264 BRITISH AND AMERICAN AGRICULTURE-. 



their cattle by the first of Norember, rather than suffer 

 them to poach their fields, in gleaning a scanty subsist- 

 ence from them ; nor do they turn tiiem to pasture till 

 late in April. 



These are the principal advantages that the British 

 farmers claim over us. Let us now examine those we 

 exclusively possess. The noblest of these is Indian corn, 

 [which does not grow in England.] Neither the beans 

 or turnips of Britain can be compared with this plant. — 

 Carrots may be raised at less expense here than in 

 Britain, because we have much fewer weeds, which are 

 the greatest enemy to that root. Cabbages, potatoes, 

 and pumpkins, would not be so much neglected here as 

 they generally are, were it not that hay is made in this 

 country at half the expense that it requires in the moist 

 climates of Britain. Vegetation there is extremely slow; 

 their spring is nearly one month earlier than ours; yet, 

 though their wheat begins to grow in March, it is not 

 reaped till late in August ; ours is cut 6 weeks earlier, 

 though it does not begen to vegetate till late in April; so 

 that it takes five and a half months in Britain to perfect a 

 crop which is performed here in little better than three. 

 The same causes intiuence the growth of grass. In 

 soils, therefore, of equal quality, much less will grow in 

 a given time in Britain than in America, as far as may be 

 inferred from the general average of their clover and 

 natural grass in not exceeding ours, though they are 

 longer in a growing state. It is true, that the moisture 

 of the climate, and mild winters, give a great verdure to 

 their fields at some seasons ; but this only nn apparent 

 advantage, which deceives superficial observers, while it 

 is attended with real inconveniencies ; first, the grass it- 

 self is b}^ that circumstance rendered less nutritious, as 

 is well known by every farmer; secondly, while the 

 hay is lighter, it is got in at more expense than ours, 

 which is made at the driest season of the year. In our 

 crops 1 f grain we enjoy similar advantages; their har- 

 vests are frequently wet, while nine years in ten ours is 

 got in without the least obstruction from rain. The 

 produce would also, I am well satisfied, be greater here 

 than in England, on highly cultivated soils, since it is 

 'tvell known that the strength of the straw depends upon 



