1844.] 



THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE. 



Annual Cattle Show, to be held at Ballinasloe, for the 

 year 1813, was also referred to a sub-committee, to pre- 

 pare and revise the same, previous to having it submitted 

 to the general meeting for approval. The Secretary 

 also stated that the 2d edition of the Society's Transac- 

 tions and Report for 1843, together with the maps 

 and diagram.*, couli be had by members on application, 

 on forwarding tenpence in post-office stamps to cover the 

 amount of postage. It was most desirable that this work, 

 which contained so much useful and valuable information 

 on thorough-draining and reclaiming waste land, &c, 

 should be circulated as extensively as possible, and ar- 

 rangements had been made for the purpose with the 

 Society's publishers— Messrs. Curry, of Dublin; Long- 

 man, of London ; and Fraser, of Edinburgh— to dis- 

 tribute them upon the most moderate and cheapest terms, 

 where they can be had by non-subscribers on application! 

 It also appeared, on reference to the Society's accounts, 

 that there was a great accession of new members during 

 the present year, no less than 450 additional subscribers 

 having joined the Society at and previous to the late 

 Cattle Show, and upwards of one-half of whom had joined 

 in order to qualify the Local Societies for the premiums 

 this year. There were, however, considerable arrears of sub- 

 scriptions still due ; and the Secretary was directed forth- 

 with to write to the parties, as well as to the subscribers to 

 the local fund for the Cattle Show, to pay up their 

 arrears, in order that a full statement of the accounts 

 should be laid before the Society at the next General 

 Meeting. 



789 



yards apart; the men then dig the holes in a straight Haree farms it will be detirahlp t n K... *-« « iT~ 



3EUbfefos. 



The Report of the Agriculture of Norfolk, to which the 

 Prize was awarded by the Royal Agricultural Society 



[ of England. By Richard Noverre Bacon. Ridgways. 

 London. 



Next to the possession of accuracy and completeness, 

 we may safely assert that the value of a District Agricul- 

 tural Report depends upon the fullness of detail in 

 which it describes climate, soil, &c— those circum- 

 stances upon which, as well as upon agricultural skill, the 

 character of farming depends*. This is sufficiently ob- 

 vious ; for the usefulness of a publication depends not 

 merely on the quantity and accuracy of its contents, but 

 upon one's ability to avail himself of the information it 

 contains; the syj-tem of agriculture it describes may be 

 admirably suited for the district, but if the circumstances 

 under which it occurs be not fully stated, there is no evi- 

 dence from which the reader may judge whether it be 

 suited to those in which he is placed. 



The Norfolk system of agriculture is certainly one 

 which might be safely adopted over large districts in this 

 country ; but even here our remarks are true. A report 

 of Norfolk farming would lose much of its usefulness and 

 interest if no such detail of the geographical position, 

 the climate and soils of the county, of the relation exist- 

 ing there between landlord and tenant, of the wealth of 

 its farmers, were given—such an account as should help 

 to explain the high estimation in which it is properly 

 held. Mr. Bacon enters into great detail on most of 

 these points ; indeed, the minuteness with which he gives 

 the statistics of the district is tedious to the general 

 reader. We shall extract some statements from his 

 work, showing the condition of the county now, as com- 

 pared with what it was half a century ago :— 



" The progress of production can be very fairly indi- 

 cated by a reference to the comparative quantities of 

 W beat sold in Norwich Corn Market :— 



Wheat. 



No. of coombs sold. 

 i8 r* 50,844 



10 53,521 



\\ 61,112 



i* 54,560 



;? i7«,i7« 



V\ 207,274 



;* 201,750 



JJ 239,620 



43 244,644 



Outgoings of a Light- land Farm in Norfolk; 179a as compared 



with 1820 :— 



chain of twenty-four yards, the depth of the clay from 

 the surface varies from five to nine feet ; when it lies 

 nearest the surface, about one and a quarter load-; of 

 solid clay are raised from each of these holes, which costs 

 about G s </. f including the spreading upon the land ; but 

 where it lies nine feet, as it frequently does in some 

 parts of the fen, the ridges are made much nearer, for 

 at that depth so much cl*y cannot be obtained as when 

 it lies fleeter, and the cost is from I0§& to a 1*. per hole. 

 Clay is not universally found, sometimes sand and gravel 

 are found in its place, occasionally mixed with strong 

 blue gault, which is not so good as the soft clav. The 

 rotation of crops varies very much where the land has 

 not been clayed ; the custom is to plough and burn, aad 

 sow Coleseed, which is fed off by sheep. In the spring 

 it is sown with Oats ; when this crop is cleared off tbe 

 land is manured and sown with Wheat. It is then lad 

 down with Grass seed for two years. The third sum- 

 mer it is again ploughed and burned as before. After 

 claying, the plan is to fallow and manure; bone-dust or 

 yard-manure for Coleseed, which is fed off and Wheat 

 sown ; the next year Clover again succeeded by Wheat ; 

 then fallow or lay down to Grass for two or three years."' 

 But doubtlrss much of the present fertility of the land 

 is owing to the good yearly management of its tenants, 

 as well as the adoption of permanent improvements— 

 to the adoption of a good rotation of crops, and good 

 husbandry generally, and to the consumption on the land 

 by large numbers of sheep and cattle, not only of the green 

 crop grown on it, but of large quantities of oil-cake. 

 Upwards of 10,000 tons of this material are imported 

 annually into the county ; besides this, immense quan- 

 tities of bone-dust, guano, nitrate of soda, &c., are used. 

 One person alone sella 20,000 tons of the first annually ; 

 another sells nearly 3000 tons annually of the last, and 

 of guano he last year sold 750 tons. It is by these 

 means that the farmers of Norfolk have obtained for their 

 county such a high position among the well-cultivated 

 districts of the country. 



Mr. Bacon describes in detail the different branches 

 of farming, as conducted in Norfolk ; there are in his 

 work chapters on Rotation of Cropping ; General Cul- 

 ture, including accounts of the various crops ; Manures ; 

 Marshes, Meadows, and Pastures; Breeds of Cattle) 

 Sheep, &c. ; Feeding Horses ; Implements, &c. There 

 is not room for extracts here ; and we have no wish, by 

 giving many, to keep our readers from; the work itself; 

 but we cannot conclude without citing one passage, ex- 

 pressive of an opinion to the working out of which, under 

 Mr. Coke's patronage, we must attribute the eminence 

 in agriculture which Norfolk has unquestionably at- 

 tained among the counties of this country : — 



" * A large expenditure of money,' says a tenant occu- 

 pier and an estate agent, 'is necessary to successful 

 farming, and a tenant should always look for a guarantee 

 in proportion to the outlay. An occupier who expects 

 to hold his lacd but for a year, or to hold itouly on such 

 conditions as may terminate his tenure at the year's end, 

 should expend so much only as he may hope to re- 

 imburse himself by a year's crop ; for all expended 

 beyond that might be thrown away ; but such an expen- 

 diture plainly could not permanently improve the soil 



so of three years, seven years, or any other short term. 

 The farmer, how rich soever he may be, will proportion 

 his expenditure to his interest in the land ; but let a 

 tenant have a long and equitable lease, let him feel 

 assured that he has a life-interest in a farm, and he will 

 cast his whole lot with it ; then if he be rich and skilful, 

 he will cultivate it to the highest point to which the con- 

 stantly improving state of agricultural science can direct 

 him. Such is the importance to the whole nation of the 



tenant's guarantee.' " 



i7!)o. 



Kent per acre 8 

 Kthe ... 1 

 Labour . . j 4 



Ran* . . . 



Direct taxes . 

 J'arming bills 

 Int. on capital 



1 

 

 6 



4 



d. 



3 



6 











8 



7 



<i 



*e\ 15 ni 



£ s. 

 Kent per acre id 

 Tithe ... 4 



Labour ..16 

 Rates ... 4 

 Direct taxes . 1 

 Fannin- bills 11 

 Int. on capital 7 



d- 



nearly 100 rerct 



(i above "250 per ct 



nearly lOOpcrct 

 9 nearly »;.-. perct 

 lj 450 perct. 

 "perct. 

 6 So per ct. 



3 



1 



11 

 15 





..Difference. £\ 15 5 



tio V6r & e .P ort i° ns of the county this increased produc- 

 n was owing to the process of claying or marling, 

 wnicii aasgreatly improved the light soils. 



bit Ik Coke ' wlien ne inherited his patriraonv, exhi- 

 ced by practice how great benefit was to be attained 



«o*l° 1 lliG a l ) l ,licatl0n or " cIa y and mar i to the surface 

 «, and its effects were so momentous that his example 



as • immediately followed throughout the western part 



ouo 1 ' anJ ia 80rae P art * of the east - The conse- 

 nhihst. I! been that no count 7. and certainly no district, 



ication, 



aim. 1 "" "* """ ,,uu, "cr ui ciav anu man mrs which 

 Wound on every farm." 



n .the fen districts, where an immense improvement 

 nasar.sen from this practice 



On Landed Properly, and the Econrmy of Estatt . 

 comprehending the Relation of Landlord and Tenant. 

 and the Principles and Forms of Leases, F<irm- 

 Buildings, Enclosures, Drains, Embankments, Roads, 

 and other Rural Works— Minerals — and Woods. 

 By David Low, Esq., F.R.S.E., Professor of Agri- 

 culture in the University of Edinburgh, kc. &C. 

 Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans. 

 We have the pleasure to announce the publication of 

 this important work by Professor Low. It is one of the 

 most valuable contributions to our Agricultural Litera- 

 ture which we have had an opportunity of noticing. We 

 shall not fail, as soon as possible, to give our readers a 

 particular account of its contents. 



exhih-f S n that no count 7. and certainly no distri 

 to h t0 a B reater extent the proof of this applicath 

 ahm f 6a m lhe number of clay and marl nits whi 



The Farmer's Almanac and Calendar for 1845. By 

 C. W. Johnson, Esq., and William Shaw, Esq. 

 James Ridgway, loi), Piccadilly, London. 

 It has an index on its title-page which promises a great 

 ;leal, but it raises no expectations which are not satisfied 

 by an examination of the contents. Besides a good 

 agricultural calendar, a great deal of matter very useful 

 and instructive to the farmer has been gathered together 

 in this volume. Its advertising sheet is a very interest- 

 ing and readable addition to it. It certainly continues 

 to be the best Almanac for the farmer that has appeared. 



" The mnti op..»<> « » c 1 • a . , . wooden rammer. These will cost about 12/. Large 



*«t to seTout the lamHnrn f^L ?°" 1 l t> W ' C0 PP ers are fouild inconvenient for stirring when com- 

 — ^L ,"!^ land in rid ges from hfteen to eighteen po ^ lds art> ma ,, e wilh tlie meal of PeM| B( ^ ^ c TLe 



Miscellaneous. 



Linseed as Food. — The only apparatus reouireti is a 

 Linseed-crusher, an iron copper, a hand-cup, a stirrer, 

 one or two half-hogsheads, two or three pails, and a 

 wooden rammer. These will cost about 12/. Large 



See our last week's Leading; Article. 



fastened to a shafc of wood 4 feet long, and somewhat 

 ess than the handle of a pick. The rammer is 3 feet 

 long, about 5 inches square at the bottom, and 2\ at 

 the top ; through which a pin 14 inches long is passed 

 for the convenience of being used with both hands- 

 mine is nothing more than one end of a broken axle of 

 a cart, with a stick thrust through the linch-pin hole. 

 I commenced winter-crazing this year upon white 

 lurmps grown after Flax, the tops of which, being 

 extremely luxuriant, are cut with Tea-straw into chaff 

 compounded with Linseed-meal, and given to my bullocks 

 according to the following plan :— Upon every six pails 

 of boiling water, one of finely crushed Linseed-meal is 

 sprinkled by the hand of one person, while another 

 rapidly stirs it round. In five minutes, the mucilage 

 being formed, a half-hogshead is placed close to the 

 copper, and a bushel of the cut Turnip-tops and straw 

 put iti ; 2 or 3 hand-cups full of the mucilage are 

 then poured upon it, and stirred in with a common muck- 

 fork. Another bushel of the Turnip-tops, chaff, &c. is 

 next added, and 2 or 3 cups of the jelly, as before, all 

 of which is then expeditiously stirred and worked to- 

 ther with the fork and rammer ; it is afterwards 

 pressed down as firmly as the nature of the mixture will 

 allow, with the Utter instrument, which completes the 

 first layer. Another bushel of the Pea-straw, chaff, &c. 

 is thrown into the tub, the mucilage poured upon it as 

 before, and so on till the copper is emptied. The con- 

 tents of the tub are lastly smoothed orer with a trowel, 

 covered down, and in two or three hours the itraw 

 having absorbed the mucilage, will also, with the Turnip- 

 tops, have become partially cooked. The compound is 

 then usually given to the cattle, but sometimes is allowed 

 to remain till cold. The bullocks, however, prefer it 

 warm, but whether hot or cold, they devour it with 

 avidity. The cost for Linseed, according to the above 

 rate of feeding, is 2s. .1 /. per week. It will be seen that 

 the real fattening properties of the above compound 

 centre in the Linseed ; and that, in order to produce a 

 greater or less effect, it is only necessary to regulate the 

 quantity of that important ingredien\ Also, that Wheat, 

 Oat, and Barley-straw, or Bean-stalks, may be used 

 either with or without Turnip-tops, according to circum- 

 stances ; ni ing more being required than fibrous matter 

 to act as a vehicle for conveying Linseed to the stomach of 

 the animal, and for reconveying it to the mouth for rumi- 

 nation. Unfortunately for the extension of my plans, few 

 really practical agriculturists are disposed to promulgate 

 their own individual success. I subjoin, however, an 

 extract from the letter of a gentleman ia Essex, with whose 

 enlarged and philanthropic views I have long been ac- 

 quainted, and who will rejoice if the simple relation of 

 is own experience should in any way be rendered ser- 

 viceable to his country :— « My Flax-crop was pronounced 

 by tbe Belgian agent, at Ipswich, to be as fine as any he 

 had ever seen. It was nearly 4 feet high, very thick 

 in the ground, and perfectly free from weeds. The 

 expenses for harvesting my crop were under 20s. per 

 acre. I have laid 10 acres in a hovel and stacked 

 3 For the want of water I was not enabled to steep 

 any ; and shall not now make the attempt till the spring. 

 My experiments with compound last year were satisfac- 

 tory. I am now feeding 14 horses and colts with straw 

 and hay compound. My plan is, to 8 bushels of cut 

 hay, and 8 bushels of Wheat chaff, are added 28 lbs. 

 of crushed Linseed boiled in 18 pails of water. I give 

 the horses this quantity at night in the yard. In addition, 

 they have one pint of Pea-meal per day, and one hun- 

 dred weight of straw per week. The boiling Linseed is 

 poured upon the chaff, and both are thoroughly mixed 

 together. I intend giving my young stock 1£ lb. of 

 Linseed-meal with a bushel of chaff daily ; my cows the 

 same/'— James Barker, Stour Hall, Ramsey, near 

 Harwich. A bushel of good Linseed at 5s. &/., weighing 

 48 lbs., if properly formed into compound with three or 

 hit times the weight of Bean, P(«, or ordinary Wheat- 

 meal, and a little more than double the weight of the 

 whole in water, will cost about 21. lbs. per ton. — John 

 Waruts, in the Farmer's Journal. 



How to Kn 1 ood Guano. — The farmer should 

 never purchase guano, except its composition be war- 

 ranted by the analysis of a competent chemist. He 

 should cork up in a buttle a half-pound sample of each 

 kind of guano that he buys ; and if his crop should dis- 

 appoint reasonable expectation, he should cause the 

 samples to be analysed; and ihoald the result not corre- 

 spond lo the anal) sis exhibited at the sale, he is .'airly 

 entitled to damages (or the loss of his labour, rent, crop, 



Sec. Then jssity of following this advice will appear 

 on considering the delusive, if not utterly false, analyses 

 under which car-oes of guano have been too often sold. 

 In a recent case which came under my cognisance, in 

 consequence of having been employed professionally to 

 analyse the identical cargo, I found the guano to be 

 neariy rotten and effete ; containing altogether only 2i 

 per cent, of ammonia, J per cent of urate of ammonia, 



aily 9 of sea-salt, 2l of water, and 4j| of earthy 

 phosphates. Now, this large cargo of many hundred 

 tons, fetched a high price at a public sale, under the ex- 

 hibition cf the following an ;is: — 



Urate of ammonia, aoomoniaeal salts, and decayed 



umal matter 17.4. 



Phosphate of lime, phosphite of magnesia, and 



oxalate of lime 48.1 



Fixed alkaline salts 10.8 



Enrthy and stony matter 1.4 



Moisture 22.3 



100.0 



* — — ' ' IUU.U 



izes most in use contain from 30 to 40 gallons. Upon Tue purchasers, I was told by the brokers, bought it 



