UNIVERSITY OF B.C. LIBRARY 3 9424 00125 9636 STORAGE ITEM PROCESS IflG-CNE U.B.C. LIBRARY SL2b'ii J> THE LIBRARY THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA v& • ' Ecclefiaftical Courts-Kirk Seffion-their cenfonal power —adminiftration of poor's funds - - - 273 Prefbytery-its Civil jurifdiaion as to glebes and manfes —over ichools and fchoolmafters Synod— fingularity as to powers of appeal - - 276 General Affcmbly-its powers as to caufes-to laws - 27 7 XII CONTENTS, OR INDEX. Page Note B. — Explanatory of the various Scotifh tenures of property - - T - 279 General view of feudal tenure - ib. Difficulty of reconciling the feudal maxims of Scotifh law to any other mode of tenure, for perpetuity, than the feudal - - - 287 Difficulty from regifter of fafines — of which an account is given ----- 292 Hiftory of the tack or leafe — with the caufes which have led to the fuppofition of the jus deleBus perfona being of confequence - 294 Security of Scotifh tenants tenure, from ads 1449 and 1469 ------ 298 Agricultural credit hurt, through feudal notions - 301 Note C. — Explanatory of the origin of fmall farms 304 Abfurdity of Agrarian laws, and neceffity of feparation of profeffions - 306 Note D. — Containing general obfervations upon the generic character of the farmer — leafe s—fize of farms 308 Generic diflindtions of character, in the enjoyers and ac- quirers of a fortune - 3^9 Farming of independent proprietors of land - 311 Do. of profeffional farmers - - - 314 Leafes — Confidered as to their duration - - - 316 The indefinite or perpetual leafe of Lord Karnes - 321 Leafes confidered, as to the alienable or unalienable property the tenant ought to have in them - - 322 Difcouragement of the tenant's fixing his own capital in the foil — of his obtaining other capitals to borrow for that purpofe — and general banifhment of capital from agriculture, through the deleBus perfona - 323 327 CONTENTS, OR INDEX. Xlll Page Arguments in favour of the retention of the jus deleclus confidered — tenant's political principles — deterioration of the farm by worfe farmer — chance of forfeiture — manners of the tenant — beggarly cultivators under middle tackfman - - Leafes confidered as to the extent of the ufe of the foil in re ftri£ted or unreftricled management - - 332 Reftrictions in Tweeddale — and proper for it - 335 Size of Farms — General confiderations of the conftitution of the farm 337 Principles which dilate it to its proper fize - 341 Do. — which circumfcribe it within proper limits 342 Note E. — Confideration of the extenfion of the right of franchife in England, in fuperfeding the fecurity of the leafe - - - - 345 Note F. — Upon ufury - - - 347 Note G. — Upon the unproductive claffes, and the ab- furdity of levelling principles - - 350 Note H. — Confideration of the effects of large and fmall capitals upon the market of grain - 353 Of Dearth - - - - 358 ■ — Monopoly - - - - - 360 — Foref ailing, &C. - 362 > — Government interference, by internal regulation — and of the maximum and the minimum — and individual interference for relief of the poor 369 Appendix, No. I. Account of Whim, and of mofs culture - 377 Appendix, No. II. Pifeafis of fheep, an eflay, with notes referring to Tweeddale experience The Author's inexperience in revifing Proof Sheets, and the difadvantages refulting, in confequence of his difbnce from the Prefs, will, it is hoped, plead his apology for the following ERRATA. 19. line 5. for are, read is. 34. fecond paragraph, line 9. for he, read-Cat. S3- lines ia. and 13. for difunion, /-^disjunction. 59. line 9. for county, read country. 85. fecond paragraph, there is a reference to Note D. inflead of Note C 96. Though the rent of the county, in the ftatifHcal account, is given per pa- rifhes, the author, in his calculation, has excluded the 3S00 fheep of the Selkirk part of Inverlcithan parifh ; when corrected, his general inference will be found ftrengthened. 309. foot note, line 7. for enclofure, read enclofures. 343. fecond paragraph, two references to pages are left unfilled up— they are to pages 75. and 7 1. I48. line 9. for fuch, read much. Jja- hue 6. for though, read the. 185. line 2. from bottom, for forehead, read forehand. 193. line 10. from bottom, for to, read at. J&15. Eddleftone fair — for O. S. reaJN. S. C42. line 15. from bottom, for 903, read 703. S78. line II. from bottom, far duty, read duties. 490. line 13. for old mother ancient, read our ancient mother. 29 1. foot note, line a. for fteady tenor of, read fleadily announced. This correc- tion is indifpcnfable, to exprefs the author's intended fenfe. C99. line 5. for 1446 read 1449.— JV. B. Wherever the Scotifh acts I446 and 1466 are quoted, fubfequently, let them be corrected into 1449 and 1469. 31a. line 14. from bottom, place 2. before thefe words in italics, The Extent of the Right. 33a. line ao. place 3. before thefe words in italics, The Extent »f the Ufc, 336. laft line, fupply a comma after fward. 340. line 5. from bottom, for mogen, read moyen — an old Scotifh word from the French, iignifying in common. 348. line II. for rife, read ufc. 36a. line 3. from bottom, place a fcmicolon after the word prtuttngi and a comma after the word road. INTRODUCTION. A lthough Agriculture has been prattifed as an art, from ^ the remoteit antiquity, it can, as yet, hardly be confi- dered as ranking among the fciences, eftablifhed upon fixed and determined principles. Experience is, in all things, our only inftruclor. But it is difficult to afcertain the principles of Agriculture, through experience •, becaufe, here, we can- not, as in mechanics, chymiftry, &c. command every circum- ftance that is to be admitted into the experiment ; and, con- fequently, can never determine, with exact precifion, the ex- tent of efficacy of each concomitant co-operative caufe, in producing the refult. The wide extent of the difference of refult, produced by the differences of feafon, over which the power of man has no controul whatever, is extremely obvi- ous •, and there is no poffibility of determining how far the effect is to be afcribed to human means, or merely to the fea- fon, unlefs every agricultural experiment were to be con- ducted in a comparative manner. In regard to the food of plants — a principle which we ought to be able to fet out with, as the foundation of die whole practice, had Agriculture attained to the rank of a fcience — no certain conclufion feems, as yet, to have been fufficiently eftablifhed. "Whilft fome, perhaps, ftill adhere to the generally exploded theory of the fathers of the univcrfal drill-fyitem of hufband- ry, in imagining it to confifl of comminuted earth, however ap- parently unadapted to enter their capillary verTels under any form ; Whilft others place it in oils and laits j although, when immediate ly xvi INTRODUCTION. immediately applied, thefe fubflances feem either inefficacious or detrimental to vegetation : Others, confidering the earth as of no farther ufe, than as a fupport to retain the plants upright and firm, hold water to be the only vegetable fuftenance, or wa- ter together with air : And others, juftified, probably, by more ftrong analogies, confider it as confiding of the fubtle effluvia, or other folutiotiy of the fub fiance of putrified animal or vegeta- ble matters, adminiftered to the capillary roots or abforbent vef- fels of the leaves of plants, by the earth, by the air, and by rain ; and tranfmuted and affimilated to their proper fubftance, by the unknown, and probably uninveftigable, powers of vegetable life. But, though the theory of Agriculture is fo very little ad- vanced, many parts of eftablifhed practice feem abundantly jufti- fied by their general fuccefs. From the earliefl antiquity, the tillage of the ground has been found indifpenfably requifite, for the purpofe of deftroying ufe- lefs or noxious weeds, and to diredt the fertility of the foil to the production of plants more adapted to the fuftenance of man and beafl — for that of pulverizing the foil, fo as to render it permeable to the fibrous roots, extending themfelves in fearch of the proper nutriment of the plant — and that of ridding foils of fuch fuperfiucus moifture as is found detrimental to them, in throwing the furface into the fhape that admits of the readieft defcent to water. The manipulations necefTary for thefe pur- pofes, together with the necefTary implements of cattle fit for labour, and the inflruments of the plough, the harrow, &c. — thefe, being fubjecls more entirely under the command of man, where every thing related can more eafily be forefeen and pro- vided for, have admitted of gradual and progreffive improve- ment; and, in various particulars, may have poffibly arrived at all that perfection of which they are fufceptible. It has been further afcertained, through long experience, that alternation of crops is highly advantageous, in preventing the fertility of the foil from being fo fpeedily exhaufted. In this view, a clafiification of crops has been formed — into thofe which arc exhaufting. and thofe that are ameliorating, or, at leaft, lefs INTRODUCTION'. XV 11 left exhaufting. Under the former clafs are aiTorted what are called culmiferous, or white crops ; which have few, or narrow leaves ; do not ftiade the ground while growing ; and leave the foil, when removed, in a compact, hardened date. To the lat- ter clafs are referred the leguminous, or green crops ; compre- hending the whole tribes of peas and vetches ; together with all plants cultivated for the root or for the leaves ; as alfo all that are cut green for Summer food or for hay, and are not allowed • to ftand till they ripen their feeds — the procefs of vegetation deemed mod exhaufting to the foil : Thefe meliorating crops ihade the foil, by their broad leaves ; or pulverize it, by the ex- panfion of their roots ; or exhauft the foil lefs, by drawing more nourifbment from the air; and, when removed, they leave the foil blackened in colour, and more loofe, puffy, and mellow, in confidence. It has been found advantageous to abftain from cropping with white crops in fucceffion, and ever to interpofe a green crop betwixt the white ones. It feems not, however, perfectly afcertained, whether this advantage entirely refults from the diftinaive difference of thefe crops, as meliorating and exhaujllng \ or whether it may not, in part, be afcribed to the general principle (if fuch a vague conception can be confidered as a definite principle) that nature delights in variety. This lat- ter fuppofition would feem, indeed, to be countenanced, from what has been alleged to have been obferved in Eaft-Lothian — that two green crops in fucceffion, fuch as turnip after beans, feems as unproductive a mode of culture, as two white ones in fucceffion. It is probably, too, upon this principle alone, that we can account for the fuperior thriving of changed feeds, and the deterioration of every fpecies too long fown fucceilivdy in the fame grounds — and for the foil fometimes tiring entirely of a particular fpecies of crop to which it has been long familiar- ized, as is laid to be the cafe with fome Norfolk foils in regard to clover. To the fame principles, of the meliorating nature of the crop, or of nature delighting in variety, may be referred, the experienced utility of recurring intervals of pailure, or what is defigned convertible hufbandry. Where X711I INTRODUCTION. Where the fertility of the foil has been exhaufted by crop- ping, or where its powers of fertility have never been brought into action by culture, the application of various fubftances to the foil, under the name of manures, has been experienced to be of very great advantage. Thefe have been clafTed under the two general defcriptions of enriching and Jlimulant ; though it feems dubious, whether the damn cation has proceeded upon a perfect and complete comprehenfion of their diftinctive natures. The former, confiding chiefly of vegetable or animal matters, in a ftate of putrefaction, are peculiarly fuited to lands ex- haufted by repeated cropping : The latter, confifting of calca- reous fubftances, fuch as lime, marl, and chalk, are cbnfidered as beft adapted to foils whofe powers have not, by culture, been ever brought into action — the feptic nature of fuch fub- itances tending to accelerate the putrefaction of fuch animal or vegetable matter as may fubfift in the foil, fo as fpeedily to convert them into the proper nutriment of vegetables : For the fame reafon, fuch manures may even be applied, with fuccefs, to lands in a ftate of exhauftion from repetition of crops, till fuch time as every thing putrifiable in the foil fhall have been actually putrined. Such feems to be the general fummary of the practical prin- ciples of Agriculture j which, in particular adaptation, might be extended into a wide detail. To thefe general principles the Author mult be fuppofed to refer in the Report, although no explicit reference is direct- ly expreiled. Draining, as a part of tillage j fencing, fo as to give com- mand of the foil for exclufive appropriation to particular ufes ; and fheltering, by plantations of wood, for the purpofes of de- fending both vegetable productions and pafturing animals from the weather •, — thefe, under the molt comprehenfive view of the fubject, might all, alfo, be confidered as feveral branches of Agriculture. The INTRODUCTION. six The unity of landed eftates, in times of feudal turbulence and anarchy, being as indifpenfable to their fecurity, as is, at all times, the indivisibility of their governments to tru in order to ftimulate him to induftrious exertion. As Tweeddale is a county, into which improvements have been all recently introduced, from counties already improved j it was agreed between Sir John Sinclair and the Author, (when, at his folicitation, the Author confented to draw up the Report *), that it would be fuperfluous to dwell much upon the * From cira-nrrflances occurring, uninterefting to the public, the work was not publilhed by the B >ard of Agriculture, as originalK intended. The Author fent it to the Conductors of the Farmer's Magazine, who publilr.cd fome extracts, which fecmed to excite fome demand for the publication of the whole. And to the Author's objection, that the local fate, from local interefl, in fo narrow a coun- ty, for a work fecmingly local from its title, culd never defray the ev.pence of publifhing — the anfwer was, Publijh ly fubferiptkn, anJ we iviil/upiicrt vex - tar influence. This mode was accordingly adopted. XX INTRODUCTION. the minutia of agricultural practice, or implements, the detailed defcription of which might be expelled in the Report of counties where they had been in longer ufe ; and that more fpace might be allotted to the confideration of thofe moral excitements to a- gricultural induftry in the farmer, which are of univerfal ap- plication. The handling of the fubject, in this point of view, the Author found more congenial to his accuflomed train of think- ing. In fo treating of it, he has uniformly proceeded upon this obvious and fimple maxim, the truth of which he ap- prehends to be as indifputable, as its application is univerfal, That the beft mode of injuring the invention and .profecution of the moft advantageous meafures, is, an arrangement, which fall communicate, to thofe on whom their execution is devolved, a fufi- cient perfofial inter ejl in their invention and execution. To fome, lie doubts not, fuch views will be confidered as foreign to the Report of a county ; whilft, to others, they will conftitute its moft efTential value. For the fake of uniformity, and of facility of reference, for the purpofes of comparifon, the fyflem of method for Reports prefcribed by the Board of Agriculture, has been adopted. The method is not objectionable ; though difficulty is experi- enced in confinement to the trammels of any prefcribed method. To avoid, however, the embarrafTment arifing from the mix- ture of fpeculation with the detail of facts, the Author has thrown into the form of Notes, fubjoined to the Report, vari- ous fpeculations which occurred to him as interefting to the fubject of Agriculture at large. For the information of Englifh readers, of whom he finds a confulcrable number in the lift of Subfcribers, the Author has dwelt upon fome fubjecls with a minutenefs, which would have been fuperfluous in regard to natives of Scotland. The Author returns his thanks to the numerous and refp rs, who have been pleafed to patronize his work. AG AGRICULTURAL SURVEY OF PEEBLESSHIRE or TJVEEDDALE. CHAP. I. GEOGRAPHICAL STATE AND CIRCUMSTANCES. Sect. I.— "Situation and Extent, JL he county of Tweeddale, or Peebles, is fituated betwixt 55 deg. 24 min. and ^ deg. 50 min. of north latitude ; and from 2 deg. 45 min. to 3 deg. 23 min. of longitude, weft from London*, or betwixt g-15 and £-23 we^ 0I" tne meridian of Edinburgh. It is bounded, upon the north, by the county of Mid-Lothian ; upon the eaft, by that of Selkirk ; upon the fouth, by that of Dumfries j upon the weft, by that of Lanark. Its greateft length, from north to fouth, is about 30 miles ; its greateft breadth, from eaft to weft, about 22. The contents, (See Statijlical Tables), in Englifh acres, amount to 229,778 ; or in Scotiih, (at the rate of converfion, of 5 Englifh to 4 Scotiih acres), to 183,823 *. Armftrong, in his Companion to the Map of Tweeddale, efti- mates the arable lands at one tenth of the whole. If by arable B is • In a mountainous country like Tweeddale, the real furface may amount to a feventh or eighth part more than the plane of the bafe, as mcafured for the con- Aruftion of a map. '-g Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. is meant what is fufceptible of tillage^ this proportion would feeni by much too little. It is impoffible to form a probable conjecture, from any data furnifhed in the ftatiftical accounts of the parishes, of the amount of what is actually kept in con- flant or occafional tillage ; as, from the very various modes of treatment which fuch lands undergo, in regard to the time they remain in pafture, during the interval of tillage, the account of bolls fown, or of the extent of crop reaped, (were thefe even accurately Hated), could give very little light into the matter. Sect. II. — Divifwns. Tpie county is divided into fixteen parilhes, which are de- fcribed, in Sir John Sinclair's ftatiftical account of Scotland, as under : Page Linton 1 tt i T C 1 26 Newlands ^ - Vol. l. - £ ^ Mannor *) ^"383 ♦Skirling l - III. - 4254 Stobo J (.324 { *Glenholm •Kilbucho *Broughton \ _ VIL _ J 156 £ 429 'Kilbucho 5 " ' iW- ' £324 Drummelzier 5 i. lS3 Tweedfmuir - - VIII. - 86 Kirkurd - - — ■ — X. - 177 Lyne & Meggot") ("55^ Peebles J. - XII. - -j 1 Traquair J C369 Eddleftone - - XVII. 182 Inverleithan - - XX. - 592 gf The four marked * belong to the Prefbytery of Biggar; the reft to the Prefbytery of Peebles. The divifion of Scotland into counties, refers to Civil jurif- di&ion ; the fubdivifion of counties into parilhes, to Ecclefiaftu cul duties and jurifdi&ion f. There f For particulars, as to thefe duties and jurifdiclion, the Englifh reader may confult note A, at the end of the Report. Agricultural Survey cf Peebles/hire. 3 There are two maps of this county ; the one by Edgar ; the lateil (which is given upon a reduced fcale in this report) by Armftrong, who alfo printed an account of Tweeddale, or com- panion to his map, in 1775. There is alfo a topographical and botanical defcription of the county, accompanied with a collection of humorous poems, defcriptive of the manners of the times, by Dr Alexander Pennycook, proprietor of the lands of Romanno, in Newlands pariih, publilhed in 17 1 5. Sect. III. — Climate. The loweft lying arable land in the county, fituated upon the fide of the Tweed, where that river leaves the county, and enters Selkirkfhire, will be about 400 feet above fea-level. Be- twixt 900 and 1000 feet, is probably the higheft elevation in which cultivation is attempted by the plough. The higheft hill in Tweeddale (probably the higheft in Scot- land fouth of the Friths of Forth and Clyde) is Hartfield, m Tweedfmuir pariih, upon the confines of Dumfriesfhire ; its height above fea-level is, according to Armftrong, 2916 feet; that of Hartflant Broad Lawy in the fame pariih, is 2850; Dollar Law, in Mannor parifh, is 2840. Armftrong, in his companion to his map, gives a variety of heights of higheft fummits of thofe ridges of hills which traverfe the county in all directions, extending from 1800 to 2300 feet above the level of the fea. Abftracling, then, the higheft fummits, the gene- rality of the pall ure lands may be confidered as fituated at from 500 or 600, to 1700 or 1800 feet above fea-level ; or at 11 50 feet at a medium. The climate, in fuch northerly latitude and high elevation, may readily be conceived as late j and, from the mountainous nature of the country, as moift. Sown-grafs hay begins to be cut rather after the middle of July ; that from natural grafs, a- bout the middle of Auguft. Corn harveft feldom commences, generally, till the fecond week of September ; and it is ac- counted rather an early harveft, when the whole is got into the Winter ftack before the clofe of Odober. The reapers from the 4 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfljire. the Highlands of Scotland generally find employment for feve- ral weeks in Tweeddale, after the termination of the Lothian harveft ; the difference being obferved as greater in favour of thefe lower counties in a bad, than in a good feafon. The time of fowing, in the higher parifhes, is juft fo foon as the (late of the weather, and of the foil, will permit. Peas and oats are frequently fown in February ; it is thought tardy, at Linton, to fow even the earlier fpecies of oats much later than about the 20th of April j rough beer, or bigg, after the middle of May ; turnip, without dung, after the end of May, or with it, after the latter end of June. The higher the elevation, the greater is the degree of moift- ure ; and the crops are found to run more to ftraw, and lefs to corn. Early fowing is confidered as a check to the growth of flraw, and as conducive to the more thorough ripening of the corns : The length of pod or ear, however, is found to be proportional to the length and vigour of the ftraw or haulm ; and the medium, of mod advantage upon the whole, mull be attempted to be hit. Accordingly, in the lower end of the county, where (from lefs high elevation, as well as greater fharpnefs of foil) fhortnefs of ftraw, and proportional fhortnefs of ear, are molt to be dreaded, fowing is deferred till two or three weeks later in the feafon, than in the higher end, where the danger moft to be apprehended, is the want of thorough ripening. From early fowing, and the ufe of earlier ripening fpecies of grain, the backwardnefs of climate is feen to be fo far counteracted, that the harveft in the croft lands around the village of Linton, (where the improved hufbandry firft became general), has, for a number of years bypaft, been finifhed fooner than in the crofts around the town of Peebles ; although the difference of elevation cannot be fuppofed lefs than 200 feet. Early fowing cannot, meanwhile, be advantageoufly adopted, where the lands are not clean ; elfe the weeds, more congenial to the foil and climate, will thrive fafter than the artificial crop during the cold early Spring months, overtopping and chok- ing it. Cold Agricultural Survey cf PeeblesJlAre. $ Cold eafterly winds often prevail during the Spring months ; and it may be queftioned, whether we have not, in general, more grafs in the firft half of December, than in May. In the feafons 1794 and 1795, froft winds continued till the latter end of June, blackening the leaves of the afh-tree, (which foon feels the impreflion) ; and, in low fituations, nipping down the Items of the potato. In i8or, the whole potato items were laid flat with the ground, (excepting where growing in high fituations), on the night of the nth of June ; and, in 1796, the fame thing happened upon the night of the 7th of July. Before the laffc mentioned period, it was proverbial in Tweeddale, that there was no month in Spring, Summer, or Autumn, in which we had not experienced froft deftru£tive of vegetation, but the month of July. Our Winters are rigorous ; and the turnip crop is, of confe- quence, often loft, unlefs confumed by Chriitmas or New Year's day. Cattle do not fatten upon them in their frozen ftate ; it is well if they merely do not lofe flefh. In the high- er parifhes, they are often frozen to fuch hardnefs, that they muft be allowed to thaw in running water, before the cattle can make impreflion upon them with their teeth *. Befides the general frofts in Winter, the higher parifhes are much expofed to a fpecies of partial frofts in the end of Au- guft and beginning of September, which chiefly affect the low-lying lands by the fides of running waters, lakes, and morafTes. * When put into a veflel of cold water, where the procefs of their thawing is more eafily obferved, a fltell of ice, of greater or lefs thicknefi, forms itfelf all around the ftuface of the turnip, like a globe of gluts, exactly fitted to its fhape; upon breaking off the ice, the turnip isfound foft and found within it. If too many turnip are put into the veiTcI, the whole contents congeal into one mafs. In running water, the ice formed by the cold of the turnip is diilblved, as foon as formed, by the fucceffive application of new water. I laid out a potato on the outfiJe of a window to freeze all night, thawed if. in cold water next morning, and then boiled it ; its confidence was not impaired, but it feemc d rather infipid as to tafte. Animal or voluble fubftances, when thawed by the application of heat, grow putrid.. 6 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesftjire, morafles. A low creeping mift, or hoar froft (called, provin- daily, rhyme, or cranreugh), in a dead calm, particularly after a tract of rainy weather, is feen to fettle, after funfetting, up- on lands of this defcription ; which, if fucceeded by bright funfhine the day following, proves deftructive to all further vegetation. It would feem to do little damage to corns that are hard ripe ; and in regard to fome fpecies, particularly that of oats, it does not prevent their further maturation, if it at- tacks them whilft the juices in the ear are {till in a watery flate : But, in the intermediate ftages betwixt that ftate and maturity, it renders every fpecies alike unfit for feed, and of very inferior value for meal, both in refpect of quantity and quality. A particular account of this kind of froft will be found in the Statiftical Accounts of the Parilhes of Linton and Glenholm. In the year 1784, the crop of bigg, or rough beer, was deftroyed, through the higher parifhes, fo early in the feafon as the 1 7th of Auguft ; and that fo completely, that I perfectly recollect to have feen it applied to the thatching of houfes in the village of Linton, unthrafhed, as it was carried from the field, without the fmalleft apprehenfion being enter- tained of a fmgle grain vegetating in the ear : In that feafon, the oat crop, which being a later grain, was not fo near ma- turity, fuffered but very little. In 1782, as the froft happen- ed much later, the beer was not fo effectually deftroyed as the oats, having reached its maturity ; while the oat crop was in its mod fufceptible ftage. It feems extremely probable, that plants, artificially intro- duced from a more fouthern latitude, and more benign climate, do not attain to that maturity in a northern latitude, which they reach in their native fituation : It feems equally pro- bable, that thofe plants which are native to a northern cli- mate, and which there attain to their moft perfect ftate, are, at beft, lefs nutritious than the native productions of a more benign climate. On both accounts, it feems probable, that, in a county fituated as Tweeddale, the whole vegetable produc- tions, whether artificial or native, fhould be of an inferior kind : and that even equal weight of the fame fpecies of grain, may Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. *f may not contain an equal quantity of nutritive fubftance ; as it contains not the fame quantity of fermentable fubftance, upon which probably the nutritive quality greatly depends *. There js a difference in the quality of the grain of the higher and the lower parifhes in the county, that amounts to the differ- ence of I s. 6d. of price per meafured boll, when the average price per boll is 16s. The climate of Tweeddale is not very propitious to fruit trees. The goofeberry, rafpberry, currant, and ftrawberry, are the beft fruits produced in our gardens. The rafpberry is a native, and ripens its fruit in the higheft parifhes. The bramble is a very rare plant, excepting in the lower end of the county ; and I am not afcertained that it brings its fruit to perfect ma- turity in any feafon. The hazel does not ripen its nut to per- fection in the higher parifhes, unlefs in very favourable fea- fon s. I am indebted to James Reid Efq. of Peebles, who has pra&ifed phyfic, with high reputation, in the county, for near half a century, for the following Regifter of the Weather, ex- tracted from one he regularly kept in the town of Peebles for many years. Register * According to the calculation of Mr Kcr of Kerfield, brewer by Peebles, Scots barley, on an average, yields fully one fifth lefs of fermentable fubftance, from like weight of grain, than Englifti barley. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 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"jj c 1— I 01 r> on HI l/~, On m on M () — , ^-> CO >- r co en ■ n ^f on :> t~- On CO CO ". ^r 'O < 3 * on — o< - on Ol on Ol OO CM 3 ^ y .5 -cj -3 <-M "^ >, "J | 0 u Tiie me number o dcrably to 1 C o 1— , re •';" H~! «^5 3 be < £ a- -q 1 n o u tj o oh u O I© ^Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire, In his letter to me, Mr Reid obferves, " That the climate of Tweeddale is variable, as that of all hilly countries : That, from its midland fituation, it receives a portion of wet from both feas, though probably lefs than either fhore, yet with more days having rain from flying clouds, than even the weft: coaft ; the quantity, however, falling in one day, often not ex- ceeding .001 of an inch : That, from a regifter kept at Dum- fries, in 1776, the rain there amounted to 36.9 inches ; when, at Peebles, it amounted only to 24.936 inches : That fnows add confiderably to the number of days marked wet in the re- gifter, in the months of December, January, February, and even March, though little to the depth of rain : That, includ- ing the fouth with the weft, and the north with the eaft, the winds blow more often from the weft, than from the eaft of the meridian, in the proportion, fometimes, as 4 to 3 •, at Ot ther times, as 5 to 4 : That the medium height of the baro- meter, at Peebles, is in Summer 29.2, and in Winter 29 : That the thermometer has been known at 81 in Farnheit's fcale •, and, on the 14th January 1780, as low as 14 below o ; Such inftances being, however, quite unufual. He remarks, that the fituation of the town of Peebles is particularly health- ful ; (landing upon a fine dry bottom of gravel, 500 feet above the level of the fea, and at the confluence of Peebles water in- to Tweed, the currents of which preferve a due circulation in the air, even in the calmeft weather ; the eafterly fogs, which fo often overfpread the Lothians, never almoft reaching Peebles, being arrcfted by the high' hills to the eaftward of that town *. In * The revenue belonging to the town as a body corporate, may be confidera- bly above 300I. yearly ; arifing from land rent — frcm corn and flour mills— from cuftom levied 4ipon goods fent to market, or carried through the town — from pontage alfo at the bridge over Tweed within the town's jurifdittion, levied upon drove cattle, the mod of this kind of revenue being received from Highland cattle faffing to England. Peebles would appear to have been often ufed as a hunting rcfidcnce by our Scotifh kings. Money would kern to have had been coined in it ; an houlc flill retaining the name of Cuinzte Noel. Large tratfs of land, ex- tending on the hills for fix or feven miles downward to Gatchaup burn, would feem to have been granted it, in property, or in right of paflurage ; the rights t$ yhkh arc now loft, from encroachment, or through dctclicTion. Agricultural Survey of Petblesjbire* II In regard to difeafes, he obfcrves, that there are few prevalent in Tweeddale, which have their origin from damp and putrid exhalations ; that bloody flux or ague feldom occur, or any pu- trid difeafes ; and that inflammatory fevers are fometimcs fre- quent in Spring*." In the year 1763, ague was extraordi- narily prevalent. Since that period, it feems to have totally difappeared. It would appear, from the Statiflical Accounts, that chronic rheumatifm {the pains, as it is provincially defigned), is fre- quent among old people in the lower claries ; and that flow fe- vers are pretty general in fome feafons, from poor feeding, bad clothing, and damp lodging : In regard to which circum- stances, incident to the lower orders, Tweeddale has much im- proved, and is (till improving f. * The only place in Tweeddale where ague was ever frequent, was at Pirn in Inverleithan parifh, owing to a clay morafs, fince the draining of which the dif- eafe has not appeared. There are numerous dwellings in Tweeddale fituated in the vicinity of mofles, and of fhgnant pools of mofs water, where ague is totally unknown ; from whence it would appear, that the miafmatous exhalations from mofs and mofs water, are Hot of the feptic nature of thofe from clay morafs. There is, indeed, an experiment familiar to eveiy old woman in Tweeddale, which fnows, that mofs water, even when ftagnant in pools in hot weather, is not nearly of fuch a feptic quality as any other water placed in the lame circumftances ; and it is this, that though lint will rot, if left in other water, in fuch circum- ftances, even for twenty-four hours only after it hath been fufficiently mace- rated, it may be left eight days in mofs water without fuftaining any material damage. f It hath often been matter of furprife, that no epidemic difeafes appeared after the very extraordinary alterations that the ufual feeding of the poorer clafTes muft have underwent, both as to quantity and quality, in confequence of the ca- lamitous fcarcities of 1 7 8z, 1799, and 1800. In molt great towns, the two laft have been remarked, from their bills of mortality, as unuiiially healthful ; yet, undoubtedly, a very great number did not receive above two thirds of their ufual quantity of food. Surely, in ordinary feafons, or at all times in lituations of af- fluence, much more food is ufed than what fuffices either for health or ftrength. The return of plenty in 1801, has been accompanied by the prevalence of pleu- rify. Sect. 5 a Agricultural Survey of Feeble j/Ij in Sect. IV. — Soil and Surface. In agriculture, as in other fubjects, terms are bandied a-*- bout, to which, perhaps, no two that ufe them affix precifely the fame ideas. The ftrong marked distinctions of foil, into clay, tnofs, and fand, appear obvious to raoft people •, but the different diftin£tions of thefe, with all the intermediate diftinc- tions of foils compofed of thefe, together with ether materials in all varieties of proportion, have not probably obtained, as yet, a fufficient number of diftinctive appellatives, to differ- ence them properly ; and, even of thofe names in ufe, per- haps, few or none have been fo accurately defined, or fo flea- dily appropriated, as to communicate a very determinate figni- fication. It would tend much to the fpeedy difFufion of agri- cultural knowledge, were there fome eafy method devifed, ac- ceffible to every farmer, in the way of fimple chymical analyfis^ or otherwife, by which he might be enabled to diftinguifh rea- dily all the varieties of foil as they occur, and to refer them, under their proper defignations, to the claffes to which they belong : Writers upon agriculture would then be in poffefTion of a language generally intelligible, and be fpared numberlefs circumlocutions. Perhaps the time is not far diftant, when the fcience of Agriculture, under the aufpices of the fcientific and patriotic characters who have taken it under their protec- tion, mail attain to the fame precifion, in this refpedt, as the fifler fcience of Chymillry. In the mean time, I apprehend, that the terms ufed to chara&erife many of the varieties of foil, are very vague and undefined •, fuch, for inflance, as loams, in all their varieties, moorifh foils, &c. I confefs, I can never be certain of conceiving the exact meaning of the writer, when I read fuch terms •, nor could I pretend to apply them, with any fure conviction of exciting, in the mind of the reader, the precife idea which I have formed in my own. By far the greater part of the foil of Twecddale never was, nor probably ever will, be turned up by the plough. Of the lands under culture, there is great variety of foil ; fuch as mofs, Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 1 f niofs, clay, fand ; mofs and clay, mofs and fand, clay and fand •, and thefe mixtures, in every variety of proportion. Mofs would feem, from its hidory and appearance, to be a particular fpecies of foil, generated from the decompofition of vegetables fuccefhvely growing and decaying in ftagnant water. It conftitutes, when cut into peat and dried, a very common fuel in Tweeddale, and through the north of Scotland. It is probably convertible, by proper management, into a rich ma- nure. It is found in almolt every hollow, upon, or among the hills, in the higher parifhes, from four or five, to ten, or even twenty feet in depth : At the bottom of the bed, it is always of the deeped black colour, of the mod homogeneous confidence, and of the greated folidity and power as fuel, when dried in- to peat : Nearer to the furface, it is of a lighter tobacco co- lour, of a more fpongy contexture, confiding chiefly, to ap- pearance, of the interlaced fibres of plants, in a greater or lefTer date of decay. Befides thefe modes in hollows, or upon dead flats, mofs is alfo found on high grounds, in the higher parts of the county, compofing a foil of from two to three or four feet in thick- nefs, lying generally upon a coufiderable declivity, (a circum- ftance rather inexplicable upon the commonly received theory of its generation), over a fubfoil, impervious to water, of fand or clay till : In its natural date, it is always moid ; but, in courfe of repeated tillage, and of being treated with large dofes of lime, it fubfides and confolidates, and becomes more dry ; when, after the fubfoil is reached by the plough, and is raifed and incorporated with the mofs, thefe foil ; are formed, which, (according to the quality of the fubfoil), I would didinguifh by the names of mofs and clay, or mofs and fand — mixtures purely artificial, and which exid not in the natural date of the foil. Sir James Montgomery of Stanhope, late Lord Chief Baron of tiie Court of Exchequer, has cultivated more of this foil, than any other Tweeddale proprietor, upon the north-ead extremities of the pariflies of Newlands and Eddledone j wherf, under his mode of management, it is brought to yield pretty large returns of the Magbiehill, or Red oat, though of inferior quality f£ Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. quality as to grain ; and where, while laid in grafs, the largeffc fized oxen ever bred in Tweeddale have been reared by him *, There is a foil pretty common on the flcirts of heath-clad hills, and on high, dry-lying flats, which has fome appearance of being a natural mixture of mofs and fand ; it feems to confift of a peculiar fpecics of black earth, mixed with fand of a greyifh white colour : when turned up by the mole, the hillock appears black, fo long as it remains moift •, but, when it be- comes dry, it appears as if powdered over with the fand above mentioned \ whether the black earth is real mofs, feems doubt- ful. It produces heath in its natural ftate •, it is the pooreft of our foils ; very thin •, and fo loofe, as to blow with the wind in drought, after being pulverifed by the plough. When un- der tillage, and lying, as in general found, upon a fubfoil im- pervious to water, it acquires almoil a fluid confiftence in wet Winters, infomuch, that a ftrong wind will caufe the drills of turnip growing upon it to undulate perceptibly* This foil may be one fpecies of what is called moorijlj foil. It abounds pret- ty much in Linton parifh ; and, if I am not much deceived, will generally be found above freeftone rock. The wild un- cultivated thin mooriih foils which are met with in parifhes where the rock is whin, or Hate, or limeftone, will, I appre- hend, be found of a more folid and tenacious confiftence, and of a browner colour. The ikirts of moft part of the hills, at the higheft elevations to which cultivation is extended, feem generally to confift of a foil of the lalt mentioned kind ; which appears to be compofed of a mixture of fand and clay, in various proportions, with of- ten a mixture of gravel of various kinds ; fuch as gravel of free- ftone, of limeftone, of whin, of Hate, and, in feveral inftances, of ironftone. From the colour, perhaps, this foil might pro- perly be defigned hazel foil; a defignation which, I think, I re- collect to have read fomewhere. Defcending • I have known of an American being much deceived in conceiving our moft (from its colour) to be the fine deep black vegetable mould of the virgin foils of America. Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfl/tre, \t Defcending a ftage further down upon the hills, clay is ge* nerally found to predominate more in the compoiition of the foil. Still nearer to the bottom of the hills, where the declivity becomes very gentle, and immediately above the troughs of flat land, (called provincially, haughs), formed by the courfe of the larger waters, the foil is generally deep and fertile ; being com- pofed of fand and clay, with often a great proportion of loofe ftones, chiefly of whin or Hate. The flat lands (Jmughs) in the troughs of the waters, partis cularly where fubjecl: to be overflowed, are obferved to be, in general, of a more fandy confidence, and the more fo, in propor- tion to their contiguity to the water's courfe j though, in fuch fituations, there are fome exceptions, even m favour of ftronger clay. The old croft lands * are commonly found in the one or o-» ther of the two laft mentioned defcriptions of lands ; and the foil of thefe^ blackened and mellowed through repeated dunging and plough culture, may probably, with propriety, be denomi- nated loams : varying the designation, according to the original differences of the foil, as clay loam, fandy loam, gravelly, fonv, &c. CJV. Perhaps, it is proper to extend this denomination of loams to fuch foils as, in their natural ftate, bear the ftrong- eit afHnity to thefe artificial foils of old croft. From the appearances of the foil, as above ftated, a theorift might be led to fuppofe, \mo, In regard to the -water baughs — that their fandy confidence, particularly fandy in proportion to their contiguity to the water's courfe, arifes from this — " that the fuperior weight of the fand allows it alone to be depofited, in * Croft, or infield, is a generic dcfignation, applied univeifally in Tweeddale, and over Scotland, to fuch lands as have been in life to be kept under con (tant cultivation of cropping, receiving the whole of the dung produced from the cat- tle, houft-fed in Winter, with the allies, &c. from the farmer's dwelling. Land never cultivated, or only occafionally after folding or lime, is univcrfally defigned tutfield. This dcfignatioo, however, refers to ploughing ; fuch land never receiving the appellation of »ut/ie!J, till it is fpoken of either as ploughed, or as about to be fhugbeff. j<5 [Agricultural Survey of Peehlesjhire, in this fituation, from the overflowing flooded waters j hut that, in proportion as you recede from the water's courfe, the overflowing water lofes its velocity as it fpreads into a thinner body, and there depofits the more minute particles of fand, and the lighter particles of clay ; which alone it was able to keep in fufpenfion to that diilance from the main dream. " idot As to the hills, he might conjecture, " that, towards their fummits, the rain water mufl run in a more difFufed ftate, and with lefs momentum ,■ and, to a certain diilance in their de- scent, can therefore only abrade and waih out a portion of the finer particles of clay or fand from amongfl the gravel, leaving the foil which it hath run over, of a gravelly or hazel defcrip- tion : that, as you ilill farther defcend, the hills generally grow lefs ileep •, whence, the velocity of the defcending water is impeded, and a depofition is made of the fine particles of fand and clay, which its velocity had hitherto enabled it to keep in fufpenfion : that, on dill farther defcending, the various bendings of the ground throws die water together into rivulets (or burns *), where its weight and velocity, or momentum, in- creasing, it is enabled to warn out and keep in fufpenfion the weightier particles of fand, as well as clay, to be depofited on the banks of thefe burns when they overflow ; a part being alfo delivered, as a tribute, by their main dream, to the larger wa- ters with which they unite, to be depofited alfo upon their laughs, in the ratio already noticed. " There are doubtlefs many fa£ts, which countenance fuch fuppofitions •, it is however doubtful, if they ate fo univerfal as to form a condant general rule. Strong examples may be found, in further fuppprt of that theory of foils, " which thus deduces their origin from the gradual decompofition of the more compact fubilance of the mountains, by the action of the different elements, waihed out * The defignation of the fmallcfr rill of water is zfylt, or a ivell-Jtraml, if from a fpring-wcll. If the water is of quantity fufficient to drive a iniall water-wheel for light machinery, it is called a burn. Larger (hxamt arc CiUcd lititcr:. Tweed ii our only water defined river- - lailuirc.l Survey of Peeblesf/in. 1 7 Dut by the rain:., and depofited, in this manner, upon the lower grounds '*. " Thus, the prevailing Hone in Linton pariih is freeftone, whiph is everywhere found in quarries, in loofe ftones, or detached maffes, over all the hills and moors, and beds of rivulets, at the heads of Lyne water. Now, the de- compofition of freeftone mould apparently produce land : and, accordingly, fand foil is found to prevail more in Linton than in any other pariih of the county, with the exception of mofs, of mooriih or hazel foil, in fituations as formerly defcribed, and of fome more tenacious foil, lying on limetlone. Sand foil is the prevailing foil in the crofts kept under conftant ro- tation of cropping. The haughs, fubjecl: to be overflowed in the trough of Lyne water, (even where that water runs through the parifhes of Newlands, Lyne, and Stobo, where the pre- vailing done is whin), are, with few exceptions, of pure fand foil. The depofitions from Lyne water feem to produce the fame effect upon the foil of the haughs upon Tweed, to a confiderable diftance below their junction. The prevailing (lone through the other parifhes is whin or flate, or of a mixed nature between thefe two •, and the foil (with the exception, in many inftances, of fand foil, where the waters overflow) is of a more clayey, unctuous, and tenacious confiftence. Stagnant water, as already obierved, feems, in certain cir- cumlLances, to give rife to mofs : it feems alfo probable, that, by long continued action, it may haA'e a tendency to convert f. .nd into clay. In fome of our very flat valiies, where the ri- vulets, running through them, have little velocity, where the courfe of the ftream, impeded by windings, keeps die adjoin- ing lands in a conftant foaking moiiture, fuch lands are, I be- lieve, univerfaliy found to coniift either of mofs, or of clay morafs ; generally, indeed, mofs near the fource of the Itream, and clay further down. The higher you afcend towards the fources of the waters, mofs foil is commonly found in more abundance. When the D waters ■ Townlhcnd, in his travels through Spain, affirms that he could predict th<; foil cf the rallies, from the nature of the fltbPunse of the furrciindmg hills. I"8 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. waters are in flood, they are of a brown colour, from the clay and fand kept in fufpenfion ; as they fnbfide, thefe heavier mat- ters are depofited ; they gradually become black ; and, for two or three days, (as the ground has been more or lefs foaked with rain), they retain a porter-coloured tinge, from the fufpenfion, or the folution, of the more minute and lighter particles of mofs. It has been remarked, that the hills on the left bank of the Tweed, of a foutherly or wefterly expofure, are generally more verdant than thofe of the right, though with many exceptions. Surface. — Upon a general and diftant view, this county feems to confift of a confufed congeries of chains of mountains, running in all directions. The arable land appears only, upon internal inveftigation, lying upon the banks of the waters and burns, and the acclivities of the fkirts of the hills. For thefe reafons, it was found impoffible to reprefent, in the map, the divifions of arable and pafture lands, or the diftin&ions o£ foils : the arbitrary divifion into parifhes, is therefore alone marked. In its general appearance, the county, though wild, can hardly be defigned romantic : the mountains, though high and large, and too much upon the vail for beauty, are yet too tame for the fublime. There is nothing abrupt — nothing terrific — nothing, in fhort, to ftrike forcibly the imagination of the poet, or the painter j unlefs, indeed, the feelings of a native, blunted by familiarity and repetition,, fhould be queftioned, as a proper ftandard of judgement *, The * Twceddale has probably furnifhed the fcene of fome of our favourite Scots longs. Of the Bu[h aboon Traqualr, there can be no doubt : As to Tiveedjldc, the matter may be more problematical ; Tweeddale having no exclufive appropriation of the Tweed. There is in the county, a Logan-heufc, ulfo a Logan-burn, which, in compliment, might be called Logan-water; both, probably, too infignificant to have been celebrated in the fongs of that name. Peebles play undoubtedly refers to fports celebrated in the county town. Doctor Pennycook makes a fingular remark upon the inhabitants, though I know not that it is well-founded — " Mufic is fuch a ftranger to their temper, that you fhall hardly light upon one amongft fix, that can diftinguifh one tune fronv anothcr ; yet, thofe of them that chance to hit upon the vein, may match with th« ikilfulleft. " Agricultural Survey of PeeblcsJInrt. ly The variety of hill, and dale, and water, might furnifh rfcenes of great natural beauty, or even grandeur, were it not for the almoft total want of natural wood. For though tradi- tion reports, that a great deal of wood once grew in the coun- ty, at prefent few veftiges of it remain ; and where any are found, upon the banks of the waters and llcirts of the hills, it is mere brufhwood, confuting chiefly of birch miferably llinted in growth, fome fpecies of grey willow, hazel bufhes, and a few mountain afhes, with Ibmetimes a fringe of dwarhfh alders marking the courfes of the rivulets. It may, no doubt, be reckoned unfair to judge of what the natural wood might have been, by the remnant that now appears : The former wood may have been grubbed out for fuel, or to make room for pafture or the plough j and what now remains, may have been ftinted in its growth by the repeated cropping of the fheep .: The trees, however, found in mofles, (the only fpecimens of the wood of former times), are generally, it mull be confefTed, of diminutive fize *. In the various artificial plantations through the county, the trees come to nothing in the higher parifhes, where the foil is mean, or the fituation expofed j and, of late, it is, with good reafon, coming more into prac- tice.. * The wood molt commonly found in our peat modes is birch, or hazel. Oak is fometimes, though rarely found ; black, heavy, and hard, like ebony. Single trees of oak, of confiderable fize, have been found in mcfTes near the top cf high hills. It is pretty remarkable, that, in the moors of Carnvvath parifh in Lanark (hire, adjoining to the higher parts of Tweeddale on the noith-weft, at an elevation as iiigh, and under a climate as unpropitious as any part of TVeeddalc, mod places ftem to have obtained their names from woods ; fuch as Harivood or Hart-wood, Girt -wood or Greatiuood, Woodjide, IVoodenl, &c. &c. There are no veftiges of fuch woods above the lurface, but abundance below the mofics. Fir (unknown in Tweeddale moiTls) is found in fome of thefc, long and ftraight, indicating its hav- ing grown in thickets. Its fibres are fo tough that they are twifled into ropes for halters and teathers : The fplits of it are ufed for li^ht, by the name of candic f.r — Strong marks of great convulfions in nature. Some farmers have taken the hint of burying fir, for roofing, in mofTvjS. in qj* ■'.Itural Survey of Peebles/hire. *5 fris in Mid-Lothian, and fall into the fea at Muffclburgh ; ffitggrt water, in the part of Lyne parifh of that name, which falls into St Man's Loch, whofe outlet is Yarrow water in Sel- kirkfhire, which joins th.e water of Etirich, and, with it, joins the Tweed a little below the town of Selkirk. All thefe waters abound in trout, par, and eels ; the lochs 5/ Mary and Water Loch, already mentioned, together with SHpperfield Loch in Linton parifh, abounding in perch and pike ; the St Mary and JVater Lochs containing alfo, the firft, trout and eel, the latter eels, which, in certain feafons of mi- gration, ufed to be catched in great numbers, in bafkets, at its outlet, the head of South EJh water. Salmon are caught, out of feafon, in all the waters, and at all times, in Tweed : There is however no fifhing upon Tweed, in this county, that can afford any rent. No water machinery of any kind has hitherto been erected in this county upon the Tweed. I am indebted to William Brown, mill-wright in Lyne pa- rifh, who has ere&ed, and who keeps in repair, the greater part of the machinery in Tweeddale, for the following ftate- ments of the water-wheels, with the work they are employed in, which are erected upon the other waters and burns through the county, STATE, NOVEMBER I 797« NwnBer of Water Wheel*. Driving the paint-mill at Lamancha l the manufactory of woollen at Inverleithan for fpin- ning, carding, roving, and a fulling-mill - 2 a corn-mill, malt-mill, and thrafhing-mill, at Ker- field (Ar. B. the firft thrafhing-mill in the county) r fulling-mills 4 lint-mills - - , '- •- 2 thrafhing-engines folely - - - 3 corn-mills with one pair of (tones - - 1 8 corn-mills with two pair of ftones, and a vertical running (tone for making pot barley - 9 — corn-mills as above, alfo thraihing-engincs - 3 Total 43 £ Ik'fides ^fy Agricultural Survey of Peebles/litre. Befides the above feven thrafhing machines driven by watery either by themfelves, or along with other machinery, there were then in the county only nine other thrafhing machines driven by two horfes each, together with one for a fingle horfe, ancfc two driven each by two men. December 1 80 1 . The following is the Statement :- Number of Water Wheels Driving the paint-mill at Lamancha 1 ■ the woollen manufactory of Inverleithan, with its fulling-mill ----- 2 the woollen manufactory at Peebles 1 . the manufactory of felts for paper-makers at Carlips 1 manufactory at Garwell-foot, or at teafl teazing and fcribling engines, and fulling I fulling-mills - - 2 ■ lint-mills - 3 a mill for all corm, for malt, and for a barley-mill, and a thrafhing-mill at Kerfield 1 common corn-mills, with one pair of millftones 13 — for wheat alone ____•- 1 common corn-mills, with a vertical running-ftone for pot-barley - - - 10 — — — corn-mills with two pairs of ftones, and a vertical ftone for barley - - 5 - corn-mills with two pairs of ftones, a ftone for bar- ley ; alfo a thrafhing machine, and one of them a ftraw cutter befides 3 : thrafhing engines lblely - T4 5* Befides thefe eighteen thrafhing engines driven by water, there are, at this date, alfo twenty-four thrafhing engines dri- ven by two horfes each ; thofe driven by hand, or by one horfe, feem difufed as infignificant. They are erected by all the con- siderable corn farmers at their own expence — decifive of their utility. h Agricultural Survey of Peehlesfoire. ^ It would appear, from thefe ftatements, that thrashing en- gines have increafed, in four years, from fixteen to forty-two in number ; and that many other. improvements have been made in the machinery of mills. Two other thrafhing engines, to go by water, are in contemplation againit next feafon. Beveled work (confidered as a great improvement in wheel- .machinery, and firll introduced into Scotland, it is faid, by Mr Dale in his cotton-mills at Lanark, within lefs than twenty years) is univerfally adopted in the thrashing engines, and alfo in every new erected corn-mill ; the mill at Spittlehaugh in Lin- ton parifh having led the way. In the corn-mills with only one pair of ftones, the ftones are roughed on the furface, to enable them to tear and bruife the grain, by fmall hand pickaxes. Stones, thus dreffed, ferve well for making oat-meal, which is relifhed belt when rough in the grain. They cannot grind barley or peas to that finenefs of flour which fuits the general taftc: It is therefore neceffa- ry to have a feparate pair of ftones for that purpofe, which are dreffed on the furface with fmall chifeled grooves running in a direction from the circumference to the centre, like as in the ftones of wheat-mills ; the edges of thefe grooves clip the grain like fciffars, and there is no interftice through which any of the grain can efcape, till reduced -to the required finenefs of meal. The manufactories provided with teazing and carding en- gines, get great employ in teazing, carding, and roving wool, from thofe who make their cloth at home ; as it comes cheaper to the employer, after liberal payment to the proprietor of the machine ; and the work is done better, and with lefs wafte of materials, than when thefe operations are executed by hand la- bour. •CHAP. 28 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfhirt.. CHAP. II. STATE OF PROPERTY. Sect. \.-~EJlates and their Management. As this county confifts chiefly of hill pafture lands, pro- ducing an herbage, fcanty and poor in quality, and more fitted, in general, for rearing fheep, than for fattening them •, a large extent is neceffary to conftjtute any confiderable value : It may thence readily be conceived, that landed cftates are of large di- menfions ; as alfo, that fmgle farms muft often occupy a large extent of furface, without which, the produce would barely compcnfate the trouble of attendance and management, but could afford no rent. Sheep farms are fometimes meafured in acres ; but the mea- furement affords no datum upon which to eflimate what ought to be the rent of the farm> and accordingly never enters into the. calculation of either the proprietor, or the farmer propofing to rent it in leafe. In eftimating their value, the only confideration taken into account, is, what number of fheep have ufually been, or may be kept upon the farm, with the quality of the fheep fo kept \ whether fheep of a different kind might not be kept to ter advantage, fuch as fattening, inflead of breeding flock, or vice verfa ,■ or whether, without either fattening or breeding, lambs ought net to be bought in annually, to be fold off next feafon as holding flock •, or whether a mere diminution of num- bers might not be more advantageous, from diminution of the of death, and from the fuperiority in quality of the remain- der, from more abundant feeding; or, in fliort, whether it lit be more profitable to appropriate lefs of the farm to fheep pafture. .Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjl/irc. 2y pafture, and more of it to the rearing of black cattle, or to tillage. The valuation of the county in the cefs-books, is 51,9271. 3s. iod. Scots. The grois rent, including rent of mills, and alfo about 500I. rent from coal, lime, freeftone, and ilate, may amount to nearly 26,oool. Sterling. Were an eftimate to be made of the free rent, the deductions would be, the provifion pf the Clergy, (fee Statiftical Tables), with the building and upholding of their manfes and the parilh churches, cofting, if rebuilt, in each pariih, probably about 700I. at an average; the falaries of the fchoolm afters, (fee Note A), with the up- holding of the fchocls and mafters dwelling, colling, if rebuilt, in each parifh, probably 60 or 70I. at an average. Some o- ther deductions are not fo eafily calculated, fuch as, the up- holding of farm houfes and mills, &c. with the as yet incon- fiderable expence of poor's rates, where eftablifhed, or of vo- luntary contributions for their fupport, where there are no rates. The whole landed property may be divided among about fixty proprietors ; without taking into the account a few fmaH proprietors, poffeffmg lands to the value of 20I. yearly rent cr under, around the burgh of Peebles, and fome of the villages. Without pretending to any thing like exa£tnefs, the proprietors may be distributed into the following claliification : PoficfTing about, and little exceeding, in yearly rent, - iool. - 13 From iool. to 400I. - 24 From 400L to ioocI. - 15 From ioool. to 40C0I. - 8 60 Of the more inconfulerable of thefe proprietors, perhaps eight or ten farm the whole of their own lands, feme of them renting other farms befides ; though the farmers anting lands to the greateft extent, are not of the clafs of landed proprietors. Fherc feems indeed a fecurity produced, from the certain in- come ^o Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. come from landed property, where no rent is paid ; which fo~ pites induftry, and engenders indolence. Almoft all the proprietors, who refide either conftantly, or for a part of the feafon, farm more or lefs of their own lands, for convenience, for amufement, or even to a fomewhat great- er extent ; a very few, to an extent of farm that might be let in leafe at feveral hundred pounds of yearly rent. The prac- tice, however, of taking farms into their own management, for the purpofe of letting them in kafe, at advanced rents, after high melioration, though there are fome inftances of it, is but rare among Tweeddale proprietors : Indeed, the far greater part of the lands is little fufceptible of improvement by furface cul- ture of tillage ; and inclofure, at lead the fubilantial inclofure of ftone dikes, which need no nurfing, is as well carried on where lands are entered to upon leafe, as when in the adtual occupancy of the proprietor himfelf. About a fifth or fourth part of the lands is under ftri£r. en- tail ; befides what may be entailed by exifting proprietors, whofe deeds fhall take effect when their own confcioufnefs of the mat- ter fhall ceafe. From a fmgular circumftanee, to be afterwards explained, the lordfhip of Neidpath, comprehending the half of the lands prefently entailed, bids fair to become the moil fpeedily, and the molt fubfiantially, improved property in the county. Of nobility, there were lately fix who poffefled lands in the county, viz. the Earls of Dundonald and of Hyndford, whofe lands have palled into a different line of fuccefhon from the titles ; the Duke of Queenfberry, poffefhng, qua Earl of March, the lordfhip of Neidpath ; the Earl of Traquair, pofTemng the eftate of that name ; Lord Elliebank, pofTefTmg the barony of Darnhall, which, by entail, goes to the fecond branch of the family ; the Duke of Buccleugh, whofe intereft in the county is inconfiderable. The number upon the roll of freeholders, is generally from thirty to thirty-five, who fend one rcprefentative to Parliament from the county : The burgh of Peebles, in conjunction with thofe of Linlithgow, Lanark, and Selkirk, fends alfo one. By Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 3 J By much the greateft part of the lands is rented by profef- fional farmers, holding them upon leafes for terms of years* Nineteen years was, and is, the prevailing term of endurance of a leafe. The recent fpirit of improvement, leading farmers to perceive the propriety of launching out their capitals upon ameliorations of very diftant return, if only fecurity of poflef- fion can be obtained till that return arrives, has raifed a demand for leafes of longer endurance ; and the terms of twenty-one, twenty-five, thirty-one, and, upon the lordfhip of Neidpath three nineteens, have of late been adopted. I know not of a fingle inftance, in the county, of a liferent leafe now exifting ; though, unhappily, according to the legal conftruclion of the right of pofleflion by leafe, it may, under various circumftan- ces, occur, that a leafe for a term of years may prove merely e- quivalent to a liferent leafe, or even that the latter may be a preferable fecurity. Grafs inclofures, perfectly fenced, being yet but rare, let at a monopoly price. They are feldom let in leafes for years, but are ufually let for the feafon by public roup or auction, and are taken by farmers for their young cattle, which eat their Winter's fodder, or by profeffionai graziers or horfe-dealers : From two to three guineas per Scots acre is paid pretty commonly. The number of farmers renting lands to the extent of from 100 to 500I. of yearly rent, amounts to about eighty. A much greater number pofTeis fmall farms, from 20- to 80I. of yearly rent. Few of the fheep farms contain much lefs than 600 or 700 Scots acres ; there are more that contain from 1000 to 4000. Few of thefe farms pay lefs than iool. yearly rent. The high- eft rent paid at prefent by one farmer for lands within this county, is about 600I. yearly. One farmer who refided in this county, paid, at one time, for fheep farms, in this and neigh- bouring counties, no lefs than 1700I. yearly rent. The fmaller farms, chiefly arable, confift of from 40 to co to 100, and, in one or two inftances, 200 acres. Two or three of thefe may pay iool. or 150I. yearly rent ; the reft be- ing rented at from 25 or 30I. to 70 or 80I. The 32 Agricultural Survey of Peehhsjhlrc. The following ftatement, of the mode in which the lands are pofTefTed, (in the parifh of Linton, where there is the large ft tillage of the county ; in that of Mannor, where there is only a fmall kirk town of ahout half a dozen houfes ; and in that of the united parifh of Lyne and Megget, where there is neither village nor kirk town), will convey a tolerable idea of the whole. Perfect accuracy in the ftatement, is not, however, pretended to. Linton Parish, (from perfonal knowledge, about the year 1794)- Extent of the parifh, 25,472 Englifh acres. The whole yearly rent, about 2,4001. Sterling. Farmers renting to the extent of from 150 to 200L yearly rent -___«_ 2 Ditto renting from 100 to 150L - 7 A proprietor farming his own lands, to the extent of what might let at about 150I. - - - 1 A gentleman renting a proprietor's houfe and parks at 75I. 1 Farmers renting from 50 to iool. - 8 Ditto renting from 20 to 50I. - - - 12 Ditto renting at about 20I. - - - 10 41 Crofters, renting one or two acres around the village of Linton, are not included in the above enumeration. Mannor Parish (from Statiftical Account). Extent, 16,558 Englifh acres. Yearly rent, 1685I. Farmers paying 220I. yearly rent f Ditto paying 150I. - - 2 Ditto paying iool. 6 A gentleman renting a proprietor's houfe and parks at 50I. 1 A proprietor farming his own lands, that might let at per- haps 90I. - I Farmers renting at from 20 to 60I. - - 7 18 Parish Agricultural Survey of Peebles/litre* 23 Parish of Lyne and Megget (from Statiftical Account). Extent, 16,987 acves. Rent, without including fines at en- try, 900I. Farmers occupying large farms, one of them not refiding 6 Miller renting to extent of about 34I. 1 Farmer renting the minifter's glebe at 20I. - I Mill-wright, with a very fmall poffeffion 1 Sect. \\.~Tenures. The tenures, by which lands are held, may be claffed into fuperiority, property, and tack, or leafe. Superiority is merely that nominal title to land, which con- fers the right of franchife. As 400I. valuation of fuperiority confers franchife, and as, in Scotland, fuperiority may be re- tained, when the property of the land is conveyed away, and this fuperiority may alfo be fictitioufly conveyed in any given portions, it is evident, that, in creating votes, the fuperiority o£ the whole valuation, 51,927!. Scots, would give 129 voters at the county election : As, however, the number commonly up- on the roll of freeholders does not exceed 30 or 35, it may be readily inferred, that this county has not been much difturbed by die animofities of political conteft. Property is the valuable tenure of land, implying the full command of the fubjecT: to all the purpofes of human life ; ex- cepting, merely, political power, which is attached to fupe- riority, and may, or may not, be attached to the property. Tack for a term of years, is the tenure by which land is held, by profeffional farmers, from proprietors, for the purpofes of agriculture. For a more full explanation of this fubjeel, I refer the reader to note B. F CHAP. 34 Agricultural Survey of Peehlesjhire. CHAP. III. BUILDINGS. Sect. l.—Houfes of Proprietors. There are in the counfy about 30 houfes, (including all thofe in tolerable repair), belonging to landed proprietors, pof- felling from 100I. to perhaps 3000I. of yearly land rent. Of this number, rather more than two-thirds may be confidered as ordinary family refidences •, confifting of from 6 or 8 to 20 or 30 fire-rooms, and conftrufted upon plans confined to mere purpofes of utility, or admitting of more or lefs degrees of neatnefs, elegance, or magnificence, according to the various taftes or abilities of their refpe&ive pofleffors. There are five feats which have been, not long ago, or are now, the refidences of noblemen, viz. (arranging them in the order of higher up to loweft down in the county) Lamancha, Kirkurd, Darnhall, Neidpath, Traquair ; refpe£tively belonging to the Earl of Dundonald, Earl of Hyndford, Lord Elliebank, Duke of Queenfberry qua Earl of March, and Earl of Traquair, none of whom refide at prefent, but the laft mentioned Earl. Properly fpeaking, three of them only are ancient family feats, accompanying he pofiefiion of the titles, Darnhall, Neidpath, and Traquair. The fituation of Neidpath is, or rather was, the mod pic- turefque of any in the county. The houfe itfelf is, indeed, in no way remarkable ; being a tower-houfe of fmall dimenfions, but with exceffive thicknefs of wall, and now ruinous. It Hands upon a rock overhanging the Tweed, at the lower end of Agricultural Survey of Peebles/litre. 3 J of a wide femicircular bend of that river : the concave bank is very fteep, of great height, and wooded for near a mile up and. down the river, from its top to the water's edge, forming a vail romantic amphitheatre. Upon the oppofite fide of the river, a bold projecting wooded bank juts forward into the bend •, at the foot of which, lies a fmall plain, half encircled by the Tweed, fuggefting the idea of a fnug, fequeflered, fheltered fi- tuation for an hermitage. This fcene lies about a mile above the town of Peebles, where the road, leading up the Tweed, enters upon it at Neidpath Caftle •, whence it is carried along the middle of the concave bank, being cut out in the rock, and feeming to hang over the water below. To the traveller, by moonlight, the conftant fhifting of the fcenery as he moves a- long, with the intervening glimpfes of the water renewing the moon-beams through the trees, gives to the whole an air of fairy-land and enchantment. I am forry to add, that the de- scription no longer applies ; the place having been very lately difmantled completely, by the fale of the wood. No blame, however, can attach to the prefent Noble proprietor. This fubject of regret, like many other, falls entirely to the charge of the extravagant extent of the power of entail j imparting to the will of the dead, who have ceafed to have any further ac- tual concern, an effect by much too extenfive, in controuling the wills of the living and interefled. When a proprietor can- not leave his landed property to the natural obje£t of his affec- tion, what elfe is to be expected, but that he fhould convert what of it he can into money, which the laws of his country {till allow him to difpofe of as he pleafes ? We laugh at the fuperftition of the Chinefe, in paying divine honours to the memory of their deceafed anceftors j though it is probable, this their worfhip is, like that of other people, fo managed, as not efTentially to interfere with their temporal intercfts. But might not a ftranger to our laws and cuftoms be tempted to tax us of a more than Chinefe fuperftition, in paying to the wills of our anceftors, where they interfere fo materially with our temporal interefts, as to preclude all power of choice on our part, in fome of the moft efTential parts of their manage- ment, 36 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhire. ment, an obedience more devoted and implicit, than what is generally paid even to an acknowledged Divine authority ? It would be foreign to the purpofe, and incompatible with the limits of this Report, to attempt to characterife the ftyle of the various feats of the nobility and gentry : thefe we leave to the architect and defigner of policies, our bufinefs lying rather with the humbler fubjecl: of the accommodation of the farmer and the cottager. I fhall juft obferve, that the mountainous nature of the country affords choice of every variety of fitua- tion ; fo that he, who choofes to expofe himfelf to every wind that blows, may frequently, at this price, enjoy a pretty exten- sive profpect — of objects, however, not commonly very intereft- ing ; whilft he, who is contented to forego extent of profpect, may fnugly bury himfelf under the molt complete fhelter. There are feats to be found in both extremes of iituation ; though the middle ftate feems to have been the more general object, of choice. I have fubjoined, in an appendix, an account of Whim, which, from peculiarity of fituation, and particu- larly from the cultivation there carried on, of the deepeit mofs foil ever attempted to be cultivated in this county, feemed, in preference to others, to merit a particular defcription in an agricultural furvey. Sect. II. — Farm-Houfes, Offices, and Repairs. From various caufes, Scotland was more late in being re- lieved from the oppredion of feudal ariftocracy, than her filter kingdom ; the laft act of Parliament to that effect, and for which we are indebted to our rebellion in 1745, being fo re- cent as the 1 748. An emancipation de jure, when obtained, proves not, however, all at once, an emancipation de fatlo ; time is neceffary for the mind to habituate itfelf to the fenti- ments fuited to a new fituation ; and it is but of late, if as yet, that the feelings of fecurity and independence are as univerfally prevalent among the Scots, as among the Englifh tenantry. In former times, the Scots tenant poflefled the fentiments and habits of the fubject of an Afiatic defpot, rather than thoii Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire: 37 of a free man : deftitute of that manly confidence, infpired by the confcioufnefs of fecurity in the equal prote£tion of law, he relied more upon the refources of his own dexterity and cunning ; and die dread of being plundered, made him cauti- ous of difplaying fuch wealth as he poflefled, either in improve- ments upon his farm, or in purchafmg fuch comforts and ac- commodations as its profits might afford. From his contracted habits of concealment, and from the fmall degree of wealth which he had any opportunity of acquiring, the Seots tenant was contented to live in the moft miferable hovel 5 the poverty, too, of his landlord, who could draw little rent from a wretch- ed tenantry, deftitute of every proper encouragement to induf- try, difabling him, even had he been willing, to afford much better accommodation. Thefe hovels, fuch as they were, coft nothing to the proprietor, but were upheld for ever by the te- nant ; it being underflood, at common law, independent of co- venant, that the outgoing tenant fhould leave them always to liis fucceflor, in tenantable and habitable condition : From ufe and practice, tenantable and habitable, had come to imply mere- ly, wind and water tight ; and the common ftyle of farm- houfes admitted of little more accommodation, than mere fhel- ter from the weather. In confequence of the firm eftablifhment of monarchy, and the diflblution of ariftocracy — of the abolition of heritable juris- dictions, and the fubflitution of independent Judges, uncon- nected with the fubjects of their own jurifdiotion, and having no perfonal intereft in their own decifions — the fecurity of the tenantry, as well as ol all the lower orders in fociety, is con- firmed : General induflry has kept pace with growing fecurity > and the fituation of every rank is altered greatly for the better. In confequence of increafing fentiments of liberality among the landed gentry, cf fecurity among the tenantry, and of wealth in both, the ftyle of farm-houfes through Scotland lias been much improved. Cre.it improvements, in this refpe£t, have been made in Tweeddale, within theft laft thirty years; Sir lames Montgomery of Stanhope, late Lord Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer in Scotland, Sir James Nafmyth of New Pqffo, 5? Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Poffo, and Mr Burnet of Barns, having been among the firft to fet the example. In building farm-houfes, it is the prevailing practice, that the proprietor pays all the outlayed money for materials and wages of workmen •, the tenant performing the carriages, and becoming bound to uphold the houfes during his fack ; the lafl mentioned obligation having become the lefs onerous, from flate roofing having come more into ufage. In general, no fli- pulation is made as to payment of intereft, for the money laid out upon the buildings ; it being rather underftocd, that a tenant, pofTeffing flock to occupy a farm of the particular extent, is en- titled to accommodation in a fuitable ftyle. Much liberality, in accommodation of houfes, has of late been manifefled by Tweeddale proprietors, excepting upon the eftate of Neidpath, where, in confequence of entail, the prefent proprietor, having no more than a mere liferent intereft, cannot be exue&ed to fink money upon the fubje£t. Sheep farmers can be afforded the beft dwelling-houfes j as, from their fheep never being houfed, they require lefs extent of farm-offices than corn farmers. The beft farm-dwellings in Tweeddale, are built in a ftyle fimilar, but fo me what inferior, both as to fize, height of ceiL Ings, and quality of finifhing, to the dwelling-houfes, or tnanfes of the clergy. Thefe latter are of the dimenfions of from 34 to 40 feet in length, by from 19 to 22 feet in breadth, within the walls j the door is generally in the middle of the front, whence you enter upon a very fmall lobby and the ftaircafe ; on one hand is the kitchen, with a fmall divifion, probably taken off it, for a fcullery and fervant's bed ; on the other hand, is generally the beft room, occupying the breadth of the houfe for Its length. When you afcend the flair to the fecond flory, the fpace above the kitchen may be equally divided, making two fmall fleeping apartments ; and the fpace above the beft room is unequally divided, affording a fort of drawing room, -with a fmall fleeping clofet. The garret fpace, under the roof, may be divided into a place for lumber in the one end, and the other end fitted up with a couple of beds, into what is called a barrack Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfiire. 29 barracl room. The farmer, having a greater number of fer- vants than what are needed by the clergyman, is generally ac- commodated with a kitchen without the dwelling-houfe, which gives more room, though his dwelling-houfe is fomewhat lefs than the manfe. The number of farm-houfes of two (lories with flated roofs, lately built, may amount to fomewhat above fifty, without in- cluding a few of that defcription, prefently occupied by farmers, which formerly were occupied by the proprietors. The two mod expenfive farm onfleads (including both dwelling and office-houfes) that have been erected in the county, are, I be- lieve, one at Hudlefhaup in Mannor parifh, by Robert Camp- bell Efq. of Kailzie, the other at Elythfbank in Linton parifh, by John Carmichael Efq, of Skirling: the court of the latter, for dungftead and winterers, inclofed upon three fides by the offices, and on the fourth by a wall, contains a fpace of 100 by 84 feet clear of the buildings *. Prior to the period of improvement before flared, the moft ufual conftruction of the better farm dwellings, was that of a long houfe of only fix feet wall in height ; the apartments all upon the ground; the dimenfions about 45 by 15 or 16 feet in breadth within walls ; no divifion by partitions within, but the * Mr Alexander, tenant of Eafter Happrew, who, upon fecurity of one of the fifty-feven years leafes, granted upon the barony of Neidpath, has built, at his own expence, a dwelling of two fiories, with offices, all covered with flate, and who generally thinks for himfelf, has formed his court of offices into a fmall fquare, merely fufficient to contain his dung. His cattle have no accefs into this court, the offices being all entered from the outfide. The dung is toiTed from the offices into this court through apertures in the walls; the urine from all the offices runs into a refervoir funk in a corner of the court ; a pump is placed in the re- fervoir, whence, by means of wooden conduits laid upon moveable fupports, the Mrine is conveyed over any part of the dung. He difapproves of the trampling of cattle upon dung, as kneading it into a iblid body, and excluding the air, to the prevention of putrefaction. His winterers, upon draw, are fed in a feparate court, whence the dung and litter can be removed at pleafure, to be tofied into the other dung-court ; or otherwise lightly "said together, for the purpofc 0: putrc- fa&tan. ^a Agricultural Survey tf Peebles/hire. the crofs partitions effected by clofe beds * fet end to end, with a paffage betwixt them. You entered at the front, where the door was placed near to one end : On the right hand, we fhall fuppofe, you had a partition of clofe beds, which cut off a fpace for a room, and, on the other hand, the fimilar parti- tion dividing the kitchen from the paffage j turning to the left into the kitchen, a fimilar partition cut off a room from the kicchen. Thefe three apartments, viz. a kitchen in the middle, with a room at each end of it, conftituted the whole accom- modation. The round-about fire fide (ftill by much preferred where there are a number of farm fervants, and certainly by far moft preferable, but for the difficulty of keeping them clear of fmoke), was univerfally in ufe in the kitchen ; that is, a cir- cular grate placed upon the floor about the middle of the kit- chen, with a frame of lath and plafter, or fpars and mats, fuf- pended over it, and reaching within about five feet of the floor, like an inverted funnel, for conveying the fmoke ; the whole family fitting round the fire within the circumference of the inverted funnel. Here was placed the gudeman's refting chair, or wooden fopha, upon which he fat or reclined after the fatigues of the day, liftening, in thofe times fo dearthful of intelligence, to the news collected by the wandering beg- gar, or feafting his imagination upon the wonders of the lame ibldier or failor who had vifited foreign countries. Sect. * The clofe bed is a frame of wood, 6 feet high, 6 feet long, and 4 feet broad. In an houfe of 15 feet in width, two of them fet lengthwife acrofs the houfe, the one touching the front, the other the back walls, an entry or paflage, of three feet in width, is left betwixt the beds. To form an idea of a clofe bed, we may fuppofe it like a fquare-formed upright curtain bed, where the place of curtains is fupplied by a roof, ends and back of wooden deal, the front opening and fhutting with wooden doors, either hinged, or Aiding fidewife in grooves. The bottom, raifed about 18 inches from the floor, is fparred; this is covered with ftraw, above which a bag of ticken, or of fackcloth, filled with the chaff of oats, moft com- monly fupplies the place ©f a feather bedj with bolder and pillows of the fame .onftruc"tion. ../ 7 ural Survey of Peeblesflj'tre. 41 Sect. III. — Cottages. Hale a century ago, a great part of the cottages of the Scots day-labourers were built with walls of turf ; ilone but- trefles, or wooden pofts, built into the wall, fupporting the heavy timbers of the roof : A very few of this delcription (till exilt in this county ; but the greater part are built of ftone and lime. The general defcription of the cottage of a labourer or tradefman, who keeps a cow, is, a houfe of 18 or 20 feet by 15 or 16 within walls; the door is in front, clofe by- one of the gables ; two clofe beds form the crofs partition, di- viding the lpace occupied by the family from a fpace of four feet from the gable at which you enter, where ftands the cow behind one of the beds, with her tail to the door of the houfe. There is one window in front near the fire gable, oppofite to which, at the oppofite wall, ftands the ambry, or (helved wooden prefs, in which the cow's milk, and other family daily provifion are locked up ; and, above it, lying againft the flaunt of the roof, is the Jkelf, or frame, containing fhelves, with crofs bars in front, to prevent the utenfils fet upon its fhelves from tumbling off from its overhanging politibn •, the fhow of the houfe depending much upon the quality and arrangement of the crokery and other utenfils placed thus, in open view, upon the fkelf. A cheft, containing the family wardrobe, ftands in front of one of the clofe beds, ferving alfo for feats. The clofe beds are alfo furniihed with a fhelf at head and foot, upon which part of the family apparel is depofited, to prefex*vc it from the dull. A wooden armed chair for the hufband, when he arrives fatigued from his labour, and a few (tools for the reft of the family, and a plunge churn, completes the inventory of houfehold furniture ; to which only a fmall bar- rel for faked flefh, and another for meal, may be added, if rhe family can afford to lay in ftores, and are not from hand to mouth. The cooking utenfils are, a (mail caft-iron pot, in, which is daily prepared the oat meal porridge, the univerfal "breakfafr, eaten with milk, or with home-brewed weak ale G from 42 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. from treacle, when the milk feafon is over * ; in which alf> the potatoes are boiled, as the univerfal fupper, while they lad, eaten either with milk, or merely with fait ; in which is aifo prepared for dinner, through Winter, potatoes drefled with mutton-fuet purchafed for the purpofe, or broth to be eaten with bread, made univerfally with fhelled barley, and kale from the kale yard, and, according to circumftances, either with or without a bit of faked mutton, to give them a relifh ; the but- ter from the cow being all fold frefh, from the high price it bears in fuch vicinity to Edinburgh, being the chief dependence for money to pay for the cow's Summer's grafs, and to pur- chafe her Winter's fodder; the Ikimmed milk only being ufed in the family, in the manner already dated ; or, when moft plen- ty in Summer, ferving for dinner broth. The next indifpen- fable cooking utenfil, univerfally in ufe in every cottage and in every family in the country, is the girdle, which is a round thin plate, either of malleable, or of cad -iron, from a foot to two feet and an half in diameter, according to the fize of the family. It is fufpended over the fire by a jointed iron arch with three legs, called the clips, the ends of the legs of which are hooked, to hold fad the girdle. The clips is linked upon a hook at the end of a chain, called the crook, which is attached to an iron rod, or wooden beam, called the rantle-tree, which is fixed acrofs the chimney-dalk, at fome diftance above the fire. Upon this girdle is baked the ordinary bread of the cottager, and of the farmer's fervants, confiding of bannocks made of the meal of peas, or of barley, but more generally of the two meals mixed together, * Time was, when the character of ost meal was greatly traduced ; being ac- counted heating to the blood, and the caufe of cutaneous difeafes, and even of the rational difeafe, the itch. It has regained its character, of late, with the faculty, a' fubacid ami cooling, and is prefrribed even for cutaneous difbrders. I am in- clined to date the relloraticn of its character from the publication of Smollett's Humphry Clinker; where a rational vindication of its wholcfome propcities is put into the mouth of Lieutenant Lefmahagoe. The itch has almoft totally difap- peared fince the introduction of cteanlinefs, though the ufc of oat meal is ftill pcr- fevcrcd in. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/fjire. 43 together, and more rarely of oats. The meal is made into dough with water without leaven, and the dough is formed into circular cakes of from 7 to 9 inches diameter, and from ~ to ^ inches in thicknefs ; it is then toafted firft on one fide, then the other, upon the girdle ; and two or three days provifion are made at once : The bread has but a doughy tafte. The oat cake, known by the fole appellative of cake, is the gala bread of the cottager : The meal is made into dough with wa- ter, without leaven, as little water being ufed as is merely fuf- iicient to make the meal ftick together ; the dough is then kneaded, or rolled out, as thin as poihble, into a round cake, of diameter correfponding to the fize of the girdle ; the cake is then cut into four quadrants, and toafted on the girdle, al- ternately, on both fides, care being taken, both with cakes and bannocks, to prevent the girdle from being fo hot as to burn their furface : When the cake is fo hardened as to ftand on edge, it is placed upon an iron heater, linked upon a bar of the grate, where it toaits leifurely, till it is perfectly dry, though noway burnt ; if it hath lain fome days unufed, it is toafted anew before it is eaten ; it thus conftitutes a hearty fpecies of bread, of a tonic quality, to judge by the tafte ; and which, by many Scotsmen in the higher ranks, is preferred to wheaten bread *. There is juft one other utenfil indifpenfable to the cottager ; which is, a very fmail barrel, or can, of ftone ware, to hold his fait, which he keeps in a hole in the wall clofe by his fire, to prevent its running, from the moifture in the air : He muft alfo have a wooden pail to carry water ; in which his cow is milked, if he has one ; on which fuppofition, too, he muft have three cans of ftone ware, or veflels of cooper's work, in which the milk is fet in the ambry to ftand for calling up tin cream. I * In the predatory excurfions of our anceftors into England, the only provi- sion they carried was a bag of oat meal ; thtir only camp inenfi! was the girdle; as for cooking fkfli, thtir way was, to boil a ccw in her own fkin. 44 Agricultural Survey of "Peehlesfonre. I have entered the more largely into the defcription of the food of the cottager, as farm fervants are fed much in the fame way, excepting only that they may more often have broth made with flefh, and flefh, or cheefe, or eggs, more frequently for dinner along with the broth. The molt artificial food ufed by cottagers, or farm fervants, is fonvins. When oats are to be made into meal, the grain, ber ing dried, is made to pafs through the mill, the millflones be- ing fet at fuch diftance as merely to flrip off the hulk without bruifing the kernel ; the hulk is then feparated by the fanners : As the grains are, however, of unequal fize, the whole is again returned to the mill, with the Hones approaching a little nearer, by which the fmaller grains zrejhcelfd, or fuelled, with- out bruifing the kernels fhelled by the fir ft operation : The hulks, ox foilling feeds, are again feparated by the fanners, when the flitting, or naked kernels, are committed to the mill, with the flones fet fo near as to grind them into meal. As fome of the {hells, however, dill remain among the meal, they are fe- parated from it by hand fieves : Thefe fhells, thus feparated, and having the finer particles of the meal adhering to them, called mill feeds, are preferred for fowins. A quantity of them are fteeped in water for eight or ten days, according to the heat of the weather, or of the place where they are depofited, when they undergo the acid fermentation, to be judged of ei- ther by the fmell or tafte ; they are then well wrung in the water, and the whole is decanted through a drainer into ano-r tlier vefiel, the drainer keeping back the hulks : After the de- canted extract has depofited the fine particles with which it i; impregnated as a fediment, it is poured off; frelh water i; poured upon the fediment, which is well flirred, and allowed to fettle for twenty-four hours, when it is alfo poured clT. This wafhing is intended to corre£fc the acidity, and is repeated till the water retains only fuch fubacidity as is grateful to the palate. When this is attained, that water is poured of, and fuch quantity of frefh water added, as, when the fediment is well ftirrcd with it, fhall bring the mixture to the confidence gf thin gruel, or cre^m, when a portion of it, fufiicicnt for a meal, Agricultural Survey cf PeeblesJIAre. /\$ meal, (always the fupper meal), is boiled in a pot, in which it thickens ; fo that, when poured into a veflel to cool, it acquires the confidence of a thick jelly. Againfl the fupper hour next night, recourfe is had again to the {lore veflel, when the water is poured from the fediment ; and it is again brought to its proper confidence by frefh water, and the quantity needed put -into the pot, &c. fo long as the prepared ftore lafts. The fowins thus prepared, are eaten either warm with cold, or cold with heated milk. They are a food of very eafy digeftion, having fomewhat of a diuretic quality, and are extremely plea- fant to mod palates. The feeds, from the different makings cf meal (welders) through Winter, are preferved till the pota- toes are exhaufted ; when they afford fowins, for a fupper difh, till the potato feafon comes in again. Sowins are ufed by the weavers as a dreffing for linen yarn for the loom. Subdantial labourers or tradefmen have generally two ap- partments in their cottages ; the cow, Handing in a feparate to- fall building •, the kitchen is formed by two clofe beds, as a par- tition, in the manner already defcribed ; the room is formed bv a Galafhieis partition * run acrofs the houie. This cecono- mical partition is formed of perpendicular dandards from the ground to the ceiling, of three-fourth inch deal, from three to four inches broad, according to the thicknefs of partition re- quired, and fet about three feet afunder : A flat board (com- monly an old door) is clapped fiat againfl the ftandards on one fide ; and a maibn, on the other fide, builds up the interdices betwixt the ftandards with fmall chips of ilone and lime mortar, the old door keeping the work ftraight on the fide oppofite to him. At every three feet advance in height, he lays a crofs binder of wood upon the maienry betwixt the ftandards, clofe fitted to their interval, and to which they are nailed. When the whole is thus completed, the furfaee is fmoothed with pl.'.fter lime. Partitions might be mpde of this kind with fold-* irig doors, and roof of lath and platter, which might fcrve the purpofe * I cjII it fo, having fir ft feen it ufal at the village of Galafliiells }n Selkirk- fcire, 'jl6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. purpofe of clofe beds ; and poor people might find it more eafy to pay interefl for the advance, than to purchafe the clofe beds, which, in this dearth of wood, may coft from forty millings to three pounds each. Cottages, as defcribed, are covered with thatch, excepting in the villages of Broughton and Eddleftone, which were re- built on regular plans, with Hated roofs, by the proprietors of the manors, as viftas from their own manfions. Fern is reckoned a more durable thatch than ftraw, and heath than fern. Lint is reckoned a very durable thatch, and has been reared for the purpofe % the feed, fold to oil mills, pay- ing in fome meafure as a crop. Balket willow might, proba- bly, in many refpects, prove preferable to any of them. Tile is not in ufe, almoft, in this county ; from a dread that it could not endure the rigour of our Winters ; but chiefly from its conflant expofure to breaking in low houfes. The moft gene- ral thatch ufed, (till the two Winters 1 799, 1 800, fo dearthful of fodder, introduced the more general ufe of heath), is the ftraw of big ; applied to this purpofe, as being lefs valuable as fodder : It is either fewed to the crofs fpars of the roof, by tar- red twine ; or the roof is firft covered with divots (fod raifed by the paring fpade) laid on, overlapping like flate, with that end only expofed which hath received a knead or glaffing by the firft entry of the paring fpade ; when, after ftanding one year, the thatch, in fmall handfuls, twilled together at top, is thruft into holes previoufly made obliquely upwards in the divots by an iron-fhod, dovetailed-pointed hand inftrument (called zjting), by which both operations are performed, in alternation. Heath is neither fewed nor dinged ; excepting the firft courfe along the heads of the walls, which is fewed to the fpars. It is then laid on, in courfes from gable to gable, every courfe being beat clofe with mallets, and the top either feiurcd (like other thatch- ings) by a ridging of fods ; or, the angle of the roof being re- ceived into two deals let at angles, and the feam of their junc- ture fecured by a hollowed batten of wood ; a row of fod being ufed (as in all thatchings) to join the thatch to the flope of the A Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfiire. 47 A confutable number of day-labourers and artificera are accommodated with houfes in the villages, which they rent from year to year. In Linton, and in feme inftances elfewhere, they pofTefs them fometimes (lefs to their profit) in perpetual right of property, conftituted in form of feudal tenure; or rent them yearly from proprietors of this description. When two farms, originally feparate refidences, are joined into one, the fuperfluous houfes (not occupied by the fubtackfman to whom the fheep farmer fubfets the houfes and arable land of that fheep farm where he does not refide) are let to labourers or artificers. Sometimes the labourer, or tradefman, takes -round in leafe of twenty-one or twenty-five years from a landed proprietor, generally by the fides of highways, for an houfe garden, and cow's maintenance for Summer's grafs, or for both that and Winter's provender. He builds the houfe at his own expence, the proprietor furnifhing the price of wood, and the. wages of the mafon and carpenter •, and, after the expiry of the kafe, it reverts to the proprietor, who again lets it in leafe. Proprietors who refide, build accommodations for their tradef- men and labourers, for whom they have occafion •, and when the lands in their occupation come to be let in leafe, the farmer accommodates independent tradefmen with fuch houfes, or lets them fall to ruin, if there is no demand for them. * Upon the feparation of farms from their ftate of townfhips; runrig, and commonty, (to which they had been driven, for mutual defence, in times of turbulence), into diftinct poffeffionsj with feparate refidencies, the farmer, who obtained poiTeflion or the farm upon which the cluftered dwellings had been ereded, might have a fupernuity of houfes to difpofe of to cottagers ; and in a ftate of feciety, where the little exteniion of arts and manufactures afforded few outlets to profitable employment, more * We have nothing of the pafWico-poetical mania in this county ; winch would lead to the everting of cottages for idlers, for whofe labour there is no de- mand, for the mere pleafure of editing poetic ideas. Our fpare funds hna cient occupation in removing real diOrefs ; we can iff.rd none for the icprelcntations of imaginary happinefs. 43 Agricultural Survey of Peebiesjbirf. - more people might be found who would rent fuch houfei ct cottages, though there was fmall demand for them as country labourers, from their finding nothing better to do : Such fitua- tions would be, however, deferted, when better employment occurred to their occupiers ; and I doubt not but fuch amelio- rations may have often fiiggefted notions of thofe ideal diftreflibs fo graphically depicted, and io pathetically deplored, in Gold- fmith's fanciful poem of the Dcfcrted Village". The notion of whining over the defertion and depopulation of the country, is now abandoned to idle and ignorant fentimeutalifts, who arc left to lament, at pleafure, the lofs of thofe enchanting fancied fcenes of rural content, and cottage innocence and felicity, which no man of fenfe believes ever to have had aft exiftence but in the imagination of the poet. Cottages have been built, and cottages have been deferted, ac- cording to the local or general demand, or want of demand, for them. Amelioration of agriculture as to the fituation of farm- houfes, giving more of them to one place than there was demand for, occafioned their defertion in fuch fituations. The union of farms may fometimes alfo have the fame effect ; and the growing improvements of furface-culture may occafion a frefh demand for labourers, and of cottages for their accommodation. The old fyftem, however, of adfr.ricr.ing the cottager's labour, in hay time and harveft, to the farmer from whom he rents his cot- tage, is probably not very eligible for either party : If the cottar is bound, as was cuftomary, at low wages, or at no wages, this mud be compenfated to him in the lower rent of his houfe, or in privileges of fowing barley, lint, or potatoes, and carriage of fuel : It might be equally advantageous that every- thing fhould be paid for on both fides at market price, which might diminifh temptations to evalion in performing the terms of the agreement. The feparation of profeffions is indifpenfable to their per- fection *. The tradefman and labourer ought to have no more land * The convcrfc of this propofition fecms alfo to hold true ; and the minute knowledge of detail fecms incojifiitcnt with enlarged views. It would be no re commendation Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 49 land, than grafs for his cow, and perhaps a garden of fuch fize as could be laboured at his fpare hours, which would be parti- cularly healthful to thofe of fedentary profeflions. If he gets lb much land as requires ploughing for Winter's fodder, the lofs of time he fuftains, and the diftra&ion of application which enfues, (in hunting after farmers, who keep horfes, to plough for him, for favour or for hire, and in attending to the culture of his crops when growing), in general foon disquali- fies him from carrying on the bufinefs of his profeffion with much fuccefs. Many tradefmen in this county are reduced to this fituation ; being obliged, from neceffity, to bungle on in the belt way poflible. Where it is to be had, and where, from vicinity of refidence, it is equally convenient to all in- terefted, a grafs field, or a grafs inclolure requiring no herding, rented in common as a cow pafture, from a proprietor or farmer, is the beft accommodation in this way for tradefmen ; and as for Winter fodder, to purchafe it in the market. Un- happily, however, the monopolizing fpirit of the landed pro- prietors, jealoufly reftricting the confumpt of the fodder to the farm that produces it, (lands in the way of this moft eligible mode of the cottager's accommodation. Indeed, except in the cluftered refidence of fome of the villages, this moft advanta- geous mode of having grafs cannot be attained to ; but a fingle cow is grazed at the expence of an herd to attend her. Such as are not burdened with the additional diftra&ion of land to be cultivated for their cow's Winter fodder, have ftill, as yet, contrived to obtain that accommodation ; either in the expen- five purchafe of fown grafs hay, (which the fpirit of restric- tion has not yet doomed to be confumed upon the farm where H it commendation of a ftatefman, that he was perfectly ildlled in the practice of weaving ; nor of a prefident of an Agricultural Board, that he could vie with a miller or a butcher in judging of the yield of grain or the weight of a buliock. The fubdivifion of htbour would fcem carried to a ridiculous excefs, in the confli- tution of France; where haranguing is the exclqfive privilege of one part of the reprefentation, and judging, of the other : Or, does a Frenchman, neceflarily, fv heat himfelf; when he fprak«, as to be incapable pf.iult-ln.r with discretion? r© Agricultural Survey of Peebles/lire. it grew) •, in that of draw fodder, from farms held by older leafes, unfubje£ted to reftri&ing claufcs 5 or in that of growing corns fold by public roup, upon the termination of leafes by conventional expiry, or the tenant's bankruptcy, as againft fuch difpofal, in fuch circumftances, the reftri&ing fpirit has not as yet univerfally lifted up its teftimony. The perfection of improvement would feem to infer the complete feparation of every profeflion : The occupation of every inch of the lands by profeflional farmers ; and the cluf- tering of labourers and artificers into centrical villages, fo com- pletely detached from the occupation of land, as to buy even their milk, as well as every other kind of farm produce, from the farmer by profeflion ; perhaps, even the profeflional carter, to be fo infulated within the bufinefs of his profeflion, as to purchafe from the farmer every article of his horfe's provender. Such a completion cannot, however, exift, but in a country rich in produce by nature and cultivation, and pofTefling a very numerous population : but it is the tendency of the efforts of felf-intereft in every individual to produce an approximation to- wards it, fo far as circumftances will admit. Meantime, it were idle to attempt, by political regulations, prematurely to enforce the adoption of fuch arrangements as will, of their own accord, enfue in the natural courfe of things. It were ftill, however, more abfurd, to counteract, by regulation, thefe na- tural tendencies towards amelioration* by forcing the land into fmall cottage pofleflions, where there is no demand for fuch minute divifion ; either in yielding to the Cockney apprehen- fion of that bugbear the monopoly of farms ; or to the enthu- fiafm of fentimentaliils, wilhing to embody their poetic con- ceptions, by the gratuitous erection of cottages ; which mult neceflarily transform their occupants, from independent la- bourers, paying in work for what they receive in wages, into abject dependent beggars *. CHAP- * Sec Note C at end of volume. Agricultural Survey of FeebksJIAre. 5 1 CHAP. IV. MODE OF OCCUPATION. Sect. I. — Size of Farms — Characler of Farmers. An account has already been given of the a£tu^ fize of Tweeddale farms, (pages 28 — 33). That the largeft pofiible difpofable produce may be raifed, at the leaft expence upon that produce, in a fheep farm, fo as to enable it both to fend more goods, and of better quality, to mar- ket, and, of courfe, to afford moft rent to the proprietor, it ought to be of fufEcient extent to admit of diftinet hirfeting and herding; in fuch a manner, that each diftin£t hirfel fhould be fufficiently numerous to occupy, completely, a di- ftincl: herdfman, without which he muft be kept, to a certain degree, idly and unprofitably. If fheep farms are either too fmall or too large for this purpofe, the public mind may fatisfy itfelf upon this head, that all fuch inequalities of excefs or de- ficiency, will infallibly rectify therhfelves, fo foon as agricul- tural ftock is fufficiently abundant, by the offer and acceptance of higher rents for fuch farms, under the moft proper conffcruc- tion, as to fize, for their moft productive and moft profitable occupation. In the courfe of the actual demand in offers of larger rent (which can alone be afforded upon the fuppofition of larger difpofable produce raifed at lefs expence), the fheep farms in Tweeddale have paffed through various revolutions, in regard to their fize. Before £j2 Agricultural Survey of Feeble sfhirc. Before the extenfion of trade and manufactures afforded fo many outlets to profitable occupation, it is probable, that, upon the death of a farmer, his children, having no other pro- fitable occupation in view, would continue the poffemon •, ei- ther agreeing to manage it, without divifion, as a common concern ; or dividing it amongft them into minute feparate pof- felfions. Upon the former fcheme, their management would be Subjected to every caufe of inefficiency, originating in dis- crepancy of views, or difcordance of will ; upon tire latter fcheme, to all the inconvenience and expence of keeping, in a conilant ftate of preparation, a refervcir (fo to fpeak) of la- bour, to effect what could never pay for it : to which may be added, too, the temptation, or even the necelfity, of forcing corn to grow (for maintenance of fuch fuperabundant popula- tion), in confiderable defpite to nature, and at fuch dispropor- tionate expence of the labour of men and horfes, as, in other occupations, or more favourable Situations, might have pro- duced a tenfold greater profit. Such unprofitable occupation, in minute divifion, or under heterogeneous difcordant manage- ment, muft neceffarily (from the offer of larger rent than it could afford) have foon been made to give way to a more pro- ductive occupation, in undivided poffeffion, and under fingle unthwarted direction : accordingly, fuch conjunct, or minute- ly divided poffeiiion, has very generally ceafed through the county*. - In the deficiency of farming Stock, or Skill, or both ; fupe- rior (lock, or even Superior Skill and enterprise, with that cre- dit which is given to confidence, have Sometimes diilodged what was deficient : And, accordingly, inftances have already been * The farm in Tweecldale which had admitted of moM rife of rent, at the time it was let, is one at Inverleithan, partly arable, partly fheep paftofe. It was entered to at Whitfunday 1795, at the yearly rent of 350I. ; it had, im- mediately before, been pofTrfild by three or four tenants in conjunct farm, upon a leaf; of nineteen years, none of whom are undaftood to have enriched ' felvcs, though their yearly rent was only 125I. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. r? been given, of one farmer, in particular, renting, at one time, to the extent of 1700I. of yearly rent. But, in coniequence of the more universal tliffufion of agricultural ikill and enterprife, with the more general acquifition of farming capital, fuch mo- nopolies have been gradually hemmed in to an extent more fuited to their capacity of fuperintendance ; in courfe of the ef- fectual demand for farms of more manageable extent, in offers of higher rent. I fpeak under correction of the inhabitants of the county ; but affert, according to my own obfervation and belt information, that, during the time elapfed fince the termi- nation of the American war, (a period of moil rapidly pro- greflive improvement to Scotland), the inftances of the dif- union of fheep farms into feparate poffeflions, in this county, very confiderably exceed, in number, the inftances of their union into fingle poffeflion. The acquifition of fupevior fkill, in regard to productive furface culture, but particularly the greater demand for carters and carriers to perform the carriages of coal and lime, See. to the larger farmers, (who generally efteem it cheaper to hire their carriages from profeflionalifts, that they may attend, with- out diftraction, to their own profefiional vocations), have raifed a demand for fmall arable poffeflions, of different, though all of finall extent ; whofe poffeffors pay their rent, and main- tain their families, partly by the produce of their dairies, partly by performing the carriages of the larger farmers, or fome- times working upon the highways. The greatefl: number of thofe minute occupiers will be found in thofe parifhes that lye neareil to the town of Edinburgh, and which alfo are thofe which are neareft to the coal and lime of the county ; where the opportunity of difpofing of dairy produce to the hicheft advantage, and the vicinity to the materials of the carriage for which there is the greatefl demand, enable offerers to come forward with an effectual demand, in offers of higher rent, fofr fuch minute poffeflions. My readers, I fuppofe, will have no hefitation in believing, that the exiilence of a conftitution of fuch minute occupancy, is not to be afcribed to any capricious principle of fentimentalifm in the Tweeddale proprietors of land, 54 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. land, under whom they exift ; but to the more fteady principle of their felf-intereft ; to which we may apply the lines applied to the ftomach by Prior, in his Almat of which it it the Jolid jlrole That tells our being -what's o'clock. I have ventured to detail my notions of the fixed principles which uniformly operate, both in dilating farms to their proper fize, and alfo in circumfcribing them within their proper bounds, in note D at the end of the Report. — I proceed to The Char abler of Farmers. And here I fhall juft ftate a few particulars as to the cha- racter of Tweeddale farmers, and the influence thereby pro- duced upon the introduction of the improved fyjlem of farming; referving what I would fuggeft as to the generic charaBer of the farmer, to the note D. The fheep farms being the moft extenfive farms in Tweed- dale, and requiring the greateft extent of capital, the ftore- mafters, of courfe, conflitute the moft opulent clafs, and are the moft informed. From near vicinity to markets, they gene- rally tranfa£t all their own bufinefs in perfon, without inter- vention of a middleman ; and are, by confequence, formed to habits of acutenefs, and activity in bufinefs \ and have the more opportunity of acquiring fome knowledge of the world. That cuftomer would, neverthelefs, be a very fimple fool, in- deed, who mould expe£t to obtain a cheaper bargain, at firjl hatid^ from a Tweeddale fheep farmer, felling his goods him- felf, than what could be got from a middleman or forejlaller } who (according to the fuggeftions of anxious fear in dearths) will force the markets at his own option, becaufe he will not go without his profit. I am rather of opinion, that there is more probability the foreftaller might be obliged to relinquifh his expectations of profit, than that he fhould be able to fell the commodity to greater advantage than the Tweeddale farmer himfelf. Agricultural Survey of 'Peebles/hire. C? lumfelf. Betwixt thefe farmers and fuch permanent cuftomers as are in ufe to buy, in wholefale, their fheep and their wool, a liberal fyftem of intercourfe prevails, from a fenfe of mutual intereft; infomuch, that the goods are often bought before being feen, or fold and delivered without fixing the price. A fimilar liberality in dealing fometimes alfo takes place be- tween the pofTefTors of the fmaller arable farms and their corn- merchants. This clafs are generally, now, induftrious ; fome of them confiderably enterprifmg. Till of late, the habits of all the farmers led them rather to fave, than to make money ; to ftudy ceconomy in expence, rather than the liberal outlay of capital, in expectation of a more plentiful return. The fmall arable farmers, pofiefied of lefs capital, and generally obliged, not merely to overfee, but to work upon their own farms, are necefTarily more confined than the Iheep farmers, in their range of obfervation, and their means of information ; which feems the chief caufe of the latenefs of introdudtion, into Tweeddale, of improvements in the cultivation of the foil ; fuch improve- ments being of lefs intereft to the extenfive hill fheep farmers, who otherwife, from their more enlarged opportunities of in- formation, might have been expefted to have fooner adopted them. Both clafies, very properly, di (cover a confiderable degree of tardinefs in adopting modes of improvement introduced by gentlemen farmers, in farming their own properties. They are difpofed to confider fuch improvers as admirers of the cu- rious, as much as of the ufeful, in farming ; and are difpofed to lend but doubtful faith to the accounts of the profit of fuch fchemes ; looking upon them as the mere exaggerated ftate- ments of fervants, wifhing to curry favour with their matters, in flattering them with the idea of the utility of their experi- ments, rather than as the refult of that accurate obfervation and rigorous calculation which are, in a great meafure, incom- patible with the numerous avocations incident to the ftarion oi fuch improvers. Unlike to the political reformers of the feafons of dangerous peculation, when innovation, mer - fuch, was confidered as improvement} they are rtluc"hnt in roinquiihing §6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. relinquiihing the fure and trodden path of long experience for mere unafcertained theory, whatever brilliant profpects it may hold out. Though flow to change, they are not, however, fo bigotedly wedded to old practices, as to reject: fuch improve- ments as have flood the teft of repeated and unequivocal ex- perience : And the new improved fyftem of hufbandry has, accordingly, at lafl, found its way into general practice. This improved fyftem, which may be fhortly characterifed as comprehending the ameliorating rotation by green crop fal- low, and artificial grafles, had been practifed, upon a fmall fcale, by gentlemen proprietors farming for amufement, and perhaps by one or two farmers, confidered by the generality ra- ther in the light of gentlemen farmers, near forty years ago ; and many unfuccefsful attempts were fuccemvely made to in- troduce it into general practice among profeffional farmers. In fome inftances, it was attempted, by allowing the farmer a deduction of rent for each acre kept by him under green fal- low crop ; a mode, in particular, adopted by Mr Kennedy of Romanno : But a practice, to which, apparently, the farmer needed to be bribed, had not the appearance, with the public, of a practice which was for his advantage ; and the examples, in this wav produced, met with few imitators. Others endea- voured to entice farmers from improving counties to fettle upon their eftates ; very properly judging, that the example of fuch profeffional farmers would weigh more with their fellows than that of any gentleman farmer who had no rent to pay. But, as it is extremely difficult to prevail with fuch as are fuccefsful at home to defert their connexions for a land of ftrangers, the perfons, thus introduced, proved, in general, mere defperatc adventurers ; who, having nothing to lofe, fported fanciful and injudicious fchemes, at the rifk of the proprietor ; till they were difmiffed, after exhaufting the pockets and patience of their employers, by a continued feries of unproductive ex- pence. Neverthclefs, the new hufbandry was at la ft introduced by means of profeflional example : And I have no hefitation in afcribiag its prefent prevalence to the example fet by Mr James M'Dcugal, Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 5 7 M'Dougal, farmer in the village of Linton, originally from the neighbourhood of Kelfo, and trained under the celebrated Mr Dawfon at Frogden. Being poffeffed of only a fmall capital, but his ideas of improving farming, inferring a much more li- beral outlay of capital upon equal extent of land, than what correiponded with received ufages, he entered, upon leafe, to a farm (very fmall in proportion to what would have been confidered as fuited to the extent of his capital) at Linton, in the year 1778; which farm he ftill occupies, with confiderable additions : the land, fuited to conftant rotation of cropping, being a pure brown fand foil ; the hill pafture land being very thin, moorifli, or hazel foil. The arable land, intended for conftant rotation of cropping, he immediately began to prepare for the Norfolk turnip-foil rotation of four, viz. 1/?, Green fallow crop of turnip or potato, to which is applied the whole dung collected upon the farm ; lime being alfo ufed, at firft going over, to the extent of twelve or fourteen fmgle-horfe cart loads of lime (hells per acre, and applied previous to fow- ing the turnip, and after railing the potatoes : id, Big or oats ; grafs feeds being fown with the crop, at the rate of 10 lb. of Dutch red clover, 2 of white clover, and about a bufliel of rye grafs per acre : 3J, A crop of hay ; the after growth either cut for green houfe-feeding, or paftured : 4/^, Red oats ; when the rotation begins again with green crop fallow. At the fame time, he commenced a fpecies of im- provement, till then almoft equally foreign to the practice and the notions of either landed proprietor or farmer, in fallowing, liming, and, where attainable, dunging alfo his outfield hill pafture •, for the purpofe of (owing it off with grafs feeds, for (heep pafture, with the very firft crop. For a while, his neigh- bours could hardly be ferioufly perfuaded that he farmed at his own rifk j conceiving of him rather as a mere agent for the proprietor: But, being convinced of their miftake, and wit- neffing his fuecefs, they, at length, began to think 1 1 beco profclytes to his fyfterh; Trie example firft fpread amongft the fmall arable dairy farmers; from th< obvious ffen to refult to the el dry, in c< lee of the F k8 Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJI/ire. ant green houfe-feeding thus procured for the cows, by cut grafs for Summer and Autumn, and by turnip through Win- ter, befides fown grafs hay for the Spring months : and a prac- tice, radically founded upon the fame principles, may be now confidered as univerfal. In the extenfive uninclofed hill (beep-farms, the dairy is ne- ceffarily a matter of trilling import, from the next to impoili- bility of appropriating a difHncl: walk to cows : The new fyf- tem was, therefore, looked upon with indifference by the ftore- mafters, till about the year 1786 or 1787. When M'Dougal applied his turnip to the purpofe of feeding fheep of the native breed of Tweeddale, which, for a while, it was fuppofed, would not take at all, to the eating of turnip ; they were cheaply inclofed upon the field by nets, their horns (with which this fpecies are liberally provided) being fawed off, to prevent their entangling in the inclofmg nets, an operation feemingly attended with no rifk or detriment to the animal *. The iTieep farmers now faw clearly the advantage to be derived from a practice, which (by enabling them to prolong the feed of their caft-off breeding {lock through part of the Winter, inftead of hurrying them to glutted markets, as formerly ob- liged to do upon the failure of the grafs), put it thus in their power to obtain a better price \ and that, not only by procuring a longer range of marketing feafon, but alfo from the addi- tional improvement made upon the carcafe of the animal. The advantage was equally obvious, of thus fecuring a certain quan- tity of regular fupply of hay for their holding ftock in Winter ftorms. As might be readily expected, the example, when it once took effect, was, by much, more rapidly diffufed amongft this clafs : Infomuch that, I have the beft reafon to believe, there is not now a fmgle fheep farmer in Tweeddale, who has land fit for die purpofe, or length of leafe fufficient to make it worth * They are cut off, within an inch of the lkull, by a hand faw : Cautery, formerly ufed, is now omitted, the lofs of blood being no greater than what is deemed falutary : It is judged mofl fafe to perform the operation when the wea- ther is frefh and cool. Where wooden flakes are uied inftead of nets, there is no need of cutting the horns. Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhijfa* 59 worth while to alter his prance, that has not already reduced, or is not reducing, his croft land, at the leaft, under a fyftem of management correfponding to the principles of the afore- mentioned rotation of four *. Farther than the corn lands ad- joining to the farm houfes, and eafily herded, becaule always in fight, this fyftem cannot be carried with any degree ox con- venience i nor even thus far, without confiderable inconve- nience, whilft the lands remain uninclofed. In the diffufed population of the county, each individual is diftinaiy recognized, and the check of mutual obfervation has a ftrong influence in producing regularity of morals, an in- fluence unhappily awanting in great towns, where the cluftered population renders the individual indiftinguifnable -making them the refort of the profligate for concealment, and the fe- minaries of every fort of corruption. The prevailing charac- terises of the lower orders in this county are, fobnety, in- duftry, andafenfeof religion-, with the exception of a few inftances of perverfion of principle, occafioned by the intro- duaion of the French philofophy, and thofe, too, chiefly con- fined to the county town. A good many, who have not mar- ried early, or who have got thrifty wives, and families not very numerous, have a little money faved. Shepherds, kept by their vocation at a diftance from temptations to foetal ex- pence, are generally wealthy for their ftationj and the com- petition of their capitals, fometimes procures the diviiion or large farms. Bating ficknefs, accidents, families more than or- dinarily numerous, and fuch other circumftances as may pro- duce ftraits, without fault or miimanagement, there fubfifts, m the generality of the lower claffes, a fpirit of independence, which revolts againft the idea of fubfifting upon charity : Hap- pily, indeed, poor's rates are not io decidedly eftabiifhed by law or pradice, but that fubfiftence, not gained by perfonal induftry, • In o« of the higher fheep farms of 1 wrddale, where the plough had never beenuftd, the farmer, within theft few years, has brought into Ullage tea or twelve acres of land; induced to adopt the practice, for the pnrpofe of pro. turnip for carrying on his caft-off bvcefcl s, and Ifccwife fome hay f« bu (1 fnow ftarms.. 6q Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJJnre. i induftry, is ftill confidered as charity, and not as a right. Moft of them contrive, by their own induftry and frugality alone, not merely to feed and clothe their children in a decent man- ner, but alfo to give them education, fo far as learning to read : Very frequently, they are alio taught writing, and a little of arithmetic ; though more commonly the young people them- felves obtain thefe laft mentioned branches of education from their firft earnings of wages, by attending night fchools in Winter, after their working hours. A profligate head of a family, who diffipates, in idle extravagance, the means intrud- ed him by Providence for the maintenance and education of his family, is a character rarely to be met with. Not only do parents endeavour to fupport their children in an independent manner, but children, alfo, are feldom deficient in endeavour- ing to aflift their aged parents, according to their refpective a- biiities ; and there are not awanting inftances of day-labourer* fupporting aged parents paft their labour, without being in- debted to any charity whatfoever. We are apt to form unjuft eftimates of the characters of people in fituations different from our own, by referring to a wrong ftandard. The fame induftry to obtain gain, with the fame penurious attention to the ceconomizing of its expendi- ture, which would dilgrace a perfon in an affluent fituation, are indifpenfably neceilary to the maintenance of refpectability o2 character in the poor ; the want of them directly leading to abject: dependence and beggary, to difhonefty and ruin. The rich are, however, fometimes apt to defpife, in the poor, as mean, thofe habits which would indicate meannefs only in a fituation of affluence ; overlooking thofe manly efforts of for- titude and felf-command, which are exerted under ftraitened circumftances, in maintaining the noble fenfe of independence, and the confcioufnefs of inflexible probity — efforts to which, from the delicacy of their own education, they might find them- II Ives to be altogether unequal, but which, no doubt, are more c.ifily fupported through force of habit. The poor, meanwhile, are equally incapable of granting fuperibr latitude to the rich, in point of cxpence : Without inferring from it the fame pro- fligarv, Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfl/ire. 6t fligacy, which, in their own fituation, would be the infallible refult, and not duly confidering that this greater liberality of expenditure is the caufe of independent fupport to many of the induftrious ; they are fometimes apt to comfort them- felves, under a fenfe of inequalities of condition, by adopting the idea of a future retribution, upon the model of the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, generalized without limitation or reftri&ion. Mode of Managing Farmsy ivith their Produce. Though none of the fe£tions, in the fchedule of the form prefcribed for the Reports by the Board, would indicate a di- rect: and continued difcuflion of this fubje£l, I have thought proper to introduce it, as a feparate fe£tion, under this chap- ter of the Mode of Occupation ; that it may be feen, under one view, to what purpofes the farms in this county are applied, and what kind of produce they yield, from which the farmer is enabled to pay his rent, and to obtain his own profit. For the fake of diftindtnefs, this fe£tion may be divided in- to two parts, I. The management of Jheep pajlure farms ; II. The management of arable farms. I. Management of Sheep Farms. In fome of the large flieep farms, where the farmer does not refide, as alfo in others where he does refide, plough culture is unknown, or ufed only to a very fmall extent : The meal, for family maintenance, being bought in ; the cows and horfes, for family ufe, being fupported chiefly, or entirely, through Winter, upon fuch coarfe natural hay as is found upon the farm without culture, confiftmg chiefly of fprits ; and the Jheep, in Winter ftorms, being either driven to other parts of the country, where there is more accefs to the pafturc from lefs depth of mow, or where fodder can be obtained ; or elfe fodder being bought in to them from other places, when there is carriage accefs to the farm,, The 62 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. The generality of fheep farms have, however, more or lefs arable land attached to them. In a few inftances, the arable land may form the principal dependance, the fheep being ra- ther an acceffory ; or they may be nearly balanced in point of importance. It would lead to endlefs and fuperfluous minutenefs, to ftate the various proportions which the fheep and the arable lands bear to one other, as to their importance in point of profit, in the various fheep farms of the county. It will fufHce, to con- vey a general view of the fubject, firjl, to ftate the general management of fheep in fheep farms ; fecondly, to ftate the management of the arable lands attached to fheep farms. Fiijiy Management of fheep in fheep farms. Tweeddale being, in general, more adapted to breeding than to feeding, the great article of fale from the fheep farms is Young fheep for holding flock ; though, fince the practice has become generally prevalent within thefe thirty or forty years, of keeping fewer fheep upon the fame extent of land, probably more are fattened for the butcher, than under the antiquated practice of overftocking the pafture. The great article of fale, formerly, from the breeding farms, was the ewe and wedder lambs, kept on through Winter, and fold in the end of the enfuing June, or beginning of July, at fourteen or fifteen months old, and called at that time ewe or wedder hogs. Of late, feveral fuch farms, inftead of keeping the lambs through Winter, difpofe of the lambs in June or July, at three or four months old, in the fame feafon in which they are lambed. The fale of hogs is at Linton markets, -whence they are bought for the Highlands of Scotland, for the Oichil Hills in Fifefhire, or for Lammermuir in Eaft-Lothian, where they are kept on to a proper age, and either fold fat, or fold for farther fattening, to the Lothian grafs parks, or to England. When fold as holding lambs, they are generally bought in to the Upper Ward of Lanarkfhire, whence they are fold, ne\t feafon, as hogs, at Linton markets, as above. A . i buch of holding lambs and of hogs, are difpofed oi at the markets Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJJ/ire. 63 markets of Stag's Hall in England, and of St Bofwell's In Rox- burghshire. There are breeding farms in Tweeddale, where (as in the farms of the Upper Ward of Lanarkshire, juft mentioned) no breeding ftock of ewes are kept, and no lambs produced ; but which buy in, annually, lambs in the end of June or month of July, which are fold as hogs, after being kept a twelve- month. In fome few very high lying ftormy lands, hogs are bought in annually, and fold, after being kept twelve months, as dutn- monds. In one or two inftances of farms of this defcription, the hogs bought in, are kept for two years •, and, being then three years old, are fold off" for farther feeding, under the name of old ivedders. The greater part, however, of old wedders, to be found for fale in Tweeddale, are merely thofe which are kept on, becaufe they were not in condition for the market, as hogs or dummonds. There are a few breeding farms, where all the lambs are fold fat for the butcher ; none being retained, but what fuffices to keep up the breeding ftock of ewes and rams. There are a very few farms of fine grafs, which keep no ftock, or very little ftock, upon them, through Winter ; ewes, heavy with lamb, (confiding of the caft-ofF part of the breed- ing ftock of breeding farms in this or other counties), being annually bought in, from the month of March forwards, at Houfe of Muir markets, but oftener at Peebles fair ; and the whole, both lamb and dam, fold ofF fat from the grafs, to the butcher ; the dam being ftill farther fattened, upon turnip, af- the failure of the grafs, if the farm hath arable land attached to it fit for railing this crop. Inclofed grafs parks are frequent- ly depaftured by fheep after this fafhion of farming. Befides thefe annual fales, the farms which keep a breeding ftock of ewes, fell off, annually, a portion of their old breed- ing ewes, before they begin to fail with 3ge 5 viz. a fourth, fifth, or fixth part, at the ages of four, ihe, or fix years, ac- cording to the length of time to which they preferve their vi- gour, which varies in different farms ; a proportional quantity of 64 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. of ewe lambs being preferved annually to fupply them. Thefe caft-off breeders, or crocks, are fold fat from the grafs at Martin- mas, or ftill farther fattened upon turnip, or for the purpofe of being fattened by turnip feeders : But farms of this defcription, which have attached to them a confiderable quantity of low arable, or meadow ground, for Winter pafture, generally give the crocks the ram, keep them on through Winter, and fell them, heavy with lamb, in the month of March, at Peebles fair, or Houfe of Muir markets : the caft-off rams, in the proportion of one to forty crocks or fo, are fold in September or October, before their flefh grows rank from rutting. It may be alfo no-' ticed, that farms felling hogs or dummonds, have alfo a few dum- monds, or old wedders, to difpofe of ; being the reje£taneous ones kept on for another feafon. Such are the fales of fheep from fheep farms. Wool is alfo an article of fale from all the fheep farms, ex- cepting thofe which annually buy in lambs and fell them rough, after a twelvemonth's keep as hogs. A fmall quantity is fold to Stirling, a greater to Hawick, and the greateft part to Yorkfhire, for ferges, for fhalloons, for carpets, and coarfer cloths. Sheeps milk cheefe is fold from a few of the farms j the practice of milking the ewes has, however, of late, been more difufed ; the detriment accruing to the ewes being confidered as overbalancing the profit from the cheefe : The enormous price fetched of late by the cheefe, feems to be recalling the practice. In feveral fheep farms, young black cattle, or young horfes, conftitute alfo an article of fale, more conftant, or more inci- dental ; but in none to any great extent : The fame may be faid of the produce of the dairy, and of corn. The following Tables will convey an idea of the modes of management, and of the proportions of the fales. The pro- portions in the Tables are taken from known farms, though the numbers are arbitrarily chofen. ExrLA- Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjl/ire. 6$ EXPLANATION OF THE TABLES. I sty The flock of breeding ewes are marked at the top of the Table. In thefe, are included the ewes going in their fe- cond year, or gimmers, the ram being admitted to them at Martinmas, when they are eighteen months old, excepting in two or three of the mod high-lying flormy farms dealing in this fort of flock. The rams are not included in the breeding flock at the head of the Tables. In high-lying breeding farms, the proportion of rams to ewes is about one to forty ; in lower lands, one to fifty. The numbers accounted for in the Tables, are merely thofe belonging to die farmer. The fhepherds have the privilege, generally, of grazing a certain quantity of fheep along with the farmers, in lieu of wages ; receiving alfo fix and a half bolls of oatmeal, and the grazing of a cow, with coarfe fprit hay for her Winter fodder, in lieu of victuals. Upon a fattening farm, the herd may have the privilege of keeping twenty-eight or thirty breeding ewes, with fix or feven lambs to keep up his breeding ftock ; and, upon a breeding farm, per- haps fifty fheep, young and old. id, The numbers at the foot of each column, mow the quantity of the fpecies in that column which are annually fold. As the practice in Tweeddale is to number fheep in /cores and aid, this mode of numbering is followed in the Tables. Thus, j core. odd. io 15, is 215. 3^/, Upon inquiry, I find, that in lambs, the proportion of males fometimes exceeds that of females ; and that, at other times, the females are mofl numerous ; but that, upon the whole, they are nearly equal. They are therefore ftated as fuch. /\th, The holding of a farm, is the number falved or fmear- ed at Martinmas. The old breeders that are to lamb the enfu- ing Spring, arc marked at the head of the Tables, as the hold- ing flock ; but to thefe may be added the number of the ewe- K lambs, 66 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlj'ire. lambs, accounted for in their column as fet apart for breeders, making allowance for death. 5th, In regard to the numbers fold, (as marked, foot of each column), it may be remarked, that there are always a certain proportion rejected by the large wholesale purchafer, which are either fold at inferior price, or kept on another feafon, as be- fore explained. TABLE Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. TABLE I.— BREEDING FARM. 67 Holding 41 fcores 5 odd of Breeding Ewes, and felling out Wedder Hogs. Making allowance for death of old ewes through Winter, and of mifs of lamb in Spring, this breeding ftock may produce, annually, of lambs - Gf the word of thefe lambs, fix fcore ten may be fold off as lambs, viz Which reduces their number to - But three fcore ten, in lieu of thefe, may be bought in, of good wed- der Iambs, from fome farm fell ing thefe, viz. Making the number to amount to Of the males, may be kept uncaf- trated, and fet apart to fupply caft-off rams ... Reducing the number to This number of males are caftrated, to be kept through Winter, and fold in July as wedder hogs ; but there may die, of caftration, and through Winter Leaving, of wedder-hogs, for fale in July .... Of the ewe lambs, there may die before 14 or 15 months Reducing their number to Of which annually retained, to fup- ply call-off breeders Which reduces the ewe hogs for fale in July, to Old crock ewes fold at Martinmas Old tups, or caft-off rams, fold in September to feed fhearers MALES. score, odd. 18 3 4 o •4 J S 10 J7 13 17 16 16 1 6 FEMAIES CROCKS. [OLD TUPS score, odd score- odd.' scare, odd. 18 15 12 {5 15 12 14. 6 7 fo 6 16 6 16 o 12 The numbers annually fliorn may be fifty fcores : Six fleeces averaging a (lone of 23 lib. Engliili, the wool not wafhcd. TABLE 68 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlnre. TABLE II.— BREEDING FARM. Breeding Stock, 40 fcores of Ewes, and felling Wedder Lambs.- MALES. score, odd. The annual produce of lambs may be taken at Of thefe lambs, there may be kept, to fupply rams, - c 15 And there may die, in caftra- tion, or be unfit for it - o 15 The remainder for fale of wedder lambs, is therefore Of the ewe lambs, may be kept, as breeders ... Remainder of ewe lambs for fale - The old fheep for fale are, Caft-off breeding ewes - Caft rams 17 10 16 FEMALES. score, odd. CROCKS. jOLDTUPS. score, odd. score, odd. 17 10 Number fhorn annually, forty-eight fcores ; fix fleeces, un- warned, averaging a ftone. TABLE III.— BREEDING FARM. Breeding Stock, 50 fcores of Ewes j the Lambs and Crocks all fold Fat. Annual produce of lambs Ewe lambs kept for breeders Tup lambs kept to fupply rams - Remainder fold fat Old crock ewes fold fat Old caft-off rams MALES. score, odd FEMALES. score, odd. CROCKS. score, odd OLD TUPS. score, odd. 22 IO I O 22 I [ IO JO 9 0 O 15 21 IO II O Number annually fhoi-n, fixty-two fcores ten; five and an half fleeces to the Hone, unwaftied. Agricultural Survey of PecbhsJlAre. 69 In regard to thofe farms where lambs are bought in annual- ly, to be fold out next feafon as hogs ; or, where hogs are bought in, to be fold next feafon, or next again, as dummond9 or old wedders ; or, where ewes heavy with lamb are bought in, both lamb and dam to be fold out fat the fame feafon ; their ceconomy is fo very fimple, as to need no illuftration. Ic may be juft obferved, that the rifk of dying is greateft in lambs kept over Winter, to be difpofed of as hogs, one in twenty be- ing the common average of deaths. In felling fheep, the Tweeddale practice is, to give one to the fcore, without payment •, fo that, when fheep are fold, for in- ftance, at iol. per fcore, they are not paid for at the rate of I os. a head, but at the rate only of 9s. 6~d. In dull markets, an additional fheep is fometimes given, without payment, to the hundred j and fometimes one alfo to the parcel, &c. This practice, introduced from facility in the feller, that the advant- age may go with the buyer, is itill perfevered in ; perhaps, from the vanity of the ftoremafler, that he may boaft of a good price •, or perhaps, that the nominal may be taken for the real price, in a way of deception, which, however, deceives no- body. The cuftom only introduces confufion and perplexity into the account, and had much better be laid afide. Before proceeding to ftate the management of the arable part of fheep farms, I fhall explain the Tweeddale defignations of fheep, according to their lex and ages. I. From the time they are lambed, in DESIGNATIONS OF April, till the enfuing Martinmas that M ALES. FEMALES. CASTRATED. they are fmcared or faked, they arc defigned ".."""- Tup Lambs. Ewe .Lambs. Wedder Lambs. J. From their being falved at Mar:inmas, till next July that they are (horn - Tup Hogs. Ewe flogs. Wedder Hogs. 3. From this (hearing till next July, when they are fiiorn for the fecond time - Tups. Gimmers. Dummonds. 4. From that time till next July, when they are (horn for the third time - Fups. Young Ewes. Wedders. 5. From that time ever after Tups. Old Ewes. Wedders. N. B. The caft -off breeding ewes, when fold at Martini are defigned Jlack ewes, or crocks ; when fold heavv with Iamti in March, they are defigned great ewes. Sea id. <-.q Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Second, Management of arable land attached to fheep farms. In dating this management, it may be proper to diftinguifh the arable land into old croft, and outfield. (See Note, foot of p. 15.) Croft. — Around all the dwellinghoufes of fheep farms, which have been long occupied as refidences, there is generally found from ten to thirty acres or upwards of old croft ; i. e. land which, for ages, has been kept in conftant culture ; receiving, in rotation, all the dung collected from the cattle houfe-fed in Winter, &c. The rotation obferved on this croft, was, uni- verfally, and, in a very few inftances, continues (till to be, i. Big, with the dung ; 2. Oats ; 3. Peas : no green fallow crop, nor artificial graiTes for hay ; the only hay from this croft being procured, by allowing 2 ridge or two of the third under oats to remain untitled ; when the roots of the couch- grafs, &c. never killed by fallow, produced a fpontaneous crop. As the land was ever full of grafs roots, the fheep de- rived confiderable benefit from picking up thefe roots from the ploughed land, in barren early Spring months. This indeed was the only fenfible objection brought by the adherents to the old fyftem, againft the introduction of the new. "When potatoes came to be planted in confiderable quanti- ties, which was our fir ft improvement upon the old fyftem, a part of that third intended for peas (our ameliorating crop un- der the old fyftem) was afiigned to the potato ; and when the potato was cultivated to fuch extent as to occupy one half of the peas third, it is evident, that, by interchanging the places of the peas and the potatoes at the fecond vice of the rotation, the whole croft, in courfe of two rotations, or in the fpace of fix years, would be cleaned •, at leaft in fuch imperfect manner, as can be effected by potato fallow ; where, from necefiity of more early planting, the land cannot admit of fuch previous cleaning as with a turnip crop. Since the introduction of the turnip and fown-grafs hufband- ry, this old croft is, we may now fay univcrfaliy, kept under rotation, upon the principles of the Norfolk rotation of four, viz, 1. Green crop fallow of turnip, and part of potato, with all Agricultural Survey cf PeebUsjhite, ~tl all the dung ; 2. Barley or Big, and fometimes Red Oats, with grafs feeds; 3. Hay ; 4. Oats, or fpmefcimes Big, when the de- mand is great, anfwering tolerably well with one furrow upon light land. Where there is fufficiency of arable land for the purpofe, it is evident, that, by thus, ag -.'.iing only once in four years, the farmer may add to his crofts an additional break, equal to one third of what he could formerly command by his dung ; particularly when we advert to his additional power of enriching his land, by eating the turnip crop upon the ground with his fheep, inftead of being obliged to difpofe of them in glutted markets, upon the failure of Ms pafture ; this ability of the farmer to take a longer range of marketing, tending alio to keep the market price of meat more Heady and equable to the confumer. If the land is of that fuperior quality, as to admit of a rota- tion of five or of fix after one dunging, it is evident, where there is land lying fit for the purpofe, that a quantity of additional land may be taken into the rotation ; extending, in the firft cafe, to two thirds more ; in the fecond, to double of what could be commanded by his dung, under the old fyftem of the rotation of three. The five-courfe rotation is very commonly adopted, where there is fufficiency of land, and the foil of confiderable richnefs •, viz. 1. Green fallow crop, with the dung ; 2. Big, with grafs feeds; 3. Hay; 4. Oats; 5. Peas. The fand foils are, however, commonly kept in rotation of four only ; being accounted too poor to bear a more extended rotation, and being alfo found unpropitious to peas, the only other ame- liorating crop in ufe, in the alternation of white and green crops. A rotation of fix is fometimes, but very rarely, attempt- ed ; though I am informed it hath been found to anfwer by Sir James Montgomery of Stanhope, upon fome of his very fu- perior land in the old crofts of Stobo : This fix-courfe rotation may be, 1. Green fallow crop, dunged; 2. Big, or Barley, with grafs feeds; 3. Hay; 4. Oats; 5. Peas; 6. Oats: Or, t. Green fallow crop, with dung; 2. Oats; 3. Peas; 4. Big, with gi-afs feeds; 5. Hay; 6. Oats; or fome fuch mode of alternation, as ihall include green crop fallow, and 7 j Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJJjire, and artificial grafTes, with the conflant interchange of white and green crops. It is probable, no land in Tweeddale can, with advantage, be fubmitted to fuch fevere courfe of cropping ; un- lefs the fheep farmer were to confine his green crop fallow en- tirely to turnip, and (facrificing the fheep in a great mMfure to the foil) to confine the fheep eating the turnip, in all wea- thers, upon the turnip field. But the greater part of the fheep farms have not fuflicient extent of proper arable land 10; ro- tation fields, to render their poiTefTors very folicitous about dung ; of which article they have often a fuperabundant quan- tity for their rotation fields, in confequence of the number of young black cattle they rear and keep through Winter, up- on the coarfe fpontaneous hay of the farm. In their turnip feeding of fheep, they therefore look more to the improvement of the fheep, than the benefit of the turnip field : the fheep are accordingly, in many inftances, never confined, but have liberty to range at large over the whole turnip field, and to re- tire, when full, to dry beds, where they chuie, or to the fog, when they with for variety of food. I think there can be little doubt, that the fheep muft, in this way, thrive much better than in any other ; yet it muft be confeiTed, that it is a moft unccconomical mode of expending the turnip crop : the fheep foon wound every turnip of the field, by their bite, after which, the turnip can ftand no ftrefs of weather. If the fheep are not to be confined upon fucceflive portions of the field, it would be expedient to inclofe the field from the fheep, and, by having one fide of the inclofure moveable, to admit them to the turnip by little at a time. Unlefs upon the very light dry fand foils, the fheep are materially retarded in their thriving, by being con- fined upon the turnip field when the weather is wet. The firft improvement introduced, according to prefent re- membrance, into Tweeddale fheep farming, was, ihe diminution of numbers ; by which, the numbers kept were rendered fupe- rjor in quality, from more abundant feeding, and the rifk great- ly diminifhed, of death, and of difeafes originating in poverty. The laft great improvement was, the turnip and fown grafj hufbandry, through which, fheep ;>.nd arable farming have been rendered; ■ Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 73 rendered mutually fubfervient to each other ; the acceffion of dung, from the fheep feeding upon the turnip, enabling the ftoremafter to enlarge, or keep in higher order, his crofts, or rotation fields •, his turnip and his hay enabling him to difpofe of his crocks in better order, and with greater extent of market, and alfo fecuring for his holding Hock a certain degree of provifioiij when their pafture is blocked up by fnow ftorms. Such, how- ever, is the excefs, in Tweeddale, of the quantity of mountain- ous fheep pafture land, above that of the arable land, that it is queftionable, whether the whole arable land would fuffice, un- der any proper rotation of culture, to afford an extent of turnip crop equal to the feeding of the old flieep annually fold, or a full furficiency of hay, annually, to fupply the holding flock in a Winter ftorm ; even fuppofing the whole arable lands to be at- tached entirely to fheep farms ; or that the flieep and arable farmers fhould, in their interchange of traffic, bring tl.eir inte- refls to the operation of a copartnery. Outfield. — In molt of the fheep farms, befides the old croft, tracts of arable land are found, of greater or lefler extent, and. lying fo flat, or upon fuch gentle declivity, as to be eafdy ac- cefhble to the plough. Where thefe lands are fo fituated, aS to give little interruption, while under crop, to the fheep walks, they are occafionally brought into tillage, after folding of flieep or black cattle, or after lime. Ewes, where milked, are folded, nightly, for convenience of milking, for fix or feven (formerly eight or ten) weeks after the middle or latter end of July that the lambs are weaned. A fmall flock, upon a narrow range of pafture, may be folded, nightly, through the whole cf Summer, without inconvenience ; as they have no diftance to travel from the fold to their pafture, in going and returning: Where a part of the ewes and lambs of an extenfive fheep farm, are fattened upon enclofed and im- proved pafture, on the lame farm, it is ci ' d as even ad- vantageous to take them off their pafttrre tiguous fold ; as this prevents that difgufl \ hieh they feel to the parts of their pafture upon which : . black cattle, - ' ' ire not hotffed tl roi . ■ :h, i 1 h 74 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. fome farms, comprehends the whole, in others, only thofe not giving milk), are folded, nightly, to prevent their damaging the growing corns, from Whitfunday, till the end of September or October, that the corns are got off the ground. The folds are contracted upon a part of the outfield grafs ground, intended to be broken up for tillage. The enclofure is made of fod-dikes, at the expence of about 3d. the running rood of 6 Scots ells ; whins are infeited below the coping fod, to make the fence more formidable. Left, in a large range of fold, the folded cattle ihould frequent a particular part of it, en- riching it with their dung, while the remainder of the fold re- ceived little or no dung j it is judged preferable, to have two or three folds for the black cattle, and two or three for the {heep, according to the time they are folded, to be occupied in fuccef- fion ; rather than to enclofe the whole fpace intended to be ploughed, in a fingle fold at once ; by which means, the land would not be fo equally teathed (dunged). After harveft, the fod dikes of the fold are levelled, and the land ploughed ; or, where lime is alfo added, the lime is laid upon the furface be- fore ploughing*; when a fucceflion of three or four crops of oats are taken, according to the richnefs or poverty of the foil ; after which, it is left to cover itfelf with grafs fward, as nature fhall direct ; fhable loft grafs feeds being fometimes fown with the laft crop, to bring it fooner to grafs. After the whole of the outfield has been gone over in this manner, what was firft refigned to grafs, is again reforted to ; being ready to undergo a fecond courfe of the fame treatment. According to the num- ber of crops taken, after this mode of dunging, the farmer has thus, yearly, under crop, triple, quadruple, or even quintuple, of that quantity of his outfield, which he can fold in a feafon. If the farmer finds that he hath more outfield in his farm, than he can thus teath, by folding, during the currency of his leafe, and judges that it would yield him more profit under crop, than in pafture, he has then recourfe to lime ; liming, upon * As an improvement, the lime is laid upon the furface, fometimes, in the be- ginning of Winter, previous to the Spring, when the land is folded- Agricultural Survey cf Pe-.blcsfbire. 75 upon the fward, as much as he can overtake in a feafon \ and, with no other manure than the lime, taking, perhaps, four or five crops of oats, then one of peafe, which, in fome meafure, fecures a fixth one of oats; when it is configned to nature, to gather fward for pafture. Very weighty crops, to the above extent of number, have been reaped, in this way, from outfield of tolerable foil, which had -never before been either ploughed or limed : Upon attempting, however, to make it undergo the fame treatment, by a fecond liming, even after it had lain in grafs for fourteen or fifteen years, die experiment has been found unfuc- cefsful ; and teathing by folding, net liming, was judged the manure to be thenceforward depended upon for crops. Barbarous as this method of treating the outfield may appear, it is not eafy to iuggeft a better mode, fo long as thefe outfields Jhall remain unenclofed. To improve thefe comparatively fmall portions of arable land to be found in extenfive fheep farms, and to lay them out under rich pafture, would produce no per- ceptible advantage to a large fheep flock, to whom it would on- ly yield a few mouthfuls a piece, and whom, by the entice- ment of its fuperior fweetnefs, it would only diftracl: from the coarfer pafture on which they muft depend. It would be idle, to forego the fubftantial advantage of crops, for an inconfider- able quantity of fuperior pafture, which would be detrimental, rather than advantageous ; unlefs, by being enclofed, it could be diftin£Uy appropriated to fuch a number of animals as it would fuflice to feed fully, whether fheep for the butcher, or cows for the butcher or for the dairy. Outfield land, exhaufted by fuch treatment, efpecially after liming, is, no doubt, of lefs value than in its original ftate ; i. e. in refpeel of the profit that can be derived from it, by fubj edg- ing it to fuch exhauftion : Otherwife, it may univerfally be confidered as improved ; inafmuch as the lime brings a fponta- neous white clover into the fward, much preferable to the rufhes, heath, or other coarfe grafles which are native to the foil previous to its receiving lime. At all events, why fhould anxiety be manifefted, as to land, alone, againft reaping advan- tages which cannot be obtained a fecoud time to the like cx- i- 6 Agricultural Survey of ' Peebles/hi ir. tent ? Why preferve a value, always in mere poflibility, without ever realizing it ? A coal mine never to be worked, is, furely, e- oually ufelefs as an exhaufled coal mine. The value, thus ab- ftra&ecl from the outfields, is not all loft to the identical farm to which they belong •, being transferred, in fhape of dung, from the outfields to the crofts, through the acceflion to the dunghill, from the great addition of fodder from the outfields, confumed by cattle in the farm offices : The profit, meanwhile, from the crops, augments the capital of the farmer ; in whofe hands, from the oeconomy adhibited in its application, it is ca- pable, under proper encouragement, of being more effective of agricultural improvement, than in any other hands ; it may be fo employed upon that very farm •, or if, from fimilar caufes, it is everywhere fimilarly augmented, its operation will come round, although the identical farmer mould not lay it out up- on that identical farm whence he derived it. Were all the arable lands of fheep farms completely enclofed, fo that the farmer might have the opportunity of appropriating his improved pafture, exclusively, to that precife number of cat- tle which it would fuffice to feed to the full, there can be no doubt, but that it would then be more profitable to lay down the outfields in rich pafture, after moderate cropping, than to exhauft them. It might then be eligible, to throw off the whole of the prefent crofts in pall are, which, in that ftate, might pay equally well as under crop-, and to convert an equi- valent part of the prefent outfield into croft or rotation fields ; which, by receiving ail the dung collected from the farm offices, together with the acceflion from fheep eating the turnip upon the ground, might focn be rendered equally rich as the old crofts of the farm ". The greateft improvement of which Tweeddale is fufceptible, is, to render (heep farming and arable farming mutually fubfer- vient to each other, by fuch a fcherae of enclofure : The great addition * To ('lis fyftem of mnna^tmint, the farmers upon Count Lockhart's tftate were bound down, at the laft leafing out of his lands in the Upper Ward of La- narkfhirc, about f;< years aj.-o. Tenants on unexpired leafes Ibon followed the ,| .' ' iugh noi boui d to it by a: y obligation. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire* 77 addition of dung, from the {heep feeding upon turnip, and through various methods of mere folding of them, might add greatly to the extent of the lands kept in rotation tillage, as alfo to the quantity of their return ; whilft the improved pas- ture, and the turnip crops, would enable the farmer to fell the whole, or part of his diipofeable (heep, (according to the pro- portion of his arable to his hill land), in higher condition, and at an higher price. Farther than the arable land, enclofure could be of little or no advantage to flieep farms, for reafons to be explained under the article Jhcep *. But * John Loch, Efq. of Rachan, whofe property confjfrs of a fmall round hill, holding about a dozen or fourteen fcores of breeding ewes, and of a more confider- able extent of arable land, of excellent quality, all of which he farms himfelf, has, for upwards of twenty years bypaft, been fetting an example of the reciprocal fub- ferviency of fheep farming and tillage, to the mutual advantage of both. He places great dependence upon the folding of his fheep, both for bringing land into tillage, and alfo for the improvement of his paffure. In his letter to me, he obferves, that he took the hint of improving land upon a large fcale, by fheep folding, from obferving the luxuriancy of the crops produced in the way of folding (heep, common in the country ; and that, hitherto, the pro- fecution of the practice, upon a more extended fcale, has anfwered his warmed ex- pectation. Finding the fod dikes of the country troublefome and exnenfive, he got flakes of foreign wood, each ten feet in length, and in fnch number, us to enclofe about four fifths of a Scots acre at a time. His whole flock of fheep were, nightly, brought from his hill, and folded up,.n his land intended to be brought into tillage, from the end of May, till the end of October ; the flake fold being fhifted to new ground every io or 14 days in wet weather, and once in three weeks when the weather was dry. Wher.ce it may be concluded, that about 8 Scots acres would thus be annually manured by his flock; or at the rate of thirty flieep to manuring one acre. In this manner he brought much of his arable land into tillage, for which he had accefs to procure manure in no other way. He has foimetimes got ploughed, before Winter, a part of the land intended for fheep-folding the enfuing Summer ; and alfo limed it in time, to have the lime effete before folding the fheep : Upon this part, which the fheep were folded firft ytpon in Spring, he had the opportunity of lowing broadcaft turnip, after ihe fheep were removed, which turned out a half crop ; and were eaten by the fbeep, next Ppting, upon the field, in time to have the land b treated, ploughed along ith the reft <:f the folded land for a ci"p. 'I his he eonfiders as a very great im I ; as land io treated, not only receives a flieep teathing, in common with the ! folded, l^nda of th/ turnip eaten upon it by the 78 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfl/ire. But who, it may be afked, are the proper perfons to carry on fuch fchemes of extenfrve enclofure ? The anfwer we would be inclined to give, upon experience of what has been effected on the lordfhip of Neidpath in Tweeddale, is, Tenants, at their own expence> upon moderate rents ; and with the fecurity, from their leafey of thrice nineteen years poffeffion of the farm. Proprietors, not practical farmers themfelves, are but ill qualified to judge of the proper plan of enclofure, to render the farm productive ; but of this the tenant is a competent judge, becaufe to this alone he directs his attention. The proprietor confults often elegance, izfc. ; the tenant only ufe. The pro- prietor cannot drive a hard bargain ; and there muft be a want of the fheep, previous to its being fubje£ted to a crop of corn. The ploughed land he confiders as yielding a drier bed to the folded fheep than the grafs land ; and, when it hath been limed, the paddling of the fheep's feet, mixes the lime more intimately with the foil, than can poflibly be effected by the operation of the harrow. Having brought into proper order the greater part of his outfields by means of folding, and having laid out, in grazing parks, what is not intended to be kept under conftant rotation culture, he has now lefs occafion to fold his fheep upon new land intended to be cultivated. He, however, finds the folding to be the beft mode of recruiting his improved pafture, deftroying the fog, and invigorating the grafs. The turnip fields, upon his rotation lands, he finds moft profitably ex- pended, when eaten upon the field with lheep. And as his hill is now all enclofed, and fubdivided with Rone dikes, he is in no riik of intermixture; fo that he can attempt different breeds of fheep. He has found the Cheviot breed to anfwer well, and is now croffing that breed with the South-Down. He tells me, he is entirely of the opinion of the old writers, " that a flock of fheep is the moit powerful arm, cither for bringing land into culture, or for preferving it in the mofl highly pro- ductive condition. " Although Mr Loch informs me, that, to judge by the price at which he dif- pofes of his fheep, the continued folding is in no way detrimental to them ; it would neverthclefb be extremely abfurd, to extend his practice to widely extended fheep farms. His fmall flock can, without long travel, be eafily conducted, daily, from his comparatively fmall extent of hill land to their fold, and back again, without much fatigue, or interruption of the time of pafhiring. The cafe widely , in both icfpccts, as to an extenfive hirfel of 50 or ICO fcores of fheep, ing, when at cafe, fcattcrcd over miles of mountain. In fituations iimilar to his own, no fyftctn can be better than Mr Loch's. The fame fyftem, as to the .15 part of hit flicep, is adopted by Mr Charles Alexander, upon his extent (iw farm ol ' : «.\v- Agricultural Survey of Feeble sflnre. 79 of oeconomy in the whole of his expenditure : The very fame ca- pital, under the rigidly ceconomical application of the tenant, would effecl: almoft double the execution. The tenant, even upon a nineteen years kale, would be willing to pay intereft for enclofing capital : If, however, the enclolures are laid out with a view to talte, more than utility ; or if the capital advanc- ed is over proportioned to the work executed, the tenant can lefs afford intereft, and the proprietor has paid disproportion- ately for the extent of melioration accruing to his farm. Perhaps, the moft ceconomical fcheme of enclofure, which a proprietor could adopt, would be, to give his tenant a charte blanche as to enclofing, when he finds him judicious, thriving, wilhing for enclofure, and willing to pay common intereft for the capital advanced : that he fhould entruft the direction of the enclofures entirely to the tenant, in the certainty that they {hall be conducted fo as to add the moft productive value to the farm : that he mould alfo impower the tenant to contract with the undertakers, who, as he pays intereft, will therefore adhibit his ufual ceconomy in the advance of capital. Upon fuch a fyftem, it might be prudent in a proprietor to borrow money for the purpofe of enclofing, however unfafe fuch prac- tice has hitherto been accounted in the agricultural improve- ments of proprietors •, as he might be certain his tenant would never call for an advance, for which he is to pay 5 per cent., unlefs upon the well-founded profpe£t of its yielding himfelf 1 o or 15*. Indeed, a great part of the lands in Tweeddale cannot be brought to their proper productive value, by improve- ment of culture, till enclofure is more generally extended. When this Ihall be effected, improvements of their value may- be * Money funk in agricultural improvements, is not like money launched out upon mercantile enterprizes ; it cannot be recalled all at once, but merely in an- nual returns ; and probably not in this way, till alter a confiderable lapfe of time. Proprietors borrowing money for fuch purpofes, fbould know well from whom they borrow. Money-broking conveyancers have an evident intereft in Uniting ft- curities as often as poffiblc, from the profit arifing to them from drawing up new titles of feciuity, the expence of which falls upon the bonower. Such is the cufc '.n Scotland- So Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjfjire. be extended, both to the arable lands and to the fheep. It Is, however, fubftantial, immediately ufeful, (lone-dike enclofure, that the Tweeddale fheep farmer (lands in need of ; and for this alone would he confent to pay intereil. Hedges, he confi- ders as mere vexatious baubles, which can never, in any degree, prove a fence for TweeiMale fheep. Confidering, indeed, the variety of foil that mult be encountered in any extenfive fcheme of enclofure, it were abfurd to fuppofe, that every part of it was fit to rear thorns. In fo far as my obfervation extends, there is not to be met with, even in the richeft foils of Tweed- dale, one hundred yards of continuous hedge, fufficiently fen- cible againft any defcription of pafturing animal. I now pro- ceed to II. Management of Arable Farms. By arable farms, I would be underflood to mean fuch farms as do not depend upon fheep, but upon tillage ; although there are few of them that do not keep a few fheep of the long-tail- ed, large, fine-wooled, Englifh breeds, which are eafily confin- ed to narrow ranges ; neither pofTeHing that uncontroulable pro- penfity to roam at large, which is proper to our native wild fheep ; nor the fame contempt for hedges as a fence : Thefe fheep pafture along with the cows, are often houfed in Winter, and are called pets ; a defignation applied to every kind of fheep kept in this flate of domeftication. There are few of thefe farms entirely arable, though fome are. A confiderable number of them are moftly enclofed with hedge and ditch, which, with conftant repairs by paling, makes a tolerable fence. As thefe farms often extend into the plains, and have the arable lands of fheep farms interpofed betwixt them and the fheep ; this circumdance gives protection to the hedge enclofures, which, being thus defended from the aflaults of their more formidable enemies from without, more eafily i\i (lice to confine their more peaceful inhabitants within. Thefe farms are of fmaller fize, and of lefs. extent of rent, than the ftieep farms, as already mentioned. The Agricultural Survey of PecblesJJj'ire. 8l The ftaple articles of their produce are the dairy articles of frefh butter, {kimmed milk cheefe, new dropt calves, with old cows fold off, in calf, or fat, and fometimes young cows or oxen \ corn alio and hay ; with, incidentally, a young horfe bred from the plough mares ; and, where they are kept, the pet .lambs, or eld pet fheep, fold fat. Frefh butter, fent weekly to Edinburgh, by weekly carriers, is the chief dairy product to which attention is paid \ and with good reafon. To deal in fatted veal, excepting, inciden- tally, at the fcarce feafons ; or in any cheefe, but what is made of the milk, after abstracting the cream for butter ; would be to relinquish the advantage we poflefs, of vicinity to the belt market for frefh butter, and to place ourfelves on a level of competition in the market, with counties the mod diftant from the capital *. M The * Butter is all made from cream. Great care is taken to preferve the milk from impurities. A milk-houfe muft be cool, but free from damp, and admit- ting of the circulation of air. The milk veflels, generally of cooper's work, are well waited, every time the milk is taken out of them, in boiling water; and are carefully fcrubb;d, with a ndier, or hard brufh made of the fmalkr twigs of heath ; fome adding a little fU.lt during the fcrubbing, others a little quicklime, to neutralize the acid imbibed by the vefTel from the milk. The milk is poured from the milking pail into thcie veflels, where it is to remain for carting up the cream, through a fieve of flannel, or of fine brafs wire. According to the heat or coolnefs of the weather, it is allowed to ftand for 36 or 48 hours, before the cream is fkimmed oiF; the cream is put into a ftparate veflll, where it is collected for the weekly churning. The churn ufed, is the barrel-churn, with moving breakers; though, of late, a fquare box, with a Aiding lid, and encvine breakers, which can he taken out at pleafure, is getting into ufe, from the greater facility of cleaning it. The cream, when put into the churn, is palled through a canvaf> bag ; am!, in fhort, every precaution is thus ufcel, to preftrve the milk free of every taint, and of the admixture of all extraneous, lubilances. About 30 years ajo, very lit- tle attention was psid to rleanlinefs ; and, after the butter was taken from the churn, a large knife, hacked law-ways on the edge, was repeatedly paflcd through it in all directions, that hairs and other impurities might be removed, by their adhering to the ragged edge; this practice, then univerfal, was called hairing lit butter. Of 'all animal concoctions, that of the converfion of the aliments into milk, fcems to produce the lcatl change upon the original nature of the; aliment ; and the §2 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. The parifhes chiefly abounding in fmall arable and dairy- farms, are thofe nearefl the capital, as Linton, Kirkurd, New- lands, Eddleflone, and Peebles ; Newlands being probably the bed adapted for the dairy, in confequence of more abundant fhelter for milk-cows, from the more abundant artificial wood plantations. The town of Peebles confumes a considerable quantity the quality of the milk and butter depends very much on the nature of the food given to the cows. The butter of cows, fed in Winter upon carrots and hay, dif- fers very little, either in colour or richnefs, from that made upon Summer's grafs feeding. There feenis, indeed, to be a particular congruity betwixt the juice of carrots and milk ; inlbmuch, that the exprefled juice of rafped raw carrots, put into the churn along with the cream, gives to Winter butter, not only the colour, but a confiderable degree of the rich tafte of butter from grafs : It, indeed, pre- vents the butter from keeping fo long fweet. The difagreeable tafte given to milk and butter, from turnip feeding, is generally corrected, by putting into the milk veffels, along with the new milk, a fmall quantity of faltpetre, either in powder, or infufed in water. The ikimmed milk is made into cheefe ; the milk being immediately curdled, fo foon as the cream is taken from it, after being warmed to the heat of new milk ; when, if the dairy yields a fufficiency at one fkimming for a cheefe of the fize required, the curd is immediately committed to the cheefe prefs ; if not, the curd is preferred, and mixed with the curd from the milk next Hummed. The whey is ufed inftead of water, for making the oat-meal porridge, to the confider- able faving of meal, (a faving produced to a greater extent, by ufing milk for the fame purpofe in Winter, when there is not fufficiency of milk for cheefe-making), and the refidue is given to pigs; fometimes, inftead of water for drink, to weaned calves for holding ftock ; and fometimes to new weaned foals. A fort of very mean cheefe, is fometimes made from butter milk, but none for fale ; when kept till moulded (which foon happens), it acquires a particular high aromatic flavour, exceedingly grateful to iome palates. In the [beep farms, where Cheeps' milk cheefe is made, the whole milk of the cows upon the farm is mixed with the lheeps' milk. The butter, during this pe- riod, being ill tailed, is kept to be mixed with the tar for fmearing the flieep; and the milk is afterwards made into cheefe. There are, by confequence, very few farms where cheefe is made of entire fheeps' milk ; and, frewn the various propor- tions of the admixture of cows' milk, there are few article-s in commerce, paffing under one common denomination, of which the qualities are fo various as thofe of f beeps' milk cheefe. The yearning, or runnet, ufed for curdling the milk, is commonly the flomach of a calf, well falted, along with the curd found in it, and dried : When about to be ufed, it is cut into fmall pieces, (fome only ufing the (lomach, and thiowing away Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 83 quantity of dairy produce from the farms in its neighbourhood. The medicinal well, with die woollen manufactory, begun at the village of Inverleithan, may, in time, raife a confiderable demand for dairy produce, from the farms in the pariih of that name, and in that vicinity. The away the curd, which is often rancid), and put into a can, with a ftrong pickle of fait and water: When it hath fteeped fo long, that the liquor, upon trial, is found to have acquired the yearning quality, the liquor is carefully decanted from the fediment, and bottled up for nfe ; when frelh pickle is poured upon the fto- mach, fb long as it is found capable of giving out this quality to the pickie. In- Read of the ftomach of a calf, fome ufe, with fnccefs, the ftomach of an old cow, falted, rolled up hard, and dried ; the itomach of a hare, or of a lamb, are found to anfwer; and perhaps the fame property is to be found in all ftomachs, intend- ed, in early life, to digeft milk : What appears fingular, the infidc fkin of a hen's gizzard, cleaned, falted, and dried, is found to pofTefs this quality ; perhaps, it is a property belonging to every kind of ftomach. Several vegetables are ufed, in aid of the ftomach yearning; I have made trial of decoctions, of all different ftrengths, of one pointed out to me, as of high character, but could not find that, of itfelf, it had the fmalleft tendency to curdle milk. The quantity of the yearn- ing liquor necciijry for a given quantity of milk cannot be afcertained ; evcrv par- ticular ftomach yielding a ftronger or weaker impregnation to tiie pickle in which it is infnfed ; and the houfewife being net unfrequently difjppointed, in finding that no yearning quality whatever has been imparted. If chymical analyfis were applied to runnet, perhaps fome fuccedaneum might be found out, which would produce the effect with certainty, and, at fame time, prevent the bad tafle often communicated, by ftomach runnet to the cheefe. Sweet-milk cheefe, /'. e. cheefe made of the whole milk, without abstracting ths cream, is not made for fale in this county; but only for private family ufe. The theory of prefciving all the richnefs pcftible, to cheefe of this defcription, feems to depend upon the following facts, which feem abundantly afcertained in experience : lino, That cream is c-vaporable, in a degree of heat not very inieitfe ; as appears from the equal p :ornefs, both of the cheefe and of the whey, when the milk is too much heated before putting the yenrnhig to it : 2J0, That the adbefton of the cream to the curd part of the milk it but flight ; as appears from the richnefs of the laft drainings of the whey, which, in whole milk cheefe, are very rich cream, if the curd is too hard wrought by the hand, or if it is too hard prefted at firft, imme- diately upon its Leing committed to the cheefe prefs : 3^/0, That the whey, if not fijon feparatcd, fpeedily contracts the acid, and then the putrid fermentation in the cheefe; making the cheefe fwell, tainting its fmell and talte, and rendering it unfit for keeping. Hence, the propriety is indicated, Imo, Of yearning the milk as cool as may be : 2do, Of moderate working of the curd by hand, in extracting the whey ; to- gether 84 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. The evident advantage to the dairy, to be derived from the improved fyftem of husbandry, led fpeedily to its adoption (as already obferved) in farms of this description. The milk-cows (generally feeding to from 25 to 30 (tones Dutch of carcafe, when fold moderately fat to the butcher) are much fed in the houfe, during mid-day heat, and over night, in Summer, up- on clover cut green ; which adds greatly to the dung bred up- on the farm. The turnip crop is given to the milk-covs, and the young flock in Winter. The plough horfes are alfo much fed on cut clover in the houfe through Summer, when hard worked ; as they can thus fill their bellies very fpeedily, and have more time for work : When at pafture, they generally feed with the milk-cows ; or fometimes, when they come hun- gry from the yoke, they are leathered (i. c. confined by a long rope, fattened to their halters, with a ftrong wooden or iron pin gether with a regulated prefTure, moderate at nrft, and gradually increasing, when it is put into the cheefe-vvell, and fubmitted to the cbecfe-prefs * : Or the Ayr- fnire practice, of taking the curd repeatedly from under the cheefe-prefs, and dic- ing it into fmall pieces, which are expofed, at each operation, upon a fievc, for draining and drying by the air ; that, thus, the aqueous particles of the whey dripping of, or exhaling, the cream, bee- , may continue adhering to the curd, while undergoing the laft more flrons confojidatihg preffure. The general time of preflure, becaufe fuiting the practice of daily chcefe mak- ing, without the expence of double apparatus, is 24 hours. Some houfewives i'jlt their cheefe in the curd ; others, by rubbing fait upon the ikin of the cheefe after it is made; o:hei.;, by putting the ciieeie in pickle, which is thought to extract Tome of its richi A faft, faid to i • i44 o o Rent from fheep L. 17,834 o o The cows, young and old, are in thefe Tables flated at 4378 ; or, as fome of thefe are in the Selkirkfhire part of Inverleithan parifh, fay only 4300. Suppofe thefe can pay, over- head, of rent, at the rate of il. 10s. each; hence - 6,450 o o Rent from fheep and cows L. 24,284 o o The remaining 1 7 1 61. of rent may be fuppofed to be made up, from horfes reared above what fupplies the breeding ftock ; and from grain fent to market, above what fupplies the con- fumpt of the farmers families and fervants. The average rent per Englilh acre through the county, would appear to be confiderably under half a crown. The fa£ls founded upon above, are chiefly collected from the ftatiftical accounts. But various interefts might prevent ac- curacy of ftatement in various articles. I fhould iufpeft the rents are ftated low. Sect. III.— Tithes. The Clergy of Scotland are fupported upon fixed Jlipends or fabrics, modified out of the tithes of the lands, by the Court of Seilion. The medium falary of a clergyman, I have underftood to have been formerly eftimated at cvol. *, belides a houfe, and a glebe of land, con fi fling, at an average, of near ten acres. The Court of Seffion had not, from its original conftitution, any jurifdiction in the matter of tithes and flipends ; but, by *cl of Parliament 1707, a commiflion was delegated to it from the Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlnrl. 97 the Scotifh Parliament, for the purpofes of valuing of tithes, of plantation of kirks, and of augmenting the ftipends of the Clergy. It was at one time conceived, that, fo loon as the Court had fulfilled the purpofe of this commiilion, in augment- ing the clergyman's living in any parifh, its power expired in that inftance, and it had no right of future interference for the fame purpofe of augmentation. In courfe, it was an eftabliih- ed maxim, that, without a frefh commiilion from Parliament, the Court could grant no fubfequent augmentation to livings which had bw'en augmented by it fince 1707. In confequence, however, of a change of views in the Court, as to the extent of this Parliamentary commiilion, as alfo of the public opinion in regard to the flendernefs of the Clergy's provifion, the Court has, within thefe ten or twelve years bypail, departed from its ufual maxims, and has mown a willingnefs to grant augmenta- tions, whenever necefiary, wherever there are funds for the purpofe. The Clergy have not been backward in embracing this fa- vourable opportunity ; and it is believed that, immediately, if not already, the medium of Scots ftipends will reach to lOcl. or 100 guineas, be fides the dwelling-houfc and glebe. The livings of the Tweeddale clergy have all received aug- mentations, fince this change of maxims •, with exception of that of Kirkurd, where the teinds have been all valued in money, and are all exhaufted in payment of the prefent fti- pend. The power of valuing, and for ever fixing the value of his teind, at a certain rate, howfoever much the lands may be fubfequently improved in value, is a great privilege to the Scots landholder. Had it been made a rule (as in the late a£r. for commutation of thirlage), that the teind mould always be va- lued in an annual payment in grain ; though the fund, out of which the Clergy were to obtain their provifion, could not have increafed in proportion to the improved production and value of the lands ; neither could it have fuffered a diminution in va- lue, from the depreciation of money. As, however, there is nothing to prevent the valuation from being ciiimatcd in mo- O ney, 08 Agricultural Survey of Feeble sjhire. ney, landholders have, by this means, not only obtained the juftice of being at full liberty to improve the productive value of their lands, in the certainty of reaping to themfelves the whole profit of their improvements ; but they have obtained an iniquitous advantage, in having a perpetuity fixed in a man- ner which renders the bargain of gradually increasing advan- tage to them, and of proportionate increafing difadvantage to the other party *. The Scots landed proprietor is, at any time, entitled to raife a procefs before the Court of Seffion for the valuation, and alio, if he choofes, for the fale of his tcind ; when, after proof of the free rent of his lands, the tithe is eftimated at one fifth part of the proven rental ; and the decer- uiture of the Court fixes it for ever at this precife extent, how- ever much the lands may afterwards increafe in value. The free part of this tithe (that is, what is not already appropriated to the clergyman) is payable by the proprietor to the titular of the tenuis ; but as it is to the titular a precarious fund, being fubjett to the future augmentations of the living of the clergy- man of the parifh, the proprietor can compel the titular to fell it him, at nine years, or at fix years purchafe, according to dif- ferent fpeeialties. When an augmentation of flipend is grant- ed, * In the cafe of the augmentation of the (Hpend of Lamington, the Court of Seffion feenicd to manifeft an intention of redreffing this inequality, arifing from the privilege of valuing tithe in money, by finding that fuch a valuation did not preclude them from allocating flipend in grain. It would have fulfilled every view of equity, had the Court, in allocating grain, efUmated it as exhaufting juft as much of the money-teind as would have fufficcd to have purchafed it at the date of the valuation. If fuch was ever the maxim, it was not perfevcred in ; for, upon a reclaiming petition, though the Court adhered to the maxim of their having power to allocate grain where teind had been valued in money ; yet they found, that grain, fo allocated, fhould be eftimated as exhaufting the tcind at the rate of 15 s. per boll. This procedure feems to be conlidered as a precedent for all fimilar cafes : But upon what maxim it may be founded, fuperior to mere fa- cility of compromife, it is difficult to guefc. Where mere compromife is allowed to take place of general principles, it is very apt to betray us into inconfiftency. In the fame fpirit, where grain is allocated upon money-teind, the proprietor may rid himfelf of the visual, by making a liirrender of his whole money-teind, if only Ix makes his option within the years of prescription. Agricultural Survey of Peebksfljire. 99 ed, the titular of the tenuis of the parifh can allocate to that purpofe, in the firft place, the whole free teind of fuch pro- prietors as have not purchafed their teind from him : v thefe are exhaufted, the remainder of the augmentation falls, pari paffuy upon the tithes which have heen purchafed from the titular and thofe of his own lands, if he has any withir parifh. Important as is the privilege of the valuation and purehafe of tithes, it >. - : / out much difcern- ment of, or , its adv< itagt ices. At the Reformation, the patrimony of the Church, \ of the church lands, with the tithe of all other lands, was ( by the Crown : it was ibon laviihed away upon the favourites of the Court, by James the Sixth. Charles the Firft, upon his accefiion, amongft other devices for railing money, bethought himfelf of recalling the improvident grants made by his father, of the property that had belonged to the Crown : and, accord- ingly, in the firft year of his reign, he railed a revocation and reduction of all thefe grants. The grantees (who, in the cafe of tithes, were called titulars of the tithes) being, however, found too powerful a body to be rafhly attacked ; and they, on the other hand, being appYehenfive that the King might ulti- mately fucceed ; the affair ended in a compromife, in which it was agreed to fubmit the whole to the Kind's arbitration — aflurance having, no doubt, been previcufly obtained, th?r. he would not abufe the power thus given him to cut and cane for himfelf. Proprietors of land who had obtained none of the fpoils of the Church, and had felt no temporal benefit from the Reformation, (it being of no moment to them whether they paid their tithes to a layman or clergyman, if indeed the latter were not more eligible in point of moderate exa&ion), were alfo allowed to rfcprefent their claims, in the arbitration, in regard to the tithes of their own lands — a meafure probably adopted to ftrcngthen the hands of the King- in dealing with the titulars. In 1629, the King pronounced his decreet-arbi- tral upon the whole matters fubmitted to him : In which he fatisfies himfelf with an annuity to be paid him from eacli fpe- IGO Agricultural Survey of PceblesfJiire. ties of tithe — an annuity which has never been collected fmcz 1674 ; appointing alfo commiflioners to value the tithes, for the purpofe of afcertaining his annuity, which was to be a propor- tional part ; and fixing a fifth of the free rent as the propor- tion which was to be held as tithe : Empowering alfo every proprietor of land to compel the titular to accept of the annual value fixed, inflead of levying the corpora of tithe ; or to fell the tithe altogether, upon the terms already mentioned. Thefe decreets of the King were confirmed by the Scots Parliament in 1633, and commiflioners were by it appointed for carrying them into efFecl : Thefe commiffions were renewed from time to time ; and the laft commiffion, before the Union, and con- sequent extinction of the Scots Parliament, was granted, as be- iore noticed, to the Court of Seflion in 1707. Scots landholders feem to have been flow in apprehending the value of this privilege conveyed to them. I am affined, that few of the more ancient procefles of valuation of tithe feem to have been raifed at the inflance of the proprietors ; but at that of the commiflioners, for afcertaining the King's annuity ; or of the titular, to afcertain the furplus teind he was entitled to receive. From the barbarifm of the country, it is likely, few proprietors entertained any conception of their rents rifing in conference of improvement. Conftitutions, apparently opprefiive, are often more fo in appearance than in reality ; fuch, in ail probability, is the cafe with the tithes in England. To the Scots landholder, privileged as he is, it may appear hard, that the tithe of the Clergy ihould rife upon him, in confequence of improvements made folely at his expence, and to which they have contri- buted no fhare. As, however, the clergyman will, doubrlefs, in general, find it convenient to live upon good terms with parifiiioners, it is prcfumeable that he will ordinarily confent to accept of a very eafy compofition. The farmer (who, in taking his leafe, muff, no doubt, make allowance for the poffible exaction of the whole tithe) will, therefore, always I himfelf eafcr, under the moderate compofition of the clergyman, than he could have done under the proprietor, fuppofing Agricultural Survey cf Peeblesjlnre. loi fuppofing there was no fuch thing as tithes ; becaufe the latter lies under no reftraints of this nature, to prevent him from exacting full rent for the whole value of the fubje£t. Thus would it feem probable, that tithe fo far operates to the en- couragement of the farmer, in preventing him from being dis- abled to carry on his improvements by a rent racked to an ex- orbitant ftreteh : But the improvements which fuit a farmer, upon any proper length of leafe, are of equal importance to the increafe of the productive powers of the foil, as thofe longer-fighted improvements of more diftant return, that are fuited to the more permanent intereft in the fubject, of the perpetual proprietor. Without doubt, the clergyman, as well as the proprietor, expects to reap where he has not fown ; and, upon a renewal of leafe, will lock for a rife ih compo- fition, as the other will for a rife of rent, proportioned to the increafed value of the fubject ; though improved entirely by the proper outlay of the farmer's capital, and though neither have contributed one farthing to the improvement. If, how- ever, the lands fhall have, meanwhile, been improved in pro- ductive value, it muft be a matter of fmall concern to the pub- lic, whether he who reaps the immediate benefit mall be a fox- hunter or a preacher. Extraordinary things are alone thought worth reporting ; and the instances of oppreffion of the farm- ers by the Clergy, which reach us in. Scotland, candour muft therefore difpofe us to confider as the exceptions from the general rule. Such feems to be the favourable view of this fubject. But when it is confidered that neither landholder nor farmer can, at beft, have any farther fecurity for a favour- able compofition obtained, than the uncertain incumbency of the compounding clergyman, with the- prefumeable good difpofition of his eventual fucceflbr ; the difadvantage to im- provement muft ftili appear very confiderable. Were an arrangement fettled by law, under wliich the Eng- lifh tithe could be impartially valued — without the odium of rigorous exaction attaching to the Clergy — ar fame time pre- venting the poffibility of fraud arid chicane, doubtlefs pretty prevalent at prefent j it cannot admit of queftion, that the re- venue IC2 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/litre. venue of the Clergy would, in the firft inftance, be very great- ly augmented *. And it feems to be as little doubtful, that, upon fixing the value of the tithe, the rapid progrefs of im- provement, on removal of this incumbrance, would foon much more than indemnify the expence of the immediate rife in the value of the tithe. It is prefumeable, that, in the event of the agitation of fuch a meafure, Martin will avoid the infatuation of his bro- ther Jack ; who, in the intoxication of applaufe for his zeal, in tearing, from the coat given by his father, the meretri- cious ornaments affumed through evil perfuafion of brother Peter, tore fluff and all, to tatters, fo as hardly to leave him- felf wherewithal to cover his nakednefs : And, that the equity of a Britifh Legiflature will no more confent to give, without proper equivalent, the property of the poffeffor of one tenth, to the holder of the other nine, than to give the property of the holder of nine tenths, gratuitoufly, to him who poffciies one. The character of injuftice is invariable, whether prac- tifed upon a larger, or a leffer fcale. Grain, or lands, conftitute the only permanent values upon which to fettle annuities for perpetuity. In the view of pub- lic utility, it feems, however, very inexpedient, that the in- come of individuals, compofing a corporate body, fhould a- rife from lands held in property by the corporation : The ex- ifting individuals having but a liferent, or even fhorter inte- reft in the fubjec~b, no improvement of it is to be expected from them, but fuch trifling ones as coft little expence, and immediately repay ; none of thofe moft important ameliora- tions, of expenfive outlay, and of diltant return, which fuit thofe alone, v.hofe property is exclufively perfmal, alienable, and tranfmijfibic. * I underftand, that, in fcveral of the reports of Englilh counties, this augmen- i nf the tithe is flatcd as the great objection againft a commutation ; it muft certainly, then, be wry laxly exacted. Perhaps thofe who arc mofl clamorous far a commutation, flatter themfclvcs with the profjxct of an unfair valuation. T.1DLE, Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfoire. 103 TABLE, SHEMTNG THE PROVISION OF TWLEDDALE CLERGY. The victual part of the (Upend, generally one half oatmeal, and the other, beer in grain, is here converted at the rate of 15s. per boll. The glebes are valued at il. per acre, Scots •, that of Peebles at 2I. Excepting where they can, without inconveni- ence, be kept in grafs, the poiTeffion of a glebe may, however, be confidered as conftituting an article of cxpence, rather than of profit, to the clergyman : as, when kept under tillage, a preparation for labour mult be maintained in readinefs, of which the return of produce from fuch a fmall poiTeffion can- not defray the expence. The money ftipend includes from 3I. to 5I. allowed the minifter for the expence of adminiftering the facrament of the Lord's flipper, called communion elements. No valuation is put upon the minifier's manfe or dwellinghoufe. PARISHES. PATRONS. PROVISION OF THE CLERGY. Money Stipend. Bolls of J' i,f tat. Acrei Scots in Glebe. Whole Value of lAvnrr. Linton D- of Queen flvrry L. s. 56 13 d. 4 no l%k L. s. 152 13 d. 4 X'ewlands Do. 64 0 8 96 16 148 0 0 Lyne & Megget Do 104 3 O — 14 121 3 4 Brouchton Do. | 56 0 4* 2 2 114 0 0 Glenholm Do I 46 13 A 96 9 i*7 '3 4 rwe'edfmuir Do. I 15 0 0 AH 10 121 O 0 Drummelzier Do. | 74 - 0 74 10 139 12 0 Mar nor Do. 1 QI 10 ie " »4 115 16 10 Peebles Do. | too O 0 64 6 j 60 0 c i ave 1 lei tli an Do. | JO 18 6 6j* to 130 1 c Kirkurd Mr Carmichael | 70 O 0 - 19 89 0 0 Skirling I)n. 1 CO tl c Ho 8 j i 0 i 1 0 Kilbucho Col. Di i 1 n j rf> the me- liorating green crops of turnip, potato, peas, artificial graffes ; fccond, the exhaufting white crops of oats, bigg, barley. Turnip and potato are chiefly ufed as the green-fallow crop. The land allotted for fallow, which is generally ploughed im- mediately after harveft, is, after related ploughings and har- rowings in Spring, laid into ridges, the crowns of which are iX the diftance of from two and an half to three feet of diftanc* from 146 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. from each other ; dung is then emptied from carts into every third furrow, in fmall heaps (or hutches), five or fix of luch hutches being contained in a fingle-horfe cart ; the dung is then fpread by a three-pronged fork (or grope) from the hutch, along the furrow in which the hutch lies, and the furrow on either fide. For turnip, the ridges are immediately fplit by the plough, which reverfes the pofition of the furrows and ridges, covering up the dung in the furrows, and making the ridge occupy the former place of the furrow. The feed is immediately iown upon the frefh mould by turnip barrows, formerly defcribed. The feed is not raifed in the county, but purchafed in the {hops. The turnip are white, red, or green, topt. The red pro- bably grows to the largeft fize, but the green feem more hardy j whence the propriety of part of each •, the firft for a bulky crop to be firft confumed, the other for food later in the feafon *. From two to three pounds weight of feed are fown upon a Scots acre ; the abundance of plants being reckoned the beft fecurity againft the devaluations of the fnail or fly. The firft culture they receive, is to thin the plants in the row, by hand- hoes ; and the fooner this operation is performed, fo much the better ; the weeds are then often hafhed down, in the intervals betwixt the rows of plants, by the hand-hoe •, the fides of the ridges are then pared by a paring-plough drawn by one horfe, and the earth afterwards fet up to the plants by a double mould- boarded plough. A great part of this culture, while growing, has of late been much fimplified by Mr James M'Dougal in Linton. Immediately after the plants are fingled in the row (wlu<:! • The frequent lofs of turnip crop from ieverity of Winters, is introdikii j, f.ift the practice of pulling all the turnips about Martinmas, laying them up in Jung narrow ri'lges, and covering them (as thty ate to he confumed (boner o. later) with merely their own (haws, or with a flight covering of turf : i\i prtferved, they arc found to feed well throng the whole of April — which will render, t! e hardindf of kinds of lefs confequence. Turnip mny thus be raifed even on fl.t! clays, as they maybe taken off' before the Winter rains, without injury to the lr.:,d. The ftiu'.vs and roots are both cut off when the turnips are pul!ed< Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 141 /'which he is careful to have executed before the weeds in the intervals of the ridges have come to any fize), he pares one fide of all the ridges, taking care fe to temper his plough that the furrow thrown from it overlaps, and whelms up all the weeds in the interval, and is laid ciofe to the plants upon the right- hand ridge ; after an interval furhxient to rot the buried weeds, he pares the other fide of all the ridges, laying the furrow as before ; and this operation he repeats fo long as the plants will admit of the paflage of the plough without injury j nor does; he fet up the earth to them at all It is evident, that, under this mode of management, the plough, in paring, can be car- ried much nearer to the plants ; as, on one fide of them, the earth is firm ; as alfo, that the plants are much lefs expofed to drought, than when they ftand with the earth pared from both their fides at once. In the fheep farms, the turnip is applied to the feeding of caft-off breeding ewes ; in arable farms, to the milk cows, or rearing flock, or feeding ofF-caft cows, or fometimes bullocks. The Ruta baga, or Swedifh turnip, is coming into repute, as the fureft Spring food : its cultivation is the fame as that of the common turnip ; only they are fowa in the beginning of May, while the common are fown in the latter end of May, or before the middle of June. They pro- mife to fupply the great def deration of fucculent Winter food to lad till the grafs feafon. Lad Spring my own crop of them, pulled early in Winter, topped and tailed, and laid up in a ridge upon the furface of the ground, and thatched with rufhes, ferved as food to milk cows till the 1 ith day of June \ very few of them being damaged by keeping. For potato^ the land is prepared and dunged as for turnip. The potato fets are then laid upon the dung, and the ridges are fplit by the plough to cover the potato ; or, fometimes, the field is juft harrowed acrefs for this purpofe. A late practice is, to cover them with a garden-rake ; then to cover them fur- ther by a flight plough, paring off one f do of all the ridges j then, after fome time, by another paring off the other fide of all the ridges j with the intention of thus covering them Hightly with loofe earth, fo as not to exclude fo totally the in- fluence 142 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. fluence of the air, fun, and dew, as is apprehended to bo done by fplitting the ridges at once, and thus covering the po- tato deep by two furrows comprefled againft each other by the action of the plough f. If the horfe is made to walk upon the top of the ridge in covering the potatoes, this prevents the earth from being comprefTed upon them by the trampling of the horfe. Jull before the plants appear above ground, the land is generally harrowed : when they diftinctly appear, a furrow flice is taken from both fides of the row of plants by the plough, and the plants are cleared of weeds by the hand- hoe j and, as foon as poflible thereafter, the earth is laid up by the double mouldboarded plough to the plants, and then drawn clofe to their Herns by hand-hoes *. The time of planting potatoes, is as early as may be in the month of April ; on this account the fallow given with potatoes is more imper- fect: than that with turnip, there being lefs time for prepara- tory cleaning before the infertion of the crop. The feed ap- parently moll in requeft, from being moft prolific, is the Apple or Jonadab potato ; it is a round-fhaped potato with light purple clouds upon a white ground ; it is very lately intro- duced, 1 do not know whence ; and perhaps its fuperior pro-* lific quality depends merely upon the principle which caufes every change of feed to be an improvement : "When beat, after boiling, it is faid to produce more meal from the fame ■fneafure than any potato hitherto known. Tarns are fometimes planted for cows and horfes ; it feems a late plant, and pro* bably is therefore lefs nutritious than the common potato, which we can ripen to perfection. Hays are affuredly moft jiutritious when cut before the ripening of the plant : in this refpe&, 4 By following this method, I had a crop, in the unfavourable feafon 1795^ fully equal to that of the very favourable feafon 1794- * It is of importance to be expeditious in the operations of the plough, left the tendrils thrown out by the plant fhould be torn by its action : from not at- tending to this circumftance, 1 ruined a moft promifing crop in 1793. The ploughman, in the laft operation of the plough, obferved the bottom of the ftu-i ■ ■ ■ led with torn tendrils, appearing as maggots. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 143 fcfpect, however, roots bear, more probably, an analogy to corns. I know not if this analogy holds in every refpe£t ; in that cafe, abundance of root, like length of ear, fhould de- pend upon ftrength of ftem, which is promoted by late fow- ing ; but fuperior ripening, accompanied with lefs ftrength of ftem, and proportional diminution of bulk of root and of grain, fhould be promoted by early fowing; and each fituation fhould ftrike the medium that bed counterbalances the difadvan- tages to which it is moft liable. Early potatoes are raifed in gardens : it feems particular, that this plant fhould bear nei- ther flowers nor feed. It is needlefs to defcant upon the ufe- fulnefs of potatoes, fo univerfally acknowledged, as food for man and beaft. As the curl is hardly known in Tweeddale, a good number of potatoes are annually difpofed of for feed to the Lothians. Peas are fometimes fown upon part of the break intended for green crop fallow : They are very feldom drilled ; indeed the rapid growth of the plant will admit of very little horfe- hoeing. When the farmer cannot reach his whole fallow- break with turnip and potato, for want of dung ; he fows peas upon the refidue, without dung ; and next feafon gives that part a little fpring-fallowing with dung, in preparation of beinp- fown out with bear and grafs feeds along with the part that had carried turnip and potato : At next return of fallow, he takes care to turn that part, which had bore peas, into turnip and potato. Peas are moft generally fown upon outfields, (as mentioned page .) : They conftitute a regular crop upon ro- tation land, where the rotation contains five or fix fliifts, (page .) In the higher parifhes they are a very uncertain crop. They are fown in February, March, or April ; and are frequently fown under furrow. Two kinds only are in ufe; the Peebles pea, of a grey colour, fpeckled with dark fpots ; and the Magbiehill> a ftill earlier kind, of much the fame appearance, and growing lefs to ftraw : A ftill earlier kind was picked out by myfelf from a field of Magbiehill peas, by marking the earlieft bloflbmed (talks, (the way in which Mr Montgomery of Magbiehill, father to Sir James Montgomery of Stanhope, 144 Agricultural Survey of Peellesjtjire* Stanhope, late Lord Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer, is faid to have difcovered the Magbiehill). The experiment hath been dill further profecuted by Mr Aitken, proprietor of Callends in Newlands parifh, who has difcovered two kinds in thefe peas j one kind with ftraw of a purpleifh caft, with naughty fhort pods j the other longer podded, with ftraw of a yellowifh fhade. In proportion to the earlinefs of ripening, all our kinds are refpe£tively lefs abundant in ftraw > but this deficiency is part- ly remediable by late fowing : In fome of our foils and fitua- tions, there is no danger to be apprehended from deficiency of luxuriance in ftraw, however early the kind, or however early the fowing ; there, this earlieft kind of pea is advantageous : In different fituatious, where peas are ufed as an eke to the turnip and potato fallow crop, the adoption of this early kind might afford time for fome preparatory fpring-fallowing of the ground, previous to fowing. Artificial Graffes. (See Chap. VIII.) Second, White crops in common ufe. Oats, always fown after clover, upon rotation land under rotation of four fhifts, and fometimes with grafs feeds after green crop fallow ; or in a rotation of fix fhifts, after peas ; and the only grain cultivated upon outfields, bating fometimes the interpolition of peas. Of this grain, we have three diftinct fpecies. The Blainjlie, or Tnveed/ide ivhite, is the Iateft, and is found to fuit the loweft lying pavifhes better than any other. The Carmvath is about ten days earlier than the laft, and grows to ftraw, in thin poor foils, better than any other fpe- cies. It is procured from the high lying moor farms in the parifh of Carnwath in Clydefdale ; the belt from Barbachlec, in Whitburn parifh. It is (proportionally to the bleaknefs of the fituation and poverty of foil it grows in) a long, thin-bodied, ill-filled oat, with a baird or awn. The Magbiehill, earlier, by eight or ten days, than the laft. It was introduced, from Ayrlhire, in the beginning of laft cen- tury, Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 14 5 fury, by Mr Montgomery of Magbiehill, in Newlands parifh, father to Sir James Montgomery of Stanhope ; and has conti- nued, without degeneracy, in the upper parifhes of Tweeddale. It is more fhort and plump, on equal land, than the two pre- ceding ; and is hence known by the name alio of barley oat, impofed upon it from its figure. It was introduced into Rox- burghfhire, by Mr Dawfon of Frogden, about fifteen years fince, and there obtained the name of red oat. It is eafier fhaked than the two preceding fpecies -, though, in fa£t, (el- domer fhaked, from being oftener cut down before the fetting in of the equinoctial florms. It fuits not the lower parifhes, where, from fharpnefs of foils and drier climate, fhortnefs of ftraw is apprehended. In the higher parifhes, it is fown upon deep mofs, or reclaimed clay morafs, where there would be danger of other fpecies lodging ; in dry land, it is never fown, but where the ground is in good heart, as upon clover lea, or after turnip and potato fallow. Rough beer, or big, is reckoned the befl grain to fow along with grafs feeds in rotation lands ; it is fometimes fown under furrow, though rarely. — Blended beer, that is, a mixture of rough beer and of barley (fo common in Fifefhire), is not ufed in this county. The hiftory of this practice is curious : It would feem, that, by the intermixture of the farime of thefe earlier and later ripening fpecies, the whole field ripens at one time, probably in the intermediate period of the ripening of each of thefe grains. Captain MacKay of Scotfton carefully picked out fome of the barley from a field he had of blended beer ; and this barley he finds more early than any other bar- ley he has fince procured for feed. Experiments ought to be made in regard to this fubjecr, ; as, 1. Whether barley and big, when fown together for the firfl time, would ripen equal- ly, as the blended beer does in Fifefhire ; or whether it re- quires fucceflive growing together, to accomplifh this inter- change of properties ? 2. It might be worth afcertaining, by the experiment of feparating the two grains, whether the pe- culiarity each had attained in growing blended together, would iin as a permanent diftintHon ? Alfo, whether the big had U gained, t^6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. gained, in improvement of quality, from having obtained fome- what of the latenefs of barley ; and whether the barley had de- generated fomewhat to the inferiority of big, from having had imparted to it fomewhat of its quality of more early ripening ? Sect. V. — Crops not commonly cultivated, or in fmall quantity, are, of green crops. Beans, fometimes tried in drills, but quite difufed, from the impoflibility of faving them in our wet harvefts. Tares, fometimes a few fown as green food for horfes : The purpofe, however, is more certainly fecured by cutting part of the hay field very early, that the fecond crop may come in before the general fpringing of the aftermath of the hay field. Cabbages, fometimes ufed as part of the green fallow crop. Carrots muft be fown fo early, and muft consequently be fo much overtopt by weeds, before they appear through the ground, that little preparatory cleaning can be given to the land before fowing ; and the fubfequent weeding muft be a very te- dious labour. For thefe reafons, as alfo from the difficulty of raifing them in frofl, they feem unfit for a general fallow green crop. If any, induced by the rhodomontade defcriptions of their profit, to be found in books of agriculture, were to choofe to rifk them as a crop, it feems probable, that the fecureft me- thod of rearing them, would be to fow them (as has been fuggefl- ed to me by the venerable Countefs -Dowager of Dundonald ) upon land that had previoufly carried a crop of drilled turnip with dung ; preparing the land, by merely fplitting the ridges, and fowing them on the top of the new ridge formed by this operation. At Mr Henderfon's, in Kirkurd parifh, I have eaten butter, in Win- ter, from the milk of cows fed upon carrots and hay, which, for richnefs of colour and of tafte, feemed to come nothing fhort of that made upon grafs in Summer. Lint is fc^jvn, in inconfiderable quantity, and merely for family ufe, upon land previoufly fallowed, along with grafs feeds ; or on clover lea. The Truftees premium (whether from the good fenfe of the farmers, or from fome new meafure as to tllQ Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 147 the locality of its diftribution) feems not now to hate the ef- fect of making it be (own, as a gambling fpeculation *. Of white crops, thofe not commonly cultivated, or not to any great extent, are, Wheat, not cultivated, in the higher parifhes, for want of climate •, nor, in the lower, as too exhaufting to the foil. Rye ufed formerly to be fown on the outer ridge of corn- fields next to dwellings, to defend them from poultry, which would appear to diflike the grain. None is now fown, even for that purpofe. Potato crops may average between thirty and forty bolls per acre, (nineteen or twenty ftone per boll, feventeen and a halt pounds to. the ftone). Sixty boils per acre is held a very great crop. Turnips * A bounty, or premium, feems ufeful to induce the trial of fomething new. If, upon fufficient trial, it is found profitable, it will force its own way. If it cannot ftand upon its own legs, why tempt people to what is unprofitable, in let- ting them a-gambling for a prize? More than twenty years fince: I was apprifed of the following incident : — At a time when the Truftces for encouraging arts, manufactures, &c. held out a premium to encourage the growth of lintfeed, the minifter of Humby, in Eaft Lothian, was in ufe to fow lint upon land in his farm, which was in fit condition to have carried wheat ; finding that, from the premi- um of one (lulling per peck allowed by the Truftces for feed, when adjudged fit for the purpofe by their appointed judges, and from the od. per peck, the real price given for it at the oil mills, the only market where there was a demand for it, he could, upon the whole, make more from his crop of lintfeed, than what he could obtain from a crop of wheat. As for the lint itfelf, it always was difpofed of, unmanufactured, as thatch, to the villagers of Humby. A patent for a new invention has this in it, preferable to the encouragement of a bounty or premium, that the public have nothing to tempt them to put in life the practice, hut the profit found to refult from it. Every thing has two handles. The profpect of obtaining the advantages of a patent, may give great encouragement to the genius of invention : But when it is considered that this re- liance, after one invention hath been fallen upon, has a tendency to fopite all farther efforts at invention in him who has thus mown himfelf poiTelTed of a geni- us for it ; perhaps the effect of patents may appear more ambiguous. Patents can never be applied to agricultuial practice, which cannot, like thofe of manu- facture, be proved in fecret; they would tend only to encourage invention in the contraction of new implements of husbandry. 148 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhtre. Turnips may feed towards fourfcore Tweeddale fheep per acre, from Martinmas till Newyear's day ; or may feed a cou- ple of bullocks, of thirty ftones each, Dutch weight, for be- tween three and four months, if the crop is tolerably good. Big or Barley, fown always upon well-dreffed land, may a- verage eight bolls per acre over the county. Oats, where fown as part of rotation, may produce nearly the fame return as beer. Confidering, however, the poor re- turns from fuch of the lands upon which this grain is fown, the average of return over the county may probably not exceed four, or four and a half bolls per acre. Peas, as they are not fown in fuch quantity, upon poor foil, as oats, and are pretty much difufed in the higher parifhes, may probably average about fix bolls per acre in their return. The above ftate of returns is, hqwever, mere vague con-* je&ure. CHAP. Agricultural Survey of Peehlesfi/ire. 1 4$ CHAP. VIII. GRASS. Sect. I. — Natural Meadows and Pajlures. (See p. 85.) Engltsh meadow, or dry land in natural grafs, which is conftantly faved for hay, receiving every fecond or third year a top-drefling of dung, is unknown in Tweeddale : Scotifh farmers would confider fuch a mode of obtaining hay, as very unoeco- nomical, and would expecl: to obtain it much more advantage- oufly from land kept in rotation tillage. Scotifh meadow hay is obtained only from wet boggy land -, confifting (according to the nature of the foil, difference of degree of wet, or difference of expofure) of coarfe fprot grafs, or grafles of finer quality. Sect. II. — Artificial Grafts. These constitute the Scotifh dependence for hay, entering into every improved fyftem of rotation culture. They are fown in Tweeddale, generally with barley or big, though fometimes with oats, upon land that had previoufly car- ried a green fallow crop. Where the land is dry, and of free mould, and well defended, lefs feed is neceffary ; becaufe lefs of the feed and fewer of the plants perifh, than where the foil is ftiff, or inclined to wet, or open to the trampling of cattle in Winter. In the firft cafe, about a bufhcl of Englifh rye grafs, with ten pounds weight of Dutch red clover, fuffice for a Scot- ifh acre j in the laft, nearly a bufhel and an half of the former* with. fcjcJi Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. with fourteen or fifteen pounds of the latter, are requilitc. When paflure conftitutes part of the rotation, fome pounds of white clover, and of rib grafs, are added ; a part of the rye grafs, and of the red clover, being kept back *. Hill paflure grafs receives little improvement, except the ac- cidental one received from the refrefhment of the tillage, infli- tuted, with a view to corn, after lime or folding, as already fpecified in pointing out the treatment of the outfield arable land of fheep farms. This fort of tillage is beginning, how- ever, to be modulated into a greater correfpondence with the intereft of the fubfequent paflure. In outfields, of clay or mofs foil, at 1000 feet elevation, wet from the continual moiflure of the air, alternate oats and natural paflure are the only ad- miiTible modes of cultivation. Sect. HI.— Hay Harvef. The harveft of meadow hay commences at Lammas ; fome- times interfering, towards its conclufion, with the commence- ment of corn harveil : That of hay, from fown grafles, about the middle of July. In * According to Captain Mackay's experience at Scotflon, in Newlands pariftl, yellow or bop clover did not grow at all; neither when fown upon old croft land, of deep free foil; nor when fown on light free foil, to the extent of 8 lb. per acre, YorlfrAre for (fold under that name in Edinburgh feed Chops, and feeminely a cul- miferous grafs, that is natural to our bed leas) produced, with him, upon the laft mentioned foil, a tolerable crop of hay ; but, lor two or three years that the field was continued in pafhirc, every fpecies of cattle feemed to naufcate the two or three experimenting ridges bearing Yorkfhire Tog ; or, at leaft, fo much to prefer the other gralTes of the field, that thefe ridges had to be cut for hay, from among the feet of the pafluring cattle. He tried alfo, upon a field of the fame fort of foil, in a fmall patch of the field, a fpecies of clover called cow grafs (very fimilar in appearance to the red clover, with a da.k green leaf, which grows fpontaneoufly under our hedges) ; it yielded a very weighty firft cutting of hay, feemingly very palatable to horfe's ; the aftermath was inferior to that of the reft of the field, probably from the exhauflion of the roots in the weighty firft growth. In fubfe- quent paflure, all animals fetmed fond of the cow grafs ; and it remained an yea* cv two long" hi the ground., than the Dutch ved clover. Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlnre. l$i In making hay from fown grafs, every precaution is taken to prevent the exhalation, or warning out of the juices, by the. un, air, or rains : It is therefore never, mwt fpread out (or ieaded) ; but lies fome time in the fwath, which is alfo turned whole ; and, in this ftate of unbroken fwath, is found to fhoot off the rain : It is then put up in large cocks, and thence into tramped ricks, (that is, ricks built by a perfon who (lands upon the rick in building it) ; whence it is carried, at convenience, into the Winter ftack, or fold to the confumer. It is faved with all that precaution againft exhalation, or fermentation, which an apothecary ufes in curing his medicinal herbs, to pre- vent wafte or degeneracy. In making meadow hay ; from die more advanced period of of the feafon, and more foft and fucculent nature of the grafs, oppofite maxims of management are adopted ; and every ad- vantage, of teading before the fun and wind, is taken, in order to procure as much drynefs, as will make it keep in the Win- ter ftack. Heating the hay in the Winter ftack, would be confidered as a deterioration, except in regard to fprot hay, for the pur- pofe of making it more eafily chewed. The aftermath of clover is fometimes ftacked with dry ftraw for fodder. Almoft no farmer, now, cuts hay for two fucceffive from his field of fown grafs. Sect. IV. — Feed:/.'?, Turnip is applied to feeding crock fheep, or to the milk cows of the dairy ; a few bullocks are alfo fed upon them, be- sides the caft-offs of the dairy. Potatoes are very much given to hori'es. A fmall quantity of hay is always reierved in the arable dairy farms, for new-calved cows in Spring, though the greater part is fold. The provident fheep farmers fell no hay, till their fheep are enfured againft Winter ftorms. Peas ftraw was the great feed of fheep in ftorms,, till fuperfeded by hay ; it 1 5 2 Agricultu ral Survey of Peebles/hire, it was always accounted our beft fodder, for horfes working hard in Spring ; there is either a prejudice, or experience, a- gainft giving it to cows. Oat-ftraw is our next beft draw fod- der. Straw of big is dangerous for horfes, exciting inflamma- tion ; though this tendency feems corrected by potatoes. It is given to milk cows eating turnip ; though chaff of beer, fteep- ed in boiling water, is the great dependence of cottagers, for their new-calved cows in Spring. CHAP. Agricultural Survey cf Peellesfhlrt. 153 CHAP. IX. GARDENS, ORCHARDS', There are three hot-houfes in Tweeddale ; at "Whim, Kirk- urd, now Caftlecraig, and Darnhall ; another is begun at Kingf- rneadows, and another probably in contemplation at Kailzie. A botanic garden, with fuch exotics as could live in our climate, either in the green-houfe or open air, was kept up by the late Sir James Nafmyth at New Poflb. In hill countries, great heat is often produced, in particular fpots, from reverberation. The reflection from a rocky hill upon the garden of Pirn, in Inverieithan parifh, is the reafon that, in that garden, two crops of peas, fit for the table, have been often fucceflively raifed in one feafon from the fame plot of ground. I do not however imagine the gardeners' boait, in. fome better climates in Scotland, could there be exhibited, of fowing peas, reaping their produce, fowing this produce, and having eatable peas from that fowing, within the feafon. CHAP, I ?4 Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJI/ire. CHAP. X. WOODS AND PLANTATIONS. The natural wood is inconfiderable. (See article Surface.) The extent of artificial wood, I am apt to think, may amount to rather more than two thoufand acres ; but my data can af- ford room for only vague conjecture. The practice of fallowing, liming, and laying the ground in proper ridges, where neceflary for draining, previous to plant- ing, has been fometimes ufed ; and ought probably to be ufed more frequently. From various quarters, I am affured that it contributes aftonilhingly to the quick growth of trees, to keep the earth around them in cultivation of fallow for a fuccefiion of years. This practice might be worth inflituting, in planta- tions in the immediate vicinity of houfes erected in fituations that have not the immediate advantage of ready grown fhelter of trees. The following facts are ascertained in experience by Joh« Loch Efq. in his plantations of Rachan. Trees, when not de- prived of their lateral branches by pruning, naturally grow with their boles of a conical form, correfponding to the general out- line figure of the whole tree : After ceafmg to grow fo fall to height, the top gets gradually rounded, from the dropping off of the under branches through rottennefs, occafioned by the overfhadowing of the upper branches : After this period, the bole advances lefs in girth at the root, but more in girth to- wards the top, lofing more and more its corneal fliape, and approaching nearer to a cylindrical form. For experiment's fake, he early pruned a parcel of trees in the plantation, by rubbing Agricultural Survey of PeellesJlAre. 1 55 rubbing off the lateral buds as they began to fhcot : Thefe trees are at prefent, and have been, for many years, of a cylindrical form in the bole, from the root up to thole lateral branches which had not been difplaced ; whilft thofe, of like age, which had never been pruned, ftill retain their boles of a conical fhape. Hence, one of two conclufions feems neceffarily to fol- low : either, firjly that the upper part of the boles of the prun- ed trees has been accelerated in growth, without retardment of growth in the under part of the bole : or, fecondly, that the up- per part of the boles has made merely, or little more than, the ordinary advance •, whilft their under part has been retarded, from the abftra&ion of the branches, whofe office it is, proba- bly, to attract the fap in greater quantity to the parts of the bole contiguous to their infertion. From the general appearance of the pruned and unpruned trees, the laft conclufion appears the pro- per inference. Whence, it would appear, that pruning is un- favourable to the growth of trees \ at leaft, in fo far as to pre- vent them from attaining to the fame content of folid wood in the bole, in equal time. From Dr Anderfon's reafonings, (in the third volume of his Agricultural Effays), it would neverthelefs feem probable, that, in order to obtain good wood free of notches, the arrangement of nature muft be followed in plantations •, that the trees muft be planted fo thick, as that the exclufion of air muft fpeedily prune off the lower branches, in making them die and drop through rottennefs •, or, if not fo thick planted as to produce this effect, that they fhould be timeoufly pruned. In one part of Mr Loch's plantations (where the furface foil is very poor, producing but dwarfifh heath, and incrufted with a white coloured lichen, as with a leprofy), it is evident (from the firs, in which the length of each year's growth is feen, in the length of bole intervening betwixt the off-fets of lateral branch- es), that the trees had at firit languifhed, whilft their roots were confined to the ungeuial furface foil ; but that, apparent- ly, upon their roots piercing into a fubftratum of better mould, they had taken on more vigorous growths. The 156 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. The Radian plantations exhibit a linking inftance of beauiyy incidentally obtained as an acceflory, where utility was purfued as the primary obje£t — the moft fatisfa&ory mode, furely, in which it can be obtained. In picking out the good foil, worth improving, from the bad, and in enclofing itt the bad was, of courfe, endofed \ fo that no farther expence was incurred, in planting up the bad foil, but the mere purchafe and infertion of the trees : And fuch, happily, is the fituation of the grounds, that the plantations are difpofed in all the wild irregularity of nature. T\\q greateft extent of healthy thriving plantation is, perhaps, to be found at New Poflb, and at Stobo, upon the oppofite fides of Tweed, in Stobo parifh ; where the foil or climate feem peculiarly favourable to the growth of trees. There they hard- ly contract mofs, fo incident to trees in the upper parifhes. Larix has been experienced to thrive better than any other wood, upon our pooreft foils, and in our moft expofed fitua- tions. We have ftrong proofs of its fuperior durability in pal- ing, even of the fliort age of twenty years growth. It is be- come a favourite tree. Hitherto, it has been thinly interfperfed among other trees in plantations ; and, from fo fpeedily over- topping all others, it is wind-waved, for want of melter. This has lately introduced the pra&ice of planting them by themfelves, in thickets, that they may {belter one another. CHAP. Agricultural Survey of PeeklesJIjire. T 5 7 CHAR XL WASTES OK COMMONS. (See Enclosing, Page ia6.) CHAP. XII. IMPROVEMENTS. Sect. I. — Draining. The generality of the cultivated foil in Tweeddale, being ligfrt, draining is not of fuch general indifpenfaBility, as in counties of more retentive foil: The greater part of it, too, lies upon fuch declivity, as affords a ready defcent for the fur- face water. Where neceffary, draining has been generally at- tempted, either by open ditches, or by covered drains, pretty deep and wide, filled with flones, at fuch expence and difficul- ty of procuring materials, as precludes any great extenfion of them : It m thus attempted, often, at great expence, and, nof unfrequently, to very little purpofe. Elkington's mode of draining, as defcribed in Mr Jphnfton's book upon that fubjedr, viz. " the tapping of the (fuppofed) re~ fcrvoirs in hillsy by boring auger holes into them> fo as to procure a free iffuc for their waters, which are received into, and car- ried away by, proper ditches, prepared for their reception ; pre- venting, thus, the water from oozing out, from want of pro- per vent, in ajl directions, over the edges of theft fuppofed re- fcrvoirdj 1 5 8 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfjire. fervoirs, through large tracts of fuperincumbent furface, and wetting the land, to a great extent, below : " As alfo, his mode of draining land-locked bogs, from whence there is no outlet for the water, " by boring through the impervious Jlrata, in the bot- tom of the bog, upon which the water rejls, into fuch pervious Jl ra- ta as may (very probably) be found to exifl below. " Thefe com- pendious modes of draining (when they fhall be perfectly un- derftood) promife to be both the molt extenfively ufeful, and the leaft expenfive, that can pofhbly be adopted, in all cafes to which they fhall be found applicable. In all the fuppofed cafes put by Mr Johnfton (in regard to the pofition of the ftrata, and of the receptacles where the water fupplying the fprings is contained in hills), the remedies fuggefled mult infallibly prove effectual : The fuppofition, however, of tke exiftence of fuch bowl-fhaped cavities, where the water overflows the edges of the bowl all around, and which, inftead of being allowed to overflow the edges, might all be drawn off by an auger hole, bored into the bottom of the bowl, would, it is feared, be fel- dom found realized in the hills of Tweeddale ; where the ftrata mere generally affume an oblique pofition, than one any way tending to horizontal. It is evident, that the practitioner, up- on this method, mud ever proceed merely upon fuppoftion ; which may or may not be realized. Long experience would feem neceffary to enable him to form probable conjectures. But, be fides that wetnefs, arifmg from water-refervoirs in hills, and from collections of water in land-locked bogs, there are many tracts of land kept in an inferior ftate of production, from a thin furface foil incumbent upon a till impervious bot- tom ; where, from the incapacity of the foil to abforb any con^ fiderable quantity of water, the land is put into a poachy ftate by every heavy fhower of rain. Mr Johnfton (in his account already quoted) has given a molt perfpicuous and well reafoned defcription of the modes adopted in England (particularly in the county of Effex), to remedy this evil, by means of a very ccconomical fpecies of covered drains. Sir George Montgomery of Magbiehill introduced this mode of draining, in 179", with molt complete effect, in his parks of Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 159 of Sunnyfide, in Newlands parifh. The foil of thefe paifca was of that thin, black, moorifh nature, upon a retentive til!, bottom, already defcribed (p. 14.) ; to poachy, in Winter, that, when pulverized by fallow, it, in Winter wet, prefented no more refinance to the foot of the paffenger (which plumped down to the fubfoil), than what would have been prefented by a- bowl of rice and milk : Even when in pafcure, and the fur- face firmed by grafs fward, the parks were extremely fubjecl to Winter poaching ; and, upon the fecond or third year of pafturage, the furrows betwixt the ridges ufed to be complete- ly grown up with rufhes. The firft park, drained after the method defcribed by Mr Johnfton, had been paftured one year previous to the draining procefs : In an hour or two after the heavieft rains, a horfe may now gallop over this, without al- moft leaving the impreffion of his feet 5 and the rufhes, which were beginning to take poffeffion of the furrows, have literally all perifhed for want of moifture : I have, indeed, never ob- ferved fuch a total change of die nature of any foil. The mo- derate expence of the execution, would feem to render this mode of draining an undertaking fuited to the tranfitory interefr, in the foil, of even a tenant upon a leafe of nineteen years j provided, at leaft, he is not fubjedted to the rifle of forfeiture^ during its currency, from the injudicious retention of the de- lectus perftt*, through the conftrudible, or expreffed condi- tions of the leafe. The expence would, in few inftances, ex- ceed thirty {hillings per Scots acre. Inftead of detailing the pradice at Sunnyfide, it may be of more ufe to ftate, in general, the mode of forming thefe drains; atid the general principles of the practice. The eeconomical mode of forming thefe drains/is, FirJI, to open up a trench by the plough where the drain is to be drawn, throwing off a furrow flice to either hand, in going and returnl ing ; if the plough is not ufed, the earth muft be dug out by a common garden fpadc, one fading deep. Skandty, Another fpading is dug out by a fpade, 12 in.: >, and 3 inches in breadth at top, tapering to 5 inches in breadth at bottom ; this fecond fpade is pwmdsdrwifch m iron 1 ■■ 1 its-ffiaft, by which 1 66 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. which the digger, Handing on the furface, forces it with his foot into the ground, it being impoffible for the operator to Hand within the narrow trench, previoufly formed by the common garden fpade : the mouldery earth, falling from this fecond fpade, is cleared out by a correfponding fhovel, which, for the reafon already affigned, is bent a little upwards in the neck. Thirdly Another fpading is taken out of the trench, thus formed, by a fpade (furnifhed with an iron wing for the foot, a little farther up the {haft) of 16 inches in depth, and 3^ inches in breadth at top, tapering to 2^ inches at bottom : This fpade is formed very ftrong, and rounded confiderably in the back, to afford the better prife ; and is, in fhort, pretty fimilar to the inftrument ufed in this county, under the name of the foot-pick ^ or pick-ax for the foot : The mouldery earth, falling into the bottom of the narrow rut formed by this third fpade, is then fcraped out by an iron fcoop, attached to a wooden fhaft \ the fcoop is like to the one half of a tube divided longitudinally, or to the bor- ing part of an auger or wimble ; it is about a foot in length, l\ inches in width at the neck, tapering to i£ inch at the mouth ; its iron neck is bent, fo that the fcoop forms an angle of about 45 degrees with its fhaft, enabling the operator, (land- ing with a foot on each fide of the trench, eafily to fcrape out, and throw afide, all the loofe earth from the bottom of the rut. The bottom of the drain, fo formed, fhould be 26, or,Jset- ter, 30 inches below the furface. The drain is then fluffed with wood prunings, cuttings of hedges, weedings of fir plantations fplit, or with heath or whins, or with flraw or rufhes ; which two lafl, when ufed, are directed to be twilled into ropes, of the fize of a man's arm, and three fuch ropes to be put into the drain, one fingly, the other two along-fide of each other. The fluffing is put in, in" fuch bulk, as to flick fa ft before reaching the very bottom of the rut, fo as to leave a paffage of 2 or 3 inches clear at bot- tom, for paffage to the water ; though, when die materials are of loofe contexture, this is of Jefs confequence ; the water per- colating through their interflices, and finding always more room from that decrcafe in bulk, which enfues upon the decay of Agr'iraltitral Survey of PeeblesJI/ire. i<5l of fuch perifhable materials. A perfon, with the fcoop, goes immediately before the one putting in the fluffing, to fcrape out any loofe fluff that may have tumbled into the rut. It is almoft fuperfiuous to mention the propriety of beginning the operation of Huffing, at the head or higheft part of the drain. The Huffing being put in, and, if it is of very open mate- rials, a little flraw or rufhes being laid a-top, to prevent earth from running through it — and the drain being fluffed to the height of 10 inches, or a foot, from the bottom — the earth taken from the drain is returned above the fluffing ; care being taken to lay the mofl free and loofe earth immediately upon the fluffing, that the water, oozing from the foil, may find ready admiffion into the drain : For this purpofe, the fluffing is fometimes covered with fand or gravel. Where the drains are conducted in the fame direction with the declivity of the field (that is, flraight up and down), they will draw water laterally to the diflance of two yards and an half from their fides, in very retentive foils ; and, by confe- quence, they ought to be made parallel to each other, at every five yards diflance. They are, in no foil, found to draw to a greater lateral diflance than three yards and an half; and, of courfe, ought never to be placed at a greater diflance than fe- ven yards afunder. The lefs declivity fuch drains have, they are, in Effex, accounted the more permanent *, becaufe, where the water has a quick run, it is ready to abrade earth from the fides, or raife it from the bottom of the rut, fo as to oCcafion obftruclions. On this account, where the land lies on a fleep declivity, it may be proper to carry the drains Hoping acrofs the declivity, in order to diminifh the velocity of the run of water ; in this cafe, the drain can only catch the water from its upper fide, and can draw none from the other fide ; though, perhaps, it may draw to double diflance from land above it, than from land upon the fame level ; fo that, probably, the drains need not be made more frequent in this direction, than when the courfe of the drain follows the natural decline of the field, and, cf courfe, draws from both fides. Y Drains i6i Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Drains of this kind, fluffed merely with draw, have been known, according to Mr Johnfton, to laft twenty years, with- out exhibiting the fmalleft fymptom of decay •, and it is not known how long they may Itill endure. Stuffed with brufiV wood, they have been known to laft forty years, with little or no repair. It is judged, that frefh cut green branches are the moft durable fluffing, particularly thofe of the willow and the beech. Stones are confidered as the very worfl of fluffing for fuch drains ; as, whenever an obftruc~lion is once formed, it muft remain : "Whereas, when the fluffing is of wood, heath, flraw, rufhes, &c. even when fmall obflruclions are formed, new vent is foon found for the water, in the vacuities formed by the decay of the fluffing materials. Where a drain is obftruc~led, the water rifes to the furface, immediately above the obftru£lion •■, and the remedy is, either to clear out the drain at the fpot, or, which is eafier, to cut a new drain from above the obftru£lion into the next drain. When obflruclions become fo numerous, as to require the field being drained anew, the approved method is to conduct the new drains, fo as to cut acrofs the old ones, making them alfo a little deeper ; by which means, the field is more effectu- ally drained than at fir ft. In cutting acrofs thefe drains, the whole fluffing has been found entirely confumed ; but the earth fo perfectly arched over the place originally occupied by the fluffing, that the paffage for the water remained clear, and the drain was found (in the Effex phrafe) to bleed freely. Thefe drains can only prove effectual, where the rut, form- ed by the laft narrow fpade, is cut into an impervious till bot- tom ; as, where the bottom is of fand or gravel, the water e- fcapes from the rut, to rife again in fome other part of the field. Where there are only partial fpots of this open bottom, the Effex practice is, to conduct the water in the rut over thefe open-bottomed patches, in a pipe formed of puddled clay. The whole drains of the field may be conducted, either in- to a receiving open ditch, at the bottom of the field, or into a covered drain : in the laft cafe, this receiving drain fliould have a flagged or caufewayed bottom, built fides, and covering flags. Iu Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfljire. 163 In very fliff clays, the furface water might be incapable of percolating into fuch drains ; in which cafe, crowned ridging is the only remedy. In fheep-walks, never intended to He ploughed, fuch drains, formed much more (hallow, and fluffed or covered, by merely inverting the furface turf, might often be of e Hernial benefit. Sect. II. — Paring and Burning. Vert little ufed in this county ; apparently ruinous in thin foils ; might be ufed advantageoufly in deep mofs foils ; were it not that not one feafon in ten gives drought enough for the operation, and that the preparatory fteps (in cafe of failure) v/ould be very obftru&ive to other modes of culture. SECT. III. — Manuring. Teat/ping, by folded fheep or black cattle, has already been noticed. The other manures ufed, are, the dung of cattle from the farm-houfes, lime, compoft of lime and mofs, or of lime and fcourings of ditches *. Dung of caltle collected in farm-ofHces, feems too little at- tended to, in regard to the mod proper mode of ftoring it up, for proper fermentation, and for prefervation. The dungflead is often found fituated upon a declivity, allowing the juices to run off; or upon a bottom of loofe gravel, unfecured, by caufeway, above clay, to prevent the juices from being ab- forbed ; or fo placed, that the rain water from the roofs of the houfes runs into it, and from it, warning out and carrying away the foluble and moft nutritious particles of the dung. Little confideration feems paid to the principles, that, too Y 2 much, • In a comparative experiment of Captain Mackay's at Scotrton, betwixt the effects of the pure dung of cattle and thofe of comport of fcourings of ditches with lime, both applied to old croft of deep rich loam, the refult turned out in favour of the comport, for three or four fucceffive crops. Perhaps in fuch foil there plight be much matter for the lime of the compoft to convert info vegetable foo4, 164 Agricultural Survey of PccblcsJJ/tre. much, as well as too little moifture, and too much exclufion ef air by over consolidation, as well as the too free admiflion of it, are all equally unfavourable to a proper fermentation. Lime is, "ft ill, fometimes, injudicioufly applied to the fward immediately before ploughing, fo as to fall to the bottom of the furrow when the field is ploughed; the practice of letting it lye upon the fward for an year or two before ploughing, that it may incorporate with the grafs roots, is however more approved : It is generally efteemed beft to apply it, new flack- ed, in its hi^heft ftate of pulverization, to fallow previoufly harrowed fmooth; then to harrow in the lime after it is fpread, and afterwards to plough the land with a fhallow and narrow furrow. Whether, upon land kept in conftant rotation culture, it is beft to lime fully at once, or to lime flightly at fhort intervals, feems not well decided in this county. The theory of lime feems not at all well underftood : And it would feem prudent, to keep the theory ft ill open, that it may be accommodated to fuch facts as fhall prefent themfelves in experience, rather than (hut it up definitively, to their ex- clufion— the common effect of theory when embraced as com- plete, and adhered to with bigotry *. That its cauftic alkaline nature, when applied quick, fhould diffolve the fmall feeds in the foil, or the live roots, converting their oils into foap fo- luble in water, and fitted to enter the capillary vefTels of the roots of growing vegetables, feems contradicted in experience. Lime, fpread quick upon growing plants, never has been found to diffolve them : whence then fhould it be fuppofed deftru&ive of the organization of live roots ? In drying pickled * Witliout forming a theory, knowledge would be a mere procefs of memory, and would confift of a mere lumber load of disjointed, unconnected facts, inca- pable of inference or application. It is wifely ordered, for the increafe of uftful knowledge, that man mould delight in fyftem j and mould in general feel a mental want, till the facts which have reached his knowledge are fyftematically arranged ; ivbeii, alone, he can fay, that he under/lands or can explain. Every thitfjj, how- ever, has its extremes : fyftematic inference ought never to be implicitly truftcd, without verifying its conclufions by experience, where attainable. Agricultural Survey of PceUesJfjire. 1 65 pickled wheat, by dufting it with quicklime, more of that fubftance is furely brought into contact, with the grains of wheat, than what can be fuppofed to fall to the fhare of the feeds of weeds in the foil, ifyen upon a ftrong liming : and why fhould what is found beneficial in the one cafe, be fuppofed noxious in the other ? Or, if this is fuppofed one of its princi- pal effects, beat unburnt limeftone, or flacked lime become neutralized or effete by the reabforption of fixed air, fhould at leaft be incapable of producing thofe effects ; though it would appear doubtful whether its effects have not been obferved equally good, when applied in thefe ftates, as when applied in its quick or cauftic alkaline ftate. From a large tract of land in Lyne parifh, which had never been at all cultivated, the farmer reaped a long fucceflion of weighty crops of oats, after liming. Upon a renewal of leafe, he thought he might apply to this land for a repetition of the fame crops, upon a frefh application of lime. He limed a part which had lain in pafture for fourteen years ; but his crop was worth nothing : And he is convinced, that no return is to be expected from this land, but by the application of dung, in teathfolding or otherwife. In a field in the parifh of Skirling, which was fuppofed to have been limed long ago, the tenant had reccurfe to complete fallow, as a preparation for laying down in grafs. The field was limed upon the fallow ; and a few ridges were left unlim- ed, in order to obferve the difference. No difference was ob- fervable in the crop laft feafon, nor is obfervable in the grafs this Spring. Thefe facts feem to indicate, that lime fertilizes, by acting upon pre-exifting materials in the foil ; whether, by neutral- izing acids inimical to vegetation, and thus removing obftruc- tions impeding the operation of its vegetative powers ; or whe- ther, by ftimulating, by direct influence, thefe powers into ac- tion. In Dr Anderfon's eflays on lime, as a cement and a manure, fome experiments are detailed, which would indicate its effects j$ a manure. And many years ago, I recollect to have heard faOs, 1 66 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. fads, adduced by a Mr Smith (which occurred in his improve- ment of the eftate of Mr Glafsford, the great Glafgow mer- chant) and by Mr Pitlo, (as refults occurring to him in improv- ing farms of Sir William Cunningham's of Livingfton), which feemed to point to the fame conclufion. Whatever may be the juft theory of the modus operandi of lime, its application muft be found, in general, advantageous in this county, as may be inferred from the increafing demand for it among the farmers. From fome experiments we have heard of in Yorkfhire, it would appear, that lime laid upon grafs, without being mixed with the foil by ploughing, had no perceptible efFecl. At Mag- biehill in this county, a grafs park was limed, without being ploughed, to the extent of three times the rate of ordinary liming ; to the very great improvement of the grafs, and pro- portional increafe of the rent. The common rate of liming, near to the limekilns, is from twenty to twenty-five bolls of fhells, or from ten to twelve fin- gle-horfe cartloads per Scotifh acre : though, at the remotefl diftance, where the fhells (carriage included) cofl from four fhillings to four {hillings and fixpence per boll, even the low rate of fifteen bolls of (hells per acre, is found evidently benefi- cial upon unreclaimed land newly broken up. Indeed, at thefe diflances, the foil is found, generally, more light and fharp. Mofs is fometimes applied, even in a raw ftate, and frefh dug, to light foils, apparently with good effects. I have feen it thus applied at Blyth, in Linton parifh, in fupplement to tea thing, upon the ends of ridges, over which the fold-dike enclofure could not be conveniently extended. Some burn it, after drying it, in open fire ; alleging that the fire only diffipates the aqueous moifture, and ufe the allies fo procured. Others burn it in a fmothered fire, keeping the flame from burfling out, by the addition of wet mofs, frefh dug, to prevent the efcape of volatile particles. It is very commonly made into compoft with lime, with or without a proportion of the dung of cattle. Made into com- poft Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 1^7 poft with lime alone, it would appear, from Lord Meadow- bank's experiment, of very little value. Mofs, in fome Englifh counties, would appear to conflitute a moft powerful manure, even when merely dried, pulverized, and fown on the field by the hand. It may, no doubt, vary in quality, in different fituations •, and is probably of fuperior qua- lity, in proportion to fuperiority of climate. We are led fo to judge, in comparing the aftonifhing returns from rnolTes culti- vated according to Smith's recent method, in the low-lying county of Ayr, with the effects produced in this county, by a fimilar mode of treatment, which hath long been pradifed, with very little advantage, by Sir James Montgomery of Stanhope, at the Whim. From Lord Dundonald's experiments, mofs would appear convertible into very rich manure, when treated with fuch fu- perabundance of alkaline falts as fhall fuffice, not only to dif- engage the acid, by which the large portion of oil contained in it is bound up, but alfo to convert that oil into foluble foap. Lime is our cheapeft alkaline fubftance •, and yet Lord Mea- dowbank experienced no valuable refult from the mixture of mofs and lime in compoft •, although Smith's improvement of mofs in Ayrfhire, feems to depend upon the large application of lime to mofs foil, drained with fhallow drains, fo as not to dry it to withering. It is afcertained alfo, by late experiments, that the alkali of potafhes is obtained, in incomparably greater- quantity, from almoft every fpecies of weed dried and bumf, than from the burning of wood, whence alone it was in u\'c to be procured. His Lordiliip's brother, the Reverend James Athol Cochrane, has, this feafon, been inftituting a variety of experiments upon mofs, as a manure, and for other purpoks, at Lamancha, in this county ; the refult of which will probably be laid before the public. Lord Meadowbank, in his publication, December 1801, re- commends the following method of forming compoft ol mofs, the good effr&s of which he conceives as fufficiently vouched from his fix laft years experience of its application. Let. l6"8 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Let a row of cart loads of new made dung be laid out a- long the crown of a dry ridge, on which the midden is to be formed, clofe to one another : Let two rows of mofs be then depofited, one on each fide of the row of dung. The mid- den is then thus formed : The workman begins at one end of the rows j he throws forward fo much from the rows of mofs as fhall make a bottom of fix inches thick ; he then throws, upon this bottom, dung, from the dung row, to cover it ten inches thick ; then, above this, fix inches of mofs ; then four or five of dung ; then fix more of mofs ; then a thin layer of dung : He then covers the outward end, and the two fides, with mofs, and lays on mofs a-top till it is raifed to the height of four feet, or four and an half. Having thus completed this part, he proceeds, as before, till the whole is formed. Afhes of coal, peat, or wood, fhould then be fpread over the top of the midden, at the rate of about one cart load to twenty-eight carts of comport ; or, if thefe are not be had, about half the quantity of finely powdered flacked lime. The mofs ufed fhould be thrown out of the mofs-pits weeks or months before being depofited for the midden ; that, by draining and drying, it may not check the fermentation intend- ed to be produced, through its excefs of preflure, or of moif- ture. Care mufl be taken, for the fame reafon, not to fet a foot upon the compoft when making up. And if the dung ufed has little litter in it, frefh weeds, potato fhaws, &c. or even fawings of timber, muft be added in making the compoft, to keep it open. In mild weather, feven carts of common farm dung is fuf- flcient for twenty-one of mofs. In proportion to the cold, more dung is necefiary for proper fermentation. In Summer, the fermentation may come on in ten days, or fooner ; it is apt to exceed, and to firefang the materials ; a flick fhould be kept in it, to try the heat ; and if it arifes to near blood heat, it fhould either be watered, or turned over, when frefh mofs may alfo be added. It fhould thus remain untouched, till three weeks before ufing ; when it fhould be all turned over, upfide down, and infidc out. This compoft is equal, weight for weight, to Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 160 |6 the beft dung. "When the mofs is ufed raw, it mould be laid upon the midden lumpy, to admit air. More experiments ought to be made in regard to a fpecies of manure fo frequently obtainable in this county. Urine of cattle, till of late too much' neglected, is now more attended to : It is collected by earth laid down to abforb it (as are alio the juices running off from dungfteads) ; or it is re- ceived into a pit furnilhed with a pump. Mr Stewart, at Efhields, a farm below Peebles, belonging to James Hay Efq. of Hayfton, collects the urine in the way laft mentioned, and ap- plies it to the land by putting it into a puncheon, furnilhed, at the hindermoft end, with a pipe, terminating in a large rofe like that of a watering pan ; the puncheon is fixed upon a wheel carriage, drawn over the ' field by one horfe, and the u- rine from the rofe befprinkles to the breadth of nine feet ; fo that an eighteen- feet ridge is watered in the going and return- ing cf the carriage. He obferves, " That as urine is of a fcorching quality, it is unfafe to apply it to any growing crop, in great heat or drought ; fo that, in general, it is unadvile- able fo to apply it, after the month of May : That it ought not to be applied to any land in Winter, from its being fo eafily wafhed away by rains j and never, on wet lands, earlier than the month of March ; and then, only in dry weather : That it may be laid upon fallow, at any time when it is dry enough to abforb it readily : That, in dry warm weather, it is advanta- geoufly laid upon dunghills, particularly thofe of compoft. " The modes of applying dung have already been explained. Perhaps the mode of applying it, in top dnffngy has not been attended to fo much as it deferves. This mode is feldom prac- tifed, except for pafture parks, with compoft ; or with cornpoit gr afhes, to forward a fecond growth of clover. If well prepared dung were fpread upon crops in a grow- ing fate, in Spring, it would feem probable that every nutri- tious particle, wafhed in by the rains, would be greedily ab- forbed by the roots, now in an active bibulous fate : But when manure is ploughed in, it feems probable that much of it is placed too deep, to be reached by the plants , and, particularly, Z when f]0 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. when it is ploughed in before Winter for a Winter crop, drat much of thofe juices, diluted by Winter rains, paffes by the roots, without being appropriated by them, which they would have readily abforbed, if in an active vigorous ftate of growth* If fuch application were ufed, when the weather is not as yet fo hot as to occafion evaporation, or when the plants fo far cover the foil as to prevent it ; it feems feafible to fuppofe, that a much lefs quantity of manure would produce a much greater efFe£t. This mode of application feems to be ui^d, to much advantage, in feveral Englifh diftricl:s. I have had occafion to obferve, this Spring, great fuperiority of effect from afhes har- rowed in with the feed j probably the effect may not be lading- Sect. IV .— Weeding. The larger weeds only (fuch as docks, thiftles, and mug--* wort) are pulled from the corns. Lint alone is carefully hand- weeded. Green fallow crops are weeded by hand and horfc- hoeing. In an experiment of hand-weeding oats, by James Reid Efq. of Peebles, at the expence of about a crown per acre, the additional return, above the yield of the unweeded part of the field, was eftimated at about one boll per acre : the fallow green crop cleaning husbandry being then, however, fcarcely in practice, the difference would be the more remark- able. Hands could not be procured to carry on this operation to any great extent ; and the new hufbandry feems, in a great meafure, to fuperfede its ufe. Sect. V. — Watering. Formerly this fpecies of improvement feems to have been pretty much in practice, in the parifh of Dolphington, in the Contiguous county of Clydefdale. It feems to have fallen into difufc, probably from never having been fcientifically con- dueled. In the year 1707, a float meadotUy and a catch meadow, were formed upon the farm of Kirkhoufe, in Traquair parifh, ' (belonging Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJJ/ire. 171 (belonging to the Duke of Buccleugh, and rented by Mr Currer), by Mr Stevens, the perfon fent to Scotland for that purpofe by the Board of Agriculture. The fuccefs attending the watering, in thefe inftances, has difFufed the practice. A farmer, on Traquair eftate, has got one executed by Stevens, which is flooded by the water of Quair j being contented to lay out the principal, and to fore- go the intereft, during the currency of his tack, upon condi- tion of being reiniburfed the principal at the expiry. Robert Campbell Efq. has had one formed at Kailzie, to which he is intending to make additions ; and feveral more are in contem- plation. I find no better way of explaining the fubjecl, than by in- ferring the following account and plan, which I fent to the Farmer's Magazine, and which is inferted in No. X. That account was chiefly fuggefted from what I had found in a pamphlet, publiihed by Mr Wright in 1798-99, upon the me* thod of floating land in Gloucefterfhire. I have added notes, from what occurred from the perufal of a pamphlet of Boi- jvell's, in Dorfetihire, pubiifhed in 1790. Explanation of the Plates. Plate I. Fig. 3. reprefents a float meadow, under irrigation j the dark ihading reprelenting the water. When the hatch of the water dam-dike * (marked H) is lifted up, the water runs in the natural channel of the river *, when the hatch is fliut, as reprefented in the figures, the na* tural channel is laid dry below it, and the water runs laterally along the main feeder •)• in the direction of the arrows, and is from it diftributed into the floating gutters % {g g g g), which are * Where there is but one outlet (or thorough) in the dam-dike, the dam-dike is defigned, by Boftvcll, a Jiuiee. Where there are more than one outlet or tho- rough, with correfponding hatches, the dam-dike is defigned a w#/f . •J- The main feeder is defigned, by Bofwell, the head mgin. \ Bpfwdl (Jefigns the floating gutters trtncLit. Tj2 Agricultural Survey of Pt\\ are formed along the crowns of the ridges into which the me«J dow is arranged, overflowing on both fides of faid gutters, and running down the fides of the ridges into the furrows or drains § betwixt the ridges (d d a d) \ which drains discharge it into the main drain ||, whereby it is returned into its natu- ral channel at the foot of the meadow. The marks (o o, or a a), and the tufts, in the rmin feeder and the floating gutters, denote — Thzjirj}, obftruclions (called bends by Bofwell) made by Hakes, or fods, or ftones, in order to raife the water, and make it flew over from the main feeder into the floating gutters, or from the latter over the panes •, the fecond, notches cut in their fides, Math a fimilar intention. If, however, the main feeder and floating gutters are properly con- ftru£led at their firft formation, thefe fupplementary aids will be, in a great meafure, unnecefTary ; for the main feeder ought, at its entrance, to be of dimensions juft fufEcient to admit the quantity of water which is to be conveyed to the meadow; and gradually to contract its fize as it goes along, in order that the water, for want of room, may be forced into the floating gut- ters, dribbling al'fo over every point of its own fides : The float- ing gutters ought to be formed after the lame model, that, by their primary conltruclicn, the water may, in like manner, overflow their fides through their whole courfe. That as little as pofTible of furface may be taken up in unproductive v courfes, a fimilar mode of conftruclicn muff, be adopted r drains j they ought to be narrow, neareft to the main feeder, where they receive little water ;• and to diverge, in proportion to the greater quantity of water they have to carrv, as they ap- proach nearer to the main drain : This lafl is, for fimilar rea- fon, firruhrly conftrudlcd. In the three plate,*, this mode of construction is made obvious to the eye. The $ The furrow drains bet wixl the ridges, K-fw;!l dtfigjis trcr-b drains; and the piece of grafs furfuce, over which the water floats, lyhjg betw •. he defigns a pane- j| The main drain is called, by Bofwell, (A! drain. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/bin. 773 The meadow, in this plate, mull be conceived to lye" in a regular and very gentle flope, from the main feeder to the main drain. Fig. I. and fig. 2. prefent a view of the ridges cut acrofs, with each its feeding gutter (g) upon its crown, with two dif- charging drains (del) along their fides. When they are form- ed in grafs land, with the intention of preferring the grafs fward whole for immediate watering, they may, moft cheaply, though more roughly, be formed, as represented in fig. i. ; the floating gutter being merely bulked up into its proper fhap -, by the foil and fward taken from iffelf and from the receiving drains, in forming them j when, the depofitions of fediment from the floating water, will gradually fill the moulders of the floating gutter, up to die dotted line, moulding the ridge at length into the ihape of fig. 2. Were it not for the greater ex- pence, it would be better to make them of the ihape of fig. 2. at their original formation. It comes more cheap, though it occafions more delay, to plough the land into proper ridges, and, after completing the formation by the fpade, to fow it off with grafs feeds, and to delay the flooding till the fward has attained to a proper confidence *. In the formation of the meadow, particularly if the dccli-, vity is very fmall, care fhould be taken to lofc as little as pof- (ible of the level, in the main jfeedier and floating gutters, by giving them fuch fmall defcent as fliall barely fuffice to make the water run ; in order that the greater defcent may be afford- ed to the water, do vm the fides of the ridges from the floating gutters * It would appear probable, from Tome experiments in Twerddale, that wa- ter admitted over recently /own artificial grafts, makes the land throw them out. Perhaps, indeed, fuflirient care had not been taken to let the water off as readily as it came on : Upon fuppofition, however, that natural graflcs would prove more hardy, an intelligent farmer in Dunfyre parilh, Ihire of Ciydcfdalc, who is form- ing a water meadow, propofes to take a crop of oats, after a fir ft rough formation by the plough ; then to let the land lye in pafhire one feafon, for the further efta- Llifliment of the natural grafs roots; then to plough into the full ihape, affifring the formation by the fpadc, and to take a fecorjd crop of oats; after which, either to water immediately, or pafture another feafon, as the fwaid lhall or (hal! nc* appear to have a proper confluence, XJ4 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. gutters to the receiving drains j that thus the water may float over the grafs panes, with the greater rapidity, and in more quick fucceffion — the principles upon which fuccefsful water- ing, in a great meafure, depends *. The narrower the ridge is formed, the greater defcent can be given from the gutter on its crown to the drain in its fur- row, fo as to make more water pafs, in a given time, over the grafs-bearing pane ; but, at fame time, the more furface muft be unprofitably occupied in unproductive gutters and drains. A balance medium muft be attempted betwixt thefe advantages and difadvantages. Mr Wright expreffes the opinion, * that the breadth of the ridge ought never to exceed eleven yards, nor to fall fhort of eight. ' Mr Bofweil is not explicit as to the breadth of ridge ; he, however, incidentally, in treating of the formation of a particular defcription of meadow, in dry ground, mentions ten or twelve yards : In general, he obferves, that, upon light channelly or fandy foil, the breadth of the ridges may be extended, and more meadow may be watered by lefs power of water ; and that, in ftrong clay, or moffy [corky) foils, more water at a time, and Longer continued, is requifite ; and the ridges muft be narrower : In thefe laft foils, the heavier and more rapid the body of water which is made to pafs over them, fo much the more of beneficial effe£t is to be expected j unlefs, indeed, the current is fo unmanageably rapid and weighty as to endanger the tearing off the fward, It is evident, from the infpe£tion of this plate, that, if the meadow has been properly formed according to the foregoing defcription, the hatch (H) is no fooner lifted up, than the water refumes its natural channel, and the meadow becomes imme- diately dry > its figure immediately freeing it of all furface water, — 1 . ■ * In a meadow, formed Spring J 797, by Mr Talbot of Penrick Caftle, the defcent of water, in the floating flutters, is at the rate of one inch in nine yards; and of two inches in one yard, over the fides of the ridges ; the difhnce betwixt the floating gutters and receiving drains being five yards, or the whole breadth of the ridge ten yards. This formation, Mr Wright commends as nearly perfect ; though, in refpeel of breadth of ridge, he prefers that adopted in the Duke ci Bedford's meadow, where, from more abundant water, it is fixe«Vat eight yards* Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. J '} $ water. To prevent the poflibility of any water getting into the meadow, when intended to be laid dry, Mr Bofwell takes notice of the trunk ; which may be a log of wood bored like a pump ftalk, and is buried under ground at the entrance of the main feeder ; one end (which is flmt with a hatch or plug when the meadow is to be flooded) opening in the bottom of the main feeder, the other into the channel of the river below the hatch (H). The fame efTec} is produced, either by prolonging the firft floating gutter into the main drain, with a hatch to fliut it, at proper diltance from the main drain, when the water is turned upon the meadow •, or by carrying up the firft drain to the main feeder, with a hatch to fhut it when the meadow is under water, and to be raifed up when the meadow is laid dry. The convenient contrivance of the way-pane, noticed by Mr Bofwell, may here be explained. Suppofe, then, the meadow of this plate 1. to be enclofed, on one fide by the natural channel of the river, on the other three by hedge and ditch, with the ditches next to the meadow, and the hedges on the other fide of the ditch ; it is evident, that advantage may be taken of the ditches, at the head and foot of the meadow, for the main feeder and the main drain ; and that the ditch on the fide of the meadow oppofite to the channel of the river, may ferve the purpofe of the lefTer drain (d) on that fide. Bofwell has no objections to this ufe of any of the ditches, but to that of the head ditch, for the purpofe of a main feeder : Not only would the roots of the thorns breed obftru&ions in the main feeder ; but, which is of more difad- vantageous confequence, rats and moles, working in the bank, would make holes in it, by which the water would be carried off". To remedy this, befides other advantages, Bofwell advifes the forming of the main feeder parallel to the head ditch, but at the diftance of a half ridge, or pane, below it *. This pane is formed to Hope properly from the main feeder into the head ditch, and is floated immediately from the main feeder. This pane is called the way-pane ; becaufe carriages for carrying off the • Or at fui : d ■■ • as ilia.ll fufEce to turn a hay cart f]6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire* the hay are admitted upon no other part of the meadow ; which faves the damage that would accrue from wheels eroding the floating gutters and fmaller drains ; the hay, in making, being all carried up, in courfe, to the edge of the main feeder. This meadow is all flooded at one time j or, as Bofwell ex- preffes it, by one turn of water, Plate II. This plate reprefents a float meadow, lying in different de- clivities : It may be floated all at once •, or, if the water is de- ficient, at all times, or, in time of droughts, any one, or any two of the three compartments into which it is divided, may be fmgly watered, while the remainder is kept dry : It is a mea- dow with three turns of M'ater. In this meadow, it is fuppofed that the ground rifes from the natural channel of the river up to (F i.), which is a feeder with its correfponding floating gutters (g g g g) ; and thence defcends to the hollow along which is conducted the drain (D i.), which receives the water from the lefTer drains (d d d)} and difcharges it into the main drain. It is fuppofed, that the ground rifes again from (D r.) up to the fecond feeder (F 2.), and thence defcends to the hollow, along which is conducted the receiving drain (D 2.) The remainder of the meadow is fuppofed to lye in a regular Hope, from the main feeder to the main drain, or laft mentioned receiving drain. The letter (r), in this and the former plate, marks a fmall rut or gutter, form- ed by a fpade or triangular hoe, for conducting water to places upon which it does not appear to fcatter regularly. The hatch upon the river's natural channel, and the one upon the feeder (F 2.), arc reprefentcd as fhut ; and, confe- quently, the natural channel, together with that part of the meadow which is floated from the feeder (F 2.) as dry. The hatches, upon the feeder (F 1.), and upon the main feeder, are reprefentcd as drawn up ; and, confequently, the two parts of the meadow, floated from them, are reprefentcd as under wa- ter. In I ' i n i > ]..\tj; r.s s vkv r. v i> "Idle HI. n^ Agricultural Survey of Peebksjlnre. 1 77 In the confirmation of float meadows, the floating gutters die away to nothing within four or five yards of the main drain ; the water from the extremity of the gutter eaiily fpreading over that fpace ; or, where ready to collect into a ftrtam before falling into the main drain, being made to fpread properly by the fmall ruts marked (r) : The fmall receiving drains, for like reafon, may be made to die away before reaching the feeders. This is reprefented in the plan. In forming meadow, Gloucefterfhire flooders make no ac- count (according to Mr Wright) of the original quality of the foil or fubfoil ; the meadow will, in all cafes, come in time to be equally good ; the goodnefs depending entirely upon the quality of the water, which foon creates, of itielf, foil enough for the plants. The fubfoil is of no account, whether pervious or impervious to water \ as it is found (after fufficient time for the water depofiting fufficiency of fediment), that the water difcharged by the main drain, is, in every meadow, nearly equal in quantity to that admitted by the main feeder, any ap- parent diminution being no more than what might be fairly at- tributed to evaporation, from fuch an extent of furface, with- out fuppofing any of it to have funk through the foil *. If, however, there are fprings in the meadow, thefe mud be car- ried ofF by underdraining j for every meadow muii firit be thoroughly drained, before you can drown it to good effetl. Ufed water is confidered as of very little ufe ; hence, mea- dows formed below another meadow, to be watered by the fame water that hath, immediately before, watered the meadow above, are confidered of very inferior value. Hence ariLs the propriety of making the watered panes narrow 5 as, even in meadows where the ridges are the moft narrow, the part of A a the * Mr Bofwell takes notice of a meadow of thin moorifli foij, upon an imper- vious bottom of clay till, watered from a faring near to its, lource. It. proved per- ftdly barren : When the meadow was laid dry, a yellowilh-coloun d v.'.itcr ooztd through the foil (probably from ochiy impregnation of the fubfpil) : It was /co- vered with chalk and other manures, and *11 to no purpo£s ; At length it vi»S thoroughly underdrained, when it inn. • ': ' -■ prpdutSive. 178 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire* the pane neareft to the floating gutter bears more grafs than the parts farther off; becaufe the former firft filter the water, and tranfmit it ufed, in fome degree ; to the latter : The balance of difadvantages, however, forbid too great narrowing of the panes, that fufBciency of productive furface may remain un- broken. Even fimple clear water, taken off for the meadow near to the fource of the fpring, and where no extent of furface is wafhed by rains to render the water turbid even in the wetteft feafon— evenfuch water enriches meadow ; with the exception, probably, of fprings impregnated ftrongly with minerals, which might prove destructive to vegetation : The beft effects are, neverthelefs, to be expected from waters draining a good ex- tent of fertile lands, or receiving the drainings of great towns. Water is fuppofed to act both as an enricher, and as a Winter jheker to the grafs plants. In the former view, the quality of its depofitions will afcertain its value ; though (as even the water from a fpring enriches, and as this too is deteriorated by being ufed), it is not improbable that pure water, in filtering through the grafs, undergoes fome kind of decompofition ; in the courfe of which it is deprived of fome vegetable pabulum, which the plants of grafs affimilate to their own fubftance, and which it cannot again render out in the fame quantity, to the plants it next paffes over in fucceffion*. As a mere Winter fnelter, water fhould have the fame effects, ufed, as un- vfcd. For both purpofes, it would appear eligible that the wa- ter fhould cover the panes in a fheet of one inch of thick- nefs ; and moving in a fucceffion, of the quicknefs given by a defcent of two inches to the yard, from the edge of the float- ing • By Count Romford's experiments on food, particularly in making foups from vegetables after long boiling, it would appear that water properly decom- piled forms a chief article in animal nutrition. Six or feven ounces of a mix- ture of peas, potatoes, and barley, weighed dry, will, after long boiling with furticiency of water, furnifh food for twenty-four hours to a hard working man ; although it is certain, that a man perfectly idle would abfoluuly Oarve upon fiich an allowance, if adminiftered to him under any other form, and though he fhould drink along with it the fame quantity of water. Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJIj'tre. 1 79 ing gutters, upon the crown of the ridge, to the edge of the drain along its fides. To cover the meadow with a fheet of water exceeding an inch and half in thicknefs, would, it is fuppofed, rot out the roots, from the too entire exclufion of the air : for the fame reafon, the water mull, at longer or fhorter intervals, be turned off the meadow, that the plants may get air. Considering the depth and rapidity of water re- quired in floating, a confiderable command of water is necef* fary for no great extent of meadow. It is always better to contract the extent of meadow, than overftretch the power of the water. Flate III. This plate reprefents catch meadow for the fide of a hill, or deep declivity It is called catch, becaufe, when the whole is watered at once, the water, floating over the upper moii pitch- es*, is catchedm the floating gutters, which diftribute it over the inferior pitches f. The lateral horizontal feeding gutters, which fcatter the wa- ter over the firft and fecond pitches, are reprefented as fhut by fods, or ftones, &c. (8) ; and, confequently, thefe firft and fecond pitches appear dry : The whole water is reprefented as palling down the main feeder into the lowed floating gutter 5 whence it floats the lowed, or third pitch, and is received into the drain at the foot of the meadew, to be returned by it into the natural channel. When the whole is to be floated at once, the ob ft ructions (8) are taken from the lateral floating gutters : obstructions, meantime, are placed in the main feeder, immediately under the floating gutters, to force the water into faid gutters : thefe ob- structions muft not, however, entirely obftruct the main feeder, but muft allow feme unufed water to proceed to the lower pitch- es. * I am (uQmciocs that the word pitch is here improperly ufed : I believe a pilch of tvork is the tech Die floater's phrafe to denote the portion of a meadow watered by one turn of water. It may anf*er wel! enough here as a reference to the plate, ■(■ Meadow watered by water ctetehed fioru a higher lying tr.e.idew after having floated it, is called cat I ...... ■;- EoUe^i. 1 Bo Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhlrt. es. The breadth of the pitches, in catch meadow, I have not found ascertained \ they may, no doubt, confiderably exceed that of a pane in a float meadow •, becaufe, from the more ra- pid defcent of the water over the ground, it may run farther, without being fo much impoverifhed by fo much fhorter con- tinued ufe. Bofwell propofes a different form for catch meadow. The main feeder, in this plate, he carries on, along the head of the meadow, and down the fide oppofite to that bounded by the water's natural courfe. Drains, of fimilar form to thofe mark- ed (a d d) in the two preceding plates, but of larger fize, are drawn, in the place occupied by the floating gutters of this plate, with their fmalier end approaching near to the natural channel, and diverging towards (in order to discharge them- felves into) the main feeder, on the oppofite fide of the mea- dow. Hatches are placed upon the main feeder, immediately below its turn down hill, and immediately below the discharg- ing mouths of each of the drains. If you chufe to water the jirj} pitch by itfelf, fliut the hatch immediately under the turn downwards of the main feeder ; the water then accumulates in the horizontal part of the main feeder, and it floats over its bank upon the firft pitch : meanwhile, all the other hatches being opened, the water floating over the firft pitch, is catched in the firft drain below it, and difcharged into the perpendicular part of the main feeder. To water the fecond pitch by itfelf, open the hatch immediately below the turn downwards of the main feeder, and (hut the hatch upon the main feeder imme- diately below the diverging mouth of the drain lying under Jirji pitch ; the water then runs along the main feeder, without floating over, till it comes to this fhut hatch j when it runs up the drain along the head of fecond pitch, overflows its fides, and waters that pitch \ and, the hatches below being opened, the drain at the foot of fecond pitch difcharges the water into the main feeder. By this ingenious contrivance, the feeders and drains fcrve the double purpofe of drains and feeders, into which they are alternately converted. Catch meadow, on the face of hills, is not fo much prized as float meadow upon flat lying land. Catch Agricultural Survey of Peeblesffnre. 1 8 r Bofwell propofes, as advantageous, the formation of land Into water meadow, even ivhere there is no perenni.il run of wa- ter ; if, only, it be fo fituated, that, in wet weather, the draw- ings of any large tra£V. of cultivated rich land can be collected into a main feeder, and brought over it. This he calls water- ing by land flood;-!. After what has been fuggefted, as to the formation of wa- ter meadows, nothing more feems requifite, on this part of the fubjeel:, but the explanation of Rafter Levelling. When mea- dow is formed from grafs land, preferving the fward, inequali- ties of fmaU account are equalized by this mode : The fmall heights are deeply rutted by the fpade into narrow parallel {tripes ; one {tripe is taken out, and another left remaining, al- ternately ; thofe left, are beaten down by the heel or a mallet ; thofe taken out, are chopped and fpread in the little hollows, p.nd beaten down : The levelling thus proceeds in double ratio ; the heights being lowered down, and the hollows elevated. Watered meadows are expected to yield, firft, a Spring feed, coming in by the middle of March, or beginning of A- pril : This may be paftured till the beginning of May. If a crop of hay is next intended, the pafturing muft ceafe then ; as, if continued for a Angle week in May, the hay would be ruined in quality (according to Wright) ; as it will be foft, woolly, and unfubltantial, like a crop of aftermath. Second, The pafture having been eaten quite bare, the meadow is wa- tered for a few days, (the fewer, in proportion to the heat of the weather) ; and, in fix weeks or fo, a crop of hay will be in readinefs for cutting. Third, After the hay is removed, the water, again turned over the meadow, for a few days, will produce a crop of aftermath, for paflure or for green houfe feeding : A fecond aftermath, or even a third, is procured, fometimes, in the fame manner. The Spring feetl, raifed by the Winter watering, is a wholefome food for every kind of pafturing animal. No fact, however, is better .ascertained in agriculture, than, that paf- tuti/ic 1 82 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. turingjheep on grafs, raifed by Summer watering, infallibly rots them. They mud never, therefore, be allowed to tafte the aftermath ; unlefs it has been allowed to grow after the hay crop, without watering. In Scotland, it is not to be expected that watering will produce either fuch early, or fuch abundant vegetation, as under the fuperior climates of Gloucefter or Dorfet (hires. One general rule in watering is — never to admit the water, when there is growth upon the meadow, fit for either pafture or cutting, as the fediment of the water would make the crop naufeous or uneatable — and to admit the water at the time the meadow is quite bare. Another general rule is, to proportion the continuance of the water upon the meadow, to the heat of the weather, con- tinuing it longeft when the weather is coldeft. In hot wea- ther, too long watering is Did to produce a fcum of a white- ifh colour, which is deftructive of vegetation ; and whofe cure is, inftantly to lay dry. Hot foil needs fhorte ft j cold, longeft watering. The meadows ought to be eaten bare in the middle of Oc- tober, that they may receive the benefit of the water from the firft floods after Summer, which muft necefTarily have the richeft depofitions ; and this firft flooding may be continued for five or fix weeks. In November, December, January and February, the flood- ing may be continued ; firft, for five or fix weeks at a time, and then, gradually for lefs fpace at a time, with intervals of laving dry gradually increating. From Michaelmas to Can- dlemas, no flood fhould be allowed to pafs, without its waters being thrown over the meadow, to obtain the fediment. In Scot- land, the watering may probably be continued through March. That the benefit of the water may never be loft, it is pro- per to have a meadow with different turns of water j or fepa- rate meadows, to be alternately watered, and laid dry. This is alfo peculiarly advantageous in procuring an uninterrupted fucceffion of aftermath pafture, or green houfe feeding. By continued courfe of watering, meadow is not only fer- tilized for grafsj but enriched for tillage. A Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 183 A Scotifh farmer is aftonifhed at the accounts of the return of meadow, as ftated by Mr Wright. For inftance, in South Cerne in Gloucefterfhire, the rent obtained from one of the beft meadows, per Scots acre, for five weeks pafture from the fecond day of Aprils amounted to no lefs than 5I. 9s. ^d. The fubfequent hay crop amounted to 230 Tweeddale ftones per acre, at 22 Englifh pounds to the ftone, befides the after foggage, whofe value is not ftated. The number of cattle maintained per Scots acre, for the above five weeks pafturing, amounted nearly to feventeen wedders, one and a fourth cow, together with one colt. The average value of meadow in Dorfetfhire, is ftated, by Bofwell, at a much lower rate. Meadows are let, by them- felves, at from 30s. to near 3I. per Scots acre; or, if the crops are let feparately, the Spring feeding till the ifl of May is let at about 12s. and the aftermath at from 12s. to 18s. per Scots acre ; the price of the hay crop varying, according to crop and markets, from il. 18s. to 3I. 5s. per Scots acre. The expence of forming water meadow, every thing in- cluded, Bofwell eftimates at from 5I. to 7I. tos. per Scots acre, according to the favourable or unfavourable predifpofi- tion of the grounds. In high lying fheep farms, where the returns from tillage are not adequate to its expence, water meadow feems to pro- mife a mode of obtaining an early Spring food for ewes, and Winter fodder for milk cows, and horfes kept for carriage of fuel and riding, at a cheaper rate than, in fuch fitnations, they could any other way be procured. Mr Anderfon has, I underftand, introduced watering in his fheep farm of Cramalt, in the high lying parifh of Meggot. Our Scotifh experience is ?£ yet too limited, to decide upon, CHAP. 1 84 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhire. CHAP. XIII. LIVE STOCK. Sect. I. — Cattle. The average fize of milk cows may be about twenty-five {tones Dutch weight, when moderately fat. The farmer en- deavours to fuit the fize of his cows to their pafture. He efteems it much more fafe to have them under, than over* fized. Mr Mackie, in his fecond letter to Colonel Dirom, relative to the corn laws, obferves, that fmall animals take on fat more readily than large ones, in proportion to their feeding, for two reafons : Jirft, Becaufe the furface of the bodies of fmall animals is much greater, in proportion to their folid contents or weight, than that of large ones ; and, as fat is moftly depofited upon the furface of the body, they have, confequently, a larger fpace to lay it upon : fecondl^ Becaufe the mufcular fibres of fmall animals are lefs tenfe, and more eafily admit that fat, which, in the fattening procefs, infin ur- ates itfelf into the interior veficles of the mufcular fibres. He takes notice of a comparative experiment of fattening large and fmall oxen upon turnip and hay ; in courfe of which, it was found, that each large ox ate double of what was con- fumed by the fmall one. When both were fold, the large oxen fetched 12I, each of price, and each pair of fmall ones 1 61. Mr Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjl/ire. 185 Mr Loch of Rachan fpeaks highly of a breed of cows he lias got from Kyle, recommended in Colonel Fullarton's Re- port of Ayrfliire. Mr Stewart has a breed at Efheilds, picked up in Berwick- fhire. Two kinds of them he wifhes to propagate as flock : The one, of a dark red colour ; face, bread and legs, white ; horns fmall, long, and well fet ; bones fmall for their weight; body round ; legs fhort, but well fet on them : The other* of a paler red colour, with more of white ; the bones fmall alfo, but not fo handfomely fet, nor the horns fo handfome. The firfl, are the mod kindly feeders; the fecond, the bed milkers: the firft, when fattened, of fuperior beef; the fe- cond, yielding mod tallow. It feems probable, that a great range of well obferved ex- perience is dill neceffary, before any thing very decifive can be pronounced, as to the indications in black cattle, that prog- nodicate fuperiority, as to the diftinct properties of feeding or milking. Sect. IE— Sheep. There feems to be no clear tradition, nor even plaufible conjecture, as to nuhen, or whence, fheep were fird introduced into this county, or whether the prefent breed are indige- nous, or from another country. There is, indeed, an obfcure tradition, that, previous to the introduction, or general pre- valence of fheep in the parifh of Tweedfmuir, the farmers in that parifh paid their rents, by grazing, for hire, through Summer, the oxen then generally ufed by Lothian farmers for their Winter ploughing. The native Tweeddale breed, which has continued the fame as far back as memory or tradition extends, are all horn- ed, with black faces, and black legs, and coarfe wool. Their fhape, to which alone attention has been paid in fele&ing the breeders, is compact, fhort-coupled, fhort-legged, round-bo- died, with a riling forehead ; in fhort, pofiefling thofe quali- ties, which, in every other fpecies of animal, has hitherto B b been 1 86 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. been confidered as indicative of kindly feeding and eafy keep *. Sir John Sinclair, to whom his native country {lands highly indebted on various accounts, has, feemingly with great propriety, recommended the Cheviot breed, as the bed adapted of any known fpecies of fine-ivooled Jbeep, for high, bleak fituatiens. They are in the courfe of being fairly tried ir. Tweeddale. Nothing, however, decifive can as yet be faid in regard to the experiment. They are hardy and vivacious, and no more liable to difeafes or death, than our native kind ; excepting, merely, in a fevere feaforij at the time of lambing, when the lambs are more rea- dy to perifli from inclemency of weather, being more naked at the time of birth. Their longer back, longer legs, lower forehand, and more lank flvape, would indicate their being lefs kindly feeders : they are acknowledged, indeed, to be lb, by thofe who are propagating that kind. It is pretty generally fuppofed, that the lands, which would fuffice to maintain fl/ty fcores of the na- tive breed, would maintain only forty-five fcores of the Che-r viotj and that, not from fuperior weight of carcafe, but mere unkindlinefs in feeding. There is no judging, as yet, of the profit from the fales ; as the price has not, as yet, come to its level. Whilft the rage for this ipecies of improvement continues, and till once the country is fully flocked, the ewe lambs draw a preihnn ajf^clloius for breeders ; and even the wedder lambs draw the fame kind of price, on account of the wool, from thofe whole farms are adapted * Mr Stewart, upon Mi- Hay of Hay (ton's farms of Efhields, or Hay (ton, has liro-'ght our native breed to bring lambs in January ; from the very plaufible no- tion, that they will feed their lambs at ltfs expence than any other breed yet known, in that very e>>penfivc fealbn of keeping. The practice was once very profitable; but, as in all finailar cafes, the fuperior profit attracts capital to the fame employment, till the profits arc beat down, by competition, to the level of that obtained in other employments; the only difference remaining, being that y/hich confifls in natural advantages for the practice ; for which, proportional kp.1. jftufl be paid againfl a new Ic Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfbire. 187 adapted for carrying on this kind of ftock fheep. Meanwhile, an adequate price is not obtained from the Edinburgh butcher, for the fkins and wool of the lambs, or old flieep difpofed of to him ; becaufe he contracts with a dealer, through the feafon, for the lkins of all the flieep he fhall kill, at an average price ; and he cannot, as yet, fay before-hand, what number uf fine fkins he fhall have in his parcel. He reckons the carcafe infe- rior, both or lamb and mutton. Fine wool, like every other article in commerce, niuft fall in price, as it becomes lefs fcarce. There is, too, no reafon, in the nature of the thing, why fuch as can afford it, fhould not give a proportionably higher price for delicate mutton, as for fine wool ; it being juft as reafonable to wifh to be delicately fed, as to be foftly clothed : Nor is it perfectly afcertained, that the mutton of the Cheviot breed conies up to the acknowledged delicacy of that of our native breed. It remains, then, as yet, to be determined, by fair experi- ment, whether, in point of profit, the acknowledged fuperiori- ty of the black-faced breed, in regard to feeding and carcafe, and the lefs rifk of death of lambs, fhall furpafs, or equal, or come fhort of, the acknowledged fuperiority of the Cheviot breed, in regard to wool. The experiment will be completely tried ; and, if fuccefsful, the change of breed will be as com- pletely effected : For the Tweeddale farmers are certainly as much fet upon their own intereft as any other clafs of men, when, only, it is clearly afcertained to them where their inte- reft lies. In regard to agricultural improvements, the higher ranks of fociety are ready to difplay too much of the Ipirit which ani- mates the democrats of the day ; their notions of improvement, haftily embraced from mere partial views of the fubjecl:, mult be inftantjy adopted, and every ancient fyftcm mult be over- turned, to make way for them ; their abitract reafonings, ,} priori, mult be implicitly confided in ; pa ft experience is un- worthy of atteiitioni and future experience nor worth wai for'; innovation is reform; a cau 11 it) ainil chaj -1 • ' ■':• il ' ' \udket hvi'T. . ef 1 88 Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJInfe. of mental energy, and of directing itfelf by the polarity of rea* fon *. The fame zeal leads, in both inftances, to the fame difregard of veracity ; and the report of an infuriated reform- ing gentleman farmer, as to agricultural fa£r.s, deferves as little credit, as that of a democrat in regard to public events. In gentlemens parks, different kinds of fine-wooled fheep have been kept ; particularly the Bakewell breed, with long combing wool : The South Down have, of late, been adopted, by Sir James and Sir George Montgomery, at Whim and Mag- biehill j and by the Countefs Dowager of Dundonald, at La- mancha. Their wool, though lefs in quantity, may, from fu- perior price, render them equally profitable with the Bakewell ; while their fmaller fize would indicate their flefh to be more delicate, though not comparable to that of the black-faced breed. The idea which has been fuggefted, of dividing, univerfally through this county, the high lying coarfe pafture from the lower and more fine, appropriating the former to the coarfer wooled, and more eafily kept breeds, and the latter to the lefs kindly feeding, but finer wooled, would be found inadmiflible ; the coarfe-wooled kinds requiring lower pafture for Winter. Even where old wedders (the hardieft of all fheep) are kept, there muft be varieties of pafture, to fuit the changes of fea- fon. The period of geftation, with fheep, being twenty-one weeks, the general term of the admiffion of the tups to the ewes is the 2 2d November ; fo as that the lambing may commence by the 1 8th of April. In lower fituations, where tire grafs fprings earlier, the tup is admitted perhaps ten days fooner. Except- ing * Mr Chatto of Mainhoufc, near Kelfb, at one time, followed farming as a profeffion. When he commenced practice, Jlraight ridges were the order of the day ; every one was branded, as prejudiced to antiquated abfurd cufbm, who had not ftra'iglu ridges, at all events : He, too, therefore had his ridges ftraightened. He has afTurcd me, however, that of all other errors in farming, he never fo heartily repented of any one, as of ftraightening ridges in wet land ; the former high crowns, now levelled, remaining for years perfectly barren ; and the old fur- rows, now filled up, bci»g converted, into mire. Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfjire. itg ing in two or three very high-lying farms, the tup is admitted to the gimmers, as well as to the older ewes. According to the poverty or richnefs of the pafture, and confequent more enlarged, or more circumfcribed ipreading of the fheep in their feeding, one tup fuffices for forty, or for fifty ewes : And no more than what are neceffary are kept of fuch an unprofitable flock. An enclofure would feem highly neceiTary in every fheep farm, in which to confine the tups for fome weeks, previous to their admiffion to the ewes, in order to fuperfede the awk- ward contrivance ot a cloth fewed over their bellies, which, though it prevents the premature impregnation of the ewer, does net prevent exhauftion — not to mention the excoriating effect of the confinement of the urine. The lambs intended for wedders, are caftrated as late as can be hazarded, that they may fliow better in the forehand, and in the born * ; but early enough to avoid the great Summer's heats, which would render the operation dangerous : The u- fual feafon is fome time in June. Thunder or froft, immedi- ately after the operation, are both highly dangerous. The mode of operating is this : One perfon, commonly a maid-fer- vant, holds up the lamb, with its back againft the holder';, breaft ; the operator, ftanding before the lamb, cuts off a part of xhefcrotum with a fharp knife, then fqueezing out the tefti- cles, he catches them betwixt his fore-teeth, and draws them away, with all their vefTels attached to them. Lambs are not fhorn till the fecond July from their being lambed. The * It feems odd, that caftration mould produce fuch oppof:te effects in the bull and the ram, increasing the growth of horn in the former, and diminilhing it in the latter. This is one, of various inftances, in which analogy does not hold. We mud have recon rfe to analogical reafoning, in fubjefts inaceeffible to expc;i- ence: It is, however, idle to reft upon analogy, where we have accefs to confirm or annul the eonclufion by experiment. That like events Iriall take place in like circnmftances, is the fundamental principle of all reafoning, as to caufe and ef- feft; but circumftancet wilt appear alike, upon a fuperficia! view, where a difference may he dimmed upon mere minute e- amination. ipo Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJJj'irc. The breeding ewes are cafl off at the ages of four, five, or fix years ; requiring, proportionally, the retention of a greater or lefs number of lambs, annually, to keep up the flock. Some- times particular ewes will mew iymptoms of failure more ear- ly, or will retain their vigour longer than any of thefe allotted periods : Their ftate is examined once a year, and is judged of by the appearance of their eyes, and the condition of their teeth, when thofe to be call off are diftinguifhed by fome vifible mark of heel (an iron ore which makes a red mark) or of tar. It is judged belt to caft them while yet in full vigour, as they draw the better price. From the retained name of crocks, or decript, the old practice had been different. The fheep are all fmeared, or falved, at Martinmas, with a mixture of tar and butter : twelve Scots pints (twenty- four Englifh quarts) of Norway tar, with one and a quarter Hones (16 lb. of 22 oz. going to the Hone) of Orkney butter, fuffice for fifty lambs, or for fixty fmeared for the fecond time : The fame tar, with a ftone and an half of butter, fuffice for eighty older fheep. The young fheep require more tar, in pro- portion, in order to kill the vermin, to which they are more fubject. Smearing is farther judged neceffary to keep the wool in better quality, and in greater quantity ; as, alfo, for a de- fence againft cold and wet. It, no doubt, difcolours the wool ; and the reprobation cf this long-conftituted practice, furnifhes a theme for declamation to our ignorant, inexperienced, revo- lutionary, reforming farmers *'. About the beginning, or towards the middle of July, the lambs, intended for holding flock, are weaned ; when they re- ceive * Mr Loch of Rachar, obferves, that a fmear, which fliall, at once, fhoct the rain, kill vermin, and defend the wool from the withering efftd of weather with- out difcolouring it, feems to be, hitherto, a dtfiicrat.im in fheep farming. He propofes a fmear compofed of butter, train oil, and turpentine. Ik informs me, that, ten or twelve years ago, on obferving a recommenda- tion to that effefl; from the Wool Society, he clothed fixteen of his flock, from the neck to the tail, with cerecloths of a foot in breadth, as a fubftitute for fmear- ing: But, at hearing time, the wool below the cloths was fo padded and glued together, by the viicid clammy pcrlpiration from the animals body, as to be good i'jr nothing. Agricultural Survey of PecbtesJJjlre. 191 1 1 Ceive the artificial marks to diftinguifh to whom they belong; which are, the farmer's initial, ftamped upon their nofe with a hot iron, prcvincialiy defigned the barn ; and alfo marks cut in- to the ear with a knife, defigned lug mark. Head mark, or, in other words, that characteriilic of individuality ftamped by the hand of Nature upon every individual of her numerous progeny (and which we learn fo readily to difcern, in all thofe fpecies with which we are moft familiarly converfant) is, how- ever, efteemed, by every fheep farmer, as the mod certain and unequivocal mark of the identity of a fheep : It is a mark with which no coincidence can take place (as in artificial ones), through either accident or purpofe. An intelligent fhepherd, whofe perceptions are fharpened by habitual attention, can rea- dily diftinguifh every individual of his flock, independent of any artificial mark ; jail as he could recognize a fellow fervant, upon perfonal acquaintance, whether he were drefled in a long, or fhort, or black, or white coat, or wore no coat at all. A perfon, remarkable for his quicknefs in diftinguifhing fheep, has been known, for a wager, to put threefcore of ewes and lambs, of a flock he had never before feen, all higgledy-piggledy, into a houfe, and immediately to go in himfelf, and to turn them all out one by one •, firft, a ewe, and then her own lamlx, without committing a fingle miftake ; although the only means required by him, to enable him to diftinguifh fo accurately, was to be allowed to obferve them for half an hour quietly feeding, each ewe with her lamb alongfidt; of her, previous to their being driven into the houfe *. After * It is exceedingly probable that the individual, in every fpecies of animals, is perfectly diftinguilhed from every other individual of the fame fpecies, by dm-, raaeriftic marks of individuality : How ell'e, indeed, cou!d matfcs diflingiiilh cadi ether at the pairing feafon ? But, from want of habitual and minute attention, the general uiemblancc alone (hikes us ; whilft the minute differences efcape our obfervation. To one unaccufromed to fheep, a Tweeddale flock (ail of one make of body, and lame texture of wool, all homed, uiih black facts and legs'! would, upon a curfory view, appear as perfcdly alike, and tcu:aiiy iiiuliltingiiiuYible from one another, as a flock of crous. I qr.cfiion not but a crow herd svoultf I ; learn to di.linguifli individuals as perfcft!) as a Jhcpherd. I rccollal h . whew 192 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesf/ire. After rearing the Iambs, the ewes were wont to be milked foe fix or feven, or even to the length of ten weeks. The practice is, in fome farms, totally difcontinued, to prevent weakening the ewes ; where continued, it is ufed in modera- tion. The lambs, for holding flock, immediately upon their be- ing weaned, were in ufe to be fent, often to great diftances, to be fummered (as it is called) for fix weeks, upon barren heathy land, in fome cold, bleak lituation ; from a notion that fuch rugged treatment had a tendency to harden their con- ftitution. Very violent tranfitions of this nature, from the molt palatable and nutritious of food, the mother's milk, to fuch unpalatable, innutritious, and hardly digeftible pafture, aie, however, now generally condemned. The lambs arc indeed fent to the higher parts of the farm, whofe grafies are, at this feafon, in their higheft ftate of perfection ; care, however, is taken that their food {hall be both copious and pa- latable. Meanwhile, fome better and lower lying pafture is faved (hained) for them, for their Winter's provifion : what is thus hained, is called the hog fence. Formerly, the hog fence was referved exclufively for the lambs, which were admitted to it at Lammas 5 but, from the obfervation made in farms fo fmall, as not to admit feparation of hirfels, that the hogs were much lefs fubjecl to the fcknefs (a difeaie often ex- tremely £ata! to hogs), it has, of late, come pretty much into practice, to allow the old {heep and the hogs to pafture indif- criminately together. The earlieft fpringing food of flieep, is a plant, bearing a white cotton head upon its feed-ftalk, vulgarly defigned Mojf- crop : It begins to fpring about Candlemas, if the weather proves frefli : It grows in mofies. Draiv-ling fucceeds it, in the month of March ; fo defigned, becaufe the (heep feize, tenderly, where met with a remark, that a painter, in drawing a foreigner, is much more apt to hit off the general national appearance, than the individual refemblancc. Fpr this rcafon, county reports might he bell made up from the reports of two, a foreigner and a native; the fitft for the general features, the latter for minute differences. Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjljire. 193 tenderly, with their teeth, the part of the plant appearing above ground ; and, inftead of biting it over, they draw up a long white part of the plant from a focket under ground. The latefl fpringing plant is faath, which yields its flower to the bee, after all other flowers have decayed. A proper fuccef- fion of earlier and later fpringing heath, is a matter of efl'en- tial confequence in mod Tweeddale fheep farms, (and indeed in all fheep diftri£ts where heath abounds), in order that the range of this fpecies of food, in its mod eatable ftate, may ex- tend through the greater* poflible portion of the feafon. This fucceflion is obtained by burning a certain portion of heath, each Spring, before the rifing of the fap j fo as to have heath, upon the farm, of one, two, three, or four years growth from the root. As in all plants of a fhrubby nature, the heath plants mod recent from the root, fend forth their fhoots moft early in Spring, and the oldeft later in the feafon. When the game laws were, of late, altered, by protrading the commencement of partridge mooting, in favour of late corns, it is pity but the legal feafon for muirburn had alfo been prolonged, in favour of the fheep. There is not one year in ten, in which the proper quantity of heath can be burnt within the time limited by law, which extends from Michaelmas to the end of March : Burning in Winter ha$ been found deftruclive of the heath, in fome inftances of trial. Old heath, or whins, or broom, are the great refource of fheep in Winter fnow ftorms, as they keep the fnow afloat, and allow the fheep to come to the grafs growing about their roots. I have never heard of any attempt to cultivate any of thefe plants for fheep, but whin and broom. Prejudices continued long in Tweeddale againft artificial fhelters and Winter feeding for fheep, upon fuppofition that they rendered them too lazy to dig the fnow with their feet, in order to come at their natural food : Both thefe prejudices have nearly vanifhed, being expelled by experience. Trees are, in various inftances, planted for fhelters. It would be for the intereft of ev?ry proprietor of fheep farms, to encou- ,. Cc rage I £4 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. rage the farmer to rear fhelter of trees, by allowing him the V/eedings of the plantation, and becoming bound to pay the farmer, at the rate of perhaps 8d. or iod. apiece for every tree left (landing at fpecified didances, at the expiry of his leafe : Such an intereft communicated to the farmer, would give the mod effectual fecurity for the protection of the trees. Shel- ters are alfo procured by buildings, enclofing a fquare open area in the middle, furnifhed with (hades on every fide. Stells (that is, circular fpaces of area, proportioned to the fize of the flock, enclofed by a five or fix feet wall of done or fod, without any roof) were the primeval fhelters invented by our forefathers : The circular figure of the building caufes the drifting wind, in fnow dorms, to wheel round it, without rifmg over it, and depofiting the fnow in the calm region within. The Iheep are fed, in Winter dorms, with fuch provifion as can be procured, under the trees, in the (hades, and within the circles : Even where no feeding is adminider- ed, much advantage refults to the animals from mere defence againd the weather ; and they are much the more alert in iearching for natural food, fo foon as the dorm ceafes. The mode of acting of the fheep, gives a pretty certain indication of the weather to be expected : Upon the near approach of a fnow dorm, thofe accudomed to (helters, are obferved to make for their (helter : Upon the near approach of thaw, their prefentiment leads them to be lefs indudrious in digging the fnow for food, as if confcious that fuch labour was no longer neceflary. When fnow drift unexpectedly arifes, and the depth of fnow on the grounds prevents the poflibility of driving the iheep to fhelter, the herdfmen gather them together in a body, and keep them in condant motion, that they may tread down the fnow as it falls, and may not be whelmed up by it. The natural fhelters are the leeward fides of hills of Jleep declivity (or Jlrait hields) \ a calm is formed immediately under their brow, where the drifted fnow is depofited and accumulated, whilft the flieep red, unmoleded by it, farther down the hill. When Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 195 When thaw comes, the fheep are carefully guarded againft refting upon thefe bields, where they formerly found fhelter ; as the heat of the earth, melting the under furface of the ac- cumulated mow under the brow of the hill, caufes the wreath (called, from its figure, a combed wreath) to Aide down in a body, like an avalanche in the Alps, crufhing to pieces every thing it meets in its courfe ; the very weight of the wreath, when long accumulated by drift-winds blowing from the fame quarter, expofes the fheep to the fame rilk, in their bields, even in time of froft. The proper hirfeling and herding of the fheep, in claffing them into diftinct flocks or hirfels, and in allocating to each flock its proper walk for the different feafons of the year, are mat- ters much attended to. A proper management in thefe re- fpects, is held as the diftinclive mark of fuperiority in fheep farming. The principles of hirfeling are, to clafs into fepaTate flocks fuch fheep as are endowed with different abilities of fearching for food ; and to have all that are in one flock, as nearly as poffible, upon a par, in this refpecl. For inftance, ewes far gone with lamb, or fuckling their lambs, muft not be clafTed with fheep unclogged with fuch incumbrances, who would al- ways get the ftart of them in running to the beft bites. Hogs, too, mould be kept feparate from the older fheep, who would intimidate them ; and mull alfo be provided, if poffible, with more delicate and more plentiful food ; though, as already ob- ferved, this advantage to the hogs is now beginning to be in fome meafure relinquifhed, on account of the diminution of the rifle of their death refulting from their pafturing in com- mon with older fheep— whether this diminution of rifle arifes from prevention of over eating, or is owing alfo to fom? other undifcovered caufe.. The principles of herding are, to allocate, to each particular flock, feparate walks upon the farm for each feafon of the year ; fo as that all the different kinds of herbage may be com- pletely ufed, in their refpedive proper feafon, and a fuilicien- cy ir>6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. cy be left, in a proper eatable ftate, for Winter proviGon, after all frefh fpringing of grafs is over *. Such are the general principles kept in view, in regard to hirfeling and herding : Their proper practical application de- pends upon profeffional fkill ; or may be neceffarily determin- ed by the peculiar circumftances of the farm, which may ren- der it neceffary to be contented merely with what \:- pvndicable\ inftead of what would be more eligible. In very fmall fheep farms, hirfeling cannot be attended to, the rninutenefs of each diftincl hirfel, into which they muft fall to be claffcd, being unable to afford the expence of feparate herdfmen. It * Many intelligent farmers are of opinion, that the whole of hirfeling and herding refolyes it fell into the fimple principles following, viz. to have no more frock upon the farm, than what can be abundantly fnpplicd with food ; to keep the whole pafiure in its higheft eatable ftate, by fhifting the flocks gradually over the whole in fucceffion, fo as that none of it (ball have fprung to feed-ftalk, or fhall have withered or rotted, before the fheep are admitted to it ; and, that after having eaten up what they have been laft admitted to, they fhall always have ano- ther fpaee in readinefs, which fhall have lain vacant for perhaps three weeks, and no more than three weeks, for freshening and taking on a new growth; and, that as to Winter provifion of grafs, after all fpringing of grafs has ceafed, it is in vain to think of fupplying this, by referring a part, till it has grown withered, rotten, and uneatable ; for that faid reftrvation would have done them more good by putting it previously into their bellies and upon their backs, when it afforded nou- l.ifliing food, than by preftnting it to them in Winter, when unpalatable, innu- tritive, and unwholefome. The dependence of fheep againft fuflering in the un- productive months of Winter, muft be chiefly fought in their good habit of body before Winter fets in; as then they muft depend, for immediate food, upon Inch fcanty picking as can be got from heath, whins, or hardy coarfe grafles, which they rejected in Summer, and which (land through Winter ; and hay in : irms. They account nothing more nccifUry, in regard to feparation into difti'ncl hir- fels, than to keep the lambs, after weaning, upon the lower part of the paf.uiv, fiom Auguft till December ; after which, all gr> mixed over every part of the farm till March, when the heavy ewes arc Separated from the barren fheep, and feed, mbs, upon the lower pafhire, till the time that this paflure is again lit ap; new-weaned lambs. They judge, that more depends, in j . f fickneTs, upon tiie grafs being always in an eatable ftate, than up< n mix- the old witfi tlie young fheep upon the hog fence. Where a breeding farm . hogs, the heavy <:•■>.?$ arc worft cflin Spiing, the hog* getting the Iomt ■ Is to fit them fooner for the market Agricultural Survey of Peebles/litre. '\ty) It is a fact afcertained, that fat fheep, from farms of dif- ferent .qualities in Tweeddale, fhail appear equally fat to thd handling of the butcher; yet the one kind fhall yield perhaps one third more of tallow, in proportion to weight of carcafe, than the other kind. Here, the locality of the depofition of the fat depends upon the pafture, and not the breed. May there not be fufpicion of quackery, in the reports of breeders, as to the propenfity of peculiar breeds to depofit fat on parti- cular quarters ? Sect. III. — Horfes compared to Oxen. Where arable farms are of fufficient extent to admit of fubdivifion of labour among the labouring cattle ; fo as that a fufficiency of heavy, flow work, requiring mere ftrength and fteadinefs, could be entirely appropriated to one clafs ; whilffc another clafs could always be employed in work requiring chiefly agility and expedition ; it would then, evidently, be advantageous to keep two diilincl fets of cattle, for thefe di- ftin£t fets of operations. But as almoft none of the Tweed- dale farms are of fuch extent as to admit of this diftinct ap- propriation of different kinds of labour, cattle muft be kept which will equally anfwer all kinds of labour. In this view, the horfe will be found a much more univerfal animal than the ox : and the horfes fitted for Tweeddale, muft be fuch as. poffefs a confiderable degree both of ftrength and of mettle. The breed of horfes has been confiderably improved, fincc the introduction of two-horfe ploughs. Oxen, once univerfally ufed in ail kinds of tilth, are now as univerfally laid afide ; a fact, clearly decifive of the inutility of ufing oxen for labour. Could the farmer, by ufing oxen inftead of horfes, fend more produce to market of beef or corns from his farm, would any thing elfe be necefiary to in- duce him to adopt the change ? An intcreft may not be pur- fued when it hath never been clearly feen ; but nothing will induce the dereliction of an intereft, already feen and reaped^ but the difcovery of a fuperior intcreft arifing from a differ- ent management. The Ip8 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. The fubftitution of oxen for horfes in labour, is, never- theless, the theme of popular declamation ; and it would not be at all furprifing, if fome of the wife city committees, fit- ting in profound inveftigation of the caufes of the high prices of provifions, fhould bethink themfelves of applying to the Legiflature to enforce this fubftitution by compulfion. We would rather recommend it to them, to get over their preju- dice againft the ufe of horfes flefh as food : No defcription of pafturing animal will take on flefh more fpeedily than the horfe ; and, if his flefh fhould become palatable, he would be, in this refpe£t aifo, much more ceconomically kept than the ox. We have heard of dogs having been ferved up at table, in this country, after the manner of Otaheite : It would be much more patriotic, to introduce the Tartar fafhion, of eat- ing old horfes well fattened : Indeed, after overcoming the repugnance arifing from the hideous and difgufting appear- ance of that undiftinguifhingly voracious and fcrophulous-look- ing animal, the fow, repugnance to the flefh of horfes would appear a mere prejudice of education — like the prejudice a- gainft potatoes entertained, according to Count Rumford, by the Bavarians, which obliged him to introduce them by ftealth, a6 an article of food, into the poors-houfe at Mu- nich. Sect. IV.— Hogs. Swine are kept at corn-mills, and upon the offal of dairy farms : There is a prejudice againft the ufe of their flefh, which is daily giving way. Sect. V. ^-Rabbits. They are found wild in the fand-hills of Linton parifh v fometimes kept tame in houfes ; but are not an article in com- merce. Some of the fand-hills juft mentioned, might proba- bly be converted, with advantage, into warrens. Sect* Agricultural Survey of Pecblesjhire. 199 Sect. VI. — Poultry. They are impofed fometimes as kind rent. The town of Edinburgh feems not, as yet, fufficiently rich to afford fuch a price for poultry, as would render it profitable to apply the whole produce of a farm to the rearing of them as its ftaple article of fale. Thofe fold to Edinburgh, are, therefore, only in fuch quantity as can be reared from the mere offals of the farmers barn-yards ; or as are foolifhly impofed beyond this extent in kind rent. Sect. VII. — Pigeons. There are few pigeon-houfes, and, I believe, none that yield rent. It is a general complaint, that they do not thrive ; which is, upon the whole, no lofs ; the farmer fuffering the lefs from the privileged depredations of this protected ani- mal. Sect. VIII.— Bees. Much, of late, has been faid of their poffible product j and they are probably not fo much attended to, in Tweeddale, as they deferve. If the country, however, were flocked with them to the utmoft poffible extent, it might be queftionable, whether the diminution in produce of beef, mutton, wool, hides, and tallow, from the impoverifhment of the pafture, would not more than compenfate the return in value, from the increafed production of honey and of wax. Were the de- predations of the bee confined to the flowers alone, which are unpalatable to pafluring animals, from the wife provifion of Nature for the prefervation and propagation of feeds *, the range * Mr Loch of Radian, in his letter to me, incidentally takes notice of thii wife arrangement of the inflinc~t of palluiing animals. He obferves, that they will kardly touch the feed-ftalks of plants, ac if cwfifcioui of the confequences; but Zoo Agricultural Survey of PeeblfsJJjire. range of the bee would lefs Interfere with the pafture of other animals : But the bee feems equally fond of the rich exfuda- tions from both buds and leaves ; the abftra&ion of which may probably leave the plant more barren of the proper nou- rifhment of cattle. The improvement of agriculture, from thinning the num- ber of weeds producing their flowers and feeds at various fea- fons of the year, has a tendency to diminifh the range of food, both for game animals and for bees : The number of the for- mer has, accordingly, been obferved to be diminifhed ; and, by like reafon, the land may have been rendered incapable of fupporting fuch numbers of the latter : The fame reafon may account for the want of thriving in pigeon-houfes. that, when plants are cut and given to them in this ftate, they will readily eat what they would otherwife have rejected ; as if confcious, that the fame reafon for refraining, now, no longer fubfiftcd. As reafoning of their own does not fiirely lead, the beafts to fuch wife practi- cal conclufions, the regulation of their in (tin ft may certainly, nor nnreafonably, be afcribed to a Supreme and Beneficent Intelligence, that created, and that go- verns the univeife — a dcftrir>e which, it is to be hoped, we may be allowed to maintain, without imputation of folly; whatever maybe decreed by any prag- matical, felf-fufficjent AfTembly concerning it ; whether by the appel nominal, or the reckoning of their nofes ; or whether by acclamation fsmple, or the ftrength of their vociferation. (Written in 1796.) TABLE Ag> icultrira! Survey of Peebksfi'ire. 201 TABLE of Sheep, Black Cattle, and Horsi*j, in Tweeddale. The Numbers from the Statiftical Account, fupplied from equally good information, where deficient. There is joined, an account of the horfes, as in 1797, obligingly communicated by Mr Brunton, County-Surveyor. The acres in each parifh are from Armftrong : As he fays he converted them at 700 to the mile, I have reduced them to the pro- portion of 640. Names of Parijhts. Contents in Acres Eng- lijli. r rsm Sir Ji hn Sir.c 'airs Worhinghorfes . .- « Sijti/ii.al Accounts. Liable in tax . ! Not li- SadJle- Total horfes. No. of Steep Coil's . Horfes able in horfes. tax. Linton ^■S^l2 10,000 46o| I30 i 89 IO | II I IO Newlands 16,604 3,000 700J 23C i 133 »3l 23 169 Kilbucho 6,135 4,000 I40I 50 |. 4i I 9 IO 60 Kirkurd 6,053 2,000 200 70 ! 33l lI 12 56 Lyne& Meggot 16,988 10,500 Il8l 33 1 is 1 - 5 20 jSkirling 2>°~33 4,000 i5°| 75 |'37l 7 4 48 (Broughton 4,261 2,200 200| 80 39 1 — 4 43 Mannor 16,55 s 8,700 i9o| 85 46 1 7 9 62" Drummelzier 21,714 5,000 3oo| 50 29 1 1 1 0 | 40 Glenholm 8,283 5,000 I50J 60 31 1 3 6 1 40 Traqu.nr 15,808 I0,000 20o| 98 68 1 12 16 j 96 Peebles 16,649 8,000 5oo| 200 108 i 26 20 | 154 Tweedlmuir 21,376 j 15,000 8°i 351 11 | — 3 1 *4 Stobo 11,456 j 5,000 i9o| 8i| 29 j 6 5 1 40 Eddleitone 19,428 j 8,4CO 62o| 193! 94 i 15 12 | 121 Inverleithan I 20,361 j i 5,000* i8o| 921 37 i n 1 1 ! 59 Totals | 229,779 f 1 1 5,800 437«ji502j 840 i 131 1 161 |i 132 About 3,oco of this number of fheep are in that pnrt of this parifh which lies in the contiguous county of Selkirk; probably alio 6 horfes. and 11 milk cow.v. Dd C PI A F- 202 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/Birr, CHAP. XIV, RURAL OECONOMY. Sect. I. — Labour. Justices of the Peace have powers vefted in them for the regulation of wages, as alfo of the price of provifions. They, however, very wifely, refrain from interfering in matters which can alone be properly regulated by the courfe of the market. The demand for labour, as for every other marketable ar- ticle, neceffarily varies according to circumftances j and the price muft, of neceffity, be regulated by the proportion be- twixt the exifting quantity of the article and the demand. Where capital, and profitable employment for capital, abound, in proportion to the population, the demand for, and confe- quent reward of labour, will, neceffarily, rife to the highefl rate ; but the reverfe mud, as neceffarily, enfue, upon the oppofite fuppofition. If, in the former cafe, it mould be at- tempted to lower the wages of labour below what the demand can afford, the competition of employers, pofftffed of capital, would lead them to break through, or evade, all fuch regula- tions. If, in the latter cafe, it fhould be attempted to raife Wages above what the demand can allow, the competition of labourers for employment would beat them down, avowedly or Agricultural Survey of Feelle spire. £03 or Secretly, to their natural market price *. And the only ef- fed of fuch nugatory regulations, mull iffue in the occafion- ing of more or lefs embarraffment, in the contrivance of eva- fions to efcape the penalties of their contravention. (Ste Note F, at the end of th-e Report.) The unremitting effort of the. generality of individuals to bet- ter their circumftances, occafions the accumulation of capital j and the wages of labour rife in proportion to this accumula- tion. The increafmg of wages tends to diminifli the further accumulation of capital ; were it not that the more eafy cir~ cumftances of the labourer encourage marriage and population, and, by multiplying the number of labourers, tend to beat down their wages, through their competition for employment. Ading and re-a£ting, thus, mutually, upon each other, alter- nately, as caufe and effed, accumulation of capital, and in- creafe of population, would proceed, hand in hand, in an in- ' terminable progreffion •, were it not that external and internal war (a ftate fo natural to man, as to have made the art of mu- tual deftruaion furnifh, at all times, and everywhere, the bu- finefs * Indeed, in this way alone, could the exifting capital in employment be e- qually difTufed among the labourers of a country, fo as that each fhould receive his proper fhare of it, in proportion to his willingnefs and ability to work ; if it were poffible to carry into effect any regulations raifing wages to an higher rate, the infallible confequence muft be, that the diftribtftion of the aforefaid capital would be confined to a fmallcr number of labourers, and that the remainder could get no employment, and muit therefore fubnlt on charity. But if the chanty comes ex- cUitively from the pockets of thole pom-did of capital, the capital, thus fhsrtened, is able to employ (till fewer at the regulated rate : If it comes, in part, from the employed labourers, it is to them all one whether this diminution of wages arifes from their giving it in charity to the idle, or from its being taken from them through the competition of the indubious. In the reign of fimsculotilm in France, it might have been thought, that the raifing the wages of labour would have been the primary object of Government; and yet, during the height of its prevalence, the ejtceffive low rate of wages, compared to that of Britain, was then held out, in the French AffembHes, as a ground of confidence, that France would ibon carry off* the manufactures of Britain. In fact, the capital of that country was fo exhaufted by confifcation and requifition, to fupport the profligacy of he* tyrants, and the mad fcheroes of her Government, that funds did not exift to fop- po;t labour, except at the very lowed rate of recompenfe- 2C4 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. finefs of a particular profeflion — a profemon, too, whofe rela- tive virtues have ever been held in the higheft celebrity) may ever, at fhort intervals, be expected to intervene, to the thin- ning of population, and the perdition of capital : A view of human nature, molt lamentable, but, at fame time, ludicrous \ and which will ever be found to correfpond to realit}?, fo long as man continues what he is — a reafoning, rather more than a rational animal — in the cool fpcculations of the clofet, jujl ; but, incapable of acting up to the maxims of jufiice, fo foon as his pafhons aroufe him to action. Or, fhall we efteem the ac- quifition of the warlike virtues cheaply purchafed, at the pre- mature expence of a few lives, through glorious toil and ho- nourable wounds ; which, otherwife, might have quietly ter- minated in the fuffbeation of defluxion ? Or fhall we prefer the poets golden age of innocence and inactivity, when men had little elfe to do, but to bafk in the fun ? The rate of wages experienced a fad reverfe, from the de- ficiency of funds for the employment of labour, through the fcarcity of the crops 1799 and 1800. Little difference took place in the nominal or money rate of day's labour ; but there was lefs employment ; and employers preferred giving the high- eft accuftomed rate of money wage, without furnifhing victuals in the houfe. The great competition for the privilege of eating at difcretisn, at the rifk of the ma/Ier, without regard to the price of victuals, caufed a prodigious declenfion (even to the amount of one half) in the money wage of fervants to eat in the mat- ter's houfe. Since the return of plenty, from, the abundant crop of 1 80 1, wages are again rifing ; though diey have not yet attained (by perhaps a fourth) the exifting rate previous to the years of fcarcity. Before that period, the. yearly money wage of a good plough- man, getting his vidua r., lodging, and warning, in the mat- ter's houfe, had, within fix or eight years, rifen from fix or feven to ten or twelve pounds. If he was married, he had, perhaps, twenty fhillings lefs of money wage, and, in lieu of '.'.ds, 61 bolls of oat meal, and the Summer's and Winter's. maintenance Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJIAre. 205 maintenance of a cow for kitchen * ; or, in place of the cow's maintenance, ninepence or tenpence, weekly, for that purpofe : The mailer furnifhed him alfo with a houfe, with carriage of fuel, and as much land for potatoes, beer, or lint, as the dung from his cow and alhes would manure •, the ploughman's wife, in recompenfe of thefe privileges, affifting the mafter, without any wage but her victuals, in time of hay and corn harveft. The fmallnefs of Tweeddale arable farms, admitting little of fub- divifion of labour, it is generally neceiiary that the ploughman Ihould be fit for all work, as fowing, mowing, flack-building, thrafhing, &c. The money wages of a female country fervant, living in the mailer's houfe, had arifen to twenty-five, or even thirty-five {hillings, for the Winter half year ; and, in Summer, to forty, or (where there was long ewe milking) to fifty-fix millings. Some of the mod robuft young women do not engage them- felves for the half year after "Whitfunday, that they may have the opportunity of gaining two diftinct fees, the one for ewe milking, and the other fubfequently for harveft work. Ewe milking (now more and more difufed) commenced formerly about the latter end of June ; the lambs being more early weaned, that the more cheefe might be obtained : It fel- dom, now, commences till the beginning or middle of July 5 continuing, in fome few places, nine weeks, but more generally confined to fix. The farmer needs additional female fervants for the ewe milking. Six cr (even fcores of ewes are allotted to each milker. The milking is a fevere fervice : Very little time can be allotted to fleep during the night, as the ewer, muft be milked over night, when confined to the fold, and in the morning, before they are again pat out to pafiur-? ; and the time of their detention in the fold is fhortened as much as pof- fible, that they may have time to feed through the day. As the ewe milkers muft, alfo, milk the cows upon the farm, and perform the tafk of fpinrijng, each, ten cuts of worfted from roved * KiLb-ti (in Latin, otfonlum) fignifies any thing eaten along with bread. There is no Englifh word equivalent" 2o6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. roved wool daily, they find but little time for fleep in the day time. The milking fold is an inclofure of foci dike, with whins inferted below the coping fod, to prevent the ewes from break- ing over it. At one fide of the dike, is erected a pen [bought), by fod dike, or paling of wood, inclofing an oblong fquare, open at one end, and of a breadth to admit all the milkers Handing fide by fide. Into this bought, as many ewes as it can contain are drove in at a time \ when the milkers entering, prevent the ewes from getting out, and immediately proceed to bufinefs : Each milker feizes the ewe neareft to her by the haunches, drawing it backwards till it ftands with its hinder legs ftraddling acrofs the milking pail ; fne then, with both hands, feizes upon the teats, and milks, by fqueezing them betwixt the firft joint of the thumb, bent in, and middle of the fore finger : when milked, the ewe is turned out behind her, the herd taking care that the milked ewes fhall not mix with the unmilked, upon their efcape from the bought. From the pofition of the ewe, whatever drops from her falls into the milking pail ; the folid refufe is feparated, by draining or de- position, but no chemical procefs is in ufe to feparate the di- lute *, and probably the peculiar pungency of the cheefe is part- ly owing to the falts in the urine. Before the fneep are fhorn, the cheefe is peculiarly dark in colour, and has a peculiar haute gout, from the fweat, or other matters from the wool (called eik), mixing with the milk : this is cheefe made under the wool. In regard to fheeps milk cheefe, as in regard to inoft other viands, it conduces little to the appetite of the gueft to pry in* to the fecrets of the kitchen. This cheefe is in great requeft, and of high price, from its increafing fcarcity •, which will re* drefs itfclf, when the price becomes fo high as to render it advantageous to the farmer to facrifice the animal's advantage to the increafe of its cheefe. When old, the cheefe is ac- counted one of the bed flomachics. The wage of ewe-milking amounts to about half a crown weekly, with board ; the farm- er's wife allowing, alfo, to each milker a piece of coarfe cloth, Called a etve-mllht \ brat, to cover her before, to prevent her clothes Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 207 clothes being fpoiled by the tar and other filth adhering to the wool. A woman {hearer, hired through harveft, gets from twenty to twenty-five (hillings, with board ; a man, from twenty-five to thirty. When a track of wet weather feems fet in, they are difbanded till the weather fliall clear up : In wet mornings, or Cngle wet days, they are detained at board, and employed in twilling ropes for binding on the coverings of the Hacks. Days wages for fhearing neceffarily vary, more from the variety of demand for the work, than thofe of any other labour ; women receiving from eight to fourteenpence, with victuals ; and men from a {hilling to twentypence. Shearers hired at a fixed fum for the whole harveft, wilh to perform the moft work in the leaft time, but are lefs careful as to the mode of execu- tion ; thofe hired by the day may more readily be made to perform the work with exa£tneis, but have not the fame in- tereft in performing much : A mixture of both kinds feems preferred ; the mutual example correcting the faulty tendencies on both fides. Piece-work would always come moft cheap, were it not for the rifk of faulty execution, in cafes where its mode cannot be fpecified in the bargain. Undertaken by the piece, fold dikes of fod coft threepence per rood of fix Scots ells, running meafure : Ditches, from eightpence to a lhilling per rood, ac- cording to the fize of ditch, and nature of the foil. Mowing of grafs, from two to five {hillings per Scots acre, according to the ftrength of crop, or its {landing ftraight, or being warp- ed by the wind. Thrafhing, about fevenpence per boll, with victuals. A flout lahourer, working by the piece, will earn from fixteen to twentypence a day, without victual-. When victuals are furnifhed, days wages are, for mov ing grafs, from fourteen to fixteen pence : For more ordinary Sum- mer's work, from tenpence to a ihilling : For ordinary Winter's work, eightpence or ninepence. Womens ordinary wage for Summer's outwork, not of a preffing nature, like that of har- veft, fuch as gathering weeds, hand-hoeing, gtc. is fourpence with, or eightpence without victuals. There is very little a- gricultural 2o$ Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. gricultural employment for women in Winter. "With victuals, a tailor's wage is tenpence : Other handicrafts, as in Mid- Lothian. Ploughmen and fhepherds are hired for a whole year ; wo- men fervants half yearly, except fuch as referve themfelves for ewe-milking, and for harveft work. The old ftyle is obferved in the terms of entry to, and removal from fervice. Uniformity would, here, be eligible, as well as in weights and meafures. Sect. II. — Provifwtis. To what has been obferved on this fubject, under the ar- ticle of Farm Houfes and Cottages ', it may be added, that, in fheep farms, the fheep dying of difeafe are ufed as flefh meat, under the defignation of trail. Sect. III. — Fuel. In the higheft lying parifhes, near the fources of the wa- ters, peat of mofs is the only fuel ufed. The beft peat, (being the mod folid, black, lading, and yielding the ftrongeft heat), is that which is found in (hallow beds of mofs, lying generally upon a declivity : it is commonly not above fourteen or eigh- teen inches, or the length of a peat, in deepnefs, after remov- ing the furface foil with the roots of the heath or ling growing on it, (called the tirling of the mofs): As the digger Hands upon the furface, and prefles in the peat-fpade with his foot, fuch peat is defigned foot-peat. Other peat are procured from deeper flow modes of various qualities ; and as, in digging, a paffage is made to drain the water from the bottom of the mofs, and a perpendicular face of the mofs laid bare, from which the digger, danding on the level of the bottom, digs the peat, by driving in the fpade horizontally with his arms; this peat is, therefore, de- figned breajl-peat. The peat-fpade is furnifhed with a triangu- lar cutting mouth, as alfo, with a cutting wing on the right fide, both of well-tempered metal, to cut the half decayed wood found mixed with the mofs; the woeden fhaft termi- nates Agricultural Survey of ' Pcehlcsjlnre. ' *xq§ nates at the end near the iron, in an oblong fquare (hape, on which the peat refts when lifted up. The operator begins to the left, and works t© the right. He begins by turning the fpade back uppermoft, that by its wing he may feparate the one fide of the firft peat from the folid ; reverfing the fpade, he at one pufh drives it in to the whole depth of the oblong part of the (haft, the wing cutting the fecond fide of the peat. By a jerk of the fhaft, the end of the peat breaks off at the point of the fpade; it is raifed up, and carefully turned off upon the ground ; it is taken up by the women wheelers, (hurlers), who lay a number of them upon a wheelbarrow without fides, and lay them down, fide by fide, upon fome con- tiguous dry ground. Two hurlers commonly fufBce to fpread the peat dug by one man. When the peat have become fo hardened by the drought, that they will ftand on end, they are placed on end three or four together, and leaning againft each other; this is called footing the peats. After this comes the operation of iuiud-roivitigj or the building them up in narrow heaps, or fragments of dikes ; in which ftate they remain till carried home and put into a Winter ftack, which is covered with fod to defend it from rain. E e CHAP. 210 Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJlAre, C II A P. XV. POLITICAL OECONOMY, AS CONNECTED WITH, OR AFFECTING AGRICULTURE. Sect. I. — Roads. The landed proprietors of every county are, certainly, the clafs mod fit to be intruded with the management of the roads \ which aft upon the agricultural improvements, in which they are fo nearly interefled, like oil upon the wheels of a machine. They have moil leifure ; may be expected to have more enlarg- ed views, and liberal fentiments ; and are more habituated to bdi.G..- labour and pains upon fubjects whence they derive no immediate pecuniary advantage : They are fometimes apt to be deficient in energy. In narrow counties, where all are more intimately connected, the public advantage is too ready to be facrificed, in fome degree, to mutual accommodation ; which, when yielded to from facility, in one inflance, is claimed in others upon the precedent. Inftances are not a- wanting, in this county, of the public road, from this caufc folely, being carried in a zig-zag direction, inilead of the ftraight one ; or over fteep acclivities, inftead of around them. It is well obferved by the Rev. Mr Handyfide, in his ftatiftical account of the parilh of Lyne in this county, ' that the bed mode of conducting the direction of roads would be, for the truftees of each county, to commit the direction of their roads to the determination of thofe of another county. ' Syftems, beginning where nothing previous exifted, are often more eafily carried into the belt effect, than the reforma- tion of arrangements originally bad. About Agricultural Survey of Feeble spire. 2 1 1 About the middle of Iaft century, the time when the gene- ral views of the utility of good roads had reached this county, and made turnpike ads be applied for, the public road to the capital was eked up out of private roads, made chiefly to fuit private conveniency, and, of courfe, fubjecled to fuch deflec- tions as might be expeded, where private accommodation was the principal, and that of the public rather a by-view : They were narrow, they were often dreffed up, like avenues or pri- vate approaches, with tall hedges and plantations of wood. From want of energy to require, or of difintereftednefs to of- fer facrifices of private convenience and advantage •, or perhaps, too, from a doubt how far the inexperienced return from tolls could afford to pay indemnification of the private lofs incurred, in breaking through exifting inclofures, in order to give the public road its proper width and direaion— From fuch reafons, it has happened, that the mod public road of the county (the one "leading from Edinburgh, by Noblehoufe, to Moffat, Dum- fries, and Carlifle) is, for about feven or eight miles of its courfe, fo completely fhaded by high walls, and hedges, and wood plantations (its breadth, alfo, often not exceeding 15 or 18 feet), that neither fun nor wind can find accefs to dry it: Repairs, more expenfive than the return of the toll (though higher than any in the Lothians) can afford, are but barely fuf- ficient, therefore, to prevent it from becoming an impaffable, rotten bog ; and every fnow-drift chokes it up completely. A^ prepofterous propenfity feems, indeed, pretty prevalent, of placing wood plantations along the fides of public roads-, though, furely, moft proprietors need be at no lofs to find o- ther fituations, y. here they might be of equal benefit as Ihelter, without detriment to the road, by over fhado wing it, or to the traveller, by giving a lurking place to the robber. The roads through Twoeddale are made, at an average, at about Sol. per mile. Various feherhes have been adapted as to upholding. In the upper diftricr, where there is moil repair, and moft wear, from rhe fetiftft&ftt heavy carriage of lead from Leadlnlls, an apy./ I mode, war, chofen, of \i oldihg to .• *e of land> upon thfe road I 2 1 1 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. who, it was thought, might give the neceffary repairs at by- hours : Theie by-hour^ } however, feldom occurred ; the money was confumed by people, from whom it was impoflible to reco- ver it, and the roads neglected. They have, of late, been let to a profeflional undertaker at more expence, and probably with fomewhat better effect. The itatute labour is commuted at eight millings per iool. Scots of valued rent ; which the landed proprietors pay in to the county collector, along with their cefs, having recourfe up- on their refpe£tive tenants. Befides the roads- marked upon the map, a road, from the Peebles road at the foot of Tarth water, carried over that wa- ter by a bridge, and running up the weft fide of Newlands. water, to the Noblehoufe road, and thence to the Linton road, would be of great utility in giving ready accefs to coal, lime, and freeftone, to a confiderable diftridt of country lying below. Another road from Darnhall to Noblehoufe Inn, connecting the Edinburgh roads by Peebles, and by Noblehoufe, would open the coal, lime, and freeftone of the county, to Eddle- ftone and Peebles parifhes. A communication to Weft Lo- thian might be of ufe, by the pafs of the Pentland-hills, named Cauldjlane-Jlap, connecting the Linton Edinburgh road with that from Edinburgh to Ayrfhire. An ufeful road has been lately fet on foot, by fubfcription, from Traquair, fording Tweed, and carried up Leithan-water ; opening a communica- tion to the Lothian coal and lime, to the parifhes of Traquair and Inverleithan, In regard to all matters, that will naturally be undertaken through a fenfe of intereft, by individual exertion, and at pri- vate rifk, it is fafe to leave them upon this footing, without Go- vernment interference. But though, in a certain degree, the committing of the management of the roads to the landed pro- prietors of the refpe&ive counties, wears the afpect of intrud- ing it to thofe who have the moft intereft in the proper execu- tion of the truft, yet various confiderations would indicate the propriety of the whole roads and tolls being placed under the immediate management of Government ; For, granting that Go- vernment Agricultural Survey of Peebles/Lire. 213 vernment expenditure is always lefs (Economical than any o- therj (till this disadvantage would be more than counterbalan- ced, from the advantage of employing the military, in time of peace, with very little expence above their ordinary pay. It might be expected, upeii this fyfteai, that general views would more fteadily prevail over partial considerations ; and that the fuperplus of funds, from tolls upon roads of great recourfe, might be applied to roads of lefs recourfe, which the funds from their tolls cannot afford to make, or uphold, fumciently. An inflexible arrangement of management would, however, need to be laid down, fenced by the fame facrednefs that guards the fvftem of the finking fund. The heightening of the tolls would be an obvious and eafy mode of taxation, which, if regu- lated as at prefent, by weight of carriage, would fall heavieit on the poor. Sect. II. — Canals. For thefe the country is too mountainous, and its produc- tions of too little value : None exift in fact, nor are in con- templation. Sect. III. & W.—Fiars— Weekly Markets. The Peebles Tuefday's weekly market formerly fupplied the manufacturing weft country with meal from the fouthern corn counties. The canal betwixt Forth and Clyde having opened the Lothians to the weft country, there is now a very inconfi- derable quantity of meal difpofed of at Peebles market •, the fouth country farmers, who frequented it, now carrying their corns to Dalkeith, and returning with coal or lime ; for both of which they depend upon the Lothians. It is needlefs to take notice of fairs which exift now only in name, and where no bufinefs is done. The following, I believe, is a very exact lift cf the fair?, in this and ether counties, where Tweed ' ! rmers tranfact bu- FAIRS 2 1 4 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. FAIRS IN TWEEDDALE. Town of Peebles. into, Fajlenfeven fair. Held upon the firft Tuefclay of March, N. 8. Ewes great with lamb are fold by character, without being fhown. It is the great market for feed corns, fold by fample, or often by character ; alfo the chief fair for fervants, for the year, or half year, fucceeding the enfuing "Whitfunday. idoy Beltyne fair. Held fecond Wednefday of May, N. S. Stallions are fhown ; fervants are hired ; farm fales of outgoing tenants are advertifed. 3/20, Lamb fair. Held laft Tuefday of June, O. S. Lambs for holding, fold by character, without being fhown ; wool alfo by character j but, when Linton third market falls upon the fucceeding day, 'the bargains are feldom completed till the par- ties have met again at that wool fair. 4fo, St Andrews fair. Held laft Tuefday of November, N. S. ; called alfo Siller fair, becaufe the chief or only bufi- nefs is, the payment of bargains upon credit from the preceding fairs. Two other fairs tire fometimes ufed as dates of payment in billsj though no fair is held, viz. Ryte fair, laft Tuefday of October, N. S. ; and Heck fair, firft Tuefday of September, N. S. Linton. There were five markets, continuing week after week, upon Wednesdays : Molt of the bufinefs is now tranfacted at two of them, viz. Second Linton market. Held third Wednefday of June, O. S. Wedder and ewe hogs fold and delivered upon the market grounds j alio a few dummonds and old tups; lambs for holding, fold by character. The fhecp come to the market ground e; I Tuefday, and are generally all fold off that evening. Agricultural Survey of ' PeeblesJInrt. 2 1 5 evening. This is the principal market for Tweecklale holding fheep. Third Linton market. Held Wednefday the week follow- ing j though, as at the fecond, the bufinefs of felling the fhe^p is all tranfacted on the Tuefday evening. The Wednefday is the great market for coarfe wool, of the black-faced or Linton breed ; all fold by character ; from Tweeddale, Upper Ward of Ciydefdale, part of Dumfriesfhire, of Selkirkshire, and the hilly parts of the three Lothians. Shearers are hired for the enfuing harveft. Skirling, \mo, May fair. Held firft Tuefday after the 26th of May, N. S. or upon that day of the month, when it falls on that day of the week. Yeild cows for grazing, with a few milk cows, are fhown, fold, and delivered. idoy June fair. Held firft Wednefday of June, O. S. One of the greateft fairs in the fouth of Scotland for a fhow of working horfes : The rate of this market generally determines the price through the feafon. A few milk cows. ^tioy Old Skirling fair. Held 4th September, O. S. or on the Monday after, when the day of the month falls upon Sab- bath.. A pretty extenfive fale of horfes ; alfo of black cattle, partly fat, partly young, for holding. Eddie/lone. Eddhjlonc fair. Held 25th September, O. S. or on Mon- day, if that day of the month falls on Sabbath. Chiefly win- tering young black cattle ; oxen for draught ; and a few fat cattle. Servants hired for the half year fucceeding enfuing Martinmas. Bronghton. Broughton fair. Held nine days after Edcjleftone fair, Monday, if the ninth day falls upon Sabbath. Chcefe fold in wholelalc by character. Servants hired for the Winter • • 1 Aim 2 1 6 Agricultural Survey of Peebksjhlre. FAIRS IN MID-LOTHIAN. Houfe of Muir market. There 'are three, weekly, for ewes great with lamb, fhewn, fold, and delivered upon the grounds : The only confiderable one is held upon the laft Monday of March, N.S. FAIRS IN CLYDESDALE. Carnvoath. imo, Midfummer Fair. Held firft Thurfday of July, N. S. A great fhow of horfes ; milk cows ; grazing cattle; a few fat cattle. 2doy Lawrie's (St Laurence's) Fair. Held fecond Wednef- day of Auguft, O. S. The fale is, of horfes, of lambs for hold- ing, and fat cattle. Biggar. imo, Midfummer Fair. Held firft Thurfday of July, O. S. Lambs for holding ; a few milk cows ; a few horfes. ado, Old Biggar Fair. Held firft Thurfday of November, O. S. Fat black cattle, chiefly ; a few winterers ; rather more horfes than at the former. Lint is alfo retailed, at leaft in fuch fmall quantities as may ferve a family's Winter fpinning. Lanark. St James's Fair. Held lafl Wednefday of July, O. S. A great market of lambs for holding ; probably, the greateft fhow, in the South of Scotland, of year old horfes : Thefe are bought generally to the Weft country, are worked very early, but gently, and well fed ; and are returned, when full grown, to the great Skirling horfe market. Wool is retailed. Be fides the above fairs, a confiderable number of Tweed- dale hogs, and older fheep, are annually fold at the fair of Stagf- hall Batik, in England. Lambs Agricultural Survey cf Peebles/hire, 117 Lambs for holding are alfo fold at St BofweWs fair, in Rox- burghfhire. Held 18th July, N. S. Fat lamb is weekly fold in the Edinburgh market, through Summer, from the end of June till the end of September ; alfo, crock ewes, fed upon grafs, or farther carried on upon turnip, from Martinmas till New- Year's Day. Butchers from Glaf- gow buy probably more of the black cattle, fed on turnip in this county, than the Edinburgh butchers, notwithstanding of trie greater proximity of the latter ; owing to the greater riches and population of that country of manufacturers. A few black cattle, fat, or for feeding, are bought or fold at All-Hallow -Fair in November, in Edinburgh. Such meal as is fold from that part of the county lying above Peebles, is Tent weftward to Biggar weekly Thurfday's market. Meal-dealers in Kirkurd, Newlands, and Linton pa- rities, buy at Peebles, and tranfport to Biggar ; and often buy grain at Leith, to be manufactured at our mills, and fent to Biggar. Oats, from the higheft lands, ripened, or rather wi- thered, to be fit for keeping, by the fro ft, which would betray themfelves if made into meal, find a market in Edinburgh, for the ufe of horfes. No fiars of grain are ftruck for the county ; the reference of price of beer is made to the Mid-Lothian fiars. The borough of Peebles, as is probably the practice in more boroughs, claims a preference in its own weekly meal-market, and allows no ftranger to purchafe till the town is firft ferved ; a reftriclicn which, like all fuch reftriclions, has a tendency to difcourage the refort of buyers and fellers. In the dearth of 1799, the Magiftrates attempted to fix the price of meal; while it was rapidly rifing, they would allow only laft market day's price : As might have been forefeen, no meal came to market, but what was damaged, fo as to be worth nothing more, elfewhere, than the town's allowed price. Y\ nether through mere coincidence, or from caufation, the influ was more mortal at Peebles, than common in the cor. Borough Magiftrates muft often adopt mebbifh. me. fui Sj how-< ever contrary to their own coi Ff :. . 2 1 8 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Sect. V. — Commerce. Excepting that in meal, already noticed, there is little o- ther commerce, but mere retail trade. Sect. VI. — Manufactures. An woollen manufactory was fet on foot at Inverleithan, by Mr Brodie (better known by his extenfive iron-works in Shrop- fhire, and his fhip hearths), who is a native of, and proprietor in the county : The houle confifts of four {lories, containing all kinds of machinery, and driven by water. Cloths are made of all colours, from 27 to 30 inches in breadth, and (before the laft great rife of wool) at from is. 6d. to 6s. per yard. The iron-works have been, of late, a fo much more profitable con- cern, that the woollen has been lefs attended to. It is furprifmg, that no manufacture of ccarfe woollen has been eftablifhed at the village of Linton ; where there is water to drive machinery of confiderable weight, abundance of lime, freeftone, coal, and peat ; the diftance from Edinburgh about 16 miles, and the accefs a turnpike road. A Linton weaver, Alexander Alexander, has lately eredted a manufacturing houfc, with water machinery, upon the North on the lands of Robert Brown Eiq. of Newhall ; he fup- feveral paper-mills with felt;;, made of the coarfe Tweed- dale wool; and propofes, as capital, and credit, and vent for the commodities, increafc, to extend the manufacturing to that of fepges, and fuch other fluffs, as coarfe wool is adapted to. A manufacturing houfe has very lately been fitted up at Peebles for narrow cloths : And, there, two or three indivi- duals had occafionally done a little in the fame line, in the in- tervals of their employment by cuftomers ; carpets and flan- nels, and fomc cotton goods, being manufactured upon the fame fyftem. Moft of the looms in Twecddale are, however, employed in working to private cuftomers; though feme con- tly_, and others occafionally, are employed in weaving K- • Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 2 1 9 nens for the manufactories in Edinburgh, or cottons for thofe of Lanark or Glafgow. There are in Peebles a few (locking looms. Sect. VII.— Poor. A society muft have become rich, before it can make libe- ral provifion for the fupply of its poor. In a fociety of lavages, fuch as thofe of America — fubfifl- ing upon mere natural produce — by the chafe, by fifhing, or upon fpontaneous fruits and roots — without appropriation or culture of the lands ; without domeflication of animals, which are perfecuted in hunting, to the danger of extermination — an immenfe tract of "territory is neceffary to fupply fubfiilence to a very inoonfiderable tribe •, which muft be traverfed, with the utmoft exertion, by each individual, in fearch of the means of his own perfonal fupport. In fuch a ftate, where the moft la- borious exertions of each, in the maturity of fhrength, are of- ten requifite to fecure even a fcanty perfonal fubfiftence, it is not to be expected, that proper provifion can be made for thofe who are pad their labour, or for thofe who have not attained to it : Accordingly, the univerfal provifion for the aged is, to knock them iii the head ; unpromifing infants are put to death, as an effectual mean of preventing them from becoming bur- denfome j and even thofe deftined for prefervation, are deferted in feafons of unfuccefsful hunting, and turned over to the mer- cy of the wild beads *. The imperious paramount calls of felf- * Such is the happy ftate of lavage liberty and equality, to which the di'ci- plcs of the new ph Rouiiuu would have- us to revert, by abandoning all the inftitutions of civilized and induftiious fociety. — See a fcrmon by the anther, Upon liberty mil eqy The expofure of infants is allowed by law, alfo, in the highly cultivated empire of China. Among favjgc-, the want of cul urs ; ; vents the earth from fuppoit- rng its full com], lenient of population. In China, th< aid fce;n to have increased to an extent beyond what the territory can fupport, und. highefl degree bf culture. War, famine, or peftilence, would feem neccHary 1 lelicf of China; if it rannot difbuilhuu itll-if of its 1 | itetion by or. tion, to which its prefent rr.;ix'.: . . 220 Agricultural Survey of Feeble spire. felf-prefervation, fteel the heart againft the feelings of humani- ty, which it would be fuperfluous to indulge towards diftrefles, which there are no means of relieving. The admirer ©f the favage ftate may exclaim, ' If you find, there, no palaces, you will find as few hofpitals : ' There can, indeed, exifl no funds for the erection of either the one or the other : every exertion be- ing required to-enfure mere felf-prefervation, there is no leifurc for the purfuits of either fcience or humanity. The fundamental laws, erifuring relief to the poor, are thofe which enfure the acquisition of wealth. — thofe which fociety muft adopt, when man, relinquifhing his ftate of favage liber- ty and equality, where all have like right to all, betakes him- felf to the cultivation of the earth, an'd the domeftication of animals, from whence all civilization, implying leifure and fe- curity of fubfiftence, muft originate. They are the laws of appropriation, the fources of never ceafing inequalities of con- dition : Laws which' encourage induftry, by holding out to the induftrious, the fecure profpect of reaping the fruits of his la- bour, in afcertaining to him the undifturbed perfonal poffeffion and enjoyment of that fubjeel, to which his induftry has been attached, and in which it hath become i/ifeparably inherent ; . together with the power of transferring it to defcendants, or other natural objects of his affection — a power indifpenfable to the excitation of an induftry of farther profpe£t, than of mere liferent provifion — effential to the accummulation of capital, and to the prevention of its diffipation, in the fame lifetime in which it was created *. Man was formed for action, and that the active talents of each might be called forth to exertion, every one's particular in- tereft is left to his own management : For, though man is alfo benevolent, a continued intermeddling interference in the con- cerns of others, would, to his own confeioufnefs, as well as to his neighbour's feelings, appear the height of impertinence. To rejoice with thofe that do rejoice, without envy or maligni- ty, conititutes a character amiable to others, and delightful to the * See the author's ferraon on liberty and equality, agricultural Survey of Peeb!csfl:r/f. 221 the pofieflbr ; but for active benevolence, the calls arc only oo cafional. To fecure to all a fair field for the exertion of indivi- dual induftry, by enforcing, impartially to each, the laws of juftice, afcertaining and protecting property in its full exercife, \2, iri general, the utmoft range to which benevolence, under a fenfe of common intereft, can extend its active exertions with propriety. Such univerfal protection of all, by all, being ob- tained, a fenfe of feparate interell will, generally, belt accom- plifh every ether purpofe that benevolence could fugged. Cafes will no doubt occur, as exceptions to the general rule, where individual intereft cannot be profecuted or defended, or where individual diftrefs cannot be relieved, by individual exertion ; and in thefe, the humane and benevolent ought ever to be ready to aflift. The human conltitution is formed in wonder- ful harmony ; the principle of felf-intereffc poffefles,- at all times, the energy of a pafiion ; whilft benevolence is only a difpofi- tion, in readinefs to be rouzed into the paflions of indignation, or of fympathy, as cafes of oppreflion, or of diftrefs, (hall arifc, which call for our active interference. To fuppofe that benevolence, of itfelf, will or ought to lead to the inceflant accumulation of funds, out of which diftrefs may be relieved as it occurs, would be, to lay a itrefs upon this principle, utterly difprcportioncd to its habitual energy : And the fecure pi-ofpect held cut to felfiflmefs, will be found the only means of creating funds for the purpofes of liberality. In this fenfe may the latVy protecting property, be called our fchool- majler to bring us to Chr'ifl. Thofe trained to habits of acquisi- tion and accumulation, may indeed often prove deficient in li- berality ; but they are the founders of the (. ! pendence, more apt to diffipate than to accumulate, but, in ge- neral, more liberal : And thus, through varieties of character, the fame purpofes are nearly produced^ which mi bet- ter manner, be obtained, •- ; - each individual cl fter more properly balanced. The monks, who profelTed to renounce enth for the next, inftead of considering the the proper preparation for e ifelves to 222 Agricultural Survey cf Peebksfhire. celibacy, and to a life of poverty, to be fupported folely upon alms — in confidence with their general profeffion, their par- ticular vow, aud their own practice, were led to fet light by induitry, of the meft powerful incentives to which, they were deprived by their rule;: They, profefledly, interefted not them- felves at all in induitry, or that augmentation of population which may enfue upon increafe of induftry ; they trenched up- on the time of the induftrious by religious feftivals ; they fung forth the praifes of almfgiving, in which they had fuch an im- mediate intereft \ and fo celebrated this particular difplay of be- nevolence, as if it comprehended the whole of Chriftian chari- ty : Infomuch, that the word charily, without farther explana- tion, is apt, from habit, to convey the idea merely of alms ; though, undoubtedly, of all benevolent exertions, this is the moft equivocal, even as to the accomplifhment of its own end. * When thofe profeffed beggars and alms-preachers had become rich, through pious donations, given them in their own name, or as common almoners, who diilributed the charity of other people-, from fellow-feeling, and regard to confiftency, they profufe in the indiicriminate diflribution of alms : and monafteries became the refort of idlers and fturdy beggars, who preferred the rcfource of alms, to that of their own induitry. f A crowd of idle profligates were thus relieved from the neceffi- ty of induitry, to which they might happily, otherwife, have i compelled by (tarving ; and their fubfiftence ultimately a heavy tax upon the induftrious part of the commu- ■ , of itfelf, might have been accounted a good po- litical reafon of the reformation. Upon * We have fcrmons upon alms, by clergymen of high refpetfability, in which too much of the fpirit of monkifm is difpfeyed — where, too, the appropriation of the land and water, and other fubjefls of human induftry, feems invidioufly glanced at, as ufurpations upon the common rights of man— where, alfo, the rich feem advifed to di*>& with the poor, in the way of almfgiving ; left the uuirpation, cx- throogh fufferance, fliould he terminated by infiurrecTSon. All this favours ftrongly of the favage-ftate enthtffiafm of Roufieau. | Townfcnd, in his Travels through Spain, attributes the general want of in- duftry, in a great meafurc, to the indjferiminating alms of the monaftciies. Agricultural Survey of Ptebles/birb* ii~* Upon the abolition of monafteries, at the reformation, the fame difficulties occurred in Scotland, as in other reformed countries, in regard to making provifion for die really poor ; as alfo for curbing the licentioufnefs of thofe flout idlers, who, together with the really poor, had depended for fubfiftence up- on monaitic alms ; but who now inundated the ftate, and lived by depredation. The evil feems, indeed, to have attained to fuch an alarming height, that fome of the moft ftrenuous af- fertors of liberty in the Scotiih Parliament, thought it necef- fary to propofe, that the whole mendicants, indifcriminately, fhould be enflaved, and their fer vices adjudged to fuch mailers as would confent to maintain them, for fuch work as they could compel them to perform. This idea feems, in fome fhape, to have been adopted by the Legiflature ; as appears by various acts of the Scotifh Parliament j in which magiltrates are em- powered and enjoined to apprehend ferners, maijterlefs men3 Jhirdy beggars, &c. ; and to adjudge their fervices, for different periods, to fuch as would accept of and maintain them. In- deed, the Scots acts chiefly refer to fuch descriptions of poor. There are a great number of Scots acts of Parliament, re- newed from time to time, enjoining aiTefiments for the poor, together with the building of parifh workhoufes, in which they were to be put to labour. Thefe acts, either from their con- tradictory nature rendering therri incapable of execution ; o/ from want of intereft in, or compitlfitor upon, thofe who ihould have executed them ; were, in fadt, never executed at all. Excepting, indeed, in gre , where, from the num- ber of the poor, their labour might be fuppofed fomewhat ade- quate to the expence, the erection of workhoufes would have inferred confiderable expence, without profpect of indemnifi- cation. As defuetude is, in Scotland, underftood to abrogate law, and ought ever, in mutable man, to he conflrued into dereliction of purpofe, thefe lav. . obfolete. The evil of Jlurdy begging has, in a j hav- ing been configned to the remedies of ilarving, or iws •, and the real poor have been ever left to depend, chic voluntary charity, without any 1 224 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. beft footing on which the matter can reft, both as to the poo* and their providers. From the enormous extent to which poor's rates have arifen in England, it is probable, that great caution will be ufed in attempting to organize this lubject, as to Scot- land, into any very ftridtly defined legal fyftem. The poor, generally, through Scotland, have hitherto been fupported by voluntary contributions, given in at the church door on Sundays, and other donations ; together with a few fmall ftated perquifites, fuch as, from 2S. 6d. to ios. for the ufe of a finer or inferior pall, or mortcloth, at burials ; from one to two millings for proclamation of banns of marriage ; be- fules, in fome cafes, from the intereft of money mortified by charitable perfons, Thefe funds are adminiftered by the Minis- ter and Kirk-Semon (fee Note A) ; fometimes, by allocating penfions from time to time ; fometimes, in a maimer, left en- tirely to the difcretion of the Minifter, lean: the fixing of pen- fions fliould beget a reliance to relax induftry. From the in- creafe of diflenters, and the too prevailing cuftom among the opulent, of abfenting themfelves from church, it is probable, thefe funds may not long fuffice •, when recourfe mull be had to parochial afTefTments. Such equal afleflment is alfo prefer- red by many, as it reaches every one ; whilft, upon the fyftem of voluntary contribution, the burden is rolled over upon the al, and the avaricious efcape : Though, certainly, if the eftablifhment of poor's rates leads, neceffarily, to fuch enor- . expence of poor's eftablifhment, as has enfued in England, the liberal had better bear the whole of the prefent expence, fix times told, than incur their fair proportion of the then rate. Though the fratute poor's laws in Scotland may be confidcr- ed as obfolctc, from difufe ; there is, ncverthelefs, a confuetu- dinary law for poor's rates, though feldom, and never general- £ted upon (fee Note A) : And it would be well, if the ne- ity of a£fcing upon it could altogether be fuperfeded. Un- to funds employed in productive labour, which reproduce themfelves, together with a profit, funds, employed in fupport the poor, ;nc altogether annihilated. If an individual, or a fociety. u-:i!t:iral Survey of "Peelksjlnre. 22$ ■iv, are pofleffed of funds faffieient to maintain an hundred perfons for a twelvemonth ; fuppofing thefe hundred fupported, idle— the fund perifhes in the ufe, and is no longer in exigence: If, however, it had been applied to the fupport of an hundred, as the wages of productive labour, in agriculture, trade, or manufacture, it is equally evident, that fuch labour would, at the end of twelve months, have replaced the fund, with a pro- fit that might be added to it, which might enable it, for the enfuing twelve months, to fupport an hundred and ten or twen- ty—affording, thus, additional fubfiftence for an increafmg po- pulation. Were the whole funds of fociety devoted to alms, and confumed in idlenefs, mankind would foon revert to the favage date, having nothing for fubfiftence but natural produce ; and the one half might repeatedly eat up the other, before po- pulation was reduced to that limited number which natural pro- duce would fuffice to fupport. It feems ridiculous, therefore, conftantly to ring the changes of commendation upon charity, in the fenfe of almfgiving, as if it comprehended the whole of what was commendable in neighbourly practice ; and to con- fider the conduct of thofe, who lay out their funds in the em- ployment of productive labour, which replaces them, together with a profit, as immeritorious, if not in fome degree immo- ral ; when the good of mankind fo evidently requires, that no more funds fhouid go to perdition, than what are abfolutely ne- cefTary to relieve fuch diitrefs as cannot otherwife be relieved ; and that the grcateft quantity pomble fhouid be applied to the employment of productive labour f . When the fupport of the poor is enforced by a compulfa- tory tax, and a maintenance can be claimed as a right, and not a favour, the fhame of application is removed * : And if the maintenance is any way equal to the wages of laborious induftrv, an irrtfiluhle temptation to pretence of poverty and G g inability } See Note G. * In dearth 1795, a foal! afT.iTment of poor's rate was impofed, for the firft time, in Newhmds ; and I found that many came to claim a (hare of tit Hatof •J tie gintlmt*) whty o'.b«nvife, (tsftfcj fatvs awdejio app UcaUofl. 226' Agricultural Survey of Pcebtesjhlre. inability is held out : So foon as funds are thus provided, a- bundance of candidates for their confumpt will prefent them- felves j nor is there any certain criterion to diftinguifh the voluntarily from the necejfarlly poor. Nothing requires fo little encouragement to make it thrive, as idlenefs 5 to which pover- ty, in two cafes out of three, may be confidered as a fynonime. Through frugality, in the days of youth and ftrength, a fund of fupport might often be provided againft the infirmities of old age ; but the fecure profpecl: of otherwife obtaining fuch provifion, fuperfedes the neceffuy of fuch faving. Where poor's rates have been regularly eftablifhed in Scot- land, they have, from thefe caufes, been continually upon the increafe-f-. Where poor's rates are eftablifhed, they neceffarily bring along with them laws ftrictly defining refidence ; that it may be afcertained on whom the burden of the poor's fupport falls. Thefe laws, as enacted in England, have been, by fome, confidered as originating in a humane regard for the poor, and to indicate the •f- Compare the expence of Yarrow, in the neighbouring county of Selkirk, (Statiftical Account, vol. '/th, page 509), where rates have been eftabliihed for a confiderable period, with that of the parilhes of Linton and Newlands in Tweed- dale, where, till the laft feafons of dearth, there were neither poor's rates nor fix- ed penfions. Ceteris paribus, the poor are proportioned to the population ; they are fuppofed alfo to abound moft where there are villages. Linton contains a vil- lage of 30c fouls 5 there is no village in Newlands, or in Yarrow. Throwing a- way odd numbers, the population of Yarrow was 1200 ; that of Linton and Newlands 900 each : The expence in Yarrow ought to have born a proportion, therefore, to that of Linton, or of Newlands, as four to three. In Yarrow, how- ever, in I792, the rate, for one year, was 120I. befides the collections and other funds: This fum, too, mufl have been all expended ; as poor's rates are general- ly laid on to anfwer penfions priorly allocated. But even including the dearth of winter 1 795-96, the yearly expence in Newlands and in Linton had not exceed- ed 36I. each ; nor 31I. for an average of five years. The clergyman obfetves, in his Report above quoted, ' that the poor's rates were moderate at their commence- ment, owing to the /mail number of fen/iotters : ' an observation which furely needs no comment. In the dearths 1 799- 1800, I have been informed, that the poor's rate in Yarrow amounted, annually, to about 420I. : In Linton, and in Newlands, the expence amounted only to about iool. annually; poor's rates being then aflbflcd; in the two latter parifnes, in aid of the ordinary funds. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 527 the mode in which they may obtain a fettlement : By others, with more appearance of probability, they have been looked upon as obtained upon the principle of felf-defence, in order to get rid of every avoidable burthen. In England, it would appear, that no perfon coming to a parifh is allowed to fettle there, left he fhould acquire a refidence, and eventually be- come a burden, unlefs he can produce fecurity for his even- tual maintenance to an extent that no induftrious labourer, having only his own labour as his fund of fupport, can pro- cure. Induftrious labourers are thus confined as prifoners within the precincls of the parifh which gave them birth ; they are debarred from carrying their induftry to fuch places as have a greater demand for labour, and where higher wages might be obtained 5 or, if they have acquired a new refidence, they are prevented from retiring, in the feafon of age and in- firmity, to fuch friends and relations as might footh and com- fort them ; and, by performing many little offices of good will, which could not be procured from f rangers but for hire, might make their maintenance come far more cheap. The fuperplus of labourers, in one diftricl:, cannot be difburthened upon an- other, where a greater demand for labour hath arifen ; nor the neceffity of the latter be relieved from the fuperfluity of the former ; the litigations inftituted to evicl: refidences, with the expence of the removal of paupers to their proper refidence, coding more, too, in every litigated inftance, than what the fuppcrt of the fubjeet of litigation would coft in any Scotifh parifh. (See Smith's Wealth of Nations, Book I. chap. x. part fecond, and third particular.) From the moderate expence at which the poor have hither- to been fupported in Scotland, Jaws of refidence have very feldom become the fubjec?c of litigation : Otherwife, there are laws of confuetude, (at leaft, admitted by general acquief- ence) ; as, that three years actual refidence, without being be- holden to any poor's fund, conftitutes a legal refidence to a grown perfon ; and, that birth conftitutes the fame to a child. But there is no authority in Scotland that can remove a flout labourer from a parifh, to prevent his acquiring a refidence j and. 228 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. and no pledge againft his eventual maintenance can be required, either from himfelf, or from his laft purifh where he had refi- dence : he mult be confidered as what he is, and not in pro- fpect of what he may become. Till the great increafe of the expence of maintenance occafioned by the dearths of 1 799"* I Soo, I have heard of few inftances of litigated refidence. Indeed, it would appear preferable, in general, to fopj whatever poor happen to refide in your pariCh, if fuch rule {ball be univerfally adopted, than to incur the expence of le- gal eviction of refidence in any inftance. Even under an ex- penfive poor's eftablifhment, fuch as that of England, it were probably preferable to adopt this rule as law, than to fubjetfc the labouring part of the community, and the public at large, to the oppreffive reftraints, inconveniences, and difadvantages, that refult from the laws of refidence. In Scotland we have no office-bearers under the defig- nation of overfeers of the poor and ckurch-ivardens. If thefe office-bearers, who feem to have power to aflefs for the poor, are not themfelves liable to the tax ; or if they receive emolu- ment proportioned to the fum they thus place under their own adminiftration, it were not furprifmg fhould they be un- ceconomically liberal at the expence of other people. In the contradictory Scots acts of Parliament, (all, too, of equal authenticity, the fubfequent always homologating the whole of what went before), the power of compulsitor, as to the poor's provifion, is fometimes lodged in the Sheriffs of coun- ties, in the Commiflioners of Excife, in Cornmiffioners ap- pointed by the Kirk-fcffions, in the Kirk-feffions themfelves, in overfeers appointed by the Julttces of Peace, or the heri- tors with advice of the Kirk-feflion. By the cuftoin aequi- efced in, it is the heritors who impofe the tax, when re- courfe is had to rates : and, as they bear the one half of the impofition, their tenants, who bear the other half, arc in the iafe hands of thofe who have a common concern *. The minifler * In a fmall parifb in CydcfJale, bordering upon this county, where t,he peater part of the lands belong to one propvieior, to whom the other heritors gen Agricultural Survey of T'ccbkfp'ire. 2 29 minifter and kirk-feffion are the ufual adminiftrators ; but are refponfible to the heritors for their adminiftration : The adrni- niftration is not confidered as a voluntary fervice, for which hire may be exacted ; it is rather held in the light of a fort of profeflional duty. The poor's funds are, therefore, virtually, both iinpofed and adminiltered, at no expence, by thofe who bear the burthen. Little liable as fuch a fyftem would feem to the poffibility of abufe.; yet fuch, it would appear, is the propenfity to idlenefs, alias poverty, when any fecure profpec"r. of provifion is held out to it ; that, as formerly obferved, wherever poor's rates have been regularly eftablifhed in Scot- land, they have increafed that poverty they were meant to cure. Faulty as our confuetudinary fyftem may appear in various refpetls, it is highly queftionable, whether that man would in fact benefit his country, who fhould attempt to organic it into a more regular fhape. In burghs, poor's rates are laid on like other taxes, ac- cording to dented fubftancc. -In the country all is laid upon proprietors and poffeffors of land, by the rule of the valuation of the lands in the cefs-books. The Scots poor's a£r.s, having chiefly relation to the poor from idlenefs, enjoins their apprehenfion, and the adjudging of their fervices to thofe that would accept of them ; and, from the act. 1672 downwards, (as it would feem they could not be difpofed of by the former provifion), enforce and reinforce the erection of work-houfes, or correclion-houfes, in all the prin- cipal towns, into which all the poor from their adjoining coun- ties fhould be collected, and where they fhcnld be compelled to labour. Under feyere penalties, the Magiftrates are enjoin- ed generally delegate their powers as to public c ce.rs of th« parilfc, it was found nrccflary to eihblifh a poor's rate during the late deatths. This proprietor fenf mefiages to the tenantry of the parifla, that, as feveral of them were ciders of the fcflion ; and as all refided, and knew the lltuation of the poo* ; and'as, likc- vife, they had to pay the one hah of any afililment iwpofed, he knew nobody fo fit to manage the bufinefs as themfelves : He dcf:rcd them, therefore, to nv.et with vi.c ciiniftsr and elders, under auuraoce of abiding by all that they thould decern. 230 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. ed to erect fuch houfes in thirty-two towns fpecially defigncd in the a£t. The heritors of the parifhes in the counties at- tached, for that effect:, to thefe towns, are enjoined to levy affeffments, one half payable by the proprietor, and the other by the poffeffor of the lands, for the purpofe of paying to the Magiftrates at the rate of two {hillings Scots, per diem, for each of the vagrants fent by them to the correction-hcufe for the firft year of their refidence, and of one (hilling Scots per diem for the next three years ; the Magiftrates, meanwhile, having aifo the profits of the work of thefe vagrants for thefe faid four years, as alfo, for feven years thereafter, as an in- demnification for the expence of erecting thefe correction- houfes. After the expiry of faid eleven years, the acts make r.o farther provifion. It would appear to have been prefumed that the vagrants confined in them would, by that time, have acquired fuch habits of induftry, that they might fafely be fet at large upon the- public. In thefe a6ts, however, the poor unable to work, i. e. die real poor, are left to be .fupported by the voluntary contributions at the parijh kirk : So that the mode confuetudinarily now adopted for affeffing poor's rates for the real poor, is borrowed from that part of the Scots acls which relates folely to the provifion to be made for fending idle va- grants, able to ivorky to thofe correction-houfes where they were to have been compelled to labour. — (Dr Anderfon has given a good vieiu of the Scots poor's laivst in his periodical publi- eaiiony called the Bee.) In a very few inftances, ivork-houfes, as they are defigned, have been erected in great towns, in conformity to the letter of the Scots a£ts, for the reception of the real poor .unable to ivork, who have been maintained hitherto by voluntary collec- tions at the church doors, and other voluntary donations. In Edinburgh, the preffure of the two recent years of dearth and fcarcity has led to the obtaining of a fpecial a£t of Parliament, empowering the impofition of a poor's rate, when necefTary, to the extent of io,oool., for the fupport of the unable, and the occafional relief, in fuch feafons, of thofe whofe work can- not reach the whole of their maintenance. That Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 23 i That there is a poffibility of maintaining the poor more cheaply, when collected together into alms-houfes, will appear evident to every one who has attended to the difference, in cheapnefs, of common mejfing, compared to feparate eftablijb- ments. But, though phylically pofiible, it has been found mo- rally impracticable to mefs the poor at even the fame degree of cheapnefs in alms-houfes, as that at which labourers, receiving no charity, do, in fact, maintain themfelves upon their diftincfc feveral eftablifhments. From Dr M'Farlane's Inquiries concern- ing the Poor, published in 1782, it appears, that, even m Edin- burgh (where the poor's houfes are managed by the moft re- fpectable inhabitants, and are reckoned to be upon a better footing than thofe of moft other countries), the average annual expence of each individual, in thefe houfes, came to from 4I. 4s. to 4I. 10s.; whilft, upon the fame average, the annual earnings of a tradefman, after deducting houfe-rent, amounted to no more, for food and clothing to himfelf and family, than 15I. per annum ; which, allowing the computation of only three children to the family, falls to be divided among five indivi- duals, allowing only cf 3I. for the maintenance of each. Such is the wafte that may be expected, when perfons live at die expence and rifle of other people : fuch the exertions and fru- gality which fpring from na ction, and the honourable pride of independence. To think of maintaining beggars equ pend- ent induftrious labourers maintain themfelves, is feemingly in vain : Yet, the expenfive maintenance of the firft, is an ep- prefhon of the laft. {See foot-note, p. 203.) The expence of erecting and fuperintending alms-houfes, can, at all events, only be afforded in great towns: 1 ■ tnad- miffible in country parifhes, he population is thin. Even in great towns, it is queftioned, whether the poor might not be more cheaply maintained in their own houfes, (when left to difpofe of fucli abilities as they poffefs, in fuch lines of fm; induftry as they fhall find out for th< of oecafional charity, distributed according t< 1 1 defert ; when, having a lefs certain dependence sore at th ir ^32 Agricultural Survey of Pecbtesjhire* own rifk, and having the entire property of inch earnings as they can obtain, by fuch induftry as they are capable of exercif- ing, a greater degree, both of ceconomy and of induftry, would be enfured j and they would alio be more happy in their own feelings, when freed from the monotonous irkfomenefs of con- finement, and from the languor of want of an employment immediately and perfonally interefling. A very accurate fyf- tem of fuperintendence of the molt refpe£table inhabitants (fuch as was enforced, in Edinburgh, by the necefiity of the cafe, in the calamitous feafons 1 799-1 800) would need, however, to be kept up, to this effe£t. But men of bufinefs are too much occupied in bufinefs ; and thofe of wealth and leifure are too bufied in illuftrious idlenefs, to find leifure for occupations of obfcure ufefulnefs. Could work-houfes be put upon the footing of thofe of Count Rumford at Munich •, fo as that the poor might have refort to them for work fuitcd to their feveral abilities, with- out compulfion 5 might obtain the full ordinary wages of fuch work as they can execute, to be entirely at their own difpofal ; and wholefome food afforded them at the cheapeft rate at which it can be afforded in the way of cooking in common, after the moft ingenious contrivances for the economizing of fuel and of labour, and of fuch feientihe cookery as gives tire greateft quantity of nourishment from the leaft quantity of raw- materials ; there is little queftion but that the expence would come far cheaper, than upon any fyftem of compelled labour under confinement, and where the whole profits of the work performed goes to the benefit of the work-houfe. The following Tables, from the, Statistical Accounts and o- ther information, will fliow the eafy rate at which the poor are maintained, where no regular poor's rates are eftablifhed ; and will alfo convey a general notion of the mode of the ad- mmiftration of the poor's funds. The Tables are from the books of the treafurers \ in which are marked every mere oc- cafional fupply, under accidental diftrefs from fieknefs, &c. as well as the more regular fupplies in cafes of permanently par- tial Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjfjire. 233 tial or total inability to work. Gratuitous charities from well difpofed neighbours, in articles of maintenance or of clothing, do not appear in the books, nor in the tables. No fuch gratuitous charities would be given under a compulfatory fyftem of regu- lations, leaving nothing to be determined according to private apprehension of need or defert. H h Table 234 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlj';re. TABLE I. Showing the annual average expence of the Poor, in the three parifhes of Linton, Newlands, and Kirkurd. There are no poor's rates in either of thefe parilhes. In the two firft, the fettling of fixed penfions has been carefully avoided, led fecurity fhould re- lax induflrious exertion ; though, no doubt, in cafes of extreme old age, &c. where the circumftances of the pauper were evi- dently feen to admit no hope of change, the fupply given comes to be, in practice, nearly as equal and regular, as if a fixed pen- fion were allotted. In the Iaft, fmall penfions may have been al- lotted ; though never to the extent of excluding dependence upon occafional voluntary relief. In the two firft, the poor have been made to depend upon the difcretionary power of the parifh Mini- fter, as treafurer; who acts according to the occafional advice, reprefentation, &c. of the more refpedtable inhabitants in the dif- ferent quarters of the parifh. Linton Population, by Statiftical Account, 928. By return Abbot's Bill, 1064. Average yearly expence from 1769 till 1773 Ditto from 1773 till 1781 Ditto from Martinmas 1782 till ditto 1785 Ditto from June 1785 till ditto 1790 Newlands Population, by Statiftical Account, 891. Abbot's Bill, 950. Ditto from July 1773 till July 178a Ditto from July I 78a till July 1790 Ditto from July 1790 till July 1795 - Kirkurd Population, by Statiftical Account, 288. Abbot's Bill, 327. Ditto for five years preceding 1758. The average of pen- 1 doners yearly being 6j - - / Ditto for twenty years preceding 1778. The average of pen- 1 fioners being yearly Io| J Ditto for ten years previous to 179a. The average of yearly 1 penfioners being 6-^ * - i Stock at Interejl, L. 3* "5 So 140 140 140 Ann. average Expence. L. s. d. 10 18 8 16 19 3 31 O ol 18 17 10 11 % 4i %l I Hi 31 *5 O 4 Oi 5 10 9 6| 9 7 81-5- TABLE Agricultural Survey of ' Pechlcsflnre* 235 < vt to c 'i o CO c o c C to c O o bO O 'So PL, 3 CO d ct: _- tn c< — ■ o i- T «»J _" 5 3 ^ £ n rt rt ..- jC ^•u. C_ a. n a w t-i c « ? o « ° M c< »-< m ~o -- V. J J-s I s -cOI ^O^O^CO^OOOOOO ** I tnVD u-^^-0O0O m OVOO V2 _jM | _ _ ^, >_ ,«i „ c< h rJ r» JZ ** B* J2 E"° b _. 8 = £•§ C (If u c ■* z rt — t» rt r! -5 - -3 5 3 cn — cv, -H>-or<-)co«-ooO\ co b a b 5° ■5. p v o J -5 J, js Tj- m »0't')-M'j-0\txOkOfr)00 ^ ts ro rf m vn^o o r- t^co r- o O ^O » N M r, lr, ^ o *•. £ .5 *-" « o O H U f c c • — "o K a O l; .. O ** w ~ "3 £ ^ "5 .o j: •" « -a < £ v 13 .; 236 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlrire. I am indebted to the Reverend Mr Forrefter, Minifter of Linton, for the following ftatement of the rates of fupply grant- ed to the poor of that parifh from January 1800 till January 1 80 1. I am forry I cannot furnifh a ftatement of the fame kinc? for Newlands ; as money was given to different diftribut- ors , and though their accounts were given in to the treafurer in detail, they are entered in his books only in grofs : The an- nual expence, however, the number of poor, and the rates of fupply, were much the fame as at Linton. Poor's rates were impofed in both parifhes in the two dear years ; but the adminiftration was difcretional, without fixed penfions. Expence Poor of Linton from Jan. 1800 to Jan. 1801. The total number fupplied was 70. — The whole annual ex* pence amounted to 103I. 10s. — The rate of fupply as under : Rate. No. of Poor at that rate. 10 9 From as. 6d. to 5s. From above 5s. to 10s. Above 1 os. to 15s. Above 15s. to 1 1. - - 9 Above il. to il. 5s. r - - 9 Above il. 5s. to il. 1 os. - 7 Above il. 10s. to 2I. Above 2I. to 2I. 103. 6 Above 2I. 1 os. to 3I. 6s. - - 4 From 4I. 9s. to 5I. 16s. - 7 The mod ferious burdens to which poor's funds are expofed, are, orphans and old people without relations, who muft be committed to the hireling care of ftrangers ; in which cafes, there is much expence incurred, for little fervice, flovenly exe- cuted. Even a baftard child, difowned by the father, is not a very ferious burden, if the mother is ftout and ceconomical : About twenty-five years fince, I knew of an inftance of this kind occurring in the parifh of Linton 5 where the maintenance of the child, till it was fit to do fomcthing for itfelf, did not coll: the Scffion, annually, above 40s. In Agricultural Survey of 'Peebles/hire. 237 In cafes of baftardy, we are apt to be too indulgent to the weaker fex -, though, undoubtedly, both culprits ought to fuf- fer; and neither ought, furely, to be a gainer for their encou- ragement : Yet, when a ploughman could gain only 61. or 7I. o/yeariy wages above his viduals, I have known one of this defcription amerciated by Juftices cf the Peace in an aliment of 41. yearly to his baftard child, till it fhould arrive at the age of ten years. The next to ruin that would enfue upon fimilar de- cifions, would render them equivalent to an aft of banifhment, and defeat entirely their intention ; befidcs holding out an ir- refiftible temptation to perjury, in Scotland, where, by law, it is referred to the accufed father's oath to decide whether he is or is not the real father ; unlefs, indeed, the mother can ad- duce preemptive proof, from circumftances ( 'famplena probata ) of his guilt j when her oath is taken in fupplement of her proof. In the dearths of 1782, 1795, i~99> l8c0> fome P™"ies bought meal, and fold it at an under-rate to their poor •, others approved rather of diflributions in money ; as interfering in no way to the difcouragement cf the retail trade in meal ; the en- couragement and free competition of which, was confidered as both highly convenient for thofe tridefpeople who got no poor's fupply, and as the belt fecurity againft their being im- pofed upon. There are two or three friendly focieties in this county : In laft dearths, fome of their capital was loft, by being embarked in the very idle, but highly popular concern of importing grain. They have all embraced the privileges of the aft of Parliament in their favour, by fubmitting to its regulations. Under the frugal management of administrators chofen by the members, they promife to be of great ufe, at {mail expence, and with rifle of mifapplication. .< 2i 8 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhlre. Sect. VIII. — Population. I. POPULATION TABLE. o 0 CI c From Sir John Sinclair's Statistical Account. 0 c r; \t~ 8 £ Ages. , Names of - C !} % 0 Parifhes. l| e ? 3 5 a a 1 1 d v. 0 g O 0 »^> 0 0 0 d O « «£ 5 E £ 5 g | 0 "8 •s & ?3i 800 928 449 479 218 1*6 349 146 29 178 9 Linton Newlands 1009 940 891 448 443 220 195 m I03 40 182 8 Eddleftone 679 810 710 J7i 339 131 146 272 120 41 — 5 Kilbucho 279 250 363 188 175 i°5 75 1.3.5 37 11 62 4 Kirkurd 310 260 288 131 IT7 5.5 56 "3 58 6 65 6 Lyne & Meggot 265 167 152 n 81 26 41 64 15 6 — 4 Skirling 33J 230 334 120 114 49 56 105 18 6 — 2 Broughton 367 274 264 142 122 75 57 96 31 5 — 2 Mannor 32c 292 229 123 106 49 5* — — — 4a X Drumelzier 305 320 270 123 U7 6 Glenliolm 39* 270 300 135 165 76 74 — — — 55 5 Inverleithan 559 420 560 268 292 JO Traquair 651 480 44? — — 118 88 181 39 19 — 10 Peebles 1896 1582 1920 — — 547 365 626 322 60 — 28 T'.veedfmuir 397 250 227 5i 5 itobo ■313 8908 300 7645 3i8 8099 — =^- ~ __ 60 5 Totals 117" According to Dr Pennycook, the population in 1715 was 8oco. In the Sta- t'tflical Accounts, it appears, that the population of Linton in 1777 was 1003. In the account of Lyne and Mrggot, the average population is faid to be 160. In the account of Mannor, after the ckiTirication, as in the above table, the clari- fication continues ; 54 from 20 to 30 years ; 28 from 30 to 40 ; 28 from 40 to 60 ; 17 from 60 to 80 ; 1 from 80 to 90. In that of Glenholm, the population is faid to be more numerous in Summer. In that of Stobo, the arrangement is; above 8 years of age, males 119, females 102. About 40 of the inhabitants, ftated above as belonging to Inverleithan parifh, rcfide in that part of the parifh which lies in the county of Selkirk. In Peebles parifh, Z1 of the taxed houfes arc within the burgh, as alio 1480 of the population* II. °-' rt 14-, fa - G.2 ,5 « t2 ~ *. o ot^H 0 *f 00 cs 0 O r>i-NM vo •*!■ 1 n 0 0 x: ft O O CsO ^O ^O co m r<-> ro co rt cs ot 1-1 M Ico r 5 ■§,•- ig <--a ;; . — -lloC\'--tOr^coLoO 1-1 1. i -^.c O — — ►-. Csroro-' -^-Lr^-« 1-io^m 0 CO m 'O,tf0^ttMff)«MHC ~t" 0 -3 ; £ >. co 00 t-- co co\0 -.«csi->c-i««ro « Q« « 2 ■- •« >« 5 "? >>!§ CO « CO - * o> § § ^ ^ ^t, B ta -=, *■ »j»'S J ■H r-ao 0 ^t- of rf tJ-vd c* ^ « lo 0 VD =0 CJ lo^O LnNM >-i Cni-ivO ^ t-- M m co*^fcs CI fi| -> ^> ^- c^ >-i 0 cs -5 I §° j, g 00 -^O r^coosoioo r-00 00 00 r-. r}- r» c-r || c< £^<2 oovo >_or~-« 0 Tfcoot 0 O i^r->-\o ^J-|0 O O C\\o ^OO cocococococ'* ct o« « mx 1 a, 11° .« >-o O C\NO •-" COV3 00 I^hOO COC4 COO00 f- c r*j CSvCOC Of O C-IOO l--t^'<^-lo>-0^1-i 0 cs 0 tl '-'lO-^-COCOCO^t-ir-.i-ii-.i-iMMwi-i ^C £ ■3 $ t-^ 't .-* CJ be B E 2 1 _5 vSP ^T,^ M c* VD vo O o»om r^ •54- 2 3 § V_> CNVD «j~, -1 co 1^1*0 ij-,VD !-o cs rnOVD >-i ^ ^ -t" -4 ■3 ^-^-OCKI | |r-o gl i :/ O 0\ loVO LnO T]-cS -j-w cno (V)Ntj-|x 3 "■ -* "T C\ CO -1 CO^O V2\3 i^^^i^TCH ^r lc a 3 r ^•3 CO ■ji ■ £T ^ JC ^ ^ ^v^"^0 "t '- cm - ro t m rv c^ cs -?* Z' Z Z ^^ t ^1 1 ^. ~ cs -^r- CM -k; - *~ M C ° v-1 *2o.fa~2 ^S0 S "S S P =a ST ;> ,g -c ^i c *r! 5 «.) 3 « rt C .3 0 -0 i^ & -3 0 .fa 5*3 S •'• c r JJ Pi^^pqPmSWw -4 S Eq Q H a S'J) fa 24^ Agricultural Survey of PeeblesJJjlrc, TABLE Of Taxed Clocks, Watches, and Dogs, in 1797; for which I am indebted to Mr Brunton, County Surveyor. Names of Pariflies. Clocks. Watches. Total Watches Dogs. Total Dogs. Of gold. Ofjilver. Paying 3*. Paying 5*- Eddleftone Newlands Kirkurd Skirling Stobo Glenholm Kilbucho Mannor Drummelzier Tweedfmuir 1 .vne & Meggot Inverleithan Trafluair Brougliton Linton Peebles, country") Tov/n ditto J II I 1 5 1 5 4 -> 7 4 5 6 7 I I 2 5 4 *5 •3 ,5 8 5 3 1 2 4 1 2 3 1 2 IO IO 8 2 6 5 IO 4 2 5 7 9 1 6 5 19 J3 18 *.3 2 6 8 4 12 8 3 5 9 12 1 7 5 21 I I I 5 1 1 1 2 J7 27 20 10 9 4 IS T9 6 11 22 18 14 20 9 18 28 20 II 9 4 20 20 7 11 22 l9 14 20 11 Totals 106 35 1 II2 147 !| 13 I221 234 None of the foregoing accounts of the population would appear to have been made up from actual enumeration, but thofe in the ftatiilical accounts, and in the return by the fchool- mafters, purfuant to Abbot's bill. Pennyeook, as phyfician to the county, had much opportu- nity of information, though it is probable that his ftatement is merely deduced by calculation from probable data. The return to Webder, I am informed, was made up from calculations, founded upon the proportion which the whole population is fuppofui Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 24 J fuppofed to bear to the number of examinable perfons upon the minifter's examination -roll ; but it is uncertain, how far fuch lifts might have been accurately kept ; and, though examinable perfons are confidered to be thofe who have attained to eight years of age, and all above that age, yet it is queitionable, how far, in every inftance, fuch claffification might have been rigid- ly adhered to. Armftrong's ftatement, I know, in various in- ftauces, was taken from the random guefs of clergymen fitting at their own fire-fides, who kept no regular lifts.. The inhabited houfes arc noticed, in eight of the parifhes, in the Statiftical Accounts ; and the rate of inhabitants to an houfe, in thefe, is 5^0. In the fame parifhes, by the return in purfuance of Abbot's bill, the rate of inhabitation is 5^ to an houfe ; and by faid return, the general rate of inhabitation is 5^ to an houfe. It is, unqueftionably, a matter of great importance, that the real ftate of a country fhould be afcertained ; and for this pur- pofe, it would be neceflary, in Scotland, that the keeping of regular regifters of marriages, births, and deaths were en- forced. In the affortment of the population of Tweeddale upon Abbot's bill, the claffes employed in agriculture, trade, ma- nufacture, and handicraft, are ftated at 2921, and the non- defcripts, at 5881, or more than double. The fchoolmafters would need more fpecific inftrucTtions as to fuch affortment ; otherwife, nothing can be learned from their returns — while fame, as is confident with my own knowledge, in this county, re- turn, in the non-defcript clafs, the whole of the females, and the whole of the children ; and others make the wives and children go along with the fathers of the families, &c. &c. In twelve of the parifhes, the proportion of males to females is given in the Statiftical Account; and the females exceed the males by 5 1 ; and, in proportion of the whole population in thefe twelve parifhes to this difference, the whole population of the county, by faid accounts, fhould give a difference of excefs of females over males of 79-*- nearly : This excefs, per return under Abbot's bill, is 412 ; but, in proportion of the whole di I i ' the 242 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. the population, per Statiftical account, to the whole under Ab- bot's bill, the excefs of females by the latter ought (in the above ratio) only to have been 86i nearly. Could this difference of excefs in the females be owing to the abfence of males, in con- fequence of a ftate of war ? or, are thefe great variations of the proportion, to be attributed to inaccuracies in the different enu- merations ? No doubt, in the twelve parifhes of the Statiftical Account, on which the above calculation is grounded, the town of Peebles is not included ; and this may make the general ex- cefs of females over males appear considerably lefs from the Statiftical Account, widowed females generally betaking them- felves to towns ; not, however, feemingly, to fuch an extent as mould eafily explain the great difference of excefs in the return under Abbot's bill. The enumeration under Abbot's bill was, indeed, made during the Summer half year, when the farmers employ more fervants, particularly female fervants ; and that may have increafed the difference of the proportion of females, and, indeed, of the extent of the whole population, by the ex- cefs of the demand for farm fervants in the Summer half year, above what is fupplied by the fpread of the Winter inhabitants of the town of Peebles, and villages, in that feafon, over the country : But this alone could not nearly account for either the excefs of the proportion of females, or the increafe of 903 upon the whole population, in the return of Abbot's bill -, not even upon the fuppofition of the returns to Sir John Sinclair having been made, generally, from an enumeration in the Winter feafon. The fure method of obtaining an exact, enumeration is, to have it executed over the whole empire at one time \ which pre- vents all poffibility of deficiency, or duplication of return, in confequence of migration. Coniidering the great excefs of the proportion of females un- der Abbot's bill, which certainly fmplies the abfence of a great- er number of males in the army and navy, who are therefore not enumerated •, and confidering, notwithjlaiulitig, the great excefs of the total population over that returned to Sir John Sinclair ; it muft certainly appear, that the population of the county Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 243 county has rapidly increafed within thefe ten years bypaft. As this increafe cannot be attributed to the introduction of manu- factures, it mull be afcribed to improved agriculture ; and the lamentation over the depopulation of the country, which we find in feveral of the ftatiftical accounts of Tweeddale parifhes, muft either have proceeded from mifmformation, or from par- tial views — it may have taken place, locally, in fome parifhes, but net upon the whole, over the county ; or apparently, (from cir- cumftances explained p. 47, 48.) where it had no reality : And hence the account of farm-towns once inhabited, and now fallen to ruins, which are confidered as the marks of a former more frequent population. The population in Tweeddale, according to the above tables, would appear to (land at the rate of 1 to 26^ acres 5 or at the rate of 24 to the fquare mile *. The following date of the population has appeared in the newfpapers, as already prefented to the Houfe of -Commons : — Males. Females. Total. England 3»987*935 4*343*499 8,33 M34 Wales - 257,178 284,368 541,546 Scotland 734,58r 864,487 1,599,068 Ireland, not yet returned, com- 4,000,000 Iflands of Guernfey and Jerfey computed — — — — 80,000 Army and Militia I98,35I — — 198,351 Navy and Marines 126,279 — — 126,279 Seamen in regiitered fhips M4>558 — — 144,558 Convicts on board of hulks 1,410 — — 1 , i 1 0 Total - 5,450,292 5>492>354 15,022,646 Sect. * That the reader who has little accefs to books may form fome comparative notion of the relative ftatcs of papulation, I fubjoin a fhte of the computed popu- lation to the fquare mile in different countries, from Townfcnd's Travels in Spain : Ruffia 5 ; Spain 67 ; England 107; France 147; Holland 27a. The population of Tweeddale appears to be nearly an one hundred and eighty*. fecond part of that of Scotland. 244 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Sect. IX. — Corn Laws. The belt corn laws for encouragement cf agriculture ever introduced into Scotland, were, the a£ts of Parliament 1449 and 1469, with the gradual extenfiqn of the principles of thefe ilatutes, through the liberal interpretation of our Judges ; af- fording affurance to the cultivator of the foil \ of reaping the fruits of his labour and his capital, by communicating fecurity to his te- tiure (fpojjejion. The act of Parliament 1 748 falls under the fame defcription : Much alfo remains in expectation from indi- vidual exertion ; as an enlightened fenfe of felf-intereft (hall be more and more difrufed through the claries of landed proprie- tors, and of profeffional farmers, in regard to the proper con- flru£tion of leafes. — See note D. In regard to the corn laws, properly fo called, the views en- tertained by landed proprietors and farmers feem to be, that the price of corn fhculd be artificially enhanced, by conftant bounties upon its exportation, and by the prohibition or dis- couragement of importation ; excepting in clamant cafes of more than ordinary fcarcity and dearth. And confidering how many exclufive privileges have been obtained againft thefe clafles, by merchants and manufacturers, who have fo often had the addrefs to perfuade the public at large of the coinci- dence of the public good with their own private views — in mo- nopolies of the home market, fecured to them by prohibition of the importation, and bounties upon the exportation of fueh ar- ticles as they deal in ; together with monopolies of the home- produced raw materials of manufacture, by prohibitions of its exportation in an unmanufactured ftate ; it is not furprifing, that the former clafles fhoukl have bethought themfelves of ob- taining exclufive privileges in counterbalance. It we truft to the opinion of that profound and clofe rea- foncr. the author c\ the Wealth of Nations, it would appear, ■ - though home monopolies will enrich merchants and ma- nufacturers, at the expence of their fcllow-fubjedts, thus ini- ufly debarred from buying where they can be cheapen1: ferved ;, Agricultural Survey of Peeblesshire. 245 ferved ; yet, that no fuch advantage can accrue to farmers or landholders, from fuch exclufive pofleffion of tlie home market of ccrn : for that corn is the ftandard of value of every other marketable commodity ; and that a certain quantity of corn will ever, at an average, purchafe the fame quantity of labour (fo efTential a part of the constituent price of every marketable ar- ticle), proportionally to the liberal, moderate, or fcanty reward given to labour in any country, according to the progreflive, Stationary, or declining ftate of its profperity. That fuch arti- ficial enhancement of the price of corn, therefore, could be of no real benefit to the farmer cr landed proprietor ; for, though the farmer can afford more money rent in proportion to the greater money price he receives for his produce, his landlord can make no larger purchafe of home labour, or its produces, in which his expenditure mult chiefly lye ; as they mult all pro- portionally rife in money price ; nor can the farmer, for the fame reafon, extend his cultivation proportionally to this in- creafe of the money price of his corns •, and that, by confe- quence, this artificial enhancement of the price of grain can- not tend to the encouragement and increafe of tillage. That, meanwhile, the heightening of the price of corn heightening the wages of every manufacture, difables the manufactures of the country from competing in the market with the manufactures of other countries, where wages are cheaper. It would be much more confonant to the natural fenfe of equity, and probably not impolitic, to remove every kind of ar- tificial reftri£tion in regard to agriculture, manufacture, and commerce ; and to leave every one to turn to the belt account he can, his (kill, his induftry, his capital, and his revenue, deftined to enjoyment in confumption ; fubjectcd merely to fuch impofitions of taxation as are neceffary for the fupport of Government. Confiderable alarm, in regard to the declining (late of agri- culture through tlie kingdom, feems to have been excited by the publication of Colonel Dirom upon the corn laws, in 1706. From 2i,6 Agricultural Survey of Pecblesfiire. From that publication it would appear, that, from the year 1688, (when bounties upon exportation were firft permanently obtained, in addition to the formerly exifting reftri£tions upon, or prohibitions of, importation), till the year 1750, our export of grain gradually increafed •, till it arofe to an annual average of 800,000 quarters- above our imports : But that from that period (after which our corn laws ceafed to be fo favourable to export, or fo inimical to import) a melancholy reverfe took place; till at length, during the twelve years from 1773 down- wards, the balance againfl exportation arofe fo high, as to amount to an annual excefs of 311,176 quarters imported, above what was exported ; and from that period till 17935 to about 546,408 quarters. A publication fubfequently appeared in r 797, entitled, Dif- ferfion of the gloomy apprehenfions, of late repeatedly fuggefed from the decline of our com trade ,• and conditions of a directly oppoftte tendency, eflahfifloed upon well authenticated fads, by the Reve- rend John Howlett. The execution feems to come up to the profeffion of the title of the work. As 8co,ooo quarters was formerly the balance of exporta- tion above importation, and the importation now exceeds the exportation by 546,408 quarters ; it is evident, that the propor- tion of grain confumed, to that raifed, exceeds, suw, the pro- portion in 1750, by both thefe fums, or by 1,346,408 quarters annually. When, however, fays Mr Howlett, it is considered, that, fince 1750, the population of Great Britain has increafed probably by 2,500,000 * — that, in confcquence of increafing wealth, the whole population are better fed — that the incrcafe of confumption of butcher meat has fo augmented, as that, upon a moderate computation, 300,000 more of fheep are an- nually killed, 60,000 of oxen, and 40,000 of fwine — that the additional number of high fed horfes, now kept for pleafure, for travelling, for tranfport of commodities, above what were kept for thefe purpofes in 1750, amounts, upon probable calcu- lation, * The aclual enumeration has fecmingly fhown the increafc to be greatly above the iujpf oliliua. ni the text. Agricultural Survey of Peehlesjloire. 247 lation, to 400,000 : And it will then appear, how very little length thefe 1,346,408 quarters of grain would go to the fup- port of this prodigious incveafe, both of men and animals, which muft fubfift upon the produce of land. This greatly in- creafed confumpt could not pofiibly have been iupported, but from a proportionally increafed produ&ion from the lands, by the improvement and extenfion of agriculture : Nor is there taken into the above account, the increafe of confumpt from the additional number or better feeding of working cattle, im- plied in improved or extended agriculture \ nor the additional animals of the dairy, required from increafe of population; nor the increafed rate of maintenance for thofe in the army and navy. Mr Howlett appeals to every one's experience of what he fees around him, in regard to the progrefs or retrogradation of agriculture— the feen ftate of the fa&, being a much furer ground of conclufions, than the returns from the Cuftom- houfe. He is of opinion, that corn laws cannot have any consider- able influence in any way •, but alleges, that as the improve- ment of agriculture has continually increafed fince the Revolu- tion, and that as corn laws (of the belt conftruclion, in the o- pinion of the favourers of them) have, at different portions of that period, co-exifted, an opportunity is thus afforded of con- founding mere coincidence with caufation : But that agricul- ture will be found ftill to have gone on progreffively improving, equally, during that portion of thefe periods when they are fuppofed kail, as when fuppofed moil favourable *. That if corn * At the Revolution, life, liberty, and property were perfectly flcured ; and that encouragement given to induftry, which arifes from fecurity of reaping, and unrnoltftedly enjoying its fruits. Shall, then, any fuperior caufe be fought for, to account for the profperous (late of induftry in agriculture, or any other occupa- tion ? Under fuch circumftances, is it not Slaringly abfurd to fearch for the caufes of the nation's thriving, in any partial fyftem of regulations, fuch as the corn laws, which it has been found repeatedly fo necefTary to alter and amend, and fo fre- quently to fufpend altogether in their execution ? Might we not almoft as rea- sonably 24 3 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjlnrt. corn laws had any confiderable effect, it would chiefly appear in keeping the market price fteady and uniform : but that, even in thofe periods, when corn laws are fuppofed to have operated to the beft effect, the prices appear to have been fubject, to equal fluctuation, as at any other period \ as is evident, upon infpecting the tables of prices, produced by thofe who would wifh, from thence, to fhow their beneficial effects. That the price muft depend upon the feafons fent by Providence, and is but little determined by the controul of human contrivance, in the way of regulation. Sect. X. — Game Laius. The facred animals, whofe perfons are inviolable, whofe aftions are fecure againft refponfibility, whofe damages can neither be prevented nor compenfated (like thofe of the human fpecies) by their punifhment, nor extirpation, nor recovery from their owners, or, rather, thofe who have the exclufive pri- vilege of becoming fuch, fo foon as they can catch them — owners, therefore, only upon hypothefis : — thefe animals, in this country, are of a kind, whofe ravages are very little de- ftru£live. We have no deer, or wild boars, roaming at. large. Excepting in a flight degree, in regard to Muirburn (page 193), we have no laws facrificing hufbandry to the accommodation of the game : We have no regulations protracting the cutting of hay, till the birds mail be fledged ; or of corns, till they fhall be fat ; or prohibiting the ufe of certain manures, for fpoiling fonably account for the fuccefs of an individual, not from his induftry, but from his ChriUian name, or his nofe, according to the hypothefis of Father Shandy ? There is furely no little dfgree of impertinence in the enthufiallic patronizcrs of the corn-law fyftem, in calling upon us to arreft our attention upon trifles of even ambiguons tendency, to the neglect of the invaluable bleffing of that freedom we enjoy. A fuund conftitution of body can (land the tampering of quacks; and when vigorous health fiill remains, it is apt to be afcribtd to the nofirum adminil- tered. The fupciior foundnefs of the Britilh conftitution may thus confer unmc- ijicd credit on many an idle or uufululary political nojlrum. J.gruiiliural Survey of Peebles/hire. 249 fpoiling of their flavour *, Crows, which every one is allowed to deftroy at pleafure, occafion much more damage to the crops, than the whole tribe of game animals put together. The only damage at all worth attending to, is that resulting from men and dogs, in puriuit of the game. Before the high tax upon game licences, with heavy penal- ties for hunting without licence, the fheep, particularly upon the range of Pentland-hills, in Linton parifh, were much mo- kftcd, in the muirfowl feafon, by thoughtlefs, idle, apprentice boys from Edinburgh, traverfing the grounds. In regard to the detriment of agriculture, the very worft poffible regulation, in reipect oi the game, would be, to throw it indifcriminately open, with liberty to purfue it everywhere, to all without diitinction. The very belt would be, to veft in the occupying farmer, an abfolute power of preventing every perfon, without exception, from hunting over his farm againft his confent : A privilege thus granted of favour, and not held of right, would never be abufed, to the damage of farming itock. No doubt, thofe privileged to hunt, are commonly in circum- flances to enable them to make full compenfation for any da- mages they may occafion ; and in fuch fituations of l-efpedtabi- lity, as would reitrain them from knowingly occafioning any damage whatfoever : Yet, without fome fuch regulation, pro- perty launched out in farming can hardly be conceived equally protected by law, as other property launched out in the bufi- -nefs of other gainful profeffions. To have recourfe for da- mages, merely where damage cm be legally inftrutted, would K k nowhere * Allufions to tlie old French game laws. — See Touitgs Tour. There are laws on the Scotiih fiatute book, unrepealed, which prefcribe the punifhment of the lofs of the right hand, for the third ofTence of fhooting- pigeons. They may be consi- dered as fallen into defuetude, like other laws alfo unrepealed; fuch as, the fla- tute apainft fornication, in 1567, by which it is ordained, that all perfons guilty, as well tl;e men as the women, « (hall be tane to the deepeft and fouled poole, or water of the parochin, and their to be thrice dcuket ; and thereafter banilhcd the r parochin fc r ev:r. ' i'jo Agricultural Survey of Peeblesfhire, nowhere elfe be confidered as a fufficient compenfation, for" having property put in rifk at the mere pleafure of another. Suppofe the whimfical privilege were afTumed, of playing cudgel matches, for diverfion, in a glafs or china (hop : The fhopman would furely have fome reafon to be diflatisfied with this privilege, although he had the mod undoubted fecurity of recovering all damages that might enfue •, and though, from the nature of his wares, no damage could poflibly occur, in total fracture, or even mere fiflure, but what could, with eafe and certainty, be inftru£ted. In hunting, however, for exam* pie, with flow hounds in Tweeddale, where the fheep, walking wide, are naturally very wild, the mere recourfe for legally in- ftru£ted damage muft afford (till lefs adequate compenfation for the rifk ; as, from the nature of the property, much da- mage may be fuftained, which is utterly incapable of any legal inftru&ion — fuch as, lofs or prevention of fat, from difturbance in their paftures — difeafes consequent upon overheating, in run- ning through fear, or even upon fear itfelf. Here, as elfe- where, the power of prevention of unneceffary rifk is the pro- per and the belt fecurity. Upon the other hand, it would ap- pear a fevere regulation to exclude the proprietor, without leave afked and granted, from fuch rural fports as he might find up- on his own grounds \ which might have a tendency to prevent monied men from inverting their capitals in the purchafe, the improvement, and adorning of landed eftates. Expediences here clafh, and the fubje£t is confefTedly of great delicacy. Farmers, no doubt, are apprized of their fituation, and, in their calculations of difcount, muft make allowance for rifks, whe- ther more conftant or occafional. Meanwhile, I have ftated the matter in the ftrongefi point of view •■> as there can be no harm in reminding hunters of the very particular fituation, m which the very valuable farming ftock of the country is placed — a circumftance perhaps too apt to be forgotten in die ardour of the chafe. Game feems now, by the lateft decifions, to be confidered as property ; or, at lenit, that the property of another cannot be rendered fubfervient to the ufe of ftarting game in it, or of following Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 25 1 following game through it ; and it is thus happily in the power of the proprietor of the lands to exclude all privileged hunters, whofe raftmefs might render them more regardlefs of rifle upon the property of another, where they have lefs intereft in the te- nant's thriving. In the cafe of fheep worried by dogs (a cafe fometimes oc- curring in the country, and often in the vicinity of towns and villages), it feems not perfectly decided, whether the firjl tref- pafs of the dog is at the rifk of the proprietor of the fheep, or of the owner of the dog. In the lateft, I believe, and ftrong- -cft decifion of the Court of Seffion, upon this fubject, the de- cifion went near to the eftablifhment of the general principle, * that the firft trefpafs is at the rifk of the owner of the dog. ' In that caufe, of a dog belonging to a tan-yard, an opportunity was given of bringing forward the matter upon the general principle, diverted of all fpeciakies : But (though it was made a common caufe, I have heard, among a number of perfons keeping fheep around Edinburgh) the anxiety of the parties led them foolifhly to bring forward fome vague fpeciakies, tending to criminate the former character of the dog ; and, though the only circumftances of this kind, either alleged or proved, a- mounted to no more, than * that the dog had, fome time be- fore, been feen looking earneftly at the fheep in the enclofure, ' the Court, in awarding damages againft the owner of the dog, laid much ftrefs upon this fpecialty of the cafe, in order to de- cline the indirect eftabliihment of the general principle — a mea- fure which our Courts of Juftice feem fhy of adopting ; fuch decifions amounting, in effect, to a fort of legiflation, and re- quiring legiilative caution and deliberation. CHAP 25 ? Agricultural Survey of PeeMesj?ji>-& CHAP. XVI. OBSTACLES TO IMPROVEMENT- *^-f*ljfliBHl""* *' * Deficiency of capital is the great general obflacle to agricuJU tural improvement. Manufacturing and trading capital have had fo many fuperior privileges bellowed upon them, that more than a due proportion of the capital of the country has, thence, been attra&ed into trade and manufacture. Nor, if we trull to the opinion of the author of the Wealth of Na- tions, can this difadvantage be counterbalanced, in favour of agriculture, by any exciufive privileges attempted to be bellow- ed on capital employed in this occupation by the corn-lav/ fiy£- tern. More full fecurity of reaping the proper fruits of agri- cultural fkill and capital, than what is prefently enjoyed* might certainly, however, be conferred, to the encouragement of the more extenfive invcfliture of capital in farming, and to its accumulation in more rapid progreffion, were it not for preju- dices of various kinds. Prejudices, too prevalent among landed proprietors, in re- gard to the extent of intereft in the lands mmunicated vbj the leafe to the occupying cultivator ; both as to the duration. of that intereft, and alio as to the complete alienable property of it — Prejudices deftrucHvc, in an high degree, of agricultural credit, and tending to prevent the tenant's fixing of even his own capital in the foil ; re fl riding, of coiufe, all the more im- portant improvements, of permanent duration, but diftant re- turn, to the exertions of the landed proprietor ; whofe means, gen Agricultural Survey f Pt eblesjhire* 253 rally equalled by his expence, feldom greatly abound, can- not fpeedily accumulate, and ,ire necelarily leaft efficacious in their application ;— the Scots law, feemingly not as yet fuili- ciently difentangled from the fhakles of feudalifm, giving too much fanction to fuch prejudices, See notes B and D. Prejudices in regard to the fize of farms, which would lead to regulations, on the part of individuals, or even of the pub- lic, interfering with the natural order in which the fubjeer, would neceflarily arrange itfeif ; upon the principle cf the ex- ifling agricultural capita/ exerting itfeif u to obtain that mode of its iuvejliture, under which it can be rendered mofl high- ly productive. (See note D.) — Entails tend to obftru£t the beft arrangements; both in regard to the duration of leafes, and alio in regard to thofc exchanges or fales of property which might tend to render forma more productive, either as to fize, or to other circumftances of more convenient and profitable poffeffion. The little effect of the relaxation of entail, by Acf, Parliament jcth of his prefent Majelty, in regard to leafes, has been fpecified already (page 1 1 1.) : A power is, in that a£t, al- fo conferred, of making exchanges of land, to the extent of thirty acres ; which may fometimes fuiT.ce, but much ofteaer may fail to effect the purpofes of a profitable exchange. An originally bad conftitution is not eafily reef ified. Prejudices of the mob, which have tco much infected every letnflature, in regard to the free marketing of grain ; difcour- aging the profeffion of the corn-merchant ; forcing, in fome meafure, the farmer into retail trade, and depriving him of the advantage, fo profitable to every producer, of a whclefalc merchant to take oil, and to pay for his produce ; returning him thus immediately the capital he had advanced, with its profit ; and enabling him again immediately to apply it to the peculiar bufmefs of his profefGon, as a producer — and that, too, with entire and undivided attention. In time of dearth, thefe prejudices expofe bo>: »wk the corn merchant, fo eflentially ufeful to him, to the defcrudtion <■: pitals-, by the fury of the unenlightened mob. — Nor are fliefe mobbiik conceptions confined entirely to the lower orders of fociety. — > Our 2C4 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. Our flatute book ought to be purged entirely of all Jaws enabl- ed in the fpirit of mobbifh conception, which continue to give countenance to fuch abfurd prejudices (fee note H) ; and the prompt exertions of the military force mould ever prote& from outrage the capitals fubfervient to agriculture — the moft ufefully employed of any other. A (Irong {landing military force is indifpenfable, both to the effecting and to the perpe- tuating of the civilization of any country. The ivant of proper fubdivifion of labour •, and of farmings in all their feveral branches. This want cannot be fupplied by any regulation : There is an univerfal tendency, however, to fuch completion j as every one muff, find that praElice makes perfecl- nefs, according to the proverb % and would find that he could gain more by undivided attention to one thing, could he only obtain fufliciency of employment to occupy himfelf entirely in that way. This infers, however, a plenitude both of capital and of population *. The ivant of rich fiefs cj foil \ and benignity of climate. This is an evil which admits not of complete cure : It may be palliated j by the fhelter of wood plantations ; by the enclofure of arable farms, and the adoption of a mode of preparation, and of crop- ping of the lands, fuited to the foil and climate j as fuggefled through the courfe of the Report. The * The fubdivjfion of labour, and exclufive application to one fpecies of work, lias a natural tendency to produce the arrangement of men into cafis, as they are found in the early civilized eaftern regions; the families readily continuing to fol- low the occupation of their forefathers. It feemed to have produced fomethiog of this kind in Holland ; where, it is laid, villages were to be found entirely occu- pied by a particular fpedes of boors, or farmers, who devoted their whole atten- tion to the culture of lint, and its manufacture into flax, fit for the fpinning-wheel. They pofTefTcd no lands upon leafe ; but hired, for a fingle feafon, from more ge- neral farmers, particular fields, ready drefTed, for carrying a crop of lint : The profcffion of lint boor was continued among them from father to fon : I know not if they ufaalfy intermarried, exclufivcly, with thofc of the fame caft ; or whe- 1 her fuch cuflom had grown fo invariable as to have obtained the force of a law; or whether this mark of an approach to high cultivation, has iurvived the irrup- tion cf t{:c difciples of the favage-ltate philofophy of RoulT.v.u. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 255 The ivant of proper modes offtoring up grain, fo as to preferve it from natural decay , and from the deflriiclion of vermin. Such an invention would more deferve a premium, than that of af- certaining the longitude with precifion, or that of dying cotton of a fcarlet colour. Grain would then continue at an equable price ; the plenty of one feafon would cover the fcarcity of ano- ther j and we would hear no more of dearths. Within thefe twelve or fifteen years, we have been vifited by the brown bur- rowing rat, which feems entirely to have banifhed our former fpecies of black rat : They feem too cunning to be enfnared to take arfenic ; at leafl when adminiftered in the way of unfcien- tific family practice ; and our beft remedy hitherto difcovered, is a fufficiency of cats. Foxes have abundant fhelter in the nu- merous young plantations of wood through the county ; and their depredations among young lambs are often very confider- able : A fox-hunter is fupported in the county by contribution among the fheep farmers. The gentlemen proprietors, out of the rogue-money collected along with their cefs, have, of late, revived the inftitution of a thief-catcher, to clear the county of fuch fturdy beggars as extort alms by intimidation. The prohibition of the exportation of 'wool, by confining its fale to home manufactures, may prevent the price from rifing to the rate it might otherwife do, and prevent that attention being paid to its improvement which otherwife might be paid. Corn laivSy as of doubtful tendency ; and Game laws, as in fome degree detrimental, have already been mentioned. Bad roads may alfo be again noticed, as referring to this chapter, particularly the by-roads. C I A P- 1x6 Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. C H A P. XVII. MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS, Sect. T. — Agricultural Societies, There tire none in the county inflituted for the exprefs purpofe of formally difcuffing agricultural topics : A bookfellcr in the county town has fet up a circulating library ; but meets with fmall encouragement : From the thin difperfed ftate of population, the number of readers cannot be many, and thofe who do read do not read much. A monthly club, compofed chiefly of farmers, meet at the head inn of the county town, for fecial intercourfe. There is a fociety of the proprietors and farmers, inftituted for the purpofe of profecuting rogues, from a fund railed by annual contribution of the members. Sect. II*— Weights and Meafures. Butter, cheefe, wool, hay, are fold, within the county, by the Tweeddale tron weight : the pound confiding of 23 Engliih ounces, and 16 fuch pound.-, going to the (tone. Butter and cheefe, fent to Edinburgh, are fold by the pound of 22 Englifh ounces \ 1 6 fuch pounds to the (tone. Meal, butcher meat, put barley, are fold by Dutch weight, of 17! Englifh ounces to the pound. Meal is generally retailed in half ftones, containing eight of fuch pounds, called pecks, fix- tecn fuch pecks going to the boll, and two bolls going to the load ; which laft is the denomination under which it is fold in whole- fale, a peck bei n to each load, though this pradice is wearing Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 257 Wearing out. Barley is fold in pounds and ftones, by retail ; in wholefale, it is ibid in bags, the bag containing fixteen ftones. Groceries are fold by the Englifh pound of fixteeii ounces. Grain is all fold, now, by a late regulation of the Juftices of Pei'.ce, to whom fuch regulations are by law committed, by the Linlithgow firlot •, which is alfo, by law, the ftandard of Scotland. The firlot is fubdivided into four pecks, four firlots go to the boll, and fixteen bolls to the chalder. Potatoes are fold by the oat firlot, with as many above the mouth of the vef- fel as will lye when toffed on by a fhovel : The weight of a firlot of potatoes may be about eighty ftones Dutch weight j though, in potatoes, as in grain, the proportion of the weight to the meafure depends upon the quality of the article. The new eftablifhed firlot, is a wooden veiTel, with its fides rifing at right angles to the bottom ,• a mode of conftruction in-* difpenfable to uniformity. In the old meafure, the fides were made to rife at all varieties of acute angles from the bottom ; fo that, though they all held exactly the fame quantity of wa- ter, they varied, to tire extent of difference (as I am informed by dealers) of from a 40th to a 30th part, according as the lefs or greater acutenefs of the angle admitted of the eafier or more difficult paiTage of the grain into its apex. Many perfons feem deeply interefted in eftablifhing the fale of corns by weight, and •not by meafure : There is, no doubt, a Height in meafuring, which cannot be prattifed in weighing : In other refpe£ts, the feller, in both cafes, mult make calculation of differences of va- lue, in the fame weight and fame meafure of grain, according to the different qualities of the grain as to thicknefs of huik# and its different ftates of dampnefs or drynefs. Sixteen ftones Dutch is the weight of good bigg in Tweeddale : It has been known, in favourable feafons, to weigh eighteen or njnetceit ftones ; but this weight is feldom attained. The liquid and long meafures in Tweeddale, are the faifiS that generally prevail through Scotland. JL1 258 Agricultural Survey of 'Peebles/hire. I fhall (late here a few fa£b which have been omitted in their proper place. Dairy, farming, as the fyftem of tenants paying rent, which is now fuch' a confiderable object in the parilhes neareft to the capital, was nrft pra£tifed, in its prefent mode of accuracy, upon the famr of Wefter Deanshoufes, in Newlands parifh. Sir James Montgomery of Stanhope refided upon, and occu- pied this farm, while he held the office of Sheriff of the county. Sir James afterwards let the farm to Mr Thomas Stevenfton, who, in confequence of the prior refidence, found himfelf fur- nifhed with every accommodation and conveniency for dairy farming, in a flyle greatly fuperior to what any landlord would, then, have thought of propofmg, or the tenant of requiring. The tenant contracted with Edinburgh coffee-houfes for frefh butter ; and, though with fomewhat more trouble, obtained prices fuperior to what are obtained by thofe who fell it to weekly carriers, or to Edinburgh grocers : The fame mode of difpofal is continued by his fon, who fucceeded him in the farm. Old Stevenfton throve upon this practice ; and left three fons, eftabliflied in as many farms, in this county. Mr James Henderfon, in Weftmains of Kirkurd, was the next that made a figure in this fpecies of farming. Mr George Dalziel, innkeeper, nrft at the village of Linton, and afterwards at Noblehoufe inn, was the nrft farmer that fowed turnip in the open fields : I believe he had a field of per- haps two or three acres at Linton, fo early as the 1 763 or 1 764 An innkeeper upon the London road, which then paffed by Linton to Carlifle, previous to the making of the road by Sel- kirk, had many opportunities of information ; and Dalziel was a man of obfervation and acutenefs. I believe he might alfo be the firft who cultivated potatoes, on a large fcale, by the plough. But the knowledge got from oral information, can never be fo accurate or complete, as what is obtained from ocu- lar infpe&ion of the practice. Dalziel made trials, both of tur- nip and artificial grafTes : I believe, however, that neither were at all adopted into a regular fyftem of rotation of cropping, till introduced Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 1 J9 introduced in this form by M'Dougal, as noticed (page 56). I have reafon to believe, that the turnip hufbandry was > intro- duced into Ayrfhire, in confequence of a hint grven by Mr Alexander Dalziel, fon of George, and then fata upon Lord Glencairn's eftate, to a Mr Smith occupying a farm near to the village of Monkton in that county; in confequence of wmch, Smith came to Noblehoufe, in the Summer of 1789 or 1790, on purpofe to be inftrufted in the prattice of the culture of the plant when growing, in Angling the plants by the hand-hoe Ld ploughing betwixt the drills. The fa£t being to recent may be eafily afcertained. So late as the publication of Colonel Fullarton's Report, the regulated Ayrfhire praftice , to which the tenants were bound by their leaies, was that of three years corn crop followed by fix years grafs : and though this fyftem would appear to have been only a fmall improvement upon fome prior fyftem ftill more .barbarous, we find, that the ho- nour of its invention continued to be ftill keenly contelted, as, antiently, was the honour of the birth-place of Homer. Wooden flakes, for confining fheep upon turnip, are com- ing more and more in requeft : For thefe two laft years many Tweeddale carpenters find almoft clofe employment m furmfh- ing them-a fign that Tweeddale fheep farmers, in feeding on turnip, do not pay their whole attention to the benefit of the fheep, as ftated in page 72. ; but are attending more to the be- nefit of the land. The flakes are each nine feet long, made of foreign fir •, and, when well painted, are, according to their more ftrong or more flight conftruftion, afforded at from 5s. to 7s. per flake. In Autumn 1801, when the aftermath clover was everywhere fo luxuriant, an intelligent farmer, in the pa- rifh of Dunfyre in Clydefdale, bordering upon this county, confumed his clover by fheep enclofed in flakes, as on a turnip field, to the great benefit of the land. This practice was a no- velty in this neighbourhood. To one acquainted with this county for upwards of 30 years bypaft, it conveys a pleafing idea of progreflive improvement, {hat the clafs of farmers, formerly ftudious of making gam merely 260 Agricultural Survey of Peeblesjhire. merely by faving, are now fo liberal in their outlay, eyen uppft tlie mere inftruments of their trade. It may be here noticed, that the Tweeddale hills are gene- rally hard and dry ; that the fheep are peculiarly healthy and hardy, the rot being fcarcely known ; and that, for holding {lock, the heavy ewes, in particular, (in which kind of flock there is the greateft rifk, from unfound paftures), fell at a price proportionally more high than that drawn for fimilar ftock from more fufpicious quarters, in proportion to the dimU nution of die rifk of their thriving. CON- Agricultural Survey cf Peehhsfiirt. 26 1 CONCLUSION. Was man covered, by nature, with fur, like the bear ^ were the elements fo tempered, that their influence could not injure him, or his body impartible and unfufceptible of injury- did he inhale aliment, with breath, like the camelion; was the continuation of his kind provided for by the permanence, and not the fucceflion, of individuals ; or, was the fucceffion pro- cured by fpontaneous production, without diftinaion of fex, or the paffions originating in that diftinaion - - - Upon fuch fup- pofitions, there could be no call for induftry, to procure clothes, houfes, fuel, or meat •, no necefiity of any kind of exclufive appropriation-, no poffibility of injury, nor perception of di- ftinaion betwixt juftice and injuftice ; no need of mutual co- operation, of government, or of law ;— but each individual, pof- fefiing the boafted perfeaion of the ftoic fage *, would cenfti- tute a complete whole in himfelf, unconnected with, and inde- pendent upon fociety. Having no wants or defires to ftimulate his felfilh exertions, for their relief or gratification f ; having as little call upon his benevolence, in behalf of others, as unneed- ful as himfelf, it were difficult to conceive what could be his occupation— whether his ftate of exiftence would not be mere- ly paflive ? whether he could be faid to live, or merely to ve- getate ? whether his mind could turn its attention upon its own powers, or rife to objeas of more fublime contemplation, with- out • Totus in fe teres atque rotundus. I Ingenii largitor venter. l6z Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. out having the knowledge of fuch powers brought home to its confcioufnefs, from their firft having had their energy called forth upon more immediate and urgent concern s ? It were endlefs to indulge fpeculation upon the confequences deducible from ideal fuppcfitions. We muft take man as he js— -fitted for, and deftined to adtion, by his great Creator— im- pelled, by his wants, to thofe exertions to which their relief is entrufted — and left to become the artificer of his own fortune — impotent, indeed, in his individual capacity •, but powerful, in the co-operation of his fellows. The profperity of man in focicty ; the extent of the popula- tion that can be fupported ; together with the comfortable fub- fiftence of that population, depend upon the improvement of Agriculture and the ether Arts : and their improvement, is the joint refult of ftock, of fkill, and of induftry. Stock is created by man, in his capacity of an hoarding ani- mal, out of the favings of the products of his induftry. Skill is obtained by him, as an obfervant, a recollecting, comparing, combining, inventive, and communicative being — • from experience and information, from judgement and in- ference. His animal frame is happily adapted to enable him to carry into execution the contrivances of his intellect. He acquires dexterity, in his operations, from habit, in their fre- quent repetition : And the excellence of his dexterity, depends upon the exclufive application of his talents to one occupation ; both leading to, and confequent upon, the proper fubdivifion of labour and employment. Induftry confiits in the unremittent and ftrenuous application of fkill, dexterity, or flock, to their proper profitable occupation. Man's excitement to it, arifes from his wants and his defires, joined to the certain profpe£r. of being allowed to apply its pro- ducts to their relief and gratification. In particular cafes, his benevolence will excite him to flrong exertions of jnduftry ; in the cafe of defendants, always — if, indeed, under this modi- fication, the motive is, with fuch ftrict propriety, defigned be- nevolence : In general, though it may frequently aroufe ener- gy, it is a motive much lefs energetic, or, at leaft, by no means Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. 263 : 0 be depended upon for fuch unvarying conftancy in its opera- ttbn as his felfifhnefs. To afford him the certain profpecl: of enjoying his acquisi- tions, and of tranfmitting their fecure enjoyment to defend- ants, or other natural objects of his affection, through the pro- tection of equal law — This is all that fociety can effect for him, to Simulate him to the exertion of induflry, to the acquifition of fkill and dexterity, and to the accumulation of ftock — This is all that can, in this view, be held out to him, in the arrange- ment of the terms of private contract for Specific purpofes *. To think of rendering him induftrious through regulation, were he not induftrious by nature ; or to attempt to excite his induflry, without holding out its proper excitement, were to offer remedies to the dead. The vital power exifls of itfelf ; remedies cannot infufe it, but mud prefuppofe its exiftence : Regulation fhould attempt nothing but the removal of obftacles to induflry. Skill, induflry, and ftock, are mutually and equally fubfer- vient to each other, in promoting the productive efficacy of each. Without a certain proportion of fkill and induflry, no ftock could ever be created ; or, if in exiftence, could be turned to no profitable account. Without the pofleffion of a certain proportion of ftock, fkill and induflry could not be applied but to operations of immediate return ; though, in agriculture par- ticularly, the importance of the return is often in the direct, proportion of its diftance. Without fkill, the operations of induflry muft be comparatively inefficacious. Till ftock, how- ever, has been confiderably accumulated ; till individuals become rich, fo as to have leifure for contemplation, without neceffity of conftant perfonal application to labour, for the purpofes of imme- diate fubfiflence ; no fkill can be acquired, no time can be dedi- cated to the cultivation of the fciences, to the consequent inven- tion of machinery, nor to the difcovcry and contrivance of the application of the other natural powers to the facilitating of la- bour * See note D. *?)*. Agricultural Survey of Peebles/hire. tour — through which means alone can induftry be rendered, to the higheft degree, productive *. Energy, once raifed, exerts itfelf univerfally. Man delights, and with reafon, in the exercife of thofe talents that mark the fuperiority of his nature j though the exertion fhould bear no immediate reference to the ends that firft called them forth to action : They become the fubje£ts of emulation, the fource of confcious fatisfaction, and the foundations of fame. In the words of an elegant political author—* The fpirit of the age, then, affects all the arts ; and the minds of men, being once roufed from their lethargy, and put into a fermentation, turn themfelves on all fides, and carry improvements into every art and fcience. ' The fpirit of a monk dictates feclufion from the world. The fpirit of Chriftianity confiders this world as the theatre of active duties ; in the proper diicharge of which, confifts the beft preparation for eternity. * ,cee note G. ENI3 OF THE "REPORT, 1/ W © T E S* NOTE A. The divifion into counties, marks the boundary of the jurif- diction of the Sheriff, who is the judge of the county in civil caufes, (all of which, in Scotland, are determined by the judge, without the intervention of a jury), his fentences being fubje£t, upon appeal of the parties, to the review of the Court of Sef- iion. This lail mentioned court is the Supreme Court of Scot- land, from whence an appeal lies only to the houfe of Peers. It is compofed of fifteen judges, (nine of whom conflitute a quorum), and is juftly confidered as the Grand Jury of Scotland in civil caufes *. The Sheriff is alfo the criminal judge of his county, judging, in petty crimes, without a jury ; and having, as generally fup- pofed, a right to judge, though feldom choofing to judge, with- out a jury, in crimes inferring fevere punimment, only fhort of capital f . His fentences are confidered as fubjecr, by appeal, to the review of the Court of Jufliciary, in all cafes of feverer pe- M m nalties, * It was this notion of the Court forming the great rational Jury in civil caufes, which raifed, not many years fince, the well-founded eppofition to the (Economical plan propofed, of augmenting the falaries of the judgss, by diminilh- I ;ir number, and dividing tlufe of the aboli/hed places among thole to be retained. f Arnot, in his hiftory of Scots criminal law, obferves, that Magistrates of royal burghs have fhown greater aptitude to judge without juries in fuch caufes within their burghs, than Sheriffs within their counties ; whence he concludes, that prefumption is always in proportion to ignorance. It is a neceflary qualifica- "on in a Sluiirf, that be (hall have p:ifT:d trials r« an advocate before our iuprsme court. l66 NOTE A. nalties, except where he has decerned upon the verdict of a jury. The power of the Sheriff to judge, by a jury, in ca- pital cafes, feems to be falling, or to have fallen, into defuc- tude; all fuch caufes being now determined by the Court of Jufticiary, in their more permanent fittings at Edinburgh, or at their annual circuits through the country. This laft mentioned court is compofed of a Lord Juflice-General, (an office next to finecure), and of fix of the judges of the Court of Semon ; thefe fix having an additional falary, proportioned to the addi- tional trouble of their double gown *. They judge in all capi- tal caufes, upon the verdicl of a jury, and (as has been ascer- tained by the rejection of an appeal by the Houfe of Peers as incompetent) in the laft refort. They are always ready to meet for difpatch of bufinefs, as it occurs, at Edinburgh, during the Winter and Summer Seffions of the Court of Seflion ; and take circuits, two and two together, through the different diftricts of Scotland, for the adminiltration of criminal juftice, during the Summer vacation of that Court. Private parties are not bound over to profecute crimes. This duty is devolved upon the procurator-fifcal, before the Sheriff-court; and, upon the Lord Advocate, or his deputes, before the Court of Jufticiaryj in Edinburgh, or the Judiciary Lords, upon their circuits, They are the public accufers, and carry on criminal profecutions- at the public expence. The inftituticn of the Grand Jury, with whom is veiled the power, after precognition of fa£r_s, of fup~ preffing, or of enforcing, criminal proiecutions, is unknown in Scotland, where thefe powers are veiled in the Lord Advocate alone, who has been found irrefponfible in the execution of his office, by a decifion of the Court of Jufticiary, upon a complaint againft him (originating, apparently, rather in the wifli to have the extent of his powers defined, than in any feeling of oppref- fion) from a perfon againft whom he had intented a criminal profecution, and who was acquitted by the jury through failure of proof f. The inftiiutiou of a public aeeufet feems a great improvement — < — • « • Go-wn, the Scotifh name for the robe of office, j M'JLauriii's criminal i NOTE A. 267 improvement in criminal law. The inveftment of the ex ten- five powers of a Grand Jury, in an officer of the Crown re- moveable at pleafure, is apparently lefs favourable to the fecu- rity of the fubjea ; yet no feeling of grievance has been excit- ed for more than half a century ; affording one proof, among many, that Liberty, or (to fpeak more correctly) the proper cir- ■cumfcription of liberty, (whence reiults equal and general fecu- rity of life, liberty and property), is more dependent upon ge- neral knowledge and manners, and the publicity of meafures, than upon any fpecific forms that have been devifed to infure The courts of the Cornmiffaries have alfo a county junidic- tion, extending to cafes of fcandal, probates of wills, marriage, and divorce, &c. ; being the remaining veftige of the civil ju- rifdidion exercifed by bifhops courts. Unlike to other Scotifh courts, the emoluments of the judge arife not folely from an ad- equate fixed falary, but from weighty fines or dues upon each particular caufe ; the whole expence, almoft, of obtaining juftice, thus falling upon the party, inftead of his being infured, as in other courts, againll the expence of the judge, which the pub^ lie at large defray. The jurifdiaion of the juftices of the peace, is almoft every way fimilar to that of the juftices in England •, with the excep- tion, that we hardly know fuch a chara&er as that of a trading jttjlice, making money of his office •, whence we are apt to in- fer, that the nomination in England is not confined, as in Scot- land, to the refpedable landed proprietors. This jurifdiaion of the juftices extends, as to the powers of each, fingly, and of the whole, coileaively, over the county for which they are no- minated. Clafljfications of parifr.es into djftri&s, for holding different juftice courts, for the greater accommodation of liti- gant parties, has of late been made over Scotland, in purfuance of the late a& of Parliament for Scotland, veiling in the juftices a power of judging, fummarily, and without appeal, and accord- ing to the diaates of confeience alone, in all caufes founded upon mere perfonal contraa or obligation, where the claim does not exceed the value of 3I. 6s. 8d. Sterling. To 26$ XOTE A. To confine judges to written laws, as the rule of their judge- ment, is the characteristic feature of liberty ; and the expence of formal litigation, is the price that muft be paid for liberty. To allow them to judge, at discretion, and without appeal, bears a ftrong refemblance to defpotiim. Where, however, fuch power is veiled in a clafs of men, in an independent fitua- tion, and confined to caufes in which they have no perfonal intereft, and of fuch fmall magnitude, as removes every fufpi- cion of improper influence, the fummary juftice of the Afiatic cadi, feems, in practice, infinitely preferable to the expence and delay ever found attendant upon formal law litigation. The utility of this mode of adminiftering juftice, has been fo appa- rent, after experience, that many counties in Scotland expreffed their wifh to the Legislature, through their reprefentatives, that the powers of the juftices mould be enlarged. Their powers have accordingly been extended, by a fubfequent amendment of the act, to caufes where the claim does not exceed 5I. Sterling in value *. The diviiion of counties into parifhes, refers, almoft cxclu- fivelyj to ecclefiaftical duties and jurisdiction. Every parifh in Scotland is provided with a minifter (cler- gyman) ; in fome inftances with two. The minifter is prefented to the office and its emoluments, in many inftances, by the Crown ; in the reft, by fome lay pa- tron, all of whom are generally extenfive proprietors of land. The perfon prefented, muft be one found qualified for the of- fice by the Church : And the Church, jealous of its own re- spectability, has enforced, by a number of repeated regulations, ry long apprenticeship, in the way of literary and theologi- cal * (; . s might have been noticed as another mode of the adminiftra- tion or juftice, b»;t they arc almc-ft univcifally fallen inlo defuetudc, excepting in cafe of d'lipirtt or fairs, where the bailiff of the barony, within which tlie fair is held, decides the differences th.it may arife between neu- tral perfons at the market. The decifiom ot a bailiff, dependent upon the proprie- tor of a barony, in caufes 0 J litigation between the baron and his own tenant, mull certainly appear in a very fufpicious light to independent judges, befote whom they might conic by appeal. A jurifdfftibn of fuch a nature ought e where to be laid afu'x NOTE A. 269 cal education. The candidate for the miniftry, after a regular courfe of univerfity education, mult regularly attend the theo- logical lectures of a divinity profeflbr, in fome one of the uni- verfities, for at leaft four fucceffive feafons ■■, during winch at- tendance, he muft give repeated fpecimens of his talents for public fpeaking, in difcourfes, publicly delivered, upon pre- fcribed fubjecls. Before he can obtain a licenfe from die Church to be a public teacher, he mufl alfo undergo examina- tion before the Prefbytery to which he applies for fuch licenfe, and exhibit before them fpecimens of his talents for teach- ing, by difcourfes on a variety of preleribed fubjects. The puri- ty of his moral character mull likewife be fufficiently attended by the clergy in whofe bounds he has refided during all the ftages of his progrefs, from the commencement of his theological ftudies. When he has received licenfe to preach from the Prefbytery, he is qualified to receive a prefentation to a pariln. But, before his admiflion into a benefice by the Church, he muft again undergo fimilar trials and examination before the Prefbytery within whofe bounds the parifh to which, he is pre- fented lies. By the old Scotifh acts of Parliament, the Church are bound to receive into the office whatibever qualified minifter fhall be prefented by the Crown or other lay patron.. After the Revolution, by a£fc 1690, the right of presenting to vacant pa- rifhes was taken from the patrons, and veiled in the heritors (or landed proprietors), the elders (or veftry), and the heads of families of the parifh ; who prefented, or, in the technical phrafe, called the minifter to the office. This at! was, however, repealed, and the right of prefentation again veiled in the ori- ginal patrons, by an act of Queen Anne. This act of Queen Anne was unpopular with the lower orders in Scotland, who fecm generally to favour the right of univerfal fuffrage in the election of minifters *■ ; the Church of Scotland, for a while, feemed * The great bulk of diflenters from the Church of Scotland, have left it, upon account of the mode of election by a patron, inflead of univerfal fuffrage. Within thtfc thirty years, an election of a diflcntkuj minifter took place in this county, upon NOTE A. fcemed to efpoufc the caufe of the lower orders. In order to defeat the intention of the act, they fet up the pofition, that a call was ftill neceflary, as well as a prefentation ; and that a prefentee (though ftamped current as a qualified perfon by the Church, in obtaining licenie from it) could not be confidered as qualified for that particular parifh to which he had been pre- fented, unlefs he obtained alfo a general call from the pariihion- ers, who alone were the proper judges whether or not his par- ticular call of gifts fuited their particular capacity of edification. A call from the pariftiioners was therefore adopted, as a necef- fary requisite to admiilion into the office, after a prefentation had been given. To prevent juggling tricks of patrons, by pre- fenting fuch unqualified perfons to parifhes as the Church would refufe to indu£t, in order that they may pocket the emolu- ments, there are laws enjoining patrons to prefent qualified per- fons within fix months from the vacancy, under the penalty of incurring a forfeiture, for that vice, of the right of prefenting, vvhich then devolves to the Prefbytery * : And, in one inftance upon upon the broadeft bafis of the molt tumultuary popular election. It was on that occafion adopted as a maxim, that every one ivho bad a fed to be fdv;d, hufband and wife, man, woman and child, matters who had a permanent refidence, and fervants who might change theirs at every term, had ail an equal right to vote in the election ; provided only they had arrived to the capacity of judging ; the tefl of their having arrived to ihis, being held to be their participation of the lacrament of the Lord's Supper, which generally takes place from the age of 15 to 18. — What mode hath been adopted in later elections, I have had leis accefs to learn. The difl'enters profefs to adhere to tHe articles of the Eflablifhed Church, but to differ in their interpretation from the efublifhed clergy, who are lirppofed to have relaxed from the rigour of high Calvinifm, in forming conceptions of the Supreme Being, more amiable, and Icfs tremendous, than what are fuggtired by abfolute decrees of election and reprobation. Some difference is alfo dated as to the mode of enforcing the duties of morality. To ding doivn gude ivarh — to vilify their importance as to man's felvation, feems, among the diflentcrs, to be the proper mode of exalting and doing honour to the fupreme efficacy of the Redeemer's jighteoufnefs. To treat morality with fomewhat more refptel, is imputed as an er- ror to the eflablifhed clergy — it is called legal definite. * That patrons may not be tempted to keep parifhes vacant, there is alfo an- other law, by which patrons are obliged, at the fight of the heritors, to apply the vacant NOTE A. 2/1 upon record, the Church, under colour of this law, refufed induction to a prefentee whom the pariihioners refufed to call, upon pretence that, by this refufal, he was evinced to be a per- fon unqualified for that particular charge ; and alio, upon the aflumption that the right of prefentation had thus devolved to the Prefbytery, gave induction to another, whom the Prefbytc- ry prefented upon a call from the pariihioners. Upon a com- petition for the emoluments of office, by thefe two candidates, our Supreme Civil Court found, that the patron's prefentee had tlO right, becaufe he had not received clerical induction into the office ; and that the other had as little title, as he was not prefented by the patron : That, of courfe, no forfeiture of the patron's right had occurred ; that the parifh remained it III va- cant j and that the rights of patrons could not be defeated, nor popular election fubftituted in their room, upon any fuch pre- texts. The inhability of a lay prefentation alone, to confer a right to a church office and benefice, without clerical induction, was indeed thus fullained ; but it was equally manifeft, that the refufal of clerical induction to a prefentee, who had been ftamped as qualified by the Church, could not infer a jus devo- lutum on the part of the patron, and could only prolong the vacancy of the parifh. For thefe reafons (and probably alfo from the apparent abfurdity of fuppofing that die qualification of fufficient talents and literary acquisitions was not of univerfal application, but that every particular call of head required an appropriate particularity of adaptation), the Church has, for a long period, ceafed to obtrude the neceffity of popular election ; and, though the form of a call has not yet fallen into defuetude, and has indeed been declared by the Church to be a necefTary form, the people themfelves are convinced of its being only a form, and in general very properly refufe to appropriate to themfelves a mere fcmblance of popular election, where the fubflance is a\\ anting : The prefentee is therefore clerically inducted, unlefs tenible objections are ftated, after a citation with vacant ftipends to pious tifei ; that is, t» fuch works cf pubiic utility, a? arc not o'.hcrwife provided for by law( 17% NOTE A. with proper inducia to that effect (called, the ferving of Lis edit} J, againit his doctrine or moral character *. . Thofe who are fatisfied with the previous regulations of the Church, as a fufficient fecurity againft the admiffion of impro- per members, adhere to the Church -, whilft fuch as imagine their own private choice neceflary to coriftitute the pajioral re- lation betwixt themfelves and their clergyman, join the Dif- fenters f . Probably three fourths, or more, of the candidates for be- nefices in the eftablifhed Church, obtain their purpofe through a long courfe of fervice, as tutors to children in families that have intereft with the Crown, or other patrons — another courfe of clerical training, that feems ftill further to enfure both lite- rary acquifition and propriety of conduct. Accuftomed, how- ever, to look up to the higher claffes for promotion, the man- ners of candidates for the eftablifhed Church, are rather formed to conciliate the favour of the more enlightened part of fociety ; and are lefs adapted to the tafte of the lower orders, than the manners of thofe who look down towards univerfal fuffrage. The diflenting clergy are probably more popular with the lower chiles i and may, there, have more influence. Indeed, there is * Though I have defcribed the mode in which church fcttlements are now car- lied on, it mnfl: beobferved, that there has ever exifted an oppofition party in the Church (called the high-flyers, or wild party, by their antagonifts, who defign themfelves, the moderate party), who infill on the neccflity of a call. It is believ- ed, none of them would wifh to eftablifh the univerfal right of fuffrage in all -who have fouls to he faved. The paity feems, however, divided in opinion ; fome wilhing to extend the right of furlrage to every male the head of a family; others, to re- fhict it to heritors and elders : others, merely to heritors, either eftimatcd^r capi- ta, or in proportion to their valuation in the cefs-hooks. The Church, perhaps not ever wifely, has ftt her own forms in oppofition to her practice, by a declara- tory law, palled not twenty years fince, in which the call is declared a neceflary form. •|- The relation betwixt a clergyman and his congregation, is compared, fome- times, to marriage ; to the completion of which, mutual confent of parties is ne- ceflary : And other conelufions are alio drawn from this fimile, as a ground e£ ng— as, that tranflation to a Letter benefice, is Spiritual adultery, &c- NOTE A. 273 is a fource of error, arifing from mere pofition ; and he that is foremoft, may fometimes be conceived to lead, when, in fadt, he is only driven — as the rife or fall of mercury in the baro- meter is the indication of the (late of the weather, but not its caufe. The mediocrity of the livings in the Scotifh Church, has been confidered as favourable to the refpe£tability of the cleri- cal character ; confining their attempts at diftindtion to the roads of literary eminence, or exemplary morals, and attention to their profefiional duties ; and precluding every hope of its attainment through the oftentatious difplay of riches in expencc, The equality, however, of church livings, and the next to total ab fence of every chance of promotion, prefent a want of JJimu- ha to great exertion. The loweft Ecclefiaftical Court, is that of the Kirk-Se/fioii, a court fomewhat fimilar to that of the Englifh Veftry, and which hath only a parochial jurifdicStion. It is compofed of the minifter of the parifh (who is the perpetual moderator, or prefi- dent), and an indefinite number of elders, two of whom, with the minifter, are neceflary to form a quorum *. As an Eccle- fiaftical Court, the Kirk-feflion exercifes a fort of cenforial power over the inhabitants of the pariih, inflicting upon delin- quents the penalties of exclufion from the facraments, or the penance of public rebuke from the pulpit, before the congrega- tion, on Sabbaths. This power, which, from its nature, is difcretionary, would fcem, in former times, to have been exer- cifed often in a manner very inquifitorial, harafiing, and vexa- tious ; particularly before Ecclefiaftical cenfures were deprived of all civil penal effect : It is now exerciied with more difcre- N n tion ; * The elders are chofen from the landed proprietors, or other refpeftable in- habitants of t!ie parifh : The exifling Kirk-fcfiion choofe the ciders, who are for- mally inftalled into the office by the minifter, if no ohjcfVion appears againft their moral oY religious characters, after proper citation, upon ten days ir.Ji.cia, to '.War effect. It is fometimes difficult to get proper perfons to con Pent to become c from the idea, that the character im'polcs an obligation to a conduct pecul'.r.V txemfltty. 274 NOTE A. tion j and, in moft great towns, it is not excrcifed at ali.; Its exercife, in country parifhes, is chiefly confined to fornication •, their adminiltration of the poor's funds making Kirk-fefiions chiefly anxious in investigating an irregularity which may afre£t the funds, in bringing the maintenance of baftards upon the pariih *. In all Eccleiiaftical caufes, an appeal lies from the Kirk-feflion to the Court of Prefbytery. Befides their Ecclefmftical jurisdiction, Kirk-feflions are the ordinary administrators of the poor's funds of the pariih ; which they administer without any expcnce whatever, or any farther fee or reward, but the confcious Satisfaction, and general credit that may accrue from administering well. Their administra- tion is fubject to the controul of the heritors (landed proprie- tors of the pariih), who may, when they pleafe, infpe£t the ac- counts ; and who ought to be voluntarily confulted by the Kirk-feflion, in all important tranfaetions of uplifting or lend- ing out fuch poor's money as is at interest. Where poor's rates are ettablifhed (which feldom took place, excepting during the laft two years of dearth and fcarcity), the heritors, upon previous citation from the pulpit, meet once a quarter, or half year, with the Kirk-feflion ; when (a lift of the poor being made out, and weekly or monthly penfions being allotted to each) * Church courts cannot, by their fentences, arfeO the civil rights or property of any pcrfon : Their power extends only to what may be called the fpiritua! correction of vice, by exclufion from the facraments, till public penance is per- formed, or other fatisfying marks of penitence exhibited. A woman's accufation of a man, as having been guilty of fornication with her, is not liftened to, unlcfs a child is produced, as a corpus delicli, fubfiantiatinj the exiflence of the crime, and thus far giving credibility to the accufation. If, them, the woman can prove no preemptive circumstances, the man can repel the accufation by his oath — if Jhe proves any fuch, his oath is not admitted. The civil law follows the fame rule, as to decerning the aliment of the child, which the Church does as to fixing the fcandal : of courfc, the prefumptive proof taken by the Church court, is often, though not necejfarily, fuftained by the Civil court. (See page Z37. of the Re- port.) NOTE A. 275 each *) the Kirk-feflion account for the one half of the money arifing, fmce laft meeting, from collections at the church doors on Sabbaths, and from the poor's perquifites paid in at funerals and marriages ; which fum, together with the intereft of lent money, being compared with the penfions alligned, the defi- ciency is made up by a parochial affeiiment, the one half payable by the proprietors of the land, the other half by the farmers who occupy it : the remaining half of the money, arifing from collections and perquifites, is left under the adminiitration of the Kirk-feflion, to provide for accidental unforefeen cafes of diftrefs. The Ecclefiaftical court immediately fuperior to Kirk-fef- fions, is that of the Prelbytery. This court comprehends, un- der its jurifdiction, a greater or lefler number of parifhes, feldom under twelve ; and is compofed of all the minifters of the parifhes under its jurifdiction j each Kirk-feflion in the diftrict having a right to fend alio one lay elder to reprefent them, who is elected every half year. In this court, all pro- cefTes againft minifters muft originate. Its Ecclefiaftical deci- fions are fubject to the review of the Court of Synod. Befides its jurifdiction in matters purely Ecclefiaftical, as to the dodtrine and difcipline of the Church, this court hath veftcd in it a feparate jurifdiction, in matters of a partly civil nature, in which its judgements are not fubject to the review of any court but the Supreme Civil Court, jiko, Where a minifter is not provided of a glebe, or where it is deficient in quantity, . they can fet off, for that purpofe, from the church lands within his parifh, to the extent of four and an half Scots- acres of arable land (including the fpace occupied by the fire of his manfe, or dwelling houfe, and garden), as an arable glebe j to- gether with as much pafture land as may fuffice (according to report of valuators) for the pafture of two ccws and one hoife. They can alio compel the heritors to build, or keep in repair, the * Sometimes no penfions arc fixed, from the dread of fupprefling induftry, !>y begetting reliance; but a grofs Turn is rotcd, . . .',.■■.. D2gcip$pt oi' the I.':k-:l!!ijn. 1*]6 NOTE A. the parifh church, and the minifter's manfe and offices, ids, With concurrence of the county commiflioners of fupply, they may compel the heritors of every parifh to make provifion of a legal falary for a fchoolmafter * ; and alfo to build an houfe for the fchoolmafter' s refidence, and a fchool for teaching in. The heritors are the electors of the fchoolmafter •, but his election is not valid till he is found qualified for the office, after examina- tion, by the Prefbytery ; and the Prefbytery have it at all times in their power to difmifs him, either for incapacity or immorality ; their fentences as to his qualifications being fub- jett to review of the fuperior Ecclefiaftical courts alone. The Prefbytery has generally five or fix ftated meetings yearly, or more, upon citation from their moderator, (chofen half yearly from the clerical members), when unforefeen bufinefs occurs. The meeting is held at the county town withm the jurifdic- tion. The provincial Synods are the courts next in fuperiority to Prefbyteries, holding meetings twice a year, in November and in May. Thefe comprehend a greater or lefTer number of Pref- byteries *, and all the component members of the Prefbyteries under their jurisdiction, are conftituent members of the Synod, Aa * The maximum legal falary cannot exceed III. as. ZT-^i.\. ; the minimum is 5I. lis. lT7d.; the one half is payable by the proprietors, the othtr by the occu- piers of the land. The fchoolmaiter is almoft always conftitnted precentor (the perfon who leads the finging of pfklms in church), and clerk to the Kirk-fcflion. The wages of teaching are very low; fiom is lo Is. 6d. per quarter for reading Englifh, and not exceeding from as. 6d. to 3s. for reading, writing, and arithme- tic ; tlic fcholars, too, paying only for the precife time of attendance. The whole emolument of the Scots parochial fchoolmaiters will not, probably, at an average, exceed twenty guineas yearly — a recompence, by much too fmall, for their very iilcful and nioft laborious occupation. Schools are generally fupplied from among young men profecuting their iiudies with a vitw to the cleiical office; and, if there uck no church benefices in profptft, there could be no well qualified fchool- uulrtrs in fact, as no pcrfon, any way decently qualified for the office, could ever •:on:eiit himfelf with a country fchool as his ultimatum. NOTE A. 277 An appeal lies from the Synods to the Supreme Court of the General Aflembly of the Church of Scotland *. The General Aflembly is the Court of laft refort. The King is there reprefented by his Commiflioner. It meets once a year, for ten days in the month of May, at Edinburgh. It is compofed of reprefentatives from all the Prefbyteries of Scot- land, each fending two clergymen at leaft, or more, in pro- portion as the clergy conftituting the Prefbytery {hall exceed twelve in number : One lay elder is alfo fent from each Prefby- tery, and one from every Royal burgh and univerfity. With the exception of the erection of new parifhes, or of afliftant charges in the fame parifh, or overtures (propofals) of new laws, every caufe Ecclefiaftical mud originate in the inferior courts pf Kirk-fefTion or Prefbytery, and can only come before this t'ourt by appeal. The power of legiflation does not reft entirely with this court, though it here pofiefles pretty extenfive powers of controul : The power of enacting Handing laws, is, by the conftitution, veiled in the courts of Prefbytery, to which all overtures of new laws mult be remitted for their deliberation, and without the concurrence of the majority of which they can- not be enacted. Like the Lords of the Articles, however, in the Scotifh Parliament, the General Aflembly can refufe to tranfmit any overture for deliberation ; and can even refufe to enact, after a return of approbation from a majority of Prefby- teries. By fuch arrangements has the Church endeavoured to avoid * in regard to the power of appeal from inferior to fuperior church judicato- ries, there is a Angularity in the conftitution of the Scotifh church, to which no parallel is perhaps to be found in any conftitution, antient or modern. Even al? though none of the parties interefted Ihould feel aggrieved by the Sentence pro- nounced, or appeal from it, it is, nevertheless, competent for any member of the court which has pronounced the Sentence, to bring it under review of the S i| Court, upon his announcing his difient, and protefting for liberty to complain, if he fhall conceive either that the fentence is contradictory to matetial jiifiice, or nibverfive of any principle of the conftitution : The Superior Court will receive an appeal from fuch appellant, and to the t fleet either of fimply cenfiuing the court which pronounced the ftntencc, 01 of totally reversing the Sentence^ as theyfhatf1 • iff. 27 S NOTE A. avoid the inconveniences objected by Anacharfis to Solon's republican model of Athens, of the wife only deliberating^ while fools decide. Under her cumbrous Dutch built form of repub- lican constitution, the church is mofl unwieldy in her motions, particularly in enacting laws. The neceflity, therefore, has been apparent, of inverting the General Aflembly with the in- difpenfable power of enacting overtures into interim laws, to be of force from Aflembly to Aflembly, till the general fenfe of the Church can be obtained \ and, which is pretty Angular, fome of the moft important laws of the Church, in regard to the qualifications of clergymen, and in regard to difcipline (which 'daft goes to the important effect, as to the clergy, of deprivation of office, benefice, and the clerical character), ftand upon no other authority, than this interim provifory power of the General A ffembly : They have, however, been fo long ac- quiefced in, that they have palled into laws of confuetude, without neceflity of freih enactment every Aflembly, according to the ftated mode of the exercife of this provifory power. The Scots clergyman is bound to refidence ; and his charge can be declared vacant, upon fix weeks abfence, without leave to that effect, obtained from his Prefbytery : He can hold only one benefice. A degree of exception, is, however, very properly admitted, as an excitement to literary effort, in regard to holding Prcfefibrfkips in Univerfities •, when thefe are removed at fuch IV rail distance as not to obftruct, in any great degree, the per- formance of parochial duties. The ftated parochial duty of the • rgy, are thofe of public prayer, and preaching every Sab- bath : The prayers are never read, and fermons very feldom — a cuftom which, no doubt, admits of more animation in the fervice •, fubjecting it, however, to every variety in performance, according to the various abilities, or accidental ftate of fpirits in the administrator : The cuftomary difcourfes, are two every .Sabbath, and often three in Summer. The minilter alfo ad- i nift< rs the facraraents of Baptifm (taking the father fponfor refer* nee to any other), and of the Lord's Supper ; the lat- ter, at leaft, once yearly, and feldom more often: He generally . .* ehjfes, too, through his whole parifh, once a yean ar>d» next NOTE A. 279 next year, formally vifits, giving exhortations, both on week days : He, befides, occafionally vifits the fick ; and, among tlie poorer claffes, generally acts, in fome meafure, in the capacities of lawyer and phyfician, as well as of divine. Marriage is va- lid, in Scotland, as to all civil effects, without the adhibition of Ecclefiaftical ceremonies, or the publication of banns in the church. I fhall conclude this note, by jufl obferving, that the di- vifion into parifhes refers alfo to the ftatule labour, affeffed parochially : This fimple mode of making and upholding roads, feems the firft that has been devifed by almoit every nation, before adopting the much more preferable one of a toll, levied from the paffenger. As compelled labour turns, however, to very little account, this fervice, as well as molt other perfonal fervices, has been almoft univerfally, through Scotland, com- muted into money payment, at a very moderate competition. note B. As the Scots law preferves a Uriel analogy to the feudal fyftem, it may be proper, fhortly, to fhte the leading features of that fyftem •, that the nature of Scots tenures of land may be rendered more generally intelligible. Before the complete eftablifhment of the feudal fyftem, the lands would feem to have been divided, in large portions, among great families, the heads of which poffeffed all the rights of in- dependent fovereignty within their own territory i living in a ftate of conftant hoftiiity with one another, and incapable of union, excepting a tranfient one, under the moft refpefted mi- litary leader, when national attack required fuch coalefcence, for the purpofes of national defence. In fuch circumftances, public utility muft have focn pointed out the neceflity of a permanent union of the whole dates un- der one fupreme power, to which all the reft fhould be fubor- dinate •, and that, not only for the purpofes of national defence, but for theprefervation of internal tranquillity by thefupprcflion of 280 NOTE A. of the right of private war or feuds. Such views led to the efla- blifhment of the Regal power in one family, under which the o- ther powers Were united, upon terms of union more or lefs ftri£t. or loofe ; the public advantage, as well as the private ambition of the Monarch, both leading to the gradual extenfion of this fu- preme power, that the whole force of the ftate might be thus concentrated, fo as to a6t with energy, either againft foreign enemies, or for the domeftic protection of its own members. In following out thefe views, the great landed proprietors* originally independent, were all, in various ways, reduced to a military dependence upon the Crown as their fuperior ; holding thence their lands upon condition of the military fervice of themfelves and their retainers, and of their perfonal attendance in the Court of the Monarch, for the purpofes of granting na- . tional fupplies, and of enforcing the due execution of the laws * ; the only conftitution conformable to the manners of the times, which could give unity and confidence to a State. Thefe great barons, the immediate vaflals of the Crown, afligned, by a fubinfeudation fimilar to their own mode of te- nure, portions of their lands to their military retainers, as fees granted them, upon condition of their perfonal military fervice at the call of their immediate fuperior, and of homage and at- tendance in the baron's courts. In thofe times of turbulence, when no fecurity could be en- joyed, but under the protection of a military head, upon con- dition of military fervice, allodial^ or independent property in land, could not long remain an eligible mode of tenure : And, accordingly, it may be readily prefumed, that proprietors of this defcription would find it neceffary to renounce fuch a te- nure (however eligible it might appear in our times), by refign- ing their lands either to the Crown, or to fome powerful baron as fuperior, to be held thenceforward from fuch fuperior, up- on the reciprocal conditions of protection on the one hand, and military fervice upon the other. In * Ikncc the origin of the Houfe of Peers, and their right of attendance per •epita, and not by repvefentation. NOTE ft. 28l In this manner, the whole date came, in procefs of time, to be entirely united into one mafs, by a regularly connected chain of military dependence and fubordination. At the original formation of Monarchy, it is extremely pro- bable, that many of the great barons were in a ftate of power to enable them to make terms with the monarch, in fubjefting ihemfelves to him in military fubordination ; and that, though, upon die perfect eftabliihment of the feudal military fubordi- nation, the tenure of their lands aflumed the appearance of fiefs, or fees, for military fervice, yet their lands were never held during the mere good pleafure of the Monarch, but were, from the firft, confidered as held upon hereditary right. In regard, however, to fubordinate fees, or fiefs of land, they would feem at firft to have been held only during the good pleafure of the fuperior. But as the military chief would fel- dom eject his companion in war, unlefs for failure of fervice due ; and would, in general, be inclined, upon the death of his vaflal, to continue his heir in the poffeflion, if fit for mili- tary fervice j or even, during the heir's minority, to accept of a fubftitute till he came of age ; it would feem natural, for thefe reafons, that, in ufe and practice, fiefs mould gradually * come to be confidered, firft, as pofleffions for life, and at length as hereditary •, a fine, it would appear, being accepted of by the fuperior, to induce him to accept of the heir for his vai- fal *. Such would feem to have been the gradual extenfion of the right of property in their lands, which military vafials pro- greflively acquired. This extenfion of their right would feem to have been confined to the pofTefTors of fiefs of confiderable extent, enabling their owners to bring feveral retainers into the field, and themfelves to maintain fuch a rank, as put them upon a companionable footing with their fuperior. It is pro- bable, no fuch privilege was generally granted to the poficf- fors of land fees of fuch fmall extent, as compelled the pof- O o feflbr * Tliis prcfcr.t, amounting generally to double the feu-duty, is Hill retained 2$ a feudal cafualty, due to the fuperior upon the acceljjpn cf an he|r. 282 NOTE B. feiTor to be the immediate cultivator of the foil, and to ap- pear fingly in the ranks as a foldier, without any retainers un- der his command. Forming our judgement from inference, in a matter where few facts are upon record, we can hardly conceive how the abfurd ideas (pervading the Scotim law, and the mode of thinking among Scotifli proprietors of land), in regard to the importance of the proprietor's right of a deleElus perfonas as to the leafe-holder cultivating his ground, could have originated ; excepting upon the fuppofition, that thefe more inconfiderable jfo/fer, lad rpentioned, never acquired per- manent property in their lands, but were, gradually through change of manners, moulded into mere farmers ; a clafs va- lued by the landed proprietor, merely as conducive to his pro- fit ; and to whofe conftitution, military feudal notions have no applicable reference, but that which may have continued afibciated, in confideration of fuch an original. As monarchy rofe in (Irength upon the ruins of ariftocra- cy ; and a regular difciplined military force, fupported by taxa- tion, began to be fubftiruted to the unmanageable mobbiln mi- litary fervice, for external defence, and internal police ; the Crown, or Great Barons, as fuperiors, would find themfelves nothing the poorer, in difpenfing with this military fervice, for which there was no farther occafion, and were eafdy in- duced to accept of an yearly feu, or quit-rent, in place of it. In regard to the Crown, this commutation money of the mi- litary fervice was probably the earliell form of a general land fax *. During • This yearly feu-duty continues as one of the feudal rights of fuperiors over the lands that hold of them. In progrefs of the right of alienation acquired by vatTals, though this feu-duty muft ftill in form be retained, in order that the right T03y be di.ly ccnflituted, in conformity with the feudal ideas of Srotifh law; yrt "he feu-duty came to he reduced to a mere nominal payment, or quit-rent; and fuch holdings obtained the name of blencb-boldlngs. When the fuperiof, probably for a valuable confideration, thus chofe to emancipate his vaflal, by giving him a h-holding, the wit, or fportivity of the times was fometimes difplayed in the; nominal r' ^ ';ation retained; fuch as, the obligation upon the vaflal, to give fo »any bhfls of a horn when his fuperior Ihould pafs his manor, to dance befe#c liin, to entertain him with a baggies, &c &c. NOTE B. 283 During the adual continuance of perfonal military fervice, a deUBus plrfona, or right of choice in regard to the perfon who was to be his military vaffal, was a matter of the utmoft importance to the fuperior, as a military chief. In fuch cir- cumftances, it would have been obvioufly abfurd, that the vaffal fhould have had a right vefted in him, of fubftituting another perfon to ferve in his ftead, by the voluntary aliena- tion of his fee ; or even that the land thus given him by his fuperior, in mere ufe, and as a retaining fee for his perfonal fervice, mould be confidered capable of being evided, as a property, by the creditors of the vaffal. But, upon the aboli- tion of perfonal military fervice, fuperiors could feel but little intereft in this matter ; and, accordingly, the power of aliena- tion was gradually aflumed by the vaffal, through toleration of the fuperior. As this, however, was no doubt confidered as an higher degree of indulgence from the fuperior, than his ■allowance of the tranfmiffion of the fief by hereditary defcent to the vaflal's heir (who feemed to have a fort of natural claim to continuance of poffeffion), it is probable this right of alie- nation was longer in becoming a matter of common ufage 5 an higher fine, too, would ever be exacted by the fuperior, to procure his confent to the acceptance of a ftranger, than what he required as a conlideration for continuing the polTef- fion to the natural heir *. Whilft land was poffefled by the vaffal, merely as a fee or benefice for perfonal military fervice; till once the minor was fit for fuch fervice, the fuperior had a delectus perfon* in the fubititute to ferve for him ; and the benefice, meanwhile, re- verted to the fuperior, till the minor fhould attain to majority, burdened only with the minor's aliment. As it was of ths utmoft importance to the fuperior, that his vaffal, particularly if a female, fhould not form dangerous connexion with his enemies by marriage, the dekclus perfona was therefore infer- red * This fine, upon the admiflbn of a ftranger, or Jlngular fueeejer, is ftill re- tained among the feudal cafualtics due to the fuperior : One year's rent of tfle . . mes enaftid; but, in general, liipetiors coinpoartd fgr kis- 2$4 NOTE 15. red to convey a right of interference in this matter; and the fuperior's confent was held neceflary to the validity of his vaf- fal's marriage. Thefe rights over the eftates of minors, and in regard to the vafTal's marriage, conftituted the fuperior's right of luard/bip. So long as the delectus perfona continued to be founded in the reafon of the thing, thefe rights of ward- fhip were cheerfully acquiefced in ; but when, upon a change of manners, and of the ftate of fociety, the fuperior ceafed to have any other than a mere pecuniary intereft in his vaflals, they came to be confidered as the fource of great oppreffion. The tutory of minors eftates came, then, to be conferred by the Crown, or other fuperior, to needy dependants, as a mean of repairing a ruined fortune •, and the havock committed on eftates under tutory, feems repeatedly to have called for the interference of the Scotifh Legiflature, in a£ts, to prevent the commiffion of fuch abufes. The female ward would alfo fre- quently be expofed to grievance, in being difpofed of in mar- riage by the fuperior to the higheft bidder, without confut- ing her own choice. As the oppreffion of wardfhip came to be more and more felt, it is probable the fuperior's right would come in ufe to be compounded for in money payment ; the Legiflature alfo, more and more, interfering to regulate its exercife. The final abolition of the hardfhips of ward are, in Scotland, of fo late a date, as the act of Parliament 1748. In this manner, the right of fuperiority gradually arofe, from the circumftances of fociety, and extenfion of analogy ; and, in like manner, was it gradually circumfcribed, in confe- quence of a change of circumftances : Till, at length, the right of the vaflal, from being held merely at pleafure, and from being ftrictly perfonal and beneficiary, came to be per- petual, patrimonial, and hereditary, every way alienable and tranfmiffible ; or, in ihort, entire property, fubject merely to annual feu-duty, and the other feudal cafualties. During the actual exiftence of the feudal ftate, the fupe- rior alone figured in die imagination as the proprietor of the lands. NOTE B. 285 lands *. When, however, the vaflal had obtained an heredi- tary right to his lands, with unreftri£ted powers of alienation, fubjedt, merely to the feu-duty and other cafualties incidentally due to the fuperior j he was, to all intents and purpofes of hu- man life, the proprietor. And the queftion came to be, •* In what light the originally more important right of the fuperior fell to be viewed ? " The fonorous law diftinction was in- vented, of dominium directum, to denote the right of the fupe- rior ; and of dominium utile, to denote the right of the vaflal — technic defoliations, which never were adopted, or have fallen into difufe, in common language j in which the- right of the fuperior is called fuperiority, and that of the vaflal property. From the impreflion of ancient ufage, the right of fuperiority has been confidered, in the eye of Scotifh law, as the more noble of the two ; and, accordingly, fuperior advantages have been beftowed upon it, both as to fecurity of poiiefiion, and as to eafe and preference of recovery. Amidft the ftruggles of monarchy againft feudal tyranny (the final fuccefs of which has proved the epoch of emancipa- tion, and of the extenfion of the protection of law to the lower orders), Royal burghs (which had been gradually withdrawn by the communication of privileges from the Crown, from their dependence upon the great barons) were called upon to fend reprefentatives to the King's Court of Parliament, in or- der to balance the power of the Nobles, formidable to the Crown and to the internal peace of the country, and to no- thing elfe. For the fame reafon, the lefTer barons, holding of of the Crown as fuperior f, who had been excufed the fervice of perfonal attendance in the King's Court, from their inability to * Till within thcfe two centuries, the vaflal is not defigned prspridor in ths Scotifli acts of Parliament, but retains the defignation of tenant. I Compofed, probably, of thofe to whom the King had feued out portions of his own pejfonal domain, or of the domains of fuch nobles as had forfeited them to him by their rebellion ; and perhaps, too, of fuch originally allodial proprietors as had, in their choice of a military protector, refigned their lands ;:: vnflalasre to the Crown, in preference to any other military chief. 2%6 NOTE B. to bear the expence, were alfo fummoned to appear by repre- fentatioii •, and, by ufe or ftatute, the poffeffion of lands hold- ing of the Crown, valued in the county cefs-books at 400I. Scots, or valued at 40s. of old extent, was, and is the quali- fication fubjecling to the burden (according to former notions), or entitling to the privilege (according to modern views) of re- prefenting, or being reprefented. The Crown could call upon its own vaffals to balance the •power of the Nobles ; it could expe£t no fuch fupport from the vaffals of the Nobles themfelves : And, accordingly, landed proprietors, holding their lands in vaffalage from fubjedts as their fuperiors, were not called upon to exercife, and have not obtained any right of reprefentation. In refpecl: of this right of reprefentation, all lands holding immediately of the Crown as fuperior, are defigned freeholds. In the progrefs of arts and manufactures, new modes of ex- pence were opened up ; and the funds in the hands of the great barons, formerly employed in fupporting that magnifi- cence, which coniifted in the number of military attendants, were diverted to the purchafe of the productions of the fine arts ; the fame vanity, formerly difplayed in a numerous re- tinue of armed followers, often leading its pcffeffbr to barter power for perfonal decoration, and to part with the command over men (to ufe Dr Smith's iiiuitration) in order to become proprietor of a pair of diamond buckles. The great barons were laid under new temptations of contracting debts, and of relieving themfelves, by felling portions of their landed pro- perty. In all feudal dates, advantage was taken of thefe pro- penlities in the nobles to weaken their own power. The Crown ufed all its influence in encouraging the alienation of the eftates of the nobles : And, in order that every alienation fhould furnifh the Ciown with a new freeholder or leffer ba- ron, regulations were, in various countries, enacted as to the mode of inveftifure of thefe new purchafing proprietors ; by which the practice of fubinfeudatior), of the buyer in vaf- falage to th. s his fuperior, was prohibited; and the land fold • hold, by cpnfcqueuce, immediately of the NOTE 13. 287 the Crown as fuperior. Unfortunately, cur Scotifh moaarchs either overlooked the propriety of fuch regulations, or pof- feiTed not fufficient influence to enforce their adoption : Ac- cordingly, ther^ is no law in Scotland preventing the dis- junction of fuperiority from property. A whole property may thus be fold, whilft the feller, by fubinfeudation, makes the buyer hold of himfelf; the feller, meanwhile, continuing vaflal to the Crown for the lands fold. And, as this retained right of freehold from the Crown may be divided and dif- pofed of, in as many portions as the valuation of the lands can afford of freehold qualifications, hence it comes, in Scot- land, that mere fuperiority is fometimes alone reprefented, whilft real property enjoys no right of reprefentation. The right of franchife is thus confined, in Scotland, to the great Barons or Nobles, appearing in the Scotifh Parlia- ment per capita, but, fince the Union, by fixteen reprefenta- tives in the Houfe of Peers ; to the Landed Electors, often merely fuperiors, but not proprietors, who fend reprefenta- tives from the counties to the Houfe of Commons ; and to Royal burghs, who fend reprefentatives to the fame houfe. The Scotifh law has hardly as yet been brought to recognize any other mode of holding land in perpetuity, but the feudal tenure : A mode of holding which is very expenfive, and which comes to be very oppreffive in the cafe of fmall landed properties, particularly where thefe have been purchafed for the purpofe of erecting upon them expenfive buildings ; as every heir by fucceffion, and every purchafer by f.ile, in order to complete their tides, fo as to have the full command of their fubject, mud not only pay the feudal cafuakies due to the fuperior from the heir or lingular fuccefior, but muft alfo be expofed to the expence of precepts of dare coitjhat^ char- ters from the fuperior, and infeofment upon the charters ; deeds executed upon papers or parchments paying high (lamp duties, and accompanied with formalities of expenfive execu- tion. Thefe deeds are equally expenfive, whether the fubject be worth 20s. or 20,ocol. of yearly value ; and though Go- vernment 288 NOTE B. \-ernment, in the ftamp duties upon receipts, promiffory notes, and legacies, have properly apportioned the price of ftamp to the value of the tranfaction, no difcrimination of the differ- ence in value of the fubjcCt, is made as to the ftamps for deeds afcertaining the titles to perpetual landed property *. In the village of Linton, where the inhabitants hold each his fmall pofTeiTion in perpetual property, by all the cumbrous and expenfive formalities of feudal tenure (like fo many fifh- ing cobles moored by the anchors and cables of firft rate men of war), I have known a cot-houfe, with its kale-yard, both not worth 20s. of yearly rent, cofh three times the value of the fee-fimple of the fubjecl:, in expence of conveyance, and of making up of feudal titles, in the fpace of eighteen years j — a tax upon the commerce of fmall properties in land, almoft equally oppreffive as the Spanifh tax of Alcavalla upon other merchandife. In cafes where manufacturing villages have been erected upon ground purchafed in perpetual property, the feudal cafualties of the fuperior come fometimes to be peculiarly grievous ; when, after the alienation of expenfive buildings, to the erection of which the fuperior contributed no fhare, upon ground originally worth nothing, the pur- chafer (who probably was aware of no fuch lleeping claim) is called upon, as a fingular fucceiTor, to. compound with the fuperior of the ground, by a whole year's rent of his fubjecl:. A cafe of this kind was, within my own recollection, warmly litigated betwixt the fuperior and the inhabitants of the ma- nufacturing village of Airdry, in Lanarkfhire. But, though it feemed generally wifhed, that an exemption, from the bur- den of feudal cafualties, could have been admitted, in a cafe bearing no fort of analogy, even in original purpofe, to feu- dal practice ; yet, our Supreme Court found itfelf obliged, in ftrict, conformity to the principles of Scotifh law, to decide in favour of the claims of the fuperior. The • There is the fame want of diftinclion proportioned to value, as to the (lamps for written lcafts. NOTE B. 2%9 The fmall territories, lying within the jurifd>aion of Royal burghs, are the only perpetual properties emancipated from the burdenfcme formalities of feudal holding. It were to be wifhed that fimple and unexpenfive modes of holding landed property in perpetuity, fimilar to burgage holding, were rendered more general for properties of fmall value. ' It might, at fame time, be very inexpedient to abro- gate entirely feudal forms, however foreign to-prefent circum- ftances, commuting the feudal canities upon a fair valua- tion as in the cafe of tithes. In regard to properties of fuch magnitude as to afford the expence, thefe forms may be con- fidered zs of confiderable utility ; inafmuch as they are ap- propriated forms, to which long ufage has given a fteady and a determinate fignincation-a circumftance of more import- ance than many feem to be aware of *. e u. The tack or leafe, renewable at the termination of certain periods, upon paving a final! or mere nominal fpecified fine to the proprietor as fuperior, is the fimple unexpenfive mode of holding, which the late Lord Gardenftone has deV1fed for the P P * To atte^ that a change in the forms of conveyance would prove ruinous , refpeftabie clafs, who, it is faid, live as a tax upon property, by bating paper in the multiplied forms of conveyancing, is very abfurd. Were we to ftp* ,(e the modes of holding and conveyancing reduced to the utmoft conceivable £*»*» yet, if they were only formed of a nature gently p iable to be accommodated to that endlefs diverfification of rights, in aU thai -foppofc- able'varie'ies of orieinal conffitntion, tranfiniffion. and fubtranfmiffiou for wh.ch a demand mfeht arife in a bufy and induftriou. Hate of fociety ; a neceffity would then be created for the fcparatt proftfflon of the conveyancer The arrange- ment and creation of thefe rights, in all their actual and foppofeabfe va- netS*, murtconftitutcadiftinftfcience; requiring, as other feiences, a clear theo- hted, to form fuch genial rule, of pradice as Ihould prevent all entangle- ment and confufion.-lf the expence of conveyancing were more mo, lSrarc, Uftrt ..dd be more frequent demand for the employment of the conveyancer , TW pref.nt high e.pence cf conveyancing brings it under ^ 0t f^ ^ arithmetic ol taxation, .here two and two prod.ee, not four, but one. 1 he frmemavbefaid of ftamps, where no proportion is held to the value of the Mg* 'The parties will often rather truft>tO the fccurity of mutual good Art* . BCe of a legally ebnflStuto*feairity. 5p©- NOTE B, the feUars in his village of Laurencekirk. It is with diffi- culty, however, that the Scotifh law (bigotted as it is to the antiquated ufages of feudalifm, notwrthttanding the abfurdity of forcing them into coalefcence with modern manners, to which they bear no fort of analogy) has admitted the tack as a mode of holding land in perpetuity. In Scotifh law, it is confidered as indifpenfable to the nature of a tack, that it fhall have an iJJ), or term of expiry ; and the want of an ifh is, in legal conftruction, an irritancy of the tack : It is alfo conftructed into an irritancy, if the yearly rent, fpecified in the tack, is merely nominal and illufory, and is not fomewhat adequate to the value of the fubject. It was in order to pro- pitiate the prejudices of old mother ancient, the Scotifh Law, that Lord Gardenftone devifed his tack for his villagers, — in reality a perpetual right, though under the femblance of an expiring one. And it is to be hoped, that our Judges, in the exercife of their nobile offichtm of interpreting law according to equity *, will endeavour to mollify the manners of the venerable matron, and lead her to recognize and extend her protection to this new fpecies of right 5 conftituted, in fact, after * The political axiom, of the neceffity of feparating the Legi/lathe from the Ju- dicial powers, though juft in general, muft yet be understood with many grains of allowance. In the unceafmg changes which the ftate of fociety undergoes, laws, highly reafonable at one period, come to be inapplicable in a fubfequent one ; and would be productive of much inconvenience, if literally enforced, and not equi- tably interpreted. But no Legiflature can, with becoming fteadinefs, interfere to make new laws upon every partial feeling of grievance ; nor until the old are found, unequivocally, to be univerfally oppreffive : The equitable interpretation of the Judge is the only remedy fnitcd to particular cafes. Such power of dif- penfing with law, would be dangerous in the hands of a fingle Judge. In Eng- land, all fear of danger is removed, by the intervention of the Jury, in civil caufes. The Supreme Court of Scotland, as formerly obferved, constitutes the Grand Jury erf the nation in civil caufes ; they have ever a (Turned a /while off.cium, in interpreting law according to equity ; nor has this power ever been exerted, hut for the manifeft advantage of the fubjett. Almofl the whole (ecurity enjoy- ed by the Scotifh .cultivator of the foil, has been gradually extended to him by liberal (ketches of our Judges, hi their equitable interpretation of law ; which, in its letter, is not very favourable to his fecuiity. NOTE B. 29I after a fafliion to which (he has not been accuftomed ; but, in •the outward form of which, fuch feemly deference has been paid to her habits, by the ficlio juris, or the quafi. Some attempts have been made of forcing her to recognize the tack as a right of perpetuity, in its native undifguifed fhape, and without attempting to introduce it under cover of the wed- . ding garment of feudality. A tack for ever was fuftained (Wight againft Hopeton) in 1763. The fentence was not, how- ever, decifive of the general principle ; but proceeded merely upon the fpecialty of the challenger being debarred from the atlion by a perfonal objection againjl his title to challenge *. In 1 760, a tack for 1 260 years was fuftained, upon general principles, by the Court of Seffion. An oppofite fentence upon a fimilar caufe, had, however, previoully been reverfed by the Houfe of Peers in 1758. In the uncertainty of all human affairs, a pofleffion for j 260 years may be well reckoned equivalent to a perpetuity ; and, where manufactories are to be erected, and the ground to be improved to its utmoft poffible extent, by the acceflion of valuable buildings, it would certainly be expedient to take advantage, either of this, or the formerly mentioned fpecies * From the number of judges in the Scots fupreme civil court acting as a jury, the fame fteady tenor of uniformity of principle in their decifions, is not to be ex- pected, as in the Englifh courts, where a fingle judge prefides and directs the de- tiiion of juries, by his reports upon the caie. A fingle perfon, of abilities, natur- ally forms a confiflent theory ; and the practice confonant to it may be eftablil'h- td into uniform precedent, from the facility with which juries will ever allow themfelves to be directed by a judge of eftablifhed integrity, and of acknowledged intellectual aicendancy. In this way, the fyfiem of infurance laws has arifen, from the decifions of Lord Mansfield. Indeed, in fuch circumftances, a judge is not fhy of bringing forward his general views, and, without hedging himfcif behind fpecialties, is ready, like Lord Kenyon, to lay down his general principle of deci- fion in each particular cafe. In a jury of judges, where no afcendancy of this na- ture is acknowledged, there may be rivalry of fyftem, and a fhynefs of entering in- to fyftematic contentions. This may be one reafon why our courts are reckoned more ready to found their decifions upon the fpecialties of the cafe, and more fcrupulous of deciding to the eftabliihment of general principles. To eflabiifh ge-> neral principles as to the interpretation of law,- particularly where an equitable interpretation has come to be expedient, approaches fomewhat to the nature of le- gislation ; and requires, no doubt, legislative caution and deliberation. 292 NOTE B. fpecies of tack-holding, if the decifions in their favour can a.5 yet be fufficiently depended upon, as forming a fleady general rule of precedent. Befides their contrariety to the accuftcmed mode of holding property in perpetuity, one great argument of thofe who have attempted to impugn the validity of tacks of fuch long endur- ance, was, the danger cf invalidating die faith of the regifler of landed property *. In how far fuch tacks might indeed affect the * It may be proper, for the information of the Englifh reader, to give, here, an account of that lingular inliitution in Scotland, which gives fuch iecuiity to commerce in land, the Regifler of Safines. Alter a variety of regulations in regard to protocols, or books kept by public notaries, which, in Scotland, (as at prefent over the Continent), were the only prefervatives of deeds, from whence authentic copies could be procured, in default of the originals ; and, after various attempts at fubflituting ftrrrething better in their room, continued from the year 1450 downwards At length, by act 22d of James VI. chap. 16. amended, in practice, by interim acts of the Court of Se£ fion, (which has ever afTumed a fort of by-law power in regulating the forms of conducting bufinefs), as alfo amended by fubfequent acts of the Parliament itfclf, the idea of a general regifter, of authentic faith) and equally acceffible to all having intereft, for all tranfactions relative to perpetual rights upon landed property con- stituted in the form recognized by the Scots law, was finally incorporated into the body of the law itfelf; a fyftem, bellowing as great iecuiity upon the commerce of lands, as human ingenuity could probably have invented. For general accommodation, particular regiflers are kept for term ties, (two or three counties being claficd together, and having a common regifler) ; and a gene- ral regifter is kept in Edinburgh, in which it is competent to regtftrata deeds from any part of Scotland. In one or other of thefe, all deeds affecting land, as r-.a! lights, and conftitnted by infeofment or fafme, whether in the way of com- plete transference, or merely of pledge, muft be engrofled verbatim. The- regift ra- tion mull take place within fixty days of the execution of the deed, which, the deed becomes invalid. If there are two fuch deeds of f.ifine upon the fame land, the one prior in execution, but pofterior as to the date of registration, the other poftcrior in execution, but prior in registration; the latter hath, by law, the preference. Every perfon wishing to lay out money upon land, either in porn chafe, or lending on mortgage, 01 finking it for an heritable annuity, has accefs to confult thefe registers ; in one or other of which, he is certain of obtaining infor- mation how far the land is already arretted by any deeds of a fimilar nature. As the county registers arc filled up, thry are transmitted to the Edinburgh R.< An action is competent ,'lttrs, i. NOTE B. 293 the faith of the regifter — in how far this might be prevented, by enforcing the regiftration of tacks, of a certain length of en- durance— or, in how far fuch multiplicity of regiftration might not tend to inextricable confufion, of which there is already fumcient danger, from the multiplied regiftrations of titles to fuperiorities, divided and configned for the purpofe of creating fictitious or real election votes thefe are matters of difcufliou for thofe more intimately acquainted with the iubje£t. There is, in Scotland, no veltige of that fimple, unexpenfive tenure of land, fo frequent in England, called copyhold; except- ing only the four towns of Lochmaben *. There are, indeed, lands if the deed is not regiftercd within a limited time after it hath been prefentcd : And to prevent the regiftration of deeds in any other order of priority, than that of their presentation, a minute book is kept, in which is inferted a general de- fcription of the deed, with the date of its piefentation to be recorded; which mi- nute is fubferibed, both by the prefentcr of the deed, and by the keeper of the re- gifter, as a check againft fabrication. The judges of the Court of Sefilon, too, (under what check to fecure vigilance I know not), are required and empowered, when they pleafe, to call for both the regifter and the minute-book, to fee that they accord, when compared together. In fhort, by contrivance of fo many checks, this matter feems brought to all the perfection of which it is fufceptible. This high degree of feenrrty lias, it is believed, fincc generally known, brought a ccniidcrable influx of Englilh money into the Scotifh loan market — enabling, probably, the Scotifh merchant and manufacturer to borrow money on fomewhat eafier terms. Honeft John Bull, with all his puffing affectation of fupuiority, would do well, in feveral inftances, to take a lefion from his filler Peg. The Athenians, as we learn from the Trawls of Anacbaijh, had fallen "opon a very fimple idea of a regifter. A (tone, on which the nature of the right af- fecting the land was engraved, was fet up in ibroe confpicuous part of it ; with- out which publication of the deed, it is proba le the deed was of no validity a- gainft third parties, any more than Scotilh deeds unrecorded in the public re- gifter. * There were, indeed, in Scotland, as in England, rentallrr?, or kindly te- nants, around the manfions of the great proprietors, confiding generally of rela- tions of the family, who held their lands, not by military tenure, but for very moderate rent, in money or in kind ; and who were in ufe to fueceed from father to fon ; the fimple evident of their title being a mere regiftration in the book's of the Lord of the Manor, without any of the cxpenftve formalities of the feudal J94 NOTE B. lands of a certain defcription, in Orkney and Zetland, which, by a particular ftatute, are privileged to be held by udal (probably allodial) tenure *, exempted from all the expenfive forms and cafualties of feudal holding ; * to fave ' (as expreffed in the fta- tute) ' the expence of renovation of rights and infeofments. ' Having thus giver feme account of thofe tenures by which lands are held in perpetuity, I (hail proceed to make fome ob- fervations upon the conftitution of that temporary right of hold- ing, by which the actual cultivator of the foil poflefles for agri- cultural purpofes, namely, The Tacky or Leafe. This fpecies of tenure hath not obtained, in Scotland, the designation of property », or efiate in land. In times of turbulence, the military chief, and his armed retainer, were of principal importance, and alone figured in the imagination. The record of them has, accordingly, been more clearly preferved, and their progrefiive hiftory can be more accurately traced ; till the right of the former terminated in tenure. Thefe rights were in train of acquiring complete validity, from cuftom, as in England ; when their pofleflbrs, as in England, would have become copy- holders. Their progrefs towards confirmation, was, however, checked by the Re- formation. At this period, the lands of the Church, being feized by the Crown, vere difpofed of to court favourites ; and thefe new proprietors, having no kindly connexion with the churchmens kindly tenants, univcrfally ejected them — a precedent, which made all fimilar rights be immediately called in queflion : when our law courts, after being much puzzled how to act in a cafe entirely new, at length interpreted them, according to the circumftances of each cafe, into leafes for life, or for certain terms of years ; fo that they have all, long fince, expired. The rentallers of Lochmaben alone efcaped ; owing to the latenefs of their fupe- rior's application for their ejection, which made his long acquicfcence be inter- preted into an homologation of their right to poflefs as they had pofTelled hi- therto. Many of thefe Lochmaben rentallers, wc are informed (Si 'atifiical Account, Vol. VII. page z/io), can inflrucl the poffcffion of their lands in their families for $co years; and may, therefore, in point of antiquity, though probably net •: vie with moll of the nobles of enr land. NOTE B. 50$ In the prefent mere fuperiority ; conferring only political power, but without profitable ufe of the lands ; and that of the latter, in the property, or valuable ufe, with the full command of the fubjett. The hiftory of the actual cultivators of the foil, of more importance than that of either, as to the increafe of its powers of production, is involved in impenetrable obfcurity : from the want of record, we can, however, fafely infer, that their ftatement was, originally, mean, unprivileged, and de- fpifed. It feems extremely probable, that the lands, occupied by the military chiefs, or their more confiderable military retain- ers, were originally cultivated by flaves, who had no intereft: themfelves in the produce, but were compelled to labour under overfeers, at no expence to their mailer, but merely that of their maintenance. But as men are not eafily brutalized into the quiet pafhvity of labouring cattle ; as their fuperior powers of memory, comparifon, and judgement, are apt to kindle their feelings into permanent paffions, dangerous to their tamers, in proportion to their fuperior reach of contrivance ; it would feem to have been found expedient, in Scotland, as in every other country of which we have more diftin£l record upon this fubjecl, to admit the flave into a participation of intereft with his mailer, in the produce of the foil *. To * The lands of the Romans were originally cultivated by flaves. And it is furprifing, that, under fuch a mode of culture, their agriculture fliould have fo much excelled. Having no commerce, there was no other road to wealth and com- fortable fubfifrence, but the mod accurate cultivation of the foil. The fuperin- tendance of the proprietor feems accordingly to have been fo very conftant and minute, as to palliate, in a great meafure, the evils of fuch a conltitution of cul- tivation. Superior accuracy of fuperinteiidance might become equally the teft of fuperiority; as is the fame accuracy in doing bufinefs, in our manufacturing and commercial towns. The inconveniences, however, of this fyftem, made it gradually give way to x better : Slaves were admitted to a copartnery intereft with the mafter : Their Ih- very was firft mitigated, in their being made adferipti £>cb proprietors quoad Lie e/flcfa. He, accordingly, fymbolically d'vefls himfelf of the property, by fymbolical re- fjgnation of it into the hands of a pcrfon conrtitutcd to reprefcut the iuperior ; from whom the annualrenter, or mortgagee, receives fymbolical redelivery of it by in feoffment. The tranfaction is atteftcd by the notorial written deed, called . 1 which, t< : it ' - I be engr [T.U in 1 public regiftcr ol NOTE B. 301 There Teems, however, no good reafon, why the fuperior* or other creditors of the proprietor in debitis fundi, mould enjoy — not only the fame extent of preference as the proprietor him- felf, into whofe place they can ftep when they pleafe, to make good their claims, which is reafonable — but an extent greater than the proprietor, in coming before all the other creditors of the tenant, not only for one year's rent, but for all arrears of rent due by him to the proprietor, and alfo for the current term's rent. In die latter of thefe inltances, the law bellows an extent of preference upon a derivative right, greater than what belongs to the original it is derived from ; and feems to have loft fight even of analogy, as well as of utility. The agricultural credit of the cultivator is, however, lefs hurt in thefe inltances, which may occur feldom, than from that perpetual obftru&ion to it, which is conftituted in die re- fufal of the law, to fupport him in the fully complete, alienable, and eviclable property, which he ought to have in his leafe ; which, in many cafes that might be figured, may prevent him from freely fixing his own capital in the foil j and which may pre- vent others from lending theirs, from the well-grounded appre- henfion, that, if once there fixed, it may never again be with- drawn. The right of delectus perfona, which, very oddly, has been magnified into a confequence that does not belong to it, in the eye of law equally as of individual conception, obftructs the tenant's credit, by depriving him, in n great meafure, of the power of alignment, or of fubfets. In all tacks, where aflig- nation and fubfet are debarred by covenant in the leafe, the proprietor can prevent either ; although he fliould be able to produce no reafon, but his own whim or fancy, and cannot in- itrucl any diminution of fecurity ; or, even although he fliould have all reafonable additional fecurity offered him, which would be held fatisfactory in any other cafe. There is indeed an ex- ception, in the cafe of tacks of very long endurance, where (as the law has never recognized, or lpeedily relinquilhed dip ab- furdity of the right of tack being undefcendible to legal heirs) the proprietor, from the distance of time, though held a very- conjuror in the difcernmeut of ' fpirils, is confidercd is having re- nounced 30a note B. nounced his dtkclus ; from the impoflibility of his knowing the characters of the eventual fucceffors, either through fimple vi- rion or the fecond fight : Our Supreme Court have, I am told, upon thefe principles, within thefe few years, fuflained the va- lidity of a fubfet cf a tack of 38 years. What length of tack ihall be confidered, thus, upon legal principles, as implying power of fubfet, or where the point of time lies, within which the law fhall fay to that power, ' hitherto fhalt thou come, and no farther, ' remains hid in the counfel of our Judges, to be determined in fome future decifion. In 1791, it was decided, that, in a tack of 19 years, it was implied, in law conftruc- tion, without any formal ftipulation in the leafe to that effect, that the power of deleElus was retained j and that the tack was neither affignable nor fubfettable. In fubfetting, the original tackfman is confidered as bound to the proprietor, as well as the fubtenant j whilft, in affign- jnent, the original tenant is free, fubftituting the other in his place. In conformity to the analogy of the feudal law, there- fore, as well as to the greater fecurity of the proprietor, the Scotifh law is confidered as more favourable to fubfet, than to affignation ; becaufe, in fubfet, the firfl tenant does not relin- quifh his pofition as a quafi vaflal, and the purpofes of the me- taphorical delectus may be, thus, confidered as metaphorically, or analogically fulfilled, by this fifi'io juris, or quafi : moreover, too, the fecurity of the proprietor, fo far from being weakened, is greatly ftrengthened, in having his right of hypothec unimpair- ed, and the fecurity of two inftead of one. Upon this princi- ple, it was confidered, by our law oracle, Erfkine, that a power of fubfet was implied, in all cafes where the contrary was not direclly expreiTed •, till the aforementioned decifion, in 1791, came to rectify our mifconceptions. Even Erfkine allows, that, upon legal principles, an exprefs ftipulation in the tack againfl affignees, both legal and volunta- •",•, would prevent the tack from being evicted by the tenant's creditors : Otherwifc, a tack, unaffignable by the tenant's vo- luntary deed, would, according to him, be eviclable by adjudi- cation, at the inftance, of the tenant's creditors: But, even \:\ that NOTE B. 3°3 that cafe, the creditors would be guilty of lefe-Majejte towards the facred right of the ddcBus, were they to bring the reverficrt of the leafe to a fair fale to the belt bidder : They are debarred, therefore, from fuch unhallowed and irreverent meafures ; they can only enter upon adminiftration, as refponfible fa&ors of the tenant's concerns. The great foundation of law, conftituting, at leaft, the dif- ference betwixt right and wrong, is public utility. When law reafoning confines" itfelf to the attempt of fymbolizin'g, in prac- tice, ufages long fince obfolete, and whofe reafon has ceafed— though, In refped of the exadnefs, or want of exaanefs, with which the affimilation is efa&ed, it may be juft or incongruous —yet, in its own nature, as it is neither true nor falfe, fo neither can it be either right or wrong. There is, however, a neceflity of fixed rules of procedure ; without which, there can be no fecurity or confidence in law. Decided views of utility are flowly evolved j and, meantime, the molt obvious rule is the analogy of known ufages. Views of utility, however, excepting perhaps in the in- ftance already quoted, feem progrefiively to have been gain- ing the afcendant over fyftematic law reafoning. And though the tack, in Scotland, is ftill fomewhat encumbered by a rem- nant of the {hackles of feudalifm, in a confiderable degree ob- ftru&iye of agricultural credit and enterprize ; yet, under the benign influence of the ena£fcments of 1446 and 1466, with the liberal fpirit of interpretation fubfequently followed up by our judges, the Scotifh tenant probably enjoys., more fecurity than what was ever beftowed upon the aaual cultivators of the foil, either in ancient, or in modern times. Comparing ourfelves with others, more caufe of fatisfaaion will prefent itfelf, ia having attained the relatively bell, than of regret, in not hav- ing attained the bed fuppofeable. Proprietors, in their covenants, might redrefs all deficien- cies of the law, in exprefsly renouncing all retention of the jus deh'Bus : Or, fliall we fuppulc them grafping after the chances of forfeiture— or that, in their wifdom, they fliould conceive a fnirited cultivation to proceed under fuch riik ? I: 304 NOTE B; It might be mentioned, that the policy of entails, through the reftri&ion often contained in them as to the endurance of leafes, militates alfo, in a very great degree, againft liberal out- lay of capital in cultivation. A feeming relaxation of their re- itraint has been indeed obtained by act. of Parliament, 10th of his prefent Majefty. Obfervations upon that a£t have been made (pages no, ill, & 253 of the Report.) In this Note, the leafe or tack has been confidered, chiefly in an hiftorical point of view. Some additional confideration of its circumftances, in the view of public utility, will be re- fumed in a fubfequent one. I have been much indebted for Information to Rofs's Lectures on Conveyancing. NOTE C. Where manufactures are eftablifhed, an effectual demand, in offers of larger rent, will arife for fmall fubdivifions of land, to be pofTefTed by cow-feeders fupplying the manufacturers with milk ; or by thofe keeping pofl-horfes for travelling, to tranfadt bufinefs ; or by carters, who find occupation in trans- porting fuel, and the materials and produce of manufacture. Even where agriculture has arrived at confiderable improvement, fuch demand will arife, in a mere farming diftri£t, from the ad- vantage enfuing upon fubdivifion of labour ; the farmer finding it cheaper to hire all his carriages from the profeflional carter, than to perform them himfelf ; as he is thus allowed to apply his whole capital, with entire undivided attention, to his own proper profeflional occupation, the cultivation of the foil *. The • The fame argument applies to the retailing of meal. Could the farmer find it advantageous to intercept the profit of the carter, by performing his own car- riages, he needs no other inducement to make him do it. The very fame reafon would make him the retailer of his own grain. But the profeflional carttr can ca/ry cheaper, as the profeflional retailer can alfo retail cheaper tban the farmer, with Whofe Cher bufzncf*, fuch occupations wcmlcl oWtruftin£ly intcrfe/e. KOTE L. 305 poflefibrs of fuch minute tenements; cannot properly be defigned farmers : they depend not upon farming, nor does it constitute their chief occupation. It marks a progrefs in improvement, when labour and employment are fo much fub- divided, as that their diPcin£t branches can afford chief and prin- cipal occupation to their diitincl: feveral profeffionalifts. But the completion of improvement implies their complete and perfecT: feparation. And there is an universal, unremitting tendency to fueh completion j every one's intereft necefTarily leading him to confine himfeif to that occupation, in which, through prac- tice, his undivided attention would render him more and more expert, fo foon as he can find fufficient employment in that particular occupation, as to enable him to devote to it, exclu- sively, his whole time and attention ; every other profeffional- ifl, meanwhile, engaged chiefly in fome other branch, finding it for his intereft to take his furnifhings from tire former, that he may alfo, in like manner, exclufively devote himfeif to his own particular employment. In great towns, where there is fufficieney of employment in one particular line of profeffion, we find, accordingly, that land is very feldom occupied by cart- ers, cowfeeders, &c. ; they difincumber themfelves of that in- terruption to their bufmefs which would arife from the cultiva- tion of the foil, finding it much cheaper to purchafe the farm produce they need from the profcflional cultivator. For the fame reafon, merchants dealing in the retail of corn, potatoes, hay, or other farm produce, do not take land in leafe ; finding that the profefiional cultivator can furnifh it to them cheaper than they could raife it. Nor is the practice of fuch profef- fionalifts, of not pofleffmg land, the effecl: of any regulation, or even public prejudice. On the contrary, as to the latter fort of profcffioualirb, it is the univerfal, ineradicable prejudice of all it towns, that every retailer of farm produce mould him* felf be the producer of the article. Neither will any landlord refufe the higheft rent offered him ; fo that there is nothing to prevent merchant; from outbidding profeffional farmers, if it ■ . f ir i.'it'ireft to produce, as well as to fell. R r So f $<$& NOTE C. So long, however, as the circumftances of a fociety arc fuch, as not to admit of perfect fubdivifion of employment, there will exift a clafs of fuch minute occupiers of land ; not for the immediate profit derived from land, but on account of its fubferviency to other more profitable employment. It is needlefs to fay that fuch minute occupation ought to be encou- raged ; for, fo long as the circumflances of fociety require it, it will force its own way, from its being able to afford more rent. But it would be equally abfurd, either unnaturally to force it into, or out of, exiftence, by inftituted regulation j it ought to be left to be fettled by the actual demand. Inftituted regulations counteracting natural tendencies, wil} ever be themfelve3 counteracted : And, therefore, there is very Kttle danger to be apprehended of the introduction of a fort of general cottage-fyftem of the occupation of the lands — a fort of Agrarian law, of late fo much cried up. So long as fuch paftorico-poetical politicians content themfelves with attempt- ing to enlighten the landed proprietors, in convincing them that fuch minute occupation would tend to their intereft, no harm can enfue. The proprietors of land, after liftening to their declamation, will judge of the expediency, by the offers of rent which are made them ; and their confciences will be kept eafy as to the propriety of fuch procedure, from the con- fideration, that the higheft rent can be afforded only from the higheft production raifed at the leaft expence. Of all forced artificial regulations, the moft abfurd (con- demning the earth to fterility, and its inhabitants to poverty) would be an Agrarian law, dooming the lands to fubdivifion, into equal poffefnon, among the inhabitants of every country ; whether to be held in property or in leafe. In a common paf- turage, (the only conceivable mode of holding pafture lands in equal poffeffion), is it poffible to imagine that any thing could be effected, in the improvement of breeds, in the prevention of intermixture, in proper flocking of the land, in hirfeling or herding ? Among fuch puny proprietors, or farmers, having each an equal intereft in the half or quarter of a common horfe, might not the animal be oftener idle than occupied, for want NOTE C, 3°7 want of agreement as to the time when, and the purpofe tor which, he was to be yoked ; or ftarved, before his matters fliould agree when, or whereupon, he was to be fed ? Every individual being thus, in a manner, adfcriptus gkbe, and doom- ed, per force, to be a farmer ; and no one being at liberty to devote himfelf to any other profeffion ; of courfe, each indi- vidual muft, of neceihty, become Jack-of-all-trades, and pro- vide himfelf in every kind of furnifhing he required ; and the ftrange uncouth fyftem of univerfal awkwardnefs and bungling that muft enfue, may more readily be conceived than defcribed. Nothing but the continued interpofition of the moil violent re- gulating force, counteracting the ftrongeft natural tendencies, could ever preferve luch an unnatural conftitution of things, for any time, in exiiience : As every fuch fmall poffeffor mult conftantly be endeavouring to difpofe of his minute poffefTion, which cannot fufficiently occupy him, which he cannot occupy to any purpofe, and which prevents him from betaking him- felf to more profitable employment, to thofe who could readi- ly afford him more for it, than he can pofhbly make of it him- felf. It would, indeed, be extremely Angular, if that fubdivi- fion of labour and employment, which is the characteristic of civilization and improvement in every other inftance, mould form an exception to the generate rule, in the fole inftance of the cultivation of the foil, The Agrarian fyftem is, in fome fort, exemplified in the common-property lands belonging to burgh corporations ; the occupation of which, by detracting their at- tention from their proper profefiions, has generally the effect: of beggaring the members of the corporation. It is happy for them, when they have the good fenle, and fortunately alio c?a\ agree, to let their corporation lands, in undivided pofleflion, to a practical profeffional farmer. The inhabitants of the town of Peebles, in this county, poflefe lands in common property, chiefly confifting of hill pafture, but containing alfo arable land : Particular domiciles, in the town, have different pro- portions of btereft in this common property attached to them as appendages, the whole integer of the property being ideally confidercd as confifting of a certain number of founts, and the particular 308 NOTE C. particular intereft of each domicile being designated by a fpe- cified number of thefe foums. Before thefe lands were, hap- pily, by univerfal content, let to a (Ingle farmer, the value of one foum was confidered as equivalent to 5s. yearly ; without taking into the account the lofs untamed by the proprL of the domiciles, in diffraction cf their attention from their proper employments in the common management of this com- mon concern. Now, that the lands were let to a profcffional farmer, the yearly rent divided among the proprietors, amount- ed,- at once, to about 13s. for each foum •, and the lands have, even fubfequently, been fubfet, by the original farmer, at a considerable over-rent *. NOTE D. The topics of inquiry, fuggefted in Chap. IV. of the pre- scribed form of the Agricultural Reports, are curious and im- portant : viz. the proper fze of farms ,- — the genen "V- of farmers; — the proper conjlruElion of the f Each of them merits particular diicufiion. I QiaH ftate what has occur- red to my reflection ; 1/?, In regard to the character or farmer; 2//, In regard to the conftrufition of leafes? 3//, In regard to the proper fize of farms. Cbara&er * When a contiguous proprietor wifhevd, of late, to ptrchafe this cemmon - prcperty land from the domiciled proprietors of the foums, fomeofth< I politicians protefred againft this disjunction of the foums from the domicil' the burgh Jbould be defirted of its inhabitants; an opinion fanetioned l" acts of the Town Council, recorded in the To-iii's hooks, declaring any one it- famous who fhould propofe focJi a meafure. A curious mode, : ' population, to preferre TcfpeftabiKty tothc burgh ; though, perhaps, upon with other entails of land, intended to preferve confer:: 1 family name*, merely, or as defig native of rank. NOTE D. 309 Cbara&er of the Farmer. The origin of profeffional farmers, as conftituting a diflinct clafs in focicty, is not to be attributed to any artificial regula- tion of political contrivance ; it is an arrangement that muft neceffarily take place, in toe natural courfe of tilings ; and that hath therefore exifted, in every age and nation, fo foon as men have emerged from the Jack-cf-all-trades ftate of favagifm, and attained to any degree of civilization. In proportion as civili- zation advances, through the effecl:, and as the additional caufe of the proper fubdivifion of employment, the prorcffion of the farmer has become more and more exclufive, appropriate, and diftinft. In the progrefs of civilization, under the protection of laws, or cuftoms equivalent to law, fecuring property in its acquifi- tion, enjoyment, and tranfmiffion, two diilinct defcriptions of perfons will arife, into which every fociety may be divided ; thofe ivhofe fortunes are already made, and thole nvhe have their fortunes to make : The firft trained to habits of enjoyment, rather than to thofe of acquifition ; tire fecond to habits of acquifition, more than to thofe of enjoyment : The firft comprehending the landed and the monied intereft ; the fecond comprehending thofe who have not equal property in land, or in money, and who are willing tor give rent, or intereft, for the ufe of the one cr the other, which they pay out of the profits refulting to them Frcyn their fkilful and induftrious ufe of either : Tliefe, again, employ under them, all mannei : -labourers, and artificers. The two clafles are deftined to be mutually fubfervient to each other: They are, indeed, mutually indifpenfable to cadi other's exiftence *. In thofe born to opulence and independence, and trained up to the proper enjoyment of a fortune^ the fame adventurous ipirit of enterprize, or induftry, or mil .ntiou * Nothing could be more abfurd, than the Jacobinical attempts of repitfcat the firft of thefc clafles as a nuifance ill foci G. 3IO NOTE D. attention to oeconomy, in the acquisition of gain, are not to be expecled, as in thofe who have their fortunes to make : And :t is happily fo ordered, to preferve forne fort of equality in the conditions of men, and to give their chance of rifing in the world to thofe in more poor circumftances ; otherwife, thofe in obfcure fituations, could never poflibly emerge from their ob- fcurity, if they had to compete againft equal induftry, joined to the advantage, of which they are deftitute, the poffemon of wealth : But, in the ordinary routine of human affairs, poverty begets induftry; induftry, riches; and riches, when long enjoyed, and the habits by which they were obtained forgotten, leads to that prodigal profufion, which terminates in poverty; — when the rotation recommences. Meantime, men of {kill and enter- prize, but deftitute of capital, are accommodated with the ufe of land, or of money, by thofe poflefled of fortunes in either ; whilft the latter are equally accommodated by the former, who enable them to live at eafe, by maring with them the profits, in name of intereft, or of rent, which they were enabled to make by their induftry, through the loan or hire of money, or of land. It is not from mutual attachment, but from mutual need of each other, that thefe two clafles are fubfervient to each other's intereft : It is not from any view to the other's accommodation, that the monied, or landed proprietors, grant the ufe of their money, or land, to the man of {kill and enter- prize ; but becaufe, with their habits, they receive more from him, in fliaring his profits, in the name of intereft or of rent, than what they could obtain, by directing, themfelves, the out- lay of their monied capital, or overfeeing the cultivation of their own foil : It is not from any defire of obliging the mo- nied, or the landed capitalifts, that the man of enterprise con- fents to fhare with them in the fruits of his induftry, in fuper- intending the proper profitable ufe of their money, or their land ; but becaufe, without the ufe of land, or of money, his fkill and induftry could be turned to no account. The fame obfervation is equally applicable to the mutual accommodation of thofe who employ labourers, and thofe who give their ma- r.'.ial labour for hire : The former give employment to the lat- ter NOTE D. lit ter, becaufe, without their labour, neither Mock nor land could be turned to any profitable account ; and the latter, labour for hire, to the former, becaufe they need their maintenance to be daily, or at fhort periods, advanced to them in wages ; be* ing unable, for want of ftock, to await the ultimate return of the product of their labour. The benevolent intention of mu- tual accommodation, is, in the general, director of nature ; not in thofe who are thus mutually fubfervient to the accommoda- tion of each other — though the practice of mutual accommo- dation has, by the ordination of nature's Author, a ftrong ten- dency to beget fentiments of mutual good-Will *. In an induftrious Mate of fociety, though the whole mem- bers are thus mutually fubfervient \ it is not, through the fub- ferviency of gratuitous donation on the one hand, and fervile obligation upon the other ; but through the fubferviency of the interchange of equivalent values -, by which, in the midlt of mu- tual dependence, in one fenfe, they are mutually independent, in another. To return, however, from this digrefiion, which, I pre- fume, will not be confidered as very foreign to the fubje£t •, the character of the independent country gentleman, the pro- prietor of land, Hands clearly diftinguiihable, upon the prin- ciples laid down, from that of the farmer who rents land for hire. Independence is, no doubt, a relative idea. The country- gentleman, however, who, either wifely (in consideration of the general ftandard of wealthinefs), or foolifhly, confiders him- felf as independent, is not at all likely to acquire that character, and thofe habits, that mall fit him to become a very fuccefsful cultivator of the foil. From his fituation, he is bad under a refponfibility ; and from the education, and habits fuited to his fituation, he is fuppofed to poiTefs that liberality of mind, and extension of views — that public fpirit, and difengagement from the contracted purfuit of private emolument, which point him cut * The good- will produced by interchange of mutual accommodation, preflcd, in Latin, by one word, neccjfitudo. 012 S0TE £). out as proper to be entruded with, and as having mod leifure to manage, meafures of public concern : Hence a variety of du- ties are impofed upon him, which mud neceiTarily occupy a considerable flrare of his attention, if he would wifh to pre- ferve his proper refpectability. He lives upon an income, the extent of which is publicly known ; and, from the publicity of his income, a certain fuitable expence in his dyle of living, is exacted of him, by cudom and fafhion. From the numberlefs avocations to which he is thus neceiTarily expofed, in the dif- charge of his public duties, and in his focial intercourfe, he cannot be fuppofed to beftow that habitual and minute atten- tion, fo indiipenfable to fuccefsful hufbandry : That penurious attention to all the minutie. of ceconomy, which fo well fuit the profeffional firmer, would, in his fituation, be even degrading. Neither can he remedy thofe deliciencies, arifing from his fitua- tion and confonant habits, by the fubditution of an overfeer : For, admitting the latter to be as active, fkilful, and honed, as can well be fuppofed, it is not in nature to expect from him, as acihig for another's interejit and at another's rijk> the fame drenuoud exertion, with the fame attention to ceconomy in ex- pence, as what may be reafonably expected from the profef- fional farmer, atling for his own iniertjl^ and at his onvn rifk ,- when, from proper duration, and ether fecurity of his tenure of pofleffion, he is certain of reaping the whole profit of the utmod exertion of his fkill, induftry, and ceconomy, in the proper outlay of his dock *. But, further, the funds for im- provement, in the hands of the independent country gentle- man, mud, in general, be extremely limited. From the rate of living, impofed upon him by fafhion, in his odcnfible fitua- tion ', from the ambition of didinction, which even the mod prudent can hardly reftrain within the bounds proportioned to their means •, from all the habits afiumed in an independent fi- tuation, in which he hath been taught to confider it as his bu- finefs to enjoy) rather than to acquire; from all thefe circum- dances, * Profeffional farmers fimttimcs complain of the vicinity of gentlemen ini- i , the idlenefs of the letter's fei v'aiits being iou:iJ epntagious. NOTE D. 313 fiances, his favings, from his annual revenue, can be but in- confiderable. Inconfiderable as are thefe favings, they, how- ever,, conftitute the only fund which he is inclined to riik upon agricultural improvement* He fcruples to borrow money for this purpoie ; becaufe it is feldom found that his improvements make a fuitable return ; for, though he often does excel in theoretical knowledge, his practical {kill mult ever come far ihort of that of the profeiuonal farmer : He is univerfally, too, confidered as an eafy and a lawful prey to all thofe in his em- ploy ; nor is he poiTeffed of that Uriel:, unremitting attention, which h ncceiTary to his felf-defence : His fchemes are there- fore executed, at an over-proportioned expence ; and, for want of practical Ikill in direction, and, ftill more, of ceconomy in execution, his return of profit is feldom adequate to his ex- pence of outlay*. The habits, of his ftation lead him alfo to attach himfelf to t 7, as much as to vfcfal and profitable improvements ; the former being, in the univerfal mode of thinking, that tife of money which fuits thofe born to inde- pendence ; and whofe minds, in the courfe of an education fuited to their circumftances, may be fuppofed to have imbibed a relifh for the liberal arts. Even to borrow money for the purpofes — of ornamental architecture — -of dreiTmg up a lawn— of placing here a piece of water, and there an artificial ruin for a vifto : Even to borrow for fuch purpofes, is not judged pie- pofterous ; though no return of profit is, in any ihape, ex- petted. If, even when the mind is ftotcd v, it«li all the acquisitions, and the energy, that c.;n render a date of independent fortune moft highly reipectablc, little, iucceis is to be expected from the proprietor's cultivation of Ins own foil : What can poilibly be expected, when independent fortune pleads privilege oi worthlefs infignificanice ; and the power of enjoyment displays itfplf in mere debafing and itupifying fenfuality ? S s The * It U proverbial in thi and piobably every where befidei, ' That a ■Zonal farma rd, as rent, the whole farmers profit ■, rea| 1 -. Ln Is, akin n.'.'i hfl has no rent to pay.' 314 not£ £)'. Tlie farming moft fuited to the ftation, and congenial to the proper habits of the refpe&able independent country gen- tleman, would feem to be great outline improvements — beneficial, not to firigle farms alone, but to a whole eftate ; and in which, farmers, having intereft merely in fingle farms, will not, of courfe, fo immediately intereft themfelves; leaving the detaib to be filled up by the particular profeffional farmers, who have an immediate intereft in their execution. The only detail farm- ing, fuited to the independent country gentleman, is experimental farmings for the purpofes of invention, or of verification •, con- dueled, too, upon a fcale that could involve no important con- fequences : That minute attention and ceconomy, which would degrade him, if applied (like thofe of the profeffional farmer) for the mere purpofes of gain, would do him credit in con- dueling experiments, producing refults of general utility. It is not, indeed, to be expected, that the inventions of the gentle- man farmer mould be immediately adopted ; nor is it fit they mould s "What is perfectly ascertained as ufeful, will, neverthe- lefs, fooner or later, force its way into practice. The character of the profeffional farmer is, from the oppo- fite nature of his circumftances and fituation, formed in generic diftinction,. to that of the independent landed proprietor. Having to acquire, not to enjoy, a fortune, his faculties are iharpened by neceffity •, his whole energy is called forth, as he mult either do or die -y his attention is ever alive to the moft minute details, that can contribute, in any way, to his purpofe. In this manner, like all other profeffionalifts, he acquires more perfect practical (kill in the bufinefs of his profeffion ) his plans are laid down with judgement, conducted with accuracy, and with the moft minute attention to ceconomy in expence. Subjected to almoit no public duties, his attention is not di- ftracted from the peculiar bufinefs of his profeffion ; he can perfonally ovcrfee every operation, and attend to the whole de- tail of practical oeconomv. Like as with all thofe who live upon profit, his income is unknown ; and no particular rate of living is exacted of him, by cultom and faihion : If his rent, then, is fufficiently moderate, and his encouragement to induf- try NOTE D. 315 try otherwife proper, his annual favings may amount to much more in proportion to the produce of his farm, than thofe of the independent country gentleman in proportion to the rents of his eftate. And as his habits' are formed, not to enjoyment, but to acquifition, thefe favings are neither devoted to orna- ment, nor other expence of living, but are added to his farm- ing capital ; which he would certainly rather employ himielf, in the way of his profeffion, to the fuperior or more extended cultivation of the foil, that he might reap farmer's profit, than lend it to other profeflionalifts, who could afford him only com- man interejl. From the duft thefe favings arofe, and to the duft they have a natural tendency to return. Unlike to the in- dependent proprietor, he can even, with fafety, borrow money for the purpofes of agricultural improvement ; as, under his ©economical application, capital may reach to double extent of efficacy *. The * A prejudice feems generally prevalent againrt: the expediency of a tenant farming opon a borrowed capital. In the reafon of the thing, were this fubjecl placed upon a proper footing, there feems no fufficient caufe, why the borrowing of money fhould be more inconfirtent with this profeffion, than with that of other gainful profeffions, requiring the outlay of capital. Indeed, the ridiculous abfurdity of the retention of the dcLSlus p:rfoni, etfcfxehiia, of the Report}. la 31S NOTE D. management, too, annual favings would foon accumulate into a new capital ; which, in his judicious and ceconomical mode of application, will go much farther in improving the produc- tive value of the lands, than a much larger capital under the more lavifh expenditure of the independent proprietor; where alfo the application fo often tends to deviate from ufe to orna- ment. The advantage of improving quickly, with a large capital, and the whole farm at once, rather than flowly, gradually, and partially, as ftock {hall accumulate by degrees in the hands of the improver, is exceedingly obvious. But, where are fuch capitals to be found, as would at once reach to the extent of the improvement of a whole unimproved diftricl: ? Capital can alone be created from favings : according to the Scots proverb, the ground mufl build the dike. Proprietors might, no doubt, pledge their lands, in fecurity of fuch capital as they might borrow ; but capital is not to be had, to ferve all the purpofes for which it might be wanted. Upon proper encouragement of farming induftry, it would gradually accu- mulate in the hands of the tenantry, to ferve every agricultu- ral purpofe. The intereft of the tenant, the proprietor, and the public, if well underftood, are ultimately the fame: vi2. that the te* riant, tinder every proper encouragement fJhould be excited to the im- provement of the productive value of the lands. But, in regard to the duration of the leafe, the intereft of the tenant and die pro- prietor are, in appearance, immediately at variance. It is, without doubt, the immediate intereft of the proprie- tor, to let his lands at the higheft poflible rent — to have them brought, during the leafe, to their higheft pollible cultivation, by the exertions of the tenant's induftry, and the outlay of his capital — and to feize upon thefe advantages as fpeedily as may be, In an age of awakened induftry, enlightened, too, by more interchange of com- munication, nothing icems awanting, but proper moral excitement. The torpor that prevailed in Scotland till within thefe jo years, may be, in part, afcribed to ■ - j-cr.cral ignorance; but partly alfo, no doubt, to the debit/id ftate of the tc* •, in refpe£t of their tenures. tfOTE D. 3ICJ be, by granting the (horteft leafe that a tenant can be found to accept of; and even that expofed to various chances of for- feiture. Such fhort-fighted avarice mud, however, overreach itfelf, and neceflarily defeat its own end ; as advantages, that can only be reaped through the voluntary co-operation of others, cannot, in reafon, be expected, where the advantage is not mutual. If the rent is too much racked, or the duration of the leafe too fhort to encourage induftry or outlay, no fuch advantages can arife ; and the tenant's folly or obftinacy may be very abfurdly blamed, when he merely refrains from doing what he has no intereft to do ; where, with more juftice, the blame might be imputed to the narrow-minded and illiberal policy of the proprietor. The proprietor has it more in his power to let his lands in what manner he will ; the tenant is more under neceflity of receiving them upon fuch conditions as can be obtained. To think of fupplying the tenant's want of intereft, by compulfion in his leafe, is as idle, as to think of extorting, by the whip, from flaves, the fame ftrenuous exertions as may be excited in free men, when paid in proportion to the work they perform. All compulfory regulations enforcing improvements, in which the tenant enjoys not his equal ihare of advantage, will neceflarily by him be evaded, or reftricted within the mod confined fenfe of the letter — a difinterefted regard to the public good, being as little to be expected in this clafs, or lefs fo, than in that of their fuperiors. But, fuppofmg that fupe- rior cultivation could thus be enforced by regulation, without imparting to the tenant a proper fhare of the advantage, and that the immediate advantage refted all with the proprietor ; the advantage accruing to the latter would, ultimately, prove to have been more apparent than real : For, if the tenant had been admitted to his proper fhare of the immediate profit, it would not have been diflipated ; but would have accumulated, in his ceconomical hands, into an addition of capital; enabling him, in proportion to his increafe of (lock, to afford more rent for land, upon which it might be profitably occupied. It i3 not eafy to determine wjiat is the proper duration of z leafe. It may, with propriety, be fnorter upon a farm aire?.- dy 320 NOTE D. dy improved, where immediate profit is reaped by the tenant, without much expence of outlay. It Teems probable, that, with few exceptions, the error through Scotland has lain, hitherto, in too fliort duration. There is certainly, however, a juil medium of endurance, if it could be hit upon, neceffary to preferve the tenant in his proper ufeful character. Upon a leafe of exceffive length, though the original leffee might re- tain the profeilional habits in which he had been trained, even after he had accumulated confiderable wealth ; yet his fuc- celTors might be tempted, however awkwardly at firft, to at- fume the manners of thofe bom to independence -, to com- mence gentlemen ; and, of courfe, to degenerate in their farming capacity. When fuch revolution of character does take place, public utility, as well as the intereft of all concern- ed, requires, that the farm were in better hands. It would pafs into better hands, if there is no claufe debarring afligna- tion or fubfet •, as a farmer of the true breed, poffeffmg the true profefiional character, could afford to give him more rent for his farm, than, with his new affumed character, he could make of it by farming it himfelf. The grudge at feeing a profit thus made of his lands, in which he does not mare, is, with fome proprietors, a reafon for preventing the power of fubfet \ but the lands could never have become worth fo much, had they not been fo held by the tenant, that a profit could be made from them, in which the proprietor could not ihare. After all, though long leafes can alone, without doubt, lead to improvements of permanent duration; and to the greater quantity of fuch improvements, in proportion as capi- tal, under the adminifhration of the tenant, will go much far- ther than in any other hands : yet, neverthelefs, towards the clofe of every leafe, there mud be an unimproving interval, during which, all attempts at melioration on the part of the tenant muft ceafe ; and where the compuKion of regulation, under penalty, muft be fubllituted to the fpur of fclf-intereit in the tenant, to enforce melioration, or to prevent deteriora- tion- note D. 3Z r lion. — A weak and Inefficient fucccdiu:enm% whdfe effe£fc will ever be attempted to be declined and evaded. To remedy this defect, Lord Kaimes (probably the fir ft who has conlidered farming in the view of its proper moral excitements) has fuggefted the indefinite, or perpetual leafe. He proposes, that the tenant fhould poffefs the farm at a rent certain, and for a term of years certain (fuppofe 20 years) 5 after the expiry of this flrft term of years, that the tenant fhould continue to poffefs for a fecond term of 20 years, the rent for this fecond period to be advanced in a fpecified pro- portion (for example, to one third part more than for the firft 20); and fo to continue, from 20 years to 20 years, upon proportional rifes of rent, ad infinitum — with fucceffion, un- doubtedly, to heirs, and liberty of alienation ; without which, even this leafe could prove no proper inducement to induftry. As, however, at the end of any of thefe 20 years periods, it may fo happen, that the tenant fhall judge the fpecified rife of rent too much for him to pay •, or the landlord fhall judge it too little for him to accept of: It is therefore farther propofed, that it fhall be optional to either party to vacate the leafe at that period, upon giving twelve months notice to the other ; when the farm fhall be laid open to the competition of bid- ders-, with this provifion, in favour of the prefent tenant, " that he fhall be at full liberty to bid for the farm ; and that either his offer fhall be accepted, or otherwife he fhall receive from the proprietor fo many years (fuppofe 15 years) purchafe of the advance of rent offered by him ; " it being left optional to the proprietor to do either, left the tenant fhould offer ad- vance merely with a view to the purchafe-money. In this manner, the proprietor would be certain, at mode- rate intervals, of receiving a rent adequate to the improved value of his fubject (at leaft, if proper provision in the rifes could be made to correfpond, not merely to the money price of the improvement at the time of fixing the provifion, but making allowance for the eventual variation in the value of money *) ; whilft the tenant, meanwhile, would be eucourag- T t ed * Perhaps, this could not be done, but Gy rraking the rent in grain. (S«e p. 86. of the Report.) 322 X0TE D", ed to go on improving to the very end of his leafe, under the' certainty of either receiving back the farm at fuch a rent as he could readily afford, or of obtaining an adequate compen- fation, if another were preferred to the leafe. Befides the difficulty of fixing the rifes of rent at the end of each of the 20 year periods, fo as to keep (in a money rent) due proportion to the eventual value of money, other difficul- ties prefent themfelves, as to this effort of Lord Kaimes at the idea of a perfect fyftem of continual moral excitement to the tenant's induftry. iwo, As, under this fyftem, the farm is locked up, ad in- jinitum, againfl alteration j it muft have been fo perfectly con- ftru£led,as to its fize, for the moft profitable occupation, as to need no alteration in this refpedt. ; otherwife, this advantage can never afterwards be obtained. But how is this to be per- fectly forefeen ? 2cio, All improvements of the eftate at large, to which it might very probably be neceffary to facrifice the particular in- tereft of this fingle farm, are precluded, from the unalterable nature of its conftitution. ^tio, All chance of its undergoing the ornamental improve* meats, at the leaft, which fuit an abfolute and perpetual pro- prietor, are excluded ; as it can never fall out of leafe. The extent of the right of property in his leaft; which is com- municated to the tenant, falls next to be confidered. The univerfal prejudice in regard to the propriety of cramp- ing, fhackling, and circumfcribing the extent of the tenant's right of property in his leafe, through the proprietor's reten- tion of the right of delectus perjbna in the tenant, by which the latter is deprive I of the power of alienation of his right of leafe, has been already adverted to in Note B. It hath origi- nated in that particular cafl of thinking, which has been im- preffed upon us, through familiarization with the ufages of the feudal law •, which would lead us to force into an unnatural an- alogy with thefe ufages, a fubje£t, which bears no fort of re- ference to feudalifm, and which ought to be regulated upon principles diametrically oppofite. Had NOTE D. 323 Had there been any propriety in enforcing, in regard to cuU iivating tenantry, the fame perfect dependence upon the pro- prietor, as, in times of turbulence, was necefiarily enforced in military tenantry, upon their military chief ; then, the cultivat- ing tenant ought never to have obtained the fmallcft degree of emancipation — he ought to have been retained as a mere tenant at will : The cultivating tenant of one property-chieftain ought never to have been forced upon the acceptance of another pro- perty-chieftain ; and the act 1446 was an iniquitous encroach- ment upon the inherent, inalienable rights of delectus perfona of heirs and of fmgular iuccerTors : The cultivating ufufructuary tenant ought, like the military tenant, to have been ever confi- dered as identified with his mailer ; and ought to have continu- ed anfwerable for his debts, as the ether for his depredations : And the act 1466, relieving him from fuch reiponfibility, mull alfo be confidered as a violent and iniquitous interference, diffe- vering a connexion which ufage had imprefTed with tlie cha- racter of nature. The principles applicable to a military tenant, are as oppo- fite to thofe applicable to a cultivating tenant, as the principles which regulate fighting, are to thofe which regulate induftry. Abfolute defpotic rule is alone fuited to the foldier ; but indu- llry is extinguifhed by its touch. When the cultivator of the foil was fitted to become a farmer, properly fo called, (cultivate ing the foil, at his own rifk, by the outlay of his own flock, and paying rent to the proprietor for the ufe of his foil), it was found indifpenfably necelTary to depart from military maxims, under which the tenant's induftry could not poiTrbly thrive ; and accordingly, the fecurity of the acts 1446 and 1466 were extended to him. Still, however, die fecurity of the cultivating tenant is, through the ridiculous adherence to the jus delectus, very far from being fo full, as what is found neceflary to encourage in- duftry in other profefiions, requiring, like his, the ihduftrious outlay of a capital. Suppofe a tenant holding a Ieafe, which is not of that long duration, which, ipfo facia, implies the relinquifhment of the jus delectus ; and fuppofing lie has no children ; and fuppofing that 324 NOTE D. that his heirs are perfons whom he docs not love, or whom he hates : If he (hall fix his capital in improvements of the foil, he cannot devife it to whom he will, as he has no power of alienating his leafe to whom he pleafes ; but the right of leafe to the farm, together with the capital he had fixed in it, is thus carried, by a fort of entail, to heirs for whom he has no re- gard. Is it fuppofeable, under fuch circumfkmces, that the te- nant will ever fo fix his capital ? Will he not rather retain ft under his immediate pofleffion, and fubject to his own devife- ment ? He will be equally barren of improvement, as an heir of an entailed eftate, fimilarly fituated in point of connexion 'y having, like him, but a mere liferent intereft in the fubject. (See page 35, and foot note, page 105.) Or, fuppofing a tenant upon a leafe, fubject. to the embar- go of the jus deleEluS) has no family but a daughter : What rational inducement can he have to fink money upon the im- provement of his farm ; when, after his death, his daugh- ter mud either remain fmgle ; or, if me marries, mud incur a forfeiture of the leafe, through the abfurd fyftem adopted in Scotilh law, of forcing the incongruous fubjecls of tenures for the purpofes of fighting and of mduftry, into analogy ? (See page 297.) Or, fuppofing a tenant to have a family of fons ; as we are not yet arrived at the high civilization of being aflortcd by law or cufLom into cafts (fee foot-note, page 254), it is very bable none of the fons may choofe to follow their father'-, profefiion ; but may have all fettled thcmfelves in- more lucra- tive employments, which they ceuid not relinquifh, without: great lofs, in order to take up the occupancy of the fathei'a \zz.{z> by fucccfiion after his death. Would any father, pof- fefl'ed of common fenfe, or common affection, in fuch cir- cumflances, launch cut more upon his farm, than what he had a profpect of reaping full advantage from during his own '.-■ —when he knows, that, upon the event of his death, his Ions are debarred, by the jus chkBuSy from reaping the profits of a liberal outlay, by difpofing of the reverfion of the leafe to the bell bidder'-, and that they mult cither difpofe cf it, by rclinqvifhing it to the proprietor lev nothing, or for any thing he MOTE D. 325 he pleafes to allow ; or otherwife continue themfelves the poffeffion, under the unprofitable management of an overfeer, adling at their rifk, and without any intereft of his own at flake * ? In all thefe inftances, whatever may be the fecurity of du- ration, nominally fpecified in the terms of the tack, the real in- terejl of the tenant amounts, in effect, to no more, through the operation of theyz/j- dekclus^ than a mere liferent intereft. Through the operation of the jus dele&us, the tenant is, in a manner, an adfcriptus gleba ; he cannot lid himfelf of his leafe to the beft bidder, fo as to recover the capital he had fixed in the foil, when a move lucrative profeflion opens to him; or when he might have the opportunity of transferring his fuperior ikill, and induftry, and capital, with the gresteft advantage to himfelf, and alfo to the public at large, to feme other farm, in fome lefs improved diftricft ; where fuperior profits might be made, from the incapacity of inferior im- provers to compete with him in offers of rent, and where his example might be of general benefit. In other profeffions, it would certainly be cenfidered as a moil prepofterous mode of improvement, to force capitals to remain where they were once fixed, or induftry to continue to be employed about the identical fuhjecl to which it was fir ft applied. What could we judge of regulations of trade, which fhould bind the trader to the continued occupation of the fame herring-bufs, or Weft Inciiaman ; or the merchant to the fame fhep ; or the manufacturer to the perfonal occu- pation of his cotton-mill ? Induftry retains unirerfally the fame character : its proper excitement, to whatever fubject applied, is fecurity and free- dom. * A cafe of this kind occurred lately in the farm of Blythbank, in Linton pa- r:fh. A fpiiited farmer, who had laid out great expence in melioration, died at an early period of his leafe. His heirs, oil a wife engaged, could not take up the occupancy ; and the proprietor, had he ufed the powers of his jus dtk&a, might have had the leafe given up for an old fong : tie gencioufly allowed them to dii- pofe of it to the beft bidder. Where, however, is the encouragement to improve- ment, when the riik of forfeiture is only avoided through forbearance of the land- lord. ? 325 NOTE D. dom. If there is a reluctance againft the inveftiture of capital in agriculture ; if capital more freely directs itfelf to inveftiture in manufactures or trade, the reafon I mould conceive to be extremely obvious. Capital will ever more readily be directed to thofe employments where it enjoys moft freedom and fecu- rity, where it remains moft at the free difpofal of its proprie- tor, and where it incurs leaft rifk of forfeiture. In the a£ts 1446 & 1466, the Scotifh Parliament broke through the analogy of fcudamm, in favour of the fecurity of capital invefted in agriculture : Nor would it appear a very great flretch of power, in the Imperial Parliament, to break through the analogy of the military deleilus, by declaring an unaihgn- able, inalienable leafe (excepting, perhaps, in a very few fpe- eified caies) to be a prelum illicitum — that every encourage- ment might be held out to the invefting of capital in agricul- ture, by rendering it equally unfettered, as to life and trans- ference, when fo invefted, and equally fecure againft rifk of for- feiture, as when invefted in any other induftrious occupation. For obvious reafons, Parliament will ever be reluctant a- gainft interfering with the free ufe, or even abufe, to a certain extent, of property. And every reftraint of this kind upon agricultural induftry might be removed, by the terms of bar- gain, by landed proprietors ; who might exprefsly renounce the jus deletlus, confidered as inherent in them, in the eye of law •, — unleis, indeed, poiTefhng heirs of entail might be confidered, in fo doing, as acting ultra vires, in thus trenching upon the inherent prerogative of the heirs of provifion of the entail. In many cafes, the jus ddeclus mult operate, in the ftrongeft manner, in refh-aining the tenant from ever fixing his own ca- pital in the foil : in all cafes, it mult militate againft agricul- tural credit. Where the leafe is cvictabie at law by creditors, this entitles them, not to difpofe of it by fale to die higheft bidder, but merely to adminiftrate for the tenant. Farmers might do fo, though with conliderable inconvenience : monicd men, not profeffional farmers, might ruin themfelves by fuch iniftration. But where the proprietor debar:; all affigna- tion, whether legal or voluntary (a folly, of which, it feems, .'hey are fuppofed capable^ as the law makes provifion for the cafe) : NOTE D. 327 cafe) ; even tins recourfe, for the money lent to the farmer, is denied. Under the reftraints of the delectus, a monied man would jult be as fcrupulous of lending money to a farmer^ upon fecurity cf his leafe, as to a pofTe fling heir of entail up- on fecurity of his eftate. [See foot -note, page 315.) — The latter will, in general, more eafily obtain credit, from his real or fup- pofed political influence ; through the deluhve influence of which upon expectation, the lender may fwindle himfelf out of his money, relying upon a fecurity of repayment, which has no exiftence but in his own imagination. The reafons why leafes fhould ever be completely alienable, like every other fpecies of property upon which capital is launched out, are abundantly obvious. The reafons why the alienation of leafes fhould be clogged by the proprietor's jus deleclus, have never appeared to me to be of any weight : Some fuch reafons as the following, I have heard fuggefted. The delectus has foraetimes been defended, upon the fuppo- fition that it gave a tie upon the tenant's political principles, in preventing the fubilitution to one with whofe principles the proprietor was originally fatisfied ; of another, whofe principles he might have caufe to diflike. Were it a matter of fuch im- portance, that landed proprietors fliould have the regulation of the tenant's principles ; and were it proper and expedient, for this purpofe, that fecurity fliould be withdrawn from agricul- tural induftry ; the beft regulation would be, that the whole cultivators of the foil fhould be kept as tenants at will. This, however, would be to attempt to preferve a country, after re- ducing it to a (late not worth preferving ; like to the policy of extirpating the inhabitants, to prevent their riling in rebellion. To communicate a flake worth defending, I fliould apprehend to be a preferable mode of fecuring attachment to any exifting order of things. In regard to the late danger of the infurrecrion of the poor againft the rich, for the divifion of their funds, upon Rouffeau and Godwin's fyftems of {avage liberty and equality, I think it will not be denied, that the efiential intereft'at ftake, in the farming clafs, had the moft powerful efledt in preferving the country from revolutionary madnefs. Much was certainly effected by the fpdrited and heartily afre&ed fervices of the Yeomanry : 323 NOTE D. Yeomanry : Nor would the zeal have been lefs, in proportion to the largenefs of the capital inverted in agricultural induftry. And though, perhaps from miftaken principle, or perhaps from mifcalculation of confequenccs, and the defire of being of the fide of what was apprehended would become uppermolt, there might be exceptions among the Yeomanry ; yet, from fimilar caufes, were not exceptions equally to be found among landed proprietors, and even titled nobility * ? The delectus has been defended upon the principle, that if alienation was allowed, the proprietor would be fubjedted to the rifle of getting a worfe farmer to his farm. But, upon the common principles by which other matters are regulated, the proprietor may be allured, that, upon the fyftem of free aliena- tion, the farm will always fall into the hands of the higheft bidder \ and the man who gives molt, can do it in no other way, than from the raifmg cf molt produce at leatt expence, through fuperior (kill, or induftry, or capital. Devastations, it is faid, might be committed, in allowing a tenant's creditors, or affignees, to enter upon his leafe. Sucli deraftatiqna of an eftate, no doubt, inevitably enfue upon the creditors of the proprietor entering into his place, naith full command of the fubjccl : Nothing of this kind could happen from thofe fubftitutcd in the original tenant's limited right ; as they can do nothing but what he could do— will do nothing for their interelt, but what he would have done for his— -and are obliged to perform every thing to which he was bound. The retention of the chance of forfeiture of the leafe, after the farm has been improved, by fixing in it the tenant's capi- tal— if ever fuch an idea was entertained by any pretending to the name of gentleman — is unworthy of refutation. Under rift cf forfeiture, who would rift his capital, when, in other profeffions, * A ludicrous incident happened in this county. — A proprietor, through mif- takc of names, though, no doubt, in confequence of his having offered moll rent. Jet a. farm to the ringleader of the county militia mob. The matter is of no confequence, however much fnch things may be magnified into importance : Any other he had pitched upon might, in the courle of a nineteen years leaie, have become a militia mob leader; and might have needed a Tranent military execu- tion to enlighten him, and to keep him correit. NOTE D. 329 l^tofeffions, it may be outlayed without fuch rifk ? In an un- allignable lcafc, tenants, no doubt, lay out their capitals under naore or lefs riik of eventual forfeiture ; their fecurity lies in the faith they repofe in the honourable character of landed gentlemen ; and I believe there have been few inftances in which that faith hath been fruftrated. But of what ufe is it to retain a chance of forfeiture, when there is no purpofe of exact- ing it when it occurs? An independent fecurity is furely a more encouraging footing, for the liberal unreftrained outlay of capital, than the more precarious one, founded in depend- ence upon another's character. In the latter fituation, there is a degradation, which, other things being equal, would lead men of capital to prefer other fituations of greater refpe£tability *. The manners of the tenant have been confidered as a rea- fon for retaining the delecius\. Upon the general principle on which * In the pattern county of Berwickshire, improvements, feeming'y originating among proprietors, were completed, over the county, by tenants holding by leafes of from thirty to fifty-feven years endurance. In the fpecimens of leafes, exhibited in the Repoit of that county, the tack is more or lefs ftriftly confined to heirs and fucceffors. And the exclufion of affignees, of affignees legal or voluntary, and of executors and fubtenants, are found more and more explicitly exprcfled, as we approach the prefent times. Were the proprietors become more and more anxious of retaining the chances of forfeiture, in proportion as land became more and more improved throujh the more habitually liberal outlay of the tenant's apitals ? Did the tenants ever apprehend, through preconception, or from ex- perience, that advantage would be taken of thefe excluding claufes, when oppor- tunity offered ? Thefe probabilities of virtual forfeiture, which may occur through the di- USut, as already dated, reducing the tenant's real intereft to that of a mere liferent, make it not unforeign to relate what has been dated to me, by Mr Alexander Daliiel, formerly f.-.ctor on Lord Glencairn's edate of Kilmarnock, ' that the very worft-managed farms upon that eftate (yielding, by far, the lead produce, aid probably, alfo, the leaf! profit to the occupiers) wen; two, which had been let, in liferent leafe, at a mere quit-rent, to two favourites of the familv. ' Here, through the injudicious mode of its adminilf ration, we fee an indance of liberality, at once, moll expenfive to the donor, mod unprofitable to the receivers, and mod detrimental to the public, in condemning a proportion of the lands to a date of comparative dcrilky ! f A kind of morbid fenfibility is excited upon this fubjeit, from a grotefque identification of the proprietor with his property, as if it, Literally, cenftituted his U u fr long. — The reflric'Hons of management were planned by Mr Lowe, a profef- fional farmer of long-tried ability, experience, and integrity. — Such men may pre- %eud to pttfciibe rules to profiflwiial farmers. 334 note D. penalty, to a fenfe of interefl in the tenant, is, however, at beft, but an awkward, unkindly, and up-hill fort of introduction. Let men of capital be attracted to the prcfeflion of farming, by rendering the fituation of tenants as fecure and independent, and confequently as refpe£lable, as that of peribns launching out their capitals in any other gainful profeflion, and no pre- fcription of management would be at all neceflary, during the currency of the leafe, in an age of awakened induftry, arid of prompt and univerfal communication. The tenant's intei"eft would lead him to wifh for, and* his means to procure, the very bell information j and he would infallibly be led to adopt that mode of culture, which infured the largeft production. If ca- pital is banifhed from agriculture, by fuch reftraints as beggars only would fubmit to, beggars alone can we have for tenants ; and it is in vain to think of enforcing management, which they have not capital to execute, under the fanction of penalties, which they are unable to pay. But though, during the currency, no prefcribed form of ma- nagement feems neceflary ; though the matter may be, then, left to the tenant's fenfe of his own intereil ; yet, during a few years near to the expiry of the leafe, regulations would feem indifpenfably neceflary. For a few years, it is evidently the te- nant's interefl:, unlefs indeed he has already contracted for a new leafe, to draw from the land every thing it can produce, without being at any expence in recruiting its power of produc- tion, as he is not to fuffer by its enfuing flerility : Or, if it chance that the farm has been taken by another tenant, the connexion of long pofieflion (probably the only original right of appropriation of land) may make him entertain a fort of feel- ing of injury, upon his ejection ; and may lead him to adopt deteriorating practices, emuloufly, and to his own hurt, merely to gratify his refentment againfl: his fucceflbr, who (as he half conceives) has ufurped his place. Reftrictions, as to the laft three years of pofl'eflion, would feem lufficient to fecure the interefl: of the proprietor ; whilft they prevent not (in a leafe pf 20 or 30 years endurance) the adoption of improvements during the currency •, which, if evidently advantageous, might, by mutual cenfent, fuggeft alterations as to the rcftrickd years, In NOTE D. 33$ In 57 years leafes, leading to fuch permanent improvements as thofe which, in Tweeddale, are carrying on upon the eftate of Neidpath, no reftrittio'ns whatever would feem at all neceflary ; as no farming practice, towards the clofe, could undo what had been done at the beginning of the kale. — (See p. 104, &c.) Reftridlions, in Tweeddale, are but of late introduction. In regard to hill fheep pafture, it feems generally under- ilood, that the outgoing tenant fhall not plough fuch land as had not formerly been in ufe of tillage. In regard to the ara- ble croft land of (heep farms, there feems no reftri£tion to have been in ufe ; excepting, merely, that no dung fhall be carried off the farm, but lhail be either applied to raife crops, or be left to the intrant tenant, at a fair valuation. As to the outfield arable land of lheep farms, the practice feems not at all ac- curately defined. Attempts have been lately made by proprie- tors, to have it afcertained, that no fuch land mall be broken up from grafs, without previous liming, teathing by folded cattle, or other manuring. As the meafure of the execution muft, however, be referred to arbitration, arbiters (who can have no equitable rule but the cuftom of the country) will fuftain a ve- ry lax execution, when melioration is enforced beyond the ex- tent of cuftom : It would be, indeed, iniquitous, to enforce me- lioration upon the tenant who came to a fcourged farm, and of courfe expecled, from cuftom, the fame advantage at his re- moval. Where there is pofitive law, or exprefs ftipulation, there can be no injury in being compelled to perform what was forefeen and aflented to : It is iniquitous, to deprive any one of advantages he was reafonably induced to expect, by any ex pojl faElo law, regulation, or adopted interpretation. The regulations, formerly, as to arable farms, extended no farther than what has been dated as to the croft lands of iheep farms. In regard to the reftriction proper for the laft three years in. arable farms, and the rotation land of fheep farms, the follow- ing reftriclions would feem proper, and at fame time all that are neceflary. For the proper underftanding of their proprie- ty, it will, however, be proper previoufly to ftate, That the term of entry to all Tweeddale farms is at Whitfunday, as to the 33^ We D> the pafture grafs and houfes ; and to the arable land, at die re- paration of the crop from the ground ; the crop being the way- going crop of the outgoing tenant * : That the poffeffing tenant mall, in his laft crop but one, low out, with clover and rye- grafs in fpecified proportion, one fpecified portion of his rota- tion land, anfwering to one of its divifions in the courfe of ro- tation j the faid portion, the year before, having been under green crop fallow, with all the farm houfe-dung applied to it : That he lhall, in his laft crop, allow the incoming tenant, or the proprietor, to fow grafs feeds, along with his crop, upon a fimilar portion of his rotation land j faid portion having, the preceding year, been under green crop fallow, with all the dung applied to it : That the Martinmas before the Whitfunday of his removal, he lhall plough a fimilar portion, which he fhall leave to the intrant to fallow •, and that he fhall lay no dung upon his waygoing crop, but leave his dunghill to the intrant tenant, that he may apply it to his fallow green crop : That the intrant tenant fhall purchafe the hay crop at a fair conjectural valuation at Whitfunday, fown as per firft mentioned reftric- tion : That he fhall pay the outgoing tenant, per valuation, for the eftimated damage that may be fuppofed to accrue to his crop by fowing grafs feeds, per fecond mentioned reftriftion, in taking nourifnment from faid crop, as weeds : That he fhall pay for the third portion, left ploughed at Martinmas, for him to fallow, per third reftriction, at the rate of the eftimated pro- fit which the outgoing tenant might have derived from crop- ping it : And alio, that he fhall pay for the year's dung left, at fair valuation of its worth ; ov elfe, that the outgoing tenant mail be at liberty to difpofe of it by open auction ; in which cafe, the intrant tenant has, at leaft, the preferable advantage, of being excufed carriage. Perhaps, it might alio be eligible, that the intrant mould have privilege of fowing grafs, to produce an earlier fward over all * The cuftom in Tweeddale is fo well underflood, that, inftead of the tack ex- preffing that the removal from the grafs is to he at Whitfunday, and from the D of the enfuing crop ; meft of the tacks merely bear, that the entry is at Whitfunday, and the rrtnoval at Whitfunday : The reft is under- flood. mote D. 337 a]} the crop ; paying, as already fpecified, for the eftimated da- mage that might accrue to the outgoer's crop, by abflra£ling nouriihment. The incomer would thus, at once, be fet a-going in the bed rotation fyftem prefently known ; having fown grafs, for green houfe-feeding, the firfl feafon ; gi*afies fown, to come in the next feafon; fallow, for green Winter feeding the firft year, &c. So that, at once, he would be in proper rotation, which he need not be again thrown out of. Size of Farms. In regard to the fize of farms, as in regard to every other condition of their tenure, it is my opinion, that this Ihould be left to regulate itfelf, by the effectual demand of the market ; upon the fimple principle of who bids more ? More rent cannot be offered for a farm, under one condi- tion of tenure, as to fize, duration, or other circumflances, than under any different condition of tenure ; but folely from this caufe, that, under the former, it can be made to yield more produce, at lefs expence, than under the latter f. So foon, then, as there exifts in any country, a fufficiency of agricul- tural fkill and flock, to occupy the whole lands in the mofl profitable, becaufe the mofl productive manner, the interefl of the proprietor, and of the farmer, will both concur to reduce, in time, the whole under this mofl productive mode of occu- pation. The farmer follows this mode for his own interefl j and he who does fo, can offer mofl rent for the farm. This is an irrefiflible tendency, which artificial regulation may foolifhly attempt to counteract ; but which will infallibly counteract: every oppofing regulation. [Seepages 202, 203, as a!fo the fubfequent note F.) *, X x Whim. f More produce at lefs expence, is a fyftem declaimed againfl as inimical to po- pulation. The fame clamour might, with equal reafon, be raifed againfl mashm* • in manufactures. * The maxim of the Latin poet can no where be better applied — Nataram txfellas furca} tamen ufque recurrtt. 33S NOTE D. Whilft agricultural fkill and {lock are deficient, farms may be either too large, or too fmall. They may be too large, when a farmer gets upon his hands a tract of defert wafte, which he has neither fufHciency of flock to improve by furface culture, or even to plenifh up with cattle to con fume the na- tural paflure ; becaufe, through deficiency of agricultural flock, the landlord found no competitors for a divifion, and wifhed, neverthelefs, to have the farm taken off his hands. They may be too little, when, from want of the proper efla- blifhment of the fubdivifion of labour and employment, (to- wards which, too, there exifls an irrefiflible tendency, through the mutual interefl of all concerned — See preceding Note' Cy and page 48.)} and of outlet to more profitable bufinefs, a farmer's family continue to occupy his farm in the unprofitable modes of minute fubdivifion, or of conjunct counterthwarting management ; inflead of lending their flock at interefl to one of the individuals, which would be more profitable, the reft betaking themfelves to other profeflions ; and no relief being to be obtained by fpreading fuch minute capitals into the occu- pation of a greater extent of lands, as fuch farms would be too large. Till fufficiency of capital has accumulated out of fav- ings, we mufl reft fatisfied with the beft practicable, inflead of the befl conceivable, mode of occupation. As flock and (kill increafe, the interefl of all concerned begets an invariable tendency to the mofl productive and mofl profitable occu- pancy, independent of any artificial regulation to that effecT:, and in defiance of any regulation to the contrary. Our tribe of difinterefled politicians, who are continually torturing their brains in devifing fchemes for the public good, may refl fatis- fied, that, if they are good for any thing, they will take place without any interference ; if they are good for nothing, though the public good may be embarraffed, it will not alto- gether be defeated, by regulations attempting to enforce them. This natural tendency to arrangement, under the mode of mofl profitable occupancy, is obflrudled, through the retraining in- fluence of the proprietors' deUElus perfona. , which prevents the alienation note D. 339 alienation of leafes, or commodious interchanges of lands held under leafe, on the part of the tenants ; and by the cramping influence of entails, which obftruct fimilar profit- able arrangements among proprietors. The fubject being an interefting one, it may not be im- proper to enter into a more minute difcuflion ; and to endea- vour to inveftigate the circumftances that conftitute the mod profitable mode of occupancy of farms ; together with the principles that lead to their dilatation to their proper fize, and to their circumfcription within their proper bounds ; upon the fuppofition that there exifts a fufficiency of agricultural fkill and capital for the beft poflible occupation of the whole lands. In every particular inftance, the fkilful and experienced profeflicnal farmer is the only competent judge of the arrange- ment of any particular diftrict into farms, fo as to render each farm of the moft commodious conftruclion for the molt productive and the moft profitable occupation. There are, however, certain obvious general principles relative to farm- ing ; from whence any perfon of reflection, though but mo- derately {killed in the practical details of farming, (as I con- fefs myfelf to be), may deduce fome decided general conclu- fions as to the moft profitable mode of occupation. Every perfon, in the flighted degree acquainted with the fubject, muft know, that, in farming, every fcheme of ma- nagement comprehends under it a long detail of practice, which muft be gone over within the feafon j as alfo, that there is a particular period of each feafon exclufively adapted to each particular part of the practice, which, if neglected, cannot again be recalled. This takes place, to a confiderable degree, even in a mere pafture farm, where the neceflary o- perations are comparatively (ew and fimple. It takes place, to a very great degree, in an arable farm, where the operations are more numerous and complex : There, every variation of of the feafon ; every change of the weather, varying often, in our uncertain climate, many times in a fingle day ; every variation in the ftate of preparation of the foil, or of the ftate and fituation of the crop \ all conftitute emergencies, call- ing 24 * note D, ing for inftant decificn as to meafures, and as prompt and vigorous execution. In the fimilar fituation of war, to the operations of which thofe of agriculture bear, in this refpe£t, the moft ftriking analogy, every nation of the earth have ever perceived the ne- ceflity of fubmitting the management entirely to the conduct of a Jingle will : — from the fubject of the defpot, accuftomed to unreafoning, implicit, and inftantaneous fubmiffion ; to the fubject of the moft anarchical democracy of ancient or of mo- dern times, where temporary will is the only law, and where the bufinefs of government might often be at a ftand, till the prevailing party could rid themfelves of the oppofition of their antagonifts, by the affaffination or banifhment of their majori- ty. In the like fituation of agriculture, the jarring of counfel and contention for preference of fchemes, are equally incom- patible with that promptitude of execution, which, in both cafes, is alike indifpenfable : The inftant of execution muft, in either fituation, be feized, left opportunity evaporate dur- ing protra£ted deliberation : The republican adminiftration can only fuit fituations, where there either is no bufinefs, or a great fuperfluity of time. It would appear, then, one indifputable maxim, in regard to fuccefsful farming, ' that, other things being equal, a farm can be occupied to much greater advantage, by z.Jmgle Jarw.ery where the management is directed by a fingle will, than con- junctly, by more than one, in conjunct pot-lemon.' U.ndei; i'uch fingle unembarrafied direction, a moderate proportion of intellect and of energy will go much farther towards profit- able farming, than a much greater proportion of both, in a conjunct farm under conjunct management; where the time of action muft often be confumed in jangling contention about preference of counfel. Our Scotifh proverb is here moft ifrictly applicable, ' A mogen pot never played well. * Small farms, of fuch diminutive extent as not to do /heir cirn turns, that is, of fuch fmall dimenfions as to be infufficient to maintain upon them fuch an abundance of labourers and work- ing cattle as fhall fufficc for everv different work, which muft of tea NOTE D. 3)1 often be carried on at once in each period of the feafon, with- out being idle for want of employment for a great part of eve- ry feafon ; and where, of courfe, neighbouring farmers are ob- liged to join in mutual co-operation ; implying, neceffarily, concurrence of wills ; or otherwife to keep, each, an expenf ve fuperfluity of labour in conftant preparation : Such farms may juftly be confidered as a fpecies of conjunct farms, and as liable to the fame defects, in point of productive conftruction. So far as we have proceeded, it feems indifputably effential to the moft profitable occupancy, * that the farm fhould be held by a fingle farmer ; and that it mould be able, in point of fize, to afford conftant employment, at ail times, to fuch a number of labourers and working cattle, as fhall fuffice to exe- cute every neceffary operation, at every time, without neceffity of co-operation. ' It is the evident intereft of every farmer, to afpire after the occupation of as great a quantity of land, as the extent of his capital can enable him to manage, in this plenitude of occupa- tion ; where every part of the farm is kept in its moft produc- tive ftate, by fufficiency of labour ; and where no preparation of labour is kept in readinefs for emergencies, but idle for the moft part ; but where the whole capacity of labour is in con- ftant productive employment. And this appears to be the principle of intereft, which will uniformly cperate in dilating farms to their proper fize. But what then are the principles which will confine farms within their proper bounds ? And how are we to be fecured againft the fo much dreaded danger of farming monopoly ? Will the circumfcription of farms enfue of itfelf, when mat- ters arc left to take their natural courfe, to be directed bv the fenfe of felf-intereft in thofe immediately concerned ? Or mult we apply to the cunning men to devife for us a fet of proper ar- tificial regulations to counteract all natural tendencies in the fubject ? To me, it appears clear, that this matter will, alio, arrange itfelf, in the bell: poflible manner; when things are left, with- out 342 NOTE D. out difturbance of intermeddling interference of regulation, to take their natural courfe. For, perfonal undelegated management feems juft as effentially neceffary to productive profitable farming, as Jingle direction. To conduct a farm by means of an overfeer, is the pitiful re- source of an independent gentleman farmer •, when, with the habits of his ftation, he commences practical farmer in detail ; and the fuccefs is anfwerable to the fyftem. An intelligent, induftrious, and ceconornical farmer, can outbid all his farming profit, in his offer of rent. To what elfe, indeed, do farmers paying rent, owe their exiftence as a diftinct clafs ? Compared to the active, fharp, and interefted Superintendence of an acute farmer, acting at his own rifk, and for has own fole benefit, the Superintendence of an overfeer, without rifle, and without profpecr. of proportional gain, is like the turning of ferious bu- fmefs into farce *. Although the farmer's overfeeing of his own overfeer, is conducted in a much more accurately Sifting manner, than the gentleman's overSight of his overfeer ; yet, as the farmer can outbid, in rent, the gentleman's whole profits in acting by an overfeer, it Seems readily to follow, that an equally intelligent, active, and rich farmer, can readily carry off any farm from another farmer, who is obliged to commit the management of it to an overfeer ; by being able to afford more rent for it, in proportion to the fuperiority of perfonal to delegated manage- ment. Where, then, Skill and capital have arifen, Sufficient Sor the moft profitable occupation of the whole lands, the bounds of the capacity of accurate perfonal Superintendence, will limit the bounds of the Size of farm : The competition of equal capital, together * Tlicre are exceptions to all rules ; there are exceptions in this county : But our prefent bufinefs is with general rules, and not exceptions. The keen fenfe of perfonal intertfi mud tver be acknowledged a. more powerful fpur to energetic in- duftry, than the generally more languid fenfe of mere obligation of duty. An overfeer, coining from a more improved diftrictto one where improvements are lefs underftood, may, for a while, excel the farmers of the latter diftritf, who farm at their own rifk, note D, 343 together with the fuperiority of accurate perfonal fuperintend- ence above that which is either too much diftra&ed, or under neceflity of being delegated, will neceflarily hem every farmer in within thofe bounds where he can occupy with mod advantage. The limits of the capacity of perfonal fuperintendence, will, no doubt, vary with the different degrees of ftrength of intellect: or of energy to be found in individuals ; :.nd the boundaries, within which farms will be circumfcribed, will keep pace with fuch variations. In farming, however, as in other profeffions, eminence is confined to a few ; the generality are nearly upon a par ; and even eminence is finite — and the monopoly of farms is a bug-bear. The limits of perfonal fuperintendence will be lefs confined, in a pafture diftri£t, in proportion to the paucity and fimplicity of the operations. It will, for the oppofite reafon, be more narrowed, in an arable diftricl. Even a fuperior ftyle of more accurate cultivation of each particular acre, will more and more circumfcribe the limits of fuperintendence, as to the extent of land occupied ; though not as to the extent of capital laid out, or of rent yearly paid. The bed arrangement of extent will neceflarily find its own way. When Laputa projectors come gravely forward, the one with his fcheme of ioo acre farms, the other with his of 50, and a third with a fort of agrarian cottage fyftem, it is difficult to determine, whether our fpleen or our laughter ought to be moved. So long as they fhall confine themfelves to the prag- matical pointing out of their proper interefts to the parties con- cerned, but who, it feems, have not fenfe to perceive their own advantage ; in fo far they can do no harm, and the parties will judge for themfelves. When, however, they would attempt to enforce their fpecific noftruths by legiflative authority, their in- terference is of a more ferious nature than mere pragmatical impertinence. The Parliament of Great Britain has not been in the habit of carrying meafures by acclamation : A fort of prevalent, philofophic, native phlegm, feems unfufceptible of enthufiaftic admiration of the brilliant fchemes of projectors. The filent operation of the writings of the profound and ingenious Doctor Adam 344 note D. Adam Smith, fecms to have given a check to the intermeddling fpirit of regulation. In all difquifitions of this nature, public utility is the point of reference upon which all reafonings mufl bear. In many inftances, however, private duty Hands, in part, oppofed to public utility. It is mod conducive to public utility, that he who can pay the higheft rent, mould be preferred to the farm, as he can only afford to pay it from fuperior production ; yet there may be a call upon the landholder's generofity to prefer his old tenant, though, from inferior (kill in rendering the foil productive, he mould be unable to afford quite fo much rent. But, even here, the principles explained will have their operation : For if generofity is a duty, on the one hand, there is furely a degree of modefty incumbent upon the expectant from libera- lity : And where, in confequence of more profitable occupancy, more i-ent can be afforded, an old tenant cannot have the face to afk from his landlord the facrifice of the whole advantage in his favour : He will find himfelf therefore obliged to alter his accuftomed fyftem of occupancy to that fuperior one, upon the credit of which, more rent has been offered ; that he may offer more rent alfo, although he expects a preference without giving the mofl. Productive occupancy, when adopted, enables high rents to be given ; and high rents offered, enforce the adop- tion of the mo ft productive occupancy. In thofe violent changes, enluing upon fudden and unforefeen revolutions, it may be impoflible to devife new methods of fa- mily fobfiftence, upon difpoffeflion : In thofe that take place gradually, through the progrefs of the demand for them, as they may more readily be difcerned at a diftance, it is more eafy to provide for them ; Yet, in an infulated fituation, like the Highlands of Scotland, where there may be Iefs informa- tion as to the various different modes of employment that may be reforted to, it might be cruel to introduce fuch changes, fo foon as the demand ihould require, or as even public utility fhould dictate. In regard to the principles regulating the fize of farms, I have been much indebted to a chapter, intended for part of a large work by the Board of Agriculture, which was circulated ; and NOTE E. 345 lich was drawn up by my refpected friend the late Rev. Dr Thomas Robertfon, minifter of Dalmeny. NOTE Ev Although this opinion is fan&ioned by the autliority of the late Dr Adam Smith, it feems admiillble only to a certain ex- tent. Many facts are brought to light in the Englifh Reports, from which it appears (contrary to the commonly received notions in Scotland), that, in point of improvement, England in gene- ral falls far mort of thole parts of Scotland where improve- ments have been of any length of (landing. In particular, it appears, that the great bulk of Englifh farmers are kept in a miferable (late of dependence, preventing all exertion on their part — from their pofleffing as tenants at will, without any 1-eafe •, or upon mere liferent leafes ; or leafes of very mort duration : under which impermanent tenures, too, the whole mode of management is in general fpecifically prefcribed, in regulations fan£Honed by heavy penalties ; enforcing ofttimes a practice of hufbandry the mod prepofterous and- unproduc- tive *. If conjectures may be allowed, till a fufneiency of fa£ts are eftablifhed to form foundations for certain conclufions ; may it not be prefumable, * that the extenfion of the right of franchife among the farming intereft, as adopted in England in the ftrug- gle of Monarchy againll Ariftocracy, lias both given origin to more early improvements in that country ; and has alfo, fubfe- quenilyy proved the caufe of their retardment ? ' In England, the pofieiTion of a farm by liferent leafe, from which the pof- fefibr can inftrudt, that he derives a profit of forty (hillings Sterling yearly, without deducting parliamentary or parochial Y y taxes, I am indebted, for thefe views of the iltuation of Englifh farmers, to Dr -Robevtfon's agricultural chapter upon the fize of farms, and charaftcr of farmers. 346 NOTE E. taxes, confers the right of voting in the election of a county reprefentative ; a qualification fuppofed equal, at the time of enactment in the beginning of the fifteenth century, to what 20I. would be now •, from the difference of the denomination and value of money. As the moft ufual mode of holding land in farm, for any length of endurance, known at the time of this enactment, was that of liferent leafe, it feems extremely probable, that the political importance, thus generally confer- red upon the clafs of farmers, would procure for them the advantages of fecurity and refpedt for their interefts, as an en- couragement to their induftry, more early and more completely^ than they were obtained, in Scotland, from mere views of in* difpenfable utility, or enlightened felf-intereft. As, however, in procefs of time, the poffemon, entitling to the privilege, came, in courfe of the gradual depreciation of money, to be an obje£t of trilling importance to both landholder and farmer -y is it not equally probable, that the landholder would create, upon every farm, little liferent holdings to the extent of the qualification, merely for the purpofe of creating a voter to fup- port his own political coniequence •, and (as the pofleffors of fuch fmall holdings could not live upon them, independent of a larger extent of farm) that, in regard to this larger extent, he Ihould retain them as tenants at will, or upon very fhort leafes, in order to fecure their votes in abfolute dependence ? In this county, the inhabitants of the Royal burgh of Peebles held a fmall farm, for grazing their milk cows, from the Nobleman who managed the political intereft of that burgh. They however poflefled it, as is prefumably the cafe in all fimi- lar Situations, only from year to year. It would be worth inquiring into, whether the generality of Englifh tenants at will, or upon very fhort leafes, are not alfo voters at elections ? No improvements of importance can be expected from farmers having fuch unpermanent intereft. It is no wonder proprietors fhould place little confidence in their management, and find reftricYions neceflary. An injudicious extcnfion of the right of franchife, may thus readily be conceived as a mcafure which might reduce the enfranchised note E. 347 cnfranchifed to tlie mod abject ftate of dependent ferviiity, deitructive of all exertion. The extenfion of complete fecurity to every clafs, in regard to perfonal liberty, life, and property, is the very life and foul of indu-try ; and this, in all probabi- lity, depends more upon the enlightening efficacy of the prefs, under a form of government infuring publicity to all public meafures, than upon any precife diftribution or arrangement of political power, whether in the direct ratio of wealth or popu- lation, or the compound ratio of both. note F. Do not the laws againft ufury fall exactly under the fore- going defcription ? It is without doubt proper that a legal rate of interefl mould be fixed, at different periods, as near to the exifting market rate as can be guejfed — to take place in all fuch cafes as afford no op- portunity of making an optional bargain. Where, however, there is an opportunity of voluntary agreement, there feems juft as little need of legiflative interference, in fettling the terms as to the price of the ufe of money, as in regard to that of any other article in commerce. In all fuch cafes, the terms may be left, with equal fafety, to be fettled at the difcretion of the parties concerned. Where capital, properly employed, yields a profit ; it is certainly equitable that this profit fliould be fhared betwixt the advancer of the capital, and the perfon who profitably em- ployed it ; -being the joint product, of the one's capital, and the other's induitry. Even if borrowed merely to fpend it, it is juft that its owner fhould receive, for its ufe, what he would have received from one who fliould have employed it, fo as to replace itfelf with a profit ; in the fame manner as it would be equitable in the proprietor of an horfe to exact the fame fare from one who hires him for a pleafure ride, as from another who hires him to work in his plough. — What is given in cha- rity, or lent in friendihip, is out of the queftion. — In the cafe of 348 note F. of money lent for hire, for mutual accommodation, upon mere principles of equity, it feems perfectly juft, that the hire, or intereft, mould not be determined in an invariable fpecific pro- portion to the capital advanced, or at fo much per cent. -, but that the lender mould receive more or lefs, in proportion to the profit which the ufe of money can afford. Nor can any ftand- ard be devifed for apportionating the refpe£tive (hares of profit betwixt the borrower and lender, but the exifting rate of the money market. Where capital is fcarce in proportion to indu- ftry, and its profits confequently high ; an higher rate cf inter- eft will be afforded by the induftrious for the rife of capital : Where the reverfe takes place, the rate of intereft muft be beat down, by the competition of capital for employment. Nor docs there appear to be any iniquity in demanding more, or offering lefs, for the ufe of money, according as the market will allow, than for any other article in commerce. All laws, counteract- ing thefe natural tendencies, will themfelves be counteracted. Laws fixing the maximum of intereft, and condemning an high- er rate under the name of ufury, are evaded, in difguifmg the intereft received, under the names of premiums for the rijle, co- partneries, 8;ot£ G, fidered as a primary object •, to the total neglect of its life. E af- file queftion is not, as to the modifications which the primary paffion may undergo •, but, as to the origin and the pofhbility of die formation of the fecondary paffion : In which view, there can be no doubt whatever, but that the protection and fecurity of the etijoyers of fortune are perfectly indifnenfable to the original exiftence and formation of indujtrious acquirers. In this clafs of men of independent fortune, we expect to find an extent of intellectual range, in tafte and literature, fuit- ed to their greater leifure — more of generofity, liberality, and difinterefiednefs, though, generally, fomewhat lefs of enter- prize and activity, than what are to be found in thofe whofe habitual bent is directed towards acquisition — more of public fpirit, with move enlarged views of public utility, than in thofe whofe minus are narrowed to the continual purfuit of private intereft. Their fituation, and the habits confonant to their fi- tuation, point them out as proper to manage matters of public concern. Our expectations may, too often indeed, be belied : and, without doubt, no clafs of men is exactly what it ought to be. Many of this clafs may be considered as mere fruges confu — mere cumkerers of the ground. Worthlefs, how- ever, as they may chance to prove, their protection and fecu- rity is, neverthelefsj indifnenfable to the exiftence of the clafs of the induftrious — in a moral view, juft as generally worth- lefs *. fecond clafs of the unproductive, are thofe whofe la- bours themfelves are unproductive. To this clafs may be re- ferred, i phyficians, and divines •, together with the profeffors of the liberal arts ; and thofe who cultivate the mere abftract * In '.very thing by nature progreffive, our eftimation is formed by compa- rison. The general rate of attainment conftitutes the ftandard of mediocrity; i which, the great bulk will ever be comprehended. Extraordinary excefs or deficiency, art alone considered as deserving of high praifc or cenfure. During the late war, for example, . : high rate of attainment in the Britiffi navy, in regard both to -, and to ikill'ul, fpiritcd, and fuccefiful execution ; that the feaman could expect no more than mere j unification , who did not both undertake and execute what, it would, formerly, have been accounted ely to have attempted.. note G. 353 obftract. iciences of quantity and number. None of thefe, at leaft immediately, reproduce their confumption by their la- bours. In a manner more circuitous, a number of thefe labourers are, neverthelefs, by far the moft productive of all ; tending to in- creafe, often in an almoft incalculable ratio, the effect: of im- mediately productive labours, by the difcovery and application of the mechanical and other natural powers. All of them have the common tendency of awakening the powers of intellect: ; without which, mere brute force muft remain pitifully circum- fcribed in its operations. They all tend to enlarge the fphere of human knowledge — to aroufe, into energy, the nobler facul- ties of the human foul — to vindicate the fuperiority of the man over the brute. They may not, at all times, either immediately or ultimately, tend to produce wealth : But of what ufe is ac- quifition, but for the purpofes of enjoyment ? And they hold out the means of dignified enjoyment, in which there is no de- bafement or degradation. Mendicant idlers, who contribute nothing either to the ufe or to the ornament of fociety, by the labour of the body, or of the intellect, fall under neither of thefe claffes — are, absolutely, good for no valuable purpofe — and deferve no toleration. note H. In a correfpondence with the late Doctor Robertibn of Dal» menv, upon the proper fize of farms, I found, that the only advantage fuggefted by him, in favour q{ fmall farms, was, the prevention of the too great, or the too early heightening of the market price of grain ; in ccnfcquence of the neceflity fuch. fmall poflefibrs laboured under, of felling immediately, to pro- cure money, from deficiency of ftock to enable them to keep up their grain for a high price : not, however, that fuch advan- tages were either lb certain, or of fuch importance, as to call for eirher public or patriotic individual interference, in order to Z z force ■$54 NOTE Hi force the lands into fuch (mail divifions, to a greater extetH than what would naturally take place in courfe of the demand for them. In this view of the matter, the quefcion as to the utility of fmall farms, naturally refolves itfelf into the queftion, as to the good or bad effects upon the market of grain, of a deficiency or fuperabundance of capital ftock in the hands of farmers, or other merchants of grain. In the firjl place, then, we fhall attempt to trace the natural and neceflary effects of a deficiency of capital. Were we, then, to fuppofe a large proportion of the crop veiled annually in the hands of fmall farmers, who, from defi- ciency of Itock, are obliged immediately to bring their grain to market ; and were this not remedied, by the intervention of a iufficiency of com-merchants poflefling ftock to enable them to buy it from them, and to abftra£t it from the confumpt-market, by ftoring it up ; the confequence would be, an over-cheap- nefs at the beginning of the feafon, which would caufe a rate of confumpt be entered upon, that would infallibly terminate in abfolute famine in the end of the feafon, were it to continue at the fame rate till all was exhaufted. Luckily, however, the remaining few of the holders of grain, who had capital fuffi- cient to keep it up (fo long as the market was glutted by the fales of thofe deficient hi capital), would be enabled to over-* enhance their price now, in proportion to the over-cheapnefs that had prevailed before; proportionally to the over-fcarcity now taking place in the market, in confequence of the over- plenty in which it was before fupplied : And this comparative dearth, which would of courfe take place, would alfo be indif- penfably neceflary, in the view of public utility, in order to re- duce the confumpt from its former extravagant rate, to fuch a rate as fhould enable the remainder of the fupply to laft till the return of another crop. — To the confumer, the confequence would be, a furfeit, followed by a fhort allowance, inftead of moderate, equal feeding ; a cheapnefs, followed by a propor- tional dearth, inftead of a moderate, equal average price of the feafon -, the dearth and fcarcity, too, aggravated probably by NOTE H. !5S fey that abfolute wafte occafioned by the over-plenty and cheap- nefs in the commencement of the fcafon, which would not have taken place under the average price. — The advantage, it is evident, could never accrue to the confumer ; it would re- main entirely with the few farmers or corn-merchants poffefled of large capitals : What takes place in every bufinefs requiring capital to carry it on, would take place here — where capital is fcarce, its profits are high. In the fecond place, let us attempt to trace the effects of zfu* perabundance of capital. Upon this fuppofition, as none of the holders of grain would be under the neceflity of felling it immediately, it might be withheld from market till an over-dearth of price took place, from mifcalculation, in the holders of it, as to the exifting fup- ply of grain in the country ; a Subject fufceptible only of a rough guefs, even by thofe who have the ftrongeft perSonal in- tereft in afcertaining it, and far lefs ascertainable with precifion by Magiftrates, or by the Legiflature. In proportion, how- ever, as the victual-holders felt a flacknefs in the demand at the exifting prices, which made it feem probable that a furplus would remain undifpofed of in their hands, they would cer- tainly endeavour to avoid this, by lowering the price, as every other dealer would do in like circumftances, efpecially with a commodity of fo perifhable a nature. Upon fuppofition, then, of the worft effecls to be dreaded from a Superabundance of ca- pital, the confequence would juft prove the reverfmg of that (late of the market which has been noticed as the effecl: of a deficiency : The confumer might firffc experience a temporary dearth and fhort allowance, to be followed by a Succeeding pro- portional cheapnefs, and full allowance. In judging betwixt the worft effecls to be dreaded, as to the rate of the market, from a deficiency on the one hand, or, on the other, from a Superabundance of capital in the poSfeffion of farmers, or other merchants of grain ; the two alternatives are left to the confumer to decide upon, viz. (to uSe an homely phraSe) whether he would prefer, firjl a turf, and then a hunger ; or, firjl a hunger, and then a bur'j The 356 NOTE H. The effects of deficiency are, however, necciTary and una- voidable. From the neceflitous fituation of fuch dealers, their conduct is not with. them a matter of choice. In regard to the capitaled corn-holder, his conduct is optional, and no way forced upon him by the neceflities of his fituation. It is in his power to alleviate the dearth which enfues, upon withholding too much his fupplies, from mifcalculation of the crop ; and it is as evidently his intereft fo to do, by then bringing forward his fupplies more liberally, left they fliould reft undifpofed of upon his hands. Where there is univerfally a fufficiency of flock among the dealers in grain, none of them are then obliged to fell in glutted markets ; none of them can withhold from market, in any reafonable expectation that others are obliged to fell in glutted markets — to the increafe of confumpt from cheapnefs, and the enhancing of the price of the remaining fupply, through the thus occafioned fcarcity. As every one is equally ready to fupply the demand as it arifes, and as each is equally enabled to withhold from glutted markets ; the ten- dency of thefe univerfal efforts of the whole dealers is, to keep the fupply and the price at an equal rate through the feafon. None can form a reafonable expectation of felling at a price above the average price, proportioned to the plenty or fcarcity of the crop ; and it is the intereft of each to fell, fo foon as he can obtain what, to his heft calculation, is the average price. Where capital abounds ', its profits would thus be reduced \ from competition. Judging of the deficiency or abundance of flock in the hands of farmers and other corn-dealers, by the fluctuation or fleadinefs of the price of grain, we fliould feem in mofl danger of fuffering inconvenience from its deficiency ; for though the certain profpedt of a very plentiful crop will fometimes produce a fall, in price, of the remainder of the preceding crop upon hand, yet, in general, the price is higher towards the termina- tion, than the commencement of each crop. Lefs variation, in this rcfpecl, takes place now, it is believed, than what took place twenty or thirty years ago ; which is a favourable fymptom of the increafe of agricultural flock. The note H. 357 The fluctuation or fteadinefs of the market price of grain, through a fingle feafon, feems greatly to depend upon the de- ficiency or abundance of capital ftock in the hands of farmers and other dealers in grain j except in fo far as tire immediate profpecl: of more than ordinary plenty or fcarcity in the fuc- ceeding crop, has an effecl: in lowering or heightening the price of the remainder then upon hand. The enormous variations in price, which take place from feafon to feafon, depend, however, upon the variations of the crop as to plenty or fcar- city ; and the prices mull, of neceffity, follow thefe variations of the crop, till fuch time as fome method be invented of pre- ferving grain for a continuation of years, fo as to enable the merchant of grain to embrace, in his calculation, a feries of feafons, inftead of confining them, as he does now, to the exift- ing fupply from the crop of fingle feafons. Could a method be devifed, of preferring grain through a continuation of feafons, fo as to render it poilible (net merely, as at prefent, to transfer a fmali quantity of the furplus of one feafon of plenty, to the relief of one fucceeding year of fcarcity, but) to carry on the fuperabundance ol fever al fucceeding years of plenty, to cover the deficiency of feveral fucceeding years of fcarcity, as was done by the Patriarch Jofeph, with the tho- roughly ripened grain of Egypt, in the cafe of the feven years of plenty, fucceeded by feven years of barrennefs ; and, were there abundance of capital in the hands of farmers and corn merchants to fuffice for fo extenfive an undertaking : In that cafe, the calculations of the market would no longer be confined to the mere exifling fupply of fingle feafons, but (through mere ftrength of natural fagacity, tracing the ufual run of feafons, though unaffilted by the revelation of dreams) might be extended to embrace confiderable periods of time; and might thus give a ftcadinefs to the market prices of grain, fuited to the average of years, in (lead of that of fingle feafons ; reducing the variations of price to differences of five, ten, or fifteen/*?/- cent., inftead of the prefent ufual fluctuation, from feafon to feafon, to the enormous differences of fifty, an hundred, 358 NOTE H. hundred, or two hundred per cent. — In {hort, the price of grain might then be kept to fomewhat of the fame unvarying ileadi- nefs as the price of broad cloth ; and though a forfeiting excefs of plenty woidd thus be prevented, a dearth or a famine could never poiubly occur. Till fome method is devifed, of preferring grain for a con- fiderable number of years, each year mull continue to depend, for its fuppiy, chiefly upon its own crop ; and, in cafe of defi- ciency of the crop, as it is not in the power of men to create grain out of nothing, fhort allowance becomes neceffary, to pre- vent famine ; unlefs the deficiency can be fupplied by importa- tion from other countries. Suppofing the ufual annual con- fumpt of a country to be equal to the crop of an year of ufual plenty j and fuppofing, in a bad feafon, the crop to amount on- ly to three fourths of that of an year of ufual plenty ; it is evi- dent, that if this crop is confumed at the fame rate as in an year of ufual plenty, it will laft only for nine months, and leave no provifion for the other three. It is fhort allowance, alone, that can then prevent a fcarcity from ending in abfolute famine. Dearth is the natural means of producing diminution cf con- fumpt, fo as to prevent famine j it is an harfh remedy, but a fure one j and one that will occur of itfelf, exactly in the pro- portion neceflary for that purpofe, if things are left to their natural courfe. Every farmer, or other dealer in grain, (what- ever they may pretend to the contrary, to avoid popular odium), will, for their own intereil, endeavour to obtain the highefl price that can be afforded ; proportioning the price in fuch manner to the power of purchaftng, as that the whole exi/ling fuppiy may be difpofed cf at that rate, without leaving on hand any remainder undifpofed of If the price is either over or under-calculated for that purpofe, the iutereft of the dealers will lead them to ve6lify the miftakc. If the price is over-calculated, it will foon be found, from the diminution of the demand, that the whole cannot be purchafed at that rate of price, and that a furplus undifpofed of mult remain on hand. To avoid, then, the di- minution NOTE H. 359 minution of price that muft take place upon that fuppofition, and to obtain, if poflible, the exifting price ; more fupplies will be brought forward, and the greater influx to the market will, of eourfe, reduce the prices. If, on the other hand, the price is under- calculated, it will as foon be found that the demand is fo great in proportion to the fupply, that, in a ftiort time, there muft be a very great fcarcity ; and that thofe who keep up their grain, will then be enabled greatly to increafe their price. Thefe views will lead the dealers to withhold their grain, and to fup- ply the market in lefs profufion •, till the increafe of price de- creafes the confumpt, fo as to beget a probability of the alter- native before mentioned. Under, or over-calculation of the price, or (what is in effect the fame thing) the too liberal or too fcanty fupply of the market, will thus, of eourfe, redrefs itfelf, from the views of the dealers to their own intereft. The intereft of the dealers and of the public, however feemingly at variance, would thus appear cxaclly to coincide in the fame thing ; viz. that the fupplies fhjould be brought forward in that pro-* portion, and (which is in end the fame J that the price fhould be fo proportioned to the power of purchasing, as that the cxijling fup- ply fhould lafl through the whole feafon, without either a deficiency or a remainder. If, towards the end of the feafon, the appear- ance of the fucceeding crop affords a certain profpect of plenty, it will then be the intereft of the dealers to get off what re- mains fpeedily, while a good price is obtainable ; and the com- petition for fale in the market will lower the price. If, on the contrary, the fucceeding crop is more deficient than the one before, the certainty of a ftill higher price, will lead the deal- ers to be more fparing in their fupply of the market : The price will, of eourfe, rife ; the confumpt will be diminifhed ; and a part of the prefent crop will remain, to cover the deficiency of a itill more fcanty fucceeding one. It feems not eafily conceiv- able how thefe operations of grain-dealers upon the market, ran ever be productive of any thing but the advantage of the public, fo long as they are directed by their own private inte- reft -, a principle, for whofe conftant operation they may cer- tainly 3&3 NOTE H. tainly be trufted, till a more fteady principle of action (hall be found to exiil in hitman nature. Men pinched with flraits, are, however, unwilling to afcribe them to neceffity, becaufe againft neceflity they know there is no refource. They would therefore fondly wilh to attribute them to voluntary caufes ; againft which they can, with more feasibility, utter their complaints ; and from which they may flatter themfelves to obtain redrefs, by regulation. Hence, the invention of the imaginary crimes (as they appear to be) of fore/tailing, regrating, and monopolizing ; the call upon Govern- ment to interfere, by internal regulation of the market ; and the inept affumption of this power, even by enlightened govern- ments, from the impulfe of popular clamour ; together with all thofe deftructive outrages fo often perpetrated by meal mobs. Had, however, thefe evil genii, the corn-dealers (who, like phantoms, haunt and diflurb the imaginations of fo many ho- ned people, in times of dearth) any intere/led, or rather dijin- terejled defign in the death of the people, they certainly go ve- ry awkwardly about their bufinefs : Their defign might be mofl readily, and with perfect certainty, effected, if, inftead of raif- ing the price, fo as to enforce diminution of confumpt, they fhould bring forward the fupply in the fame profufion, and re- duce the price, fo as to communicate, to all, the fame power of purchafing, as in years of ordinary plenty. The exifting fupply, if juft equal to a nine months fupply of an oi'dinary year, would then mofl: certainly be confumed in nine months ; and abfolute irremediable famine would be enfured for the o- ther three. ijly Monopoly. Of all imaginary evils, that of a monopoly of grain feems the leaft to be dreaded in a free country, or in any country. Stocks, perhaps, may be found, amaffed in fuch a fmall number of hands as renders combination poihble, which may purchafe up the whole of an article, exifting only in very limited quantity, fuch as fugar or fpiceries •, but, in regard to an article of univerfal confumpt, and raifed in quantity to an- fwer an univerfal, a conftant, and a daily confumpt, it is im- poflible NOTE II. 361 poflible to find flock fufficient, in fuch a number of hands as are capable of combination, to command any perceptible quan- tity of that article. With all the advantages for combination potfefTed by manufacturers, and with all the exclufive privileges which they have generally had the addrefs to procure from eve- ry government j was there ever any apprehenfion entertained of a monopoly of the general clothing of a country ? How much lefs reafon, then, is there to apprehend a monopoly of the arti- cle of general food ; which certainly would require an extent of Hock three or four times greater to command it ; where thofe who fir ft raife it, and in whom the property of it is firlt vefted, are, from their difperfed fituation, utterly unfit for com- bination * ; and in regard to which, every government (fo far from bellowing exclufive privileges) have univerfally fhown an anxiety to prevent an imaginary combination, which, in fact, feems impoffible in the nature of the thing ? In the anxious fituation of a dearth, it is not, however, furprifing that the minds of the people fhould give way to the terror of imaginary evils and imaginary crimes ; particulai-ly, fince their belief in their exiilence, receives fanclion from flatutes, gravely enacted with a view to their prevention or their punifhment f . When dearth occurs, the ftatutory crimes of monopoly and foreflalling im- mediately prefent themfelves to the terrified imagination ; the alarm is given, and the cry raifed, that the dearth is artificial t that the criminals fhould be punifhed, and their wicked machi- nations counteracted. If by artificial is meant, whatever takes , place through human conduct, in confequence of forethought ,- mofl undoubtedly, every dearth is artificial; being the refult of the 3 A conduct * Til? impoffibility of a monopoly of farms, feems abundantly evident, from rinciples which neccfLiily lead to the circumfcription of farms within their proper bounds; already explained in note D. f Since the repeal of the penal ftatutes againft witchcraft, the belief in it hath ceafed : — an horfe can now be quietly feen to die of the botls, without having his death imputed to the incantations of an old woman. Were the flatutes againft l'Ttftalling, regrating, and monopoly, repealed, it is prefumrable alio,, that a dearth would quietly be afcribed to the natural caufe of fcarcity. 3 62 NOTE HL condu£t of the dealers in grain, upon their calculation of the exilting fupply. If, however, the foregoing ftatements and reafonings are juft, it will be found, that, fo long as the deal- ers continue to act with a view to their own intereft, (which is furely the beft fecurity for their conduct that can be wifhed), their interefts, and that of the public, mud exactly coincide, in fo proportioning the fupply and the price to the power of pur chafing, as, that the exifling fupply may lafl through the feafon, without de- ficiency, and leaving no remainder. The more extenfive the ftock, the dealings, and the information of the grain merchants-; fo, in proportion, will their continued efforts to buy where cheapeft, in order to fell where deareit, tend to make the great- er plenty of one diftrict contribute to the relief of the greater fcarcity of the reft ; equalizing, everywhere, the fupply and the price, 2. Foreflalling. The hue and cry, in regard to monopoly of grain, feems to have greatly fubfided. What is called the crime of Foreftalling or Regrating, feems to be the crime of the day ; and, to judge of it by the newfpaper accounts of the exor- bitant fines impofed in various inftances, it would feem to be confidered as a crime of a deep dye, So far as it is poffible to collect the meaning affixed to the term foreflalling or regrating, the effence of the crime would feem to confift in the practice of buying, upon a market day, articles of food of any kind, already upon their road to market, or arrived at the market ; with the in- tention, manifejled by the overt atl, of felling them over again, with a profit, in that market-place, and upon that fame day. There is furely, however, no crime in fimply dealing in victuals, with a view to profit, more than in drink, or clothing, or furniture, or any other fpecies of merchandize. The criminality, if there is any, mult originate in the circumftances under which they are bought and fold. It appears difficult, however, to conceive wherein lies the criminality of buying, to fell over again, with a profit, upon the market day, more than upon the day preced- ing, or upon the road •, or in the market-place, more than in an lujufc, or in a field. To attempt to impute criminality from fuch circumftances, feems about equally confident with the gravity note H. 363 gravity and good fenfe of magiftracy, as to attempt attaching witchcraft to an old woman, by pricking her for the devil's mark. . An imperious public neceffity may caufe an innocent aftion be conftrued into a crime ; like that of the fentinel, who is mot for involuntary fleeping upon his poll: In thefe cafes, however we may regret the innocent fufferer, the neceffity of the regu- lation reconciles us to his fate. But, before we can confider the fines hitherto' impofed, as any thing elfe than oppreflive ; or the interference in any fhape, as any thing elfe than imper- tinent i it would be neceffary to point out the neceffity of conflruing into a crime, an aftion, in itfelf confidered, which is neither cenfurable nor meritorious ; to point out, as in the cafe of the fentinel, the harm that would enfue, from the to- leration of a praftice indifferent in its own nature. There are only three interefts, to which the pradices of the foreftaller can bear any conceivable relation, or can in anywayaffed: That of the foreftaller himfelf; that of the farmer or original producer ; and that of the confumer. In regard to the intereft of the foreftaller, it is evident that no intereft has been, or is taken in it, either by the law, or by the magiftrate ; it is left entirely to his own difcretion, though generally the moft in hazard of any of the three. In regard to the farmer, in no country do the laws, rela- tive to this fubjeft, feem to have originated in any view to his intereft -, but to have been obtained from another quarter. Every dealer, who fits in a work-fhop or behind a counter, within the precincts of a Royal burgh, feems to grudge that the farmer or vidual- merchant mould obtain any profit from their refpedive profeffions ; and has the aflurance to con- demn, in them, the maxims by which his own whole conduct: is regulated, of taking all the profit upon his commodity that the market will afford him •, unfairly narrowed, too, as is the competition againft him in his own market, by the exclufive privileges with which his little corporation is invefted ; en- abling him to reap fo much over- proportion of profit upon the drink, or clothing, or furniture of his euftomers, as leaves them 364 NOTE H. them lefs than in due proportion to lay out upon their vic- tuals. In every view of utility, the profeffion of the farmer or the victual-dealer feems, at leaf!:, equally entitled to pro- tection and encouragement, as that of any producer or mer- chant. Stunned, however, by the inceffimt clamour with which his ears are continually affailed, and which is fo ready to overfet the firmeft conclufions of reafon ; the magiftrate of a burgh, too, generally confiders it as eflential to his official character, to fet himfelf in a flate of direct hoftility agaitift the farmer and victual-dealer. The contagion of fuch fenti- ments feems, alfo, more or lefs to have infected every legif- lature *, leading to the adoption of the mobbifh idea, of forc- ing every farmer to become alfo retailer ; in the filly concep- tion of thus faving the retailer's profit to the confumer ; though, in contradiction to that beft eftablifhed of all political axioms, that, in proportion to the fubdivifon of labour and em- ployment) more biifwefs is performed, in lefs time, and in better manner, and at a cheaper rate. The interefl of the foreftaller and farmer being out of the queftion, and, in fact, never attended to in the difcuflion ; the only other intereft that can poffibly be affected, is that of the confumer ; and the only conceivable manner, in which his in-r tereft can be hurt, is, by the enhancing of the price of the com- modity. The confumer may, perhaps, in his great wifdom, conceive, * that, as the original holder of the commodity did, in fact, fell it to the foreftaller at a certain price ; it was from thence evi- dent, that faid holder was willing to have parted with it at that price : that, confequently, if the foreftaller had not ftept be- tween, but allowed it to come to market, the original holder would have fold it at that price : but, now that the foreftaller has paid that price, he will not part with it without a profit; which profit, therefore^ the confumer vnf pay.' This ftate- ment certainly contains every fhadow of a reafon drat can be adduced, to fubftantiate the hurt which can accrue to the con- fumer. If the fallacy of his argument, however, does not ap- pear from the italics in the printing, it will be abundantly evi- t from the following confiderations. The NOTE II . 365 The price in the market depends, not upon any fingle inte- reft, or view, or will ; but upon the general combination of all the views, interefts, and wills, of the whole buyers and fellers in cumulo ; when (after higgling and mutual explanations of views, with their reafons on both fides of the queftion, as to the prefent ftate and future profpects), the prices fettle in a rate conformable to what is generally conceived to be the pro- portion betwixt the a£tual or preiumeable fupply to the demand, To this alone, both fellers and buyers refer, in endeavouring to fix their ideas of what the market price mould be ; and no- thing elfe is by either taken into confideration. If the foreftal- ler has, or thinks he has, a clearer preconception of what will turn out to be the market price, than thofe upon their way to the market ; and finds, upon trial, that they expect lefs than he imagines the market will afford ; in that cafe he buys : If, on the contrary, he finds that their expectation exceeds his ideas of what the market will afford ; he does net buy : well knowing that he can have no expectation of profit from the tranfa£tion?out upon the firft fuppofition ; as the market price muft determine his profit, and not his profit the market price. Had Lis ivill to obtain profit, the power of regulating the mar- ket price, he would buy equally upon either fuppofition. He pretends not, however, to be poffeffed of the wiihing cap of Fortunatus. Had fellers, indeed, the power of realizing their wiflies, bankruptcy would be unheard of among merchants. The confumer buys in the market at the market price : If the foreftailer has given more for commodities upon the road to market, he muft be contented to fuftain lofs ; and it would be ridiculoufly fimple in him to think, that the confumer will con- ceive himfelf under any obligation to pay him more than mar- ket price, to prevent him from fuftaining lofs, or from going without a profit. It would be an equally fimple conception in the confumer, or foreftaller-hunter, to imagine, that the farm- er (whofe conceptions of the market price, while upon his way to market, fell fhort of what turns out, in fact, the price) fhould conceive himfelf as under any obligation to reft fatisiied with what he 'would then have been willing to have accepted, when, upon arriving at the market, he finds he can obtain more : If he $66 NOTE H. he is conceived to be under any obligation to that purpofe, he fhould be put to his oath as to the price he had expe&ed, and be compelled to accept of that price. The profit or lofs, then, from the previous operations betwixt the foreftaller and farmer, reft entirely between themfelves, ac- cording as either has formed the more juft preconception of the market price. Thefe operations can, in no fhape whatever, af- fect the confumer, whole price is uniformly the market price *. The foreftaller can hardly expe£t to obtain profit, by buy- ing in a market, and felling over again in that fame market ; as, after the market is feen, every one's ideas are more up to the market price. If, indeed, a knowledge of fcarcity has re- cently occurred (from failure of Crop, for inftance, elfewhere), which is, as yet, only in pofleffion of a few •, he may, in that cafe, buy up with a profpeCl of profit •, if not in that market, at leaft in a fucceeding one, by the time fuch knowledge fhall have become general ; when, if his information turns out well- founded, he will obtain profit ; and his practice, inftead of proving hurtful, will only contribute to the more timely pro- duction of that dearth, which alone can infure that diminution of confumpt which is necefTary to prevent fcarcity from ending in famine : If his information turns out ill-founded, he will ob- tain no profit, but may fuftain lofs. "Were we to fuppofe a chartered company, invefted with the exclufive privilege of purchasing all the grain and butcher meat of a country, at fuch a price as they chofe to give, and of compelling all the confumers to purchafe it from them, at a price fixed by the company : Or rather, to make the fuppofi- tion bear fome faint refemblance of poflibility, were a govern- ment to affume this privilege over a conquered country, and to enforce it by all the power of the military eftablifhment : In that cafe, it is at leaft a pofiible fuppolition, that (in order to fave warehoufe room) the one half of the provifions might be deftroyed, and that the price of the remainder might be railed fo high, as to force out, in the purchafe, the whole fubllance of * The market price is that to which every bargain tends, but which none at- tains : In every market, almoft every particular bargain is made a little hisher cr lowtr than tbc average of the whole, which is the market price. NOTE H. 367 of the inhabitants who did not die of want in the interim. Here would be, not an artificial dearth (which is ever necefTary to prevent famine, in real icarcitv), but an artificial farcity with a vengeance ; though, certainly, it would be a much more eafy and lels circuitous mode of obtaining the wealth of the in- habitants, at once to murder and to rob them. If one fcourg- ing crop were thus taken off a country, it would be idle to ex- pert a fecond. — It is probable, however, that fome monftrous chimsera of this nature haunts the imagination of foreltaller- hunters ; infpiring terrors, fimilar to, and equally reafonable, as thofe of children for hobgoblins in the dark *. Mr Burke jufhly obferves, in treating of the power of lan- guage to excite the paflions, that the effect, is not produced in confequence of ideas conveyed, but merely through the power of fympathy. AVhen, from infancy, we have been accuftom- ed * Though the deflruiftion of piovifions is a tiling not unufual in meal mobs, I have heard of no infrance of the defhuc~tion of vivres by dealers, which feemed in the fmalleft degree probable ; except in regard to Edinburgh butchers, who, it is faid, ibmetimes bury their meat remaining upon hand after a glutted market, when beginning to grow tainted. 'Tis pity, any thing fhould be thus deftroyed, which can afford luftenance to man : It were better fold, at a low price, to poor people. The fault, however, does not lye with the butcher, but mull be afcribed to the interference of regulation. The magiftrates are conceived officially bound to infpect the markets, and to take care that no damaged provifions are expofed to fale; a delinquency which they are empowered to correct, by forfeiture of the commodity, and the impofition of fines : To be catched in this mere ftatutory dclinquency, expofes the perfoti to a fort of ienominy, attached to it by rote. The magifirate, upon infpefting the market, condemns, at dilcretion, the flefh meat which he confidcrs as damaged by taint, or even what he conceives merely to he too lean ; and, I am told, fends it to the poor's houfe. Rather than lofe his meat in this fort of ignominious manner, the butcher may he expected to bury it out of the way, 10 foon as he apprehends rilk of its being condemned by the arbitrary power of a magifirate. As nobody, however, can be compelled by the butcher to purchafe his meat when it is tainted, or lean : it does not appear, that any harm could enfue from leaving this matter entirely to the difcretion of the purchafer. It fecms hard, to deprive the poorer clafies of the option of having meat of inferior quality, at a low price, rather than no meat at all. Flefh meat, lean from fcanty feeding, or too much cxerrile, is even more wholefome than pampered, flail-fed. fat meat. Even after it hath acquired a confiderable taint from keeping, flefh meal feems no way noxious to the conflitut'.ons of thofe whofe forr.acks can re- ceive 3<53 NOTE H. ed to hear certain words always pronounced in the tone of in- dignation, we are, from fympathy, fired with the fame indigna- tion ; the word and the paffion get aflociated from habit ; fo that, when one is prefented, the other is excited. This ac- counts for numberlefs prejudices of education, and might be illuftrated in the powerful effects produced by many words end- ing in tan or ifm. If we would with to rife fuperior to mere prejudice, we muft analyze the fubje£t of our prejudice, to difcover, by its proper teit, whether it is weil-founded. I have known a perfon entertain a mod violent antipathy to fwine's flefh, though he had never tailed it in his life ; and who, of courfe, could not know, by the proper teft, whether he really liked or difliked it. When we hear the cry raifed a- gainft foreftallers, regraters, and monopolizers ; inftead of al- lowing ourfelves to be hurried away by an inflindHve terror and anxiety for their extirpation, we would do wifely to inquire into the nature of the objects of our terror, that we may know whether there is real danger, or whether we ourfelves only are panic-ftruck. Grain is a property diffufed neceffarily through fo many hands, that, unlefs an univerfal combination, fuch as never did, nor can. happen, were to take place, the deftru£ticn of any part could only redound to the advantage of thofe who pieferved it, and to the lofs of the deftroyer. Were o-ive it. In country places, at a diflance from market, it is well known to be ne- ccflury, even in genteel families, to keep flelh meat, for chance of Grangers, till it hath often contracted a confutable degree of taint; fo that mod of it is ufed in this ftate, and without any fenfible inconvenience. In fneep countries, the herdi- men live very much upon the flefh of fheep, dead of the ficknefs or iliac paffion, the very fmell of which is intolerable to thofe unaccuflomcd to it ; and they are a clafs of people who arc certainly upon a par with any clafs inhabiting great town?, in point of flrength, or agility, or foundnefs of constitution. If fuch meat can be digefled by the aged and infirm in an alms-houfe, it could furely do no damage to the (trongcr organs of a flreet-porter, or other day-labourer. It would be abfurd to fuppofe, that poifonous aliments are knowingly fent to the poor's houfe, in or- der to get rid of the petitioners ! or, that the butcher is fraudulently made to incur a forfeiture ol his meat, that they may be fupported at his expence, without charge t<> the funds. A zeal, without difcretion, may, however, betray the beft-inten- tioncd into inconiiftencies ; or rather, an abfurd imputation cf duty may force men iijon absurdities, which they fee and lament, but cannot avoid. KOTfi H. 369 Were the laws againft thefe imaginary crimes repealed, the :f ill them might ceafe, as in the cafe of witchcraft ; and the magiurate might be faved much difagreeable embarraffment. — Innovation, however, is dangerous •, and it is, perhaps, better that they ihould die their natural death, by becoming obfolete. Meanwhile, it might probably be expedient to remit the cogni- zance of all fuch caufes to juries ; who, as they judge both of law and fact, might gradually caufe the whole to fall into non- execution, in proportion as good fenie began to prevail. 3^/, Interference of Government. The profpeBus annonXy or care of the annual fupplies, is a duty which every people have imputed to their governments, in the idle conception, that their governors, and not their own induftry, can, or ought to provide their bread ; an imputation which frequently impels Government to interfere ; fometimes, perhaps, in the convic- tion, though, furely, more often without any conviction, of their ability to effect the purpofe. It might be an eafy matter, for the elder, or chieftain, of a ttibe of American favages, to take an account of the whole annual crop of maize, raifed in common by the labour of the women, and all collected into one fpace round the Indian town ; and to divide the whole in equal proportions among the differ- ent families of the tribe. In an extenfive, well-cultivated Eu- ropean Hate, where cultivation goes on, not in the languid manner of a general concern, but under the keen animation of a fenfe of feparate intereft, it is impoflible any government can either afcertain the extent of the fupply, or the propor- tion to every individual upon a divificn ; or that it can attempt the violent feizure, and arbitrary difpofal of private property, without giving a check to induftry ; the ruinous confequences of which would infinitely more than counterbalance any tem- porary advantage that might be conceived to refult from any fuch interference. The only proper interference of fuch go- vernments, in order to infure plenty, is, not by temporary in- termeddling, but, by general laws, protecting the cultivator of the foil, and infuring him of reaping the profits of his own in- duftry, both againft the oppreffion of his fuperiors, and the outrage of popular ferments. 3B In 3/0 KOTE H. In years of ordinary plenty and cheapnefs, matters arc al- lowed to go on quietly in their natural courfe : In dearth, how- ever, clamour rifes high ; governments are loudly called upon to interfere, and are fometimes forced to interfere, or, at lead, to affect a buflling (how of interference, merely to prevent popular infurre<£tions-, though under conviction, that fuch in- terference, inftead of doing good, often tends to increafe the very evil it was intended to remedy. It would certainly be a mat- ter of much advantage, were the people at large duly apprifed of the effects to be expected from the interference of govern- ment ; that it may neither be impelled, from clamour, into ruinous meafures, nor blamed for declining interference, where it might be productive of harm, and could do no good. As it is not in human power to create grain, it is evident, that, in cafes of fcarcity, neither government, nor the richer clafles of the community, can do any thing to alleviate the fcarcity, or to procure greater plenty ; but, by diminifhing their own confumpt of grain, to produce a faving ; or by con- tributing funds for the purpofe of importing grain ; or enticing adventurers, by a bounty, to import it, at their own rifle, from other countries — a meafure, which the partial range, to which man's benevolence mud be confined, to be adequate to his power, will juftify in a nation, though at the expence of other nations ; but which will hardly be equally juflifiable in the ad- ministrators of a burgh, in attempting to relieve the town, at the expence of the provinces •, or in the inhabitants of a pro- vince, in attempting to interrupt the free circulation of grain for the relief of the town. — Even this interference, the only one that can really augment the quantity of grain, and really re- lieve the fcarcity, ought to be gone about with great difcretion ; left the very idea of government interference mould augment the alarm of fcarcity, and, in confequence, lead to mifcalcu- lation of the fupply, and increafe (for a time at leaft) the dearth *. In * In the fcarcity of 1 79J-6, the Parliamentary hue and cry about dearth and fcarcity (when, from vulgar conception', or the defpicablc attempts at popularity, on NOTE H. 371 In the way of internal regulation, Governments may, and Jo fometimes interfere, in times of fcarcity and dearth ; though this mode of interference, efpecially of that kind to which go- vernments are impelled by popular clamour, is always hazard- ous in the extreme. In all modes of infernal government interference with the fup- plies and the price of the market, there is one principle which can never be departed from, without expofmg the people at large to the moil imminent danger of perifhing through fa- mine, viz. that the price ffjould be fo proportioned to the power of pur chafing, as that a rate of confumpt /ball be fecit red, which fhal/ infure the lafl of the exifing f apply, till the return of ano- ther. If the price is fixed at an higher rate, the people are pinched more than what is neceflary ; if fixed at a lower rate, famine muft neceilarily enfue. Were governments never to interfere, but from decided views of public utility ; in that cafe, we would often fee an- xiety difcovered to fix a minimum price, lefs than which fhould never be accepted, under fevere penalties, in order to infure that moderate rate of confumpt, which would prevent the crop from being eaten up before the return of another, the confe- quence of which would be irremediable famine. .As, how- ever, no government ever did, in the annals of hiftory, nor ever will interfere, to fix a minimum price •, it feems pretty e- vident, that views of public utility never did, nor ever will, fuggelt the propriety of any interference at all. The vn the eve of a general eledV.on, many fpeeches were delivered, which might have fuited the ringleaders of meal mobs) mod certainly led to great miscalculation of the fuppiy ; to confequent withholding from market, in a greater proportion than the due one : Of courfe, the dearth rapidly increafed, till Parliament were impelled to entice adventurers to import, at a mod extravagant bounty. The dearth, however, proved, in end, to have been fo egre^ioufly miscalculated, that it was found, that dearer vicinal was imported, to compete with cheaper in the home market. The adventurers fuflaincd great lofs ; and though application was made to Parliament for relief, none was afforded; which, all things confidered rather a hard meafure, 3)2 NOTE H. The only interference of Government, of which we have* or {hall ever have an account, is, in the fixing of a maximum price *. The fixing of a maximum price can only be done (if public good is confulted) to prevent the dearth from being over-cal- culated. Wherever there is dearth, however, it is ov.Jr-ealcul- r.tcd in the imagination of the people at large. If Govern- ment ever is impelled, therefore, to the fixing of a maximum price, it may be efteemed certain, that this price will be fixed at a lower rate than the exifting one •, and (if it were in the power of any Government, which fortunately it is not, per- fectly to enforce the regulation) the confequences to be appre- hended are obvious. It may be alleged, that if a maximum price were fixed in dearth, even fo low as to be fo proportioned to the univerfu power of purchafmg, as to allow every one to purchafe as much as he could do in an ufual year of plenty ; that the ef- fect would only be, to place the fhort allowance, neceflary in order to prevent a famine, upon the footing of option ^ inltead of that of necejfity ; and that every one, from conviction of the necefhty of the meafure, would voluntarily betake himfelf to that fhort allowance, neceflary to make the exifting fupply lafl till the return of another. Such a fcheme would appear, how- ever, perfectly Utopian. Unlefs every one were fuppofed to know, what it is impofiible for him to know, the proportion of the exifting fupply to that of an ordinary year, fo as to know the proportion of abilinence that fell to his ihare3 in proportion to the deficiency of the exifting fuppjy ; and un- lefs * When the French Convention (apparent]) under the influence of the Paiis rncal mob in the galleries) efrablifhed the law of the maximum, a famine was con- fidered as the inevitable confequence, by every perfbn of reflection. Luckily tor that people, there are mcafures which tlic molt icrutiniiing tytanny cannot cany into full effeft. With all the means of information, and ability of cool invifti^ation, poflctled by a Britilh Legislature, no mcaliircs of effective interna! interference were h ed in 1705-6 : Luckily they were not fo overawed. n-oteH. 373 lei's the good faith of every one could be depended upon, for his voluntarily practifing that meafure of felf-denial which was necefiary, a famine would be the necefiary refult. How little cptior.nl f elf -denial can be depended on, will, it is apprehended, be Sufficiently evident to thofe who have a family of fervants that eat in the mailer's houfe. It is believed, no mailer, fo circumftanced, ever found his fervants willing to be contented with lefs victuals in an year of fcarcity, than in an year of plenty. Such a propofal was probably never made bv a maf- tcr, from the certainty that it would not be liftened to *. That * Were the practice more prevalent, of giving fervants a certain allowance of meal and money in their own houfes, in lieu of victuals in the houfe of the maf- ter, the temptation of difpofing of the favings; at an high price, would uniformly infure a confiderable degree of faving, in an year of fcarcity and dearth. Self- interefr is an energetic principle, in every fituation. In fituations of ebfeurity, where the motives of obtaining credit and celebrity are not prefented, it is net to be expected that views of public utility fhould have fuch influence. In the fcar- city of wheat in 1795-6, it was eafier for our Sovereign to bring himfdf to the felf-denial of fubfiituting the meal of barley to the flour of wheat in the Royai h nifehold, than to perfuade the mcanefr of his fubjedts in parim work-houfes to follow the example. — In fcarcity, the dearth of price places the fllf-denL! of the generality upon the certain fecurity of neceffity, iufcead of the precarious one of tptitn. Among thofe, however, who are fo rich, as that the dearth does not necefFari'y enforce a change in their mode of living, fhort allowance muit remain in a great mcafure vpliwal. Sumptuary laws cun have here little effect : they can- not be enforced, except at the expence of retaining a fpy or excifeman in every houfe. As they admit, therefore, of no fanction, they amount merely to recom- mendations. PerfoGS, however, in fuch fituations, are few in number; and as they live lefs on bread (everywhere the great article of food among the gene- rality) and more upon butcher meat, though their fhort allowance cannot be enforced by ntcejpty, it is of the [tfs conf.-qtience, as all their favings of bread could have but an imperceptible effect in producing more plenty to the generality. Inconfiderable, however, as the amount may be, to which fuch favinus tould a- rife, it is certainly the duty of all, in fuch fituations, to practife faving ; for, as ; 1 .in tannot be created, the only thing remaining to jbe done in fcarcity, is to favc, that the fupply may \A\ out the icafon. In iiich cor.fpicuous fituations, the credit to be obtained, by I d example, will always injure a confi- derable drgice of faving ; particularly, foi inftance, in the pampering of parade horfes, where their grcate!* gi . 5*74 note H. That a Legiflature may fix a maximum price in fuch a man- ner as to incur no rifk of producing an ablblute famine in an vear of fcarcity, it would be indifpenfably neceflary that it mould be perfectly apprifed of three things, neither of which can probably be afcertained by any Legiflature in a manner hi the ieaft degree approaching to precifion : Fir/I; The rate of confumption of grain in an year of ordinary plenty : Secondly, The proportion which the exifting crop bears to that of an year of ordinary plenty : Thirdly, The extent of the power of purchasing, in pofTeffion of the whole confumers of grain. A maximum cannot, with any degree of fafety, be fixed, un- lefs founded upon a perfecl: knowledge of all thefe data ; fo that the price may proportion the power of purchafmg fo ex- actly to the exifting fupply, as that a rate of confumpt may be enfured, which mall enable it to laft till the return of ano- ther. The Britifh Legiflature, in 1795-6, however flrongly impel- led, and notwithstanding of its fuperior means and ability of information, durft not hazard a meafure fo evidently fraught with the molt imminent danger. If matters are left to their ordinary courfe, the intereft of dealers in grain would appear evidently to have the efFecT: of producing, with certainty, and without danger or violence, precifely what any enlightened Legiflature would propofe by internal interference of regulation, viz. the fixing of the price at fuch a rate, as Jhall fo proportion the poiuer of purchafing to the exifiing fupply , that it fijall lafl out the feafon without re- mainder or deficiency *. In ■ In the Anti-Jacohin Review, for February iSor, it is, obfervcd — * that a . irmer is a (liitintl being from every other fpccies of trader, who have all an abfa- lute property in the articles in which they deal ; while he can only have a qualified and conditional property in the fruits of the earth, which are neceffary to the exift- rnce of man, and were exprefsly given by the Creator for his fuppprt. ' Then ^llowi a dcduSlio ad abfurdum, if it was allowed that his right was a complete pro- perty— as, that he might ftarvc his cuflomcrs by rcfufing to fell, or by dc (troy i 115 his commodiry, ■?;<:. ?;c. ! would note H. 375 In regard to individual patriotic interference, for the alle- viation of fcarcity, it has been already obferved, that, as grain cannot poflibly be created, the only thing remaining to make the fupply fuflice, is to fave it, or to import it from other countries. In regard to interference, as to the power of pur- chafing ; either by diflribution of money to increafe the power ; or by reducing the prices, fo as to render the fame money- power adequate to a greater extent of purchafe ; it may be ob- ferved, that this ought always to be attempted by the rich, in regard to thofe, who, from age, from ficknefs and infirmity, or from families more than ordinarily numerous, are unable to compete in the fcramble of the market with thofe who are not weighed down by fuch incumbranced : To increafe indifcri- minately the money-power of purchafing to a few in a parti- cular diftrict, would only give relief to thofe few, at the ex- pence of the generality. An univerfal diftrihution of money, would only bring more money into the grain market ; but, as it could not augment the fupply of grain, the cfre6t, of the competition I would juft obferve, that, in fimilar fubjefts, it is the general n:!e that ought to be inculcated; — the general tendency is to create exceptions, even long before we have arrived at that condition oi necefflty, ivhich hath no law. Thefe gentlemen, very properly, inculcate the jus di-v'mum of Monarchy, with the general propriety of paffive obedience and non-refiftance; and they would certainly reprobate the conduct of fuch as fhould manifefl a propenlity to dwell upon the exceptions. Property in the fuhjeel to which induftry is attached, is the only proper excite- ment to indultry, in agriculture, as in every thing befide. I take the opportunity of flating, here, a fact relative to the operations of the foreftaller and producer, rifling betwixt tbem/ilves, as dated pages 565, 366. In conference of (what I would conceive) an abfurd deeifion, through which the wholesale trade in hay had been condemned under the head of foieftalling ; a firmer near Edinburgh refuful to deliver his hay to his merchant who had purchased it, affecting a fcrt.ple of confciencc, in encouraging tire aim-; of forestalling. The hay, it muft be obferved, had rifen in price from is. 6d. to lid. from the date of the fale till the term cf delivery. The merchant, intimidated by the recent deeifion, was afraid to have recuurfe to legal modes of enforcing the bargain. What wai the confequence ? The horrid guilt of forefhlling was, t> be fure, not in but the farmer himfelf, inflead of hi> merchant, Old the hay at %%£, 376 note H. competition would only be, to increafe its money-price j but the quantity which each perfon could carry home, would be exactly what it was before. Such a meafure would, indeed, in fome degree, counteract this direct effect ; for, as fuch dis- tribution muft be at the expence, and tend to the diminution, of the funds deftined to fupport ufeful labour, the demand for fuch labour mult flacken in proportion ; and, of courfe, the money -power of purchafing muft be diminifhed in the one way, in the fame ratio in which it is increafed in the other. This note was written immediately after the dearth 1795-6. I thought it needlefs to alter it, in alluding to more recent ex- amples ; as the general principles, laid down, are of univerfal application. N. B. — In explaining the mode in which the market of grain is affected, I have always taken notice, merely, of the operations of the merchant. The effect is, however, equally the joint refult of the competi- tion of purchafers : To have continually noticed both, would have led to unfufferable tedioufnefs — though, affuredly, a merchant cannot fell, without finding others willing to purchafe. Appen- APPENDIX* M*0- 1 Account of Whim, the Seat of Sir James Montgomery, Bart, of Stanhope, Late Lord Chief Baron of his Majefys Court of Exchequer : With fome Observations upon the Culture of Flow-Moss, and of Ploughable Moss, from Information communicated by him. T^iie lands of Whim were purchafed about the year 1730, ■*■ whilft in a ftate of nature, without cultivation or inha- bitant, other than perhaps a Gnglc herdfman, by the Earl of May, afterwards Duke of Argyle ; who built a fmall houfe, with offices (enlarged, fince, by the prefent proprietor), at the eail end of a large fow-mofs, confining of about an hundred acres of extent * ; the depth of the mofs foil, before it had fubiided in confequence of draining, being from twelve to twenty feet, and in feveral places more. The houfe ftands nearly upon a level with the top of the hill of Arthurs Seat, in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh. The object, it is faid, which the Earl had chiefly in view, in the choice of this Ctuation, was, the cultivation and improvement of the flow- mofs-, and the amufement which he promifed himfelf, in dif- 3 C playing * Mofs foil, which hath formed itfclf upon a flat, or in a hollow, is generally the moft deep :' from the almoft total ibgnation of the water, it is kept perpetu- ally in a ftate of femi-fluidity, and remains level in the furface, like arly rlui.1 iub- fcucc. H:nce, the designation of Jttwmfh « ««<* »»*»• 3/5 Appendix, Nd. T. playing the triumph of the creative power of art, in new- modelling the nature of a fub}e£t feemingly fo untoward and unpromifing : Hence the name, by wliich he defigned his place, The Whim. Till his death in 1761, he kept a great number of work- men continually employed in draining, planting, and other- wife improving : Even after he became Duke of Argyle, he was, annually, in ufe of fpending feveral weeks at the Whim, in going and returning betwixt London and Inveraray. Great expence was incurred by the Duke, in originally cutting the main drains through the mofs foil, down to the till-bottom, for a paffage to the waters collected in the lefier interfe&ing drains ; as, in moft places, from the great depth of the mofs foil, it was neceflary to ufe a wooden ftage, or fcaffolding, upon which the mofs was thrown from the bot- tom of the drain, and from thence to the furface. As the mofs, from this drain, was always fpread upon its fides, the weight of it caufed the fides to crumble down, and fall into the drain, each Winter, in much greater quantity than would otherwife have happened : So that every fucceeding Winter created a neceffity for a repetition of the fame laborious and expenfive work, through the enfuing Summer. The Duke's plantations upon the dry land, to the fouth and eaft, have fucceeded middling well -r they have, in gene- ral, failed upon the flow-mofs, excepting upon that part of it, which lies in the immediate vicinity of the houfe, where the mofs was effectually drained, and cultivated to a confiderable depth, previous to planting. Trees of different kinds had been planted, in ftripes, through the flow-mofs, along the fides of the main drains : Thefe have not, however, fucceed- ed, excepting upon thofe places where the original foil (or till below the mofs) had been thrown up from the bottom of the drains, and been depofited, to a confiderable thicknefs, upon the' mofs furface ; or where the mofs foil had, in its na- tural flate, been of a more folid confiflence ; in which date it is found, when lying above banks, or knolls, which had ex- ifted Apfendix, No. I. 379 Ifted in the fubjacent original foil, previous to the formation of the fuperincumbent mofs foil *. The prefent proprietor has greatly reduced the expence of forming, and keeping in repair, the main drains through the flow-mofs, by working at them only in the Summer feafon, during the continuance of rainy weather ; when the increafed quantity of water, from the fide cuts, occafions a confider- able current in the main drains ; of which advantage is taken, in flooding away the mofs from the bottom of the drain, and thus faving the expence of throwing it out to the furface, by the help of fcaffolding : An operation the more eafily execut- ed, as the foil of mofs, being of nearly equal fpecific gravity with water, is eafily floated in a very inconfiderable current. The trees he has planted upon the flow-mofs appear to thrive ; care having always been taken to drain the land. fey fide-drains communicating with the main ones ; and to meliorate the foil, by repeated culture of potato crops in lazy-beds, with lime, dung, or allies, before planting the trees. The * In cutting the main drains entirely through the mofs foil to its bottom, it is afcertained, that the original furface of the ground (now covered by the flow* mofs) is unequal — rifing, in different places, into knolls or banks. It feems pro- bable, that the flow-mofs foil (confifHng of decayed vegetable fubflances) had ori- ginated in the pools of ftagnant water, lodged in the hollows betwixt thefe knolls or banks ; from the fucceffive growth and decay of their aquatic productions, aid- ed, too, in part, by the ^cumulation of fallen leaves and branches from the trees or fhrubs which may be fuppofed to have grown upon the more elevated and dry- parts of the original foil. As the mofs foil continued to accumulate from thefe caufes, it would gradually fwell over the rifings in the original foil; chilling the roots of the trees and ihrubs, with which theie rifings might be covered, and at Jafl killing them; when, in couife of decay, or by the force of the wind, they would fall down, broken over or torn up by the roots, and be gradually fmothered up, and fmoothed over by the gradually increafing and femi-fiuid mofs foil. Trees are, accordingly, found under the flow-mofs, lying along, with the torn-up roots attached to them ; or broken over, with the root and (lump flill (landing in the fubfoil. Previous to draining, fiow-mofs produces only thofc aquatics, called pro- vincially fog, which are of no ufc as paflure : When fomewhat drained, heath firings up fpontaneuully. 380 Appendix, No. I. The Duke's plantations (originally extenfive) have been improved and enlarged, fince the property came into poflef- fion of the Lord Chief Baron ; and he has, alfo, greatly en- larged the houfe ; adding a court of offices, upon a large f'cale, and ornamented in front ; extending alfo the lawn. — /The place has, upon the whole, an air of magnificence. In the pleafure grounds, there are feveral artificial pieces of water. Eaft of the houfe (where the foil is dry, and covered with fweet graffes), the furface is agreeably diverfified by gen- tle fwells, tufted with trees. A wild wildernefs walk, through a fmall wood, lands you upon the banks of an artificial lake, with iflands, covering an extent of fix or feven acres of fur- face. What chiefly ftrikes the vifitor at Whim, is the ftrong marked contraft betwixt the improvements of human art, and nature in her wildeft form, here found in immediate contact : Your ears are, at once, faluted with the warblings of the blackbird and thrufh, from the plantations; and the wild notes of the plover, the curlew, the groufe, and other mofs hird^, from the flow-mofs. Befides the improvement upon the flow-mofs, by wood plantations (which effectually fhut out its haggard appear- ance from the houfe and the approaches), it has alfo received a furface improvement, converting it into grafs pafture, to the extent of a confiderable number of acres, in the immediate vicinity of the place , and that, chiefly, by the prefent pro- prietor. The firft thing neceffary to this fpecies of culture, is the formation of roads of communication to the places intended to be cultivated, for the conveyance of manure, &c. The road is formed by a ditch, of no great depth upon each of its fides, to convey the water to fome of the main drains; the fluff from the ditches, forming the plane of the road into a convex fliape; fo that water may defcend from the middle of :t,„to the ditches on each fide : Then, in winter frofts, (when the Appendix, No. I. 381 the flow will bear the weight of carriages), binding materials are laid upon the road, and covered with gravel. The land is now ready to receive its culture, on both fides of the road — though at no great diftance from it on each fide, from the dif- ficulty of tranfporting manure from the carriages, over a foil fo deep, and of fuch foft confidence. The mode of cultivating this flow-mofs foil, which Sir James (after repeated experience) has found to be the mofi fuccefsful, and, at fame time, the mod economical, is the fol- lowing : The main drains being made effectual for difcharging the water (as already defcribed), the portion intended for cultiva- tion, is furrounded and properly interfered by open drains, of perhaps 3 feet in depth, communicating with the maiu ones : it is then divided into ridges of 20 feet in breadth, by ft ill more fhallow drains of from 12 to 18 inches in depth, communicating with thofe of 3 feet in depth : Ten feet in breadth (all along the middle of the 20 feet broad ridge) then receives the following furface preparation. All the little pro- minences, from little hillock? of fog, fkc. are pared off, and thrown into the hollows ; and the foil, from the two Iaft men- tioned kinds of drains, is alio fpread over it, fo as to make its furface level : A good coat of lime is then fpread above all. If this operation can' be effected early in Summer, fo much the better — that the furface foil, with the roots of the mofs plants, may have time to rot and digeft with the lime, aided by the fermentation occafioned by the Summer's heat ; and may alfo receive the benefit of the Winter's froft. In Spring, the 10 feet in the middle of the ridge, which has been thus prepared, is covered with dung ; when potatoes are planted upon the dung, and are covered up (in the lazy-bed fafhion) from the remaining 5 feet on each fide ; a frefh covering be- ing, from thence alfo, given, if neceflary, to earth up the ftems of the potatoes during their growth. When this Jityl crop of potatoes is raifed, a fufficieucy is left in the beds, as feed for the enfuing year's crop ; and immediately the 10 feet lidge or bed, is made up anew, with a frefh covering of raw mof:> 382 Appendix, No. I. mofs from the 5 feet on each of its fides ; care being taken to clear the fmall drains, or to deepen them a little, if needed ; it being alfo highly proper to add a frefh liming to the raw mofs which has been laid upon the bed. In raifing thxsfecond crop of potatoes, the 10 feet broad bed isfpread out upon each of the five- feet fides whence the raw mofs had been thrown up, fo as to form a ridge of 20 feet, which mutt be kept round- ed in the middle. The enfuing Spring, it may be cropped with oats, and laid down with grafs feeds; or, if it is judged proper to take two crops of oats, it is dug over, immediately after the feparation of the firft crop of oats. Stable-loft grafs feeds, with a mixture of white clover, are apprehended to be the belt fuited to this fpecies of foil. Dung, lime, the afhes of mofs, either burnt with an o- pen or fmothered fire, feem all of great efficacy in rotting and digefting the vegetable matter of mofs foil. Flow-mofs, in its natural, undrained, and undigefted flare, remains dilated with water, like a wetted fponge : when pro^ perly drained and digefled by culture, its dimenfions contract in a very great proportion. His Lordfhip is of opinion, that every yard in depth of his flow-mofs might, by thefe means, be confolidated into perhaps one inch, in depth, of real made mould. It would appear, then, phyfically poflible, though by no means advifedly practicable, by a continued repetition of the above mentioned culture, (deepening always the drain as the mofs foil fubfided), to reduce, at length, the mofs foil of our deeped flows, to a foil of very moderate thicknefs lying upon the fubfoil *. In enlarging his lawn, the Lord Chief Baron found it ne» ceffary to remove the Duke's gardens, which were too near to the houfe ; and he adventured to pitch upon a fpot for that purpofe • Sir James's mode of culture, of which this account was drawn up in 1796; to correfpond, in principle, with that lately fallen upon in Ayrfhirc. Appendix, No. I. 3 '? J purpofe (othersvife lying the mod convenient) upon the eaft- ern extremity of the fiow-mofs already mentioned. He was thus, in fome meafure, neceffitated to attempt a culture of flow-mofs, that fhould reduce it to a garden mould. About 8 Scots acres are enclofed, by a wall of ftone and lime, from 9 to 10 feet in height ; it having been, previously, neceffary to cut a trench or lane through the mofs (which, on the welt fide, was from 8 to 10 feet deep), down to the till bottom, of fufficient width to admit of cart accefs for the materials of building, as well as to obtain a firm foundation for the wall. A contrivance, in the original formation of the wall, faves, in a good meafure, the expence, and prevents the damage to the wall, from the repeated nailing up of the fruit trees. Slates are built into it, at regular diftances, with one end projecting about five or fix inches from it : thefe ends are perforated, fo as to admit rods, of a finger's thicknefs, for fup- porting the branches. The foil of the garden hath been made in the following manner : Fifh ponds have been dug in different places, fo fituated that every part of the garden may be drained into one or other of them, with proper outlets for difcharging the furplus water, when it rifes above a certain level. The mofs foil is carted away, or part of it is prepared and burnt, till it is taken off to within a foot or eighteen inches of the fubfoil ; which laft is of various qualities, though generally inclined to clay; when the aflies from the burnt mofs, with lime and dung, are fpread upon the mofs foil left remaining. The whole of the left foil, with the manure upon it, and as much of the fubfoil as can be turned up by the plough, are then well mixed and incorporated, by repeated ploughings (in the courfe of cropping with turnip or potato) till the foil i3 perfectly made fo deep as the plough can reach. Subfequent to this plough culture, the land is trenched by the fpade, fo as to double the ftaple of the foil. The made foil is, by this procefs, placed undermoft ; whilft an equal quantity of unmade fubfoil, from the bottom of the trenches, is 384 Appendix, No. I. is laid above it, to be afterwards made in its turn. Care is taken, in forming the trenches, to keep the fubfoil (left un- touched by the fpade) in fuch a declivity, that the water, fink- ing through the cultivated foil, may have a clear defcent, un- der it, upon the fubfoil. A covered drain of loofe ibones is alfo formed, all along the lower fide of the declining fubfoil, into which this water falls, and by which it is conveyed into one of the ponds. The furface is alfo formed, at fame time, to a Hope correfponding to that given to the fubjacent fubfoil -, that fo there may, in every fhape, be a proper defcent for the water into the covered drain, whether it runs upon the fur- face, or finks through the made foil to the till bottom. In the trenching procefs, each particular break, into which the garden is divided, is thus formed to one equal dope, both in upper furface and fubfoil: the different kinds of foils, where they vary in quality in the fame field, are alfo fometimes now mixed together. The new foil, turned up in the trenching, is treated with raw mofs, mofs afhes, lime and dung ; till, by tillage with fallow crops, it is alfo made : fo that, at length, a foil is formed of from eighteen inches to two feet in depth, upon the whole ; producing garden fluffs, and fmall fruits, in abundance. The garden is furnifhed with a vinery and a peach-houfe, the produce of which have hitherto been very great. As one encouragement to the cultivation of Flow-Moffes, and inhabitation of their vicinity, it may not be improper to obferve, that few families in the kingdom have enjoyed more uninterrupted health than Sir James's. So falubrious is the air of Whim, that (though very many working people, from all quarters of the country, have been conftantly employed in the improvements there, for now upwards of fixty-five years) I am afiured by Sir James, that the ague is a difeafe unknown, — (See article Climate, in the Report.) Befides the flow-mofs, his Lordfhip has had long experience in the cultivation of mofs foil cultivat cable by the plough ; as ob- ferved, under the article Soil, in the Report. This Appendix, No. I. 3S5 This kind of mofs foil is generally 'found upon the decli- vities of hills. Though, from this fituation, it is more difficult to account for its original formation, it is, neverthelefs, a foil, in every agricultural view, of the fame compofition as flow- mofs, only more confolidated, from the more ready paffage of the water from it : Like flow-mofs, however, it abforbs, re- tains, and is dilated by water, as a fponge, while it remains in its natural (late, unrotted and undigefted. This foil is, very commonly, more thin at the top of the declivity, deeper about the middle of the defcent, (from a dip that there often takes place in the fubfoil), and again more {hallow at the bottom ; extending, at deepeft, frequently to the depth of near four feet. His Lordfhip diftinguifhes this foil, as it has occurred to him in practice, into two kinds ; as characterized by their natural appearance, previous to culture, indicative of their different ftates, as to drynefs, and confequent folidity. The one kind is covered with bent, and other green herbage, being generally full of fprings j the other, more dry and folid, is covered with heath. As lime is almolt the only attainable manure, for rotting fuch foils, and converting the vegetable matter of which they are compofed into mould ; and as lime is found to have little effect upon land foaked with wet; it would appear necefTary to begin the procefs of culture, in the firjl of thefe foils, by draining with open ditches and covered drains. The potato culture, in lazy-beds, might be ufed, as far as can be accom- plithed, in the fame manner as in flow-mofs, mutatis mutandis ; which, at the fame time, effects both purpofes of draining and of digefting the foil. As this expenfive culture, however, cannot, with profit, be carried on upon a large fcale, unlefs in the neighbourhood of towns, (where the inhabitants may be induced to undertake the culture, for their own profit, and at their own rifle ; or where a fufficiency of hands may be procured, for hire ; and, at the fame time, a ready market for the produce, without long carriage, the expence of which its value cannot bear), it would feem necefTary, in other fituations, 3 D to ^86 Appendix, No. I. « to depend upon the lefs expenfive culture of the plough, wherever the cultivation is attempted upon a large fcale. If the land cannot be laid fufficiently dry, for liming, by drains, without incurring a difproportionate expence, a judicious ma- nagement of the plough may be made to come in aid of draining. It fhould be broken up, as foon as it is rendered dry enough to be capable of being ploughed. When, after it has lain a fuffkient time for the thorough rotting of the fward, it may, by two or three furrows, in the drought of Summer, be formed into convex ridges, the lime may be then ap- plied ; and, in courfe of culture, as the foil digefts and con- iblidates, it will be found more and more eafy to rid it of fuperfluous rnoifture, from the convexity of the ridges, than while it remained in the fpongy ftate, of raw undigefted mofs. In regard to the fecond more dry and folid fpecies of mofs foil, it would feem proper to apply the lime upon the furface ; and to allow the field to lye two years in that ftate, previous to ploughing ; when it will give an immediate return, in crops, for the culture. By liming, ploughing, and repeated liming, or otherwife manuring of the frefh mofs foil, as it is turned up (taking crops, to pay for the expence, betwixt the repeated fallowings), the mofs is gradually digefted and compacted ; when, after the fub- foil (generally of a clay confiftence) is reached by the plough, and properly mixed, and made to a proper depth of flaple, this foil is formed into all that perfection of which it is fufceptible. It may thenceforth be treated, in the routine of farming, with the dung bred upon the farm as manure, or with compoft of mofs and lime, &c. All mofs foils feem to poffefs a ftrong vegetative power, in the production of graffes, the blade of grains, and the ftems of plants cultivated for the root : They fhow themfdves infe- rior (in their high fituations in this county, and in our back- ward climate) in carrying on their productions to maturity. Probably, in lower fituations, and more favourable climates, they might prove the moil productive of all foils. Mofs varies in Appendix, No. I. 387 in quality, in our climate -, the mod folid being the moil fer- tile, and vice verfa. Its qualities may probably be alfo fufcep- tible of great variations, from difference of climate. One comparative advantage is pollened by the generality of ploughable mofs foils, in this county— that, from their high elevation, they are little liable to be affected by the Harveft froils, noticed in the Report, article Climate. Upon the whole, when the expence of cultivation is com- pared to the return of profit, it would appear, that the cultiva- tion oi jlow-mofi, in this county, is an undertaking unfuitable to a farmer, upon any length of leafe •, unfuitable even to a proprietor, except with the indifpenfable view of hiding a nui- fance in a policy— unlefs, indeed, a gentleman of fortune (in- ftead of fpending his income in thofe enjoyments fuited to his rank, which perilh in the ufe) mould choofe to employ what he faves from thefe, in thus eftablifliing a permanent value, which may remain, as his mark behind him, when he takes leave of this world. As to ploughable mofs foils, their culture may be undertaken, with great propriety, by the landholder, with the probable profpeft of being compenfated, in the return, for the expence of outlay : Their culture could fcarcely fuit a farmer, except upon a leafe of confiderable endurance, or in the near vicinity of lime. APfen- APPENDIX, N°- II, Essay on the Diseases of Sheep : Drawn up from Com- munications fumiJJied by Dr Gillespie, Phyfcian in E~ dinburgh ; together with Hints by Dr Coventry, Profefibr of Agriculture in the Univer/ity. With Notes, fuggefed from Obfervations in 'Tiveeddale, CSV. Tt is fuppofed by thofe who have beft accefs to information on the fubject, that the ifland of Great Britain contains about thirty millions of (beep ; and that of thefe, from three to four millions annually die of difeafe. Were we to average the large fheep of England, with thofe of lefs value in Scot- land, the annual lofs, from this caufe, would not be lefs than from two to three millions Sterling : A lofs which is certain- ly of very ferious concern to the nation at large, as well as to individuals. The mortality of fheep, by difeafe, is more than double that of the human race — if we abftra£t, from the latter, the wafte occafioned by wars, and by the accidents in- cident to commerce and navigation. It muft therefore appear to be an object of great national importance, to invefligate the means of preventing, or curing, the difeafes to which fheep are expofed. In the following Eflay, we do not pretend to offer a per- fect treatife upon the fubjecl. All we aim ar, is to give a fhort catalogue of the various difeafes, and to fuggeft, under each article, the mod obvious means either of prevention, or of cure. On a fubjedl which has never been fcientifkally in- veftigatcdj Appendix, No. It. 383 veftlgated, miftakes are unavoidable ; and thefe we leave to be corrected by the candour of the reader. Mod authors who have treated of the difeafes of brute animals, have fiufi- ed their books with a long feries of noftrums and prefcrip- tions, where the ingredients are exceflively complex, and which either do not mix, or deftroy each other's effect. We {hall endeavour to avoid this error j and leave all doubtful cafes to future inveftigation. Some difeafes are peculiar to lambs, and others to flieep at a more advanced period of life. Lambs are fubje£r. to I. Diarrhceciy or Loofenefs. This diforder is commonly called, by the fhepherds, pin- ning ,' becaufe, when the purging has advanced a certain length, a glutinous matter flows from the anus, which faftens' down the tail to the hips, and prevents any farther paflage. When fhepherds obferve this, they commonly feize the lamb, and having warned and difengaged the tail, they rub the parts with the earth of a mole-hill, or other powdery matter, to prevent the tail from (ticking in future. Hogs lard, or fweet oil, would anfwer much better for dm purpofe. The difeafe is caufed by wet and cold in Spring, together with the ewes eating too greedily of foft moid, grafs. Removing them to heathy, or poorer paftures, where altringent or aromatic plants abound, prevents, or cures the diforder *. II. CioUc, * Among lambs, fed with their dams, upon the rich improved pafture ol ian parks, pinning never occurs ; whence, it is probable that it originates milk, concodted from poorer pafture, which gives more curd than cream to the milk, rendering the excrements of the lamb more viicid. When the mothers have little milk, the lambs are very rarely pinned. Pinning is therefore considered as a favourable fympton of the lamb's being well nurfed. It is not confidercd as a difeafe, in Tweeddale ; though, if not redrefled, it would be productive of difcalc. It is conlidered as an accident to be guarded againft ; and which, like other accU dents to which fheep arc liable, requites the fhepherd to be coaftantly waiki;:- through his flock. No Tweeddale farmer would, on this account, remove h:s ewes and lambs to poorer pafture., where the hmb* would be work qui fed ; 3

rn on the oppofite fide of the head — apparently" with equal fjiccefi. however fecmingly mortal tfie wounds. C, l\ 402 Apendix, No. It. upon young fucculent grafs. 'The cure (hould be attempted by making them feed upon aftringent plants, fuch as tormen- til, bark and leaves of oak an,d willow, or bruifed twi^s of thefe plants. If thefe do not foon check the diforder, opiates and laudanum may be adminiftered : From 15 to 20 or 25; drops of laudanum, thrown upon a piece of wheaten bread," which the animal is made to fwallow, will foon check the diforder •, and it mould be repeated, if it returns with violence. Or, the laudanum may be dropped among a little warm milk, and poured down its throat *. Another fpecies of diarrhoea frequently occurs in the lad ftage of chronic diforders, and is only to be cured by promot- ing the ftrength of the animal. IX.— Ret. The general difcriminating character of this difeafe is, that its feat is in the glandular fyftem ; though many different diforders are confounded under this name. The diforder is either partial, and confined to particular glands ; or general, and affecting the whole fyftem. 1. Tul- * John Loch, Efquire, takes notice of what is called breakjba-. D. Profcflbr of Lo- gic, Edinburgh Reverend John Fleming, Cairnton James Ferguflbn Elq. advocate Louis H Ferrier Efq. advocate Robert Forreftcr Efq. Reverend Alexander Forrefler, Linton Mr Michael Falcon jun. Largs, Newton- Douglas Alexander Findlater Efq. Edir.1 Mr David Foyer STESCRIBERS NAMES. 409 Reverend George Goldie, Atholftonford Marmaduke Gray Efq. Kyloe Reverend William Gordon, Urquhart Mr John Geddes, Orton, Moray John Grainger Eiq. W. S. Mr Thomas Gibfbn, Cardrona Alexander Goldie Efq. W. S. Alexander Gardiner Efq. Lady kirk Mr William Gairns in Stevenfton Mr James Grahame, merchant, Edinburgh Mr William Gray, Glen Dr Andrew Grahame, Dalkeith Alexander SincLir Gordon Efq. London H Right Hon. Earl of Haddington, 3 copies Right Hon. Lord Hawke, 3 copies Honourable Charles Hope, Lord Advocate Honourable Baron Hepburn, Smeaton fames Hay Efq. of Hayftown, M. D. Captain James Hay, late of the Mac- Cartney Eaf\ Ir.diaman John Hay Efq. Ranker, 2 copies Sir John Henderfon of Fordel, Bart. Robert Hay Efq-. Drummelzier Robert Hay Efq. of Spot l)r Hunter, phyfician, York Mr David Hepburn, Pleafance Mr William Hunter, Knows Mr Robert Howden, Chappie Mr John Hepburn, BcarstoorJ Godfrey Higgins Efq. Yoiklhire Mr Michael Harding, Walton, Stafford Mr John Howden, Cardiff, Wales Mr John Hogg, Dunbar Mr James Howden, E^ll Fortune Mr Jnhn Howden, Congalton-Mains Mr Andrew Howden, Law head William Henderfon Efq. Comlongon Francis Horner Efq. advocate Charles Hay Efq. advocate Mr A. Iknderfon, feedfman Andrew Hamilton Efq. Spittlehaugh Mjf-.ir Thomas Hart Mr Charles Howden, Atholflonford Mr John Handifule, farmer, Wariti Robert Hamilton Efq. advoca Colonel Hutton, Peebles Mr Janus Johnftone, Gleghornte John Jamiefon Efq. Alloa Mr William Jobfon, Turvielaws, Nor- thumberland Mr Alexander Johnftone jnn. Elgin Alexander living Efq. advocate Mr James Johnfton, merchant, Dalkeith Mr William Jamiefon, Alloa k The Right Honourable Earl of Kellie Sir Alexander Kinloch Bart. Gilmerton Mr Lockart Kinloch, Invernefs Archibald Knox Efq. Sunnyfide Jofeph King Efq. Newmill, Elgin Mr Andrew Keir, Newton Reverend George Skene Keith, Keithhall Mr Thomas Kerr, Whitekirk Mrs Murray Keith, Murraythall Mrs Ann Keith, George Street, Edinburgh John Kennedy Efq. Underwood Adam Kennedy Efq. Romano Wiiiiam Kerr Eiq. Kerfield t. Ri^ht Honourable Earl of Lever. James Leflie Efq. of Rothic Mr George Leflie of Badenfwoth Jofeph Ltifts Efq. Low Newton Tlev. William Leflie, St Andrews, Moray. Mr John Lawfon, Old Mills James Laidlaw Efq. W. S. 2 copies \\ iiiiam Laidlaw Efq. of Allerton Gilbert Lning Efq. Edinburgh Mr Charles Lawfon, mifon, Newlands' n Lawfon, Efq. Cairn m 1:1 , x oopie* 3G 4io SUBSCRIBERS NAMES. John Loch Efq. Rachan William Loch Efq. younger of Rachan Mr John Lamb, writer, Lanark Walter Laidlavv Efq. Hyndhope Mr John Laing, Blythfbank M Sir Jame* Montgomery, Bart. Stanhope, 3 copies Sir George Montgomery, Bart, of Mag- biehill, 3 copies James Montgomery Efq. M P. Angus M'Donald Efq. jeweller, Glafgow, 6 copies Neil M' Gibbon Efq. Inveraray Alexander M'Donald Efq. Glencoe Adam M'Donald Efq. Achtrighton James Maxwell Efq. Aros Mill Mr John Mein, Haddington Mr John Murray, Kii klandhill George Mylne Efq. Sydferf James Maync Efq. Powis Logie Mr Alexander MacKenzie, Thomafton Alexander MacKenzie Efq. Hilton, Rofsihire Captain Monro, Teanenich, Rofsfnire Rev. Mr M'Kenzie, Foddeity, ditto Marfhall Efq. Yorklhire Mr William Mitten, Bav.dfworth, ditto Mr William MacKie, Maokie-Ormifton Kenneth M'Kenzie Efq. Dunaiu Mr John Mathcw, Rome Mr Peter Mat hew, Sheriiiion Rev. Mr Macqueen, Prefton Robert Macbain Efq. NairnGde" William M'Intolh Efq. Balnerkirk Colin Monro Efq. Invernefs Mr Maitland of Freugh Mr John M'Chlery, Mount-Pkafant, Galloway George Mole Efq. Aberdeen Mr Robert Murray, Clerkington Mr George Murray, Pinkerton Rev. Mr Moor, Oldhamftocks John Meek Efq. Campfield J. Wolfe Murray Efq advocator Hugh Mofman Efq. i copies Thomas M' Knight Efq. Ratho David Monypenny Efq. advocate Donald M'Laughlan of M'Laughlan Efq. advocate Alexander Macconochie Efq. advocate William Murray Efq of Henderland John A. Murray Efq. advocate Colonel Macdowal of Logan Archibald Menzies Efq. Edinburgh Eneas Mackay Efq. Scotftown, a copies Kenneth M'Kenzie Efq. Dolphington, % copies Kenneth M'Kenzie Efq. W. S. Edinburgh Rev. George Mark, Carnwath Mr James Murray, Flemington Mill Mr James M'Dougal, Linton Mr John Murray of Hartftone Mr William Murray, Kedmuir Mr James Milne, Whitelaw Stewart Moodie Efq. advocate Mr John Mathefen, Skirling Major Moodie of Melfetter Hugh Montgomery Efq. Port-GIafgow Captain Macdowall Mr Charles Macfarlan Mr Humphry Macfarlane Mr Robert Macfarlane George Menzies Efq. Culler Mr Duncan Macfarlane, Colnefc Mr John Mitchell, Arochmore Mr John Malcolm Mr Robert Miller N Reverend Francis Nicol, Strathmartin Reverend James Nichol, Traquair Mr James Noble William Ogle Wallis Ogle Efq, Gaufej- Paik, Northumberland SUBSCRIBERS NAMES. 411 Alexander Ofborn Efq. Solicitor of the Mr William Rennie, Oxwcllmains, Dunbav Cuftoms Mr Andrew Richardfon j. Parkinfon Efq. Afgarby, Lincolnfhire W. Payne Efq. Frickley, Yorkfhire, 6 cop. Richard Parkinfon Efq. Slanes-Caftie, Ireland Mr Park, Caterick, near Beverly, York- fliire Mr John Proctor, Calcoats, Murray Mr Peter Philip, Longbridgemuir Reverend William Porteous, Kilhucho Reverend Charles Paton, Ettrick Mr David Pearfon Mr Henry Park, Inverleithao William Rofs Efq. Stranraer George Rennie Efq. Fantaffie, a copies Mr George Rennie, Waughton Mr James Reid, Brownrigg David Roughead Efq. Haddington Mr William Ritchie, ftudent of Divinity Jofeph Richardfon Efq. Newfield, near Annan, a copies James Roughead Efq. Haddington, 3 copies Dr Robcrtfon, phyfician, Invernefs Allan Robertfon Efq. Invernefs Mr Colin Ritchie, Culmore, Galloway Mr Alexander RufTell, Aikenhead James Rofe Efq. Fewfide Mr William Rhind, Inveilachty George Robinfon Efq. W. S. Charles Rofs Efq. advocate George Robertfon Efq. Arbuthnot-mains Colonel Renton of Symington Dr Henry Robertfon, Edinburgh Reverend J. M. Robertfon, Livingflon Reverend Charles Ritchie, Kirklifton James Reid Efq. furgcon, Provoft of Peebles Mr John Rammadsc, Whitehaugh Sir John Sinclair of Ulbfter, Bart. M. P. 3 copies Lady Sinclair of Ulbfter Sir James Stewart of Coltnefs, Baronet, 2 copies Mr Richard Sommer1;, Townhead Mr John Shirrcff, Mungoswells Mr John Shirreff, Captainhead Mr Richard Shirreff, Luggate Mr Francis Shirreff, Dnmhills Mr James Shirreff, Edinburgh Mr Peter Shirreff, Drem Mr James Shirreff, Greenhead David Shirreff Efq. Kinmylees Reverend Dr Stewart, Newburgh Mr John Salmon, Mordunmills Benjamin Sayle Efq. of Wentbridge, Yorkfhire Mr Jofeph Storrs, Yorkfhire John Smart Efq. Trewhitt, Northum- berland Mathew Sandilands Efq. W. S. Mr Robert Stevenfon, Caftle-Hadingham, EfTex Mi Donald Smith, Gcrdonftown Charles Stewart Efq. M. D. Edinburgh Thomas Smith Efq. W. S. Mr James S'ruihtrs, writer, Edinburgh Reverend William Strachan, Culter Robert Stark, Efq. Dugald Stewart, Efq. Profeffor of Moral Puilofophy, Edinburgh, a copies Mr Thomas Saunderfon, merchant, K- dinburgh Henry Shettlewood Efq. Mr Waiter Skirving, merchant, Dalkeith Mr Walter Simpfon, Drummehier Mr John Scott Mr Alexander Stewart, Efhields Mr DaviJ Skirving, Gail 3 G 2 4i : SUBSCRIBERS NAMES. Mr Andrew Somrru Robert Sommerville Efq. Haddington igton of Edflone Right Horn I I-larl cf Traquair John Trotter Efq- Mortonhall, 2 ( Mr Andrew Taylor, Linton Mr Adam Tutnbull, Newbigging J. D. Thorn Ton Efq. Lcith Thorburn, Hol'iice Mi William Turnbuii, Blackhatigh 1 komas Tweecic Efq. of Oliver Eobert Veitch E(q. Hawthornbank W Mr John Walker, Monkridge Mr Francis Walker, Tunderlanc Mr Peter Weir, Ferrygate William Wight Efq. Edinburgh R. R. Wood Efq. Lincolnshire rn Wilkie Efq. Haddington Mr William Watfon, North Miduleton, humberjand John Wilfon Efq. Morpfth Richard Wr.it. .ward Efquire, E.ickacre, Stafl Mi .-. :. , R hnfca!?, Stafl Mr Charles Woadly, Cardiff Mr Francis Walker, Whitelaw Mr William Walker, Halyards Wilkie Efq. Haddington Mr-John Wilfon', Prefton, nearDunfe Mr Malcolm Wright David Williamfon Efq. advocate Mr Samn I Wood, writer, Jedburgh R.cvercnd William Watfon, Eiggar James Walker Efq W. S. Mr Jime? Wright, Haugh of Newlifton ■ Williamfon Efq. Cardrona itthew Wilkie, Bonnington A. S. Weddcrburn Efq. of Wedderhum iJexander Wellh, Hurtftaii2 Mr Watfon, Whitflade Mr Alex. Williamfon, writer, Peebles Mr Adam Whyte Mr William Wallace Mr WiHiam Yule, Gifford Mr John Young, Inverness William Young Efq. Inchhrcom, Elgin Mr Robert Young, Coxtovvn Mr Alexander Young, Elgin Mr Archibald Campbell Younger Mr Charles Young, infnrauce broker, E- dinburgh The Reverend Waltei Young, Erskinc ADDITIOl nes Allardyce, Boynes Mill • . Fdinbhrgh Mr William Drown, Dunfyre • . 1 Crai (Ion lion Rev. .Mr ( . R.cv. Dr Douglas, Galafhiels JVIr James Deans, Coulter-park Humphry Dcnholm Efq. of Birl ■ scat Mi Hugh Gilbert, Wall xander Graham, Kerlewell Mr Al N.itidcr Gray, Lyne Rev. Mr Haining, Dunfyre Rev. Mr Handy fide, Lyne Mi Richard Jamiefon, Wandlemill Mr James Kerr, Peebles, 2 copies Mr Robert Laidlaw, Kingledores, 2 cop 1 Ir Lundic, ( lordon ADDITIONAL NAMES. 4^3 ©ideon Ncedham Efq. Mr Jolin Nimmo, Newliolm Mr William Newbigging, Pettynatn Mr John Rofe Mr David Stodhart, Eafton Mr Thomas Stodhart, Biggarfhiels Mr James Stodhart, Walftone Mr James Stodhart, Covington Laurence Tweedie Efq jnn of Oliver Mr Robert Tweedie, Longhangh, % cop. 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