314 OfRidying. 



4. Height 



It is necessary that ridges, on wet land, should -be well 

 rounded, so as to form the segment of a circle, without 

 being carried to so ridiculous an extreme, as is the case in 

 Gloucestershire, where two men, standing in the furrows, 

 cannot see each other's heads ( 4l ). For the purpose of ele- 

 vation, the soil is gathered, in the course of ploughing the 

 ridge, once or twice, according to its dryness or wetness. 

 Indeed, in very wet lands, the soil has often been gathered 

 thrice, with much success, especially for a spring crop \ for 

 this mode, not only lays the land dry through the winter, 

 but enables the farmer to commence his operations sooner 

 in the spring. The height, however, should not be too 

 great ; only sufficient to furnish a declivity, to let off the wa- 

 ter ; for when the crown is raised too high, one-half of the 

 ridge is often covered from the sun, (a disadvantage which 

 is far from being slight in a cold climate), and the crop, 

 which is always best on the crown, is more easily shaken 

 by the wind, than where the whole crop is of an equal 

 height ( 4 $). Besides, with high ridges, there is a tendency 

 to work the fertile soil to the centre, and to leave the rest 

 of the land very bare, and consequently deficient in pro- 

 duce. There cannot be a worse error in tillage. But it 

 may be remarked, that the height to which a ridge is raised 

 by gathering, entirely depends upon the deepness of the fur- 

 row slices ; for some farmers, by two gatherings, will raise 

 the ridge as high, as others will do by three. 



5. Line of Direction. 



The last point regarding ridges, which it is necessary to 

 consider, is the line of direction, more especially in steep 

 grounds. There are four modes in which the ridges may be 

 laid out on such declivities. 



1. When they are planned on the same Line or Level, thus ; 



