Application of Blue Shale to the Surface of Land. 163 



4 men, filling and spreading, 6 days, at 2-9. Od. per day 



1 do. do. do. 3 days, at 2s. Od. , , 



2 lads, driving, &c. . 6 days, at 1^. Od. , , 

 1 1 horses . . .6 days, at 2s. 6d. , , 



I immediately ploughed it in ; and about Christmas I cross-ploughed it. 

 With repeated workings I mixed it intimately with the soil ; and after 

 cleaning it I sowed it in June, 1838, with hybrid turnips, giving it 8 

 three-horse loads of rotten manure per acre, and drilling on the whole 

 field a compost of 14 qrs. of half-inch bones, with their dust, and 14 qrs. 

 of vegetable ashes, made from weeds, &c., burnt. The crop of turnips 

 was really good. It was eaten off with sheep ; and 250 shearlings were 

 eight weeks upon them, besides the scraps which were eaten by ewes. 

 1839, barley and small seeds; produce, 35 qrs. 3 bushels, or40f- bushels 

 of marketable* barley per acre, weighing 16 st. 3 lbs. per sack of 

 4 bushels. 1840, pastured with sheep; in autumn sowed with golden- 

 drop wheat. 1841, wheat; produce 21 qrs. 6 bushels marketable corn, 

 weighing 63^ lbs. per bushel : thus making an increase in my barley 

 crop of 27f- bushels, and of my wheat 17|- bushels per acre, besides saving 

 the expense of from 12 to 16 bushels of rape-dust per acre in each 

 crop. 



I am 

 Yours respectfully, 

 Holmefield House, Ferrybridge^ Chas. Charnock. 



January 15, 1842, 



Last year I tried an experiment on a dry grass-field, laying on one 

 acre 1 cwt. of nitrate of soda, cost 22^., and on another acre 4 qrs. of 

 soot, cost 16^. ; the result was very much in favour of the soot. 



IT. — Improved Dibbling -Wheel. 



To the Secretary. 



Sir, — Having seen, in the Report of the Council Meeting on the 9th of 

 March, a description of a dibbling-wheel for mangel-wurzel, by William 

 Miles, Esq., M.P., and which consists of only "one'* wheel, I send 

 you a drawing of a machine which we have used for seven years, with 

 the greatest success, "never having lost our plant" since we used it. 

 It appears that the only difference between it and Mr. Miles's consists 

 in our using two wheels, which are placed on an axle at any distance 

 apart under 34 inches. Now, if only one wheel is used, and the han- 

 dles are fixed like a barrow, the man who uses it must of course follow 

 the machine and walk on the ridge, or else by the side of the wheel. 



* i. e. without the small or light soilings. 



