cient personal knowledge of the agricultural practices o 

 any extensive tract 01 country, to have hazarded such 

 a work t'v present, grounded on his own personal ex- 

 perience alone ; but having had the satisfaction of re- 

 ceiving, from a number of the most intelligent farmers 

 in Scotland, tne most di inc and valuable returns, 

 of the state of their different possessions, and the man- 

 ner in which they are respectively cultivated, he hopes 

 it will be in his power to give a just aud authentic ac- 

 count of the system on which agriculture is carried on 

 in the more improved districts of North Britain. 



It may be proper, at the same time, to observe, 

 that the present inquiry is confin u to lands strictly 

 speaking arable, or subject to the convertible system 

 of husbandry, and that farms purely grazing do not come 

 within the scope of the present inquiry. 



I. POSITION OF THE FARM-HOUSE AND OFFICES. 



The first point that any judicious farmer would resolve 

 to ascertain, in regard to any farm he would wish to occu- 

 py, (more especially if it was of any extent, namely, from 

 300 to 500, or 1000 acres), would be, whether the farm- 

 house and offices were properly situated, and erected as 

 nearly as possible in the centre of the farm. In many 

 cases, this would make a difference in point of rent of 

 from 5 s. to even 10 s. per acre. The difference is calcu- 

 lated by some intelligent farmers, as the expence of a 

 plough, or L. 100 per annum. If a house is placed in 

 the corner of a large farm, a part of it will often be ne- 

 glected by the farmer ; less manure will be sent to it ; 

 the expence of cultivation is materially increased i the 

 horses have their strength uselessly wasted in going 

 backwards and forwards, and die remote part of the farm 

 is left in what in Scotland is called an outfield or after" 



