280 Norfolk Farming. 



bubbled up and burst, their memory only existing In the breast 

 of some unfortunate farmer, who lost his crop by inadvertently 

 purchasing some great bargain. To enlarge on this matter would 

 be to attempt a treatise on artificial manures rather than to relate 

 the advance which they have caused in Norfolk agriculture. 



It is time to turn to another subject — one of very great im- 

 portance — one about which there has been less mystification, on 

 account of its being more generally understood. The progress in 

 agricultural implevients and machinery is very marked. Foremost 

 in the rank of improvements must be placed steam-thrashing. 

 When jNIr. Bacon wrote his Report there was only one portable 

 steam-engine in Norfolk — noAv there are nearly as many engines 

 as there are parishes. This is a great and rapid increase, for 

 anything new does not often take readily with agriculturists. 

 It is worthy of remark, to show how durable well-made portable 

 engines are, that the one mentioned by Mr. Bacon is still in 

 existence, and works as well as ever. Horse-machines had 

 established their superiority over the flail, and they have had 

 to bow before the giant power of steam. There are very few 

 occupations in Norfolk well suited for fixed engines. All the 

 large farms have field-barns, to avoid the necessity for carrying 

 the whole of the corn to the homestead. Therefore portable 

 engines, which can be removed from one steading to another, and 

 from one stack to the next, are more suited to our county. There 

 has been a great saving in the cost of thrashing wheat by steam — - 

 not so great as some statements would make out, for it cannot 

 now be done with portable engines under 1^. per coomb (2^. per 

 quarter) ; but still the cost is only half what it was. Independently 

 of the saving of expenditure, the crops of wheat now grown could 

 not have been thrashed by flails, and there is the opportunity of 

 taking advantage of dear markets, Ijy knocking out any quantity 

 in a very short time. Had there been no steamers last harvest, the 

 price of wheat must have considerably advanced before the new 

 crop could have been delivered in the old way. In East Norfolk 

 the flail is still occasionally used for barley. The farms are smaller, 

 and labourers more plentiful : they have thrashed the crop this year 

 at from Is. Sd. to 2^. per quarter ; so there is really little gain 

 from using steam for l:)arlcy on these small occupations, as long 

 as this sort of employment is needed for the labourers. But it is 

 quite a different question in the West ; there is hardly a flail in 

 the parish, and that is only brought out from its hiding-place to 

 thrash the gleaners' corn. The horse-machines are mostly 

 broken up and sold, or the horse-works used for chaff-cutters, 

 so totallv has steam destroyed all competition. Steam-thrashing 

 has enabled the farmer to dispense with some horses, or, if not, 

 to emplov them more advantageously about his farm. There 



