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THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



farmers here are themselves distillers ; others press it 

 with a four-horse power, and sell the juice, thus saving 

 carriage on the roots; but all grow the crop, and all 

 admit it is the best paying one. Wheat here is the 

 worst, the £ s. d. lie in a nut-shell. Can the farmer 

 produce it at 14s. per ton ? certainly ; then at that 

 price, at what price (at the trade strength) can it be 

 manufactured? and, lastly, at what price will it sell? 

 I am told the grain-distillers of England set their faces 

 against it. Let them. It can be produced so pure and 

 tasteless, that it can be flavoured with any kind of spirit. 

 If I could find myself encouraged by my brother- 

 farmers — if I could find they felt (if my statements are 

 true) the inkportance of this matter, it would greatly 

 encourage me. To any who will write to me on the 

 subject I shall really feelobliged ; but I am sorry to say, 

 he who works for ihe public always finds — 'tis said — an 

 ungrateful master. 



I have never travelled much in England during har- 

 vest, consequently have not had much opportunity of 

 seeing the many different ways of " hooding " shocks. 

 In Kent, near Seven-Oaks, I have seen long wheat 

 shocks covered partially with, now and then, a hood sheaf, 

 doing more harm than good. Here the sheaves are tied 

 much smaller than ours ; twelve are put in each shock 

 in a circle ; in threatening weather three men proceed 

 to hood them, each holding up and spreading an inverted 

 sheaf, which three sheaves are kept thus placed by two 

 of them, while the third fastens a straw band round them. 

 It is very quickly done, and secure from rain and wind 

 when finished. I thought it a most excellent plan in a 

 wet harvest. Their mode of cutting is what we call 

 bagging : but their "hook'' is not a hook ; 'tis like 18 

 inches of the blade of a scythe, fastened at a right-angle 

 to a handle 18 inches long also— consequently the 

 labourer has no occasion to bend his back like our men ; 

 and in his left hand the harvestman carries a stick about 

 a yard long, with a piece of iron at the end slightly 

 hooked. They make capital work of it, and gleaning is 

 not very profitable. Their low waggons are very suitable 

 for small farms, as the horses being so quickly detached 

 the vehicle is always left standing at the corn " cock," 

 while the horses return for another load. I have never 



yet seen an oblong stack as with us. A fortnight after 

 harvest not a stubble is unploughed ; and so tender is 

 the soil, 'tis frequently done with one horse — of course 

 not deeply. The crop of wheat is not good, but they 

 have others which balance it ; the rapeseed is excellent, 

 also the " oillette " and the "chamomine" — all oil- 

 producing seeds : the betterave never looked better. 



In this country, where a succession of green foddering 

 crops are thought so much of, every exertion is made to 

 obtain a return from the land between harvest and 

 Christmas. Their multitude of productions are har- 

 vested at such different periods, that it gives them every 

 advantage, both in time to sow and to regulate the sow- 

 ing of such first as require most time. Spring tares and 

 coleseed mixed arc cutting now : they have two kinds 

 of coleseed, one much more gigantic in its growth than the 

 other. Buckwheat ; mustard — the latter we all know of; 

 but I never in England saw buckwheat thus used ; 'tis 

 cut last, and sometimes, but very seldom, ploughed in. 

 Now that we have such excellent skimmers, 'tis easier to 

 crop our stubbles than twenty years ago ; and it must 

 be slight indeed when the crop for fodder or ploughing- 

 in is not worth the seed ; and we must not value the ex- 

 pense at more, as all now skim their stubbles that can, 

 whether for cropping or not. Even chicory is grown 

 as fodder ; cutting it, on good land, three or even four 

 times a-year : it lasts in the ground from six to ten years, 

 and cares for neither excess of dryness, wet, or cold ; it 

 /■* so early that the first cutting is sometimes in April : 

 it takes about lOlbs. of seed to sow an English acre : 

 'tis drilled a foot apart, and the plants should be \\ 

 inches distant from each other in the rows. 



I should be glad to hear the opinions of those gentle- 

 men who have this year tried the sorgho. I have some 

 in England, sown in May, and sadly neglected during 

 the dry spring ; but 'tis eight feet high, and some sown in 

 June is four feet. The more I hear of it here, the more 

 confirmed I am in all I have stated as to its good pro- 

 duction in all parts of England, and its adaptability to 

 the southern counties for its saccharine and all other 

 valuable properties. 



The English Farmer in France. 



Lille, Oct. bth. 



THE BISCATHORPE LINCOLNSHIRE RAMS. 



Sir,— Th3 letting of Mr. Tiioraas Kirkliam's Bakewell Liu- 

 colnshire rams took place on Thursday, Sept. 2. Mr. Kirk- 

 ham appears to have brought his sheep as neatly to perfection 

 as possible. Ttic celebrated Mr. Skipworth, at Bakewell, iu 

 his speech, when respondins;, said : " He was glad to say that 

 he had been gratified beyoud all anticipatiou : Mr. Kirkham's 

 sheep were really splendid speciraens of what sheep ought to 

 be." One hiuidrcJ aud twenty rams were let, and the whole 

 amount was £1,376 ; of which sum £781 lOs. was for the 

 shearlings, which gives an average of £13 Os. Cd. No better 

 proof of the high eatiuiation iu which Mr. Kirkham's flock is 

 held could be had llian the vt'ry numerous ajscmblage of agri- 

 culturists from all pirts of the midland district, by which the 



letting was attended. The sheep speak for themselves, by the 

 anctioncer'a hammer, and the old breeders of Leicester sheep 

 speakiug so highly of Mr. Kirkham's sheep iu their speeches, 

 and, when respondiiig, say volumes iu favour of Mr. Kirkham's 

 sheep, and No. 30 shearling being let at £20 to the eminent 

 Mr. Bosworth, of Dishley, Leicestershire, and the very spot 

 where Mr. Bakewell lived, and where the Leicester* take their 

 origin, must he highly gratifying to Mr. Kiikham, who has 

 plainly ?liown that a heavy fleece and plenty of stamina can he 

 produced without detcrioraliiuj shape and mnformttij. 



Samuel Arnsby. 

 Millfteld, Pelefhorovgh, Sepl. 15. 



