judgment and attention to keep a good cross-bred flock than any one breed. With good management I feel assured they will make the greatest profit. The Hampshire Downs are a cross between the old horned Hampshire and the Down. They are a big framed, and strong constitutioned animal. Their deficient points are light of wool, a great paunch, and raw, keen back. If crossed again with a Cotswold that has a good fat back and plenty of wool, I feel certain that would produce a very good sheep, and a good fleece of wool also. I give the Hampshire Down breeders credit for being the best managers of lambs I know of in feeding and bringing them to greater perfection than any other breed. They make a great price of them. If they make a greater profit I do not know, as they drop their lambs so early the ewes must have better food, and will consume so much more after lambing than before. If the lamb is fourteen mouths old instead of twelve months when sent to the butcher the cost of keeping will dip considerably into the price they make, and the butcher will give more in proportion for a small sheep if fat than a big one. Of the South or Susses Downs I know but little. They have undoubtedly done a great good by crossing other breeds. I should like thera better if they grew more wool, had bigger backs, and less bellies. 1 think them great consumers of food for their size. If yon chance to be out travelling, early or late, where they pasture, yon will in- variably see them feeding at all hours, when the long wool sheep would be lying down. 1 often think when I see them in a show-yard well fatted I should like to dine off a haunch, and would keep some for my table if I were a nobleman. I consider them gentlemen's slieep, not farmer's to pay rent with. The Shropshire Downs are cross-bred sheep. I have seen many very good animals of that class, but I do not know in what way they were originally bred. I hear they are becoming small and light of wool. 1 should recommend a cross with a good fat-back Cotswold and heavy wool. The »00 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. three classes of longvvolled sheep have all beea wonderfully improved from bein.i? crossed with otlier loiignoolled sheep, and from careful selection among their own breed. There- fore they may be called crossbred sheep. The Shropshire, Ilanipshire, aad Oxfordshire are all crossed with longwool and shortrt'ool, a mixture altogether, and good sheep they are. I consider those three classes the best sheep for profit and to feed the public of any I kuow at the present time. If the Hampshire and Shropshire were blended wi',!'. more wool they would be more profitable to the producer. I believe the South- downs, horned Dorsets, and Welsh mountain to be the only • slieep that can be called pure breeds of all the classes I know anything about. All other breeds may strictly be called cross bred, and all so much improved by it that I do not think any one may hesitate in crossing if they will use judgment and put proper animals together, blending all the good qualities into cue, as I believe Mr. Twynara did some years past. I have no doubt but some of the Hampshire flocks are improved by it at the present time. He was perfectly right in putting the ewes of the first cro s to rams of the same cross— the only way to produce uniformity, and nothing shows good breeding so inuoh. Most persons admit the first cross to be good, but many are so absurd as to say the young ewes must bo seat off and not bred from. A very strange idea to my mind. After you have bred the animal you want them to do away with them. If a few lambs go wrong it will not be much loss to cull or weed them out aud feed them. Every person before purchasing his rams should look very closely into the points of his ewes, and put a ram good in those points in which the ewes are deficient. It may sometimes be requisite to use a longwooi, shortwool, auJ a half-bred ram among cross-bred to suit the different ewes and keep them right — that will require judgment to be exercised. Mr. Bakfoud thanked Mr. Smith for the practical manner in which he had introduced the subject, and he was also very glad to find tiiat he recognised the services the late Mr. Bakewell had rendered in forming his celebrated breed of Leicester sheep, and he was quite satisfied th it every flock of longwoolled sheep had either directly or indirectly benefited from a strain of his celebrated sheep. Before the Cotswolds received the benefit from the Bakewell blood they were a coarse bred, large-boned, unprofitable breed of sheep, and required a large amount of food before they were tit for the butclier. With regard to crossing he was convinced that judicious crossing — for instance, the Cotswolds with the Hampshire Downs— produced excellent animals for the butcher, coming curly to maturity, with only a moderate amount of food, but if the crossing was continued with the idea of keeping a cross-bred flock he was satisfied that it required immense care and judgment in selection, otherwise he was convinced they would deteriorate, and while he advocated judicious crossing for purposes of the butcher, he could not too strongly advise the retention of our pure breeds in their integrity, for what would the cross-bred flocks do if they had not the pure breeds to revert to occasionally P Mr. J. BLt;NDi,i.L had been very much interested by the observations of Mr. Smith respecting his Cotswold sheep. He (Mr. Blundell) had the pleisure of selling tegs obtained by his sheep at Botley market in 1850 and 1860. Mr. Charles B. Smith, of Wickham, had for some years used rams from Mr. W. Sm th's Cotswold flock. Mr. Smith had gone into the matter, and he was quite sure his remarks were much appreciated. He (Mr. Blundellj was struck very forcibly with his observations with reference to his idea iu bringing his sheep to perfection. He was quite convinced that in order for a man to bring about a good breed of stock or of sheep he must have his beau ideal before him. He must have that which he intended to produce iu his mmd's eye, or he would never see it in reality. If a man wanted to improve the breed of sheep he must have some idea in his head, for they might depend upon it these things did not come about by accident. When they had an idea to establish a type of eheep they must see whether it would be of advantage to have a Cotswold, or Hampsliire Down, an 0.\ford Down, or a Shropshire. Look at Mr. Humphreys — he reared a splendid class of sheep, and called them the Improved Hampshire Downs. He had one idea : he started upon it, and lie attained to such eminence as no man had reached since hia day. He wished, however, to make one or two remarks with reference to tlic cross- breeding of the sheep in his own time. He might say that iu 1826 was the first year he went to the Weyhill Sheep Hit. There had been for some ten yeais previous an attempt to establish a South Down or Hampsliire Down cross-breed with the Somerset and horned Dorset, thinking they would be able to supersede the horned ewe peculiar to the district of Somerset aud West Dorset. One peculiarity in the ewes was early {ambing, a greater number of twins, and more natural support for the lambs than any breed he knew of. But that did not succeed. He recollected very well Mr. Robert Gaylor, a gentle- man who was a member of that club, who, before his death, purchased some cross-bred ewes which were produced by a South Down ram from a horned ewe, aud the lambs produced were some of the best he had ever seen for general purposes, aud he thought it a great pity that they did not try it farther, but they said they could not get lambs enough, aad that was because they adhered too much to the Down. Tiien they said that the Down ewes did not leave such good manure as the horned. lie had had some experience in this matter, and coincided with this view, aud he did not hesitate to say that so far as his observation could guide him, the horned ewes left a great deal better manure for the crop in succession than the South Down ewe. He thought they should have adhered to those principles of crossing such as were set forth by old Mr. Humphreys, and by the same rule as guided Messrs. Druceand Howard with the Oxfords, and if the cross with the Down and horned ewes had been persevered in upon the same principle the Somerset and Dorset breeders might have produced a valuable type of sheep having the appearance of Down sheep which, through the influence of the scil and climate and the horned ewes blood, might have dropped their lambs in November and December, with plenty of twins, aud probably displaced the horned ewes altogether. He would divide his remarks under three heads. The first would be the cross for fat lambs. Tlie best cross he knew of would be to put a Hampshire Down ram to a horned ewe. It had been said that they should have South Down rams but he did not think so. It would not give the weight for age, and their coats did not come so well as the Hampshire Down cross. He once had a very nice lot of lambs indeed from horned ewes by the Cotswold cross, and he recollected taking them to Tareham Cattle Show and getting a prize with them. Ten of those lambs were sent to London, and he was told that they were the heaviest ever seen there for their age, aud seven out of the ten were twin lambs. The second point was as to fat tegs. He did not think they could do any belter, iu order to bring tegs fit for the butcher at I'Z or l-i months old, than put a Cotswold ram to a Hampshire Down ewe. The third and last point was with regard to the crossing of the flock for breeding purposes. This was a very important point indeed, because they found that go iuto what country they would, there was sure to be some who had a pre- judice against it. Some people said they would not attempt it, but they did not give a reason for it. Before a man could give auanswer he must have attempted it, aud then he would be in a position to say whether it would do or not. His advice was tiiat in some llocks, and more particularly Hampshire Downs and East Dorset, the Shropshire sheep would be the best to to cross with. And why ? Because they would have, first of all, 30 per cent. more lambs, they would liave a greater aptitude to fatten, they would run thicker, and they would have sheep hardier than the Hampshire Downs. At the same time they would have sheep which would yield more valuable wool- He was sure they would get 130 lambs out of 100 ewes in the Shropshire and Downs cross while they would not have more than 90 out of the 100 Downs. This was a matter worthy of their serious consideration. The sheep in the midland counties, including Shropshire, fed in a different way, and were more easily satisfied than the Hampshire Down breed. Then it was said that the iambs would be smaller, but they would have 30 per cent, more to sell. Supposing the loss in the 100 was 6s. per head on account of the size it would be £30, but then the gain on 30 lambs at £-2 each would be £00, so they would thus have £60 as against £30. This was an important point, aud these and other things must be taken into consideration if they attempted to cross in the breeding of a flock, and by doing what he suggested he believed they could get as great a per-centage of lambs as from any race of sheep in the king- dom. The Shropshire sheep was the hardiest breed they had. He had seen them under various circumstances, and he had seen them bear with that which would have cliilled their Hampshire lambs to death. He therefore considered that to adopt the Shropshire would be to improve our Down sheep. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 301 He would do precisely the same as Mr. Humphreys did ia the establisliaient of the Improved Hampshire Downs. In just tlie same way he would take the Shropshire Down aud improve the Hampshire Downs, selecting necessarily the best, weeding out the worst ewes, and taking the best rams. It had been objected by some that they would not have the colour, but tliey could have a Shropshire sheep with a dark face, aud farmers should not be deterred ou that account. He would not detain tliem any longer, but he could recommend Mr. Smith's type of sheep for early maturity. The r]Lviioi.v:v asked Mr. Smith in what way could Cots- wolds be rendered useful in that neighbourhood? 3Ir. Smith replied tliat he believed they could be made useful by being put to Hampshire Downs, and he considered they would make as good sheep as there were in existence, as the Hampshire sheep had a strong constitution. lu reply to Mr. Barford, Mr. Smith said he would cross the Cotswolds with the Hampshire Downs for the purpose of growing wool and mutton. Mr. W. C. Spooler said he thought they ought to bemnch obliged to Mr. Smith for bringing forward the subject of the breeding of sheep, and especially as he found that it was only twice in the history of the club that they had had sudi a sub- ject introduced and discussed. A.t the same time, since then many changes had been introduced for the better feeding and fatting of sheep, aud great expense had been incurred, and it was one of the very best subjects that could be brought before thein. He recollected last year, in July, going down to attend the meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society, and he stopped at Doncaster. Feeling very hungry, lie, with a friend, ordered some mutton chops, but, when they were brought in, he deter- mined not to order any more mutton if he went to the north again, the contrast between the mutton chops of the north and those of the south beiag very great indeed. He sent back C[uite as much as he consumed. And he thought it worth while to say here that while they were effecting changes, and putting more money into their pockets, they must take care they did uot sacrifice quality for the sake of quantity, and there- fore he thought they should keep their original breeds, for he should be very sorry indeed to see anything like the Sussex breed die out, and should rather wish to see them maintained in all their purity. The same might be applied to the Cots- wolds, but he could not recognise wool as the only remarkable quality of these sheep, and he was therefore glad to hear Mr. Smith speak up so well in their favour, that he had touched so aptly on their good qualities. He liked a man who would speak up for the good qualities of the breed of sheep with which he was satisfied, as he considered it a very hearty principle. He respected a man like BIr. Smith, who said that the Cotswold slieep had never disgraced him, and wlio con- sidered them the best breed in the world. He agreed with most of what he had said, but there was oue point on which he must dilfer, and it was ou a matter of history. Mr. Smith had told them that the Cotswold sheep led to the first wool market, but he (Mr. Spooner) could go back somewhat more remote than that, aud refer him to the time when a wool trade was established in Winchester at the time of the Romans. Thus they would see this was a time much more remote than that to which Mr. Smith had alluded ; but the breed of sheep then in existence had no doubt died out, and been replaced by more valuable ones. He might state that when some years ago he was asked to write a paper on the cross-breeding of sheep for the Joitniul of the Royal Agricultural Society, he wished to have some engravings inserted of the different kinds of sheep bred, but the only one the Council would allow was the old Wiltshire or Hampshire sheep — the white-faced one — which was the progenitor of the Hampshire sheep. [Mr. Spooner here produced the Jonrncl containing tlie engraving of the sheep, and he explained minutely its peculiarities.] He wished he had been allowed to have others inserted, as Ihey would have shown breeds now extinct. The origin of tlie Oxford sheep was no doubt to be attribute! to those in that county. Mr. Twynam was the first who established that breed, but lie did not pursue it to a great extent, lie having iiad occasion to change his farm ; but, during the lime he did couliinie it, he took his rams to Wilton fair, iiud they were crossed with the Hampsiiire and Wiltshire breeds, attaining extraordinary effect. Some few years before this the 0\ford men took tlie matter up. Mr. Druce was one of thcni, and he liad now rstablislird a lirred which was very valuable, while Mr. Ciiarles Howard was a very successful breeder. His sheep, he thought, were a dip into the Leicester breed, and now he succeeded in gaining any number of prizes. In establishing a new breed of sheep, how- ever, they should be careful what they were about. _ It was like a young man taking a wife. He knew many failed in consequence of not taking the right animals, and others from want of spirit to go on with the thing. He thought tlicre were many who when they had established a new breed of sheep thought they had done enough, and rested satisfied. Perhaps good mutton or size was req'iired, and tiierefore what had been the case with the Hampshire sheep and Oxford sheep was so with many others, and there had been, according to Mr. Smith's account, a greater crossing with the Cotswold , sheep than he had been led to believe. Rut still they had con- tinued with their crossing. In the Royal shows the Cotswold sheep were certainly giand animals, and showed much uni- formity of cliaractcr, and those who wanted the animal for the butcher alone should take the Cotswold breed. He did not think there was any sheep which would give so much food. Mr Spooner then proceeded to point out that the first cross witii the male was of advantage for the purposes of the butcher, and that while different breeds had gradually become almost ex- tinct yet a certain part of a particular breed was traceable a long time afterwards, in proof of which he quoted certain sta- tistics from " Darling's Work ou Plants and Auimals," aud v.liich was brought about by what they called reversion. It was no good to think of crossing unless they had a superior kind of animal, and with sheep it was different from others. The breeding of horses was a sort of gipsy chance work, but it was not so with sheep. In bieedmg sheep there was not only a principle to look to but also tlie pocket, and it was not until after many years of hard work, experiments, aud ex- penditure of money that their efforts were crowned with suc- cess. There was no class of animals where science, knowledge, and skill had been brought to bear so much as with sheep. That had been the case with Mr. Humphreys and Mr. Raw- leuce, who had so successfully improved the Hampshire sheep. They had only arrived at this pitch of excellence through exer- tion and great study, and one was surprised that when they arrived at this pitch of e.Kcellence some should let it stand still and look on, for it vras quite as difficult to keep up this standard of excellence as it was to obtain it in the first in- stance. He thought Mr. Smith deserved a great deal of credit for introducing the subject, and he hoped gentlemen would avail themselves of the advaniage of producing stock from his flock, which had proved so successful in the field against all ordinary competitors, for when a challenge had been thrown out he had accepted it, and with success. The CiiAiiiJiAN said so far as his experience with sheep went as a grazier, and particularly lambs, he could corroborate everything Mr. Smith had said witli regard to the putting of a Cotswold ram with Down ewes. He had dene so for many years, and with very much success, aud he must say tiie most profitable way of getting forward lambs was by putting a Down ram to a Somerset ewe. He recollected in that market lie showed some from a Cotswold ewe, and they not only carried away the prize, but he also obtained more money for them. He, however, should like to see the second cross carried out, as he believed it would result in immense advan- tage. He knew r. great objection to it, and particularly among the Hampshire men and sheep breeders, was that they liad to sell their best sheep, and consequently had none to fall back upon to keep their flock up. He agreed with Mr. Rarford— that they should not throw over altogether a distinct breed of sheep, so that they miglit always have the advantage of crosses with the pure bred. Unless they had a distiuct breed of sheep to fall back upon they could not continue their crosses with any advantage. He thought they should be obliged to Mr. Smith for bringing forward the subject, as it was one which deserved a great deal of consideration not only from breeders but also graziers of sheep, for he was sure cross- breeding might be carried out to a far greater e.xtent than it had hitherto. JMr. Rartord was of opinion that oue of (he drawbacks (o cross-breeding was that there was a great deal of unceitainty about it, and when a man crossed he was in doubt as to what would be the result. He tliought the great thing was to ha>e a breed of sheep suited to the land on which (hey lived. ]Mr. Smith, in ri'ply, said he did not think there was any advantage in producinjc immense animals. lie cuuld uot quite agree with wiiat Mr. Rlundell had said with respect to t!ie Slirop-.hire ;',«miuiI*. He had seen a great deal of them, 302 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. but he did not apiirove of them much. Some people objected to a cross on the ground of colour, hut why siiould they ob- ject ou tlwit account when they had an increase of wool, mutton, and o-her tliinp;s ? lie never saw any heavy wool out of Shropslures. Uis idea was tiiat Shro|)shire sheep crossed with Ilamshire Downs would not do at all. The latter put to a good fat-backed Cotsvvold ram would produce the best sheep in his opinion, lie proposed " That it is the opinion of this Club that for the purposes of the butcher a material advantage' is gained by using a iam of a different breed, and that with the Hampshire ewe no cross is more advantageous than that with the Cotsvvold ram." This resolution was seconded by Mr. \V. C. Spoo^■ER, and carried. The CiiAiiiMAN proposed a vote of thanks to Mr. Sraitli, which was seconded by Jlr. BAH,roRl),and carried, and a vote of thauks having been passed to the chairman the proceedings terminated. NEWCASTLE FARMER S' CLUB. THE BREAKING UP OF MUIRLAND. At tlie last meeting, Mr. William Lyall, of Cadonlee, read a paper on this subject : Dr. Wallis in the chair. Mr. Lyall said : I accepted the invitation of your secretary, my friend Mr. 15ell, to read a paper on this subject, with much pleasure but with consider- able hesitancy. To labour at and superintend this kind of work has fallen much in my way, and occupied a large portion of my time and attentiori since beginning to farm, but to write on the subject is a new vocation. Tlie century we live in has been and is very likely to be a wonderful one. All branches of industay have made rapid strides of progression, and the accumulation of vi'ealth has been ernormous. This prosperity we are pleased to be abl". to say, has not only visited those who were rich already, but has greatly improved and amelior- ated the condition of tlie working classes, who may iitly be viewed as the great consumers of food of the country. Their wages having been gradually, steadily, and greatly increased, their manner of living, as a consequence, has changed, a desire for better food become apparent, and in nothing is this more easily distinguished than in the demand for butcher's meat, for which our cold cUmate seems to produce a natural appetite. To meet the increased consumption we have been making large importations from neighbouring countries, which certainly is a plan highly to be approved, attended though it is with many evils ; still it would be wise for us as agriculturists — whether landlords or tenants — to give some attention to ascer- tain whether our own produce is as great as it can be, and to do all in our power to provide for a demand so much in accord- ance with the laws of nature and national prosperity. Of course all efforts in this direction must be so limit(!d as to allow of fair remuneration for our labonr, and a retarn of our out;lay, but with a view to what has been said, surely the first step must be to make certain that all ground that can be cul- tivated is immediately brought under tillage and made to pro- duce what it can. Late years have done much in this direction ; out arable acres have been mightily increased, but still there are to be found large tracts of land wliieh, from natural weakness of the soil, or from its distance from farm buildings and railways, because of its inaceessibleness and steeepness, from its high exposed climate, or from the quantity of stones upon it, would bafHe and render highly unprofitable all efforts at regular cultivation, yet which, by a judicious expenditure, might be made to yield excellent pasture for sheep. It is in regard to the improvement of this kind that we venture to throw out a few suggestions. And first, a* to fencing. Wire fencing in many cases may be found to be the cheapest, and is often gladly to be resorted to, but where stones can be pro- cured without difficulty or much expense, walls are much to be preferred. If built about 5 feet high — which costs about 8d. per lineal yard — they save the second but no less import- ant part, of a shelter for the sheep. Great care should there- fore be exercised that these dykes be placed with a view to this latter consideration, and it will sometimes be found advisable to enclose more land than is intended or can be broken up in order to secure a convenient shelter from the " angry ariths," as we say in Scotland. The surface stones should therefore be dug up and carted for this purpose before commencing to plougli ; what more are required can be procured while tlie plougiiing is going on. Draining should be proceeded with at the same time, if this expensive work cannot bo dispensed with. But where the ground is intended rather for pasture than cultivation, it will scarcely be necessary to go so thoroughly into this work as in regularly cultivated fields. The most convenient time for ploughing is during the summer months, when horses are generally less rcijuired for the ordinary work of the farm. If the surface be tolerably level and the land free from stones, the steam plougli may be intro- duced, but the common ploughs can oftener be used to advan- tage. Where on an incline, this should be done with one furrow, as the draught is excessive, and better work can be executed. It is no advantage to plough very deep — four or five inches being sufficient — but the furrows should be well closed to ensure the decomposition of the turf as quickly as possible. This ploughing is often attended with great clilficulty, an extra man to steady the beam of the plough being requisite, as also others to dig up the stones at the bottom of the furrow. But as first time is worst, and only, after all, a question of a pound or two per acre, it would be silly to be deterred by the first appearance of hard labour. I iiave seen many acres to break up with the pick and spade, the stones being lying so close as to prevent a plough being used. But where very bad pieces come in, unless tlic field is intended for regular ciopping, in which case patches uuploughed would be troublesome in the course of after cultivation, it would be as well to leave them untouched as incur so very much expense. There is this to be said, however, that when stones are to be dug or quarried for the dykes, there is almost no way of getting them cheaper than to" trench sucli pieces of ground. Stones are the great hindrances to the breaking up of large tracts of land in Scot- land, but there is a consideration here which is of importance to those selecting ground for improving, viz., if the soil is naturally dry, it is better to incur expense in digging stones than in draining wet land of equal quality, as the former is easier pulverised, and in most cases is of the most permanent value. In the course of the ensuing twelve months, or at all events six months before sowing the seed for the first crop, the stones having been removed from the ground, lime should be put on, the quantity applied to be determined by tiie nature of the soil. If it be light or sandy moor four tons per acre might suffice. I think it would be false economy ever to put less, and very generally from five to six tons would be neces- sary to have a satisfactory and lasting effect. The land should then be harrowed, or if a year has elapsed since the first ploughing, so as to have allowed time for the vegetable matter of the turf to rot. It might be cross-ploughed, but it is unwise to plough too soon, as more labour is entailed if the turf is too early brought up again to the surface. The frost in winter will have a great effect in reducing the sods, and after being well harrowed it will be ready the following season for the first seed. From good accessible fields a crop ofoats might be taken, but turnips sown broadcast require no more labour, and are more to be depended upon. A little aramonaical manure, say 3 cwt. per acre, should be given, and the seed very carefully distributed. Strange as it may at first appear, even on a roughish, turfy sur- face, three-quarters, or at most one lb. per acre of seed will be found amply sufficient. To get this very small quantity equally sown over a whole acre seems rather difficult, but perhaps the easiest and best method is to mix the seed with shellings from oats, and use the ordinary broadcast sowing machine. A single tine of the harrows will suffice to cover the seed, and it should be rolled afterwards. White turnips crop best on land in this particular state, and may be sown as late as the end of June. The first crop is by no means a certain one, but though the ground appear very rough, it is wise to try for a crop, as the preparation for it is further- ing the land, and a crop of turnips, besides the great amount of eating it stands when broadcast, even more THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 803 than an app:ireutly equal crop iu drills, will benefit the land tlirough tlie sheep (reading upon it. Another crop of turnii)s siiould follow, and this time sown in drills, if possible, before laying away in pasture. Some advise grubbing, instead of ploughing, at this stage ; and if the land is loose on the surface, and the weather dry while the turnips were being consumed by the sheep, this plan may be good, for obvious reasons. The grass will have the full benefit of the manure, and the firmness below is also helpful to its growth. Two or three pounds of rape should be mixed with the clover and grass seeds, and sown about the end of April or beginning of May. It will be ready for pasture about July or so, and perhaps no food is so fattening as what is then produced. Before being done with these details, you may perhaps want to know some- what of the cost. We can only roughly estimate this, as the expense varies so much. The main items, however, are ploughing, from £1 to &2 10s. per acre ; building fences, £2 to £3 ; lime, from £4 to £6 ; stones digging, or draining, £1 to £10 ; carting, &c., £1 to £2 ; in all, from £9 to £23. A wide diflferenoe, as you may perceive ; but say from £13 to £16 as a medium, or £20 in exceptional cases. Allow me to remark here that the work is very hard on both men and horses, and that it is absolutely necessary to procure as good men as possible. The horses must be steady ; fiery ones are of no use, and should be well fed and carefully driven, else they may get knocks agaiost stones which may very easily cause a great deteriortion in their value. The first three crops — two of turnips and one of rape — will go far to repay the outlay, not including that which is of a permanent character. With respect to the after management of such ground, little need be said. It is generally reckoned that the death-rate is higher among sheep pastures on new than on old ground, which may be accounted for by its growthy nature, and because more sheep are kept per acre. It is, therefore — especially the first summer, when ihe rape is there — better for wethers or old sheep than for lambs ; and, if convenient, it is a good plan to graze an old field along with it. It should be allowed to lie in grass so long as it yields sufficient quantity of pasture to be remunerative ; but N\hen the grass begins to get wild it should be ploughed. In no case should it be ploughed so often as to make it lose its freshness ; much of our new land of a weak nature has been rendered compra- tively useless through this error. It is easier to keep laud in good condtioa than to bring it up after it has been reduced, and if allowed to lie a number of years in grass at a time it will thereafter produce with a vigour which can scarcely be expeetedl'rom old cropped land. We spoke of the expense as being from £12 to £16 per acre ; let us now consider how this is to be met. It is evident that before this land can be done the tenant must show himself enterprising and energetic, be willing to put forth a considerable amount of capital and labour, as well as be content to wait a year or two before he reaps any fruits from bis efforts. We have, therefore, staring us in the face the necessity of the tenant's having some security for his capital before he will launch into such improvements, as every one knows that enterprise must have ior its motive the prospect of immense results or absolute security of small profits. The former, as tenant-farmers, wo need not expect ; the latter we are legitimately entitled to. In Scotland, where leases for lU or 21 years are almost universal, it has been cus- tomary to make a special bargain at the beginning of the lease, such as the landlord agreeing to erect the fences and execute the drainage, which, being permanent improvements, remain to him when the lease has expired. The I'J years in which the tenant has opportunity to redeem his capital are held to be security. This is doubtless a fair and honourable arrangement ; but it is by no means a perfect system. A rush to get through with improvements during the first years, and over-cropping at the end of the lease is almost a natural consequence. The tenant finds it necessary to curtail his expenditure after one-third of his lease has run, and often ceases to improve, from a fear of not having time to recover his capital, when he could the most easily afford to go on. A system by which the tenant at his way-going would receive compensation for all improvements executed by him, which enhanced the lettable value of the farm, would thereby be enabled and encouraged to go on im. proving all through his lease whenever a convenient time pre- sented itself, and would be sure to retain to the end of the lease the soil in the highest possible condition. On the other hand, the benefit ensuing to the landlord would even be much greater. All land that could be broken up and yield a fair percentage fur capital employed would gradually be brought under cultivation, and as we have just said, it would be the endeavour of the tenant to maintain the fertility to the end of his lease. Practical observation teaches us that when a farm in such a desirable condition comes into the market there is always plenty of competition for it, and the landlord would get in the shape of increased rent what he had paid as compensa- tion to the preceding tenant, and a great deal more, I hesitate not to say, if the expenditure has been judicious and the im- provements of permanent value, not to speak of the pleasure any right-thinking proprietor must have in seeing his land well farmed, nor of the good results in the shape of increased pro- duce which partake of a national character. I have always had a great wish that this could be effected by mutual arrangement rather than calling for legislation on the subjest. Why should proprietors and their tenants grow year after year to be more at cross purposes with each other ? The former, for example, have got increased rents, just as the latter have thriven and become able to pay them ; and sarely it is evident in reference to the question before us that the interests of both parties are identical. In other words, that greater facilities to the farmer bespeak larger rents to the landlord, factors should be particularly careful to preserve the good feeling that ought to subsist. Great responsibility lies with them ; and oh ! if they were men of ability — not merely good accountants, but at home in all the branches of farming — capable of judging of all propositions laid before them by the farmers, and vested with powers to enter into terms for im- provements at all times, how often would we be willing to let our landlords get great benefits if they only allowed us com- pensation enough to make our work pay! I know not whether I speak to both classes or to tenants only, but surely it would redound to our credit if we are united in our efforts to make agricultural enterprise keep pace with the times. The taste which the people of our islands have acquired for better living will grov;' rather than otherwise ; what were considered luxuries twenty years ago are necessities now ; and should we not take advantage of this favourable tide — to put it on no higher than selfish grounds — and increase our supplies, instead of year after year becoming more dependent on our Continental neighbours F Of course, we must stop short when remunera- tion ceases, but we are yet far from this point. Let us then so far as we can keep our capital in our own country, hoping to increase our own profits at the same time. We leave it to trades unions and all such little tyrannical powers to raise their incomes by restricting the supplies — everyone is the better for our advancements, which will be the result of honest industry. My paper is finished. I cannot but feel how un- satisfactorily I have performed this duty, how little justice has been done to so great a subject. No vague theories have been indulged in ; what has been said has been picked up by ob- serving my vigorous neighbours, from my father (who has had great experience), and during the last three or four yeirs on my own farm, where we are still diligently employed. I refrain from speaking of this from a fear of appearing egotisti- cal ; but if any of you in the course of after discussion care to ask any questi ons, please do not hesitate to do so, as I am only too willing to give you the benefit of my practical know- ledge. Or if any one or number of members of this club have a desire to see this kind of work, as there is now a good opportunity, if they honour me with a visit, I shall be proud to see them, will gladly give them all information in my power, and show them such hospitality as can be expected from a bachelor farmer. My address is with your secretary, Mr. Bell, who will communicate between us, perhaps he will be even more accomuiodating, and show you the way to Selkirkshire. Mr. Brydon said it would be a great pity if they separated without discussing the very valuable paper which he had heard read with great pleasure, from the little experience he had had in the improvement of waste land, he could endorse all that Mr. Lyall had said, and he did not know that he could say anything ; but it struck him that the estimate of 8d. per lineal yard for the erection of slone walls was very much lower than in his experience. The CiiAiUMAN : They could not do it in Northumberland. Mr. Bkydo.n said it used to cost a shilling. The CuAiiiiVUN said perhaps some gentlemen might have something to say in opposition to Mr. Lyall's tlieory of breaking up these lands. His opinion was that they ought 304 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. never to break tliem up, but (o draia them, clear away the stones, and improve them by manuring. Mr. Jon>' Hope (Hexham) ventured to say that Mr. Lyall had struck very important ground, for if there was one thing jnore than another whicli required great study aud attention it was the subject so ably brouglit before them by Mr. Lyall. It was not for him to speak on the mere mechanical part of the quf stion, but rather from the standpoint of the great benefit to the nation arising from Mr. Lyall's valuable recommenda- tions. It was clear that the population was increasing rapidly ; and, if we were to provide for a much larger population, we mast keep pace with the times in capital, skill, aud labour, for if we got behind we should suffer nationally. It was said that w'e could feed a much larger number of caitle and sheep than we do. Last year something like lialf a million acres ol waste land were reclaimed, and, if we went on at tliat rate, we should probably keep up with the requirements of the country. As our population inereased, the value of cattle would increase, unless we provided a large quantity of feeding land, and one of the most important means to this end was to call into use the waste land of the country. How many acres of waste land had we P Mr. Lyall said he did not know. Mr. Hope said he had come unprepared ; but, if the discus- sion were adjourned, he ventured to say that a great amount of information could be brought to bear on the subject. Mr. Reed said there was always great diffidence in speaking on the part of farmers at these discussions. It struck him that Mr. Lyall must have devoted a great deal of time and at- tention to bring his paper up to the mark ; and he tliouglit, if he had not been so busy in farming, he would have been married, at any rate. Tlie chairman had stated that he did not see his way clearly to the breaking up of waste lands, but it struck him (Mr. Reed), from the little he had seen in his outlandish country, it would be diiticult to get anything but artificial manure there. He thought the time was not far dis- tant when they would iiave to make a very great effort to improve the land. Many said they would have to lay down their poor land to grass, but it would be little use doing so without manure, farmers were not in an enviable position. There was one question Mr. Hope got warm upon, and that was Tenant-Riglit. Mr. Hope : I never mentioned it. iMr. Reed : Well, well, I thought you did. Tiie time is not come for that, but I hope the time will not be long before we get a proper Landlord and Tenant Bill. Mr. W. Bell (Harlow Hill) said many of the members in the other room had not heard the p^per, and he thought it would be better to adjourn the meeting. His opinion was tliat the day was far distant when they would have to break up fresh land, which was evident if they took this county as a criterion. Tlicy found almost everywhere large tracts of land only half cropped, and it would not be to the advantage of landlords to break up more. It might be to the advantage of the country if «-aste lands were brought into cultivation ; but the question was. Did not Mr. Hope, or anyone else, think it would be much better to have tlie land already broken up brought into a better state of cultivation, rather than go on breaking up more, which would pay neither landlord nor occu- pier ? Let them take the railway in any direction, and tliey will see tillage lands with crops of oats not worth bringing into the barn. Then, again, what would be the use of breaking up these lands without having plenty of manure to put on them ? There was manure enough in the country, but farmers would not pay the price for it for this purpose. If a tenant did, he would waut 10 or 12 per cent, for his outlay, which he now got without risk ; and how would the landlord be likely to do it ? When liiey saw the present land properly cropped and cultivated tliey might raise the question of breaking up more ; but until then, they might safely let the mat.'er rest quietly. Mr. Robert Wood said he knew land on tlie Lammerranir Hills which some years ago was not under cultivation, but which now grew turnips that would do credit to any land in the United Kingdom. On a farm of Mr. Lyall's uncle, a few months ago, he saw turnips growing that would grace Tyuside on black, raoory soil. Mr. Bell seemed to be unaware that in these moory places there was a perfect mine of rich mould, which, with the application of lime, produced enormous crops. lie would say, cultivate well whatever they had, and briug that which is waste into cultivation, so as to produce abun- uant crops. Mr. Lyall did not suppose ihev were not lo cultivate the land they had better, but to bring "that which is comparatively worthless into cultivation also— that which in the Lotliians is worth £3 or £4 au acre, and in parts of England is not to be got for money. ^Mr. Wallace (Trench Hall) thought Mr. Bell aud Mr. Wood were both right, and he agreed with them both. There was great advantage in the black, moory soil described by Mr. Wood, because it would give the very things they were striving to get. But ift the counties of Northumberland and Durham there was uot a yard of it. He would endorse Mr. Bell's Ojoinioti strongly. With tlie present exigencies of the labour question, aud the dilUculty of getting manure, it would be the greatest folly to break up more land. Look at the nature of the soil. They had got a very large area of cold- bottomed chiy land, which was quite unfit to grow turnips, aud it would require a great amount of manure and careful cultivation. That v/as one proof that Mr. Bell was right. It was impossible to grow turuips on it, and unless they could do that it would be useless to go to the expense of working it. He then thouglit it would be better to adjourn the discussion, in order that they might have an opportunity of reading the paper, and be prepared to speak about it. The CiiAiujiAN thought that nearly all the gentlemen who had spoken had misunderstood Mr. Lyall. It was not the breaking up of these waste lands, but how to improve them, and then laying them down to grass again. Mr. BiiYDOX said the propriety of breaking up the land to which Mr. Lyall referred was unquestionable. A great part of the land on the Lammermuirs and Gala Water would not keep a sheep under four or five acres ; but he had known some which after it had been broken up and laid down to grass would keep sis sheep to the acre. A vote of thanks to Mr. Lyall was carried, and it was agreed to have the paper printed. Mr. Lyall said in reply he did uot expect that his paper would liave met with universal approval, and he could ouly say of those gentlemen who had ditfered from him that he was glad to hear tlie other side of the (luestion. He did not at all refer to the land which was immediatety under tillage, as he was laying away land four or five years. The advantage could easily be seen on a stock farm of having new laud, which grew turnips better than any laid cropped land, and as turnips are essential for stock, he had them on the new land, which enabled him to allow the old tillled land a longer time for pasture. Mr. Brydon had referred to steepness in the land. He had a field that a cart could not be driven across, and the stones had to be taken away on sledges. This year it got about 3 cwt. of dissolved bones, with a little ammonia, the turnips were sown in June, and he had no doubt they would eat £S to the acre, besides t!ie advautage of running the sheep off to another field. The discussion was theu adjourned for three weeks. THE ESSEX " MUDDLE."— At a meeting of the com- mittee of the Essex Agricultural Society, it was dis- covered that the days fixed lor holding the next show on one side of London were the same as these fixed some time previously for holding another meeting on another side of Loudon, at a small town known as Epsom, whereupon it was " unauimously resolved" to put back the Stratford Metting until after the Derby. A wondrous body is this same Essex Committee, and the Stratford Meeting has now been cleverly contrived to clash with that of the Beiks Society, to be held on the same days on another site handy to London, viz., at Reading. DISSOLUTION OF A POOR-LAW UNION.— In conse- quence of the persistent refusal of the board of guardians of the Garstang Union (Lancashire) to erect such a workhouse as the Local Government Board deemed requisite for that union, it has been determined that it shall Ijc dissolved, and that tlie townships of which it is composed shall be added to the Preston, Kyhle, and Lanca'-trr Unions. GLOUCESTERSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY— It lias been decided to hold the next meeting at Tewkesbury, against Cheltenham and Cireucester, also in competition. TIIE MALT TAX. — At the market dinner at Scvenoaks, it was resolved to agitate for a total or partial repeal of the Malt-duty. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 305 THE DETECTION OF ADULTERATION IN ARTICLES OF FOOD AND DRINK. At the last raesting of the Chemical Society, Mr. T. Bell, of Somerset ilouse, delivered a lecture, iu which he said : As early as 1777, an Act of Parliament was passed to prevent the adulteration of tea, and in the following year another di- rected against the adulteratioujof tea and coti'ee. In the prosecu- tions instituted by the Excise, however, every facility is afforded to the accused to defend himself, by allowing liini to liave por- tions of the saiiie sample as that analysed at Somerset House for analysis and examination by liis own chemist, and in all cases taken into court the analyst has to give his evidence on oath, and the defendant is finally dealt with according to the circum- stances of the case. As the cheapness of many of the s'arclies causes them to be largely used for adulteration, one of the first things necessary in studying the subject is to become acquainted with the microscopic characters of the various starches, such as those of wheat, barley, oats, rye, maize, sago, rice, potatoes, beans, peas, &c. The speaker pointed out the distinctive cha- racters of these, illustrating his description by well-executed drawings of the appearance which the ditferent varieties of granules present under the microscope. He also noticed the various kinds of arrowroot occurring in commerce, namely — that of the JIan//i/a aricid'niacccc ; the Enst Indian or Cur- cuma arrowroot, from Cnrci'ma amj nsUfoli" \ the Tacca arrow- root, from Tacca oceanica; Cassava, or Tapioca, from BLmthot iifillssima ; the Portland arrowroot, from the tubers of Arum maculatam ; and the Canna, or Tout-les-Mois, from the Canna edulis. The next subject treated was the adulteration of colfee, which can only be successfully accomplished after it is roasted and ground, but has, perhaps, been carried to as great an extent as almost any other article of food. A very simple way of detecting tlic presence of chicory in colfee is to sprinkle a little of it on tiie surface of water iu a test-tube or wine- glass, when each particle of chicory becomes surrounded with an amber-coloured c'oud, which spreads iu streaks through the water until the whole acquires a brownish tinge : witb pure coffee, liowcver, no cloud is produced until the lapse of about a quarter of an hour. Another method of detecting adulte- ration is by the depth of colour obtained by the infusion of a given weiglit of the suspected article in water, and by the density of the infusion. The use of the microscope is, liow- cver, indispensable, and, for tliis purpose, it is necessary to be acquainted with the microscopic characters of tlie various substances used to adulterate the coffee, such as chicory, mangold wurzel, carrots, parsnips, turnips, beans, peas, acorns, locust-beans, rye, the husks of mustard-seeds, &c. The dis- tinctive characters of these were described by the lecturer, and illustrated by enlarged drawings. He also noticed that the ash of coffee, remarkable as it is for the minute quantity of silica it contains, and for the absence of soda, afforded a valuable indication of its purity. Tea is adulterated to a very large extent, not only with leaves of various kinds, including exhausted tea-leaves, but also with inorganic sub- stances, such as quartz, sand, and magnetic oxide of iron ; these latter substances are rolled up inside the leaf, and one sample of green tea examined was found to contain no less than 20 per cent, of quartz and 8.6 of the magnetic oxide. The latter may readily be separated by grinding up the tea, and removing the magnetic oxide with a magnet. The facing employed for green tea usually consists of French chalk and Prussian blue. In the preparation of exhausted tea-leaves, they are rolled up with gum-water, and then dried, catechu being added in some cases to restore the astringency. The article known as the " maloo mixture" consists essentially of exhausted tea-leaves. In searching for tlie presence of other leaves than those of the tea-plant, the best method is to heat a small quantity of the suspected tea with water until the leaves are sufiicieutly softened to admit of being unfolded. They should then be spread out on a piece of glass and care- fully examined as to the nature ol the serratures and the character of the venation, also the form of the cells of the epidermis and the stomata, and the peculiarities of the hairs as shown by the micioscope. The essential difl'crences which the tea-leaf presents when compared with other leaves were minutely described. The chemical composition of tea was next discussed, the amouut of lignin and of tannin being very important. The two kinds of pepper, known iu commerce as black and white pepper, are derived from the same plant, but differ in the latter being bleached, or having the husk removed by washing; but neither kind can be adulterated witli success before it is ground. The most common adulterants of ground pepper are linseed meal, the husks of mustard-seeds, rice, bean, and pea-meal, and the flour and bran of the ordinary cereals, ground chilies being sometimes added to restore the pungeney. Some of these substances can be readily detected by diffusing the pepper in water, and pouring the mixture on to a muslin sieve ; the deep red particles of the chili can then be recog- nised, and also the camphor-like fragments of rice. The mustard-husks are known by their cup-like shape, whilst the smooth, shining appearance of tlie linseed readily distinguishes it from the dull brown of the pepper. Mr. Bell, iu replying to questions from Dr. Wright and Dr. Voeleker, said that the amount of ligneous matter in tea was determined by thoroughly exhausting the leaves by repeatedly boiling them with fresh quantities of v/ater until the washings were colourless. He tbought that the amount of theinein tea did not afford positive evidence as to whether it was adulterated or not, as the amount in the difleren qualities of tea varied from 1,8 to 5.9 per cent. ; the estima- tion of the tannin present was far more important. VALE OF ALFORD TURNIP ASSOCIATION. At the annual meeting, Mr. 11. 0. Farquharson, of Haugh- ton, in the chair, Mr. Keid, Bents, the Secretary, submitted the report on the turnip crop of 1873. It showed that there are 2G members in the Association, and that the crop on 17 farms was inspected. Tue judges were ; Messrs. Win. Pater- son, Whiteley ; James Alexander, Guise ; Win. Anderson, Kinstair ; John Leonard, Earraton ; James Kennedy, Stratli- lunach; Henry Stevenson, Tillygreig ; and James Lawson, Scotsmill. The judges awarded the prizes as follows : Ciiaile:mge Cui-, given by Mr. 11. O. Earquharson, of Haughton, for greatest weight per acre of yellows aud swedes combined. — 1 (the cup), Mr. Yule, Glenlogie (23 tons 12 cwt. 3 qrs. 121bs.) 2, Mr. 11. O. Earquliarson, of Haughton (26 tons 7 cwt. 3 qrs. 121bs.) 3, Mr. Wilkeu, Waterside (26 tons 1 cwt. 1 qr. 2Ulb3.) 4, Mr. Wm. xM'Combie, M.P., Tillyfour (26 tons 2 qrs. lilbs.) Yellows.— 1, Wm. Yule, Glenlogie. 2, R, 0. Earquhar- son, of Haughton. Savedes. — 1, G. Wilken, Waterside. 2, AVm. JL'Combie, M.P., Tillyfour. The Judges iu their report said : " We arc of opinion that nriiips generally have been as fine a crop as has \wkw known n this district for a largo number of years, and that, consider- n g the great difficulty of keeping down the excessive growth of weeds encouraged by the late rainy season, farmers deserve great credit. Three acres respectively of swedes aud yellows was tlie quantity inspected on each farm, as contrasted with four of swedes and five of yellows, which was the required quantity last year. The heaviest swedes were grown at Water- side, the yield being 29 tons 4 cwt. 1 'ir. 41bs. It may be noted here that on about one-half of this crop — and that the heaviest — the dung used was driven on the stubbles and ploughed down during the autumn. ]\lr. Yule, Glenlogie, who carries off the Challenge Cup, had the heaviest crop ot yellows, viz., 32 tons 12 cwt. 3 qrs. 121bs. The average of the respective weights of swedes and yellows as compared with last year are as follows : Swedes in 1872, 1 6 tons 2 cwt. 3 qrs. ; yellows in 1872, 16 tons 2 cwt. 3 qrs. Swedes in 1873, 24 tons 2 cwt. 16lbs. ; yellows in 1873, 23 tons 15 cwt. 1 qr. 81bs. AVlien we take into consideration the unusual mildness of the bcason, we are quite convinced that the weights would have been still more favourable had the time for inspection been late on in the autu!iiu. The following ])oiuts observed by us will perhaps be worthy of notice. (1.) The last week of May and the first week of June has been the mott seasonable time for sowing swedes aud yellows respectively last year. (2.) The best crops have been grown on 26-inch drills. (3.) Guano, where it has been used, has been attended with good results. 306 THE FAFtMER'S MAGAZENE. 95 01OC01CC1^O-#-f»O00 -f'OCiOCO-?' ^gt— !■— I i-HOli— li— I0'3 -P S'^ir- ioif3m-*cocococo CM OO CO C!5 >p 05 -^ t- >0 lO »o CO o -i< CO CD Ct CO »0 T^ O «b 6> oo (» cc CO ni sdiiunj, jo jaqnintii •S9i[Dni ^ ^ ^ _ i~ t~ oo i^ c^ CO C* CJ CM CI CI CM CM CJ C< CM d CM CM CM CM 0< CI -O 1— 1 CO O O C5 O O CO O CO O 0-*-fll^-OcO •lOOiocooovct^-cocjCf— lo ccricoooci "i— (r-Hi— ft— I 1—1 1—1 r— I 'onBn£)-oi{dsoiu •c^ •4«o .ud '[uapf anog •jA\o jad 'sg 'sajBqdsoijdjadng 'iai[snq jad -pg 'sf 'sanofj; }sn(j ;q ~ ctf ■ 0-3 (ansnq lad "pf -sf 'satioq; paxij^ •^tto jad -pg -sQ 'sanog; paAjossiQ; 1-1 c^ • CI i-( : - o •;.v\o lad 'pg 'sc^ 'oDTing •piB^ CO t^ 1?5 CO -* •* Cl O C^ lO CO rtr— IrHr-li— li— IrHr— li— ICJ CM : o CO Tff c> . rH 1—1 1—1 r—l m S — 00000030CO o o o o o o i -a -3-0 -a -a oj-ri^ a:> -oocD^r:it-HOO Ocsiiooc/Dciocijoodbaocsii 0550aStOr— IC<5C»00'*1300-#t— «ot~c-ooooot~t— oooooot~^~ •Sdijour -l-i— IfHeH-ji-.l-f ,^05 0:00r-<0 0 3t^00c00-^ mCO i0O=0t0 0>i0OOC0i>-OCiO 1—1 1— li— Ir— 1 rHi— li— Ir— I •4.tta jad -sgi; 'ouBn£)-oi]dsot[j ■J.413 Jdd •p9 -ss '500S •4;na jjd •;.v\3 jad -pg -SOI '|Kaj\[ anoq" •^jia jad -SQ 'sa4in{dsoi[iIjadns •pi[snq jjd -pg -sf 'saaoq; jsug [aiisnq aad -p-^ -sf 'sanof[ paxij^ •(MO J-)d "po 'SQ sanof]- po\io-;s[(-j; •jtta Jad •p9 'sgj 'onunr) •pjL'.C jad -nf '2iin(j « "so C? ^ CO "OQOoco :ioe45oe»eot—'5*i PL, C< Q. a, iH. Q. o> Jd o ^o ^ ^o ^ ^o o b o o o' ' 3 3 a t- c tiiOwCut^rfcuLiia^nja-aiejcuti) a 3 3 a ■ u^ cTtJOfl 3 O £3 IS .3 >>-5 o'x S 5 a ■> 2 -S -2 g : ci cj ^ ■> t^ Bi as !c(^cjgco'=<'^'ijl ;;ic(C( Ji |ci-ic( get i« it (5 >>>>:>. " >.>^>> >»t^ ^ >» 308 THE TAEMER'S MAGAZINE. The CiiAiRJfAN said he was glad to find they were not in the same position this year as they were ia the previous year, when they were prominent in having the worst crop of turnips in the whole county of Aberdeen. It was a very odd thing that they should have established their association, and that tlieir first competition should have taken place in the year in which the turnip crop was the worst upon, record. That was a very curious circumstance, but, of course, their record would be retained, and would be useful for comparison in other years during the existence of the association. He had to congratu- late tiie members upon the results of this year, and he looked forward to next year bein? still better. They were, with the view of making the results better, going*to introduce a new principle in awarding the prizes. It had been settled by the association that next year the whole crop of turnips on the farm should be taken into consideration, instead of, as liereto- lore, three or four acres. Tiie judges will take into account the character of the whole turnip crop upon the farm, and will decide according to the best weight and best cultivation. He hoped the adoption of that principle would have the effect of extending the membership of the association, and would give more satisfaction than the course iollowed in previous years. There was one thing he wished to bring under their notice, and that was the very prominent feature that, amoiigst the various manures that were used, it was very, often the case that the man who laid down the greatest quantity of artificial manures did not derive the greatest advantage. He thought, in these circumstances, it would be advisable for the members of this association to have all their artificial manures analysed before they put them into the ground. He found it stated in an agricultural paper that week that in England some of best firms had been found to fail in regard to tlie quality both ot their feeding stuffs and artificial manures, wlien the articles delivered came to be analysed by the chemists of the different associations. Now, if such things took place in England, they might also take place in Scotland ; and he would strongly advise the gentlemen forming this association to have the manures that they purchased analysed, and not to trust to any guarantee. He thought they should take into consideration who they would appoint to be their analytical chemist, and how he was to be paid. They principally bought their manures from two or three companies, and if a number of them took the same manure at the same price they could have one sam- ple analysed, and it would serve as a guarantee for every buyer. He hoped they would take the matter into considera- tion, and he would be very happy to hear any one upon the subject. Mr. M'CojiBiE, M.P., proposed the health of Mr. Farqu- harson, of Haughton, their president and chairman, and the OJiginator of the association. They all knew that the tenant- farmers depended upon their turnips, and upon the price they obtained for their fat cattle ; and he hoped the proprietors would allow him to say that their rentals mainly depended npon that also. The Vale of Alford was much indebted to Mr. Earquharson for the impetus he had given to tuinip cultivation. Speaking for himself, he would be very anxious to have the best turnips in the Vale of Alford, and he could assure them he was very proud to know thst he came in second to liis friend Mr. Wilken. No doubt the farmers would use their best exertions to grow the heaviest crop possible, and they were indebted to their chairman for encouraging them to do that. Tiiere was, no doubt also, in a more serious matter about four years ago, they were deeply indebted to their chairman, for at the time the rinderpest tbreatened to decimate their herds, no one supported the tenant-farmers so strenu- ously as Haughton did. He hoped what Mr. Earquharsou did at that time would never be forgotten by the tenant-farmers of the Vale of Alford. It was of no use, where he was so well known, to say a word about Mr. Earquharson's merits. He believed Haughton was a man, who, as every one should, tliouglit for himself, and, tiiough he and Mr. Earquharson did not agree upon political subjects, that jwas nothing at all. He knew quite well that would never interfere with their private friendship. He proposed the health of Haughton, who was a good landlord, and he believed would always be known as a good landlord, and one who wished to live and let live. Mr. George Bruce, Keig, introduced a discussion on pastures. He said : " Old times are changed, old manners gone," are words which might well be used in regard to the agriculture of our vale. Not many years ago farmers derived their income almost entirely from the grain crops, but now it is principally, as our worthy M.E, remarked, by the rearing and feeding of cattle they can make ends meet. As our pastures have therefore a good deal to do with the feeding of our stock, and have uot hitherto got the attention they deserve — in other words, thougli tbey have degenerated in a great measure by the continued cultivation of the same plants — till the old system of selecting, and manner of sowing the seeds, have not changed. I therefore intend to make a few remarks on this subject, which I trust will, in some case, make two blades of grass to grow where only one grew before. Erom what I can learn, clover seeds were first sown about the beginning of the seventeenth century, and about 1650 they were sown almost as they are now. It may seem strange, but for nearly tu'o and a half centuries little improvement on the old system of sowing our seeds has been made ; while on the other hand we know that the grass on many farms is not so good as it used to be. None of my hearers doubt the impor- tance of having good pasture, but were I to ask how much ryegrass and clover seed I should sow per acre to make good grass, so much diversity of opinion exists that ten farmers from the hundred now present would not advise me to sow the same quantities. Without respect to the kind of soil, one farmer sows 401bs. of light ryegrass Bnd 41b3. of clover seed per acre ; while liis next-door neighbour, in tlie same sort of soil, will sow 30Ibs. of the heaviest ryegrass and lOlbs. of clover seeds per acre. Now, one of the two must be wrong. Unless soil, and crop, and climate are considered, wc shall never make good pastures or hay, for there is a "certain under- stood connection between the soil and the kind of plant," and it is, therefore, quite out of the question to suppose that the same seeds will suit all soils and all climates, will suit our thin high-lying fields as well as our in-town, whether intended for hay or pasture. In too many cases, farmers, when selecting their seeds, do not consider that the field for hay should get different kiuds and quantiliesof seed from the field that is to be pastured, and the consequence is that disappointments often occur. Without referring to any particular soils, but speaking generally of the soil in our vale, farmers should sow for hay a large percentage ot English red and Alsyke clover, with a few extra pounds of ryej;rass. Eor pasture, more white clover, with a good deal of covvgrass, and a few pounds of Italian rye ; and in high-lying soils a pound or two of trefoil per acre is very useful, especially for sheep pasture. I strongly recom- mend the cowgrass clover, not only because it lives a year longer than other clovers, but it has a much larger root, as you will see by what I now before you. (Mr. Bruce here exhibited a clover root about fifteen inches in length ) Tiie Italian ryegrass is also of great moment to the farmer, being a most useful early grass ; and, if sown at the rate ot 61bs. per acre in the field intended for hay, the second crop will greatly abound with it, thereby being a preventive for the blowing of cattle. By sowing a few pounds of it with the other seeds, you may then sow less clover seed, and be easier on your soil. Some farmers do not sow Alskye clover. I think this is a mistake. It is a most useful friend to the farmer. It is peren- nial ; no winter kills it ; and it is seldom injured when the crop is laid. It is said cattle do not eat it, and, no doubt — it being a strong-tasted plant — they do not care for too much of it. Were I to compare the taste of the cattleman to the oattle, the matter may be explained by telling you that one of our north country cattlemen went lately the round of Bingley Hall, Smithfield, and Newcastle shows, and on being asked by his companion when he returned home " Eu he liket to live in the south,' he replied, " Nae ava, Saundy, man. I liket the diet gey weel in the beginnin', but as I got naethiug ava but roast beef and plumpuddin' and stuff' o' that kind, I got rael sick saer't o't." Now, ray friends, cattle are something like our cattlemen — they do not like too much of any good thing — they do not care for too raucli Alsyke ; and to justify what I say, you have only to notice tbein, when in a field of the finest clover, go and eat the moss from the top of the fence. Very often the farmer is surprised to find abundance of clover in one field, and hardly a plant in the next. My belief is that this is in a great measure owing to the kind of seeds we sow. A deal of the foreign clover seeds are too weak to withstand the vicissitudes of our changeable climate. Erost one day, rain the next, sleet and rain and snow, and so on, on certain soils, has a tendency to throw out the clover seeds. T have seen a field where, on the part that was exposed, hardly a plant could be got, while on the other side of the field, which THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 309 got the same amount of frost, but did uot get tlie morniug sun, plenty of clover plants were to be seen. The farmer should therefore use as hardy seeds as possible, and this can only be attained by usin;;^ seeds of eertain countries' growth. I mean English grown seeds, or at least a large percentage of them. Welsh red clover is also becoming a favourite. You all know the importance of a change of oats ; and in like manner red clover from the mountainous districts of Wales is a capital ciiauge. If the farmer sow English-grown clover, he may expect a strong broad-leafed plant. If, however, he sow weakly seeds, unless in very favourable seasons, he is cer- tain to get weakly plants. Let him sow strong clovers, or at least a large percentage of them, and then he will hear less of that remark, " clover-sick," which many of our best farmers only too often make. Owing to the size of our clover seeds, there being from 24-0,000 to"250,000 seeds in a pound the farmer often makes the mistake of burying his seed. By ex- periment we lately found that red clover brairds best with a covering of half-an-inch of soil ; that only 50 per cent, will grow if put Ij in. deep, and at a depth of 2 in. not a plant will appear. With white clover, tlie best braird is with half- an-inch of covering; at j in. only the half will grow, and at a depth of 1^ in. not a seed will germinate. From this the necessity will be seen of getting a fine mould to receive the seeds, and also, on looking at tlie root of clover I showed you, you will then see tiiat too much care cannot be taken in pre- paring the soil, the rootlets being so very feeble. Some farmers roll the soil before putting in the seeds, but in many eases if rolled ten times instead of once, all the labour would be repaid by the crop, for it is evident that if the smaller clover seeds be sown on a rough, cloddy surface, the half will never spring. Good pasture is not only valuable in itself, but through all the rotation, and the loss therefore to the farmer when his seeds do not grow, is not only on his hay or pasture, but also on his succeeding crops. Even as far back as 1700, it was noticed "that, where there was a good crop of grass, a good crop of grain generally followed." We know tliat the roots and leaves of our clover grow in direct proportions to each otiier. The farmer should, tiierefore, use every effort to get strong plants, and plenty of them. When laying down the grass and clover seeds last season, 1 set aside three plots, giving to No. 1 plot 51bs. of clover, and 361bs. of ryegrass seed per acre. To No. 2 plot I gave 6ibs. clover and 3Glbs. ryegrass seed per acre. To No. 3 plot I gave Tibs, of clover seed, 301b3. of ryegrass, and 61bs. of Italian rye — the clover in plot 3 being the best strong healthy seed I could lay my hands on. I last week dug up one square yard from each plot, sifted out all the roots of clover and ryegrass, and weighed them. In No. 1 plot I had 24cwt. of roots per acre, in Nj. 2 plot I had 29 cwt. per acre, and in No. 3 plot I had 35 cwt. of roots per acre. Can any one doubt the importance of strong seeds after this, with roots something like what I have already showed you, the vale of which, as a manure, many here will he able to enlarge upon, roots entering the very subsoil, decaying and opening up the soil, making way, and acting like drains? This opening of the soil is a most important matter to the farmer, and no landlord knows it better than our chairman, when I am told he gave a tenant of a 150-acre farm £90 in one year for drainnge. V/c got a very able paper last year from Mr. Stevenson on tlie manure we should give to our grass, and I need not touch this wide subject. But how is it that bones and lime ofteu improve our pastures ? The science and cliemistry tells us that an average crop of clover carries away per acre about 80 lbs. of lime and 19 lbs. phos- phoric acid. The necessity, therefore, of returning lime and phosphoric acid in some shape may easily be seen. White clover is an acid-hating plant. Chemistry comes again to our rescue and tells us that time will take away all the acidity from the soil and allow the white clover to be in the condition of my friend the cattleman — get the food it likes. I do not believe the ideas on future farming stated in an article which appeared lately in F/us/'rs Magn-hir, and which was reviewed at length in our most excellent local and agricultural paper, the Baiff'shire Journal, where it is proposed to raise three crops in the year by heating tlie soil with steam, nor do I believe that Mr. Jeffries' ideas of cultivating our lii-lds will work. I would rather put the steam into the brain of our rising generation, by teaching them chemistry. Let them take a leaf Irom the life of the owner of Tiptree Hall, whose works are well worth reading, and who writes me that his success has been by giving plants tlieir proper food — by attending to his subsoil. Is it not a blot on Scotland, and more so on Aberdeenshire, the most-famed cattle feeding county in Britain, that we have no middle-class school or college where the rising generation might study the science they are to follow after ; for surely the science of agriculture has now a claim deserving of atten- tion ? Until this come about, until the groundwork of the problems be understood, the words of Liebig will come only too true — unconsciously to the ignorant farmer all his in- dustry, care, and toil only hasten his ruin ; while, on the other hand, it is only by knowledge that capital and power are attained. Mr. M'CoMBiE, M.P., said it afforded him pleasure to hear of the high position his young friend Mr. Bruce had taken, and the honour that had been conferred upon him by the Highland Society the other day, for his essay on a similar topic to that wliicli he had now discussed. He was sure he spoke the sentiments of all present when he congratulated Mr. Bi uce. He would only make one remark on Mr. Bruce'a observations on Alsyke clover. He had had a good deal of experience of Alsyke clover. He occupied some very poor land, tliat no other clover would grow upon except Alsyke. He did not say it was a clover that cattle were very particularly fond of, but he could cover poor land with it, and get a bite for the cattle, which he could not get in any other way. Mr. IMiTCiiELi. (Auchnagathle) said he had g'-eat pleasure in listening to Mr. Bruce, and had got a good deal of infor- mation from iiim. He was, however, disappointed with one thing. After telling them there were so many different opin- ions as to the quantity of clover and grass that should be sown, Mr. Bruce neglected to say what he considered a proper quan- tity. Then, again, as the result of his experience, Mr. Bruce gave the weight of the roots of grass ; hut it seemed almost incredible, although he did not wish to dispute it, that tlie weight of roots per acre should be 35 tons. Mr. Bruce : I said 35 cwt. Mr. Mitchell said it seemed to him that was a greater weight of roots than they could raise of turnips. But he alluded to that to point out that Mr. Bruce had neglected to say what was the weight per acre of each plot of grass grown. Bid it correspond at all with the weight of the roots ? He should think it likely that the heaviest crop of grass would be produced from the medium quantity of roots. Mr. Bruce replied that it would be diflicult to answer the question as to what quantity of seed to give, without ascer- taining the nature of the soil. Climate and soil must he accounted for before he could say v.'hat quantity and descrip- tion ot seed to sow. As Mr. M'Combie had said, A.lsyke clover suited liis poor land, where nothing else would grow ; but it did not follow that Alsyke clover would be the only or best tiling for Mr. Mitchell's land. As to the quantity of grass, unfortunately he could not tell that, because sheep had been, very much to his regret, allowed to overrun and eat it down. He should explain that the roots were weighed as they were taken up, whereas to ascertain the exact quantity of manurial ma' ter in them they ought to have been dried. Mr. Anderson, Wellhouse, also expressed pleasure at hearing Mr. Bruce bring the subject of Alyske clover under notice, because it was a clover he had heard very much con- demned. As had been said already, they had seen good pas- ture from Alsyke clover where they could get it from nothing else. Mr. Wilken, Waterside of Forbes, explained that, at a committee meeting a week before he had agreed — as no one else would — to make a few observations on the utilisation of liquid manure, not because he could offer any exhaustive in- formation on the subject, but simply to start to provoke a dis- cussion. Liquid manure is, lie said, one of those few commo- dities we have at hand, a»id I am sorry to say in most eases allow to run to waste — and that in the face of the conviction of most farmers that it could be made, at least in some mea- sare, available for improving our crops. The greatest dilTieulty with us all is how to apply it to the land at as little cost as possible. I am sorry 1 do not see my way to recommend any mode that will altogether do away with that great bugbear of most farmers, /(/.«//, and a little extra labour. Before anything can be done with the liquid manure of the farm, it is necessary first to collect it in tanks for distribution either upon the dung or upon compost iieaps, or botii. I shall shortly describe the mode I have myself adopted for collecting the urine. I have made two tanks, one in the centre of the courtyard or dung- hill, and another at the bottom of the same, outside the court 310 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. wall. luto the first is druiued the waste urine of the byres. Both tanks are covered in and fitted with chain pumps, and so placed that it can be pumped either into ? cart, or on to a compost heap, formed of refuse, such as weeds, potato heads, earth, and lime. From the tank in the centre of tiie court I have the urine pumped daily during the winter months on to the dung, and distributed by means of a moveable spout with holes in the bottom. After it passes through the dung it goes into the second tank at the bottom of the court, and is again pximped at intervals of about a week, or when convenient, either on to the compost heap, or into a cart for distribution on the fields or on another heap of earth. The first tank holds about a day's uriue with 50 head of cattle, and is made iu a very simple and cheap manner, viz., by sinking two sugar barrels one on the top of the other, costing about 9d. each, into the ground. This tank is pumped, as before men- tioned, every day, and takes the cattleman about half-an-hour. Tlie second is larger, and holds about a week's urine, unless iu rainy weather. This, in the meantime, has to be driven out in a cart to the compost heap. Next season, however, I mean to place the refuse collected for compost alongside the tank, as by that means I will be able to pump at once on to it, and to save the cost of driving ; unless in spring, when I mean to apply it, diluted with viater, in a liquid state. This takes a man from two to thiee hours weekly, so that the cost is not very great, at least in comparison with the value. This, of course, is not what I would consider the best plan — only one adapted in my case, as being the cheapest, and, I believe, adaptable to most farms at little cost. I have no doubt, how- ever, that in order to get the full benefit of the urine, covered courts are the best, and perhaps the cheapest in the end, as, by that means, rain is prevented from washing out the best part of the dung, as also " droothy " weather and the sun's rays are kept off, and so both bleaching and drying are saved. He then went on to speak of the amount and value of liquid manure. On a 200-acre farm, with 50 cattle, there would be 130 tons of liquid manure running to waste every year, the ammoniacal value of which would be about £66. Every farmer, he continued, has the opportunity of gatliering during every year many useful ingredients for the future support of his crops, if these were only systematically gathered into one place ; and the urine being pumped or run on to them, a valu- able compost would be the result. By a proper adoption of the system of compost manures, I am satisfied we save and apply to tiie soil many fertilisers that would not otherwise be made use of. Many of the weeds which are collected from the turnip fields should not be used until they have been so thoroughly decomposed that their seeds are destroyed ; and they require active fermentation ere they are fit food for vegetables, and I think the compost heap the best place for this. Besides, they are made valuable manure. In my opinion, the most useful and profitable way we can use our liquid manure is by adding it to such things as we know to be of little or no value singly, but which become valuable auxiliaries when mixed together. One thing is certain — if only urine is mixed with earth, we will have a useful fertiliser, and one at the command of all. i\Ir. ANDERSON, Wellhouse, said the subject started by Mr. Wilken was most important, being one of the departments in which farmers allowed more waste than in almost anything else. It agreed with his own opinion that they almost lost as as much in liquid manure as would supply all tha extraneous manures they required for their turnip crops. But the thorough use of liquid manure could hardly be got without covered courts. That was a very wide question, but still Mr. Wilken had done very much to economise liquid manure under ordi- nary circumstances, and of course whatever could be done under ordinary circumstances it were well to do, Mr. M'CoJiBiE said, so far as feeding fat cattle was con- cerned, covered courts were all very well, but as to confining calves and yearling and growing cattle in covered courts, he most distinctly lifted up his voice against that. That was against nature altogether. There were a great number of farmers in Morayshire in the way of keeping their young stock in covered courts ; and he would not give within £1 or £2 per liead for those cuttle that he would give for cattle kept iu open courts. His young friends, and there were a great num- ber of them round the table, would remember that he was old aud they were, young, and lie wouhl advise them, if they wished to buy a bullock, not to buy it out of a covered yard, but to buy it from a person who had beeu iu the habit of turning it out every day. If they did buy a bullock that had not seen the sun, nor yet perhaps tlie moon for seven or eight months, they might depend upon this fact, that, alter being two or three months on the grass, they would take the bullock in lighter than they put it out. The Chairman : Allow me to correct you Mr. M'Combie. You and Mr. Anderson are going upon two different points. You are talking about putting bullocks into covered courts ; but Mr. Anderson was talking about the manurial advantages of covered courts. Mr, Anueuson : That is just the remark I was about to make. I did not recommend covered courts for cattle ; I spoke of covered courts for manure. I do not see that cattle should be iu any way differently treated from what they are at present ; so that Mr. M'Combie's remarks are quite aside from the point. Mr. Mitchell, Auclmagathle, did not approve of covered courts. His firm belief was that many of their manure heaps required rain water to keep the manure from heating. He knew many men of experience would bear him out in that. He had heard it said that rainfall was quite necessary for their manure heaps, but that the collection of rain water from the roofs of houses might be superfluous. He was very glad to hear Mr. M'Combie's remark about putting stock into covered courts. He thought these very strong points against covered courts. Mr. Anderson, AYelUiouse, pointed out that experiments made on Lord Kinnaird's farm proved that crops raised with manure from a covered court were very much better than crops raised with manure from an open court. Of course, as had beeu said, experiment was a great thing, and iie should be glad to hear of more experiments of the same kind. Mr. M'CojiBiE said that a farmer had perhaps two or three byres filled with stock. He turned the manure into a covered court, Au enclosure was made within the court, straw thrown upon it, and a lot of young beasts put in. In his opinion it was as good as death to them to be put in that court upon the dung taken out of the byres, Mr. Anderson : I never asked you to put stock there. Mr. M'CoiiBiE said he saw an example of that class on one of Lord Aberdeen's greatest farms. The young cattle were put out upon dung taken from different byres, and more poor starved creatures he never saw in his life. Mr. Bruce asked Mr. M'Combie to explain to him how it was that, when he went to Morayshire, he always bought cattle that had been in open courts, and advised all his young friends to keep their young stock in open courts, whereas at Tillyfour he did not allow any young stock to see either the sun or the moon ? Mr. M'Combie : If you come to Tillyfour you will see that my own stock all go in an open straw-yard. I will be very glad to see you there at any time, and you will see for your- self that my beasts are not kept in close courts. Mr. Walker, Bithnie, reverted to the important remarks made by the Chairman on the subject of chemical analysis, A good deal of conversation thereupon followed, in the course of which it appeared that the meetiug was favourable to the formation cf a Chemical Association in connection with the Turnip Association. The following Committee were ap- pointed to make all necessary arrangements, namely, for parish of Alford, Mr. f arquharson of Haughtou (to be chair- man), and Mr. Anderson, Wellhouse. For Tullynessle, Mr. Robert Wilson and Mr. Wilken. For Keig, Mr. Mitchell, Auchnagatlile ; and Mr. Ironside, Brindy. For Tough, Mr, M'Combie, M.P., and Mr. Paterson, Whiteley. For Leochel- Cushnie, Mr. Strachan and Mr. Dunn. THE METRIC SYSTEM,— The Danish Government ap- pointed a commission in August last to report upon the ques- tion of the introduction into Denmark of the metric system. This commission has just issued its report, which recommends that the system shall be allowed to be used from the 1st of January, 1875, aud shall become compulsory on the 1st of January, 1878, A minority of tlic commission recommend the use of tiie metric along with the old system. Tiie question has also been taken up in Norway, where a commission has reported iu favour of tlie adoption of the metric system. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 311 KINGSOOTE AGRICULTURAL A8 S 0 CIATI 0 IsT. TENANT-RIGHT BILL. At the last mouthly meeting, Col. Kingacote, M.P., ia the chair, the followiug paper was read by Mr. II. HoL- BOROW : lu discussing this important and long-agitated subject there are a few points which 1 propose especially to consider. 1st. What do we, as farmers, understand by the words " Tenant Right" ? Certainly not an increase of power as directed against the landlords ; nor a demand to do what we like with the land in our occupation to the injury of the owner thereof ; nor an encroachment in the way of vested right in the property itself ; nor a claim for anything detrimental or prejudicial to the landlord; but a fair security for money judiciously spent in the improvement of another man's pro- perty with a view to its increased fertility and productiveness, so tliat the tenant may not be deterred from using his best endeavours (to the injury of himself and the nation at large) through fear of expulsion, or any other act of vicissitude which may rob him or liis family of his capital so invested. 2ndly. Is there a need for something to be done to this end ? I think I may say that there can be no doubt of this ; all parties seem to admit it ; observation confirms it. Tiie rea- soning witli tenant-farmers on the desirability of attemptiug to raise the soil to tlie highest pitcli of productiveness imme- diately brings out the confession of want of confidence in thus spending their money under existing circumstances. No rea- sonable person can say that their security is what it should be. That increased confidence would bring about increased endea- vour there can be no question. That the rapidly-increasing requirements of the nation render it necessary that everything should be done that could be done toward feeding the popula- tion with home produce no one doubts. That this will not be done until better security is conceded to those who have to spend their money in doing it is most certain. Policy, there- fore, apart from the mere justice of it, demands that something should be done, and without unnecessary delay. 3rdly. IIovv is it to be done ? Who is most responsible ? In replying to the first of these questions tiiree methods present themselves for our consideration, viz. : Compensating agreements; Long leases ; Legislation. Let us consider the respective merits of each, and the expressed opinions and predilections of tenant- farmers with reference to them. That compensating agree- ments subject to oue year's notice to quit are in favour with many intelligent farmers I know from experience, and their reasons are not unimportant. For instance, it is urged that a young farmer on starting into business life has great difficulty in obtaiuing a farm corresponding in size with his capital, or the kind of farm he would like to settle down upon, or such as he would have confidence in risking his capital and prospects upon for a lengthened period ; and if he did succeed well, he would not like to have his hands tied so that he could not remove to something more extensive, for a farmer can- not gradually enlarge his farm as a tradesman can his shop, or a manufacturer his establishment, or a merchant his business. Theretore many prefer the yearly tenancy on account of the opportunity it gives to remove to something more suitable. Such persons believe that a compensating agreement may be easily given which would meet all their requirements as to security. That compensating agree- ments may, generally, be given, there is no reason to question, and such as would be fair between both parties, if landlords would only set themselves to the attempt, and employ those men as agents who tliorouglily understand the business of agriculture. There is, however, some difficulty in drawing up compensating agreements so as to give the desired security without laying it open to the tenant to run up an extortionate bill against the new comer; but this is only a matter of detail, and does not immediately concern the subject under discussion. But the bare fact of a tenant being on the look-out for an opportunity to relinquish his holding for some- thing more favourable, or of a tenant feeling that at any time he may have his rent raised, or receive notice to quit, will always militate to some extent against an earnest and unfettered attempt to accomplish all the improvement within his power. Leases I hold to be of little avail in bringing about enlarged productiveness unless they are long ones, although a tenant may fairly claim the privilege of determining it at the end of the first seven years if he finds it a losing game, because it should be remembered that his total ruin may be concerned, whilst it is a mere matter of rent to the landlord. A long lease, conceding all tlie liberty and scope for skill and enter- prise within the bounds of reason during its continuance, with stipulations for unexhausted condition being paid for, as well as for a suitable course of cropping being pursued, at the termination, would be conducive to nearly all the confidence a tenant would require, for he must submit to some degeee of risk in his enterprise, and would he nothing unreasonable for a landlord to graut, who must be content to submit to a mea- sure of risk also. That long leases have proved, aj a rule (where they have been properly drawn up), conducive to agri- cultural development there is no reason to question, but iiow far it would be wise to make leases a rule without exception is alio a grave question. The undeniable fact is that agricul- ture is such a complicated afi'air that to generalise is more wise than to particularise when attempting to deal with its pecu- liarities ; and here I expect the dilliculties of the next question will especially present themselves, viz., legislation. To lay down a principle may not be so very difficult, but to define particulars so as to meet all the requirementsof variety of soil, climate, locality, and so forth, would be an endless task ; and, if legislation fails to make matters very plain, the lawyers, with their accustomed " coach- and-four," will soon find de- lightful employment fortlieraselvesin driving slash throuitli it. But this is not the worst to be 'eared: it is ratiier the alienation of kindlv feeling and pleasing interest that may arise between the landlord and his tenant from the former feeling that lie is relieved from all concern for the tenant by Act ot Parliament, and that it is only a matter of hard bargaining betwee.i theni in every respect where the Act does not inte.rveue. People may call this old-fashioned mutual interest and good feeling mere teniiment if they will ; but as agriculture appear* to differ in some respects from most other lines of business, it differs in this particular also, that it will be a misfortune when this kind of sentiment has become a dead letter. Not that I am for farmers being mere semi-serfs to their landlords, no, not that at all ; let them be men and hold up their heads and show that they understand their business, their position, and their responsibilitiies, but let them still cultivate the good- feeling and respect of their landlords nevertheless. Let it not, however, be understood that I am condemning the attempt to legislate by Act of Parliament upon this most necessary sub- ject, for it will be wise to do so if the desiderated security cannot be obtained without. We come, therefore, to the second question, viz. : Who is the most responsible ? It may seem one-sided, but it cannot be denied that the man in power is the man most responsible, simply because he can meet the necessity if he will, and the tenant can use no force except it be that of combination, but combination is altogether averse to the farmer's practice, antecedents, or susceptibilities ; in fact, in this particular it is just the thing he cannot do, because of his being continually outbid by others who are not farmers bred. " Perforce," then, is not his motto, but " Live and let live" is. Give him the fair chance to " live," and he will soon show you how he will both do so himself, aud help others to do the same by supplying them with the necessaries they require in abundance. Fourthly, let us not forget the landlord's point of view. He thinks that he has the right and the power to do wiiat he likes with his own ; most cer- tainly lie has, and the responsihU'ily too. Let him see to this latter, or the others may slip from his grasp. His wishes, liis interest, ought to be respected to their fullest extent, and it is hoped that no attempt will be made to the contrary ; but whatever his wishes may he, his interest is undoubtedly bound up in the cause of agricultural development we have beea considering, as well as the tenants, individually, and the nation's too. To say that the landlords have done nothing to this end would be wrong, for many of them have already conceded the requireuients to some extent, and others will follow no doubt ; but will they, as a body, do all that is neces- 312 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. sary if left to their owu disposal? They may ia time, but the progress is so very tardy that something more " express" and in accordance with the rapid movement of events and requirements of the nation seems necessary. We will, there- fore, proceed to examine the proposed bill, with a view to passing our judgment as an agricultural body thereon ; whether it appears likely to meet' the acknowledged require- ments or not. Having read and re-read the bill, since writing the foregoing introduction of the subject, I have, myself, come to the conclusion that it is worthy to become the law of the land, but with a few trifling alterations in its details. I will, however, confine my observations to the few leading clauses, which seem to me to contain the core and substance of the bill itself. Clause 1 declares that the tenant shall be compensated for his unexhausted improvements — ^just what is really needed. Clause 2 describes the improvements them- selves, for which claim may be made, under three heads, viz., temporary, durable, and permanent, each of which is well de- fined. Clause 3 defines the mode of procedure, and is so well got up that it seems to me difUcult for any tenant to rob a landlord under any of its provisions, and I have made calcu- lations in various ways to ascertain wliether the tenant would be able to run up an unfair bill against the new comer ; but it appears to me that his chances of doing so are very small indeed. At the same time provision is made for a set-olf in case of any neglect of the tenant. The leading valuers of every district would be sure to agree to a fair scale of remu- neration for feeding stutTs and purchased manures to serve as a general rule, and would know how to depart from it under any special circumstances. They, as practical men, would know how to work out the principles laid down by this clause so that no injustice might occur. Clause "t having reference to "durable improvements," is most just, for if a tenant has added to the letting value of the farm he ought to be reim- bursed, and there would be no claim under this clause if he had not. Clause 5 treats of " permanent improvements," and these must also add to the letting value in order to entitle to a claim for compensation. A most useful clause this is, and well got up ; neither can I perceive how any hardship can accrue to an owner of property under its provisions. Clause 10. The justice of this clause no one can deny, and I am con- tinually meeting witii cases calling for its enactment and operation in my valuing peregrinations. Clause 13. Here is the point of attack ; here is the " bone of contention." Do away with this clause, and then — why put the bill in the fire for all the use it is of. Why do not opponents attack the biU in its details, or as a whole? It it be unjust or unequal ■why not show it? All the opposition I have yet heard, or read, to this clause only goes to prove that the bill itself is wanted. It is said to be un-English to bind people I Then do away with all Acts of Parliament, and let every one do as he likes, or that argument fails. Another talks about " freedom of contract." Well, ihat has been tried a long time, and found wanting. Why ? Because the landlords, as a rule, are unacquainted with prac- tical agriculture themselves, and very commonly leave their business in the hands of those who are wholly ignorant of it. The 12th clause is like the keystone to an arch ; take it away and the structure falls to the ground. I now pass on to another important clause — the arbitration clause, the 18th — together with the schedule of regulations. This is good in itself; but I do trust that it will be so altered as to compel the arbitrators to appoint iht'ir own umpire before proceeding to business, instead of leaving it for the inclosure commissioners to make the appointment when required. The present provision of the bill in that respect would open such a wide door for extravagant costs as might destroy the weak party's chance of obtaining real compensation by the pre- liminary expenses. Tliis should be avoided as much as possible. These appear to be the leading points of the bill, and all the rest we may pass over without special notice. After what I have said perhaps some may be ready to accuse me of express- ing the opposite views to what I did a year ago on the subject of legislation in reference to agriculture. Well I still wish that legislation could be done without, but I am reluctantly come to the conclusion that it is necessary. AVhy, lately 1 have had to do with two large estates where a printed form of agreement is got up and enforced, in which a Michaelmas tenant is positively refused all payments for artificial manures used with the last year's root crop unless he has first obtained a written consent for them to be used, and yet the crop could hardly be grown without them, and the entire benefit goes to the next comer ! Nothing but Act of Parliament will ever cause such parties to do more than they are absolutely obliged in the direction of recompense. In conclusion, I beg to propose the following resolutions : " That this meeting, recognising the great necessity which exists for better security to the tenant-farmer, earnestly hepes that Mr. Howard's bill may become law." Agreed to by 15 to 4. Secondly, " The opposi- tion raised against the 12th clause is considered to be one of the strongest proofs of the necessity for the bill itself, and this meetiug hopes it will not be struck out." Agreed to by 11 to 3. Thirdly, " This meeting recommends tTiat the arbi- tration clause should be so altered as to give to the arbitrators the power to appoint their own umpire, and only to bind them to appeal to tlie Enclosure Commissioners in case they fail to agree upon one themselves." These resolutions were all unanimously adopted. BATH AND WEST OF ENGLAND AND SOUTHERN COUNTIES AGRICUL- TURAL SOCIETY. Tlie usual Council meetiug of this Society was held at the White Lion Hotel, Bristol, Sir J. T, B. Duckworth in the chair. There were also present : Sir. T. D. Acland, Bart., M.P., Messrs. R. Bremridge, Jonathan Gray, R. K. Meade King, J. C. Moore-Stevens, H. G. Moysey, and R. NeviUe-Grenville, M.P., J. T. Boscawen, H. Badcock, C. Bush, R. H. Bush, W. Crabbe, R. R. M. Daw,Thos. Dyke, E. W. Dymond, Charles Edwards, Fredk. Gil!, James Hole, J. E. Knollys, H. A. F. Luttrell, H. Spackman, J. Strattou, W. Thompson, R. Trood, C. A. W. Troyte, W. H. Walrond, H. Williams, R. Wippell, and J. Goodwin (secretary and editor). The Financial Statement for the year 1873 was con- sidered attd approved, and ordered to be printed and circulated through the medium of the Society's Journal. It appeared that the expenses of the Plymouth meeting were £6,383 lis. 5d., whilst the income derived from it was £7,108 53.3d., thus yielding a surplus of £734 13s. lOd. in favour of the Society. The By-Law Revision Committee presented an ad inlerim report, and undertook to have their work completed by the next meeting of Council (March 31st). For the superintendence and due enforcement of the Society's contracts, a committee was appointed consisting of Colonel Luterell, Colonel Lennard, Mr. R. Neville, Mr. C. A. W. Troyte, and Mr. Arthur Grenfell. For the accommodation of the representatives of the press on the occasion of the forthcoming Bristol meeting special provision was directed to be made by the Official Superinten- dent. The following new members were elected: Messrs. T. R. M. English, Wynhol, Walton, Clevedon ; W. Hunt, Burton- street, Bath: G. Turner, jun., Thorplands, Northampton; J. Temple and Sons, Slate Works, Canon's Marsh, Bristol ; and W. Lane, jun., Sandford, Crediton. [It seems to us that " a special provision for the representatives of the Press" would be the inclosure to the several offices of invitation admission-tickets, if any such courtesy bo con- tinued, instead of compelling people to crowd about a small window and a slow clerk on the opening morning. We declined to exercise any such " privilege" at Plymouth, nor do we know of any other Society where this obnoxious custom prevails. — Editor M.L.E.'] MR. CROSS.— The only new, and by far the boldest of all the appointments, is that of Mr. Cross to the Home Office. There are reasons for Mr. Cross's selection, young in Parlia- ment and almost unknown as he is out of his own county of Lancashire. He is the man who left the Northern Circuit to defeat Mr. Gladstone in South West Lancashire in 1868, and he has steadily risen in the House of Commons until he was recognised as a leader of Conservatives in all the semi-legal ad- ministrative questions which interest country gentlemen. Be- sides the Home Secretary is always regarded as the second in the lead of the House of Commons, and there has been a little mutinous talk of a Derby-llardy administration. — Wesfern Times, THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 313 THE CENTRAL CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. A Council Meeting of this boJy was held on Tuesday, IVIiirch 3, at the Salisbury Hotel, Mr. G. F. Muntz iu the chair. Among those present were Sir J. Pakington, Sir Massey Lopes, M.P.; Mr. C. S. Read, M.P.; Mr. A. Pell, M.P.; Mr. Chaplin, M.P.; Col. Paget, M.P.; and Mr. Storer, M.P. The CuAiRiiAX, in opening the proceedings, observed that the last meeting, having met merely to adjourn, that meeting was practically the opening one of the present year. Ap- pearing there for the first time in the position of President, he must crave foibearance and indulgence for any short- comings, especially as he succeeded a gentleman v^ho was emmently qualified to occupy that position, and who, by his quickness of perception, his sound judgment, and his constant urbanity, had gained the respect and esteem of every mem- ber of that Chamber. About four years ago the then Chairman of that Chamber, speakinn from the place where he then stood, and observing Mr. Knatchbull-IIugesseu in the room, said it was seldom that they were honoured by the presence of a member of her Majesty's Government ; but at that moment three gentlemen who had taken an active part in the proceedings of the Chamber had received the distin- guished liouour of being appointed to an office in the Go- vernment of the country. He looked upon that as a very auspicious event in connection with the influence the Chamber was likely to exercise in the country. It had been said that landlord influence predominated in that Chamber. That was not so, and it could not have been said by any one who had attended the meetings. The influence of the Chamber depended upon its being a truly representa- tive body, a body representing tlie agricultural interest throughout the kingdom, not merely a section of it, and if that were recognised it would acquire a power which would enable it to confer immense benefit on the whole agricultural community. As regarded the programme for the year, they had before them two very great questions, and he tliought no one would deny that they ought to have priority over all others — the question of Local-taxation and tiiat of land- tenure and compensation for unexhausted improvements. In the case of Local-taxation they should not forget that they would have opposed to them a large, powerful, and interested minority, who were now exempt from such taxation — mortgagees, fund- holders, shareholders, and others occupying a similar position, and a great deal of energy and perseverance would be required to enable the Chamber to accomplish the object. As regarded the question of land-tenure and compensation for unexhausted improvements, he believed their great diflBculty was the want of knowledge and intelligence among those who were interested in the matter, and what was especially needed at present was calm and temperate discussion, with a view to a settlement, whieli would be just and equitable to all parties concerned (cheers). The question of education was daily becoming of more importance to agriculturists. The amendment of the Poor-law was also an object of great interest ; and the im- portance of uniformity in weights and measures was increased by the increase of foreign competition. Another question which demanded careful attention was the protection of Eng- lish cattle from infectious foreign diseases. The last question which he would mention — he would not say the least, because he knew that with many members of the Chamber it was a question of deep interest — was that of free-trade in agricul- ture, particularly in malt. That was a question wliich must be dealt with. If the principle of free-trade were a true principle, it was true not merely in one case but in all cases, and therefore he said the question of the repeal of the Malt- tax demanded earnest consideration. Mr. HoDSOi.L (Kent) then proposed that three cheers should be given lor the three members of the Chamber who had just been appointed to olRce in the Government — Sir M. Beach, M.P., Sir M. Lopes, M.P., and Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., and tiiis suggestion was vigorously carried out. During some routine business which followed, the Chairman alluded to the fact that a deputation was to see the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the following day iu reference to the Malt-tax, and Sir John Pakington was, on the motion of Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., seconded by Mr. Hodsoll, elected Vice- Chairmau for the current year. Mr. Smith (Essex) having inquired whether the amount of arrears of subscriptions previously reported, namely, £189, had been reduced. The Secretary replied that a considerable number of arrears had come in, and that he had no doubt they would be able to get in the major portion of the remainder. The election of the Business Committee was then pro- ceeded with, the result being that the following were chosen for the current year : Mr. G. Wliitaker, Captain Craigie, Mr. J. II. Hodsoll, Mr. J. Bowen Jones, Mr. J. S. Gardiner, Mr. Thomas Brown, Mr. G. Storer, M.P. Sir M. Lopes, M.P., then read the following Report of the Local Taxation Committee, which was adopted : Sinco the Local Taxation Committee presented their last report, Parliament has been dissolved, and a now Govern- ment has assumed the reins of ijower. The unaccomplished task of reforming our existing system of local taxation must now, therefore, be undertaken by a new Parliament ; and upon the new Ministry will devolve the duty of initiating remedial legislation. While firmly adhering to their former demands, your committee will continue, as hitherto, sciiipu- lously to avoid all mero party considerations in dealing with this subject. In the interest of the ratepayer, it has fre- quently been their duty to protest against the treatment of this question by the late Government. They are now equally anxious to press on the present Ministry the urgency of the ratepayer's claims to prompt and eflfective redress. In dis- solving Parliament Mr. Gladstone indicated his future poUcy, and at last admitted ' ' that a further portion of the charges hitherto borne bj' real and immovable property should, wixh. judicious accompanying arrangements, be placed upon pro- perty gencrallj'." And in the sketch he gave of his intended Uudget he also said, " The first item I have to set down in the financial arrangements proper for the year is relief, but relief coupled with reform, of local taxation." Your committee are glad to observe this tribute to tho justice of their argu- ments, and to welcome the prominence thus given to the question tlu'oughout the late General Election — a prominence which must ensure its early consideration by the new Go- vernment. The combined necessity for both relief and re- form has always been felt end admitted by your Committee. Their opposition to the proposals hitherto made has beett directed against the order in which the subject was ap- proached, the indefinite postponement of substantial relief and the attempted substitution of petty alterations of administra- tive detail for real and urgently-demanded remedies. Tho earliest and most reasonable step in general reform is now admitted to be the removal from the rates of the most peculi- arly national of our present burdens, in cases where central control now determines the e.xpenditure. A development of the existing system of Treasury Grants in tho direction approved by Parliament in 1872, involves no complicated re- construction of existing authorities. Such relief might, therefore, be given at once, even if the time at the command of the new Government should prove too limited to attempt more intricate reforms in the present financial year. It will not bo forgotten that the late House of Commons assented to the charges imposed by the Education, Sanitary, and Vacci- nation Acts only on Mr. Gladstone, Mr. Stansfeld, and Mr. Porster severally undertaking that each imposition should be fully taken into consideration when the whole subject of local-taxation camo to be reviewed. Whether, therefore, any of the charges now existing, especially that for police, should, as matter of justice, and at the same time with a view to greater efhciency and economy, bo removed entirely from the local category ; whether in other cases State aid could be further proportioned to State control, or whether any other moans exist of alleviating existing hardships, will bo matter for tho earnest consideration of your Committee. Admiuis- trativo changes, although not indisponsal)lo preliminaries to the relief of ratepayers, must ultimately bo included in any general reform of local finance. Local Government, tho machinery of assessment and collection of rates, the removal of all exemptions from ratal liability, and the difficult questions of Highway, Turnpike, and Sanitary management will all demand careful cousiiloration. With a view to elicit information and suggestions on some much-controverted points, your Committee proiwso to offer a prize of fifty guineas ibr tho best Essaj' on l^efornfc necessary in tho con- stitution of local authorities and tho administration of local rstes. Tho success of their former Prize Essay in awakening an interest in needful financial I'elbnns leads your Committee to anticipate much advantage from a jn-oposal which enables them to show as vital an interest in efficient and economic local Igovernment as in just and equal local taxation. In prospect of Parliamentarj' discussion on local taxation, the annual and other statistical returns recently distributed x2 314 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. become of special interest and value. The aggregate rates of England and Wales in 1872 exceeded £18,000,000, thus showing an increase of fully 80 per cent, in the last twenty years, and exceeding by nearly £2,000,000 the amount at which Mr. Goschen placed thorn in 1868. This rapid increase of local taxation contrasts forcil;ly with the frequent remissions of imperial burdens. About one- third of the rates raised are no doubt expended, as the late President of the Local Govern- ment Board has pointed out, for remunerative purposes. It must bo rememljered, however, that no less than £12,000,000 annually are now levied for what are officially acknowledged to be non -remunerative purposes. It is of the incidence of this large portion of our ratal liurdens your Committee espe- cially complain. It is no doubt gratifying to see from the Annual Poor Eate Return a slight reduction in the cost of out-door reUef, wliich is mainly attributable to the unprece- tlented prosjicritj' of the countiy. From the figures now presented to us we may learn, however, some valuable facts. In the course of a single decade, while the actual cost of laaintainmg our paupers (i. p., in in-maintenance and out-door relief alone) shows but a small comparative increase, the demand made upon the Poor-rate by county, police, and borough authorities has grown by fully £1,000,000; or 50 percent.; the cost of lunatics l)y fitj per cent., and the large item of miscellaneous and unclassified expenditure— for which recent legislation is accountable — by nearly 100 per cent. One-third of the whole sum levied under the name Poor-rate is now applied to purposes wholly foreign to the original intention of this impost. The returns moved for by Mr. Pell, at the instance of your Committee, give for the first time, though not yet in a complete form, a tabular analj-sis of the piu-poses to which rates arc devoted. They also specially enforce the urgent necessity for some such measure as your Committee's Local Taxation Accounts Bill of last Session, and show the need of a real local Budget, while they pointedly direct attention to the confusion now existing in the varying dates to which local accounts are made up, and the ii-regular or defection audit to which many of our local taxes are suljject. Yoiu- Committee have before directed attention to the paper on Local Government and Taxation read Ijy Mr. Dudley Baxter, at the Social Science Congress at Norwich. This paper has now been reprinted, together with a series of valiiablo letters by Mr. Baxter on Mr. Goschen's Report of 1870. Your Committee, while admitting the ability and research with which that Report was compiled, have already pointed out that many of its statistics were unreUable, and that its main conclusions were fallacious and misleading. The present very able letters of Mi-. Baxter com- pletely dispose of Mr. Goschen's arguments, whether de- rived from historical data, from the api^arent rate in the £, or from comparison with foreign countries. Yovir Com- mittee will take steps to give the widest publicity to Mr. Baxter's pamphlet. His careful analj'sis of the relative total burdens of rated and unrated property claims, in their opin- ion, especial consideration. Even assuming, as Mr. Baxter does, that only one-half of the rates fall ultimately on the property assessed, he very clearly shows that that property is charged to Imperial and Local taxes at 12 per cent., while iim-ated personalty escapes with a total payment of 5 per cent. — a result which fully establishes the justice of your committee's protest against exceptional taxation. The aimual report of your committee issued in November last attracted a large share of jjublic attention during the recess, and neai-ly 4,000 copies of it have been circulated. At the invitation of the Lancashire, Worcestershire, and Lincoln- shire Chambers, the secretai-y of your committee attended and addressed meetings in Manchester, Worcester, and Bos- ton, which wore instrumental in increasing the interest felt in Local Taxation Reform. Your committee have on this occasion to acknowledge the expressions of approval of their past exertions and confidence in their futitre poUcy which they have received from local chambers, and from their sup- porters generally throughout the country. They have fur- ther ta thank the contributors who have so readily responded to their appeal for help. To the Worcestershire Chamber of Agriculture they feel that especial thanks are due for the welcome aid they have again offered. — Masset Lopes, Chair- man. Sir M. Lopes, M.P., moved a vote of thanks to Mr. Dudley Baxter for the interest which he had taken in local-taxation reform, and for the able and valuable letters which he has written on the subject. Sir J. Pakington seconded tlie motion, which was adopted. Mr. Pell, M.P., after reminding the meeting that at the commencement of the last Parliament a deputation from the Cliaraber had an interview with Mr. Gladstone on the subject of local taxation, proposed the following : " That the Premier be requested to receive a deputation from the Central and Associated Oliambers on the subject of local taxation, and that it be referred to the Local Taxation and Executive Com- mittees to make the necessary arrangements." Colonel Paget, M,P., in seconding the motion, observed that the position of the Chamber in reference to that question was not affected by the recent change of Government. That question was free from the domain of party politics, and they would be just as eager to press their claims on the present Government as they were to urge them on the consideration of that which had ceased to exist. The Chairman then presented and read tlie second report of the committee on " Unexhausted Improvements," which was as follows : Since your Committee presented their first report, a largo amount of additioaal information has been received ; never- theless, returns of agricultural customs are still wanting from several counties, and to complete the inquiry in which the committee are engaged will need some little time longer. Yoitr committee have arranged the mode in which the details of customs shall be summarised, and are proceeding with the work of abstracting the several Schedules returned, and entering the particulars in the final gummary forms. And the diverse customs and modes of compensation which appear in those returns have fully shown the absolute necessity for such a ta)jular synopsis of the whole, to enable members of the Council and of the Associated Chambers to obtain the information afforded in the most intelligible and comprehen- sive form. If is thoiight desirable, having regard to the magnitude of the work and the difference in the interests concerned iu the respective classes of improvements, that " Temporary," " Durable," and "Permanent " improvements should form distinct sections of the final report. In the present report, your Committee confine their observations to such items as materially affect the question of compensation, ommitting references to those which are comparatively unim- portant. Your Committee desire to draw the particular atten- tion of the Council to the mai'ked diff'erences between customs prevailing to-day and those existing in the j'ear ISIS when Mr. Pusey's select Committee of the House of Commons issued its report. For example : In Lincolnshire, at that time, no allowances were given for guano or other highly- concentrated manures, which are now universally allowed for in that county. Compensation for draining was then only partially introduced, though it is now a general custom in Lincolnshire. At that time there was no allowance in Staf- fordshire for pm'chased oilcake, feeding stuffs, and artificial manure, or fur marling, boning, liming, planting quickset hedges, or draining, all which are now subjects of compen- sation, in, at any rate, the southern division of that county. In Cambridgeshire, in that pai't called the Isle of Ely, allow- ance for oilcake, for artificial manm-es, and for claying, is new, since the date of Mr. Pusey's inquiry. In Nottingham- shire allowances for draining were only partially introduced at that time, but are now universally the custom, together with compensation for road-making, planting qriickset hedges, executing irrigation works, and making main drains, watercourses, and reservoirs. In Cheshire there was at that period no allowance for either draining or planting quickset hedges, which, however, obtains in North Cheshire at the present time. In parts of Oxfordshire compensation for chalking and boning have been introduced since 1843. In South Wiltshire allowance for purchased manures is new. In parts of Gloucestershh-e artificial manures are now allowed for, and compensation is given for drainiog, though neither of these improvements was recognised by custom in 1848. And in parts of Dorsetshire a smaU allowance for oilcake, feeding stuffs, and purchased manures, and also for draining, has been introduced, though there was no custom of the kind mentioned in the House of Com- mons report. This is sufficient to show that an inquu-y and report of so early a date as 1848 is wholly insufficient to enable any one to aiTive at a correct conclusion regarding the established customs of the various counties in the present day. Your Committee would direct attention to the absence of any uniform principle upon which Customs might be sup - posed to have origmated. Thus, guano is allowed for in some counties when applied to corn crops, in other counties only when applied to root or green crops ; and in the latter case, some counties or districts pay for all, and some for only half the quantity used in the last year ; and while some counties pay for no guano used in the last year but one of the tenancj', other counties pay for one-third of what is ap- plied in that year. For oil-cake the allowances vary from half the value of cake used in the last year, with nothing for cake used in the year before that, to one-fourth of the last j'car's and one-eighth of the previous year's cake, or two-thirds of the last year's and one-third of the previous year's consumption of oil-cake. Compensation for tile-draining ranges so diversely that improvement is calculated in some counties to extend over six years, and in other counl ies up to fourteen years. Planting quickset is spread over varying periods from three to ten years. Liming arable land is sup- posed to benefit the tenant from five years down to only two years ; and liming pastures is taken as lasting three years in some counties up to six years in others. The Returns show that in some counties, in lieu of money compensation for pui'chased feeding stuffs and manures, the out-going THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 315 tenant is entitled to an away-going crop ; but a lai-ge number of the Returns show that in many counties and districts no compensation whatever for temporary improvements is secured by custom either in monej'' or crop, and up to the present time your Committee have not received a single inti- mation of the existence of any custom securing to the tenant cornpensation for buildings, exccptmg structures not attached to the freehold, which ho is, of course, at liberty to remove. Looking at the results of the inquiry, so far as it has at pre- sent proceeded, revealing a very partial prevalence of equitable Tenant-Right customs, ^■ery conflicting practices as between one county and another, and even between dif- ferent parts of the sanio county, and, over a very lai'ge num- ber of counties and districts, the absence of any compensation whatever for unexhausted capital invested by the occupier (and this a quarter of a century after the labours of Mr. I'usey's Committee and the attempted legislation of 1848), your Committee cannotbut conclude that the time has arrived for a settlement of the Agricultural Customs of the king- dom upon a uniform basis. And while the contemplated legislation which is supported by the Council will guarantee a rmivcrsal recognition of the respective claims of landlord and tenant, your Committee believe that the application of the provisions of any Act for this object will be greatly faci- litated by the framing of a general Scale of Allowances, founded upon the information which is being collected, em- bracing, as it does, the experience of leading agriculturists throughout England.— G. F. Muntz, Chau-man. The Chairman having moved the adoption of the report, this was seconded by Mr. Caldecott, and agreed to. Mr. H. Neild having remarked tliat none of the recent election addresses contained any direct reference to the special interests of tenant-farmers, and intimated a wish to propose a resolution relating to that subject, the Chairman informed him that he was out of order, and called upon the Secretary to read a letter received from Mr. J.imes Howard. The Secretary then read this letter, in which Mr. Howard said : " As the Chamber is about again to discuss tlie subject of Tenant-Right, would it not be well, in tlie first place, to settle the principle upon which any legislative measure should be based? If tlie bill I had the honour of introducing into Parliament last session should come under discussion, perhaps I may be allowed to say that without the r2th clause, or some clause equally binding on both parties, 1 do not think the bill would be worth passing (cheers). But, by all means, I would press upon the Chamber the necessity, before going into the subject, of settling this point : Shall we seek a com- pulsory or a permissive measure ? Mr. Read and I settled this point at the very outset, and why should not the Cham- ber P It would have saved endless discussions if the cham- bers and clubs had first settled tliis principle." Mr. Carrington Smith said he wislied to propose that clauses 12, 13, and li should be struck out of Messrs. Howard and Read's bill, and that there slionld be introduced in clause 1 words for providing compensation for unexhausted improvements in cases in which it was not provided for by lease or agreement. He would, however, first propose the following resolution : ' That every effort should be made to secure the passing of the Landlord and Tenant Bill during the ensuing session." Without proper provision for compensation for unexhausted improvements the occupation of a farm was as purely [specula- tive as the backing of a horse for the Derby. The present head of Her Majesty's Government had now, lie believed, a splendid opportunity of effecting a settlement of that question. The present law said to the farmer in effect, " Tiioushalt not improve." Let the right hon. gentleman, by legislation on that subject, erase tlie word " not," so that the law would in future say to the occupiers of land, " Thou shalt improve." He could not help thinking that clause 12 in the bill of last session was thrown as a sop to tenants and clause 13 as a sop to landlords. Surely the men who drew up those clauses knew that a large proportion of the land of England was held under annual agreements ; and could they desire that every tenant who occupied in that way should give notice to his landlord in order that he might bring himself within the operation of the bill. In his opinion clauses 12 and 13 re- quired elision from that bill, just as much as in the estimation of numbers the 25th clause required to be expunged from the Elementary Education Act. Mr.MA^ (StatTordsliire)Iwished to observe that although Mr. Smith was chairman of tlie Staffordshire Chamber he did not represent its views on that subject, as was clearly shown by a resolution which it had adopted. Mr, T. DucKHAM then secouded Mr, C, Smith's resolution. Colonel Paget having pointed out that there was no Laud- 1 rd and TenantBill now, Mr. C. Smith substituted the word " a" for " the," and with this alteration tlie resolution was adopted. Mr. C. Smith having then expressed his wish to propose the omission of clauses 12, 13, and 14 in the bill of last session, Mr. Butler (Essex), put it to the Ciiairmau whether it was competent for the meeting to take action on a bill which was no longer belore the Legislature. After some remarks from Mr. Corra:\-ce, Mr. C. Smith submitted his supplementary proposal in the following form : " And that in the opinion of this Council the best means of attaining this end is to take the late Land- lord and Tenant Bill, with tlie exception of clauses 12, 13, and 14, and to make clause 1 run thus : ' Subject to the pro- visions of this Act, wherever in the opinion of the arbitrators such conipcnsatiou is not provided for by lease, or) agreement, or local custom, efficient and sufficient [compensation should be made by law.' " Mr. T. DucKHAM seconded this motion. Mr. Butler moved an amendment to tlie effect that the consideration of the question be postponed until some bill on the subject has been introduced in the House of Com- mons. Mr. J. S. Gardiner seconded the amendment. Mr. G. A. May said the Staffordshire Chamber, which he represented, had in the absence of their chairman (Mr. C. Smith) unanimously adopted the following resolution : " That this Chamber approves of tlie principle of Mr. Howard's bill, namely, that legal security should be given equally to both landlord and tenant, for bad husbandry and compensation for unexhausted improvements, and beheves it to be necessary for the future improvement of agriculture and amicable relations between landlord and tenant." The feel- ing of his Chamber was, he remarked, unmistakeably in favour of the 12th clause of Mr. Howard's bill, what it de- sired being that farmers should be enabled to invest their money safely in the land which they cultivated. Mr. Stratton maintained that although the bill of Mr. Howard was not then before Parliament, it was quite compe- tent for the Chamber to discuss it with a view of its being made the basis of future legislation. Sir J. Pakington wished to say a few words with the view of simplifying a question which it seemed to him was becoming rather complicated. There could be no doubt that by means of conversation there they might lay a foundation for future action; but the report of the Committee just read showed how extensive and how difficult that subject was, and that while the principle of Tenant Right had been carried out in various parts of England, there was great variety in the modes of carrying it out. They had just passed a resolution declaring that it was desirable that the ensuing session should not pass away without legislation in reference to Tenant-Right. He thought that resolution was one of great value, and in his humble judgment it would be better to consider how far they should act upon it than to attempt then to lay down details with regard to a bill which it should be remembered was not before Parliament. He would advise his friend Mr. Smith not to be in a hurry to get a bill passed. lie would remind him of the peculiar position of the new Parliament. They were now in the month of March, the new Parliament had not yet met, and practically the session could not commence till after Easter. Several gentlemen had thrown out suggestions with regard to a bill, but, as they had been already reminded, there was no biU. There was a bill last session which was brought forward by Mr, Howard and Mr. Read, but Mr. Howard was not now in Parliament, and Mr. Read was not likely to introduce that bill in the coming session ; and he ventured to suggest that the first thing to be done now was to ascertain what two other gentlemen would consent to become the fathers of a new bill, or to reintroduce that which had been withdrawn. He thoi'ght it would be better to get a new bill introduced in Parliament, and then referred to a select committee, than to discuss the details of a measure which had ceased to exist. He would, therefore, suggest that both the motion and the amendment should be withdrawn, and that they should content themselves with having passed the important resolution already adopted. Mr. Stoker, M.P. hoped tlie excellent suggestion of Sir 316 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. John Pakington would be adopted, but, failing that, would sup- port the amendment. Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., agreed with Sir John Pakington that it was desirable that both the resolution and the amend- ment should be withdrawn, but thought it would be quite competent for the Council to pass a general resolution in accordance with the bill introduced by Mr. Howard. If they did not begin by settling what the main principle was fo be, they could not have a bill of any value. Mr. Howard justly said in the letter which had been read, that the first thing for the Council to decide was whether it was wished to have a compulsory bill or a permissive one. He knew perfectly well from his experience with regard to the bill of last year that whoever might have charge of such a bill in future — and his own duties would certainly prevent him from occupying that position in the next session — should receive instructions from tbe Council as to the main principles to be adopted. Mr. Pell, M.P., wished to make one remark in reference to what had just fallen from his friend Mr. Read. There was great ambiguity in the word " compulsory." A hill was not compulsory; but, if it passed into an enactment, it became compulsory. Therefore the question was what was meant and covered in the minds of Mr. Read and those who agreed with him by that terra. They need not go beating about the bush. The question was whether that Council intended to ask the Legislature to prohibit landlords and tenants from making any contract they chose to make between themselves in refer- ence to a holding, unless they excluded themselves from the operation of tbe bill by entering into an agreement or lease extending over 21 years. That he understood to be the point at issue. He believed the Council was aware that he was in favour of the principle of free contract, and he thought the meeting should be contented with lealfirming the principle which it had already approved. Mr. Jasper More reminded the meeting that last session Mr. Disraeli having convened a meeting of the Conservative members of the House of Commons on that subject, they de- cided that the 12th Clause of Mr. Howard's Bill, making its operation compulsory, should be struck out. (Colonel Paget, M.P. : No.) If that were not so, perhaps the hon. and gal- lant member would be kind enougli to explain what was done at that meeting. All the leading journals announced what he had stated. Of course if any Liberal members were to intro- duce a bill, they would find themselves in a minority. The Chairman reminded the Council that circumstances liad entirely clianged since that question was put down for discussion, and added that the Chamber had already decided in effect that any bill which might be passed should not be permissive. A Voice : No. At the request of the Chairman, the Secretary then read the resolution on the subject passed by the Council last year, de- claring that " security for this purpose, where not given by lease or agreement, should be provided by legislation." The Chairman thought the principle of that resolution was that where tenants were not secured by other means the bill sliould give security. He thought it was on the whole desirable to follow the advice of Sir John Pakington. Mr. T. HoRLEY hoped the Council would not separate with- out passing some resolution respecting the principles of legis- lation. He was confident that if they did so tenant-farmers generally would be greatly disappointed. He did not agree with Mr. Pell that the bill should be permissive. Mr. Chai-lin, M.P., thought that that discussion was some- what premature. They had been engaged during the greater part of that morning in considering a hypothetical bill— a bill which no longer existed, and if he might veuture to make a sug'iestion, it would be that the wisest course would be to adopt the suggestion made by Sir John Pakington. He tliought it highly desirable that the disputed question whether there sliould be a law prohibiting freedom of contract between landlords and tenants of England should be definitively settled. In what manner that question would be settled, he, for one, could not doubt for a single moment. He believed that the vast majority of the landlords and tenants throughout this country would oppose almost unanimously anything like in- terference with freedom of contract. (Cries of "No, no.") He tliouglit that if the matter were brouKht to the test of a poll of the tenants, it would be found that liis opinion was not unfounded. iJcfore the Chamber expressed any decided opinion on that subject, let a bill be introduced in Parliament, and let them see what sort of a bill it was. Mr. BowEN Jones, as a tenant-farmer, could not help ex- pressing his great surprise that opposition to a legislative measure securing compensation to tenant-farmers for unex- hausted improvements should proceed from a county where custom already gave such compensation. Why should not the advantages enjoyed in Lincolnshire be extended to the whole country? No one there wished to interfere with any freedom of contract which would not prevent justice from being done to the outgoing tenant. Mr. LiPSCOMBE (Yorkshire) also expressed his surprise that gentlemen from Lincolnshire should object to the passing of a bill in accordance with the custom which prevailed there. Mr. Chaplin, M.P., said he and other gentlemen connected with Lincolnshire wished to see the custom of Lincolnshire extended over the whole country. They had a custom, but it was a custom without the 12th clause. Mr. Bromley (Lincolnshire) said the Lincolnshire agricul- turists objected to the bill of last session because it would have interfered with existing agreements and contracts. They were decidedly in favour of compensation being given for un- exhausted improvements, but they also maintained that tbe law should only come into operation in the absence of any lease or agreement to the contrary. The amendment having then been withdrawn, Mr. Pell moved another amendment, viz. : " That the Council, without pledging itself to details, approves of the principle of compensation to tenants for the unexhausted value of their improvements, and to landlords for dilapidation or deterioration caused by default of the tenant, and desires that security for this purpose, where not given by lease or agree- ment, should be provided by legislation, subject only to the written consent of the landlord in the _case of permanent im- provements." Mr. Bromley seconded the amendment. Mr. Fowler (Dorsetshire) supported the amendment. Mr. C. S. Read, M.P., said so much had been said about the 12th clause of the bill of last session, and there had been so much misunderstanding on the part of gentlemen who wished to misunderstand, that he could not help troubling them again. Mr. Pell had, he thought, purposely misunderstood the matter. If Mr. Howard's bill had passed into law, that clause would have prevented an agent from depriving a tenant of any com- pensation for unexhausted improvements. He had known cases in which landlords in England had contracted themselves out of a custom. Immediately after the passing of the Irish Land Act a large number of Irish landlords entered into an agreement with tenants paying rental over £50 by which they were prohibited from claiming sixpence for compensation under that Act. Again, with regard to game, the law said that it should be the property of the tenant ; but did not landlords, as a rule, nevertheless keep the game iu their own hands ? Mr. Stoker, M.P., and Mr. Pnipps, M.P., supported the amendment. Mr. C. Smith said he was perfectly willing to withdraw his resolution iu favour of one for giving security by law to a tenant where it was not given by lease or agreement. The motion was then withdrawn, and thereupon Mr. Pell's amendment was submitted as a substantive motion. After a few words from Col. Paget, M.P., in support of this motion, Mr. D. Long moved as an amendment, " That this Council approves of the general principle of Messrs. Howard and Read's Landlord and Tenant Bill of last year, and earnestly but respectfully requests tiie attention of the Legislature to the subject as early as possible." Mr. H. Neild, in seconding the amendment, expressed his astonishment that opposition to such a bill should emanate from Lincolnshire. Mr. C. S. Read said he strongly desired that the Council might be unanimous on that subj ect, and he thought the reso- lution proposed by Mr. Pell did in fact embody the main principle of the bill of last session, which was simply this — that where compensation was not secured by lease or agreement the law should step in and protect the unfortunate tenant. Mr. Chaplin, M.P., hoped the Council would be unani- mous inpassiug the resolution now before it, to which he him- self gave his hearty support, and trusted that this conduct on his part would relieve the minds of those wlio had persistently THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. 317 said that Liucolushire geutlemeu were opposed to legislatiou on that subject. As to the 12th clause he regarded it as at once mischievous and useless. He had always held that if the agriculture of England was to prosper there must be una- nimity and good feeling between landlords and tenants, and he felt certain that any legislatiou of that kind would be most injurious. The Chairman, after reading the resolutiou, observed that either a good bill or a bad one might be founded upon it, and thought it very desirable that if it were adopted the Council should at an early period endeavour to fgund a good bill upon it. Sir J. I'akington said they did not want a tenants' bill and they did not want a landlords' bill, but one that would secure to the tenant the benefit of what he had expended on the land ; and he was very desirous that they should come to a unanimous vote, because that would give increased strength to their pro- ceedings. After some conversation tlie resolution was adopted, only two or three hands being held up for the amendment. Mr. AuKELL proposed that Mr. Pell and Mr.,Chaplin should draw up a bill founded on the resolution, and lay it before a future meeting of the Council for consideration. Mr. H. Neild seconded the motion. Mr. Bromley protested against the attempt to hook two members ot Parliament in that way. Mr. Pell, M.P., hoped the motion would be postponed till after the Speech from the Throne had been delivered. The motion was then withdrawn. The next subject on the agenda being "The thrashing machines Bill," on the motion of Mr. G. Turner, seconded by_ Mr. T. Horley, it was resolved "That this Council is of opinion that before any law is passed upon the subject of agricultural macliines an inquiry into the extent, number, and circumstances of accidents arising from the use of all farm machinery should be instituted, with the view of ascertaining whether any legislation is necessary." The Secretary then read a letter from the Secretary of the Association of Chambers of Commerce, asking the Council to join in a deputation to the Government having for its object the appointment of a Minister of Commerce and Agriculture. At the suggestion of the Chairman it was decided that this matter should be considered at the next Council meeting. It was afterwards resolved that " Highway legislation," in- cluding the question of the transit of locomotives on highways, should form another topic at the next meeting. The Council then adjourned till the lith of April. A BEER-TAX v. THE MALT-TAX. DEPUTATION TO THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER. On Wednesday March 4, a deputation of about a dozen members of the Central Chamber of Agriculture and the Associated Chambers, had an interview with Sir Stafford Northcote, in Downing-street, to lay before the right hon. gentleman the views of those bodies in reference to the Malt- tax. The task of introduction was performed by Mr. Joshua Fielden, M.P., and Mr. G. Storer, M.P., the only two Mem- bers of Parliament on the deputation. Mr. J. FiEiDEN, M.P., said lie had long felt that the Malt- tax was very unjust in its operation as regarded the labouring people of this country, while it took very much more out of the pockets of the people than went into the Exchequer. Having been connected all his life with the manufacturing dis- tricts, he had observed how heavily it pressed on the labouring population there. It was the custom of many labourers in that part of the country to brew beer at their own cottages. It had been ascertained that in five townships 76 per cent, of the inhabitants, chiefly labouring people, brewed at home, 'hat 8 per cent, would brew at home but could not afford to do so, that 6 per cent, bought beer, and that 10 per cent, did not drink beer. It was most important to encourage the habit of brewing at home, which tended so much to keep men from public-houses, and that could only be done by repealing or reducing the JIalt-tax, which was practically a tax of 140 per cent. In Surrey, where he now resided, he had found that labouring men literally could not get beer, and, for the sake of such persons, he wished to see the old practice of brewing at home revived. He knew, of course, tiiat a Chancellor of the Exchequer, when asked to repeal a tax that yielded £7,000,000 per annum, would have to consider the subject from a different point of view from that which he (Mr. Fielden) had taken ; but, seeing that within a few years the duties on tea had been reduced by one-half, and those on sugar by three-fourths, sugar being entirely a foreign production, he tliought those who asked for remission in the case of a home- grown and home-manufactured article had a fair claim to con- sideration. The following " statement" was here presented : Because the excessive taxation of 21s. 8d. per qr. discourages the growth of barley, thereby preventing tlie adoption of tlie most remunerative rotations of crops, and, as a consequence, limiting the production of meat and dairy produce. Because the opera- tion of this high tax directly handicaps the production of second-class and medium-quality barleys, which alone are capable of very extended cultivation. Because the tax, in debarring the use of inferior barleys for malting purposes operates as a fin(! upon high farming — very heavy and prolific crops of barley being generally incompatililc with the pre^er- vation of superior quality for malting. Because this discou- ragement of the production of all but high-quality barleys acts especially to the injury of agriculture in Ireland, where, owing to the climate, barleys of the finest quality can rarely be grown. Because an increased demand for barley would be of greater advantage to English farmers than an increased demand for any other grain, seeing that good malting barley is produced upon only a limited area in foreign countries, and thus our home growth would not be swamped in our markets by immense imports, as is the case with respect to wheat, oats, and other corn. Because the amount of taxation paid by farmers upon the beer consumed as a necessary item of expenditure in their business commonly ex- ceeds the sum paid by the farmer iu income tax. The tabular abstract of returns, appended to this statement, of particulars relating to 56 farms in 22 counties, shows that, on 30,000 acres, the tax unon the beer consumer (including as beer the extra wages paid in lieu of beer) amounts to no less than £3 3s. per 100 acres. This is reckoning the tax with its artificial en- hancement of the natural price to be 7s. 6d. per barrel of 36 gallons, of the average strength of four barrels per quarter of malt. The income tax per 100 acres can hardly exceed 20s. Because the malt tax is by far the heaviest of the imposts remaining upon articles of food and sustenance, and thus falls with peculiar pressure upon the labouring classes and, through them, upon employers of labour. It has been shown from statistics of the relative consumption of beer and of tea, coffee, and sugar, that the repeal of the Malt-tax would save the working classes per household a very much larger sura than the repeal of the duties on tea, coffee, and sugar. So that, even at the present restricted rate of consumption of beer, the working classes would gaia far more from a " free dinner-table" than from a free breakfast-table." Because the discouragement of cottage brewing by the weight of the tax seriously detracts from the comforts, while it also deteriorates the habits and morals, of the labouring classes. Be- cause the Malt-duty is extravagant by reason of the loss involved in its cumulative incidence ; it having been lepeatcdly siiown on the best authority that, by levying the tax at such an early stage in the manufacture of beer, the natural selling price to the consumer is raised probably oue- third ; while the tax cost the public 40 or 45 per cent, more than the seven and a half millions actually acciuiug to tlie revenue. Because the duties on wines, the beverage of the rich and well to-do classes, have been lowered 60 per cent, since the year 1859, the average wine duties having been 5s. 2d. per gallon in 1859, while they arc only 2s. at the present time. Because all other industries except husbandry have been considered by the State and have been delivered from exorbitaut special taxation, whereas the British farmer is 318 THE FAEMER'S MAGAZINE. placed by the Malt-tas at a disadvantage in competition with foreigners. They prayed that any taxation remaining npon malt might be transferred to beer for the following reasons : Because liberation from Excise restrictions would give to farmers a new source of profit in their business from the use of malt as food for animals. As inferior barley malted con- tains 20 per cent, more of flesh-forming constituents and 100 per cent, more of sugar than the raw grain, while it would cost at least a third less than the same barley malted and charged with duty, and as malt is of very remarkable value as a food for young stock, freedom to use it in this way would have a great effect in augmenting the production of meat. Because the farmer using his own malted grain would be able to protect himself to a large extent against adulterated feeding stuffs, now too often victimising him in the market. Because the system of taxing beer by the sale of adhesive stamps to be affixed to barrels sold has been successfully adopted in other countries, and because it was given in evidence by high au- thorities of the Board of Inland Revenue, before the late Select Committee on the Malt-tax, that a taxation upon beer or by a system of brewers' licences, could be collected without danger to the Revenue. Mr. G. F. MuNTZ said the Malt-tax interfered greatly with the productive power of the country, and on that ground he thought it ought to be repealed. Mr. Storer, M.P., said for many years successive deputa- tions had waited upon successive Chancellors of the Exchequer on that important subject, and urged the consideration of the claims of the agriculturists to repeal on the ground of strict justice, and as a necessary consequence of free trade in corn ; and tliroughout, while the justice of the claims had been con- ceded, the relief sought had been persistently denied. lie hoped the time had now arrived wheu justice would no longer be sacrificed to expediency. They asked the right lion, gentle- man and the Ministry to take tlieir claims into careful con- sideration. They remembered with gratitude that the present Prime Minister, while he was formerly Chancellor of the Ex- chequer, proposed to abandon half the Malt-duty. It was not for them to say what amount of remission it would be in the power of the Government to offer. They went for the ulti- mate abolition of tlie tax, but they were willing to accept an instalment, and an instalment of half the whole amount would be very valuable. They did not ask for remission merely in the interest of one class, though the tenant-farmers had a very strong case. Having to farm at a great disadvantage as com- pared with foreigners, they were compelled to use malt, the duty on which was, in many cases, sixpence in the pound, and in some instances — that is on clay and arable farms — as high as a shilling. Then there was the present state of the labour question. In the rural districts, interested agitators had done everything in their power to set the employed against the employers ; and he believed the asperities which existed would be very much softened if farmers were enabled to allow their men good beer, or if labourers were enabled to produce beer at their own homes at a cheap rate. Labourers would then feel that there was something more for them in tlie land from which they were being urged to separate themselves. In many parts of the country the labour question was assuming an aspect which threatened the very existence of agriculture in the case of arable land. He wished to endorse what Mr. i'ielden had said with regard to the necessity of encouraging private and cottage brewing. In nineteen cases out of twenty, drunkenness was the result of poisoned beer being imbibed at the public-houses ; and it was clearly the interest of the town as well as of the rural labourer that there should be a remission of the Malt-tax. Mr. H. NziLD said the question was one of great interest to the growers and the consumers, or would-be consumers, of barley. He represented the dairy farmers, and could state, from experience, that there was nothing so valuable as a con- diment as malt, which should be liberally used in the pro- duction of milk and butter, and for the development of stock — cows, calves, sheep, and pigs. When that able Parliamentary committee was sitting on that question in 1868, one of the soundest practical farmers of the Yorkshire AVolds gave most valuable evidence as fo the use of malt by stock-feeders and breeders. Having calculated tlie total number of head of stock, he estimated the quantity of malt that might be used per head with advantage, and he put it down at 17 million bushels. That was in 1868. He liad seen him lately, and he now thought that 20 millions might be used with great benefit both to producers and conEUiners. Recent legislation had very wisely checked the adulteration of milk ; and farmers wished to fill up the gap thus created, and to be instrumental in sup- plying the increasing demand for pure milk. It was an urgent necessity that every facility should be afforded for good tarming. The labourers now had the advantage of a rise of three or four shillings per head in their wages, and that of course in- creased the pressure on the farmers, and rendered it more imperative that the shackles on production should be removed. Tiie deputation did not belong to a class which clamoured for the boasted surplus, but they wanted to have male set free for farming purposes. After alluding to a recent meeting of far- mers in Liverpool, and to a meeting of the Manchester Club, at which the repeal of the Malt-tax was strongly insisted upon, Mr. Neild concluded by quoting the strong language of the Parliamentary Committee of 1868, that the Malt-tax ought to be repealed, and a licence on brewing substituted for it. Mr. G. A. May said he wanted to dispel an idea, which was very common, that the consumer of beer was the person who paid the Malt-tax. As a tenant-farmer he knew that that was not the case. An ordinary consumer might pay for a twopenny glass of ale a penny tax, but the farmer did the same thing. But beyond that the farmer had to face a very difficult, and under that tax a very unequal competition. In the centre of England there was a very large tract of strong land, lying either on marl or clay, or cold red sandstone. The rainfall was much greater there than near the eastern coast, where the land was lighter and altogether more fitted for the growth of barley, and he believed he did not exaggerate when he said that at least one-third of the barley grown in the Midland Counties was spoiled either by being down during growth or by being badly harvested. In consequence of this great loss in the barley crop many of his friends grew very httle indeed. There was often a difference of 15s. a quarter, and never less than 10s. between the inferior barleys and the best, and the loss to which he alluded amounted to a very serious sum per acre. If they took 5 quarters as the average produce per acre, and that were worth 10s. a quarter less than the better class of barley, that made a loss of 50s. per acre. It was difficult even to place the lower qualities of barley, maltsters havine to pay a much higher amount of duty on barley bought at 40s. than on barley bought at 50s. He had at that moment two large ricks of barley which he would be very glad to malt for the purpose of making beer on his farm and the feeding of his stock. He kept a rather large stock of sheep, and would like to give his ewes before and after the lambing at least half-a-piut of malt a day. He knew of nothiug that would be more beneficial to both. It had been said that malt was of very little use as a feeding material. If that were the case it seemed strange that the refuse of the brewers fetched such a high price. He lived near Burton, and he believed tiiat one firm there, that of Messrs. Bass and Sods, brewed something like 200,000 quarters of malt a year, and the simple grains at 3s. a quarter produced £30,000. Then tliere was the malt dust, the yeast, and the balm, the value of which was difficult to estimate. Altogether the commonest refuse of the brewers was of great money value, showing indisputably that it was a very valuable ingredient for feeding. The Chancellor of the Exchequer : Is that refuse used in the raw state, or is it mixed with other materials ? Mr. May : It is generally mixed with other things. Tlie Chancellor of the Exchequer : What is the pre- sent regulation with regard to the use of malt for feeding purposes P Is tiiere not a regulation that malt may be used for feeding purposes if mixed with linseed? Mr. BiDDELL : That regulation has been found totally in- applicable to the farming business 1 have tried it myself, and it has failed. The Chancellor of the Exchequer : I wanted to know with reference to the refuse of the breweries, how that is commonly used, whether it is mixed with anything else? Mr. May said it was mixed with chopped straw and hay, and with meal. There must be great value in malt itself for feeding purposes when the refuse was so valuable. Farmers were now in a worse position than almost any class of trades- men in the kingdom. Their business was getting less and less remunerative, and they justly asked for the remission of a portion of the Malt-tax with a view to its ultimate abolition. Mr. G. Turner said a large part of tiie county to which he belonged — Kent — grew an inferior kind of barley, and was THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 319 practically liaadicapped. Ie November he had a jrood, sound ' heavy barley, which the maltsters would not then look at, be- \ cause it was not quite up to the mark. lu March they were wishing to take it, and that showed that it was good enough to make beer. There was a large quantity of barley grown in Kent upon which the grower lost I'rom 5s. to 7s. per quarter, because, instead of going to the maltster, it had to be used for distilling, grinding, and other purposes. He believed that remark was applicab'e to five-sevenths of the barley grown in Kent. The repeal of the i\Ialt-tax would be a great blessing to the labourer, because he could then obtain beer from his master's cellar instead of visiting public-houses. The physical strengtli of the labouring class had been decreasing year by year, and the only thing that accounted for that was the dilli- culty of obtaiuing good and cheap beer. Mr. W. Broavn wished to say one or two words, as a grower of high-priced barley. Some persons said that men of all classes did not want the Malt-tax to be repealed, but, coming from the county of Essex, he denied that. Malt was now the only raw material that was taxed, and they wished that tax to be abolished, in order that t'ley raigiit liave " a fair field and no favour" in their competition with foreigners. To show how lieavily the tax pressed upon them indirectly, he would give the figures witii regard to his own barley. During the past season he had sold his barley at an average of 50s. per qr. The tax amounted to £5 per acre on the barley- growing land, and on the whole acreage of his farm it was 17s. per acre, or more than half the rental, lie believed that if tiie malt-duty were repealed there would be a larger demand for tlie better kinds of barley. He had been told by a brewer that when malt rose to 70s. a quarter, brewers were obliged to have recourse to sugar. Oue of the largest brewery firms in London had tiireateued that if the Malt-tax were repealed he would use syrups ; but it would be impossible to use a large quantity of syrups all the year, because it was well known that beer brewed from sugar would not keep duriug the summer montlis. Upon all beer exported from this coun- try the malt-duty was remitted. That was a very great hard- ship to farmers wiio could not use their raw produce without having it heavily taxed. As regarded the question of mono- poly, the repeal of the duty would no doubt in some degree open the trade. The large amount of capital that was re- quired to compete with such firms as the Messrs. Bass tended to keep the trade in a very few hands. Mr. BiDDELL said if, on looking round, he saw a tax im- posed on other raw materials produced in this country, he would, as a farmer, cheerfully submit to a tax on malt. If he saw a tax levied on coal at the pit's mouth, or on iron after it had come out of the smelting furnace, he would not com- plain. But he maiutained that farmers ought to be treated like other people. Neitiier Mr. Lowe nor Mr. Gladstone had contradicted what was said by previous deputations, but they both said it was a question of revenue, aud the money could not be spared. There was now a surplus, and it was high time that something was done to meet the just claims of the farmers. When in 1S52 the present Prime Minister proposed that half the duty should be remitted, only six more votes were wanted to carry that proposal. Since that period £20,000,000 of taxation had been removed, and he put it to the right hon. gentleman whether if that amount of remission would have been just then it would not be just now. Mr. Jasper More said the Chancellor of the Exchequer had no doubt had many claims already for the present surplus, but, be that as it might, the present Government would probably remain in office so long that it would have sufficient time to give due consideration to the repeal of the Malt-tax. Mr. Lowe, whose special ambition did not appear to be in the direction of being the farmers' friend, had admitted that the tax was indefensible excejit on the ground of revenue; and many temperance advocates had come to the conclusion — in which he concurred — that the repeal of the Malt-tax would promote the cause of temperance. Mr. May reminded the right liou. gentleman of the close connection between that question and the losses sustained by farmers in their stock by disease. In 1872 those losses amounted in the aggregate to millions of pounds. Tiiere was nothing which animals in a disordered state of mouth and stomach would take so freely as a solution of malt, and if that were tlie only ground for it the Malt- tax ought to be repealed. Mr. Neville urged that that obnoxious tax ought to be repealed in order that the principle of free trade might be fully carried out. That principle was now generally admitted to be true and correct, although, as was well-known, farmers suffered much for some years from the operation of free trade. Now that the English farmer had to compete with the corn growers of the world, it was most important that they should be freed from the burden of the Malt-tax. He believed the repeal of that tax would tend very much to decrease drunkenness. Tiie other day a judge sitting at an Assize in Staffordshire — a county which was remarkable for the drunken- ness whicli prevailed — said he thought the fearful drunkenness of that district was owing in a great degree to the existence of a great number of low-class public-houses where labouring men drank bad beer. If the Malt-tax were abolished many of those men would, he believed, practice cottage brewing and drink their beer with their families at home. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said : Well, gentle- men, I am sure you will, as Mr. Jasper More pointed out to you the necessity for doing, make allowance for the difficulties of my position. The difficulties of a Chancellor of the Ex- chequer are always considerable when a Budget is approaching ; but my difficulties, coming as I do so suddenly into office, are greater than usual ; and therefore you will hardly expect that 1 should now give you any positive answer upon the impor- tant questions which you have brought before me. At the same time I must thank you for having brought before me in so convenicQt a form and with so much ability the different con- siderations which have been urged upon me, and several of which are put forward so well iu the printed statement just handed to me. Of course, I feel that the Malt-tax is part of a very large question, morally and physically as well as finan- cially, and that the whole subject is one which requires very great and very careful consideration, both on account of its magnitude in itself and on account of the various questions which are more or less directly connected with it. All I can say at the present moment is, that we will give the most serious consideration to the arguments which have been brought forward, aud that I will take care to give due weight to them in considering what arrangements are to be made. There are one or two questions which, it occurs to me to ask, and upon which you will perhaps be able to give me some useful information. One argument which has been very much dwelt upon by several gentlemen is that the effect of the Malt-tax is bad as discouraging cottage brewing. It has also been suggested that it would be desirable, if the revenue can be spared, that the incidence of the tax should be altered by converting the tax on the raw material of malt into a tax on beer. Now I want to know whether you have considered the question how far the transfer of taxation from malt to beer would operate in the case of cottage brewing. The great difficulty which arises when we consider the question of trans- ferring the duty from the raw material malt to the finished product beer is this — that instead of collecting the tax from a small area and a few manufacturers, you would have to col- lect it from a much larger area and a greater number of estab- lishments, and that would perhaps make the levying of it more difficult and more vexatious. A question would of course be raised by the brewers as to the justice of transferring the tax from malt to beer, and leaving private brewing out of con- sideration. Have you considered at all how that should be dealt with P Mr. FiELDEN, M.P., observed that the amount of private brewing was now very small, and he did not think that if it were left perfectly free there would be much complaint. Mr. BiDDELL said that as an employer of labour he would not like to see occupiers of a cottage with a rental uuder £5 a year subject to a licence ; addiutr that he did not think there would be any difficulty iu tlie case of the middle classes. Mr. H- Neild remarked that the transfer in question had been suggested only as a dernier ressort. The Cuancellor of the Exchequer: Gentlemen, I don't know that I can really say much more at present ! You can hardly expect me to do anything more now than say that I will take the matter into consideration. I feel its importance ; and I feel the weight of many of the arguments that have been adduced. One thing is, I think, quite obvious — namely, that a reduction in the price of beer will tend to promote tempe- rance, by leading people to drink wholesome and good beer in S20 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. preference to spirits ; but it' we are both to reduce the duty on I Mr. J. Fielben, M.P., then thauked the right hoii. gea- nialt and to lose revenue on spirits, we shall want a very good tleman for the manner iujwhich he had received the deputation, surplus (laughter). j and the interview terminated. A BEER-TAX OR A MALT-TAX? Mainly of course tlirough the influcDce for good or evil of the Central Chamber of Agriculture, the cry for jMalt-tax repeal is gradually dying away. At Norwich, Mr. Sewell Head said " there was not the same carDCstness for the repeal of the Malt-tax there was a few years ago, for he was sorry to say there had rot been that unanimity amongst farmers which he desired to see, or that persistency which it was necessary to manifest in order to obtain the repeal of the tax." At a meeting of the Chamber of Agriculture iu the neigh- bom-ing county of Cambridge on the same day, a resolution was passed declaring " under present circumstances it is inexpedient to repeal the Malt-tax ; " while The Times says : " The deputation which waited upon Sir Stafford Northcote was not, indeed, in a parliamentary sense, very influential. Only two members formed part of it — Mr. Fieldeu and a new member, Mr. Storer. When we consider how many members there must have been in London waiting to attend yesterday's ceremonial, we may well feel that this was a weak array. "Where were the members for Essex ? "Where the members for Herts? Where was Colonel Barttelot ? All these were conspicuously absent." Precisely so, as TZ/c Mark Lane Express had been asking throughout the autumn how it happened that the chosen champion of repeal, this same absent Colonel Barttelot, had not a word to say about the Malt-tax in the many long speeches he was making about the country ? To demonstrate what people do when they are really in ear- nest, let us but look to the strong array of members of the House who went up with the Anti-Income-tax depu- tation, and then to the " two-peunyworth" which in- troduced the Anti-Malt-tax people. "Where, oh, where were " the Farmers' Friends," the Pells, Jenkiusous, Brises and the others ? It is, however, only fair to add that Mr, Read gives another reason which he thinks will account very easily for this apathy — at least amongst farmers, if not amongst the M.P.s : " In 1865, he sold very good barley at 12s. a coomb ; last Saturday he was offered 27s. a coomb ; but he was positive that if barley were entirely free, in the average of years the price for it would exceed that of wheat." It may be better or safer perhaps to take the question just as it stands before us at present; and here Jlr. Read com- plains of a want of unanimity, as he says, amongst farm- ers, but as we say amongst the repealers themselves. It has so happened that we have had some considerable experience in organizing the action of deputations about to wait upon any member of the Government, wlien of course the great aim has been to take some clearly- defined line, and to put this as concisely as possible before thfe right honourable gentleman, who will be toler- ably sure to catch at any inconsistency or contradiction on the part of his visitors. And on "Wednesday last the deputed representatives of the Central Chamber of Agriculture went as comfortably together as a litter of pigs engaged iu a free fight. Instead of going straight on and enlisting the support of other classes, by showing that with free barley they could produce more meat and drink of a better quality, they tried to fight barley against tea and sugar, and went on to suggest a substitute the very mention of which would put one of the most influential interests alike iu the House and the country dead against the movement. The deputation asked by way of relief for the imposition of another duty, fiddling and inquisitorial in its character, whereby people would be required, uuder the direction of the exciseman, to stick postage stamps on their beer- barrels, and so forth. It was in this fashion, in fact, that the Chancellor of the Exchequer was besieged : Mr. Fielden, a veteran in the cause, said " labourers preferred to brew beer in their own cottages. In his own district there were five town- ships, in which 76 per cent, of the inhabitants brewed at home, 8 would brew at home if they could, 6 per cent, bought beer, while 10 per cent, did not drink any. Considering that the habit of brewing beer at home was a worthy and beneficial one to the labourer's family, and that such persons were taxed even to the extent of 100 per cent., he held that the Malt-tax was a cruel tax. Its removal Avould encourage the good old prac- tice of home brewing; the labouring man and his wife would then have an abundant supply of pure, nutritious drink." "Whereupon, the secretary appro- priately read a statement, which, by way of helping the labourer, suggested the renewal of a tax upon beer in accordance with the report of the Select Committee. Then Mr. Storer, the nevv member, "endorsed what had falleu as to the necessity of encouraging private and cottage brewing, especially in the interests of morality ; for every one cognisant with the administration of justice must know that nineteen out of every twenty cases of drunkenness arose from the poisoned beer men imbibed at low public-houses." And everyboby said Hear, hear to this, just as everybody had of course agreed to the statement and its precious " fourteenth" and lastly. Soon after naturally followed jMr. Neild, who straightway declared that " no language could be stronger than that of the Committee of 1868, who came to the conclusion, after hearing the evidence brought before them, that the Malt-tax might with justice be repealed, and a licence to brew be substituted, and that no loss to the revenue would be incurred thereby." This " strong language" was very much as Mr. Neild gives it ; but when he refers again to the report he will find that over this paragraph recommending a beer-tax six of the Committee " came to one conclusion" and six to another ; as it was only carried by the casting vote of the Chairman, Colonel Barttelot, who had himself drawn up the report. On precisely the same terms a proposal from Mr. Lent Dent was rejected — that is, by the Chairman's vote. It may be useful to compare the two, as Mr. Dent's paragraph ran thus : " Various propositions have been submitted to your Committee as to the substitution of a beer-tax in lieu of the Malt-duty ; but the difficulty of imposing a tax upon private brewers, and the inconvenience from the inter- ference of the Excise in the operations of the public brewer, as well as the serious expense of collection, do not incline your Committee to look with favour upon the proposal." The remainder of the argument was equally con- tradictory ; as Mr. Jasper More " would promote the social happiness and welfare of the labouring classes by inducing them to drink their beer with their wives and families" by clapping on a beer-tax ! Until, at length, the Chancellor of the Exchequer seeing an opening was bound to " observe that one or two arguments put for- ward in the statement presented, and one which has been much dwelt upon by several of the geutlemeu who have THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 321 Spoken, is that the effect of the Malt-tax is bad as dis- coui-aging cottage brewing. I see also that you suggest that it would be desirable if the revenue cannot be spared, that the incidence of the tax should be so far altered as to convert it from a tax upon malt — that is, the material in its first stage of manufacture— into a tax upon beer. I want to know whether you have considered the question how far you think that the transfer of the taxation from malt to beer would operate in the case of cottage brewing. A difficulty which arises when yon consider that question of transferring the incidence of the taxation from the material malt to the finished pro- duct beer is, that you would have to collect the tax at a great number of establishments instead of a few. A question would, of course, be raised by the brewers as to the justice of transferring the tax from malt to beer, leaving private brewing out of consideration." The breweries, the cottagers, the private families ! If Sir StaflFord Northcote wishes to get up " a row" of the regular match-box pattern let him venture on a beer-tax forthwith. The division over such a proposal was so narrow in the House of Commons Committee, that it would only have been prudent to have at once put it aside ; but the Chamber of Agriculture has now the credit of reviving a scheme, the very mention of which will raise hostility on all sides against the repeal of the Malt-tax. Surely the Chamber had better to stick to its Local Taxation labours, over which at length even The Times begins to laugh. THE CHESHIRE CHAMBER OF AGRICULTURE. A MODEL AGREEMENT. At a general meeting held at Crewe, to discuss the points of agreement between landlords and tenants which would be most just and beneficial to both parties upon taking and leaving farms, Lord de Tabley presided. The Secretary, Mr. T. Rigby, said Captain Smith, chief constable of Cheshire, had told him that morning that pleuro- pneumonia had broken out in a very virulent form in the Hyde district, on two farms which had lately been tenanted by a Derbyshire farmer, who brought his stock from Derby- shire, and had only bought one cow since lie removed to the Hyde district. That purchase he made in August last at Hazelwood fair. Two animals had died, and 10 had heen killed. The other portion of the county was comparatively free. The farmer said there was no disease in the district from which he removed, and he could not account for it, unless it had been caused by the cold Cheshire clays. Sir Harry Mainwarog : There is some obnoxious smoke there, and perhaps that may have caused it. The CiiAiroiAN said the Council had met since the last meeting, and drawn up a report, which they recommended to the meeting as a basis for consideration and agreement. The Council was numerously attended by practical agriculturists and landlords, and the points agreed upon were those which they thought best calculated to meet with general adoption in the district. Of course any landlord could vary any particu- lar point, but it was wished that the attention of the Chamber should be drawn to the desirability of having some uniform custom, particularly as to tenancy, time of incoming and out- going, and compensation for unexhausted improvements. Considerable discussion took place on the various points of agreement suggested by the Council, which were taken scrhdlm. The Council recommended that the tenancy as to houses and buildings should be from the 25tli of March, but the Chamber decided that it should be from the first of May. On the ques- tion of notice, the Council suggested that six month's notice sliould be given by either party to terminate the tenancy, but the meeting resolved by 26 to 9 votes, that twelve months notice should be given. The clause as to game read thus, as it left the bauds of the Council : " The landlord leserves all game, fish, and wild-fowl, with full liberty for himself, friends, or servants to enter on the ground at any time, aud hunt, shoot, fish, aud sport." An amendmentthatthe word" winged" should be p'aced before the word game was proposed, and carried by 28 to 8 votes. Mr. G. W. Latham said that all cases of heart-burning or ill-feeling in Clieshire that he had ever known with reference to game had been owing to the letting of game, and he wished to move a rider to the resolution to the effect that in all cases ofletting game the tenant should iiave the first offer. Tliere were of course some exceptional cases. A landlord who let his liouse was very often obliged to let tlic game willi it, and in such a case the tenant practically stood in the same posi- tion as he did to his landlord before the house and game were let, and very little harm would be done. It was in cases when the game, apart from the liouse, was let to gentlemen from large tuwus that oppression occurred. Mr. Edwards (Malpas) seconded the proposition, which was unanimously passed, and the words " In all cases of letting game the tenant to liave the first offer," were added to the clause. The points of agreement, as amended, were as follows ; and it was agreed that they should be printed and further discussed at the next meeting : Tenajvcv.— From year to year. As to the arable land from 1st November, except that portion of it to be sown with wheat ; the meadow and mowing land from 31st December; all other land, except an outlet for cattle and garden, from 2nd February ; and as to house and buildings and said outlet, from the 1st May next, subject to the following provision : Notice. — 12 months' notice given by either party in any year to terminate the tenancy, such notice to be given on or before the 2nd of February. UNDERLETTi?iG.— The tenant not to assign, underlet, or part with the possession of the premises, or any part thereof, without the consent of the landlord or his agent. IIe>'t.— To be due and payable on the 2'ith June in each year of the tenancy. Taxes.— All tithe, rent charge, land tax, and other taxes and rates, whether parliamentary or parochial (excepting land- lords' property tax), to be paid by the tenant. Cultivation.— The land to be farmed in a proper, hus- band-like manner, and kept and left in a good state of cultiva- tion. Proportion of tillage to be mutually agreed upon between landlord and tenant. Fences, Ditches, &c.— All fences to be kept aud left in good condition. All ditches aud under drains and outfalls to be kept free and clear from all obstructions ; and if this be not done in any year of the tenancy the landlord to have power to do the work and charge the tenant with the cost. Gates, Posts, Rails, .\:c.— To be put in repair by landlord on entering, and to be kept in repair by the tenant, landlord allowing timber in the rough. Repairs. — The tenant at his own cost to keep in good repair and condition the inside of the house and buildings, as taken from the landlord, including the glass in windows, locks and bolts, and do all papering, painting, plumbing, and colour- ing"; to keep pumps, wells, cesspools, drains, spouts, paved yards in good order (being allowed stones for paving by the landlord), to keep all occupation roads in good working order, and so liand them over at the end of tenancy. The landlord to do all outside repairs, painting and plumbing, and keep the outside doors and lead in windows in repair, and renew spouts when necessary, tenant to do all carting required in carrying out the same. Game. — The landlord reserves all winged game, fisli, and wild fowl, with full liberty for himself, friends, or servants, to enter on the ground at any time, and hunt, shoot, fish, aud sport. In all cases of letting game the tenant to have the first offer. TiiEsrASS.— Tiie tenant to do his best to prevent trespass over his land, and report the same when necessary to iiis land- lord, agent, or gamekroper.s. E.NXRi, — The landlord, his agents, and servants to liave 322 THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. free access (ingress aud egress) to the laud, house, and build- iugs, and to all woods aud plantations at any reasonable time, to take laud for buildiug, planting, or other purposes, and to liave all minerals, clay, gravel, stone, &o., with power to get, manufacture, and take away the same at any time without notice, allowing reasonable compensation to tenant for the crop that may be growing, and for the reduction of the extent of his farm. Trees. — The tenant not to cut, lop, or fell any trees, and to keep and preserve from damage all timber and other trees, and to leave the orchard and garden as fully planted with Iruit-trees and shrubs as upon entry. PixTURES, &c. — All the grates, cupboards, aud boilers ou the premises, as specified in schedule annexed, to be paid for on entering, aud to be sold to the incoming tenant or landlord at fair valuation on leaving. Umexiiausted Improvements. — The landlord to allow the outgoing tenant for permanent improvements, such as specified in the schedule previously adopted by the Chamber, on the terms, and iu accordance with the said schedule, as fixed by arbitrators appointed as hereafter stated, deducting from it the value of any deterioration or dilapidation iu the premises, buildings, land, &c., caused by default of the tenant, as specified in the said schedule. Condition's betw'een Outgoing and Incoming Tenant. — Outgoing tenant to have half the crop of wheat sown upon land that carried a crop other than wheat the previous year, and two-thirds, if grown upon a bare summer fallow, and also the straw in which it grew ; but he must pay for the spring cultivation, and for the cutting of all the growing crop at harvest. Tithe. — Outgoing tenant to pay the whole tithe rent- charge, due October 1st, iu last year of tenancy. Incoming tenant to pay the same, due 1st of April, in year of his incoming. Seeds. — Outgoing tenant to be paid by incoming tenant for the cost of all clover and grass-seeds sown during the last year of his tenancy, upon production of vouchers, provided the produce of such seeds has not been grazed with any other stock than sheep or calves under one year old, and not after the 1st November. Manure. — Incoming tenant to pay two-thirds the market value of all manure left upon the farm that has been properly cared for aud put into midden. No manure to be removed from the farm. Uay and Straw. — The outgoing tenant to remove no hay or straw grown during the last year of liis tenancy, and to be paid by the incoming tenant two-thirds of the market value of the hay aud straw left upon tlie premises. Arbitration. — All differences between the landlord and tenant, or between the outgoing and the incoming tenant, shall be settled by arbitration. It both parties concur a single arbitrator may be appointed, and his decision shall be final and binding. If both parties do not concur in the appoint- ment of a single arbitrator, each party shall appoint an arbi- trator, and the two arbitrators so appointed sliall appoint an umpire to decide upon any or all matters of dispute between them, and his or their decision shall be final. Arrears and Power of Landlord to Recover. — If the rent, or any sum due and payable to the laadlord under this agreement shall be in arrear, or if the tenant shall make default in the strict performance of all or any of the condi- tions and agreements on his part herein before contained, or if he shall become bankrupt, or file a petition for liquidation, or coinpositioa witli his creditors, or assign over his estate for the benefit of his creditors, or if his goods or chattels sliall be seized, or taken under a bill of sale or legal execution, the landlord may re-enter upon the premises, or any part thereof, in the name of the whole, and thereupon the tenancy shall cease and absolutely determine, but without prejudice to any action, distress, or any other proceeding for the recovery of any rent in arrear, or for damages for breach of this agreement which may have previously occurred. AGRICULTURAL HALL COMPANY, LIMITED. At the thirtcenti ordinary general meeting ou Tuesday, March 3rd, the following report of the directors was pre- sented : Since the last general meeting the purchase of the freehold of the Agricultural Hall has been completed. Thus leasehold property annually decreasing in value has been converted into freehold, which the directors believe will increase in value. The share capital, which was previously £45,000,is now £55,000 The loan capital, which was formerly £14,000, is now £26,000 Total £81,000 Out of the £8,000 debentures authorised to be issued £2,000 has not yet been raised. The balance-sheet for the year ending 31st of January last shows a net profit to the credit of revenue of'£3,46't 2s. 6d., which, added to the sum of £1,682 16s. 6d. (the balance of the previous year's account) makes the sum of £5,146 19s., out of which your directors recommend a dividend of 7 per cent, clear of income tax, on the capital of £55,000, which will absorb £3,850, leaving a balance of £1,296 19s., out of which your directors recommend that £596 Is. Id. should be carried to the credit of the the capital account, leaving £700 17s. 11 to be carried forward. During the two best days of the Cattle Show — Tuesday and Wednesday— a fog of unexampled density and duration hung over London, in con- sequence of which the receipts at the doors during the week were £1,800 under those of 1873. Notwithstanding the con- sequent unavoidable falling off in the income of the year, the directors feel themselves justified in congratulating the share- holders on the sound and promising condition of their property. The refresliment department has been let for a term of five years at a fixed rent of £1,000 a year. Your directors continue to avoid undertakings of a speculative character. The new buildings, besides increising the value of the refreshment de- partment, continue to produce a good income, and the Great Hall has been well let during the winter season. The directors retiring by rotation are Mr. Leeds, Mr. Shuttleworth, and Mr. Banister, who are eligible, and offer themselves for re-election. At the request of your directors, Mr. Charles Dorman con- sented to continue to act as " law clerk" for last year. He has now finally resigned tiiat post, and your directors recommend his appointment as a director, feeling that through his intimate knowledge of the Company's affairs, that course will be bene- ficial to the shareholders. Mr. Howard retired from the board in April last, and your directors recommend the election of Mr. Alfred Crosskill, implement maker, Beverley, Yorkshire, in his place. The auditor, Mr. Cufflin, also retires, but is eligible and offers himself for re-election. The auditor's report was also presented : I have examined the capital and revenue accounts and tlie balance sheet, and I find that they are in accordance with the books of the Com- pany. I have also seen the vouchers aud receipts, which con- firm the expenditure account. I am of opinion that it is time the capital account was closed, and that all the expenditure should come from revenue. I am also of opinion that the de- sire expressed by some of the shareholders, for a more detailed account, is not unreasonablcj^aud miglit very properly be fur- nished. Mr. Robert Leeds, the chairman, said that the report, which had been adopted by the unanimous voice of the board, contained full information of the company's proceedings during the year, and therefore he would not detain them with any re- marks of his own. He moved I he adoption of the report. Mr. J. Shuttleworth seconded the motion, observing that the directors iiad used their best endeavours to promote the interests of the Company. During the year they had been at considerable trouble and expense to enfranchise their valuable property. A large sum had been expended, but he believed it had been spent well. Mr. CumiN moved, as an amendment, that the dividend be 5 per cent., and expressed his opinion that if they divided 7 per cent, it would be a great deal more than was fairly earned. He thought that the business was not conducted upon safe princi- ples, and instead of adding to the capital it should be reduced. THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 323 or the account closed. The Company being entirely dependent for its revenue upon two annual shows, the better plan would be for the shareholders to husband their resources, and periodi- cally set aside a considerable sum tor contingencies. Mr. Brew- ster seconded, and Mr. Rndkin supported the amendment, criticising at considerable length tlie management of the property. Mr. Druce defended the action of the directors, and considered they were entitled to the confidence of the shaieholders. The amendment was then put to the vote, and negatived by a majority of two to one. The original motion was then carried. The vacancies in the directorate were next filled up. In opposition to a board nomination, Mr. Thomas Rudkin was brougiit forward, but the motion being treated by the Chair- man as one of want of confidence, it was, after a protracted discussion, negatived. The retiring auditor was tiien re-elected, and votes of thanks to some of the oHicjals were put or about to be put when the meetiug broke up rather abruptly. ROYAL ACxRIOULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. MONTHLY COUNCIL, Wedxesday, Marcli 4.— Present : Mr. IlollauJ, President, in the chair ; the Duke of Bedford, Earl Cathcart, the Earl of Leicester, the Earl of Lichfield, Viscount Bridport, Lord Cliesham, Lord Kesteveu, Lord Skelmersdale, Lord Vernon, the lion. W. Egerton, M.P., Sir A. K. Macdonald, Bart., Mr. Booth, ! Mr. Bowly, Mr. Cantrell, Mr. Dent, Mr. Druce, Mr. . Edmonds, Mr. Evans, Jlr. Braudreth Gibbs, l\Ir. Ilornsby, 1 Mr. Bowen Jones, Colonel Kingscote, jM.P., ]Mr. Leeds, Mr. Mcintosh, Mr Milward^ Mr. Shuttleworth, Mr. Jabez Turner, Mr. Wakefield, Mr. Welbv, M.P., ilr. W. Wells, Mr. Whitehead, Mr. Jacob Wilson ' Colonel Wilson, Professor Simonds, and Dr. Voelcker. The following members were elected : — • Agg, Colonel W., Hewletts, Cheltenham. Branwhite, F., Chapel House, Long MelforL Briggs, T., Babrahara, Cambridge. Camm, Rev, J., B.M., IMonkton Wyld, Charmouth, Dorset. Carruthers, R. B., Guards Mill, Gretna, Cumberland. Cope,E., Leighton Hall, Wellington. Crisp, C. E., Sittles Farm, Alrewas, Lichfield. Cutlack, H., Ely, Cambridgeshire. Cutlack, J., Ely, Cambridgeshire. Davies, J., Plasuevvydd, Llaiirbaiadr, Oswestry. Dean, W., U'orth, Ilorbling, Folkingham, Ellis, P. IL, Clayton Court, Hurstpier-point. Hague, J., Gawsworth, Macclesfield. Leathara,G.A. B.,Thorganby Hall, York. Little, J., Fauld, Longton, Cumberland. Longman, A. H., Shendisli, Herael Hempstead. Ratcliffe, C, Womanswold, Canterbury. Scarborough, E. I., Coly ILonse, Colyford, Cloyton. Smallbones, V. G. V., Gramal-Neusiedd, Vienna. Stilgoe, II., Lower Clopton, Stratford-on-Avon. Stirason, W., Marston, Arapthill. Tinning, J., Cliillesford Lodge, Wickham Market. Finances. — Major-General Viscount Bridport pre- sented the report, from which it appeared that the secre- tary's receipts during the past month had been examined and found correct. The balance in the hands of the bankers on Feb. 28 was £1,733 6s. 8d. The committee have received a report from their solicitor stating that he had collected arrears to the amount of £IG8, and the committee recommend that the names of sis members who gave notice to withdraw, and twenty-six members whose arrears from various causes cannot be recovered, be removed from the books. This report was adopted. Journal. — Mr. J. Dent Dent (chairman) reported that the publication of the Journal had been delayed in the hope of receiving Mr. Stephenson's report on last year's farm competition. Mr. Stephenson's continued illness had prevented his furnishing this paper, and the Journal will be published during the ensuing month without it. The Liucolnshire Agricultural Society having applied for permission to republish the paper of Professor Simonds ou the " Lamb Disease," at their own expense, it was recommended that the Society present to the Lia- colushire Agricultural Society the number of copies of the paper which they require. The judges had made their first inspection of competing farms in Bedfordshire. This report was adopted. Chemical. — j\Ir. AV. Wells (chairman) reported that the committee recommended the usual grant of £200 to Dr. Voelcker for chemical investigations. Dr. Voelcker had brought under the notice of the committee several cases of inferior artificial manures and feeding stuffs, but the committee did not consider them suitable for publica- tion. Further correspondence, not yet completed, had taken place in reference to the last quarterly report of the Chemical Committee. This report having been adopted, and the further correspondence in reference to the last quarterly report having been read, it was moved by Mr. Wells, seconded by Mr. Dent Dent, and carried unanimously, " That the committee have power to sit in a fortnight, and decide as to the republication of the previous report in the Journal, and as to the publication of the subsequent correspondence both in the Journal &ni the agricultural newspapers." Implements. — Mr. T. C. Booth (chairman) reported that the committee recommended that the otfer of the Society's Gold Medal made at the last meeting of the Council be worded as follows : " For the best guard or appliances to the drum of a thrashing machine for pre- venting accidents to people employed." The committee also recommended that the secretary obtain from the consulting engineers an estimate of the cost of testing machinery which it is proposed to provide for the trials of carts and other implements at Bedford. This report was adopted. General Bedford. — Earl Cathcart (chairman) re- ported that the Local Committee were making satisfactory progress with the showyard ; and that the Committee recommended that the secretary be authorised to make arrangements as usual with a banker at Bedford, and to let the vacant refreshment shed ia the showyard. This report was adopted. Education. — The Duke of Bedford (chairman) re- ported that twelve candidates had entered to compete for the Society's prizes and certificates at the ensuing ex- aminatiou ; and that the committee had had an interview with the sub-committee of head masters of middle-class schools, who had undertaken to draw up in writing their suggestions for consideration by the Committee at their next meeting. This report was adopted. Potato Disease (Special). — Mr. C. Whitehead (chairman) reported that six entr es of potatoes had been made to compete for the prizes oflered by the Society for disease-proof potatoes. One cwt. of five of these entries (of a ton each) had already been sent to the potato- growers who had consented to grow the potatoes subject to the regulations adopted at the last meeting of the Council in seventeen of the districts recommended in the last report of the committee. The committee had no doubt that the arrangements with the growers iu the re- maining three districts would be made very shortly, and that the bags constituting the sixth entry would be for- warded to the growers in the course of this week. This report was adopted. 324 THE FARMER'S MAaAZINE. Veterixary. — Colonel Kiugscotc, M.P., reported that tlie committee had elected Viscouut Bridport chair- man for the year 1874. He further reported that two letters had been addressed by Colonel Maitland, of Holy- wvch, Eden Bridge, Kent, to the secretary, with respect to' the mortality of cattle from the disease called " Quarter evil," or "Black-leg," and that the same had been laid before Professor Simonds ; the committee recommended that his letter on the subject be published in the proceed- ings of the Council meeting. A letter had also been addressed to the secretary from Mr. J. F. Cooke, Gaston Hall, Attenborough, stating that he had suffered very severely from abortion in his ewes, almost every ewe beiug affected. This letter had also been forwarded to Professor Simonds, who communicated with iSIr. Cooke, informing him thai he considered that the result was due to too lavish a use of succulent food, especially turnips, which ^Ir. Cooke eventually acknowledged had been the case. The committee recommended the payment of the grant of £300 to the Royal Veterinary College for the year 1873. The committee desired to express their regret at finding from reports received that foot-and- mouth disease had again broken out in many parts of the country. This report was adopted. The following is Professor Simonds' letter in reference to " Quarter-evil:" " Royal Veterinary College, Camden Town, N.W., " Eeb. 21., 1874. " My dear Sir, — I return Colonel Maitland's letter on the subject of the disease known as 'Black-leg,' or 'Black- quarter,' &:c. This affection, as you are doubtless aware, pre- vails more or less in every part of the country, and being a blood disease proves destructive to life in by far tlie larger number of cases. " The attention of the Society has often been called to the malignancy and fatality of the malady by myself under the scientific name by which it is known, viz.: " lliematosepsis — a septic condition of the blood. Like maladies in which the blood undergoes changes affecting its vitality, science fails to a great extent to elucidate its courses ; but this much is known, that well-bred calves which are well- cared for are more susceptible to the disease than others, especially between the 6th and the lltli or 15th month of their age. It is during this tlms that great care is required in the feeding of the young animals, and in the selection of their food. Turnips and all succulent vegetable matter ought to be sparingly given, especially in a season like the present. Experience has proved also that much good may be done by the use of saline agents, such as common salt mixed with the food. An occasional saline aperient, and a few doses of an ordinary antiseptic, such as the hypo -sulphate of soda, will frequently prove prophylactic. "Among herds in parts of the country where the disease is very rife it is the custom to bleed the calves once or twice in the year, to insert a seton in the dewlap, give some aperient medicine, and follow it by preparations of bark. These means are preventive, and to preventives we must chiefly look for good to be done in lesseniug the losses from ' black-leg.' — I am, ray dear sir, very truly yours, " J.vs. B. SiMOSDS. " H. M.Jenkins, Esq." It was moved by Mr. Jacob Wilson, seconded by Mr. T. C. Booth, and carried unanimously, "That the stock prizes committee, the implement committee, and the stewards of live stock and implements be appointed a com- mittee to recommend judges of stock and implements at the Bedford meeting." Lieut. -General Viscount Bridport then moved the reso- lution of which he had given notice at the last meeting of the Council. This was seconded by !Mr. W. H. Wake- field, and, after some verbal amendments suggested by Earl Cathcart, Mr. Dent Dent, and Mr. W. Egerton, j\I.P., it was unanimously carried as follows : " That the Council call the attention of the Secretary of State for the Home Department, and the President of the Local Government Board, to the present unsafe condition of many bridges throughout the country for the passage over them of ploughing and traction engines, the increased use of which in agricultural operations is becoming more and more necessary. Mr. Wakefield drew attention to the removal of pony stallions from the prize-list of this year. Letters were read in reference to au Intcrnatioual Ex- hibition of dairy utensils and products, to be held at Milan on March 30th and the following days ; and also in reference to an International Exhibition of horses, cattle, sheep, pigs, and implements, to he held at Bremea on June 13 and eight following days> AMERICAN DAIRYMEN'S DISCUSSIONS. WINTER MEETING OE THE VERMONT ASSOCIATION. The dairymen of the Green Mountain State were present in force at the convention held during three days at Essex Junction. There was a sprinkling of solid men from other parts of New England and New York ; particularly, St. Lawrence County was influentially represented. An equal number of persons of sounder sense, or better up in their calling, it is rare to find in one audience. Worthy descendents of their pilgrim sires, the Vermont yeomanry, as a whole, are genuine Yankees, in talent, energy, enterprise, and phjslque, and even in the in- stinctive inclination to ask questions. They have taken the lead in organised effort for improvement in their speciality of butter-making. There is only one other association — the Western N. Y. Butter-makers' — organised in the interest of butter manufacture. The labours of the Vermont society have left their impress upon the butter of the State. Vermont butter has become celebrated for its superior excellence ; and St. Albans, her leading butter market, is widely known as the centre of a large trade, and is recognised and quoted with as much regularity to indicate the pulse of the butter traffic, as Little Falls and Utica are to indicate that of cheese. Tlie good influence does not end with the education of her own sons in the perfection of her favourite art. That influence is cast far and wide, and other States and nations are picking up and appropriating the facts, and becoming educated by the teachings of Vermont. With unassuming modesty, her noble sons gathered this year in an obscure village, liid away among the hills and swelling peaks of her mountainous surface ; but the light of their intelligent deliberations rises above the enveloping heights, and shines away into the distance, the reporters carrying the result of the deliberations to readers numbered by the hundred thousand, to be studied, sifted, and, as far as applicable to their several needs, utilized. — [This is tall talk.] The ceremonies, in true Puritan style, were introduced with prayer by the Rev. Edwin Wheelock. The President, the Hon. E. D. Mason, in a well-timed and thoughtful address, reminded the members of the Association that their success depended on themselves ; that they must be their own native power in the work of bringing forward and comparing fact with fact till they raise and establish their speciality to the dignity of a science as well as an art ; that the foundation of success is to properly appreciate the importance of mutual advantage and improvement by associated effort, lie urged a more liberal patronage of agricultural newspapers as a cheap vehicle of valuable and current knowledge. Every dairyman who does not inform himself through this agency is sure, in a short time, to get behind ; and, for like reasons, the formation of farmers' clubs was earnrstly urged. Again, the farmer should not only study thrift, but a well-ordered thrift, and strive for a more refined taste in all that pertains to the struc- ture and appearance of his buildings, ornamental trees, yards, gardens, and flowers, and thus add to his owu happiness, and THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 325 increase Ihose^ liome oujoymeuts that make tlie household satisfied, and stay the drift of his youug people to the far West, or to the follies too comnion in town and city. Dr. L. C. Butler then welcomed the Association to the village, and was followed hy Mr. Henry Clarke, who recounted the history an