74 
THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE. 
[JAN. 31, 
have been brought up to know better, and this dates | 
the mischief farther back. 
Were any one to undertake the management of a 
cotton mill or an iron foundry without adequate 
funds for the support of the establishment, and the 
endurance of periods of depressed prices, his ruin, 
except in a few exceptional cases of rare talent or 
energy, would be a matter of certain prediction ; 
yet how sadly numerous are the instances in farm- 
ing where the very payment of the Michaelmas 
rent has to be made up out of the newly reaped 
crop, sold as soon as harvested at ‘the depressed 
prices of a glutted market, and where every opera- 
tion of the year is performed at the wrong season, 
for want of the requisite hands to take time by the 
forelock ; thus visiting every disadvantage of price 
and season upon those who are least able to bear 
them. 
It is idle to prate to a man about super-ordinary 
little at a time), in the regular operations of the 
farm. We will begin, then, with the beginning of 
all good farming, in our wet climate—'Tur Prin- 
crmLES op Drarnina. This will form the subject of 
a future article.— C. W. H. 
WHY NOT OURSELVES GROW THAT WHICH 
WE MANUFACTURE? 
I nave frequently noticed articles in your Paper from 
anonymous writers, who no doubt wish as far as pos- 
sible to promote the happiness of the working classes, by 
some p ecause ting means, rather than 
fall back upon the only remedy in law, which involves 
the separation of families in a union workhouse. I have 
considered that the annexed paragraph (which I eut. out 
of the Leeds Mercury the other week), might be worthy 
of their attention; and as 14. 3r. 16 r. of land, Irish 
measure, has been made to produce what gave “con. 
stant employment to 217 persons for 12 months," at 
wages ting to 22177. 6s. 8d., I must request those 
improvements, who, for want of funds, is struggling 
behind in the mere routine operations of the season ; 
orto confuse by the reiteration of scientific terms a 
mind that has never learnt how to learn. Like the 
hunted ostrich that buries its head in the sand, and 
thinks the dogs cannot see it because it cannot see 
them, the untaught mind is blinked from the acqui- 
sition of progressive knowledge by the inherent 
want of early cultivation of its faculties; and the 
admirable essays and records of experiments now 
published in the agricultural works of the day, are 
least understood by those who most require to be 
informed of them. Something more simple and ele- 
mentary than the language of a learned professor is 
surely required to bring up the rear, composed ofso 
many who, most needing the instruction, have not 
yet caught the meaning of the terms in which it is 
presented to them ; it is to the supply of this defi- 
ciency that we are most anxious to address ourselves. 
In directing attention, therefore, to the sciences 
which bear upon agriculture, the object which was 
held in view (in the very imperfect enumeration of 
them into which we were recently led) will be sadly 
misconstrued by any one who should conceive that 
it was done with the purpose of exhibiting, much 
less of exaggerating, the difficulty which their long 
names seem at first sight to proclaim, 
In all arts there are technical terms, which present 
a formidable barrier to the uninitiated ; butevery hill 
seems more insurmountable at a distance ;..and the 
traveller in agricultural science, if he be really in 
earnest, will find, on approaching resolutely these 
ugly-looking words of many. syllables, that after all 
they are mere conventionalities of language ; and 
that, if he be a really practical cultivator of his land 
and of his mind, Nature has already taught him 
much more about them than he-was aware of; and 
that, however ignorant he may have been of the 
name, he was far from ignorant of the subject. 
The story of the old man who was startled on 
hearing that he had been “talking prose" all. his 
life, is precisely in analogy with the surprise. mani- 
fested of late years by those who heard, for the first 
time, that chemistry, geology, and vegetable phy- 
:siology, were in an especial degree matters apper- 
taining to the farmer. But the farmer is not to 
suppose that he stands alone in this formidable rela- 
tion to the sciences. There is not a trade that is 
followed, or an art'that is practised, that does not 
depend upou some one or more of these mysterious- 
sounding names. The dyer is beholden to che- 
mistry for the knowledge which enables him to mix 
his colours without confusing their effect. or neutra- 
lising their virtues, and to fix those colours perma- 
nently in the cloth. The tanneracts upon chemical 
principles in the operation of leather. The cotton- 
‘spinner, the watchmaker, the wheelwright, must -all 
understand the principles of mechanics, inthe ad- 
justment of matter to the laws of motion. The 
miner and the well-sinker must obey the laws of 
geological structure. The gardener andthe- planter 
will fail in every attempt that is made in defiance of 
the truths of vegetable. physiology and botany. 
The jeweller and the lapidary-will make the grossest 
blunders, if entirely ignorant of the facts involved 
in the science of mineralogy. e pump-mak 
must consult the natural properties of fluids as re- 
veoled in hydraulics and hydrostatics, But al 
these sciences, and many more, belong to the 
farmer. He deals with mother Nature on. a wider 
scale than all the rest of mankind ; and his experi- 
ments last the whole year round, and for many years 
together; and every law of Nature that he trans- 
gresses in the least degree, revenges itself upon his 
pocket ; and it is as true physically as it is morally, 
that, in keeping of them, there is great reward. 
But it is by practice that science is most effectually 
taught. lt was from practice that the knowledge 
of the laws of Nature was originally derived; and 
following this natural course ourselves, we must 
endeavour to elucidate gradually the principles of 
agricultural science, by “ taking it as it comes” (a 
gentlemen who pride themselves in allowing their rich 
green valleys to remain scores of years unploughed, and 
who take delight in “ bringing to perfection,” at a heavy 
expense, the unfortunate animals that are annually ex- 
hibited at our Smithfield shows. I would ask. them to 
inquire whether they by their practice, or the grower of 
this Flax-field, do most good for the country, and for the 
working population. I beg of them to go into a minute 
calculation of the expenses of feeding to perfection one 
of those animals. Will the produce of three statute 
acres do it? Then compare the real value of the animal 
with the 307. prize and all added, with the result of this 
Flax-field, and above all, look at the employment it 
afforded to the working population where it was grown. 
I do not wish to offer a remark in deprecation of what 
gentlemen take an innocent pleasure in ; but as, in my 
opinion, prizes should be offered to farmers to produce 
and bring to perfection what would be most profitable 
to themselves and the country, if lesser sums should be 
offered for what is more eye-sweet or fanciful. Iam 
obliged to compare FI ture and le-feeding, 
because the one has been overlooked, aud the other 
appears to be the leading subject of prize-lists and com- 
petition. I have said so much for the last 12 months on 
the profits that farmers may derive from Flax-culture, 
that I shall now call their attention to the results, when 
the article is manufactured, and the good feeling it is 
calculated to create between the agricultural and the 
manufacturing classes of the community. I beg atten- 
tion to the following :— 
* Camprics,— We copy from the Belfast News Letter 
the following paragraph respecting this article of manu- 
facture, which will be interesting to all who wish for the 
industrial prosperity of Ireland. | Our contemporary 
says :—An improved fabric, made from the best quali- 
ties of home-grown Flax, denominated ‘the Golden 
Flax,’ has gained the first prizes, both for cambric and 
cambric handkerchiefs, at the present November meet- 
ing of the ‘the Flax Improvement Society of Ireland. 
We notice this in connection with the following sum- 
mary of facts, detailed in the valuable work by Dr. 
Kane, on ‘the Industrial Resources of Ireland,’ which 
fully goes to prove the vast importance of this branch of 
our industry. We find it therein stated, that near to 
Warringstown, three statute acres of land produced no 
less a quantity than 100 stones of Flax, value 75/.; the 
produce of this field was sold to an eminent factory in 
the neighbourhood (the very same that has turned out 
the present prize webs), for 15s. per stone ; this Flax in 
the process of conversion into cambric pocket handker- 
chiefs, will give constant employment for 12 months to 
about 217 persons, whose wages amount to 22177. 6s. 
8d. Adding 75/. for thé Flax, you arrive at a value of 
22921. 6s. 8d., the elements of which sprung from about 
la.9 R. 16. of land, Irish measure, and the entire 
when finished, will yield a very remunerating profit tothe 
manufacturer,” 
Now, with proof such as this, before the eyes of land- 
owners,that3 statute acres can be made to pay and employ 
217 people for a year, I do think it should arouse a feeling 
of desire for experiments in this country. If the opera- 
tives in one part of the three kingdoms are so alive to 
to their interests, in the production of this article, why 
have we not more of it? We make glad the hearts of 
the French and Belgians, and care nought for the many 
aching hearts at home. Not only does the demand for 
fine continental Flax increase, but the prices continue to 
advance, so that now fine Irish Flax commands a 
market at enormous prices ; in proof of which I shall 
here relate as I had it the other week from a gentle- 
man in Manchester engaged in Flax spinning :—He told 
me that 180 stone of fine. Flax had been bought in 
Derry, at 15s. per stone, and brought to Tanderagee, 
and then sold at 20s. per. stone; and from that to Bel- 
fast, and sold again to a firm in Lisburn at 21s. 6d. per 
stone. As this is not a solitary instance, I think proper 
to notice it, because in my opinion there is not only an 
advantage in Flax growing, over all other crops, that 
the'land will produce if attended to with skill, but the 
grower has ten times a better chance of gaining a prize 
than he whose whole time and capital is employed in 
what is termed “ bringing animals to perfection,” The 
ing, in order to balance the extra expense of extra care 
and feeding. 
In Flax culture there is a wide field for the skilful 
farmer to employ his capital, time, and extra attention ; 
and he must see that when we grow what we can manu- 
facture, that the operatives are thereby better able to 
be the consumers of his corn and cattle, and the money 
only changes hands, and is not transported to another 
kingdom. I do hope that the above statement ma 
have the effect of drawing attention to what must (as 
the above proves) be for the real benefit of the agricul- 
tural interest. 
cotton could be produced in Lancashire, could it 
be supposed that landowners and farmers would be so 
blind to their own interest as not to keep in the country 
the millions that the Americans draw annually from 
Manchester. I cannot believe so; for the spinners of, 
cotton themselves would become farmers, sooner than 
overlook such advantages. Holding these opinions, E 
cannot but view the position of landowners and farmers 
and Flax-spinners in the same light ; for the latter are 
at present sending their millions annually to foreign 
farmers, that English landowners should, by every 
means, try and keep in this country.—J. H. Dickson, 
6, De Beawvoir-square, London, Jan. 18. 
BRIEF NOTICES on AGRICULTURAL SUBJECTS. 
The Vitality of the Seeds of Couch-grass.—Where 
Couch has been common, depend upon it that.clean, and 
fallow land as you may, it will have plenty of the seed 
still remaining in it to originate a new crop; and the 
same may be said of Charlock; so that, in cleaning 
land, we, only destroy the present existing weeds, but 
do not totally stop the originating cause. But from 
some weeds we have nothing to fear from their seeds, 
as the Corn-bine or Hop-bine or Bine-weed, which three 
names I take to mean one thing ; and also the Colts- 
foot weed ; and as for the common Thistle that propa- 
gates itself by sending out runners from its roots ; 
though in appearance its seeds ripen, I should like to 
see the person that can raise a bed of plants from its 
seeds, The only method to destroy these three last kinds 
of weeds is by cutting them off a little within the ground 
every time they have grown a few inches high, which 
may take three or four years time to finish them by 
thus bleeding them to death ; and in a rainy season 
they will require cutting off about once a month; but 
for your g i i terminating pursuit 
let me tell you, that you will have fewer in number to. 
cut off every time the cutting is repeated, until there be 
none, and when it is once done, it appears to be a per- 
manent annihilation, as I have proved with the Thistle 
in two places on Grass-plots 10 years since, and not one 
Thistle has ever put up its head in those places since ; 
and as to the Corn-bine, a gardener (a neighbour of 
mine) has thus pursued it, and eut and bled it to death 
with the hoe. Before he began thus (it was on rich 
land) it had regularly aimed at smothering over a large 
number of standard Gooseberry-trees. The Coltsfoot 
I have never thoroughly pursued to death, but I have 
lessened and weakened it by. repeated ploughinge, and X 
have no doubt but annihilation would be the ultimate 
result of this practice, I dare assert that no person 
knows the origin of the three plants, or pests, above 
mentioned. A few years ago I had a ploughed field 
which appeared covered all over with Coltsfoot, where 
none had been before ; it first came up in the middle of 
summer while the field was under fallow, the field lying 
dormant for about five or six weeks in a very rainy 
time; this same field was of a clay subsoil, and has 
been now under cultivation for 30 years only, and never 
before, that I know of, since Noah’s flood. 
The Editor says (at p. 426, 1845) that we must loosen 
the soil on the stubbles after the Charlock or Kedlock 
has shed its seeds among the previous crop; and do it 
immediately after harvest, to grow the seed into plants 
for the slaughter. I wish we could induce them thus 
to grow ; but with this accommodation at this time* of 
the year (with us), none of them will grow ; they have 
too much native “ instinct” to be thus cheated and 
raised up to face a winter. [They have no such fore- 
sight on our sandy soils. 
To deepen the Soil—An easy way to deepen the 
soil upon most arable lands, is by reversing the ridges, 
in those eases where the land has been ridged up from 
6 to 12 yards wide, and between 2 and 3 feet high for 
ages, with the subsoil buried undistucbed ; now, if the 
oceupier of these lands can make his mind submit while 
he ploughs the ridges several times downwards, or even 
until he has made that part the highest that was the 
lowest, he will find that in afterwards returning the 
ridges to near their former position, he will have some- 
thing like an average depth of soil of 12 inches thick- 
ness : but in doing thisit will be the safest and best to 
do it gradually, more and more in a course of years 
(say 10 or 15 years) ; this method can be adopted with- 
out that extreme addition -of power required for sub- 
soil operations. 
Lice.—These, on either animals or vegetables, are 
produced from within the animal or plant [This is, we 
know, a very common, but—a “ Leicestershire Farmer” 
must forgive us for adding—mistaken notion.], and not 
‘ited 1 
Flax grower who knows his business can tell, as he 
watches the progress of his crop, the extra profit he 
will have over the same breadth of land sown in Wheat, 
and this is a certain prize; whilst the cattle feeder 
must take his chance, depending on the caprice or whim 
of the appointed judge, who may hand the 307. prize to 
iol t 
E 
o them from some other extraneous origin 
or parent; poverty and sickness is the general state of 
the animal or plant when they appear (though there are 
some exceptions where they are found in abundance on 
fine prosperous animals). 
Draining.—When meadows that are constantly mown 
ss hay require draining, this business requires mue 
his next-door which he lated on obtain- 
[P and care, as they may-be over drained or 
