

The late Sir James Graham. 33 



upon his engagements in London, but he generally 

 contrived to come down for different periods twice a- 

 year. He would always spend the first fortnight after 

 his return in riding about the farms with his steward, 

 the late Mr. Yule, and then with Mr. Brown, seeing 

 and suggesting improvements, till at length the whole 

 estate bore unmistakable impress of his practical 

 knowledge and broad aims, and became quite a pro- 

 verb of good farming in the North. Farmers, whose 

 only account-books were their right and left pockets, 

 might well take a lesson from the Netherby tenantry. 

 Croft Head where he lived during some very happy 

 years, as Mr. Graham, after his marriage and some 

 additional fields, or about 1000 acres in all, made up 

 his home-farm ; and he also from time to time took 

 other farms in hand to improve. Green crop fallows 

 were latterly a special point with him, as a prepara- 

 tory measure of permanent improvement. Hence in 

 his leases the out-going tenant was bound not to have 

 more than one-fourth of his fallow-share in bare fallow. 

 In many districts, but more especially the low-lying 

 ones of the Netherby estate, he recommended the 

 culture of green crops and grass, as, owing to the 

 almost periodical rains in July, which raised the rivers 

 Esk and Liddle, the water was backed up through the 

 porous soil to the roots of the wheat, which at once 

 retarded its growth, and produced a rough sample. 

 In the valleys of these rivers there is a good alluvial 

 soil, a small portion is on a strong clay and well 

 adapted for fallow wheat, and fully a half consists of 

 what is called black topped land, with mostly a good 

 red clay subsoil, or, in some cases, a hungry white, 

 sandy-seamed clay, which is the worst soil on the 

 estate. Good farm-houses and farmsteads were his 

 delight. After his father's death he subdivided and 

 remodelled his farms, put all the buildings in order, 

 made good occupation roads, and commenced an ex- 

 tensive system of tile-draining, which is still being 



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