64] A TOPOGRAPHICAL 



once before laying it on the land, to promote fermentation, or draw- 

 it to a heap. 2. Town manure, which can be only used by those 

 who are conveniently situated for conveying it : when of a good 

 quality, it is the best of all manures, either for tillage or grass-land. 



3. Lime ; this is a manure much used upon all sorts of land : it is 

 supposed to dissolve strong soils, and to bind light ones, and to cor- 

 rect the acidity of old uncultivated land. When laid on hot from 

 the kiln, it is destructive to grubs, snails, and caterpillars : it is 

 laid on tillage land, either for barley, turnips, or wheat, from six to 

 ten quarters per acre. It is best laid on in a quick state, soon after 

 slacking, and should be harrowed-in when the land is dry. It is 

 laid on grass land with good effect, sweetening the herbage, by 

 forming sugar in the joints, so that cattle bite it close with avidity : 

 it is sometimes fetched fifteen miles by land-carriage for manure. 



4. Marl has been much used on arable land for ages back, as is evi- 

 dent from the very extensive marl-pits to be found in different parts 

 of the county. In many places complaints are made that the land 

 has been over-marled, and rendered harsh ; this may be remedied 

 by well- fallowing and liming. It is in general only in the loamy 

 soils that a true marl is found ; in the mixed gravelly soils is often 

 found a clay marl, which has been laid on such soils with good effect; 

 the quantity laid upon an acre about 128 cubic yards, which adds 

 nearly an inch to the staple of the soil. The improvement by marl 

 is believed in this county to be much more adapted to tillage than 

 pasture, and its gooij effects on corn land are long visible ; indeed, 

 in the case of thin, light, unimproved lands, the benefit of marling 

 must endure for ever, as it not only consolidates the soil, but adds 

 to its thickness and staple. It has formerly been much practised in 

 this county, but the high price of labour has of late years been a 

 check to its progress. 



The above are the staple manures of the county, to which may be 

 added composts, consisting of shovelings of soil, scrapings of roads, 

 scouring of ditches, and mud from pits and ponds, either used alone 

 or mixed with lime or muck, and generally used as a top-dressing 

 for meadow and pasture land. The ashes of our culinary fires are 

 used as top-dressings for coarse pastures, but are improved by mix- 

 ing with night soil. Soot is used as a top-dressing on wheat, or for 

 turnips ; the land should be free from weeds, as soot will force the 

 weeds as well as the crop. It is also a good top-dressing for mown 

 grassland. The soot merchant always undertakes the sowing of 

 the soot into the bargain of sale. 



