THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



547 



Now, Mr. Clarke possibly judged his (Mr. Howard's) laad by 

 that in his own locality. They all knew that during the sum- 

 mer mouths, light lauds were best under cover — that was to 

 say, shaded ; aud he thought it would be wrong for gentlemcQ 

 who farmed light lauds to revert to the old system before 

 turuip cultivation, of growing wheat after a summer's fallow, 

 and thereby expose the laud to the action of the sun. lie 

 believed that upon Mr. Clarke's land the system had been 

 successful ; but with regard to the comparison instituted be- 

 tween Jethro TuU's and that of Mr. Smith, perhaps TuU was 

 not so fortunately situated as Mr. Smith. Possibly the former 

 had land whose subsoil he could bring up, whereas Mr. Smith 

 would have to go down a good deal lower than he had yet 

 done to bring any subsoil up (Hear, hear). In fact, Mr. 

 Smith's land was some of the finest he (Mr. Howard) had ever 

 seen for the growth of wheat. 



The motion of thanks was then agreed to unanimously ; and 

 in responding, Mr. Corbet announced that on the 22nd inst. 

 a special General Meeting of the Club would be held for the 

 purpose of considering the question of the Malt-tax, and how 

 far the Members of the Club would be willing to assist certain 

 local Societies in the re-establishment of an " Anti-Malt-tax 

 Association." 



A vote of thanks to the Chairman terminated the pro- 

 ceedings. 



Mr. Clarke has since addressed the following letter 

 to the Secretary : — 



Sir, — As I could not be present at the Farmers' Club dis- 

 cussion and personally reply to the observations of the 

 speakers, may I request the insertion of a few remarks in the 

 Journal ? 



The Chairman considers that the Lois-Weedon method, 

 with manual digging, could not be carried out on a large 

 scale, because of the great amount of labour required at once. 

 I think so too ; aud therefore proposed my modified plan with 

 horse-labour. I also agree with him that a combination of 

 Woolston and Weedon, the intercultural tillage between stripes 

 of wheat being performed by steam-power, would largely add 

 to the profit, while enabling the system to be pursued on a 

 scale of any magnitude. 



Mr. Greene's crop on one field was not quite so great as I 

 stated from the particulars with which that gentleman oblig- 

 ingly supplied me. He did not inform me that his last crop 

 had not been thrashed ; but the deficiency of such a failing 

 year will make only a difference in my estimate of his nett 

 profit, which may still be £2 (iustead of £3) per acre, at pre- 

 sent low prices. Mr. Greene, like the Chairman, fully be- 

 lieves in the profitableness of the system on a small scale. 



Mr. Williams thinks the earthing-up, when the wheat is in 

 bloom, to be a great objection. At Loia- Weedon, however, 

 it is practically found to answer extremely well ; and though 

 a rough wind may twirl the crop considerably, the wheat, how- 

 ever heavy and laid, suffers little injury, beciuse of the 

 open spaces which admit air to ventilate and sunshine to 

 ripen it. 



Mr. Charles Howard pronounced Mr. Smith's heavy field 

 to be "as fine wheat laud as any man could possibly desire," 

 while the lighter portion is not by any means an inferior light 

 soil. Precisely so ; Mr. Smith all along afHrms that a soil 

 with a fair proportion of clay in its composition, and free from 

 positively noxious constituents, is well adapted for wheat- 



growing, and that his system is not applicable to " inferior 

 hght soils." But Mr. Howard says, " Mr. Smith's land is 

 some of the finest I have ever seen for the growth of 

 wheat," aud " Mr. Smith would have to go down a 

 good deal lower than he has yet done, to bring 

 any subsoil up." This is good evidence in favour 

 of the Lois- Weedon trenching. For this is the character 

 given to the soil after many years of the culture— net its 

 original character before operated upon. Now, it is a splendid, 

 rich, unexhausted wheat-soil, with a staple so deep that 20- 

 inch digging fails to reach a real unmitigated subsoil ; but 

 fifteen years ago it had only a five-inch- deep staple, and un- 

 derneath that a "yellow clay subsoil ;"' and on the occasion of 

 the first trenching (bringing up only a few inches of the raw 

 clay), neighbouring farmers foretold that the field was spoiled, 

 and that Mr. Smith would never get another crop— so he has 

 informed us. No one would thou have pronounced the field 

 to be superb wheat-land ; but its native mineral riches (com- 

 mon to most clays) have been developed by the clever cultiva- 

 tion bestowed upon it. Mr. Howard should have made 

 allowance for what he very well knows is the transformation 

 effected in heavy soil by deep and thorough tillage, as spe- 

 cially shown at Woolston. It will not do to disparage the 

 results in produce, by making out Mr, Smith's 14 alternate- 

 stripe crops to be only 7 really successive ones upon the same 

 identical space of ground. This only mikes the result appear 

 more wonderful still; for you have thus 7 crops of 71 bushels 

 each, or nearly 9 qrs. per acre average, without any manure 

 whatever, instead of 14 crops at 35^ bushels average. No- 

 body ever heard before of 7 dead-fallow unmanured wheat- 

 crops in succession, yielding an average of nearly 9 qrs. per 

 acre ; and the marvel is that this result has been achieved, 

 not on a naturally fertile mould, unprecedeutcdly rich in vege- 

 table matter, and of the physical quality and texture to highly 

 prized in some favoured districts, but on a good strong soil 5 

 inches deep, having a subsoil of yellow clay. Mr. Howard 

 thinks lightly of my own 26 bushels average, " because the 

 land in the locality is very far beyond the average of the king- 

 dom for wheat-growing purposes." But what has the high 

 average quality of soil in this neighbourhood to do with my 

 particular plot ? for we have in this vicinity some of the poor- 

 est silty marsh-land, as well as some of the best wheat-soil. 

 And my piece of ground is exactly what I said it was— so long 

 cropped aud worn-out, that to expect a yield of wheat after 

 barley, after wheat, after beans (manured), was, at the very 

 outset, chimerical ; but, in spite of two very defective general 

 harvests, and bad markets, I have made £2 per acre interest 

 and proat on each of my three crops — that is, no less than 38 

 per cent, upon the outlay, with the price at only 40s. per qr. 

 "Twenty- six bushels of wheat to the acre is nothing very ex- 

 traordinary." Perhaps not ; but I maintain that a per-centage 

 like this, upon capital now engaged in farming, certainly is ; 

 and profit is the goal of the agricultural race. 



Mr. Fisher Hobbs adduces some interesting facts as to loss 

 of yield through scorching of the soil, and suffering of the 

 wheat root from drought just prior to harvest, which results 

 from over-wide drilling. The controversy between the shadista 

 and the advocates of exposure has arisen mainly from the 

 different soils and climates best known to the experimenters. 

 The Lois-Weedon system is not proposed for light lands need- 

 ing to be covered by summer vegetation ; and on suitable 

 wheat soils, in a dry climate, perhaps the stripes would be best 

 drilled east and west. But one advantage of the system ia 



