Chap. XVIII. Of Ploughs. 289 



Farm, I perceive this Plough lays the Foundation 

 for all good Hufoandry ; and there can be no other way 

 io bring Land into perfeel Tilth in fo [hort a 5 ime^ or 



( with fo little Expence. And I am convine'd, that no 

 Farmer ought to be without it^ who defires to be free 



1 from the Danger of his Land being ever^ out of Tilth : 

 But I have heard it objeffed^ that it is harder to draw 

 than the common Ploughs ; and that its Beam being longer^ 

 upon account of the Four Coulters ', // lies farther behind^ 

 and comes harder after the Horfes. 



Refp. I mud confefs, there is fomething in that 

 Objection ; for this Plough, being fomething longer, 

 may be a little the harder Draught-, and alfo its 

 Weight and Strength mud bear a Proportion to the 

 Length of it. But this fmall Increafe of the Draught 

 would have been a much ftronger (if not a fatal) Ob- 

 jection, had that Cuftom been general^ of Horfes 

 drawing by their Tails, as 'tis faid to have been for- 

 merly in fome Places, for then, perhaps, afufHcienC 

 Strength of Horfes could not be applied to the plough. 

 But in Countries where Traces are in Ufe, every 

 Horfe of the Team may draw the Plough equally, 

 and then there will be no other Inconvenience, befides 

 the adding one Horfe, or keeping a ftronger Team: 

 And he cannot be wife, who would iofe the Profit 

 of his Land, for the Odds of fometimes adding a 

 Horfe to his Plough. And I am very certain, that 

 this Plough requires a much lefs Strength of Cattle 

 to draw it in moid Weather, which is the mo ft pro- 

 per to ufe it in, than to draw a common Plough in 

 the fame Ground, and at the fame -Depth, in dry 

 Weather ; and can feldom be ufed fafely in any other. 

 And the Vulgar, who have always a wrong Caufe 

 ready at hand to apply to every thing, impute that 



- Draught to the Fafhion of the Plough, which ought 

 to be imputed to its going deeper *, and this great 

 Depth at which 'tis capable of plowing, viz. Two 



U SpiC 



