63 BRITISH HUSBANDRY. [Ch. V. 



Christmas. As soon as the season turns, the land vvhicli was ley, and 

 intended for beans and pease, is scarified ; and when the growing weather 

 commences, the beans are drilled at fifteen inches for the convenience of 

 horse-hoeing. The pease are next drilled ; but as these, by falling over, 

 preclude tlie possibility of hoeing them more than twice, they are sown at 

 intervals of twelve inches. 



As the ground is cleared of turnips, it is ploughed into lands. In the 

 spring, the barley is drilled in rows of eight inches — not leaving any space for 

 furrow — and the clover and rye-grass is sown up, and then across the lands. 



As soon in May as the weather permits, and the sun is sufficiently 

 powerful to kill weeds, the scarifier is set to work, succeeded by a strong 

 harrow ; and having by these operations obtained cleanliness, the first 

 favourable weather is made use of to sow Swedish turnips ; or, should 

 they fail, they are succeeded by white turnips, and in the event of a further 

 miscarriage, coleseed is sown. With these, and the assistance of about ten 

 loads of clover, and ten weeks' run on pasture in bad weather, 50U sheep are 

 now kept on the farm, but lie enclosed at night in a spacious and well- 

 littered yard. The fodder produced by straw and clover hay supports from 

 forty to fifty head of cattle, and nine working horses are kept, which are 

 soiled during the entire summer : thus so large a quantity of dung is made 

 that no manure is purchased. 



In this manner 200 acres are ploughed between harvest and Christmas, 

 besides the cartage of dung and other odd jobs on the farm ; but this is 

 easily performed with the aid of the grubber, and the land being entirely 

 ploughed in the winter, there is only tlie sowing of Lent corn to execute in 

 the spring : the horses are therefore put upon green food, by which a con- 

 siderable saving is made in the consumption of corn. Many other details 

 of management are given in Mr. Greg's pamphlet, which is brief and well 

 worthy of attention, but which we refrain from enumerating, as we only meant 

 to call attention to the extraordinary statement which it contains of such a 

 system of culture having been so successfully pursued upon land of that na- 

 ture, as to yield an average, during six years, of the following crops, namely : — 



Per acre. 

 Wheat ... 25 bushels. 



Barley . . . "10 , , 



Beans . . • 35 , , 



Pease . . . 30 , , 



Clover, twice cut . . 2 tons. 



thus, after the deduction of rent and the interest of 2500/. capital, pre- 

 senting, upon an average of six years, a profit of 6711. 3s., or 21. lbs. lid. 

 per acre, and a result in favour of his mode of cultivation of no less than 

 a7i annual difference amounting to 63S/. 13s*. 



Of the accuracy of the minute account thus furnished by Mr. Greg, we 

 have no reason to doubt, though we confess ourselves somewhat sceptical 

 regarding the justice of the conclusions which he has drawn respecting the 

 superiority of his own plans over those of his neighbours ; for every 

 man, however high his honour and impartiality, is yet unconsciously 

 biassed in favour of any pursuit of his own, and no farmer could live upon 

 the profit which he has assumed as that of cultivation under the old plan. 

 On a subject of such vital importance to agriculture as that of the fallow 

 system, we indeed deemed it prudent to apply to the present Mr. Greg for 



* It may, however, be observed, that at the period when Mr. Greg's account was pub- 

 lished, wheat sold at 9s. the bushel, or 50 per cent, more than it does at the present 

 period; whilst the cost of labour, iacludiug the increase of the poor's-rate, is scarcely 

 reduced. 



