332 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



agriculture eloquent. Columella flourished about A. D. 42, 1846 

 years ago; wrote twelve books; coteraporary with Seneca and 

 Celsus. The Roman " Res Rustica," (farmers' business) tauglit 

 tillage, vineyard, orchard, domestic stock, garden, fish ponds, shell 

 fish, bees, poultry on a great scale, drainage on the large scale, 

 under drains, burning the surface of brush, &c, (not paring,) 

 preparation and care of manure. Cato advised large heaps of it. 

 Two places in the barn-}ard for it. One for first deposit, which 

 was in time taken to the second, on a dishing spot, paved to keep 

 the liquids; here it was well mixed, then the sides of it built up 

 to keep it from air, and top covered with woven branches and 

 bushes, sea-weed, river mud, all the urine well incorporated, lime 

 made from burnt marble. Cato was asked, what was the first 

 point in agriculture 1 He replied, plowing. What second 1 

 Plowing. What third 1 Manuring. Eighteen loads of best 

 manure for one level acre, and twenty-four loads for an upland 

 acre. Instead of a spade, they used a steel blade of some breadth, 

 attached exactly like a pick-axe to a handle; with this the gar- 

 dener could at a blow drive it deep into the land side from two to 

 three feet, and do more work with it than can be done by a spade, 

 and twice as deep. Mould boards were used on their plows, and 

 they usually plowed nine inches deep, which is double the ave- 

 rage depth of our American general plowing for the last two 

 hundred years. Crop plowing, harrowing brusliing. To preva- 

 ricate, was to plow an irregular furrow. If the ridge was irregular, 

 they said it was delirious, because the straight one was called lira. 

 They commonly planted in drills. They sowed about as much 

 wheat per acre as we do, allowing for its tillering. They cut their 

 wheat two days before it was ripe, because it perfected itself better 

 from the straw. They never allowed weeds to grow, as we and 

 England do. Beans, peas and like crops they called leguminous, 

 from legendoj because they pulled them up by the roots, as we 

 often do. A good hand made on an acre about twelve hundred 

 bundles of hay, of four pounds weight each ; about seven thou- 

 sand two hundred pounds avoirdupois, or about three tons and 

 three-quarters per acre, at one mowing. Cicero's ancestor was 

 great at chick peas. Stall feeding used. Rennet was used for 



