174 



eourse of v\l»ich there is an observation worthy of the attcutioa 

 of all tJiose employing saline manures, and all manures are more 

 or less composed of salts, viz. that being soluble, they are all 

 apt to sink deep, and out of the reach of the crops growing on 

 the lands treated with them, consequently it is better to apply 

 small quantities often on the surface ; than a larger quantity, or 

 to plough it in. — Sect. 10. is on the superficial application of 

 pulverized earths,~ll. of turf ashes, —12. of burning vegetable 

 refuse, — 13. of soap ashes, soot, &c. — 14. of animal exuvioe, 

 &c. — 15. of pigeon's dung, &c. — 16. of sea shells, — 17. of paring 

 and burning, which he terms burn-bating and devonshir.ng, as 

 being first practised in the county of Devon. It should only 

 be adopted he observes on land, " of inconsiderable value," 

 inasmuch as that it gives heavy crops for a few years, and then 

 it is worse than before. It is the most false of all possible 

 Husbandry, never to be practised but uj)on heavy clays, that 

 the ashes which result when incorporated, may render them 

 more open and pulverulent. It is by much the most reasona- 

 ble plan to pare off the surface, and lay it in a heap with a 

 mixture of Chalk and salt, which being frequently turned and 

 incorporated, will bring the stubborn Vegetable matters into a 

 decomj)osing state, in not so short a time but much more oeco- 

 uomicaliy ; more than one half the carbonaceous matter is dis- 

 pelled by burning ; nearly the whole is retained, and taken ad- 

 vantage of by the other slow process of decomposition. 

 Sect. 18. On burning grasslands, — 19 — on burning heath and 

 fen, — 20, on claying land, afford little, but a repetition of 

 what might be gathered from preceding ones. 



Sect. 21. Is of Enclosures, Fences, &c. one of the best 

 written in the work — replete with truth and information. We 

 •shall only dwell upon one statement, — " a country enclosed 

 maintains at least triple the number of inhabitants as a cham- 

 pion country, so great are the profits attending this husbandry. 

 It is ahva\« found that a farm divided into manv enclosure* 



