464 



TilE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



Blieep, Irish I suppose ; herd of very useful cows on 

 the left, with good house aud farmstead. Now at Bally- 

 hall Station ; district much hetter ; mangolds grown ; 

 gates of the farm here on railway numbered ; wide valley 

 to the right, extending far, and much of it grazed (a 

 placard of " Repeal," is upon the stable end in red chalk, 

 with " O'Connell") ; a pleasant farm-house again, but 

 as usual the yards join the house ; noticed the manner of 

 making hay ; it is shaken about till dry, then seven or 

 eight hands are engaged putting it into little cocks of 

 two cart-loads each, by hand generally, either in yard 

 or field ; good herd of cows : this is evidently a dairy 

 country ; the whole looks to be well conducted. Cot- 

 tages or cabins very indifferent ; potatoes giving way. 

 Now in a bad country ; stone cropping out everywhere 

 to the left — limestone ; very poor locality ; all stone 

 again : this I jot down at intervals. Stone wall 

 fences ; here an old tower to left ; still poor ; district 

 wild ; grass all rough, MuUinavat Station : all wild, 

 yet good grass in the valley below. Passed a fairly cul- 

 tivated valley to Kiimacrow Station ; country better ; 

 crops good ; potatoes going in part ; again amongst stone 

 walls, and very rough pasturage; many dairy farms to 

 be seen along the line of railway ; potatoes bad; small 

 fields in the valley ; soon in sight of the beautiful river 

 Barrow, and are immediately at Waterford. Here I 

 spent a few days, and had ample opportunities of ex- 

 amining the district. Waterford is a fine city, and the 

 river Suir flowing through it, gives a marked cha- 

 racter of great beauty to the view; the country too is 

 very fine, the soil decidedly good. I made excursions 

 into the country, particularly the Tramore side of the 

 city. Tramore is the Margate of Waterford, or Kings. 

 town of Dublin. There is a splendid sea-view from 



the walks near the town. The country is fairly farmed, 

 many gentlemen having residences near. Inspected two 

 farms held by tenants ; everything business-like, but 

 after the most economical fashion ; houses small, com- 

 fortable, and made the most of ; no superfluous furni- 

 ture, nothing but what was absolutely necessary, one 

 immense iron pan sufficing for cooking, baking, and 

 boiling : I was astonished by the tact displayed in econo- 

 mising space ; the dairy well managed, and rather large 

 in one case : why was I made to wade through a large 

 and dirty fold- yard to reach the front door ? and this 

 is not uncommon even in respectable farmsteads. The 

 proprietors here have succeeded in accumulating land so 

 as to form fair-sized farms, of from 100 to 250 acres, 

 which is considered a large occupation. I am surprised 

 to find these farmers so very homely, their common 

 designation not more elevated than Mike or Charley — 

 no Sir nor Mister, nor Mistress — ^just above the labourer ; 

 and so contented ! The labourers are sadly off — ten- 

 pence per day their regular wages, and not always em- 

 ployed, their habits and mode of living in accordance 

 with it, their appearance denoting great poverty, and 

 their comforts uncared for. Can it be wondered at that 

 they lead low and grovelling lives, fond of whiskey and 

 sensual indulgence, without the remotest idea that their 

 position is a degraded one, and therefore have no wish to 

 elevate themselves, living on the coarsest fare, dwelling 

 in the worst of huts, clothed in the worst of rags, the 

 younger part of the family scarcely clothed at all : give 

 him an extra shilling per week, it goes for whiskey, not 

 to provide a family comfort or a child's frock : it is this 

 class that philanthropists should seek to elevate and 

 improve. 



LAW OF STEAM THRASHING MACHINES. 



When George Stephenson gave that famous reply, 

 stating that he thought he could travel at the rate of 

 twenty miles an hour, although he knew very well he 

 could go sixty, he only made due allowance for the 

 proverbial caution of his countrymen. We are justly 

 renowned for a prudent hesitation, a coy affection, or 

 a Fabian policy that never suffers us to hurry ourselves. 

 Be the last discovery of the enthusiast ever so promis- 

 ing or actually good, his most reasonable expectation is 

 that plenty of time will bo taken in testing it. An 

 Englishman is rarely run away with. He may, per- 

 haps, got accustomed to a great pace, but he only 

 warms to it gradually. The Legislature itself takes 

 especial care to put all necessary aud discreet impedi- 

 ment in the path of the sanguine innovator. You must 

 leave us our old turnpike, if you please, straight and 

 clear and comfortable, all the same. You must not 

 set the Thames on fire without duo notice, nor practise 

 the art of alchemy without all proper law and licence. 

 There was a fine old statute to ensure the burning or 

 boiling of witches, and another to keep poor people 

 from dressing too fine. 



Every now and then we stumble over one of these pre- 

 cious enactments. A clever counsel, seeing no other 

 hope for it, will rake one up for the benefit of 

 bis much-injured client, " the prisoner at the bar." 

 Or, more probably still, a bench of country magistrates 

 will alarm the whole county by putting such an act into 

 force. We are half inclined to believe there are good 

 honest Justice Shallows still amongst us, who would 

 have Mother Bunch ducked forthwith if she were only 

 duly arrjiigaed before them, or order Professor Brownio 

 straightway into the stocks, on his being proved to have 

 put sixpences into his mouth and to have brought them 

 out of his eyes ! The wisdom of one age is clearly 

 intended for all, and we walk in continual fear of 

 offending against the known or unknown laws of our 

 country. 



Is the intelligent agriculturist, who rather prides 

 liimself on going with the spirit of the times, fully 

 aware of his own danger ? Does he know the offences 

 he is committing over and over again with tliat jiort- 

 ablc steam-engine ho talks so much of ? — that great 

 work of Ilornsby, Tuxford, or Shuttleworth ? Must he 



