ANCIENT AGBICULTUEAL LITERATURE. 163 



obliterated. They are always spoken of as a beneficial 

 defence against drought to the corn growing on dry land. 

 If the land to be sown were moist, so that injury to the 

 crop from wet might be apprehended, the seed was scat- 

 tered on the reduced and level surface, and, the double 

 mould-board plough being introduced, by its operation 

 most of the seed was covered up in the ridge. Several of 

 the writers say that he was a clumsy ploughman who 

 required an occator to follow him for the purpose of 

 covering any portion of the seed. The result of both 

 modes of sowing was, that the corn came up in rows, 

 separated by a considerable interval ; so considerable, in- 

 deed, that it was not unusual to plough between them 

 after the corn had grown to some height. Dickson and 

 Tull differ as to the meaning of the word occatio, and as 

 to the operation which it indicates. Probably they were 

 acquainted with passages in which Varro and Verrius 

 derive the word from occcedere, but neither of them seems 

 to have been aware that a passage in the " De Senectute " 

 completely settles the point " qua3 (sc. terra) semen oc- 

 ccecatum" covered up put out of sight " cohibet, ex quo 

 occatio (qua3 hoc efficit) nominata est." After this cover- 

 ing of the seed the land remained quiet till wheat had put 

 out its fourth, and barley its fifth, blade. It then received 

 its first hoeing (sarritio), which in dry land included what 

 we should call earthing up ; in moist land, where the corn 

 was already on a ridge, the operation was simple hoeing. 

 A second hoeing was given in the spring. These two 

 hoeings were the universal practice, and a third and fourth 

 are spoken of. Even the careful Cato is inclined to think 

 that more than two hoeings may be given with advantage. 

 Then followed hand-weeding (runcatio), which in the case 

 of prickly plants was performed with a glove " velata 

 manu debet runcari." Pliny tells a curious story about 



heavier rake was used for levelling ridges and for breaking clods than 

 for giving a light covering to seed. It is doubtful whether the Romans 

 ever used the harrow to cover seed. 



