186 Progress of Agricultural Ki}owledge 



it ought not to be done. These improvements must cost, no 

 doubt, many millions ; but there is no want of idle capital. The 

 misfortune is, that, according to an old remark, I forget by whom 

 made, the capital and the soil of the country are not acquainted 

 with each other. I wish it were a standing rule on every estate, 

 and, if possible, on each individual farm, that some employment 

 should be given every winter to the labourer, by doing some 

 lasting good to the soil. 



We may proceed, however, from the soil to its tillage, and first 

 the plough. As more has been done by our Society in the last 

 four years for its improvement than might have been expected with 

 regard to so ancient an implement, 1 will endeavour to trace the 

 progress of our inquiries. At the time of our foundation, four years 

 back, the Scotch iron swing-plough was stated to be the most perfect 

 form of plough. Lord Spencer having remarked that, from his ob- 

 servation of ploughing-matches, he doubted whether swing-ploughs 

 had any advantage over those with wheels, a prize was proposed 

 by our council for the best essay upon the subject, which was w-on 

 by Mr. Handley, who applied the draught-gauge for measuring 

 the strain arising to the horses from different ploughs, and found 

 that those wheel-ploughs he tried inflicted the least labour upon 

 the cattle. Following his example, I tried several ploughs in the 

 same manner, and with the same result. It further appeared that 

 there was a much wider difference in the draught of ploughs than 

 had been suspected, and even that,, of two ploughs used by two 

 farmers in the same parish and on the same soil, one was heavier 

 for three horses than the other for two ; the old Berkshire plough 

 costing the cattle a muscular strain of 23 stones, while Hart's 

 improved one-wheeled plough was drawn by them with ah ex- 

 ertion of 14 stones only. One of Messrs. Ransome's was hardly 

 surpassed by Hart's in lightness, and it certainly made better 

 work. The Scotch were the heaviest of the swing-ploughs. 

 The next trial was by Mr. Freeman* at Haverfordwest in 

 South Wales, who set an old Welsh plough of the country 

 against Hart's. Here again the old plough was more severe for 

 three horses than Hart's was for two. The old plough stood at 

 20 stones; Hart's at 13. The next experiments were made by 

 Lord Tweeddale, and in these the Yester plough equalled Hart's 

 plough in lightness. The next trial was before our judges at 

 Liverpool, whose words I will quote from their Report : | — 



" It appears that in almost every case the draught of the wheel- 

 ploughs was less than that of the sNving kind; and it must not be con- 

 cealed that the wheel-ploughs in every case actually turned over more 

 soil than the swing, for the share and sole of the former maintained a 



* Journal, ii. p. 105. f Ibid., p. cxiv., Judges' Report. 



