THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



227 



substances are applied, as Mr. Brodie of Garvald 

 has fbun<i by long experience, a less quaniiiy of 

 aninnal manure will answer the purpose. This is 

 making the farm-yard dung go farther, with more 

 powerful and more permanent effects ; and from 

 weighter crops being thus raised, the quantity of 

 manure on a (arm will be most materially aug- 

 mented. 



7. The use of pounded limestone, where fuel is 

 scarce or dear, was strongly recommended by 

 Lord Karnes. He observes, that three pounds of 

 raw lime is, by burning, reduced to two pounds of 

 shell lime, though nothing is expelled by the fire 

 but the air (hat was in the limestone, the calcare- 

 ous earth remaining entire. Two pounds of shell 

 lime, therefore, contain as much calcareous earlh 

 as three pounds of raw limestone. Shell lime of 

 the best qualiiy, when slacked with water, will 

 measure out thrice the quantity ; but as limestone 

 loses none of its bulk by being burnt into ehells, it 

 follows, that three bushels of'raw limestone, con- 

 tain as much calcareous earth, as six bushels of 

 powdered lime ; and, consequently, if powdered 

 lime possess not some virtue above raw limestone, 

 three bushels of the latter, beatamall, should equal, 

 as a manure, six bushels of the former. These 

 suggestions, however, have not been acted upon, 

 probably owing to the difficulty and expense of 

 beating the limestone sufficiently small. At the 

 same time, the advantage derived from the use ol 

 limestone gravel in Ireland is, however, highly 

 favorable to Lord Karnes' doctrine.* 



8. It is an ascertained fact, that lime is of no 

 advantage in the neighborhood of Edinburgh, 

 where the land has been long accustomed to aTa- 

 tion and city manure. Mr. Allan of Craigrook, 

 near Edinburgh, has given lime the fairest trial by 

 liming one ridge, the whole field over, at the rate 

 of 60 bolls joer acre, and leaving the other unlimed, 

 and he has uniformly found, that the liming has 

 had no effect. The reason, probably, is this, that 

 the land having been so often manured with 

 Edinburgh etreet-dung, which frequently con- 

 tains a proportion of shells, the use of stone lime 

 \^ thereby superseded. Indeed, some are of opi- 

 nion, that the land in the immediate vicinity of 

 Edinburgh had been abundantly limed at some 

 former period, which, in addition to the calcareous 

 matter mixed with the street-dung, renders atiy 

 additional liming unavailing. 



Mr. Hume of East Barns finds, that lime does 

 not answer on bis farm near Dunbar, which he 

 attributes to the great quantities of sea-ware, 

 mixed with shells, which have been laid on these 

 lands from time immemorial, and their having 

 been formerly under aonstant crops of corn, and 

 never in grass till lately, and even now only one 

 year at a lime. It is well known, he adds, that 

 lime acts best on land that has been much in 

 grass. Any local circumstances of that sort, 

 however, cannot diminish the credit of a manure, 

 of such essential importance to the improvement 

 of the country,! 



GENERAL VIEW OF THE IMPROVED HUS- 

 BANDRY- OP SCOTLAND. 



* It would be extremely desirable to ascertain whe- 

 ther limestone gravel might not be found in Scotland ; 

 to the discovery of which, I hope the attention of that 

 pubhc-spirited institution, the Highland Society of 

 ocotland, will soon be directed. 



t It is an interesting object of inquiry, whether 

 lime IS equally efficacious on the sea-shore, as in the 

 inland districts ? It is well known that gypsum is not. 



From Sinclair's Husbandry. 

 In a communication fi-om my respectable friend, 

 Sir Joseph Banks, he stated, that '•' agriculture 

 has derived, is deriving, and will derive, more be- 

 nefit from Scotch industry and skill, than has been 

 accumulated, since the days when Adam first 

 wielded the spade." 



I hope that the following general view of the 

 improved system of husbandry, as established in 

 Scotland, will justify that observation. 



The foundation of improved agriculture is cer- 

 tainly laid, in the best cultivated districts of Scot- 

 land, in as great perfection as it possibly can be 

 in any country. The farms are usually of a pro- 

 per size ;— the farmers, in general, have capitals 

 adequate to their cultivation ; they are bound to 

 pay the landlord such a proporti n of the value of 

 the produce, as renders it necessary for them to 

 be industrious and economical, and to acquire all 

 the skill, in the art of husbandry, to which they 

 can have access ;— their leases are commonly of 

 such a duration, as to encourage judicious expen- 

 diture in the improvement of their lands, with 

 the prospect of an adequate return ;— the cove- 

 nants contained in their leases are sufficiently fair, 

 being almost, in every case, well calculated to 

 promote, and not to retard improvement ; a liberal 

 system of connexion is established between the 

 landlord and the tenant ;— and the characters of 

 those, by whom the labors of agriculture are car- 

 ried on, whether farmers, apprentices, farm-ser- 

 vants, or common laborers, cannot be surpassed 

 by those of the same description of life in any 

 other nation. The experience of Scotland has 

 likewise proved the superior advantages of hav- 

 ing married servants on large farms ; by means 

 of which, the population of a country is increased, 

 and the kingdom filled with sober, healthy, and 

 industrious subjects.* 



The various points which require to be attended 

 to, previous to the actual cultivation of an arable 

 farm, are in general ascertained, by the practice 

 of Scotland, with a degree of precision hitherto 

 unexampled." 



The farmers of that country have established it 

 as a principle, that the position of a. farm-house 

 and offices ought to make a material 'difference in 

 the rent of a farm ;— they have ascertained the 

 best construction of farm-houses and offices, unit- 

 ing economy and convenience ;— they have point- 

 ed out the best size and shape of fields, by means 

 of which, much land is rendered productive, that 

 would otherwise be wasted in useless fences, and 

 much labor in their cultivation saved, insomuch 

 that where the fields are large, five ploughs will 

 do as much work as six can in small fields, and 

 every other part of the cultivation of a farm will 

 be executed with less power, in nearly the same 

 proportion ;— they have likewise pointed out the 

 inconveniences attending expensive fences, which 

 are more ornamental than useful to a country ; — 

 they are fully aware of the importance ofdraining, 

 and have practised it with success ; — they have 



Sea-ware contains kelp, which, from the alkali it pos- 

 sesses, may act as a substitute for lime. 



* These particulars are explained in the three dis- 

 sertations of Part 2. 



