THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



463 



and pass some better farming. The crops, for a wonder, 

 tolerably clean; but what awful cottages! Huts! 

 cabins! what are they? Wheat good, swedes good ; 

 now a good farm-house and farmstead ; land well grazed 

 with very useful sheep — quite a Goshen in the country ; 

 soil good loam, with pebbles ; seeds look well ; indeed 

 all looks well for a mile or two, and denotes good farm- 

 ing ; arrive at Mageney Station, I inquire who farms 

 near here ; Mr. Anderson, the Scotchman, was the 

 reply. What good a single farmer does in his imme- 

 diate neighbourhood by such an example ! The whole 

 district is benefited by his knowledge and enterprising 

 spirit. I never saw a better proof of it than here. 

 All may profit by his experience, and better farming is 

 the result. Obtain a fine view to the right ; here are 

 shorthorn cows, and better grazing (see the clouds on 

 the Wicklow mountains to left) ; on, on ; pass a herd 

 of shorthorn cows and heifers ; no steers anywhere ; 

 good and useful grass land ; potatoes failing ; wood to 

 left, and gentleman's residence somewhere ; on the Park 

 the land good. Where is the population to manage 

 this district? certainly not to be seen on passing. Now 

 reach Carlow. It bears the marks of a more modern 

 town, with those fine churches and buildings, seen well 

 from the rail ; many houses small ; rows of low, 

 wretched cottages ; land fine ; the hill on opposite side 

 of the town has a fine effect ; potatoes failing every- 

 where. Soon into a flat district ; potatoes worse and 

 worse ; land wet ; the flat nearly all grazed with cattle 

 of the country, and not useful shorthorns ; sheep to 

 right and left ; no good cart horses anywhere ; potatoes 

 still failing. 



Milford Station : The country lately passed and 

 around here is very convertible, and would form a 

 capital agricultural district if well cultivated and drained, 

 much hay, corn, and many heifers grazed ; no steers ; 

 flock of ewes ; clover in great cocks, tied down as usual ; 

 gentleman's residence to the left, who is underdraining 

 the farm, and all is well done; potatoes giving way; 

 wheat and swedes good, some secured in fields, nearly all 

 alike in small cobs. Bagnalstown Station ; now getting 

 amongst rocks, which crop out above the surface. 

 Wheat crops mostly temporarily secured in the fields, 

 by being built into small cobs, rounded and pointed at 

 top, and tied at top and around with straw in a peculiar 

 way, about a small cart-load in a cob. Again in the 

 valley, by a fine river ; potatoes worse and worse, many 

 grown ; district near the line fairly farmed ; small en- 

 closures, but very useful land, only requiring close atten- 

 tion ; more grass, some much better done ; gentleman's 

 park to left, which accounts for the improvement, and 

 is a good omen for the future. Country gentlemen can- 

 not adopt a wiser course than to set such bright examples, 

 taking care to avoid expensive processes, which only 

 tend to discourage poor and ignorant farmers. The 

 whole district is badly drained, it is laid into small lands 

 with wide furrows ; there is much hay to make ; counted 

 nineteen men and women within the space of fifteen 

 yards reaping wheat ; the country here is flat and 

 swampy : j)otatoc8 of course bad ; shorthorn cows pre- 

 vail, where cows are kept, some seen here ; extremely 



flat ; to the left are high hills, not very distant. The 

 fences are badly kept all along ; crops nowhere heavy. 

 The breed of pigs is similar wherever seen, and are of 

 the improved sort, much like the largest of the kind 

 denominated the small breed in England ; no old coarse 

 Irish pigs to be seen ; the breed is commendable any- 

 where. This is evidently a fine farming country, only 

 requiring enterprising industry and capital. The Irish 

 sheep seen are very similar to the Rents in form, but 

 larger ; however acceptable the distiict, you see nothing 

 like England, no nice homes, no real comforts, apparent 

 careless indiff"erence to these things throughout ; now 

 strong loam, with pebbles all the way. The grass lands 

 though good are not at all comparable with the best 

 Lincolnshire pastures, and the grazing is less compar- 

 able ; counted again 20 men and women in a still 

 narrower compass reaping. Why do they keep in each 

 other's way like this ? Here wo find good white-thorn 

 hedges, or would be so if attended to, but all is negli- 

 gently done ; some useful implements seen ; soil now 

 poorer, but better managed. Park to the right ; country 

 improves fast again, wheat cobs, small and long sheaves 

 with ears downward, capped and covering the cob. Kil- 

 kenny Station ; Town beautifully situate ; hay cutting ; 

 more pebbles, less clay. The Marquis of Ormond's 

 castle is highly picturesque, and commands the whole 

 town ; the new Catholic cathedral is a fine object from 

 the station, which itself overlooks the town. There are 

 two catholic colleges here ; the population about 22,000. 

 It is in a beautiful rich valley, well wooded. The fine 

 castle is embowered in fine forest trees all over the hill, 

 so that you only see the upper portion of it, and all is 

 in good keeping ; a prettier object is seldom seen. We 

 soon leave ; the same black stone, often blue slate along 

 the route ; potatoes dead or all going ; fine country, 

 capable of bearing any amount of produce if highly 

 farmed ; crops now only so-so ; again better farming ; 

 soon get to stones; much hay; fine turnip crops for 

 such ground ; on the hills the lands in six-furrow stetches ; 

 Tartarian oats green. Bennett's Bridge Station : country 

 abruptly undulating ; castle ofi" to the left, and a monu- 

 ment in the distance, both old ; better farming, good 

 clovers, &c. ; same soil, but more stone and less peb- 

 bles; harvest much alike, oats rather backwarder ; po- 

 tatoes backward ; a good farm-house, for Ireland ; har- 

 vest, five to cut, two women to bind, two to set up. 

 Thomastown Station ; Some large mills on the stream ; 

 good sheep, and better grazing. This is a nice locality, 

 a good stream of water turning several fine mills ; moory- 

 looking hills in the distance ; railway very high here 

 above the valley ; soon come to poor land, and much 

 stone cropping out and gorse ; pass fine old ruin of a 

 church; soon amongst mountain lime-stone; fine country 

 seen off to the right ; potatoes are here good and 

 green ; many goats, apparently wild, near here ; 

 country to the right fairly farmed, but the grass is, as 

 usual, roughly grazed ; very few sheep seen ; much hay 

 still to make ; small sort of cows — mixed breed, appa- 

 rently of Irish and shorthorns ; fine view of the country 

 from the rail for many miles, being an extensive valley, 

 bounded by distant hills to the right ; same sort of 



