[ i'6 ] 



this praftlce does not at all dimlnidi the 

 ftaple of the land. 



Whether this be owing to the great 

 crops it is enabled to yield, returning a 

 proportioned part of themlelves to the 

 earth again, which is the cafe with all forts : 



or whether the furface pared confift 



not entirely of turf, or the bulbs of faine- 



foine, with no earth at ail ; or at leaft 



none reduced to afiies, I (liall not pretend 

 to decide, but the latter circumllance, I 

 think very probable : Turf, which is no- 

 thing but an aggregate of roots and bulbs, 

 may certainly be burnt without any reduc- 

 tion of /c/V. I am of opinion thaty^// canr 

 not be reduced to aP:es ; but in this, experi- 

 ment fnould decide. A ftrong confirma- 

 ticn of this notion, i^ the well known facl 

 that land cannot be burned till it has ac- 

 quired a turf that is, till it has gained 



the thicknefs*- which was deflroyed by the 

 laft burning. 



The efficacy of the pra6tice is indifputa- 

 ble ; a middling quantity of afhes is 500 

 bufnels per acre. Suppofe a man inftead 

 of paring and burning at i6j. or 18^, 

 expence, would bring afiies to his ground ; 

 he would no where be able to get them 



carriage 



