712 



FARMERS' REGISTER— MARL IN CHARLOTTJdJ. 



RKPOKT OF THE COMMITTEE OF AGHICUL- 

 TUHE AND 31ANUFACTURES ON THE PETI- 

 TIONS FOR A CHANGE OF THE GENERAL, 

 LAW Of ENCIjOSUHES. 



The Committee of Agriculture and Manufac- 

 tures, to vvliom were reterred sundry petitions 

 from the counties of Cumberland, Goochland, 

 Prince Georo^e, Caroline. Essex, Nansemond, 

 Stallbrd and .Spoftsylvaiiia, praying an alteration 

 in the law relating to enclosures, ailer having at- 

 tentively considered the same, are induced to be- 

 lieve that the circumstances and condition of va- 

 rious parts of the state are so different, that no 

 change could be made in the general law, which 

 would not operate unequally, and i'ljuriously to 

 some; that in the west, there are many large bo- 

 dies of waste and unappropriated land, which af- 

 ford valuable pasturage to the inhabitants of the 

 adjacent countrj', who would be deprived of this 

 advantage were they comjiclled to confine their 

 stock within their own pastures; that in the eastern 

 and more cultivated parts of the state, many poor 

 persons have derived advantage firora grazing 

 their small stock on the commons and unenclosed 

 lands, and to whom the obligation to confine 

 them, or a liability to damages if not con- 

 fined, would oi)erate as a great hardship. There 

 are, no doubt, neighborhoods, in regard to which, 

 it might be desirable to change the present laws; 

 but such circumstances seem to your committee 

 too much circumscribed to justify a local legisla- 

 tion extending to the limits of an entire county : 



Hesulved therefore, as the opinion of this com 

 mittee, That the aforesaid petitions be rejected. 



substance, it appears to possess all those of lime. 

 It effervesces violently with vinegar and nitric 

 acid: Before it is burnt, it is insipid, inodorous 

 and permanent — when calcined to a red heat, it 

 becomes as white as lime — becomes lighter — and 

 when pounded and mixed with water, ft makes as 

 strong lime water as lime itself When thrown 

 into the water after calcination, it produces a hiss- 

 ing noise and heat, as lime does. After calcina- 

 tion it is rather of a greenish white, and is of a 

 strong pungent taste and odor. If properly cal- 

 cined, I have no doubt it would make very good 

 lime. As yet I have made veiy little experiment 

 in the way of digging, and none in the applica- 

 tion of these stones or the clay, on the bed of 

 sand. The stone is very easily ground as fine as 

 flour, from which any one could scarcely discover 

 the difference, either in the appearance (for it ia 

 very white when ground) or in the feeling. 



N. E. READ. 



For tlie P^aimers' Register. 

 MARL IN CHARLOTTE COUNTY, VA. 



The following is a brief description of a very 

 singular argillaceous limestone, as it appears to 

 be, which I lately discovered thrown out of a ditch 

 at the margin of the low grounds, in attempting 

 to convey v/ater to a meadow. 



The stones (which appear to have veiy little 

 grit or sand in them,) have, the most of them, the 

 appearance of races of ginger, or like lead jioured 

 out on the earth, by which it is made rough and 

 full of holes; or rather the surface of these stones 

 have the a|ipearance of a petrified wasp's nest 

 (like what is called the honeycomb rock.) They 

 are of various sizes, (some of which are round) 

 from the size of a hen's effg or a walnut, to a pea. 

 More than half of the earth or clay thrown out in 

 which they are imbedded, and with which they 

 have no communication, appears to be composed 

 of these stones. They have the appearance of oW 

 plastering, thrown out on the ground where they 

 lie, the color of lime mortar when wet, but a great 

 deal whiter when dry. With a knifij they cut 

 very much like slate, and the cut is of a very 

 whitish appearance — more so fhan the other part 

 of the stone. The atmosphere has little effect up- 

 on them, where they are on the bank, only to 

 bleach them, when they have the appearance of 

 bones scattered on the ground. The indications 

 are a large round ferruginous rock, found at the 

 bottom of the ditch, with many smaller ones on 

 the surface. A very rich blue clay is found under 

 this bed of calcareous stones, which effervesces 

 with acid. The earth also effervesces in which 

 the stones are imbedded. 



As to the properties of the above mentioned 



ON EDITORIAL C03IMENTS. 



We have understood that an erroneous construction 

 has been placed on the circumstance of editorial re- 

 marks being attached to communications, or not — and 

 that, independent of what the words may conVey, the 

 mere accompaniment of any editorial remarfc is con- 

 sidered as a compliment to the writer, which of course 

 is withheld from others on whom no comments are 

 made. We should not think this most mistaken opin- 

 ion worth correcting, but for fear of its possibly ex- 

 tending to some persons who may consider themselves 

 overlooiied in a distribution compliments, which we 

 had no idea of presuming to offer. We desire that 

 our remarks may be construed according to their ex- 

 pressions only. So far from being called forth merely 

 to express approbation, they have been more general- 

 ly produced by some inquiry, or some difference of 

 opinion, or some objection to the writer's views: some- 

 times to ask attention to what was novel and contrary 

 to general opinion, and sometimes to carry out the ar- 

 gument, left incomplete, or to introduce other views 

 suggested by what had been stated. In short, upon any 

 ground calling for remarks, they have been made — 

 but very rarely if ever, to convey, either directly or iiir 

 directly, mere approbation of a valuable communica- 

 tion. On the contrary, it has happened upon many 

 occasions, that some of those which we would rank 

 among the most valuable in this work, have been in- 

 serted without a word of comment, because none was 

 needed. The foregoing pages of this number, pre- 

 sent several illustrations of our thus acting on the 

 ground of the old adage, that "good wine needs no 

 bush" — and every attentive reader can easily call to 

 mind many similar and earlier examples : and every 

 judicious reader will concur in our opinion, that it 

 would be as improper, as it would be presuming, for us 

 to make known our comparative estimate of the value 

 of communications — and as improper in others, to 

 make for our use an imaginary and false standard, 

 which we protest against using, or that any shoidd pay 

 respect to. Of all, therefore, who have fallen into 

 this mistake, we request that every trace of such im- 

 pressions may be dismissed from their minds. 



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