2112541,704 630.6 R81 V . 67 1S06 A44921 630. 4 LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS 31 33-91 4-20M.R449 I X 1 t # 1 I I THE JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND VOL. 67. 1906. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from I MLS LG-70- 15-01 38- 15 https://archive.org/details/journalofroyala6719roya_0 COUNTRY MEETING OF THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND, LINCOLN, 1854. THE JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. VOLUME 67. (being the sixty-seventh volume issued since the FIRST PUBLICATION OF THE JOURNAL IN 1839.) 3 3 3 » 3 3 '.>3 3 3 ) > > > 0 5 > * Ol ) * .3 3 * 3 3 i » V ) ) 3^ A » 3 O 3 3 3 PRACTICE WITH SCIENCE. LONDON : JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 1906. 93369 t Extract from the Society’s Bye-laws ( Dating from the Foundation of the Society ) : — “ The Society will not be responsible for the accuracy of the statements or conclusions contained in the several papers in the Journal, the authors themselves being solely responsible.” t. « o -t n « *i «* « 4 ■* * « * * ^ * * * » » « * •> » ft1 i-' t &• *■ «. * - »< f} «) ») *4 f& •» fit' t 41 e a. •> « [ 5 ] v- J 0 & J 5 n in s N 0 \ * 4 ,6 V1 TABLE OF CONTENTS. VOLUME 67, 1906. COUNTRY MEETING OF THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND, LINCOLN, 1854 . Frontispiece [ This picture is reproduced by photography from a contemporary woodcut , in view of the Society's approaching visit to Lincoln in 1907.] PAGE The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture ... 1 By Major P. G. Craigie, C.B. Rural Roads, with Special Reference to Modern Requirements . 20 By P. C. Cowan, B.Sc., M.Inst.C.E. The Application of Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance to Breeding Problems .......... 46 ( With Five Illustrations and Two Diagrams') By R. H. Biffen, M.A. Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. . . . . . . .64 ( With Fourteen Illustrations) By Professor John Penberthy, F.R.C.Y.S. Comparative Economy of Different Methods of Harvesting Corn Crops ........... 98 By Professor John Wrightson. Agricultural Weights and Measures . . . . . .106 By Charles Kains-Jackson. Impurities in Milk and Butter . . . . . . .118 By Ernest Mathews. The Derby Show, 1906 . . . . . . . . .127 ( With Twelve Illustrations) By Thomas McRow. The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906 . . . .154 ( With Twenty-five Illustrations) By Captain H. Riall Sankey, R.E. (ret.), M.Inst.C.E. Miscellaneous Implements Exhibited at Derby, 1906 . . .185 ( With Three Illustrations) By Bayntun Hippisley. [6] Contents of Volume 67. Butter and Milk Tests at the Derby Show, 1906 By Ernest Mathews. I. — Butter Tests ....... II. — Milk-yield Tests ...... III. — Experiments in the Dairy . . . . Agricultural Education and Forestry Exhibition,- 1906 . By Ernest H. Godfrey. - I. — Agricultural Science . ‘<7 A 7 % II. — Nature Study in Rural Schools' III. — British Forestry ...... PAGE . 189 . 189 . 193 . 198 . 201 . 201 . 209 . 211 Report of the Council to the Annual General Meeting of Governors and Members of the Society, December 12, 1906 . . .214 Annual Report for 1906 of the Principal of the Royal Veterinary College ........... 230 By Professor Sir John McFadyean, M.B., B.Sc., C.M. Research Laboratory, 230 ; Anthrax, 230 ; Glanders, 231 ; Swine Fever, 232 ; Fowl Cholera, 233 ; Psorospermosis, 234 ; A new disease of cattle ( Johne's Disease), 235. Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Chemist . . . 242 By J. Augustus Voelcker, M.A., B.Sc., Ph.D. Feeding Stuffs, 244 ; Fertilisers, 248 ; Soils, 253. Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Botanist . . .255 ( With Three Illustrations) By William Carruthers, F.R.S. Purity and Germination of Seeds, 255 ; Duration of Vitality in Farm Seeds, 257 ; Buttercups in Pastures, 258 ; Diseases of Plants, 259 ; Miscellaneous, 264. International Seed-Testing Conference at Hamburg, 1906 - . . 265 By Hans Th. Giissow. Annual Report for 1906 of the Zoologist ..... 267 ( With Sixteen Illustrations) By Cecil Warburton, M.A., F.Z.S. The Currant Bud Moth, 268 ; Pear Midge, 271 ; Apple Trees, 272; Destruction of Mites by Heat, 273 ; Ticks and Disease, 274. The Woburn Experimental Station of the Royal Agricultural Society of England 282 By J. .Augustus Voelcker, M.A., B.Sc., Ph.D. Field Experiments, 1905, 1906, 282 : Continuous Growing of Wheat, 282 ; of Barley, 288 ; Rotation Experiments, 291 ; Green-manuring Experiment, 299 ; “Head” and “Tail” Barley, 301 ; Canadian Wheat, 302 ; Soot as a top-dressing for Wheat, 304 ; Potash Manuring for Potatoes, 305 ; Nitrate of Soda and Salt for Mangels, 306 ; Experi- ment on late pulling of Mangels, 307 ; Lucerne, 308 ; Varieties of Lucerne, 309 ; Varieties of Clover, 309 ; Rainfall at Woburn, 310. Contents of Volwne 67. [7] PAGE Statistics affecting British Agricultural Interests . . . .311 The Weather during the Agricultural Year, 1905-1906 . . . 333 By Frederick J. Brodie, F.R. Met. Soc. Rainfall, Temperature, and Bright Sunshine during 1906 . . 336 The Rainfall of 1906 ......... 337 Memoranda . . . . . . . . . - . 342 APPENDIX. List of Council of Royal Agricultural Society of England . i Standing Committees of the Council ...... iii Chief Officials of the Society ....... iv Distribution of Governors and Members of the Society, and of Ordinary Members of the Council ..... v Governors of the Society ........ vii Honorary Members of the Society ...... xii Summary of Members on Register, December 31, 1906 . . xii Increased Annual Subscriptions and Donations .... xiii Balance-sheet for 1906, with appended Statements of Ordinary Income and Expenditure and of Receipts and Expenditure at the Derby Show, 1906 ....... xvi Table showing the Number of Governors and Members in each Year from the Establishment of the Society . . . xxiv Abstracts from the Proceedings of the Council in 1906 . . xxv January 10, xxv ;■ February 7, xxvii ; March 7, xxix ; April 4, xxxii ; May 2, xxxiii ; May 30, xxxiii ; June 29, xxxviii ; August 1, xxxviii ; November 7, xl ; December 12, xliv. Deputation to the Board of Agriculture, March 6, 1906 . . xxx Proceedings at the General Meeting, June 28, 1906 . . . xxxiv Proceedings at the Annual General Meeting, December 12, 1906 xlvi Officials and Judges at the Derby Meeting, 1906 ... Iii Awards of Prizes at Derby, 1906 ...... lvi Prize List for Lincoln Show of 1907 ...... cxvii Principal Regulations as to Entry Fees, Ac., Lincoln Show, 1907 cxxv Index to Volume 67 . . . . . . . . . cxxvi ERRATA. (1) Journal, Yol. 66, 1905, at foot of page 150: “(c) A new food sold under a ‘fancy’ name.’’ The figures given as those of the “analysis guaranteed” were not those of the food as actually sold, but were those of the guaranteed analysis of the “meal in the dry state, i.e., before the cane sugar is added.” (2) Ibid., page 227, lines 38 and 39 : For “except in ” read “ including.” (3) Ibid., Appendix, page lvi : Date of General Meeting in Showyard, June 28, not June 21. ] [' 8 Binding of the Volumes of the Journal. Governors, Members, and others who desire to have their copies of the Journal bound in green cloth to match the Bound Volumes issued by the Society from 1901 to 1904, are requested to communicate on the subject with the Society’s printers, Messrs. James Truscott & Son, Ltd., of Suffolk Lane, Cannon Street, London, E.C. Messrs. Truscott & SON have contracted — (1) To bind the Volume in the green cloth cover, with gilt lettering at the back, and the Society’s device in gilt at the side, at the price of 2 s., including delivery of the Bound Volume ; (2) To supply the green cloth lettered cases, for the use of local bookbinders, at the price of lx. 3 d. each, post free, or lx. each, if called for at their Offices in Suffolk Lane. Back Volumes of the Journal will also be bound in the same description of cover at the rate of 2x. 3d. per Volume ; but the cases for the Volumes of the First and Second Series cannot be supplied separately. All parcels and correspondence thereon should be addressed ( postage or carriage prepaid') to Messrs. James Truscott & Son, Ltd., and not to the Society. To avoid confusion the Volumes of the Journal have been re-numbered from the be- ginning, and the following Table shows both the Old and the New Numbers of each of the Volumes which have been issued since the first appearance of the Journal in 1839 : — NEW NUMBERS Old Numbers FIRST SERIES Vol. 1. (1839-40) Vol. I. Parts I. (i.), II. (ii.), III. (iii.), Vol. 39. and IV. (iv.) 40. 2. 1841 ... II. I. (v.) II. (vi.), & III. (vii.) 41. 3. 1842 ... III. I. (viii.), II. (ix.), & III. (x.) 42. 4. 1843 ... IV. I. (xi.) and IT. (xii.) 43. 5. 1844 ... V. I. (xiii.) and II. (xiv.) 44. 6. 1845 ... VI. I. (xv.) and II. (xvi.) 45. 7. 1846 ... VII. I. (xvii.) and 11. (xviii.) 46. 8. 1847 ... VIII. I. (xix.) and II. (xx.) 47. 9. 1848 ... IX. I. (xxi.) and II. (xxii.) 48. 10. 1849 ... X. I. (xxiii.) and II. (xxiv.) 49. 11. 1850 ... XI. I. (xxv.) and II. (xxvi.) tt 50. 12. 1851 ... XII. I. (xxvii.) and II. (xxviii.) 13. 1852 ... XIII. I. (xxix.) and II. (xxx.) 14. 1853 ... XIV. I. (xxxi.) and II. (xxxii.) 15. 1854 ... XV. I. (xxxiii.) and II. (xxxiv.) v oi. ai. 16. 1855 ... XVI. I. (xxxv.) and II. (xxxvi.) 17. 1856 ... XVII. I. (xxxvii.) & II. (xxxviii.) » 52. 18. 1857 ... XVIII. I. (xxxix.) and 11. (xl.) 19. 1858 ... XIX. I. (xii.) and II. (xlii.) }) 53. 20. 1859 ... XX. I. (xliii.) and II. (xliv.) 21. 1860 ... XXI. I. (xlv.) and II. (xlvi.) tt 54. 22. 1861 ... XXII. I. (xlvii.) and II. (xlviii.) 23. 1862 ... XXIII. I. and II. (xlix.) tt 55. 24. 1863 ... XXIV. I. (1.) and II. (Ii.) 1) 25. 1864 ... 11 XXV. 1) I. (Iii.) and II. (liii.) tt 56. SECOND SERIES it 57. Vol.26. 1865 ... Vol. I. Parts I. (i.) and II. (ii.) ” 58. 27. 1866 ... II. I. (iii.) and II. (iv.) 28. 1867 ... III. I. (v.) and II. (vi.) tt 59. 29. 1868 ... IV. I. (vii.) and II. (viii.) 30. 1869 ... V. I. (ix.) and II. (x.) tt 60. 3L 1870 ... VI. I. (xi.) and II. (xii.) 32. 1871 ... VII. I. (xiii.) and II. (xiv.) l ” 61. 33. 1872 ... VIII. I. (xv.) and II. (xvi.) 34. 1873 ... IX. I. (xvii.) and II. (xviii.) »» 62. 35. 1874 ... X. I. (xix.) and II. (xx.) tt 63. 36. 1875 ... XI. I. (xxi.) and 11. (xxii.) tt 64. 37. 1876 ... XII. I. (xxiii.) and II. (xxiv.) tt 65. tt 38. 1877 ... )> XIII. tt I. (xxv.) and II. (xxvi.) tt 1 tt 66. 67. NEW NUMBERS 1878 1879 . 1880 . 1881 . 1882 . 1883 . 1884 . 1885 . 1886 . 1887 . 1888 . 1889 . 1890 . 1891 . 1892 . 1893 . 1894 . 1895 1896 . 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 Old Numbers SECOND SERIES— continued. Vol. XIV. Parts I. (xxvii.) and II. (xxviii.) „ XV. „ I. (xxix.) and II. (xxx.) „ XVI. „ I. (xxxi.) and II. (xxxii.) „ XVII. „ I. (xxxiii.) and II. (xxxiv.) „ XVIII. „ I. (xxxv.) and II. (xxxvi.) „ XIX. „ I. (xxxvii.) & II. (xxxviii.) „ XX. „ I. (xxxix.) and II. (xl.) „ XXL „ I. (xii.) and II. (xlii.) „ XXII. ,, I. (xliii.) and II. (xliv.) „ XXIII. „ I. (xlv.) and II. (xlvi.) „ XXIV. „ I. (xlvii.) and II. (xlviii.) „ XXV. „ I. (xlix.) and II. (1.) THIRD SERIES Vol. I. Parts I. (1), II. (2), III. (3), and IV. (4) „ II. „ I. (5), II. (6), III. (7), and IV. (8) „ III. „ I. (9), II. (10), III. (11), and IV. (12) „ IV. „ I. (13), II. (14), III. (15), and IV. (16) „ V. „ I. (17). II. (18), III. (19), and IV. (20) „ VI. „ I. (21), II. (22), III. (23), and IV. (24) „ VII. „ I. (25), II. (26), III. (27), and IV. (28) „ VIII. „ I. (29), II. (30), III. (31), and IV. (32) „ IX. „ I. (33), II. (34), III. (35), and IV. (36) „ X. „ I. (37), II. (38), III. (39), and IV. (40) „ XI. „ I. (41), II. (42), III. (43), and IV. (44) Issued as an Annual Bound Volume. Issued as an Annual Bound Volume. Issued as an Annual Bound Volume. Issued as an Annual Bound Volume. Issued as an Annual V olume in paper covers. Issued as an Annual V olume in paper covers. (The numerals within brackets indicate the numbers as printed on the several Parts of each Series.) ■> > ) 'J ) 4 3 > a 3^ > > » ) 3 > 3 ^ ) J J !> O 9 >>>"> >> 0 3 3 > 33 > 03 3 3 3 33133 -4 •>33*<*>©^4 *»© 3 0 3 9 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. THE PLACE OF THE SMALL HOLDER IN ENGLISH AGRICULTURE. The Royal Agricultural Society has on many occasions opened the pages of its Journal to a discussion of one phase or another of the small holdings problem. The proper and most profitable size of an area of agricultural management is a theme not unfitting for debate by practical men who can appreciate, more than either their political or theoretical advisers, the multitude of conflicting factors and conditions which, prescribe and determine the most effective scope for the cultivation of the soil under the varying conditions it presents in a country like our own. A new inquiry into the feasibility of stimu- lating by some further measures, legislative or other, the provision of more numerous units of cultivation in England has been attracting notice, and cannot be overlooked as regards its practical side by those who can study British agriculture from the inside. Although there is no longer a jealousy of the small holder among the most enlightened of our larger agriculturists, those who know most of the business of land management and the practice of economic production will not be carried away by the recurrent waves of sentiment or the gusts of theoretical opinion on this subject. They may nevertheless accept the dictates of what, for want of a better term, is known as political expediency, so that there is now more general agree- ment than was evident over a large portion of the nineteenth century that, under the agricultural conditions of the day, more room may be found for intensive farming, if the proper places and the fitting circumstances can only be secured. And VOL. 67. B t 2 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture . , *-■ , ** *> o Q to i «•> # 0 $ . <*.) '*-> fj *> r.j t *) . ■ -If j ® rV - ^ •> - • it is well this is so, for the more enthusiastic of the land reformers of the last decade of that century have received a somewhat damping account of recent efforts of legislation. The significant facts made patent by the Parliamentary Return of 1903 respecting the net results of the Small Hold- ings Act of 1892 left no room for surprise at the decision of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries to inquire anew into a subject on which the Parliamentry Committee of 1889-90 suggested legislation. The Departmental Committee which, on the nomination of Mr. Fellowes and under the Chairmanship of Lord Onslow, and with the personal co-operation of the present Minister of Agriculture in its earlier work, has been sitting since April, 1905, had naturally therefore placed in the forefront of its topics of investigation the working of the Act which made so little show in the decade covered by the published figures of holdings bought or hired under its provisions. The Committee of 1890, it may be recalled, contemplated operations on a scale which may be measured by the provision it suggested of some five millions of money for advances to facilitate the establishment of a substantial addition to the numbers of the small holders of land in Great Britain. The mere suggestion of such a sum as conceivably applicable to an agricultural purpose on this side of St. George’s Channel aroused at the time no little interest. The harvest secured after ten years’ working was in strong contrast to the hopes of the legislators. Of the County Councils of England only five seem to have purchased, and three others to have hired land for subdivision in small holdings, and one only of the Scottish local authorities has accomplished anything under the statute. A total of 248 acres sold to 72 peasant proprietors, allowing an average holding of three acres and a half, and a further total of 374 acres let to 166 small tenants, can have made no perceptible addition to the 400,000 small holdings officially reported before the Act was passed, or to the 4,900,000 acres of the “not exceeding fifty acre” holdings which were recorded as existent in the last decade of the nineteenth century in Great Britain. Whether, therefore, it was the fault of the machinery provided by Parliament, or whether it was the absence of any local demand, strong enough and sound enough to make itself perceptibly felt, for the increase of holdings of this type, it was quite time that a new investigation should be made not alone into the administration and efficiency of the statute which seemed to have done so little, but more widely into the local history of what had been going on outside of legislation by voluntary or co-operative action to promote the extension of the class of small cultivators. Report of Departmental Committee , 1906. 3 The results of this new inquiry are now complete, and while this Journal is not the place where it is usual or con- venient to discuss the legislative proposals suggested, it is nevertheless most interesting to every practical agriculturist to observe the unanimity of opinion secured — with whatever diversity of view on the methods — as to the desirability of materially strengthening the position of British agriculture by augmenting its numerical force in the constitution of the body politic of the State. It is generally agreed to be an advantage to the nation as a whole to stimulate to a keener interest in the soil the diminishing ranks of agricultural labour, and to open to the best fitted of farm workers further avenues of promotion to the tenancy or the ownership of the land. Such a result should in theory be secured without inflicting any wrong on the occupants of larger farms. The better mixing and graduation of the classes engaged in agriculture offer opportunities of mutual help and mutual gain. Wisely carried out, in the warning of past failures, as well as in the light of exceptional successes, such an object may well enlist the sympathy and co-operation of the widespread membership of the Royal Agricultural Society. A welcome on public grounds will therefore be accorded to any really effective experiments for planting more agriculturists on the land of England. The storehouse of information respecting existing local conditions, which the Committee’s Report supplies, will be drawn on very largely in all future discussions. The mustering, in convenient shape for reference, of all the varied proposals for dealing by legislation with the matter of the inquiry, is another useful piece of work. The sidelights and illustrations from the land systems of other countries, which appear in the Appendices to the bulky Minutes of Evidence, will in their turn afford matter for reflection and study. But for the moment the attention of the agricultural public will be mainly concentrated on the definite recommendations which are offered on the authority of ten of the eleven members who served on the Committee. The fact that some of the signatories to the Report either qualify or amplify these conclusions by certain individual notes and reservations in no way lessens the impor- tance of the general findings arrived at ; and the absence of the eleventh signature — that of Mr. Jesse Collings, who signs a separate Report — was to be expected by any one who remembers the assiduity with which the veteran champion of a peasant proprietory system prosecutes on a single line the particular remedy with which his name is so indelibly identified. His colleagues, with no disbelief in the advantages of ownership, where that is feasible under present economic and financial b 2 4 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture. conditions, prefer to make the most they can of the existing machinery, the traditional customs of British agriculture and the modes of tenure which already flourish, in order to push forward, so far as prudence will allow, small tenancies as well as small ownerships, exactly as the varying wants and conditions of different parts of the country may prescribe. Leaving all details to an examination of the Blue Book itself it may suffice here to indicate that the Committee attack the problem committed to them on five different lines of approach, and propose to call into action three direct and two contributory agencies to achieve their end. The direct forces which it is suggested should be set in motion are the State, the County Councils, and the existing owners of land. The State, it is proposed, should act through the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries as the particular Government Depart- ment created in 1889 for the very purpose of concentrating and focussing the administrative functions formerly diffused amongst a variety of Commissions and Committees. That Board, it is suggested, should be empowered to proceed by way of direct experiment in the purchase, equipment, letting, and sale of small holdings in suitable localities. The local authorities are at the same time offered another chance with the aid of large amendments in their existing statute, which, with a wise concession to the continuity of English legislative work, is to be left to operate wherever it commends itself to the ratepayers’ immediate representatives. Lastly, and perhaps as an agency more generally and immediately effective than any efforts by authorities local or central, it is suggested that the landowners of estates on which a larger supply of small farms could be usefully created should be helped and encouraged to face what the evidence collected shows to be the costly process of subdivision and equipment by the aid of State loans on favourable terms. The parallel for this proposal, which is also that of the last Royal Commission on Agri- culture, is to be found half a century ago when the drainage and improvement of land was materially and most opportunely fostered, without loss to the Exchequer, by the advances of Government money which the nation found it profitable to make. The two indirect forces which the Committee propose to call into action to promote the success of their scheme are the well-known agencies of organised co-operation and extended and improved education. Not one of the five proposals for direct or indirect operation offers any sensational or revolutionary features. They will be generally acknowledged to present a series of sober and prac- tical steps towards the end which is aimed at — all of them Recommendations of Departmental Committee , 1906. 5 within the limits of precedent, British or foreign, although not all of equal magnitude. Probably the new experimental efforts suggested for the Board of Agriculture will be regarded as the most novel of the group, although, as I have just indicated, the voluntary action of owners will be widely recognised as the readiest of all the forces to be summoned into action, if only Parliament will do its part in the matter and endorse the recommendations laid before it. In a country like our own, precedent counts for much. Where to make a beginning in the large experimental enter- prise suggested will be the question to be weighed. And there will be no difficulty in finding guidance on this point in the stories of witness after witness, where they tell how here, by natural process, small holdings have arisen ; how elsewhere, under irresistible economic conditions, they have decayed ; how in one place a State Board may be the effective promoting agency ; how in another an enthusiastic local authori^ have found the task within their powers ; and again, how owners have themselves succeeded with, occasionally, the most novel feature of the interposition of collective associations or syndicates holding and reletting small farms to qualified applicants. My purpose in this article is not, however, to cull a series of recorded instances from the Blue Book now issued. It is rather to prepare for such consideration as the conclusions of the Committee demand by clearing out of the way some statistical misconceptions which seem to have got hold of the public mind with reference to the actual place of the small' holder in the distribution of land at the present moment in this country, and the extent to which we may find already at work and in evidence examples of success and failure. There was a time not so long ago when it was customary to conclude that, whatever might be the experience of our Continental neighbours, the small holder was a non-British, or at least a non-English feature of our later agricultural practice, who required to be created, or re-created, as some readers of history will tell us, by the aid of the pattern and example of other lands. The better knowledge acquired by our developed agricul- tural statistics has largely removed this impression, and it is now seen that however prominent may be the position of the medium and the large farmer in England, there are all around us, in particular localities and under particular climatic and market conditions, no inconsiderable number of instances where land, in nearly every county, is held and cultivated in areas not exceeding fifty acres. It may well be worth while, therefore, to examine afresh these records before any new 6 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture . departure is made, and try to see what is the exact place of the small holder to-day in English agriculture, and how far it differs from that which we find elsewhere. The latest Committee lay before us the bare facts which our agricultural returns now tell us, but, having regard to their reference, they could not be expected to discuss in any detail the statistical bearing of the figures. It would need a very exhaustive and laborious analysis of the existing statistics we possess in this country to discover what are the crops a small holder on all the soils of a country like ours, and with prices where they are, may most hopefully grow if he is to flourish and not to fail. For such an inquiry there would have to be a new and minute local analysis of the occupiers’ schedules in the lower grades of holdings, and such a search might be a long and costly business. Nevertheless it would be interesting to know something more, in extension of the 1895 returns, as to the prevalence of one or other form of agriculture in holdings under fiftv acres ; the relative number on which wheat is grown ; what are the total numbers of these holdings devoted in whole or in part to potatoes, to small fruit, and so on ; and, if the figures could be got, not only for cultivated areas, but for land farmed of whatever character, what stock was raised and kept on the smaller units of our system. The returns of 1885, which preceded the 1895 investigation, were ambitious on this last point, but failed in accuracy owing to the narrowed scope of the cultivated area. It is well known that the old category of market gardens has lost its meaning, and that special vegetable crops for sale are reared in many ordinary farms that are by no means of merely “ garden ” dimensions. Even much wider topics would be germane to such an inquiry : as with regard to the class of cultivator on existing small holdings, the help he gets on his holding from his own family, or the hired labour — permanent or temporary — he may still require for effective husbandry. But to do this not by merely casual type, but on a thoughtful and balanced statistical system, would probably involve an extension of our population census in an unfamiliar direction, but one that is already pursued in some of the enumerations of foreign countries. Sometimes it has been tried to give the effect of such an investigation by quoting the experience or the balance sheets, where these exist, of individual occupiers. But the practice is not a very commendable one, and although one looks for, and may find in the evidence tendered to a Committee, instances both of successful and of unsuccessful ventures — and these deserve and receive attention — it is a dangerous practice to Complexity of English Agriculture. 7 generalise from casually picked out cases. It is even worse to conclude that because this or that man has succeeded, and this or that man has failed, in one- particular set of circumstances or another, therefore a particular course of action may be boldly entered on ; or that an attempt should be made to regard the statements of a few individuals as typical enough to form ground for legislation rather than for the institution of further and closer experiment under varied conditions before any exaggerated demand is made on the public in any whole- sale fashion for setting up in business a new series of farmers. Nothing is more clear than what the latest Committee recognise, that the agriculture even of a relatively small country like our own is an extremely complex and varied business. What succeeds in one parish or one farm by no means necessarily succeeds in another, nor can enterprises of a special character, involving the production of a particular product, be without danger to existing cultivators multiplied at will, or attempted at all, without a very close scrutiny of the type of cultivator to be chosen and established by the public credit as a pioneer of the movement for more numerous and more intensively farmed units of cultivation. On this point apprehension is already apparent among the raspberry growers of Perthshire and the celery growers of Lincolnshire, lest a successful industry already locally established might be swamped by any ill-considered or over-done extension. On the question of the mere number of individuals who, as a matter of fact, pursue the role of a small farmer, we have many figures. As a rule, in statistical comparisons between this and other countries, we usually compare the British or United Kingdom figures with those of foreign political units ; but there is a danger in the use of certain data thus combined which I am anxious for our present purpose to avoid. I use, therefore, quite designedly, the term English agriculture when I ask how the small holder bulks in proportion to larger farmers at the present time, for the conditions of Welsh, of Scottish, and still more of Irish land holders, differ rather widely from our own, and our knowledge of the relative place of the small holder in these countries is, owing to a special feature of our existing returns, less conclusive and less accurate. Only in one part of the United Kingdom — Ireland — is the basis of the holdings return the wthole measured area of over 20,000,000 acres. The 594,000 separate holdings, or the 549,000 separate occupiers recorded for Ireland — for we are given choice of two sets of figures here — would work out at an average of thirty- four acres per holding or thirty-seven acres per occupier, whichever set of divisors we prefer. But these calculations cannot be properly compared with the Welsh, the Scottish, or 8 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture. the English averages, all which are taken, not on total, but on cultivated land. It is true that even in England herself the existence of farmed but not technically cultivated soil in some English counties obtains to a degree that hinders a strictly comparative statement, though this arises mainly in the group of counties constituting the northern and north-western division, where the conditions approximate to those of Wales or Scotland in this respect. Over three at least of the four agricultural divisions of England we are free from any material difficulty. For so much of the surface of England, the facts are simple. The area brought into account for the purpose of the yearly returns of the size of holdings, it must always be remembered, is only the land returned by its occupiers as cultivated, that is, carrying crops or permanent grasses. The difference between this measurement and the land farmed consists of land occupied for agricultural purposes, and used for grazing, but not regarded by the occupier as rising to the category of “ permanent grass.” This surface is not of course to be disregarded in its bearing on the size of the “ units of farming ” to which it is attached ; but unfortunately it has no history, having been only recorded, and that approximately, since 1892, and the figures necessarily lack precision in certain districts where the areas are uncertain or overlap ; whereas the cultivated area has been known for forty years, and can be used for comparisons of the growth or diminution of holdings between one date and another. In the eastern, midland, and western counties of England, these rough grazings appear to form a relatively insignificant fraction of the total area, 649,000 acres, as against 17,700,000 acres cultivated ; whereas in the northern division there are 1.717.000 acres of grazings attached to the cultivated area of 6.460.000 acres. In Wales there are 1,288,000 acres of grazings to 2,794,000 acres cultivated, and in Scotland, 9,104,000 acres, or nearly twice the surface used for regular crops and per- manent grass, which appears as 4,863,000 acres only. It is obvious, therefore, that the present position of the small holdings relatively to all holdings is fairly gathered by an analysis of size, made on a basis which exhaustively accounts for 96 per cent, of the farmed surface, as in the three divisions of England just above indicated. And though that basis may not be materially wrong, even when the 24,600,000 acres of cultivated land in England as a whole is referred to — forming, as it does, 91 per cent, of the surface farmed — yet it is very defective for our purpose when dealing with Wales, where the area shown as divided into holdings is only two- thirds of the farmed surface, or with Scotland, where the area so distributed is barely over one-third of that actually farmed. Discrepancies in the Census and the Agricultural Returns. 9 Again, there is another consideration which must not be overlooked. The numbers of farmers, great and small, and the number of occupiers of land, whether on a large or on a petty scale, are not the same thing. Both sets of figures are supplied, no doubt, by the very persons themselves who ought to know what they should be called, so it is no jugglery or misstatement in a Government office which is to blame, as some imagine, for the lack of corroboration between the two classes — one drawn from the entries a householder makes as regards himself on his census schedule, and the other from what the occupier of agricultural land indicates in his yearly schedule for the Agricultural Returns. There are in England alone, leaving out the other parts of the United Kingdom, the following discrepancies in the two sets of statistics : Farmers and graziers in 1901 in England alone appeared from the occupation column of the census as just 188,909 persons. Even if the class recorded as farm bailiffs were added to this total — and there are reasons for questioning the most recent total owing to the inclusion in this category of “ foremen,” who were probably not in charge of units of agricultural occupation — this would only bring up the census total to 210,000 individuals ; while from the Board of Agriculture data we know the number of separate “ hold- ings ” was 380,000 at the time of the last general inquiry in 1895, and 372,000 in the returns for 1905, and the census year lay about mid-way between these dates. It follows that the occupation of something under 170,000 holdings was in the hands of persons who did not describe themselves to the census enumerator as either farmers or bailiffs ; or, as is certainly true in particular instances, more holdings than one were held by a single farmer. Probably many occupiers practised other and very likely more gainful professions than farming, but there are no data available to show whether these people who held land, but were not primarily farmers, occupied large or small areas. Our own census is very deficient in this respect compared with that of some Continental coun- tries ; and it has not even continued the efforts of that reliable statistician, Dr. Farr, in continuing the Table which gave at least some approximate information respecting the staff of men engaged in the working of farms of various types. The holdings return classifies the holdings over one acre but under five acres as 81,000 in number in England, while 167,000 more vary between five and fifty acres in extent. Probably it is among these smaller holders that a large pro- portion occurs of those who had placed themselves — and quite properly it may be — under some other heading than that of agriculture in filling up their census form of professions. 10 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture. To what extent the small holder in England to-day is or is not a small farmer onr official statistics cannot therefore enlighten ns. It is, however, not correct to allege, as is sometimes argued, that the existence of the many occupiers of land who are not primarily farmers, but who hold nevertheless, as a matter of fact, a large number of the units of cultivation, prevents our using the returns of holdings in this country as comparative data in making contrasts with the parallel returns, as regards size, of other countries. All international comparisons have difficulties of their own, but the difficulty in this respect, at all events, is not so great as it seems, for just the same thing occurs abroad as happens here, and as the latest Small Holdings Committee very properly remind us, the enumerated small holders of our Continental neighbours include many persons very largely engaged in other businesses than simple agricul- ture. It may be worth while to quote some examples of non-agricultural occupiers elsewhere. If we take the case of Germany, it is interesting to examine somewhat closely the very full and detailed tables of the last German occupation census, and note the extent to which occupiers of small plots of land in that country were first agriculturists and next something else, or first traders or working men and only secondarily petty farmers or residents on the land. There are no less than 5,559,000 units of “holdings” shown in the census of 1895 in Germany, but less than half of these were occupied by agriculturists working on their own account ; and even of those so working, one in every five pursued some subsidiary occupation. Industry, trade, commerce, and trans- port appear as commanding the principal part of the exertions — either as masters or as workmen — of not far short of two million occupiers of German land. Nor do these figures exhaust the long columns of other land occupiers, some of whom are primarily wage earners in agriculture and allied businesses, but others belong to other categories in the census. It may naturally be supposed that these cases occur most largely in the smallest sized holdings. In Germany, so small were many of the units that nearly three and a quarter millions of holdings were under five acres in extent. Now, if the professions of the petty occupiers of this grade are analysed, only about one person in six, or just 564,077 individuals, are shown as being agricul- turists really working on their own account ; and even of these one-fourth pursued a further and supplementary occupation, and thus did not live out of the land alone. Among the other holders of under five acre plots there were 613,596 agricultural labourers who held land as well as worked on farms. On the other hand, no less than 1,591,000 occupiers were primarily 11 Foreign N on-agricultural Occupiers. engaged, either as chiefs or as workers, in other than agricul- tural industries. Nor does this altogether complete the list of all the professions of the German smaller holders. There does not seem any good reason to expect that we should find in England any more extensive prevalence of the use of the land, as a residential adjunct or convenience only to some more directly gain-producing business, if our census authorities could be persuaded to make like inquiries into the relation between the occupation of land and the professions, primary and secondary, of the occupiers. It may be said that Germany is, after all, a growingly industrial state, and that we should find a more exclusive use of the land as' a primary source of livelihood elsewhere. Turning nevertheless to an extremely small State such as Den- mark, so often quoted as an example of successful agricultural organisation, with all the aids of an excellent co-operative system, we may find, even there, something of the same disposition to regard the occupation of a small holding largely as a convenience or assistance to other than agricultural work. Gut of a total of 250,000 holdings, into which nearly 9,000,000 acres of Danish soil is divided, nearly 172,000 are occupied by persons regarded as properly engaged in agriculture, with some 4,000 more engaged in somewhat kindred tasks in woodlands, gardens, and mills. The remainder, or 26 per cent, of the holdings, were in the hands of persons engaged in commerce, transport, and other industries, or held by professional, independent, and unclassified persons. It is not therefore necessary to confine attention to the occupation of the soil in small portions to those cases where the occupation is conducted for direct subsistence or production ; and if the English small holder is not always a true farmer, but something else besides, he is no less a useful unit in the population, and he has his counterpart in other countries where the cult of the small holding has been most strenuous and most successful, and where many domestic and other rural industries, largely extirpated in our own country, survive. Subject to these cautions it is interesting to start with a clear notion of the large aggregate of small holders which our English counties already have to show, and certain tables attached to a recent publication of the Board of Agriculture, and certain data annexed to the latest Small Holdings Com- mittee’s Report, enable this to be very conveniently done. Briefly, out of 372,000 occupiers of purely English farms, 248,000, or exactly two in every three, are already small holders of one description or another. If we take it that a 44 small holding ” means anything from one acre up to fifty — - t 12 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture. which, is practically the definition in the Small Holdings Act of 1892 — it will be found that, so far as numbers are con- cerned, there is no English county in which the “ fifty acre and under ” occupiers of land form at the present time less than one-half of the total number of occupiers, and only nine in which these small holders are less than 60 per cent, of the total. There is one county indeed — the West Riding of Yorkshire — where there are more than three small holders to every occupier of over fifty acres. It cannot therefore be said that we have no experience to go on as to how small holders succeed or fail or what their relative position is with respect to the larger farmers around them. I have said that just two-thirds of all the English farms shown in the returns are small holdings of one sort or another ; but a closer examination of the scope of our annual returns shows that this is really an understatement of the case. These returns take no account whatever of the holdings of land below the acre limit, of which we have no recent record, whether under the loosely applied terms of allotments or gardens or plots of soil. The latest general inquiry into these still smaller units of cultivation suggested that such parcels of land already abounded between sixteen and twenty years ago, and though the classification was admittedly very defective — and there has been some indication in recent agri- cultural reports that the allotment demand is fully, and some- times even more than satisfied — there is no reason to suppose there are appreciably fewer persons interested in this way in the land than formerly. All such petty cultivations find a place in the foreign tables which we most usually contrast with our less exhaustive survey. There is such frequent misrepresentation of our English position in this respect that it is well at the outset of a new movement for increasing the number of small holdings to look into this particular consideration, which the form of our returns leads us sometiihes to overlook. And here again we find it useful to compare our own conditions with those of Germany. Germany, so far as occupied by farms, covers 107,000,000 acres, and on this area displays 5,559,000 separate units or individual holdings. Of these, 58 per cent., or no less than 3,236,000, are under five acres in extent, and more than half of them are below fifty ares (or 1*2 acres) in extent. Yet another 36 per cent, of the German holdings lie between five acres and fifty acres ; so that a total percentage of no less than 94 per cent, of the holdings of that country are of the dimensions we regard in England as “ small.” The parallel English figures, accounting for less than one-fourth of the German surface, show on that area a total of 372,000 separate Comparison, with Germany. 13 holdings, whereof less than 22 per cent, are under five acres, although over one acre in extent, while 45 per cent, are of the five to fifty acre class. Both together make 67 per cent, of the total against the German 94 per cent. But any bare figures of this sort leave erroneous impressions that should be removed, unless we consent to push the comparison further, for the starting points of the two sets of statistics differ. It is essential to remember that the German returns are swollen at the lower limit by their including all fractions of petty plots, down even to some which figure in the official returns as not exceeding the fortieth part of an English acre. Either, therefore, we must eliminate those which fall short of the acre limit at which our regular English statistics of holdings commence, or, for want of any better estimate, we must fall back on the looser and admittedly unsatisfactory figures of the special inquiries made in this country in 1886 and 1890, and add these estimates to the later official record. In these inquiries, in one form or another, the petty parcels of land occupied as allotments and gardens, &c., were reckoned to have reached an aggregate of nearly 900,000 in round numbers for Great Britain, or nearly 800,000 if we limit the comparison to England as distinct from Scotland or from Wales. Such an estimate would raise the English holdings below fifty acres in extent to an aggregate of perhaps 1,050,000 units, against the German 5,252,000, or just one to five in place of one to eleven. If one dared therefore to add to the recorded hold- ings of over an acre in this country all the minor types of gardens and allotments of which we have any sort of know- ledge, we should stand possessed in England of a ratio of small holdings to total holdings very much closer to that which Germany can show, or 90 against 94 per cent. It is not a little curious that the effect of unearthing and utilising the old estimates of land held in England in plots of one acre and under one acre holdings, be they allotments or gardens or what not, and adding these to the areas with which alone our annual returns deal, exactly in what would appear to be the fashion abroad, would be so to alter the relative grouping of our statistics as to establish a claim — at all events until the old data are discarded as unreliable — to have more holdings in the very smallest category than even the Belgians, the exiguity of whose units of agricultural occupation is known to be extreme. I do not wish unduly to press this point, and no one is more conscious than I am of the difficulty of attaining certainty in our own country respecting the units of cultivation below the acre limit ; but when the case is argued against England on the ground of the small number of persons holding land in any fashion, I think the consequences of 93369 14 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture . applying the German method of reckoning to onr own condi- tions should be studied. The extent to which particular portions of England have to-day a multiplicity of small holdings of all grades, and held both by owners and by tenants, necessarily crops up in the latest Committee’s inquiries. Nor is it only in the recognised colonies of small farms which owe their start to more or less recent efforts that these conditions arise. I question if we shall find there a more curious instance of subdivision than that I quoted in my Statistical Society paper on the size of holdings in 1887. There, on the good authority of the late Mr. W. C. Little, I instanced a parish in the Isle of Ely of 11,000 acres, where the soil was owned by 179 owners, of whom sixty-five were stated to be farmers or gardeners, forty-one were engaged in trade or commerce, and thirty-two were labourers. There were 243 separate holdings or occupations, 47 per cent, of which were under an acre. In sixty-eight cases the properties were occupied by their owners. It is of course on the extent of land devoted to small holdings that a more legitimate comparison may be made, and here the prevalence of allotment holding or garden culture makes a less impression on the totals. Nearly half the farmed area of Germany seems to be devoted to holdings of under fifty acres, or 44 per cent., while France does not seem to place more than 28 per cent, in farms of this size, Denmark no more than 17 per cent., and England 15 per cent. Comparisons of the average size of holdings are often made, but on the strength of such figures as I have been commenting on above it may be well to pause before we use them to ascertain just how far down in the scale of land occupation we are prepared to go before we divide the total area by the aggregate number of units accounted for. I may be disposed to attach an undue importance to this feature of any attempt to compare the true place of the small holder in the agricultural economy of different states, but the point is one which I have repeatedly urged on the International Statistical Institute, and in the report which was laid before that body in Rome as long ago as 1887 by Monsieur de Foville and myself attention was directed to the difficulty. The German and the Belgian data seem indeed to begin at zero, and the holdings of the latter state, it has been said, include as units not only “ gardens,” but “ jardinetsT It is not, however, merely the nominal place and relative importance of the small holder that we must correctly appre- ciate before we embark on a new effort to provide for his more effective multiplication. The questions of what is his tenure of the soil he tills, and to what extent he owns his farm, and how 15 Proportion of Land owned by Occupiers. far he should be helped to do so by outside aid have been once again discussed. Here we come, as all committees who examine the matter come, into a very debatable region. It is not enough to quote purely a priori opinions as to the magic of property — not enough to recognise, as many practical agriculturists will, the real political advantage to their great industry of multiplying the number of persons who have a permanent interest in the land. Neither will quotations from the experi- ence of other States help us very materially in this matter, although it is of interest to read how in Germany, or France, or Denmark, an opposite system to our own holds good. Considerations of quite a different order have to be regarded before any conclusion is reached, and history, experience, economic teaching, and political motives will all in succession be appealed to. Still, we have one advantage now not obtainable in the older discussions. When I wrote on this question twenty years ago, we did not know — at least with any statistical precision— what proportion of our farmed land here was occupied by its owners and what by tenants. That information is happily now forth- coming, and although it applies still to the limited area known as technically cultivated, it coincides with that of the holdings return, and gives us certain results to begin with. Taking the English figures alone, as before, the general report of the Board of Agriculture for 1905 gives the land owned by its occupiers as just 13 per cent, of the *whole. Wide variation in practice appears in this matter between county and county. The highest proportion of land occupied by its owners at the present time appears to occur in Surrey, where more than one acre in three is so returned, a feature which is no doubt connected with the large use of land in this county for residential, rather than purely agricultural purposes. In the same way, in Berkshire, Hampshire, Middlesex, and Sussex, high percentages of owner farming, ranging from 23‘8 to 27'6 per cent, are reported. At the other end of the scale will be found the counties of Cheshire, with less than 7 per cent, so occupied, and Lancashire with little more ; while in Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Durham, and Northumberland, the proportion of the land in the owners’ hands is not up to 9 per cent. Even in Lincoln, in portions of which county colonies of peasant owners have always been noted, not 10 per cent, of the cultivated land returned in the yearly schedules is now described as owned by the occupiers — a far lower ratio than prevailed in 1888. Taking a broader view, the south-eastern and east-midland counties of England have over 19 per cent, of cultivated land in this category, and the proportion was even higher than this, or 22 per cent., when 16 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture. these ratios were first shown in 1888. In the counties of the north and north-west less than half that ratio of owner farming appears to prevail. Taking these figures as a guide, there would not appear to be any advance, but rather, a definite decline in the practice of farming the soil directly by its owners. In the first year these statistics were collected (1888) very nearly 16 per cent, of the whole English cultivated area, against the present 13 per cent., was so returned. But too much should not be made of this movement which may, it is suggested, be largely due to somewhat better prospects in English farming and the readier letting of vacant farms than was the case in the earlier years of agricultural depression. On the degree of owner farming in different sized holdings we have no later information than was given in 1895, when the proportion owned in each group of holdings according to size was worked out ; but it is interesting to note that the ratio of owned land in the smallest sized holdings — those below five acres — was, in the year just quoted, practically the same as for the general average of the country, and was in excess of the proportion shown in the 1895 inquiry for any other grade of holding below 500 acres. In five to twenty acre holdings, the ratio quoted by Mr. Rew as his evidence to the Committee was below the general average, or only 12 per cent. In the next grade of twenty to fifty acre holdings and again in those running from that area up to 300 a®res the proportion owned by the occupier was below 9^. per cent. In the larger holdings, over 300 acres, it reached a proportion very much beyond this, but the figures in the larger farms probably indicated not that more persons desired to farm their own land themselves, but that, as things were at that moment, tenants were more than usually shy of hiring farms. However, the small proportion of the small holders of England who actually do own their farms is now a well- recognised figure, and one to which the very latest foreign data offer a striking contrast. In the German census, taken in the same year as the English inquiry just mentioned (1895), nearly two-thirds of the land in the smallest grade of holding, up to five acres in extent, was land owned by the occupier, who might be, however, and, as I have shown above, very often was, not primarily an agriculturist, but practised some other calling. In the class still higher in the scale, as much as 88 per cent, of the 41,000,000 acres so held in Germany was land owned by the occupier. In fact, the German position is the exact reverse of our own, for only 12’4 per cent, of the land in farms was wholly leased land. The French proportion of occupying ownership Relation of Agricultural Population to Area of Land. 17 is nothing like this — probably just below half of the cultivated area. In Denmark, as many recent reports urge, the tenant farmer is conspicuous by his absence, freehold or hereditary tenure prevailing on nearly 88 per cent, of the total surface. Despite all these contrasts it cannot be said from an exami- nation of the latest evidence, that the English tenant or the English agricultural labourer shows as a rule any strong desire to become an owner. And on this point the pros and cons will be found to have been very carefully set forth in the new Report of Lord Onslow’s Committee. It is, of course, not the place here to discuss the legislative efforts which have been suggested to enable the practice of owner farming to be very largely tried ; but looking to the position which this question occupies, from other than a purely economic standpoint, one may wish well to the substantial experiments proposed in this direction. Again and again in the discussion of this question one feels that there are points of the most varied character to be raised. At one time the subject is debated from the point of view of increasing the aggregate production of the soil by the intensive cultivation of minute areas, for the working of which relatively large amounts of capital and a relatively great expenditure of labour is indispensable. At another, it is not the question of additional production, but that of finding means for the employment of more persons on a given area that is the goal aimed at. What is more or less loosely called the agricultural population of a country bears in different circumstances very different relations to the area of its surface. We may have held up for admiration the condition of a country like France, which has a measured surface almost exactly four times that of England (taken by herself, without including other divisions of the United Kingdom), while the agricultural population may be more nearly six times as large. On a French surface of 130,000,000 acres we are told there resides a “rural” population of some 23,500,000, or 60 per cent, of the inhabitants of the Republic. Of these some three-fourths (17,500,000) are set down as belonging to the agricultural class, and that agricultural class includes dependents and consists of over 3,500,000 persons working on their own account, or employers of labour, and somewhat under 3,000,000 more employed as labourers in this industry, the balance of less than two-thirds being the families or personal servants of the workers. Our English statistics do not perhaps lend themselves to an exactly parallel classification. We have, it is true, in our last census a so-called rural population (very differently defined from that of France, however,) which is only 28 per cent, of the total population, and of these the VOL. 67, c 18 The Place of the Small Holder in English Agriculture. active agricultural population of the English counties (Wales being for the purpose of our present inquiry omitted) does not apparently exceed, if it even reaches, a million persons, although there is too little precision in the figures for any confident use of the total. Again, if we attempt to follow the French classification of the elements of which the English million of active agriculturists is made up, we should find not quite 190,000 record themselves as farmers, while the remaining four-fifths are labourers, assistants, or other engaged auxiliaries. If a proportion of dependent families and servants of the active agricultural population were to be allowed and added on the French scale, i.e., a little less than two per worker, the estimate — and of course it is a very rough one — would give us, including dependents, an agricultural population of somewhat less than 3,000,000 souls in the English counties alone. That figure, it may be submitted, is the one to be placed against the 17,500,000 of our French neighbours. Now, as the ratio of the English area to that of France appears to be as one to four, it would follow that, were the two systems of agriculture identical, the English agricultural community would have to be expanded by nearly 1,400,000 persons beyond the total just arrived at. The question, then, to be solved is : How far the different density of the two agricultural populations is due to the greater multiplication of agricultural holdings in France ; how far to the natural conditions which dominate and prescribe the most profitable types of agriculture in the two countries ; or how far may it be due to the superior efficiency of English over French labour in achieving what I still regard as a relatively greater productive out-turn by the expenditure of a smaller labour force. I am not going to inflict on my readers here what would be perhaps a tedious, if interesting, analysis of relative production and its economic cost. But the latter problem is worth a thoughtful and detailed inquiry by some of our younger investi- gators, equipped with accurate knowledge of the agricultural processes and the agricultural results of the two countries. The answer may be very different from that to be given if attention were confined to the political aspects of the case. In that event the preference may be given to any system, even if more costly in its expenditure of human force, on the ground of maintaining a larger country-bred and country-reared and country-loving population, as a make-weiglit to the less stable emotions of a purely urban electorate. But France, though the nearest and most familiar object lesson in this permanent controversy, is not the only type to which the advocates of smaller units of agricultural management Agricultural Population in France and Denmark. 19 turn. We hear a great deal of Denmark and the use made of its soil. Here we have a very small State, nearly as much smaller than England (still keeping to England proper) as England is smaller than France. Its 8,897,000 acres are little more than a fourth of our 32,500,000, and like the Irish, but unlike ourselves, the Danes seem to account for nearly all their surface in the area of their 250,000 separate agricultural holdings ; while we divide only the 24,000,000 of cultivated land, or three-fourths of the surface, into our English quota of 372,000 holdings. Now, the entire Danish population is just over 2,500,000. Of these, three-fifths, or 1,500,000, are resident in rural communes, although not quite 1,000,000 of them are classified as agriculturists or their dependents, the active section of the class being 510,000, of whom 152,000 were employers, and 358,000 were employed. The interesting account of the progress of Danish agriculture given last year to the Royal Statistical Society by Mr. R. J. Thompson, brought out the small ratio of the dependent population, the large proportion of female workers, and the considerable labour force required. Upon 1,000 acres of Danish territory, the persons employed were seventy-three, compared with thirty-six in this country, and these figures will raise more than a passing criticism, that, after all, as a matter of economic production, the Danish development Has another side not entirely to be overlooked. The Memorandum appended to the Report of the Small Holdings Committee calls attention to some other features of the Danish case which have not perhaps yet received the attention they require. But no one has really worked out the aggregate production and aggregate expenditure and net profits of the Dane as we might like to see it done. It is, however, obvious that the Danish agricultural system is not one of extremely small units of management such as may be met with elsewhere on the Continent. The Danish average holding would be very much that of the Irish, or over thirty-five acres ; but if the holdings under one and a third acre were excluded for better comparison with our own, the average would rise to forty-nine acres per holding, which is not so very much below the English average of sixty-six acres. Half of the Danish area — and it includes some land not used agricul- turally— is farmed in groups of holdings between thirty-seven and 147 acres in extent, or with an average of seventy-three acres per farm. West Wellow, Romsey, Hants. P. G. Craigie. f 20 RURAL ROADS, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO MODERN REQUIREMENTS. In Volume 37 of this Journal, published in 1876, appears a most admirable and instructive paper by Mr. W. H. Wheeler, M. Inst. C.E., which deals with the history of roadmaking and the manner in which roads should be constructed and maintained. The greater part of that paper is of permanent value and is applicable to the conditions of to-day with unabated force, and it would be difficult to improve upon the excellent suggestions it contains. During the last thirty years, however, the advent of the bicycle and motor car has led to a great revival of the interest in roads, and the public mind is now greatly bent on questions regarding them. The time therefore appears to be opportune for a restatement of some long-established truths, which unfor- tunately are too little regarded ; and for a brief review of new conditions affecting the art of roadmaking. Roads have fittingly been regarded as a symbol or measure of the civilisation of the country in which they are found. According to the Abbe Renel, if the community is stagnant the condition of the roads will indicate the fact. If they have no roads they are savages. Adam Smith asserted that “ the construction of roads is the greatest of all improvements,” and Ruskin said : “ All social progress resolves itself into the making of new roads.” From this point of view the people of the United Kingdom, have little cause for congratu- lation ; as, although the main truths regarding roadmaking were enunciated and demonstrated by Telford and Macadam in the beginning of the nineteenth century, they have been to a great extent ignored in the British Islands, especially since the introduction of railways, and, as a consequence, many of our roads are narrow, crooked, weak, and bad. Central Control of Main Roads. In France, the magnificent national department of “ Les Ponts et Chaussees ” was definitely established in 1712 ; but it did not hesitate to profit from the teachings of Macadam in 1830, and from that time the principal highways in France, then badly maintained, though well constructed according to a system apparently combining the best ideas of Telford and Macadam, have been the best in the world. The space now available does, not allow of a detailed description of the admirable organisation by which the State practically controls the administration of all the important roads in France, including 23,820 miles of National Roads ; but the system is worthy of careful study as it secures efficiency, economy, and general satisfaction. Central Control of Mam Roads. 21 In England and Wales about 27,380 miles of main roads through rural and urban districts (excluding county boroughs) are dealt with by 1,055 Councils, in addition to the County Councils, and the result, comparatively speaking, is ineptitude, waste, and discontent. With such a division of authority any approach to uniformity in procedure or results is hopeless. For some purposes small areas of control and assessment are desirable to check extravagance, but they are not suitable or economical in connection with roads, and especially with main roads. The smaller road authorities now so common cannot provide for the services of highly skilled officers necessary for real economy, or arrange for, the use of steam rollers and other modern appliances ; and they are naturally prone to use local materials instead of more costly materials which, though brought from a distance, are often more truly economical. Not infrequently a road with heavy traffic traverses a poor area which contributes little of the traffic and derives no clear benefit therefrom. Under these conditions, or on account of other adverse circumstances, such as a scarcity of good materials for roadmaking, or a heavy subsoil, it is hopeless to expect the authorities in small areas to reach any high standard of road maintenance. As raising money for the maintenance of roads by tolls on the traffic, which at first glance appears to be the fairest method of assessment, has been abandoned, an equali- sation of rating for at least the main highways should be arranged for. Skill and experience are not lacking for the improvement and maintenance of our roads, but even with so large an area as a county, and with the aid of very competent county surveyors, it is difficult and indeed almost impossible under existing conditions as to assessment for the necessary expen- diture, to meet the demand for improved roads from those interested in traction engine and motor car traffic, and those, far the greater number, who use the highways otherwise, and suffer from the nuisance of dust raised by the swift self-propelled vehicles now employed. Royal Commissions and Parliamentary Inquiries. In 1833, a Committee of the House of Lords recommended “ a system of general control over the management of the roads in the kingdom to introduce one general economical and skilful course of management,” and they formulated a scheme for central control of the turnpike roads alone, to cost 97,0002. a year, which however was not carried into effect.1 At that time 1 This scheme proposed the appointment of two General Surveyors with a salary of 2,500Z. each, and twelve deputy Surveyors with salaries of from 800Z. to 1,OOOZ. The value of skilled services in connection with roads appears to have been more fully recognised by this Committee than it is now. 22 Rural Roads. some 23,000 miles of turnpike roads were controlled by about 1,200 Trusts, many of which had only from fifteen to eighteen miles in their care, and though their joint income was more than one and a half million pounds a year, they were unable to meet their expenditure, including interest on loans. In 1840, the cost of maintaining the turnpike roads was 66?. per mile. In 1901, the Royal Commission on Local Taxation reported : u The maintenance of main roads we also consider on the whole to be to some extent a national service and likely to become more so owing to the increasing mobility of the population and the development of new means of locomotion.” They recommended that a new annual grant equal to one-half of the annual cost of the roads, determined by some authoritative and impartial body to be main roads, should be made from the Imperial Exchequer, and estimated this grant at 1,000,000?. In 1903, a Departmental Committee, appointed by the Local Government Board, reported that there are 1,855 highway authorities in England and Wales and that the mileages of roads of all classes which are maintained by many of the District Councils are very small. The Committee pointed out most forcibly the want of uniformity in the existing methods of road maintenance, and suggested that local sentiment should not be allowed to prevail over an effort to secure greater uniformity, efficiency, and economy in the maintenance of main roads. They recommended the formation of one County Board for each county to deal with all main roads therein, and expressed the opinion that the cost of maintaining trunk lines of roads throughout the country should be a matter for national, rather than local or county provision, and that such roads should be called “ National Roads,” and should be maintained under the supervision of a central body. In 1906, the Royal Commission on Motor Cars, in their Report, referred to the new grant of 1,000,000?. recommended by the Royal Commission on Local Taxation, and pointed out that its motive was the relief of rates and not necessarily the improvement of, or any increase in the expenditure upon, the main roads. They expressed the opinion that, if any such grant were made, a portion should be applied to the improve- ment of the character of the roads as distinguished from their ordinary maintenance. The latter Commission also stated : — “ It is recognised on all hands that modern developments of road locomotion have rendered necessary some modifications and improvements in the con- struction and maintenance of roads, so that no one method of construction, at once economical and effective, can at present be recommended ; but one fact appears to be certain, viz., that in order to make the roads more suitable for the traffic of the present day, and to maintain them in that condition, a considerable outlay is required.” Mileage and Cost of Main Roads. 23 Mileage and Cost of Main Roads. In England and Wales there are, as already stated, 27,380 miles of roads classed as main roads in an irregular and irrational way and charged on the county at large. In Scot- land, all county roads are under the control of the County Councils, through a few District Committees in each county, and no roads are classed as main roads.1 In Ireland all county roads are under the control of the County Councils, but the estimates must first be approved by the Rural District Councils. Main roads to an extent of from one-fifth to one- third of the total mileage have been declared in seventeen out of the thirty-two counties, and are charged one-half on the district and one-half on the county at large. The mileage of public roads in the United Kingdom, excluding those in urban districts and county boroughs, is approximately shown in the Table on page 24. In England and Wales the County Councils pay to the Councils of 825 Urban Districts an average amount of 221?. per mile per annum for the maintenance of 3,554 miles of main roads in these districts. In Scotland the average cost per annum of 2,100 miles of streets and roads maintained by town authorities is about 224?. per mile. Figures in relation to the mileage and cost of roads and streets in English and Irish county boroughs and urban districts are not readily available. The figures in the Table as to mileage and total annual expenditure on maintenance are taken from recent returns of the Local Government Boards, and the other figures are based on these returns. They show that the burden of taxation for rural roads would not be oppressive, if equalised, and that the nation could easily afford to provide better highways as quickly as the work could be done. It is astonishing to find that in Ireland the mileage of rural roads is nearly two and a half times that in Scotland and nearly half of that in England and Wales. The average cost per mile over the three countries is 26?. per annum, which is also the figure for Scotland taken separately. According to all the evidence available, the maintenance of main roads in England and Wales has been greatly improved since the Local Government Act of 1888 came into operation. This might naturally be expected, as the annual cost has increased considerably throughout the country. On main roads maintained directly by the County Councils the cost of maintenance increased from 55?. per mile in 1897 to 72?. 1 Some minor roads, however, are maintained by Parish Councils, who in 1903-4 expended 3,272 1. on them. Table showing Mileage and Cost of Maintenance of Mam Roads in the United Kingdom. t Rural Roads. 0 0 0 co O 8n 5 *w 3 d d _ P Pi P 0+= 0 2 ■+■> CO +3 o-2 8-2 Pi P 2 ^ a 0 > ◄ ^d # • rl|N H|OJ M[t#I co ^d 03 d d r-H pO 0 0 d ^ fcfi Pi 2 o 2 P ° 1 1 ^ CO CO T— ( d CO 00 CO p b° CO .2 -2 0 co 43 p i-h ^ o c3 pi rj eg ±1 p O P o 3 Ip 0 n ^ K-h o > o Pi t- PO oo o tH 1 t- CO CO CO CO 03 13 == Hd G d nd c o o OS pO Pd c3 <0 pO pO K- o 2 Os 13 rl > (0 Ph 03 Pd 03 $ » Ph ’-t o co od G c3 r I O P d ® o 2 05 d r\ > vq/ (0 ’~~i r— H t— I pG CO d CD - •+5> rH c3 O Ph ©i PO CO 05 00 r-H o d~ d 03 Cost of Repairing Main Roads. 25 per mile in 1904, or about 31 per cent. The rural main roads of England and Wales, with a mileage of nearly 23,826, now cost about 71 1. per mile. The national roads in France in 1904, with a mileage of 23,820, almost exactly the same as that of the rural roads classed as main roads in England and Wales, cost about 51/. a mile. These national roads constitute about one-fifth of the total mileage of the highways in France. Though it must not be forgotten that the French climate is drier than that of England, that heavy waggons in France have wide tyres on their wheels, and that the road traffic in England is very heavy in many parts of the country, the difference between the results secured in France for 51 /. and those obtained in England for 71 /. is most striking. Without information, not now available anywhere, a close estimate as to the total cost of putting the main roads of England and Wales into good order cannot be made. Even the mileage of main roads which properly merit that name has not been determined ; but probably about 20,000 miles in the rural districts might properly be classed as national main roads ; and an expenditure of 2,000/. a mile could be well applied, without extravagance, to improve these roads as to alignment, width, drainage, gradients, and surface, or say 40,000,000/. in all. Such an expenditure would not accomplish all that is required to make the roads worthy of the nation, but it would effect a great improvement and would be a good investment. In many cases the roads are strong in the centre and mainly require widening and strengthening at the sides of the carriageway. The necessary funds might be borrowed at 3 per cent, for fifty years, and with a sinking fund accumulating at 2f per cent, the total annual charges would only be 1,550,000/. a year, or, approximately, the present annual cost of main- taining the rural main roads, which equals 2 d. in the pound on the total rateable valuation of England and Wales. Even if the improvements led to no early reduction in the cost of maintenance, which they certainly might be expected to secure, the total annual charge for the improved rural main roads would be 4 d. in the pound on the rateable valuation of the country — not a very alarming figure. To secure proper value in the improvement of the trunk lines of traffic, the advantages of central control, free from local bias or popular pressure, should be combined with that of local knowledge by arranging for the execution of the works of improvement by the county surveyors (who are very competent officers), under the direction of a Government department. 26 Rural Roads. It is highly probable that if Parliament enacted that the management of the main roads should be dealt with by a national department, and that the local authorities should be bound to contribute to this department not more than the amount they now expend on the main roads, the department, with the aid of the county surveyors, would before many years put the roads into a condition satisfactory to all members of the community, and costing less for maintenance than the present expenditure. Most local authorities would be glad to give up the control of the main roads in their district, if they were assured of an improvement in their condition and were safeguarded against an increased charge on the local rates ; but in any case, as was pointed out in 1903 in the Report of the Departmental Committee previously referred to, local sentiment should not be the governing factor in this important matter. Government grants in aid of local taxation are not at present altogether satisfactory in their effect upon local adminis- tration. They do not stimulate most authorities to a fuller and more effective performance of their important duties, but are thrown into the general purse, which is too often unduly depleted for purposes much less important and of less general interest than the improvement of highways. An effort should be made to extricate the existing grants, so far as they originally referred to roads, from the fund for general purposes ; and the amount so retrieved and any new grants for a like purpose should be definitely applied towards the permanent improvement of main roads and a higher standard of maintenance. What is necessary as regards rural main roads in England and Wales could be effected by the definite application to them, out of the grants now made to local authorities, of a portion equal to about 2d. in the pound on the total assessable valuation, together with a new State grant of approximately equal amount. Up to 1888 the State paid half the cost of the maintenance of the main roads ; but this definite payment was then dis- continued, and certain revenues were assigned to the county authorities in lieu thereof. New Legislation Required. Legislation giving effect to these ideas and enabling land, required for new roads or for widening and improving existing highways, to be acquired in a simple, speedy, and economical way would be welcomed by all classes.1 At present no 1 In Scotland the County Councils have no powers to acquire land for these purposes. In England and Ireland the powers available are inconvenient and costly to put in force. New Legislation Required. 21 administrative ipachinery exists for the construction of new trunk roads. The procedure might be by Provisional Order of the Local Government Board, who might be authorised, on the petition of any one authority interested in the construction or improvement of a main road, to constitute a temporary Board to deal with the whole question throughout several districts or even counties. Wise legislation with regard to our highways is greatly needed, and it would have the following effects : — (1) A great improvement in the condition of the main roads. (2) A general improvement in trade and industries due to the increased facilities for transit afforded, the value of which would vastly outweigh the cost of the improvement of the roads. (3) An ultimate saving in the cost of road maintenance. (4) A practical cure of the mud and dust nuisance. (5) The employment of many labourers for a number of years on works, the result of the execution of which would be an increased demand for labour tending to settle the unem- ployed question. (6) An improvement in the facilities for moving troops and war materiel for the defence of the country against invasion. At present our roads cannot carry light traffic at high speeds nor very heavy traffic at any speed. The following preliminary steps should, however, be taken : — (a) To procure from the county surveyors accurate maps of all roads which might fairly be considered main or trunk lines, with particulars as to their width, gradients, and condition. ( b ) To determine, by means of an impartial and authori- tative body, what roads may properly be considered as of national importance. From the preliminary maps of the county surveyors, and the existing records of the Ordnance Department, a very valuable general map could be prepared, and with such a map and accompanying schedules of the present cost of road maintenance, the main features of an improved system would be apparent and its cost could be estimated with confidence. (c) To investigate the circumstances of all the county boroughs and urban districts as to the cost falling upon them for road maintenance, apart from scavenging and watering, and to prepare statistical tables to show the poundage on the assessable valuation due to such cost in every administrative area in the country. Without such information the financial questions as to grants and area of charge cannot be properly considered. 28 j Rural Roads . POWER-DRIYEN VEHICLES. The introduction of the bicycle in a practical form about 1880 directed public attention to the condition of the roads, but a further and immense stimulus in this direction has been produced by the invention of the motor car with pneumatic tyres. The need for better roads has become acute on account of the advent of the power-driven vehicle, which was rendered possible by the Locomotives on Highways Act, 1896, and there is now probably a greater unanimity of opinion than ever before existed in these islands that an improvement is desirable. Every new kind of carriage or waggon, including the bicycle, when first introduced, was strongly objected to on the ground that it would destroy the roads or be dangerous to the public. The new vehicles, however, have always gained the victory, though, in the -case of locomotives on roads, it was long delayed in Great Britain. The use of steam carriages on roads began about 1830, and was favourably reported on by a Parliamentary Committee in 1831, but although it was then confidently expected that the new vehicles would rapidly become established on a great scale, this hope was disappointed, mainly it is said, on account of the unfair opposition of persons interested in other methods of locomotion. Regarding this point, the Right Hon. Sir John H. A. Macdonald, K.C.B., Lord Justice Clerk of Scotland, gave most interesting evidence before the Royal Commission on Motor Cars, 1906, and set out the case for the abatement of the dust nuisance and encouragement of motor traffic in the following striking passage : — “ The dust question has become very prominent since the advent of the power-driven vehicle. To most it is a subject of bitter complaint. It will turn out that the awakening of the public mind to the problem of dust pre- vention, by the advent of the motor vehicle, will be in reality an ultimate blessing to the community, Dust is present on our public roads not because of the advent of the motor car, it was there before. The evil is not merely the throwing up of dust, the evil is having loose material on the road at all. Whether the loose material is dust or mud, it is not only an annoyance, but it is an evil from more than one point of view. It is an enemy to health, to vehicles, to horses, to pedestrians, and to vegetation, and a drag on commercial prosperity. It demanded the stimulus of a revival of the use of the roads to cause serious thought to be given to the subject. The mail coach days were the days of dust raising in clouds, as Bob Acres says on arriving at Bath, ‘Warm work on the road, Jack, odds whips and wheels ; I’ve travelled like, a comet with a tail of dust all the way as long as the Mall.’ “ So fearful was the nuisance on much frequented roads that pumps were provided at enormous cost at every few miles on the Bath road, which was watered daily in dry weather. “ But the stoppage of all fast horse traffic by the rivalry of the railways led to the question of the prevention of dust being shelved for seventy years. Now it is again before ns, and already invention has been stimulated and is far on the road to success. “ The free use of the power vehicles on the roads will confer the following among other benefits : — P ower-driven Vehicles. 29 “(1) A means of healthy recreation and health restoration to dwellers in crowded cities. “(2) A revival of road touring on a great scale, and consequent revival of the country inn, good custom to which brings prosperity in its locality. “(3) Convenient transit for passengers by which they can be taken up and set down at any point or house. “(4) Omnibus traffic in towns with reasonable acceleration, and a cessation of wearing-out cruelty to horses. “(5) Feeding the railways at points on the main lines without the use of branch lines. “(6) A great increase in the range of delivery of goods from door to door, and increased postal facilities. “(7) Mechanical traction for work on the land, ploughing, harrowing, reap- ing and carting both to markets and on the farm being done by one power machine and markets fifty miles off being reached in market hours. “ (8) Assisting to prevent the congestion of large towns. “ (9) Greatly improved sanitation by the elimination of foul matters from roads and streets. “ (10) The cheapening of transit by road for passengers and goods.” The other side of the question is ably set out in an article in the Quarterly Review , published in October, 1906, and was lately stated briefly by Mr. Hawkshaw, Past President of the Institution of Civil Engineers, who said he quite appreciated the advent of motors, and their great convenience and useful- ness, but it was no good overlooking the fact that motor traffic in its present stage had already done much to destroy the pleasures and comfort of country life. The Construction of Good Roads. The difference between a successful roadmaker and one who fails in his efforts is of the same kind as that apparently subtie, but, in truth, simple difference which exists between a good cook and a bad cook, a successful photographer and one who fails to obtain good pictures. The success or failure may be based upon the use of exactly the same materials and exactly the same appliances, but we all know the wonderful difference in the results. The success is due to precise and thorough attention to details, some of which appear to be unimportant, and the failure to the absence of such attention. Neither Telford nor Macadam originated the use of stones broken to a small and uniform size for the upper crust of roads, but they were the first men in the British Islands who, in professional labours, carried out effectively scientific views in road construction and maintenance. They were good cooks ; those who preceded them and many who followed them were bad cooks. Some of Macadam’s views, especially as to the foundations for roads, were quite erroneous and were vigorously challenged by his contemporaries. At his instance, macadam was sub- stituted for stone paving in some parts of London and, as might have been expected, proved quite unsuitable. As to 30 Rural Roads . road maintenance he was undoubtedly a great reformer, but he was by no means a scientific road engineer like Telford. Macadam’s views as to the uselessness of a foundation of large stones in all cases, cannot be upheld ; though such a foundation is not required if there is a dry free draining and incom- pressible road-bed such as is afforded by gravel or sand. He appears to have confounded plasticity with elasticity and to have overlooked the fact that the bending of a road necessarily involves increased draught and internal wear of the road crust. The enormous influence of Telford and Macadam and, to a minor extent, of Rennie, in the improvement of roads, appears to me to be due to their strong personal character and to their attention to the one main idea — uniformity , which, though not exactly expressed in any of their writings, was the important factor which differentiated their work from that of the earlier roadmakers, and also from that of many roadmakers of the present day. There was little difference in reality between the practice of Telford and Macadam in regard to the maintenance of roads, and Macadam’s great success was due to the unselfish zeal and persistence with which he urged his views. What is required for a good road, which should be clean, hard, and even at all seasons of the year, is a free draining or hard impervious foundation and practical uniformity in shape, in gradient between moderate limits, in drainage, in strength of coat, and in quality and size of materials. If those who have charge of our roads would keep before them the watch- word, “ Uniformity,” with, perhaps, in addition, the ruling motto, “ the maximum of beauty,” which guided a very successful French roadmaker, M. Dumas, Engineer-in-Chief of the Ponts et Chaussees in 1843, we might, in a few years, obtain on most of our roads a vastly improved surface. Yet, too frequently, we find in the present day great stretches of road, the subsoil of which has never been properly drained and the shape of which varies greatly and is at few points right, repaired with carelessly selected materials, carelessly applied, and carelessly dealt with after application. The most fatal errors in connection with road making are the use of stones of uneven sizes, and the application of mud. to patches. What is wanted on all macadam roads, whether the steam roller is used or not, is that the stones should as quickly as possible become consolidated into a kind of mosaic of uniform strength with the least possible proportion of soft materials. With or without steam rolling, stones with dimensions of more than two and a half inches soon present knobby projections above the average level, and are starting points of destructive wear and waste which increase in a compound interest way. The Construction of Good Roads. 31 Stones two and a half inches in their greatest dimension represent cubes with a side of about an inch and a half. The old roads in the pre-macadam days of the Grand Juries of Ireland, and of Mr. Abercombie, in Scotland, were said to be repaired with broken stones the size of a turkey’s egg, which, with the old-fashioned kind of turkey, was probably about right. Absolutely no mud should be put upon patches of broken stone unless it is desired to form a new and bad road crust on top of the old road cru^t. Stones mixed up with mud will not work into the old road crust. Another vitally important operation for the maintenance of good roads in a really efficient manner is the removal of dust in the summer and of mud in the winter as quickly as it is formed. An eminent sanitarian lately stated with respect to the streets of London that one pound of dust, with the addition of water, produces seven pounds of mud. The removal of dust and mud should be effected by almost continuous cross sweeping, which is the only remedy for the tendency of soft roads to track in wet weather. Sweeping and scraping by horse-drawn machines is not so satisfactory as hand sweeping, unless frequently and carefully done. Sweeping is often much more useful, even in winter, than the application of broken stones. Where steam rolling is not used, all the materials should be spread in the last three months of the year, and the possible necessity for additional stones during a wet summer prevented by skilful manual labour. Roads cannot be satisfactorily maintained without constant attention, which is best secured by putting short lengths in charge of efficient surface men. It should be noted with great care what road maintenance means. It means preventing the road from ever getting bad ; it does not mean allowing it to get bad and then in a desperate and impossible manner trying to make it good again. Except when stones are being spread or channels cleared out it is difficult for the ordinary passer- by to see, with proper road maintenance, the importance of what the surface men are doing. The true principle of their work is the “ stitch in time.” A good surface man is, however, a rare thing. It is of the utmost importance that hedges and trees, especially on the southern side of the road, should be pruned and cut, so that the sun and wind, which are great aids in road-maintenance in our climate, may have free access to the surface. Road Foundations. A good foundation is essential for every road which is to carry heavy traffic, but there has been much confusion of thought as to how such a foundation can be secured. 32 Mural Roads. Telford did not, as is popularly supposed, invariably use a paved foundation for macadam roads, but suited his methods to the special local conditions, and 920 miles of roads which he constructed in Scotland for the Government were formed without pitching or paving. The subsoil or road bed is the real foundation, and if this is dry, uniform, and well drained no special foundation courses are required, but only a moderate thickness of crust. Mr. Thomas Codrington, at one time Superintendent of Welsh Highways, carried out some most interesting experi- ments which showed that the load on a wheel is transmitted to the subsoil or foundation by a portion of the road crust roughly of the form of a truncated pyramid, the sides of which are inclined at an angle of about 45° with the horizontal plane. This simple fact explains why a traction engine wheel often breaks through a road, though the load per inch of width of the wheel is not so great as that on a cart wheel, and it also explains how increased strength is obtained by thickening the road crust. In the first case the area of the bottom of the truncated pyramid is not proportionally much greater than the area of its top ; in the latter case the bottom area considerably exceeds that on which the cart wheel bears. A road requires such a thickness of road crust and foundation courses as will lead to a distribu- tion of the load over an area of subsoil sufficient to carry it without sensible compression, and the actual area required for a given load depends in most cases not only on the nature of the subsoil, but also on the degree to which it is drained and protected from the access of water. The distribution of the load is evidently dependent not only on the thickness of the road, but also on the extent to which the crust is consolidated, as with a well-knit crust the angle of distribution is flattened. In the construction of modern roads a hard set pitching or pavement is not generally used as a foundation for macadam roads, though it may be adopted with great advantage if the subsoil is of a clayey nature and suitable stones are easily procurable. In Great Britain and on the Continent roads are now generally made with a rolled bottoming or foundation course of large but uniformly sized stones, about six inches deep, laid on the subsoil (after it has been well drained and rolled) and covered by a layer of broken stones, two inches in size, rolled to a finished thickness of six inches. A layer about three inches thick of gravel, clinkers, or ashes is sometimes first laid on the road bed to separate the bottoming from the subsoil if it is soft or retentive of water. Concrete makes an excellent foundation for a macadam road, but its cost is almost prohibi- tive except in cities and in connection with block paving and asphalt. Foundations ; Drainage ; Materials. 33 The vehicles which try the foundations of roads most severely are traction engines, and the law regarding them is in much need of revision. In the opinion of Mr. Maybury, the County Surveyor of Kent, where 170 traction engines are regularly at work, there is now no economic necessity for such appliances, owing to the advent of the heavy motor ; and it is to be hoped that, if traffic with traction engines is to be continued, they will ere long be improved by the application of the “ Pedrail,” or otherwise, in order to reduce the damage they now cause by tearing up the road surface and deforming or breaking through the road crust. A traction engine con- centrates weight and forces tangential to the road surface to a much greater extent than any other vehicle. Drainage. The drainage of the subsoil and surface of roads, though a matter of the very greatest importance, seldom receives sufficient attention and is rendered difficult in Great Britain because a sufficient width has seldom been secured or retained for the roads. On many miles of our highways the cost of special piped drains laid under the centre of the road for subsoil and surface drainage would be amply repaid by a decrease in the cost of maintenance. Open drains are out of the question in most cases and should not be tolerated on the road sides except where separated from the travelling way by a fence or wide sodded margin. When closed drains are used, the outlets for surface water should be of a simple, safe, and strong design, with detritus pits and hinged gratings. According to evidence given by Sir John Macneil in 1831 before the Select Committee on Steam Carriages, the wear on a portion of a road on a wet clay bottom was found, by accurate experiment, to be eight times as much as the wear on another portion of the same road with a solid dry foundation. Quality and Size of Materials. For the lower layers in road construction any moderately hard stones may be used, but for the upper layers which form the working surface it is true economy to take every pains to obtain materials which are hard, tough, and impervious. The best materials are certain kinds of granite (many granites are too soft for macadam), syenite, diorite, and basalt. For the upper crust of roads the stones should be broken to pass in any direction through a ring not exceeding two and a half inches in diameter. In Mr. Wheeler’s paper already referred to, particulars are set out of the great saving made in the maintenance of roads by the use of granite, costing 13s. 6d. per ton, instead of local materials costing less than VOL. 67. D 34 Rural Roads. half that price. In Gloucestershire it is now found that it is much more expensive to use local materials obtainable at 3s. 6d. a ton than to use better materials at 14s. 6d. a ton. It is of the utmost importance that the stones should be evenly sized, and all pieces markedly larger and smaller than the required size should be screened out. If stones of different sizes or qualities are used in the same layer it is practically impossible to secure a uniform coat, and without uniformity in the road crust the preservation of a smooth surface during wear cannot be hoped for. A return to the use of forks or pronged shovels instead of ordinary shovels for lifting and spreading broken stones is well worthy of consideration. Sur- veyors are divided in their opinions as to whether stones broken by hand or by machinery are best adapted for the repair of roads. No general rule can be laid down, but if the jaws of the stone-breaking machine are kept in good order and fed with properly sledged pieces of sound stone, not inclined, as some special stones are, to break into fiat or long pieces, and if suitable screens are attached to the stone-breaker, there is no doubt that greater uniformity in size and shape is obtainable than with hand breaking. Moreover, the fact must be faced that the hand stone-breaker is almost extinct. Importance of Uniformity in Cross Section. The importance of having a nearly uniform cross section from fence to fence for the whole length of a road cannot be overestimated. The exact section itself is of minor importance, but that of the travelling way is better flat than too round, as drainage along the road is much more effective than cross drainage, and no amount of cross curvature will drain off water from a rut on a road. The water channels should, as specified sixty years ago, be at the same levels on both sides of the road and should be as small as possible ; and where there is no foot- path the margins should be neatly dressed to true lines and so that they may be slightly higher than the road and have a slope thereto, pipes being formed where necessary under the footpath or margin to drain the channels. If there is a deep water channel or excessive cross curvature or a grip or open ditch on one side of the road and within the fences, the road will not wear evenly ; but with a road properly formed there is no reason why one portion of the road should receive much more wear than another, and if, at night, a wheel gets beyond the travelling way no accident occurs. Patches applied without steam rolling should be of moder- ate size, of a length about equal to the width of the road, and of a width of about one-third thereof, and should be laid down zig-zag, so that a horse may travel along the road without Road Rolling. 35 putting his foot upon a loose stone. With such spreading the wheels take the edges and corners of the patches, and they are speedily consolidated at a level approximating to that of the old surface, without the use of any blinding material. Road Rolling. The rolling of roads by horse power was advocated by John Shotbolte in 1619, Robert Phillips in 1736, M. de Cessart in 1787, and P. H. Clay in 1817 ; and the most strenuous and effective advocate of this process was Sir John Burgoyne, the first Chairman of the Irish Board of Works, who a few years after it had found favour in France issued an excellent paper on the subject in 1843. The repair of roads by means of a steam roller was com- menced in Paris about the year 1864, and in England a few years later. It is best effected by sheeting a considerable length of roadway with stones of uniform strength and size. The stones should not be larger than 'those used for ordinary patching, and the consolidation of the sheeting, which should not exceed at most four inches in depth, should be secured by rolling in such a manner as to ensure the rapid and, as far as possible, full consolidation of the sharp angled pieces of stones with the minimum quantity of what is called “ blinding.” It is very important in the repair of roads with a steam roller to have the stones of moderate and uniform size. If they are not so, it is impossible to compact them to the extent required, and the longer they are rolled the more difficult consolidation often becomes, especially if the stones are, as they should be, of uniformly good quality. The road mender is then forced to throw on excessive quantities of soft material, and the result is a most unsatisfactory road crust, which wears unevenly and throws up excessive quantities of mud. With well applied rolling a saving of about one-third of the materials can be effected, less cleaning is required, the torture of loose stones is obviated, and a smooth and easily maintainable road surface is quickly secured. All steam rolling should be carried on under the constant supervision of a responsible person, who can be trusted to do exactly what his chief has directed. Without such supervision a roller gang will usually hurry over their work and produce most disappointing results. When the writer started steam rolling in 1894 in the county of Down, he put the steam rollers in charge of young civil engineers, who stood by them during all working hours, and furnished returns each day of the amount of stones, blinding, and water used. He insisted that a long straight-edge and spirit level should be carried with each roller, and gradually induced the men to believe that 36 Rural Roads. the use of the straight-edge and level is necessary to secure a uniform cross section. The surface on which the stones are to be laid should, as far as possible, be made uniform as regards drainage, shape, and consolidation, and the stones spread as nearly as may be of uniform depth. The coating should be thoroughly rolled dry and without the admixture of any blinding, though scarifying or wetting the old surface slightly to secure rapid incorpora- tion is sometimes desirable in light coating. The dry rolling should be continued until the stones show a markedly mosaic appearance, and then, and not till then, the smallest possible quantity of blinding should be applied by making up a slurry, like very thin mortar, in the road channel and sweeping it towards the centre as rolling proceeds from each side. The quantity of dry blinding should never exceed about 5 per cent, of the quantity of stones to which it is applied with ordinary depths of coating. The one thing to bear in mind is that to secure the best work practically no blinding should pass below the top layer of stones ; it should merely fill the fine joints already secured by dry rolling. The quality of blinding to be used with steam rolling should be very carefully considered. The writer tried all kinds except the nearly pure vegetable soil, which is frequently used with disastrous effects ; and he is of opinion that the best blinding obtainable is old road mud from which the softer materials have been washed and weathered away. New road mud contains too great a proportion of soft and organic matters for use as blinding. Very fine stone screenings also make good blinding, but it should always be remembered that it is not so much “ blinding ” as “ binding ” or joint closing which is required. Kleinpflaster and Brick-paving. In a perfect macadam surface stones of equal size and strength lie closely packed together with a very fine network of joints thinly masked with hardened mud worn from the stones. Such a surface can only be obtained by placing the stones by hand on a carefully prepared and equally consoli- dated foundation, in the way that almost everlasting footpaths have been formed by setting on edge by hand on a uniform foundation narrow chips of stone or flat waterworn pebbles of nearly uniform size. This method is called “ Hornizing ” in Scotland, and it was someivhat closely followed in forming roads, with a minimum of soft material in the road crust, in the Province of Hanover, where there are few quarries, at a cost of only from 10 to 20 per cent, over that for a new coating of ordinary macadam, and with most satisfactory and economical results. In 1895 fifty-two miles of roads had been Road Pavements. 37 improved in this way ; the earliest portions of the work, ten years old, were then in good order, and it was proposed to lay fifteen and a half miles more in the same way. In this work the old macadam surface was first carefully levelled up and solidly rolled with any necessary amount of new metal and the surface stones set thereon in a half-inch bed of sand or fine gravel. These stones were dressed approximately to the form of cubes two and a half inches to three inches in the side. In practice, it was found that exactness of shape is not essential, but that special attention must be given to secure a good uniform foundation and that adjacent stones should have the same thickness. The system is equally applicable to the formation of new roads or the improvement of a worn-down macadam road, and is known as “ klein- pflaster,” or small paving, in Germany, and more recently in England as “armoured macadam.” Usually the joints are filled with sand, but unless it is of high specific gravity or possesses coherent qualities, it is apt to be displaced in dry weather. In Liverpool, pitch grouting has been found most satisfactory with kleinpfi aster. The Welsh Granite Co., Carnarvon, have lately introduced special machinery for the preparation of the stones used in this kind of construction. It is almost certain, having regard to experience with brick pavements, gained in Holland and in America, that excellent results at a moderate cost could be obtained in Great Britain by the use of small cubical bricks for kleinpflaster work, and there is a very hopeful field for investigation in this direction, as, with modern grinding and mixing machinery and brick kilns, bricks of great uniformity can be obtained. Roads with brick pavements are generally preferred in Holland, and they are very extensively used in the United States, where their cost, including a concrete foundation, is 6s. to 7s. a square yard. Professor Ira 0. Baker states that bricks made from shale are best, that brick pavements are adapted for all gradients, wear smoothly, and have been found to stand heavy traffic for more than ten years most satisfactorily.1 Road Pavements. A perfect pavement for roads and streets has not yet been obtained. The ideal pavement should be smooth to the wheel and rough to the hoof, almost noiseless and impervious, so that it may not absorb dirty water and, when drying, give off offensive emanations. The pavement of the future appears to be an asphaltic pavement containing a sufficient amount of grit or sharp sand to remove the difficulty often felt as to foothold for horses, which difficulty can be dealt 1 See Public Works , Vol. IV., No. 3. 38 Rural Roads. with in most cases by ample cleansing with water. Much may be done to improve this foothold by the use of india- rubber shoes or, as another authority suggests, by allowing the frog of the horse to reach the road surface. Macadam is quite unsuitable for use in towns when the traffic is at all heavy, and should be replaced by more solid and impervious material when the cost of the maintenance of the macadam exceeds about a shilling per square yard per annum. Stone pavements are durable and are much more easily cleansed than macadam, but are too noisy for use near dwellings. Next to asphalt, the pavement which is most nearly what is desired for use in town streets is wood paving, which should be of hard wood and laid directly on a carefully prepared concrete foundation. The costs of stone paving, wood paving, and asphalt paving of the best descriptions are approximately the same, and considerations other than those of cost, therefore, determine their selection. The draught on asphalt roadways is only two-thirds of that on stone setts, and only from one-fifth to two-fifths of that on macadam surfaces of the ordinary kind, according to their condition. The best kind of asphalt paving used in Europe is obtained in the natural form of rock, which is reduced to powder, laid hot, and compressed by rolling or trowelling. A cheaper kind is more artificial in its character and is laid in a semi-fluid condition. The objection to both these kinds of asphalt is that in certain conditions of the weather the surface becomes slippery, and it is not even with the greatest care suitable for steep gradients. It is, however, a perfectly sanitary pavement, preventing the pollu- tion of the subsoil and the upward passage of foul ground air, is easily cleansed with water, and dries rapidly. Objection has been taken to the fact that it seals the ground surface and may lead to a greater access of foul ground air to the houses on the sides of the street ; but this objection has no cogency if all such houses have, as they ought to have, an impervious stratum below the lowest floor to shut off the ground air. Asphaltic pavements are comparatively noiseless, the only sound on them being that of the horses’ feet, which is not greater than is desirable for the safety of pedestrians. In this respect it is practically the same as hard wood paving. The question may then be asked, Why is asphalt not more generally used ? The true answer appears to be first that municipal authorities in Great Britain have not yet seen their way to provide properly for the cleansing by water of the surface of the streets ; and, secondly, that the owners of horses adhere in the most conservative manner to the iron shoe, the origin of which is lost in the mists of antiquity. Asphaltic Asphaltic and Wood Pavements. 39 roadways are more easily repaired than any other kind of pavement. Wood paving, with its numerous joints and comparatively soft and elastic surface is satisfactory as regards noise and foothold for horses, though in certain conditions of the atmosphere it may become quite as slippery as asphalt, and it is not adapted for steep gradients. It has the tremendous drawback that it is porous and does not dry rapidly unless treated very carefully with creosote or other materials which are used to close to some extent the pores of the wood and prevent its decay. In spite of such precautions, and to some extent on account of them, the dust from streets with wood pavement is very offensive and irritating to the eyes and throat in long-continued dry weather. Breaches made in wood paving are difficult to repair in a neat and satisfactory manner ; and as it is also a matter of the utmost difficulty to secure blocks with uniformity of resistance to wear, it is remarkable that wood paving should retain the hold it has on the favour of many city engineers. It is supposed to have an advantage over asphalt paving when tram rails are laid in streets, but in Berlin, and elsewhere, tramways have been successfully laid in asphaltic paving, with and without lines of stone alongside the rails. In Australia, whence come the hard woods most in favour for street paving for heavy traffic, wood paving was stated to be practically discarded a few years ago. In America brick paving and a special kind of asphalt are in general use in preference to the forms of paving most commonly used in Europe. The modern American asphaltic work is carried out with natural bitumen obtained in Trinidad, where a large deposit of this valuable material is found in a comparatively small area from which, between the years 1893 and 1902, about a million tons of bitumen have been obtained, mainly for paving works in America, but partly for use as an insulating material. Professor Louis, of the Armstrong College, estimates that the supply is not inexhaustible, but that there should be about fifteen million tons of bitumen remaining in the Pitch Lake, which is the principal source of supply, and has an area of about 140 acres. In forming asphaltic roadways in America, from 12 to 15 per cent, of refined Trinidad bitumen is mixed with 70 to 80 per cent, of sand and 5 to 15 per cent, of lime- stone dust. These materials are heated and stirred together into a stiff mastic paste, which is laid two inches thick on top of a first layer of finer stuff of the same nature, applied to the concrete foundation to unite the wearing surface thereto and prevent “ creeping.” This process requires great judgment and experience, but the same may be said of any street pavement 40 Rural Roads. work. It should also be noted that in America these asphaltic pavements are sometimes formed with blocks instead of with sheets of asphalt laid in situ. The great feature of this American asphalt work is the comparative freedom from slipperiness that is said to result from the admixture of sharp sand, and this freedom is really the only quality in which asphaltic pavements as hitherto constructed in Europe are seriously deficient. Mr. E. North, C.E., states that in New York traffic has abandoned 93rd Street, which has a gradient of 1 in 20 and is paved with granite, for 94th Street, which is paved with asphalt and has a gradient of 1 in 17. This system is now said to be making headway in England, though early experiments with it failed, probably on account of the want of the detailed care so necessary but hard to secure in connection with roadmaking. The writer was lately struck by the good appearance of some asphaltic footways in the city of Waterford, and spoke about them to the city engineer. He stated that they were made by an old foreman, who died some years ago, and that the loss of this man, whose heart was thoroughly in his work though he was always as black as the pitch he dealt with, had made it impossible to secure work of the same kind of equal quality and durability. The personal equation is nowhere of more importance than in connection with road work. The man is always of as much importance as the method. The writer would here draw attention to the fact that any person can use upon the public highways vehicles constructed in the most ramshackle manner, which, as regards noise, are instruments of torture to other people, and that there is now no limitation in the statutes as to the minimum width of tyres of cart wheels. The width of tyres can be regulated in England and Wales by bye-laws under the Highways and Locomotives Act, 1878, and in Scotland under the Roads and Bridges Act, 1878, but there is no power to make such bye-laws in Ireland. If all vehicles were constructed in a rational manner, with springs and simple arrangements to keep down jar and clatter between parts of the vehicle, it might then be possible, even without a great improvement in our roadways, to reduce the noise of traffic very considerably ; and if farmers and carters were constrained to use wheels with a width of tyre of about four inches, it would be much easier to keep macadam surfaces in good order. The extra cost of such wheels would be about 30s. a pair at most. Great public benefit would result if it were enacted that by, say, January 1, 1910, all carts with the present knife-like wheel edges should be illegal throughout the kingdom, and, further, that all vehicles intended for use in towns should be reasonably constructed with a view to save The Dust Nuisance. 41 the roadway from unnecessary jolts and abrasion and the ears of the people from avoidable stress and strain. The Dust Nuisance. The dust nuisance and the insufficiency of the highways in the British Islands for rapid or very heavy traffic being the difficulties which road reformers are seeking to overcome, it is advisable to consider briefly what has been done or proposed to secure the needed improvements. The motor car has come to stay. In its heavy form it concentrates heavier loads on the foundations of roads than ordinary vehicles impose, and in its lighter and more rapid forms it causes the dust nuisance. To remedy the dust nuisance it is necessary to take special pains by careful construction and maintenance that the roads shall be as dustless as possible. This, with ordinary macadam, can, in many places, be effected by the cross sweeping, which is a necessary part of good road maintenance. On very important lines there would be little difficulty in applying, for the removal of dust, a pneumatic machine similar to that now used to extract dust from carpets and house furniture. The makers of motor cars should continue to direct their careful attention to an investigation of the best form of cars, wheels, and tyres, for lessening or preventing the fanning and suction action which raises the dust. The action of a car in this respect depends not only on the form of the carriage, but also on the way the springs are fixed and the steadiness in running of the engine. The absolute cure for the dust nuisance would be the use of (a) macadam fixed by tar or a similar binding material of better quality ; (V) kleinpflaster, otherwise known as hand-set or armoured macadam ; or (c) brick or stone pavement. Roads constructed with these materials are easily cleaned, and motor cars can be propelled on them with the minimum tractive force, and, as a matter of course, travel more smoothly on them than on the best ordinary macadam surfaces. It appears to be idle to try to find a cheap liquid material which will fix or keep down dust on an unscientifically constructed road surface ; the cost of such materials would be better expended in making a permanent improvement in the road crust. Those in charge of our highways may be fairly expected to give special care, in the interest of motorists and the public generally, to the proper banking up of the road on the outer side of curves and to keeping hedges and trees well cut down at the same points, and near cross roads, to enable the road to be seen as fully as is possible for some distance ahead. Roads may be so banked up at curves without any disadvantage to ordinary traffic and without adding to the trouble or cost of maintenance. In any case, all deep channels and low sides 42 Rural Roads. should be abolished. On the kind of road surface which the general public are entitled to demand, side slips should be rarely experienced. It is moreover most desirable that the travelling way should be widened at cross roads, and the roads joined by easy curves. All main roads should have footpaths or wide grass margins. It was lately proposed to construct special motor roads to join London, Southampton, Portsmouth, Brighton, and Dover, the main line being from London to Dover, of a length of forty-three miles, with branches fifty-seven miles and sixty-six miles long. A company bearing the title, “Motor Roads, Ltd.,” was registered with respect to this project on September 30, 1905, with a capital of 150,000?. Nothing definite had then been decided upon as to the road surface or charges for the use of the road. The Royal Commission on Motor Cars, in their valuable Report, issued in 1906, deal at considerable length with this question, but give no very definite recommendation as to the course of action which should be adopted or the detailed .methods which should be employed for its solution. As their conclusions closely confirm the opinions on the subject originally formulated by the writer in 1905, he ventures to quote from the Report as follows : — “ There is no doubt at all about the dust nuisance ; during the summer months it exists more or less on all frequented roads, but more particularly on the great main roads and within a radius of thirty or forty miles of London, and it causes material damage, discomfort, and annoyance to users of, and dwellers by, the highways. ... It was generally admitted, and we have no doubt of the fact, that pneumatic tyres of motor cars from their suction and the propelling action of the driving wheels, are especially liable to lift up dust lying on the road and to draw out the binding of the road, particularly if the binding is originally of a loose and inferior description. . . . There seemed to be a general belief, in which we concur, that a car standing high from the ground, with a clear smooth run for the draught beneath it, is the build calculated to produce least dust. . . . Speaking generally, we came to the conclusion that at a speed below ten miles an hour the dust raised is compara- tively slight, that it increases very greatly however at from, say, twelve to twenty miles an hour, and continues to increase but in a smaller proportion at higher speeds. . . . There is no doubt that a well-constructed road made of hard stone, carefully laid on a good foundation, with proper filling or binding material, and well rolled, will produce far less dust than a poorly constructed road, made with some soft or unsuitable stone of the district and filled in with road scrapings or other unsatisfactory binding, as is often the case. . . . “Generally speaking, the evidence suggests that the best type of macadam will probably be found the most effective and economical road for all kinds of traffic, including both heavy and light motor cars. In localities where (a) exceptionally heavy vehicles and loads are common, e.g., in the neighbour- hoods of large manufacturing towns, or where (V) precautions against dust are exceptionally necessary, specific treatment was suggested. When provision is to be made for exceptionally heavy traffic some harder and more durable and therefore more costly pattern of road would have to be employed. In this connection the system of armouring a metalled road surface with stone blocks, Tar Macadam 43 known in Germany as kleinpflaster and in Liverpool as random setts, is, in our opinion well worthy of careful consideration ' by road authorities. It was alluded to more than once in the course of the evidence by the principal road experts we had before us, who had themselves examined it, and it was always characterised as a most effective form of strengthening existing roads up to the standard of real efficiency for the carrying of heavy traffic. The method of laying it in Germany and the cost of labour and material are given in detail in Captain Bigham’s Eeport on Roads. “To meet the cases of towns and villages traversed by dusty main roads, some adaptation of the French tarring process has been suggested, and details of the method used and the cost are given in Captain Bigham’s Report. Although such a system would be too expensive for application on all main roads, involving, as we are told it would, an annual cost of from 40 1. to 50 l. a mile for an 18-ft. road, yet if applied in such localities only as we have mentioned the price might not be thought too great for such an effective remedy. Road authorities in several parts of England have experimented on short lengths with tar, tar-mac (a road material composed of iron slag broken small and boiled in tar), Westrumite, and other dust preventives ; but these experiments have not been on a sufficiently large scale or carried on long enough to afford any satisfactory information as to their success or cost.” Tarring, Tar Macadam, &c. Tar macadam has been used from time to time in the British Islands for many years, and the use of tar applied to the surface of paths and roads, which the Commission calls the French tarring process, was practised by some English surveyors long ago. The Report of Captain Bigham referred to is an admirable one, and in it the cost of kleinpflaster is given at 4s. 9 d. a square yard when laid on an old macadam road, and 7s. when laid on what is usually known as a Telford foundation seven inches deep, first overlaid by three inches of small broken stone. The total cost for a mile of new road eighteen feet wide would therefore be 3,663Z., and for armouring an old road 2,529 1. This cost per mile appears to be quite within the resources of urban authorities, and it would not be extravagant to use armoured macadam on some rural main roads, as the reduced cost for maintenance and cleansing would meet, to a great extent if not entirely, the interest and sinking fund on the cost of the improvement. The only other material for the cheap construction of road crusts, suitable to the needs of the present time on main roads, is tar macadam, of which tar-mac may be considered as a special variety, with some advantages due to the porosity of the slag, but somewhat likely to wear irregularly on account of want of uniformity in strength. Tar macadam can in some localities be laid four inches thick for about 2s. per square yard, but the cost per square yard for laying it, in 1905, six inches thick on the Victoria Embankment, where the results were not altogether satisfactory, is stated at from 4s. 6(7. to 5s. 3 d. per square yard by the Engineer to the London County Council. There are two serious difficulties in connection with tar 44 Rural Roads. macadam which have led to a great variety in the results hitherto obtained : first, the necessity for dry weather during the execution of the work ; secondly, the varying qualities of tar, which is a highly complex substance. If over-distilled it loses its binding qualities, and if under-distilled it softens in warm weather. Moreover much of the tar produced with modern systems of gas making, is not of a kind well adapted for tar macadam ; and on the whole, though this kind of treatment has given most satisfactory results where skilfully applied in good weather, it requires very careful experimental in- vestigations such as are now being carried out by the Roads Improvement Association, before it can be considered quite satisfactory or reliable. The life of tar macadam is about twice that of ordinary macadam and it requires to be re-surfaced in two to ten years according to the traffic. Tar-mac laid at Newark showed no sign of wear after being subjected to very heavy traffic for two years. Mr. Aitken, of Cupar, Fife, a most successful highway engineer, and the author of one of the most modern books on roads, has lately invented a tar-spraying machine, using compressed air, with which he hopes to be able to prepare tar macadam, and to apply tar to the surface of finished roads at a trifling cost. Mr. A. G-ladwell, Surveyor to the Eton Rural District Council, lately reported that he is obtaining excellent results in re-coating roads by rolling clean granite into a bed of fine stone chippings, about three-quarters of an inch thick, mixed with tar. He states that under the roller the tarred mixture is forced upwards, thus filling the joints in the granite coating in a satisfactory manner, and that owing to the ease and rapidity with which the work can be done, and the saving of watering when rolling, no extra cost is involved in laying the improved coating. Many experiments have been made to secure a thin waterproof and durable skin or coat on the top of macadam, but the prospects of success in this direction appear to the author to be slight. What engineers are in. need of is a material of moderate cost, better than tar, for use as a binder or matrix for macadam ; and the writer believes that if chemists experimented with Trinidad bitumen and other similar substances, what is required might soon be found. Mr. Brodie, the City Engineer of Liverpool, has already attained a considerable degree of success in this direc- tion. The use of Portland cement as a binding material was tried many years ago, and it appears to be worthy of new trials ; but obviously with such a rigid binder it would be necessary to have a very rigid foundation. It is stated that concrete pavements for heavy traffic have been thoroughly tested with good results in Chicago and Denver during the last two years. List of Publications r. 45 When the horse is finally driven from our highways there will be no objection to surfaces only rough enough to give a grip for driving wheels ; but in the meantime, and for many years to come, unless there is a rapid and general change in the method of shoeing horses, the requirements of the users of ordinary carts and carriages must be considered. Very valuable experimental work is now in progress in the counties of Middlesex and Kent, on some of the main roads, which, under the present administration, are being rapidly raised to a high standard of excellence ; and as the roads in these counties are particularly subjected to heavy motor traffic of all kinds, this pioneer work is worthy of the most careful attention by those interested in our roads. A very simple instrument called “The Viagraph” has been invented by Mr. John Brown, F.R.S., Belfast, for taking an autographic record of road surfaces, and by its use accurate information can be readily obtained as to the relative values of various methods and materials for road construction and maintenance. In conclusion, the writer desires to express the opinion that a paper of this kind, on so great a subject, cannot adequately deal with the questions involved. The principal value it may conceivably have is to attract the attention of thinkers to important phases of the problems under consideration, so that they may investigate them with some degree of thoroughness, and, having attained a sure faith, strive, according to their opportunities and powers, to exemplify it in good works. There is in the subject a great opportunity for legislative and administrative ability. p p COWAN Local Government Board, Dublin. Short List of Publications regarding Roads, to which Reference is recommended. A Treatise cm Roads , by Sir Henry Parnell, published in 1833. A Practical Treatise on Malting and Repairing Roads , by Edmund Leahy, published in 1847. The Maintenance of Macadamised Roads, by Thomas Codrington, M.Inst.C.E., 1892. Pavements and Roads , “ Engineering and Building Record,” New York, 1890. Special Consular Reports on Streets and Highways in Foreign Countries , published by The United States Government in 1891. Highway Construction, by A. T. Byrne (publishers, John Wiley & Sons, New York). Road-malting and Maintenance, by Thomas Aitken, M.lnst. C.E., published by Charles Griffin & Co., London, in 1900. (New Edition in the Press.) The Construction of Roads, Paths, and Sea Defences, by Frank Latham, published by the Sanitary Publishing Co., London. Valuable articles will also be found in the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers and the Incorporated Association of Municipal and County Engineers. 46 Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance. THE APPLICATION OF MENDEL’S LAWS OF INHERITANCE TO BREEDING PROBLEMS. In consequence of the re-discovery of Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance,1 published originally as far back as 1865, attention has again been called to the scientific study of breeding problems. Investigations are now being pushed forward by many workers, and the extraordinary certainty with which the complex problems of heredity can be unravelled has shown that the hopes of a few years ago, that breeding would become a precise subject, are rapidly being realised. Of the man directly responsible for this, Gregor Johann Mendel, we know singularly little. He was born in the Austrian Silesia at Heinzendorf, in July, 1822. In 1843, he entered the Augustine convent at Altbriinn as a novice, becom- ing a priest in 1847. From 1853 to 1868 he was teaching natural science in the Briinn Realschule. Whilst so engaged he carried out numerous experiments in cross-breeding, using many kinds of plants for the purpose. With the exception of his classical experiments with peas, which led him to enunciate the now well-known laws, the existing records of these are fragmentary, and beyond some preliminary investigations on beans and Hieracia, we know nothing further of them than is contained in a short series of letters sent to the German biologist, Nageli. These letters have recently been published by Correns, but unfortunately they reveal next to nothing of the man himself. In 1868 he became Abbot of Briinn, and shortly afterwards he appears to have abandoned his scientific work. He died in 1884, an unknown man as far as the scientific world was concerned. His work was not re-discovered until 1900, but in the few years that have passed since then its influence has been so far reaching that it has completely altered our outlook in more than one branch of the study of genetics. On its re-discovery six years ago, many experiments were started to determine whether Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance were of general application. The majority of these have been concerned with plants, but investigations have also been carried 1 See “ Experiments with Wheat and Barley Hybrids illustrating Mendel’s Laws of Heredity.” Journal K.A.S.E., Vol. 65, 1901, pp. 337-315. Their Application to Live Stock. 47 out with certain characters in the following animals : poultry, mice, rabbits, guinea-pigs, sheep, and horses. Indirect evidence has also been obtained from pigeons, canaries, snails, and silkworms. Even in the case of man himself it seems probable that certain characteristics can be shown to be inherited on Mendelian lines. Such a list is sufficient to show that these principles are of far-reaching consequence ; it is clear that they are going to prove of vast importance to the great breeding industry which has become so essential a part of our modern agriculture. The time has not yet come when cut and dried formulae for breeding “ to order ” any particular type can be given ; but there is no reason why the breeder should not take into account the facts which have already accumulated and endeavour to utilise them in practice. If this is possible, and in my judgment there is no question of it, the value of such work will be almost inestimable. The simple statement that the stock of this country is valued at some four hundred and fifty million pounds 1 sterling is enough to make it obvious that even the slightest improvements must in the aggregate represent an enormous gain. The improvement of stock has ever been the aim of our stock breeders. Thanks to their efforts our agriculture is now in a far sounder position than otherwise would have been the case, and we can still export the finest of live stock to all parts of the world at a profit to ourselves. The signs are not wanting, however, that the foreigner is gradually invading what has hitherto been one of our preserves, and it remains to be seen whether the ingrained experience of centuries in this sort of work will enable our agriculturists to retain the lead they have held so long. If the breeders will only add scientific methods to their extraordinary and almost instinctive knowledge of the features of first class stock, this position can be retained. It is in the hopes of giving some idea of how scientific methods can be employed in the raising of live stock that this article is written. It attempts to do no more than this, for the problems of the breeder are not to be solved except by specialists in each particular breed, who alone have the requisite knowledge to attempt such work profitably. Experiments with different varieties of wheat. — The essen- tial features of Mendel’s discoveries can be readily illustrated by following out the results of crossing together varieties of wheat differing from one another in certain characteristics. For the sake of simplicity two varieties differing in one respect only will be first considered. These are chosen in preference to 1 “ The Breeding Industry : Its Value to the Country, and its Needs.” By Walter Heape, M.A., F.K.S., page 73. 48 Mender s Laws of Inheritance. any experiments in the animal kingdom simply because large generations have been raised, and there can be no question about the statistics or the principles deduced from them. In the one variety the ears are lax ; in the other they are dense Fig. 1— Crossing of Ldx and Dense Eared Wheats. or club-headed (big. 1, p). When these types were crossed together, a hybrid (F i) was obtained with ears which were neither as lax as the one parent nor yet as dense as the other, so that in this respect the ears may be described as intermediate, Experiments with Different Varieties of Wheat. 49 and for the sake of convenience this form of ear will be referred to subsequently as the intermediate type. The same form of ear was produced whether the club wheat was the male or female parent. The grain of these plants when sown did not breed true to the intermediate shape, but produced individuals with lax, intermediate, and dense ears (Fig. 1, F 2). These plants occurred in the proportions of 1:2:1. The plants with lax ears were similar to the one parent, those with dense to the other, whilst the intermediates were similar to the plant pro- duced as the result of the cross. No other types were found, although some thousands of plants were raised, so that crossing did not give rise to the miscellaneous progeny it is often sup- posed to and the types appearing showed the parental and hybrid characters only. On making trial sowings of these three types, the lax and dense were found to breed true to these characters, whilst the intermediate ears again split up, giving rise once more to plants with either lax, inter- mediate, or dense ears, in the proportion of 1 : 2 : 1 (Fig. 1, F 3). The plants with the ear shape characteristic of the actual cross-bred behave in the same fashion, then, as the cross-bred itself when a further generation is raised. Numerous similar crosses have been grown, and all of these have given identical results. The explanation offered by the Mendelist is that the hybrid forms sex cells or gametes which carry the characters in a pure and not a blended condition. Some of its pollen grains and egg cells carry the dense character ; others, the lax ; these are produced in approximately equal proportions. On fertilisation, then, the chances of combination are : — 4 Pollen grains Egg cells Where ' the gametes carrying the lax character meet, the resulting plant has lax ears ; similarly where dense meets dense, only a dense eared form can be produced ; but where lax and dense or dense and lax meet, then, as we know from the original cross, the progeny will have intermediate ears. No other combinations save these four are possible, a fact which accounts satisfactorily for the ratio of 1 : 2 : 1. The cases which Mendel himself investigated are at first sight a little more complex than the one described here. The inheritance of the bearded and beardless characters in wheat is, however, of the same order as Mendel’s cases with peas. VOL. 67. E 50 MendeV s Laws of Inheritance. The two varieties (Fig. 2, P) chosen for this experiment were bearded and beardless, but otherwise similar. On crossing, a beardless hybrid was obtained which was as beardless Fio. 2.— Crossing of Bearded and Beardless Wheats. Crossing of Bearded and Beardless Wheats. 51 as the parent. In this case, then, there was no appearance of an intermediate form resulting in the production of a semi-bearded type as one might have expected from the example quoted previously. The reciprocal cross gave the same result. The hybrids, then, were similar to the beardless parent, and where that was chosen as the mother one might well have supposed that the cross had failed to take, and normal grain had been set. Mendel termed the character which appeared in the hybrid, to the exclusion of the other, “ dominant,” and its fellow “ recessive.” Using this terminology, the beardless condition is said to be dominant over the bearded, and the bearded recessive to the beardless. On sowing the grains of the hybrid, they produced beard- less and bearded offspring, three of the former being present to each of the latter. On the assumption that the hybrid produces gametes carrying either the beardless or the bearded character, this result is readily explained. The possible chances of combination are represented diagrammatically as before : — Pollen grains Egg cells Male gametes Female gametes A Beardless Beardless A They are A A, AB, BA, BB. Where A and A meet or B and B, the resulting plant will be beardless in the one case and bearded in the other. Where the unlike gametes A and B meet, as in the original cross, then they give rise to beardless plants, A being dominant over B. If this explanation is correct, then two of the three beard- less plants, namely AB and BA, should give a mixed progeny similar to that of the original hybrid, whilst the third, A A, though indistinguishable by eye, should breed true. The plant BB, showing the recessive character, should also breed true. The succeeding generation (Fig. 2, F 3) showed that this was the case. On the average, two out of every three of the beardless plants (f 2) threw bearded as well as beardless individuals, whilst one bred true to type. All plants with beards, that is, the recessives, on the contrary, bred true. The beardless plants which give a mixed progeny corre- spond with the intermediates of the previous case, but owing to the complete dominance of the one character they are inseparable as far as external appearances go. Neither of these crosses has produced fresh types in a stable condition, but they supply the breeder with some essential facts which may be stated here and their application 52 MendeV s Laics o] Inheritance. followed out in a more complex case. This may be considered to be more or less typical of those which will be met with in practice. In the first case the characters already existing in the parents are transferred in their full intensity to the fixable forms among the descendants of the hybrids. Where intermediates occur, these are incapable of breeding true to type, and they always throw off the types which produce them originally. Recessives breed true from the moment of their appearance among the offspring of the hybrids ; but, on the average, only one in three of the individuals showing the dominant feature breeds true : the stable forms can only be distinguished by raising a further generation from them. Where more than one pair of characters are present in the parents, new forms are produced by the recombination of these characters into fresh groupings. This is illustrated in the series in Fig. 3. One parent was a club wheat with a beard, the other had lax ears and no beard (Fig. 3, PP). There are thus two sets of units to be considered, namely, beards and no beards and lax and dense ear-shapes. On crossing these varieties together, the hybrid obtained was beardless and intermediate with regard to the shape of the ear (Fig. 3, F i). In spite of the fact that more than one pair of characters is present, the results are the same as before, the beardless condition being dominant and the meeting of the lax and dense giving intermediate. The offspring of the hybrid consisted of the following types : — Bearded lax, beardless lax, bearded intermediates, beardless intermediates, bearded dense and beardless dense (Fig. 3, i-6). These occurred in definite proportions, the lax, intermediate, and dense being present in the ratio of 1 : 2 : 1, whilst on the average there were three beardless to one bearded of each of these types. No other types beyond these were produced, no entirely fresh features like, for instance, roughness of chaff making an appearance. The data already obtained from an examination of the previous cases will show how the behaviour of each of these six types may be predicted when a further generation is raised from them, and incidentally it will show how the breeder will have to treat such cases in practice. Beginning with the intermediate types our previous experience would indicate that they would break in the next generation into lax and dense (Fig. 1). On sowing, it is found that both the bearded and the beardless forms break in this way, so that it is policy to throw out all these intermediates at once, as fixity of type should be essential in all breeds. Crossing of Bearded Dense and Beardless Lax Wheats. 53 Both the lax and dense forms, whether bearded or beardless, will, however, breed true to the lax or dense type of ear (Fig. 1), so that it only remains to determine whether they will breed true to the bearded and beardless characters. CO lO CD 1 The beardless condition of the first cross and the fact that there are on the average three beardless to one bearded individual indicates that beards are recessive to no beards FIG. 3.— Crossing of Wheats with two pairs of characters (Bearded Dense and Beardless Lax). 54 Mendel7 s Laws of Inheritance. (Fig. 2). The recessive characters invariably breed true to type from the moment of their appearance among the descendants of the original cross-breds, so that every bearded individual will breed true to this character. The combination of beards and laxness or similarly of beards and denseness should therefore breed true. Repeated tests have shown that this is actually the case. Stable races of each of these forms can therefore be isolated in the generation bred from the hybrid. The two other types to be considered are the beardless lax and dense-eared. The beardless condition is dominant over the bearded, and consequently one cannot distinguish between those beardless individuals which are pure in this respect and those which will throw off recessives when a further generation is raised from them. To isolate the pure types it is necessary to sow a series and determine which produce beardless forms only. On the average the pure beardless form will occur once in every three trials. All future sowings of this type when isolated will remain pure. Both the recessives and the dominants in combination with lax or dense ears can then be isolated, the problem of finding the pure recessive being simpler than finding the pure dominant. Such cases as the one just described will probably be met with frequently by the breeder. A slightly more complex case was discussed theoretically in the Journal (Yol. 65, 1904, page 342), which may here be referred to from the practical point of view. In this case the parents differed from one another in two pairs of characters : rough and smooth chaff and red and white colour. Of these, roughness and redness are dominant over smoothness and whiteness. The generation bred from the hybrid consisted of four types : rough red, rough white, smooth red, and smooth white in the approximate proportions of 9 : 3 : 3 : 1. The smooth and white types being recessive in both characters bred true from the first, but the other three types involving combinations of dominant characters offer a more complex problem. The smooth red, for instance, is pure as far as the smoothness goes, but the redness may be pure or it may mask a recessive white. To isolate the pure dominant form the same breeding test has to be applied, when one in every three will breed true to the combination of the recessive smoothness with the dominant redness. The same is true of the combination of roughness and whiteness. Where the two dominants are combined to give rough red individuals, the stable form is more difficult to distinguish. As already indicated one in three of the reds will breed true and one in three of the rough chaffed, so that the chance of finding the pair combined in the pure form is only one in nine. To Crossing of Suffolk and Dorset Horned Sheep. 55 obtain this combination in the stable condition it is therefore necessary to test a far larger series of individuals than was the case where only one dominant feature had to be considered. The combination of two dominants from the animal breeder’s point of view means a long series of tests which may prove almost prohibitive in practice. Crossing of Suffolk and Dorset Horned Sheep. — The inheritance of numerous characters in the animal world has f>een traced in the same manner as those just described. Thus the inheritance of the face colour and horns in sheep has been investigated by Wood. 1 The breeds chosen for this purpose were Suffolks and Dorsets, the former having black faces and no horns, the latter white faces and horns in both sexes. Thirty Suffolk ewes, crossed with a Dorset ram, gave forty- three lambs, all of which had speckled faces, the black and white being distributed in patches. The cross was also made in the opposite direction, Dorset ewes being mated with a Suffolk ram. In this case also all of the offspring had the same type of speckled face (Figs. 4 and 5). The direction of the cross, then, makes no difference in the progeny. This may be taken as a general rule, and the breeder need not look for males carrying the character he requires with the idea that they will prove the more prepotent. The faces of the hybrid sheep being neither pure black nor white, like those of the parents, but a mixture of the two, must be described as inter- mediate, neither black nor white being dominant. Thus the inheritance of this pair of characters reminds one of the inheritance of the lax and dense ears in wheat. The next step was to breed from these hybrids. A Suffolk- Dorset ram was saved, and crossed with a number of females of the same descent. Unfortunately, the animals were young to breed from, and only a small number of lambs was secured. Five of these had pure white faces, two speckled, and one black. The numbers are too small to indicate what proportion of each type would occur in a large flock of this descent, but small as they are, they show that the result of mating together the hybrids is to produce once more the characters seen in the parents, together with further hybrid, that is, speckled faced, individuals. If we may judge from analogy, and it sqems safe to do so in this case, it would be hopeless to attempt to obtain a pure race of these speckled faced sheep by mating black and white ; each year they would simply throw half as many black or white faced individuals as speckled. Turning now to the inheritance of horns, in both the sets of hybrids the animals were horned if males, and hornless if females — a curiously interesting result not without a bearing 1 Wood, Journal of Agricultural Science, Vol. I., page 364. 56 MendeV s Laws of Inheritance. Fig. 4— Result of crossing Suffolk and Dorset Horned Sheep. Fig. 5.— Result of crossing Dorset Horned and Suffolk Sheep, Inheritance of Colour in Horses. 57 on the problem of the segregation of sex. 1 On crossing together the hybrids, then, as far as the horned character goes, the mating was similar to that originally made between the Suffolks and Dorsets, but the result was singularly different, for both horned and hornless rams and horned and hornless ewes were produced. So far we have considered each of these character-pairs separately, confining attention to either the coat colour or the horns. Taking them together we find that the black or white or Speckled individuals may be horned or hornless. These characters have thus entered into a new series of combinations. In the parent, white faces were associated with horns, but among the descendants of the hybrid are black faced indivi- duals with horns ; similarly, the white face of the Dorset type appears without horns. Were there any point in fixing these new breeds, it would probably prove an easy matter, for either white or black faces would in all probability breed true at once to these characters, and attention would have to be directed only to the horns. In this case, the fact that the hybrid male is horned and the female is hornless introduces a complication which has not yet been investigated. To test the purity of the forms appear- ing in the generation raised from the cross-breds, a further breeding test would be necessary. Crossing the hornless types with the pure Suffolk would, if the type was fixed, give nothing but hornless offspring, whilst if impure, horned individuals, as well as hornless, would result. Similarly, the horned types, if crossed with the Dorset, should always produce horned offspring if pure, or horned and hornless if unfixed with regard to this feature. Shorthorn- Aberdeen Angus Cross. — In cattle, the polled condition appears to be dominant over the horned, since in crosses between Shorthorns and the polled Aberdeen Angus, the resulting animals of either sex are polled or at the most bear small scurs in place of horns. Similarly the black colour of the Aberdeen Angus is dominant over the red of Shorthorns, whilst white appears to be recessive to the latter.2 Inheritance of Colour in Horses. — Actual experiments planned to trace the inheritance of the various characteristics have not yet been carried out, and in view of the cost such a research would entail, it is not likely that they will be for many years. Nevertheless data of the clearest kind are not wanting here, and the story of the inheritance of the chestnut colour of the coat is known with certainty. The facts have J From information received from Sir John Thorold, it appears that crosses between Galloways and Shorthorns are horned if males, and hornless if females. 2 Cameron, Live Stock Journal, December 28th, 1906. t 58 MendeF s Laws of Inheritance. been traced by Hurst from a careful analysis of the records given in Weatherby’s Ge?ieral Stud Book of Race Horses.1 In this great work the parentage, sex, and coat colour of all British thoroughbreds is given, and the records appear to have been kept with unusual care. From the data given there it is clear that chestnut colour is recessive to bay and brown, and consequently wherever one of these latter colours is mated with chestnut the offspring is bay or brown. By way of example, St. Simon, St. Serf, Galopin, Ladas, Merry Hampton, and Cabin Boy, all either bay or brown animals, have given 370 foals when mated with chestnut mares, and without exception these have proved to be bay or brown. In this group of sires each was pure with regard to the colour of the coat. As is only to be expected, though some sires were not so, a bay or brown resulting directly from a cross with a chestnut would not be pure, for instance, though one could not detect this without actually breeding from it. There is in this case no mark of the hybrid to correspond with the speckling of the face of the hybrid black and white faced sheep. Hurst has picked out a series of these cases and shown that twelve such sires, when mated with chestnut mares, have produced an approximately equal number of bay or brown and chestnut foals. The actual figures are 355 and 347. A typical case is afforded by Isinglass, one of whose parents was a chestnut. Mated with chestnuts he gave 62 foals, 28 of which were bay or brown and 34 chestnut. These figures are •a sufficiently near approach to equality where comparatively small numbers are concerned. Calling bay or brown D and chestnut R , the sires in these cases are DR , and they produce both D and R gametes in equal proportions. The chances of combination may be represented as follows : — Female gametes Male gametes giving DR or RR in equal proportions. As bay or brown is dominant over chestnut the DR" s will appear to be pure bay or brown. As chestnut is recessive to these colours when mated with chestnut, no matter what the descent, it must give chestnut. Hurst illustrates this point by an analysis of 100 chestnut sires of various extraction mated with some 600 chest- nut mares again of varied descent. These gave a total of 1,104 recorded foals, of which 1,095 are entered as chestnut. In 1 Proc. Roy. Soc., Yol. 77, page 390. Crossing of Poultry. 59 other words, over 99 per cent, were true to type. The remain- ing nine recorded as bay or brown are doubtless errors in the record, and it is interesting to note in this connection that further records of some of these same animals in the Racing Calendar give them as chestnut. A further series of records given in the Landwirthschaft- liche Jahrbiicher for 1888 by Crampe, and again by Wilckens, shows that chestnuts of any descent when bred together give nothing but chestnut in their offspring. Crossing of Poultry. — Owing to the fact that large numbers can be raised at a comparatively small cost, poultry have pro- vided very suitable material for the study of heredity. From the researches of Bateson and Hurst1 it is now possible to trace in considerable detail the inheritance of most of the features characteristic of the various breeds. One case of exceptional interest is afforded by a study of the Blue Andalusian fowls. This “breed” proves to be a typical example of an unfixable first cross or DR. If, for instance, show birds are bred together, they do not produce simply Blue Andalusians, but three distinct types : white splashed, black, and some resembling the parent type. In an actual experiment of this sort the progeny consisted of 41 white splashed, 78 blue and 39 black birds, that is, they occur in the ratio of 1 : 2 : 1. One would expect from this that the whites and blacks would breed true to these characters, and further trials have shown that each type mated with its own colour breeds true. Further, if blacks and whites are mated, the resulting offspring are Blue Andalusians. To secure specimens of this breed, then, it would be policy to breed from the “ wasters.” All the resulting birds would then be Blue Andalusians, whilst if Blue Andalusians were bred from, the result would be that one-half only would reproduce the type. Turning to other colours, the white of the Leghorns is dominant over colour in the Houdans, Hamburghs, and Cochins, but the dominance is not complete, as flecking occurs in the feathers of the cross-bred birds.2 In the same way the black of the Houdans and Hamburghs is dominant over buff in the Cochins. The comb characters have also been investigated in great detail. The single comb of the Cochins or Leghorns is re- cessive to the leaf comb of the Houdans, whilst the rose comb of the Hamburghs is dominant over the same singles and over leaf combs. In the generation bred from the hybrids in each case the two types appear in approximately the ratio of three to one. 1 Report to the Evolution Committee of the Royal Soc., Parts I., II. and III. 2 There is evidence to show that white may be of two sorts — one recessive to colour, the other dominant. Evol. Report Roy. Soc., Part III., page 18. Davenport, Inheritance in Poultry, Washington, 1906. 60 MendeVs Laws of Inheritance. Amongst the other characters which have been investigated is that of broodiness, and according to Hurst non-sitters, when crossed with sitters, give in the first generation all good sitters. From the studies made with other subjects such as mice, rats, rabbits, 1 and guinea-pigs many other examples to illustrate the same phenomena might be quoted. It must not be assumed, though, that because the cases chosen for description are all simple no complications occur, for undoubtedly they do. These complications always appear, however, to be capable of analysis if only the investigations are made on the right lines, and where such investigations have been made they serve to increase one’s confidence in the wide applicability of Mendel’s Laws. All of the characters quoted are more or less obvious ones, and the question might be raised as to whether the same laws will hold for such intangible characteristics as, say, docility, yield of milk, quality of flesh, and so on. The answer is that in all probability they do. Bateson, for instance, after making most comprehensive investigations on heredity in poultry writes : “ There is no reasonable doubt that such features as late or early feathering, shortness of wing quills and tails, peculiar qualities of voice, forms of constitutional weakness follow rules closely similar to those detected in features more amenable to critical study.” The inheritance of those characters with which the prac- tical breeder will for the most part be concerned is beyond the reach of the scientist, who rarely has the opportunity of carrying out extended observations of this kind, still more rarely perhaps has any interest in those features which go to the making up of first class stock. Under these circumstances all advance in this particular direction must come from the breeder, and he will largely have to work out his own salvation. He alone has all the requisite material to hand and is in a position to carry out a sufficiently large number of experi- ments. The chief points to which attention must be paid by any one attempting to carry out work of this kind may shortly be described here. In the first case, he must become familiar with the conception that the animal is built up of a series of units or characters, the inheritance of which may be traced independently of one another. This offers a certain amount of difficulty to those in the habit of judging animals as a whole, but this will disappear if such an example as that illustrated in Fig. 3 is worked through in detail. Each of the characteristics of the two parents should be recorded carefully, and their inheritance observed in the cross-breds. As a general 1 Hurst, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zoology, Vol. XXIX., page 28‘3. Their Application to Live Stock. 61 rule it will be advisable not to attempt to work with too many characters at a time, as this tends to complicate the experi- ments considerably. Where practicable, two pairs only should be chosen, as this will limit the numbers to be raised from the cross-breds to reasonable dimensions. The data obtained from the first crosses will as a general rule be sufficient to determine whether one of a given pair is dominant or recessive, or whether the result of their union is to give an intermediate. A third possibility that the cross- bred may show a reversionary form is not considered here, as such cases appear to be rare amongst animals in which the breeder will have any interest. The next step is to mate together the cross-breds. Many breeders will feel that this is a mistaken policy, for the idea is prevalent that the offspring of such a mating is degenerate. This is doubtless due to the fact that among the offspring, particularly where the parents differ in numerous characters, many types appear, and this has been taken as an expression of the fact that the original types have been hopelessly broken up — a matter, of regret in the days when pedigree was far more important than Mendelists now consider it to be. Nevertheless, as it is in this generation that the sorting out and the recombi- nation of the characters present in the original parents occurs, this mating is essential. As large a number of cross-breds as practicable should be used in order to obtain a sufficient number of animals to choose from. Thus, if two pairs of characters are under consideration, on an average the four possible com- binations in a stable form will only occur amongst sixteen animals, and this number must be more than doubled in order to secure males and females of each type to test the purity and establish the breed. The animals not considered desirable should be disposed of, and those chosen for further testing should be examined character by character. A comparison with the experiment described in Fig. 3, or the case following it, will at this stage help to show the chances of obtaining the type in a fixed condition. If it shows a combination of two recessives, then, mated with its like, it will breed true. If a recessive and an intermediate, it will be fixed as regards one feature, the recessive, but when bred with its like it will throw intermediates, together with the characters as seen in the parents. For instance, in the case of the sheep-breeding experiment, if we assume that two of the animals are pure as far as the horned character goes, but have speckled faces, these, if bred together, would give in their offspring horned black, white, and speckled faced individuals, and pure races with black or white faces could be bred from these, but not a race with speckled faces. 62 MendeV s Laws of Inheritance. * Where a dominant and a recessive character belonging to different pairs are in combination, then it is a two to one chance that any given animal is pure with regard to the dominant character, and the only method of discriminating in snch cases is to test by further breeding. This becomes a serious matter, for to ensure picking a pure male and a pure female, on the average nine matings must be made. Unfortu- nately there seems no possibility of this further breeding test being avoided, though it may be simplified by crossing the types to be isolated with a pure recessive. If the type is pure, all the offspring will show the dominant character ; if not, half will show the corresponding recessive. If the pairs of char- acters are A a and Bb , such an animal may be Ab , the pure, or Aab , the impure, type.1 On crossing with an animal such as the parent showing the recessive in question, a , in the former case, Ab on meeting a will give all Aab ; in the latter, where two types of gametes Ab and ab, are being produced, it will give Aab and ab in equal proportions. The pure types, when isolated, form the starting point of a new breed. Finally, the case has to be considered where two pairs of dominant characters are combined. On the average this occurs nine times in every sixteen individuals in the genera- tion bred from the cross-bred. These animals all appear to be similar, yet constitutionally they fall into four types. Using the same notation, Aa and Bb, for the pairs of charac- ters, such animals may be AB, AaB, ABb or AaBb. The type which will breed true when mated with its like is the one in which both dominant characters are pure, namely AB. This only occurs once in every nine individuals. As one would require a pure male and female to start such a breed, it is evident that the chances of drawing both are too remote for practical purposes. If such a combination had to be effected and the type fixed the simplest plan would be to take animals showing both recessive characters, ab’’ s, from the generation bred from the cross-breds and mate these with the series having the appearance of AiTs. The pure type would then throw only animals similar to itself {AaBb resembling AB). On the average this would mean nine matings to find a single pure type, and in the case of animals which give but one descendant a year this would have to be continued for at least three years before one could be reasonably sure of its purity. Once a pair of such animals have been isolated the 1 This combination occurs three times on the average in sixteen individuals. See Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 65, 1904, pp. 337-345. The corresponding com- bination aBb or aB , where a is recessive and B dominant, occurs in the same proportion, and the pure type may be distinguished in the same fashion by crossing with an animal showing the recessive b. Formation of New Breeds. 63 type would remain pure. It is questionable, though, how far it would be practicable to make such a combination in the case of the larger animals, though theoretically there is no difficulty about it. Where, however, a number of offspring are produced annually one season’s testing would be sufficient to determine the purity. From the foregoing account it will be seen that breeding has entered upon a definite stage, and that order can be traced in a subject which hitherto has appeared to be chaotic. The breeder has now to recognise that new breeds can be built up with certainty by recombining characters already existing in other breeds, and improvements in type will result from picking out a desirable feature here, another there, and so on, and combining them together. These characters are handed on in their full intensity, and as far as it can be determined there is no possibility of definitely diminishing or intensifying any character by breeding. The intermediates which result from certain combinations which might at first sight appear to contradict this statement are unstable. In some few cases evidence has been found which shows that characters are sometimes coupled together in some way and are incapable of being separated on crossing, but this phenomenon does not appear to be a general one, and at present it cannot be discussed in detail. Whether any fresh features not already existing in the parents will ever appear among the descendants of cross-bred animals is still a matter for future experiments to decide. Indications that such may be the case have been found, and though unexpected at first, Mendelian explanations of their occurrence are not wanting. In this direction, then, there is still the chance which always appeals to the breeder of producing a type totally distinct from the forms he set out with. R. H. Biffen. Cambridge. 64 PARASITES OF CATTLE AND SHEEP. SUMMARY OF CONTENTS. PAGE Introduction . . . .64 External Parasites op Cattle 65 Flies 65 Ox Warble Fly . . .65 Lice 68 Scabies or Mange Mites . 69 Ticks 71 Ringworm Fungus . . 73 Internal Parasites of Cattle 74 Stongyles of Parasitic Gastritis . . . .74 Tapeworms . . . .77 Liver Fluke . . . .78 Strongyles of Hoose, Husk, or Parasitic Bronchitis . 78 PAGE External Parasites of Sheep 80 The Maggot, Fly, or Worm 80 Lice 80 Ked 81 Sheep Scab . . . .82 Mange Mites . . . 86 Ticks 86 Scarlet Mite or Harvest Bug 87 Internal Parasites of Sheep. 87 Sheep Warble or Bot Fly . 87 Parasitic Gastritis . . 88 Liver Fluke . . . .92 Parasitic Bronchitis . . 95 Parasitic Pneumonia . . 95 Gid, or Sturdy, Hydatid . 96 The importance of parasitic diseases of cattle and sheep to the stock owner can scarcely be over-estimated, for, in the absence of the majority of destructive plague-like maladies scheduled under the Diseases of Animals Acts, such are probably the cause of more serious loss than all others, while scientific research and common observation have, of late, added con- siderably to our information concerning them. This recently acquired knowledge has tended to give the impression that parasitic disease is more prevalent than formerly. There are no sure grounds on which to form an opinion on this point ; but it is certain that the category is swollen by the newly attained power of placing diseases in proper relation to their several causes. In the past it was the fashion to name an ailment after its most prominent symptom ; at present it is customary to associate cause and effect. For instance, “ husk ” of the older school we term “parasitic bronchitis ” ; formerly “ diarrhoea ” was regarded as a disease, and the name, or its more familiar equivalent, “scour,” was applied to conditions in which * it was a prominent symptom ; now we speak of it in relation to its cause, under the heads of “parasitic gastritis,” &c. In considering the adoption of measures to lessen losses from parasitic attack, those of a preventive nature will be found of greatest value. In cases of internal affections, it is often beyond our power to do much good after disease is established. The greatest importance attaches therefore to a knowledge of the conditions essential to the life and develop- ment of parasites both within and without the host Flies on Cattle. 65 In this article it is proposed to describe the more impor- tant facts concerning some of the parasites of cattle and sheep most commonly met with in Great Britain, dividing the subject into external and internal parasites of cattle and of sheep, and giving in each case the treatment recommended. External Parasites of Cattle. The external parasites usually produce their effects by local irritation, while the diseased condition of the skin is often mainly the result of self-inflicted injury, caused by the host in attempting to rid itself of the irritant. Parasites which pierce the skin may, however, produce sores, or be the carriers of disease germs and the means of propagating serious systemic or local conditions, in addition to the irritation associated with their puncture. Flies. — All insects have six legs and jointed bodies ; the class includes the Diptera or two-winged insects, commonly, though not always correctly, called “ flies.” In the perfect state, flies are temporary parasites ; some only bite the skin, and give rise to sores, which are aggravated by the attempts of the animal to dislodge its unwelcome guests ; others, not truly parasitic, may merely convey infective matter, with which they have become soiled from contact with diseased parts, but may thus be important factors in spreading contagious disease. Of the biting “ flies,” cattle are sometimes attacked by the breeze or gad fly ( Tabanus ), — resident in woods and pastures, and which in its flight makes a buzzing noise — the forest fly ( Hippobosca ), the cleg or grey fly ( Stomoxys ), and the gnat ( Culex ). These, and probably flies of other species, when, as during the past summer, circumstances favour their existence, may annoy, cause unrest, and occasion loss of flesh and milk, to which self-inflicted injury is often added. The legs of cattle appear to be more generally affected by flies of this class, which are found more commonly in certain districts than others. On rare occasions, the small blinding breeze fly ( Chrysops ), which specially attacks the eyelids, may induce extensive inflammation, leading to temporary blindness. The means at our disposal for preventing the attack of such flies are referred to under the next section (Ox Warble or Bot Fly). Ox Warble or Bot Fly. — Of all parasitic diseases of the skin, probably none is more familiar than that usually referred to as “Warbles.” It is well known that the lumps, which are perceived in the skins of cattle from January to May, contain the larvae or maggots developed from eggs deposited on the skin or hairs in summer by a fly. For many years, it has VOL. 67. F 66 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. been taken for granted that the fly which deposits the eggs on the skin or hairs is the ox warble or bot fly ( Hypoderma bovis ), (Fig. 1), and that the eggs gain access to the depths of the skin at the spot in which they are inserted or deposited. The softness and non-resisting character of the egg-depositing tube has always proved more or less an obstacle to the acceptance of that view of the entrance of the parasite into the skin. Recently the view has been advanced that another fly, the Hypoderma lineata , or American Heel Fly, deposits its eggs on the hairs, particularly of the legs of cattle ; that these eggs, or larvae developed from them, are licked off by the animal, pass into the gullet, which they pierce, and in this indirect way reach the skin. Fortunately, neither of these questions need affect the stock owner, whose object is to avoid their occurrence in his cattle. The maggots appear from January to May in the skin, and here they are found with the tail end, in which is the breathing pore, at the perforation at the summit of the warble. The number of warbles in the skin, f individual animals varies widely ; in some, only a sin$ r 3 specimen may be found, while hundreds may reside in a superficial foot of hide. A few warbles cause little inconvenience to their host, but when very numerous, great discomfort, local injury, and loss of flesh may ensue, and under any circumstances, the unbidden guest cannot be welcome. It is, however, fig. i— The Ox Warble to the hide that the greatest damage is done ; Fly ( Hypoderma bovis). & -£ew warkles may spoil a large portion, while many will render it practically useless.1 The losses on account of warbled hides are stated to amount in the aggregate to several millions of pounds annually ; while, when the warbles are numerous, considerable portions of beef may be unfit for sale. Underneath the skin containing warbles there is found a somewhat jelly-like substance, which has a very dirty nauseating appearance. Flesh so affected is termed “ licked beef.” When considering the effects of this fly, we must take into account the unrest, sometimes amounting to “panic,” the consequent loss of flesh and milk, and other possible injury to the in-calf cow, attributed to the apparent terror of animals while the eggs are being deposited. During this act, the warble fly is credited with producing a buzzing sound, hovering over the animal, making a sudden dart on to the skin, leaving an egg, and repeating the operation many times. As there is still wanting proof that the warble fly possesses any weapon with which the skin may be hurt, we think it probable that any 1 See also page 207 of this Volume. The Ox Warble or Bot Fly. 67 terror experienced may be associated with the buzzing of the breeze or other flies which bite. Prevention. — When the warble is noticeable in the skin, the injury to the hide is done. Our attention should therefore be specially directed to the adoption of measures for preventing the fly from depositing eggs. As there is reason for believing that the warble fly lays its eggs only in bright warm sunshine, and avoids shade and water, the shade of trees, sheds, &c., should be accessible to the cattle, and, where practicable, water to stand in during the hottest parts of the day. The application of certain dressings to the skin from the beginning of May to the middle of September is of great service in deterring the fly from depositing eggs. Of such dressings there are many available. Few flies will alight on the skin which has lately been treated with paraffin, or paraffin and grease ; but the effect is not enduring, and repeated applications must be made, while there is a degree of danger connected with extensive use of this agent. Stockholm tar is probably the most enduring, and the application is necessary only three or four times during the summer. Monthly dressings with a mixture of ha eiJ pint of oil of tar, a pound of flowers of sulphur, and a ga urn of train oil, have been successfully employed for many ^ears, and probably nothing is safer and better. It has been the common practice to dress only the back and upper parts of the body, but in view of the known habits of Hypoderma lineata, and doubt about those of Hypoderma bovis, it is well to include the legs. When the warble is noticed in the skin (from January or February till May), the maggots should, when practicable, be squeezed out and destroyed by squashing or burning. If a little paraffin, pickling brine, or mercury ointment be applied to the warble a few hours before, the maggots are squeezed out more easily. When very numerous, the parts may be smeared with grease or mercury ointment, but with the latter great care is required, and a small quantity only must be used, and only a small part of the skin dressed at one time. It is stated by more than one authority that, naturally, the maggot leaves the skin only in the early hours of the morning, and it is advised in severe infestations of animals to place them in the house at night, and sweep up and destroy all maggots on the floors. As it is probable that winter residence in the skin or tissues of cattle is absolutely essential, if all the maggots in the cattle of a district were destroyed, infestation in the coming season would to a large extent be averted. Indeed this special condition in the life-history of the bot fly suggests that con- certed action might annihilate the species in this country. 68 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. Lice. — These parasites, which induce lousiness, pediculosis or plithiriasis, are wingless insects. They are permanent para- sites, small, but visible to the naked eye, about one-eiglith of an inch long, of a dull white or greyish colour, possessed of hooklets for holding on and a mouth for pricking. They are usually found lying flat on the surface of the skin, and though there is no disposition to leave the host, this is often effected by rubbing, &c. The pear-shaped eggs or nits become attached to the hairs and contain the young living parasites, which quickly come to maturity. Lice found on cattle belong to either of two families : the Hcematopinus (Fig. 2), which sucks the blood of the host, or the Trichodectes (Fig. 3), which lives on skin products and dirt. The ox may harbour two varieties of the former and one of the latter. Young animals are more commonly affected, and one parasite, the Hcemato- pinus vituli seems specially to favour sucking calves. Lice tend to spread all over the body, and are usually associated with a dirty condition of the skin and a low state of flesh. The one species by biting, and both by crawling about, induce irritation, and consequent attempts on the part of the bearers to rub themselves. The coat is thus often broken, and sometimes large patches are denuded of hair. Treatment. — Due regard for cleanliness, a liberal diet, and keeping apart from infested animals and places recently occu- pied by them, constitute the preventive treatment. The cure Scabies or Mange. * 69 is readily effected by thorough washing with soft soap and water, and, after scraping dry, the application over the whole body of any reliable mange dressing twice in a fortnight. Good food facilitates the cure. Litter should be burnt and places disinfected. Scabies or Mange. — Scabies or mange ( Psoric acariasis ) may result from the attack of either of three varieties of acarus or mange mite, and is named accordingly, sarcoptic, psoroptic, or symbiotic. The two last forms are usually regarded as more common in cattle. Acari are all minute, and none are readily distinguishable with the naked eye. All mature mange mites have four pairs of legs, and the thorax and body are continuous and unjointed, and their heads are adapted for pricking or piercing the skin. These parasites live, breed, and develop on the skin, and have no tendency to leave it of their own accord. They are, however, sometimes rubbed on to posts, hurdles, &c., and may live away from the animal for some time, probably about two or three weeks. Their power to injure depends on the rapidity with which they multiply. Some idea of the rate of increase may be formed from the statement of an authority on the subject, that one pair of acari may in three months produce 1,000,000 females and 500,000 males. Mange or scabies is common to all domesticated animals. The disease is, as far as is known, not commonly transmitted from animals of one species to those of another species. Each mange parasite flourishes best on its proper host. Usually mange is observed in poor neglected animals. These are certainly not the exclusive conditions under which mange in cattle has frequently come under our notice. Indeed, our experience rather suggests that it is, at any rate, more frequently observed in high-class, highly fed, and, generally speaking, well-cared-for animals. Observation at the entrances to our showyards indicates that mange is not very uncommon in show cattle, and that the stringent rules as to non-admission of cattle affected with contagious skin disease are thoroughly warranted. Prevalence of mange in show cattle may be accounted for in two ways : animals from many sources are congregated, and are more or less closely associated in the showyard ; and, while there, they are, one after the other, well handled by innumerable keenly interested visitors, who possibly sometimes transfer the parasite from the affected to the healthy. The Sarcoptes , the smallest of the three, is not regarded as a common cause of disease in cattle. It does, however, exist, and more frequently than is generally supposed. The parasite is lfticroscopic in size. When a mature fertilised female reaches the skin, she pierces it, and bores her way into the 70 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. substance, forming a minute channel. As she proceeds, she deposits her eggs, and when the process is completed, dies. The eggs, as embryos, pass singly out of this little channel and become fecundated by the male on the surface of the skin, and the females of this generation repeat the process of boring and hatching a new generation ; so that the skin of the animal, the subject of sarcoptic mange, has on its surface mature and immature parasites commencing to bore, or developing for this purpose, while in the substance of the skin are eggs and embryos. It therefore follows that while dressings applied to the skin may kill the parasites on the surface, the coming generation, protected by its position in the little channel, must be provided against by repetition of the dressing. The form of disease caused by this parasite is usually found on the upper surface of the body, and tends to spread at the border of the lesion. The irritation is greater than in the other forms. The other two varieties, psoroptic and symbiotic, which may be found together on the same animal, usually attack the root of the tail and the neck, and the Psoroptes have a greater tendency to spread to other parts of the skin, while the Symbiotes, which live together in groups, rarely wander from their common seat, the root of the tail. Neither of these acari burrows. Symptoms. — These result from irritation caused by the pricking of the parasites, and possibly the insertion of some irritating substance. The degree of irritation varies ; in some cases it is slight, in others it is intense, and the animal may be much disturbed, rubbing violently, and sometimes severely injuring the skin, which, in the sarcoptic variety, may become thickened, hard, and wrinkled. Cattle out of doors appear less affected ; indeed, it is asserted that turning out to grass is a cure. This is doubtful, for it is often found that on returning to the house the disease again becomes active ; and though the possibility cannot be denied, spontaneous cure is not common. The diagnosis absolutely depends on discovery of the parasite, which is accomplished by aid of the microscope. Treatment. — Though there is little disposition for the acarus to leave its host, and it cannot live and develop apart from him, it is liable to removal by various means, as by animals rubbing each other, &c., and the disease must be regarded as contagious and treated accordingly. Affected animals should be isolated. If the disease is recent and limited, it may suffice to dress the affected parts only ; but if there is any doubt on this point, and usually there must be, it is advisable to apply the dressing all over the animal. • The skin is better prepared for receiving the dressing if washed Ticks and Redwater. 71 in tepid water with soft soap and dried. Dressings should be thoroughly applied. Sulphur, tar, creosote, paraffin, are all effectual. Mercurial ointment is sometimes used for dressing limited areas, but there is always a certain amount of danger connected with this preparation. The application should be made two or three times, with intervals of about a week, and then may or may not be washed off. In providing for any parasites which may have left the affected animal, anything with which these have been in contact should be disinfected after each dressing of the animal with a solution of blue vitriol or carbolic acid, and all contaminated litter burnt. Ticks.1 — These parasites are of the same Order as those causing mange. The family name is Ixodidse. They are widely distributed over the world and attack animals of many varieties. Mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, all harbour them, and may transport them long distances. Until within recent years, ticks have been popularly regarded, in Great Britain more particularly, as parasites of the sheep, but we know them to be common on sheep, cattle, and dogs in some parts of the country. They are temporary parasites living apart from their proper ultimate host for considerable portions of their existence. Ticks are of com- paratively large size, all being visible to the naked eye, the six-legged larva being about one-sixteenth of an inch long, while the mature female, distended with eggs and with blood sucked from the host, may be three-eighths of an inch long, and a quarter of an inch broad, or the size of a small horse bean, to which it bears some slight resemblance. The male also becomes distended after a meal of blood, though not to the extent of the female. The female, when fully distended with eggs, drops off on to the ground and undergrowth, where she discharges her very numerous eggs, shrivels up, and dies. In about fifteen days, six-legged larvae are hatched from the eggs, and may live for months, attached to dry grass, &c. As many as 2,000 larvae have been counted on a single blade of grass. After further development into nymphae and mature ticks, they are adapted for piercing the skin deeply, and for holding on very tenaciously ; so that, in attempting to remove the tick by force, the head or rostrum often breaks off and remains in the skin. Redwater. — Investigations in America led to the discovery that ticks were essential to a serious disease of cattle called Texan fever. More recently it has become known that some of the scourges of cattle in South Africa are brought about through their agency. These discoveries have excited 1 See also page 274 of this Volume. 72 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. considerable attention, and it is now believed that in the production of the disease known in the United Kingdom as “ Red water,” ticks play an important part. From time immemorial, in various parts of the kingdom, particularly in Devon, Cornwall, the northern counties, Scotland, and Ireland, both adult and young cattle have been liable to an affection, more or less fatal, whose most striking symptom is the passage of blood-coloured urine, and commonly known as “ Redwater.” There seems little room for doubt that the appearance of this disease depends on ticks. In this affection, the tick probably plays the role of carrier of a disease germ, a low form of life, called a piroplasm , which it introduces into the blood of its host. This germ dissolves out from the red blood corpuscle its colouring matter, which appears in the urine. These piroplasms are obtained by sucking the blood of cattle containing them, but one of the most remarkable features is the transmission of the piroplasm to the progeny of the tick. If a mature female tick is taken from an animal suffering from redwater, and its young are hatched apart from affected animals, and placed on healthy animals, these become affected with redwater. If some of the blood of such animals is injected into a healthy animal, the latter takes the disease. It has been observed that after an animal has had redwater and apparently recovered, the disease may recur if the animal is subjected to any debilitating conditions. Animals bred and reared in situations where redwater is common appear less liable to take the disease in a serious form, while purchased animals often suffer very severely. The disease rarely affects cattle grazing on high ground, or that which has been recently cultivated. Though this affection is not a disease of the skin, it is as substantially due to the attack of skin parasites as the irritation which results from their movements and punctures. In Great Britain the number of ticks attacking an animal is usually small, and the symptoms of local irritation are not very severe. Treatment . — The knowledge of these facts suggests increased attention to the maintenance of the skin free from parasites. Experiments with sheep dips have shown that any of those effectual in scab will rid animals of this pest ; this is applicable to ticks on cattle. For prevention, cattle should be kept off infested pastures and places where there is old, dry grass or undergrowth. The burning of dry grass, &c., and the plough- ing of infested fields are indicated, while the sure method of dealing with ticks on cattle is to pick them off and burn them ; the application of a little paraffin facilitates this somewhat tedious process. Ringworm of Cattle . 73 Ringworm. — This prevalent affection of cattle is caused by a minute vegetable parasite or fungus ( Trichophyton mentagrophytes ), which gains access to the hair roots, where it grows more or less rapidly, causing removal of the hairs, the production of scales of epithelium, and sometimes inflammatory liquid. It is usually met with in calves and young cattle, commencing at the lips or about the eyes, and spreading to the rest of the head, neck, and upper parts of the body , rarely affecting the lower parts. The ringworm is usually first observed in the form of a circular, grey, elevated patch, of which several may appear at about the same time ; these may extend and coalesce, so forming very large areas. Ringworm is not usually regarded as a very serious disease ; indeed, it often disappears spontaneously. Occasionally, however, the disease manifests itself very severely, and in addition to the ringworm on the surface, there may be considerable liquid poured out, or a weeping, while the skin may be much swollen. In such cases the general health is rather seriously affected, and we have known fatal results. Low condition of the animal and a dirty condition of the skin appear to favour the activity of the parasite. The symptoms are obvious in the ringworm ; in acute cases there is a good deal of irritation, which causes the animal to rub itself, bringing off much hair and sometimes causing the skin to bleed. Under any circumstances, ringworm is an annoying and undesirable disease, temporarily disturbing animals, and interfering with their well-being. The affection spreads from calf to calf, and often when such are congregated in house or yard, nearly every animal becomes affected. The ringworm of cattle can be communi- cated to the horse, the dog, and probably other animals ; but the malady gains its greatest importance from the fact that its fungus grows readily on the human subject, and in children induces a severe and somewhat intractable form of ringworm (j Herpes circinata), in which there is acute inflammation of the scalp. This is then readily spread from child to child. There can be little doubt but that the systematic medical inspection of schools will draw attention to this not uncommon origin of child disease, which, fortunately, is suppressible by the exercise of care in the treatment of cattle. Treatment. — In many cases, plentiful supply of good food — always an essential of any system of treatment — is alone sufficient. Such happy results are, however, not always attainable, and not infrequently, ringworm is troublesome to get rid of. There are many remedies at our disposal, as mercurial ointment, iodine, creoline, paraffin, turpentine. It has come within our experience to meet with fatal results from. 74 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. the application of poisonous dressings for ringworm, and in obstinate cases, or where the ringworms are extensive, treat- ment under the direction of the veterinary surgeon is likely to be more effective and safer. The spores of the ringworm fungus live a long time, certainly for six months, probably longer, apart from animals. They have been found on posts, &c., where affected calves have rubbed, and this suggests the application of disinfectants to places likely to have been contaminated, and the burning or ploughing in of litter. Internal Parasites of Cattle. In common with other domesticated animals, cattle harbour in their internal organs a great variety of animal and vegetable parasites. It will only be possible here to refer to some of the more salient points concerning those usually recognised as more important. The majority of these are commonly known as “ worms,” whose length largely exceeds their breadth. Proceeding to consider the parasites of the digestive tract, though occasionally the “ ray fungus ” and some bots are found in the back of the throat, and some fluke-like bodies (amphi- stomes) in the rumen or paunch, it is not until we come to the fourth or true digestive stomach, or abomasum , that we reach the location of parasites whose effects are generally recognised as common or serious. Parasitic Gastritis. — The true digestive stomach of cattle may harbour other worms, but it will be sufficient for our purpose to state that those most frequently found associated with serious disease in cattle are minute strongyles, which, though not actually microscopic, are too small for recognition in the stomach with the naked eye. Roughly speaking, these strongyles are from one-eighth to one-third of an inch in length. In some instances, only individuals of one species are met with ; in other instances individuals of two species are in association. In severe cases of the disease attributed to them, these worms exist in myriads. If the inner lining membrane of the stomach of an affected animal, recently dead, be gently scraped wTith a knife, and the scrapings transferred to a watch glass or small clear glass phial containing pure tepid water, the minute hair-like worms will be readily discerned, sometimes actively moving ; and if placed under a* low power of the miscroscope, it will be seen that they are highly organised, and the distinguishing features of sex and species will be apparent. The males and females are all mature, the latter usually containing a large number of eggs ; on the slide may be found eggs, but no intermediate stage of the worm, i.e ., no form between that of the egg and the mature worm, thus indicating that in all Parasitic Gastritis in Cattle. 75 probability parasites do not increase in the stomach. A little while after death, the worm is more readily found in the contents of the stomach, which are usually quite liquid. Though, occasionally, post-mortem examination reveals some redness of inflammation, frequently only a watery con- dition of the mucous membrane of the stomach is noticeable, and a carcass often presents nothing remarkable to the ordinary observer, and beyond the emaciation and catarrh of the stomach, no more to the expert. There is, therefore, little wonder that, prior to the discovery of the cause of the affection, the losses were attributed to other and various agencies. We are not aware that until 1892, when we contributed an article to the “Veterinary Record,” announcing the discovery of the parasites, the real nature had been recognised. Unfortunately, nothing is so far known as to the life-history and development of these worms. Only mature worms and eggs have been encountered in the stomach or the bowel con- tents and faeces of affected animals. It is therefore probable that eggs develop into embryos outside the bodies of cattle, and that after further development these are taken in with food or water. Some actual observations on worms of the same class suggest that moisture and a period of residence within a soft-bodied animal, such as a worm, or snail, is a necessary part of the life-cycle of the worm. The disease is usually noticed in the autumn and early winter, and though young cattle are most frequently its subjects, it is occasionally met with in adults. Symptoms. — The manifestation of symptoms will depend very largely on the number of the worms in action in the stomach. The effect of a few will probably be inappreciable. In somewhat rare instances the manifestations are acute, severe, and rather rapidly fatal. In the majority, the symptoms are less severe, and the course of the disease more protracted. Indeed, often the malady is sub-acute and of long duration. Diarrhoea, wasting, and poverty of blood (anaemia) are the special features met with in all forms. Its subjects are first observed to lose their bloom and to do badly ; diarrhoea is usually noticed from the early stage, and is continued through- out, getting more and more continuous and profuse. The membranes become paler, and emaciation more marked ; occasionally, in the later stages, dropsical swellings may be noticed under the dewlap and between the lower jaws. Throughout, the appetite generally remains good. There is little other constitutional disturbance, and no fever. These conditions may last for several months, and such animals are popularly known as “ piners, wasters, scanters, skinters, scrofulous, and consumptives,” though probably it should 76 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. not be taken for granted that these strongyles are responsible for all cases included under these designations. It is sometimes possible to find the parasite in the faeces, which is, of course, proof positive, though the results do not always justify the trouble of searching. Prevention. — It is most important to bear in mind the fact that infested animals, whether showing signs of the disease or not, are passing the eggs of the worms. If at grass, these are scattered over the pasture, rendering it dangerous to other susceptible animals. This method of distribution of parasite ova is one of the main factors in bringing about that condition of pasture known as soiled, foul, over-stocked, and cattle-sick. Animals known to be, or suspected of being, infested with worms should be kept indoors, and their droppings ploughed deep into the land, or burnt. Young cattle, especially, should not be grazed on pastures known to be infested. Horses, adult sheep, and adult cattle run fewer risks on such pastures. There is no reason for thinking that the eggs or embryos of the worms live apart from animals for indefinitely long periods, so that if it were practicable to keep susceptible animals from infested pastures for twelve or eighteen months, it is probable that the danger would be removed. The ploughing of infested grass land — we grant not often practicable — is likely to render such free. Though little is known of the life-history of the worm, many circumstances indicate the desirability of preventing access to dirty pools, and avoiding depasturing on land which has been flooded. Top-dressings of lime and salt are advocated, and such may be, in some degree, beneficial from this point of view, while recent experiments will appear to indicate on other grounds the desirability of the more frequent use of lime. Though such agents may not, even in large quantities, destroy all adult parasites, it is possible that they provide conditions detrimental to them. Cattle may harbour a few of these strongyles, while they show no symptoms, and it is important to remember that each female worm is capable of laying an immense number of eggs, and so possibly of maintaining the existence of the disease on a place, or of taking it to fresh situations. Adult animals withstand attack better than the young. It is therefore a better practice to allow the younger to have the first bite than to follow adults in grazing. It must be confessed that this form of parasitic invasion is not readily amenable to curative treatment. While it cannot be denied that the administration of remedies in some cases materially assists in recovery, a certain, indeed, a large pro- portion of cases, in which the symptoms are marked, appear not to be favourably affected by any drugs administered. In the Tapeworms. 77 present state of our knowledge, if there are good grounds for suspecting cattle of being infested, while they are fit for the butcher, it is probably economical to sell, rather than treat them. Unfortunately, however, infested cattle are usually emaciated before the nature of the malady is realised, and sale to the butcher is then out of the question. If remedial measures are to be adopted, the animals to be treated must be kept warm ; and as the disease is usually noticed in the late autumn and winter, it is best, if possible, to house them. This, in addition to protection from cold, which the ansemic state demands, will allow of the destruction of the parasite eggs passing from the patient. A liberal diet is equally necessary. Drugs likely to kill or expel these worms must be potent, and care must be taken to make certain that what is given does not injure the “ host ” more than the parasite. The choice and administration are best directed by the veterinary surgeon. It has been the practice to prescribe chloroform, turpentine, tar, carbolic acid, thymol, lysol, &c., and we are disposed to the view that in the incipient stage of the disease, in cases where the struggle between parasite and host is just in the balance, such drugs, especially the first named, may turn the balance in favour of the host. Periodic administration of such medicines, bitter tonics, and plenty of common salt, probably ward off attack, and we think this plan may be adopted with advantage in situations given to the disease. As a cure and preventive, tobacco has been highly spoken of. Mr. Ernest Mathews advocates the administration of half an ounce of shag tobacco in the form of a ball every other day for a week, then allowing an interval of a week, and, in the case of animals showing symptoms, proceeding in this manner until marked improvement is effected. As a preventive, the same dose is given on alternate days for a week, at equal intervals, four or five times while the animals are at grass. The animals are supplied with pure water to which a little lime has been added. We have received other testimony appearing to be favourable to this method of treatment which seems worthy of an extended trial. Tapeworms. — The intestines may harbour tapeworms, or Teenies , of three species. Neither, as a rule, gives rise to appreciable symptoms. These curious creatures are really a colony of segments in Indian file, each fully adapted for purposes of reproduction, and the mature ones farthest from the head contain immense numbers of eggs. The most common is the broad tapeworm ( Tcenict expansa ), remarkable for its great length (sometimes reaching sixty feet), and the breadth of its segments. It occasionally gives rise to some abdominal pain. This, however, is rare. The same 78 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. tapeworm infests the intestines of the sheep, and is credited with causing diarrhoea, &c. Its presence in the intestine may be indicated by the appearance of segments in the faeces. The whip worm ( Trichocephalus affinis ), a parasite usually found holding on to the lining of the bowel, is about one to one and a half inches long ; it has a very small head, and very long slender front portion, and somewhat abruptly thickens towards the tail. Ordinarily only a few specimens are found in an animal, and little importance is attached to their presence. Occasionally many are found coiled up together in the form of a small ball in the intestinal tube. This parasite also infests the sheep. Liver Fluke ( Distoma hepaticum ) is sometimes found in the liver of the ox, but rarely giving rise to symptoms. This organ very commonly contains dense walled bladders, cysts, or hydatids (the Echinococcus veterinorum ). This bladder or cyst contains a watery liquid and very large numbers of the heads of minute tapeworms which inhabit the intestine of the dog. Of these cysts we may meet with just a single specimen, while in some cases they are so numerous as to appear to occupy nearly the whole organ. They are whitish, most frequently about the size of a walnut ; occasionally larger specimens are met with. They are also found in the lungs and in these and other situations in cattle, sheep, and man. There are no distinctive symptoms shown during life, though they are often very numerous. They may cause loss of flesh, unthriftiness, indigestion, &c. If the cysts are swallowed by a dog, minute tapeworms, one-tliird to one-half of an inch long (the Tcenia echinococcus ), develop in his intestine. The preventive treat- ment consists of destruction of all the cysts, which may also be found in many other situations, and the treatment of dogs in the manner to be described under “gid” in sheep. Hoose, Husk, or Parasitic Bronchitis. — Cattle may harbour in the windpipe and its smaller branches (bronchial tubes) fine worms (strongyles), that special to the oxbeing'named^ron^yto micrurus. These are usually met with from one to two inches in length, and may be found singly or in considerable numbers, matted together in bundles in the bronchial tube. The mature female is usually full of living embryos. Here they induce irritation and the production of mucus, and the disease known as parasitic bronchitis, hoose, husk, &c. Young cattle at grass are more commonly its subjects. Symptoms. — The irritation of the bronchi and the collection of mucus cause a cough of a husky character. This cough which is usually noticed from March to October is frequent and easily excited if the young animals are moved about rapidly or hustled. Sometimes paroxysms or fits of coughing Parasitic Bronchitis in Cattle. 79 are severe, and difficult breathing is much marked. The paroxysms probably depend on movement of the bunches of worms in the bronchi, which are dislodged by the cough, and then inhaled into a tube, blocking it. Sometimes under these circumstances the animal may appear as though choked. Mucus is often discharged through the nostrils and may contain the parasite or its embryos, or both. In severe cases there may be great depression and a high temperature indicating inflammation of the lungs ; but in milder cases, which are commonest, the young animal’s general health and appetite are not much affected. In a certain proportion of cases diarrhoea is present, emaciation is very marked, and the course of the disease is rapid and fatal. This we take to be evidence of the co-existence of minute strongyles in the stomach and of the Strongylus micrurus in the bronchi. When there are only a few worms in the air passages recovery usually takes place in the winter. Concerning the development of the Strongylus micrurus little is definitely known. The females are seen to contain immense numbers of living embryos and worms, and embryos are found free in the bronchial tubes. There is every reason for supposing that the embryos do not develop into worms within the “ host,” for if large numbers of embryos, taken from the lungs, are given to cattle or injected into the windpipe, no worms are to be found in the bronchial tubes afterwards. It is assumed that the embryos and those of other strongyles pass out of the animal’s body into some soft-bodied animals as worms, or snails, and there undergo some essential change rendering them fit to live in the bronchi of cattle. Experi- ment shows that the embryos live in moisture for months, and after having been dried, resuscitate on being placed in water ; also that embryos coughed up and discharged in dry weather may remain dormant in the dry condition for weeks and revive after rain. Prevention. — In the absence of knowledge of the life-history of these worms, measures of prevention cannot be adopted with the precision desirable. The results of common obser- vation, however, indicate certain lines which are likely to be followed by a degree of success. Calves and yearlings should not be turned on to pastures suspected of being infested ; indeed, when practicable they should be kept on young grass which has not been depastured with cattle. Land holding water, flooded land, dirty pools, &c., should be avoided. It is deemed advisable to keep young cattle housed at night, turning them out only after the dew has gone, and to give some dry food before turning out. Shelter from cold and a liberal diet are important, and the admixture of common salt with manger 80 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. food is indicated. In fact, the general treatment against strongyles suggested for preventing attack of the stomach worms applies equally here. Attempts to cure “ husk ” with the means at our disposal will probably only lend support to the conviction that “ pre- vention is better than cure.” The administration of worm medicines by the mouth is still much relied on, and the inhalation of irritant gas, as chlorine and sulphurous acid gas, is sometimes practised, but neither of these can be relied on to effect a cure in cases in which there are large numbers of worms. The injection into the windpipe of chloroform, turpentine, carbolic acid, &c., is probably -more effectual. All should be carried out under direction of the expert. External Parasites of Sheep. “ The Maggot,” “Fly,” or “Worm.” — No parasitic attack is perhaps so widely known in Great Britain as that referred to under the above names. This, in late spring, summer, and early autumn, is the daily bugbear of the shepherd. It is particularly encountered in warm, damp, muggy weather, and in low-lying situations. Its occurrence is largely determined by moisture of the fleece, especially that due to the sheep’s excre- ment ; consequently it is most common in animals affected with diarrhoea, whose hinder parts are soiled, while wounds afford favourable conditions. It is not usually regarded as a serious matter, but it always interferes with the animal’s well-doing, and if neglected, may seriously affect its health and even end fatally. The condition is due to the maggots of true flies of one or more species. The flies credited with this power are Lucilia sericata , Lucilia Caesar (both of a bright golden green or greenish blue tint and metallic lustre), and Sarcophciga mag- nificat a large grey fly. The latter probably more commonly deposits its larvae or maggots in wounds. The flies deposit their eggs or larvae only on living animals, and not on dead flesh. Neither is the common meat blow fly. These parasites, with methods of treatment, were fully described by the Society’s Zoologist (Mr. Cecil Warburton) and by the late Sir George Brown in the Journal for 1902 (Vol. 63, 1902, pp. 297, 298 ; 416-420) ; and leaflets on the subject are obtainable from the Society for gratuitous distri- bution. It is therefore unnecessary to give further details in this article. Lice or Pediculi. — The true louse of the sheep is the Tricho- dectes splicer ocephalus (Fig. 4), a small insect about one-sixteenth of an inch long, with a whitish body and broad red head, usually found sticking closely to the skin. It produces some irritation, Ked in Sheep. 81 and by the uninitiated has been sometimes mistaken for and confounded with the scab parasite or the larva of the ked. Though in some districts it gives considerable trouble, it is not a widely distributed parasite. It is easily distinguished by its larger size, and having only six legs, whereas the smaller scab mite has eight. It bites skin and wool, and injures fleece and causes irritation. Treatment is included in that for “scab.” Ked. — The name “sheep louse” is, how- ever, most commonly associated with that ubiquitous insect, the “ked,” or Melophagus ovinus (Fig. 5), so often erroneously called the “ sheep tick.” This familiar brown wingless insect, varying from the size of a small pea to that of a small bean, lives and breeds in the skin of the sheep. It does not lay eggs, but its young are brought forth as pupae, which become attached to the wool fibres, appearing like small brown seeds. This parasite lives on the skin products, and also extracts the blood of the sheep after piercing the skin. It is so familiar that it is not usually considered injurious. There FIG. 5.— Melophagus ovinus (magnified). Fig. 4. — Trichodectes sphcerocephalus. VOL. 67. G 82 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. can, however, be no question but that its presence is detri- mental to the sheep, which it irritates and robs of blood. It is destroyed by most applications advised for scab ; but, as the larvae are not so readily killed as the mature “ ked,” two applications, within two or three weeks, are usually necessary. It is probable that its reappearance after a single dipping and its almost constant presence in sheep is due to this survival of the pupae. Sheep Scab. — “Scab,” “shab,” “rubbers,” “ sceal,” “tetter,” and other terms have been, from the earliest times, applied to a disease of the sheep’s skin. Anglo-Saxon records show that this disease was prevalent in Great Britain in the distant past, while the fact that in the year 1893 it was known to exist in at least eighty-six out of the ninety-six counties, speaks clearly as to more recent times. Though always regarded as a troublesome and loath- some affection, it was not often allowed to be fatal, and had come to be looked on as something “ which always did exist, and always would exist ” ; indeed, it had for centuries been known to be preventable and curable, but had been borne so long that its very familiarity had caused its effects to be held in con- Photo by Jf. Jt . Sheathe,*. ) tempt. As our sheep have Fig. 6.— Female Acarus causing Sheep Scab, become more valuable and called for greater care, and perfection and rapid maturity have become matters of greater importance, stock owners have realised the injurious and annoying effects of the disease and have co-operated in the call for compulsory measures towards its prevention. At the present time the result of measures recently adopted indicates the possibility of eradicating the malady entirely, a promise, the accomplishment of which appears mainly dependent on the thoroughness with which those measures are carried out by sheep owners. Cause. — The mature acarus or mite ( Dermatodectes ovis or Psoroptes communis , var. ovis), which causes sheep scab, though minute of an inch long), is just visible to the naked eye (see Fig. 6). If wool is plucked from the outer edge of the scab and warmed, the parasite may be seen on a wool Sheep Scab . 83 fibre, sometimes performing active movement with its legs, of which the mature parasite has four pairs. It is more distinctly seen with a magnifying lens ; or if some of the moist material from the border of a scab, mixed with a little glycerine and a [Photo, by P. W. Garnet, M.R.C.V.S. Fig. 7— Colony of Acari causing Sheep Scab. 1. Ova. 2. Hexapod larva. 3. Nymph. 4. Pubescent females. 5. Oviparous females. 6. Male. solution of soda, is placed under the microscope, mature acari, six-legged larvae, and eggs may usually be observed. It does not burrow, but lives and breeds on the surface, stabbing and G 2 84 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. pricking the skin to which it clings for a while. Considerable irritation is induced causing the sheep to rub and bite and so injure the infested part as to make it bleed, and produce the scab, which gives the disease its name. The lesion, or scab, is therefore the result of the irritation of the acarus and the rubbing and biting of the sheep, and its only special feature is the scab mite. The acari increase rapidly and invade other healthy parts of the skin, thus extending the original area, while in the process of rubbing they may be carried to distant parts and set up fresh centres of the disease in the animal. Fig. 7 represents a colony of acari in various stages of develop- ment as reproduced by photography from a case of actual scab. Symptoms. — Usually the upper parts of the body, i. e ., neck, shoulders, back, and sides are attacked. The sheep manifests its irritation by biting itself, and rubbing against anything which may afford the opportunity, as posts, gates, hurdles, or other sheep, and large portions of the fleece may be removed, leaving the scab in view. The wool thus removed usually contains the mature acari, larvae, or eggs, and is one of the most important means by which the disease is spread. The sheep is often disturbed in feeding, runs forward and makes nibbling movements with the lips. The diagnosis of scab, however, depends on the discovery of the scab mite. “ No parasite, no scab,” is the axiom. It is usually fairly easy for the expert to detect the parasite in the manner mentioned. The search for it is suggested by the observance of common symptoms : wool about the hedgerows, pastures, and posts, the broken matted fleece, and evidence of irritation shown by the sheep, alone excite suspicion ; but all these conditions may be brought about by other parasites than those of sheep scab. The scab mite lives for some time — probably at most a few weeks — apart from the sheep, but there is no evidence of its propagating elsewhere except on the skin of the sheep. It will therefore be seen that sheep may become affected with scab by contact with infected sheep, objects against which they have rubbed, or their wool which has been removed by rubbing. Infestation must of course be by transfer of eggs, parasites, male and female, or the impregnated female which lays her eggs on the skin of the invaded sheep. These are probably hatched out in about seven days, while about fourteen days are required before the young acari are mature and capable of laying eggs. The fleece to a large extent protects the acarus, which is a parasite of the skin on which it feeds. It exhibits no natural tendency to leave the skin of its host ; therefore when scabby and healthy sheep congregate closely, it is probable that very few acari pass from the affected to the healthy sheep, so that in those cases in which scab is Sheep Scab. 85 contracted by association with affected sheep, probably the symptoms of the disease will not be manifest for two or three weeks or more after contact. It is possible, where scab has been acquired by rubbing on objects which have served the purpose for a scabby sheep, that considerable numbers of the parasites may be transferred to the healthy sheep, which, in such case, might show signs of irritation earlier. Experimentally, they have occurred in fourteen days after infestation. It must be borne in mind that keds, ticks, and lice are extremely common in sheep, and frequently co-exist with the scab parasite. It is probable that these other parasites play an important part in the spread of scab, by causing scab-free sheep to rub against objects on which scabby sheep have been rubbing. “ One scabby sheep infects a flock ” is an old saying rendered none the less true by the above fact. While scab may perhaps be usually spread in a flock by rubbing on inanimate objects, it does not invalidate the postulate, that scab is usually introduced into a flock by the admission of affected sheep. Sheep scab, as shown by the returns of the Board of Agriculture, occurs more in winter than summer, a circum- stance probably accounted for by the fact that dipping is usually practised in the early summer. It is more common in mountainous districts where sheep are scattered, do not congregate frequently, or receive comparatively little individual attention. Prevention. — The Sheep Scab Order of 1905 imposes on the owner of sheep affected with scab, or suspected of being so affected, the duty of giving notice of the fact to the nearest police constable. Measures to be adopted in flocks in which scab exists must provide for the destruction of mature parasites and their eggs. One thorough dipping in any effective dip will probably kill all living parasites, but the eggs may remain a source of danger, so that a second dipping should be given in from seven to fourteen days after the first, which will probably effect a cure by destroying any acari developed from the eggs. In rare instances, however, usually dependent on inefficient material or inrperfect operation, some doubt may remain, when a third dipping should be resorted to. The process of “ salving,” i.e., the application to the skin of some greasy parasiticide, such as mercurial ointment, is still preferred by some flockmasters as being a more certain means of cure than dipping. That salving with mercurial ointment may prove an effectual form of treatment is beyond doubt. There is some danger to the life of the sheep connected with its use, but the experienced hand who is able to dress the whole of the skin with a very small quantity does not run many risks. In old-standing cases it 86 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. may sometimes be advisable to adopt this plan, but the general outcome of the inquiry of the last Departmental Committee indicates that certain dips are effectual and easy of application, while it is important that every sheep shall be subjected to some effectual process. The essence of the prevention of scab of course lies in the cure, i.e., destruction of the scab mite. That dipping is effectual for the destruction of the scab mites and the skin parasites, which usually co-exist on sheep, and cause much irritation, restlessness, loss of flesh, damage to the fleece, and aid the extension of scab, has for a long time been recognised, and the practice has been adopted by flock masters who realised their responsibility and the advantages to be gained. The momentous decrease of the disease since the compulsory dipping Order came into force, gives good grounds for hoping that this pest may be exterminated within a reasonable time. This will, however, depend on the manner in which the provisions of the Order are carried out. The first essential is that the dip be effective ; ’ the second, that the dipping be properly performed. Two other species of scabies, mange, or scab parasites may be mentioned, although they are not commonly recognised as inducing diseases in sheep in Great Britain. . Sarcoptic Mange. — One species, Sarcoptes, usually confines its attacks to the parts covered with hair, i.e., head and legs. It is the burrowing mite and its description in reference to cattle will suffice. It is rarely met with in Great Britain. Symbiotic Mange. — Another species, the Symbiotes or Chorioptes, have oval bodies and thick legs, and move about in groups, but are rarely found elsewhere than on the legs. Here they induce irritation, in some cases swelling and the formation of sores, giving rise to a condition of the legs, especially above the claws, included under the head of “ dew rot” ; while some writers, without much show of proof, regard this parasite as the cause of one form of foot rot. Both these forms of scabies yield to cleanliness and the application of sheep dips and other medicaments fatal to the. “ scab ” parasite. Ticks.1 — The parasites of the family were referred to at length under “ Ticks'” in cattle, and will only require brief notice here. The error of calling the common “Ked,” or Melophagus ovinus, the sheep tick has led to the view that ticks are very commonly found on sheep in almost every part of the kingdom. This is probably incorrect. The idea of such a wide and general distribution is not based on any reliable reports yet available. They are, however, common in some districts, notably hill pastures in the Border counties, the 1 See also page 274 of this Volume. Internal Parasites of Sheep . 87 Western Highlands, and in the western-most counties of England. In these districts they are usually found on sheep from March till September. Beyond the immediate effects of skin irritation, the tick is sometimes credited with introducing the germs of a disease known as “ louping ill ” and also other diseases. Dipping, as for scab, is effectual both as a cure and preventive, and the other measures indicated for destruction of the tick of cattle should be adopted. Scarlet Mite or Harvest Bug. — This minute parasite, the larva of the Trombidium holosericum , of the Order Acarina , is sometimes found in the late summer and early autumn attacking the inside of the thighs and forearms of sheep. It is just visible to the naked eye, about one-twentieth of an inch long, and of a reddish colour. In some seasons this parasite induces considerable irritation. The infested sheep is noticed to be uneasy, tries to reach its forearm and neck with its hind feet, and nibbles the skin on the inside of the legs. The irritation lasts only two or three weeks — the period which the residence on the animal “ host ” occupies, for the adult parasite is believed to live on vegetable matter. It cannot be regarded as a very common or very important parasite. It is, however, capable of inducing symptoms which at least might suggest scab, and it is well, therefore, to take cognisance of it. The application of sheep dip or a very small quantity of mercurial ointment stops the irritation. Internal Parasites of Sheep. Sheep Warble or Bot Fly. — This small, yellowish grey, slightly hairy fly ( CEstrus ovis), two-fifths of an inch long, with transparent wings, and of a silky hue, lives in summer, and is remarkable for its rapid flight. It deposits its eggs or larvae in or about the nostrils of the sheep. At this time sheep are noticed to bury their heads, to rub their nostrils, especially between their forefeet, and sometimes to sneeze and snort. The larvae gain the air sinuses or cavities of the head, and reside there about nine or ten months. Ordinarily there are but a small number of bots in these situations, and no symptoms are observed during the winter, but occasionally the larvae are very numerous, and by their gradual growth the whole mass may press on the part and interfere with breathing. Symptoms. — It is in the early summer, when the larvae are leaving their winter quarters for the outer world, that symptoms are sometimes very marked. When the larvae are creeping down from the sinuses in considerable number, there is much sneezing, a discharge from the nostrils, and coughing ; the eyes stare and are blood- shot ; the sheep may stagger as 88 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. though the brain were affected. We have witnessed on rare occasions considerable losses through inflammation of the lungs, and have found larvae in the windpipe, and considerable quantities of purulent matter there and in the bronchial tubes. Fortunately the CEstrus of the sheep is not a very common species. Prevention. — The preventive treatment, which must- be carried out during the summer, consists of application to the nostril and face of sheep in districts where the fly is known to exist, of some substance distasteful to the fly, in order to prevent it from depositing its eggs or larvae, or of killing them. For this purpose the material spoken of as deterrent to the ox warble fly of cattle is applicable. Probably smearing the nostrils, &c., with tar is most effective and enduring. All practical means should be adopted for killing the larvae as they leave the nostril in May or June. Parasitic Gastritis. — The abomasum, or true stomach of the sheep, like that of the ox, may be infested with parasites of various species. The Strongylus contortus , a slender round worm, about one to one and a half inches in length, has for many years been recognised as the cause of inflammation of the lining membrane of the abomasum. It is frequently found in the company of other nematode worms, especially minute strongyles, and formerly it was taken for granted that the smaller worms were the young of the larger. Later microscopic search has demonstrated that the smaller worms are of a quite distinct species, to which the name Strongylus cervicornis has been given. The worms are found separately or together, inducing the disease under review. This smaller strongyle is usually from to in. in length, the females being longer and more numerous than the males. Though liable to escape observation in the stomach or its contents, it may be readily discerned by means described when referring to the small strongyles of the stomach of the ox. Though round worms of other species are known to inhabit the stomach of the sheep, they are rarely found in large numbers in this country, and are not credited with the production of appreciable disease. Nothing is known as to the life-history and development of these strongyles except that the adult female is seen to contain many eggs, and that on examination of scrapings of an affected stomach only worms and eggs are found. These parasites are responsible for very serious and exten- sive losses, especially of lambs, though occasionally adults may be affected. The disease dependent on their attack is common and widespread. Though it claims a large number of victims every year, in some seasons and in some districts it, appears as a veritable scourge. A few years since, the disease was so Parasitic Gastritis in Sheep. 89 general and the losses so great among the flocks of Lincolnshire that it acquired the name of “ Lincolnshire lamb disease.” It has also been spoken of as “true lamb disease.” The malady is most commonly met with in the autumn. Symptoms.— The principal symptoms are diarrhoea, wasting, and anaemia, depression, loss of appetite for food, a disposition to eat sandy or gritty material, thirst, and a high temperature. In a considerable proportion of cases cough is noticeable. Severe cases may prove fatal in two or three days after symptoms are first appreciable, while some of the affected may live for weeks. Post-mortem examination usually reveals in the stomach a dirty-looking liquid containing sand or gritty particles. The internal lining of this organ may be pale and watery-looking, or red from inflammation. The first part of the small intestine and the caecum (large bowel) show patches of redness, while in the latter may be found small strongyles of the same species as those of the stomach, and others, as the whipworm ( Trichocephalus affinis ), which are occasionally so numerous as to induce irritation and diarrhoea. On examination of the lungs, the parasite which gives rise to “ husk ” is usually found, as well as some inflammation of these organs. Co-existing in the same animal with the above-named, or alone, the broad tapeworm ( Tcenia expansa) is sometimes to be found in large numbers. Its presence is associated with diarrhoea and wasting, and may be revealed by the appearance of the whitish segments resembling short pieces of narrow tape in the droppings. It is remarkable that the manner of life and the conditions essential to the develop- ment of these parasites outside the stomach and intestines are so far unknown to science. The picture revealed at post mortem, however, tells plainly enough that some conditions, to which affected flocks have been subjected, must have been favourable to infestation of sheep, and that presumably some foregoing circumstances must have favoured the life and increase of parasites of several distinct species. These con- ditions appear to be the same as those referred to as favouring infestation of cattle with their stomach strongyles. Prevention. — Attempts at prevention must be adopted along the same lines as those suggested in case of the cattle stomach worm. If practicable, lambs, where the disease is known to have existed for a year or so, should not graze after sheep, as it is possible that, though not appreciably affected, adult sheep, or indeed lambs, may pass on to the pasture a large number of eggs, which the more readily affected lambs might acquire. The smaller the area of the grazing ground the greater chance there will be for lambs or sheep to take in a 90 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep . FIG. 8. — Embryo of Liver Fluke boring into a snail. i Only a very small part of the snail has been drawn. (Magnified 370 times.) (Original.— A.P.T.) two. h eye-spots disappearing. (Magnified 500 times.) (Original— A.P.T.) Fig. 10. — A full-grown Sporocyst (the first generation) of the Liver Fluke. It contains several germs in different stages of growth. The largest, at the lower end, has assumed the characters of a redia. (Magnified 230 times.) (Original. — A.P.T.) 91 Liver Fluke FIG. 11. — A young Redia (second generation) of the Liver Fluke with the contents forming into germs of the third generation. (Magnified 230 times.) (Original. — A.P.T.) Fig. 12 contains a large number of germs of the third generation. Two of these are so far advanced that they show the characters of the tailed larva or cercaria. It contains also on the left hand a young redia. cx and c2 the two cercarise ; in, intestine of cercaria; w,w', germs in a very early stage; r,r, the processes which serve as feet ; in1, the intestine of redia ; v, the birth-opening by which the cercarise leave. (Magnified 120 times.) (Original,— A.P.T.) Fig. 12. — A full-grown Redia (second generation of the Liver Fluke). 92 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. sufficient number of parasites. On this depends the risks of over-stocking, and the comparative freedom from the disease of sheep having a wide range of pasture. As far as is known, these worms reach maturity, or at any rate the stage of egg bearing, only in the stomach of ruminants, preferably sheep ; and as it is not likely that, in the immature state, the parasite would live long apart from the host, it is as well to keep sheep off infested pastures as long as possible, after which the danger would be averted by the death of the immature worms. Curative treatment must be in imitation of that suggested for the cattle stomach worm. Liver Fluke. — The disease known, as liver rot, coathes, iles, &c., caused by the liver fluke ( Distoma hepaticum ), has at times during the past forty years appeared as a scourge. For several years past our flocks have been remarkably free from anything like serious outbreak. It usually follows a succession of wet seasons, and in view of a possible recurrence of wet seasons during the rainy summer of 1903, the Board of Agriculture issued a leaflet of warning and advice as to the prevention of this disease, and in the following year reprinted, by permission of this Society, the scientific articles on this disease which had appeared in the Journal. Happily there has been no recurrence of the losses experienced in the ’sixties and ’seventies. From the Board of Trade returns it will be seen that from 1879 to 1881 there was a diminution of 3,500,000 sheep in Great Britain, attributed mainly to liver rot. It is difficult to account for the disappearance of the malady. Probably certain special climatic conditions, unfavourable to its develop- ment, have obtained ; possibly the knowledge of the life- history of the fluke has led to the adoption of successful measures of prevention. Certain it is that the important discoveries of Mr. A. P. Thomas, described in the Journal some twenty-five years ago,1 which completed our knowledge of the life-cycle of the parasite, contained the information which affords us certain grounds to work on. Though at the present time comparatively little interest is likely to be taken in the subject, we must not overlook the fact that now and again we meet with cases of liver rot, and that flukes are not annihilated. Indeed, a few are frequently met with. Each individual parasite is capable under favourable circum- stances of producing innumerable young flukes. This has been variously calculated at from scores to hundreds of thousands, so that, should favourable conditions arise, it is possible for us to experience a repetition of former troubles, 1 Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 42, 1881, p. 1 ; Vol. 43, 1882, p. 439 ; Vol. 44, 1883, p. 276. Liver Fluke of Sheep. 93 while it is well that such preventive measures as can be, should be taken in the course of good husbandry. The accompanying illustrations (Figs. 8 to 14), reproduced from Mr. Thomas’s articles, indicate the series of changes from deposition of the fluke egg. It will be seen that the egg must get into water and there develop into an embryo capable of boring into the body of a snail. This snail lives only in fresh FIG. 13.— An adult Fluke, showing the branched Digestive Tract. y, the oral ; y‘, the ventral sucker ; in, the branched intestine. In the centre, between the two main branches of the intestine, lies the chief trunk of the water- vessel. Twice the natural size. (Original. — W.H.J.) FIG. 14.— Another view of an adult Fluke showing the Reproductive Organs. y, the oral ; y \ the ventral sucker ; Od, the oviduct ; Ov, the ovary ; Vt, the vitel- larium or gland that forms the granular yolk-cells surrounding the embryo in the egg; Te, the anterior; Te‘, the posterior testis ; their ducts run forwards. The generative opening is in front of the ventral sucker. Twice the natural size. (Original. — W.H.J.) and not in salt water. In the body of the snail, the embryo develops, in three generations, many more, each of which passes out of the snail, and if taken in by the sheep with its food or water, becomes the sexually mature hermaphrodite fluke. The parasite having gained the liver of its host defies removal by any known means. 94 - Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. The mature fluke is flat and about an inch long. While in the liver, the female deposits her eggs, which are carried out and distributed over the pasture with the dung. If the fresh water snail (. Limncea truncatula) is available the embryo enters it. Symptoms. — It has often been stated that in the early stages of the disease the infested sheep puts on flesh and appears to do exceptionally well, and that this is due to increased flow of bile, resulting from irritation of the young fluke creeping up the bile ducts. This improvement in condition may, and probably does, depend on the fact that situations in which the sheep takes in the flukes are most commonly old pastures, which at the time are full of grass owing to the wet weather or flooding which is so favourable to the development of fluke embryos. Soon after this reputed improvement, the sheep loses condition and becomes anaemic, as evidenced by paleness of the membrane of the eye and gums. After a while, the appetite is lost, emaciation is notice- able, there are dropsical swellings, especially under or between the jaws, the abdomen enlarges, the spine becomes prominent (razor back), and the appetite is affected. Should the symptoms subside, recovery will be slow. Post-mortem examination shows changes almost entirely confined to the liver and the blood. The walls of the bile duct are thickened throughout, giving to the organ a certain hardness to the touch, which may be extreme, owing to deposition of lime salts. Flukes may be found in the large ducts, or if the organ is cut through and squeezed, they will appear on the cut surface. Prevention. — As there are no known means of expelling the flukes from the bile ducts, the importance of preventive measures is paramount. Moisture is essential to the develop- ment of the free-swimming embryo and of the snail (. Limncea truncatula) into which it bores. Without the snail, the embryo can advance no further. The surest and probably the easiest way to prevent liver rot is to prevent the existence of this and all other fresh water snails. The snail will not live without water and that water must be fresh. All means should therefore be taken to prevent water standing in ditches, pools, &c., while the application of salt to infested pastures (5 to 10 cwt. per acre), in the autumn, helps to establish conditions unfavourable to its life. Liming of pastures has been freely advocated, but it is difficult to see how this can be of substantial service. Livers containing flukes should be well boiled if to be used for dogs, &c., but under all circumstances the flukes it may contain should be destroyed. Sheep from affected flocks should not be brought on to a place. When 95 Parasitic Pneumonia in Sheep. liver rot is detected in a flock, and it seems likely that the disease has been acquired on the farm, it will probably prove most economical to kill the whole flock, as it is impossible to determine what animals may not be infested. Plentiful supply of good dry food, to which has been added some edible salt and some bitter tonic, may assist the infested sheep to recovery, while it may help to expel any flukes which may happen to be in the intestine. Pastures should not be overstocked, and high ground is preferable. Parasitic Bronchitis. — Two species of strongyle infest the bronchial tubes or lung tissue of sheep. Strongylus filaria or Bronchial Strongyle. — This worm of the sheep corresponds so closely in structure, size, habits, and, as far as is known, development and disease-producing characters, with the Strongylus micrurus of the ox, that the reader is referred to the account of the latter parasite for details respecting these points. It is, however, to be remarked here, that the parasitic bronchitis, &c., caused by the Strongylus filaria, principally affects lambs and yearlings, and rarely adult sheep. Diarrhoea, due to the small stomach worms of the sheep, and parasitic bronchitis often co-exist in the same animal. The fatalities are probably greater in lambs than in cattle. Prevention and curative treatment must follow on the lines suggested in reference to the bronchial strongyle of the ox. Parasitic Pneumonia. — The lungs of sheep of the age of one year and upwards may be infested with a very slender worm ( Strongylus ru/escens ), which is usually from one to two inches long and of a reddish-brown colour. In its adult form it is not often found in large numbers in the bronchial tubes. The embryos invade the tissue of the lung and set up inflammation in larger or smaller areas rendering them solid. If these solid parts are cut into, and scrapings from the cut surface examined under the microscope, numerous embryos of a peculiar form and parts of the adult worm may be observed. This strongyle then does its main injury by means of its embryos, which get into the substance oj: the lung, inducing pneumonia, while the effects of the bronchial strongyle are chiefly on the bronchial tubes — bronchitis. These parasites may co-exist in the same animal, but in the adult sheep the more serious results are due to the lung strongyle. The losses from attack of this worm are sometimes very extensive, and the rapid course and fatal results of general invasion of the lung alarming. Probably a large number of isolated cases of death due to the worm are attributed to other causes. Symptoms. — The symptoms of the disease caused by the lung strongyle usually attract less attention than those caused 96 Parasites of Cattle and Sheep. by the bronchial strongyle. They will very much depend on the extent to which the lung tissue is invaded by the embryos. The sheep lags behind its fellows, tends to separate itself, is disinclined to move, and pants and coughs after any exertion ; generally there is some thirst. When the lungs are extensively invaded the course is usually short, and death may occur a few hours after indisposition is first observed. When only a very limited area of lung is affected the course of the disease may be protracted, and fresh accession of symptoms follows fresh invasions by embryos. The disease is not always fatal, for lungs of sheep wholly unsuspected during life, are frequently found to contain considerable areas of solid lung attributed to attack of the embryos of this worm. Prevention. — Concerning the life-history of the lung strongyle we are no more favourably placed than in the case of the other members of the strongyle family. Preventive measures, we think, must follow on the principles suggested in the case of other diseases due to strongyles. In the expe- rience of a good many people the disease induced by the Strongylus rufescens is limited to over-stocked sick-sheep enclosures. We have confronted it on Salisbury plain and in other places where wide range of pastures is the rule, but investigation has usually shown that the subjects of the disease have been purchased and not bred in open country. The consideration of curative treatment does not afford very good grounds for hope. When sheep are showing symptoms of the disease, the lung tissue is invaded by the embryos, and we know of no medicine which is likely to destroy them. Indeed, if there are reasons for thinking many sheep are infested, it is probably best and most economical to have the flock slaughtered. Good dry food is essential, and shelter from cold and exposure should be provided. Gid, Sturdy, &c. — The affection so well known as “ gid,” “ sturdy,” “ turnsick,” “ goggles,” &c., is very general and certainly one of the best understood diseases of sheep. The symptoms, so well expressed in the popular names, are due to the presence in the brain or spinal cord of the sheep of a cyst or bladder, the Ccenurus cerebralis or gid hydatid. This represents one phase in the development of a tapeworm ( Tcenia ccenurus ) which inhabits the intestine of the dog. The cyst or bladder, which may attain the size of a hen’s egg, is filled with a watery fluid, and contains, usually in contact with its inner lining membrane, many heads, each of which under favourable circumstances becomes an individual tapeworm. Each bladder may enclose hundreds of heads, so that if a dog swallowed one of these cysts, it is possible that a large number of tapeworms may develop in his intestines. 97 Gid , Sturdy , 8fc., in Sheep. Here the hermaphrodite tapeworm becomes full of eggs, and each segment which passes with the faeces of the dog contains incredible numbers. If one of these eggs is taken by the sheep with its food or water it passes to his nervous system and develops into a bladder. The “gid” of the sheep and tapeworm of the dog are therefore dependent on the eating by the dog of the brain of the sheep, and on the sheep eating (or drinking) what has passed from the dog. As a rule there are only a few animals in a flock affected with “ gid ” at the same time, but occasionally it happens in a much more serious form. Instances have come under the notice of the writer in which 75 per cent, of the lambs of a large flock have become fatally affected, 300 having succumbed within four months. Symptoms. — The manifestations of the presence of the hydatid in the brain of the sheep are too well known to require lengthy reference here. These will vary according to the situation and size of the bladder, and may interfere with any function of the brain. Most commonly, movements are abnormal. The affected sheep may move in a circle, step high, or trot ; .indeed, perform any apparently purposeless or uncontrollable movement. In some cases loss of power (paralysis) is the leading feature. Blindness is not infrequent. Loss of flesh is almost invariable, and if the animal is allowed to live long after symptoms are first observed, there may be bulging and softening of the bones of the brain case. Prevention.— Our knowledge of the life-history of this worm allows the adoption of precise measures for prevention. All dogs, likely to get on to places where sheep are kept, should be periodically dosed with worm medicines (as areca nut), tied up in a house for a few days, and the droppings carefully swept up and burnt. If all dog owners were to follow this practice, “ gid ” of sheep would be, indeed, a rare disease. The heads of sheep containing the bladder worm should be destroyed or, at least, thoroughly boiled before being eaten by dogs. The cure may be sometimes effected by surgi- cal operation, i.e., by trephining the bones of the skull and removing the bladder. This is a somewhat favourite perform- ance of mountain shepherds. It is, occasionally, successful, and may be interesting to the operator, but the easier method of prevention by the means suggested is also more economical and worthy of adoption. John Penberthy. Royal Veterinary College, London, N.W. VOL. 67. H t 98 COMPARATIVE ECONOMY OF DIFFERENT METHODS OF HARVESTING CORN CROPS. The general conclusion that economy has been effected by each improvement in harvest appliances requires no detailed proof. It is demonstrated by the general adoption of machinery in place of hand labour, and by the successive abandonment of the sickle for the scythe ; the scythe for the back delivery reaper ; the back delivery for the side delivery ; the continuous swathe for the sheaf deliverer ; and, lastly, the reaper for the binder. When I was requested by the Editor to write a short article on the comparative cost of harvesting by means of sickles and scythes, reaping machines and self-binders, I felt that mere estimates of comparative cost must in some degree be abortive, owing to the great range of circumstances involved. There is, in the first place, the difficulty of fixing the money value of horse labour, for to many farmers the employment of horses for cutting grass and corn is in .itself a serious objection. It was, for example, thought good management forty years ago to plough up clover land for wheat during harvest, and much stress was laid upon the advantage of a long interval between ploughing the land and drilling. Again, there is always a great deal of work on large farms in connection with horse-hoeing and putting in late roots, as well as in completing summer fallows, which require horse labour ; and some of these operations are more than likely to be partially neglected if the horses are cutting grass and corn. Whatever disadvantage there may be in postponing the above descrip- tions of work must, in some measure at least, be charged against any system of harvesting which monopolizes the horses. The absorption of horse labour is considerable on farms where, in order to keep pace with the maturing of grass and corn crops, two mowing machines and two binders, or more, are required. To cut 150 acres of grass and 300 acres of corn must mean, even under favourable circumstances, forty working days, or close upon seven weeks, including Sundays, for either four or six horses. It is in some cases possible to work a team of two or three horses a full day upon a self-binder, but when the work is carried on ceaselessly during the whole day, and the men in attendance relieve each other at the dinner hour and other stopping times, the horses must be changed. It is unreasonable to expect a team to work at the requisite speed from six in the morning till seven at night, even with intervals of rest ; but when the rule is to keep the machines going with Hand Reaping. 99 changes of drivers, a spare team is inevitable. I have gone at length into this matter because I hear of many farmers who use one team of two or three horses all day on these machines ; but it is sounder economy to keep up the pace and work the cutter continuously. If this latter plan is adopted and the amount cut and tied averages twelve acres per day, twelve horses employed on two self-binders will be required for a fortnight to do the work. On twelve-horse farms practically all the team will be needed, even after the earlier interruption for grass cutting. So serious is this interruption of summer tillages, that there are still farmers who prefer to employ men to mow their corn crops in spite of the greater cost. It is such considerations as these which make the relative advantages of hand labour and horse reapers or binders a difficult question. Still, the general result is in favour of the newer method, whether viewed from actual cash expenditure, or from the points of view of rapidity, certainty, and independence of expensive manual labour. There are some other trivial objections to the self-binder which its superior merits have silenced. There are, for example, laid and twisted crops which can only be reaped by hand. There is also the objection of tying up clover and grassy herbage, which would dry more quickly if left in broadband. The well-known beneficial effect of night dews, and even of showers, in mellowing and increasing the size of barley are not forgotten by many growers, although the practice of cutting barley with the binder has undoubtedly increased. In some seasons the drawbacks attendant upon self-binders are more evident than in others, but the tendency for many years past has been in their favour. Relative Cost. It is not difficult to establish the fact of a gradual diminu- tion of actual cost in cash payments due to each successive improvement. Horses must be maintained whether they are profitably employed or not, and unless they are urgently needed on the land, they are well employed in cutting the corn. The saving on the pay sheet is very considerable and the total apparent cost of harvesting is much reduced. Hand Reaping. Reaping by sickle was quite usual from 1850 to 1860, although the reaping machine came first into notice in 1851. In 1852, Hussey’s, and Burgess & Key’s (McCormick’s) reapers were before the public, and by 1857 were coming into general use. At that time much corn was cut by the sickle at a cost of from 10s. to 20s. per acre according to circumstances, and the work was in all respects excellent. The sheaves were 100 Methods of Harvesting Corn Crops. uniform, all the heads being ranged neatly together, and the butts square. No liorse-raking was needed, and gleaners were cheerfully allowed to gather what was left. The crop-ends were broad, and consequently were more liable to injury from sprouting in wet weather than mown sheaves. Oats were commonly set up in gaits1 separately, and afterwards bound into sheaves and put in stook. Stacks built from reaped sheaves were neat, and the sheaves were alternately laid right and left in order to tie the rick, and, when shaved, the builder’s art was exhibited in the well-marked layers. It was a perfect system of harvesting, possessing the usual superiority of hand over machine labour. Looking back to those older times, one cannot but regret the loss of many of the arts of the harvest field : the perfect sheaves, the well-placed stooks, the shaven ricks, and ornamental thatching, all of which have disappeared. The disadvantages were : the expense, and the long stubbles, dear to sportsmen, but wasteful of straw. In some cases the stubbles were mown later. Mowing Corn. The scythe was an improvement upon the sickle, and sixty years ago was employed generally. Corn scythes are shorter in the blade than Ihose used for grass, and may be two-handled, or with straight or bent sned dr handle. They may be fitted with a cradle or bow to collect the corn and lay it across the line of mowing, or in the line of progress, in which case the heads rest upon straw, and not on the ground. Mowing is best done by a party of three — often man, wife and boy. The man mows the corn, the woman binds it, and the boy makes bonds. A man will mow from one to two acres per day, and a “ head ” of mowers, that is, mower, tyer, and bandster, form a well-proportioned party. The cost on fair crops is about 10s. to 12s. per acre if let by piece. The amount done per day was estimated in Stephens’ Book of the Farm (1st Edition) as follows : — three mowers, three gatherers, three bandsters, and one raker to do six acres of oats, five acres of barley, or four acres of wheat. At the low wages which were given in 1841 he calculates the cost as 5s. 2\d. per acre for oats, 6s. 3 d. per acre for barley, and 7s. 9 \d. for wheat. Work of this description should never be done by day pay, and if let at 12s. per acre it is clear that the above ten hands would earn 48s. when cutting wheat, or 4s. 9 \d. each, which is reason- able. Barley and oats would be let at a proportionately lower price per acre. Mowing severs the straw two inches above the ground, and it has been shown by direct experiment that 1 “ Gaits” are solitary sheaves, set up separately on their stubble ends, to facilitate drying. — Ed. 101 Reaping Machines and Self-Binders. the weight of straw per acre is in this way considerably increased. The relative weight per acre of straw would be as follows : — If cut 2 in. ofE the ground the weight per acre equals 26 cwt. >> ® n ii ii ii 23 ,, ii 12 ,, ,, ,, ,, 21 ,, The scythe therefore secures about 3 cwt. of wheat straw more than the sickle, and that quantity, if viewed as marketable produce, may easily be worth 7s. 6d. and go far towards paying the expense of mowing. Mown sheaves are better adapted for throwing off wet than shorn sheaves, as they are sharper, and the stooks are pointed like a high-pitched roof. Mowing is an excellent method of harvesting corn, although it has been to a great extent relinquished in favour of reaping machines and binders. Reaping Machines. It is not necessary to review the history of the reaping machine, except to recall the revolution which its introduction has caused in harvesting. It gave employment to horses on many farms where they were formerly turned out to grass until required for carting. In other cases, as already men- tioned, it, to some extent, interfered with tillages. It cut the stubbles shorter than the sickle, although a little longer than the scythe. It proved a salutary check to the high wages demanded by labourers, and did away with all the prepara- tions previously necessary for housing and feeding itinerant bands of men from Ireland, Derbyshire, and other places. It also reduced the cost of harvesting to a point more consistent with the lower prices of corn. And yet it must be allowed that the reaping machine has had its day. It is seldom used except for barley, and upon small holdings, on which a mower with reaping attachment may be recommended. The principal interest now attaching to these machines is that of cost in comparison with self-binders, for no one can doubt the greater efficiency of the latter class of machines. Any further remarks upon reaping machines will therefore best be made in contrasting them with harvesters. Self-Binders. Twine has now been adopted as the best material for binding, and 3^ lb. per acre at 48s. per cwt. works out to a cost of Is. 6d. per acre,1 to which must be added Is. per acre for stooking or setting up. The self-binder has been brought 1 Mr. Frederick Reynard, of Sunderlandwick, Driffield, informs me that, in his own case, the consumption of binder-twine for five years, 1901 to 1905, amounted to 2-78 lb. per acre. It is, however, advisable to estimate such charges liberally, and my own consumption has generally been about 3£ lb. per acre. — J. W. 102 Methods of Harvesting Corn Crops. to great perfection and it is not necessary in this connection to discuss the merits of rival machines. It is wonderful to witness the perfection of its work and the dexterity with which a good carter manages and keeps it going without let or hindrance. It has been an education in itself to men, and although a highly complicated implement, it is extraordinary to see how it works day after day without serious breakdowns. It possesses all the advantages of the reaper, with some others in addition. There are circumstances in which it cannot be used, but these are rare. On all fairly standing crops the self- binder may be used. It has caused the rounded ridges which at one time were seen on clay arable land to disappear, for neither it nor the reaper can stand the recurring jars of ridge and furrow. It cannot always be used on heavy, laid, or twisted crops, nor on precipitous ground. It is scarcely consistent with small fields and small holdings, where back- delivery reaping machines still find employment. Cost of Reaping. We have already seen that cutting, tying, and stooking with the sickle used to cost from 10s. to 20s. per acre, and it has even been in some circumstances as high as 25s. per acre. Mowing, tying, stooking and raking wheat were estimated as costing 12s. per acre. We have now to endeavour to find the cost of cutting by reaping machines and by self-binders, and once again we are confronted by the horse question. If horses are charged simply at bed-rock price, or what they absolutely cost the farmer, they may be demonstrated to entail an expenditure of 2 51. per annum, including risk and depreciation upon an average value of 45 1. This does not include attendants’ or teamsmen’s wages, because these are paid for separately. This equals an average cost of Is. 8^d. per day, spread over 290 working days. The question is, Are we to charge horses cutting corn at the average cost of their maintenance throughout the year ? I prefer to charge horse labour at two rates, one for summer and one for winter, and to divide the total cost as follows : — £ s. d. Two-thirds of total cost for the summer half year . . 16 13 4 One-third of the same for the winter half year . .868 Total cost . . 25 0 0 This works out exactly to Is. 0 \d. per day for the winter half, and 2s. 0^, and half of 2^ is 1J, two broken numbers in the scale. Mr. H. G. Wells, in one of his clever novels, has forecast a scale of 8, and this reversion to a mediaeval truth has been called “ one of the wildest of his fantasies.” Of this scale of 8 we have an odd survival in the shipping trade, which in all countries divides a ship into a maximum of 64 shares=8x8. We believe that The Times newspaper shares are similarly divided, the first Mr. Walter having started in the shipping trade. Other traces are to be found in the 8 pints to the gallon, in the 8 half crowns to the pound, in the 8 drachms to the ounce, and in the 8 furlongs to the mile. If we could establish a scale of 8, it would solve all our difficulties. We imagine, however, that no serious controversialist will suggest the enforcement of a scale of 8. The scale of 12 has its practical advocates. Its weakness, of course, is in the last stage of dividing out. Half of 3 is 1^, a broken number. The scale of 10 (the decimal system) has two weaknesses to this one. Where the 12 scale fails is in the higher figures : 12 x 12—144, the g?mss., is the highest that children usually reach, and few grown men could answer 108 Agricultural Weights and Measures. offhand what was 144 x 144 ; whereas 100 x 100 is no long puzzle even to the slowest intellect. Nobody has ever defended scales of 7 or 9 ; because they fail on the first divisional attempt. The elimination of all odd scales — we use the word, of course, in its literal sense — is there- fore the first step of reform, one that even ultra-conservatives may be expected to support. Let All Souls’ College, Oxford, Winchester College, and Eton College give up their 9 gallons to the bushel, and the Port of Looe its 18 gallons (9x2) to the bushel. 1 The seven days to the week, however, apparently enshrine the 7 scale in an impregnable position. The fact that 8 bushels make one quarter constitutes a serious obstacle to reform. It is curious that this should be so ; but as the French say, “ the good and the better are always enemies.” We must give up the convenience of this perfect scale, however, because it cannot be worked out at either end. We can never get 64 lb. to the bushel as a fixed weight, and 8 quarters to the ton would be “ Irish ” indeed. A 2-ton unit might be brought in, but it would have to consist of 4,096 lb., which is a very unwieldy quantity. Moreover, the bushel is primarily a measure, and local traditions and usages mostly attach to this view of it. Bushels are simply boxes, the monkish Latin word bussuli meaning both boxes and in a technical sense bushels. Our word “bushel” is simply this bussulus anglicized. The bushel or box is the most diverse of measures. The following are the chief bushels in present agricultural use : — 1. The Monmouth wheat bushel of 80 lb. No wheat ever did or could weigh 80 lb. to the bushel, so that this must be an utter corruption and misuse. We suspect that the agriculture of the region was so bad that 80 lb. of corn had to be delivered to secure, on sifting, 60 lb. of clean wheat. These abnormally large bushels never occur in wheat regions proper. 2. The Chester wheat bushel of 75 lb. 3. The Aberystwyth wheat bushel of 65 lb. These three bushels used in the west and in Wales should be given up ; they serve no useful purpose whatsoever. 4. The Mark Lane wheat bushel of 63 lb. This prevails in the chief wheat counties, including Lincolnshire and the Eastern Midlands, East Anglia, and Essex with its former dependencies of Middlesex and Surrey, also in Kent. It is likewise the usual standard for all sales of beans, peas, tares, lentils, lucerne seed, &c. It has not been superseded by (5) the statutory bushel of 60 lb., which is the usual standard for maize, dari, rye, millet, American, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, and Argentine wheat. The last named, however, weighs over 60 lb. as a rule, and the surplus is deducted on 1 Thorold Rogers, History of Agriculture, Yol. VII. 109 Varying Weights of the Bushel. delivery. The 6th of the more frequently used bushels weighs 58 lb., and is used for canary seed. Others may be briefly detailed : — 7. The 56-lb. bushel. — Wheat when sold for chicken and other feed ; barley when sold for malting ; potatoes. 8. The 53-lb. bushel. — Rapeseed when home grown. 9. The 52-lb. bushel. — Rapeseed when imported ; linseed ; buckwheat. 10. The 50-lb. bushel. — Barley when sold under the Act of 1882, but other- wise only when sold for feeding purposes. 10. The 48-lb. bushel. — Gluten meal. 11. The 47-lb. bushel. — Poppyseed ; sesame. 12. The 45-lb. bushel. — Mangels ; Swedes ; Turnips. 13. The 42-lb. bushel. — Malt ; English and Scotch Oats, except when sold under the Act of 1882 ; torrified wheat and barley. 14. The 40-lb. bushel. — American oats ; Canadian oats ; carrots. 15. The 39-lb. bushel.— Oats when sold under the Act of 1882. 16. The 38-lb. bushel. — Russian, Roumanian, and Turkish oats ; undecorti- cated cotton cake. Here we have sixteen bushels all in weekly market use. Numbers 1, 2, and 3 are archaic and have long survived their purpose, while number 15 is a recent statutory creation which has “failed to please.” Similar perplexity attends the load in pastoral agriculture, for a load of new hay weighs 19 cwt. 32 lb., a load of old hay 18 cwt., and a load of straw 11 cwt. 64 lb. The railway companies are practical reformers in this matter and will only recognise the ton. Great good has been effected in recent years by this firmness of the different traffic managers. Passing from weights to measures, that is to say, to reckon- ing by the space or area occupied, we find that the ordinary measure of capacity is 4 gills 1 pint, 2 pints 1 quart, 4 quarts 1 gallon, 2 gallons 1 peck, 4 pecks 1 bushel, 8 bushels 1 quarter. This is an octave, or system of 8, the original formula being inclusive of a 2-bushel measure which has dropped out. Or the formula may have continued from 4 pecks 1 bushel, 4 bushels 1 coomb, and 2 coombs 1 quarter. The coomb is still in use in East Anglia and contains 4 bushels, but it is usually regarded as a Danish peculiarity of this very Danish part of England. The word is said to be the early English cumh , which means a cup, but Professor Skeat is not a safe guide on agricultural derivations. A coomb consists of a quantity never associated with even the largest cups. Unusual local measures perplex by their diversity in com- paratively restricted areas. Thus, there is the boll, a word the use of which is said to follow where the Scandinavians held sway. We find it at Newcastle, Carlisle, Darlington, Berwick, Duns, Kelso, and Glasgow as still the ordinary measure by which corn is sold. But the Berwick boll is double a Newcastle boll, and it takes four Carlisle bolls to make 110 Agricultural Weights and Measures. three Glasgow ones. The seven very important markets which use these divergent bolls should unite on their abolition. Unusual local weights may in some cases have originally been measures, but as a fixed quantity is now legally due by local custom they must be treated purely as weights. They include the windle of Preston and the hohhet of Denbigh, the first of 220 lb., the second of 168 lb. Neither fits in with any recognisable scale or table, though the last named may be a 3-bushel measure where the bushel was' 56 lb. It is a curious feature of this hohhet that twelve of them make the exact and very odd weight of 2,016 lb., which is said by some to be the original chaldron , of which 504 lb. is the quarter. As 504 lb. constitutes the old East Anglian quarter, the matter may repay further research. The subject has been alluded to quite recently ( The Standard, October 1, 1906), but no evidence beyond old farmers’ hearsay is apparently adducible thus far. On this hypothesis the hobbet may have been a sack, for in selling lime and some other articles, twelve sacks still make a chaldron. A very large proportion of transactions is put through in the agricultural world by avoirdupois weight, which by its name reveals its French origin. This weight in its modern form is singularly cumbrous ; 16 oz. which make 1 lb. and 8 stones which make 1 cwt. seem to be survivals of the octave, while the 20 cwt. which make 1 ton appear to belong to the decimal system. The 14 lb. which make 1 stone appertains to a rare and probably religious and astronomical scheme of 7 which Ave may call the Septet. The history of this weight, which we owe to the Plantagenets or to the Normans, would require more research than we can give to it, and its utterly amorphous character renders its abolition a crying necessity. Its continued employment costs may thousands of pounds yearly in cumbrous account keeping. Among bodies still using it for agricultural tables, are the Irish Department of Agricul- ture, the British Custom House, and the Conservative Central Association in their Constitutional Year Book for 1906. The latter, however, in their 72nd fiscal table adopt the useful unit of pounds, raising the unit to a million by pointing off six figures to the right. An old Scots’ scale of 8 is decidedly interesting. It is not yet extinct : — 4 lippies = 1 peck. 4 pecks = 1 firlot. 4 firlots = 1 boll. 2 bolls = 1 quarter. 8 quarters = 1 chalder. In this rather elaborate system where the quarter is not a “ quarter ” of anything, though there are three items out of Various Systems of Reckoning. Ill five which go by quarters, may, I think, be found something like evidence that the quarter of corn has nothing to do with quartus. In the butter trade the scale of 7 appears to be the clue to the perplexing firkins, tubs, and barrels which weigh respec- tively 56, 84, and 224 lb. and fit into each other singularly ill. But the firkin contains 8, the tub 12, and the barrel 32 units of 7 lb. each. Two peculiar reckonings prevail in East Anglia. By one, the peck at a corn chandler’s is reckoned at 15 lb. of wheat, 14 lb. of malting barley, 13 lb. of poultry barley, and 10 lb. of oats (320 lb. to the quarter). The railways serving Eastern England used to reckon 5 quarters of wheat, beans, or peas to the ton of 2,240 lb., 6 quarters of barley, 7 quarters of oats, and quarters of malt. Asylums might be filled by people attempting to make this logical, but the fact is that a free margin was allowed in order to attract custom. The system has long since been replaced by the ton, as trucks run into tons in their capacity, and trucks are the real railway unit. The old railway allowance may, however, still crop up in returns of quantities delivered at markets by rail. We refer of course to Victorian records. With reference to a possible decimal system based on the present pound it may be noted that a unit of 10,000 lb. would probably suit the railways peculiarly well as, if it were in a legal scale, the trucks could easily be built to that capacity. There are at present a variety of trucks, but the smallest holds 8,960 lb., and the largest, we believe, 15,680 lb. It is not absolutely impossible that the railway companies, amid their present rivalries, might be glad to see compulsory uniformity of a certificated 10,000 lb. capacity truck. Mr. Primrose McConnell has usefully pointed out that to get pounds into hundredweights we have to multiply by *00893, a fact in itself surely sufficiently condemnatory of the avoirdu- pois system. If there is anything still less defensible the milk trade of the Midlands supplies it with its “ barn gallon” of 17 pints. To lay upon humanity the burden of a high indivisible number like 17 is an offence for which there surely should be “imprisonment without the option of a fine.” In the Mark Lane Express for October 22, 1906, we have the argument for trying to grow malting barley put as follows : — “The fault is not with the price which maltsters and fine ale brewers are willing to pay. Their buyers are commissioned to pay a penny per lb. for the fine bright types of barley, whereas wheat at present fetches only '67 of a penny per lb., and oats are *63 of a penny per lb.” 112 Agricultural Weights and Measures. Surely this is clear enough. The farmer feels instinctively that the first course open to him means 100 sovereigns where the second means 67 and the third 63. Once established as a scale of comparison, the decimal system may almost be said to do its own translation into whatever sum or quantity is most familiar to each individual in his own transactions. The poor will at once grasp the difference between the article a pound of which costs a penny and the article a pound of which costs less than a penny, while the well-to-do who think, as we may say, “ in consols.” will with equal readiness perceive what values are above and below 'par. There is another complication introduced very gratuitously by the mints, and we must observe in passing that this is no excursus into a non-agricultural matter, but is vital to the main subject. Farming is a tra*de as well as an art. Crops are grown for money, and diversities in money remuneration, already made bad enough by so odd a scale as 12 and 20 mixed, are rendered far worse when diversities in the intrinsic value of the money assert themselves. Cannot the chemists find a method of hardening gold and silver for trade use and so give us pure money ? At present only China has this. Thus the respective finenesses of seven leading coins are as follows : — 1. The Sovereign 2. The Dollar 3. The Franc 4. The Rupee 5. The Guelder 6. The Tael. 7. The Rouble •916667 fine, •900000 „ •900000 „ •916667 „ •945000 „ 1-000000 „ •868060 or pure gold ,, silver n n v n n f> n M v For the first five of these we are indebted to Mr. Norman’s Cambist (London, 1897), and Mr. Norman, an apologist of the mints, apparently in this respect, though not in others, dismisses the tael as a weight. Is alloy necessary to make a coin ? Of course one concedes that a big and rapid trade would render soft metal impossible. But, as already remarked, has the possibility of a chemical hardening of precious metal been considered ? The degradation of the rouble will be noted ; our figures are derived from a Russian official source. The Bank of England will buy gold in unlimited quantity at 31. 17 s. 9 d. per ounce of pure metal. It only makes a penny profit on the transaction. The Uruguayan system is one of inconvertible paper. In this case the difficulties of alloy are, together with many other troubles, such as wear and tear, &c., escaped ; but the value of the paper depends on the national honour ; and here again infinite diversity makes its appearance. The ratio of silver to gold is a further source of market diversity. Japan, the latest country to grapple with this Brewing; Wool; and Cheese. 113 thorny matter, has issued 20-yen gold pieces showing a ratio of 32*347 of silver to gold. The “ Silver Democratic Party ” in the United States wear as badge a numeral, 16, indicating that if they got the upper hand they would make the ratio 16 to 1. Thus there is an extreme range of 16*347, more than 2 to 1. In India there exists by statute (Act of June 26, 1893) a mythical gold rupee, but the silver rupee remains unlimited legal tender. Thus, as Mr. Norman points out, India has no standard, neither can the ratio of gold to silver be stated ; but “ the constant 382*29546 annas, being divided by the price of silver of the day in annas, gives the ratio between the metals.” Who can wonder that India is the country par excellence of small monetary litigation ? Brewers appear, at a date which goes back well into the middle ages, to have struck upon a scale of 9x2, which is, wherever met, the remains of an older system of 9x8. The present scale is 9 gallons 1 firkin, 2 firkins 1 kilderkin, 2 kilderkins 1 barrel, 2 barrels 1 puncheon. Hogshead, butts, and tuns do not properly belong to this scale. In the sale of wool we have three entirely distinct scales in present use. It is well that the sale per pound has already superseded the old scales in most places and is gaining ground steadily. Nevertheless the old systems are in their own haunts living and even robust. The first scale is Scandinavian and still rules mostly where the Norsemen came in force : — 7 lb. = 1 Clove. 2 Cloves = 1 Stone. 2 Stones = 1 Tod. The word iod simply means a big bush which a bundle of 28 lb. of wool resembles. The old name of tod for a fox is due to his big bash of a tail. Then we have the English 20 lb. = 1 score, and 12 scores = 1 pack, which still is sufficiently correct ; and finally there is the scale of 2 weys = 1 sack, and 12 sacks = 1 last. The word wey is usually 182 lb. I suspect this scale to be Celtic, and, though Professor Skeat derives wey from wagen , I look upon the ivey as originally rather a measure than a weight. “ Last ” is probably from the Celtic luth , strong, and represents the heaviest weight or largest measure, the maximum in fact of any given scale. There are four weys of cheese — the Common, which is 250 lb., the Suffolk, 256 lb., the Sussex, 336 lb., and the Essex, 416 lb. This looks as if the wey was not really understood in the purely English east and south-east. An ingenious friend at Mark Lane, having remarked that the measure was useful because it allowed the use of a box of regular size, the writer made inquiry and found that a bin to hold one quarter of corn has the following dimensions: — YOL. 67. I 114 Agricultural Weights and Measures. Length, 2 ft. 9 in. Width, 1 „ 8 „ Depth, 2 „ 4 „ This does not strike ns as extremely commodious. How many quarters could be stored in a barn 40 ft. by 20 ft. and 20 ft. high ? It does not seem to work itself out at a glance. Measures have not been defended in recent Acts. Those of 1824 and 1882 are based on weight as the unit. The history of the quarter as the legal unit is interesting. It is referred to as the quantity by which wheat is to be priced in the following statutes : — 1155 (?). Henry II. ’s Assize of Bread ; 1 1463. Act 3 Edward IV., c. 2 ; and in so many statutes since 1463 that it may fairly be called the national wheat unit since then. It is frequently given in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as the ordinary wheat standard, so that there is continuity of record right back to the days of Henry II. Yet nobody, as we have seen, seems to know of what it is the quarter. Is there any possibility of its original meaning having been merely a measure of grain ? The Aryan root GAR, to grind, is found in quern and other words connected with grain, including, of course, grain itself and garner. , The termination -ter is perhaps the most common of all the Aryan formulae for converting a verb into a sub- stantive. Now it will undoubtedly be difficult to abolish the bushel and the quarter ; but there is happily a weight which is of universal acceptance, the establishment of which as the legal compulsory weight, without whose indication a contract would not be legally enforcible, would excite no opposition, but would be accepted as in the natural order of things. Without this lever one feels that nothing could very well be done, and for want of some such lever probably the old peoples failed. “ Give me a lever,” said Archimedes, “ and I will move the world.” This lever is the pound. The present writer would respect- fully urge upon the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries the publication of all its returns in pounds as a preliminary, and afterwards the promotion of a Bill in Parliament requiring all sales of agricultural produce to indicate the quantity in pounds as a condition precedent to their legal enforcement. There is a difficulty, and one only, to this policy. It is that the pound being a small unit for wholesale transactions, very large figures would have to be remembered. Most of us can remember that an average wheat crop in the United Kingdom nowadays is about 7,000,000 quarters, but how many, it is asked, would remember that such average crop was 1 English Industry , by W. Cunningham. University Press, Cambridge, 1896. 115 The Decimal System. 3,360,000,000 pounds ? The answer is easy. Even in the primary schools the system of decimals is now taught, and the youngest sailor boy in the Navy understands a “ four point seven ” (4*7) gun. The way in which the English word u point ” has already superseded the Latin word “ decimal ” in the vernacular shows that this amount of knowledge, at all events, has been, for good and all, assimilated by classes and masses. We have, therefore, simply to point off for ordinary use exactly as many points to the right as the degree of wholesale business requires. This facility is itself a strong recommen- dation. Thus the corn chandler might find it suit his books to point off one figure to the right and reckon in stones or bags of 10 lb. The smaller dealer in Mark Lane would find the 100-lb. unit more convenient, and would point off two figures to the right ; while the larger operators at the Baltic would find a great relief to eyesight, if to nothing else, in a 1,000-lb. unit, which would save the present working in half- penny and farthing differences in prices. They would point off three figures to the right ; then, and finally, statisticians dealing in millions would point off six figures to the right. The British average wheat crop would be familiarly known as 3,360 — four figures to quote — instead of 7,000,000 — seven figures to quote. We may indicate that this is so easy a system in practice that it has been in vogue in certain directions for some time past without exciting comment. It is, in fact, one of those things into which every person of the least education falls at once. Thus, in The Field (November 25, 1905), we have the world’s crops summed up in a table where the unit is millions of quarters. The United States Government, in its Blue Book for 1904, gives the agricultural areas to the hundredth of an acre ; thus, the Colville Indian Reserve is given as 8,752*96 acres. In the Agricultural Returns issued by the Board of Agriculture, July 21, 1906, the agricultural areas are given in millions of acres to two places of decimals, and the yields per acre to two places of decimals in bushels. In each case, of course, one points off two figures to the right. Dr. Mill’s “ Rainfall for 1905 ” gives the fall in inches to two places of decimals, and this is the degree of accuracy that is observed in the returns to the daily press, for rainfall, and also for the barometer and thermometer. Outside agriculture we have the sporting press, with its frank reliance on “the man in the street,” giving cricket averages to two places of decimals. The very newsboys perfectly understand that Hirst’s 55*94 for 1905 is better than Quaife’s 55*66. The clue to the ease with which the mind works out these figures resides in the eye, which glances 116 Agricultural Weights and Measures. by instinct at the first figures to the left and appreciates thereby the main issue involved. Thus the cricket enthusiast grasps first the interestingly close competition between Hirst and Quaife in 1905, and then goes on at his leisure to the minor question of the small difference in the former’s favour. A similar system has only to be enforced in agricultural transactions for a very brief period, and people will be won- dering how it was that they put up with the old confusion, the old loss of time and patience, the old complicated book- keeping, the old delay. Within the last few months an important step in this direction has been taken at Birmingham by Messrs. Kynoch, whose business has been, since November 1, 1906, carried on by means of the decimal system. In the Daily Express for October 17, 1906, appeared an interesting explanation of their reasons for adopting this system. They reckon the losses to British commerce by our confusion of systems at millions of pounds sterling annually. An accountant, writing to the same paper (October 19, 1906), stated that opinion is steadily growing in favour of the decimal system, and that the step thus taken would mitigate “ a worry hampering men of business all through life.” He continued : — “ The decimal system, with its easy method of moving a dot to the left and right and getting an instant correct answer, is much preferable in every way. At the present time we work our accounts and the returns from every depart- ment out to two places of decimals, so we know to the least hundredth part exactly the prices we can buy and sell at. Many business houses only work these returns out to eighths, which means a great difference when dealing, as we do, in large quantities. By our exact method we can buy so as to sell to give our customers the greatest possible advantage.” These remarks were endorsed in subsequent letters by other representatives of large business houses. The letter from Lord Belhaven and Stenton (October 20, 1906), empha- sized the great saving of school time which xvould result. This point might even have been made greater had his lordship remembered how crowded is the modern curriculum. The London Chamber of Commerce and the London Trade Protection Association approve the change. A “ Rugby Conservative ” whose objections found voice somewhat amus- ingly in a Radical journal, thought the change ought to be opposed, because it would entail upon shopkeepers the cost of new weights {Daily Chronicle, October 27, 1906), but at this rate hardly any reforms would be possible. A more real conservatism would, one fancies, be found in the dictum of Mr. Acland, that “ the metric system is sure to be adopted sooner or later by this country, wherefore the sooner we make up our minds to make the change the better will be the result ” {Tribune, October 26, 1906). The Sale of Corn by Weight. 117 The great question of international weights and measures is beyond our present scope ; to undo that occurrence at Babel will require theological virtues which international statesmen do not at present appear too particularly to exemplify. A step or two has been taken. The world has one system of degrees of latitude from the equator to the poles. It has adopted the scale of 8 for books — a folio, a quarto, an octavo : these are the terms on the Continent as well as here, and indicate the same sizes. But no recent progress has been made. It is, however, in the daily business of life, and especially in its verbal trans- actions that uniformity is valuable. Once establish a decimal system based on the pound for the British Commonwealth, and a penny card of indestructible ivorine the size of a visiting card would serve to carry the necessary title for instantly indicating the foreign counterpart to our fixed English weight of the pound and its tens, hundreds, and thousands. The pioneer of effective reform, if ever reform comes, will have been the late Mr. Jasper More, M.P. for the Ludlow Division of Shropshire. His labours have perhaps their best embodiment in the article on “ The Sale of Corn by Weight,” which appeared in this Journal in 1891. 1 The gist of the whole is in the declaration by a highly placed Government servant (the late Mr. H. J. Chaney), whose many years of experience in the Standards Department of the Board of Trade led him to say : “ I have no doubt that it would be far better and that it would avoid a great amount of trickery if corn were required to be sold by weight only.” Mr. More’s own views were marked by decided moderation and by no common foresight. He anticipated the failure of the Government quarter of 812 lb. for oats ; he held out the right hand of co-operation to France, and through France to the Continent ; he appreciated, with Mr. Chamberlain, the cental or true hundredweight ; but he was a little too pessimistic as to its gaining ground. He agreed with Mr. Chaney that “the tendency of the human mind is to halving,” a tendency for which the present article has endeavoured to show the underlying reason. He made the road easier for all future reformers, who would indeed be ungrateful if they forgot to recall and honour his services. Charles Kains-Jackson. 18, The Green, Richmond, Surrey. 1 Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 52, 1891, pp. 717-729. t 118 IMPURITIES IN MILK AND BUTTER. Never, I suppose, within the memory of the present genera- tion has the attention of the civilised world been drawn so forcibly, as was the case in 1906, to the consideration of the cleanliness and purity of various kinds of foods which are in daily demand, especially amongst the poorer classes. The gruesome details narrated in The Jungle of the doings in the large canned meat factories at Chicago, corroborated as they have been, in a certain sense, by the action of the President of the United States, have set the public thinking not only of the purity of the various tinned and preserved foods that are sold everywhere, but also of those other foods, like bread, meat, milk, and dairy produce, which may be classed as manufactured, inasmuch as they require manual labour expended on them before they can be placed on the market. Milk and butter being two of the most important of such foods, I need not apologise for dealing only with them, as both have been very much in evidence during the past few months, scarcely a week passing without something appearing in the Press on the impurities of milk and the adulteration of dairy produce; while the Report of the Select Committee on the Butter Trade is, I venture to think, a sufficient justification for including that article of food in my^ remarks. And, first of all, I would draw attention to what appears to me to be a great difference between impurities in milk and adulteration in butter. Whereas the presence of dirt in milk may^ come under the category^ of a sin of omission, being the result of negligence or carelessness, reprehensible no doubt, but not wilful, the adulteration of butter by7 the addition of water, margarine, or other foreign substance, is clearly a deliberate sin of commission, impossible to justify, as it is done wilfully, and for the purpose of making extra profit out of the ignorant purchaser. Milk. During the past few months there have been many meet- ings and conferences of scientific, medical, and other bodies, at which amongst other questions have been discussed the impurities that are alleged to be too frequently present in milk. Apparently, only the home supplies of milk were taken into consideration, as I have seen no mention made of foreign Construction of Stalls in Cowsheds. 119 supplies ; but the general consensus of opinion was that the Model Regulations of the Local Government Board as to Dairies, Cowsheds, and Milkshops, should be more stringently enforced, and that to those already in existence fresh clauses should be added dealing with the sanitary conditions of the farmyard. At these conferences it was generally recognised that impurities may be taken up by milk at various times ; but the u fountain head of milk contamination ” was invariably put down to the farms ; while dirt collected during transit on the railway, or on the premises of the milk distributor, or at restaurants, or in the dwellings of the poor, did not appear to be seriously considered, the prevailing idea being that, if milk left the farm free from dirt, the chances of its being polluted afterwards were more or less remote. Writing from the farmer’s point of view, it is not necessary for me to go into the question of dirt finding its way into milk after it has been taken over by the consignee ; but I must express my opinion that milk over twelve hours old (and very little milk is distributed in our large towns before that time has elapsed), when exposed to the atmosphere of some ill- ventilated and dirty house, or placed as I have seen it, in open tumblers on the counters of restaurants and refreshment bars at railway stations, must certainly collect or attract to itself dirt and other offensive matter. Returning, however, to the farm as being the original source of the supply, there are four different ways b.y which dirt may be brought into contact with milk : (1) the cowsheds ; (2) the cows ; (3) the milker ; (4) the dairy utensils. Cowsheds. — Cows are naturally clean animals. When lying out at grass, or when in loose boxes with plenty of room and clean litter, they will with scarcely an exception lie perfectly clean. If, however, the stalls in the cowsheds are not properly constructed, cows cannot lie clean, and then they appear to get callous and not to mind whether they are dirty or not. With wrongly constructed stalls the labour of cleaning the cows is considerably increased, and as a matter of fact the men, having none too much time for this, get careless and neglect the cattle altogether, the result being that the cows’ thighs become plastered with manure. The mistake in cowsheds is that too often the mangers are placed at the same height as if for a horse, and the standings are made too wide and too long. Mangers for cows should be on the floor level. The length from the wall or back of the manger to the back of the stall, or standing, should be just sufficient for the cow to stand up or lie down in, her head in both positions being over the manger. The width of the stall 120 Impurities in Milk and Butter. should be enough to let her stand and lie down straight, without being able to turn round and lie across it. The gutters behind the stalls should be eight inches deep, and of sufficient width to allow shovels and brooms to be used freely for clean- ing out the manure. The cows should be fastened by the neck with a chain or strap attached to a ring on a short length of chain, with a swivel, working up and down a bar of iron two feet long, which should be fastened vertically to the side of the stall, about two inches in front of the manger. The chain or strap should be tied to the ring with cord, so that in the event of anything going wrong with the cow, the cord can be cut at once and the animal set free. I give below the measurements of cow stalls, each to hold two cows. I have found by experience that in stalls of these dimensions the cattle will be comparatively clean. Two sets of figures have been given to suit the larger and smaller breeds of cattle. Total length of stall from outside wall of Shorthorn ft. in. Jersey ft. in. manger to back of the standing 7 3 6 9 Width of stall to take two cows. 8 0 7 0 Width of manger from front to back. 1 10 1 10 Depth of manger from front to back . 0 9 0 9 Depth of gutter behind cows 0 8 0 8 Width of gutter ..... 2 0 2 0 Height of hay rack from bottom of manger to bottom of hay rack .... 4 0 4 0 Height of hay rack ..... 2 0 2 0 The floor of the stalls should be level, and both the stalls and the gutter should be well littered with straw. In such standings cattle should keep clean, while with more room they will be found to get dirty. They soon get accustomed to the comparatively small dimensions of the stall, and the labour saved to the men who look after them is considerable. In my own buildings one set of cow stalls was accidentally made six inches too long. The cattle were very dirty in those stalls until a reduction in the length was made, when they lay perfectly clean again. The great secret in building cow stalls is to make the cows lie down exactly in the same spot where they stand to feed, and this can only be attained by building the mangers on the floor level and of such a height that the cows can rest their heads over the manger when lying down. Cows. — The work of cleaning cows, if standing in stalls such as described above, will be found to be comparatively light. Before milking, the manure should all be removed from the cowsheds and the hind quarters and udders of the cows brushed over, or, if necessary, washed. Necessity for Cleanliness in Milkers. 121 Milkers. — After cleaning the cows the men should wash their hands with soap and warm water. They should then put on their milking aprons, which should be made of a coarse washing material, when they will be ready to commence work. A pail of water and a towel and soap should be brought into the cowshed, and between milking each cow the men should again wash their hands. This may be thought too much to expect. I can only say that my own men have done it for years without making any complaint. Although the cows and men under such regulations should be clean, yet even with the greatest care it is difficult to prevent particles of dust from finding its way into the milk during the process of milking. To prevent this, I have followed the practice obtaining in the Channel Islands of milking through dairy muslin ; but a gauze strainer will probably do equally well. The Channel Islands milking pails are shaped like a jug, with a handle and wide rim, the diameter of the rim being about eight inches. Over this is placed a piece of clean dairy muslin which is wound round the handle to keep it in position. No straw or dust can thus get into the milk, and if any is seen on the muslin during milking it can be removed at once ; so that, as far as the eye can see, nothing impure can get into the milk pail at all. It goes without saying that milk should not be left in the cowsheds but taken at once to the dairy, where it should be again strained through muslin before being passed through the refrigerator, or separator, as the case may be. Dry milkers are preferable to those who milk with wet hands. Dairy utensils. — All the churns, pails, &c., in use in a dairy must of course be kept clean ; but where milk is sent by rail and the usual pattern of churn is used, dirt may find its way into the milk, as the milk sometimes overflows and runs back again into the churn. Railway churns should be fitted with tight covers which should also be padlocked. There is, I understand, no objection to this on the part of the Railway Companies, provided the tare is conspicuously stamped on the outside of the churn. It is not my province to recommend any particular make of churn, but I believe there are churns on the market which would fulfil these conditions. In making these suggestions with a view to ensure that dirt may be kept out of milk I must not be taken as expressing an opinion that the milk usually sent out from dairy farms in England is “ diluted with filth ” ( Daily Graphic , August 28, 1906), or that it is responsible for the numerous ailments attributed to it. I know little or nothing of the milk imported from abroad, except from what I saw and heard on two 122 Impurities in Milk and Butter. occasions, when I came into contact with it officially and unofficially. Apparently it is put on the market here with but scant supervision, for on the two occasions mentioned I was not impressed favourably either with its cleanliness or its genuineness. The fact, however, remains that rightly or wrongly the cry of “ dirt in milk ” has been taken up, and it therefore behoves farmers and milk purveyors to do all in their power to satisfy the public that, so far as English milk is concerned, it shall be sent out as pure in every sense of the word as it can be ; otherwise the public will demand special legislation on the subject, which will mean an increase of rates, without, I fear, a corresponding rise in the price of milk. Before leaving this question of the purity of milk, I would call attention to the artificial colouring of milk which takes place after it has passed out of the farmer’s hands. The richer the milk the deeper the colour, is a maxim so well known that it is hardly necessary to repeat it ; and although I believe the colouring of milk is not done with the view of obtaining a higher price (milk being usually sold regardless of the percentage of fat it contains), yet the practice is dirty, and should, in the interests of the consumer and producer, be stopped ; or, at any rate, the fact of colouring material being added to the milk should be disclosed to the purchaser. Butter. It is comparatively easy to discover dirt in milk, but to ascertain impurities in butter requires the skill and training of an analyst and bacteriologist ; and even then it is possible to mix moderate quantities of margarine with butter in such a way that the experienced chemist cannot find a real distinction between the adulterated * and the genuine article. It is, therefore, not surprising that the general public cannot tell genuine from “faked” butters, under which term I include blended butters of every description, whether mixtures of pure butters only, or a compound of margarine, foreign fat or water. Genuine butter I would define as butter churned once from pure cream, to which neither colouring matter nor preservatives have been added, containing 10 to 12 per cent, of water, and from 83 to 87 per cent, of butter fat. The selling price of butter is generally a fair test of the quality ; but, in order to understand this, certain figures must be gone into, and the description under which the butters are sold must also be considered. It is obvious that if one can get at the cost of making genuine butter in England, the selling price can be approximately estimated, an allowance for a fair profit to the middleman being easily calculated. Butter Ratio of diffe rent Dairy Breeds. 123 The average wholesale prices of milk in England and Ireland may be put at 8 d. and 4 d. per gallon respectively, very little milk changing hands at lower figures. They may therefore be taken as representing the average amount paid by factories to farmers for their milk. The amount of milk in pounds required to make 1 lb. of genuine butter (known as the butter ratio) differs according to the quality of the milk, some breeds of cattle yielding milk considerably richer in butter fat than others. The following Table gives the butter ratio figures of the various dairy breeds in England, the number of pounds of milk being also shown in gallons : — Table I. Breed Butter ratio Gallons of milk lb. Shorthorn. ..... 28 say 2 f Red Polled 30 „ 3 South Devon ..... 25 „ n Ayrshire ...... 26 » n Dexter ...... 25 >) %2 Kerry ...... 25 „ n Guernsey ...... 20 » 2 Jersey ...... 18 13 :) 1 4 Multiplying the number of gallons by Sd. and 4 d. re- spectively, the selling price of milk per gallon in England and Ireland, the cost of 1 lb. of butter, if made from the milks mentioned above, will be as follows : — Table II. Cost of butter per lb. Cost of butter per lb. Breed if milk at 8 d. per if milk at id. per gallon gallon s. d. s. d. Shorthorn. ..... ' 1 10 0 11 Red Polled 2 0 1 0 South Devon ..... 1 8 0 10 Ayrshire ...... say 1 8 0 10 Dexter ...... 1 8 0 10 Kerry ...... 1 8 0 10 Guernsey ...... 1 4 0 8 Jersey ...... 1 2 0 7 With very few exceptions the milk from Jersey and Guernsey cows in England is used in private dairies, and does not come into the open market at all ; so that it may be left out of the calculations. The remaining figures show pretty clearly that genuine butters cannot be made in England to sell at a 124 Impurities in Milk and Butter. profit under the prices given above ; and certainly no factory in England can afford to pay 8d. per gallon for the milk and then sell butter at less than these prices unless 44 faking ” is resorted to. In Ireland the price paid for milk is low, and genuine butters can be sold at low prices. There are two grades of Irish butter known on the market, Adz., 44 Creameries ” and 44 Factories,” the former being genuine butter made at one churning, the latter, genuine butters made in small lots, collected together and blended at the factories. Both are pure, but the one is naturally better than the other. The butter ratio of the Danish cattle may be put down at 27 lb. or 2f gallons, the Brittany at 25 lb. or 2^ gallons, the Dutch at 30 lb. or 3 gallons. These butters are all made and blended in their country of origin, so they are not in great demand here for blending purposes. The best parcels from Denmark and Brittany are fairly well made ; they cannot compare in any way with the best English butter made in private dairies, yet they command a good price and must leave a profit to the producers. In this connection I Avould mention that the Danes have imported a considerable number of Jersey cattle during the past few years, with the double object of improving the quality of the butter, and making it at less cost. It is not necessary to go into the butter ratios of the cattle in NeAv Zealand, Australia, and Canada, although they are probably much the same as the cattle here (the breeds being the same as ours) ; because the supply of milk being larger than the demand, the cost of the milk and butter does not enter into the question in the same degree as here. It is not therefore surprising to learn that the best New Zealand, Australian, and Canadian butters, when sold here at prices ranging from 106s. to 116s. per cwt., leave a satisfactory profit to the makers. Butters also come into this country from Italy and Siberia, but they, with the Dutch butters, are not at all comparable in quality to the Danish and Brittany, as is shoAvn by the Ioav prices quoted for them in the market reports. Of all the butters that come into England, the Irish, New Zealand, Australian, and Canadian are the best. They are genuine butters (the Colonial not being coloured), not faked or blended in any way, except as mentioned abo\Te, but are the produce of cows fed on natural grasses. The Colonial butters are also exceptionally dry, the amount of moisture ranging from 10 to 13 per cent. These butters should all be sold at reasonable prices here ; but unfortunately the Colonial butters are bought up largely by the blending factories both The Blending of Butter. 125 in Holland and at home, as their low percentage of water and their excellent quality make them suitable subjects for the blending process. The word “ blending ” covers a multitude of sins. It may mean mixing two butters together, although this is only done when one of them is probably of very poor quality ; or it may mean the addition of some foreign substance, or the overload- ing of the pure butter with water. In all cases the object of the blending is the same, viz., to put profit into the pocket of the blender. A great deal of sentimental nonsense is talked on the subject of the so-called milk-blended butter. It is said that the poor get a more palatable article of food, that it is softer and spreads better, &c. ; but in my opinion the poor would do much better if they could get the genuine Colonial butter first hand, instead of an overworked second edition of the same, overloaded with water, or mixed with some other foreign substance. A blending factory must make a considerable profit on every pound of Colonial butter it handles, while the pur- chaser of milk-biended butter is equally defrauded on every pound he purchases, since he probably only gets from 12 oz. to 13 oz. of butter fat in every pound he buys. The Siberian butters are also bought for blending and mixing, and as they are quoted at a lower price, the profit on them is probably larger. It is almost impossible to say of what Dutch butters consist, since genuine butter, made from the milk of Dutch cows, could not be sold here at a profit. Large quantities of our Colonial butters are sent from here to Holland, mixed up with other substances, and returned to this country for sale. Some may only contain an excess of water, but where so much “ faking ” is done, it is hard to believe that any of the low- priced butters exported from Holland here are pure. The question of genuine margarine does not come within the province of this article ; but if it is manufactured in this country and is sold under its proper name, no harm can be done to any one, as the purchaser knows what he is buying, and the English margarine factories are now under Government inspection. Where, however, “ lardine ” and other similar substances are mixed with butter in such small proportions as to baffle the analyst, then no punishment can be too severe. These illegitimate blending factories are not under Government control, as they are supposed to be only butter factories, and it is therefore difficult to find out anything about the compound they use. 126 Impurities in Milk and Butter. Recollecting the disclosures at Chicago, and knowing that beef fat is the foundation of the adulterants used for faking butter, one cannot but feel that the sooner all dairy factories are placed under the same inspection as the margarine factories, the better will it be for the public. Perhaps as the result of the Report of the Select Committee on the Butter Trade, a Bill dealing with the whole subject will be presented to Parliament. If so, it is to be hoped that it will receive the support of all parties, since adulteration of food cannot be considered, in any sense of the word, a political question. To any one interested in this subject I would commend the Reports of the Local Government Board and the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries for 1906, as also the Report of the Select Committee mentioned above. A perusal of these will, I think, satisfy the reader that I have not in any way overstated the “ faking ” that takes place in butter factories, and the general demoralisation of that particular trade. With the good market for milk that there is in England, butter-making cannot be profitable unless a price corresponding to the value of the milk is obtained for the butter, but that is no reason why the good and genuine produce from our own Colonies should be intercepted before reaching the public, or why a trade which flourishes on these shady practices should be allowed full latitude to carry on its doubtful business. Little Shardeloes, Amersham. Ernest Mathews. 127 THE DERBY SHOW, 1906. When it was finally decided to discontinue the Annual Show at Park Royal and return to the original plan of Country Meet- ings, the Society was at once favoured with an invitation from the Corporation of Derby to hold the Show of 1906 in their town. A deputation from the borough and county of Derby was received by the Council on November 1, 1905, when it was unanimously decided to accept the invitation. In order that the Society might not be hampered with the possibility of a loss on the first Show held on returning to the country, a Member of the Council generously guaranteed any loss which might be incurred. Derby now shares with Newcastle, York, and Carlisle the distinction of having thrice received the Society. The first visit to Derby took place in 1843, under the presidency of the fourth Earl of Hardwicke. The Country Meeting was again held at Derby in 1881, after an interval of thirty-eight years ; and a third Exhibition has now been held there a quarter of a century later. Subjoined are some details as to the three Derby Meetings of 1843, 1881, and 1906 : — Year Place of Meeting President of the year Articles entered Entries of live stock Number of persons paying for admission ( + = Profit — =Loss) 1843 1881 1906 Derby . Derby . Derby . Earl of Hardwicke . Mr. William Wells Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis . 508 5,960 4,772 730 1,229 2,319 127,996 119,143 £ — 3,164 + 4,528 + 2,028 The Derbyshire Agricultural and Horticultural Society co- operated heartily and suspended its own Show in favour of that of the “ Royal.” In return the members of the Derbyshire Society received the same privileges in connection with the Show as members of the Royal Agricultural Society. A popular feature at Derby was the provision of classes for live stock and produce open only to bond fide tenant farmer members of the Derbyshire Agricultural Society residing within the local area. The animals in these classes were exhibited on one day7 only7, viz., Friday, June 29. Butter-making competitions were held in the Dairy on Thursday, June 28, and Saturday7, June 30, for residents in Derbyshire who had been pupils of the Travelling Dairy School in Nottinghamshire or Derbyshire, or of the Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. The Horticultural Exhibition of the County Society, which was held in a large tent, proved most attractive. The Showyard. As in 1881, the Show was held in Osmaston Park. Since that year, however, this property had been acquired by the 128 The Derby Show , 1906. Midland Railway Company, who generously placed a site in the park at the disposal of the local authority for the purposes of the Show. The Company also constructed sidings adjoining the Sliowyard which enabled them to deal with the implements and exhibits of live stock in an expeditious manner. The goods stations of the London and North Western and the Great Northern Railway Companies were within three- quarters of a mile of the Showyard. The distance of the Showyard from the centre of the town of Derby was about one mile, and the Corporation, with the view of improving the facilities for conveying the public to and from the Show, doubled the then existing single line of electric tramway along the London Road. A stream which flowed through the Showyard was trans- formed into an ornamental rock garden, with cascades, rock plants, and other picturesque features. Summer houses, pergolas, fences, seats, &c., were placed in close proximity to and on the bridge over the stream. The effect of these combined efforts was most striking, and at the King’s desire the royal carriage was stopped to enable His Majesty to inspect the scene. A pavilion for the use of the President and officers of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries occupied a prominent position. Space was provided for the erection of a pavilion for the Farmers’ Club — a new privilege which was greatly appreciated by the members of the Club. Entries. The following Table shows the entries of live stock, and the quantity of space allotted for stands in the implement section of the Show, compared with the previous seven Shows of the Society and the Derby Show of 1881 : — Live Stock , Poultry , and Produce. Derby, 1906 Park lloyal, 1905 Park Royal, 1904 Park Royal, 1903 Carlisle, 1902 Cardiff, 1901 Y ork, 1900 Maid- stone, 1899 Derby 1881 Horses . i 563 2 372 2 365 422 521 355 696 424 256 Cattle i 926 898 867 944 667 553 687 683 392 Sheep 564 591 525 520 545 519 614 631 414 Pigs . 266 252 227 222 178 148 — 147 167 Total . 2,319 2,113 1,984 2,108 1,911 1,575 1,997 1,885 1,229 Poultry . 811 871 603 763 653 701 629 669 — Produce . 525 493 544 609 461 521 528 625 — 1 Exclusive of Double Entries. 2 Exclusive of Draught Horses and the Harness Classes. 129 Entries of Live Stock and Implements. Shedding in Implement Yard (in feet). Description o t Shedding Derby, 1906 Dark Royal, 1905 Park Royal, 1904 Park Royal, 1903 Carlisle, 1902 Cardiff, 1901 York, 1900 Maid- stone, 1899 Derby, 1881 Ordinary Machinery Special . (Seeds, Models, &c.) Feet 7,818 2,520 2,692 Feet 6,590 1,750 1,629 Feet 7,630 2,060 2,032 Feet 9,360 2,670 2,555 Feet 6,693 2,079 2,321 Feet 7,245 2,305 2,101 Feet 9,454 2,547 2,771 Feet 7,455 2,192 2,553 Feet 9,138 2,102 1,511 Total . [Exclusive of open ground space] 18,030 9,969 11,722 14,585 11,093 11,651 14,772 12,200 12,751 No. of Stands. 424 289 350 456 340 358 412 395 377 The Table on page 130 gives a comparative statement of the entries at the two Derby Meetings of 1881 and 1906. The Show. As in 1905, the Show lasted four days, opening on Wednesday, June 27, and closing on the following Saturday, June 30. On the first day, which was occupied chiefly with the judging of live stock, rain fell for some hours in the morning, but happily the weather cleared in the afternoon. On the second day (June 28), the King honoured the Show with a visit. His Majesty, travelling by special train from London, arrived at noon at the Nottingham Road Station, where the Duke of Devonshire (Lord High Steward of the Borough) presented the Mayor of Derby (Mr. Alderman E. T. Ann) and a number of other representatives of the Borough and County. Accompanied by the Duke of Devonshire, Lord Colebrook, and Major Holford, His Majesty then drove in an open carriage from the station to the Market Place, where an Address from the Corporation, contained in a handsome casket of Royal Crown Derby China, was presented by the Mayor. His Majesty’s reply was as follows : — “ As you are aware, agriculture, on which so many of my subjects are dependent for a livelihood, has ever been a subject in which I have taken the warmest personal interest. I feel that exhibitions of stock and machinery, such as the annual show of the Royal Agricultural Society now being held in this borough, are of the greatest utility to the country, serving to stimulate agricultural progress and to impart information of the greatest service to those engaged in the industry.” The Royal party next stopped at the junction of the London and Osmaston roads, where the King unveiled a statue of Queen Victoria which had been presented to the town by Sir Alfred Haslam.* His Majesty reached the Showyard at half-past twelve, and was received at the entrance by VOL. 67. K 130 The Derby Show, 1906 COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF ENTRIES, Etc., At the Two Meetings held at Derby in 1881 and 1906. IMPLEMENTS— Stands 1881 (July 13-17) 377 1906 (June 27-30) 424 Horses and 1881 1906 Cattle Classes Entries Classes Entries HORSES Prizes . £7 ,210 £ 2,070 Hunters . 6 50 8 64 Cleveland Bays . — — 3 21 Coach Horses. — — 3 12 Hackneys 5 21 12 76 Ponies . . 1 Mountain, &c., > Ponies . . J Shetland Ponies . 3 5 2 2 21 5 9 Polo Ponies . — — 5 35 Riding Classes — — 8 60 Harness Horses . — — 11 89 Shire 8 93 10 142 Clydesdale 6 34 6 28 Suffolk . 6 27 6 29 Agricultural Horses . 4 16 3 15 Asses — — 2 5 Total for HORSES. 38 256 86 611 CATTLE Prizes . £7,475 £2,323 Shorthorn 8 134 11 327 Lincolnshire Red Shorthorn . 8 36 Hereford. 8 33 6 59 Devon 8 23 6 27 South Devon . — — 3 11 Sussex ... 5 28 6 39 Longhorn 7 45 5 21 Welsh . — — 4 16 Red Polled 5 22 7 55 Aberdeen Angus . — — 6 76 Calloway — — 4 24 Highland — — 2 2 Ayrshire . — — 3 9 Jersey 6 89 : 7 142 Guernsey 3 14 7 53 Kerry — — 4 23 Dexter . — — 4 51 Dairy cattle . 4 4 — — Special Milk Yield and Butter Test. — — 2 68 Total for CATTLE. 54 392 i 95 1,039 • Sheep, Pigs, poultry, Produce 1881 1906 Classes Entries Classes Entries SHEEP Prizes . £785 £1,400 Oxford Down . 3 30 4 30 Shropshire 4 152 7 104 Southdown 3 72 6 71 Hampshire Down1 3 25 5 54 Suffolk — — 6 34 Dorset Horn . — — 4 22 Lincoln 4 39 6 54 Leicester . 3 40 4 27 Cotswold . 3 31 4 15 Border Leicester . — — 4 13 Kent or Romney Marsh 2 . 4 25 5 64 • Wensleydale . — — 4 11 DevonLongWoolled — — 3 10 South Devon . — — 2 6 Dartmoor. — — 2 4 Exmoor . — — 2 4 Cheviot . — — 2 6 Black-faced Moun- tain. 2 12 Lonk .... — — 2 -5 Herdwick. — — 2 5 Welsh Mountain . — — 2 16 Ryeland . — — 3 13 Total for SHEEP . 27 414 81 580 PIGS £479 Prizes . — £240 — Large White . 4 47 5 66 Middle White . — — 5 33 Small White . 4 38 — — Berkshire. 4 59 5 69 Tam worth — — 5 36 Large Black . — • — 4 62 Small Black . 4 23 — — Total for PIGS . 16 167 24 266 TOTAL FOR STOCK 135 1,229 286 2,496 POULTRY Prizes ... — — — £207 Entries — — 107 811 PRODUCE:- Prizes . — £115 — £233 Entries 7 62 48 525 Grand Totals for ( 1881 . 142 Classes . 1291 Entries . £3,664 8 Prizes LIVE STOCK, POULTRY, and PRODUCE. ( 1906 . 441 „ . 3,832 „ . £ 6,888 4 „ 1 Including other Short Wools in 1881. 2 Including Devon and other Long Woolled breeds in 1881. 3 Including £315 for Farm Prizes. 4 Including £176 for Competitions. N.B. — The 1906 figures include Entries made in more than one class. Visit of His Majesty The King. 131 Sir Gilbert Greenall (Honorary Director), and at the Royal Pavilion in the centre of the Showyard by Mr. Cornwallis (President), and other Members of the Council of the Society. An Address from the Derbyshire Agricultural Society was next presented by the Duke of Devonshire as President of that body. The Address stated that the great interest and warm sympathy His Majesty had always shown with regard to agriculture had done much to stimulate good farming, and to encourage the raising of stock of the highest quality. His Majesty replied as follows : — “ I have long appreciated the difficulties with which farmers have to con- tend in order to carry on their industry. The cultivation of the land is a factor of the highest importance to the prosperity of the country, and much credit is due to agricultural societies for their strenuous efforts to promote the welfare of the cause they have at heart by encouraging new processes of cultivation and by disseminating information of utility to farmers. I have watched with pleasure during many years the improvements which have been introduced in the methods of raising stock. I cannot peruse without a feeling of pride the sale lists in which I see so many names of purchasers coming to this country from all parts of the world, and I feel confident that the perseverance and skill of our breeders will enable us to produce as good stock in the future as in the past.” The King next made an inspection of Army veterans, to the number of about 150, belonging to the Nottinghamshire Crimean and Indian Mutiny Veterans’ Society and the Derby- shire Imperial Veterans’ Association, who were drawn up in front of the Royal Pavilion. His Majesty, having viewed the Implement Department, returned to the Royal Pavilion, where he honoured the President and Council of the Society with his presence at luncheon. Those also present included H.R.H. Prince Christian, K.G., and official representatives of the County and Borough of Derby. After luncheon it rained so heavily that the King had to complete his tour of inspection in a closed carriage. His Majesty left the Showyard at twenty minutes past three, reaching the Midland station ten minutes later, whence he returned to London. Although rain was falling heavily during the greater part of the day of His Majesty’s visit, the attendance of the public at the Show was remarkable, the number of persons paying for admission (half a crown) being 25,666. On Thursday, the General Meeting of Governors and Members was held in the large Tent, the Chair being taken by the President (Mr. Cornwallis). Votes of thanks to the Mayor and Corporation and the Derby Local Committee were carried by a largely attended meeting, and in thanking the Chairman for his services that day, the opportunity was taken to refer to the splendid manner in which the President had carried out k 2 132 The Derby Show , 1900. the arduous duties of the office during a very important stage of the Society’s existence. Mr. Cornwallis, after thanking the meeting for their kind vote, appealed to the Members to assist in firmly establishing the Society by bringing about a larger membership. With their help he felt sure that the Society would receive the support he believed it so richly deserved. On Friday, the Local Classes were exhibited in the Show- yard for that day only, and the judging of the horses and cattle commenced at 9 a.m. On Saturday, a Band Contest, arranged by the Local Committee, was held in the centre of the Showyard, commencing at 2 p.m. ; and later a Military Tournament, also arranged by the Local Committee, was held in the large Horse Ring. During the week, musical selections were performed by the Band of the Coldstream Guards, under the direction of Lieutenant J. Mackenzie Rogan, Hon. R.A.M., and by the Band of the Derbyshire Yeomanry, conducted by Mr. Sydney T. Sadler. In great contrast to the exceptionally fine and hot weather experienced in 1881, the Derby Show of 1906 was marked by a succession of wet days. But despite these unfavourable conditions the large attendance of visitors was remarkable, as compared with the returns of the Society’s recent Shows. The statements on page 133 give (1) the number of visitors admitted by payment at different times of each day of the 1906 Show, and (2) the total daily admissions of the last six Shows, and the Derby Meeting of 1881. Prize Sheet and Regulations. The Council did not feel justified in providing more than 4,000/. for the prize sheet, but it was hoped that this sum would be supplemented by the various Breed Societies, in order that every established breed of live stock might, as far as possible, have classes and prizes allocated to it. The Council’s hopes in this direction were fully realised, as the prizes offered amounted to 6,888/., towards which 2,090/. were contributed by the Breed Societies, and 797/. by the Derby Local Committee. The following Breed Societies contributed Champion and other prizes : — Horses. — Hunters’ Improvement, Polo and Riding Pony, Cleveland Bay Horse, Yorkshire Coach Horse, Hackney Horse, Shetland Pony Stud Book, Shire Horse, Clydesdale Horse, and Suffolk Horse Societies. Cattle— Shorthorn Society, Lincolnshire Red Short-horn Association, Here- ford Herd Book, Devon Cattle Breeders’, Sussex Herd Book, Welsh Black Cattle, Red Polled, Polled Cattle Societies, English Aberdeen Angus Cattle Association, Galloway Cattle, English Guernsey Cattle, Longhorn Cattle, English Kerry and Dexter Cattle, English Jersey Cattle Societies, and Dairy Shorthorn (Coates’s Herd Book) Association. Auction Sales in the Showyard. 133 Sheep. — Oxford Down Sheep Breeders’, Shropshire Sheep Breeders’ Associa- tions, Southdown Sheep Society, Hampshire Down Sheep Breeders’ Association, Suffolk Sheep Society, Lincoln Long Wool Sheep Breeders’ Association, Cots- wold Sheep Society, Kent or Romney Marsh, Dorset Horn, Devon Long Woolled, Black-Faced, Lonk Sheep Breeders’ Associations, and Ryeland Flock Book Society. Pigs. — National Pig Breeders’ Association, British Berkshire and Large Black Pig Societies. Poultry — Sussex Poultry Club. (1) Admissions by Payment at Derby , 1906. Day of Show ■ 11 a.m. 1 p.m. 3 p.m. 5 p.m. Day’s total Wednesday (5s.) 1,019 2,054 2,589 2,740 2,752 Thursday (2s. 6rL) 7,367 18,041 23,574 25,487 25,666 Friday (Is.) .... 13,874 26,773 39,412 44,263 44,670 Saturday (is.) . 11,472 28,986 41,946 45,735 46,055 Total ..... — — — — 119,143 (2) Total daily admissions for last six Shows and Det'by Meeting of 1881. ’ Prices of Admission Derby, 1906 Park Royal, 1905 Park Royal, 1904 Park Royal, 1903 Carlisle, 1902 Cardiff, 1901 Derby. 1881 Implement Yard only (2s. 6^.) . 2,372 366 Five Shillings 2,752 — - 2,011 2,685 2,321 3,1 55 3,256 Half-crown . 25,666 2,770 9,375 12,057 7,550 23,745 12,314 Half-crown . 7,684 10,912 11,403 15,398 25,063 18,130 One Shilling. 44,670 7,754 14,175 20,569 46,242 69,133 53,291 One Shilling. 46,055 5,770 16,457 18,299 19,304 46,327 40,639 Totals . 119,143* 23,9782 52,930 3 65,013 93.187 167,423 127,996 1 Derby, 1906— Only one Half-crown day. 2 Park Royal, 1905— No Five Shilling day ; third day, price of admission (2s. 6d.) reduced to Is. after 3 p.m. s Park Royal, 1904— Second and third days, price of admission (2s. 6 cl.) reduced to Is. after 4 p.m. Auction Sales in the Showyard. One of the arguments in favour of a permanent Showyard in London was that it provided such an excellent market for stock, and that if the Society returned to the migratory system of Shows in the Provinces, foreign and colonial buyers would not attend in such large numbers. This, however, has not proved to be the case, as the auction sales held in the Derby Showyard realised a total sum of 12,776?, or 4,590?. more than in 1905 at Park Royal. The figures for the four Shows which 134 The Derby Show , 1906. have been held since these auctions were instituted in 1903 are given below : — 1903 1904 1905 1906 £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. Horses 564 18 0 724 10 0 327 12 0 123 18 0 Cattle. 2,377 14 6 3,517 10 0 6,117 6 0 10.034 6 6 Sheep . 48 6 0 421 1 0 1,316 13 6 2,045 18 6 Pigs . 281 13 6 412 18 3 424 9 3 572 5 0 Total * . 3,272 12 0 5,075 19 3 8,186 0 9 12,776 8 0 The animals were generally started at satisfactory prices. The older and two-year-old bulls were not so much in demand unless they were sires of repute ; and, when so, English breeders competed against the foreign buyers. There was better competition for the yearlings, some of the prices paid being 160 guineas, 240 guineas, 300 guineas, and the highest 610 guineas. The competition for the females was quite equal to that of the bulls, forty-two being sold out of the fifty-four offered, whilst seventy bulls were disposed of out of the ninety- nine offered. Most of the cows and three-year-old heifers were bought by English breeders, whilst the majority of the younger animals went to South America. The average for the females was just 10/. below that of the bulls. The competition was well sustained to the end, and several Continental buyers were outbidden by South Americans. The feature of the sale was the strong support of the foreign buyers, who purchased sixty head out of 112. The sheep auction sale was also attended with much success, the number of animals disposed of and the amount realised being considerably in advance of the previous year’s aggregate, which in turn was the best of the three sales at Park Royal. The sales of pigs were also an improve- ment on the previous year’s totals, and the horse sales alone showed no advance. Horses. The following detailed description of the various exhibits is based upon the official reports of the Judges. It is satisfactory to note that there was a considerable increase of horses, the number of entries received (563) being the largest recorded since the York Meeting of 1900. The best-filled classes were those for Shires with 142 entries, the Hackneys numbering 76, and the Hunters 64. Hunters. — The entries in this section were above the average of the last four years. The Judges reported that the brood mares (Class 1) were fair, the winner being a good Horses. 135 type of mare. The foals, however, were decidedly poor. The yearling fillies were a good class, and the prize winners were all of capital merit. The exhibits in the two-year-old class were mostly well grown, with quality. The three-year-old filly class was not a good one. The winner in Class 8 (yearling colts or geldings) is a useful colt. The two-year-old gelding prize winners were useful. The first prize three-year-old gelding was an exceptionally good horse. The breeding and young horses were, on the whole, very good. The Hunters shown under saddle were decidedly above the average, and the winners were all horses of considerable merit and good quality. Polo and Riding Ponies. — The animals shown under saddle were few in number and not exceptional in merit. The exhibits in the breeding and young classes were all very good. Cleveland Bays. — The Judge reported that Class 14 (stallions foaled in 1903 or 1904) was one of the best he had seen. The first prize colt had plenty of bone and good all round action. The second was a similar horse but was “ rather short coupled.” Class 15 (brood mares with foals) was remarkably good. The first prize filly in Class 16 had fine action and plenty of quality. Coach Horses. — The stallion and filly classes were better filled than they have been for some years past, and some of the animals were of considerable merit. In Class 18 (mares with foals at foot) there were only two entries. The fillies were a good class of average quality. Hackneys. — The Judges of these classes presented the following report on the exhibits which came before them : — The breeding section of Hackneys was well above the average in numbers, and the quality throughout was excellent, most of the best animals seen out. this year being entered. Yearling colts and the newly formed classes for geldings were the only weak entries. Three-year-old stallions had four first-class hackneys at top. The winner, Brigham Radiant, a very typically fine-actioned bay by “Rosador,” was after- wards placed reserve for Champion honours. Sir Walter Gilbey’s Dashing Lad , by “ Royal Danegelt,” was a good second. Mr. Haley took third with a big free-moving chestnut by “ Rosador.” Two-year-olds formed a capital class, and contained the Champion stallion, Copmanthorpe Performer , sired by “ Garton Duke of Connaught,” a dark chestnut, short-legged, brilliant-actioned colt which was Junior Champion in London, and the best young horse seen out this season. Mr. Evans was second with Gartonius , a home-bred one, and, like the winner, sired by “ Garton Duke of Connaught.” He is well made, with good bone and excellent action, and is a very improving sort. Only three yearling stallions were entered, all of which were present, Mr. Hall winning with a son of “St. Thomas,” which has fair action and looks. The larger brood mare class brought out several fine matrons, at the head off which stood Rosadora , a well-known winner and London Champion. She made a great show and well won the highest honours later on, when she w^as adjudged Female Champion. Sir Walter Gilbey’s Mitre is also an excellent stamp of brood mare, built somewhat on heavier lines than the winner, and also possessed of fine action ; whilst the third, Mr. de Mancha’s Bashful Kate 136 The Derby Show , 1906. is a beautiful quality mare, but lighter in build than those placed above her. Maud or a , by “ Rosador,” headed the under 15-2 class of brood mares. Shown in excellent form with fine action, she was an outstanding winner, being followed by Mr. Evans’ B.B. Iris , another good all round mare, with excellent shoulders and limbs. In a large class of foals the winner owned “Copper King” as sire, a well grown, well balanced dark chestnut with good limbs and action. Three-year-old fillies formed a good class, Mr. Buttle winning with Boquhan Sunrise , a beautiful dark chestnut by “Rosador.” She made an excellent show, and later on was Reserve Champion. Mr. Evans was second with his brilliant actioned bay, Terrington Ruth , bred by Sir Gilbert Greenall. Two-year-old fillies were an average class, the winner, Mr. Cooke’s Lilladora , making a fine show. Yearling fillies were easily headed by Sir Walter Gilbey’s Lively Bees- wing, which made quite a sensational show, added to which she is very typical and well grown. Beyond the winners, the geldings in hand were moderate. Ponies. — These were very strongly represented, and in Class 32 (three-year-olds and upwards) several brilliant ponies were entered, Mr. Ravenhill Stock winning with Son o’ Horace , a beautiful bay of excellent shape and action, followed by Mr. Whitworth’s Jack Spratt and Mr. Price’s Lyndhurst Phosphorus , both fine movers. Only two pony brood mares came out, both, however, good ones. Mr. Tatem’s Mel-Valley Princess , so well-known in harness classes, was first, with a good foal by “ Ruby,” and Mr. Price’s good-looking Gold Fleece , by “ Sir Horace,” was second. Mr. Price won in the small class with Berry Hill Smart , a fine moving pony, bred by Mr. Hollins and sired by “ Prosjiector.” Harness Horses. — The innovation of permitting horses in harness to be shown in more than one class, where eligible, was evidently appreciated, and probably helped to bring together the best classes that have been seen this season at any show. In a good class of ponies under 14 hands, Mr. T. B. Sykes won with a quality bay gelding, Fylde Forester , which made a good show, followed by Burlington Sir Horace , also a fine mover. In the 15 hands class a new comer was seen out, Dr. Dalston- Ewbanke’s roan mare, Affection , the heavy going apparently suiting her, as she made a great show, with the best of manners. Here Mr. Sykes stood second with Fylde Zarena , whose action is good all round, though she is somewhat plain. In the over 15 hands class, Mr. McKibbin won somewhat easily with Langton Gelding , followed by Mr. Burnell-Tubbs’ Richmond winner, Gongelt , with Mrs. Hartley Batt’s Prince Edward , a quality chestnut, third. The foregoing classes were for novices which had not won a prize of over 6/. prior to the closing of the entries. In a small class of ponies under 13 hands, Mr. Waud scored a meritorious win with Ferniehurst Fortuna , a sweet pony mare by “ Sir Horace.” There were three excellent ponies under 14 hands, Miss Clarke’s Highhrook Belle making light of the heavy going, and moving in brilliant form. So Harness Horses and Ponies. 137 also did the second, Tissington Kit Cat , a brown by “ Sir Horace,” of true Hackney type. Model Queen was third. In the class for horses between 14 and 15 hands, Mr. J. S. Sykes won with Fylde Sabrinetta , by “ Garton Duke of Connaught,” this mare making a- brilliant show with the best of manners. Champion honours were eventually awarded to her. Mrs. Hartley Batt’s Hopwood Spark , by “Sir Horace,” a fine moving bay, was second, followed by Lady Defiant , another good mover. This was an excellent class. In the class not exceeding 15-2 hands, Mr. Tennant’s well-known Authority , by “ Ganymede,” won well with his brilliant action. Mr. Makeague’s Luminator was second. In the over 15-2 hands class, Mr. Gerard Jurgens, from Holland, won with the brown gelding, Padiant. This good-looking son of “Mathias” was evidently enjoying the mud, going both fast and high all round. Silver Ness , a well-known winner, was second — a typical Hackney mare by “ Canny Man.” Mr. Le Marchant’s big chestnut gelding, The Only Way , was third. The under 15-2 hands pairs produced as well-matched and fine -actioned horses as could be seen anywhere. Mrs. Hartley Batt’s Hopivood Spark and Hopivood Horace , own brothers by “ Sir Horace,” had perfect manners and brilliant action. A valuable pair, Authority and Astonishment , were next, with Mr. Makeague’s bays- in third position, and Mr. Paul Hoffman’s King of Fashion and Prince Dashaway , Reserve. In the larger classes for pairs, Mr. Gerard Jurgens’ well-matched Radiant and Glenburn Lass made a grand show, and well deserved the first prize. Mr. Kerr’s pair were second, and Miss Ella Ross’s well-known blacks were third. In tandems, Mrs. Hartley Batt again won somewhat easily with Hopwood Spark and Hopwood Horace , Miss Ella Ross being second with her perfectly trained blacks. Shetland Ponies. — These animals were typical of the breed, and the winners had splendid action. Mountain and Moorland Ponies. — The Judge states that the stallions were good specimens of what is required. The winner was a particularly powerful straight goer. The two mares were nice, smart, and handsome. Shires. — Nearly all the classes for Shires at Derby were exceptionally good and much better than they have been the last few years at the “ Royal.” In Class 60 (three-year-old stallions) the winner was a true level animal, and he was followed by some very weighty horses. The two-year-old stallions (Class 61) were larger in number and were a very good lot, there being several animals that looked like doing good to the breed in future. The yearling colts (Class 62) were a very useful lot. The class for mares with foals at foot 138 The Derby Show , 1906. brought out a number of good animals of fairly equal merit. Mares (without foals) were very good indeed, and the same may be said of the three-year-old fillies, there being some grand animals in this class. Class 68 (fillies, foaled in 1904) was a large one, the winner having plenty of size and quality ; the class throughout was of great merit. The yearling filly class was also very large, there being many animals of uniform merit. In the local classes there were many good animals, especially the fillies foaled in 1904-5. Clydesdales. — In the class for brood mares with foals at foot, only three came forward. The winning mare was an exceptionally good one, with size, symmetry, and quality, and she was a good mover. This mare was afterwards awarded the Female Championship. The three-year-old filly, which was the only one of that age shown, was a good specimen of the breed and a good size, with fine wearing feet and legs. The two-year-old fillies were all of good promise, the first prize filly being specially well brought out, with the best of bone and good feet. In the class for three-year-old stallions, the animals were of entirely different types — the first being of the clean-boned kind with size, and likely to make a wearing stallion ; the other being more of the old-fashioned short-legged sort. Of the two-year-old stallions, the first prize winner, a black colt of good size and substance, was also awarded the Male Championship. The first in the yearling stallion class was a colt of fine quality, well set on his pasterns ; he looked like growing into a good horse. The second was a big-sized colt, but lacked the quality of the first. On the whole the quality of the exhibits was fairly good. Suffolks. — The Judges expressed their regret that these classes were not better filled, Class 77 (stallions, foaled in 1904) only really representing the breed in point of numbers. The first prize horse in Class 76 was good in quality and substance, but might perhaps have stood over more ground. He also took the Championship. In Class 77 the first prize winner was full of quality, but slightly lacking in bone below the knee. The second prize horse, though plain on the top, was a promising colt. The exhibits in Class 79 were all beautiful mares, and typified the best points of the breed. The first prize animal in Class 80 was a charming filly, close to the ground, with substance and quality combined. Agricultural Horses. — The Judges reported that in the four- year-old class the winner was a massive big sound horse. In the three-year-old class, in which there were seven entries, the first four possessed all the characteristics which go to make a valuable horse for heavy work. Only two horses were shown Heavy Horses; Asses; Cattle. 139 in the two-year-old class, but the winner was of exceptional merit, having size and substance, with good feet and legs. Asses. The two new classes for asses were the means of bringing together some very fine specimens of jacks and jinnies, probably some of the best in Europe. The entries might, however, with advantage have been more numerous, only five being received. Donkey breeding has been neglected in England, while neighbouring countries such as France, Italy, and Spain have devoted much thought to it ; and, in view of the large demand for good jacks from the warmer countries, including parts of our own empire, such as India, South Africa, and Australia, it is a subject that is well worth our attention and encouragement, as in the countries mentioned the best jacks command prices of several hundred pounds sterling. In the stallion class, the first prize jack was a black Spanish tliree-year-old of great bone and substance, very true in his movements, and showing every promise of being a very exceptional animal at five years old. The second prize animal, a five-year-old white Spanish jack, well proportioned and shown in excellent condition, was certainly one of the finest white jacks living, but he lacked the height and exceptional size of the first prize animal. The first prize mare or jinny was also a black Spanish, true in her lines and extraordinarily high. The second prize almost equalled her in height, had more bone and substance, but was not so level over the back and quarters. It was a pity there were no entries of cross-bred Spanish and Poitou with English donkeys, as a very useful and profitable race might be bred. Cattle. On three occasions only have the entries in this depart- ment been greater in numbers than they were at the recent Derby Meeting, for which 926 entries of cattle were received. Those occasions were : Park Royal, 1903 (944 entries) ; Windsor, 1889 (1,144 entries) ; and Kilburn, 1879 (1,005 entries). The Shorthorns were again the most numerous, the number of animals (319) constituting a record, exceeding by fifty-seven the previous largest entry of the breed made at Park Royal in 1905, when there were 262 entries. Shorthorns. — There were ten classes as in 1905. The Judges in their report state “that the collection of Shorthorns was one of the best ever seen at a Meeting of the Society and does credit to the breeders.” The winner of the first prize (No. 582) in Class 87 (bulls, calved in 1902 or 1903) was a grand bull full of quality, and a beautiful type of Shorthorn. In Class 88 (bulls, calved in 1904) there were sixty-three entries, 140 The Derby Show , 1906. Mr. Gordon’s Fascinator , a bull of grand quality, securing an easy win.' The Judges found some difficulty in placing the next three animals ; they were so evenly balanced as to points. Mr. George Harrison was awarded the second prize for Charming Victor 2nd, and also the third prize for Royal Ensign. Class 89 (Bulls, calved in 1905). — First (No. 732), “ A most wonderful bull for his age, being deep and having little fault to be found with him ; in fact for his age one of the best we have seen for many years.” Second (654), “ Beautiful quality and a true type of Shorthorn.” Third (696), “Very deep, heavy fleshed bull, might be a little better in head and horn, but well worthy of his position.” Class 90 (Cows, in-milk, calved previously to 1902). — Here were some of the best cows seen together for a long time. First (735), Champion heifer of 1903, retains most of her good points, including good dairy properties, with beautiful quality. This fine cow, Sylph , exhibited by His Majesty The King, is a daughter of the famous bull, u Royal Duke.” Second (749), is of “beautiful quality, very level good flesh, and a real good animal.” Third (750), was the Champion of 1904, but being now over eight years old, age is making its mark, but she still retains the beautiful quality she always had. Class 91 (Heifers, calved in 1903). — First (761), is a very good heifer, deep in body, with level back, and a very easy winner. Second (764), a well-grown heifer, but not so evenly balanced as the first : ’“ this and all the winners in the class show good dairy properties, which we are pleased to see breeders are paying attention to.” Third (752), is of beautiful quality, but very small, which rather puts her a little lower in the list than she would have been. Class 92 (Heifers, calved in 1904).— First (783), is a red and white heifer, good all round, very level, deep in body, and of nice character, very similar to the winner in the previous class ; she is, in fact, from the same cow. Second (784), a roan, full of quality. Third (765), a “wonderful grown heifer, with nice character and quality, but not so level as those placed before her.” Class 93 (Heifers, calved 1905). — Here were some beautiful youngsters, showing that breeders still have an eye to quality. First (859), “a beautiful heifer well grown down, level, and a grand coat of hair ; in fact, it was hard to find a fault with her : her beautiful liind-quarters gained her the Champion- ship.” Second (800), another grand animal, very similar to the first, but not so deep in body nor so nice in head, but still an easy second. Third (848), a roan, full of quality, and will improve with age. Shorthorn Cattle. 141 Dairy Shorthorns. — Most of the animals in the three classes were shown in a natural healthy breeding condition. The greater proportion of them showed good milking qualities, though after being milked out several of the udders were disappointing. Class 9t (12 entries, of which 10 were present). — Two failed to pass the test of giving at one milking 25 lb. of milk, or 20 lb., if calved before March 27. About half the remaining eight had good udders, the others, after being milked, being mostly very light in the fore part of the udder, and one, in other ways a very nice dairy cow, having her front teats very much too wide apart. The first and second prize cows were perhaps a little too bare in condition, but as some one suggested, a bag of bones, if healthy and with a good milk vessel, would do more towards paying the rent than a bag of grease. They both milked out extremely well, each giving a large quantity of milk and showing a very good level udder after milking. Class 95. — A very small class of three, the first prize and Champion cow being an exceptionally nice type of Daily Shorthorn with a good level capacious udder and teats well placed, a good bodied cow with a nice head and neck. The second prize cow was also a very handsome animal, but her udder was not one of the best, being- a little too wide in front. The third prize cow was a nice type of dairy animal, and, although small, appeared to be a very good milker. Class 96 consisted of three heifers, none being of exceptional merit, although all passed the test of giving 15 lb. of milk at the one milking, which for a second calved heifer was after all no very extraordinary performance. Lincolnshire Red Short-horns. — The entries were small as regards numbers, but the quality was good. The younger bull and heifer classes were well filled, and contained animals of excellent merit. Herefords.— There were fifty-nine entries of this breed. The first bull in Class 108 was an easy winner, and the other winners were useful animals. As a whole the males were much better than the females. Devons. — The Judge reports that the exhibits as a whole were disappointing. The cows and heifers were hardly up to the average, due partly, no doubt, to Derby being so far from headquarters. There were, however, some very useful bulls. South Devons. — The three bulls in Class 118 were very good, large, of good colour, and full of quality. Of the five entries in Class 119, the first prize cow was large, with good colour, deep in flesh, and away from the second and third animals, though these were also useful. Sussex. — Class 121 (bulls, calved in 1902 nr 1903) attracted only two entries. The winner, an excellent example of the breed, was awarded the Sussex Herd Book Society’s Silver Medal for the best Sussex bull. The other classes contained exhibits from the most noted herds ; and, with scarcely any exception, were of excellent quality. 142 The Derby Show , 1906. Welsh Cattle. — Taken as a whole the entries were scarcely up to the usual standard. Five bulls competed in Class 127, for old bulls. The competition was very close for the first position between Messrs. Davies, Thomas & Howells’ Duke of Connaught (1049) and Mr. Greaves’ The Czar (1050), a winner on previous occasions. In Class 128 (yearling bulls), the two animals that competed were both “ nice sappy young bulls, brimful of quality,” the winner eventually taking the Champion against the old bull winner in the previous class. In the heifer class (130), in which six animal^ competed, No. 1062, a particularly nice level heifer, of undoubted quality, was an easy winner. Red Polled. — These numbered forty-nine entries, which, as a whole, were fairly representative of the breed, the first prize bull (No. 1067) in Class 131 being an exceptionally good specimen. Aberdeen Angus. — The Judge reports that the practice of permitting the ages of these animals to be calculated from December 1 allowed many more representatives of the breed to be entered, sixty-five competing in the six classes. The winner (No. 1157) in Class 141 (cows or heifers, in-milk, calved before December 1, 1903), a very good specimen of the breed, afterwards received the English Aberdeen Angus Cattle Association’s Gold Medal. Galloways. — The exhibits numbered twenty-one, and wTere, on the wdiole, very good. In Class 144, the first prize winner (No. 1191) was a very thick, well-fleshed bull, but rather undersized. No. 1200, the first prize animal in Class 145, was a “ very thick stylish bull with a capital coat.” Class 146 (cows in-milk) contained only three exhibits. The first was exceptionally good, and though shown in low condition, wTas quite fat enough for breeding purposes. Highlands. — There were only two animals exhibited, both in the female section. Ayrshires. — Only seven animals of this breed were exhibited. The Judge stated that the four bulls were the best he had ever seen. The three cows shown were also good specimens. Jerseys. — The bulls were a representative display of the breed, the old bull class being very good ; the classes for the younger bulls contained animals of merit. The cows wrere good on the average. The Judges report that Class 153, for old bulls, was small, but very good. The first prize was awarded to Captain L. G. Gisborne, for Glorious Lad , an aged bull of nice quality. The second, Ladyr de Rothschild’s Gallant , was also of good quality. Class 154. — This class was not quite up to the level of the older animals. Class 155. — The winner Jersey , Guernsey , Longhorn , aw/ Kerry Cattle. 143 (1267, Royal Ensign ) was above the average usually met with. The second (1264, Alfriston's Pride ) was also a very nice promising young bull, and generally the class was good. Class 156. — The winner (1285, Lady Viola) was a fine cow of good quality. The second (1297, Lady May) was of different type and had dairy qualities of a high order. The third (1277, Whitewood Oth) had good dairy qualities. Class 157. — The first prize animal (1317, Frolicsome 5 th) showed exceptional milking qualities for her age, with a good constitution ; she well merited her position. The second prize went to the English-bred heifer (1309, Watercress). Class 158. — The first (1335, Electress) showed great promise and excellent outline ; the second (1334, Lady Madcap) was of nice type, but not quite so strong in constitution ; and the third (1330, Marjory) was quite of dairy type. Guernseys. — Although the Show was held a long way from the districts in which the Guernseys are generally to be found, the entries were fairly representative. In the three classes for bulls a total number of eight animals only were exhibited : one in Class 160, for old bulls, three in Class 161, for two-year-olds, and four in Class 162, for yearlings. Of the cows and heifers the Judge reported that the cow class was fairly representative, and that the heifers were of good quality, more particularly those in Class 165, for yearlings. Longhorns. — There were nineteen animals exhibited. The Judge reported that the section was good, on the whole, and that this old breed of cattle was improving very fast. The cows showed considerable improvement in their milking qualities. Kerries and Dexters. — Of the four Kerry bulls exhibited, Lady Greenall’s No. 1416, Walton Rajah , was awarded the first prize and Reserve Championship. The Duchess of Newcastle’s cow (No. 1424), Hardwick Flora , was awarded the first prize in her class and the Challenge Cup for the best Kerry animal, which the Duchess has now won three years in succession. In the heifer class (174), Lady Greenall’s Walton Marsupial (No. 1429) was awarded the first prize. Of the Dexter bulls, the Judge reported that they were a somewhat mixed lot, some showing good quality, others being coarse and ugly ; he suggested that more attention should be paid by breeders to the class of bulls used in their herds. Class 177, for Dexter cows, was by far the best in this section — many of them wonderful little animals, giving an enormous quantity of milk for their size, with beautifully shaped bags and level bodies. The first prize, 1452, the Duchess of Devonshire’s Compton Daphne , was run hard by Mr. de Bertodano’s Cowbridge Lorna , 144 The Derby Show, 1906. there being little to choose between the two ; and 1458, Sprucefield Edna , was a good representative with an excellent udder. Sheep. The exhibits in this department showed a slight decrease, the total number of entries being 564, as against 591 in 1905. On this occasion the biggest entry was made in the Shropshire classes, the entries in which numbered 104, the Southdowns coming next with seventy-one entries, and Kent or Romney 'Marsh with sixty-four, illustrations of the Champion sheep are given, in continuation of the series of horses and cattle illustrated in previous Volumes. Oxford Downs. — The Judge reported that the sheep in these classes were of better quality and of more uniform character than in former years. The shearling rams (Class 182) were grand sheep, the prize winners being of very nice character and true to type. The ram lambs (Class 183) were exceptionally good. The shearling ewes (Class 184) and the ewe lambs (Class 185) were of nice quality. Shropshires. — As is usual at the Royal Show, Shropshire sheep made a good display. The classes were Avell filled, and the quality throughout was decidedly good. The Judges reported as follows : — Class 186 (Two-shear rams) was headed by a very symmetrical wide sheep (No. 1526), wonderfully developed. Second to him came a very stylish ram (No. 1520), with a good head and fleece, the Reserve going to No. 1525, a big well -grown ram of good character. Class 187 (Shearling rams). — We had no difficulty in awarding first prize here. The winner (No. 1538) is an exceptionally nice sheep, good in character, with size and quality. Second to him we placed a ram (No. 1548) with a capital head and fleece, and one of great substance. The third prize winner (No. 1535) is a nice gay sheep, with capital fleece and skin. Several other very useful animals followed, and received honourable mention. Class 188 (Five shearling rams). — This very attractive class brought out some really good sheep. We placed No. 1573 first, a pen of great scale and substance. These were followed by No. 1560, second, and No. 1562, third, two pens of nice well-grown sheep. Some other pens followed which did not reach the winners in size, but were of great merit, containing some most classy animals. Class 189 (Special selling (auction) shearling rams). — Here again No. 1538, winner in Class 187, heads the list, followed by No. 1535, which gets a place higher owing to the second prize winner in Class 158 not being entered. The third, No. 1576, was a nice lengthy sheep shown in the second prize pen of five. The fourth was No. 1560a. Classes 190 (Ram lambs) and 192 (Ewe lambs) were very even throughout, and there was very little difference in the winning pens. Class 191 (Shearling ewes) brought out some typical Shropshires. The .four winning pens were of exceptionally high merit. Southdowns. — Class 193 (Two-shear rams). — The Judges report that this was a somewhat disappointing class, many of the sheep being overfed. Class 194 (Shearling rams).- — Fig. 1. — Southdown Shearling Ram. Winner of Champion Prize for best Scruthdovsn Pam, Derby, 1906. Exhibited by His Majesty The King. Fig. 2. — Southdown Shearling Ewes. Winners of Champion Prize for best Pen of Southdown Eases or Ease Lambs, Derby, 1906. Exhibited by The Duke of Devonshire, K.Gr. Fig. 3.— Hampshire Down Ram Lambs. Winners of Champion Prize for best Pen of Hampshire Down Bam or Ewe Lambs, Derby, 1908. Exhibited by Mr. James Flower. Fig. 4.— Lincoln Shearling Ram. Winner of Champion Prize for best Lincoln Bam, Derby, 1906. Exhibited by Mr. IIenry Dueling. Southdown and Hampshire Down Sheep. 145 The winner (No. 1625) is a very active, good specimen of the breed ; the second (No. 1627) and third (No. 1636) are indifferent in their movements, but otherwise they are good sheep. No. 1625, exhibited by His Majesty The King, was eventually the Male Champion (see Fig. 1, opposite to page 144). Class 195 (shearling rams) was well filled, but was not of an even character. No. 1645 made a nice level pen and were easy winners. Class 196 (ram lambs). — No. 1651, first prize, was a very good pen, followed closely by the second (No. 1659) and third prize (No. 1653) pens. Class 197 (shearling ewes). — A very good class. The first (No. 1665), second (1663), and third (No. 1667) prize animals were very close together. The first prize pen eventually took the Female Championship. These were exhibited by the Duke of Devonshire (see Fig. 2 opposite to page 144). Class 198 (ewe lambs). — One of the most even classes in the Show. The first (No. 1669), being an exceedingly good pen, was placed Reserve for the Female Championship ; the second (No. 1677) and third (No. 1673) were also very good pens. Hampshire Downs. — In the two-shear ram class (199), the first prize ram (No. 1681) showed rare flesh, colour, and coat. Class 200 (shearling rams) contained some typical sheep, but the first (No. 1694) and second (No. 1695) prize rams were much in front of the others, both being really grand sheep, showing all the best characteristics of the breed ; the winner was a grand specimen. A good entry of ram lambs in Class 201 showed careful breeding, the first prize pen (No. 1709) being quite the best sorted seen for years. This pen, exhibited by Mr. James Flower, received the Championship (see Fig. 3 opposite.) The second prize pen (No. 1706) were also a credit to the breed, and other entries were of considerable merit. There were no entries of shearling ewes. The ewe lambs (Class ’203) showed such uniform charac- ter that the Judges were some time before finally arriving at a decision ; eventually No. 1723 won, being closely pressed by the second prize pen (No. 1722). The third prize was awarded to No. 1728. The whole class was a credit to the exhibitors. SufFolks. — Class 204 (two-shear rams), although containing only three exhibits, was very satisfactory, as all were of sufficient merit. Class 205 (shearling rams), with seven exhibits, was one of the strongest of the Suffolk sheep. The first, second, third, and Reserve Number were fine specimens of the breed, and were very close in merit. Class 206 (ram lambs). — The first, second, and third prize animals were of beautiful quality and well grown. Class 207 (three ram lambs). — This class, YOL. 67. L 146 The Derby Show , 1906. with four exhibits, were all good, the first and second prize animals particularly so. Class 208 (shearling ewes). — This class, although containing only three exhibits, was exception- ally fine, and never, thinks the Judge, have there been two better pens of ewes shown than the first and second prize pens. Class 209 (ewe lambs). — The^first, second, and third prize pens in this class were well grown and fine specimens of the breed. Lincolns. — This breed was well represented and the exhibits were of very high quality. In Class 212, for five shearling rams, fifty animals of very high merit were exhibited. The ram lambs (Class 213) were very good, and the shearling ewes, in the opinion of the Judges, were as near perfection as they had ever seen. They also consider that the Champion sheep, Mr. Henry Dudding’s shearling ram (No. 1781), is quite one of the best that has ever been exhibited (see Fig. 4, opposite to page 145). Leicesters. — Of the nine exhibits in Class 216 (shearling rams), the first prize animal (No. 1824) is a beautiful up- standing sheep, with good skin and firm mutton. The second prize sheep (No. 1821) was a typical Leicester, with many good points, but had rather light skin ; the wool showed great quality when opened and carefully examined. The third prize sheep (No. 1825) was a very useful and thoroughly typical sheep, with good skin and clean bone. The ram lambs in Class 217 were forward in condition, and looked blooming and well in their coats. The first prize pen (No. 1829) were very good lambs indeed, and the first (No. 1838) and second (No. 1839) prize winners in Class 218 (shearling ewes) stood out alone. With one exception the whole of the ewe lambs in Class 219 were quite up to the usual standard of excellence. Cotswolds. — An average collection. The first (No. 1847) and second (No. 1849) prize sheep in the shearling ram class (220) were grand specimens of the breed. The same may be said of the shearling ewe class, and the lambs were very strong, but a short entry. Border Leicester Sheep. — In Class 224 (shearling rams), the quality was of average merit, and the winner (No. 1862) showed the best points of the breed. The competition in Class 225 (ram lambs) and in the succeeding classes was limited. Kent or Romney Marsh. — The representation of this breed, numbering sixty-four entries, was the largest since the Maidstone Meeting of 1899, when there were eiglity-six entries. The two-shear rams (Class 228) were of good type and wool. Class 229 (shearling rams) was well filled with twenty-one entries of excellent sheep, seldom seen together, Fig. 5.— Dorset Horn Ram Lambs. Winners of Champion Prize for best Pen of Dorset Horn Pam Lambs, Shearling Ewes, or Ewe Lambs, Derby f 1906. Exhibited by Mr. James Attrill. Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 67, 19C6. Fig. 6. — Large White Breeding Sow, “Lindsey A.” Winner of Champion Prize for best Large White Boar or Sow, Derby, 1906. Exhibited by Sir Gilbert Greenall, Bart. Fig. 7.— Middle White Breeding Sow, “Holywell Victoria Duchess.” Winner of Champion Prize for best Middle White Boar or Sow, Derby, 1906. Exhibited by Messrs. Sanders Spencer and Son. Fig. 8.— Tamworth Sow, “Cholderton Buzzer.” Winner of Champion Prize for best Tamworth Boar or Sow , Derby, 1906. Exhibited by Mr. Robert Ibbotson. Various Breeds of Sheep. 147 with plenty of bone, and, with one or two exceptions, showing great improvement in the wool. In Class 230 there were three or four pens of good lambs, but the remainder showed room for improvement. The shearling ewes (Class 231) were of exceptional merit, showing more uniformity of type and good wool — a great improvement generally. Class 232 (ewe lambs) contained two or three pens of fairly good lambs, but the- remainder were rather weak. Wensleydales. — The exhibit of Wensleydales was a smaller one than usual, but the type and quality were good. The winning shearling ram (No. 1940) in Class 233 and the first prize pen of shearling ewes (No. 1947) in Class 235 are worthy of special mention. The lambs were young and rather small, but the winning pens of each sex had all the qualifications necessary for growing into typical sheep. Dorset Horn. — These classes were well contested through- out, the exhibits being uniformly typical. The pen of ram lambs (No. 1958), to which the breed Championship was awarded, was of especially high merit (see Fig. 5, opposite to page 146). Devon Long Wools. — There were only ten pens entered from two flocks, but the animals shown were of excellent quality. South Devon, Dartmoor, and Exmoor. — The exhibits were few in number, and the Judge reports that the South Devons were very good, the Dartmoor rams not up to their usual standard, but the ewes were better. The Exmoors were fairly good, the ewes being well woolled, but rather small. Cheviots. — The Judge reports that the general character of the exhibits, which numbered six only, was very high. Black-Faced Mountain.— Class 252 (rams, shearling and upwards). — This was a very creditable display, including several animals of considerable merit, very well bred, and brought out in good bloom. The shearling ewes in Class 253 were well brought out on the whole, and the first prize winners (No. 2012) would not easily be beaten. Lonks and Herdwicks. — The two Lonk rams exhibited in Class 254 were very good samples. The first prize was awarded to No. 2016, and the second to No. 2015. In Class 255, for Lonk shearling ewes, the competition between the two exhibits was very close, No. 2019 being placed first and No. 2018 second. The Herdwicks were remarkably good exhibits, but only three animals competed in Class 256, for rams one year old and upwards, and two pens of ewes in Class 257. Welsh. — In his report on these classes the Judge states that they were well patronised and that the quality was good, 148 The Derby Show , 1906. especially the shearling ewes in Class 259, which contained pens of exceptional merit rendering it difficult to decide between them. There were two outstanding exhibits in Class 258, for rams, shearling and upwards, viz., the first. (No. 2028) and second (No. 2030) prize winners. Ryeland. — The exhibits were not numerous, but the quality of the animals shown was good. In Class 259a, for rams, two-sliear and upwards, three animals competed, and five shearling rams were shown in Class 260. There were also five pens of shearling ewes exhibited in Class 261. Pigs. The number of entries, 266, was the highest on record, and the exhibition of pigs was perhaps the finest, ever seen at the “ Royal ” or any other Show. No prizes were offered for Small Whites, but the classification of 1905 was adopted for the other breeds, with the addition of classes for sows farrowed in 1905, for Large Whites, Middle Whites, Berkshires, and Tam worths, making in all twenty-four classes. Illustrations are given of the Champion and first prize pigs. Large Whites. — The exhibits as a whole were of excellent quality, the breeding sows (Class 264) being a strong class. The Championship was won by Sir Gilbert Green all, with a sow, Lindsey A (see Fig. 6, opposite to page 146). Middle Whites. — The Judge considered the exhibits above the average. Class 269 (breeding sows) was an extraordinarily good one. The winner, Messrs. Sanders Spencer & Sons’ Holywell Victoria Duchess (No. 2136) was a true typical sow, full of quality (see Fig. 7, opposite to page 147). Berkshires. — All the classes were well filled, and the Judge reports that, on the whole, the quality was good. More evenness of type is, however, still desired. The first prize boar and sow are illustrated (see Figs. 9 and 10 opposite). Tamworths. — The entry in Class 277 was poor, several boars being very dark and not of much quality. The winner (No. 2225), though an old boar, had good length and depth, and a grand head ; the second prize boar was of grand colour, but rather short. The winner in Class 279 won very easily,' and is a grand sow ; she also was awarded the Championship for the best pig (see Fig. 8, opposite to page 147). Class 280 was indeed, especially the winner, full of quality, the second and third and Reserve Number being good pigs true to type. Large Blacks. — All the classes were very well filled with pigs of excellent quality, and exceedingly well grown, Fig. 9.— Berkshire Boar, “|Okeeori> Emperor.” Winner of First Prize for Berkshire Boars, farroiced in 1904 or 1905 Derby, 1906. Exhibited by Mr. R. W. Hudson. Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 67,1903. Fig. 10.— Berkshire Sow, “Wandsworth Gem.” Winner of First Prize for Berkshire Breeding Sours, farroiced in 1902, 1903, or 1904, Derby, 1906, Exhibited by The Visiting Committee or the Middlesex County Asylum. Fig. 11. — Large Black Boar, “ Hasketon Black King 4th.” Winner of Champion Prize for lest Large Black Boar , Derby , 1906. Exhibited by Mr. C. F. Marriner. Fig. 12.— Large Black Sow, “ Hasketon Long Lady.” Winner of Champion Prize for best Large Black Sow, Derby, 1906 Exhibited by Mr, C. F. Marriner. Pigs and Poultry. 149 competition being very keen. The sow class was of exceptional merit. Both Male and Female Championships were gained by Mr. C. F. Marriner (see Figs. 11 and 12 opposite). Poultry, including Ducks, Geese, and Turkeys. In this department three Judges were appointed to deal with the entries, which numbered 811, as against 871 in 1905. Mr. P. Proud judged the Game fowls, Brahmas, Cochins, Langshans, Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, and Orpingtons ; the late Mr. J. P. W. Marx judged the Dorking, Sussex, French, Minorca, Leghorn, Ancona, and Andalusian breeds ; and Mr. H. Abbot judged the Table fowls, Ducks, Geese, and Turkeys. The following remarks are taken from their reports : — Fowls. — The adult classes of Old English Game were very good indeed, and were keenly contested, but the two classes for chicks were very poor. All the four classes of Indian Game were a really grand lot, and the winners difficult to separate. Brahmas and Cochins were just fair. Langshans were a nice display, the quality being quite up to the average. Plymouth Bocks were a grand lot both in numbers and quality ; more especially so in the young bird classes. Wyandottes were quite a show in themselves, numbering 168, and the quality all through was excellent, the competition being very keen. Orpingtons were another grand lot and numbered 128. The Buffs still hold their own in point of both quality and numbers. The adult blacks were a nice collection, but the two young classes were disappointing. White Orpingtons appear to be making great headway, and were a very pretty display. The Dorking classes attracted a feiv more entries than last year, and the quality throughout was extremely good. The entries of Sussex birds were, as might be expected, less than in 1905, seeing that these fowls are peculiar to the southern Home Counties. The exhibits were more uniform in type and colour than heretofore. All the French classes were good. Minorcas were a great improvement on last year ; the hen and both chicken classes were worth special mention. The six classes for Leghorns filled very well indeed. The two classes for the brown variety were the best ; in the others the purity of colour of the whites and delicate hue of the buffs was, with one or two exceptions, destroyed by the sun and weather. The exhibits of Anconas were of good quality, though the classes filled badly. The number of Andalusians was small, but in each class the winner was a splendid specimen ; the hen was particularly good. The four Table Fowl classes were small, but the specimens exhibited were well grown and 150 The Derby Show , 1906. well fattened. The shortness of entries in these classes is accounted for by the cold and late spring. Ducks. — Aylesbury s made a creditable show, but Rouen were disappointing both in numbers and quality ; the same may be said of Pekins and Gayugas. Geese. — The entries were small, but the specimens of each variety were very good. Turkeys. — The classes were fairly large, and some splendid specimens were on view. Farm and Dairy Produce. Butter. — The first and second prize exhibits in Class 394 (butter made with not more than 1 per cent, of salt) were very good. In Class 395 (fresh butter) there were fifty-nine entries, and naturally there were some excellent specimens. Cream. — This was only an average class as regards quality, several of the samples being sour, and others affected by the use of preservatives. The prize lots were clean in flavour and of a desirable consistency. Cheese. — The Cheddar cheese was somewhat irregular in quality, many of the samples being sweet-made and tough ; in consequence the quality and flavour were faulty. The prize lots in both classes were clean in flavour, and showed excellent quality. The first prize truckles were quite outstanding in merit, and were easily the finest sample in the Cheddar classes. The exhibits of Cheshire cheese were up to a high standard considering the season of the year. Several of the samples were rather tightly made, and showed over-acidity in the curd, which is considered a serious fault in a Cheshire cheese. The prize lots were quite outstanding in quality and flavour, and were fine samples of this variety of cheese. The Stilton cheese was quite the best in the section, and the exhibits throughout were up to a high standard of merit. The first and second prize exhibits were of fine quality and flavour. The exhibits of Double Gloucester cheese were rather disappointing, and nothing attractive was found, faulty flavour and openness being the principal faults. The Derbyshire cheese was also somewhat irregular in quality. The prize lots were useful samples. The first and second prize Cream Cheeses were excellent, but the balance of the exhibits in Class 404 were only moderate in quality. Cider and Perry. — The ciders and perries were inspected on June 7, and several samples from each class were selected and taken by Dr. Yoelcker for analysis. The final judging was on June 27, when it was found that several samples had deterio- rated in quality, while others had improved. Class 405 (Cider, Farm and Daim/ Produce. t/ 151 in cask, made in the autumn of 1905 : 18 entries). — Several of the exhibitors had sent poor quality ciders. One competitor had used some kind of flavouring essence, quite spoiling his cider. The first prize (No. 3317) went to an excellent cider, very clean, with fine flavour and aroma. The second prize sample (No. 3316) was also very good, but rather more bitter. The third prize (No. 3326) went to a rather thin tasting juice. Class 406 (Cider, in bottle, 1905) was the best cider in the whole competition. The first prize lot (No. 3349) was excellent, very clean and brisk, with a nice natural gas, and a fine aroma, made from “ Kingston Black apple alone. The alcoholic strength was rather low. For the second prize (No. 3347) another clean and brisk cider was selected, with not quite such a fine aroma. The third prize (No. 3333) was given to a very sweet and rich cider. Class 407 (Cider, in bottle, made before 1905). — The first prize (No. 3367) was given to a very clear, clean, fine cider, with nice gas and aroma. The second prize winner (No. 3358) was excellent, but very sweet ; while the third prize lot (No. 3369) had not such a good aroma. Class 408 (Perry, in bottle, made before 1905.)— This class was not so well filled, and the samples were not of so good average quality. The first prize was awarded for No. 3377, which was bright, clean, and good, with a good aroma. The second prize went to No. 3371, which had not such a nice aroma, and in the third (No. 3370) the aroma was slightly unpleasant. The following are the results of the chemical analyses which relate to the samples that gained prizes or commendation : — Class 405. No. Specific gravity Total solids Alcohol Acidity Award 3317 1-0254 per cent. 7-68 per cent. 3-41 per cent. •251 1st Prize 3316 1 -0235 6-84 3-14 •341 2nd Prize 3326 1-0306 8-73 3-26 •378 3rd Prize 3330 1-0220 6-82 4-02 •351 R. N. & H. C. 3323 1-0347 9*55 3-43 "685 Com. 3328 1-0235 7-51 4-20 •348 Com. Class 406. 3349 P0537 13-71 2-12 ■793 1st Prize 3347 1-0378 9-97 2*55 •500 2nd Prize 3333 1-0417 10-63 1-15 •291 3rd Prize 3334 1-0291 7-93 2-28 •325 R. N. & H. C. 3336 1-0277 8-49 4-27 ■435 H. C. 152 The Derby Show , 1906. Class 407. No. Specific gravity Total solids Alcohol Acidity Award 3367 1-0276 per cent. 7-82 per cent. 3-02 per cent. •391 1st Prize 3358 1-0323 9-07 2-56 •412 2nd Prize 3369 1-0265 7-88 3-73 •341 3rd Prize 3360 1-0229 6-79 3-12 •391 R. 1ST. & H. C. 3365 1-0294 8-20 2-84 •361 H. C. Class 408. 3377 1-0430 11-49 2-56 •720 1st Prize 3371 1 0303 8-79 4-14 •581 2nd Prize 3370 1-0321 10-63 3-37 •435 3rd Prize 3376 1-0484 12-12 LOO •603 R. N. & H. C. Wool. — Nine classes were provided, and were fairly well filled, the total entries numbering sixty-one. Class 409, for Leicester or Border Leicester wool, was fairly characteristic, with, however, two exceptions, which had too much of the Lincoln strain. Class 410, for Lincoln wool, was a very good one all round. Class 411, for Kent or Romney Marsh wool, was fairly representative ; but several of the lots ran tender in staple. Class 412, for “ Any other Long wool,’5 was filled with miscellaneous wools difficult to judge satisfactorily ; they comprised Devon, South Devon, Cotswold, and Wensleydale wools. Class 413, for Southdown fleeces, was of a very high standard and well got up. Class 414, for Shropshire wool, was well represented ; one fleece of unwashed wool should not, however, have competed with washed wool. Class 415, for “ Any other Short wool,” was a very nice one, more in keeping with its description than the corresponding Long wool class. 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The size of plant fixed upon for trial was from 15 to 20 B.H.P., this size being suitable for threshing and other agricultural purposes. Discussion of the Regulations. The principal regulations issued by the Society, under which the trials were carried out, were as follows : — 1. The plant to consist of gas generating plant and engine, complete, of 15 to 20 B.H.P. as a maximum. 2. Each engine must be fitted with a rope or web brake on the flywheel, water trough in wheel for cooling, indicator cock and gear, revolution counter and explosion counter, to be approved by the Society’s Consulting Engineer. Water will be found by the Society. 3. One attendant must be in constant charge of each plant to give any information which the Judges may require. Any attention actually given by him to the working of the plant will' be noted. 4. Each exhibitor will declare at what B.H.P. he intends to run his engine for the full load trial, and no variation therefrom beyond 5 per cent, more or less will be allowed. • 5. Full load, half load, and light or no load trials will be made with uniform selected anthracite coal provided by the Society. A subsequent full load trial will be made with coke as fuel. Each plant will be started from cold on the full load trial. The first full load trial will be commenced with the gas generators empty. 6. A given quantity of coal will be weighed out to each competitor, the time of lighting up will be noted, and so soon as sufficient gas has been generated and the engine is running at full power the time will be taken. This time will be recorded as the commencement of the run, so far as fuel consumption is concerned. 7. The engines will run for nine hours under constant load, after which they will be shut down for the night, and will resume running on the following day. At the conclusion of the trials the fires will be drawn, and any unconsumed coal will be weighed back and credited for what it may be worth. 8. The half load trials will be conducted on precisely the same lines as the full load trials, with the exception that they will be of shorter duration. 9. The light or no load trial will be of two hours’ duration. No coal consumption will be recorded for this trial. No working of the fan by hand will be permitted during the half load and light or no load trials. 10. On the completion of the above trials, one full load trial of nine hours’ duration will be made, using coke as fuel. 1 1 . The points to which special attention will be directed are : — (1.) Attendance necessary. (2.) General design — including facility of cleaning — and space occupied. (3.) Regularity of working. (4.) Fuel consumption. Water consumption. (5.) Price. (6.) Relative proportions of gas producer and engine. (7.) Volume swept by piston relative to B.H.P. Discussion of the Regulations. 157 Before proceeding to a description of the plants and of the trials carried out it is desirable to make a few remarks on these regulations, in order to indicate the general considerations which guided the Judges in the inquiries and observations they made during the trials, and in making the award. In the first place it is to be borne in mind that it was the combination of producer and gas engine that was being judged, the former, however, owing to its comparative novelty, requir- ing most attention and criticism. It may also be pointed out that with two exceptions the engines themselves were of the usual horizontal type, and embodied the results of the long experience of the various makers. 1. Attendance necessary. — An important distinction must be drawn between the attendance required for starting the plant and that needed for looking after it when running, that is, for attending to the lubrication and for filling the hopper with coal. Should additional help be needed at starting for turning the flywheel, little or no additional expense is incurred. During running only one attendant is needed at most, and, if the plant is quite reliable, it can in many cases be left to itself for comparatively long periods, and the attendant can perform other duties during such periods. The attendance required during running is thus in a measure dependent on the regularity of the working or reliability of the plant. Some of the engines were fitted with self-starters (see Table on page 155), and it is clear that, with engines of the size under trial, the only gain is to save the small expense above referred to for starting, whereas extra complication and chances of failure are introduced by the starting apparatus itself. 2. General design , including facility of cleaning , and space occupied. — A simple straightforward design is the desideratum. Since the main lines of the design of the gas engines were, except in two instances, common to all, the details were the points which had to be most carefully considered. As regards the producers they followed closely the lines of the “ Dowson ” producer, and therefore differences were investigated ; they were principally confined to arrangements which aimed at re- ducing the difficulties caused by clinker, to means of regulating the air and water supply and for increasing the regenerative effect of the suction producer. Hard water may cause trouble by “ scaling,” and this is a matter of great importance ; but the relative immunity of the various producers in this respect could not be tested in the short time available, and there- fore could only be gauged by general considerations. The design of the plant in respect of provision against possible escape of poisonous gas or risk of explosion required careful consideration. 158 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby , 1906. The suitability of the design for manufacturing on the interchangeable system comes under this heading. It is a specially important matter for agricultural engines to insure that spare and repair parts shall go into place without fitting. The regularity of running, when using coke as a fuel, depends on the amount of tar deposited on the valve seats. In the present state of the art no adequate provision can be made in the producer for preventing the formation of tar if the coke contains it in any material quantity. The ease with which the valves can be got at and cleaned is therefore of more than usual importance, and much stress was laid on this point. In this connection it is well to point out that gas coke varies considerably in regard to its freedom from tar, and it is to be hoped that when suction gas plants become more general, an arrangement will be made whereby some standard of permis- sible percentage of tar can be insured. The following points also come under this section : Ease of dismantling connecting- rod and piston, also main bearings ; the method of attaching the cylinder to the frame ; the various important scantlings, especially those of moving parts ; the material used and the workmanship, especially with regard to interchangeability ; the lubrication of the bearings, of the cylinder and of the piston. No comment is needed as regards the space occupied. 3. Regularity of ivorking. — Apart from the effect tar has on the valves, as already pointed out, the majority of the engines can be relied upon for working with a minimum of trouble, as judged from previous long experience with town gas and pressure producer gas. The suction producer is there- fore that portion of the plant which required most attention. The gas is only made as required, and when working for any length of time at a particular load the conditions in the producer will adjust themselves to that load. If a sudden and considerable change of load then occurs, the producer will take a little time to adjust itself to the conditions required by the new load. The rapidity with which a suction producer will readjust itself is of considerable importance. A change from light load to full load is the most severe, because in this case the quality of the gas is poor and it is unable to give the power. In the reversed change of load the governor takes charge. Special provision has to be made for dealing with prolonged periods of light load, as, for instance, having a bye-pass through which a portion of the gas is blown to waste each stroke ; otherwise there might not be sufficient suction to keep the fire alight. A special trial was framed to test the capabilities of the producers to respond to changes of load based on the light or no load trial in the regulations (No. 9). Historical Notes. 159 4. Fuel consumption. — Owing to the conditions of running of these plants it is important to know the fuel consumption, including the amount burnt at night when the plant is standing. The general practice in the case of an engine doing constant work is to light the fire on Monday morning, bank the fire during the night, and only draw it on Saturday to clean out the producer. This practice was kept in mind when arranging the trials. Although anthracite can be obtained in most districts it is easier to get coke, and, apart from the difficulty already mentioned in connection with tar, it will generally prove to be a cheaper fuel, notwithstanding the greater weight consumed. The coke trial was therefore of special importance. It was borne in mind that in the case of these plants the cost of fuel is relatively far less important than in the case of a steam engine, because in the former from 1 lb. to 1^ lb. of coal or coke is required per B.H.P.-hour, whereas in the case of non-condensing steam engines of a suitable class for “ estate ” engines from 5 lb. to 6 lb. are needed, and with small condensing engines about 3 lb. The water consumption and the last three points require no comment. These regulations seem to cover all the essential points for consideration in trials of this nature. Historical Notes. The combination of a gas engine with a suction gas pro- ducer is of such recent origin that a few historical notes do not appear to be out of place in this Report.1 Producer gas was first introduced in 1861, by Sir William Siemens, for steel melting, but only air was used, and in these circumstances at least 30 per cent, of the heat of the coal would be wasted if used in a gas engine. In 1878, Mr. Emerson Dowson applied steam as well as air ; that is, he combined Siemens gas with water gas. In this way a pro- ducer gas was made which not only contained 80 to 90 per cent, of the energy in the fuel, but was more readily ignited in a gas engine owing to the free hydrogen it contained. The first step towards a suction gas producer was made by Mons. Benier, in Paris, in 1894, when he succeeded in utilising some of the waste heat in the producer itself to obtain the necessary steam, instead of having a separate boiler burning a considerable amount of fuel, as is necessary in the case of pressure producers. The gas engine he employed was of the 1 These historical notes are principally taken from a paper on “ Suction Gas Producers,” by Mr. W. A. Tookey, before the Junior Institution of Engineers. 1 GO The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby , 1906. impulse every stroke type (Clerk type), and, in addition to the explosion cylinder, required two other cylinders. On the out stroke, one of these cylinders sucked the steam and air through the producer to make the gas, and the other cylinder sucked in air at the same time. On the return stroke the gas and air were compressed into 1 the mixing chamber and the explosion cylinder. The engine was governed by throttling the gas admission.1 Later on, Messrs. Taylor & Co., of Paris, improved the Benier producer, and several Taylor- Benier suction producer plants are still satisfactorily at work. Whilst Benier was experimenting Messrs. Korting Bros, were doing the same thing in Germany, and they took out a patent for a suction producer, in which the air and steam were drawn through by the suction of a gas engine ; but the results were so discouraging that the patent was abandoned. Then, in 1901, Messrs. Julius Pintsch, of Berlin, erected a suction gas plant near Verviers in Belgium. At first it was found impossible to start the engine, but Mr. H. Gerdes, the chief engineer to Messrs. Pintsch, after making various adjustments, had the satisfaction of getting the plant to work, and it has been in successful operation ever since. The first makers of suction producers in this country were Messrs. Crossley, in 1901. These were the beginnings from which the present suction gas plants have been developed in so short a period of time. Design and Construction of Suction Gas Plants. A suction gas producer consists essentially of the following parts : — 1. A furnace, in the lower part of which the fuel is burnt and forms carbonic acid (C 02), and the water vapour made in the vaporiser (see below) is broken up or dissociated into its constituents, hydrogen and oxygen. The mixture of air and steam required for the above operation is drawn in from the underside of the grate by the suction caused by the engine. In the upper layers of incandescent fuel the C 02 is converted into carbonic oxide (C 0) and the oxygen due to the decomposed water vapour is utilised to make some more C 0. The temperature in the furnace gradually increases from the grate to the point at which C 0 begins to be formed, where it reaches about 1,800° F. From this point the temperature gradually diminishes, and the gases quit the top of the fuel in the furnace at a temperature of about 1,600° F. On leaving the producer the gas consists of a mixture of hydrogen and carbonic oxide diluted with nitrogen from the air, together with some carbonic acid which has not been converted. 1 This information has been obtained from Mr. W. C. Horne, who was Mons. Benier’ s agent in this country. 161 Design and Construction of the Plants. The following is an average composition when working with anthracite at full load ; at no load the proportion of combustible gases is less : — Combustible 'Hydrogen . H2 By volume 15-6 By weight 1-2 - n ri a n Carbonic oxide C 0 . 20-8 23*5 gases ^Methane. . C H4 . 1-2 0-7 Incombustible (YQ on o ' Carbonic acid . C02 . . 6'5 11-5 Nitrogen . N2 55o 67-0 gdbCQ k Oxygen. . 02 0-5 0*6 The above description of the chemical action is on broad lines only ; in reality it is very complicated. The arrangement of the firebrick lining of producers is an important matter, as it has a considerable effect on the formation of the clinker, on the liability of the clinker to adhere, and on the ease with which the clinker can be removed. Further, if the interior is difficult to get at, the lining with firebrick is likely to be badly done by the bricklayer, and there will be defective joints which will let in air and produce intense heat in the vicinity of these joints, and thus spoil the brickwork and produce clinker. In the hoppers, by means of which the fuel is fed into the furnace, there are variations in the design of the valves which are required for connecting the hopper with the furnace and with the outside, respectively, when fresh fuel has to be put in. This detail is important, as it is essential that no air should be able to find its way into the producer via the hopper, and this detail has therefore received considerable attention from designers. To maintain good gas, the depth of the fuel in the furnace should not vary sensibly, and for this object it is usual to have a storage bell, which also acts as a distilling chamber, from which the volatile constituents (in the case of anthracite) are gradually given off. 2. A vaporiser , which may either be internal or external with reference to the shell of the furnace. The water is vaporised at atmospheric pressure by means of some of the sensible heat contained in the hot gases leaving the furnace, and in some cases by the heat of the fire. The vaporiser takes up a considerable percentage of the heat that would otherwise be wasted. In some producers definite provision is made for heating the air, and in such cases a further amount of the heat due to the combustion is saved. The heat thus recovered by the water vapour and the air constitutes the regenerative action of the suction producer. 3. The scrubber , in which the gas is cleaned. Just before entering the scrubber the gas pipe is generally given a sudden change of direction with the object of getting rid of the heavier particles of dust. The scrubber also acts as a cooler and VOL. 67. M 162 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906. removes some of the heat due to the combustion of the fuel, this heat being the remainder of the sensible heat in the gas after vaporising the water and heating the air supply. This heat is wasted and goes away in the scrubbing water. It is essential to cool the gas before it enters the engine cylinder, in order to reduce its volume and thereby get a greater weight of gas into the cylinder, and thus as much energy per explosion as possible. A hot incoming charge would have further dis- advantages as regards the running of the engine and would probably increase the liability to pre-ignition (backfiring). The scrubber is usually provided with a water seal to prevent the gas in it getting back into the furnace after stopping the engine and possibly causing an explosion. This water seal also acts as an escape valve in case of an explosion. The scrubber was practically the same in all the producers, and consisted of a cylindrical vessel partially filled with coke, over and through which the water trickled. The water supply was effected by means of a rose or a circular pipe with holes. In the case of the Crossley producer there was a layer of sawdust on the top of the broken coke. 4. An expansion box to reduce the variation of the suction pressure and to give a reservoir from which the engine can draw gas, and to lengthen the duration of the suck. The furnace proper, or generator, is much the same in all producers, the differences being principally confined to the shape and arrangement of the firebrick lining and of the details of the grate, or fuel base. The producers are started by means of hand fans. These fans were of various makes and some of them were much easier to turn than others. This is an important detail, and ease of working will appeal to the attendant. The fans produced a pressure in the producer, and there is an advantage in this, because any leaks in the producer are at once detected by the smoke coming out. These leaks would let air in when under suction, and the efficiency would be much reduced. To illustrate the principles on which suction gas producers are constructed, the producers shown by the National Gas Engine Co. and Messrs. Crossley Bros, will be described in detail. Producer of the National Gas Engine Company, Ltd. The producer of the National Gas Engine Company is shown in section in Fig. 2, and an external view is given in Fig. 3. In Fig. 3 the generator is on the extreme left, and the scrubber in the middle ; the pipes connecting the engine with the scrubber are under the floor, and the expansion box is immediately under the back end of the cylinder. The furnace is clearly shown in Fig. 2, and it will be noticed that it is of Producer of the National Gas Engine Company. 163 uniform diameter ; special firebricks are used, and they are separated from the casing by a thin layer of slag wool. The internal portion of the vaporiser is a ribbed casting marked A and is bolted to the furnace casing. The outside casing of the vaporiser, marked B, is also bolted to the furnace casing, but can be removed without disturbing the vaporiser. When both are removed the firebrick lining is quite easily reached, and the bricklayer should therefore have no difficulty in making good joints between the various sections of the firebrick. The cover marked C in Fig. 2 carries the distilling bell and the FIG. 2— National Gas Engine Co., Ltd. Gas Producer and Scrubber. hopper, and is secured to both A and B. By breaking this joint the condition both of the furnace and of the vaporiser can be readily examined. This arrangement of the vaporiser is well calculated for dealing with hard water. The vaporising water drips into a funnel marked “ water feed,” whence it is conducted into a “Field”1 tube H, where it is heated by the hot gases, after which it is led to the “feed to vaporiser” 1 That is, an arrangement consisting of two concentric tubes — the outer one being closed at the bottom, and the inner one discharging close to the bottom of the outer tube. M 2 164 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby , 1906. and thence to a channel surrounding the top of the vaporiser, whence it drips on to the ribs in succession and is gradually vaporised. The air inlet is marked on Fig. 2 and the air is preheated in by means of the hot gases, through the inter- mediary of a spiral rib EF cast on to the gas pipe, before coming in contact with the water vapour, as will readily be seen from the figure. Fig. 3. — National Gas Engine Co., Ltd. General arrangement of Engine and Producer Plant. Producer of Messrs. Crossley Br6s., Ltd. The producer submitted by Messrs. Crossley Bros, is shown in Figs. 4 and 5, pp. 165 and 166. The special feature in this producer is the disconnection between the bottom of the firebrick lining and the grate, the object of which is to minimise, if not prevent, the formation of clinker on the firebrick. The trials at Derby confirmed this contention ; not a vestige of clinker was ever found on the firebrick. The tubes of square section shown in the figure are airducts and intercept the radiant heat and thus warm the air supply. It will be noticed that the firebrick lining is continued at a larger diameter above the level of the glowing fuel, and surrounds the vaporiser, which is a specially shaped steel open-mouthed vessel enclosing the lower part of the storage bell. This steel vaporiser can be easily removed for cleaning or renewal. The air inlet for what is called by the makers the “primary air,” is placed on the top cover ; the air is heated by contact with the hot surfaces, and after taking up moisture , from the vaporiser is drawn through the square section tubes at 165 Producer of Messrs. Crossley Bros. the grate level already referred to. In this producer there is also a “secondary dry air ” supply, which, owing to a throttling action, reduces the proportion of steam as the load is reduced. A special feature of the scrubber is the layer of sawdust at the top, the object of which is to clean the gas from dust and from tar. FIG. 4. — Messrs. Crossley Bros., Ltd. Gas Producer and Scrubber. In the second plant exhibited by Messrs. Crossley the producer was the same as the one above described, with the addition of an arrangement for heating the air and the steam by means of the exhaust from the engine. Some heat is recovered in this way, but probably the greatest advantage is the improved possibility of regulating the amount of steam as may be required by variations of load. It is obvious that with such 166 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby , 1906. an arrangement the amount of steam evaporated will follow closely the number of explosions, that is, will be proportional to the load ; also there will be very little lag in the adjustment of the amount of steam. The* set was, however, withdrawn from competition after running for a few hours, so this point could not be tested at the Trials. 6 o r 167 Description of the Gas Engines used. Other Producers. It is not proposed to describe any of the other producers, since the differences between them and the two already dealt with consist in detailed matters of arrangement. Description op the Gas Engines, used. The gas engines used do not in reality require special description since, with the exception of two, they were of well- known types. They were in fact just the ordinary type of horizontal gas engines used with town gas or with pressure producer gas. The method of ignition was the only variant as regards the former ; because producer gas is not so easily exploded as town gas, and therefore the hot tube method of ignition is not so suitable and the electric spark method is adopted. Certain of the proportions have also to be slightly modified, such as the sizes of the valves and the clearance space ; the former owing to the difference in the proportion of gas to air (namely, 1 to 9 for town gas and 1 to 1J- for producer gas) ; the clearance must also be reduced because a greater compression pressure is possible without risk of pre- ignition, and is also desirable in order to increase the mean pressure. Moreover, the incoming charge is at a lower pressure in the case of a suction plant, and therefore a greater ratio of compression is necessary in order to obtain the desirable compression pressure which is from 120 lb. to 150 lb. per square inch or even more. The compression ratio was measured for some of the engines, and was found to be considerably more than that usual for town gas. The National engine. — -Fig. 3, page 164, gives an outside view of this engine. The cylinder jacket is inserted into a circular bored seating in the bedplate and is bolted to a vertical circular facing, also on the bedplate. The cylinder liner is a fit in the jacket at the front end and is held up by a faced joint at the rear end, so that it is free to expand, and the jacket communi- cates the explosion thrust to the bed ; there is a rubber ring at the front end of the jacket to prevent water leakage. The spindles of the exhaust and air valves are vertical and that of the gas valve is horizontal. All these valves can be easily dismantled by breaking three small joints. The shape of the cams driving the valves has been carefully worked out to avoid noise. The magneto is driven in a simple way by a striker on the 2 to 1 shaft, and there is a freewheel arrange- ment to prevent catching if the engine should reverse ; this freewheel also contains a device for retarding the spark by a definite amount for starting, which device is released by a trigger so soon as the engine is running. The connecting rod 168 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby , 1906. is of the marine type at both ends and is a very substantial piece of work. The lubrication of the main bearings is effected by means of rings and that of the big end by means of the usual centrifugal pipe. The piston is lubricated by a drip sight feed and there are special grooves on the piston to prevent the oil being blown away in the event of the piston rings leaking. The governing is of the usual hit-and-miss type. The Grossley engine. — This engine is shown in Fig. 5, page 166, and is very similar in design to the National engine. The arrangement of the magneto is somewhat different, but is equally simple. The spark can be retarded by a definite amount for starting. The connecting rod is of the marine type at the big end and of the locomotive type at the small end. Description of the Trials. * The trials were started at 9 a.m., on Monday, June 18, and began with the full load trials using anthracite as a fuel. The producers were empty and the time of starting each engine and of getting on the full load, from the moment of laying the fire, was noted. The various plants were started at intervals, and each was run for nine hours on full load and then stopped. The hopper and the fire doors of every producer were then sealed up. The last engine was stopped at about 7 p.m. During the night the fires were banked, and on : Tuesday , June 19, at 9 a.m., the first plant started on Monday was got under way and the time required before the engine could be started and the full load put on was noted. The other plants were successively started in the same manner, so that in each case the fires were banked for approximately fourteen hours. The full load was maintained for five hours, after which the engines were stopped, the fires drawn, and the partially consumed fuel placed in iron vessels for weighing and examination. This completed the full load anthracite trials which con- sisted of nine hours full load, fourteen hours banked fires, and five hours full load. Wednesday , June 20. — The half load anthracite trial was carried out this day ; the starting of the plants from laying the fire was a repetition of the trials carried out on Monday. Each engine ran for nine hours on half load when the engine was stopped, the fire draAvn, and the fuel placed in iron vessels for weighing and examination as before. Thursday , June 21. — The variable load trial was made on this day ; the first plant was started at 9 a.m., and the others were started in succession at short intervals. Each engine was run for two hours with no load from the time of starting. Then full load was quickly put on and maintained for one Measurements and Observations. 169 hour, when the load was taken off and the engine was run for one hour with no load. Then one-third load was suddenly put on and maintained for one hour, when the load was increased to half load, which was kept on for one hour, when full load was put on and maintained for one hour. The fuel used was anthracite, but -no measurement of the amount used was made. Friday , June 22. — The full load coke trial was made on this day and the first engine was started at 9 a.m. The time required to start the engine and get on full load was noted, after which each engine was run for nine hours on full load. On stopping the engine the fire was drawn and the unburnt fuel placed in iron vessels for weighing and examination. Saturday , June 23. — A- “novice” trial was made with three of the engines, namely, the National, the Campbell “ hit- and-miss,” and the 15 H.P. Crossley. The producers were got ready by each competitor to supply gas ; but the engine was twice started and the load put on by the observer who had had charge of the log sheet for that particular engine. Not the slightest difficulty was experienced in thus starting any of these engines. Measurements and Observations. The following is a description of some of the principal measurements and observations that were taken. Measurement of water used. — The water used by the scrubber and the vaporiser was measured by means of water meters lent by Messrs. Beck & Co., Ltd., which were of the positive type (Schonheyder’s patent), and a testing cock was placed on the delivery side. All the meters were carefully calibrated and found to be correct previous to the trials, and certain of them were again calibrated after the trials and were still correct. Indicator diagrams and the measurement of the I.H.P. — Indicator diagrams were taken at intervals and were studied as regards the initial and compression pressures, &c., but as no great reliance can be placed on indicator diagrams taken from gas engines as regards measurement of power1 the I.H.P. was not determined and hence the brake efficiency, that is, the ratio of the B.H.P. to the I.H.P., was not obtained. Even if reliable diagrams could have been obtained the staff of observers was insufficient to take the necessary number of diagrams from each engine. Moreover, the indicator gear fitted to some of the engines consisted merely of a pin fixed to the end of the crank shaft and rotating with it. As is well 1 This conclusion was come to by the Committee of the Institution of Civil Engineers on Internal Combustion Engines (see pp. 217 and 268, Min. Proc. Inst. C.E., Vol. CLXIII. 170 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906. known such an arrangement cannot give a true indicator diagram, and at any rate is quite useless as regards obtaining the I.H.P. Many of the gears were insufficiently stiff, and errors were imported thereby. A certain number of light spring cards were also taken and gave useful information with regard to the running of the engines. A number of diagrams were taken with the Mathot indicator, which is shown in Fig. 8, and some extremely interesting results were obtained which will subsequently be referred to. Devolutions. — The total revolutions for each test were obtained by means of revolution counters. Readings were taken of these counters at intervals, from which the revolutions Fig. 8. — Mathot Indicator and Recorder. per minute could be deduced. These observations are, however, difficult to take, and in many cases the result was unsatisfactory ; there were apparent fluctuations of speed which certainly did not exist. These counters, however, gave the correct mean speed when taken over a long interval of time. Explosions per minute. — The total number of explosions during each test was recorded by a counter. Several of these counters gave much trouble and were quite unreliable. Readings at intervals were also taken to obtain the explosions per minute to see if any variation took place during the progress of the trial ; these readings, however, are subject to the same errors as noted above in connection with revolution counters. Measurements and Observations. 171 Messrs. Heyward and Marshall took check readings of both revolutions and explosions per minute. Producer gas. — No attempt was made to obtain either the composition or the temperature of the producer gases. A largely increased staff would have been needed for making such observations. Time required to start. — The time required to start the plant is of some importance, and it is necessary to distinguish between starting with an empty producer, and with one in which the fire has been banked. The former was tried on Monday, June 18, and again on the Wednesday, and the latter on the Tuesday. As regards the producer the time of starting should undoubtedly be reckoned as the time required for producing good gas from the moment of lighting up, or from starting blow- ing in the case of banked fires. The gas could have been tested by lighting it and observing the colour of the flame, but the most reliable test is whether the gas is capable of running the engine with a load ; therefore the time required before the load could be put on was the fairest guide. The skill and tempera- ment of the attendant in judging of the quality of the gas is, however, an important factor, and thus a plant which can be quickly started may lose time owing to the attendant thinking that the gas is good before it is, leading to a false start. It was in fact noted that some of the attendants in their anxiety to make a quick start did so before the gas was good, with the consequence of making a false start and delaying matters. On the other hand the attendant may not have started the engine as soon as he might have done. In both cases the starting time is longer than necessary. Too much stress should not therefore be laid on these competitive starting times. Moreover, unfortunately, on Monday some of the kindling wood was damp, and this caused delay in getting some of the fires lighted. A few of the competitors had taken the wise precaution to dry their wood, but in the case of the National plant the wood could not be lighted without the use of a little paraffin oil, and in both Messrs. Crossley’s plants, after vain attempts, the fire had to be drawn and a fresh start made with a new supply of kindling wood. On Monday and Tuesday some of the competitors, in order to reduce the time of starting, opened vent pipes in a manner which should not occur in actual use, owing to the possibility of poisoning by carbonic oxide. On Wednesday this was not permitted, and in some cases a marked increase in the time required to start was observed. At the coke trial on Thursday there was no competition as regards the time of starting, and a considerable increase was noticeable, due no doubt in some measure to the greater difficulty in getting 172 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906. coke to burn and also because, just at first, there is a difficulty in obtaining a sufficiently inflammable gas (hydrogen).1 These times may be regarded as those likely to obtain in actual practical use with coke. Smoothness of running. — An estimate was made of the comparative smoothness of running, by carefully listening to the running of each engine, and by feeling the bearings to notice if there was any undue knock. The smoothness of running of the valves was also noted. The bearings were examined on several occasions after the engines were stopped. They were invariably quite cold. An exception, however, must be made in the case of the Hindley engine, which was running in a closed crank chamber, so that the bearings, and in fact all the working parts, were heated by conduction from the cylinders ; the bearings were, however, not unduly warm. The bearings of the Newton engine, which was also enclosed, were not examined. Ashes produced. — In some cases the ashes were more or less separate from the coal or coke raked out of the producer at the end of the run and could be weighed. In other cases they were so mixed up with the fuel as to render any separation practically hopeless. The matter was not one of great moment, however, as the amount of ashes depends more on the fuel than on the producer. In this connection a great difference was noted as regards the appearance of the fuel that came out of the various producers at the end of a run ; in some cases it appeared as if it had never been used, in others it looked more like cinders full of ashes. This may, however, be in great part due to the manner in which the various attendants fed in the fuel towards the end of the run ; that is, the final condition of the fire and fuel may not have been that obtaining during the whole of the trial. Clinker. — The quantity and nature of the clinker produced was specially observed, because the satisfactory continuous running of suction gas plants depends not only on the amount of the clinker, but whether it adheres to the firebrick lining or not, and whether it comes away easily when raking out the ashes, that is, whether the clinker is friable or vitreous. As regards the design of the producer, the points noticed in this connection were : the manner of supplying water to the vaporiser (since the clinker depends on the steam), and the shape of the bottom of the furnace and of the grate. An estimate of the amount of clinker adhering to the firebrick lining was also made. 1 With anthracite there is a small proportion of volatile hydrocarbons which are distilled from the fresh coal and give the inflammable gas required for starting. Measurements and Observations. 173 Clinkering whilst running. — Better provision was made for this operation in some of the producers than in others as regards the arrangements of the doors, and such producers are obviously better suited for continuous running and for working with inferior fuels. If the ash door is opened for clinkering whilst running, an undue amount of dry air enters the furnace, that is to say, there is insufficient steam. In the Mersey producer a water tap was fitted which could be utilised for temporarily increasing the amount of steam when clinkering. A can of water emptied on the grate practically answers the same purpose. Chances of explosion. — A careful examination showed that, except from carelessness on the part of the attendant, the chances of a harmful explosion are practically nil. To cause an explosion it would be necessary for the attendant to open the feeding door to the hopper at the same time as the valve communicating from the hopper to the furnace. In the case of the Mersey producer, the hopper was so arranged that such a through communication is impossible. A similar provision might be adopted with advantage in other cases. A slight explosion occurred on starting the National engine on Monday, June 18, when opening the firedoor, and in another case there was a slight explosion and flame when “ blowing up ” the producer. As already pointed out, the water seal of the scrubber prevents gas getting back and acts as a safety valve. Chances of poisoning. — Since the gas produced contains a large amount of carbonic oxide, which is of a very poisonous nature, and being inodorous may easily escape detection, the chances of poisoning were carefully considered. When the engine is working the pressure in the producer is below that of the atmosphere, and therefore any leakage would be into the producer. It is therefore when the producer is being started, or opened up after running, that there is any real danger of poisoning ; but an accident could only happen through gross carelessness.^ When the producer is being started there is a pressure in it due to the fan ; and to reduce the effort of blowing, and get rid of the air in the pipes, &c., a large vent pipe is opened by means of a valve. The outlet of this pipe should be carried outside the building where the discharge of gas can do no harm. A small cock has to be opened to test the gas at starting, and the arrangement of this cock was better in some of the plants than in others. Fire risk. — There did not appear to be any serious fire risk with any of these suction producers ; no more in fact than there would be with a slow combustion stove. General reliability. — The duration of the trials was too short to admit of the trials themselves discriminating between a great many of the plants in this respect. The matter had 174 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906. therefore to be decided as a matter of judgment based on the design of the various plants. There was no difficulty as regards the engines themselves, for the reliability of the usual design is undoubtedly as great as that of any ordinary piece of mechanism ; and with due care, especially as regards the cleaning of the valves, it is certainly on a par with that of the steam engine of the same size. Attention was paid to the arrangement of the exhaust valve springs and to the air and gas valve springs. As already pointed out the springs used in the magneto gear are of necessity somewhat delicate, and the provisions made in this respect in the case of some of the engines were far better than in others. The producers are more likely to give trouble than the engines, and the arrangements for regulating the air and the water supply were specially considered, as well as those for minimising clinkering and its bad effects. Lubrication. — The lubrication of the crankshaft bearings was in most cases effected by ordinary drip sight-feed lubri- cators. In a few cases, however, ring lubrication had been applied, a very obvious improvement, as this method gives a better and more copious lubrication and is not affected by forgetfulness on the part of the attendant. The cylinder and piston were lubricated in general by means of a drip sight-feed lubricator, the oil being suitably conducted on to the piston body. Sometimes, instead ©f a sight-feed, a rotating pin, dipping into an oil reservoir and carrying up a drop of oil with it each time, was used. There is an objection to this latter arrange- ment for, as the level of oil in the reservoir falls, so the size of the drop carried by the pin becomes smaller, and the amount of lubrication diminishes. To obviate this difficulty a duplex pin lubricator was fitted to the Davey-Paxman engine ; the pin dips into a small reservoir which is overfed by another revolving pin from the main reservoir so that a certain portion of the oil flows back, and the small reservoir is always kept full. A drip feed lubricator has however the objection that should there be a leak past the piston rings the oil will be held back in the supply pipe and the lubrication may fail. In the National engine this difficulty is got over in an ingenious manner ; the pressure in the cylinder at the end of the stroke is utilised to force the oil into a groove around the cylinder. In the Campbell and in the Dudbridge engines the difficulty is got over by using a force pump, but in both cases additional mechanism is required. From these trials it can be deduced that the following fuel and water consumptions may be expected with a good suction producer plant, when working continuously at the loads specified and under the best conditions : — Measurements and Observations. 175 Anthracite. Full load : 1*1 lb. per B.H.P. hour, including fuel needed for starting and for banking during the night. Half load : 1*6 lb. per B.H.P. hour, including coal for starting. Water : 1 gallon per B.H.P. hour at full load and f gallon at half load. Coke. Full load: 1*3 lb. per B.H.P. hour, including fuel needed for starting. Water : 1^ gallons per B.H.P. hour at full load. The following deduction can also be made from these trials : — “Assuming a 20-brake-horse-power plant to start on Monday morning with an empty producer, and to run ten hours per day on full load for a week, banking the fires at night, the consumption of anthracite peas would be about half a ton for the week, and about three-eighths of a ton if the average load is about half full load. With coke the consumption is about 25 per cent. more. From 2,000 to 3,000 gallons of water per week are required for a 20-brake- horse-power plant to provide water for the scrubber and the producer, and of this by far the larger part would be used in the scrubber.” 1 Figs. 9 to 25, pp. 177 to 182, are photographic reproductions of certain indicator and Mathot diagrams selected from the large number that were taken during the trials. Fig. 9 was taken from the National engine, when running at full load, and requires no comment ; it is just a good ordinary indicator card. Fig. 10 is the Mathot card for the same engine also taken at full load, and each of the vertical lines (except the very short ones) corresponds to an indicator diagram like Fig. 9, and the height of these lines corresponds to the maximum pressure of the indicator diagram. As both diagrams were taken with the same spring, (that is, 1 in. represents 300 lb. per square inch), it will be seen that the full line in Fig. 9 corresponds to a line of average height in Fig. 10, the top dotted line to one of the longer lines, and the lower dotted line to one of the shorter lines in Fig. 10. It will be noticed that the area of the indicator card is not substantially altered by the amount of the maximum pressure, and this fact must be borne in mind when studying the Mathot diagram ; that is, the mean pressure of each diagram is by no means proportionate to the height of the lines on the Mathot diagram. The very short lines on the Mathot diagram show the compression reached when the gas valve is shut, that is, before a “ miss ” stroke ; and this compression pressure is less than that reached before an explosion stroke. 1 “ Suction Gas Plants.” Paper read by Professor W. E. Dalby, M.A., B.Sc.. before the British Association, August, 1906. 176 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906. The reason is that, when the gas valve is shut, only air is drawn in during the suction stroke ; and, owing to the throttling action of the air inlet valve, the compression begins at from 1 lb to 4 lb. per square inch below atmospheric pressure. This action is well shown in Fig. 25 and again in Fig. 11 where the two compression lines are clearly indicated ; in the latter case the throttling action of the air valve was considerable. It will be noticed in Fig. 10 that the maximum pressure after a miss is generally less than at other times ; this effect was observed in all the other engines with the exception of the Railway and General engine, but more especially of the Dud- bridge engine in which there was a great increase in maximum pressure (from 360 lb. to 490 lb. per square inch) after each miss. Fig. 12 is an ordinary indicator diagram taken with a weak (or “ light ”) spring (TV) and shows the suction line previous to an explosion, that is, when both air and gas valves are open. It will be noticed that the pressure in the cylinder just before the beginning of compression is very little less than atmosphere, so that a full weight of charge is obtained. Fig. 13 is the Mathot diagram for the National engine at half load and Fig. 14 is a diagram of the same engine at no load after running for some considerable time in this way. Fig. 15 is also a no load Mathot diagram of the same engine, but was taken a few minutes after the change from full load to no load was made. The very high maximum pressure observed is due to the richness of the gas obtained under these conditions : the effect, however, only lasted for a few minutes. Mathot cards taken on changing from full load to no load with the Crossley, Railway and General, Fielding, and Kynoch engines gave precisely the same effect. Fig. 16 is an ordinary indicator card from the National engine when working at full load with coke, and Fig. 17 is the corresponding Mathot card. No great difference is observable between Figs. 17 and 10 ; with most of the other plants, how- ever, considerably less pressure was obtained with coke than with anthracite. Figs. 18 to 25 are diagrams for the Crossley engine taken under similar conditions to those just described for the National engine. In Fig. 19 the drum working the Mathot indicator was set to run faster ; hence the closeness of the lines. The higher maximum pressure obtained in the Crossley engine is due to the higher ratio of compression. Comparing Figs. 24 and 19 it will be seen that in the case of this engine the maxi- mum pressure reached with coke is less than that obtained with anthracite. Fig. 25 is a weak spring diagram and gives the suction and compression lines both for a “ hit ” and for a “ miss ’’ stroke ; the throttling action of the air valve when [Text continued at page 183.] Reduced reproductions of Indicator diagrams and Mathot diagrams. (Reduced in the proportion of 4 to 3 approx.) Indicator Diagrams , 177 YOL. 67 N Fig. 11. — Fielding. 19-6-06. Full load anthracite. 81 hits. Spring^ 178 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby , 1906. FIG. 14 —National. 21-6-06. No load anthracite. Spring & Indicator Diagrams. 179 N 2 Fig. 17 —National. 22-6-06. Full load coke. Spring 5J5. t 180 The Trials of Suction Gas Plants at Derby, 1906. 10 H|0 3 1 3 3* 35 3 M 3 m m 3 FIG. 19.— Crossley. 18-6-06. Full load anthracite. Spring 3^5- (Math ot drum at higher speed.) Indicator Diagrams. 181 UUUUUiAlJl^ FIG. 22.' — Crossley. 21-6-06. No lo s ^ 1 m m c.s 1 ii n“j o .5,“ K ^ m ^ . 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Sugar Mapl< Virtue . Syren 3rd Daisy Vespa CD O "d c3 Witch . Salvadora 3 0 3 Marigold. Silken Lass Violette . Ph p D •P -P d PQ 00 co oo 005 IOOHHLOH< 05 O CO CD 05 CM CD CO CD CM LO Ol CO CO o 05 05 L— 05 CD CO LO oq LO rH oq CO CM CD CM IH H LO LO CD tH IH CD LD oo tH LO tHtH CO LO CO CC LO LO CD CD CD LO LO LO i — i O i — i O ' — ^ O O O o o OO oooooo O ooooo 43 d ^ OO ^ OO ^ rH +4 H 05 05 05 05C0OOC0H CM CM O LO tH Cfi © o H CM (H CO H LO CM H o 6q & CD L^ o eq oq rH co H IH lo H cq lo t^ 0 H 43 rH rH c p 1 Fat per cent, by 4 ooooooooooo o oo o O GO OOOO OOOOOO OO ooooo OOOO O O ''H OO CX) CM CM CD m o CM HOO ^ ^ CM O O O CO 00 CD 00 CM CD COHHOHHHCM CM CM ib HHCOHt-CO ib IH ft CD CD CD HCMHHi — IrHrHrH rH rH rH rH i—H HHHHHH rH HHHHH P4 lOOOL-t^OWO o tH CM LO Oq CM LO tH CM lO O CM OOLOCM IH IH O CO CO CO LO CD O o co CD tH rH rH CM OO H CM O CD O LO IH rH OO eococML-coiboo oo 00 LO CD H005HLOH 05 b OO IH ft CM 'P J H (M H H CD lO lO H CD CD H lO lO HCOHHCOCO CO -H -H CM CO CO ■(4 • 44 a; OlOOCMLOOOt> o CM o ot^ tH CM CM 0> LO tH tH LO tH CM IH IH oq CM CD tH 05 CO CO rH rH O oo CD 05 OO CD CO LO CM CM 05 Hi CD CM O rH p og «s co lo co cm cm oq CM co CO CO CM CO CO 6q co co co -ft co CO H1 CO H1 H* H1 - .2 2 CSJCMOCDCDCDCOOO O CD o CM CM oq Hi ^ CM o O o oo ®q oq 4t< CS'^— 0 +3 -HT3 o O ' — i rH rH rH rH rH rH rH PcOMOll+COlOOO 00 OO LO CD HCDC5tH»OH 05 LO CO tHH CM >.4 PI ^H-CMH^^CDiOiO^ CD CD m LO LO HCOHHCOCO CO H Hi CM CO CO "H C j? AHH 05 tH 05 05 C5COOOCOH hH CM CM CO LO IH = 44'“'3 CO CD CO L-- CM 05 CD LO 4 CD rH 0> rH hH CD CD LO tHOO rH 05 00 CD 05 rH ^ a rH rH rH rH rH rH 44 m CJHHHOCOCOCO LO O rH rH rH O CD 05 05 CD LO CD OO t— CO L© CO . CM CM CM ^ CO CM CM rH CM rH rH CO oq oq rH CM rH CM *w id O c3 1906 May Apr. May Apr. May Mar. Apr. May f» Fh 0 Fh FH • fH Li ?-i Fh L ’LL © ° 44 d c3 Q ► O o *H o d PH o ,a H H OHHr^t>0)CiCO OOOGlOiOJOiO) C5 03QOOCOCOXCO HHHHi — Ir— Ir—irH co cd o fe ■ d in ^ oo cm 03 i-« ■ — 1 ■ O CD rH O 05 O CD OO CD> -g ^ ^ P 2 J? P rP 0 O 05 00 00 00 ^05 r— I i— I I— I rH (33 i— I I ffl‘QOr4'r;ld W W bO d rj f-1 U P P m ©+5 ^5 2 m 5c 0 d 44) O ^pp • -d _, 44 rP CO .CD 44 (D lO =0 . d ft? ^5 c lo 0 ^ CC _ Fh K g 9^ .-P deJ«o| 0-43 0 r^: CO § § pj g^g 44 m --H 0 h pd pm p m ■rj p 5 cS to o m HPP'S'»P pm phr-2 P g.p ^ OO^t/2> © P * • C3 rr^ W cd y w m p £m . P P m o m m P © > P m P © t> P P p4 © © PP co co O O !>!> 2 2 (pp rP pP © P • • '©43 43 pmm W4343 <44 © ©, ° rO 4 | j/i O O _q H goo © o, © . . co co 1 ■2 © ©'2+3 £c* 2mm o |4 J-O poooooooooooooooo t2a3 4+rtl4 ,_,„,+ Qrt o o 03 6 O t- CM 03 05 CO 10 lO CMrHL;-.CO HffiOHCO'^CDHHHffiH^t'OO® OtoCO (vj 00 03 03 03 03 03 Co CM oo t'" OO OO OO OO © toOO &o O O O O O O to CM co CM CM CM CM CM r—i pH rH rH rH rH rH rH ?3 rH ^ pH rH pH rH rH These animals were also entered for the Special Milk-yield Competition (Class 181), see Table VI., page 196. 2 S.C.= Special Class. Table V.— MILK-YIELD CLASSES at DERBY, 1906— continued. c3 £ <1 d u d d a • d r-i 40 CO isj r*H«p-i 0 o GC d M <8 T3 S* ci 0 pa d +2 GQ O 4s Pi 0 -S2 c3 C4— ( T— 4 CO qq-g MMJzi Jh d d d ^ Ff ^ qT -jo . 0 O p. n so.s^S V ® j 5 aS .PH .*§WPH 0 3 q^q'S^-g-sS K=oKA0li£ “ o 0 .2 ‘u Ph 4P> GQ lO o OLOMlNOOt^t^ 05 OO CO CO CO CO rH GO co r^co lo oo CO 05 t~— Ml 05 OlOCOt-iOIOI>t> 000500C0C0C0OO O Eh CO CO 05 CVJ CO CD ^ CO CO LO ^ LO CO GO CO CO Ml djH LOlOLOxfiLOLOLOCO 05 LO O blH H L— LO CO ^ ^ ^ ^3 L— 05 r3 05 CO 05 LO L0^3';^3'^^3^3COLO OD -Hi Lacta- tion » oooooo IM cp 05 LO ip ibncobbib rH rH r— H rH — H r-H <05 CO ggggssss 170 OOOO O 05 rH ip O CD nbiHcoH rH rH 05 05 rH <0> ‘O’ rH 0 Fat per cent, by 4 O OOO 00 00 o ^99^000 LO CO TtH o cooo rH rH lO O (M LO CO CO t"— O Ml tr- t"- t>- coooohcoococo O LO lOl^LOLOO Ml 00 t7- Ml LO Ml 13— LO t>* t>- LO 13- t>* rH GO t>- OO GO 13- CO OO LO (M CD O O (M CO CO CO Ml H P O lb- ifO OO Ml bo ^^rtiCOCOCOCOM^ CD CO -3 Ml t— CO ^ Ml Ml Ml 00 OCJ r— 1 OO * O LO Ml O O CO Ml CO OO OO t>— Ml 05 Ml CO Ml LO Ml Ml co Ml i— 1 O tr— 15— t3- f3— 1 0 Ml LO LO O H t3— OO 05 H LO CO CO 0 p,g c3 CO CO CO lio dfH CO CO CO Ml CO P P P LO CO CO CO 43 b3COCOCO-r3M!COCO Total milk yield in 24 liours Lb. oz. O Tt< 00 O CO - LO 05 rH LO O co LO CO LO 13- LO L0 05COCOHHHCO Ml CO CO 13- CO CO ^3 CO -0> « Date of las calf 1906. Mar. 23 May 2 Feb. 22 Jan. 30 May 14 Mar. 25 May 27 June 4 May 21 May 20 Mar. 26 June 1 Apr. 19 Apr. 30 May 2 Apr. 30 Apr. 28 May 4 Apr. 19 May 3 coococoooioooco Ml Ml rH Ml Ml 1— 1 Ml Sl Sh" ^ SwaCLwaroai H 1 ' r r— j, 1 r ^ 1 1 1 1 195 «H o ce Q ► o o «H O CD 3 H O & H 3 © d d .2 bo . o £■3 O ©CviOOO^ COOOOOO oo C5 05 05 05 oa o CM Sh ^ J5 ti Jh lOONWCOOlOH 05000050050 0005050500050005 I— I rH rH rH r— I r— r— I rH o' o'er CO u< o' CO Ml Ml Ml rH CM O 05 CO Ml CO CD rH 05 O 05 05 O CO 05 OO CO 05 ti> a h t> 0 xi S.SoS® ■+H p. © CO oo rioeem^ 0 rH S • 99 s s- <» . s <3 .0 s t>o . ® 2 ’^0 .0 m -0+5 as £ © 0 ^000'Sygcq h 0 0^303 S 0 0 d d 02 0 o CO _^5 £ .^5 d .nj ' - c3 03 Sh 0 P • O 03 ac ®floo PjCO Fh fnrrj dd Jh M .00.0 d g Sr! ri i I i i i i w qj w l_j SO N 0 0 Ph >» XS d 0 c3 Sh O ■|Zi ® 'm ■ ^ 0 ® 3 °00 aa r ih 0^3 SH °0'ii Si’S I £ K^> 4^ fi * -0 . 0 =2 po „ CD h+2 0 2pq -S 0 0 P o'ft b fn Sbizta qP|0] 0 0 O 0«W 0 cdOOP d dd d M ^ jd d o d o d ^0 0 0®^® 22 o o o t> c0 ^^asafc^g OOOOO00P, OOOOOW0CC rr ® !> .g£ S3® ® +5 0 O o ' ' * co v >>... 42 CD HOHNmHI©NHoHNSO'il 00 03 ecCDCDt'-£-t~-I>-l>:£- m r-j coS3222h2323 COCOCO 52 CO CO CO CO CO CO CO CO 5,HH i—Hi— IrH hHHHHHHHH ch t— i {j i— 1 1— I r- 1 pH i— I Q r-l I r- 1 1— I rH i— I o So o CD t— OO SO LO LO o 2 1 These animals were also entered for the Special Milk-yield Competition (Class 181), see Table VI., page 196. 2 S.C. = Special Class. Table VI.— Class 181.— SPECIAL MILK-YIELD CLASS for COWS of ant Age, Breed, or Cross. 196 Butter and Milk Tests at the Derby Show, 1906. 'd u d O CM O N *H O r* CM 05 $ 05 rH t- CO O 05 05 O 05 05 05 OO OO OO 05 OO OO rH rH rH rH rH I — 1 rH rH tn OO OO 05 t>T O CM rH CM rH OO > ?h bi 0 rH 0 P P r*» £>> d P* P d d rH P 03 00 • • d 0 Ph fl 'O 0 0 t>> >» >1 « © 0 O © j—i 0 0 0 0 02 02 02 02 02 02 C^ £h *H P rH ?H ?H 0 0 0 rP 0 0 0 0 1"5 1“ 5 *“5 XJl »”5 l“5 1-5 •O 3 H H A* +3 a m >. d ci pq ai © to A +31 O Ph © d tp> d c3 1-5 03 A ID > +3J 43 ID rH ’d M i Pi » p Pi o3 M t Al 43 t>» © A 43 cS © A © > a CO LO t>- OO 05 00 OO 00 00 OO HfH rH rH rH r— 1 rH o 43 aa d Pi c8 * cS © AJ 43 03 Pi © O bU Jx. 1 a ^ Or 00 © $ O t>» £ A d O >* CM * -H CO * A • • O 0 P d 0 £ d u .9 d d O AJ Pi © rH Pi 0 a 52i Ph 02 rH 3 Witch A O 43 Pi A pq 0 'd o3 > r—H d XJl 'd o3 pq rH O _b£ c3 • rH X/l d cS pq d s d © pq Yiolette Iris. © r— 1 •§ A 0) 0 C (2 .2 o CM U CO -H CO 0 o3 © 0 O .S ^10 00 ,0 ’ 1 1 — I '§A 0 is ,12 1-1 5 aPi8 © PirH |§i ©^•9 Wo t» fer CO CD t« cn ^ co co <3 3 O A d rH © jM 3 © £ d © Pi © 43 A © 03 "3 a •r4 A ◄ © © N 'E Pi d Pi CO d A c3 d A CM © A3 H Milk-yield Jests. 197 The cattle were milked out on Wednesday evening, June 27, the milk of Thursday being taken for the trials. Both the morning and evening milks, after being weighed, were sampled and analysed by Dr. Yoelcker. Table V., on pp. 194 and 195, gives the full results of the competition in the milk-yield classes of the various breeds ; while Table VI., on page 196, gives similar results in the special milk-yield class. The number of cattle competing was less than in 1905, Table VII. showing the falling off to be twenty-six. Table VII. Breed 1905 1906 Shorthorns ..... 18 10 Lincolnshire Red Short-horns . 5 4 South Devons ..... 2 2 Red Polled ..... 8 6 Ayrshires. ..... 5 1 Jerseys ...... 21 18 Guernseys ..... 9 8 Longhorns ..... 2 1 Kerries ...... ll 5 Dexters ...... 8 8 Totals 89 63 As in last year’s report the averages of the different breeds have been worked out, but in this report the special milk-yield class averages have not been incorporated with their respective breed class averages, the object being (a) to show that the yields of cattle specially bred and selected for milk reach a higher average than the others ; (5) to encourage owners of milking cattle to breed animals up to the higher standard of the special classes. It will be noticed that only one animal was present in the Ayrshire and Longhorn classes. This is regrettable, as the Ayrshire breed has a deservedly high reputation for milk production. Tables VIII. and IX., page 198, give the averages of all the different breeds that were entered for the open and special milk-yield prizes. Out of these cows four Shorthorns, one Lincolnshire Red, one Red Polled, one Guernsey, and one Dexter were dis- qualified, their milk showing less than an average of 3 per cent, fat in the two milkings. I am sorry to have to report a large number of dis- qualifications owing to the milk not being up to the standard, or being deficient in fat. The standard required, being based 198 Butter and Milk Tests at the Derby Show , 1906. on the average of the two milkings, cannot be considered unreasonable. The numbers of the cattle disqualified are as follows : — 4 Shorthorns out of an entry of 8 1 Lincolnshire Red Short-horn ,, 3 1 Red Polled „ 6 1 Guernsey ,, 8 1 Dexter ,, 8 The question of feeding cattle for these competitions is, in my opinion, intimately connected with their disqualification ; but that is a subject too complicated to be gone into in this report. Table YIII. — Averages of all Breeds in the Milk-yield Classes. No. of cows com- peting Days in milk Points Breed Milk Fat Milk 4 Fat Lacta- tion Total 8 Shorthorns 56 Lb. oz. 45 12 3 32 4575 13-28 1-60 60-63 3 Lincolnshire Red 43 60 5* 2-97 60*34 11-88 0-30 72-52 2 South Devons . 114 55 15 3-78 55-93 15-12 7-40 78-45 6 Red Polled 79 36 If 347 36-10 13-88 3-90 53-88 1 Ayrshires . 114 39 10 397 39-62 15-88 7-40 62-90 11 Jerseys 101 35 4 4 32 35-25 17-28 610 58-63 8 Guernseys . 48 39 2 3-83 39-12 15-32 0-80 55-24 1 Longhorns 57 36 8 5-32 36-50 21-28 1-70 59-48 5 Kerries 60 31 14f 374 31-92 14-96 2-00 48-88 8 Dexters 46 32 11 3-56 32-68 14-24 0-60 47-52 Table IX. — Average of all Breeds entered in the Special Milk-yield Class. No of cows com- peting Breed Days Points in milk Milk Fat Milk Fat Lacta- tion Total 7 Shorthorns 51 Lb. oz. 53 5 3-51 53-31 14-04 1-10 68"45 3 Lincolnshire Red 99 60 2\ 3-30 60-15 13-20 5-90 79-25 2 South Devon 114 55 15 3-78 55 93 15-12 7-40 78-45 1 Red Polled 50 47 2 3-50 47-12 14-00 1-00 62-12 14 Jerseys 118 36 12f 4-68 36-76 18-72 7-80 63-28 III. EXPERIMENTS IX THE DAIRY. As the Dairy was required for butter-making competitions in connection with the Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, and the Travelling Dairy School of the Derbyshire County Council, on two days during the Show, and the butter-test and Experiments in the Dairy. 199 milk-yield competitions took np a third day, there was not the same opportunity as at Park Royal in 1905 for carrying out practical experiments. Two, however, were attempted : the first to ascertain whether the public generally know the taste of genuine unadulterated butter ; the second to demonstrate that the more modern system of ceasing to churn, when the butter is in grain, is preferable to the old-fashioned plan of churning the butter into a lump, both in regard to the weight and the quality of the butter obtained. Experiment No. 1. Taste of Genuine compared with Adulterated Butter. Four lots of Channel Islands cream, weighing respectively 4 lb. and 5 lb., and estimated to produce from 2 lb. to 3 lb. of butter, were taken from the same bulk. Lot No. 1, weighing 4 lb., was churned at 54° F., churning being stopped when the butter came in grain. The butter was washed in the ordinary way (but not brined), and made up into a lump, the dairy work throughout being done as well as possible. The weight of this lot was 2\ lb. Lot No. 2, weighing also 4 lb., was treated exactly the same as No. 1, save that just before the butter came in grain the churning was stopped, and \ lb. of some rather nasty mar- garine was added ; the cost of the margarine was 5d. per lb. Churning was then continued, and the mixture was eventually made up into a lump weighing about 3 lb., the proportion of margarine being estimated at about 17 per cent. Lot No 3, weighing 5 lb., was treated similarly to Nos. 1 and 2, but \ lb. of butter substitute, costing 4 d. per lb., was added to the butter as in the case of No. 2 ; the total weight of the mixture was about 3^ lb., the proportion of the butter substitute being estimated at about 15 per cent. Lot No. 4, weighing 4 lb., was churned precisely as No. 1 ; but after the butter-milk had been drawn off, some warm separated milk was worked into the butter, the weight of the butter when finished exceeding the No. 1 Lot by 4 per cent. Taking the value of the pure butter at Is. 4 d. per lb., and assuming that all the butter could be sold at the same price, which assumption will be shown later on to be not far wrong, the pecuniary gain obtained by adulteration is as follows : — Cost Sold for Gain No. 1. — 2b lb. butter at Is. id. No. 2. — 2b lb. butter at Is. id. = 3s. id. 3s. id. 3s. id. Nil No. b lb. marg. at Os. 5 d. — Os. 2 \d. 3. — 3 lb. butter at Is. id. = 4s. 0 d. — 3s. 6bd. 4s. 0 d. 5 bd. No. b lb. substitute = Os. 2d. — 4. — 2 b lb. butter at Is. id. = 3s. id. — 4s. 2d. 4s. 8 d. 6d. • £ lb. water — — 3s. id. 3s. 8 d. id. 200 Butter and Milk Tests at the Derby Show , 1906. The profit to the dishonest manufacturer thus comes out at from 7^ per cent, to 10 per cent. It might, however, be thought that the public would not be taken in by such mixtures, more particularly as they were made by amateurs at fraud, and therefore not nearly so skilfully done as at places which are specially laid out for these nefarious practices. To test this the following plan was adopted : The samples were labelled Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4 respectively, and during two days of the Show were passed round on four different occasions to the public watching the work that was going on in the Dairy, with a request that they would taste the various samples, and give me their opinion as to the quality, by holding up their hands for the sample they liked best as I called out the numbers, and keeping their hands up until I had counted them. On every occasion No. 3 received the most votes, then No. 2, Nos. 1 and 4 being both about equally last. The experiment, it is submitted, demonstrated all it was supposed to do, viz., that the public generally do not know the taste of genuine unadulterated butter. Experiment No. 2. Old and New Methods of Churning Compared. Two equal lots of very thin cream from the same bulk were weighed out ; the one was churned as well as possible, the other into a lump. Both lots were treated alike in every other respect ; the temperatures of the creams and churns were the same, and the subsequent working was identical as far as possible. After being weighed, the two lots were judged for me by Professor Drummond, the samples being numbered 1 and 2 respectively. The weights of the butter were as below : — Weight of Weight of • cream butter No. 1. — Churned into a lump . . . 10 lb. 1 lb. 14f oz. No. 2. — Churning stopped when in grain 10 lb. 2 lb. 0 oz. Professor Drummond’s report was as follows : — No 1. — Generally very good, if anything a little open in texture ; grain, fair ; body, very good ; flavour, sweet and pleasant. Total points, 94^. No. 2. — The quality of this sample is fine ; colour, bright ; texture, a little open ; grain, very good ; flavour, fine, rather more full than No. 1. Total points, 96. From the above it will be seen that No. 2 sample, which was churned correctly, was heavier and better in quality than No. 1. This experiment only confirms the generally received Experiments in the Dairy. 201 opinion that the old-fashioned plan of churning butter into a lump is wrong from every point of view ; as, in addition to the differences mentioned above, the keeping quality of such butter is usually not first-rate. In carrying out these experiments I received the greatest assistance from Mr. Barnardiston, my Assistant Steward, Mr. Gilbert, and the Staff of the Dairy, to all of whom I would express my indebtedness. Ernest Mathews. Little Shard eloes, Amersham. AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION AND FORESTRY EXHIBITION, 1906. This department of the Society’s Annual Show was organised at Derby upon the same general lines as in previous years, in co-operation with Agricultural Colleges and other institutions. Mr. J. Bo wen- Jones again acted as Steward. A pavilion for the accommodation of the exhibits, modelled upon the more permanent structure used for the same purpose at Park Royal, was built of timber and roofed with felt. It measured 112 ft. by 34 ft., and was divided into sixteen bays, each 14 ft. by 10 ft. Owing to the distance from London, the Meteorological Exhibition, held in 1905 at Park Royal, was not repeated ; but there were several other new and interesting features. These included exhibits illustrating the work of the new National Fruit and Cider Institute ; hides showing the injuries caused by the warble fly and by barbed wire ; and a particularly suggestive and instructive representation of Nature Study in Rural Schools, organised by the County Councils’ Association. Reports, prospectuses, and other literature, issued by the contributing colleges, were distributed from a special bay under the charge of the Agricultural Education Association. The following description is compiled from notes supplied by the exhibitors : — I. AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE. Rothamsted Experimental Station, Harpenden, Herts. — The Lawes Agricultural Trust showed the following series of diagrams : — 1. Five diagrams showing the results of the continuous growth of wheat for a period of fifty-one years, 1852-1902, on the Broadbalk Field at Rothamsted : — 202 Agricultural Education and Forestry Exhibition , 1906. Diagram 1 showed the effect of increasing amounts of nitrogen applied as salts of ammonia ; the amount of grain increased with each addition of nitrogen, but the straw received still greater benefit. Diagram 2 showed a comparison between equal amounts of nitrogen applied as nitrate of soda or ammonia salts ; the nitrate of soda is the more effective manure for wheat at Eothamsted, especially as regards the straw. Diagram 3 illustrated the law of diminishing returns, and showed that with increasing amounts of manure a point is reached when the extra yield ceases to be profitable ; and that this point is sooner reached when the prices for the grain and straw are low than when they are high. Diagram 4 illustrated the results of applying salts of ammonia in autumn instead of in spring, or in alternate years instead of every year. There is always some loss with the autumn application, and in the second year the wheat receives no benefit from ammonia salts applied in the previous season. Diagram 5 showed that the benefit of a summer fallowing on the succeeding wheat crop is lost if a wet autumn and early winter follow the fallowing. 2. Three diagrams illustrating the continuous growth of barley for fifty-one years, 1851-1902 : — Diagram 6 showed the relative effects of quantities of nitrogen applied as ammonium salts, nitrate of soda, or rape cake, all of which gave the same returns when accompanied by phosphates and potash. Diagram 7 showed that after farmyard manure had been applied for twenty years and then discontinued, a very large residue of fertility was left behind, which is still having an effect upon the crop, thirty-two years since the last application. Diagram 8 showed the effect of different mineral manures upon barley, and illustrated the great value of phosphoric acid to this crop. 3. Experiments upon mangels at Rotliamsted, twenty- seven years, 1876-1902 : — Diagram 9 illustrated the dependence of the mangel crop upon nitrogenous manures, the yield increasing with each application of nitrogen. Diagram 10 showed that of the mineral manures phosphates have but little effect, but. that the crop required very large quantities of potash. 4. Experiments on crops grown in rotation at Rotlia ru- sted : — Diagram 11 showed the effect of different manures when the land is thoroughly impoverished by cropping without manure. The swedes are reduced to a minimum, as also is the clover. The yield of wheat is, however, fairly well maintained ; as much as 19 '6 bushels per acre were obtained in 1903, after fifty-six years without manure. It also shows that with mineral manures alone the yield of swedes and of clover was very greatly increased ; the wheat and barley not at all. Diagram 12 illustrated the value of the clover crop in rotation as compared with a bare fallow. The yield of wheat is increased by 12 per cent., and the barley (three years after the clover) by 28 per cent. Diagram 13 illustrated the benefit to succeeding crops of feeding swedes on the land instead of carting them away. 5. Four diagrams, illustrating tlie results of the Rotliamsted Experiments on the Feeding of Cattle, Sheep, and Pigs : — Diagrams 14 and 15 showed the amount of food (nitrogenous and non- nitrogenous) required per 100 lb. live-weight, and to produce 100 lb. increase in live-weight. Diagrams 16 and 17 showed the percentage composition of the whole carcasses of animals in a store and fat condition, and also the composition of the increase during fattening. Exhibits from Rothamsted ; Cirencester ; and Cambridge . 203 Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester. — The College exhibited diagrams illustrating the chemical composition of foods, and the results of twenty years’ continuous manurial experiments on grass land. The Natural History Department sent a number of the commoner fossils from the Jurassic formation on which the College is situated* a case showing the formation of soil from the oolite ; exhibits illustrating the life-histories of various insect pests, including the click beetle (with its larva, the wireworm), the frit fly, &c. ; certain fruits showing the modes of dispersal of seeds ; two cases illustrating the Natural Orders of the Insecta ; and two frames showing diseases which attack the leaves of trees. The Veterinary Department of the College sent anatomical and pathological specimens ; examples of drugs and plants used in medicine and to illustrate lectures on Materia Medica ; specimen horse shoes made at the College to illustrate the principles of shoeing ; and cultures of pathogenic organisms used in connection with bacteriological study and research. The Professor of Agriculture again sent the College collection of wools from different breeds of sheep, showing the varied length of staple and the fineness or otherwise of the fibre. He also exhibited samples of turf from Devonshire, grown on a clay subsoil, and illustrating the marked effect of the application of basic slag, as compared with turf from the same field where no slag had been applied. Cambridge University Agricultural Department. — The ex- hibits were chiefly designed to explain and illustrate the Department’s work in plant breeding. The interest of the collection was increased by photographs of sheep on which experiments have been made, and by a number of animal exhibits kindly lent by Mr. W. Bateson, F.R.S., and Mr R. C. Punnett, M.A., of Cambridge. The object of the latter group of specimens was to show that the same principles hold good in the breeding both of plants and animals.1 The plants and animals represented were wheat, barley, sweet peas, sheep, rats, and fowls. The first group of exhibits illustrated the effects of crossing two breeds differing in a single character. In crosses between wheats which differed only in being bearded or beardless, or in having a rough or smooth chaff, it was shown that the beardless condition and the hairiness of the chaff appear in their full intensity in the cross-breds. In the generation raised from these cross-bred plants, three of the beardless and the rough chaff are found, on the average, to each bearded or smooth-chaffed individual. 1 See also the article at page 46 of this 'Volume on “The Application of Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance to Breeding Problems,” by R. H. Biifen, M.A. 204 Agricultural Education and Forestry Exhibition , 1906. Similarly, it was shown that if black and white rosecomb bantams are crossed, the cross-breds are all black. But when these cross-breds are mated and a number of chickens are hatched, it is found that three-quarters of the progeny are black and one- quarter white. And just as all the bearded or the smooth-chaffed wheats of the second generation breed true, while one-third only of the beardless and rough chaffs breed true ; so it is found that all the white bantams of the second generation breed true, while two out of every three blacks will not do so. It is possible to fix the black or white colour of the bantam, and also the bearded or beardless and rough or smooth characters in wheat ; but it is not always possible to extract pure-breds from crosses in this way. Thus in the progeny of a cross between a short and long eared wheat it was found that short ears, long ears, and intermediate ears appeared ; that it was possible to get both the long and the short ears to breed true ; but that the intermediate ears would not fix, for these last appear to be permanent mongrels. - A very interesting parallel case in fowls was shown, viz., the Blue Andalusian, which, like the intermediate wheat, is a permanent mongrel. A pure breed of Blue Andalusians cannot be made ; so that, however long the pedigree, this fowl will always produce a certain proportion of dark or light coloured birds known by the breeders as “wasters.” Such examples as these, which show that some pure-breds may be fixed in the second generation from the cross, and that other breeds will never fix, require an alteration in some of our ideas about “ pedigree.” The uses to which these principles of breeding (Mendel’s) may be put in producing new varieties was shown by several of the exhibits. For example, in barleys differing in two pairs of characters it was shown, when in one case the ears of barley were six-rowed and hooded and in the other two-rowed and bearded, that the cross-bred was two-rowed and hooded and that the descendants of the cross-bred consisted of the following types : six-row hooded, six-row bearded, two-row hooded, two-row bearded. The characters present in the original parents therefore appeared in fresh combinations. Certain of the individuals which showed these new combinations of characters bred true. Not only characters, such as colour and hairiness, are inherited in a definite way, but it is now known that the power of plants to resist disease may follow the same laws. To demonstrate this important fact, an exhibit was arranged showing in one pot a variety of wheat immune to yellow rust, but otherwise of no value for general cultivation, and in a second Cambridge Agricultural Department ; Wye College. 205 pot a variety excessively susceptible to this disease, with its foliage and stems badly attacked. These varieties had been crossed together two years previously, and in a third culture numbers of the descendants of the hybrid were shown. Some of these were excessively diseased, whilst others were entirely free from rust. All three cultures were grown under the same conditions. Specimens were also exhibited from the field plots of these same hybrids showing fully developed plants. The resistant parent has dense ears ; the susceptible has lax ears. Among the hybrids were dense-eared forms with badly infected foliage and stems, and amongst the lax-eared forms were some which were disease-resisting. It was thus shown that immunity and susceptibility to yellow rust could be trans- ferred from one type to the other. A considerable group of exhibits dealt with the formation and improvement of pastures. The Abbotsley pastures furnished material for a diagram which showed how slight may be the correspondence between the original seed mixture and the composition of the herbage of the resulting pasture. Turfs from the University Farm showed the effects of suitable manuring and of neglect on a five-year-old pasture ; and a second series of turfs from a poor Boulder Clay pasture at Cransley, in Northamptonshire, showed how useless is the attempt to enrich such pastures by cake-feeding, or to improve them by liming, until the soil has first had a dressing of from 8 to 10 cwt. per acre of basic slag or superphosphate. In sharp contrast to the Cransley turfs, a third set from the north of England was introduced to show the class of soil which must be limed before manuring is resorted to. South Eastern Agricultural College, Wye, Kent. — As in 1904, this College sent its collection illustrating the chemical and physical properties of typical soils in Kent and Surrey, in relation to the crops for which they are best adapted ; also samples of nitrogenous manures for hop-gardens. A model and diagrams illustrated experiments on the digestibility of feeding stuffs. Fungoid pests of agricultural plants and fruits were illustrated. Living and dead specimens were shown of injurious insects. Those alive were exhibited in gauze- covered glass globes feeding on the plants they respectively injure. Labelled with their common and systematic names, and with brief descriptions of their characteristic habits, these exhibits made an interesting and instructive object lesson, especially to those occupied with fruit growing. The pests included the lackey moth ( Clisiocampa neustria ), the goose- berry saw fly ( Nematus ribesice ), the apple saw fly (Hoplocampa testudinea ), the little ermine moth ( Hyponomeuta malinella), 206 Agricultural Education qnd Forestry Exhibition , 1906. the gold tail moth ( Porthesia auriflua ), &c. From the Veterinary Department of the College were sent exhibits illustrating the parasites of sheep, including round worms {Strong glided), and types of horse shoes and preparations connected with the foot of the horse in health and disease. Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston, Derby. — The College sent a series of pots showing the results of experi- ments to test the effects of superphosphate and salt upon the germination of seed. The experiments show that salt, if applied at the time of sowing, has an injurious effect upon . germination, and that, if so applied, considerable risk is run of losing the plant in the event of a troublesome germinating period. Salt or saline manures should therefore be applied a month or two before sowing the seed. Other experiments with barley indicated the desirability of sowing artificial manures broadcast rather than with the seed in the drill, in which case it was liable to affect injuriously the germination. Specimens were shown of lucerne seeds, containing diseased seeds of a dark colour affected by some fungus. Considerable risk was incurred in sowing these seeds, as they could not be relied upon to germinate satisfactorily. Experiments are being carried on at the College in the raising of new varieties of potatoes of which one- and two-year-old seedlings Avere shown in pots. Of some of the varieties tested, good saleable tubers have been obtained Avithin four years of the sowing of the potato seed. The problem of nitrogen-assimilation, continues to receive a great deal of attention at the College, and the new inoculation cultures from the United States and Germany have been the subject of careful investigation. Tares, peas, alsike, lucerne, and red clover were shown growing in pots containing boiled, sterilised quartz sand. The effect of inoculating the soil in these pots with pure cultures of nitrifying bacteria, obtained from Dr. Hiltner, of Munich, was shown to be greatly beneficial. A new system of inoculation by mixing dried sterilised soil with crushed healthy nodules containing nitrify- ing bacteria, as found on the roots of leguminous plants, is being tried at the College. A series of cultures Avas shown consisting of dairy bacteria and moulds, some being essential to the production of good cheese, others having injurious properties. It is now usual to inoculate the milk Avith the organism that gives a cheese its distinctive flavours and to impregnate artificially the cheese- room Avith the mould without which, for instance, the success- ful manufacture of Camembert cheese is impossible. Another collection of exhibits illustrated the investigation of abnormal dairy produce, cases of animal poisoning, &c., as undertaken Hides damaged by Warbles and Barbed Wire. 207 for farmers in the counties supporting the College. Finally, a quantity of new apparatus, or of modified forms of existing apparatus, as used at the College, was shown and explained to visitors interested. National Fruit and Cider Institute, Long Ashton, Bristol. — The exhibits were representative of the experimental work which is being carried on at the Institute in connection with fruit growing and cider making. Demonstration specimens illustrating the different methods of budding and grafting Avere shown side by side Avith the living trees which had been propagated by those means. Apple and pear trees in pots, including seedlings, one-year-old stocks, and budded and grafted stocks showing the one- and tAvo-year-old growths from the time of working were also exhibited. The varieties shown were representative of the best cider and perry sorts. Speci- mens of the leading varieties of cider and perry fruit, preserved in cold storage ; fruit trees attacked by the most common insect pests and disease-producing fungi, as well as cultures of the fungi themselves ; apparatus for the pruning, spraying, &c., of fruit trees ; specimens showing the results of good and bad pruning, and demonstrations of various methods of bottling fruit, were also included. Photographs illustrating the orchard and nursery Avork, and shoAving methods of fencing and protecting young fruit trees in orchards, supplemented these exhibits. The cider section included bottled samples (for purposes of tasting) of ciders made from single varieties of cider and perry fruit ; of various blends of these and also of others fermented with special yeasts ; various utensils used in cider making ; cultures of different types of yeasts and other organisms found in cider, and also of some of the more important bacteria which produce disorders of cider ; charts showing the varying rates of fermentation in different ciders, and photographs of the cider-house and machinery. Hides damaged by Warbles and Barbed Wire. — Messrs. Michael Cozens & Sons, of Walsall, exhibited a series of raw and tanned hides, showing (1) the results of neglecting to treat live stock against the ravages of the warble fly and (2) the damage caused to cattle by the careless use of barbed Avire. One of the hides exhibited, which was received from the slaughter- man in May, 1906, contained 250 Avarble holes ; another contained 200 holes. It is estimated that 80 per cent, of the hides of cattle are damaged in this way, and also that 85 per cent, of the hides are cut or pierced by means of barbed wire. Both of these sources of mischief cause much distress to the animals and a great annual loss to farmers and the leather trade. 208 Agricultural Education and Forestry Exhibition , 1906. The Royal Agricultural Society lias repeatedly drawn atten- tion to the serious losses caused by warbled hides, and the exhibit was arranged at Derby with a view of bringing once more under the notice of farmers an evil which is largely preventable by the adoption of proper and well-concerted measures. 1 Royal Agricultural Society of England. — No inconsiderable proportion of the Exhibition was devoted to the Society’s own scientific departments. The various publications of the Society, including books, pamphlets, leaflets, diagrams, &c., were again exhibited and sold. Similar exhibits to those of previous years were sent by the Society’s Botanical and Zoological depart- ments, the former including a new large diagram illustrating the results of experiments on the germination of farm seeds. These are described in the Report of the Consulting Botanist at page 257 of this Volume. The exhibits from the Society’s Woburn Experimental Station comprised the illustration of several series of experiments by plants growing in pots, a number of diagrams and photographs having reference to the field experiments, and also specimens of corn and grass from various experimental plots. Prominent among the pot cultures were those which showed how land, naturally poor in lime, could, after a period of continuous corn-growing and yearly manuring wdth ammonia salts, be rendered absolutely sterile for a crop of wheat or barley. The weed spurry ( Spergula ctrvensis ) was the only thing that would grow on this soil. By dressing the soil with lime the fertility could be restored ; but it was shown that with barley an application of 1 ton of lime to the acre was not enough to destroy the spurry and to neutralise the acidity produced in the soil. When, however, the acid soil was sterilised by boiling it thoroughly with water, the acid constituents were removed, the spurry weed would no longer grow, and lime, then applied, was effective in restoring a full crop. In another series of pot cultures the influence of lime and magnesia in varying relative proportions was shown. When the proportion of lime to magnesia in the soil was as 2:1, the wheat crop throve well ; when, however, lime and magnesia were present in about equal proportions the crop was considerably reduced ; and when magnesia was in excess of lime then the crop was almost a failure. This matter is, however, under further investigation, as the question Avould 1 Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 56, 1895, pp. lxxxi, lxxxii. See also Professor Penberthy’s article on “Parasites” in the current Volume, pp. 65-67. A leaflet on “ Warble Flies ” is issued free of charge by the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, 4 Whitehall Place, S.W. Nature Study in Rural Schools. 209 seem to depend largely upon the amount of lime which is really available. A further pot-culture experiment illustrated the beneficial action of phosphates in the case of a fen land soil (Cambridge- shire), and that lime was not in this instance needed, but phosphates instead. The necessity of paying careful attention to details in the method of growing plants in pots was shown by the exhibition of crops grown in the same soil, but in the one case filled in more or less in a wet condition, and in the other in a dry state. The same soil was further used, but filled in in different ways, e.g ., with light and with heavy pressure respectively, and wet and dry, carefully and hap-hazard, .the whole going to show that the results obtained in pot-culture work will depend greatly, for their value, upon the particular methods pursued, and that these can only be learned by experience. The main points brought out by the continuous manuring of wheat and barley, and through the use or withholding of lime, as instanced in the Stackyard (Woburn) Field Experi- ments, were illustrated both by photographs and by diagrams. A series of micro-photographs showed the appearances due to the presence of weed and other foreign seeds as met with in ordinary feeding materials such as linseed cake, bran, &c. Further, there were exhibited specimens of the roots of wheat and barley plants taken from plots on Stackyard Field, and which illustrated in very marked manner the influence which lime, or the withholding of it, had upon the development of the roots. Lastly, some interesting specimens of turf were shown which had been recently cut from a field at New Hall Farm, Barnsley, Yorks., on which the Society had conducted its grass experiments. These demonstrated in a remarkable manner the great value of lime (on a soil poor in that constituent), an application of 4 tons of lime to the acre continuing to show wonderful benefit though the application had been made ten years previously. On this land basic slag was without effect. Mr. H. M. Freear — Dr. Voelcker’s assistant at the Woburn Pot-culture Station — was again in charge of these exhibits, for the purpose of explaining them to visitors. II. NATURE STUDY IN RURAL SCHOOLS. A novel feature and one that created much interest was a collection of exhibits illustrating the teaching of rural economy and the study of nature in public elementary and secondary schools. The department was organised by the Education Committee of the County Councils’ Association, with the help of experts, including Mr. T. S. Dymond, of the YOL. 67. P 210 Agricultural Education and Forestry Exhibition , 1906. Board of Education, and the Rev. A. Thornley, Superintendent of Nature Study under the Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire Education Committees. The latter took personal charge of this section during the Show, and rendered valuable services by explaining to visitors the character of the work done and the educational objects sought to be attained. The counties from which exhibits were sent included Cambridge, Cumber- land, Durham, Derby, Essex, Leicester, Lincoln, Nottingham, Stafford, Essex, and Worcester. In addition to specimens of exercise-books, diaries, note-books, calendars, and other teaching apparatus, there was a large variety of mounted specimens of natural objects, the work done revealing great intelligence and enthusiasm on the part of both teachers and pupils. The collections included local flowering plants, intended to familiarise pupils with the wild flowers of their districts and to develop taste and manipulative skill ; leaves facilitating the recognition of common trees (oak, ash, hazel, sycamore, beech, willow, guelder rose, hawthorn, &c.) ; fruits of wild flowers and of wind-fertilised flowers of trees ; fossils ; insect pests (black-currant gall-mite, click beetle and wireworms, aphis, cockchafer grubs, slugs, caterpillars, earwigs, &c.) ; specimens illustrating life-histories of insects and animals (wireworm, currant moth, frog, toad, &c.) ; and specimens illustrating the germination of seeds and the growth of plants. Some water- colour drawings made direct from nature of common subjects (apple blossom, blackthorn, geranium, flowering currant, &c.), were beautifully executed by elementary school children. More advanced botanical studies are undertaken by pupils in secondary schools, and from these some excellent work was sent up by girls. They included collections illustrating the classification of local plants into flowers of the hedgerow, plants of a wood, water plants, &c., and studies of common trees (walnut, laburnum, &c.), showing seedlings, branches, buds, flowers, fruits, seeds in pods, opening of pods, and the wood in sections, with interior and exterior of bark, &c. Within recent years, school gardens have become an important feature of rural elementary schools. The Stafford- shire County Council undertook*the illustration of this branch, and exhibited collections of tools, seeds, and apparatus as supplied to school gardens. They also displayed a map showing that in Staffordshire gardening classes are held in seventy-nine day schools, in thirty evening schools, and in two grammar schools. It was probably a revelation to many of the visitors to the Derby Show that such important educational developments are taking place in our rural elementary and secondary schools under the fostering guidance of the Board of Education. British Forestry. 211 Agriculturists will note with satisfaction that teaching of this kind has an important bearing upon the future of their great industry. III. BRITISH FORESTRY. This department followed closely the lines of the Forestry Exhibitions of the two previous years at Park Royal. It was organised with the expert assistance of members of the Council of the Royal English Arboricultural Society. Mr. George Marshall again kindly undertook the personal superintendence of the staging of the exhibits, and rendered valuable assistance as Steward during the Show. It will be unnecessary to describe in detail the whole of the exhibits, as many of them have been referred to in previous Reports. Attention will therefore be mainly directed to the more novel of the exhibits at Derby. Immediately in front of the Exhibition building, open ground space was devoted to choice forest and ornamental trees and shrubs from the nurseries of Messrs. Dicksons, Ltd., of Chester, Messrs. Fisher, Son & Sibray, Ltd., of Handsworth, Sheffield, and Messrs. Kent & Brydon, of Darlington. Messrs. Dickson sent a collection of conifers, and specimens of their new golden variety of the Cornish elm (JJlmus cornubiensis Dicksonii). The foliage is a fine bright gold, and the colour is stated to be retained until very late in the autumn, and not to burn in the sun. The collection of Messrs. Fisher, Son & Sibray consisted of hardy forest and ornamental trees, including a silver fir from the island of Saglialien, the giant gold and silver D imorphanthus from Manchuria, and the Japanese umbrella pine ( ' Sciadojntys verticillata). They showed also young oak, birch, sycamore, and other forest trees, lifted from the open ground, to illustrate the stout, sturdy growth of such trees when given more room in the nursery rows than is usually given in general cultivation. Messrs. Kent & Brydon sent a collection of choice shrubs for forest and estate planting. The Duke of Northumberland sent exhibits illustrating technical points in forestry. An outside plot was occupied with young trees showing the German method of sylvicul- tural mixing, light-demanding and shade-bearing trees having each their proper positions. The number of trees per acre and the method of mixing may be varied according to circum- stances ; but in the scheme illustrated the total number of trees per acre would be 4,840, the mixture being as follows : — (a) An outer row of beech for shelter. (b) A second row containing a fair sprinkling of sycamore as a wind- resisting tree. (c) Oak, 9 ft. apart, for the permanent crop. 212 Agricultural Education and Forestry Exhibition , 1906. (d) Other hardwood trees for returns during rotation. (e) Sprinkling of larch for early returns. (f) Shade-bearers,, such as spruce, silver fir, and beech, for soil production and stimulation of the main crop. Inside the building an exhibit illustrated the economic differences between dense and thin crops of trees. Thus, where only 2,722 trees per acre were planted four feet apart, there was not only less timber, but the numerous branches depreciated the value of the wood. A crop of 4,840 trees to the acre planted three feet apart gives a larger crop and also superior straight timber owing to the suppression of branches through density of growth, although the girth of the trees is somewhat less than the girth of trees planted wider apart. Another example from Alnwick illustrated cases of severe - pruning. The cuts would be dressed with a mixture of one gallon of tar and about one quart of paraffin oil. The evil effect of not pruning close to the stem was shown by a specimen. In this case decay had set in down the stem. When live boughs are cut close to the stem, healing takes place before the decay sets in. In plantations of conifers, when left alone, the natural pruning caused by thick planting takes place. A portion of a stem taken from the centre of a poor Scotch fir wood, seventy years old, showed the effects of thinning too early. The clean portion at the base of the trunk was due to the original thick planting, and the thick branches at the top appeared in consequence of the plantation, when young, having been thinned too soon. The commercial value of the crop had therefore been greatly depreciated in consequence of this mistake. On the other hand, a section of a spruce tree illustrated the advantage of deferred thinning. The section was taken from a portion of a forty-five-year-old pure wood containing 632 trees to the acre, with cubic contents (true measure) of 6,000 ft. The section was taken ten feet from the base ; the total height of the tree was fifty-three feet and the cubic contents were ten feet. The increment amounts to 133^ cubic feet per annum. The average increment of the whole wood — about 100 acres on moorland peaty soil — is over 100 cubic feet per acre per annum. It is therefore a very valuable crop for estate purposes. The Royal Agricultural College also showed specimens illustrating the evil effect of natural or incorrect pruning, the results of both being similar. Healing by occlusion is rendered impossible by the presence of the stump, which, as it dies, serves as a channel for the conveyance of water to the trunk. In a specimen shown, decay had already set in, and the planks when sawn out would be blemished. British Forestry. 213 The Earl of Egmont sent a collection of ash plants, show- ing the growth of ash for walking sticks, and five samples of wood hoops, the manufacture of which is an industry in Surrey, Sussex, and Hants. These hoops, which are used for binding barrels, are made from the underwood of chestnut, ash, hazel, and birch. Another exhibit showed the rapid growth of the shoots from the stool after cutting, the increase being at the rate of eight feet in one year. Captain Ord Capper sent specimens showing the difference between larches grown as solitary trees and those crowded in a wood ; also the diseased branches of a forty-year-old conifer, Picea nohilis. Lady Amabel Kerr showed a magnificent plank from a Scotch fir, grown at Melbourne Hall, near Derby, which was much admired. Lord Egerton of Tatton sent the polished planks of different British timbers as in previous years. Lord Yarborough also exhibited, as before, a large and varied assortment of timbers, creosoted specimens, photographs, &c., and in addition his lordship showed some massive garden seats made from peeled oak branches and a garden seat formed by cutting partly down the trunk of a tree. Messrs. Remer & Co., Ltd., of Derby Road, Liverpool, exhibited interesting specimens of home-grown hardwoods, compared with specimens of similar woods grown in the colonies and in the United States. Forestry photographs were exhibited by His Majesty’s Commissioners of Woods and Forests, the Royal Agricultural College, Professor W. R. Fisher, and Messrs. Richardson & Son, Stamford. The Surveyors’ Institution sent museum specimens, and the Country Gentlemen’s Association, Ltd., tree seeds and seed- lings. Messrs. Herd Bros., of Penrith, also exhibited seedlings and young transplanted living forest trees. The section devoted to insects, diseases affecting trees, and the attacks of game, birds, squirrels, voles, &c. was again well filled. Mr. A. T. Gillanders (forester to the Duke of Northumber- land) and Mr W. B. Havelock (forester to the Earl of Yarborough) rendered valuable services by explaining the exhibits to visitors interested in forestry. Ernest H. Godfrey. Woodford, Harpenden, Herts. • 214 REPORT OF THE COUNCIL TO THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF GOVERNORS AND MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY, Held at the Hotel Russell, On WEDNESDA Y, December 12, 1906, at 12.30 p.m. Me. F. S. W. Cornwallis (President) ill the Chair. 1. The Council beg to present to the Governors and Members of the Society the following Report of their transactions during the past year. 2. The following changes in the list of Governors and Members have taken piace : — 85 Governors and 888 Members have been elected, and 4 Members have been reinstated under Bye-law 12 ; whilst the deaths of 5 Governors, 73 Life Members, 98 Annual Members, and 3 Honorary Members have been reported. A total of 2 Governors and 250 Members have resigned ; whilst 27 have been struck off the books under Bye-law 10, owing to absence of addresses, and 30 under Bye-law 11, for arrears of subscriptions. 3. The above and other changes bring the total number of Governors and Members now on the Register to 9,620, divided as follows : — 1 Foundation Life Governor ; 154 Annual Governors ; 92 Life Governors ; 6,196 Annual Members ; 3,147 Life Members ; 30 Honorary Members. 9,620 Total number of Governors and Members, as against a total of 9,170 Members on the Register on December 31, 1905. 4. The Council regret to have to record the deaths of two of their number : Mr. Howard P. Ryland, of Moxhull Park, Warwickshire, and Mr. J. P. Cross, of Catthorpe Towers, Rugby. Mr. Ryland had been a most active Member of Council since the year 1894, and had rendered great services on several of the Committees, as Steward of Implements and Live Stock, and also as Steward of Forage in 1898, when the Society’s Show was at Four Oaks, Birmingham. Mr. Ryland’s great interest in everything affecting the well-being of the Society was maintained until almost the day of his death. Mr. Cross had been a Member of the Society since the year 1881, and was elected a Member of Council in July, 1905. Two vacancies on the Council have arisen in consequence of the resignations of the representatives Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 215 of the divisions of Lincolnshire (Mr. William Frankish) and Scotland (Sir John Gilmour, Bart.). Mr. Frankish had been a Member of Council for the exceptionally long period of thirty years, having been elected in 1875. He was an active Member of several of the most important Committees, the meetings of which. he had attended with unfailing regularity during the whole of the time he was a Member of the Council. As Chairman of the Implement Committee, as a Steward of Finance, and as Steward of other departments of the Show, Mr. Frankish’s services have been of the greatest value to the Society. Sir John Gilmour was elected a Member of Council in July, 1905, but in consequence of circumstances having arisen which prevented his attendance at the Monthly Meetings of the Council, he felt it necessary to tender his resignation. 5. The death has also to be recorded of Professor Sir George Brown, the Society’s Senior Consulting Veterinary Surgeon, who had been an ordinary Member of the Society since the year 1862, and was elected an Honorary Member on April 1, 1878. Sir George Brown had for many years been closely identified with the Society as Veterinary Inspector at the Annual Shows, and in connection with the work of the Veterinary Committee. The Society is greatly indebted to him for his valuable papers on the diseases of the Animals of the Farm, several of which have been issued in pamphlet form. The Council also regret to have to record the death of Mr. A. C. Cope, who had been a professional Member of the Veterinary Committee since 1901, in which year he was also elected an Honorary Member. 6. Amongst other Governors and Members, whose loss by death during the present year the Society has to deplore, are : The Duke of Rutland, K.G., the Earl of II Chester, Viscount Hampden, Lord Clinton, Lord Glanusk, Lord Templemore, the Right Hon. A. F. Jeffreys, M.P., Sir Wilfrid Lawson, Bart., M.P., Sir Thomas Brocklebank, Bart., Sir R. D. FitzHerbert, Bart., Sir B. Henniker, Bart., Sir W. T. Makins, Bart., Sir Pryse Pryse, Bart., Sir C. H. Rouse-Boughton, Bart., Sir Sidney Waterlow, Bart., K.C.V.O., Sir Henry Wiggin, Bart., Sir John Dunne, K.C.B., Sir William Pink, Sir Richard Tangye, Dr. W. Fream (Editor of the Society’s Journal from 1890 to 1900, and author of the Society’s Text Book, “ Elements of Agricul- ture ”), Mr. A. Dudley Clarke, Mr. Thomas Arkell (a Member since 1813), Mr. Edmund Backhouse (a Member since 1846), Mr. George Bagnall, Mr. John Barron, Major Best, Mr. Charles Burrell (a Member since 1848), Mr. Henry Denis de Vitre, Mr. A. F. Milton Druce, Mr. Henry D. Marshall (a Member of the Council from 1897 to 1905), Lt.-Col. G. Herbert Morrell, the Rev. S. H. Powell (a Member since 1842), Mr. F. Punchard, 216 Report to the Annual General Meeting , Mr. R. A. H. Seymour, Mr. A. C. Skinner, Mr. William 0. Watson, Mr. Jonas Webb, and Col. R. Worsley Worswick. 7. The Earl of Northbrook has been elected a Vice-President of the Society in the place of the late Sir Jacob Wilson. To fill vacancies which have occurred in the list of ordinary Members of Council, the following have been elected : — Mr. James Falconer, of Northbrook Farm, Micheldever, Hants ; Mr. Henry Dudding, of Riby Grove, Stallingborough, Lincoln- shire ; Mr. James W. Glover, of Warwick ; Sir Humphrey F. de Trafford, Bart., of Hill Crest, Market Harborough, Leicester- shire ; and Mr. Thomas A. Buttar, of Corston, Coupar Angus, Scotland. 8. The Council, at their last Meeting, received with extreme regret from Sir Nigel Kingscote an intimation that, by his doctor’s orders, he would be compelled to forego active work on the Council of the Society, and must therefore resign the Trusteeship which he had held so long. On the motion of the President, seconded by H.R.H. Prince Christian, the follow- ing resolution was unanimously adopted by the Council : — “ The Council desire to record on their minutes the great regret with which they learn that Sir Nigel Kingscote is compelled by ill- health to retire from the deliberations of the Council. Since his election to the Council in 1863, he has served as President of the Society in 1877-1878, as Chairman of the Finance Committee from 1875, and Chairman of the House Committee from the same date. He frequently acted as Steward at the Annual Shows, and has been a Trustee of the Society from 1874. In these and other offices, and on all occasions, his energy, tact, and earnestness have been of inestimable value to the Society, while his courtesy and kindness have endeared him in a special degree to all his colleagues.” To fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Sir Nigel Kingscote, the Council, at their Meeting held on Wednesday, November 7, unanimously elected Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis a Trustee of the Society. 9. To meet a frequently expressed desire, steps were taken in the year 1904 to obtain such an alteration of the Society’s original Charter of March 26, 1840, as would enable the Society to re-arrange its system of electing the Council with a view to placing it on a more representative basis. To give effect to this object, His Majesty The King was graciously pleased to grant to the Society a Supplemental Charter, under which the ordinary Members of the Council, instead of being elected at General Meetings of the Society by the votes of those present are now “ elected by divisions of the Society comprising the Governors and Members resident in electoral districts.” 10. The new Bye-laws governing the election of the Council, the procedure at General Meetings, and other kindred matters, were sanctioned at an Extraordinary General Meeting held after the conclusion of the business of the Anniversary General Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 217 Meeting on May 22 of last year, and were enacted at the Council Meeting which took place on May 31, 1905. Under’ these new Bye-laws, each County in England is constituted a “ division ” or electoral district, with the addition of three “ divisions ” for Wales, one “ division ” for Scotland, and one “ division ” for Ireland (Bye-law 78). A County or “ division ” comprising less than 300 Governors and Members returns one ordinary Member of the Council by the votes of the Governors and Members residing therein. A County having 300 or more Members resident therein returns two Councillors, with an additional Councillor for every additional 200 Governors and Members (Bye-law 79). 11. The first election of ordinary Members of Council under the Supplemental Charter, took place during the month of July, 1905, and the results of -such election were reported to the General Meeting on August 1, 1905, in order that the Meeting might, in accordance with Bye-law 74, “take cognisance of the election of ordinary Members of the Council in place of those vacating office.” There were 48 divisions entitled, under the new system, to elect ordinary Members of the Council, 43 of these sending up one Member, 4 two Members, and 1 (London) three Members ; total, fifty-four Members of Council. From four constituencies — Cornwall, Dorset, Essex and South Wales — no effective nominations had been received at the time of the General Meeting last year, and consequently, only 50 Members of the new Council were elected. Of these, 26 were Members of the old Council. In 29 of the 44 divisions of the Society who had sent these 50 gentlemen to represent them, there was never more than one candidate nominated, and the provisions of Bye-law 84 therefore applied. In each of four other districts there was originally one more candidate than there were vacancies to be filled, but one retired before the day of polling arrived. In the remaining 11 districts there were contested elections, which were conducted by voting papers issued in accordance with Bye-law 85. Immediately after the General Meeting nomination papers were again sent out to the Members resident in Cornwall, Dorset, Essex and South Wales, and the vacancies were duly filled up, after contested elections in the three last-named Divisions. 12. Under Bye-law 82, the whole of the new Council elected last year retain office until the forthcoming Annual General Meeting on December 12, 1906, when “the Member or Members elected by each of the Divisions in such one of the Groups of Divisions marked 4 A,’ 4 B ’ and 4 C ’ respectively as shall be determined by the Council (by ballot or otherwise) shall retire.” A second Group shall retire at the Annual General Meeting 218 Report to the Annual General Meeting , in December, 1907, and the remaining Group at the Annual General Meeting in December, 1908. The Council have accord- ingly determined by ballot that the representatives of the various Divisions shall retire in the following order : — In 1906 : — Group “ C,” comprising the Divisions of Cumberland, Westmorland, Yorks. (East Riding), North Wales, Lincoln, Huntingdon, Cambridge, Oxford, Kent, Warwick, Gloucester, Glamorgan, Somerset, Berkshire, Sussex, and Ireland. In 1907 : — Group “ B,” comprising the Divisions of Durham, Yorks. (West Riding), Nottingham, Leicester, Rutland, Suffolk, Buckingham, Essex, London, Shropshire, Hereford, South Wales, Devon, Wiltshire, and Surrey. In 1908: — Group “A,” comprising the Divisions of Northumberland, Yorks. (North Riding), Lancashire (and Isle of Man), Cheshire, Derby, Northampton, Norfolk, Bedford, Hertford, Middlesex, Stafford, Worcester, Monmouth, Cornwall, Dorset, Hampshire and Channel Islands, and Scotland. The results of the Election of Members to represent the Divisions in Group “ C ” will be announced by the President, in accordance with Bye-law 86, to the Annual General Meeting on December 12. 13. At the first meeting of the newly-elected Council, held on August 1, 1905, the following Resolution was passed : — “ That a Special Committee be appointed, with power to call for any information from officials, and to employ professional assistance, if they consider it necessary, from accountants, solicitors, and valuers, to thoroughly investigate the entire position of the Society, and to make a report to the Council after the recess as to what reforms and economies they consider desirable to put the Society on a sound footing.” This Committee was constituted as follows : — The President (Mr. Cornwallis), Mr. T. L. Aveling, Mr. Richardson Carr, Sir R. P. Cooper, Bart., Mr. R. Forrest, Sir John Gilmour, Bart., Sir Gilbert Greenall, Bart., Mr. W. Harrison, the Earl of Jersey, Mr. Christopher Middleton, Mr. T. S. Minton, Mr. F. Reynard, Mr. John Rowell, Mr. E. W. Stanyforth, Mr. Richard Stratton, Mr. George Taylor, Mr. John Thornton, and Mr. C. W. Wilson. 14. The Special Committee met on September 20 and 21, 1905, and prepared the following Report,1 which was submitted to the Council on October 4, 1905 : — 1. In accordance with the Resolution of the Council of August 1, 1905, your Committee met on September 20 and 21, and beg to report on the reforms and economies they consider desirable to place the Society on a sound footing. 2. The Committee desire to express their recognition of the services of the Staff in the past ; but in view of the financial position of the Society they are unable to recommend a continuance of so large an expenditure as is at present incurred under this head, and regret that they see no other course open to them but to request the Council to ask for the resignation of the whole Staff as at present engaged at Hanover Square and Park Royal. 1 The Earl of Jersey and Mr. E. W. Stanyforth were unable to be present at the Meetings of the Committee and did not sign the Report. Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 219 3. They consider that a sum not exceeding 1,500?. per annum is all that the Society is at present justified in expending on the salaries of the Secretary and administrative Staff. 4. They recommend that a Secretary (to devote his whole time to the work of the Society) should be appointed at a salary of 600?. per annum, and an assistant at 300?. per annum. 5. Harewood House. — They recommend that if a satisfactory price can be obtained for Harewood House, it shall be sold at as early a date as possible, and failing this, that such part of the house not absolutely required for the purposes of the Society shall be let. 6. Journal. — They recommend that the cost of the Journal, including distribution, shall not exceed 600?. per annum. 7. Scientific Departments. — They recommend that the Board of Agriculture be approached with a view to obtain a grant in aid of the scientific operations of the Society, which must otherwise be curtailed, unless such assistance can be obtained. 8. The Society’s Show. — They recommend that no Show be held at Park Royal in 1906, but that it take place in the provinces if a suitable site can be obtained and financial arrangements made ; also that a sum of not less than 2,000?. from the Governors’ and Members’ sub- scriptions be credited to the expenses of the annual Show. 9. They think it would be most advantageous that a conference be held annually between the Council and Officers of the Royal Agricultural Society and the Secretaries of the County, Breed, and other leading Agricultural Societies to consider questions of general and mutual interest- 10. Park Royal. — They recommend that immediate steps be taken for the disposal of the Society’s interest in the Park Royal Estate. 11. Subscriptions. — The Committee desire to draw attention to and emphasise the desirability of encouraging Members to give financial support to the Society beyond the minimum subscription. 15. With the exception of paragraph 10, which was remitted to the Special Committee for further consideration, the Report was adopted, paragraphs 2, 3, 4, and 11 being referred to the Finance Committee, 5 to the House Committee, 6 to the Journal Committee, 7 to the Chemical, Botanical, and Education Committees, and 8 to the Special Committee to deal with. 16. The Finance Committee, reporting to the Council on November 1, 1905, with reference to paragraphs 2, 3, and 4 of the Special Committee’s Report, considered that the new arrangements for the administration of the Society’s affairs proposed by the Special Committee would be best facilitated by bringing to a termination the existing engagements of the whole of the Staff. This recommendation was adopted, and the decision of the Council was, in due course, communicated by the President to each officer and clerk, with an expression of the Council’s satisfaction with, and appreciation of, his past services to the Society. The Secretary expressed his willing- ness to retire at once, on the understanding that he received what was legally due to him as regards remuneration. In view of Sir Ernest Clarke’s long association of 18 \ years with the Society as its Secretary, the Finance Committee unanimously recommended to the Council that his tenure of office should 220 Report to the Annual General Meeting , be considered as terminated at Christmas, 1905, and that he should receive at that time, in lieu of further salary, the sum of 1,000?. in full discharge of all pecuniary claims upon the Society. This recommendation was endorsed by the Council, who, in recognition of the services which Sir Ernest Clarke had rendered, unanimously elected him an Honorary Member of the Society. 17. In order that the selection of the new Secretary might be expedited, a form of application for the post was drawn up on October 17, 1905, and the appointment was ordered to be advertised forthwith. Subsequently, on December 6, 1905, the Finance Committee submitted the names of three candidates for the consideration of the Council, including that of Mr. Thomas McRow, who, on their recommendation, was unanimously appointed Secretary of the Society. Arrange- ments have been made for carrying out the Special Committee’s recommendation as to the salaries of the Secretary and Administrative Staff. 18. With regard to Harewood House (paragragh 5 of the Special Committee’s Report), the Council endeavoured to make such arrangements as would enable the several Breed Societies now located at No. 12 Hanover Square to be accommodated in Harewood House ; but, unfortunately, after conference with representatives of the various Societies, the proposed arrange- ments were considered to be impracticable. The Council then gave consideration to an offer which had been submitted by their Agents for letting the premises on a Building Lease for ninety- nine years from Michaelmas, 1905, at 1,000?. for first year, and 2,000?. per annum afterwards, with option of purchase within two years at 50,000?. Instructions were given to the Society’s Solicitors to carry through the necessary negotiations for the granting of the lease, and in due course a draft Building Agreement was submitted to the prospective lessees, who eventually returned the document stating that for certain reasons they were not prepared to continue the negotiations, and that their offer therefore must be considered as withdrawn. The Council greatly regret the failure of the negotiations ; but they are able to report that their Agents are in treaty with a likely purchaser. 19. In view of the possibility of Harewood House being disposed of it was thought desirable to obtain other offices for the Society, so that Harewood House could be vacated at Michaelmas. Arrangements were accordingly made for securing the lease of No. 16 Bedford Square for a term of thirty years, and the offices were transferred to this address on September 29, 1906. The accommodation in the new premises, including a “ Members’ Room,” will be found to be ample, and the Council Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 221 Chamber, now in course of erection at the rear of the House, will be sufficiently commodious for any meetings the Society may have to hold. 20. The recommendation of the Special Committee with regard to the Society’s Journal (paragraph 6) has already been carried out in connection with Volume 66, issued at the beginning of the present year. As the Members of the Society will be aware, it was found necessary, in order that the Journal might be produced at a cost of 600/., to reduce the number of pages and to revert to the use of the blue paper covers. The Council have engaged Mr. Ernest H. Godfrey to undertake the work of editing Volume 67 of the Journal, now in course of preparation. 21. In view of the recommendation of the Special Com- mittee (paragraph 7) that the Board of Agriculture should be approached with the object of obtaining a grant in aid of the scientific operations of the Society, the matter was considered by the various Committees concerned, and, subsequently, the President and the Chairmen of those Committees held a con- ference, when it was agreed to suggest to the Council that a Deputation should be appointed to wait upon the President of the Board of Agriculture in support of a strong appeal from the Society for a Government Grant in aid of the Education and Scientific Branches of the Society’s work. This course was agreed to by the Council, and on December 6, 1905, the Depu- tation was received by Sir Thomas Elliott, Secretary of the Board ; but the Government did not see their way to give the assistance asked for. 22. A proposal was made by the Board of Agriculture to form a National Council of Agricultural Research, with the object of co-ordinating the work of agricultural experiment throughout the country. In this scheme the Royal Agri- cultural Society, with other bodies, were asked to co-operate, but, while giving a general approval to the objects of the scheme, the Society, as regards their own work, felt that for its proper conduct and support in the future, a more definite promise of financial support was needed than the scheme foreshadowed. The matter therefore remains in abeyance. 23. Arrangements have been made by the Council to call a Conference of Secretaries of the principal Agricultural and Breed Societies in the country, as suggested in paragraph 9 of the Special Committee’s Report, for the purpose of discussing matters of mutual interest. 24. With regard to the paragraph in their Report, “ that immediate steps be taken for the disposal of the Society’s interest in the Park Royal Estate,” the Special Committee, after further considering the matter, adhered to their previous 222 Report to the *Annual General Meeting , recommendation. They were of opinion that the Society would not be justified in incurring the large annual expense for interest, upkeep, &c., which would be necessary if Park Royal were retained in the Society’s possession until the pre-emption period expired at the end of 1911 ; and they recommended, therefore, that the Council should forthwith instruct the Directors of Park Royal, Limited, to offer the property to the original vendors at the price of 375?. per acre, stipulated in clause 14 of the agreement of purchase dated September 30, 1901. This recommendation was adopted by the Council at their meeting on November 1, 1905. 25. The property was thereupon offered to the original vendors, who declined to exercise their right of pre-emption. The Directors of Park Royal, Limited, then placed the estate in the hands of a firm of Auctioneers, and the property was offered for sale by auction at The Mart, Tokenhouse Yard, E.C., on May 22 last. As, however, the “reserve” price was not reached, the property was withdrawn ; but the Council are pleased to report that it has since been disposed of for the sum of 28,500?. 26. The Bye-laws enacted under the Supplemental Charter require that the Annual General Meeting for the year 1906 and every subsequent year shall be held in the month of December, and that at each Annual General Meeting the balance-sheet and the reports of the Council and of the Auditors shall be submitted for consideration. The Council, therefore, beg to submit the balance-sheet for the year 1905, with the two Statements of ( a ) Ordinary Income and Expenditure, and (5) Receipts and Expenditure of the Show at Park Royal. These accounts were published in Volume 66 of the Journal issued to Members last March, having been duly examined and certified as correct by the Auditors appointed by the Members, and by the professional Accountants employed by the Society. The general result of the working of the year 1905 was a deficiency of 2,370?. 9s. Id., made up as follows : — £ S . (i . Excess of Ordinary Expenditure over Income . . 1,484 2 5 Deficiency on Show at Park Royal . £7,467 19 11 Less Special Donations . . 7,038 12 0 429 7 11 Depreciation of Fixtures, &c. ..... 456 18 9 £2,370 9 1 27. Additional subscriptions amounting to 558?. 16s., and .donations amounting to 1,041?. 5s. 6c?., have been received from existing Members of the Society, in addition to their previous Subscriptions, particulars of which will be found in the list Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 223 of Increased Subscriptions and Donations appended to this Report. [See Appendix, page xiii.] 28. A cordial invitation was received from the Mayor and Corporation of Derby to hold the Show of 1906 in that town, an eligible site for the Showyard having been placed at the disposal of the Local Authorities by the Midland Railway Company. This invitation the Council decided unanimously to accept, their decision being greatly influenced by the guarantee which had been so generously given by a Member of the Council, under which he was prepared to make good any loss which might result from the Derby Show. In connection with this year's Exhibition, the Derbyshire Agricultural Society co-operated most heartily and decided to suspend its own Show in favour of the u Royal.” The Council thereupon resolved that every Member of the Derby- shire Society should be granted the same privileges in con- nection with the Show as were enjoyed by Members of the Royal Agricultural Society. The total amount of the Prizes offered was 6,868Z., of which sum 797 1. was contributed by the Derby Local Committee, and 2,070?. by the various Breed Societies. The Local Classes of the Derbyshire Agricultural Society were exhibited in the Showyard for one day only, on Friday, June 29. Butter-making Competitions were held in the Society’s Dairy on Thursday, June 28, and Saturday, June 30, for residents in Derbyshire who had been pupils of the Travelling Dairy School in Nottinghamshire or Derby- shire, or of the Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. The Horticultural Display in the Special Tent was most attractive. The space available for the purposes of the Show was fully utilised ; the number of feet of Shedding allotted in the Implement Department was 13,000, in addition to a large number of Open Space Exhibits. The entries of Live Stock numbered 2,319, and were above the average, 29. An interesting feature of the recent Show was the trial of Suction Gas Plants. Fourteen plants were entered for competition by twelve firms, and, as the result, the Society’s Gold Medal was awarded to the National Gas Engine Com- pany, Ltd., Wellington Works, Asliton-under-Lyne, for their 20-B.H.P. National Gas Engine with 20-B.H.P. National Suction Gas Plant ; and the Silver Medal to Messrs. Crossley Bros., Ltd., Openshaw, Manchester, for their 15-B.H.P. Gas Engine and 15-B.H.P. Suction Gas Producer. The official Report on these trials is now in the press and will shortly be published. 30. His Majesty The King, accompanied by His Grace the Duke of Devonshire, honoured the Society by visiting the Show on Thursday, June 28, and was received in the Show- yard by H.R.H. Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, the 22 4 Report to the Annual General Meeting , President (Mr. Cornwallis), the Honorary Director (Sir Gilbert Greenall), the Stewards and other Members of Council. On arriving at the Royal Pavilion, His Majesty inspected the Crimean veterans of the Notts, and Derby Regiment, who had been drawn up in front of the Pavilion, under the command of Colonel Gascoigne, and afterwards visited the various departments of the Showyard. In spite of the inclement weather on the day of His Majesty’s visit the attendances were remarkable, the number of persons paying for admission (2s. 6d) being 25,666. 31. The hospitality of the town and county of Derby was worthily sustained by the Mayor and other residents in the town and throughout the county. A pleasing feature of the Meeting was the cordial co-operation of the Members of the Local Committee with the Society’s officials in all their endeavours to make the Show of 1906 a great success. 32. Formerly, the Showyard has been erected by the Society’s own officials, but on this occasion the Council decided to employ a contractor to carry out the work. Tenders were invited and the work was entrusted to Messrs. E. Wood & Sons, of Derby, who carried out their contract satisfactorily. The Council have arranged for this firm to erect the Showyard at Lincoln next year, at considerably reduced prices. 33. A statement of the Receipts and Expenditure in con- nection with the Show will be presented to the General Meeting on December 12. It is estimated that the balance in the Society’s favour will approximate the sum of 2,00(R. The Council desire to congratulate the Members on the great success which has attended the Show on its return to the country, under the management of the Honorary Director, Sir Gilbert Greenall. 34. Invitations for the Show of 1907 having been received from Ipswich and Lincoln, a Committee was appointed to inspect and report upon the sites and other accommodation offered by the two localities. Deputations from these two places attended the meeting of the Council on August 1 last, and, in each case, the Mayor tendered a very cordial invitation to the Society. The Council, after having considered the Report of the Committee, decided to hold their Sixty-Eighth Annual Show at Lincoln in 1907. 35. The Show will open on the morning of Tuesday, June 25, and close on Saturday, June 29. The prices of admission will be as follows : — Tuesday, June 25, Five Shillings ; Wednesday and Thursday, June 26 and 27, Half a Crown ; and Friday and Saturday, June 28 and 29, One Shilling. 36. The Prize Sheet for the Lincoln Show is now under the consideration of the Council, who wish to take this opportunity Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 225 of acknowledging the very handsome contributions to the Prize fund which have been promised by the Lincoln Local Committee, the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, and the various Breed Societies. 37. The entry fees for Horses, have been revised, and in future will include all charges for stabling : — For stallions and brood mares ... Members 40^. Non-Members 805. For stallions and brood mares, post entries 505. . 1005. F or other horses in breeding classes . 305. 605. For other horses in breeding classes, post entries 405. 80 5. Riding and driving classes .... 305. 605. Pace and action and jumping classes . 305. 305. The fees for Cattle, Sheep, Pigs, Poultry, and Produce will remain as before. The dates of Closing of Entries will be as follows : — Horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs : — At ordinary rates ....... May 14 At post entry rates ....... May 28 Hiding, driving, pace and action, and jumping classes . May 28 Poultry at ordinary rates ....... May 28 Produce at ordinary rates ....... May 14 Produce at post entry rates (except cider and perry) . May 28 38. Prizes amounting to 300?. have been accepted by the Council for Farm Prize Competitions in the following four Classes, open to bond fide Tenant Farmers : — Class I. — For the best-managed Arable and Grass Farm, in the County of Lincoln, exceeding 300 acres. First Prize, 60/. Second Prize, 30/. Class II. — For the best-managed Arable and Grass Farm, in the County of Lincoln, over 50 acres, and not exceeding 300 acres. First Prize, 35/. Second Prize, 25/. Class III. — For the best-managed Arable and Grass Farm, regularly hunted over by the Belvoir, Blankney, Brocklesby, Burton, or Southwold Hounds, exceeding 300 acres. First Prize, 30/. Second Prize, 25/. Third Prize, 20/. Class IV.— For the best-managed Arable and Grass Farm, regularly hunted over by the Belvoir, Blankney, Brocklesby, Burton, or Southwold Hounds, over 50 acres, and not exceeding 300 acres. First Prize, 25/. Second Prize, 20/. Third Prize, 15/. Fourth Prize, 15/. Entries close on Monday, December 31, 1906. Applications for forms should be addressed to the Secretary of the Society, at 16 Bedford Square, W.C. There will be no entry fees for these Competitions. 39. Trials of Swath Turners and Side Delivery Rakes will be held in connection with the Lincoln Show, for which •the Society’s Medals in silver and bronze will be offered as prizes. The Regulations for these Trials have been issued. 40. The Consulting Chemist reported in May, 1905, that up to that time (five months) 293 samples had been submitted by Members to him for analysis. This number was increased VOL. 67. Q 226 Report to the Annual General Meeting , to 571 for the whole twelve months of 1905, the total being 41 in excess of the number analysed in 1904. For the eleven months subsequently the number of samples has been 507. For the Derby Show, analyses of selected samples of Cider and Perry were made at the Society’s laboratory, and also a large number of milk analyses in connection with the awards in the milk trials. 41. The Woburn Field Experiments continue to show very interesting results, and the Farm has been visited by a larger number of people than in previous years. The effects of the use of lime on this soil are, in particular, very forcibly illustrated. Trials of different varieties of Clover and Lucerne have also been undertaken. As with the harvest of 1906 thirty years’ work has been completed, the occasion is thought opportune for the modification, in some way, of the Continuous Wheat and Barley experiments, with the view of making them simpler and bringing them more into line with practical farming. At the Pot-Culture Station, the Hills’ Experiments have been carried a stage further, and other experiments on inoculation for leguminous crops have been undertaken for the Board of Agriculture. An exhibit illustrating some of the principal features brought out in the Woburn Field Experiments was sent to the Milan Exhibition, for which the Society was awarded a Grand Prix. Illustrative specimens from the Pot-Culture Station were also exhibited in the Agricultural Education section of the Derby Show. 42. Since the last Annual Report of the Consulting Botanist there have been 206 inquiries dealt with from Members of the Society. The dry season has been unfavourable to the growth of parasitic fungi ; only twenty-two cases of plants injured by these parasites have been investigated. The quality of seeds both as to purity and germination has been satisfactory, though one sample of broccoli seed consisted of only dead seeds, and the seeds of Wavy Hair Grass {Air a flexuosa Linn.), which is but a weed in good pastures, were offered to a Member for Golden Oat Grass. Farmers continue to suffer seriously from purchasing mixtures for pasture which are too frequently the medium for introducing worthless grasses and injurious weeds. 43. From the applications received by the Zoologist during the past six months, most of the ordinary pests would appear to have been particularly active, but not many of the cases in which advice was sought were of an unusual character. Among fruit pests the continued extension of the ravages of the Pear midge is to be noted, and a bad case of attack by the currant bud moth ( Incurvaria capitella ) occurred, which was utilised to advance to some extent our knowledge of the life-history Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 227 of this insect. In view of recent discoveries concerning the transmission of various diseases to domestic animals by their external parasites, the study of these parasites, hitherto too much neglected, has become of extreme importance, and the Zoologist considered it advisable to comply with a request received from the Government Entomologist of India to examine a large number of ticks collected from cattle, sheep, horses, and dogs from various parts of that country with a view to their identification. The study of this collection, and of very many ticks from various other parts of the world, has occupied much time during the past summer. 44. The President and other Members of the Council joined the Deputation organised by the Central and Associated Chambers of Agriculture, who waited upon the President of the Board of Agriculture on March 6, 1906, for the purpose of urging the necessity of keeping the present restrictions in force with regard to the importation of live cattle from abroad. Mr. Cornwallis expressed the views of the Society in support of the important object of the Deputation ; and his representa- tions met with a sympathetic reply from the President of the Board of Agriculture, and may be presumed to have had some influence with the Government. The fact that the restrictions have been allowed to remain in force is a matter of satisfaction to agriculturists in general. 45. During the period which has elapsed since the date of the last Report, the scheduled contagious diseases of animals, with one exception, viz., sheep scab, have not been materially reduced in prevalence. The number of cases of anthrax and glanders reported have been nearly up to the average of the preceding twelve months, and the outbreaks of swine fever have become more frequent since the beginning of the year. Throughout the whole of last year there was a marked reduc- tion in the prevalence of sheep scab as indicated by the number of outbreaks reported, and the decline which was then begun continues up to the present time. 46. As the result of this year’s examination of students of the Royal Veterinary College in Cattle Pathology, including the diseases of Cattle, Sheep and Pigs, Mr. A. W. Noel Pillers, of the Royal Veterinary College, Camden Town, N.W., has been awarded the Society’s silver medal, and Mr. A. Leslie Sheather, of 42 Compayne Gardens, Hampstead, N.W., the bronze medal. 47. An Agricultural Education Exhibition on similar lines to that arranged at Park Royal was organised in con- nection with this year’s Show at Derby, exhibits being sent by the Lawes Agricultural Trust, the Cambridge University Agricultural Department, the Royal Agricultural College, 228 Report to the Annual General Meeting , Cirencester, the South - Eastern Agricultural College, the Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, the Agricultural Education Association, the County Councils’ Association, and the National Fruit and Cider Institute. Specimens and diagrams from the Society’s Experimental Farm and Pot -culture Station at Woburn and from the Botanical and Zoological Departments were also shown at this exhibition. The latest developments of Agricultural Science and their practical results were illustrated in a complete and interesting manner, whilst the personal explanation by experts enabled a large number of daily visitors to study the exhibits with intelligence and profit. The Forestry Exhibition, located within and adjoining the same building, was arranged and supervised by Mr. George Marshall and Members of the Council of the Royal English Arboricultural Society, who attended each day during the Show for the purpose of explaining to visitors the technical significance of the exhibits. 48. The seventh annual examination for the National Diploma in Agriculture was held at Leeds, from May 7-10, 1906, when the following 28 candidates were awarded the Diploma, the first six gaining honours : — Diploma with Honours. 1. Ernest Harrison, Harris Institute, Preston ( Gold Medal). 2. John Fisher, Harris Institute, Preston. 3. James Wyllie, Glasgow and West of Scotland Agricultural College. 4. James Ryding Bond, Harris Institute, Preston. 5. Thomas Rimmer, Harris Institute, Preston. 6. Percy Snowdon, Leeds University. Diploma. 7. Gwilym Williams, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth. 8. James Johnston, Glasgow and West of Scotland Agricultural College. 9. Oliver Cyril Spencer Watson, Harper- Adams Agricultural College. 10. Frank Atkinson Capstick, Harper- Adams Agricultural College. 11. Robert William Staniforth, Harris Institute, Preston. 12. William Stevenson, Glasgow and West of Scotland Agricultural College. 13. Georue Henry Garrad. South-Eastern Agricultural College, Wye. 14. Francis Alexander Thomson, Marischal College, Aberdeen. 15. Francis Strachan Marr, Aberdeen University. 1 6 f George Ramsey Bland, Harris Institute, Preston. t Tom Clark, Harper- Adams Agricultural College, Newport, Salop. 18. Joseph Stoker, Leeds University. 19. John Frederick Harrison, South-Eastern Agricultural College, Wye. 20. Robert Stanley Vinson, South-Eastern Agricultural College, Wye. 21. Frederick James Podmore, Harris Institute, Preston. 22. James Elgey, Leeds University. 23. Alfred Harold Heath, Harper- Adams Agricultural College. 24. Sydney Rothwell, South-Eastern Agricultural College, Wye, Kent. 25. William Sugden, Harris Institute, Preston. 26. John Wilson, Harris Institute, Preston. 27. Arthur Edward Bruce Fielding, Leeds University. 28. Annie Gladys Anyan, Harris Institute, Preston. Wednesday , December 12, 1906. 229 49. The Examinations for the National Diploma in Dairying were held this year for English students at the Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston, Derby, from September 24-28, and for Scottish students at the Dairy School for Scotland, Kilmarnock, from October 1-5. Thirty- two candidates were examined at Kingston, of whom 19 passed, and 20 candidates at Kilmarnock, of whom 14 passed. The following are the names of the successful candidates : — Examination at Kingston. Walter Biffen, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston. Georoe Ramsey Bland, Lancs. C.C. Farm, Hutton. Mrs. Anna M. E. Bowmer, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. Charles Robert Dewey, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. Miss Maude Elizabeth Dobson, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. Robert Fenton, University College and British Dairy Institute, Reading. Georoe E. H. Ferry, University College and British Dairy Institute. Miss Gertrude Marion Freeman, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston. Harold Gathorne, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston. John Miller Lonsdale, Lancs. C.C. Farm, Hutton. Miss Hilda France Newbigin, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. Miss Edith Noble, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston. Miss A.LICE Hannah Pimlott, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. Wilfrid Sadler, University College and British Dairy Institute, Reading. Robert William Staniforth, Lancs. C.C. Farm, Hutton. William Sugden, Lancs. C.C. Farm, Hutton. Miss Frances Mary Taylor, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College. Miss Tannie Wood, Midland Agricultural and Dairy College, Kingston. Victor Lionel Yates, University College and British Dairy Institute. Examination at Kilmarnock . Miss Edith Anderson, Berryhill, Fowlis Easter, Dundee. John Anderson, Spango, Sanquhar. John Cochrane, Byreholm, Penpont, Dumfries. Miss Catherine M. Dallas, 117 Warrender Park Road, Edinburgh. Miss Margaret Turnbull Dougall, Bonybridge, Stirlingshire. John Dunlop, Nether Balgillo, Tannadice, Forfar. Miss Mary Finlayson, Ardjacie Farm, Tain. Miss Lilias Lees, Lagg Farm, Ayr. Thomas Limond, Whitehill, Trabboch, Ayr. James Mackintosh, Lilybank, Blairgowrie. Miss Grace Robertson, The Dog Leap, Limavady, Co. Derry. Wilfred George Sandeman, Ferndean, Lenzie, Glasgow. John Hunter Smith, Grange, Kilmarnock. Miss Lily Strang, Strathmuir, Allanshaw Road, Hamilton. By Order of the Council : 16 Bedford Square, London, W.C. November 7, 1906. THOMAS McROW, Secretary. . 230 9 ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1906 OF THE PRINCIPAL OF THE ROYAL VETERINARY COLLEGE. Research Laboratory. DURING the year 1906, 855 morbid specimens were forwarded for examination to the Laboratory at the Royal Veterinary College for Research in Comparative Pathology and Bacteriology. This represents a considerable increase over the number in the two previous years, viz., 692 in 1905, and 654 in 1904. Anthrax. The following Table shows the number of outbreaks of this disease, and the total number of animals attacked in each of the last six years : — Year Outbreaks Animals attacked 1901 651 971 1902 678 1,032 1903 767 1,143 1904 1,049 1,589 1905 970 1,317 1906 940 1,326 As will be seen from these figures, there has been little variation in the prevalence of anthrax during recent years, and, for reasons which have been fully discussed in previous Annual Reports, there is not likely to be any notable decline in the number of outbreaks in the future. The proper burial or destruction of anthrax carcasses appears to be generally quite adequate so far as prevention of recurrent outbreaks on the same farm is concerned, but every year the disease makes its appearance on other farms on which there is no history of its previous occurrence. It is probable that in many of these cases the disease is introduced by feeding-stuffs or other materials imported from foreign countries in which anthrax is very common, and it appears at present to be impossible to devise any practicable measures to guard against this risk. Cases which have come under observation during the past year give fresh emphasis to the importance of suspecting anthrax whenever a farm animal dies suddenly and unex- pectedly, and to the danger of using the carcasses of such animals for the feeding of pigs. Anthrax ; Glanders. 231 Glanders. The following Table shows the number of cases of this disease for each of the past six years : — Year No. of cases Year No. of cases 1901 2,370 1904 2,628 1902 2,040 1905 2,068 1903 2,499 1906 2,012 It will be seen from the above figures that during the past year no sensible progress has been made towards the extermi- nation of the disease. As in all previous years, the great bulk of the cases of glanders reported have occurred in London and the Home Counties. Throughout the rest of the country, if one excepts Birming- ham, Manchester, and a few of the other large towns, glanders is rarely met with, and then practically always as a result of the introduction into the locality of a horse from London or one of the other large centres of permanent infection. The local outbreaks in country districts are always easily dealt with, as, when the disease has been diagnosed, there is usually little or no difficulty in determining what horses have been exposed to infection. By the use of mallein on the suspected animals it can then be ascertained which of them are actually infected. The number of these is usually not large, and by promptly slaughtering them the outbreak can be cut short without great expense to the local authority. In London the circumstances are quite different. There, almost the whole of the large studs have long been more or less infected, and when a clinical case of the disease is detected it is often very difficult to ascertain precisely how many other horses ought to be considered as suspected. To eradicate glanders from the large London studs would require the systematic use of mallein on all the animals known to have been in the same stable with any horse found to be glandered, and in many instances the occurrence of a single case of clinical glanders would necessitate the application of the mallein test to some hundreds of horses. Experience already gained shows that a very considerable proportion, varying from 10 to 80 per cent, of the apparently healthy horses in infected stables will react when tested with mallein, and must therefore be regarded as actually glandered and capable of spreading the infection. No outbreak can be satisfactorily dealt with unless these apparently healthy, but in reality diseased, horses are either separated and permanently isolated or immediately destroyed. When the proportion of reacting animals in a large stud is a high 232 Annual Report for 1906 of Royal Veterinary College. one, permanent isolation becomes practically impossible, and unfortunately the alternative procedure necessary to stamp out the disease is also impossible, in view of the very large sum of money that would have to be found to compensate adequately the owners of the slaughtered animals. These facts have for some years been quite clear to all those who have specially studied the subject. It is recognised that the methods by which glanders is being dealt with in London at the present time are only of a temporising character, and that there is not the least prospect that there will be any material reduction in the prevalence of the disease unless more drastic measures are employed. It is understood that the Treasury has hitherto refused to make any grant from Imperial funds to enable the London County Council to provide the compensation that would have to be given to the owners of healthy horses compulsorily slaughtered. Even from a purely agricultural view this -is regrettable, for although the losses which glanders entails fall principally on the owners of large city studs, the disease is every now and again imported into country districts. An additional motive for endeavouring not merely to keep the disease in check, but actually to exterminate it, is provided by the fact that every year glanders claims a number of human victims from among those who have been attending glandered horses. Swine Fever. The following Table shows the number of outbreaks of this disease for the past eight years : — Year Outbreaks Year Outbreaks 1899 2,322 1903 1,478 1900 1,910 1904 1,196 1901 3,140 1905 817 1902 1,688 1906 1,280 The experience of the past year in connection with this disease is calculated to create a feeling of marked disappoint- ment. The reduction in the number of outbreaks which occurred in 1904 and 1905, and especially towards the end of last year, appeared to justify a lively hope that the Board of Agriculture would soon succeed in actually stamping out the disease. Apparently, any such hope must in the meantime be abandoned, since swine fever is now actually more prevalent than it was two years ago. It is impossible to say confidently what has been the cause of the serious recrudescence which has been going on since the latter part of 1905. Swine Fever ; Fowl Cholera. 233 The very fact that after so many years of effort the Board of Agriculture has failed to stamp out swine fever is quite likely to be used as an argument in support of the opinion that the disease is ineradicable. There is, however, no sufficient reason for taking such a despondent view. Although the contrary has sometimes been suggested, it may he regarded as certain that swine fever is a purely contagious disease, no pig ever becoming the subject of it except through direct or indirect connection with an antecedent case of the disease. It therefore follows that if it were possible to ascertain all the places at which the disease now exists and then to slaughter all the diseased and “ in-contact ” animals, and to carry out efficient disinfection of contaminated premises, the disease would thereby be finally brought to an end. The fact that the disease has not been exterminated and is actuallv now */ increasing proves that these conditions are not being fulfilled. In particular, it must be inferred that the Board of Agri- culture is not obtaining prompt information with regard to outbreaks, and as long as that is the case no prqgress in stamping out the disease can be expected. For some time past the Board of Agriculture has not dealt with every outbreak by those cattle plague measures which the late Sir George Brown long ago declared to be necessary for the eradication of swine fever. When the disease is diagnosed it is not the invariable practice of the Board to slaughter the whole of the pigs on the premises, but the owner is placed under serious restrictions with regard to the movement or sale of his animals, and often experiences considerable loss both on that account and through continued deaths from the disease long after the first case was detected. An owner so treated naturally feels that he has a serious grievance, and it is scarcely open to doubt that a knowledge of the fact, that in dealing with outbreaks where large numbers of pigs are concerned the Board of Agriculture does not always slaughter out and compensate, is calculated to lead to concealment of the disease. Needless to say if such concealment is practised in any considerable proportion of outbreaks, the disease will inevitably spread. Fowl Cholera. The disease termed fowl cholera is a very common one in most European countries, but the only available statistics with regard to it come from Germany, in which in one year as many as from seventy to eighty thousand cases of the disease are notified. The disease has so seldom been diagnosed in Great Britain that its occurrence in this country has actuallv been denied. In reality the disease appears to be not very common among British poultry, but from time to time cases 234 Annual Report for 1906 of Royal Veterinary College. are diagnosed in the Research Laboratory at the Royal Veterinary College, and it is quite possible that many outbreaks are overlooked. During the year 1905 three outbreaks came under observation, and that is the largest number that has ever been met with in one year. All the common breeds of domestic poultry are susceptible to fowl cholera, and in all of them the disease is of a deadly character. When once the disease breaks out it generally claims a number of victims every day ; and in a very short time, if no precautions be taken, scarcely a fowl may be left surviving. The duration of the illness is usually a day or two, during which the fowls have the plumage ruffled, show a bluish or livid discoloration of the comb, and suffer from diarrhoea. Sometimes the course of the disease is so acute that fowls perfectly well in the evening are found dead next morning. Experience shows that in outbreaks of fowl cholera, the owners very frequently suspect that the poultry have been poisoned. To a non-professional eye the internal organs of a fowl dead from this disease generally appear normal, but when the intestine is laid open there is nearly always more or less marked evidence of acute inflammation. The microscopic appearance of the blood, however, is of far more value for diagnosis than the appearance of any of the internal organs. Indeed, there are few diseases that can be diagnosed so readily and certainly by microscopic examination as fowl cholera. The cause of the disease is a very minute bacterium, which, at the time of death, is always present in such great numbers in the blood that its presence there can scarcely be overlooked by a bacteriologist. As the disease is highly contagious, being spread by the faeces of affected birds, and the course of the disease is rapid, it is of the utmost importance to make an early diagnosis. When the existence of the disease has been established, all the fowls showing any symptoms of infection ought to be destroyed or isolated, and the remainder should be moved to fresh premises, or, if the season of the year permits, penned on fresh ground, which ought to be changed from day to day until at least a week lias elapsed without a fresh case. Where a complete history is obtainable, it is generally possible to trace outbreaks of fowl cholera to the recent purchase of an infected fowl, but sometimes the occurrence cannot be accounted for in this way, and it appears not impossible that the disease is occasionally sporadic. Psorospermosis. Psorospermosis and coccidiosis are the names applied to diseased conditions caused by certain microscopic animal A New Disease of Cattle. 235 parasites. Cases of disease of this kind have been described as occurring in most of the common domesticated mammals, and occasionally in man himself, but by far the commonest subject of coccidiosis is the rabbit. In the rabbit the disease very frequently affects the liver, and there produces appearances that have often been mistaken for tuberculosis. It also affects the intestines of the rabbit, either alone, or in common with the liver. Coccidiosis is also a disease of the domesticated fowl, but during the last fifteen years only one outbreak of coccidiosis among fowls has been detected in the Research Laboratory at the College. On the other hand, every year in early summer numerous cases of coccidiosis among young pheasants come under observation ; indeed, there can be no doubt that this is the great plague of young pheasants reared under artificial conditions. The deaths usually begin when the young birds are a few weeks old, and within a very short period the mortality may reach 50 to 80 per cent, of all the young birds on the ground. The diagnosis after death, or even during life, by examina- tion of the faeces is a very easy matter, as the intestines and faeces contain great numbers of the so-called coccidia. The excrement of these birds infects the ground on which they are kept, and it will be readily understood how, in favourable circumstances, the disease spreads with alarming rapidity. It is, of course, a very well-known fact that it is extremely dangerous to use the same ground on two successive seasons for pheasant rearing ; but, unfortunately, serious outbreaks of coccidiosis may occur among pheasants on fresh ground. Probably in these cases the disease is introduced by some of the hens used for hatching, for, judging from what is known with regard to the similar disease in rabbits, it is not unlikely that adult fowls are sometimes the subject of coccidiosis although their general health is not seriously affected. Reference has been made to this subject here because it has more than once happened that when an owner who has sent dead pheasants for examination has been informed that the cause of death was psorospermosis, he has written, asking to be informed in plain English what was the name of the disease. Unfortunately, the answer to this has to be that there is no plain English or other common term for the disease in question. A New Disease of Cattle ( Johne's Disease). Perhaps the most important fact to be recorded in this Report is that, during the past year, cases of a bovine disease hitherto not identified in this country have been met with. The only justification for calling the disease a new one is that 236 Annual Report for 1906 of Royal Veterinary College . the first recorded case was described in Germany by Johne and Frothingham in 1895. For nearly ten years afterwards no other case of the disease appears to have been observed, or at least described ; but during the last three years further cases have been described as occurring in Germany by Markus (1904), in Belgium by Lienaux and van den Eeckhaut (1905), in Switzerland by Borgeaud (1905), and in Denmark by Bang (1906). Although only a comparatively sinall number of cases have thus been recorded as yet, there is every reason to believe that the disease is not, in the proper sense of the word, a new one ; on the contrary, it is quite possible that it may have existed as a disease of cattle from time immemorial, and have been overlooked through being confounded with other affections with somewhat similar symptoms. The above-mentioned authors, Johne and Frothingham, to whom belongs the honour of having, so to speak, discovered the disease, regarded it as a form or variety of tuberculosis, and other authors have since applied the name pseudo-tuber- culosis to it. As will presently be explained, the disease appears to be entirely distinct from tuberculosis, and it would therefore be very undesirable to apply to it any term likely to suggest a connection between the two diseases. The disease has also been termed chronic bovine enteritis, which desig- nation is in agreement with the fact that the principal lesions are situated in the intestines, and take the form of a slowly developing or chronic inflammation. Nevertheless, this name is not free from objection, since cattle may be the subjects of different forms of chronic inflammation of the intestines. Hence, the writer of this Report ventures to suggest that the disease should in future be known as “ Johne’s Disease.” During the past year the disease was identified as occurring on six different farms in various parts of the country, and an opportunity was obtained to make a complete post-mortem examination of five animals killed at an advanced stage of illness. The following account of the symptoms, course of the disease, and post-mortem appearances, is based on the observations made in connection with these cases. Symptoms and course of the disease. — In all the cases investigated there was a history of the occurrence of previous cases on the same farm, extending for several years back in some of them. The ages of the animals attacked varied from yearlings to adult or middle-aged cattle. In all cases the most striking symptom was more or less rapid loss of condition, the emaciation always becoming very pronounced when the course of the disease was not cut short by slaughter. In every case diarrhoea was also a prominent symptom throughout the greater part of the illness, but sometimes the owners were able to 4 New Disease of Cattle. 237 diagnose the onset of the affection by a falling off in condition before the diarrhoea had set in. As a rule, when once the diarrhoea had begun, it persisted until the end, the rate of loss of condition being proportional to the profuseness of the diarrhoea. Beyond these two symptoms, emaciation and diarrhoea, there was never any marked disturbance of the normal functions until near the end, and the appetite was good throughout. Lesions. — The disease is essentially one of the intestines, and indeed, the other organs of the body do not usually present any alteration apparent to the naked eye. Moreover, the alterations within the intestine are themselves not of a very conspicuous character, and it is quite certain that they might easily be overlooked. As a rule, both large and small intestines are involved in the disease, but there is some reason to think that the small intestine is primarily affected, and the alterations in it are usually most pronounced. As a rule a variable length of the small intestine next the stomach is unaffected. Even before the intestine is cut its walls give to the fingers an impression of abnormal thickness, and when an affected piece of bowel is slit open the mucous membrane which lines it is found to present an appearance which is most characteristic of the disease. The abnormality of this appearance lies in the fact that the surface of the membrane shows a coarse wrinkling or corrugation. When a cut is made across the bowel wall it becomes apparent that it is the internal coat or mucous membrane which is increased in thickness. This thickening of the mucous membrane is, in the case of the small intestine, as a rule, not associated with any very marked inflammatory congestion. In the large intestine the thickened and wrinkled mucous membrane usually shows more congestion, and not infrequently small haemorrhages are present. An important point to be noticed is that in none of the cases examined was there any ulceration or formation of actual nodules such as may be found in genuine tuberculosis of the intestine. The lymphatic glands of the intestine, and especially the mesenteric group, are perhaps a little larger than normal, but here, again, the abnormality is not at all pronounced. When the glands are incised their substance appears pale and watery, but beyond this the naked eye detects nothing unusual. These intestinal and glandular alterations appear to consti- tute the whole of the alterations peculiar to the disease. In one of the animals examined post mortem a tuberculous lesion was found in one of the glands of the chest, but this observation does not point to any relationship between tuberculosis and the disease now under consideration. The animal simply happened to be the subject of both diseases. 238 Annual Report for 190fi of Royal Veterinary College. In the other cases examined no trace of tuberculosis was found anywhere. In three of the cases examined the fourth or true digestive stomach appeared to be perfectly normal. In the fourth animal the mucous membrane of this stomach was in a markedly oedematous or dropsical condition, and there were numerous very shallow erosions on it. Microscopic examination is necessary in order to ascertain what is the nature of the alteration which produces the thickening of the intestinal mucous membrane, and such examination at the same time reveals the cause of the disease. As Johne and Frothingham discovered, the diseased mucous membrane contains immense numbers of a small bacillus which is not unlike the bacillus of tuberculosis in shape and size, and which resembles that organism still more closely in what may be called staining reactions. The tubercle bacillus is the most important member of the group of what are called acid-fast bacteria, the distinguishing character of which is that when once they have been stained with any one of the dyes in common use in bacteriology they cannot readily be decolourised even by the use of strong acid solutions. The bacillus of Johne’s Disease is one of these acid-fast organisms, and by taking advantage of this fact it is very easy to demonstrate the presence of the bacteria in sections or even in scrapings from the diseased mucous membrane. In most of the cases that have been examined the number of these bacteria present in the thickened mucous membrane was colossal, and a marked feature of them is their tendency to be aggregated into comparatively large groups. As previously stated, the bacteria in question are not unlike tubercle bacilli in shape and size, but on an average they appear to be somewhat smaller. The microscopic alterations in the diseased mucous membrane comprise a partial destruction of its surface epithelium, and of the epithelium of the villi in the case of the small bowel, and also an addition of a certain amount of new cellular tissue between the tubular glands and in the substance of the villi. This cellular infiltration frequently extends to the sub-mucous coat, immediately under the deep ends of the tubular glands. It is in this new cellular material that the bacilli are found imbedded. Contrary to what is the case in tuberculous lesions, the cellular infiltration or multiplication is quite diffuse, and not in the form of nodules or tubercles. A further distinction between the two processes is that in Johne’s Disease there appears to be no tendency to the peculiar tissue degeneration called caseation, or to calcification. On the other hand, the two processes resemble each other in that giant cells are often present in their respective lesions. A New Disease of Cattle. 239 The same acid-fast bacteria are also present in the mesenteric glands in Johne’s Disease, but usually in smaller numbers than in the diseased intestinal mucous membrane. The facts already mentioned indicate that the bacillus of Johne’s Disease is an organism distinct from the bacillus which is the cause of tuberculosis in cattle, and the difference between them is further brought out when they are used to inoculate guinea-pigs. These animals invariably contract a fatal disease when they are inoculated with even minute numbers of bovine tubercle bacilli, but experiments which have been made in connection with the cases of Johne’s Disease observed in this country corroborate the observations previously made on the Continent, and prove that the disease is not transmissible by inoculation to the guinea-pig. Attempts were made to cultivate the bacilli from these cases of Johne’s Disease on artificial media, but hitherto without success. This negative result is in agreement with the expe- rience of those who have experimented in the same direction on the Continent. Probable habit of the bacillus of Johne's Disease. — A point of great practical importance in connection with every bacterial disease is to know whether it is a purely contagious one or whether it is sometimes or always sporadic. Whether a disease belongs to the first or the second of these categories depends entirely upon whether the bacteria are incapable of multiplying except in the bodies of infected animals or are able to main- tain their existence by multiplying in the outer world. In the latter case, the disease may obviously arise independently of contagion or infection, and it is equally obvious that in the former case no animal can ever, in natural circumstances, become infected except through the agency of bacteria which have come from a previously diseased animal. Applying these considerations to Johne’s Disease, one may ask whether the bacilli which are the cause of it are capable of multiplying outside the bodies of diseased animals — in the soil, in animal excrement, in water, on forage plants, or in decaying vegetable matter, for example. In view of the difficulty, amounting hitherto to an impossibility, of cultivating the bacillus artifici- ally, even under the most favourable conditions, this question must in all probability receive a negative answer. In other words, Johne’s Disease must be regarded as a purely contagious one, the vehicle of infection being the excrement of affected animals. As previously stated, in advanced cases of the disease the bacilli are present in enormous numbers in the lining membrane of the intestine, and some of them are constantly escaping into the bowel, to be passed outwards with the faeces. There is consequently no difficulty in understanding how the 240 Annual Report for 1906 of Royal Veterinary College. disease spreads ; indeed, it is obvious that, given a single case of the disease, an actual outbreak, comprising numerous simultaneous or successive cases, is likely to be the result unless special precautions are taken to isolate the affected animal and destroy its excrement. A point upon which we at present possess no information is the capacity of the bacteria for retaining their vitality in the outer world when they have been voided from the bowel. Upon this will depend the difficulty of disinfection and the length of time for which infected premises or pastures will remain dangerous. Diagnosis. — In a previous Annual Report reference was made to cases of diarrhoea and wasting in cattle caused by the presence of minute worms in the fourth or true digestive stomach,1 and the account of the symptoms of this parasitic gastritis there given would with little or no alteration apply to the present disease. That there occurs in cattle as well as in sheep a genuine parasitic gastritis caused by worms there can be no doubt, but it is quite possible that hitherto many cases of Johne’s Disease have been confounded with parasitic gastritis, the latter disease being diagnosed simply from the diarrhoea and emaciation. It is well known that small numbers of various round worms may be found in the true stomach in apparently healthy cattle, and it would be a mistake to attach any pathogenic importance to worms in that position unless they are present in large numbers. In future there will be no difficulty in distinguishing between parasitic gastritis and Johne’s Disease when an opportunity is afforded to make a post- mortem examination. The peculiar thickened and wrinkled condition of the mucous membrane in the latter disease is by itself a fairly reliable guide to diagnosis, and when any doubt remains, that can readily be resolved by searching the scrapings from the mucous membrane for the characteristic acid-fast bacilli. While the animal is still alive diagnosis is not so easy. Naturally it would occur to one to search the faeces for acid- fast bacteria in any suspected case, but a difficulty here arises from the fact that other species of acid-fast bacteria which grow on some of the grasses may be found in the excre- ment of perfectly healthy animals. Such acid-fast “ grass bacilli,” however, are seldom to be found in any considerable number in the faeces, and therefore when large numbers of acid-fast organisms, many of them collected together in groups, are found in the faeces of an animal suffering from diarrhoea and wasting, there would probably be little risk of error in diagnosing the case as one of Johne’s Disease. 1 Journal R.A.S.E., Vol. 64, 1903, pp. 280-282. A New Disease of Cattle. 241 Treatment and prevention. — According to all the experience hitherto gained, Johne’s Disease is invariably fatal. The diarrhoea may be temporarily checked, but the loss of condition continues, and in the end the animal becomes so weak that it is unable to rise. The duration of the illness is variable. In one of the cases examined post mortem during the past year, the animal had survived for nearly a year after the onset of distinct symptoms, but sometimes the loss of condition is much more rapid, and death may occur in two or three months. At the present moment it is impossible to say what period usually elapses between time of infection and the onset of distinct symptoms, but in all probability the period of incuba- tion is often a long one, extending possibly to many months. Some precise information with regard to this point will pro- bably be gained in the future by experiment. Unfortunately, there is reason to fear that animals may be capable of spreading the infection some considerable time before they themselves show any decided symptoms. The disease being in the present state of our knowledge incurable, and affected animals being a source of danger to others kept in the same premises or pasture, it follows that the best course to adopt when the disease has been certainly diagnosed is to have the animal or animals promptly slaughtered. The manure of such animals ought either to be destroyed or spread on land that is going to be ploughed down. Unfortu- nately, on some farms the disease appears to have established a firm footing, owing to the fact that cases have occurred for years past, and that no measures have been taken to prevent the spread of the disease or the infection of the pastures. Any field that is specially infected might be used exclusively for grazing sheep or horses, as there is reason to believe that animals of these two species are not susceptible to the disease. Probably little or no benefit is to be expected from the applica- tion of lime or any other dressing to the pasture. J. McFadyean. Royal Veterinary College, London, N.W. VOL. (17. K . 242 ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1906 OF THE CONSULTING CHEMIST. The number of samples analysed in the Society’s laboratory during the twelve months, December 1, 1905, to November 30, 1906, approached very closely to that of the previous year, being 559 as against 571. The complete list is given at the close of this Report, and does not show any marked difference from the lists of former years. The most important feature, so far as the analytical work on behalf of members of the Society is concerned, has been the introduction and passing into law of a new Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Act, superseding the former Act of 1893. It had come to be recognised that the old Act, however good in its intentions, had practically failed to fulfil the hopes that had been expressed concerning it, and, though useful in its provisions when energetically prosecuted, had in many parts of the country become almost a “ dead letter.” Hence the necessity, recognised on all hands, of introducing further legislation. It was found best to do this by means of a new Act rather than by an amendment of the existing one. Previous to this being brought in, the suggestions of the Royal Agricultural Society of England and other bodies were sought by the Board of Agriculture, and it can be recorded with satisfaction that effect has been given in great measure to the Society’s representations. The main difficulties in connection with the working of the old Act were threefold : (1) the reluctance of the farmer to take up the position of prosecutor ; (2) the complicated procedure as regards sampling ; (3) the evasion of the Act by the giving of worthless guarantees. These difficulties it has now been sought to remedy (1) by the appointment of official samplers to act under County Councils and Boroughs ; (2) by simplification of procedure in sampling ; (3) by compelling the giving of a guarantee of, within reasonable limits, the actual contents. Further, a guarantee is now required in the case of prepared feeding stuffs as well as of fertilisers. It may at once be said that these changes have produced a much improved Measure, and, with the issue of the Regula- tions that accompany it, bid fair to make the Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Act a much more useful one. The purchaser will largely be relieved from the odium attached to throwing doubt upon the bond ftdes of the vendor, and from the for- malities associated with taking samples and forwarding them for analysis. He will also have the satisfaction of knowing that, in future, if he has had sold to him superphosphate of, say, 26 per cent. “ soluble phosphate,” or linseed cake with 10 per Fertilisers and Feeding Stvffs Act , 1906. 243 cent, of oil, he is fairly secured to getting within 1 per cent, or so of these quantities, or, failing it, will be able to demand compensation. On the other hand, the Act still presents deficiencies, possibly unavoidable. The power which County Councils formerly possessed, of instituting action on their own account, is now taken away, and this may lead, not improbably, to a decrease of local interest and energy. Further, the Act, though it will put an end to the giving of bogus guarantees that comply with the letter rather than the spirit of the law, fails (as probably all Acts must fail) in securing to the purchaser that the price he has to pay for an article has any necessary relation to its intrinsic value. A vendor can still, though guaranteeing the actual contents, charge whatever price he likes. Accordingly, I anticipate that, though the new Act may cause a considerable increase of activity in having analyses made under County Council and Borough auspices, there will yet be ample scope for the carrying on of the beneficial work which the Royal Agricultural Society of England has now for so long a period conducted on behalf of its members. Lastly, it may be pointed out that the new Act will concern itself mainly, or almost entirely, with the civil relations between vendor and purchaser, and that the criminal sections of the Act will only rarely, and in extreme cases, be taken up. Coming to the main features presented in the following Report, it may be said that throughout the year the examination of fertilisers generally has shown an exceedingly satisfactory condition of things. Of feeding stuffs, however, the same can hardly be said. Foreign-made linseed cakes have, in several instances, been found to be unsatisfactory, whilst Bombay cotton-cake has, as a class, distinctly deteriorated, this deteriora- tion being specially marked in an increase in the sand and dirt attaching to the woolly fibre of the seed. Instances are given of this exceeding 1 per cent, and sometimes going up to 5 per cent. In compound feeding cakes and meals harmful ingredients, such as castor-bean husk, have been not infre- quently found, and a new danger has been introduced by the discovery that certain foreign beans, known variously as “ Java "beans ” or “ red Rangoon beans,” become poisonous through the development in them of hydrocyanic (prussic) acid. Numerous materials in which beet-sugar molasses form a con- siderable item continue to be largely offered, and, generally speaking, at prices much beyond their value. They obtain, however, a ready sale mainly because, their sweetness inducing animals to take them greedily, purchasers think they must be excellent foods. 244 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Chemist. A. Feeding Stuffs. 1. Linseed Cake. It has been mentioned that one change effected by the new Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Act is that, in future, a guarantee of composition will have to be given with respect to all pre- pared feeding stuffs — linseed, cotton, and all compound cakes and meals, for example. This guarantee is to be confined to a statement of the percentages of oil and albuminoids. That something of this kind will work advantageously to the pur- chaser is shown by the setting out of the following analyses of four samples of linseed cake which had been offered to a member at prices differing but little from one another, though the analyses show that the cakes were very different in quality : — A B C 13 Moisture .... 12*81 13*25 11*83 9-96 Oil . .... 9*46 9*08 9*09 11*31 Albuminous Compounds (flesh-forming matters) . 25*44 23*50 28*38 37*44 Mucilage, sugar, and diges- tible fibre 36-81 42*75 36*52 29*63 Woody fibre (cellulose) 7*36 6*39 7*79 5*69 2Mineral matter (ash) . 8*12 5*03 6*39 5*97 100*00 100*00 100*00 100*00 1 Containing nitrogen . 4*07 3*78 4*54 5*99 2 Including sand . 1*99 0*40 0*65 0*94 A cost SI. 6s. 8 cl. per ton, delivered. * B ,, 81. 15s. 0 d. ,, ,, C „ 81. 5s. 0 d. D ,, 81. 5s. 0 d. ,, „ Of the four cakes, “ A ” was a very impure one, containing, as it did, mustard seed, cockle seed, and niger seed, with 2 per cent, of sand ; “B” was of fair purity ; “C” hardly as good ; while “ D,” though the lowest-priced cake, was quite pure and of much the highest quality. A similar difference of quality, though prices were much alike, was found in the case of a member who sent two linseed cakes for oil determination, the results being : — A B Percentage of oil . . 11*43 6*60 Price per ton . . .81. 10s. 81. 5s. Moreover, while u A ” was quite pure, “ B ” was far from being so. As previously indicated, the new Act should do much to remedy these anomalies. 245 Feeding S tuffs . Considerable difficulty is often found in obtaining any satisfactory guarantee as to either the purity or the quality of linseed cakes of foreign manufacture, the vendors stating that they have no control over these matters and must just sell the cakes as they are represented to them. A common form of guarantee, which, however, can hardly be called a “ guarantee ” at all, is the following : — “Foreign Cakes. — American, Russian, and all imported Cakes and Feeding Stuffs are guaranteed of the usual good and merchantable quality of the brand or description stated, but exact composition unknown.” The following are analyses of some of these “ foreign-made linseed cakes ” which have been submitted to me during the year : — Russian make Polish make A B c Moisture ...... 10-65 13-11 11-50 Oil 6-95 6-59 18*01 Albuminous compounds (flesh-form- ing matters) .... 25-81 27-06 28-13 Mucilage, sugar, and digestible fibre. 41-61 40-17 30-27 Woody fibre (cellulose) . ' > . 8-31 7-59 6-76 2 Mineral matter (ash) 6-67 5-48 5-33 , “ •. vrii !' '-.S 4_- 100-00 100-00 100-00 , . . \r i cvr r* a . * - 1 Containing nitrogen 4-13 4-33 4-50 2 Including sand .... 1-49 0-55 0-45 “ A ” cost SI. per ton, delivered ; it was not pure, but con- tained a quantity of starchy impurities and weed seeds, though invoiced as “Linseed Cake.” Its lowness in oil and albuminoids is noticeable. “ B ” cost SI. 3s. per ton and was of similar low quality. It was likewise impure, spurry and other weed seeds being present in quantity. While giving this general warning as regards “ foreign-made ” cakes, it is only right to add that these are not by any means always to be avoided. This is instanced by the analysis “C,” the cake being one of Polish manufacture, and said to be hand-pressed by the peasants. It was practically a pure cake, and contained upwards of 18 per cent, of oil, the cost being SI. 2s. 6d. per ton, delivered. 2. Decorticated Cotton Cake. Decorticated cotton cake has unfortunately, as usual, been very hard to get of good quality, and, though only occasionally found to be adulterated, the uncertainty attaching to getting a good cake has made purchasers shy of using this relatively most economical feeding material. The following is an analysis * 246 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Chemist. of a cake submitted to me, which was both inferior in quality and excessively dear, the price being 81. 13s. per ton delivered: — Moisture .... • • • • 9-88 Oil ..... • • • • 6-90 1 Albuminous compounds (flesh-forming matters) . 42-62 Mucilage, sugar, and digestible fibre . 2729 Woody fibre (cellulose) • 7-13 2 Mineral matter (ash) . . 6-18 100-00 1 Containing nitrogen 6-82 2 Including sand . . 035 3. Undecorticated Cotton Cakes. While ordinary home-made cotton cake has been, generally speaking, of good quality and in good condition, this is far from being the case with the class of cake known as “ Bombay cotton cake.” I confess that I have never been favourably disposed towards this kind of cake, as I cannot bring myself to think that it can be used for stock without running risk on account of the woolly fibre attaching to the seed. Bat the experience of the past year has led me to regard it even less favourably, for I have noticed a steady rise in the percentage of sand and dirt which occur in these cakes and which result from less care being taken in cleaning the seed. At first, *50 per cent, of sand was about the amount usually found, as against a maximum of *25 per cent, in cakes made from Egyptian seed ; but, as the following analyses show, the per- centage is now considerably increased, and it is exceptional, according to my experience, to find a Bombay cotton cake with less than 1 per cent, of sand. A B C D E F Percentage of ash 5*52 5*54 5*87 6-00 5'93 5*73 ,, ,, sand P04 094 1*19 1*25 1-12 1*25 Still higher and exceptional figures are found in the following : — , A B Moisture ...... 1047 11-36 Oil ....... 4-69 4-36 Albuminous compounds (flesh-forming matters) ...... 2056 18-88 Mucilage, sugar, and digestible fibre 36-46 34-60 Woody fibre (cellulose) .... 20-39 18-97 2 Mineral matter (ash) .... 7-43 11-83 100-00 100-00 Containing nitrogen .... 3*29 3-02 2 Including sand ..... 2-09 5-23 Feeding Stuffs. 247 In only one of the foregoing cases was borax found to be absent. 4. Compound Feeding Cakes and Meals. The samples sent have been of the usual variable quality, some being quite good and made from sound and suitable feeding materials, while others have been made the media for using up matter of, to say the least, “ doubtful ” nature. It not infrequently happens that, in the making up of a compound cake, oil-containing materials are imported from abroad of which little is known, and as they come over with castor oil beans, or are shipped at ports whence castor bean is exported, a source of danger thereby attaches to their use. I have had before me several instances of the use of such materials in which castor bean, to more or less extent, often occurs, and their use in compound cakes subsequently has led to cases of injury and death to stock. 5. Java Beans. A further source of danger to stock has been observed from the use of beans imported from abroad under the names “ Java beans ” or “ red Rangoon beans,” and their composition and nature have been made the object of study by several investigators. It has now been ascertained that they contain an ingredient capable of developing hydrocyanic (prussic) acid, and so poisoning stock. In Scotland, especially, there have been several instances of serious losses from the use of these beans, and it behoves stock owners to be on their guard respecting the use of bean meal which may possibly contain these foreign beans. For my own part I hold that it is unwise to purchase, in the form of meal, beans, maize, and other foods which are readily obtainable whole ; much the best plan is to purchase these in the whole state, when impurities can be readily detected, and to grind them into meal on the farm. 6. “ Sharps ” adulterated with Coffee-bean Husk. Attention has been drawn in previous Reports to the use of the husk or “parchment” skin of the coffee bean as an adulterant of bran, “ sharps,” and other milling products. The exposure of this practice in the publications of the Society has, no doubt, been responsible, in great measure, for the general cessation of the practice, but now and again instances come up of its recurrence. One such case was before me recently, and in this the coffee-bean husk was so finely ground up as to make its detection, except by the microscope, impossible. 7. Miscellaneous Feeding Materials. Two analyses are appended — the first of maize germ cake, and the second of oat siftings from the manufacture of a 248 Annual Report for 1906' of the Consulting Chemist. special kind of oatmeal. The former cost 6/. 5s. per ton, and was free from impurity. It had, however, a somewhat insipid taste, and, considering the analysis, it is questionable whether it is any improvement on maize itself, at the respective prices. The “ oat siftings ” at 31. 15s. per ton must be considered excessively dear, and the material, indeed, is of very question- able feeding value. Maize germ Oat cake siftings Moisture ...... 9-32 8*63 Oil 6-71 3*09 Albuminous compounds (flesh-forming matters) ...... 14*19 7*37 Mucilage, sugar, and digestible fibre 61*17 49*84 Woody fibre (cellulose) 3*92 25*71 2 Mineral matter (ash) .... 4*69 5*36 100*00 100*00 Containing nitrogen . . . . 2*27 1*18 2 Including sand and silica 0*05 3*72 B. Fertilisers. Of the ordinary fertilisers, such as mineral superphosphate, dissolved bones, basic slag, nitrate of soda, kainit, &c., it> may be said generally that the trade in them has been very satisfac- tory, leaving the farmer very little to complain of. Mineral superphosphate of as high a grade as 35 per cent. “ soluble phosphate” has come largely into use, through the employment of raw phosphate of high grade and capable of easy working ; and, though the quality has increased, the price is relatively lower to the purchaser than it used to be. Basic slag has, with few exceptions, been found to come up to the requirements of the guarantees given. No instances have been met with of adulteration of nitrate of soda, sulphate of ammonia, or kainit. Altogether, as regards the supply to the farmer of the ordinary staple manures of the farm, it may be said, in fairness to the trade, that there is but little cause for the intervention of a new Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Act. It will, therefore, be only necessary for me to note briefly any special cases that have occurred, and to mention any new materials that have come forward. 1. Peruvian Guano ( Phosphatic ). An excellent sample of the more phosphatic kind of Peruvian guano, such as is suitable for root-growing or in hop and fruit gardens, was the following : — Fertilisers. 249 Moisture . Organic matter . Phosphate of lime 2 Alkalies, &c. Insoluble siliceous matter 12- 37 13- 67 39-62 17-73 16-61 100-00 per ton, and must be 1 Containing nitrogen ..... 2*65 Equal to ammonia ..... 3"22 2 Containing phosphoric acid . . . 6"89 Equal to phosphate of lime . . . 15"03 Potash . . . . . . . 3-16 Equal to sulphate of potash . . . 5' 8 5 Total phosphate of lime .... 54'65 The price of this was only 4 1. 18s. 9 d. considered very low. 2. Refuse Manures. As usual, it is in the class of materials that may be put under the above name that the greatest uncertainty prevails. These are generally sold for what they will fetch, and though they may be offered with a guarantee of quality, there is, even under the provisions of the new Act, no means of knowing — short of analysis — whether they are at all worth the price or not. Instances are the following A Moisture .... 20-04 1 Organic matter and water of combination 41-05 Monobasic phosphate of lime • • 2-44 Equal to tribasic phosphate of lime (bone phosphate) rendered soluble by acid (3-82) Insoluble phosphates . • • 1-25 Sulphate of lime, alkaline salts, &c. 14-13 Insoluble siliceous matter . • 21-09 100-00 1 Containing nitrogen . # , 3-06 Equal to ammonia • 3-71 B Moisture .... 2-14 1 Carbon and loss on heating • . 42-53 Phosphoric acid . • • 0-16 Lime ..... , , 3-74 Oxide of iron , , 23-50 Insoluble siliceous matter . • 27-93 100-00 1 Containing nitrogen . • • 0-35 Equal to ammonia • • 0-59 k” was described as a “new kind of manure,” 3 1. 5s. per ton, delivered, and sold as a “ potato manure.” 250 Annual Report for 1906' of the Consulting Chemist. Shoddy and coal ashes figured among its ingredients, but it was, to my mind, very far from being what a “potato manure ” should be, and the price was just about 11. per ton above the real value. It may be but a coincidence, but my experience tells me that whenever a refuse manure is sold at a price of 3 1. or from that to 3 1. 10s. a ton, I must be suspicious of it. “ 31. 10s. per ton, delivered,” seems a favourite quotation for these nondescript articles. “ B ” was sold at the seemingly low price of 7s. per ton, being produced at Wolverhampton ; the analysis, however, shows it to be practically worthless as a manure. 3. Chicken Manure. The analysis is given of a sample of manure produced in the fattening of chickens on a large scale. The trouble with . such materials is, as a rule, the wet and lumpy condition in which they are, and the difficulty of applying them to the land. The following was, however, considering its nature, in very fair condition, and, at the price — 1Z. per ton, delivered — at which it was offered, cannot be called too dear : — Moisture . 1 Organic matter 2 Phosphoric acid Lime . Alkalies, &c. Sand . 1 Containing nitrogen . Equal to ammonia 2 Equal to phosphate of lime 47-25 26-97 1-22 4-89 7-05 12-62 100-00 1-16 1-14 3-66 4. Damaged Cotton Seed. This material has, in several instances, been brought to my notice. It is not the damaged cake, but the cotton seed itself which has become damaged or heated, and so is only useful as manure. The analyses of it, however, show that, as compared with rape cake or other refuse cakes used as manure, it is relatively dear. A B C Moisture 17-01 46-40 14-26 1 Organic matter . 77-61 50-10 81-49 Alkalies, &c. 3-39 2-40 3-35 Sand .... 1-99 1-10 0-90 100-00 100-00 100-00 1 Containing nitrogen 1-28 0-79 1-31 Equal to ammonia 1-55 0-96 1-59 Fertilisers. 251 “ A ” and “ B ” both cost 12s. $d. per ton. The former, if it could be got on the farm for the price, would be just about worth purchasing, but “B1’ was much wetter and consequently poorer in quality. “ C ” cost 30s. per ton, and was clearly much too dear. 5. Soot. The variable quality of soot and the need of ascertaining its quality before using it, have frequently been commented on by me. The following is the analysis of a sample submitted to me under the name “ Soot ” : — Moisture ...... 1 Organic matter and salts of ammonia . Oxide of iron, alkalies, &c. Sand ....... 2-84 14-82 18-47 63-87 100-00 1 Containing nitrogen ..... 0"46 Equal to ammonia ..... 0*56 This, though guaranteed as “ pure soot,” was an almost worthless article, containing about 64 per cent, of siliceous matters, and not more nitrogen than is possessed by a fairly fertile pasture soil. 6. Raw Phosphate. Occasionally the farmer has offered to him raw material of phosphatic nature, such as ground phosphate, Belgian phosphate, &c., which, however useful it may be to the manufacturer of artificial manures, has, owing to its slow availability, but little use to the farmer. Of such was the following, offered at 21. 12s. per ton, it being really Belgian phosphate, and containing, as that material does, a considerable amount of carbonate of lime : — Moisture and organic matter Phosphate of lime Carbonate of lime, &c. Sand ..... 4-13 50-23 45-19 0-45 100-00 7. Ground Lime. I cannot say that my experience of ground lime during the past twelve months has been any more favourable than I previously reported it to be ; and, though good samples can be met with, they have to be looked for, and considerable care must be exercised in the purchase. . The following are cases in point : — - 252 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Chemist. A B C Oxide of iron and alumina 2*98 1*49 Oxide of iron and alumina . 7*93 Lime 77*14 86*54 Lime . 43*37 Magnesia, carbonic acid, &c. . 6*86 7*58 Carbonic acid, &c. 29*59 Insoluble siliceous matter 13*02 4*39 Insoluble siliceous matter . 19*11 100*00 100*00 100*00 “A” was inferior in quality and decidedly lumpy, not being at all what “ ground 55 lime should be. “ B,” though better in quality, was still distinctly coarse as regards grinding. Both samples came from the York district. “ C ” was a sample of “lime ashes,” obtained in Hampshire, and, though costing only 3s. 8d. per ton, could not be worth carting any distance, seeing the large amount of extraneous matter it contained. 8. Flue Dust. A sample of this, taken from the flues of boilers at a colliery, was sent me and analysed as follows : — Loss on heating ..... 4*34 Oxide of iron and alumina. . . . 41*16 Lime ........ 13*54 Siliceous matter ..... 35*21 Carbonic acid, alkalies, &c. . . . 5*75 100 00 Nitrogen ....... none This, it will be noticed, has a small quantity of lime in it, but any value it might have is discounted by the presence of a large amount of sulphur compounds injurious to vege- tation. 9. Lime Waste from Boiler Water. The precipitated mass formed in softening boiler water with lime has, as the chief objection to its employment in agriculture, the difficulty of getting it in dry and portable form. In one case referred to me, however, the lime waste had been subsequently pressed in hydraulic presses and so dried, being obtained in portable form, easy of application to the land. It gave the following analysis : — Water of combination, &c. . . . 13*21 Carbonate of lime . . . . . 74*50 Magnesia ....... 8*61 Silica ....... 3*68 100*00 253 Soils. 10. Calcined Ironstone. A member of the Society, having at band a quantity of this material, in the form of powder, thought that it might contain sufficient lime and phosphoric acid to make it worth while applying as a dressing to grass land. On analysis, however, it was found to contain only a trace of phosphoric acid, and : — Per cent. Lime ....... 2-37 Silica . . . . - . . 36'44 it being, thus, practically worthless for manurial purposes. C. Soils. The examination of samples of soil has been instrumental in bringing out, in many cases, explanation of observed facts, and in pointing to manifest deficiencies in certain constituents of the soil. The following are analyses of two samples of soil from a field of low-lying land in North Wales. On the portion represented by “A” almost nothing would grow except a mass of sorrel, while on soil “ B ” quite a fair crop of roots was raised. A B Organic matter and loss on heating 45-40 59-95 Oxide of iron and alumina . 6-53 6-81 Lime ...... 0-22 0-99 Magnesia, alkalies, &c. 1-32 1-26 Insoluble silicates and sand . 46-53 30-99 100-00 100-00 A comparison of the two analyses will show how marked was the difference between the amounts of lime in the two soils, the presence of this to a greater extent in “ B ” having, doubtless, “ sweetened ” the land. In another instance a member sent me a sample of soil from a field which he described as “in parts growing absolutely nothing.” He mentioned that six years previously lime had been applied on one strip, and here barley grew quite fairly. Analysis of the soil brought out the fact of its great poverty in lime, while the result of applying lime supplied a useful confirmation of what has been so clearly demonstrated in the Woburn Field Experiments. Organic matter and loss on heating . . 3"56 Oxide of iron and alumina . . . 4"42 Lime ........ 0'08 Alkalies, magnesia, &c. .... 0'25 Phosphoric acid . . . . . . 0‘ 12 Insoluble siliceous matter .... 91 ‘57 100-00 Nitrogen 0*117 254 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Chemist. List of samples analysed on behalf of members of the Society between Dec. 1, 1905, and Nov. 28, 1906 : — Linseed cakes . . . . . . . . . 61 Undecorticated cotton cakes ...... 35 Decorticated cotton cakes . . . . . . 11 Compound feeding cakes and meals. .... 61 Cereals . . . . . . . . . . 14 Rice meal ......... — Bean and pea meals ....... 2 Dried grains ......... — Superphosphates ........ 35 Dissolved bones and compound manures .... 35 Raw and steamed bones ....... 28 Peruvian guanos . . . . . . . . 15 Fish, meat, and bone guanos . . . . . . 16 Basic slag. ......... 35 Nitrate of soda ........ 7 Sulphate of ammonia . . . . . . . 13 Potash salts ......... 9 Shoddy .......... 29 Hoofs and horns ........ — Rape and other manure cakes ...... 2 Lime .......... 7 Soot ........... 2 Roots .......... 1 Hay 1 Creosote .......... 1 Cider .......... 1 Waters .......... 80 Soils .......... 19 Milk, cream, and butter . . . . . . . 16 Miscellaneous ......... 23 Total .... 559 J. Augustus Yoelcker. 22 Tudor Street, E.C. 255 ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1906 OF THE CONSULTING BOTANIST. DURING the past year, 208 inquiries from members of the Society were dealt with. So far as these applications testify, it may be said that from the point of view of the Botanical Department the year- has been a satisfactory one for the farmer. Most of the inquiries related to the germination and purity of farm seeds. Only twenty-two applications were made by members in regard to diseases in farm crops ; in each case information was given as to the cause of the malady, with advice as to remedial treatment. In fifty-three cases informa- tion was given as to the names and properties of unknown plants, and as to the eradication uf those that were weeds. Several of the plants had been suspected of having poisoned stock, but no loss of farm animals was brought to the notice of the Botanist from poisoning this year. Purity and Germination op Seeds. Forty-seven samples of clovers were examined for purity and germination. Only in one case, a sample of Chilian clover, was dodder found. This is a great improvement in the seed in the market ; it is to be hoped that with continued care the seed of this serious pest may soon disappear from the clover seeds offered to the farmer. The highest percentage in the germination of clovers reached 97 per cent., and the lowest was 80 per cent. ; the average was 90 per cent., representing throughout a good quality of seed. A sample of red clover was remarkable for its purity, for it was quite free from other seeds and had only about \ per cent, of mineral and vegetable impurities. One sample of home-grown clover consisted of 49 per cent, clover, 47 per cent, rye-grass, the remaining 4 per cent, of bur-parsley ( Caucalis daucoides Linn.), ribwort ( Plantago lanceolata Linn.), and vegetable and mineral impurities. This unsatis- factory sample reduced the average purity to 82 per cent. Had this been excluded the average purity would have risen to 94 per cent. The home clover harvest last year was very good. America was supplied with English seed to a consider- able extent, and hardly any American-grown seed was on the market, and that little was the remainder from the previous year. 256 Annual Report for 1,906 of the Consulting Botanist. The results of the experiment at Woburn with doddered clover seed may here be noted. The red clover imported from Europe into Chili has been attacked by two different kinds of dodder, neither of which is known in Britain, and these seeds are abundantly present in the Chilian-grown seed. The purpose of the experiment was to determine whether, from not perfecting their seeds or from the climatic changes in our winter, the seeds of the dodder plants would germinate in the second year. The clover with the dodder seeds was sown in the spring of last year. The dodder made its appearance and attacked the clover. This year the clover was quite free from dodder. It would, however, be rash to conclude from this single trial that Chilian dodder seeds do not survive our winters ; it is therefore proposed to repeat the experiment. The majority of samples examined were grasses. In them the germination reached its highest standard with 97 per cent, in a sample of meadow fescue ; and its lowest was a sample of smooth stalked meadow grass which germinated only 65 per cent. This grass as a rule shows a poor germination, and the 65 per cent, must be considered as satisfactory. It was recommended that three samples of grasses should be rejected because of the presence in them of ergot. The presence of dodder in clover is universally condemned, but little objection is taken to ergot in grass seed. But it will be obvious that ergot is a more serious danger than dodder when we remember that dodder attacks only clover, while ergot may grow on any grass in the field ; and that dodder has a seed of some size and produces an obvious plant which can easily be removed, while ergot has minute spores and its attack may not be noticed. The highest purity of the grasses was in a sample of rye-grass, which gave 99 per cent., and the lowest was in a sample of meadow foxtail which had only 76 per cent. Foxtail, cocks- foot, red and sheep fescue, tall and golden oat grass usually contain a considerable quantity of empty husks. The farmer is advised to buy these seeds specially by the heaviest bulk or bushel weight. Such seed would of course be somewhat higher in price, but the number of plants that would be produced would much more than compensate for the increased payment. In regard to seed mixtures sent for examination as to purity and germination, the percentage of the different seeds composing the mixture can be given ; but it is not possible to germinate such a mixture as a whole. Each kind of seed would require to be separated in sufficient quantity to give a reliable result. The only way to appreciate the value of a mixture is by the farmer making it himself, having purchased the different seeds in the proportion he proposes to use them, with a guarantee of purity and germination. Duration of Vitality in Farm Seeds. 257 Samples of seeds of mangel, turnip, chicory, yarrow, and other plants were examined. Among these was a sample of broccoli called “ Late Queen,” which was supplied to a member on conditions specified in the tender, including a guarantee of purity and germination. The sample did not contain a single living seed. Duplicate tests were made which showed that it was entirely dead seed. Externally there was nothing to indicate that the seed was not living. The changes that affect the life of the seed take place within the seed coat, and the vitality of the seed can only be determined when it is tested for germination. The grower can easily determine whether the seed is still living by placing some seeds between the folds of wet blotting paper put on a dinner plate and covered by a small bowl, care being taken to place this in a moderately warm room and to prevent the paper being dried up. A few days will show if the sample consists of live seed. Among the grass seeds examined this year was one labelled “golden oat grass” ( Avena flavescens Linn.), which consisted entirely of the seeds of wavy hair grass (Airci flexuosa Linn.). The seed of this worthless grass is sometimes sold for golden oat grass, but only the most careless or ignorant seedsman can be imposed upon by this substitution. The hair grass may be used on poor heath land in mountain districts, but in good pastures it is only a weed. Two samples of oats were submitted as to their value for feeding purposes. They consisted of small but well-ripened grains, and were free from damp or any unpleasant odour, which might cause their rejection by stock. One of the samples was condemned on account of the presence of seeds of corncockle ( Lychnis Githago Linn.), which when present in any quantity is injurious to chickens and stock. Duration of Vitality in Farm Seeds. The obvious importance to the farmer of using only live seed, and at the same time the serious loss to the merchant if the surplus stock of his seed at the end of the season were condemned as worthless, suggested twelve years ago, a series of experiments to determine how many years the various seeds generally used by the farmer retained their vitality under favourable conditions. Thirty-five kinds were obtained from the harvest of 1895, and a sufficient number of these seeds have in the spring of each year since been tested. The trials have been carried on for eleven years, and though it may be two or three years before they are finished, yet the results already obtained are important and instructive. For the purpose of bringing these results before the members of the Society, Mr. Giissow prepared a large diagram which YOL. 67. S 258 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Botanist. graphically shows the progress of the experiments up to this year. This diagram was displayed in the Agricultural Education Exhibition at the Society’s Derby Show. The diagram shows that for the first five years all the kinds of seeds produced more or fewer plants. The highest percentage of germination in the fifth year (1900) was made by oats and swedes which gave 98 per cent., and the lowest was met with in hard fescue which was no higher than 5 per cent. During the first and second years this grass germinated 74 per cent, and 71 per cent. In the tenth year thirteen out of the thirty- five samples were dead, and this, the eleventh year, ten more had lost their vitality, making twenty-three in all dead. Of those that survived, black oats germinated 76 per cent, and white oats 57 per cent. Five other samples germinated over 10 per cent., and the remaining five kinds were less than 10 per cent. It will be instructive to publish the results in full when the experiments are completed by the death of all the seeds. Buttercups in Pastures. Inquiry was made as to the properties of a plant which was believed to be the cause of scour in calves, giving great trouble in rearing them. The meadow, in which the plant grew in considerable abundance, was marshy. The butter made from the milk of cows which fed in it had a decidedly bitter taste. The plant sent was spearwort ( Ranunculus Flammula Linn.), and the injuries specified are those which would follow from the eating of this plant. All the species of Ranunculus , called buttercups or spearworts, possess acrid properties, and have not the slightest feeding value. They are usually rejected by animals, but young stock not infrequently eat them to their injury. Some farmers like to see buttercups in a field. They consider them to be the sign of a good pasture. They no doubt show that the soil is fitted to grow plants, but every buttercup is a distinct injury to the pasture. Being rejected by the stock they flower and seed in abundance. Their numerous seeds are well protected and remain ready to germinate under favourable conditions. Some of the most acrid increase by creeping stems that run above ground or in the soil. The pasture becomes more and more filled Avith yellow buttercup, and it loses half its value by the presence of acrid plants which causes every year injury to, if not the death of, some animals. It would be better and more profitable where land is burdened with buttercups to plough it, carefully clean it, take at least one root crop off it, and then sow it with grasses and clover, pure in quality and of good germination. Properly sown down and generously treated, a good feeding pasture has thus been secured within a year of the sowing. 259 Buttercups in Pastures ; Disease of Apples. Diseases of Plants. Comparatively few cases of diseases in plants have during the year been brought to the notice of the Botanist, and these have been mostly described in previous Reports. Cases of clover sickness caused by Sclerotinia , of potato canker caused by (Edomyces leproides , of bacterial disease in swedes, of scab in pears due to Fusicladium pyrinum , and of leaf curl in cherries caused by Exoascus deformans have been reported on and treatment recommended. In the late autumn some apples were received from a member in Worcestershire which had numerous small round shallow depressions on the surface. These are shown in the reproduced photograph. A large crop of valuable apples was Fig. 1. — Injured apples. One in section. rendered unsaleable by this injury. When cut each depression in the apple had connected with it a small group of brownish cells, and these patches were found to occur also in the apple away from the skin. There was no trace of bacteria or of any fungus. These brown patches are shown in the apple which is cut through in Fig. 1. The cells in these dis- coloured spots are somewhat larger than the normal cells, and the cell wall is thickened and dark coloured. Lining the cell wall or scattered through the cell are an abnormal quantity of roundish translucent grains of starch (see Fig. 2). The changed portion gave a distinctly bitter taste to the apple. The member who sent the apples did not detect the injury till after they were stored. 260 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Botanist. This obscure injury was noticed in 1892 by Jul. Wortmann ( Landw . J ahrhucher , 1892, Hefte 3 and 4), who gave it the name “ Little spots (Stippen) of apples.” He considered the malady to be due to a superabundance of an acid in the apple. Dr. C. Brick, of the Pflanzenschutz Station, Hamburg, who has a very extensive acquaintance with imported fruit, writes that he has frequently observed this injury on Australian and American apples. He calls the appearance also “ Stippflecke.’ Dr. Sorauer gives, in his Handbook of Plant Diseases , now publishing in parts (pp. 166-169), an account of this malady. He examined the apples carefully, but failed to discover any Fig. 2. — Section through one of the dark spots in the apple. fungus connected with the spots. He shows that in 1904, which was a very dry season on the Continent, the apples were all more or less injured in the same way as those from Worcestershire, especially those which have soft and tender . flesh. This is confirmed by the apples sent to the laboratory. They belonged to the varieties “ Warner’s King,” “ New Hawthornden,” “Lord Grosvenor,” and “ Allington Pippin” — all soft fleshy fruits. Dr. Sorauer points out that the brown cells in the diseased apples contain quantities of stored food, chiefly along the inside wall. In dry seasons the progress of the sap necessary for the development of the fruit is hindered by the want of water, so that some groups of cells, deprived of their food, become exhausted. The beginning of the injury must be looked for in an early stage of the developing fruit. Pear Rust. 26 1 He states that this injury is most frequent in orchards which have received nitrogenous manures ; and this is confirmed by the reports received by him from farmers. Accepting Dr. Sorauer’s interpretation, which fits in to the conditions under which the injury appeared this year in Worcestershire, when we had an unusually dry summer, it is most desirable that, when the apples are formed, and the moisture in the soil has been consumed during a period of dry weather, there should be given to the trees a supply of water. If this were done by way of experiment in orchards where the apples presented this year the appearance described, and well shown in the reproduced photograph, by watering some trees and leaving others unwatered, important progress would be made towards the successful treatment of this malady. A serious disease of the pear trees in an orchard in Sussex was investigated. It had been found on all the pear trees. The leaves were covered with numerous bright orange-red patches the size of a threepenny piece, or larger. The parasitic fungus producing this injury is called Gymnosporangium Sabince Dicks., or commonly pear rust. The fungus was first noticed in June. Under the microscope these patches are found to have numerous small raised pustules of a slightly darker colour than the patch, each of which has a small opening at its apex. The cells of the pustule are thick walled. When ripe, it is found to be filled with small irregularly shaped colourless spores. In September these appear on the under surface of the leaf immediately below the patches ; on the upper surface are larger pustules of a reddish colour with an orange coloured apex. This is another phase of the life of the fungus, and is called the aecidium stage. These pustules contain numerous aecidiospores, which escape into the air when ripe. This corresponds to the aecidium stage of the wheat rust fangus which is found on the barberry, and both of these must find another host plant for their further develop- ment. The spores of the barberry attack the wheat, and those of the pear grow on Juniperus Sabina. They attack the young and tender shoots of the juniper, and form oblong swellings which in the spring throw out golden yellow oblong masses, consisting of spores embedded in mucilage. These find their way to the pear tree and penetrate the young leaf, forming, in time, the orange-red patches. As this history of the fungus is well known, measures for prevention can be suggested. Careful search must be made to get rid of every plant of Sabine’s juniper in or near the orchard. If the host plant which produces the spores in spring that germinate on the pear leaves were destroyed, the further attacks would be prevented. Spraying with a weak Bordeaux mixture (say 262 Annual Report for 1906 fof the Consulting Botanist . 4 lb. of lime, 4 lb. of copper sulphate or blue stone, and 50 gallons of water) would be beneficial. Early in the year were received some gooseberry shoots which had died back. These had been attacked by a parasitic mould, Botrytis cinerea Pers. The thick greyish cushions of this fungus were protruding through the bark of the dead shoots. There was an abundant production of spores. The member had sent some gooseberries last year which were attacked by this same mould. It destroyed the tissues of the berries just as it destroyed in the following spring the tissues of the young shoots. But the injury was this year much more serious. This fungus is common on any decaying vegetable matter. It can live on dead as well as on living tissues, and it is therefore difficult to deal with. The gooseberry bushes affected had been recently planted, and had not rooted down firmly, but encouraged by the warm spring a good growth had been made. The early autumn of last year probably had not ripened the wood, and the shoots were not able to resist the frost. Plenty of spores of the mould were about from the diseased berries rotting on the ground, and they germinated on the shoots and killed them. The member was advised to remove carefully any affected branches or fruit, put them in a vessel where they would not be carried off by the wind, and burn them. Spraying would be very difficult to perform efficiently. Some twigs of gooseberry bushes were recently forwarded by the Education Department of the Worcestershire County Council on behalf of a member of the Society. They had been attacked by the fungus, Sphcerotheca Mors-uvce Berk, and Curtis, popularly called the American gooseberry mildew. The rusty brown fungus grows on the surface of the young twigs of this year’s growth. It obtains its food by sending suckers into the living cells of the bark, and so weakens and distorts the twig. Small globular bodies are developed from the mycelium. These contain a small sac (ascus), enclosing eight spores. This is the winter or rest stage of the fungus (see Fig. 3). At present the whole future of the fungus is in these spores. In the spring the round body bursts, and the sac with its contents escapes. The spores push their way out of the sac, and when they fall upon the young leaves or opening bud of the gooseberry, they send out a fine white thread (mycelium), which grows and branches on the surface of the leaves, and obtains its food also by the suckers it sends into the cells on which it rests. This is the mildew stage of the fungus. From this mycelium are produced simple erect branches, each bear- ing a single string of ovoid spores. These are produced in great numbers, and give at this stage a powdery appearance American Gooseberry Mildew . 263 to the leaves. The spores are caught up and carried by the least movement of the air to neighbouring or distant gooseberry bushes, where they sprout, and thus rapidly spread the disease. The mildew also attacks the young berry, usually on one side, and consumes by its suckers the contents of the subjacent cells of the berry. The fruit is distorted and rendered completely useless. Every effort should be made to destroy the diseased tips of the branches before the new life Fig. 3. — The Ameriean.Gooseberry Mildew (Sphcerotheca Mors-uvce Berk, and Curtis). A, Twig of gooseberry bush, the upper portion attacked and distorted by the fungus, b, A portion of the twig enlarged, showing the fungus, c, The globular body (perithecium) with the mycelium. d, A sac (ascus) with its eight spores, e, A fruiting branch of the mildew stage, a— d are drawn from the specimens received from the Worcestershire County Council, b is after Mr. Salmon, Journ. B. Sort. Soc., 1902, page 600. begins in spring. The Worcestershire County Council has undertaken, with the approval of the owner, to cut off and burn every infected part in the nursery from which I received the diseased twigs. The fungus has come to us from the United States, where it is found on wild native species of Bibes, and for more than twenty-five years it has done great harm to the cultivated gooseberry ( Bibes Grossularia Linn.), introduced into the 264 Annual Report for 1906 of the Consulting Botanist. United States from Europe. The fungus was unknown in Europe until 1900, when Mr. Massee determined that specimens of diseased gooseberries from the north of Ireland, sent to him by Mr. Moore, keeper of the Glasnevin Botanic Gardens, were attacked by the American gooseberry mildew. He announced this in the Gardeners' Chronicle, August 25, 1900, figuring and describing the fungus, and suggesting treatment for keeping it in check. Mr. E. S. Salmon (the author of a monograph of the group of fungi to which Sphcerotheca belongs), having had his attention called by Mr. Massee to the blight appearing in Antrim, published an account of the fungus in the annual volume of the Royal Horticultural Society’s Journal, issued in November, 1900. In 1901, the disease was observed in Sweden and Russia, and in November this year (1906), its occurrence in Worcestershire was recorded. Mr. Salmon has most diligently and perseveringly urged that legislative measures be immediately taken to prevent the spread of this disease. Before the disease was detected in the nursery in Worcestershire, many young bushes had been disposed of, and there is reason to fear that these may have carried the infection over a wide area. Since the appearance of the fungus six years ago, the disease has spread extensively in the European localities where it was detected, and it has attacked the goose- berry in other countries of Europe. Miscellaneous. The purple orchid {Orchis mascula Linn.) was thought by a member to be a dangerous plant, like the meadow saffron. It is, however, quite innocent ; the fresh tuber when dried and ground forms salep, which was largely used as a nutritious drink until it was replaced by the more general use of coffee. On the other hand every part of the meadow saffron is most injurious to stock. A member proposing to undertake the cultivation of Para rubber {Hevea Brasiliensis) obtained information as to that plant and its cultivation. Another proposes to cultivate the castor oil plant for the production of oil, and his inquiries were dealt with. Advice was given as to the methods of cultivation of the sunflower, also for the production of oil. This plant might yield a remunerative crop to the English farmer. It produces a valuable oil and the crushed seeds make a nutritious feeding cake. Unless, however, there are facilities for extracting the oil in convenient oil mills the cultivation of the plant should not be entered upon. Assistance has been rendered to several public bodies. The seeds for the parks under the management of H.M. Office of Seed-Testing Conference at Hamburg . 265 Works have been examined for purity and germination before the purchases were completed. The London County Council have obtained advice for the guidance of the Asylums Com- mittee in connection with the seeds required by them. The Croydon County Council have had guidance as to the treatment of weeds in their parks and recreation grounds, and also of diseased or unhealthy trees. The seeds intended to be sent to the Argentine Republic have been examined and certified as to the presence or absence of injurious weeds. The Consulting Botanist was unable to be present at the conference of experts in agricultural seed testing from the dif- ferent countries of Europe and from America, which was held at Hamburg in September. He, however, sent his Assistant, Mr. Giissow, to represent him, and to give information to the members of the conference as to the work done bv the %/ Royal Agricultural Society in this department of its operations. Mr. Giissow’s Report on his visit is appended. The Laboratory, 44 Central Hill, Norwood, S.E. William Carruthers. INTERNATIONAL SEED-TESTING CONFERENCE AT HAMBURG, 1906. In recent years the practice of examining agricultural seeds for purity and germination has made considerable progress in nearly every country. In 1905, at the Vienna International Botanical Congress, it was suggested that a conference should be held of seed-testing experts, and the following year the Hamburg State Botanical Institution issued invitations to a conference, which took place at Hamburg from September 10 to 14, 1906, and which was well attended by experts from different countries. The business of this conference was mainly to consider and arrive at some conclusions as to the best methods for the examination of seeds and to lay down uniform rules of general application. Dr. STEBLER, of Zurich, opened the proceedings by reading a paper on the methods of determining the country from which imported clover and grass seeds have been obtained. This is of the greatest importance, as it has been proved that seeds from some countries are not suitable for cultivation in other countries. Dr. Stebler stated that the determination depended almost entirely upon the presence of weed seeds in the uncleaned samples. He showed herbarium specimens and samples of weed seeds, which may be called “ characteristic seeds,” their presence indicating conclusively the country of origin of the seed under examination. 266 Annual Report, for 1906 of the Consulting Botanist . Dr. Ritter von WEINZIERL, of Vienna, referred to modified Austrian methods of testing sugar beet and mangel wurzel seed. These methods depend upon the number of seeds that germinate in a certain weight (15 grains) within six to twelve days, and the calculation is as follows : — 100 x the number of seeds that have germinated in that quantity, divided by the number of fruits contained therein.1 Dr. RODEWALD, of Kiel, referred to the difficulty of deter- mining the purity of seeds, especially in the finer grass seeds. Generally speaking, the purity of a seed depends upon the absence of all inert matter, weeds, injured or broken seeds of the kind examined, &c. About 200 or 400 seeds from which the impurities have been removed are taken to determine the percentage of germination. Dr. Rodewald pointed out the greater utility of the purity test of the finer grasses by weight. Everything that is not true to name of the kind of seed examined is counted as an impurity, and of the true seeds a certain weighed portion is taken for germination. In this way the great difficulty is overcome, which arises from dis- tinguishing between a glume containing a germinable seed and a glume without one. Other members of the conference suggested reflected light as a better method of determining whether a glume carries a seed or not. Dr. von Degen, of Budapest, dealt with dodder in clovers. He suggested that dodder should be made a subject for international legislation, although this might prove difficult. In dealing with the larger kinds of dodder as found in seeds imported from Hungary and Chili (see page 256) it is important to determine the countries of Europe in which these dodders will grow and ripen their seeds, as it has been stated that dodder from these sources does not ripen its seeds in the northern countries of Europe, like Norway, Ireland, and Scotland, but that in southern England2 and Sweden the seeds have been known to ripen. Dr. Appel, of Dahlem, spoke on the relation of plant diseases to the seed examination, and pointed out the necessity for determining the presence of the micro-organisms of disease in the samples of seeds under examination. Dr. HlLTNER, of Munich, raised the question of germination, speaking on the influence of the quality of water, the kind and 1 The “seed” of mangels or sugar beet sold commercially as such is botani- cally the fruit, which contains from 1 to 5 true seeds. Supposing 60 fruits weigh 15 grains and 75 seeds have germinated, the percentage is found by multiplying 75 by 100, which equals 7,500, and dividing it by the number of fruits, i.e., 60, and the percentage found is 125. This indicates that 100 fruits produce 125 seedlings. 2 I am not aware that dodder from Hungary or Chili has ever been known to ripen its seeds in any part of the British Isles. Seed- Testing Conference at Hamburg. 267 degree of moisture of the germinating apparatus, the soaking of seeds previous to germinating, the temperature, presence of light for certain seeds, length of the test, &c. The opinions expressed in the discussion dealt very thoroughly with the subject, though they differed on minor points, like sterilisation of the apparatus, influence of light, &c. Dr. Allerberg, of Kalmar, gave an account of germinating newly harvested seeds of grain crops. It is a well-known fact that such seeds grow very unsatisfactorily when tested imme- diately after harvest. He succeeded, however, in producing a normal growth by germinating the seeds under low tem- perature, or after drying them for a few days in a temperature of 104° F. With the view of organising researches in regard to the questions raised at the conference, a Committee was appointed to report to a further conference to be held in a year or two. Hans Th. Giissow. The Laboratory, 44 Central Hill, Norwood, S.E. ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1906 OF THE ZOOLOGIST. Introduction. The past year, though not marked by the special prevalence of any one pest, has been noteworthy for the wide range which the applications received by the Zoologist have covered. There are very few of the more ordinary injurious insects which have not been complained of in some quarter, while advice has also been asked with regard to several of a less usual description. Questions concerning many fruit pests have been dealt with, but the points which seem most worthy of mention are the continued spread of the destructive pear midge, and the occurrence in a very severe form of an attack by the currant bud moth {Incur v aria capitella ), a pest to which attention is not very frequently directed. Recent discoveries with regard to the spread of certain diseases of domesticated animals through the agency of their external parasites, and especially by the Acarines known as ticks, have made it incumbent on all those concerned with economic zoology to study that little-known group, and a great deal of time has been devoted to their investigation. It has been thought appropriate to give some account of these animals in the following Report. 268 Annual Report for 1906 of the Zoologist. The cases of corn and root-crop attack presented no feature of special importance. Various enemies of forest trees were the subjects of complaint, and one rather remarkable fact is worthy of mention. A beetle ( Tetr opium crawshayi , Sharp), which was only discovered some two years ago in the New Forest, appears to be quite widely spread in other parts of England, and to be attacking larch trees, often in conjunction with the small wood-wasp {Sirex juvencus). The Currant Bud Moth {Incur varia capitella). At the beginning of April, I was asked to inspect a red currant plantation in Worcestershire which was suffering, and had for a year or two past suffered, from a severe insect attack. The young shoots had a diseased appearance, and a great many of the buds showed, by the extrusion of little masses of excreta Fig. 1 —Incurvaria capitella and its caterpillar, somewhat enlarged. on their surface, that some grub was at work within. On cutting open the diseased buds and shoots, small dark-red cater- pillars were found, and were recognised as those of Incurvaria capitella (Fig. 1). This little moth has been known for a long time as a currant pest, and in 1864 J. G. Wood wrote of it as being “ only too common in any places where currants are grown.” Nevertheless, I had never before received complaints with regard to it, and the allusions to it by writers on injurious insects are by no means frequent. It would seem that in most cases it is present to so slight an extent as to escape notice, and that it is extremely local as a serious pest. When seen at its worst, however, not even the big-bud mite can exceed its powers of destruction. The Rev. J. B, Hewitt very kindly watched the course of the attack on the spot, and sent me specimens from time to time. The Currant Bud Moth. 269 The insect belongs to the extensive family of small moths known as the Tineidse, of which the clothes moths are familiar examples. It measures rather more than half an inch across the extended wings, and is easily recognised by its distinctive coloration, for the front wings are a dark purple brown, with three bright yellow spots upon them, one completely crossing the wing not far from its base and the other two near the front and hind margin respectively towards the tip. The hind wings are pearly grey and fringed with hairs. Unlike most moths of this group it does not shun the light, but may be seen flying about by day in June. The attack this year seems to have been earlier than usual, or else to have been noticed at an earlier stage, for the late Miss Ormerod, speaking of its occurrence in Gloucestershire, in 1891, mentioned April 20 as the date when numbers of the shoots were seen to be diseased, and German observers allude to the attack occurring early in May. The time, no doubt, varies somewhat according to the season, but though the summer was exceptionally hot the spring conditions were not such as to lead one to expect any of the April pests to anticipate their time. The dark-red caterpillars when first seen were about the tenth of an inch long. Some were found in the buds, some in the pith of the shoots, and some wandering on the outside of the twigs. On April 18, Mr. Hewitt wrote : “ Here are a few specimens of the pest in its present stage. You will notice that it is doing the same as last year — apparently eating out one bud after another and then establishing itself in the topmost shoot.” Muslin bags were securely tied round some of the infested shoots, and some of these were cut off on April 27 and sent to me. They showed fully fed caterpillars in the act of wandering away from the damaged buds to turn into chrysalids, and some of them had already spun up in the folds of the bag. At the same date it was noticed that such caterpillars as were not stopped by the muslin took refuge under the little flakes of curled bark on the currant stems and there pupated. In this situation fresh chrysalids and the empty skins of those of last year were found. My specimens gave rise to moths about the middle of May, which again is somewhat earlier than the recorded experience of others, June being the month when the full-grown insect is generally met with. The moth now seeks the young fruit to lay its eggs, for the caterpillar in its earliest stages feeds upon the pips or seeds. They appear to cause the currants to ripen prematurely, and the infested fruits show red when the majority are still green. 270 Annual Report for J-906 of the Zoologist. Towards the end of June the caterpillars, still very small (about the twelfth of an inch long), come out of the fruit and the attack is over for the season. In the Gloucestershire attack of 1891 Dr. Chapman caught some of the tiny grubs in the act of emerging from the currants and watched them till they went into winter quarters under the dead scales of old buds, where they covered themselves with a white cocoon and remained inert, only partially grown, until the attack was renewed in the following spring. It appears, therefore, that the moth can pass the whole cycle of its existence without leaving a currant plant, though of course the insect will often select the fruit of a neighbouring bush for the purpose of laying its eggs. It is not, however, yet certain that the winter is always spent upon the currant twigs. It is quite likely that many of the prematurely ripened infested currants may fall to the ground with the caterpillars still within them, and these, when they emerge, must then find some other winter retreat. A. Schmid says that the “ case-caterpillars ” (Sackraupen) of I. capitella may be found on beeches in winter, and the habit of wandering about with a protective “ case ” is somewhat characteristic of the near relations of this insect, though it is not stated that the identification was verified by breeding out the moth. This is a point which still demands investigation. Treatment. — In cases of severe attack it is certainly advisable to cut away and burn the diseased shoots as soon as they show signs of injury, at whatever sacrifice of fruit for the year. If such drastic measures do not seem necessary, there are certain points in the life-history of the pest which suggest possible methods of coping with it, especially in small plantations. The hibernating caterpillars in their cocoons are visible as little white specks at the bases of the buds, and they might perhaps be reached by a winter wash and at all events in part destroyed. The next vulnerable stage of the insect is that of the chrysalis hidden under the curled bark of the currant stems. Mr. Hewitt thinks that a good deal could be done on the small scale by rubbing down the stems with the gloved hand. This is, of course, only possible between the time when the cater- pillars leave the shoots and the time when the moths emerge, and the best time would usually be about the second week in May. In the third place some advantage might perhaps be taken of the premature ripening of the fruits in which eggs have been laid. If they could be removed and destroyed before the grubs come out to seek their winter quarters it would do much to forestall the attack of the following year. Pear Midge. 271 The red-currant plant is almost always the one to be attacked by this pest, but the black currant is not immune, as cases have been recorded in which it has suffered severely. Pear Midge ( Diplosis pirivora). During the past year this pest has made its appearance in new localities and generally to such an extent as to suggest that it was previously present, but had escaped observation. It is impossible to avoid the conclusion that many fruit growers suffer from it to a slight extent without being at all aware of the fact. This is most unfortunate, because the trouble and expense entailed in exterminating it are comparatively small if its first appearance in an orchard is noticed, but if it obtains a firm hold on the trees the result is sure to be very disastrous. It is quite natural that a pest should only attract attention when it causes considerable injury, but there are cases when it is desirable not to wait until it thrusts itself thus disagreeably upon one’s notice, and surely this is true with regard to the pear midge. Here is a pest whose presence can be easily recognised by any one, and which is at present the cause of great loss to many fruit growers. Moreover, experience has shown that there is a great danger of over- looking it in its early stages. Why wait, then, until a wholesale destruction of pear fruit sud- denly compels attention ? Nothing is easier than to make a point of examining the pear trees next May whether or not there is any reason to believe Flfested_byapear they have suffered in the past. There is very S'themaggobf little doubt that if fruit growers could be per- suaded to do this, the pest would be banished from many an orchard before it had had time to establish itself thoroughly. It is only thirteen years ago since the pear midge was first recorded in England. Now there is scarcely a county in the south of England from which complaints of its ravages have not been received, and it still continues to spread. It threatens rapidly to become not less formidable than the big-bud disease of black currants if nothing is done to check it. I would ask all who have pear trees to make a point of inspecting them next May shortly after the fruit has set. If all the fruit seems healthy, well and good. But if some of the pears appear stunted and deformed, as indicated in the accompanying figure, they should be picked off and opened. If the pear midge is at work, they will be found to contain numerous white legless grubs, precisely like cheese maggots, and like them, able to jump by applying head and tail together and separating them suddenly. 272 Annual Report for *1906 of the Zoologist. Perhaps a few such pears will be found only on a single tree, the pest having only just found its way to the orchard. In that case it will be cheaply got rid of if every pear on that particular tree is sacrificed. In any case the owner is warned, and knows of the enemy he has to deal with. The life-history of the midge has been given in previous Reports, and need not be repeated, but the practical points are these : that during most of the month of May the grubs are in the young pears, and are destroyed by picking off and burning the infested fruit, while at the end of May or in June they leave the fruit and take refuge in the ground, spreading them- selves pretty widely through their power of jumping. There they remain till the flies come out in the following spring, so that it should not be impossible to take adequate measures to destroy them, especially if the soil is bare. In grass orchards the matter is, of course, more difficult, but some top dressing might be effectual. Good results have been recorded from a heavy dressing of kainit, though it is not very obvious why it should injure the insect unless by virtue of the common salt which it contains as an impurity. Apple Trees. Last spring a diseased appearance of apple branches where they had been pruned the previous autumn attracted attention in a Worcestershire orchard. The affected trees were chiefly “ Stirling Castles,” and the apparent disease was limited to the short stump between the outermost growing shoot and the place where the branch had been pruned. This appeared swollen and cankerous, and a slight, brown cavity at the tip seemed to indicate that some insect had been at work. It was impossible at the time to come to any definite conclusion as to the cause of the swellings, but it was hoped that observation of the trees after the next pruning might throw light upon the matter. Unfortunately rather too long a time was allowed to elapse before the newly pruned branches were examined, and nothing was found to account for the phenomenon satisfactorily. In the specimens sent there was again the slight cavity near the tip, covered by a broken and perforated cap, but the evidence of definite gnawing by some grub was not clear. Various creatures were found in the chamber, some of them being obviously casual visitors merely seeking a shelter. The creature most in evidence was the beetle-mite, Oribata lapidaria , numbers of which were found in the cavity and also at the bases of the shoots. This is a mite which is constantly accused of causing malformations on the branches of various trees, but the verdict of naturalists is in its favour, as it is said to do good rather than harm by feeding Destruction of Mites by Heat. 273 upon minute fungoid growths parasitic on tree trunks. It has been referred to more than once in these Reports as particularly common on lime trees, and many people remain unconvinced of its innocence. With this exception, the animals found in the diseased shoots were beyond suspicion, being chiefly mites of carnivorous habits and the aphis-eating grubs of Syrphidse or “hover flies.” Theobald has described a somewhat similar appearance as being due to the grub of a sawfly of the genus Emphytus , but no such grubs were found in this case, nor was there any definite channel such as they would make, and the mystery remains for the present unexplained. It would be interesting to know whether other fruit growers have observed the same phenomenon, and if so, what varieties of apple tree are most affected. Perhaps next year an opportunity will arise of examining the first stages of the diseased growth. Fortunately no great injury seems to be done to the trees, the swelling being confined to the pruned stump and apparently not interfering with the new growths. Destruction of Mites by Heat. In July I was asked to make some experiments with the view of ascertaining the possibility of destroying mites infesting stored material by heat without damage to the material itself. The material in the particular case was tobacco in the form of cigars, and the agricultural importance of this was not at first obvious, but the principle seemed to have a wider application, and the experiments were accordingly made. It was necessary to employ a thermostat, an apparatus with a chamber which can be raised to any desired temperature and kept steadily at that temperature as long as the operator wishes, and Professor Nuttall kindly placed one at my disposal. The mite in question was Glyciphagus spinipes , one of the Tyroglyphidse, or cheese-mite tribe, a common species infesting all sorts of stored produce and frequently to be met with in grocers’ stores. When the boxes were opened the minute creatures were seen actively running about, but they were quickly out of sight, hidden among the cigars. These showed no sign of injury ; but of course the presence of the mites was objectionable and calculated to diminish the value of the article. Preliminary experiments were made by capturing many of the mites and placing them in glass tubes which were then exposed in the thermostat to various temperatures and for varying periods. They quickly succumbed to a very moderate heat ; indeed, the attempt to ascertain the lowest temperature fatal to them was soon abandoned, for it was realised that this VOL. 67. T 274 Annual Report for 1906 of the Zoologist. would almost certainly not suffice to kill the eggs, and this must be done if the treatment is to be of any practical use. Besides, the time taken to heat the interior of a small glass tube to any given temperature would be no indication of that required by so bulky an object as a box of cigars. The eggs were too small and too difficult to find for individual experiment, and the only practicable method of procedure seemed to be to expose the closed box to a given temperature for a certain time and defer the examination of its contents till any surviving eggs would probably have hatched out into mites. The details of the experiments, which necessarily extended over several weeks, are of no particular interest, but satisfactory results were not obtained with a temperature less than 66° C. (about 150° F.). In boxes exposed to this degree of heat for half an hour, and opened ten days later, nothing living could be found. The cigars so treated were returned for expert examination, and the verdict was that they had not suffered the slightest injury. Ticks akd Disease.1 In December, 1904, Dr. Nuttall wrote : — “ Ticks and tick-transmitted diseases promise to offer an increasing degree of interest to medical men, zoologists, and those economically concerned. Some of the diseases which ticks transmit . . . are amongst the most devastating which affect domesticated animals in many parts of the world.” The importance of external parasites as transmitters of disease has been brought home to every one by the now classical researches on the connection between malaria and mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles. Ticks have been for a long time under suspicion, though until quite recently nothing very definite was proved against them. The ill effects which were believed to result from their bites were attributed to “poisonous properties,” and some species, such as the “Mianeh bug” (Avgas pensions), had a particularly evil reputation. We now know that in the case of quite a number of ticks the suspicion is only too well grounded ; that besides causing irritating wounds by which septic matter may gain access, they are capable of communicating certain definite diseases from sick to sound animals ; that the germs of these diseases may remain alive in the body of the fasting tick for months or years, or may even be present in its eggs and the larvae to which they give rise, making the second generation no less dangerous than the first. It is not surprising, in view of recent discoveries, that attention should be seriously directed to this group of external 1 See also pp. 71 and 86 of this Volume, Ticks and Disease. 275 parasites, which have hitherto been too much neglected. The study of the diseases themselves is, of course, a patho- logical matter, and a large number of very able pathologists are now devoting themselves to their investigation. But they naturally look to the zoologist for co-operation. They find certain ticks on the diseased animals, and capable of trans- mitting the sickness to perfectly sound animals, and they require to know what particular species of tick is in question, its area of distribution, and the details of its life-history. It seems to be the clear duty of all economic zoologists to lend what aid they can, and to relieve the purely medical inquirers as far as possible from the loss of time involved in the investi- gation of a part of the subject for which their previous experience has not specially fitted them. Fig. 3. — Ticks laying eggs.1 Holding this view, I thought it advisable to accede to the request of the Government Entomologist of India, that I should examine a large number of ticks collected in that country from domesticated animals in various localities, with a view to their identification. Through the kindness of Dr. Nuttall I have also had access to a large collection of ticks from all parts of the world, and the study of these animals has occupied most of the time not taken up by the routine work of the depart- ment during the past summer. Ticks are members of the great group of Acari or mites. They are, indeed, the most familiar examples of the group, 1 Figs. 3, 4, 9, and 13 illustrating this paper have been kindly lent by Mr. E. G. Wheler. Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8 also illustrated this author’s article on “ Louping 111 and the Grass Tick” in the Journal, Yol. 60, 1899, pp. 626 - 644. T 2 276 Annual Report for* 1906 of the Zoologist. because of their comparatively large size, for mites, as a rule, are extremely minute animals. They are not insects, but Arachnids — a class which includes the spiders and scorpions. When fully grown they have eight legs, but on the way to maturity from the egg they pass through two stages. From the egg a six-legged “larva” hatches out, and this in turn develops into a “nymph,” which is eight-legged, but differs in important respects from the adult, especially in being sexu- ally immature. The female tick can distend itself to a ridiculous extent by sucking the blood of its “host,”' and it is not unusual to attain a length of fully an inch, with a proportionate breadth and thickness ; though the unfed animal may be considerably less than a quarter of an inch Fig. 4.— Male of Dermacentor reticulatus long and as flat as a bug. This from below, x io. distention makes all female ticks look much alike to the inexperienced eye, and to dis- tinguish them the mouth parts, legs and other structures not affected by distention have to be carefully studied. The male tick, on the other hand, is almost entirely covered by an inelastic “scutum” or shield, which prevents it from swelling to any considerable extent, and it is therefore more easily recognised. The ordinary life-history of a tick is extremely eventful, being spent partly on the “host” and partly on the ground. When gorged, the female drops to the ground, having been previously fertilised by the male while attached to the cow, sheep, or other animal on which it is parasitic. It seeks out a recess in the soil, and proceeds to lay a prodigious number of eggs, sometimes amounting to several thousand, occupying several days in the process. Each egg hatches out, after a period which may extend over days or months according to the temperature, into a tiny six-legged larva, whose further development entirely depends on its success itself to some passing animal. It may have to wait, fasting, for weeks or months before such good fortune befalls it, and no doubt a large proportion of the larvsn perish without attaining their object. During the waiting period they climb about among the herbage, showing great excitement and activity as any animal approaches, and seizing instantly upon Fig 5.— Larva of Ixodes ricinus. m attaching Ticks and Disease. 277 its liairs as it brushes past. They quickly obtain a secure hold upon the skin, gripping it with the claws with which their feet are well provided, and, plunging in their beaks, greedily begin to suck in the blood. The beak or rostrum is a compli- cated organ studded with hook-like teeth, which serve to anchor the parasite more firmly ; indeed, if a tick is forciblv removed the rostrum •> is almost certain to be left behind, often causing a suppurating wound by its con- tinued presence, and it is always desirable to induce a tick voluntarily to release its hold rather than to use violence in removing it. When the larva has filled itself with blood it withdraws its rostrum, unhooks its claws, and drops to the ground, and, crawling into some crevice, remains inert for a varying period, during which the food it has imbibed enables it to advance another stage in its development. When the change is complete, the skin splits and is cast off, and the “nymph” emerges. A blade of grass or a bush is again ascended and the waiting game recommences, for another full meal is necessary before further progress can be made. The whole structure of the animal is wonderfully adapted to the conditions of its life, for its patience is inexhaustible and its ability to continue to live without food amazing, and it is very certain that no chance of attaining another host will be let slip. The nymph, if it be lucky enough to find the animal it seeks, acts as did the larva. When full of blood it releases its hold and falls to the ground again, remaining quiescent until the change to the adult form is complete. Then another moult takes place and the newly emerged male or female once more seeks another host, on which it gorges itself and finds its mate. Eventually the gorged and fertilised female again drops to the ground to lay its eggs, and the life-cycle is accomplished. The foregoing is a brief account of what is probably the ordinary mode of life of a tick, three different “ hosts ” being visited in the course of its development. In the case of a few Fig. 6.— Nymph of Ixodes ricinus. 278 Annual Report fdr 1906 of the Zoologist. species, however, it has been found that the changes from larva to adult may be passed through without leaving the skin of the animal to which the tick first gains access. Ten genera of the Ixodoidea or ticks are now recognised, but before alluding to them in detail it is necessary to indicate certain points of tick structure upon differences in which the classification is founded. The body of a tick usually has a dorsal shield or scutum , covering nearly the whole back of the male, but comparatively very small in the gorged female. The scutum may or may not bear a pair of eyes. There is a kind of false head or rostrum — the part which is commonly left behind when the creature is too violently removed. On examination it is seen to consist of a base, a pair of palps , and a piercing organ con- sisting of mandibles and hypostome. The mandibles have toothed projections or digits at their extremity, and the hypostome is beset on its under surface with numerous re- curved teeth by which the parasite anchors itself (see Fig. 10). The under surface of the body shows the genital orifice somewhat in front, the anus towards the posterior end, and often (in the male especially) certain plates or shields of characteristic disposition. There are always, in the adult, a pair of stigmata or breathing apertures, not far from the origin of the last pair of legs. The legs themselves show important characters, their first joints or coxce often bearing peculiar teeth or spines, and their last joints or tarsi usually being furnished with a suctorial organ or pad for holding on to smooth surfaces, and a pair of claws. All these structures may present generic or specific differences, and there are others which demand attention. For example, there are various grooves and punctations on the body which are constant for the same species of tick, and the hind margin is usually looped or festooned more or less distinctly in a tick which is not replete. Fig. 8. — Adult female of Ixodes ricinus. Ticks and Disease. 279 Two genera, Avgas and Ornithodorus , differ so much from other ticks that they are placed in a different family, the Argasidse. They have no scutum, and no pads to their feet when adult. Their integument presents no hard plates, but is leathery in texture, and their mouth parts are more or less on the under surface, instead of being terminal. In Avgas the rostrum is so ventrally situated that it is completely invisible from above, and the back is studded with numerous more or less symmetrically arrayed circular depressions. There are no eyes. In Ovnithodovus the rostrum is more in front, so that the palps project beyond the front margin of the body. The skin is roughened by numerous raised spots, and some species possess eyes. Fig. 9. — Argas reflexus , x 10. Avgas persicns has been proved to convey a spirochete disease to fowls, and is believed to communicate it occasionally to man. In South Africa a similar human disease has been traced to Ornithodovus moubata. The remaining eight genera belong to the family Ixodidae, which may be recognised by the presence of a scutum, and of pads as well as claws on the tarsi. The characters of these genera are briefly given below : — BMpice plia lus. — Palpi short, flat above ; base of rostrum hexagonal ; eyes present ; anal plates on the male ; stigmata triangular or comma-shaped. Boophilus. — Palpi very short, with the middle of the second and third joints transversely ridged ; base of rostrum hexagonal ; eyes present ; anal plates on the male ; stigmata circular. 280 Annual Report for 1906 of the Zoologist. Fig. 13. — Rostrum of Derma- Fig. 14. — Rostrum of Ixodes Fig. 15. — Rostrum of Hyalomma FIG 16. — Rostrum of Ambly- centor electus, from above. ricinus , from below. cegyptium, from below. omma hebrceum, from below. Ticks and Disease. 281 H&mapliy sails. — Palpi short and somewhat triangular, the second joint much projecting laterally ; base of rostrum rectangular ; no eyes or anal plates. Dermaeentor. — Palpi short ; base of rostrum rectangular ; eyes present ; no anal plates ; scutum generally with coloured markings ; coxrn IV of the male much enlarged. Ixodes. — Palpi long ; base of rostrum somewhat triangular ; no eyes ; male with ventral plates ; stigmata oval ; no festoons. Hyalomma. — Palpi long ; eyes present ; anal plates in the male ; body long oval ; stigmata triangular or comma-shaped. Amblyomma. — Palpi long ; eyes present ; no anal plates ; scutum generally with coloured markings ; stigmata triangular. Aponomma. — Palpi long ; no eyes or anal plates ; body broad oval ; scutum often with metallic spots. As ticks of the genus Aponomma live almost exclusively upon reptiles, they are without economic importance. All the other genera furnish species which are either proved to be, or are suspected of being, the agents in transmitting diseases to domesticated animals. The following diseases have been definitely traced to ticks: — Texas fever or redwater in cattle, prevalent in Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South America, and Queensland. It is conveyed by ticks of the genus Boophilus. Rhodesian fever in cattle is communicated by Rhipiceplialus appendi- culatus. Careeag, a European sheep disease, is spread by Rhipiceplialus bursa. Heartwater , which affects sheep and goats in South Africa, has been traced to the “ bont tick,” Amblyomma hebrceum. Canine piroplasmosis in various parts of the world is certainly conveyed by two ticks, Rhipiceplialus sanguineus and Hce nap hy sails leachi ; and other ticks are suspect, especially the English tick, Ixodes ricinus. Spirochcete disease in fowls, and probably also in man, is conveyed by Argas perslcus. Spirochcete disease in man in South Africa has been traced to Ornithodorus moubata. In these cases the chain of evidence is complete. Dogs in England bitten by adult ticks of the species H. leachi , taken from diseased dogs in South Africa, develop piroplasmosis within three weeks, and die of that disease. In the case of Rhodesian fever the infected larva of R. appendiculatus, communicates the disease after becoming a nymph, and the infected nymph after becoming adult. The Texas fever ticks not only convey the disease in all stages, but their very eggs are infected, and the young which hatch out may infect the first cattle they attack. In other cases a remarkable corre- spondence has been observed between the distribution of the tick and that of the disease, but the last link in the chain of proof — the infection of sound animals by infected ticks from another part of the world — is still wanting. Cecil Warburton. Zoological Laboratory, Cambridge. . 282 THE WOBURN EXPERIMENTAL STATION OF THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. FIELD EXPERIMENTS, 1905 and 1906 . CONTINUOUS GROWING OF WHEAT, 1905 . „ „ „ 1906 . CONTINUOUS GROWING OF BARLEY, 1905 . „ „ „ 1906 . ROTATION EXPERIMENTS, 1905 AND 1906 GREEN-MANURING EXPERIMENT, 1905 AND 1906 “head” and “tail” barley, 1905 CANADIAN WHEAT, 1905 AND 1906 . SOOT AS A TOP-DRESSING FOR WHEAT, 1905 POTASH MANURING FOR POTATOES, 1905 . NITRATE OF SODA AND SALT FOR MANGELS, 1905 AND EXPERIMENT ON LATE-PULLING OF MANGELS, 1906 LUCERNE, 1905 AND 1906 .... VARIETIES OF LUCERNE, 1906 .... VARIETIES OF CLOVER, 1906 .... RAINFALL AT WOBURN, 1905 AND 1906 . FIELD EXPERIMENTS. Continuous Growing of Wheat {Stackyard Field ), 1905 (29th Season). The land, after being cultivated, ploughed, and cleaned, was drilled on October 14, 1904, with “ Square Head’s Master ” wheat at the rate of 9 pecks per acre. The soil was in capital condition and the seed went in well. Mild weather following, the wheat began to show on October 28. A week later it was well np on most of the plots, but already the failure of plots 2a, 5, and 8 (on which ammonia salts had been continuously used) was marked. On the contrary, plot 2b, to which lime in addition had been given in December, 1897, showed up favourably. Owing to windy weather the application of mineral manures was delayed until November 5. The application of lime to plot 2b of the continuous wheat series, as also in the case of plots 2b, 5b, 8aa, and 8bb of the continuous barley series, having produced such striking results, it was decided, now that the other plots (5 and 8, on which ammonia salts had been used) had begun to show failure of crop, to extend the experiment with liming. On plot 2b, lime had been put on in December, 1897, at the rate of 2 tons per PAGE 282 282 286 288 290 291 299 301 302 304 305 306 307 308 309 309 310 Continuous Growing of Wheat. 283 acre. This dressing, it must be allowed, is a considerable one, and, though here justified, it can well be understood. that the cost of it might make the ordinary farmer hesitate. It was therefore thought desirable, in extending the liming experiment, to endeavour to ascertain whether smaller applications of lime might not be efficacious : accordingly, the new scheme was made to include applications of 5 cwt. (plot 2aa), 10 cwt. (plots 8aa and 8bb), and 1 ton (plot 5b) per acre, as well as a repetition of the 2 tons per acre on plot 2bb. The lime used contained 79*34 per cent., of lime (CaO). It was bought ground, then slaked with water under cover, left for a few days to crumble down, then carted out and spread on the land and harrowed over. These various dressings were given on January 19, 1905. It was not expected that any result would be noticed in the crop of 1905, as the lime would necessarily take some time to work. Farmyard manure, made as usual in the feeding boxes by bullocks, was spread on plot lib on February 18, and rape dust on plot 10b on February 20. Cold weather followed upon this and made the crop appear very limp. The nitrogenous top-dressings were applied, the first halves of the heavier dressings on April 17, and the second halves and single dressings on May 15. The different plots came on very fairly except 2a (ammonia salts only), which was almost bare, and presented quite a contrast to 2b which had had the same treatment with lime in addition. Heavy rains fell early in June and the wheats were all in bloom by June 24, after which, under the influence of dry weather, they ripened fast towards the end of July. On August 14, they were cut, and were carted on August 24, being finally threshed and weighed on November 3, after which the corn was valued by an expert. The general yield was an average one and much in excess of that of 1904. The unmanured produce was 14J bushels per acre (plot 7, this being the more reliable owing to the influence of surrounding trees on plot 1) as against 7*4 bushels in 1904. The highest yield was from plot lib (farmyard manure), 32*45 bushels, the biggest crop with artificial manures being 26*57 bushels (plot 9a). Ammonia salts alone (plot 2a) gave no crop worth reaping, but with the lime (2 tons applied once, Decem- ber, 1897) yielded just over 10 bushels, which was as much as nitrate of soda alone gave. The gradual diminution of crop with nitrate of soda is noticeable and points to still further interesting results being forthcoming in the future. Used with mineral manures, ammonia salts (plot 5) gave a higher yield than did nitrate of soda (plot 6). When, however, heavier dressings of the salts were used (plots 8a and 9a) the ammonia salts showed the same signs of failure as they did on plot 2a, 284 The Woburn Field Experiments , 1905 and 1906 Table I. — Continuous Crowing of Wheat , 1905 (29 th Season ), and 1906 (30 th Season). (Wheat grown year after year on the same land, the manures being applied every year.) Stackyard Field — Produce per acre. 1905 1906 Head corn Tail corn Value per Head corn Tail corn Value Plot Manures per acre Straw, Straw, per quarter on basis No. Wgt. -U> r*j chaff, &c. quarter on basis No. Wgt. chaff, &c. of per of 2tts. of per 97.S fir/. bush. bush. • bush. bush. £ Lb. Lb. 0. q. lb. s. d. Lb. Lb. C. q. lb. s. d. 1 Unmanured . . v . 4'8 58-0 28 7 0 9 27 0 9‘3 62'5 30 8 0 15 26 6 2a i Ammonia salts (contain- ing 50 lb. ammonia) No crop 3'4 56-0 16 4 1 20 26 0 2aa As 2a, with 5 cwt. lime, Jan.. 1905 .... No crop 19’2 62'5 32 16 0 25 26 6 2b As 2a, with 2 tons lime, Dec., 1897 .... 10'2 60’0 53 9- 1 0 28 6 261 61'5 60 20 1 8 26 6 2bb As 2b, with 2 tons lime (repeated), Jan., 1905 8’9 58'0 69 8 0 16 27 0 25'5 58'5 116 22 2 12 25 0 3 Nitrate of soda (contain- ing nitrogen = 50 lb. ammonia) .... 10’2 551 188 14 2 8 26 0 23-0 58’2 144 22 3 11 25 0 4 2 Mineral manures . 9'3 57'5 72 9 3 10 28 0 6'8 60-2 26 7 0 25 26 0 5a Mineral manures and ammonia salts (contain- ing 50 lb. ammonia) 25'2 58*5 57 19 3 4 27 0 31-5 62-4' 62 22 0 8 26 6 5b As 5a, with 1 ton lime, Jan., 1905 .... 19'4 60-5 97 18 2 16 29 0 31'0 63-5 60 19 3 4 27 0 6 Mineral manures and nitrate of soda (contain- ing nitrogen=50 lb. am- monia) .... 21-2 577 211 22 3 10 28 6 217 60'0 133 18 1 22 26 0 7 Unmanured 14-2 607 143 12 3 21 28 6 1P5 61'2 28 8 2 24 26 6 8a Mineral manures and (in alternate years) am- monia salts (=100 lb. am- monia) .... 8'43 60-0 40 9 212 29 0 10'64 560 24 8 2 24 25 6 8aa As 8a, with 10 cwt. lime, Jan., 1905 . . . . 14‘23 60’0 65 11 1 24 29 0 21 d4 62'2 40 15 0 20 26 6 8b Mineral manures, am- monia salts (=100 lb. ammonia) omitted (in alternate years) 10'24 600 48 9 1 0 28 6 28'03 620 48 21 2 0 27 o • 8bb As 8b, with 10 cwt. lime, Jan., 1905 .... 18'24 62'0 97 14 1 24 29 6 3473 622 44 23 2 20 27 0 9a Mineral manures and (in alternate years) nitrate of soda (containing nitrogen = 100 lb. am- monia) .... 26'63 58'5 203 27 110 28 6 7'44 60'0 24 8 0 0 26 0 9b Mineral manures, nitrate of soda (containing nitrogen = 100 lb. am- monia) omitted (in alter- 10a nate years) 1889, rape cake (=50 lb. 15'34 607 109 13 216 29 0 35'23 61-5 204 35 0 22 26 6 ammonia). No manure since 121 59-2 59 10 1 10 29 0 15-9 61'0 26 12 0 4 26 6 10b Rape cake (=100 lb. am- 11a monia) every year since 1890 20'2 60-5 128 19 3 24 29 0 34-5 63-0 56 28 3 22 26 6 1877-81, farmyard manure lib (=200 lb. ammonia). No manure since . 16-3 61-9 88 15 120 29 0 13*6 61-2 48 10 3 4 26 6 Farmyard manure (= 200 lb. ammonia) every year 321 6P9 161 32 1 0 30 0 162 61'2 28 17 1 4 26 6 1 Ammonia salts are equal weights of sulphate of ammonia and muriate of ammonia. j 2 Mineral manures are, throughout, 3£ cwt. superphosphate of lime, 200 lb. sulphate of potash, 100 lb. sulphate of soda, 100 lb. sulphate of magnesia per acre. 3 Applied. 4 Omitted. Continuous Crowing of Wheat and Barley. 285 Table II. — Continuous Growing of Barley, 1905 (29 th Season ), and, 1906 (30 th Season). (Barley grown year after year on the same land, the manures being applied every year). Stackyard Field — Produce per acre. .1905 1906 Plot Manures per acre Head corn Tail corn Straw, Value per Head corn Tail corn Straw, Value per No. of bush. Wgt, per bush. Weight chaff, &c. quarter on basis of 28s. No. of bush. Wgt. per bush. Weight chaff, &c. quarter on basis of 27s. 1 Unmanured 20-0 Lb. 53'4 Lb. 45 C. q. lb. 12 0 2 s. 25 d. 0 12’3 Lb. 517 Lb. 26 0. q. lb. 7 0 15 s. 23 d. 0 2a 1 Ammonia salts (contain- ing 50 lb. ammonia) 8 0 2 5 23 0 1 010 22 6 2aa As 2a, with 5 cwt. lime. March, 1905 97 50’0 65 7 0 0 25 0 11 ’6 48'0 20 5 312 23 0 2b As 2a, with 2 tons lime, Dec, 1897 . . . ■ . 237 52‘0 97 14 216 24 6 257 531) 60 10 1 16 23 0 2bb As 2b, with 2 tons lime (repeated), March, 1905 . 28-2 517 227 19 2 4 24 0 38A 52'8 96 18 2 8 23 0 3 Nitrate of soda (contain- ing nitrogen— 50 lb. am- monia) .... I7‘9 51'4 89 12 0 1 23 0 36'3 52 '8 81 19 214 23 6 4 2 Mineral manures . 23-3 53-5 60 13 1 11 26 0 18‘8 51-8 20 9 218 23 6 5a Mineral manures and am- monia salts (containing 50 lb. ammonia) 3'9 52-0 16 3 0 4 26 0 17 52-0 3 0 3 9 23 6 5aa As 5a, with 1 ton lime, March, 1905 3-9 52b 8 2 3 0 25 6 33'9 55'5 48 16 0 0 25 0 5b As 5a, with 2 tons lime, Dec, 1897 .... 40-6 547 96 24 2 12 26 0 44-3 54'5 48 21 1 6 26 0 6 Mineral manures and nitrate of soda (contain- ing nitrogen=50 lh. am- monia) .... 30’0 52'5 117 19 2 10 24 6 47'5 53’6 48 27 0 0 25 6 7 Unmanured 187 52'5 62 10 2 4 25 6 17'5 51’2 29 8 2 16 23 6 8a Mineral manures and (in alternate years) am- monia salts (=100 lb. am- monia) .... 2'8? 52-0 49 2 1 12 26 0 3.44 52-0 4 2 210 23 6 8aa As 8a, with 2 tons lime, Dec. 1897 .... 367 3 547 126 23 1 16 25 & 28'64 53-2 24 15 1 8 26 0 8b Mineral manures, am- monia salts (=100 lb. ammonia) omitted (in alternate years) 6'64 52’0 20 4 1 24 26 6 1P83 56’0 16 6 2 9 23 6 8bb As 8b, with 2 tons lime, Dec, 1897 ... 36‘ D 53'8 97 21 1 8 26 6 38'23 54-3 48 20 3 0 25 6 9a Mineral manures and (in alternate years) nitrate of soda ' (containing nitrogen = 100 lb. am- monia) . . . . 32‘33 52-6 148 21 1 0 24 6 32'94 537 36 18 1 16 26 0 9b Mineral manures, nitrate of soda (containing nitrogen = 100 lb. am- monia) omitted (in alter- nate years) 1874 537 59 11 1 0 25 0 60'83 527 120 42 1 7 23 0 10a 1899, rape cake (=50 lb. ammonia). No manure since 21'9 53'6 90 11 2 12 26 0 237 520 32 12 2 6 23 6 1 0b Rape cake (=100 lb. am- monia) everv year since 1890 . A . 34’0 527 184 22 3 12 23 0 45-8 527 56 24 1 18 23 6 11a 1877-81. farmyard manure (=200 lb. ammonia). No manure since ; 327 53-5 96 16 0 14 26 6 26-5 53’5 30 14 3 24 25 0 111) Farmyard manure (= 200 lb. ammonia) every year 42-0 54-3 118 26 0 18 26 6 45'6 55-3 42 27 0 20 25 0 1 Ammonia salts are equal weights of sulphate of ammonia and muriate of ammonia. 2 Mineral manures are, throughout. 3£ cwt. superphosphate of lime. 200 lb. sulphate of potash. 100 lh. sulphate of soda, and 100 lb. sulphate of magnesia per acre. 3 Applied. 4 Omitted- 286 The Woburn Field Experiments, 1905 and 1906. whereas the nitrate of soda did not. As usual, nitrate of soda gave comparatively the larger yield of straw. The need of liming plot 8 was thus emphasised. Plot 4 (minerals only) wras not reliable owing to increasing overgrowth of trees. The result from rape cake (plot 10b) was not equal to that from farmyard manure (plot lib). Though the lime applied to the new plots 2aa, 2bb, 5b, 8aa, and 8bb, could hardly be said to have got into full action, it is worthy of note that while the 5 cwt. on plot 2aa effected no change, the application of 2 tons on plot 2bb and of 1 ton on plot 5b seemed temporarily to retard the crop. On the other hand the 10 cwt. on plots 8aa and 8bb gave a distinct increase of 14 to 18 bushels of corn, besides markedly improving its quality. The rainfall for the year was 19*31 in. When the corn was valued, it was found that farmyard manure gave not only the largest crop, but the best quality, while nitrate of soda alone (plot 3) was the poorest quality of all. It is specially noticeable that plots 3, 6, and 9 (on all of which nitrate of soda was used) gave the highest proportion* of tail corn, as also the lowest weight per bushel. On the whole, the wheat from the farmyard manure and rape cake plots was the best, and then came that from the ammonia plots, where lime in addition had been used. The wheats were, taken together, much better than the barleys of the same year, and the five lots that stood highest in the valuation were above the average of the wheats of the district. The complete results are given in Table I., page 284. 1906 (30th Season). The details of cultivation, &c., were much as just recorded for 1905. The rainfall for the year was 25*23 in., as against 19*31 in. in 1905. A good deal of rain (3*06 in.) fell in January (which had been a dry month in 1905), as also in February and March (1*69 in. and 1*67 in. respectively). As in 1905, there was a great deal of rain in June (3*48 in.), but July was very hot and dry, and brought the crop early to maturity. The seed, “ Square Head’s Master,” obtained from Yorkshire, was drilled at the rate of 9 pecks per acre, on October 11, 1905. The ammonia plots (2, 5, 8), as usual, looked much poorer than the rest, of which plot lib (farmyard manure) showed most prominent, then plot 10b (rape cake). Plot 3 (nitrate of soda alone) at this stage looked inferior to the other nitrate plots (6 and 9) where minerals as well had been used. Already at this point the influence of the small dressing of 5 cwt. of lime to plot 2aa had made a wonderful difference as compared with the unlimed plot 2a, but the repetition of the 2 tons of lime on plot 2bb did not seem to make it any better than plot Continuous Growing of Wheat. 287 2b, which was last limed in 1897, and which looked exceptionally well. The ground being very sodden in November, mineral manures could not be applied until December 18. Rape dust was put on plot 10b, and farmyard manure on plot lib, on March 2, 1906, and the nitrogenous top-dressings on April 11 and May 14. At the latter date the most striking feature was the effect, on plot 2aa, of the single application (the year before) of 5 cwt. of lime. The influence of lime was also marked in plots 8aa and 8bb, as compared with the similar unlimed plots. By the close of June the best plot of all was undoubtedly 10b (rape dust), and, by way of contrast, the farmyard manure plot (lib) was very disappointing. This continued throughout the season, and the plot yielded very badly, not giving half the crop that the rape cake did (16*2 bushels, as against 34*5). It is very difficult to assign any adequate reason for this abnormal result, for the dung was of quite as good quality as in other years, and made and applied in the same way. The fact, however, remains, and was a common matter of observation by visitors to the farm throughout the season. “ Rust ” began to make its appearance towards the end of June, and was most marked on the nitrate of soda plots. The plots were cut on August 9, carted August 15-17, and threshed • and weighed on November 15, the corn being subsequently valued by an expert. The general yield was similar to that of 1905 and up to the average of the first twenty years. The unmanured produce (plot 7) was 11\ bushels per acre, and the highest yield 35*2 bushels (nitrate of soda and minerals), this being closely followed by ammonia salts and minerals including 10 cwt. of lime, and by rape cake (34*7 and 34*5 bushels respectively), nitrate of soda, however, giving the more straw. The poverty of the farmyard manure plot (lib) has been commented on ; the yield was only 16*2 bushels, as against 32*45 bushels in 1905. Another anomaly is that with plot 3 (nitrate of soda only), which, though it looked at one time distinctly inferior, gave 2 bushels more corn than the same amount of nitrate with minerals (plot 6). The effects of these anomalies can only be eliminated, or their causes explained, by a long series of experimentation and observation such as is pursued at Woburn. While ammonia salts alone (2a) produced but 3^ bushels, the effect of 2 tons of lime put on in 1897 was to increase this (2b) to 26*1 bushels and to exceed by 3 bushels the yield from nitrate of soda alone (plot 3). Even the 5 cwt. of lime put on plot 2aa in 1905 raised the produce to 19*2 bushels, and the remarkable appearance of this plot as com- pared with plot 2a was a perfect “ object lesson ” to the many visitors who came to the farm. 288 The Woburn Field Experiments , 1905 and 1906. It was almost incredible tliat so great a change could be effected in so short a time by the application of a mere “ sprinkling ” of lime, and this alone justified the departure that was made in 1905 and the greater complexity of the plots involved thereby. On the other hand, the repetition of 2 tons of lime in 1905 (plot 2bb) did not seem called for, and it has been, accordingly, made clear by these experiments that the influence of a dressing of 2 tons of lime to the acre will last, with corn crops, for at least nine years. Similarly, the application of 1 ton of lime to 5b did not increase the yield, but it has to be remembered that plot 5a was exceptionally good this season. Ammonia salts (heavy dressing) with minerals, including lime, took the produce to 34*7 bushels (8bb), practically equalling that from the heavy nitrate of soda dressing with minerals (9b). The omission of nitrate of soda for a single year (9a) resulted in a fall to 7*4 bushels (9a), the decline, when ammonia salts were similarly left out (8aa), but lime used, being nothing like so great, viz., to 21 4 bushels. As remarked before, plots 1 and 4, are both, through the influence of overshadowing trees, unreliable. The full returns are given in Table I., page 284. The same features as in 1905 of large quantity of tail corn, together with low weight per bushel, resulting from the use of nitrate of soda (plots 3, 6, and 9), are noticeable. The best weight per bushel was given by rape cake (10b) and ammonia salts with lime (5b). Lime, when applied, seemed generally to improve the weight per bushel. The wheats were only of medium quality and, with three exceptions, did not come up to the average samples of the district. The highest prices were obtained with ammonia salts and minerals with lime ; rape cake and farmyard manure were not much behind, while nitrate of soda gave the lowest prices, the wheat not being good enough for milling purposes. Continuous Growing of Barley (, Stackyard Field), 1905 (29th Season). The land was prepared through the winter and ploughed a second time, March 1-3, 1905. “ Hallett’s Chevalier ” barley was drilled on March 10, at the rate of 10 pecks to the acre. At the same date lime was applied to plots 2aa, 2bb, and 5aa in the same way as with the continuous wheat plots. Very stormy weather followed and it was not until March 17 that the mineral manures could be put on, as also the rape dust (plot 10b), farmyard manure going on to plot lib still later (March 21). The nitrogenous top-dressings were applied, the first halves of the heavier dressings on April 17, and the second Continuous Growing of Barley. 289 halves and single dressings on May 15. Although no result was expected so early from the use of lime it certainly did appear as if that put on plots 2aa and 5aa had caused some improvement. Heavy rains early in May affected the plant considerably, as did also an attack of wireworm ; this latter was least marked on the rape cake plot (10b). The barley came into ear by June 19, and the several plots were cut August 25-26 and carted on September 1, the crop, however, being much damaged by rain, which fell heavily on August 28-29. The corn was threshed out on November 3, and subsequently valued. The crop, though much damaged in regard to quality by the rains that fell at harvest time, was a much heavier one than that of 1904 and was not much below the average of the first twenty years. Thus, the unmanured produce was 19‘35 bushels per acre as against the average of 21 bushels, and mineral manures alone gave 23-3 bushels (average 22‘5 bushels). Farmyard manure, as with the wheat, produced the heaviest crop, viz., 42*6 bushels, while 40‘6 bushels were reached with a dressing of artificials comprising mineral manures, ammonia salts, and lime (plot 5b), no lime, however, having been put on since 1897 ; while ammonia salts alone gave no crop, the same with lime (1897) but no minerals yielded 23’7 bushels, or in excess of the produce from nitrate of soda alone (17*9 bushels). Even when used with minerals (plot 6) nitrate of soda failed to give as good a crop as did ammonia salts with minerals and lime (30 bushels as against 40’6). Rape cake produced the satisfactory yield of 34 bushels. In regard to the newly limed plots it may be noted that, though so recently applied, the 5 cwt. on plot 2aa produced nearly 10 bushels of corn wrhere before none had grown, and on plot 2bb an increase of bushels. On plot 5aa, however, where 1 ton had been applied, no benefit accrued. The crop returns and other particulars are set out in Table II., page 285. The quality of the corn was much deteriorated owing to the unfavourable conditions ruling at the time of harvest. As with the wheat, so here, farmyard manure gave the highest produce and the best quality, while nitrate of soda gave the worst quality of all. As had been the case with the wheat, the lowest weight per bushel was given with nitrate of soda (plots 3 and 9), and the best with ammonia salts (and lime), rape cake, and farm- yard manure. The best samples were not more than would pass as low class malting barleys, for which, however, owing to high prices ruling for foreign barleys, there was at the time a good demand, and so the differences in price are not so marked as otherwise would have been the case. VOL. 67. u 290 The Woburn Field Experiments , 1905 and 1906. 1906 (30th Season). u Chevalier ” barley was drilled at the rate of 9 pecks per acre on April 4, 1906, farmyard manure to plot lib and rape dust to plot 10b being put on just afterwards. Mineral manures were applied on April 26, and nitrogenous top- dressings on May 14 and 29. The crop suffered but little from the heavy rains at the end of June. The newly limed plots at this period bid fair to give very interesting results, for, while plot 2a (ammonia salts only) was almost bare, the 5 cwt. of lime on plot 2aa showed a clear difference, though this was not so marked as in the corresponding wtheat plots. Also the 1 ton of lime on plot 5aa, and the second application of 2 tons of lime to plot 2bb, both showed up distinctly, though in the case of the wheat this had not been so. These observations, coupled with the harvest returns which confirmed them, point to much that requires studying with regard to the differences between wheat and barley as crops, and in reference to their requirements, as also to the physical and chemical effects of lime when put on the land. It would appear as if the sterile condition of, and acidity produced in, the barley soil by the continuous use of ammonia salts (as instanced in plot 2a, now practically bare) was more marked with the barley crop than the wheat, or that the barley crop, being a surface feeder, suffered more from the acid top soil. Hence a larger quantity of lime than the 5 cwt. employed on plot 2aa was probably required to neutralise the acidity and to restore fertility ; whereas with the wheat crop, which goes down deeper, the lesser quantity of lime might suffice. This seems to be further borne out by the fact that 1 ton of lime on plot 5aa, and 2 tons applied a second time on plot 5bb, effected marked improvements with the barley crop, though they had been ineffective with the wheat. The barleys ripened but slowly, and a good deal of “ smut ” appeared on the ears, though this was not more marked on some plots than others. The plots were harvested August 23-24, threshed on November 16, and the corn wras valued. The crop was a distinctly heavy one, and, taken all round, one of the biggest that has been obtained on this land. Though the unmanured produce, 15 bushels per acre, and that from minerals only, 18*8 bushels, were below the averages of the first twenty years (21 bushels and 22*5 bushels respectively), the farmyard manure (lib) and rape cake (10b) plots both exceeded 45*5 bushels, against averages for previous years of 39*9 and 37*4 bushels ; nitrate of soda and minerals gave (plot 6) 47*5 bushels against a previous average of 43*5 bushels, while ammonia salts with minerals, including lime, reached 44*3 bushels (previous average 39 bushels). Even nitrate of Rotation Experiments. 291 soda alone (plot 3) gave 36*3, the average being 35*6, and, used in heavy dressing with minerals (plot 9b), it gave the exceptionally heavy crop of 608 bushels of corn with 42 cwt. of straw, the general average for twenty years being only 49*3 bushels. It cannot, therefore, be held, as yet, that in the case of the barley crop the continuous use of nitrate of soda has been detrimental. Both farmyard manure and rape cake gave excellent crops, and the failure of the former noted in the case of the wheat this season was not repeated. The favourable season, though it gave unusually good crops on plots 10a and 11a (residue of organic manures), did not succeed in allaying the injury done to the land by the continued use of ammonia salts without lime, for plot 2a (ammonia salts only) was nearly a blank, and plots 5a, 8a, and 8b (ammonia salts and minerals without lime) were nearly as bad. Wherever, on the contrary, lime had been put, the crop, as already observed, derived great benefit. The 5 cwt. of lime on plot 2aa gave 11*6 bushels, the 1 ton on plot 5aa 33*9 bushels, the 2 tons (applied last in 1897 to plots 2b and 5b) 25*4 bushels and 44*3 bushels respectively, while the further use of 2 tons in 1905 to the previously limed plot (2bb) resulted in a further increase of 13 bushels, though no minerals (as in 5b) had been put on. The results from plots 8aa and 8bb (lime last applied in 1897) would seem to indicate that the lime on these plots was getting used up. Table II., page 285, contains the full harvest returns. The inferiority of quality under the influence of the use of nitrate of soda was not so marked as in most years ; rather more tail corn was obtained generally, but the weight per bushel suffered but little. The best weights per bushel were obtained from the farmyard manure plot (lib) and the ammonia salts plots (5aa, 5b, 8bb) with minerals including lime. Only three of the samples were fit for more than brown malt, these being the ones manured with ammonia salts or nitrate of soda, in each case with minerals (9a, 8aa, and 5b). As a class the barleys were below the average of the district. Rotation Experiments (, Stackyard Field). As mentioned in the Report for 1904, the new rotation scheme was begun that year on the upper (or road side) half of the area, the lower half continuing to be cropped alike all over. On the upper half (8 acres) kohl rabi was grown in 1904 and fed off, at the rate of 12 tons per acre, by sheep. On Rotations I., II., and III. the sheep had only the roots with a little clover hay chaff, but on Rotation IV. they had, on plot 1, decorticated cotton cake, on plot 2, maize meal, and on plots 3 and 4, the roots only, with, in each case, clover hay as before. 292 The Woburn Field Experiments , 1905 and 1906. In 1905 swedes followed on Rotation I., a green crop (mustard) on Rotation II., wheat on Rotation III., and barley on Rotation IV. On the lower half of the field (8 acres) wheat was the crop all over. The course of rotation will accordingly be : — Rotation I. Rotation II. Rotation III. Rotation IV. 1904. Roots . Roots . Roots . Roots (with cake and corn) 1905. Swedes . . Green crop (with cake and corn) . Wheat . Barley 1906. Barley . Wheat . Roots . . Green crop (with cake and corn) 1907. Green crop . Roots . . Barley (with cake and corn) . Wheat 1908. Wheat . Barley . Green crop . Roots (with cak e and corn) 1909. Roots . . Green crop (with cake and corn) . Wheat . Barley 1910. Barley . Wheat . Roots . . Green crop (with cake and corn) Rotation I. 1905, Swedes. 1906, Barley. The kohl rabi crop of 1904 was weighed out to the 150 sheep that were used to feed it off, so that the same weight (12 tons to the acre) was consumed, together with clover hay chaff, on each of the four plots of the rotation. The sheep were on the plots from November 5 to December 2, 1904. The land was then ploughed, cultivated the following spring, ploughed again May 5-12, 1905, and on June 14 “ Monarch ” swede seed, at the rate of 4 lb. per acre, was drilled, together with 4 cwt. to the acre of basic superphosphate and 1 cwt. per acre of sulphate of potash. Basic superphosphate was used in preference to ordinary mineral superphosphate because of the lime in it and the known poverty of the soil in lime. Despite this, “ finger-and-toe ” attacked the plant to a consider- able extent, though, on the whole, a quite useful crop of swedes was obtained. This was pulled on November 14 and weighed November 22-27. The weights are given in Table III., below. As the crop was not influenced by the consumption of cake or corn on the land, discussion of the results is not called for here. Table III. — Rotation /. Swedes , 1905. Stackyard Field. Plot Produce per acre. T. c. q- lb. 1 17 5 1 8 2 20 4 3 10 3 21 15 1 22 4 19 4 2 18 293 Rotation Experiments. Sheep were put on to eat off the swedes on each of the four plots, the quantity consumed being kept down to 12 tons per acre, together with a little clover hay chaff ; the remainder of the roots were carted to the homestead. This rotation now coming into regular order (in 1906), the plan as arranged was commenced, the object being to ascertain the residual or unexhausted manure value of, on the one hand, a highly nitrogenous food like decorticated cotton cake, and, on the other hand, a starchy and low-nitrogen food like maize. The question at issue was whether, after giving these foods to sheep feeding off a root crop on the land, the manurial values, or the differences between them, of the two foods, as set out in Lawes and Gilbert’s Tables (or subsequent modifications of them), were justified in the crops subsequently grown as the result of the feeding of the cake or corn on the land. If compensation is to be paid, on the basis of the Tables, for the cake or corn so used, but the crop-producing (or unexhausted manurial) value of which has not yet been realised, it should clearly bear some relation to the increased crops which are capable of being grown thereby. It was, therefore, to see whether the crops so grown in an ordinary rotation course bore out, by their larger return, the money values assigned in the Tables, that this experiment in its new form was instituted. It is necessary here to go back shortly to the earlier history of these rotation experiments, for the same question presented itself at their first inception in 1876. After a number of years of experimenting under the four-course rotation of roots, barley, clover, wheat, it was ascertained that the influence of the clover crop (and this crop could, it was found, be grown on the Woburn land every fourth year without difficulty) was so great on the wheat and subsequent crops as to neutralise altogether any ’differences between the manurial value of the highly nitrogenous decorticated cotton cake and that of the low-nitrogen maize meal. It seldom happens, however, in practice that one can take a clover crop once in four years on the same land ; and, accordingly, it was now decided that if the question of manurial value were to be brought out, it must be by a course of cropping in which a clover or other leguminous crop was omitted, for the leguminous crops of the farm, it is now known (through the researches of Hellriegel), utilise the nitrogen of the atmosphere and store up nitrogen in the soil, thus practically supplying a nitrogenous manuring sufficient to neutralise the difference of effects capable of being produced by the use of such foods as decorticated cotton cake and maize meal when brought into comparison. Accordingly, in the new scheme now determined upon, it was resolved to omit the leguminous (clover) crop altogether, 294 The Woburn Field Experiments , 1905 and 1906. and, in place of it, to grow a green crop such as mustard. In other respects the former lines were adhered to, except that cake and corn were not given in such quantity as formerly (to avoid over-manuring), and were only fed once in the course of the rotation and not twice as before. In this way it was hoped that the real differences of manurial value between decorticated cotton cake and maize meal would be brought out. To return to Rotation I. On plot 1 the sheep were to have decorticated cotton cake given them, on plot 2 maize meal, while neither cake nor corn was to be given on plots 3 and 4, these being kept as “ control ” or “ standard ” plots. The actual quantities consumed per acre, with the 12 tons of roots and 1^ cwt. of clover hay chaff, were 920 lb. decorticated cotton cake on plot 1 and 920 lb. of maize meal on plot 2. This came to, on the average, \ lb. of cake or corn per head daily throughout the period of feeding (which would be an ordinary amount for a farmer to give) together with lb. of clover hay chaff. The sheep, 100 in number, fed off first the control plots (4 and 3) and then passed on to plot 2, and finally to plot 1. The whole period of feeding off the four plots (^ acre each) was 33 days (November 30, 1905, to January 1, 1906). The land was then ploughed and cultivated, and “ Chevalier ” barley was drilled in on April 5, 1906, at the rate of 9 pecks per acre. The crop came very well, and it was soon noticeable that plot 1 (decorticated cotton cake) was much superior to the others, between which, however, there was little to choose. Heavy rains towards the end of June damaged the barley a good deal, and plot 1 went down in places somewhat, though it recovered later. The plots were harvested August 23-24, threshed on November 16, and subse- quently valued. The results are given in Table IY. Table IY. — Rotation I. Barley , 1906. Stackyard Field — Produce per acre. Plot Head corn Tail corn Straw, chaff, &c. Value of corn per quarter on basis of 27s. Weight Bush. Weight per bushel Weight C. q. lb. Lb. Lb. C. q. lb. s. d. 1 Swedes fed off with dec. cotton cake . 26 3 3 55-4 54-1 30 35 1 10 25 0 2 Swedes fed off with maize meal . 23 1 3 47-4 55-0 21 28 0 17 26 0 3 Swedes fed off with- out cake or corn . 23 0 27 47-0 55-3 34 25 3 26 27 6 4 Swedes fed off with- out cake or corn . 22 1 10 45-1 55-5 26 24 1 4 26 0 Rotation Experiments. 295 It will be noticed that the weighings bore out the appear- ances that the growing crops had presented. Plot 1 (decorti- cated cotton cake) produced 8 bushels more barley and 7 cwt. more straw than did plot 2 (maize meal), the latter being practically the same, as regards corn, as plot 3, but yielding 2 cwt. more straw. The duplicate plots (3 and 4) differed by nearly 2 bushels of corn, and might well have been closer. Probably an average of the two would be the fairest reckoning, and this would give : — Plot Increase per acre over unmanured produce Corn Straw 1 (decorticated cotton cake fed) . 2 (maize meal fed) .... Weight C. q. lb. 3 3 26 0 1 26 Bushels 9-35 1-35 C. q. lb. 10 0 23 3 0 2 The corn from plot 1 was hardly of as good quality as the other lots, not being so well matured. Rotation II. 1905, Green Crop {Mustard). 1906, Wheat. The kohl rabi of 1904 — 12 tons per acre — was fed off by 150 sheep without cake or corn, from December 3 to December 27, 1904, after which the land was ploughed and cultivated through the spring of 1905. Mustard was drilled in on July 6, and the crop was ready for cutting on August 18. It was ploughed in as green stuff on September 2-4, and then wheat, “ Square Head’s Master,” was drilled in on October 6, 1905, at the rate of 9 pecks per acre. The crop was quite a fair one, and was ready for cutting on August 9, 1906. It was carted on August 17, threshed on November 15, and afterwards valued. The returns are given in Table V. Table Y. — Rotation II. Wheat , 1906. Stackyard Field — Produce per acre. Plot Head corn Tail corn Straw, chaff, &c. Weight Bush. Weight per bushel Weight • O. q. lb. Lb. Lb. C. q lb. 1 20 0 4 36-7 6P2 42 27 3 10 2 19 2 17 35-8 6P5 . 48 27 2 22 3 14 3 22 26-9 62-3 34 21 1 9 4 14 3 27 266 63-0 49 21 3 8 Value of corn per quarter on basis of 27s. 6d. s. d. 27 0 27 0 27 0 27 0 296 The Woburn Field Experiments , 1905 and 1906. The results show that the yields of plots 1 and 2 were closely alike, and also those of plots 3 and 4 ; but between the two sets there was a difference of about 9 bushels of corn and 6 cwt. of straw, for which there is no apparent reason, all four plots having been treated alike, and no decorticated cotton cake or maize meal having been fed as yet to plots 1 and 2. The samples were all of even quality. Rotation III. 1905, Wheat. 1906, Swedes. The kohl rabi was, as in the case of the other rotations, fed off between December 27, 1904, and January 16, 1905. The land was then ploughed and cultivated, and on February 27, red “Nursery” wheat was drilled at the rate of 9 pecks per acre. The wheat came very well and produced a nice crop, which was ready for cutting on August 25. It was carted on September 1, and threshed and weighed on November 3. The produce is given in Table YI. Table YI. — Rotation III. Wheat , 1905. Stackyard Field — Produce per acre. riot Head corn Tail corn Straw, chaff, &c. Value of corn per quarter on basis of 29s. Weight Bushels Weight per bushel Weight C. q. lb. Lb. Lb. O. q. lb. s. d. l 19 1 16 35-1 61-8 112 31 0 21 29 6 2 19 3 25 36-0 62-1 99 31 0 3 29 0 3 20 2 26 37-6 61*7 85 32 1 15 29 0 4 21 2 8 . 39-0 61-9 89 35 0 26 30 0 The four lots were considered excellent samples of spring sown wheat. Plot 4 was the best quality, and was valued at 30s. per quarter on a basis of 29s. for the season. Plot 1 was put at 29s. 6 48'8 48'5 45'9 (1879) 50‘3 (1868 1516 1396 1198(1888) 1683(i90i) Wales . J South-western I with South V 497 50-2 48’3 (1888) and 1893) 52'8 (1868 ) 1714 1650 1459(1888) 1964(1893) Wales . j Channellslands1 52-5 52-2 507 (1885) 54' 3 (1899) 1944 1899 1710(1888) 2300(1893) Note. — Theabove Table is compiled from information given in the Weekly Weather Report of the Meteorological Office. lFor the Channel Islands the “Averages” and “Extremes” of Rainfall and Mean Temperature are for the twenty -five years, 1881-1905, 337 The Rainfall of 1906 and of the previous Ten Years , ivith the Average Annual Fall for a long period , as observed at thirty - eight stations situated in various parts of the United Kingdom. 1906 Rainfall of Previous Years Dif- fer- i Ave- Stations Total rage rain- rain- fall ence from 1905 1904 1903 1902 1901 1900 1899 1898 1897 1896 fall ave- rage. Per England and Wales: In. cent. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. In. Durham 28-8 —14 19'2 19‘0 30'8 18'5 22'9 28'8 24'5 20'8 2P8 24'5 27'6 York .... 22 '8 —11 207 20'8 30'3 187 20'5 25'8 22'4 237 24'4 22'2 25'6 Hillington 816 + 16 22*7 25' 7 35'6 262 24'4 32'6 247 221 26'3 297 27'3 Yarmouth . 28-0 + 6 22-6 210 251 21'4 21'2 24-7 9,9/4 20'0 20' 8 21'3 26'4 Cambridge . 22A — 2 19-0 176 30'5 15*8 167 197 19-3 179 20'4 207 22'8 Rothamsted . 26'8 — 5 24'8 23-2 363 196 211 271 251 187 25'0 29'0 281 Nottingham . 21-8 -14 18-6 20'0 32' 2 21'5 20'4 28'5 22' 6 19'5 23' 4 23'0 25' 3 Cheadle. 34-3 + 2 26-7 26'3 39'2 26'4 277 37*5 30-9 27'8 328 29'3 33 6 Hereford 23‘6 -12 24-0 25-0 37-8 24' 3 25'2 32'8 267 22'4 267 18'2 26'9 Cirencester . 26'2 —16 25-1 28'8 411 251 261 31'0 26'8 221 327 23'6 31'2 Oxford .... 24'0 — 5 21'0 227 35-9 167 22'3 23'6 21-0 191 26'3 23'5 25' 3 London .... 22’2 — 9 23-0 20'2 38-0 20'4 21'5 22'2 22'0 17-8 23'3 227 24'4 Hastings 287 — 2 26'9 24'6 32' 3 23'0 19-4 29'8 25' 8 23'0 281 29'9 29 '2 Southampton 331 + 7 26’2 31-0 43'2 27'4 28'3 31-6 27'6 26'6 32'6 26' 3 309 Stonyhurst . 497 + 4 38'8 396 58'9 368 390 483 47'5 47-9 51'3 44'2 479 Manchester . 42-2 + 12 33'3 32'0 45'2 26'5 33 3 42'8 33'5 33-2 391 38'4 37 8 Liverpool 28-1 — 2 24-0 251 34'4 25'6 251 31-9 27*6 25'6 28'4 266 28'8 Llandudno . 31 '6 + 1 26'1 26'0 385 25'0 287 32'8 32'4 313 307 30'4 31'2 Pembroke 42-5 + 20 28'2 318 45'8 30'9 33'0 40'6 35'0 355 381 307 35-3 Clifton .... 301 —14 25-0 30'9 42' 8 265 26'6 377 35'5 30'9 38*9 27-6 351 Cullompton . 33’9 — 5 281 34-9 427 30'8 311 35'5 37'0 29'9 38-9 27-6 35'5 Plymouth 331 — 8 30-5 41'4 45'8 30'9 33‘0 40'3 331 29' 2 40'4 291 36'3 Scilly (St. Marv’s) 29-8 —11 27-5 34'4 39'9 25'3 32'6 341 31'9 271 357 25'8 336 Jersey (St. Auhin’s) . 29-2 —14 30-3 37'3 38'2 30'4 29'6 34'6 26'3 30'0 36'2 33'2 339 -Mean for the whole of ) England and Wales j 29’9 — 5 25‘6 28'0 37*5 267 27'4 32' 3 28'6 26'2 31'3 28'5 316 Scotland : Stornoway . 42'2 — 9 50-7 557 621 46'3 42'8 62'5 59'9 71-6 45'2 59*0 466 Wick . 33’2 + 16 32-3 25'3 35'9 26'4 321 331 297 27'4 21-9 347 28'6 Aberdeen 3P5 + 2 28-5 237 36*3 27*3 28'0 34' 0 30'3 27'5 287 312 308 Balmoral 3 391 + 9 35'6 24'9 441 31-8 31'4 40'5 35'6 36'5 368 30'2 36'0 Leith 307 +29 19'2 23'4 30'9 16-4 22'5 31'2 24'8 19-9 20'5 217 23'4 Marchmont . 389 + 13 271 261 38'6 24'4 27 '2 43'8 326 28' 3 29'0 31'4 34'5 Fort Augustus 51-6 +21 43-6 44'4 66'0 35'6 369 50'5 42' 3 54-3 41-9 42'6 42 '5 Glasgow 40'1 + 1 30-7 337 53'3 291 32'9 47*0 43'5 37'4 397 35' 9 39'8 2 Mean for the whole 1 of Scotland . j 46-3 + 6 411 421 571 43'0 40'8 52'2 461 47'4 41'5 437 44'3 Ireland : Edenfel (Omagh) 42'4 +12 361 42'9 54-9 39*3 430 467 42'0 40'4 46-3 37'3 378 Markree Castle . 44'6 + 7 39'0 44'9 541 38'4 44'9 45-3 437 40'4 461 42'3 41’6 Armagh. 301 — 4 29 '9 30'9 36*3 317 321 36'4 32'5 31'8 351 31'2 31'5 Dublin .... 22'8 —18 25-3 22'2 31 '6 29'4 261 34' 3 277 271 29' 4 26'9 278 Parsonstown 32'6 — 1 257 32'9 40'8 28'2 311 38'5 331 34'2 37’8 32'4 33'0 Kilkenny 287 —12 25 '0 31’ 5 42'0 331 303 39'2 30'9 291 41'4 29'2 328 '-’Mean for the whole \ of Ireland. . J 367 — 8 34-6 38'9 47'9 372 377 44'9 40'6 38'6 44-5 38'0 397 1 The Average Fall is in nearly all cases deduced from observations extending over the t.hirtv-flve years 1866-1900. 2 The Mean Rainfall for each country is based upon observations made at a large number of stations in addition to those given above. 3 The figures for “Previous Years ” are for Braemar, which ceased reporting after 1905. VOL. (17, 3 338 The Weather during the, Agricultural Year , 1905-1906. [Continued from page 335.] becoming cold and changeable, with showers of snow or sleet, and with occasional thunderstorms in various parts of the country. The lowest temperatures occurred between the 27th and 29th, when sharp ground frosts were experienced over the more central districts. May, which proves so often the bright, st month of the year, was characterised for the most part by dull cheerless weather, with an excess of rain in all but the eastern districts. A burst of summer warmth on the 8th was accompanied by thunder- storms of considerable severity and by heavy rain along tne valley of the upper Thames ; in some places as much as 2 in. were measured. Thunderstorms were also experienced in many places on the 13th, while on the 19th a cool wind blowing in from the North Sea was accompanied by a very heavy downpour of rain in the north of England, many stations in Durham and Northumberland recording amounts varying between 2 and in. Temperature at about this time was generally low, with ground frosts of sufficient intensity to cause damage locally to the fruit and ground crops. Towards the end of the month the weather seemed to deteriorate rather than to improve, the closing week being marked by heavy rains in most districts, and by thunderstorms in the south and also in the north of England. For the season, as a whole, the mean temperature of the spring was mostly below the average, the deficiency being greatest in the west and south. The total rainfall exceeded the normal in the western parts of the country, but was below in all the eastern, central, and southern districts. In the eastern counties, only 80 per cent, of the average was recorded, and in the midlands only 77 per cent. The duration of bright sunshine was in excess of the normal in most districts, but in the midland counties the excess was small. In the north- western counties, and in the Channel Islands, the amount agreed very closely with the average. The Summer of 1906. The summer proved one of the finest and driest of recent years. In the early part of the season, brilliant sunshine was tempered by cool winds, so that the thermometer seldom rose to any very high level. Later on, the weather became gradually warmer, and quite at the close of August and the beginning of September a burst of heat of quite a phenomenal character for so late in the season was experienced over the entire country. The most striking features of an untoward nature were a very heavy rainstorm, which occurred in the south and south-east between the 28tli and 29th of June, and a series of thunderstorms which were developed over the 339 The Summer of 1 1) 0 (> . whole country at the beginning of August. On August 1 an exceedingly heavy fall occurred in Wales and the neighbouring- parts of England, while on the following day a destructive whirlwind was experienced in and around Guildford, and a still more destructive hailstorm in north-east Bedfordshire and the neighbouring parts of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire. In the latter case the crops over a large area, which promised an abundant yield, were beaten down and entirely destroyed, the total loss of property being estimated at about 55,000/. June opened with thundery weather, but the conditions soon improved, and for about three weeks the country experienced an almost uninterrupted run of bright sunshine, the only important exc ption occurring between the 13th and 16th, when thunderstorms occurred in many places. With a general prevalence of winds from some northerly quarter the thermometer was usually rather low for the time of year, and between the 4th and 6th slight ground frosts were experienced in various parts of the eastern and midland counties. Towards the close of the month the weather became warmer, but less settled, and between the 28th and 29th, a heavy fall of rain occurred over southern England, the amount in the space of about twelve hours, being as large as 2*4 in. at Kew, 2*2 in. at Rothamsted, and 2'1 in. in Central London (at Westminster). Between 9.45 a.m. and 10 a.m. on the 27th, earthquake shocks of an alarming character were experienced in South Wales and the West of England, and in some localities a certain amount of structural damage was reported. July was upon the whole tine and fairly dry, but until very nearly the close of the month the thermometer failed to rise to any very high level for the time of year. Thunderstorms were rather general over the south and east of England on the 11th and 12th, the weather being, however, at the same time very cool, with slight ground frost in some few parts of our eastern and midland counties. A near approach to ground frost was also reached in the northern and central parts of the country on the night of the 20th. In the last week of the month the weather became, as in June, warm and changeable, with thunderstorms and heavy rain over eastern, central, and southern England on the 27th. On the 30th the thermometer rose to 80° and upwards in many parts of the country. August opened with a spell of exceedingly unsettled weather, the thunderstorms of the 1st and 2nd being attended in some parts of our midland and southern counties, as we have already seen, by violent and destructive effects. After this outburst, the conditions improved, but for the remainder of the month the weather, although much finer in the south and east than else- where, was never quite settled. Further thunderstorms which z 2 340 The Weather during the Agricultural Tear, 1905-1903. t occurred on tlie 7th and 8th were again accompanied by heavy falls of rain in some parts of our eastern counties, the amount at Rauceby, in Lincolnshire, on the latter day being as much as L4 in. in the space of an hour and a half (10 to 11.30 p.m.). In the latter part of the month there was a general deficiency of rain in all but the northern districts, and quite at the close the thermometer rose rapidly to an abnormally high level for so late in the season ; the shade maxima of the 31st being above 90° in many parts of the country, and as high as 95° at one or two places in the south. For the summer as a whole the mean temperature was above the average, but owing to the coolness of the earlier half of the season the excess of warmth was not very great. Excepting in those few localities in which torrential downpours occurred the rainfall was very deficient, the driest weather being experi- enced in the eastern, midland, and southern districts. For the south of England as a whole the total rainfall did not amount to more than 51 per cent, of the average. Bright sun- shine was abundant, especially in the drier portions of the country, where the summer was one of the finest within recent years. The amount of sunshine was, however, no larger than in 1904, and was not nearly so large as in 1899. The Autumn of 1906. The autumn was mostly warm, with an excess of rain over the eastern half of the country, but with a slight deficiency in the Avest. The tendency for fine weather, so largely prevalent in the earlier portions of the year, was still in evidence, and although the conditions in October and November were often extremely unsettled, the total duration of sunshine was again in excess of the average. The phenomenal burst of . heat experienced at the close of August continued throughout the first three days of September, when shade temperatures of 90° and upwards were recorded in nearly all parts of the country. At some places in the midland and southern counties the thermometer rose to 95°, and at Bawtry it touched 96°, the readings at the time being in nearly all cases the highest on record for the month of September, and in some cases the highest on record for any time in the year. A sudden change to cooler weather occurred on the 4th, but for nearly three weeks the temperature remained above the normal, the only touch of cold occurring on the night of the 10th, when a rather sharp ground frost occurred over the inland parts of the country. The conditions were for some little time changeable and showery, and on the 15th and 16th thunderstorms were experienced in many places. Towards the close of the month the weather became The Autumn of 1906. 341 tine and very dry, the days being warm and sunny, but the nights cold, and often foggy, with occasional sharp ground frosts. Under the influence of numerous cyclonic disturbances, which came in from the Atlantic, the weather in October was very unsettled, with frequent, and in some cases heavy, falls of rain. Temperature was, however, more often than not above the average, and at a few places in the south-east of England the month proved the mildest October on record. Thunderstorms occurred in the north of England on the night of the 1st, and heavy rain was experienced over the midland and southern districts on the 2nd and 3rd. Thunderstorms were reported over eastern and central England on the 9th and 10th, while on the 18th and 19th, a heavy fall of rain occurred over our northern counties, between 1| in. and 2 in. being measured on the morning of the 19th in some parts of Northumberland. Further thunderstorms occurred in various parts of the country on the 28th, and on the two following days a considerable amount of rain was registered in many districts. The weather of November was very variable, but temperature remained, as a rule, above the average. Heavy rain fell in the Channel Islands on the 4th, and over the eastern, midland, and southern counties on the 8th. Towards the end of the second week an anticyclone spread in from the Atlantic, and sharp night frosts occurred in most districts. A temporary change to very unsettled weather occurred after the 14th, with a low temperature and squalls of hail or sleet in many places, and on the 19th, a stiff gale from the north-westward blew very generally. This was succeeded by a very mild southerly breeze, and between the 21st and 24th, the thermo- meter rose to an unusually high level for so late a period in the season. In the closing week the weather remained warm, with a deficiency of rain in the eastern districts, but with an excess at many places in the west. For the season, as a whole, the mean temperature was considerably above the normal, the excess being especially large over the eastern and midland counties. Rainfall was more than the average in all the eastern and central districts, but was slightly deficient in the western parts of the country, and largely deficient in the Channel Islands. The amount of bright sunshine showed a general excess, but in the north-east of England the departure from the normal was not large. 12 Patten Road, Wandsworth Common. Frederick J. Brodie. MEMORANDA. Address op Letters. -All letters on the general business of the Society should be addressed to “The Secretary, Royal Agricultural Society of England, 16 Bedford Square, London, W.C.” Telegrams. Registered address for telegrams : “Practice, London.” Telephone Number.— 3675, “Gerrard.” Office Hours.— 10 to 4. On Saturdays, 10 to 2. Annual General Meeting, Wednesday, December 11, 1907, at the Society’s house, 16 Bedford Square, London, W.C. Monthly Council (for transaction of business), at noon : usually on the first Wednesday in every month, excepting January, September, and October : open only to Members of Council and Governors of the Society. Subscriptions.— 1. Animal. — The minimum subscription of a Governor is 5/., and that of a Member 1 Z., due in advance on the 1st of January of each year, and becoming in arrear if unpaid by the 1st of June. 2. For Life. — Governors may compound for their subscriptions for future years by paying at once the sum of 50Z., and Members by paying 15Z. After payment of ten or more annual subscriptions, a Member may com- pound for future subscriptions, including that of the current year, by a single payment of 10Z.; and after payment of twenty or more annual subscriptions, by a single payment of 5 Z. — or 25Z. in the case of Governors. No Governor or Member can be allowed to enter into a composition for life until all subscriptions due by him at the time shall have been paid. No Governor or Member whose subscription is in arrear is entitled to any of the privileges of the Society. All Members of the Society are, under the Bye-laws, bound to pay their annual subscriptions until they shall withdraw from it by notice in writing to the Secretary. Payments. — Subscriptions may be paid to the Secretary, either at the office of the Society, 16 Bedford Square, London, W.C. ; or by means of crossed cheques in favour of the Secretary, or by crossed postal orders. When making remittances it should be stated by whom, and on whose account, they are sent. All Cheques and Postal Orders should be crossed “ London and Westminster Bank.” On application to the Secretary, forms may be obtained for authorising the regular payment, by the Bankers of individual Members, of each annual subscription as it falls due. Members are particularly invited to avail themselves of these Bankers’ orders, in order to save trouble both to themselves and to the Society. When payment is made to the London and Westminster Bank, as the Bankers of the Society, it will be desirable that the Secretary should be advised by letter of such payment, in order that the entry in the Bankers’ book may be at once identified, and the amount posted to the credit of the proper person. No coin can be remitted by post, unless the letter be registered. Journal. — The Volumes of the Society’s Journal are (when the subscription is not in arrear) forwarded by post to Members, or delivered from the Society’s Office to Members, or to the bearer of their written order. The back numbers of the Journal are kept constantly on sale by the publisher, Mr. John Murray, 50a Albemarle Street, W. Lincoln Meeting, June 25 to 29, 1907. Entries close : Implements, March 15 ; post entries, April 1. Live Stock, May 14 ; post entries, May 28. Riding and Driving Classes, May 28. Poultry, May 28. Produce, May 14 ; post entries (except cider and perry), May 28. New Members. — Every candidate for admission into the Society must be nominated by a Governor or Member, and must duly fill up and sign an application for Membership on the appointed form. Forms of proposal may be obtained on application to the Secretary, who will inform new Members of their election by letter. Hemal Agricultural Sorictu of (fnglani). ( Established May 9, 1838, as the English Agricultural Society, and Incorporated by Royal Charter on March 26, 1840.) Patron. HIS MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY THE KING. President for 1907. The EARL OF YARBOROUGH, Bkccklesby Park, Lincolnshire. Year when elected on Council 1895 1895 1882 1893 1885 1895 1871 1881 1899 1880 1874 1881 Trustees. H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G., Marlborough House , S. W. Bedford, Duke of, K.G., Woburn Abbey , Bedfordshire. Cawdor, Earl, Stackpole Court , Pembrokeshire. Cornwallis, F. S. W., Linton Park, Maidstone , Kent. Coventry, Earl of, Croonie Court , Severn Stoke , Worcestershire. Derby, Earl of, K.G., Knowsley , Prescot , Lancashire. Egerton of Tatton, Earl, Tatton Park , Knutsford , Cheshire. Gilbey, Sir Walter, Bart., Elsenham Hall , Elsenham, , Essex. Middleton, Lord, Birdsall House , York. Moreton, Lord, Sarsden House. Chipping Norton , Oxon. Spencer, Earl, K.G., Althorp , Northampton. Thorold, Sir John H., Bart., Syston Park , Grantham , Lincolnshire. 1889 1871 1898 1872-74 t 1884 f 1887 1891 1903 1876 1883-90 1 1894 i 1899 1881 1869 Vice=Presidents. H.R.H. Prince Christian, K.G., Cumberland Lodge , Bowen- Jones, J., St. Mary's Court , Shrewsbury. Cavendish, Rt. Hon. Victor C. W., M.P., Holker Hall , Lancashire. Chaplin, Rt. Hon. Henry, Stafford House , 67. James's , V. IF. Crutchley, Percy, Sunning hill Lodge , Berkshire. Dugda-le, J. Marshall, Llwyn . Llanfyllin , 6. G., Mont. Fellowes, Rt. Hon. Ailwyn E., Honing ham, Norwich. Feversham, Earl of, Buncombe Park , Helmsley. Yorkshire. Jersey, Earl of, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., Middleton Park , Bicester , Oxon. Northbrook, Earl of, Stratton , Micheldever Station , Hampshire. Parker, Hon. Cecil T., Eccleston , Chester. Whitehead, Charles, Banning House , Maidstone , /God. 11 List of the Council of the Society. Year when first elected on Council 1905 1905 1905 1905 1905 1906 1906 1905 1905 1905 1906 1906 1905 1905 1905 1906 1900 1904 1905 1903 1905 1906 1905 1903 1900 1905 1905 1905 1904 1905 1904 1884 1905 1905 1904 1905 1906 1905 1897 1905 1905 1905 1901 1903 1886 1905 1891 1875 1905 1905 1 905 1904 1889 1889 Ordinary Members of the Council. Adams, George, Royal Prize Farm , Faringdon ( Berkshire ). Adeane, Charles R. W., Babraham Hall , Cambridge ^Cambridge- shire^). Aveling, Thomas L., Boley Hill House , Rochester (Kent). Bankart, S. N., Hallaton Hall , Uppingham (Rutland). Barker, John, M.P., The Grange , Bishop's Stortford (Essex). Brocklehurst, Henry Dent, Sudeley Castle , Wincheombe (Glouces- tershire). Buttar, Thomas A., Corston , Coupar Angus (Scotland). Carden, R. G., Fishmoyne, Borrisoleigh , Tipperary (Ireland). Carr, Richardson, Estate Office, Tring Park (Hertfordshire). Cooper, Sir Richard P., Bart., Shenstone Court , Lichfield (Staffs). De Trafford, Sir H. F., Bt., Hill Crest , Market Harbor o' (Leicester- shire). Dudding, Henry, Riby Grove , St allingbo rough (Lincolnshire). Eadie, John T. C., The Rnoiole , Hazelwood, Derby (Derbyshire). Falconer, James, Northbrook Farm , Micheldever Station (Hampshire). Forrest, Robert, St. Fagan's , Cardiff (Glamorganshire). Glover, James W., 12, Jury Street , Warwick (Warwickshire). Greaves, R. M., Wern, Portmadoc (North Wales). Greenall, Sir Gilbert, Bart., Walton Hall, Warrington (Cheshire). Harris, Joseph, Brackenbrough Tower, Carlisle (Cumberland). Harrison William, Hall House, Leigh (Lancashire). Hine, John Henry, Pomphlett Farm , Plymstock, Plymouth (Devon). Hippisley, R. J. Bayntun, St on Easton Park, Bath (Somerset). HiSCOCK, Arthur, jun., Manor Farm , Mot combe, Shaftesbury (Dorset). Hobbs, Robert W., Kelmscott, Lechlade (Oxfordshire). Howard, John Howard, Clapham Park, near Bedford (Bedfordshire). Ingram, Walter F., 2 St. Andrew's Place, Lewes (Sussex). Knightley, Sir Charles V., Bart., Fawsley , Daventry (Northants). Lobb, George, Lawliitton, Launceston (Cornwall). Mathews, Ernest, Little Shardeloes, Amersham (Buckinghamshire). May, William A., 3 Wellington Street, Strand, W.C. (London). Middleton, Christopher, Vane Terrace, Darlington (Durham). Miller, T. Horrocks, Singleton Park, Potdton-le-Fylde (Lancash ire). Minton, Thomas S., Montford, Shrewsbury (Shropshire). Onslow, Earl of, G.C.M.G., Clandon Park, Guildford (Surrey). Palmer, Ralph C., 9 Little Stanhope Street, Mayfair, W. (. London ). Pilkington, Claude M. S., Wolla-ton , Nottingham (Nottinghamshire). Plumptre, H. Fitzwalter, Goodnestone, Dover (Kent). Rea, George Grey, Middleton, Wooler (Northumberland?) . Reynard, Frederick, Sunderlandwick, Driffield (Yorks., E. Riding). Richmond and Gordon, Duke of, K.G., Goodwood, Chichester (Sussex). Rogers, C. Coltman, Stanage Park, Brampton Bryan (South Wales). Rowell, John, Bury, Huntingdon (Huntingdonshire). Scoby, William, Hob ground House, Sinnington, York (Yorkshire, North Riding). Shackle, Ernest W., Redleaf, Hayes (Middlesex). Smith, Alfred J., Rendlesham, Woodbridge (Suffolk). Smith, Henry Herbert, Bowood, Caine (Wiltshire). Stanyforth, E. Wilfrid, Kirk Hammerton Hall, York (Yorkshire, West Riding). Stratton, Richard, The Duffryn, Newport (Monmouthshire). Tallent, Herbert, West acre, Swaffham (Norfolk). Taylor, George, Cranford (Middlesex). Thornton, John, 7 Princes Street, Hanover Square, W. (London). Turner, Arthur P., The Leen, Pembridge (Herefordshire). Wheeler, E. Vincent V., Newnham Court, Tenbury (Worcestershire). Wilson, Christopher W., Rigmaden Park, Kirkby Lonsdale ( West- morland) . Ill STANDING COMMITTEES. *** Under Bye-law 39, the President is a Member ex officio of all Com- mittees, and the Trustees and Vice-Presidents are Members ex offieiis of all Standing Committees except the Committee of Selection. Finance Committee. Adeane, C. R. W. ( Chairman ). Cooper, Sir R. P., Bart. Greenall, Sir G., Bart. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. Aveling, T. L. Carr, Richardson. Cornwallis, F. S. W Crutchley, Percy. Harrison, W. Wheeler, E. V. V. House Committee. The President. Crutchley, Percy. Northbrook, Earl of. Mathews, Ernest. Gilbey, Sir Walter, Bart. Thornton, John. Cornwallis, F. S. W. Journal Committee. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. ( Chairman ). Derby, Earl of, K.G. Jersey, Earl of, G.C.B. Adeane, C. R. W. Cornwallis, F. S. W. Hippisley, R. J. B. Mathews, Ernest. May, W. A. Rogers, C. C. Wheeler, E. V. V. Whitehead, C. Chemical and Woburn Committee. Bowen-Jones, J. ( Chairman ). Richmond and Gordon, Cawdor, Earl. [Duke of. Parker, Hon. C. T. Knightley, SirC. V., Bart. Brocklehurst, H. D. Falconer, J. Greaves, R. M. Howard, John Howard. Ingram, W. F. Middleton, C. Minton, T. S. Pilkington, C. M. S. Reynard, F. Rogers, C. C. Scoby, W. Stanyforth, E. W. Turner, A. P. Botanical and Zoological Committee. Wheeler, E. V. V. ( Chairman <). Onslow, Earl of, G.C.M.G. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. Bowen-Jones, J. Cornwallis, F. S. W Middleton, C. Reynard, F. Rogers, C. C. Shackle, Ernest. Tallent, H. Whitehead, C. Northbrook, Earl of ( Chairman ). Derby, Earl of, K.G. Moreton, Lord. Cavendish, Rt. Hon. V. Fellowes, Rt. Hon. A. E. Parker, Hon. C. T. Greenall, Sir G., Bart. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. Veterinary Committee. Bankart, S. N. Crutchley, Percy. Harris, Joseph. Hiscock, A., Jun. McFadyean, Prof. Sir J. Master of Farriers’ Company. Mathews, Ernest. Miller, T. H. President of Royal Coll, of Vety. Surgeons. Rogers, C. C. Rowell, John. Smith, A. J. Stanyforth, E.W. Swithinbank, H. Wilson, C. W. Stock Prizes Committee. Reynard, F. (Chairman). Coventry, Earl of. Northbrook, Earl of. Middleton, Lord. Cooper, Sir R. P., Bart. De Trafford, SirH. F., Bt. Greenall, Sir G., Bart. Bowen-Jones, J. Buttar, T. A. Carden, R. G. Carr, Richardson. Crutchley, Percy. Dudding, H. Eadie, J. T. C. Greaves, R. M. Hobbs, Robert W. Mathews, E. Minton, T. S. Rea, G. G. Rowell, John. Smith, A. J. Stratton, R. Turner, A. P. Wheeler, E. V. V. Wilson, C. W. The Stewards of Live Stock. IV Standing Committees. Implement Committee Greaves, R. M. {Chair mail). Parker, Hon. C. T. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. Adams, George. Aveling, T. L. Bo wen- Jones, J. Crutchley, Percy. Falconer, J. Forrest, R. Glover, J. W. Harrison, W. Hippisley, R. J. B. Howard, John Howard. Middleton, C. Reynard, F. Smith, A. J. Stanyforth, E. W. Tallent, H. The Stewards of Implements. Showyard Works Committee. Greenall, Sir G., Bart. {Chairman). Parker, Hon. C. T. Cooper, Sir R. P., Bart. Aveling, T. L. Carr, Richardson. Crutchley, Percy. Forrest, R. Harrison, W. Rea, G. G. Stanyforth, E. W. Taylor, George. Committee of Selection. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. Onslow, Earl of, G.C.M.G. Cornwallis, F. S. W. {Chairman). Fellowes, Rt. Hon. A. E. Harrison, W. The President. Carr, Richardson. Stratton, R. And the Chairman of each of the Standing Committees. Education Committee. Moreton, Lord {Chairman). Cornwallis, F. S. W. Mathews, E. Jersey, Earl of, G.C.B. Dugdale, J. Marshall. May, W. A. Bowen-Jones, J. Greaves, R. M. Palmer, R. C. Brocklehurst, H. I). Hine, J. H. Wheeler, E. V. V. Dairy and Produce Committee. Mathews, Ernest {Chairman). Derby, Earl of, K.G. Parker, Hon. C. T. Thorold, Sir J. H., Bart. Carr, Richardson. Crutchley, Percy. Greaves, R. M. Harris, Joseph. Hine, J. H. Hiscock, A., Jun. Plumptre, H. F. Taylor, George. Thornton, John. Wheeler, E. Y. V General Lincoln Committee. The Whole Council, with the following representatives of the* Ruston, Col. J. S. (Mayor of Lincoln). Clark, A. H. Frankish, W. Local Committee : — Lubbock, Edgar. Newsum, A. C. Page, W. T., Jun. Pennell, C. W. Tindall, C. W. Tweed, E. E. (Local Secretary). Secretary. Thomas McRow, 16 Bedford Square, W.C. Editor of the Journal. — Ernest H. Godfrey, Woodford , Ilarpenden , Herts. Consulting Chemist. — Dr. J. Augustus Yoelcker, M.A., F.I.C., 22 Tudor Street , London , E.C. Consulting Botanist. — W. Carruthers, F.R.S., 44 Central Hill , Norwood , S.E. Consulting Veterinary Surgeon. — Prof. Sir John McFadyean, M.B., Royal Veterinary College , Camden Town , N.W. Zoologist. — Cecil Warburton, M.A., Zoological Laboratory, Cambridge. Consulting Engineer. — F. S. Courtney, 25 Victoria Street , Westminster, S. W. Consulting Surveyor.-— George Hunt, Evesham, Worcestershire. Publisher. — John Murray, 50a Albemarle Street, W. Solicitors. — Garrard, James & Wolfe, 13 Suffolk Street , Pall Mall East , S. W. Bankers. — The London and Westminster Bank, St. James's Square Branch. Distribution of Governors and Members of the Society v DISTRIBUTION OF GOVERNORS AND MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY, AND OF ORDINARY MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. (Elected in accordance with the Bye-laws enacted on May 31, 1905, and numbered 57-93.) Electoral District Division Number of Governors and Members Number of Ordinary Members of Council Ordinary Members of Council r Bedfordshire 103 1 J. H. Howard. - Cheshire. 205 1 Sir Gilbert Greenall. Cornwall 97 1 G. Lobb. Derbyshire . 165 1 J. T. C. Eadie. Dorset 67 1 A. Hiscock, jun. Hampshire and 232 1 J. Falconer. Channel Islands Hertfordshire 214 1 Richardson Carr. Lancashire and QO(l 9 (William Harrison; T. H. Isle of Man . 1 Miller. A. \ Middlesex 244 2 E. W. Shackle ; G. Taylor. Monmouthshire . 63 1 R. Stratton. Norfolk . 266 1 H. Tallent. Northamptonshire 200 1 Sir C. V. Knightley. Northumberland . 195 1 G. G. Rea. Staffordshire 311 1 Sir R. P. Cooper. Worcestershire . 171 1 E. V. V. Wheeler. Yorkshire, N.R. 166 1 W. Scoby. ■ Scotland . 210 1 T. A. Buttar. 3,298 — 19 Buckinghamshire . 152 1 E. Mathews. Devon 156 1 J. H. Hine. Durham . . . 123 1 C. Middleton. Essex 214 1 John Barker, VI Distribution of Governors and Members of the Society DISTRIBUTION OF GOVERNORS AND MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY — continued. E SECTORAL DISTRICT Division Number of Governors and Members Number of Ordinary M UMBERS of Council Ordinary Members of Council. r Herefordshire 137 1 A. P. Turner. Leicestershire 274 1 Sir H. F. de Trafford. London . . 609 3 f W. A. May ; R. C. Palmer ; t John Thornton. Nottinghamshire . 161 1 C. M. S. Pilkington. • -o Rutland . 21 1 S. N. Bankart. Shropshire Suffolk . 275 215 1 1 T. S. Minton. A. J. Smith. Surrey . 240 1 Earl of Onslow. Wiltshire 129 1 H. H. Smith. Yorkshire, W.R. 265 1 E. W. Stanyforth. South Wales . 117 1 C. C. Rogers. 3,088 — 17 Berkshire 234 1 George Adams. Cambridgeshire . 172 1 C. R. W. Adeane. Cumberland . 100 1 Joseph Harris. Glamorgan 86 1 R. Forrest. Gloucestershire . 259 1 H. D. Brocklehurst. Huntingdonshire . 50 1 John Rowell. Kent 444 2 (T. L. Aveling ; H. F. *• Plumptre. Lincolnshire . 241 1 Henry Dudding. c. < Oxfordshire . 142 1 R. W. Hobbs. Somerset . 122* 1 R. J. Bayntun Hippisley. Sussex 317 2 f W. F. Ingram ; Duke of "*■ Richmond and Gordon. Warwickshire 250 1 J. W. Glover. Westmorland. 63 1 C. W. Wilson. Yorkshire, E.R. 121 1 F. Reynard. Ireland . 140 1 R. G. Carden. L North Wales . 177 1 R. M. Greaves. -2,918 — 18 Foreign Countries. 276 Members with no Addresses 20 Grand Totals . 9,600 54 Vll GOVERNORS OF THE SOCIETY. HIS MAJESTY THE KING... Windsor Castle . TfH.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G.... Marlborough House, S.W., and Sandringham, Norfolk . . . . VP H.R.H. Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, K.G.... Cumberland Lodge, Windsor .... IAberdare, Lord...Longwood, Winchester fACLAND, Alfred Dyke... Danesbury, Welwyn IIAdeane, C. R. W....Babraham Hall, Cambridge . ALINGTON, Lord...Crichel, Wimborne .... tALLCROFT, Herbert John.-.Stokesay Court, Onibury, Salop . fAMHERST OF Hackney, Lord...Didlington Hall, Brandon ANCASTER, Earl of...Normanton Park, Stamford Ann, Sir Edwin T....West Parkflelds, Kedleston Road, Derby ARCHER-HOUBLON, George B....Hallingbury Place, Bishop’s Stortford ........ ASHWORTH, Alfred. ..Horsley Hall, Gresford fASSHETON, R. C....Hall Foot, Clitheroe .... ASTOR, Waldorf. ..Cliveden, Taplow, Bucks BARING, Godfrey, M.P.... Nubia House, Cowes, Isle of Wight . Barnard, Lord...Raby Castle, Darlington Barrymore, Lord. ..20 Hill Street, Berkeley Square, W. Bath, Marquis of...Longleat, Warminster .... Bathurst, Earl, C.M.G.... Cirencester House, Cirencester BECK, A. Cecil, M.P....Tbe How, St. Ives, Hunts. . TfBEDFORD, Duke of, K.G.... Woburn Abbey, Bedfordshire . fBEEVER, W. F. Holt-.Yewden Lodge, Henley-on-Thames tBELPER, Lord. ..Kingston Hall, Notts. .... tBENN, Thomas G.... Thornton Gate, Rossall Beach, Fleetwood, R.S.O BENTINCK, Lord Henry. ..Underley, Kirkby Lonsdale . Binney, J....Pampisford Hall, near Cambridge . Birkin, Sir T. I., Bart....Ruddington Grange, near Nottingham fBLYTH, Sir James, Bart.-.Blythwood, Stansted, Essex . BOWEN, G. W. H....Ieklet,on Grange, Gt. Chesterford, Essex . VP BOWEN-JONES, J. B....St. Mary’s Court, Shrewsbury Brassey, Henry Leonard C....Apethorpe Hall, Wansford, Northants BRISCOE, W. A....Longstowe Hall, Cambridge BROWNLOW, Earl.. .Belton House, Grantham BUCHANAN, James... Graff ham, Petworth Burghclere, Lord. ..48 Charles Street, Berkeley Square, W. Burns, Walter S. M.... 22 Old Broad Street, E.C. Burton, Lord, K.C.V.O....Rangemore, Burton-on-Trent CADOGAN, Earl, K.G....Culford Hall, Bury St. Edmunds CALTHORPE, Lord...Elvetham, Winchfield CARRINGTON, Earl, K.G....Daws Hill, High Wycombe. VP tCAVENDlSH, Rt. Hon.VictorC.W.,M.P....Holker Hall, Lancashire TfCAWDOR, Earl... Stackpole Court, Pembrokeshire . tCAWSTON, George. ..The Manor House. Cawston, Norfolk VP Chaplin, Rt. Hon. Henry... Stafford House, S.W. CHELSEA, Viscount- .48 Bryanston Square, W. . CHETWYND, G. J. B....Wyndthorpe, near Doncaster fCLARENDON, Earl of, G.C.B....The Grove, Watford CLIFDEN, Viscount. ..Lanhydrock, Bodmin . Date of election Date of election as Member as Governor — Feb. 3, 1864 April 6, 1892 Aug. 4, 1875 April 1, 1885 Oct. 8, 1902 Nov. 6, 1889 May 7, 1879 Feb. 2, 1859 Mar. 3, 1869 Dec. 2, 1868 Mar. 6, 1889 Feb. 4, 1885 June 22, 1892 July 3, 1889 April 2, 1879 July 6, 1881 Mar. 13, 1878 Dec. 12, 1888 Dec. 10, 1890 Nov. 3, 1875 Nov. 2, 1892 Mar. 6, 1867 Aug. 3, 1887 Nov. 7, 1888 Nov. 7, 1883 Mar. 3, 1863 May 4, 1904 June 5, 1872 July 13, 1883 Aug. 1, 1905 Feb. 4, 1903 Jan. 10, 1906 April 4, 1906 Dec. 12, 1888 May 7, 1890 May 5, 1875 Aug. 1, 1906 Mar. 6, 1889 Feb. 1, 1905 May 30, 1906 Jan. 30, 1907 May 2, 1906 July 27, 1892 April 4, 1906 April 4, 1906 April 4, 1906 Jan. 30, 1907 May 3, 1893 June 6, 1894 Mar. 6, 1895 Aug. 2, 1882 Jan. 10, 1906 Jan. xo, 1906 May 2, 1906 July 27, 1892 Mar. 7, 1906 Feb. 1, 1905 Feb. 3, 1892 Jan. 10, 1906 April 4, 1906 July 27, 1904 Dec. 7, 1892 April 4, 1906 June 25, 1890 Dec. 11, 1889 May 2, 1894 Mar. 7, 1906 Mar. 2, 1892 Mar. 2, 1892 June 6, 1894 Nov. 2, 1870 Feb. 6, 1895 May 7, 1906 May 2, 1894 Mar. 7, 1906 + Life Governor. II Member of Council. T Trustee. VP Vice-President. List of Governors of the VI 11 COBHAM, Viscount. ..Hagley Hall. Stourbridge . COCKBURN, N. C....Harmston Hall, Lincoln COLEBROOKE, Lord... Stratford House, Stratford Place, W. . COOPER, Sir Daniel, Bart. ...Warren Tower, Newmarket || COOPER, Sir Richard P., Bart....Shenstone Court, Lichfield . T Cornwallis, Fiennes S. W.... Linton Park, Maidstone tCOTTERELL, Sir John, Bart....Garnons, Hereford T fCoVENTRY, Earl of...Croome Court, Severn Stoke, Wore. . fCox, Frederick. ..Harefield Place, Uxbridge Craven, Thomas. ..Kirklington Hall, Southwell, Notts. Crewe, Earl of. ..Crewe Hall, Crewe, Cheshire . VP fCRUTCHLEY, Percy.-.Sunninghill Lodge, Ascot CURTIS, Charles C.... South Collingham, Newark, Notts. CURTIS-HAYWARD, Lt.-Col. J. F....Quedgeley House, Gloucester Date of Election as Member Dec. 8, 1875 May 4, 1892 Feb. 4, 1891 Dec. 12, 1888 May 6, 1896 April 1, 1863 May 6, 1891 Feb. 6, 1884 June 3, 1879 Feb. 4, 1887 Feb. 1, 1888 Dartmouth, Earl of...Patshull Hall, Wolverhampton DAVIES, David, M.P....Plas Dinam, Llandinam, Mont. . DE LA Rue, Ernest. ..Lower Hare Park, Newmarket . TfDERBY, Earl of, K.G., G.C.B....Knowsley, Prescot De Rothschild, Alfred C....Halton, Tring .... Derwent, Lord. ..Hackness Hall, Scarborough .... DESBOROUGH, Lord...Taplow Court, Maidenhead HIDE TRAFFORD, Sir H. F., Bart.. ..Hill Crest, Market Harborough . tDEVONSHlRE, Duke of, K.G....Chatsworth, Chesterfield 1DEWHURST, G. Littleton. ..Beechwood, Lymm, Cheshire fDiCKSON-PoYNDER, Sir J., Bart., M.P....Hartham Park, Corsham, Wilts. .......... Digby, Lord...Minterne House, Cerne Abbas, Dorset Dormer. John Cottrell... Cokethorpe, Witney, Oxon. DOWNSHIRE, Marquis of...Easthampstead Park, Wokingham DuciE, Earl of... Tort worth Court, FalfLeld, R.S.O., Glos. Dugdale, James Broughton. ..Wroxall Abbey, Warwick VP DuGDALE, John Marshall. .. Llwyn, Llanfyllin, S.O., Mont. fDULEEP-SlNGH, Prince Frederick. ..Old Buckenham Hall, Attle- borough . . . . Duncombe, Capt. W. H. O....Waresley Park, Sandy, Beds. tDUNMORE, Earl of. ..Isle of Harris, by Portree, N.B. tDURHAM, Earl of...Lambton Castle, Durham .... June r, 1904 June 3, 1874 Dec. 12, 1888 Aug. 1, 1883 Dec. 9, 1891 Nov. 2, 1887 May 5. 1869 Feb. 3, 1892 Feb. 1, 1888 April x, 1885 T Egerton OF Tatton, Earl...Tatton Park, Knutsford f Ellesmere, Earl of...Worsley Hall, Manchester Elliot, Sir Charles, Bart....Beesthorpe Hall, Newark-on -Trent ESSEX, Earl of. ..9 Mansfield Street, W. .... EVANS, Lewis, F.S.A....Russells, Watford .... EXETER, Marquis of...Burghley House, Stamford Mar. 6, 1872 Nov. 7, 1888 May 4, 1898 FARQUHAR, Granville... 24, Park Street, Grosvenor Square, W. FARRAR, Sidney Howard. ..2 King’s Gardens, Hove VP Fellowes, Rt. Hon. Ailwyn E....Honingham, Norwich . VP FEVERSHAM, Earl of. ..Duncombe Park, Helmsley, Yorks. Fife, Duke of, K.T....15 Portman Square, W. Fitzhardinge, Lord. ..Berkeley Castle, G.los. HfFORREST, Robert. ..St. Fagan's, Cardiff .... Fox, J. St. V....Girsby Manor, Lincoln .... FURNESS, Sir Christopher, M.P....Grantley Hall, Ripon GERARD, Lord...Eastwell Park, Ashford, Kent. . GIBSON, William. -.112 Regent Street, W. .... T GlLBEY, Sir Walter, Bart....Elsenham Hall, Elsenham, Essex Glenesk, Lord. ..139 Piccadilly, W. .... Feb. 6, 1889 Dec. 12, 1888 Mar. 5, 1862 Mar. 4, 1885 Feb. 6, 1878 April 13, 1904 Nov. 2, 1870 T Trustee. VP Vice-President, + Life Governor. II Member of Council. Date of Election as Governor April 4, 1906 April 4, 1906 May 2, 1906 Jan. 10, 1906 Jan. 30, 1907 July 2, 1884 Dec. 12, 1906 April 4, 1894 July 31, 1901 Dec. 6, 1893 Mar. 7, 1894 F eb. 1, 1905 April 4, 1906 Dec. 12, 1906 Dec. 9, 1891 Mar. 7, 1906 April 4, 1906 May 2, 1894 Mar. 7, 1906 April 7, 1869 Feb. 7, 1906 June 1, 1892 June 2. 1880 May 2, 1894 April 2, 1890 July 25, 1894 April 4, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 Feb. 1, 1905 June 28, 1905 Feb. 1, 1905 July 25, 1894 May 6, 1896 Feb. 3, 1869 July 14, 1880 Nov. 7, 1883 July 7, 1869 May 2, 1906 Nov. 2, 1892 July 27, 1904 June 21, 1898 April 4, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 May 3 b i9=>5 Mar. 3, 1875 Nov. 7, 1888 Feb. 1, 1905 May 30, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 Jan. 10. 1906 Jan. 10, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 June 5, 1889 Dec. 12, 1888 Royal Agricultural Society of England. IX GOLDSMID, Oliver E. d’Avigdor—Somerhill, near Tonbridge . Grafton, Duke of, K.G.... Wakefield Lodge, Stony Stratford fGRANT, Sir G. Macpherson, Bart.—Ballindalloch Castle, Ballindal- loch, N.B GRAY, Harold S....Gog Magog Hills, Oambs. .... IlfGREENALL, Sir Gilbert, Bart.... Walton Hall, Warrington . GRIFFITHS, John James... Highbury Grange, Highbury, N. . GROVES, James Grimble... Bank Hall, Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire HADDINGTON, Earl of, K.T.—Tyninghame, Prestonkirk, N.B. HALL, A. C.—Six Mile Bottom, Cambridge .... Hamilton AND Brandon, Duke of, Hamilton Palace, Hamilton, N.B. HARDING, Colonel T. Walter. ..Madingley Hall, Cambridge . HAREWOOD, Earl of. ..Hare wood House, Leeds . . . . HAVERSHAM, Lord. ..South Hill Park, Bracknell tHENDERSON, Sir Alex., Bart....Buscot Park, Faringdon, Berks. Henderson, Capt. Harold G....Kitemore, Fai'ingdon . tHENRYSON-CAlRD, James A....Cassencary, Creetown R.S.O., Kirk- cudbright ......... Hertford, Marquis of... Ragley Park, Alcester. fHEYWOOD, Sir Arthur Percival, Bart....Doveleys, Uttoxeter fHOLFORD, Major George L., C.Y.O., C.I.E....Westonbirt House, Tetbury, Glos. ........ HOOLEY, Terah F....Papworth Hall, near Cambridge . fHORNSBY, James.. .Laxton Park, Stamford . . . . fHOTHFlELD, Lord... Hothfield Place, Ashford, Kent Howard DE Walden, Lord...Seaford House, Belgrave Square, S.W. ILOHESTER, Earl of...Melbury, Dorchester .... INNES, H. McLeod— Trinity College, Cambridge .... flRWlN, Colonel Thomas A....Lynehow, Carlisle .... flVEAGH, Viscount, K.P....5 Grosvenor Place, S.W. JAMES, William D.... West Dean Park, Chichester VPf JERSEY, Earl of, G.C.B., G.C.M.G.... Middleton Park, Bicester JoiCEY, E....Blenkinsopp Hall, Haltwhistle, Northumberland t Jones, Walter J. H....Blakemere, Hartford, Cheshire . JONES, William C....Llanerch Park, Trefnant, R.S.O. . fKlNGSCOTE, Col. Sir Nigel, G.C.V.O., K.C.B....Kingscote, Wotton- under-Edge, Glos. ........ tKLElNWORT, Herman Greverns...Wierton Place, Boughton Mon- chelsea, Kent ......... §KOLHAPUR, H.H. The Raja of, G.C.S.I.... Kolhapur, India tKYNNERSLEY Thomas F.... Leighton Hall Ironhridge, Salop. TLANSDOWNE, Marquis of, K.G., G.C.S.I.— Bowood, Caine, Wilts. Lathom, Earl of— Lathom House, Ormskirk .... LAYCOCK, J. F....Wiseton, Bawtry, S.O., Yorks. .... tLECONFlELD, Lord...Petworth House, Sussex LEEDS, Duke of. ..Hornby Castle, Bedale ... fLElCESTER, Earl of, K.G....Holkham Hall, Norfolk Lichfield, Earl of...Shugborough, Staffs (representing National Provincial Bank of England) ...... t Linlithgow , Marquis of, K.T., G.C.M.G., G.C.V.O....Hopetoun House, South Queensferry, N.B. ...... fLLANGATTOCK, Lord. -The Hendre, Monmouth .... LONDESBOROUGH, Earl of...Londesborough Park, Market Weighton tLONDONDERRY, Marquis of, K.G.— Wynyard Park, Stockton-on- Tees .......... Date of Election Date of Election as Member as Governor Mar. 5, 1902 — June 3, 1884 April 1, 1863 April 2, 1890 April 4, 1906 Feb. 3, 1892 May 2, 1894 May 1, 1889 — May 1, 1895 June 6, 1894 June 6, 1883 Dec. 12, 1888 Nov. 5, 1890 May 7, 1873 Aug. 2, 1882 April 7, i875 June 6, 1878 May 5, 1880 Nov. 7, 1894 June 30, i875 April 11, 1888 April 6, 1854 Nov. 7. 1883 Feb. 3, 1875 Nov. 2, 1887 Nov. 6, 1901 May 1, 1889 Nov. 7, 1888 Mar. 1, 1871 April 4, 1906 Feb. 7, i9°6 Aug. 1, 1905 Feb. 7, 1906 Nov. 2, 1892 April 4, 1906 July 28, 1897 Mar. 7, 1906 July 31, 1895 May 7, 1884 Feb. 2, 1898 April 6, 1892 Nov. 7, i9°6 May 29, 1895 May 7, 1879 Mar. 7, i9°6 April 4, 1906 Mar. 7, i9°6 June 25, 1895 June 6, 1894 Feb. 7, 1906 April 4, 1894 Dec. 12, 1888 May 2, 1894 May 3°, i9°6 July 1, 1874 J une 4, 1902 Feb. 6, 1889 Nov. 4, 1891 Feb. 5, 1896 Nov. 4, 1903 May 2, 1906 Mar. 6, 1901 Aug. 1, 1906 Nov. 15. 1843 Aug. 1, 1906 July 31, 1895 May 2, 1894 Nov. 7, 1906 June 3. 1885 + Life Governor. § Honorary Member. II Momber of OounciL VP Vice-President. X List, of Governors of the Date of election as Member tLONG, Rt. Hon. Walter H., M.P....Rood Ashton, Trowbridge, Wilts. . Aug. 4, 1880 fLONSDALE, Earl of...Lowther Castle, Penrith .... — fLoPES, Rt. Hon. Sir Massey, Bart....Maristow, Roborough, Devon . Mar. 15. 1848 LUCAS, Lord. ..Wrest Park, Ampthill, Beds. .... Ludlow, Lord...Heywood, Westbury, Wilts. .... — MAClVER, Colin. ..Statham Lodge, near Warrington MAIR-RUMLEY, J. G....The Hammonds, Udimore, S.O., Sussex Malmesbury, Earl of... Heron Court, Christchurch, Hants. . MANNERS, Lord. ..Avon Tyrrell, Christchurch, Hants . Manvers, Earl...Thoresby Park, Ollerton, Notts. Meyer, Carl...Shortgrove, Newport, Essex .... T Middleton, Lord... Birdsall House, York . . . . Midwood, G. Norris. ..Brown Street, Salford .... MlLDMAY, F. B., M.P.-.Flete, Ivy Bridge, Devon MONTEFIORE, Rev. D. B.... The World’s End, Islip, Oxon fMoORSOM-MlTCHlN SON-MAUDE, C. R....Harewood, Leeds . TfMORETON, Lord...Sarsden House, Chipping Norton, Oxon. fMOREWOOD, C. R. Palmer... Alfreton Park, Derbyshire fMoUNT-EDGCUMBE, Earl of, G.C.V.O...Mount-Edgcumbe, Plymouth Mounteney-Jephson, A. J....Adbury Holt, Newbury, Berks. MUNCASTER, Lord...Muncaster Castle, Ravenglass, Cumberland . April 6, 1881 June 5, 1901 Dec. 12, 1888 Feb. 1, 1888 April 11. 1888 Feb. 6, 1901 Dec. 2, 1857 April 7, 1875 Nov. 6, 1861 Neeld, Lt.-Col. Sir Audley D., Bart., C.B., M.V.O....Grittleton, Chippenham ......... Newcastle, Duke of. ..Clumber, Worksop Norfolk, Duke of, K.G.... Arundel Castle, Sussex NORMANTON, Earl of...Somerley, Ringwood YP Northbrook, Earl of. ..Stratton, Micheldever, Hants June 2, 1880 UtONSLOW, Earl of, G.C.M.G....Clandon Park, Guildford, Surrey Nov. 3, 1880 fPALMER, Sir Walter, Bart.. ..50 Grosvenor Square, W. . VPfPARKER, Hon. Cecil T....Eccleston, Chester . fPARR, Roger Charlton... Grappenhall Heyes, Warrington fPEARSON, Sir Weetman D., Bart., M.P....Paddockhurst, Worth Sussex ........ PECKOVER, Alexander, LL.D....Bank House, Wisbech . PENARANDA, Duke of...Palacio Liria, Madrid, Spain . Perks, R. W., M.P....11 Kensington Palace Gardens, W. PHILLIPS, Frederick S....Sunnyside, Holmwood, Surrey PHILLIPS, Lionel. ..Tilney Hall, Winchfield, Hants, t Platt, Col. Henry, C.B....Gorddinog, Llanfairfechan . f Platt, James E....Howbury Hall, near Bedford . t Plymouth, Earl of, C.B....Hewel Grange, Bromsgrove fPORTLAND, Duke of, K.G....Welbeck Abbey, Worksop. tPORTMAN, Viscount- -Bryanston, Blandford Portsmouth, Earl of...Hurstbourne Park, Whitchurch, Hants fPowis, Earl of... Powis Castle, Welshpool . April 7, 1876 May 7. 1902 Nov. 6, 1895 May 7, 1894 Mar. 5. 1862 June 30, 1886 Aug. 6, 1862 April 6, 1887 tQuiLTER, Sir W. Cuthbert, Bart....Bawdsey Manor, Woodbridge, Suffolk .......... Mar. 3, 1886 RADNOR, Earl of. ..Longford Castle, Salisbury .... — fRAMSDEN, Lt.-Col. W. J. F....Rogerthorpe Manor, Pontefract . May 2, 1883 tREDESDALE, Lord, G.C.V.O....Batsford Park, Moreton-in-Marsh, Glos _ REISS, James E....36 Cadogan Square, S.W. .... Feb. 7, 1883 || RICHMOND AND GORDON, Duke of, K.G.... Goodwood. Chichester . — ’ fRlDLEY, Viscount. ..36 Portland Place, W. .... — T Trustee. yp Vice-President. t Life Governor. II Member of Date of election as Governor Dec. 11, 1895 1 July 4, 1883 May 7, 1884 Mar. 7, 1906 May 30, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 Feb. 1, 1905 May 2, 1906 April 4, 1906 April 4, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 Mar. 3, 1875 Mar. 5, 1902 Nov. 1, 1905 Mar. 5, 1902 July 26, 1893 Mar. 3, 1875 Feb. 7, 1894 Mar. 5, 1890 Aug. 1, 1905 June 23, 1891 July 31, 1901 May 2, 1906 July 29, 1891 April 4, 1906 Feb. 1, 1905 May 27, 1903 Feb. 1, 1899 May 25, 1898 July 30, 1902 Aug. 1, 1905 Feb. 7, 1906 Feb. 7, 1906 Mar. 7,1906 Mar. 7, 1906 June 28, 1905 Feb. 3, 1897 May i, 1895 Nov. 6, 1878 June 2, 1880 Mar. 5, 1890 Dec. 9, 1891 June 23, 1891 April 7, 1897 April 9, 1902 June 25, 1895 Nov. 3, 1886 May 2, 1894 April 13, 1904 June 5, 1901 Council. Royal Agricultural Society of England xi RlPON, Marquis of, K.G....Studley Royal, Ripon. ROLLE, Hon. Mark...Bicton, East Budleigh, Devon Rose, C. D., M.P....53 Berkeley Square, W. tRosEBERY, Earl of, K.G....38 Berkeley Square, W. Rothschild, Lord, G.C.V.0....148 Piccadilly, W. Rothschild, Leopold de...Ascott, Wing, Leighton Buzzard Rothschild, Hon. N. Charles. ..Ashton Wold, Oundle. Rothschild, Hon. Walter. ..Tring Park, Tring . Salisbury, Marquis of, C.B.... Hatfield House, Herts. . Salomons, Leopold... Norbury Park, Dorking 1SANDAY, George H....Highfield, Uxbridge SAYILE, Lord, K.C.V.O....Rufford Abbey, Ollerton, Notts. tSCHRODER, Baron J. H. W....The Dell, Staines SHEFFIELD, Sir Berkeley D. G., Bart ...Normanby Park, Doncaster *Simonds, W. Barrow-..Abbotts Barton, Winchester fSLATER, Sam...Dunscar, Bolton-le-Moors, Lancs. Smith, Eustace Abel...Longhills, Lincoln . Smith, G. Murray... Gumley Hall, Market Harborough tSMITH,Hon. W. F. D., M.P....3 Grosvenor Place, S.W. . T SPENCER, Earl, K.G....Althorp Park, Northampton . HtSTANYFORTH, E. Wilfrid. ..Kirk Hammerton Hab, York STRADBROKE, Earl of, C.B....Henbam, Wangford Strauss, E. A., M.P.... Kingston House, Abingdon Suffolk, Earl of.. .Charlton Park, Malmesbury . Sutherland, Duke of, K.G.... Stafford House, St. James’s, S.W. fSUTTON, Martin J.... Holme Park, Sonning, Berks. fSwiNBURNE, Sir John, Bart....Capheaton, Newcastle-on-Tyne SWITHINBANK, Harold-. .Denham Court, Denham, Bucks. fTARLETON, Lieut. Alfred H., M.Y.O., R.N....Breakspears, Uxbridge fTHOMPSON, Henry Yates. ..19 Portman Square, W. TfTllOROLD, Sir John H., Bart....Syston Park, Grantham Tollemache, Lord... Peckforton Castle, Tarporley Townley, Rev. Charles F....Fulbourn Manor, Cambridge Tredegar, Viscount. ..Tredegar Park, Newport, Mon. fTRENCH, Col. The Hon. Wm. Le Poer...3 Hyde Park Gardens, W. TURBERVILL, Col. J. P....Ewenny Priory, Bridgend fTWEEDMOUTH, Lord...Guisachan, Beauly, N.B. YAN de WEYER, Col. V. W. B....New Lodge, Windsor Forest WALTER, Col. Arthur F.... Bearwood, Wokingham t WARREN, Reginald A....Preston Place, East Preston, Worthing WATSON, Rev. Went worth... Rockingham Castle, Uppingham WERNHER, Sir Julius, Bart.. ..82 Piccadilly, W. . Westminster, Duke of. ..Eaton Hall, Chester . f WHARNCLIFFE, Earl of...Wortley Hall, Sheffield Whitbread, Sam...Southill, Biggleswade. Beds. VPf W HITEHEAD, Charles. ..Barming House, Maidstone t WILLIAMS, Henry. ..Moor Park, Harrogate Williams, Joseph G....Pendley Manor, Tring tWlLSON, Darcy Bruce. ..Seacroft Hall, near Leeds Wolverton, Lord-. .26, St. James’s Place, S.W. . Wynn, Hon. F. G....Glynllivon Park, Carnarvon WYTHES, Ernest J.... Copped Hall, Epping, Essex P YARBOROUGH, Earl of...Broeklesby Park, Lincolnshire fYERBURGH, Robert A.... Woodfold Park, Blackburn . fZETLAND, Marquis of, K.T....Aske Hall, Richmond, Yorks. . * Elected a Foundation Life Governor, March 5, 1890. T Trustee. P President. VP Vice-President. VOL. 67. Date of election as Member Nov. 7, 1888 * — Nov. 7, 1888 Mar. 4, 1868 May 4, 1898 Nov. 3, 1869 Feb. 7. 1900 June 19, 1839 June 5, 1889 Dec. 12, 1888 Dec. 5, i860 Feb. 6, 1884 Feb. 3, 1886 Mar. 1, 1882 May 1, 1878 May 1, 1867 Feb. 4, 1885 Aug. 5, 1868 Mar. 7, 1894 Dec. 12. 1888 Mar. 5, 1884 Aug. 1, 1888 June 3, 1857 June 3, 1879 April 1, 1857 Aug. 1, 1883 June 3, 1891 Mar. 4, 1891 April 12, 1893 Aug. 4, 1880 Date of election as Governor July 3, 1861 Nov. 7, 1894 Jan. 10, 1906 June 6, 1894 June 4, 1890 Mar. x, 1893 Jan. 10, 1906 Jan. 10, 1906 May 2, 1906 May 6, 1896 Dec. 10, 1902 Jan. 30, i9°7 April 2, 1890 Feb. 1, 1905 Mar. 5. 1890 Feb. 7, 1906 April 4, 1906 April 4, 1906 Dec. 9, 1891 Mar. 3, 1875 July 31, 1895 May 2, 1906 7, 1906 2, 1906 7, 1892 1, 1882 7, 1890 7, 1906 Mar May Dec. Feb. May Mar. July Nov. May Mar. Feb. May May July July 29, 1903 7, 1894 1, 1889 7, 1906 7, 1906 3, 1876 1, 1901 27, 1892 31, 1889 Jan. 10, 1906 Mar. 6, 1895 June 6, 1894 May 4, 1904 April 13, 1904 May 30, 1900 May 2, 1906 Mar. 7, 1906 Feb. 6, 1889 Mar. 6, 1895 Jan. 10, 1906 Feb. 1, 1905 May 2, 1906 Nov. 4, 1903 July 29, 1903 April 4, 1906 Nov. 7, 1888 Feb. 4, 1874 May 2, 1894 + Life Governor. II Member of Council. AA List of Honorary Members of the Society Xll HONORARY MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY. (“ British Subjects or Foreigners who have rendered exceptional services to Agriculture or Allied Sciences ,” and who have been elected under Bye-law 8 as Honorary Members , without payment <*f subscription.') ARISUGAWA, H.I.H. Prince. ..Tokio, Japan ....... ARNIM, Berndt von... Criewen, Brandenburg, Germany . . . . . BANG, Dr. B.... Professor at the Royal Veterinary College, Copenhagen. CARTUYVELS-VAN-DER-LlNDEN, Jules, M.A....215 Rue de la Loi, Brussels CHAUVEAU, Prof. Auguste, M.D., LL.D....10 Avenue Jules Janin, Passy, Paris. Clarke. Sir Ernest, M.A., F.S.A.... 31 Tavistock Square, London. W.C. . De Vogue, Marquis. ..2 Rue Fabert, Paris (Ordinary Member, June i, 1892) . ELLIOTT, Sir Thomas H., K.C.B... Secretary, Board of Agriculture, 4 Whitehall Place Etzdorf, Landrath von... Elbing, West Prussia ...... Ewart, Prof. James Cossar, M.D., F.R.S. ...Regius Professor of Natural History at the University of Edinburgh ......... FLEISCHMANN, Prof. Wm... .Director of the Agricultural Institute of the Royal University of KOnigsberg ......... Kolhapur, H.H. The Raja of, G.C.S.I... .Kolhapur (Governor, Feb. 6, 1889) , LE Cocq, Senor Alfredo Carlos. ..Director of the Department of Agriculture, Lisbon Liveing, Prof. G. D., M.A., F.R.S.. ..The University, Cambridge . . . . Lovink, Herr Hermanus Johannus... Director-General of Agriculture, The Hague, Holland . . . . . . . . Macdonald, James, F.R.S.E.... Secretary of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, 3 George IV. Bridge, Edinburgh ...... McFadyean, Prof. Sir John, M.B., B.Sc., C.M.... Royal Veterinary College, Camden Town, N.W. (Ordinary Member, Feb. 1, 1893) . . . . . . Nobbe, Dr. J. C. F... .Director of the Experimental Station, Tharand, Saxony PASSY, Louis. ..45 Rue de Clichy, Paris ........ Plunkett, The Rt. Hon. Sir Horace Curzon, K.C.V.O., F.R.S.. ..Vice-President of the Irish Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction, Dublin PROSKOWETZ, Emanuel Ritter von, sen....Kwassitz, Moravia .... Ramos-Mexia, Senor Don Ezequiel ...Sociedad Rural Argentina, Buenos Aires . REID, His Excellency the Hon. Whitelaw... Dorchester House, Park Lane, W. SALMON, Dr. D. E.... Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry, United States Depart- ment of Agriculture, Washington ........ Scherbatoff, Prince Alexander. ..President of the Imperial Agricultural Society of Moscow, Russia .......... SlEMONl, Dr. Giovanni Carlo. ..Director-General of the Department of Agriculture, Rome Thiel, Dr. H.... Privy Councillor, and Director of the Department of Agriculture, 17 Lutherstrasse, Berlin ......... Tisserand, Eugene. ..Ancien Directeur de l’Agriculture, 17 Rue du Cirque, Paris . VASSILLIERE, Leon. ..Director of Agriculture at the Ministry of Agriculture, Paris Date of election June 29, 1905 June 21, 1899 July 3L 1901 Dec. ”, 1895 Dec. 6, 1893 Dec. 6, 1905 June 21, 1899 June 23. 1903 May 3°, 1900 May l, 1901 Dec. 12, 1894 July 7, 1902 June 23. 1903 Mar. 7, 1894 April 13, 1904 June 23, 1903 May ' 1, 1901 May 6, 1896 June 23, 1891 June 23. 1903 Nov. 5, 1890 July 3o, 1902 June 29. 1905 July 3i, 1901 Nov. 3, 1897 June 23, 1903 Aug. 1, 1883 Aug. h 1883 June 23, 1903 SUMMARY OF MEMBERS ON REGISTER, December 31, 1906. 1 Foundation Life Governor (Member elected before the granting of the Charter on March 26, 1840). 155 Governors paying an annual subscription of 5 1. 93 Life Governors who have compounded for their annual subscriptions. 6,189 Members paying an annual subscription of 1Z. 3,132 Life Members who have compounded for their annual subscriptions. 30 Honorary Members. 9,600, Total number of Governors and Members at December 31, 1906. Xlll INCREASED ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DONATIONS Received and Promised by Governors , Members , and others interested in the Society's work. Amount of Subscriptions Promised to Date, £567 3s. ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS. £ s. d. Messrs. Barclay & Co., Ltd. (Bankers) 52 10 0 The lit. Hon. Sir Ernest Cassel . 26 5 0 *Sir Oswald Mosley, Bart . 25 0 0 Lord Rothschild .... 25 0 0 *Sir Berkeley G. D. Sheffield, Bt. 25 0 0 *Earl Cawdor 10 0 0 *Col. Sir Nigel Kingscote, G.C.V.O, K.C.B 10 0 0 *Lord Leconfield .... 10 0 0 Sir Richard P. Cooper, Bart. 9 10 0 *Mr. Alfred Ashworth . 5 5 0 *Mr. J. Marshall Dugdale 5 5 0 National Provincial Bank. Ltd. (Earl of Lichfield, Governor) . 5 5 0 *Mr. R. A. Warren .... 5 5 0 H.R.H. Prince Christian, K.G. . 5 0 0 *Mr. J. Bo wen- Jones 5 0 0 Mr. N. C. Cockburn 5 0 0 Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis 5 0 0 Mr. Alfred de Rothschild . 5 0 0 *Earl of Ducie 5 0 0 *Mr. J. G. Mair-Rumley. 5 0 0 Lord Middleton .... 5 0 0 *Earl of Mount-Edgcumbe . 5 0 0 *Sir J. H. Thorold, Bart. 5 0 0 The Hon. F. G. Wynn . 5 0 0 Mr. J. Herbert Benyon 4 0 0 Lieut. Edwin P. Brassey . 4 0 0 Mr. Charles T. Garland 4 0 0 Mr. Thomas Hugh Mann . 4 0 0 Mr. Mark Wey land 4 0 0 *Mr. A. H. Lesli e-Melville . 3 3 0 *Lord Moreton 3 3 0 *Mr. Alfred Dyke Acland . 2 2 0 *Mr, T. Brocklebank '2 2 0 Christ’s College, Cambridge 2 2 0 *Mr. A. E. W. Darby 2 2 0 Mr. John Howard . 2 2 0 *Mr. John Howard Howard 2 2 0 Lincolnshire Red Short-horn Association 2 2 0 * Life Governor *Lord Magheramorne . £ 2 s. 2 d. 0 *Mr. Ernest Mathews . o U 2 . 0 *Sir Charles Morrison-Bell, Bart. 2 2 0 *Lord Northbourne . r 2 2 0 *Mr. R. H. Otter .... 2 9 0 * Mr. Albert Pell . 2 2 0 *Mr. W. A. Prout .... 2 2 0 *Mr. George H. Sanday. 2 2 0 Mr. Charles M. Stanford 2 2 0 *Mr. E. W. Stany forth . . . 2 2 0 *Lord Allendale .... 2 0 0 *Lord Barrymore .... 2 0 0 *Mr. W. H. Cooke .... 2 0 0 *Mr. J. P. Cross (the late) 2 0 0 *Mr. Percy Crutchley . 2 0 0 *Mr. J. B. Kingscote 2 0 0 *Lt.-Col. F. W. Lambton 2 0 0 *Mr. Charles Lethbridge 2 0 0 *Sir J. F. Rotton, K.C. . 2 0 0 *Mr. S. G. Stopford Sackville 2 0 0 Mr. Wm. Shepherd 2 0 0 *Lord Wenlock .... 2 0 0 *Mr. E. Y. Y. Wheeler . 2 0 0 *Hon. Percy Wyndham. 2 0 0 Capt. W. E. F. Acton . 1 1 0 Mr. George Adams 1 1 0 Mr. J. A. Anderson 1 1 0 *Mr. J. G. Barford .... 1 1 0 Mr. H. Barnett .... 1 1 0 *Mr. Richard Baylv 1 1 0 Capt. Clive Behrens 1 1 0 Mr. Frank Bradshaw . 1 1 0 *Mr. Thomas Brigg 1 1 0 Mr. M. Bromley-Wilson 1 1 0 Mr. Henry O. Brown . 1 1 0- *Mr. G. J. M. Burnett . 1 1 0 *Mr. A. J. Butcher .... 1 1 0 Mr. Charles Carter 1 1 0 *Capt. H. A. Cartwright 1 1 0 *Mr. G. E. Champion 1 1 0 *Rear-Admiral W. R. Clutterbuck 1 1 0 *Col. R. B. Colvin .... 1 1 0 *Mr. George Crawhall . -1 1 0 Mr. John Crawter. 1 1 0 *Mr. William G. Crum . 1 1 0 *Mr. T. A. Dickson .... 1 1 0 r Life Member. AA 2 xiv Increased Annual Subscriptions and Donations. Lieut.-Col. C. Villiers Downes *Mr. James Dungey *Mr. J. B. Ellis .... *Mr. Edwin H. Everett . Rev. W. R. Finlay . Rt. Rev. Bishop Fisher *Mr. W. H. B. Fletcher . *Mr. T. Musgrave Francis . Mr. Fredk. C. Frye Mr. W. Gardiner . *Mr. William Garnett . Mr. George Gee . Mr. A. S. Gihson . *Sir William Grantham *Mr. W. T. Hall Mrs. G. S. Hamlen- Williams *Sir E. S. Hardinge, Bart. *Vicount Hill .... Mr. Reuben Hunt . *Mr. E. W. Hussey. *Mr. W. F. Ingram . *Mr. Peter Iredale . *Mr. J. W. Kenyon . Mr. John Kitson . Mrs. Henry Lambton . Mr. F. G. Lomax . Mr. J. W. Lorden . Mr. Edward H. Lloyd . Mr. George A. Macmillan . Mr. C. H. Miles . Mr. F. E. Muntz . ®Mr. O. O. Openshaw . *Mr. Ralph Palmer *Mr. W. Fillingham Parr *Mr. John E. G. Perkins *Mr. Thomas Perkins . *Mr. Theodore R. Robinson . Mr. Frederick R. Rout *Mr. R. J. Sankey . Miss Alice Scurfield . Viscount Sidmouth 'Mr. Michael Stocks *Mr. Walter C. Stunt . 'Mr. Garrett Taylor *Mr. George Taylor Mr. Stephen H. Terry . *Mr. John Thornton *Mr. T. L. Walker . 'Mr. Conrad A. Wallroth Mr. Arthur Warner Mr. J. B. Wayman Lieut.-Gen. Sir H. C. Wilki Mr. John Williamson . Mr. James Woody att . Mr. Fitzherhert Wright *Mr. Thomas E. Yorke . ;on *Mr. Lawrence Abram . Mr. W. F. Addie . Mr. C. H. Aldridge Mr Frederick Ames . *Mr. Joseph Ashforth . *Mr. Robert H. Ashton . Mr. James Bailey . Mr. James Barron. Sir Hugh Bell Mr. George S. Blakey . Mr. G. F. Braggins Messrs. Bramwell & Harris Mr. John Brock Mr. Frank I. Brown *Col. C. T. Caldecott Miss S. M. T. Carpenter Rev. Henry Carter Mr. E. H. Cartwright . Mr. Ernest Chaplin £ s. d. 110 110 110 110 110 110 1 1 0 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 1 1 0 110 110 110 110 1 1 0 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 110 1 1 0 1 1 0 110 110 110 110 110 1 1 0 110 110 110 1 1 0 110 1 1 0 110 110 1 1 0 110 110 110 110 1 0 0 10 0 10-0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 Mr. Coles Child . Mr. Cary Coles Mr. S. Copeland . *Mr. W. T. Cotes . *Major P. G. Craigie Mr. Joseph Cross . *Mr. J. F. K. Cross . Countess of Derby Rev. Henry J. De Salis *Mr. Wm. Marshall Dugdale *Dr. Bernard Dyer Mr. Charles F. Earle . Mr. C. J. D. Eveleigh . Sir William Farmer . *Mr. Charles A. Ferard . M r. Charles File . *Mr. T. F. Filgate . Mr. L. Forestier-Walker Mr. W. Formby . Mr. A. J. Forrest . *Sir Wm. Foster, Bart. . Mr. William H. Foster. Mr. S. G. Foulkes . *Mr. J. Francis Gaskell . Mr. W. T. Graham *Mr. Edward O. Greening *Mr. J. J. Harle Mr. Thomas D. Harrison Mr. William Harrison . Mr. Alfred Hewlett Mr. Richard Hewlins . *Mr. J. Smith Hill . *Mr. W. Hollins . Lady Hughes. Mr. G. H. Innes *Mr. W. W. Jeudwine . Mr. S. B. Joel. Mr. J. Clement Johnston *Capt. Hon. F. Johnstone *Mr. Henry J. Keyworth *Mr. J. R. H. Keyworth. *Mr. J. W. Kimber . Mr. Titus Kime Mr. Henry T. Law Rev. Thos. G. Little Mr. Alexander McGregor *Mr. Gervase Markham Mr. Alfred Marsh . Mr. W. E. Martin . *Mr. Henry Mellish Lady Middleton . Mr. Henry C. Minchin Mr. Henry A. Murton . *Captain Devereux H. Myttoi Mr. George Neve . Mr. F. W. Nicholson 'Mr. G. F. North . Capt. W. E. F. O’Brien Col. F. Palmer *Hon. A. E. Parker. Mr. W. F. Paul . Mr. A. W. Perkin . Mr. J ohn W. Phillips . Mr. Henry F. Plumptre *Mr. Edmund Potter . Sir R. D. Green Price, Bart, Mr. Thomas Priest *Mr. F. Punchard (the late) ■'Lieut,. -Col. W. J. F. Ramsden 'Mr. J. R. Rawlence *Mr. Frederick Reynard Mr. Henry Rigden Mr. Francis Robinson . *Mr. John Roynon . Lord Percy St. Maur . £ s. d. 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 II 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 loo 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 10 0 * Life Governor or Life Member. Increased Annual Subscriptions and Donations. XV £ s. d. £ s. d. Mr, Samuel Sanday 1 0 0 Mr. G. L. Venables 1 0 0 *Mr. Alfred Smetham . 1 0 0 *Mr. E. W. Voelcker 1 0 0 Mr. Abel H. Smith, M.P. . 1 0 0 Prince Bliicher von Wahlstatt . 1 0 0 Mr. Alfred J. Smith 1 0 0 Princess Bliicher von Wahlstatt 1 0 0 Mr. Lindsay E. Smith . 1 0 0 Sir H. Wake, Bart. 1 0 0 *Mr. T. Carrington Smith . 1 0 0 Mr. E. F. Walesby 1 0 0 Gen. F. E. Sotheby 1 0 0 Mr. J. C. Waiker .... 1 0 0 Mr. A. R. Stenning 1 0 0 Mr. James Watt .... 1 0 0 Mr. W. B. Sutton . 1 0 0 *Mr. Jonas M. Webb 1 0 0 Capt. W. Taylor . 1 0 0 *Earl of Westmorland . 1 0 0 Mr. Matthew Thompson . 1 0 0 '"‘Mr. J. M. White .... 1 0 0 Mr. Arthur S. Thornton 1 0 0 Mr. T. P. Wilkes .... 1 0 0 *Mr. Richard Tidswell . 1 0 0 Mr. Samuel Williamson 1 0 0 Mr. G. Turnbull . 1 0 0 Marquis of Winchester 1 0 0 *Mr. Arthur P. Turner . 1 0 0 Mr. Thomas Winter . 1 0 0 Mr. James H. Tyson . 1 0 0 o n Sir C. P. Yan-Notten-Pole . 1 0 0 1 o yJ * Life Governor or Life Member. DONATIONS. £ s. d. The Goldsmiths’ Company 500 0 0 The Mercers’ Company 105 0 0 “Anonvmous” . . . . 100 0 0 The London and Westminster Bank, Ltd 50 0 0 Sir Oswald Mosley, Bart. . 50 0 0 Mr. Clement Stephenson . 35 14 0 London and County Banking Co., Ltd 31 10 0 Sir A. C. Stepney, Bart. Surveyors’ Institution 25 0 0 21 0 0 National and Provincial Bank, Ltd 21 0 0 Merchant Taylors’ Company . 21 0 0 Sir Charles Hamilton, Bart. 10 10 0 Rt. Hon. A. J. Balfour, M.P. io : 10 0 Mr. E. H. Hill 10 0 0 Mr. E. R. Pratt . . ’ . 8 0 0 Mr. Albert Buck .... 5 (J 0 Caius College, Cambridge . 5 0 0 Mr. Howard Gilliat £ 5 0 d. 0 Mr. James Gould . 5 0 0 Mr .Louis Paine . 3 0 0 Mr. William Holder 2 2 0 Mr. C. Pelham Lane . 2 2 0 Mr. Norman McMullen • 2 2 0 Wensleydale Blue-faced Sheep Association 2 2 0 Trustees of the late Dr. Corbett 2 0 0 Mr. Alfred Hewlett . . 2 0 0 Mr. W. A. Butcher 1 1 0 Mr. J . P. Kin g 1 1 0 Mr. Charles Whitaker. 1 1 0 Mr. George Ballard # 1 0 0 Mr. R. M. Danks . 1 0 0 Mr. R. H. P. Hutchinson 1 0 0 Mr. William S. Stowell 0 10 6 £1,041 5 6 xvi Dr. Correspond- ing figures for 1905. £ 37,000 i,93i 70 7,785 4-399 4i3 186 4,998 1,484 430 1,914 3,084 153 107 16 131 50 457 2,627 27,557 £76,971 ROYAL AGRICULTURAL Balance-sheet, I * £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d To H ABE WOOD HOUSE DEBENTURE STOCK . 37,000 0 C To SUNDRY CREDITORS— Sundry Creditors and outstanding .... 1,908 13 9 Subscriptions received in 1906 in advance . . 110 2 0 Show Receipts received in 1906 and belonging to 1907 848 1 3 2,866 17 0 To LOANS secured by a Second Mortgage on Harewood House 7,785 0 0 To LOAN from Bankers 3,000 0 0 To AVAILABLE CAPITAL - Capital at December 31, 1905 2,627 16 0 Balance from Show Fund— Profit on Show at Derby Contribution from Ordinary Income Donations towards the Society’s Funds . Life Compositions received in 1906 . Excess amount realised on Timber Sales . Less Deficiency on Ordinary Income and Expenditure Account 2,028 8 4 2,010 0 0 — 4,028 8 4 1,038 6 0 824 0 0 219 0 4 8,737 10 8 1,281 7 11 DEPRECIATIONS written ofl Fixtures Furniture . Machinery . Show Plant Buildings at Woburn viz. : — To SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DONATIONS TO PERMANENT SITE FUND . [Note— In addition to the Invested Assets, as stated in this Balance-sheet, the Society holds in its corporate name 8,1267. 8s. 2d. Consols., repre- senting a Legacy of 9,0007. received in 1896 under the wdl of the late Mr. E. H. Hills. The income arising therefrom is, under the will, to be applied in the investigation of the value and uses of the rarer forms of ash in the cultivation of crops ; and the Trust will be administered under the Charitable Trusts Acts.] 7,456 2 9 141 15 5 101 0 8 14 2 10 103 19 50 0 0 410 18 4 7,045 4 5 27,557 7 0 £85.254 8 5 THOMAS McROW, Secretary. WELTON, JONES & CO„ Accountants. SOCIETY OF ENGLAND. December ox. xvii -? i 906. •respond- f figures or 1905 £ 37,000 IJ45 1,890 2,297 1,500 141 2,484 700 389 1,500 249 37 82 27,557 676,971 Cr. By HAREWOOD HOUSE at cost .... [Note. — Since its original purchase, the property has considerably appreciated in value.] By 1,100Z. HAREWOOD HOUSE 2£ per cent. DEBEN- TURE STOCK (part of a total of 37.000Z. Stock) at cost By LEASE OF 16 BEDFORD SQUARE . By FIXTURES AT HAREWOOD HOUSE— By PICTURES (5007.) and BOOKS (1,000Z.) . . . By MACHINERY— Value at December 31, 1905 Less Depreciation at 10 per cent By SHOW PLANT— Value at December 31, 1905 Less Sales Less Depreciation at 5 per cent By BUILDINGS FOR POT EXPERIMENTS AT Woburn— As per Account at December 31, 1905 Less Depreciation By SUNDRY DEBTORS By CASH AT BANKERS AND IN HAND— Reserve Fund Ordinary Account In Hand By SHARES IN PARK ROYAL LIMITED- 15, 000 Shares of 1Z. each, at cost .... [Note. — This has no relation to the present value of the Shares, which is dependent on the realisation of Park Royal.] £ s. d. £ s. d. 37,000 0 0 1,144 17 4 3,000 0 0 Value at December 31, 1905 1,890 5 9 Less Depreciation at 7£ per cent 141 15 5 1,748 10 4 Added during 1906 11 3 6 By FURNITURE— Value at December 31, 1905 2,296 17 4 Less Sales 11 0 0 * 2,285 17 4 Less Depreciation 101 0 8 141 8 6 14 2 10 2,483 16 3 404 8 0 2,079 8 3 103 19 5 700 0 0 50 0 0 7,609 14 8 248 17 9 61 1 8 1,759 13 10 2,184 16 8 1,500 0 0 127 5 8 1,975 8 10 650 0 0 435 5 0 7,919 14 1 27,557 7 0 £85,254 8 5 Examined, audited, and found correct, this 14th day of February, 1907. JONAS M. WEBB. HUBERT J. GREENWC NEWELL P. SQUAREY, HUBERTS J^GREENWOOD, l Auditors on behalf of the Society. XYIH Correspond- ing figures for 1905. 464 102 no 85 143 6,263 74 113 187 6,450 1,484 £7,934 STATEMENT OF ORDINARY INCOME 1 The Expenditure in this account includes not only cash paymfT — _ | 1 I grtc oxne- £ s. d. Annual Subscriptions:- 7in -,0 n .„us for 1906 nO 13 U Governors'. Sub0''- ' . received in 1905, but belonging to 1906 . . /0 4 0 Men>h ' Subscriptions for 1906 5,747 9 0 Subscriptions for 1906 (additional) .... 179 3 0 Subscriptions for previous years .... 71 0 0 Life Governors and Members:— Annual Contributions 250 5 0 Miscellaneous Interest on Daily Balances 228 1 7 Income on Investments . 26 2 6 Sales of Pamphlets, Diagrams, &c 77 7 10 Sales of Text Book 138 5 3 Letting of Council and Committee Booms . . . . 19 19 0 Bent of 12 Hanover Square 313 10 0 Less Bent paid 313 10 0 s. d. 7,028 14 0 489 16 2 7,518 10 2 1,281 7 11 £8,799 18 1 THOMAS McBOW, Secretary. WELTON, JONES, & CO., Accountants. AND EXPENDITURE FOR THE YEAR 1906. but all liabilities in connection with the year’s transactions. XIX Correspond- ing figures lor 1905 £ 2,007 190 82 ' 403 1.860 819 104 115 219 600 75 183 614 18 596 254 200 200 657 169 16 27 23 17 252 92 160 80 ~8o 86 55 17 5 163 26 i37 £7,934 g-epmMfure. General Administration:— Salaries of Official Staff Pensions to Officials Professional Charges Auditors’ Fees Rent, Rates, Taxes, Insurance, and House Expenses Binding and Purchase of Books .... Printing and Stationery Postage and Telegrams Carriage of Parcels and Travelling Expenses . Advertising and Miscellaneous Office Expenses Interest on Loans Journal of the Society, Vol. 67 Printing, Binding, &c Postage, Packing, and Delivery . Editing, Literary Contributions, &c. . Illustrations .... Less Sales (Yol. 66 and earlier) Advertisements (Yol. 67) Less Credit Balance ) Printing, &c. . from Vol. 66 j Advertisements Elements of Agriculture:— Binding Text Book £ s. d. 85 12 5 150 0 0 84 16 3 41 8 11 £ s. d. 1,779 10 0 190 0 0 56 14 0 1,787 0 2 14 15 8 403 10 10 186 18 1 34 17 10 61 2 5 322 14 8 420 0 0 186 13 4 165 0 0 30 0 0 801 13 4 235 12 5 566 0 11 126 5 2 Pamphlets :— Printing Report on Trials of Suction Gas Plants Laboratory :— Salaries, Wages, &c Other Scientific Departments:— Consulting Botanist’s Salary and Expenses Zoologist’s Salary Grant to Royal Veterinary College Medals for Proficiency in Cattle Pathology Honoraria and Expenses of Examiners . Travelling Expenses of Officials . Hotel Expenses of Examiners and Officials Printing, Stationery, and Advertising Writing Diplomas and Gold Medal . Secretary’s Salary Less Entry Fees received and Sales of Examination Papers Less Amount received from Highland and Agricultural Society Examination for National Diploma in Dairying:— Milk, Cream, and Appliances for Examination Fees to Examiners Maintenance and Travelling Expenses Printing and Postage Less Deposits forfeited, and Sales of Examination Papers . Contribution to Show Fund 250 19 2 200 0 0 200 0 0 2 12 3 Examination for National Diploma in Agriculture:— 169 16 5 17 9 0 26 14 10 25 8 0 21 6 6 50 0 0 310 14 9 86 17 0 223 17 9 101 10 6 20 2 9 45 13 0 10 18 9 8 13 0 85 7 12 15 £ s. d. 4,837 3 8 439 15 9 26 5 0 33 8 6 614 14 6 653 11 5 122 7 3 72 12 0 2,000 0 0 £8,799 18 1 Examined, audited, and found correct, this 14th day of February, 1907. JONAS M. WEBB, ) HUBERT J. GREENWOOD, > Auditors on behalf of the Society. NEWELL- P. SQUAREY, ) i XX STATEMENT OF RECEIPTS AND EXPEN- JUNE 27 TO Correspond- ing figures for 1905. £ 3.957 108 57 4,122 I,84I 99 72 15 2,027 366 45 36 2 449 50 689 26 d 156 IO 195 65 16 2 7 136 20 364 12 541 24 517 1 15 32 IO 8 23 188 ^eceipfs. Subscription from Derby Local Committee Fees for Entry of Implements:— Implement Exhibitors’ Payments for Shedding Non-Members’ Fees for Entry of Implements . Fees for Entry of “New Implements” 5,708 13 0 194 0 0 63 0 0 Fees for Entry of Live Stock:— By Members : 963 Entries @11 . 1,963 0 0 87 Post Entries @ 30s. . 130 10 0 41 Late Entries @21. 82 0 0 43 Substituted @ 5s. 10 15 0 s : — 218 Entries @21. ... 436 0 0 24 Post Entries @ 50s. 60 0 0 8 Late Entries @ 3Z. 24 0 0 2 Substituted at 10s. 1 0 0 160 Entries @ 5s. Fees for Horse Boxes and Stalls Fees for Entry of Poultry:— By Members : — 206 Entries @ 2s. 6<2. By Non-Members -598 Entries @ 5s. 9 Post Entries @ 10s. Other Entry Fees:— Fees for Entry of Produce Fees for Entry in Horse-shoeing Competition . Fees for Entry in Horse-jumping Competition Catalogue :— Extra Lines for Particulars of Implement Exhibits Woodcuts of “New Implements” Advertising in Catalogue Sales of Implement Section of Catalogue (including bound copies) Sales of Combined Catalogue .... Sales of Programmes £ s. d. 15 7 0 6 6 3 182 16 3 22 1 9 642 4 0 13 6 Less Commission on Sales 25 15 0 149 10 0 4 10 0 869 18 9 26 18 3 ! £ s. d. £ s. d. 2,000 0 0 5,965 13 0 2,186 5 0 Miscellaneous Receipts:— Amount received from Refreshment Contractors . . . 465 0 0 Rent of Railway Offices 126 0 0 Premium for Cloak Room ........ 35 0 0 Rent for Board of Agriculture Pavilion 30 0 0 Premium for Motor Garage 14 12 6 Miscellaneous 590 521 0 0 40 0 0 877 0 0 179 15 0 64 15 0 21 5 0 36 0 0 843 0 6 676 1 6 £13,410 15 0 £8.318 Carried forward . DITURE OF THE SHOW AT DERBY, 30, 1906. Correspond- ing figures for 1905. - £ 3,737 2,000 347 6o 19 25 448 7i 11 70 18 1,069 90 759 9 133 47 6 I,°44 96 33 5 134 5,ioo 604 44R idcpen&xtuve. &c. £ s. d. Park \ J Cost of Erection of Showyard Transferring Society’s Plant from Royal to Derby . Fencing round Showyard Erection of Implement Shedding Erection of Stock Shedding . Erection of Dairy . Erection of Fodder Shed, Office, Erection of Grand Stand, &c. Erection of Horse-shoeing Shed Yarious Offices : — Lavatories, Stewards’ Stables, and extension to Main Entrance Printing Signs and fixing do., providing and 5 fixing Judging Hurdles, erecting Tern- I porary Exit Sheds, and constructing j Platform in front of Entrances . . ) Insurance Ironmongery Erection of Gas Suction Plant Shed Forestry Exhibition Board of Agriculture Pavilion Fire Station ... Osmaston Road Entrance . Hire of Canvas, Felt, &c. General Labour, &c. (including Society’s Clerk of Works Less 64 per cent, on 7,101Z. Os. id. (as per contract) 461 11 44 81 Flag Poles at 10s. 40 10 0 Salaries .-—Surveyor Assistant Director .... Printing Printing of Prize Sheets, Entry Forms, Admission! Orders, Circulars to Exhibitors, Prize Cards, Tickets, V and Miscellaneous ) Programmes for Members Plans of Showyard Printing of Catalogues .... Binding of Catalogues .... Carriage of Catalogues to Showyard . Printing Awards . . . Programmes of Jumping Competitions £14,129 Advertising Advertising Closing of Entries in Newspapers Advertising Show in Newspapers Bill Posting Printing of Posters and Placards Press Visit, &c., before Show .... Postage, Carriage, &c. General Postage Postage of Tickets to Members Carriage of Luggage Amount of Prizes Awarded (for details, see page xxii.) Cost of Forage for Live Stock Hav, 182Z. 2s. 10 d. ; Straw, 349 1. Is. 3d.; Green Food, ( 967. 17s. 9 d. ; Insurance, 21. 5s. 9 d. ; Cartage, 17Z. Is. 5 d. j Judges’ Fees and Expenses:— Judges of Implement Trials, 46Z. 4s. lid. : Miscellaneous^ Implements, 28Z. 17s. 6d. ; Judges of Horses, boZ. 17s. 5d. ; Cattle, 129Z. 14s. lOd. ; Sheep, 81Z. 15s 4d ; Pigs 21 Z. 4s. 6d. ; 1 Poultry, 11Z. 18s. lOd. : Butter, 4Z. 5s. 6d. : Cheese, 14Z. 10s. 6 d. ; Cider and Perry. 10Z. 4s. 8d. ; Wool 4Z. 4s. 6d. ; Horse- 1 shoeing, 26Z. 18s. Od. ; Luncheons, 10Z. Is. Od. . . ./ Carried forward £ s. d. 1,233 16 5 764 18 24 1,415 8 2 2,919 11 1 222 15 64 84 16 9 542 3 0 91 17 3 1,213 7 34 165 0 0 7 2 1 11 13 9 110 1 54 100 11 8 90 15 0 37 15 34 25 10 0 1,290 7 6 414 11 4 10,742 1 94 502 1. 44 250 0 0 250 .0 0 528 10 5 69 6 6 24 16 9 -j 617 17 9 99 8 2 29 11 10 73 18 0 18 0 0 100 17 0 128 3 4 500 0 0 192 12 3 39 9 4 £ s. d. 10,240 0 5 500 0 0 1,461 8 10 71 9 2 33 13 2 10 16 1 961 1 11 115 18 5 3,768 15 0 647 9 0 455 17 6 £18,150 11 1 XXII Statement oe Receipts and Expenditure Correspond- ing figures lor 1905. £ 8,318 343 949 640 285 40 7 2,264 184 81 22 119 7 ' 4i3 61 241 7,280 5,100 £18,577 ^tecei pf# (< contd .). Brought forward . Admissions to Showyard:— Wednesday, June 27, @ 5s. . Thursday, June 28, @ 2s. Qd. Friday, June 29, @ Is. . Saturday, June 30, @ Is. Day Tickets .... Season Tickets Entrances to Horse Ring:— Thursday, June 28 Friday, June 29 Saturday, June 30 Tickets sold for Reserved Enclosure . . . . Dairy:— Sales of Produce at Dairy Auction Sales in Showyard and Share of Commission Debit Balance on Show Statement of Prizes Awarded:— £ s. d. 1,873 Horses 1,830 0 0 2,747 Cattle 2,092 15 0 1,563 Sheep 1,357 # 0 424 Pigs 441 5 0 285 Poultry 181 15 0 115 Cheese and Butter 90 0 0 40 Cider and Perry 40 0 0 53 Wool 51 0 0 16 Horse-shoeing 16 0 0 175 Horse-jumping 167 15 0 53 40 Contribution to Bee Department . 40 0 0 7.384 6,308 0 0 £ s. d. 1,248 Less Prizes given by various Societies, &c. . . . 1,738 10 0 Prizes given by Derby Local Committee . . 793 0 0 Horse-jumping (Consola- 36 tion Prizes) . . . 7 15 0 2,539 5 0 2,284 £3,768 15 0 £ s. d. £ s. d. 13,410 15 0 685 7 9 2.991 10 3 2,018 14 6 1.992 10 11 502 7 5 95 19 6 266 2 0 161 15 0 138 11 0 239 10 0 8,286 10 4 805 18 0 50 18 11 324 11 0 £22,878 IS 3 Examined, audited, and found correct, this 5th day of December, 1906. THOMAS McROW, Secretary. WELTON, JONES & Co., Accountants. JONAS M. WEBB, NEWELL P. SQUARET, Auditors on behalf of the Society. of the Show at Derby ( continued ). Correspond- ing figures for 1905. £ 14,129 15 32 66 1 75 58 76 10 512 2,044 £i8,577 @&pmdifnre ( contd .). Brought forward . Badges for Judges and other Officials Rosettes General Administration Stewards House, 18/. ; Living, 38/. 10s. Id. ; Personal and [ Railway Expenses, 18/. 10s. 2d ) Assistant Stewards : — Personal and Railway Expenses. Official Staff : — Extra Clerks, 62/. 17s. 9 d, ; Lodgings. 42/. ; Maintenance of Clerks, 36/. 15s. Od. ; Travelling Expenses, 9/. 19s. 5d. ; Secretary Expenses, 40/. 7s. Od. Finance Office — Superintendent of Turnstiles. 10/. 10s.; Grand Stand Men, 15/. 15s. Id. ; Turnstile Men, 87/. ; Bank Clerks, 16/. 13s. Od Aivards Office : — Clerks, 32/. 9s. 2d. ; Awards Boys, 1/. 3s. 4d. General Management : — Foreman and Assistant Foremen Yardmen and Foddermen Door and Gate Keepers Carriage and Horse Hire Veterinary Department : — Veterinary Inspectors . Engineering Department : — Consulting Engineer and Assis- tants, 76/. 15s. Od. ; Wages to Workmen, 13/. 9s. lid.; House, 6/. 6s. Od. Police , &c. Metropolitan Police, 470/. 0s. 5d. aires, 20/. 8s. lid Commission- :} Dairy .—Staff, 83/. 9s. 4d. ; Milk, 42/. 6s. 8d. ; Ice, 13/. 10s. Od. A Utensils, 61/. fis. lid.; Salt, 1/. 16s. Od. ; Miscellaneous! Payments, 3/. 2s. 9d. ; Butter Tests, 14/. 6s. 3d. ; Milk f Analyses, 15/. 6s. 6d. ; Carriage, 1/. Is. 6d ) Poultry —Superintendent, 10/. 10s. Id. ; Penning, Atten- 1 dants, and Food, 20/. 15s. 6d. ; Carriage, 10/. 11s. 4d. . . j Ilorse-shoeing : — Hire of Forges, 17/. 9s. 6d. ; Nails, 1/. 18s. 6d. ; \ Gratuities, 51. 2s. 6d. ; Refreshments, 1/. 3s. 9d. . . . j Produce —Analyses of Cider General Showyard Expenses:— Military Bands .... St. John Ambulance Association Official Luncheons Royal Pavilion : Furnishing Floral Decorations Bath Chairs Telephone Extension . Education Exhibit Laying'on Gas Mains . Hire and Erection of Horticultural Tent Carriage of Sleepers Tan and Ashes .... Hire of Chairs Mcdcils • • Hire of Safes, 1/. iOs. ; Hire of Stoves, 1/. 10s. ; Towels 10/. 13s. 6d. ; Blinds, 9/. 18s. 6d. ; Cord, 3/ Telegraph Extension . Miscellaneous Payments Trials of Suction Gas Plants Credit Balance .... XX111 £ s. d. £ s. d. 18,150 11 1 49 10 0 42 3 9 70 0 3 49 8 5 191 19 2 79 18 7 33 12 6 47 6 11 78 11 0 50 15 5 13 9 0 108 4 2 96 10 11 490 9 4 141 5 50 0 52 18 82 10 3 0 0 5 0 0 9 5 6 no 14 1 73 17 11 25 12 14 19 38 0 14 15 20 16 22 16 26 12 0 18 13 10 22 5 7 424 18 11 885 6 9 335 19 11 41 17 5 25 14 3 18 12 8 728 15 4 246 14 10 2,028 8 4 £22,878 13 3 Actual profit to the Society on the Derby Show £2,028 8 4 Contribution from Ordinary Funds of the Society to the Show Fund . 2,000 0 0 Balance carried to Reserve Fund . . £4,028 8 4 XXIV Table showing the Number of GOVERNORS and MEMBERS IN EACH YEAR FROM THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SOCIETY. Year ending witli Show of » President of the Year 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 3rd Earl Spencer .... 5th Duke of Richmond . Mr. Philip Pusey .... Mr. Henry Handley 4th Earl of Hardwicke . 3rd Earl Spencer .... 5th Duke of Richmond . 1st Viscount Portman . 6th Earl of Egmont 2nd Earl of Yarborough. 3rd Earl of Chichester . 4th Marquis of Downshire . 5th Duke of Richmond . 2nd Earl of Ducie .... 2nd Lord Ashburton Mr. Philip Pusey .... Mr. William Miles, M.P. 1st Viscount Portman . Viscount Ossing'ton .... 6th Lord Berners .... 7th Duke of Marlborough 5th Lord Walsingham . 4th Earl of Powis .... ( H.R.H. The Prince Consort . ) 1 1st Viscount Portman . . 1 Viscount Eversley .... 2nd Lord Fever sham Sir E. C. Kerrison, Bart., M.P. 1st Lord Tredegar . Mr. H. S. Thompson 6th Duke of Richmond . H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G. 7th Duke of Devonshire. 6th Lord Vernon . . . . Sir W. W. Wynn, Bart., M.P. Earl Cathcart Mr. Edward Holland Viscount Bridport .... 2nd Lord Chesham .... Lord Skelmersdale .... Col. Kingscote, C.B., M.P. H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G. 9th Duke of Bedford Mr. William Wells .... Mr. John Dent Dent 6th Duke of Richmond and Gordon Sir Brandreth Gibbs Sir M. Lopes. Bart., M.P. H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G. Lord Egerton of Tatton Sir M. W. Ridley, Bart., M.P. Her Majesty Queen Victoria Lord Moreton 2nd Earl of Ravensworth Earl of Eeversham .... 1st Duke of Westminster, K.G. Duke of Devonshire, K.G. Sir J. H. Thorold, Bart. Sir Walter Gilbey, Bart. H.R.H. The Duke of York, K.G. . Earl Spencer, K.G. . Earl of Coventry .... H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G. Earl Cawdor H.R.H. Prince Christian, K.G. H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, K.G. Earl of Derby, K.G. Lord Middleton .... Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis . Governors Members Total Life Annual Life Annual Honor- ary 1,100 86 189 146 2,434 5 2,860 91 219 231 4,047 7 4,595 101 211 328 5,194 15 5,849 94 209 429 6,155 15 6,902 95 214 442 6,161 15 6,927 94 198 527 5,899 15 6,733 92 201 554 6,105 19 6,971 91 195 607 5,478 20 6,391 93 186 648 5,387 21 6,335 89 178 582 4,643 20 5,512 90 169 627 4,356 19 5,261 91 162 674 4,175 19 5,121 93 156 711 4,002 19 4,981 90 147 739 3,928 19 4,923 88 146 771 4,152 20 5,177 89 141 795 3,838 19 4,882 85 139 839 3,896 20 4,979 83 137 896 3,933 19 5,068 81 133 904 4,010 18 5,146 78 130 927 4,008 18 5,161 72 119 927 4,047 18 5,183 84 90 1,113 3,328 18 4,633 83 97 1,151 3,475 17 4,823 80 88 1,263 3,735 17 5,183 78 45 1,343 4,013 17 5,496 79 81 1,386 4,190 16 5,752 79 84 1,395 4,049 15 5,622 77 82 1,388 3,903 15 5,465 75 74 1,409 3,888 15 5,461 75 73 1,417 3,864 17 5,446 74 74 1,511 3,764 15 5,438 72 74 1,589 3,896 17 5,648 71 73 1,655 3,953 14 5,766 74 62 1,832 3,936 12 5,916 76 58 1,944 3,756 12 5,846 79 79 2,058 3,918 11 6,145 83 78 2,164 4,013 11 6,349 81 76 2,239 4,073 17 6,486 81 72 2,328 4,130 26 6,637 81 72 2,453 4,700 26 7,332 83 70 2,673 5,083 20 7,929 85 69 2,765 5,041 19 7,979 82 71 2,849 5,059 19 8,080 78 71 2,979 4,952 19 8,099 72 72 3,203 5,408 21 8,776 71 69 3,356 5,619 20 9,135 70 61 3,414 5,569 20 9,134 71 64 3,440 5,387 20 8,982 66 56 3,521 5,225 16 8,884 73 58 3,567 7,153 15 10,866 122 58 3,846 6,941 17 10,984 117 60 3,811 6,921 19 10,928 111 69 3,784 7,066 20 11,050 107 74 3,786 7,138 21 11,126 113 73 3,798 7,212 22 11,218 120 80 3,747 7,179 23 11,149 126 83 3,695 7,253 23 11,180 126 83 3,705 7,285 24 11,223 121 79 3,687 7,182 25 11,094 116 75 3,656 7,009 23 10,879 111 71 3,628 6,832 24 10,666 102 70 3,564 6,338 27 10,033 100 69 3,500 5,955 26 9,650 99 62 3,439 5,771 27 9,398 96 68 3,375 5,906 32 9,477 95 72 3,270 5,808 31 9,276 94 155 3,132 6,189 30 9,600 XXV ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND, abstracts from tbe proceebmgs of tbe Council. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. The late Mr. Howard P. Ryland. The President said that since their last meeting they had lost by death an active Member of the Council, Mr. Howard P. Ryland, the representative of Warwickshire who died on Decem- ber 28 last. Mr. Ryland was elected a Member of the Council in 1894, and since that date he had rendered valuable services to the Society as a Member of many of its committees, including the Chemical, Stock Prizes, Implement, and Showy ard Works Committees ; as Steward either of Implements or Live Stock, at many of the Society’s Shows ; and as Steward of Forage at Birmingham in 1898. His death would be greatly regretted by his colleagues on the Council. Resignation of Mr. William Frankish. The President said he regretted also to announce that he had received a letter from Mr. William Frankish resigning his seat as a Member of the Council. Mr. Frankish had occupied this position for the exceptionally long period of thirty years, he having joined the Council in 1875. He had been an active Member of some of the most important of the Society’s committees, including the Finance Committee, and throughout the whole of his long period of membership he had attended the meetings of those committees and of the Council with unfailing regularity. He had acted as Chairman of the Implement Com- mittee since the death of' the late Mr. Hemsley, in 1888, and in that capacity, as well as Steward of Finance and Steward of other depart- ments of the Shows, his services had been of the greatest value to the Society. They could only express their great regret that Mr. Frankish felt that the time had now come for him to relinquish active participation in the Society’s work. In accepting his resignation he was sure that it would be their wish that he should convey to Mr. Frankish an expression of their great regret at his retirement, with the assurance of their goodwill and grateful recollection of his long, untiring, and valuable services to the Society. (Hear, hear.) Finance Committee. Mr. Adeane (Chairman) reported that the Committee had considered the report for the year 1904-5 of the Directors of Park Royal, Limited, viz., Lord Middleton, Sir Walter Gilbey, Sir Nigel Kingscote, and Mr. Percy Crutchley, which was to be presented to the ordinary general meeting of the Company on January 10, 1906. The Report contained the following paragraph : — The Directors who would in the ordinary course retire at this meeting in accordance with the Articles of Association are Lord Middleton and Mr. Percy Crutchley. Having regard, however, to the decision of the Royal Agricultural Society (which is the registered holder of all hut seven of the 15,000 shares of the Company) to hold its Show of 1906 elsewhere than at Park Royal, and to put the Com- pany’s estate up for sale in the course of next summer, it does not appear to the present Directors of the Company that any useful purpose would he served by their continuing in office. They de- sire therefore to tender their resignations as Directors as soon as it may be con- venient to tbe Society to make other arrangements for the control of the Company’s affairs. xxvi Monthly Council , January 10, 1906. The Committee desired to place on record their appreciation of the services rendered by the Directors who had expressed their wish to retire, and they recommended that the names of Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis, Mr. C. R. W. Adeane, Mr. Richardson Carr, and Sir Richard Cooper be submitted to the General Meeting of Park Royal, Limited, to be held on the 10th instant, for election as Directors of the Com- pany ; that the shareholders who hold shares on behalf of the Society be requested to vote for their election accordingly ; and that it be an instruc- tion to the Directors to take the neces- sary steps for the sale of Park Royal. The Committee recommended that an estimate of the Society’s receipts and expenditure for the current year be submitted to all the Committees at their meetings in February next, and that any grants required be sub- mitted to the Finance Committee for their consideration before presentation to the Council. They further recom- mended that no additional expenditure should be incurred by a committee without the consent of the Council, the proposed increase having been first brought before the Finance Committee. Mr. Adeane, in presenting for the first time a report from the Finance Committee, of which he had been elected Chairman, asked for the kind indulgence of the Members of the Council, because he was new to the Council, and new to the work of the Finance Committee. He felt very much the responsibility he was under- taking in becoming Chairman of the Committee, and he would not have undertaken the work had he not been assured by the Members and by Sir Nigel Kingscote, who had so long pre- sided over the Committee, that they would give him their hearty support. He was doubtful of his capacity to do the work considering the difficulties that lay before them ; but he was perhaps of an optimistic nature, and he hoped that somehow they would be able to struggle through. He could, however, assure the Council that he would do his utmost, with the help of the Finance Committee, to put the Society on a sound financial basis. He thought that in this, the first year of the new Council, they would all wish that some careful financial statement should be laid before them, and lie hoped they would agree that the plainer they made their position, the more sympathy they would get from the public outside. That was the unanimous feeling of the Finance Committee, and they proposed, as soon as they were able to do so, to lay such a statement before the Council. They hoped to lay the balance-sheet for the year 1905 before the Council at their meeting in February, and also to sub- mit for their sanction an estimate of the expenditure for the coming year. He thought it was most important that they should know where they were going, how much they were spending, and how much money they had with which to meet their esti- mated expenditure. He hoped that when once that estimated expenditure had been passed, no increase would be permitted except by leave of the Council, any proposed increase having first been brought before the Finance Committee. He did not think that the Finance Committee wished to tyrannise over the other Committees, but if they were to be responsible for the finances of the Society — and they wished to accept full responsibility — the Committee must have some control, at any rate as regards the giving of advice to the Council. He did not propose to go into any detailed figures that day, but with regard to the appeal which the Finance Committee were now making through the Members of the Council, he thought he should mention one point, because the financial position of the Society was a serious one. It was very difficult for them to appraise property the value of which would not be known until it came to the hammer ; but roughly he thought they might take it as a basis that their assets balanced their liabilities. This being so, they had no reserve. At one time, they had 30,00(E„ but this had all been expended. The future of the Society, therefore, rested entirely upon the goodwill of agriculturists throughout England and Wales. He thought it would be a step forward if that were clearly realised. He was of opinion that the generous sub- scriptions which had already been Report of Veterinary Committee. xxvn announced would prove a great encouragement. He believed that if an appeal for further support were organised in every county in England and Wales it would have very good results, and he quite hoped that by the end of the financial year the Society would be placed on a really sound basis. So far as he could see, the Society could not continue to exist without an income of at least 10,000/. a year. At present they received something over 6,000/., and their efforts should therefore be directed to the raising of another 4,000/. Veterinary Committee. The Earl of Northbrook (Chair- man) said that with reference to the reply of. the Board of Agriculture to the deputation from the Society on December 6, 1905, a letter had been received from Sir Thomas Elliott, dated December 15, 1905, intimating that the Treasury had decided to make a grant of 800/. to the Ro}ral Veterinary College for the year 1906-7. At the request of the Committee, Sir John McFadyean had explained that this Treasury grant of 800/. had been made to the Royal Veterinary College in order that it might be placed in the position of a recognised school of the University of London, and that the grant was conditional upon the require- ments of the University of London being met by the College. These requirements involved an increase of staff and an. increase in the building accommodation ; so that no portion of the grant would be available for the provision of the veterinary privileges hitherto accorded to the Members of the Royal Agricultural Society in return for the Society’s annual grant. The Committee had arrived at the conclusion that it was essential that the veterinary privileges hitherto accorded to Members should be continued ; and they resolved to recommend to the Council that a grant of 200/. be made to the Royal Veterinary College for the year 1906, upon the understanding that the College would afford the same privi- leges to the Governors and Members of the Royal Agricultural Society as heretofore. Lord Northbrook, in presenting this report, said that it made absolutely clear the position of the Society with regard to the grant given by the Treasury to the Royal Veterinary College. That grant was given for special higher Veterinary Education, and was ear-marked for that purpose. Not one penny of that sum of money could go to the relief of work done by the Royal Veterinary College for this Society. The Committee had had, therefore, to consider the question as if that grant had never been made. They had come to the conclusion that it would be very unfortunate if they had to discontinue the work done through the Royal Veterinary College. That work had been of great benefit to the Members of this Society, and to farmers, stock owners and breeders throughout the whole country. The Society’s grant was the only money that was available for this purpose, and if it was discontinued the work would have to cease, and the veterinary privileges of their Governors and Members would have to come to an end. He hoped, therefore, that the Council would continue the grant, and he begged to move the adoption of the report, and also a formal resolution that a grant of 200/. be given to the Royal Veterinary College for the present year on the same conditions as before. Mr. Reynard seconded, and the motion was formally adopted, Mr. Adeane explaining, in reply to a question by Sir Charles Knightley, that the grant involved no increase on last year’s expenditure. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1906- MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. The late King Christian of Denmark. The President said that since the last meeting of the Council they had all read with great sorrow the news of VOL. 67. the bereavement that had befallen the Royal Family by the death of His Majesty the King of Denmark. Their deepest sympathies had gone out to BB XXV111 Monthly Council > February 7, 1906. Her Majesty Queen Alexandra, to His Majesty King Edward, and the rest of the Royal Family. He desired, there- fore, to propose from the Chair the following resolution, which he was sure would meet with unanimous acceptance : — That this Council desire to place on record their deep sense of sorrow for the death of His Majesty King Christian IX. of Denmark, and to convey their respectful sympathy to His Majesty the King and Her Majesty Queen Alexandra in the great loss which they have sus- tained. H.R.H. Prince Christian secon- ded the resolution, saying they all felt the deepest sympathy with their Majesties the King and Queen under these melancholy circumstances, which were the more sad owing to the sudden and unexpected character of the event. The resolution was adopted unani- mously, all the Members standing. Death of Mr. J. P. Cross. The President said he regretted to have to report officially the death, on the 4th inst., of their colleague, Mr. J. P. Cross, who was elected last year as an ordinary Member of Council, representing the division of Leicester- shire. Mr. Cross was well known as a breeder of Shire horses, and as an exhibitor at their Shows, and the Council would regret very much that his services should have been so soon lost to the Society. Finance Committee. Mr. Adeane (Chairman) reported that the Committee had considered the draft balance-sheet and statement of receipts and expenditure for the year 1905, which they recommended should be approved by the Council, and ordered to be submitted to the auditors for final examination (see Yol. 66, 1905, pp. xvi-xix). The Committee also presented the following estimate of ordinary receipts and expenditure (other than the Show) for the year 1906, which they had pre- pared on the basis_of the recommenda- tions of the Special Committee in their report of September 21, 1905 : — Receipts Subscriptions for 1906 of Gover- £ nors and Members . . . 6,850 Sales of publications, &c. (exclu- sive of Journal, deducted from cost of production) . . . 150 Total receipts . , . £7,000 Expenditure. One quarter’s salary to March, 1906, of old Officials of the Society Salary of new Secretary for 1906 Salaries of other new Officials (three-quarters of £900) . Pensions *Rent, lighting, cleaning, wages, &c. (say) Printing and stationery Postage, telegrams, carriage, &c. Miscellaneous Journal Chemical Department . Botanical and Zoological Depart- ment Veterinary Department Examinations for National Dip- lomas in Agriculture and Dairying Contributions from Governors’ and Members’ subscriptions to the expenses of the Annual Show *Park Royal (say six months’ interest, rates, taxes, &c.) . £ 499 600 675 190 1,900 400 150 100 600 600 460 200 200 2,000 1,000 Total estimated expenditure £9,574 * Extraordinary expenditure— arrange- ments for the sale or sub-letting of Harewood House and for the sale of Park Royal not having been completed. Mr. Adeane, in moving the adop- tion of this report, explained in detail the items of the balance-sheet and of the statement of ordinary receipts and expenditure for the year 1905. He said that the total receipts for the year amounted to 6,337 1. 6s. 2d., and the expenditure to 7,82 il. 8s. Id., leaving a deficit to be carried to the balance-sheet of 1 ,484?. 2s. 6d. He pointed out that the sheet did not represent a cash statement of receipts and expenditure. On the side of expenditure there would be found actual payments, and also estimates of payments. He illustrated this point by reference to the Journal, the net cost of which was put down at 6007. ; whereas only a little over 1007. of that amount had been actually paid. The item repre- sented, however, expenditure incurred during the year 1905. As long as they kept in mind the difference between the word “expenditure” and the word “ payment ” the matter would be clear. Whilst the receipts represented actual cash payments, the expenditure included not only cash payments, but all liabilities incurred in connection with the year’s trans- actions. Having also explained in detail the figures of the balance-sheet, Report of Finance Committee. XXIX Mr. Adeane stated that if the Society’s assets were correctly valued and the property were liquidated, the Society would appear to be worth 2,627 1. 16s. (as shown under the heading of “Available capital”) in addition to the Society’s interest in Harewood House and the Park Royal estate. With regard to the estimate of receipts and expenditure for the year 1906, the income was estimated at 7,000k, made up of 6,850k subscrip- tions, and 150k from the sale of publications other than the Journal. The former figure was based on the promises of subscriptions to the present date, and showed (although they were only in the second month of the year) an increase over last year of 500Z. The latter figure was based on the average amount received annually under this heading. The expenditure would be in some respects abnormal. With regard to the item, “ One quarter’s salary of old Officials of the Society, 499k,” it would be remembered that under the recommendation of the Special Committee the whole cost of ad- ministration was not to be more than 1,500k Of this sum, 600k was absorbed by the Secretary’s salary, leaving 900k for other officials. It would be found, however, that there was, in fact, an excess of 274k over the allowance of 1,500k That was owing to the salaries due to old Officials for the first quarter of the year. With regard to the item for “Rent, &c., 1,900Z.,” he thought the Council would agree that that was too large a sum to pay for rent, and the Committee hoped that before the end of the year some arrangement would have been made to reduce that figure to a reasonable amount, which, in his opinion, should certainly not be more than 1,000Z. There was, therefore, an excess of 900Z. under this heading. As to the items for Park Royal, making 1,000Z., that, of course, was abnormal ; but there would be certain expenses to be met in the course of liquidation. Therefore, to sum up, he should say that the excess of expendi- ture over the normal was : (1) Official salaries, 274Z. ; (2) Rent, &c., 900Z. ; (3) Park Royal, 1,000Z. ; making a total extraordinary expenditure of 2,174Z. He thought they might hope that the ordinary expenditure of the Society would in future years be kept within the figure of 7,400Z. The estimate he presented did not include losses on Shows, but it did include a “Contribu- tion to the Show expenses” of 2,000Z., and in this there was a difference from the practice of former years. He believed that something like 1 ,400Z. was charged to the Show account last year for official administration, but for 1906 they were not only not asking the Show account to bear any share of the administrative expenses at the head office, but the ordinary account was contributing to the Show funds the sum of 2,000Z. Looking to the future, he thought they must expect from time to time losses on the Shows. Fortunately, this year, through the generosity of a friend of the Society, they were guaranteed against any loss, but if they were going impartially to visit the different parts of England they must be prepared to incur occasional losses on Shows. Therefore, he thought it most desirable— and he hoped the Council would agree with him — that they should at once set to work to form a Reserve Fund, and that such Fund should consist of donations, life compositions, any Show profits, and other moneys that might accrue. He hoped, moreover, that in future years they would have a balance of income over expenditure which could be put to the Reserve Fund also. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. The late King Christian of Denmark. A letter was received from the Secretary of State for the Home Department, stating that the message of condolence of the Council, on the occasion of the death of His Majesty King Christian of Denmark, had been laid before their Majesties, and had been very graciously received. BB 2 XXX Monthly Council , March 7, 1907. Finance Committee. Mr. Adeane (Chairman) reported the Committee’s recommendation that a new account he opened with the Society’s Bankers, to be called the “ Reserve Fund,” and that the proceeds of the timber sales, and all donations and life compositions of Governors and Members, as from January 1, 1906, be paid into such account. Veterinary Committee. Sir Nigel Kingscote reported that a letter had been received from the Central Chamber of Agriculture, inviting the Society to join in a Deputation to the President of the Board of Agriculture to urge upon him the necessity of keeping the present restrictions in force with re- gard to the importation of live cattle from abroad. As the Deputation had been fixed to take place on the after- noon of March 6, it had not been possible for the Committee to bring the matter before the Council ; but in view of the urgent importance of the question, and the action previously taken by the Society in the same direction, the Committee were unani- mously of opinion that the Society should be represented at the Deputa- tion. They therefore requested the following Members of Council to attend the Deputation as the official representatives of the Society : — The President, the Right Hon. Victor Cavendish, M.P., Mr. J. Bowen-Jones, Lt.-Col. J. F. Curtis-Hayward, Mr. F. Reynard, Mr. E. W. Stany forth, and Mr. C. W. Wilson, with Mr. Ernest H. Godfrey, of the Society’s office (see below). Shows of 1907, 1908, and 1909. The President reported that the the Committee, appointed to consider a scheme of rotation for the holding of the Society’s future Annual Shows, were unable to submit an entirely new scheme of rotation, but they recom- mended that for the Shows of the next three years — 1907, 1908, and 1909 — endeavours should be made to obtain offers of sites from the following districts : — Eastern District, 1907 ; Western District, 1908 ; Northern District, 1909. In answer to questions raised by Mr. Adeane and the Earl of Feversham, Mr. Crutchley ex- plained that the Committee were of opinion that in defining the districts it was not necessary for a strict line to be drawn between them. deputation to tbe Boart) of agriculture. TUESDAY, MARCH 6, 1906. Earl Carrington, G.C.M.G. (Presi- dent of the Board of Agriculture), received, on Tuesday, March 6, 1906, a Deputation organised by the Central and Associated Chambers of Agricul- ture, and consisting of representatives of agricultural societies throughout the United Kingdom, who waited upon him for the purpose of urging the necessity of keeping the present restrictions in force with regard to the importation of live cattle from abroad. The Deputation was received in the Westminster Hall Grand Com- mittee Room, which was crowded with the large number of represen- tatives who attended. With the President of the Board of Agriculture were Sir Edward Strachey, Bart., M.P., Sir T. H. Elliott, K.C.B. (Permanent Secretary), Mr. A. W. Anstruther (Assistant Secretary), and Mr. F. L. C. Floud (Private Secretary). The Royal Agricultural Society of England was represented by the fol- lowing Members of the Council : — Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis (President), the Right Hon. Victor Cavendish, M.P., Mr. J. Bowen-Jones, Lt.-Col. J. F. Curtis-Hayward, Mr. F. Reynard, Mr. E. W. Stanyforth, and Mr. C. W. Wilson, with Mr. Ernest H. Godfrey, of the Society’s office. Mr. T: Courtenay Warner, M.P. (Chairman of the Central Chamber of Agriculture), having introduced the Deputation, Mr. B. St. John Ackers (Chairman of the Cattle Diseases Committee of the Central Chamber) explained the object of the Deputation, Deputation to the Board of Agriculture. XXXI and presented arguments and statistics in favour of the maintenance of the existing law. Mr. F. S. W. Cornwallis said he had the honour as President this year of the Royal Agricultural Society of England to attend with his colleagues on behalf of the Society in support of the important object of the Deputation. They were unanimously requested to attend by the Society’s Veterinary Committee, who had for many years past taken an active part in the effortg to eradicate the contagious diseases of animals in this country. The Royal Agricultural Society, as his Lordship was aware, was keenly interested in the valuable pedigree herds and flocks of the stock owners of this country ; and the freedom of these herds and flocks, as well as all descriptions of farm live stock, from contagious diseases was a matter of the most vital national concern. (Cheers.) The Act of 1896, by which for the first time foreign animals were definitely excluded from landing in this country, except for slaughter at the port of debarkation, was the final outcome of many years of strenuous agitation on the part of agriculturists and stock owners, dating from the disastrous outbreak of cattle disease in the sixties. As his Lordship knew, the farmers of this country had also suffered incal- culable losses from pleuro-pneumonia and foot-and-mouth disease. Both these diseases were imported into this country from abroad, and they were still prevalent in foreign countries. The Society which he represented, and he thought he might add, the whole of the stock owners of this country, were of one mind that any lessening of the restrictions at present in force against the importation of live cattle would create a widespread feeling of alarm, would affect most prejudicially the country’s important export trade in pedigree live stock, and would have ruinous and dis- astrous effects upon what was at present the most hopeful and remunerative feature of British agricultural industry. (Cheers.) By the operation of the existing law in the past, pleuro-pneumonia and foot- and-mouth disease had been eradicated from this country, and they felt that if they were to maintain their present freedom from these diseases, it was essential that the present law should be maintained in force. They felt also that if through any relaxation of the present law these diseases should be again admitted, the compensation that would have to be paid to stock owners for animals slaughtered would be almost incalculable. It was ex- tremely difficult to place an accurate value upon the pedigree live stock of this country. In fact, the value of tins class of stock to owners and to the country generally was. practically inestimable. The late Mr. T. C. Booth stated in evidence before a Parliamentary Committee that the losses in his celebrated Warlaby herd from re- peated outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease alone amounted to no less than 30,00(B. In 1888, the De- partmental Committee on Pleuro- pneumonia reported that pleuro- pneumonia was an imported disease, and was not indigenous • to this country ; that it was an incurable disease communicated by contact between living animals only ; and that its treatment should be of a preventive and not of a curative nature. He would therefore point out that if the present law was re- pealed a great feeling of insecurity would be created in the minds of the breeders of live stock throughout the country. (Hear hear.) They had to look also not only at the position at home, but to the effect which any such action would be likely to have in other countries, and especially to the regulations which foreign countries might impose for the admission of live stock exported from this country. (Cheers.) Other speeches in support of the object of the deputation were made by Lord Northbourne (British Dairy Farmers’ and Southdown Sheep Breeders’ Associations), Mr. John Treadwell (Bucks. Chamber of Agriculture), Sir Oswald Mosley (Shorthorn Society and National Cattle Breeders’ Association), Mr. F. A. Channing-, M.P. (Central Chamber of Agriculture), Sir John Cottrell Monthly Council, April 4, 1906. xxxii (Bath and West of England Society and the Hereford Cattle Herd Book Society), Mr. E. W. Stanyforth (Royal Agricultural Society of England and the Shorthorn Society), Capt. J. Craig, M.P. (Ulster Agricultural Society), and Mr. R. G. Carden (Royal Dublin Society). Lord Carrington, in the course of his reply, said that his colleagues desired him to state that they were not in any way blind to the existence of a very strong feeling of apprehension in the minds of a very large portion of the agricultural population that a change in the law would be a serious danger to the community at large. He was not able to give any distinct announcement as to what the final decision of the Government might be. The Government was happily in possession of veterinary advice of the very highest class, and now the matter must go before the Cabinet for its final decision. He would take care that the views and arguments of the Deputation should be laid before his colleagues. The question would be decided on its merits as affecting the health and the well-being of their live stock industry, the magnitude and importance of which the Government most fully realised. (Cheers.) They could not hope to please both sides, but they would do their duty without partiality, favour, and affection. Mr. Courtenay Warner thanked the President for his reception of the Deputation, and the members of it then withdrew. abstracts from tbe proceedings of tbe Council. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Sale of Park Royal. Mr. Adeane, in moving the adop- tion of the report of the Finance Committee, said that, in accordance with a resolution come to by that Council in November last, the Direc- tors of Park Royal had arranged that that estate should be put up for auction on May 22. Of course, as that time approached, they would have to think about what amount they should fix as the reserve price, and the Directors did not feel that they would be justified in taking that important step without first con- sulting the Council, because all the shares in that Company were held by the Royal Agricultural Society. The Council would probably agree that it was undesirable that the re- serve price should in any way be published before the sale, and doubt- less they would think it advisable that the subject should not be debated in the Council. He suggested, as Chair- man of the Directors of Park Royal, Limited, that the Council should instruct their Finance Committee to fix the price, in conjunction with the Directors of the Company ; and if that was the wish of the Council, probably some one who was neither a member of the Finance Committee nor a Director of Park Royal would propose a resolution to that effect. Mr. C. W. Wilson thereupon moved : “ That it be an instruction to the Finance Committee, acting in conjunction with the Directors of Park Royal, Limited, to fix the reserve price to be placed on the property in the forthcoming sale of the Park Royal estate.” Mr. Ernest Mathews having seconded the motion, it was put from the Chair, and carried unanimously. Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Bill XXXlll WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. House. On the motion of the President, the Council resolved themselves into Committee to consider the recommen- dation of the House Committee that the offer they had received for Harewood House be accepted by the Council. A lengthy discussion followed, in which several of the Members present took part, and eventually the report, with the omission of the reference to the offer for the House, was received and adopted. Chemical and Woburn Committee. Mr. Bowen - Jones ( Chairman) reported that the Committee bad considered the Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs Bill of the Government, together with a memorandum thereon prepared by the Society’s Consulting Chemist. Since the issue of this memorandum certain amendments had been made in the Government Bill; and after full discussion the Committee had resolved that a letter in the following terms should be addressed to Sir Thomas Elliott, the Secretary of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries : — The Council of the Royal Agricultural Society of England having taken into consideration the Fertilisers and Feed- ing Stuffs Bill as put forward by Sir E. Strachey and the Solicitor-General, and as subsequently proposed to be amended by Sir E. Strachey, desire to make repre- sentations on the following points : — 1. Section 3, sub-section 2, line 11. — The insertion of the words “by the agri- cultural analyst,” after the words “samples for analysis,” would make it clear that the work was to be done by the person holding the official appointment under the Act, and not by some one else. 2. Section 4, line 14. — Similarly it would be well here to insert after “ to have analysed,” the words “by the agri- cultural analyst.” 3. Section 3, sub-section 3. — In this sub- section there is no provision for the forwarding of the invoice, or a copy of it, to the agricultural analyst, when the sample is submitted for analysis, but only in the case of a sample being submitted to the chief analyst. The Council think it only right that the analyst should be informed of the de- scription under which the goods were sold and the guarantees under which they were sold, so that he may be able to know what he is required to determine, and how to report as to whether the purchaser has been prejudiced or not. Such information as this ought to be supplied to the analyst when the sample is sent. 4. Section 5, sub-section 2. — The Council think it very desirable that the expression “agricultural body or association ” shoul d be more clearly defined, and they would be glad to have an assurance from the Board of Agriculture that this clause is not intended to apply to bodies aided by payments from the rates, and with which the Royal Agri- cultural Society and other similar associations carrying out analyti- cal work could not compete on fair grounds. 5. Section 6, line 20. — It appears to the Council desirable that provision be made for the tracing back of the offence to the original offender. The Committee had further recom- mended that the views of the Council, as expressed in the letter, should be represented to individual Members of the Standing Committee on Law. WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Death of Mr. A. C. Cope. The President announced that he had just heard of the death of Mr. A. C. Cope, and made a sympathetic reference to his services to the Society as a professional member of the Veterin- ary Committee. Mr. Cope had been an Honorary Member of the Society since 1901, The Society’s House. Sir Nigel Kingscote moved, Mr. Carr seconded, and it was resolved, that the Finance and House Committees jointly take the necessary steps for securing new premises for the housing of the Society when the negotiations for the disposal of Hare- wood House had been completed. XXXIV General Meeting of Governors and Members , Journal Committee. Sir John Thorold (Chairman) reported that the suggestion made by Mr. J. W. Glover at the last meeting of the Council that Farm Prize Com- petitions should again be undertaken by the Society had been considered by the Committee, but they regretted that they were unable to recommend its adoption. Sir John Thorold added that the Committee had carefully considered the recommendation of Mr. Glover, and on reference to old volumes of the Journal he found that in some cases the expenses connected with these competitions amounted to over 1,000?. a year. It was therefore impossible for them to recommend the Committee again to embark on a scheme for giving prizes for farms. Mr. Glover said he was very much obliged to the Committee for consider- ing this matter, and hoped that at some future time the Council might see their way to take the matter up again. In his opinion the competitions had done good in the past. Show of 1907. Sir John Thorold (Chairman) reported that a letter dated May 28, 1906, had been received from the Mayor of Ipswich inviting the Society to hold its Show of 1907 at Ipswich. The Committee recommended the appointment of a Committee of In- spection, consisting of the President (Mr. Cornwallis), the Honorary Director (Sir Gilbert Greenall), the Chairman of the Finance Committee (Mr. Adeane), the Chairman of the Stock Prizes Committee (Mr. Reynard), the Chairman of the Implement Com- mittee (Mr. Greaves), to visit Ipswich and any other sites which might be offered before the next meeting of the Council. The President announced that a resolution passed by the Essex Agricultural Society had been handed in by Mr. John Barker, the Member of Council for Essex, asking whether the Royal Agricultural Society would consider an invitation to hold the Show of 1907 in the county of Essex. Mr. Barker explained that next year the Essex Society would celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, and were desirous that the Royal Agricultural Society’s Show for 1907 might be held in their county, when they would do all in their power to make the Show a great success. It was an interesting fact that the Essex Show was instituted fifty years ago on the occasion of the Society’s visit to Chelmsford in 1856. proceedings at General fPeeting of Governors and fPembers, HELD IN THE LARGE TENT IN THE SHOWYARD AT DERBY, THURSDAY, JUNE 28, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Present on the Platform. Trustees. — The Earl of Coventry, Col. Sir Nigel Kingscote, G.C.V.O., K.C.B., Lord Middleton, Lord Moreton. Vice-Presidents. — - Mr. J. Bowen- Jones, the Right Hon. Victor C. W. Cavendish, M.P., Mr. Percy Crutchley, Mr. J. Marshall Dugdale, the Right Hon. Ailwyn E. Fellowes, the Earl of Northbrook. Other Members of Council. — Mr. George Adams, Mr. C. R. W. Adeane, Mr. T. L. Aveling, Mr. John Barker, M.P., Mr. R. G. Carden, Sir Richard P. Cooper, Bart., Lt.-Col. J. F. Curtis- Hayward, Mr. John T. C. Eadie, Mr. J. W. Glover, Mr. William Harrison, Mr. Arthur Hiscock, jun., Mr. R. W. Hobbs, Mr. J. Howard Howard, Mr. Ernest Mathews, Mr. W. A. May, Mr. T. H. Miller, Mr. Ralph Palmer, Mr. Claude M. S. Pilkington, Mr. G. G. Rea, Mr. William Scoby, Mr. E. W. Stany forth, Mr. Richard Stratton, XXXV Thursday , June 28, 1906. Mr. Herbert Tallent, Mr. John Thornton, and Mr. Christopher W. Wilson. There was also in the tent a large gathering of the general body of Members. The President, in opening the pro- ceedings, said that their first thought would be that, with the exception of what they hoped was only a temporary shower of rain, they met in the Show- yard under very pleasant and en- couraging circumstances. (Hear, hear.) Within a very short time the Show would be honoured by a visit from His Most Gracious Majesty the King, and no one needed to be reminded of what inestimable value His Majesty’s support had been to the Society, not only that day, but in past times. That he should graciously come to visit them at so great a distance from London was another proof of His Majesty’s interest in their Society, for which they were respectfully and sincerely grateful. (Hear, hear.) The Society must ac- knowledge with great gratitude the efforts of the Mayor and citizens of Derby to give them a handsome re- ception. (Applause.) Their welcome had been given whole-heartedly and in no stinted manner, and whilst the time at the Society’s disposal when they accepted the invitation to visit the town was not too long, yet the vast energy displayed on the one hand by the Local Committee and on the other hand by Sir Gilbert Greenall and the Staff of the Society would allow them to say they had on the show-ground a collection of exhibits worthy of the Society, and a Show very well staged indeed. (Hear, hear.) The Council’s only hope was that in its final result the Show might be satisfactory to the Society and a gratification to the people of Derby. (Applause.) Thanks to Mayor and Corporation. Lord Coventry said he had the honour to move : “ That the best thanks of the Society are due and are hereby tendered to the Mayor and Corporation of Derby for their cordial reception of the Society.” He was sure every Member of that great Society would participate in the vote. They had never been more hospitably received in any other part of the country than in that ancient borough. (Hear, hear.) Those who had driven through the streets must have been gratified by the beauty of the decorations, and the same generous hospitality had been evinced in many other directions. He was sure the meeting would join in giving Derby hearty thanks for the welcome. (Applause.) The Right Hon. Ailwyn Fellowes, in seconding this resolution, thought he could not do better than re-echo the words which had fallen from the President and Lord Coventry. He thought it was a happy omen that in the new departure the Society had been received with such pleasant feel- ings by the Mayor and Corporation. (Hear, hear.) The resolution was then put to the meeting and carried by acclamation. Thanks to Local Committee. Lord Middleton said he had to move: “That the best thanks of the Society are due, and are hereby ten- dered, to the Local Committee for their efforts to promote the success of the Show.” He was sorry that the Mayor was unable to be present, being engaged elsewhere, but he was ably represented by Mr. Pakeman, who, as Chairman of the Local Commitfee, had regularly attended the meetings, no doubt at great inconvenience and con- siderable trouble. As soon as it was known that the Show was to be held in Derby the Mayor and the Cor- poration at once took up the work, and put forth all the energy and zeal possible with a view to assisting the Council to make the Show a success. Mr. Alfred Ashworth seconded the motion, and complimented the Local Committee on the admirable manner in which they had done their work. He had attended the Shows of the Society for forty years, and he never remembered an occasion where the Society had received a warmer welcome than that which had been given them by the ancient town of Derby on the occasion of what he might term a return to their travelling system. He looked upon it as a good augury for the future success of the Society, and hoped the example would be copied by other counties. The resolution having been carried, Mr. John Pakeman, on behalf of the Mayor and Corporation and the Local Committee, returned thanks XXXVI General Meeting of Governors and Members , for the vote. He was sure that one and all would feel gratified at the kindly way in which their services had been noted. When it was known that the Society desired to come to Derby, from the very first it was the feeling of the people of Derby- shire that they should do their very utmost to make the Royal Show a great success — (hear, hear) — and with- in a few hours of the information being received — for which they were indebted to their good friend, Mr. Eadie, a Member of the Council — the Derbyshire Society had a meeting, and unanimously and enthusiastically decided to give up their own Meeting for this year and throw themselves into the fray to make the Royal Show a great success. From that clay not a single Member of the Committee had been slack, but every one of them had done their level best. While they appreciated their thanks, they would also bear testimony to the great con- sideration and the very charming manner in which they had been re- ceived by the Council of the Society, from whom they had received the greatest assistance, from the President, downwards. He could only add that if ever at any future time they decided to bring the Royal Show to Derby, they would be sure of a hearty wel- come and of everything being done to make the Show a success. Thanks to Railway Companies. Mr. R. Millington Knowles said he had been asked to move : “ That the best thanks of the Society are due, and are hereby tendered, to the various railway companies for the facilities afforded by them in connection with the Show.” It was quite unnecessary for him to point out the great facilities the railway companies had given not only to exhibitors sending stock, but also to passengers coming to the Show. It was, of course, in their interest to do so, but it was also a great benefit to the Society, Mr. Aveling thoroughly endorsed what had been said by the proposer of this resolution. If it were not for the railway companies they would not then have been at Derby. At the same time the railways took money out of their pockets, and it was only right that they should give facilities in return. He had much pleasure in seconding the motion. The resolu- tion was then put, and was carried unanimously. Suggestions of Members. In response to the usual inquiry from the Chair as to whether any Governor or Member of the Society had any remark to make or suggestion to offer that might be referred to the Council for consideration, Mr. James Watt said he had been asked on behalf of a good many exhi- bitors of all classes to impress upon the Council the desirableness of the railway companies giving the general public the facilities of travelling to the Show at reduced fares, a privilege which was accorded by the Scottish railways to their fellow-countrymen across the Border. (Hear, hear.) Mr. W. P. J. Allsebrook said that on the last occasion when the Society visited Derby, in the year 1881, prizes for farms were offered by the Societv. It was said by many that there was no class that helped agriculture more than such competitions, and he sug- gested on behalf of many of their friends, both Members and other farmers, that the farm prize com- petitions should be revived. Mr. Robert Tinniswood supported the suggestion, saying that those who cultivated their farms well made agriculture profitable for the landlords and themselves, and he was sure the Society would get local sympathy and support if this suggestion were adopted. Mr. Eldred G. F. Walker said he had been asked by a number of cider makers whether the Council could not possibly see fit to appoint a second Judge. Cider was one of the most delicate things for a man’s palate, and though they could not have a better Judge than Mr. Ettle, yet it was important for him to have an assistant, as some of the samples were flavoured, and spoilt the palate for other samples. He also drew attention to the arrangement made for showing butter, which, in his opinion, was very antiquated. It was not educational, and it wasted tons of ice. If some refrigerating arrange- ment could be adopted, the butter would not be in the state it then was. Thursday , June 28, 1906. xxxvii The President said that a note had been taken by the Secretary of the various points raised, which would be considered by the Council. Some of them had received consideration, but would be again brought under notice. Thanks to Chairman. Mr. Joseph Martin, in moving a vote of thanks to the Chairman, said that as an old Member of Council he had had the pleasure of acting with the President. Mr. Cornwallis had always been willing to exert his in- fluence on behalf of anything for the benefit of agriculture. He had taken office under unfavourable circum- stances, but he was the right man in the right place. The result of their present Show proved that he had done his duty not only to the satisfaction of the Royal Agricultural Society, but with great credit to himself. He had much pleasure in proposing a vote of thanks to Mr. Cornwallis for his services in the Chair. Mr. Richard Stratton seconded this resolution. As one of the oldest o£ the present Members of the Council he had known very many predecessors in the office held by Mr. Cornwallis who were most excellent men of business, but no President had had a more arduous time or had done his duty better than Mr. Cornwallis. He could assure them that the amount of work and anxiety that had devolved upon the President was more than many of them could realise. He had had to employ practically the whole of his time and thoughts in the in- terests of the Society. They had had to go through a very important stage, and he hoped he might say that great reforms had been effected. In future they would look back upon Mr. Corn- wallis’s year as being the turning point in the Society’s career of prosperity. The Secretary then put the resolution, and it was carried by acclamation. The President, in reply, thanked the meeting most sincerely for the vote which had been passed. This vote of thanks on previous occasions had generally contained a valedictory note, but under the new bye-laws he had another five months to hold office as President of the Society. He hoped that the rest of his term of office might be free from a great deal of the anxiety that had undoubtedly hung over the earlier part of it. No one could have received greater indulgence or more loyal support from his col- leagues. As the previous speaker had said, changes of considerable impor- tance had been effected. Those changes had necessarily entailed a large amount of work upon all con- nected with the Society, especially upon the staff, and that staff a reduced one, for the state of their finances had compelled them, to their great regret, to part with many who. had worked most loyally and well for the Society, and who had been bound to it by the closest ties. He would not be doing justice to them if he did not acknowledge the great help that they had given to the new Secretary when he was taking over his duties. He was perfectly certain that the Secretary would desire to acknowledge that assistance as sincerely as he did. He had also to acknowledge the help that Mr. McRowhad given him on all occasions. That he had come to them as no recruit in the Society’s service was proved by the way he got into his saddle almost directly, and he had worked hard ever since. Other changes of great importance had had to be carried through . These were matters of common knowledge, and were absolutely necessary in the state of the Society’s finances at the time. Might he say, in conclusion, that whatever economies were prac- tised, whatever energies were thrown into the various spheres of the Society’s work, none of them considered that the Society could be firmly established until they reached a considerably larger membership ? He appealed to every Member to help them in this respect. With their help he was sure that the Society would get the support which they and he believed it so richly deserved. He thanked them very heartily for their vote of thanks, and assured them that there was no honour which he appreciated more than that of being President of their great National Agricultural Society. The proceedings then terminated. xxxviii Monthly Council , August 1, 1906. t abstracts from tbe proceedings of tbe Council. FRIDAY, JUNE 29, 1906. MEETING HELD IN THE SHOWYARD AT DERBY. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Disposal of Harewood House. Mr. Adeane presented a detailed report from the Finance and House Committees on the progress of the arrangements for the disposal of Hare- wood House. The report recom- mended certain modifications in the provisions of the original Trust Deed made between the Society and the Trustees of Harewood House Deben- ture Stock on August 2, 1893. The present Trustees had agreed to these modifications on condition that any surplus revenue which might arise after payment of the debenture stock interest at the end of each year should be handed over to the Trustees as a further fund for the repayment of the stock. The Finance and House Committees were of the opinion that this condition was a reasonable one in the interests of the stockholders, and they recommended the Council to assent to it. They also submitted for the approval of the Council, a draft Supplemental Trust Deed embodying the modifications agreed upon. On the motion of Mr. Adeane, seconded by Mr. Carr, the Report of the Finance and House Committees was adopted, and the Supplemental Trust Deed was formally approved. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 1, 1906. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Finance. Mr A DEANE (Chairman) reported the Committee’s recommendation that the Directors of Park Royal, Limited, be requested to take the necessary steps to wind up the Company as soon as practicable after the completion of the sale of the estate. Mr. Adeane, in presenting the report, announced that a statement of accounts connected with the Derby Show had been prepared, from which it appeared that the result would be a financial success. Approximately the profit would be 2,000k, in addition to the Society’s contribution of 2,000k from Members’ subscriptions. Show of 1907. Deputations attended in support of the resolutions received from Ipswich and Lincoln inviting the Society to hold its Show of 1907 in their respec- tive cities. The deputation from Ipswich was introduced by Mr. Alfred J. Smith (the Member of Council for the Division of Suffolk) and consisted of the Mayor (Mr. B. H. Burton), the Earl of Stradbroke, Mr. Ernest G. Pretyman, Mr. Herman Biddell, Mr. William F. Paul, Mr. J. F. S. Gooday (General Manager of the Great Eastern Railway), and Mr. W. Bantoft (Town Clerk). Speeches were made by the Mayor of Ipswich, Mr. Ernest Pretyman, Mr. J. F. S. Gooday, and Mr. Herman Biddell. Various ques- tions having been answered by the deputation, the President thanked the Mayor of Ipswich for the invitation, and said that it would receive the careful consideration of the Council. The deputation from Lincoln was introduced by the Earl of Yarboroug-h, and consisted of the Mayor of Lincoln (Mr. C. A. Newsom), Mr. C. W. Pennell, Mr. W. T. Page, jun. (Deputy Town Clerk), and Mr. W. Frankish (Secretary of the Lincoln- shire Agricultural Society). Speeches were made by the Earl of Yarborough and the Mayor of Lincoln. The Earl of Onslow said he under- stood that there would probably be no XXXIX Show of 1907. difficulty in guaranteeing the Society against any loss, but he did not understand that that amounted to a definite proposal on the part of Lincoln or Lincolnshire. The Mayor of Lincoln, in reply, said he did not know that they could go so far as to give an absolute guaran- tee, but he thought that his friends would bear him out in saying that any loss would be borne by the city and county. The President thanked the depu- tation for attending the meeting, and congratulated the Mayor of Lincoln on the fact that the city was now in a position to offer the Society an invita- tion. He had reason to know what a visitation it was for a town to have such an epidemic as was experienced by Lincoln. The deputation then withdrew. Mr. Adeane moved, and Mr. Rich- ardson Carr seconded, a resolution to the effect that the Society should hold its Show of 1907 at Ipswich. Mr. Harrison moved, and Sir Gilbert Greenall seconded, an amendment to the effect that the Society should hold its Show of 1907 at Lincoln. After discussion, the President put the question, when, on a show of hands, the amendment in favour of Lincoln was carried by twenty-seven votes to eleven. It was then formally decided to hold the Show of 1907 at Lincoln from June 25-29. Disposal of Harewood House. Sir Nigel Kingscote (Chairman of the House Committee) reported that a meeting of the holders of Harewood House debenture stock had been held on Friday, July 20 last, when the following resolutions were passed, in each case nem. con. : — I. That this meeting of holders of debenture stock of the Royal Agricul- tural Society of England, constituted by trust deed dated the 2nd day of August, 1893, and made between the said Society of the one part and Hugh Lupus Duke of Westminster, Sir Walter Gilbey, Baronet, and Sir Robert Nigel Fitz- hardinge Kingscote, as trustees of the other part (which meeting has been duly convened pursuant to the provi- sions contained in the third schedule to the said trust deed), hereby assents to certain proposed modifications of the rights of the said holders against the Society and its property and certain modifications of the trust deed which have been proposed by the Society and are recommended by the present trus- tees of the said trust deed, and doth hereby authorise such trustees, with a view to effectuating such modifications, to concur with the Society in executing a supplemental trust deed in the terms of the draft which has been submitted to this meeting, and has for the purpose of identification been subscribed by the Chairman thereof. II. That this meeting expresses its opinion that until the repayment of the stock, interest should be paid thereon as from the 1st August next at the rate of 4 per cent, per annum instead of per cent, as at present, and that the debenture holders should be paid off as soon as practicable, either by sale or mortgages of the ground rent. HI. That this meeting of holders of debenture stock of the Royal Agricul- tural Society of England, having heard the proposal to let the site of Harewood House, No. 13 Hanover Square, on build- ing lease, with an option to the lessees to acquire the freehold within a limited period, hereby approves of such pro- posal, and requests the trustees of the trust deed to concur in the letting with or without such modifications as the Society may propose and the trustees may approve. The arrangements for carrying out the transactions connected with the disposal of Harewood House, as ap- proved by the Council, could now be proceeded with. With regard to Reso- lution II. the Committee regretted that they could not recommend the Council to adopt the suggestion to alter the interest payable to the de- benture stockholders from 2\ per cent, to 4 per cent. The Joint Com- mittee had recommended that the Finance Committee be requested to make the necessary arrangements for defraying the cost of the purchase of the lease of 16 Bedford Square, and the incidental expenses connected with the transference of the offices. They further recommended that the Presi- dent be authorised to sign on behalf of the Society the agreement for taking the lease of 16 Bedford Square on the terms arranged. Chemical and Woburn Committee. Mr. Bowen - Jones (Chairman) reported that further consideration had been given by the Committee to the scheme for the formation of the proposed Council for Agricultural Research, and the following resolution had been unanimously agreed to : — The Chemical and W oburn Committee after taking into consideration the scheme submitted to them for the xl Monthly Council , « establishment of a National Council of Agricultural Research, upon which it is proposed that the Society should have two representatives, recommend the Council to give a general approval to the proposed scheme. They recognise the advantages which the formation of such an association would possess as helping to consolidate experimental research throughout the country, and as preventing unnecessary duplication. Thev feel, however, that the successful working of the scheme must depend very greatly upon the means available for carrying it on, and also upon the system of control which would be exer- cised, and on these two points they would wish to have fuller information. In view more particularly of the carry- ing on of the Woburn experiments, which have hitherto been maintained entirely by the liberality of the Duke of Bedford, the Committee feel themselves bound to ask the Board of Agriculture what assurances of support for the future conduct of the work as now organised would be forthcoming in the event of the Society joining the proposed Association. The Committee recommended that a reply in the terms of the above resolution be sent to the Board of Agriculture. Botanical and Zoological Committee. Mr. Wheeler (Chairman) reported that the Committee had further con- sidered the memorandum from the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries as to the proposed Council of Agricul- tural Research, and were generally in sympathy with the objects of the proposed Council, but in the absence of information as to the way in which November 7, 1906. the scheme was to be carried out in detail, they did not deem it desirable to abandon the work at present carried out by the Society’s scientific officers. Committee of Selection. Sir Nigel Kingscote reported the Committee’s recommendation of the appointment of a Sites Committee, to make the necessary arrangements for holding the Society’s Shows for 1908 and 1909, and to consist of the follow- ing : — Sir John Thorold, Sir Gilbert Greenall, Sir Richard Cooper, Mr. Adeane, Mr. Greaves, Mr. Reynard, Mr. Harrison, and Mr. Richardson Carr, with power to add to their number. Disposal of Harewood House. On the motion of the President, seconded by Mr. Crutchley, it was resolved that the Society’s Seal be affixed to the Supplemental Trust Deed effectuating certain modifica- tions of the rights of the holders of Harewood House debenture stock against the Society and its property, and certain modifications of the Trust Deed, dated August 2, 1893, for securing the said stock, as proposed by the Society, recommended by the present Trustees of the Trust Deed, and assented to by the stockholders at the meeting of stockholders con- vened by the Society and held on July 20, 1906. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1906, HELD AT THE HOTEL RUSSELL, LONDON, W.C. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Resignation of Sir Nigel Kingscote. The President said he very deeply regretted to have to inform the Coun- cil that a letter had been received from Sir Nigel Kingscote to the effect that, by his doctor’s orders, he had been compelled to resign active work on the Council of the Society, and had therefore resigned the Trusteeship which he had held so long. Sir Nigel was elected a Member of the Council so long ago as 1863, and the records bore ample testimony to the devoted services he had rendered their great Society. (Hear, hear.) Those who had had the honour and pleasure of working under and with Sir Nigel knew that the bare records did not tell of a tenth of the work he had * always been doing on behalf of the Society. He had filled every office in the Society — Trustee, President, Chair- man of the Finance and House Com- mittees, had been a member of many others — and he had been Steward of nearly all the Departments at the Annual Shows — in fact, he was always working for the welfare of the Society. xli Prize Sheet for Show of 1907. He (Mr. Cornwallis) was sure that he was expressing the opinion of every Member of the Council when he said that Sir Nigel’s genial presence, stately bearing, unfailing courtesy, and wise counsel and advice would be very deeply missed at their meetings. As a Governor of the Society Sir Nigel would still watch their proceedings with great, interest, and although he would not be an active participator in the work of the Society, it was to be hoped that they would often see him amongst them. Mr. Cornwallis then moved the following resolution : — “The Council desire to recordon their minutes the great regret with which they learn that Sir Nigel Kingscote is compelled by ill-health to retire from the deliberations of the Council. Since his election to the Council in 1863, he has served as President of the Society in 1877-1878. as Chairman of the Finance Committee from 1875, and Chairman of the House Committee from the same date. He frequently acted as Steward at the Annual Shows, and has been a Trustee of the Society from 1874. In these and other offices and on all occa- sions his energy, tact, and earnestness have been of inestimable value to the Society, while his courtesy and kind- ness have endeared him in a special degree to all his colleagues.” H.R.H. Prince Christian, in seconding this resolution, said he had nothing to add to what the President had said. He only wished to express personally the very great regret he felt at the cause which obliged Sir Nigel to retire from the Trusteeship. He was sure they were all very sorry for it, and were very grateful for all the work he had done and all the interest he had taken for so many years in the Society. Sir Nigel was a very great personal friend of his. and • he had known him for many years. His Royal Highness was very sorry that the state of Sir Nigel’s health was such that he could not give his attention and aid to the Society as formerly, but he hoped that Sir Nigel would soon be better, and that he might be spared to them for many years. The resolution was unanimously adopted by the Council. Prize Sheet for Show of 1907. Mr. Adeane reported that the Finance Committee had considered the question of increasing the amount of prizes to be offered by the Society at Lincoln from 4,000/., as at Derby, to 4,600/., which increase of 600/. had been urged by the Stock Prizes Committee to be necessary, but hav- ing in view the state of the Society’s finances, they could not undertake to recommend the additional expendi- ture. At the same time they did not feel justified in refusing the application of the Stock Prizes Committee, and therefore had left it to the Council to decide whether the increase asked for should be granted or not. The Com- mittee thoroughly appreciated the wish of the Stock Prizes Committee to increase the prize fund, and they entirely agreed with the principle. Their only difficulty was to find the money, and they felt that they were not really in a position to recommend it. seeing the position of their finances. They must therefore leave it to the Council to take what risk there might be in granting the additional sum asked for. After all, it was a matter of speculation. It might turn out very well. If the profit on the Lin- coln Show was sufficient to cover the amount there would be no call on the funds of the Society, but if, on the other hand, there should be a loss, they would undoubtedly have to provide the money. The Finance Committee could not recommend the increase because they would have a considerable deficit on their ordinary balance-sheet this year, and. looking ahead, he did not think that their income would be more than sufficient to meet their expenditure in 1907. Therefore, taking all these points into consideration, the Committee felt it necessary to put the financial position before the Council. No doubt the question would be debated when the Council heard what the Stock Prizes Committee had to say, and they could then come to a conclusion. If it was absolutely necessary the Finance Committee would do its best to find the money. Mr. Reynard presented a report from the Stock Prizes Committee recommending that the sum of 4,600/. be placed at their disposal for provid- ing prizes for Live Stock, Poultry, Produce, &c., at the Lincoln Show of 1907. He said that the Council would xlii Monthly Council , November 7, 1906. notice that this was 600?. in excess of what was granted to them last year. The Committee had most carefully gone into the proposal, and consider- ing the very handsome additions from the Lincolnshire Local Committee (900?.). the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society (134?.), and from the various Breed Societies, they felt bound to endeavour to enlarge their prize list for all classes of stock. He would like to point out that although 4,000?. was voted last year for their prize list, they had received 4,120?., so that this addition was the small one of 480?. in excess of what had been received last year. He therefore trusted that the Council would vote this amount, as it was hoped that the extra prize money would attract more exhibits and make the Royal prize sheet what it ought to be. With regard to the reduction of fees for horses, there had been very great complaints of late years that they had been too high. There had been a separate charge for the entry fee and a separate charge for stabling, but now it had been reduced and the entry fee included the charge for stabling. The Hon. Cecil Parker said that it seemed to him that this was the old battle being started again between the Finance and the Stock Prizes Committees. If they had a Finance Committee, why should they not be guided by them ? He was of opinion that they should support the Finance Committee and adhere to what they said. Mr. Wilson appreciated very much the guarded way in which the Chair- man of the Finance Committee had brought forward his report. He thought their object was to make the Show as good as possible, and he believed that the increase would not be money thrown away. He would certainly support the Council in giv- ing the extra money. Mr. Stratton said he had been unable to attend the Stock Prizes Committee on the previous day, but had he been there he should certainly have opposed the proposition which had been made. Considering the financial position of the Society, the action which had been taken with regard to the Special Committee, and the paramount importance of en- deavouring to impress upon everybody the necessity for economy, he did think it was premature to increase the amount of the prizes so soon. Naturally, he would like to see the prizes as high as they could possibly afford, but it was most important that they should, at all events for the present, be economical. One thing had beeu clearly established, and that was that a first-class show by no means depended upon a large prize sheet. He observed that the pro- posed increase was mainly to be given to horses, and not only was there to be an increase of prizes, but the entry fees were to be considerably reduced, so that there would be a loss on the entry fees, and all for the particular benefit of one section, or mostly so. He did not think that it would give general satisfaction. They had an excellent Show this year, and he certainly thought it premature to do anything further in the way of prize money. He therefore supported Mr. Parker. Mr. Rowell remarked that, seeing the very handsome way in which the Breed Societies had met them, and the very careful way in which the Stock Prizes Committee had gone through the prize list, he hoped the increase would be granted. They could not expect these Societies to contribute unless they gave a fair prize list, and he thought the worst step they could take would be to pare down their prize sheet below the amount asked by the Stock Prizes Committee, as they could not again expect to be met so well by the Breed Societies. Last year they had asked for the smallest amount that could be offered, and he thought that in view of the successful Show they had had and the support they received from all the Breed Societies, the additional 300?. or 400?. they had asked for could well be granted. If it was refused, he thought it would be a backward step. Mr. Palmer said that the Council must make themselves secure by economy, and heartily supported Mr. Parker. Sir Gilbert Greenall thought it would be a very false economy indeed Farm Prize Competitions. xliii if they were not to give a good prize sheet. All the Breed Societies had met them in the most handsome way, and if they desired to retain the support of those Societies, they must give proper prizes. With regard to entry fees, Mr. Stratton had missed the point. ■ Under the present arrangement, if a man entered one horse he had to pay a sovereign for the entry fee, and, in addition, the charge of 21. for a box, or 1 1. 10s. for a stall ; but should the animal be entered in more than one class he only paid the charge for the box or stall once. An exhibitor who entered a small pony in one class only had to pay 21. 10s., and this deterred many owners from entering. Under the new arrangement the inclusive charge of 11. 10s. for each entry would be found to come to nearly the same amount as formerly, if a horse were entered in two or more classes. The breeding section of the horse classes would be considerably relieved by the adoption of the proposed revision of entry fees. Mr. Harrison could not agree with the remarks made by Mr. Parker, Mr. Stratton, and Mr. Palmer. He was as great an economist as any of these gentlemen, but he thought the request of the Stock Prizes Committee was entirely in the right direction. To increase the prizes and increase the interest taken would certainly add to the success of the Show. The gentlemen who were opposing this increase in the prize sheet should look at the question from the point of view of the success of the Show, both as a national institution and a financial success. He would like to point out that for the Lincoln Show they were going to make economies in the erection of the Showyard, and what the Society had to look at was what the ultimate financial result at Lincoln would be. His own opinion was that they would make a profit at Lincoln. They had made a profit at Derby of over 2,000k, and that was not taking into account the 2,000 1. credited from the Society’s ordinary funds to the Show account. He thought that with every regard to the Finance Committee’s recommendation, the request of the Stock Prizes Committee should have YOL. 67. some weight with the Members of the Council, and he would most strongly support their application. After some further discussion, it was, on a show of hands, decided by twenty-three votes to twenty-one to limit the amount to be offered by the Society for prizes in 1907 to 4,000k The report of the Stock Prizes Committee, with this amendment, was then adopted. Selection. Mr. Adeane reported that to fill the vacancy caused by the retirement of Sir Nigel Kingscote, the Committee recommended the election of Mr. Corn- wallis as a Trustee. On the motion of Mr. Adeane, the Council unanimously elected Mr. Corn- wallis a Trustee of the Society. Mr. Cornwallis said he could not proceed without acknowledging the high compliment the Council had paid him. If he had rendered any services to the Society he had been more than repaid by the kindness and indulgence he had received from every Member of the Council, and their latest compli- ment was far in excess of anything he deserved. Farm Prize Competitions. Sir Gilbert Greenall reported that the following prizes, amounting to 150k, had been offered by the members of the Belvoir, Brocklesby, Burton, Blankney, and South Wold Hunts, for farms hunted over by these packs : — 1st 2nd 3rd 4th £ £ £ £ Class I. For farms ex- ceeding 300 acres . 40 25 10 — Class II. For farms not exceeding 300 acres . 30 20 15 10 ( Entries to dose on January 1, 1907.) A further sum of 150k had been offered as prizes for farms in Lincoln- shire, and it was necessary that these matters should be dealt with immedi- ately. If the Council would agree to accept these prizes, he would move that a Committee be formed to make the necessary arrangements. Mr. Crutchley said that before the question was put he would like to point out that, so far as he could remember, the judging of Farm Prize Competitions was a very expensive matter, and he presumed that the CC xliv Monthly Council December 12, 1906. whole cost of the judging would fall upon the Society. Mr. Harrison explained that all the expenses of judging would be met from outside, and that the Society would be put to no expense whatever. These offers were accepted, and a Committee, consisting of Sir John Thorold, Sir Gilbert Greenall, Sir Richard Cooper, and Mr. William Harrison was appointed to carry out the necessary arrangements. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1906. HELD AT THE HOTEL RUSSELL. LONDON, W.C. MR. F. S. W. CORNWALLIS (PRESIDENT) IN THE CHAIR. Report of Firance Committee. Mr. Adeane (Chairman) said that the Committee laid before the Council that day a balance-sheet of the Derby Show, and they asked the Council to approve it. The only remark that he had to make was that it was extremely satisfactory. Financially it showed an actual profit to the Society of 2,028 /., which, together with the contribution of 2,000Z. from the ordinary funds of the Society, gave a gross profit of 4,028/., which they would ask the Council • to authorise them to put to the Reserve Fund, thereby increasing the general security of the Society. He thought they would all wish to acknowledge on that occasion that these results could not have been obtained had it not been for the energy and enthusi- asm of their Honorary Director, Sir Gilbert Greenall. Botanical and Zoological. Mr. Wheeler (Chairman) reported that a Memorandum had been received from the Board of Agriculture with reference to American gooseberry mildew. The Committee recom- mended that a Memorial be sent to the Board of Agriculture urging them to obtain power to deal with out- breaks of disease of plants, and to prohibit the importation or sale of diseased plants or fruits which might spread infection. This matter had been brought to a head by the reported outbreak of a disease known as American goose- berry mildew, and concerning which a circular had been received from the Board of Agriculture. That circular stated that : “ The disease, which is termed American owing to the extensive damage it has done in America, is of a very serious character, and has rendered the culture of goose- berries unprofitable and practically impossible wherever it has appeared.” The circular also went on to say that : “ During the winter the disease remains dormant, and will not spread from plant to plant. During this period, however, it can be con- veyed from one district to another in bushes and stocks. It is clear that enormous and irreparable mischief may be done in this way.” He might also add that the disease in spring and summer was dangerous, owing to the spores of this mildew flying about. The Board of Agriculture said that :