256 JVeio Publications. [April, 



be not only feel hard and unsteady, but will allow the seed corn 

 to fall down between them and become buried. Furrow-slices in 

 too flat a state always yield considerably to the pressure of the 

 foot; and they are then too much drawn, and afford insufficient 

 mould for the seed. Furrow slices should lie over at the same 

 angle; and it is demonstrable that the large extent of surface ex- 

 posed to the action of the air is when they are laid over at an 

 angle of 45°, thus presenting crests in the best possible position 

 for the action of the harrows. Crowns of ridges, formed by the 

 meeting of opposite furrow-slices, should neither be elevated nor 

 depressed, in regard to the rest of the ridge, although plowmen 

 often commit the error of raising the crowns too high into a 

 crest — the fault being easily committed by not giving the feered" 

 (that is, the first or marking-out slices) " furrow-slices sufficient 

 room to meet, and thereby pressing them upon one another. The 

 furrow-brows should have slices uniform with the rest of the ridge; 

 but plowmen are very apt to miscalculate the width of the slices 

 near the sides of the ridges; for if the specific number of furrow- 

 slices into which the whole ridge should be plowed are too narrow, 

 the last slice of the furrow-brow will be too broad, and will there- 

 fore lie over too flat; and should this too broad space be divided 

 into two furrows, each slice will be too narrow, and stand too up- 

 right. When the furrow-brows are ill made, the mould-furrows 

 cannot be proportionately plowed out; because, if the space be- 

 tween the furrow-brows is too wide, the mould-furrow^s must be 

 made too deep, to fill up all the space, and vice versa. If the 

 furrow-brow slices are laid too flat, the mould-furrows will be apt 

 to throw too much earth upon their edges next the open furrow, 

 and there make them too high. When the furrow-brows of ad- 

 joining ridges are not plowed alike, one side of the open furrow 

 will require a deeper mould-furrow than the other." 



Another important subject, and which perhaps has not been 

 seen in all its bearings, is harrowing. In the language of Mr. I. 

 Allen Ransome, we are presented with the following considera- 

 tions. 



" It is admitted, by all acquainted with the subject, that har- 

 rowing, especially on heavy soils, is the most laborious operation 

 on the farm, — not so much, perhaps, on account of the quantum 

 of power requisite for the draught, (though this is sometimes con- 

 siderable,) as for the speed with which the operation is, or ought 

 to be, accompanied; and yet it is frequently left to the charge of 

 mere boys, and sometimes performed by the worst horses on the 

 farm. 



" If we examine a field, one half of which has been harrowed 



