1?3S] 



F A II INI E li S ^ REGIS T K R 



6S5 



strnction. at a plovver pace than with ihree horses 

 and il)t» iiKiilern instriiniPiii. 



Thrashing;. — Tlu". who. it is thraslini on Iili^! larii) 

 by a machine, and tlie quickest niovinii' hoisos 

 are selccteil tor the work; thev do more work and 

 <lo it better. A rapidity of niofion if* fiivorahle to 

 tlie thrasihinir the corn clean. Sonieiinies hail- 

 bred horses with a unod deid of hone have been 

 einf»loyed on ihi.- (iirni; they are (HlHcnit to procure 

 at a moderate price, hul in the tliashinir-macliine, 

 harrowinfT, ar:d rollin<», they are uiirivaHed. 



The barley is thraslieii with a flaii. The ma- 

 chine is apt to strip it off, and does not, tfierelore, 

 bring it out in a slate fit for the market. The two 

 hiborers can also be i^enerally suificiently spared 

 from other work for this emi)loyment. 



The tlirashin2:-machine is, of course, a very un- 

 popular instrument, and to the use of it, amongst 

 other supposed abuses, the present comlbrtless sit- 

 ution of the peasants is often attributed. The 

 train of reasoninji: by which it can be proved that 

 whatever macl)ine saves expense or labor to the 

 farmer must ultimately lower tlie price of the 

 commodity it assists in preparinij lor the market, 

 ie not calculated to satisfy the laborer. His mind 

 always recurs to the single point of the lost use of 

 the flail. This aversion to the machine has in- 

 disputably had the effect of re^lucing their num- 

 ber, and still more tiie use of such as exist. 



Manure. 



Different opinions exist respectint; the state in 

 which stable and farm-yard manure should be ap- 

 plied; whether it should be carried out fresh, or be 

 permited to lt;rinent and be decomposed. It is al- 

 most impossible to doubt that if an immediate 

 effect be the object, it is belter calculated, in a 



out the year. On the harm described, about two 

 hundred anil ihiriy slieop are cousianlly li'i! on 

 two hundred acres of the land, be^^ides ihe latiibs 

 which lidl in February, a portion of which are 

 sold in the October ti)ll(>wiiig, logoiher with some 

 ewes which are dralied from ihe stock. Some 

 sacrifices have been made for this purpose; a less 

 breadth of corn than the usual f!ro|)ortion is sown. 

 Ii hi'.s hap'pencd three nrfour times in the course of 

 twenty years, when, both hay cro))s uud turnips 

 have iiuied to a consiilerable extent, so tiini abuiU 

 fifty lambs have been sent to winter in other 

 places. Uy this plan of ailolting more land than 

 the usual [sroportion to slock, the arable is kepi in 

 higher condition, and the plant on it is enabled 

 by iis vigor to resist the mischief to which, in un- 

 (iivorable seasons, if it were in a weaker state, it 

 would be exposed. The seed and labor are fie- 

 quenilv, under such circumsiances, tlirown away. 

 It is more advaiitaifeous to plough, lljllow, and 

 clear the land thus uselessly employed, and pre- 

 vent the accumulation of fresh seeds from crops 

 of weeds which invariably rise amongst a corn- 

 crop, that does not overpower them by iis luxri- 

 ance of growth. 



General character of the district. 



This district contains no land of better quality 

 than that of medium value; consequently, some 

 branches of agriculture carried on in richer land 

 are here urknovvn. No horses are bred — no con- 

 siderable dairies exist — very tew cattle are lt\tted. 

 Some oxen and cows have been prepared (or the 

 butcher, by feeding them installs upon Swedish 

 turnips and hay; but even that practice is not 

 common. The grazing-land is (oundonly in small 

 quantities, and the quality of it is seldom good 



rotten state, to afford nourishment to the plant; ! enough to forward Ihe cattle sufficiently before 



but it' a permanent benefii to the soil, to a succes- 

 sion of crops, and the amelioration of the greatest 

 extent of land be intended, it is better to apply it 

 as fresh as possible. 



they are put in the stall, much less to prepare 

 them for market, without being stall-led. 



Beans and peas are rarely seen; such crops on 

 these soils are very precarious. It is tiir cheaper 



By sufFerinc duncp to ferment, a great portion of 1 to purchase such articles trotn districts better suit- 



its valuable inirredients are carred off' by evapo- 

 ration, and it becomes much diminished in bulk 

 and weiirht. The businsss of a firm does not at 



ed to their growth. 



Notwithstanding the thinness of soil which pre- 

 vails in ihis district, the crops suff'er less in dryjsea- 



ali times permit the conveyance of it to the I sons than the appearance of the land would in- 

 fields for which it is allotted, and a pari is thus I dicate. The chalk is retentive of wet, and com- 

 unavoidab'y exposed to It-rmeritation, but this pro- i municates its moisture to the roots of the growing 

 cess may be retarded by frequent lurninor and by crops sufficiently to protect them acrainst ihe inju- 

 mixing considerable quantities of mould with it rious effiect of heat, and sives them an advantage, 

 Mould should always be placed at the boltom of under such circumstances, they would not enjoy 

 a dung heap, and, if possible, tht\ heap should be in land of better quality. 



covered with it. The moisture is constantly drain- 

 ing downwards, or passing off' in the shape of 

 gas or steam trom the top. The covering at the 

 top and bed underneath intercept materially this 

 loss. On this farm, the manure durinir the spring, 

 autumn, and sunmier, is carried out as fresh as 

 possible. In the winter it is spread in the sheep 

 ibid, to protect the stock from Ihe dampness and 

 cold of the around. If the dung cannot be [ilough- 

 ed in during the warmer seasons, or conveniently 

 mixed with mould, it remains in the yard where it 

 is better protected from the drying eff'ecis of the 

 heat and wind than in the field? The plough 

 follows the fold course as quickly as possible. 



Sheep. — The common allowance, in this district, 

 for the number of sheep on a farm, is said to be 

 one to each acre; but perhaps lew tiirmers within it 

 upon an average feed near that quantity through- 



The inferiority of soil is recompensed, in some 

 measure, by the salubrity of the air. The disea- 

 ses common to very deep or marshy soils scarcely 

 make their apfiearance; and except low fevers,, 

 originating in poverty and want of warmth, no 

 epidemical disorders prevail. The fields have 

 been mostly inclosed underacts of parliament; are 

 of large dimensions, and of a regular, uniform ap- 

 pearance. The hedges are not thick or high, or 

 mixed with timber trees. The whole country is 

 liilly exposed to the currents of wind, and in wet 

 seasons the corn is tar more easily secured than 

 when a luxuriant growth of timber, woods, and 

 fijnces impede the motion of the air. 



Brill- Husbandry. — The experiment of the drill 

 husbandry was tried on this farm tor a succession 

 of years. Neither diligence, patience, nor ex- 

 pense, were spared, aud occasionally the drilled 



