THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE, 



8S 



good by neglecting this most essential point in the improve- 

 ment of stock : and local shows like yours, when the milk 

 question is one of the greatest interest, may tend materially 

 to mitigate, if not entirely to correct the mischief. The 

 animals competing for your prkes should not be got up for 

 the occasion, excepting the fat stock, but be taken from the 

 general herd, and, if possible, two or more cows, and not 

 one only, should enter mto competition. You will then 

 encourage many, wlio otherwise miglit never aim at anything 

 beyond mediocrity, to press forwarS; and some of tlj^se wlio 

 carry off your prizes will enter their animals at the conntrj 

 show against a larger field, wlien they may probably learn 

 a lesson that there is plenty of room for improvement 

 in their herd, as the prize-takers again at the coun- 

 try show will in tlieir turn cry small at that of the 

 Eoyal Agricultural Society. I hope the formation of 

 your society will induce many of the landlords of the 

 neighbourhood to establish upon tbeir home faims 

 herds of shorthorn cattle of first-rate quality, that by selling 

 and letting: out their bulls at moderate rates, they may 

 effect a gradual improvement in the stock of their tenantry. 

 This was the plan introduced by the late Earl Ducie, and 

 the marks of his exertions are still visible in the districts 

 around Tortworth and Woodchester. Colonel Kingscote 

 has for some time followed the same laudable practice, and 

 I feel personally indebted to him for it. The right honour- 

 able and gallant admiral at your ancient castle is following 

 tbe same track, and has expressed his determination not to 

 be beaten. This augurs well. Local exhibitions of stock 

 resulting from such encouragement must become exceedingly 

 interesting. One thing, however, should be never lost sight 

 of in rstablishiug these herds, viz., that the animals be use- 

 ful for the every-day purposes of the farm. The intro- 

 duction of a highly bred class of shorthorns without good 

 milking properties would be a positive injury to the district, 

 let their pedigrees be ever so famous. Excellent milkers 

 are to be found among pure shorthorn herds, as in the case 

 of Colonel Kingscote's, and it is the introduction of such 

 that should be encouraged. I would suggest that you 

 should offer a few prizes for general competition, of sufticieat 

 value to induce some of those who devote their special ener- 

 gies to the improvement of their herd for the purposes of 

 sale and exhibition, to bring their stock to your cattle show, 

 taking care, however, that encouragement is given to those 

 qualities you desire to cultivate in your own stock, and for 

 that purpose cows in milk, and tested as milkers, and bulls, 

 their produce, seems to promise the best result. By this 

 means you will draw annually to your show animals of first- 

 rate class, by which you may compare those exhibited from 

 the localitjs and in course of time challenge the country to 

 show against you. I cannot from these considerations 

 agree with those who think yours a retrograde movement. 

 Tfie same argument that I have advanced for offering a 

 prize open to all competitors, at the annual cattle show, holds 

 good also in the ploughing-matches. Whilst you offer 

 prizes for the best ploughing done by servants of the mem- 

 bers, and encourage your sons to put their hands to the 

 plough, and become themselves masters of the work they 

 nave to superintend, induce also, by the offer of a liberal 

 premium, the best ploughmen in the country to attend your 

 matches, and show your ploughmen the degree of excellence 

 they should arrive at. The advantage of having some 

 ploughing done in the trial field by first-rate ploughmen, 

 with the best ploughs, was evident at several ploughing- 

 matches lately — among others, I believe, at your own. There 

 is one point in which you cannot possibly clash with the 

 larger societies, and in which you have probably the advan- 

 tage over them ; that is in your discussions; these are cer- 

 tainly calculated to do much good, if properly managed. 

 There is no agricultural question upon ivhich we may not all 

 learn something •, and if we come determined, freely and 

 dispassionately, to discuss the subject before the meeting, we 

 shall find that the observations and experience of one will 

 throw light upon difficulties which have presented them- 

 selves to others, and there will spring up a willing and 

 mutual interchange of ideas, which is the surest road to 

 improvement. Take the case of cheesemaking. How many 

 excellent cheesemakers in this vale have gone to their last 

 honte, the secrets of tbeir success being buried with them, 

 or, at the best, left as a legacy to their family ! Now this 



bump of aecretiveness it will be one object of your society to 

 knock out of the heads of all those in whom it is strongly 

 developed, for it is decidedly antagonistic to progress and 

 impro7ement. The very foundation of your association 

 evidences that you admit improvement is possible; this is 

 the first step towards advancement ; and you may depend 

 upon it that as in science those who have attained the high- 

 est pinnacle of fame as investigators of nature have ever 

 admitted that they have merely entered the threshold of the 

 unexplored region of wonders beyond, so we shall find cause 

 to admit, as we increase our knowledge of the secret pro- 

 cesses of nature ever passing and frequently unobserved 

 around us, that the number of questions we have to ask in- 

 crease with our enlightenment, and that profit and pleasure 

 will both accompany our search after knowledge. To derive 

 the greatest advantage from discussions, we must throw our 

 prejudices to the winds. We are all too apt to prejudge 

 questions; this frequently arises from not knowing, and 

 perhaps an inability to obtain a knowledge of the facts upon 

 which a conclusion should be arrived at. When a man has 

 given due consideration to a subject, carefully weighing the 

 evidence before him, provided that evidence be good and 

 sufficient, and his judgment sound, the concliision he arrives 

 at is no longer a mere prejudice, but an opinion, for holding 

 which he can give satisfactory or, at any rate, powerful rea- 

 sons. Come, then, to the future discussions of this associa- 

 tion, stored with arguments to back the view of the subject 

 you desire to enforce, and a mind free to appreciate those 

 offered by others ; then will your meetings partake of a 

 judicial character, for so far only as your arguments are 

 sound will your resolutions be worthy of attention. Again, 

 the formation of your society shows a determination to im- 

 prove ; and patronised as it is by the aristocracy and gentry, 

 as well as supported by the tenant farmers, there is every 

 prospect of a most satisfactory result. In the march of im- 

 provement all must go hand in hand : if the landlord lags 

 behind, the tenant's energies will be cramped, and the im- 

 provements of the former may be rendered comparatively 

 useless by the want of co-operation on the part of the latter. 

 Our business as farmers is to extract from the earth the 

 greatest amount of food that we can for the support of our 

 fellow-subjects ; are we, then, doing our utmost to increase 

 the productions of the earth ? What are the obstacles in 

 the way of improvement, and how can they be removed? 

 These questions each suggest an increased number of others, 

 which will come on for discussion. The support given you 

 by those who have it in their power to assist you in 

 improvement shows that they are ready and willing to teach 

 you, and that they are really desirous that the march of im- 

 provement should be encouraged. Situated as we are in one 

 of the richest, as well as most beautiful parts of England, it 

 is natural to enquire what, as agriculturists, we are doing, 

 or rather what is the land doing ? Is its richness being so 

 taken advantage of, that the food it is supplying for oiir 

 teeming population is in proportion to that richness? or is 

 it the esse that some poorer lands are passing this in the 

 race of improvement, and through the greater industry and 

 enterprise of their occupants giving an equal or even greater 

 return for the country's good ? This is a subject well worthy 

 the serious consideration of all those interested in this asso- 

 ciation ; in some degree it affects our credit with our fellow- 

 countrymen. Now I cannot hesitate to declare my belief 

 that we are not making the most of our rich and beautiful 

 district. If Mr. Morton is correct in his view of the matter, 

 the value of the produce of the land, if broken up to a con- 

 siderable extent, would be more than double that 

 which is returned from it when in pasture alone. 

 Without admitting there would be so great a dif- 

 ference as this. I believe that the breaking up of a 

 considerable portion of the poorer pastures would make 

 the farms intrinsically more valuable ; would be of 

 immense advantage to the dairy farmer, enabling him 

 as it would, in connexion with convenient buildings, to keep 

 his stock more comfortable than, in many instances, he can 

 at present, whilst it would supply him with some roots for 

 his stock in the winter— no slight advantage, especially in 

 such seasons as this ; and not least, while aftbrding more 

 employment it would materially increase the acreage pro- 

 duction of the land, to the no small benefit of the communi- 

 ty. This question of breaking up some of the poor pastures 



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