142 ON THE AGRICULTURE OF THE 



land was overrun by sheep in autumn, but Mr Mackenzie 

 observed that in this way a great many of the roots of the young 

 grasses were torn out and destroyed from all further vegetation, 

 and now the land sown out with grasses in spring is kept clear 

 of all kinds of stock till after the cutting of the hay. About the 

 first week of April the young grass is top-dressed with 1 cwt. of 

 nitrate of soda and 1 cwt. of dissolved bones per acre, and about 

 the beginning of July the hay is cut with a mower, first put 

 into " coles," and then stacked. The crop of hay generally 

 averages about 180 stones to the acre, and is invariably of the 

 finest quality. The aftermath is utilised in feeding sheep. Mr 

 Mackenzie keeps from eight to ten cows, and breeds from these 

 and a shorthorn bull, the present stock bull being Neagle, bred 

 by Mr W. S. Marr, Uppermill, Aberdeenshire, and after Eoyal 

 Prince, Mr Marr's well-known K.C.B. bull. The extent to 

 which feeding is carried on at Dalmore is really wonderful, but 

 this shall be noticed at greater length further on. About the 

 end of September or beginning of October Mr Mackenzie buys 

 in from 250 to 300 Cheviot wethers and about 200 cast Cheviot 

 ewes. The ewes are fed on cut turnips and about 1 lb. per day 

 of the feeding mixture ; and the wethers get turnips on the root, 

 along with hay draff and 1 lb. per day of the mixture. They 

 are sold off generally in January or February. A very large 

 number of swine are also fed off every year, the variety kept 

 being Duckering's imj)roved breed. 



Eeference has also been made to the farm of Balintraid, on 

 the property of Delny, which Mr Matheson acquired. This 

 large and highly-cultivated farm is tenanted by Mr Andrew 

 Monro, banker, Invergorden, and is rented at L.766. Mr 

 Monro is an enthusiastic liberal farmer, and besides cultivating 

 his farm on the most approved principles, feeds a large number 

 of bought-in cattle during winter. He owns extensive manure- 

 works at Invergordon, and from these and the well-known 

 establishment of a similar kind at Bunchrew, owned by Messrs 

 John Cran & Co., more than two-thirds of the whole of the artificial 

 manure used in the counties of Eoss and Cromarty are obtained. 



On Mr Ptoderick Mackenzie's desirable little estate of Kin- 

 craig, in the parish of Eosskeen, is situated the fine farm of 

 Tomich, occupied, along with the adjoining small farm of Broom- 

 hill, by Mr John Hall. Mr Hall has for many years been well 

 known as an experienced valuator of land, and thoroughly prac- 

 tical, intelligent agriculturalist ; and both with respect to culti- 

 vation and general arrangements, his farm is indeed a perfect 

 modeL Tomich extends to about 400 acres, all arable, is worked 

 in seven shifts ; and Broomhill, measuring 150 arable acres, in 

 five shifts. The land intended for turnips is subsoiled in autumn, 

 cross ploughed in spring, and well cleaned, and dunged with 

 from 20 to 25 loads of farm-yard manure, and 7 cwt. of bone 



