292 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



management pursued in the dairy farms of North 

 Wilts. I propose to give you a plain, practical 

 statement of the general system, without reference 

 to any particular farms ; and as there has, within 

 the last few years, been new methods of cheese- 

 making introduced, I propose to refer to those, 

 but I cannot pretend to offer you any scientific ad- 

 dress on the art of cheese-making. My observa- 

 tions will, therefore, refer chiefly to the manage- 

 ment of the pastures ; the description of stock, with 

 their selection and treatment ; and the methods of 

 making cheese, and its subsequent management. 

 This latter part you probably will consider the 

 most important, concerning which I am the least 

 able to speak with confidence. Should I fail to 

 offer you anything either instructive or interesting, 

 I trust you will excuse me, and " accept the will 

 for the deed." 



The pasture and meadow lands of North Wilts, 

 if not from "time immemorial," have from the 

 earliest date from which I have been enabled to 

 gain any information of the agriculture of the 

 country, been principally devoted to dairy pur- 

 poses ; and as late as 1811, when Mr. Davis wrote 

 his report on the farming of Wiltshire, it would 

 appear little or nothing was done to renovate or 

 improve the pasture lands of the district. Feeding 

 and mowing alternately, and feeding the hay out 

 on the part mown, were considered suflficient to 

 keep it in condition for dairy purposes, at that date. 

 The richest meadows in the Vale of Avon and other 

 favoured spots were then used for grazing. At the 

 present time there are very few farms, even of the 

 best land, upon which grazing is carried on exclu- 

 sively. Draining at that period was but little un- 

 derstood, and less practised, the surface of the 

 land only being kept dry by open trenches. 



Considerable improvements have, within the last 

 few years, been made in the grass lands of the dis- 

 trict, and (although there has not been that great 

 change wrought on the dairy farms of Wilts as 

 there has been in another large cheese-making 

 country— viz., that of CheshireJ much has been 

 done to improve the poorer pastures of the district 

 of which I am speaking by draining and manur- 

 ing, but still much remains to be done ; for it is 

 well known to us all that the pasture lands— not 

 only of Wilts, but throughout the whole country — 

 do not receive the same attention as the arable 

 land, although it would be equally grateful, and 

 prove quite as remunerative to the occupiers, if not 

 more so. It is true that yard manure is made in 

 larger quantities, and more carefully preserved, 

 and with the admixture of ditch- scouring, road- 

 e^rth, &c., the pastures certainly get a greater share 

 of dressing than formerly. There is very little 

 done in manuring with bones, guano, or other arti- 

 ficial manures. I have known, in some few in- 

 stances, the " grass manure," manufactured by 

 Messrs; Proctor, of Bristol, tried with success ;* 

 but to dress grass land with artificial manure, is 

 an expense the North Wilts farmers do not, at 

 present, feel incUned to incur to any extent, with- 



* See Mr. Sotheron Estcourt's report to the 

 Chippenham Agricultural Society, of experiments 

 with different manures on grass lands, 1857. 



out a surer guarantee of a profitable return than 

 they have at present. What manure is used, is, 

 for the most part, laid on in the winter months , 

 the plan of manuring after the scythe is little prac- 

 tised, although, no doubt, it is the best time of 

 year to manure pasture land ; but it is considered 

 to cause a loss of feed, which at the time can be 

 ill spared, although a subsequent advantage would 

 be gained. There are two systems pursued in 

 feeding the pastures by many, and I believe, in the 

 majority of cases, the alternate system of feeding 

 and mowing is adopted. There are some farms 

 where, from the situation of the fields, it cannot be 

 conveniently done, and the same " cow-lease " is 

 fed every year, and the manure laid on the lands 

 that are mown ; the former system is undoubtedly 

 to be preferred where it can be pursued. In the 

 important branch of husbandry, that of haymaking, 

 the North Wilts dairy farmers, in my opinion, 

 stand pre-eminent; great attention is paid to the 

 quality, as well as quantity, by early mowing and 

 great attention to the making. There is no dis- 

 trict with which I am acquainted where so much 

 good hay is usually made as in this district ; and 

 it is quite requisite it should be so, as it is the only 

 food for the stock to depend on in the winter 

 months. On many farms there is not sufficient 

 arable land, to provide either straw or roots, to any 

 extent, to assist in keeping the cows through the 

 winter. 



The herds of cows of the North Wilts dairies 

 are now generally of the short-horned breed; i. <?., 

 in most dairies that breed predominates ; but there 

 are a great variety. There are to be seen in some 

 of our best dairy-farms as fine herds of cows as 

 can be found in any county of England ; though not, 

 however, with their " names, colours, and ages en- 

 rolled in ' Coates's Herd Book,' " they have, possi- 

 bly, as many good combined qualities, and, as dairy 

 cows, prove much more profitable to their owners 

 than their most aristocratic sisters. Comparatively 

 speaking, very few breed the stock for their dairy ; 

 some farms rear sufficient for their own use, and 

 there is some very excellent short-horned stock 

 bred in the county. The world-wide name of 

 Richard Stratton at once suggests itself, and there 

 are many others who breed some very good stock ; 

 but it is not, by any means, considered a breeding 

 district. 



Many of the first-class dairymen select their 

 cattle with great care and at considerable trouble 

 and expense. In making their selection, the milking 

 qualities are the first point attended to ; but there 

 are other points that influence the purchaser in his 

 selection — symmetry, aptitude to fatten when no 

 longer a dairy cow, and with some the colour has 

 considerable weight in the choice ; and when all 

 the good qualities are combined, then price is not 

 so much an objectj as many sales of heifers, both 

 by auction and at market, will amply testify. Very 

 long prices are now given for really good animals. 

 There are, of course, in such a large and varied 

 district, many farms where neither breed nor 

 colour is much attended to, their milking qualities 

 and their making useful grazers being the chief 

 requisite. Consequently, on such farms there are 

 a great variety, and description, and non-descrip- 



