1838] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



645 



« large limb is lourul, which has been sqiuired by 

 my carpenters, aiul carrietl home, lur tlio purposes 

 oC builiiins!: — and liere, Mr. Eiiilor, arises a ques- 

 tion for those who are Ibnd ol" divin<r into these 

 hiatters, who were the persons that appHed the 

 axe, and to what mariiel wei'e the trees carried ? 

 From the above statement, I lliinic your corre- 

 spondent will view it in the liirlit of a conclusive 

 experiment, that heavy wooded marsh land sinks 

 more than any other kind of land without wood. 



Before I conclude, I will adduce one more in- 

 stance, still more conclusive, ofthe excessive sink- 

 ing of this kind of land. In tligging the canal, 

 above mentioned, a piece of the land in question, 

 consisting of about 90 acres, was enclosed by the 

 embankmen', woode<l with the identical kind 

 mentioned by your correspondent — ash, maple, 

 gum — besides a ihw very large loblolly pnie trees, 

 a quantity of palmetto and cedar bushes, and the 

 greatest part covered with rushes. This land, 

 through which a creek runs, was so completely 

 raised, that nothir.ar but a very high spring tide, 

 aided by an easterly wind, could at all afi'eci, (the 

 tide with me rises six feet)— knowing it to be of 

 the very first quality, I ordered it to be cleaned. 

 Since which, it has produced abundantly of every 

 kind of grain, plantetl on our low country. It 

 now ranks among my first rate fields, and often 

 produces fifty and sixty bushels of rough rice to 

 the acre. I remain, verj^ respectfully, 



Chas. E. Rowand. 



The 2d and 3d yeans, 6 120 



Prom ttie Edinburgh Fanners' Magazine. 

 toEVIEW OF THE COMPARATIVE STATEMENT 

 OF THE EXPENSE OF OXEN AND HORSES 

 FOR FARM-LABOR, GIVEN IN THE NOU- 

 THUMPERLAND SURVEY. 



As the authors of the Norihumberland Survey, 

 reviewed in your fourth number, appear to have 

 very much undervalued the expense of keep, both 

 of oxen and horses, I have sent you an attempt at 

 &. new estimate of both, on what seem to me truer 

 data. 



J^xpense of an Ox for one year. 

 Summering on grass, being the cus- 

 tomary payment for a cow . £ 3 10 

 ^ of an acre of tares during summer, 



at £5 . . . 150 



Wintering on straw . £ 1 10 

 ^ an acre of good turnipvS, 



at £5 . . . 2 10 



4 

 If on hay, 200 days at 8d. 6 13 4 



Half of this, as the average 



expense . . 10 13 4 is 5 6 8 



Interest, harness, shoeing, 



as per Survey . , . 15 



Deduct supposed increased 

 value of the ox 



Total 11 6 8 

 1 6 8 



Gives the annual expense 



of one work ox 

 Hence, the 1st year, with 



8 oxen, will cost . £80 

 Vol. VI.— 69 



£ 10 



Expense of three years £ 200 

 Averajre lor one year . . £ 66 13 4 



To which must be added, the expense 

 of a driver, which I cannot estimate, 

 including: watjes and victuals, below 14 6 8 



Gives the total annual charge of each 

 ox plough . . . £ 81 



Kxpense of ahorse for one year. 

 Summering on grass, 165 days, at 6d. £ 4 2 6 

 Vetches or tares, as (or the ox . 15 



Straw for half the winter, at the same 



rate with the ox . . 15 



Hay half the winter, or 100 days, at 



8d 3 6 8 



Oats, 70 bushels, at 2s, 3d. . 7 17 6 



Harness, shoeing, and annuity, as per 



Survey . . . .350 



Annual expense of one horse £ 20 18 



Hence, the annual expense of a two-horse 

 plough will be £41 3s. 4d., leaving a balance in 

 iavor of horses ibrfarm labor, and against the use 

 of oxen, of £39 16s. 8d, for each plough. The 

 ploughman is not charged in either, being the 

 same in both. 



In the strongest soil, the improved swing-plough 

 can never require more than three horses, and 

 thai only for once ploughinff, in particular seasons 

 and situations. Suppose three required for half 

 the year, and with a driver, this would add £17 

 7s. 2d. to the expense of each horse plouirh in 

 such siiH' soils, still leaving a balance of £22 7s. 

 6d. acainst each ox team. 



Extending this comparison, with the authors of 

 the Survey, who suppose 5000 ploughs in Nor- 

 thumberland, and, allowing Great 'Britain and 

 Ireland to contain forty times the extent of tillage 

 land in Northumberland, the two-horse ploughs 

 give a difference of nearly six millions sterling 

 annually. Supposing half the ploughs to have 

 three horses, the difference would be nearly five 

 millions. Jnisuch years of scarcity, the diflference 

 would be more than double. 



It must, however, be observed, that the above 

 comparison is made with the improved swing- 

 plough, and will by no means hold good with the 

 extravagant horse-teams so prevalent in the 

 South, which are more expensive even than ox- 

 teams. 



It would go a great way towards lessening the 

 danger of future scarcities, to devise a means of 

 introducing the swing plough universally into 

 practice. Perhaps a tax, increasing annually, 

 upon all ploughs drawn by more than two, or at 

 most three horses, would answer the purpose. A 

 similar tax on boats constructed of hewn timber, 

 very speedily introduced the saw into Russia. 



The second calculation respecting the value of 

 produce, by usintj ox-labor, comes much nearer 

 mine, than the direct estimate of expense. Had 

 the authors allowed nearer the average price, the 

 difference would not have been very material. 

 They calculate directly the loss on each 



ox-team . . . £ 8 3 



Estimate of lots of produce by each is 17 13 

 My calculation with two-horse ploughs 39 16 8 

 Ditto with three horses . , 22 7 6 



