1S39] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



693 



breakfast, and the like time (or dinner. Twentj- min- 

 utes rest are also allowed holh in Ibrenoon and afiei- 

 noon. The vicluuls are brought to the field in three 

 carls, one for each division; and the bandsters of the 

 diderent bands act as distributors, after the portions 

 are measured out or set apart (or each band by ihe 

 person who drives the cart. The hreak(ast consists 

 of oat-meal pottage and milk; at dinner, bread and 

 heer are jriven; and for supfier, the like allowance 

 as at breakhisl. Fairbairn thinks that it haa taken 

 a day of six shearers to cut an acre of wheal; and 

 if so, twenty- five acres have been cut each day. 

 1 suppose he is not far from the mark; for we have 

 worked lour days and a hallj and done little more 

 than cut down the fallow break of one hundred 

 acres. The field presents a fine siixht. as it is 

 wholly in stocks of twelve standing sheaves, with 

 two lor hoodings or covering the top. A man 

 goes regularly throush the field to set up such 

 sheaves as may have fallen down; but should the 

 weather prove dr}-, it will be carted to the slack- 

 yard in a day or two. The oats and barlev cut 

 iast week, under Fairbairn's inspection, will also 

 then be ready. The barley lay untied for three 

 days, which was ofgreaf benefit in the winning of 

 it. When tried up, it seemed perfectly dry, but 

 Mr. Jamieson says he is always apprehensive of 

 barley heating in the stack, as the softness of the 

 straw allows a deiiree of corafiression apt to be 

 followed by a heat dangerous to the grain. I un- 

 derstand it is customary with him to examine 

 every field before the cans are sent to bring any 

 home; and that he is particularly careful to carry 

 iT^ne till completely winned. Indeed, when stacks 

 so large as those I saw last year are made, the 

 greatest attention must be necessary, otherwise 

 healing, particularly of barley and beans, could 

 not he avoided. This attention is too often disre- 

 garded, many people thinking they ought always 

 to carry when their neighbours are so employed, 

 wiiiiout reflectincT that the winning process is reg- 

 ulated, not only by the ripeness and cleanness ol 

 the crop when cut down, but also by situation and 

 size of sheaves. A small sheaf wins in half the 

 time that is called lor by a large one, and dries! 

 much faster alter being completely wetted. Allj 

 these circumstances should be considered by the | 

 iarmer before he carries ; and on no account what- j 

 ever should a previous personal examination be | 

 omitted. To spoil corn in the yard is a most dis- 

 gracpful affair to the fanner; though, disgraceful j 

 as it is, perhaps it happens ofener than is known, i 

 Mr. Jamieson, however, assures me, tiiat it is 

 now mucli less frequent in the couniry than form- 

 erly, when the crops were fouler, in consequence 

 of the imperfect rotations then practised; also, that 

 the size of sheaves is of late greatly diminished, 

 which permits the winning process to go more 

 speedily and equally forward. 



Elliot and his ploughs are seed-furrowing the 

 fallow field, and. will iie well through with it by 

 the time that the loading of corn commences. 

 The ridge is neatly gathered up, great care being 

 used not to raise it too high in the middle. The 

 horses are supported on green tares, which are in 

 full pnd, and appear to be nourishing food. Mr. 

 Jamieson says, no kind of food ie better in dry 

 weather, especially if fre'*- from rottenness at the 

 root. They are ail tied up in bunches of the like 

 size as those of clover; onlv, I observe, thtit each 

 horse gets three per dav, instead of two of ciover; 

 Vox.. VII— 75 ' 



! owing, I presume, to the latter being generally 

 j more stuffing in the siomach, or. in other words, 

 not so watery and digeshbie. 



Septeiuber 10. — Our field of shearers was this 

 week augmejited by four liesh b.mds, or 48 ad- 

 ditional shearers, who were jjut under ihe direction 

 of one of my veterans, often ipmjiloypd in former 

 times when extra hands were brought to the field- 

 so we now cut down a great breadth daily, ihouwh 

 the like care and aiteniion are bcpiowed as at the 

 outset. To save time and avoid confusion, eacii 

 grieve orsteward cuts out and enters the lour banda 

 or twelve ridges entrusted to him; and I am now 

 so well acquainted with my troops, that 1 can place 

 all of them in their proper station, without the 

 smallest difficulty. As we pay weekly such of 

 our hands as leave us on Saturday, a slight drilling 

 becomes necessary on tlie JMonday morninfr. We. 

 go on very smoothly, and keep regular hours. 

 Elliot rings the bell half an hour before sun-rise to 

 prepare: and again, at the first peep of the lumi- 

 nary, when all must march without further cere- 

 mony. We have had a \'e\v wet, or rather dewy 

 mornings; but, as it was dry above head, Mr. Ja- 

 I mieson, at those times, ordered us to proceed with 

 I the work, and to leave the sheaves unbound, or in 

 i the state technically called broad-band. A detach- 

 j ment was always selected in the course of the day, 

 I or when the corn was sufficiently dry. lor tying up 

 1 this broad-band corn; and Howard geiie/allv at- 

 j tended those so employed, Fairbairh and I taking 

 I charge conjuncily in his absence. Mr. Jamieson 

 ) has been less with us this week than last one, and 

 J more with Elliot, who was busily engaged in 

 I driving jiome corn. Three heiids of cans, (bur 

 in each, have driven for several days, and a con- 

 siderable number of tall, well-built slacks have 

 been put up, while a set of hands has been em- 

 ployed since the first day in covering them, which 

 operatiot) is here executed very neaily in ihedam- 

 buard or cross-roping wa}'. About five acres of 

 wheat were thrasiied last week, so as good li-esh 

 straw might be got for covering; — our summer 

 thrashed straw being two much broken by the 

 machine fijr resisting rain. This new straw was 

 careflilly drawn under Elliot's inspection, and 

 make^i excellent thatch. The wheat thrashed has 

 been laid thin on the granar}' floor, and orders 

 given to turn it daily, till it comes into a keepable 

 slate. Being constantly in the field, I have had 

 slight opfiortunity of personally witnessing the 

 building of the stacks, or the management exer- 

 cised; hut 1 learn, that a man stands on the stack, 

 and forks the sheaves to the builder, till the stack 

 gets tolerably high, when a kind of opening is left 

 lor him to stand, and two stack headers, as they ore 

 called, become necessary. The stacks, to be sure, 

 are of great height, and require extra help to com- 

 plete them; otherwise, I am confident Mr. Jamie- 

 son, who is perfectly up to every thing of that na- 

 ture, would not give such assistance. 



September 19. — A good deal of rain has fallen 

 this week, which retarded cutting, and stopped 

 carrying altogether. Tiie first object was to keep 

 all the cut corn a-foot, and to complete the cover- 

 ing of what was carried. Respecting these mat- 

 ters, Mr. Jamieson is particularly carefjl. When 

 the rains ceased, we cut oats of the lale varieties, 

 wfiich were all gailed; in other words, the sheaves 

 were set up single, with bands loose around them, 

 and pulled near to the top, attention being paid to- 



