Salutary Effects of Fire, on Soils, 217 



** its effect y and beat the dung the straw ivould makt, 

 " The Rev. Mr. Allington, at Swinop, has cut gorse 

 '* (whins) and burnt it in May, for turnips ; it also 

 *' answered well ; — the effect great on the turnips, — 

 *' on the barley better. In Gascony^ and almost to Ba- 

 ** yonne^ Mr. Young observed the same mode of ma- 

 ** nuring for raves^ a sort of turnip, in use there. A 

 " similar mode of manuring has been, a length of time, 

 " carried on in the north of Ireland^ though with a dif- 

 *' ferent and more substantial material; it consists in 

 *' drawing the crumbly and friable parts of boggy 

 ** grounds, to the gravelly or clay fields, in summer ; 

 *' then spreading it, until it becomes dry ; afterwards 

 *' gathering it in small heaps, setting it on fire, and 

 " whilst it is flaming, spreading it on the grass. The 

 " effect of this on the grass is great, also on the suc- 

 *' ceeding crop. If it were used for a fallow crop, there 

 ** is no doubt the advantage would be much greater, 

 ** and more permanent. JP^hins,^ I know to be a 

 ** most excellent plant." &c. 



I was gratified when I met with this confirmation of 

 an opinion I have long entertained. — Very long before 

 I saw Mr. Young'' s Calendar, or this book. I have 

 no sympathy in feelings like diose of Dennis the critic ; 

 who was enraged when he was told of an old author, 

 who had anticipated opinions professed by him. He 

 was accustomed, on such detections, to execrate the 



* W7«'ns— Furze, or Gorse. OeJiisia S/iivosa of Ray ; U/ex of 

 Linnaeus. 



VOL. III. E e 



