THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



339 



Ibrgottea thus early wlicre the tvvelve-liuiulrcd guinea 

 bull went to. Did not he make one in " the considera- 

 ble increase in the live stock of the colony during the 

 year 1836" ? And he, after all, is but an index to what 

 maybe done. We repeat, tlie trade is only just fairly 

 dawning upon us. " The character of our stock of all 

 kinds," says the Argiis, " is improving rapidly. 

 Scarcely a week passes without the importation from 

 England of thoroughbred horses, cattle, or sheep, which 

 are purchased readily by our breeders at high prices. 

 Within the last few days two imported Clydesdale 

 horses have been sold at £700 and £705 respectively, 

 and a lot of yearling Durham bulls from £\%Q to 

 £200 each. One heifer, Lady Mary, fetched £"300." 



They are too good judges, or take their instincts too 

 certainly from the old country, to run wild on one sort 

 only. Although a Durham cow fetches three hundred, 

 a Clydesdale horse makes more than double as much. 

 In a word, there is a chance for all of us. There is no 

 man who breeds a good animal but may have the oii- 

 portunity of placing him in our colonies. We say 

 again, as we hope with sufficient emphasis, it is a kind 

 of business rapidly increasing, and that somebody must 

 cultivate. The Emperor of the French, and Mr. 

 Thorne of New York, will pale before a country cousin 

 who means to stock a farm near Melbourne or Ade- 

 laide. Let us already, even at the outset, show some 

 proof of what maybe done here. " The only serious 

 difficulty" — we are still quoting our friend the Argus 

 — "is the high price and scarcity of agricultural labour, 

 and this the farmers are now trying earnestly to over- 

 come by extending as much as possible the use of 

 labour-saving machinery." This, in a new country, 

 and one in which there is still such a run for gold, was 

 of course to be expected. Labour-saving machinery 

 supplies the vacuum. There is no mistake about it, 

 " The farmers are now," that is, just beginning to 

 overcome the difficulty by such a means. And the 



effect oi their just beginning to do so is, that the best 

 customer our English implement-makers ever had is 

 Australia, We appeal to the Ransomcs, the Gar- 

 retts, the Hornsbys, the Howards, and others : — did 

 they ever have such orders as they have had for this 

 colony within a year or two ? Or was there ever such 

 a promise of more to follow ? The farmer must make 

 his own application. There is no surer sign of good 

 farming than good implements ; and the man who 

 uses them will be sure to have good stock to match 

 them. 



At least he will in Australia. They are already be- 

 ginning to pride themselves upon what they can do. 

 There is a stock, implement, and produce show now 

 coming on at Port Phillip, that is to be the best ever 

 known. There are more entries, and of a higher class. 

 At Adelaide, again, there is a ploughing-match an- 

 nounced, where the best man will receive a hundi-ed 

 guineas. They will pit Howard and Rausome once 

 more against each other, though without the presiding 

 geniuses of those two houses exercising their skill in 

 the contest. In one sentence, the Agi-iculturo of 

 Australia is to be permanently improved and estab- 

 lished ; and from the resources of the mother-country 

 will that improvement be mainly effected. 



This is no mere flash in the pan, no mere spurt of 

 people ovei'burdened with money, who would take to 

 farming like a well-to-do tradesman, or excited ama- 

 teur. On the contrary, " we may safely say that the 

 prospects of our agriculturists ai-e brighter than they 

 have been for some years past. We hear nothing now 

 of agriculture not paying in Victoria. Produce of all 

 kinds fetches a remunerative price, and as well as we 

 can judge by the intelligence received from all quarters, 

 this state of things is likely to continue for some time 

 to come." 



What else is likely to continue for some time to come 

 we have already intimated. 



HIGH AND LOW FARMING, ALIAS GOOD AND BAD FARMING, UPON 

 LAND OF EQUAL VALUE. 



Sir, — As your journal for years has been plainly showing 

 the way to high and good farming, I beg to inform you that 

 within the laat five years, in the south part of a midland 

 couuty, which county is reckoned second to none., for high 

 and good farming, I saw two extremes in farming upon two 

 adjoining farms of equal value per acre. Upon the sloven's 

 farm, the wheat crop did not average more than 2^ qrs. per 

 acre; at the same time the diligent farmer, by his high and 

 good farming, grew upon an average 5 qrs. of wheat per acre. 

 The same year, I saw upon the said negligent farmer's land 

 a close which had been a dead fallow for two years in succes- 

 sion, and not properly cleaned the second time or year ; which 

 reminded me of the famous old adage " Once well done is 

 better than twice ill done." Five quarters of wheat per acre 



at £3 per qr,, and 2| quarters at the same price, makes £7 lOs. 

 per acre difference in the wheat crop, between good farming 

 and bad. Then taking all other grain crops in proportion and 

 the root crops, if any grown, makes a vast difference in the 

 produce upon a farm of 1,000 acres, which proves at once that 

 if good farming will not pay, bad cannot. A man cannot 

 grow two great crops at one time — one of weeds, and the 

 other of corn. Great crops of corn, of course, keep a man in 

 his farm, and great crops of weeds shove or drive him out of 

 it. At rack rent, he cannot afford to grow great crops of 

 weeds, alias to farm badly. My friend, the good farmer, 

 stated to me that he considered land lying two years in 

 succeassiou a dead fallow was antediluvian farming. 

 Peterborough, N'ov. 12th. Samuel Aknsby. 



