218 Miscellaneous Intelligetice. 



12. On the Use of Oxen in Agriculture. — Sir, In the Quar- 

 terly Journal iov Pi^x\\ 1819, is a letter signed C, suggesting 

 the possibility of moving ploughs, ^c, by wind or steam. Now 

 it appears to me to be a matter of much less public benefit than 

 working them generally with oxen. It is uncertain whether we 

 may ever arrive by the one at any useful purpose, but the good 

 effects of the other are certain. I have always thought taking 

 off the tax on farm-horses a very unadvised step. The true 

 policy would be to put on a heavy addition, and thus to compel 

 the use of oxen. Their keep is cheaper than that of horses ; 

 arid when worked for three or four years they will sell for more 

 than prime cost, and coming into our markets furnish food for 

 thousands. Our horses used in husbandry are estimated at 

 1,200,000 ; if oxen supplied the place of one half, namely, of 

 600,000, and these were to come off to the butcher when seven 

 years old, we should have about 100,000 every year entering 

 our markets, which is nearly or quite equal to the annual con- 

 sumption of London. Large oxen of the Holderness breed 

 might be used to great advantage. The beef of these animals in 

 full health and exercise must be finer flavoured than that of 

 oxen eating oil-cake, tied up by the neck without motion for 

 three months, or confined in a little dirty, miry yard, about twice 

 as large as themselves. 



Another useful invention is much to be desired, namely, a 

 cheap fishing-net, so constructed as to resist the teeth of the dog- 

 fish, with which our sea swarms. They not only prey upon valu- 

 able fish to an incredible degree, but often ruin the fisherman for 

 the season. It is no uncommon circumstance for many of these 

 creatures, when inclosed in a new net, to bite their way through 

 and destroy it. To say nothing of the fish they destroy, the 

 mischief they do to the nets exceeds belief. If caught, they 

 would make excellent manure. To this fishery let another be 

 added, for the porpoise, because they are known to live upon 

 salmon, and chase them as a hound does a hare. From these 

 oil might be made. Both these fisheries would employ hundreds 

 of the starving sailors ; rid our seas, in time, of these destroying 

 animals ; and fill our barns with plenty, from the fine manure 

 they would furnish. D. 



_, 



