18 BRITISH HUSBANDRY. [Ch. I. 



ground, and are fastened to the shares by nuts and screws ; the front share 

 having its broadside to the left, and the hind one to the right : thus forming, 

 as it were, a double plough, with two shares, but without any mould-board. 

 The beam is a straight piece of oak, about six inches wide at the handles, 

 but gradually reduced to about four inches at tiie point, and the stilts are set 

 on at each side of the beam at about six inches from the end. Its mode of 

 operating is thus performed : — it cuts under the surface from three to four 

 or more inches deep, by which operation the stalks of root-weeds are divided 

 below, while the seed-weeds are left untouched above ; so that no part is 

 turned over : and as the under stratum is only loosened, neither the seeds 

 nor the weeds are buried by this process*. The trench plough is, however, 

 used more generally for the purpose of cutting the land two or more slices 

 deep. " The first cuts off the weeds, and deposits them at a considerable 

 depth ; the next raises a slice of clean mould from below the soil which 

 produced the last crop, fresh and full of heart, which it lays upon the vege- 

 table rubbish turned down by the former, in such a thickness as to smother 

 the weeds, and decompose them into nurture for the next crop. This 

 operation will, indeed, in every soil require a strong team ; but one such 

 ploughing is sufficient for almost any crop, and the slices being laid one 

 over another, the land will generally harrow wellf. It certainly thus saves 

 the labour of raking, picking, and burning weeds ; and if these advantages 

 can be gained by that one process, it must be allowed to be greatly in its 

 favour, and we believe it is much employed by market-gardeners. But it is 

 to be observed that these men are constantly stirring the ground for the 

 production of more than one crop in the same year, and therefore are en- 

 abled to keep their land in a state of cleanness, which prevents the growth 

 of weeds in a manner that cannot be accomplished by the farmer ; and they 

 also invariably work upon a soil of deep staple, which gives the roots of 

 those crops which they usually produce full room for the utmost range of 

 their productive powers : while in the common mode of farming, seed-weeds, 

 if not buried to a great depth, would, at certain seasons, be apt to shoot 

 again with increased vigour, instead of being decomposed. Although it 

 has been highly recommended by the eminent agriculturist whom we have 

 quoted, and is used to a certain extent by some very intelligent men, we yet 

 think that it demands both judgment and caution in its execution. 



The skim-plough — or shim, as it is in some places called — as described 

 underneath, was originally invented by the late Mr. Ducket, formerly of 

 Esher, in Surrev, with the intention of burying the sod of clover and sain- 

 foin leys, or turf, especially in sandy soils ; or, in ordinary cases, it can be 

 used on stubbles for the purpose of burying weeds. The coulter is so formed — 

 by having a wing or small iron mould-board firmly screwed to it at any fixed 

 height — as that in its progress through the ground it will not only pare off 

 tlie surface to any depth that is required, and turn it over, but the slice thus 

 cut off is also immediately buried by the common share of the plough ; 

 the work thus has at one ploughing the appearance of a fallow, and har- 

 rows nearly as well. In this manner it can be added to any common plough, 

 and is now much employed, with various modifications, one of which con- 

 sists of a very small ploughshare fixed below the beam in front of the 

 coulter, and another of a double skim, which can be either added to the 

 plough or removed at pleasure %. It requires, however, some additional 



* IMalcolm's Survey of Surre}', vol. i. p. 199. 

 f Middletoa's Survey of Middlesex, 2uded.p. 105. 

 X See vol. i. chap. xvi. and plate, p. 350. 



