440 Account of the Rev. Mr Dichfon. 0£l, 



In the year 1770, MrDickfon returned to his native coun- 

 ty, having been trauflated from Dunfe to Whittingham, in 

 Eafb Lothian, where he lived but a few years : he was killed 

 by a fall from his horfe, on the ajtii of March 1776. No 

 man could be more univerfally regretted among the circle of 

 his acquaintance, than he was; not merely on account of his 

 refpe£lable abilities as a clergyman and a fcholar, but ftilj 

 mors on account of the unbouiuled benevolence of his heart, 

 and the peculiar franknefs and promptitude with which he 

 gave his affiftance, in advice, or in credit and fupport, to 

 every perfon who had the fmallell title to alk him. 



It was with no fmall degree of judgement, that MrDickfon 

 had early fele£led to himfelf a corner of literature, for which 

 the habits of his life had particularly qualified him, and in 

 which he was not likely to interfere with any of his compa» 

 nions, who darted at the fame time, for the fame derived from 

 v/riting well. He had obferved with regret, that the books of 

 hufoandry, that had been publiftied in England, were ill cal- 

 dulated for the foil and climate of Scotland ; and likewife, 

 that many of them confifted chiefly of uncertain fpeculations 

 on theories, not well fupported by the hiftory of facls. He 

 was therefore determined to compofe a Treatife of Agricul- 

 ture, on a plan that ihould obviate thefe ol)je£lions. The 

 firfl volume of this Treatife was publifiied in the year 1764, 

 and the fecond feme years afterwards ; and has ever fince 

 been held, not only to be the book bed adapted to the prac- 

 tice of the Scolirn farmer, but, upon the whole, one of the 

 mod judicious and pradlical treatifes on the fubjedl that has 

 ever been publifned in Britain. 



The Hufbandry of the Ancients v/as the produce of Mr 

 Dickfon's maturer years, and, as he confefles himfelf in the 

 preface, cod him a very great degree of application and la!- 

 bour. The public v/ill judge of the execution. To the editor^ 

 it appears to do much honour to the author, and to be a very 

 valuable prefent to all who are converfant in the lird and mod 

 ufeful of all the necelTary arts. Farmers, in general, are en- 

 tirely ignorant of the language in which the books of ancierlt 

 hufbandry are written ; and there are but few of thofe lovers 

 of the art, who are maders of the language, that will take the 

 trouble to fekft out of the ancient authors, in fome of which 

 there is no fmall degree of obfcurity, all the experiments and 

 rules that fait the modern pradice. 



This 



