FARMING AND DOTATION OF CROPS. 63 



Tlio farmer, not aware of the clanger of the 

 cloceitfiil nature of the acreage on wliieh he 

 lias embarked, perhaps, his all, may think 

 that he will plough beneath tlie latent wild 

 oats, or other seedling obstacles, and, by throw- 

 ing them on the surface, crush them from 

 existence, turning up a better mould that lies 

 beneath. 



Here, again, a j)an of iron or of conglomerated 

 flint may stop him, and an obstacle is offered to 

 his eyes which holds the water, or, by its dura- 

 bility and hardness, walls him up from further 

 action, while, at the same time, it suggests to 

 him the idea that he must break through the 

 iron pan to attain a better drainage and a better 

 soil. 



To this end, he goes to the heavy outlay of 

 spade husbandry and double trenching to break up 

 the pan, and to find, what ? Why, that beneath 

 tlie iron or intervening pan there is no other 

 soil — in fact, no soil of a productive nature, but 

 simply fine pulverized sand, of no service to any 

 one save for scouring grates. I enumerate these 

 as facts very well known to myself, and to show 

 how many more difficulties there are in the path 



