THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



509 



source of her wealth, and the fouutain of outlay is dried up. 

 The imports of grain aud flour show the position of the kiug- 

 doai. We have at hand the estimated value of such imports 

 for the two first months of this year as compared with January 

 and February of 1859 aud 1860, viz., 



1859 .. ,. .. £1,941,880 



1360 .. .. .. 1,709,471 



1861 .. .. .. C,17(i,65-2 



Such facts need no comment. It is no small matter for 

 wealthy England, and Suffolk as a portion of that kingdom, 

 to suffer the partial loss of a corn, root, and hay harvest, and 

 pay milhons for the substitute. Never has the opinion been 

 mora prevalent than at the present time, with the cotton sup- 

 ply in doubt, and the general depression prevailing from a 

 scanty harvest, that though manufactures and trade are most 

 desirable, we cannot afford to despise British agriculture. 

 Ita prosperity and its development, even far beyond its present 

 position, is moat essential, aud well will it become those in- 

 terested as owners aud occupiers to consider and consult freely 

 upon the improvements which can be effected for their mutual 

 Ijenefit and the promotion of the general prosperity. If the 

 loss of a few millions produces such reverses as we have this 

 year experienced, what would not the general prosperity he 

 increased by producing a fc* millions worth of food an- 

 nually beyond our present average ? We believe it to be 

 a great national question, and one in which all classes of 

 the community are interested. If eulighteumeut is infused 

 into the general management of landed property, capital will 

 naturally follow as a sort of investment, and the increase may 

 indeed be vast. Eveu Suffolk, well farmed as she may be, 

 could augment her produce 23 per cent, by improvements 

 aud reclamation. As a step to progress it was a matter 

 of great satisfaction to us to hear a public man from 

 the western division of the county express his expe- 

 rience of the perfect foolishness of the many leases 

 and agreements which were in the course of busiaesa 

 laid before him, and his intention to propose upon the com- 

 mittee of the Suffolk Agricultural Asacciation a prize for the 

 best copy of a lease or agreement suitable for the county. It 

 is the experience of every public man that the want of a good 

 sound sensible lease, agreement, or security is the grand ob- 

 Btacle to investment; and we trust so sensible a proposition 

 as a prize for the best and most suitable form will not meet 

 with rejection. The wheat plant has improved in appearance. 

 Barley looks well. Peas and beans are a good plant, and grow- 

 ing fast. Mangel wurzel are up in some cases. The past few 

 weeks have been very favourable for fallow-work, and much 

 progress has been made. Lambs are a very good crop. Feed 

 still scarce, but now growing rapidly. The census of 1861 

 shows the importance of retaining the present labour in the 

 cou'ity: we know there is an abundance under the present 

 depression, and the difficulty to find money wherewith to 

 employ, but we look for a brighter future. 



M I D - K E N T . 



Whatever may have been the weather the last three months 

 elsewhere, certainly it has been all that could be wished for in 

 Kent — mostly dry, to allow of the cleaning cf orchards aud 

 other grounds that became foul through the continued wet of 

 last year, and yet sufficient rain to meet the wants of vegeta- 

 tion of the present season. The advantages of this are, that 

 work of most kinds has advanced in a more satisfactory way 

 than last year, and though all crops are not alike pro- 

 mising — on the coutrary, many are the reverse to that — still, 

 so far as the advantage of a favourable spring is 

 concerned, we have no cause to coraplaiu ; but to 

 go into detail, I may say that wheat on the whole looks indif- 

 ferent, some being ploughed up, owing to the ravages of the 

 slug aud the effects of the severe weather. Autumn-sown 

 peas are also bad m many places ; and the same may be said 

 of beaus. Seed corn is however more promising, and such 

 crops as lucerne, sainfoin, &c , where grown, look tolerably 

 well. Grass is more abundant than was at one time appre- 

 hended, and with favourable weather for the next fortnight we 

 may perhaps have a good hay crop. Hops (our most 

 important production) are variable ; in some places look- 

 ing as well as can be wished, iu others as bad as 

 can be ; in fact, many plants have died from the raina of last 

 summer and autumn, aud we hear of vermiu attacking 



them the present season. Fruit is, in a general way, a 

 failure, gooseberries suffering so much from the birds, and the 

 apple-bloom beiug thin, there cannot be much fruit expected. 

 Cherries, iu a general way, promise best, but they cannot be 

 regarded as safe yet. Plums under an average crop, and pears 

 very few indeed. The position of many of our hop and fruit 

 growers is far from enviable, the great labour-expenditure of 

 last year not being met by anything selling well in return, 

 very few hops being grown, and those remaining iu most 

 cases iu the hands of the grower yet, with no prospect of getting 

 rid of them ; and the fruit of last year also realized very little, so 

 that the prospect of a more abundant season is ardently wished 

 for. In addition to these evils, sheep have done badly ia 

 many places, and great losses have been sustained 

 on the heavy lands, not well drained ; but in our 

 own case they I'.ave done better than in the winter of 1855-56, 

 but thelamt)ing has not been very successful, and the number 

 of barren ewes far exceeds what we ever had before. Feed ia 

 now tolerably plentiful, and with a nice steady rain, in a week 

 or so the crop of grass may be expected to be good. The 

 late dry weather has, however, been of infinite service in as- 

 sisting to clean and mellow the tillage ground, and the digging 

 and hoeing iu orchards have been done to advantage, and we 

 are in hopes we shall not have occasion to complain of a want 

 of water so much as in the seasons of 1858 and 1859, the 

 ground in a general way getting moist underneath, al- 

 though the rainfall of the last three months has 

 been much below the average, but some cold north- 

 easterly winds prevailiug in the early part cf May 

 checked vegetation very much ; some more genial weather fol- 

 lowing has, however, renovated it again, and I hope my next 

 communication will record a more favourable season iu many 

 respects than we have had for some time, as it is much wished 

 for; and not only the well-being, bat the solvency of a great 

 many small farmers in the neighbourhood depends on its being 

 so ; and it is to be hoped, as well for their sakes as for the 

 country in general, that the summer of 1861 may be a fine 

 and productive one. — J. K— May 25. 



THE VALE OF THE TEES. 

 The weather during the last six weeks has been drought)-, 

 with the exception of some showers aljout the 12th instant. 

 Eain is now very much needed : the turnip and clover 

 seeds cannot germinate for wautof moisture ; the clods on 

 the land working for turnips are nearly as hard as stones, 

 almost defying our best implements to crush them. The 

 wheat, as is usual in dry weather, has done well, and looks 

 as well as it usually does at this time of the year, with the 

 exception of that which was sown in a too-wet state, which 

 caused the seed to perish. Fortunately, we do not see 

 many of those missed crops. The spring corn came up well, 

 but now wants rain. Grass is short, having been keptbaek 

 by the frosts the second week in May. Fat cattle is scarce, 

 and fetch good prices. Our corn markets are well supplied 

 with wheat, but it is of inferior qualitj', aud the price 

 much less than we expected to see it, considering the bad 

 crop of last year. Hinds and servants who changed 

 masters last term have got better wages. — May 24. 



AGRICULTURAL INTELLIGENCE, 



FAIRS, &c. 



CAMBORNE FAIR was well attended, but fat cattle were 

 scarce ; the cattle fair generally was not well supplied, and 

 but few sales took place. The horse fair was much better ; a 

 number of fine horses being offered, and sales effected at good 

 prices. 



EVESHAM FAIR.— Good attendance of buyers, and a 

 large supply of beef of fine quality, but demand slack ; prices 

 from 6ud. to 7d. Mutton, shorn, plenty on offer, quality mid- 

 dling, but a brisk sale at 7d. to 72d. Veal, moderate supply 

 and quality. Not much doing in cows and calves. In sheep 

 a good trade was done ; the supply was large, and quality 

 gcod ; a moderate demand for ebeep and lambs and pigs. 

 Horses were plentiful of the ordinary sort, but the trade ruled 

 dull. A large quantity of prime sheep were sold (600), and 

 also some fine store cows, at high rates. Mr. Tredwell sold 

 aorae good cattle, horses, cows, and sheep, at fair prices. 



FALKIRK FAIR.— For milch cows the prices were still 

 high, but grass beasts vfcre difiScultto sell. Milch cowa (first- 



