138 SUBSOIL PLOUGHING. 



the former because they render their walks un- 

 sightly, and cause them much work ; and the latter 

 because, as they think, they eat their green corn. 

 But they would find, if deprived of them, that the 

 earth would soon become cold, hard-bound, void of 

 fermentation, and consequently sterile." 



Mr. Mechi,' of England, so distinguished for his 

 appreciation of manure in a liquid form, thus enu- 

 merates the benefits of pulverization in a speech 

 upon deep cultivation : " Nature herself has proved 

 the necessity of some degree of cultivation of the 

 soil by disintegrating the surface of our globe by 

 the use of the chemical aid of air and water ; by 

 clothing the earth with a vegetation which was 

 adapted by Almighty wisdom to its soil and climate. 

 In vain does man select the most imperishable 

 material as a record of his skill ; chemical affinity, 

 ultimately, by the action of heat and cold, of air 

 and water, decomposes and crumbles to dust the 

 architectural beauties of antiquity. It is a singular 

 fact, that rarely do we meet with a farmer who 

 would deny the benefit of a long summer fallow 

 for tenacious soils — I mean a frequent ploughing 

 of the surface-soil ; and yet, how few are prepared 

 to admit the advantage of a similar operation on 

 the subsoil! This fact, however, can hardly be 

 wondered at when we consider that the greater part 

 of the heavy and hard-bottomed land of this king- 

 dom [England] is undrained, or drained in too 



