136 



Farming of South Wales. 



Inferior land mlixht stand as follows for ten years 



But it will be naturally asked. If this be a fair statement, how 

 do the farmers live ? They depend chiefly on the young stock 

 to pay the rent, and rely on the dairy, which continually brings in 

 ready money to meet other current expenses. In addition to this 

 the small farmer and his sons do the principal work and repairs 

 of the farm. They have thus hardly any outgoings for labour or 

 tradesmen's wages, and they live in a style of patriarchal sim- 

 plicity almost entirely on the produce of their own land. 



Turnips are the first of the occasional crops that are met with, 

 and they are generally drilled on 27 inch ridges, though in many 

 instances they are sown broadcast and not hoed. Sometimes 

 dung is used alone, occasionally combined with artificial manure, 

 but good crops are obtained from 3 cwt. of guano. In more arid 

 climates summer heat is reckoned as one great foe to turnip 

 culture, but here it is summermoisture ; for, although it nourishes 

 the turnip, it also encourages the growth of weeds and natural 

 grasses, and renders it difficult, even with repeated hoeings, to 

 keep the land clean. With tolerable culture heavy good crops 



