53S 



THE AGRICULTURAL GAZET 



toes, in place of Beans or Peas, or perhaps in place 



of Swedes or Mangold Wurzel ; of one rotation in 

 place of another, or of any rotation with its greater 

 annual produce in place of the constant growth of 

 the Grasses, as in pasture land ; — these are not, 

 except in the long run, proofs of increased fertility 

 of the soil. Whatever determination be arrived at 

 as to the crops that shall be grown or retained, the 

 result is, in the outset at any rate, only a more or 

 less perfect expression of the actually existing 

 fertility of the land. How important both that the 

 most valuable expressions be given to this fertility ; 

 and that such a mode of expressing it be adopted 

 as shall not tend to its diminution or exhaustion, is, 

 of course, obvious enough. It is sufficient for the scope 

 of these remarks to have alluded to this fact. The 

 power of the different rotations of crops, whether as 

 the exponents of fertility, or as in themselves ferti- 

 lising agents, have been already abundantly dis- 

 cussed in volumes of the English Agricultural 

 Society's Journal, to which we refer our readers. 

 See especially vol. x. p. 345, where this subject is 

 discussed in full detail. 



It appears then that the lessons taught by ob- 

 servation in reference to fertility and barrenness in 

 soils amount to this : — (1). That supposing climate 

 to be favourable, or, if unfavourable, modified by 

 shelter and by drainage, fertility is attainable on 

 peaty soils by drainage, paring, and burning, claying 

 and liming, and the use of portable manures; and 

 after a year or two of cultivation, then by growing 

 food for stock, as Grasses, &c, and waiting for con- 

 solidation by the lapse of time before breaking it 

 up again for regular cultivation. (2). On sandy 

 soils by marling, and the use of Rape- cake, guano, 

 and bone-dust, as the means of growing food for 

 sheep, whose consumption of this food with oilcake 

 on the land shall still further fertilise, consolidate, 

 and fit the land for growing Wheat and other grain 

 crops : and (3), on clay lands by burning, liming, 

 draining, and the use of dressings of bulky manures. 

 It appears (4) that on all soils fertility is promoted 

 by the use of water as a fertilising agent, whether 

 this is obtained by means of irrigation or of drain- 

 age ; that (5) pn all soils, lime, when judiciously 

 applied, is a fertilising agent ; (6) that manure 

 being simply food for plants, everywhere contributes 

 to fertility ; that (7) deepening the soil, and the 

 thorough cultivation of it as a method of enlarging 



the home supply of food for plants are fertilising in 

 their influence ; and that (8) the adoption of a 

 suitable rotation of crops is necessary both to give 

 due expression to what fertility exists, and also to 

 ensure its permanence and even increase. 



As a last remark in reference to what observation 

 teaches on this subject we may refer in general 

 terms to the relations of landlord and tenant, and 

 to the education and general intelligence of the 

 population, as matters obviously and directly con- 

 nected with it. The energy of individuals, shown 

 in the opening of access to markets, and in the 

 excitement of a neighbourhood out of the sluggish 

 indifference and contentment with existing circum- 

 stances which so easily become habitual— instanced, 

 let us say, in the successes of Lord George Hill 

 around Gweedoie, on the west coast of Ireland, 

 almost as perfectly as in the history of the Ban de 

 la Roche, under the pastorate of Oberlin— may be 

 a subject of too general a character to claim detailed 

 examination in an agricultural journal ; but that the 

 absence of markets, or of access to them, and that 

 the listlessness and ignorance of the labouring class, 

 are among the most obvious causes of barrenness of 

 soil, observation will in many districts of Ireland 

 and Great Britain testify. 



DAIRY PRODUCTION. 



The discussions at the Royal Agricultural Society's 

 meetings between Mes rs. Horsfal^ Scott, and others, 

 on the subject of dairy management and production (of 

 Which you have given copious details in your columns 

 for some weeks past) will have at least this benefit— that 

 they will cause agriculturists to pay some attention to 

 the details of the operations carried on in their dairies. 



In the case of far the greatest number of farms— viz., 

 on those where only a few cows are kept, and these 

 rather for the use of the family and servants than for 

 toe amount of profit to be derived— these operations 

 Have generally been left entirely to the skill and judg- 

 ment of female members of the family. There were 

 two reasons for the little attention paid to this branch 

 w«?^ l . n f eCOn °^ CS : ~ Fir * r the " gentleman » farmer 



£^L T^f such dair ^ returas « » sort of 



£Z7?? °f 7 hlch none wouW " go in to the rent." 

 *£ft ™ ? y C0D8idered dairy management as a 

 C»ft mystery into which the other sex had little 



business to inquire • indeed Z, \Z • • , ?• J 

 *n imniui «J? ' maeeu to inquire into which was 

 an imp hed censure on the domestic management But 

 now when the yield of milk from cow 8 , Keam to be 



2& f 6 l U h er * t0 r 6 Pr ° duCed herefrom, i the 

 aobject of elaborate discussions before the Roval Aeri 



cultural Society, of lengthened papers of sUtemfiiL 



counter-statement, and corrections in the leading agricul! 



tural journals, it is no longer infra dig. on the part ot 

 the male sex to inquire into details and "whisper sug- 

 gestions" (we would not counsel more decided inter- 

 ference), nor an abandonment of time-honoured rights 

 for the ladies to give such an explanation of their dairy 

 experiences as can appear intelligibly in print. 



Without entering into details for the past, I may 

 state as the result I generally arrived at during several 

 years' experience of a dairy of five or six cows (this 

 number being as many as the ordinary domestics could 

 attend to without an interference with other occupa- 

 tions, as the female members of the family could super- 

 intend without much labour), which was this — that each 

 cow, besides bringing up its calf, gave a money return 

 of 91. to 12/. per annum : butter selling at Is. per lb. ; 

 and milk at 1 d. per quart for skimmed, and 2d. for 

 sweet milk. This return could, of course, be obtained 

 only by a tolerably liberal and careful system of feeding. 

 Mine has generally consisted, during the summer and 

 autunin quarters, of the run of a small Grass enclosure 

 for a few hours each day, with cut mixed Clover and 

 Rye-grass in the stall ; during the winter and spring 

 quarters, of Turnips and straw, with the addition of 

 two daily cooked messes of chaff, Turnips, and meal. 



Observing the discussions that were going on, I 

 wished to know how the experiences of other dairies 

 tallied with the results arrived at in my own, and for 

 this purpose caused a careful record to be kept for one 

 week, the details of which are given below. Of the six 

 cows in my byre I had but three in milk, two not having 

 yet calved, while a third was employed in nursing two 

 calves ; she has finished this with one pair born in 

 March, and has entered on the charge of a second pair 

 born in July. Of the three milking cows one (No. 1 in 

 the following note) has been for some years in my 

 possession ; the other two were purchased in May a 

 few weeks after calving, and in a very low condition. 

 Thus, taking the three together, they were in less than 

 average condition for milking ; their breeding is a cross 

 of the short-horn and Ayrshire ; and their food was, as 

 I have mentioned, cut Grass, with a daily run in an 

 enclosure, where they have free access to water. 



Their milking was as follows for seven days from 

 June 26 to July 2. It will be observed that for two 

 days each cow's milk was separately measured; for the 

 other five days the collective quantity only was noted : 



U, 185S 



too many light bodies audliueTefrrr ^^S 



descript gummy legs, and a very oE,? * m - 

 — The quick-stepping qLt^K^ 



not judge of save from observm't^ 



to size, 

 could 





W 



K 



are requ 



of the shoulders, which ^^Zt' 

 no specimen of the hardy, compact Um \ ? 

 horse, a breed much entitled toT nit ^ bj *» 

 It may answer to breed large horses for T 1/ r" 8 * 

 ft*, but middle-sized, nelt, J^St^ 



. .red for farm-work ; a kind that eate M 

 much as your great dray horse and looks h^ ** • 

 that half. Where the farmer has to £££&* 

 roads, great weight, combined with strength V^L 

 We have to thank the local committee rfffi 

 and the worthy mayor of that town, Ridurd Fe^T 

 Esq, for having brought together such w Jfi 



±ii or si ^j^z^.*®** of a 



*t 



Esq., for having brought together such an * 



the pleasure to see. 



chase, carriage horses and hacks" u ! unde^bi 

 business of far — * - 



("cow No. 1 

 June 26-^ „ 2 



I .. 3 



27, the three 



28, ditto 



29, ditto 



30, ditto 

 July 1, ditto 



f cow No. 1 

 July 2^ „ 2 



I » 3 





• • • 



• • 



* • ■ 



a • . 



• ■ • 



• e . 



• •• 



■ ■ > 



• » ■ 



Morn- 



■ _ 



Noon. 



Even- 



* 



mg. 





mg. 



quarts. ( 



quarts. 



quarts. 



34 



3 



3 



24 



« 



1 



3 



2* 



3 



5 



n 



7 



8 



7 



8 



8 



8 



8 



8 



8 



8 



9 



64 



7 



*S 



3 



3 



2 



2 



14 



4 



H 



1 2J 



Total quarts 



quarts. 

 5 V-23 



19* 

 23 

 . 24 

 24 

 22£ 



. • • 



• • • 



■ • * 



t • * 



• ■ • 



• ■ t 



?r 



Quarts, 161 



which threw up 15 quarts of cream, and these churned on 

 July 3 gave 16 lbs. 1 oz. butter and 9| quarts buttermilk. 

 Of the skimmed milk 64 quarts were sold or used ; 

 82 quarts made 20 lbs. of curd. 



The total returns for a week therefore were 



16 lbs. 1 oz. butter, at Is £0 16 



9 1 quarts buttermilk, at Id. 



64 quarts skimmed milk, at Id 



20 lbs. curd, sold at 2i<? 





 5 

 4 



1 

 9 

 4 



2 



£16 4 



Supposing the milk had been sold fresh, the return 

 at 2d. per quart would have been (161 x 2d.), \l. 6s. \0d.; 

 so that the manufacture into butter, &c, was, within a 

 fraction, as profitable as would have been the sale (had 

 that been practicable in the locality), of the sweet milk. 

 This, then, gives a weekly return during summer of 9s. 

 per cow. Suppose 



20 weeks at that rate £9 



20 weeks at the lower rate of 6s 6 



12 weeks to run dry 



... 



...... 



£15 



We obtain 151. per annum as the money return to be 

 expected from a fair average cow fed liberally but not 

 pampered. How does this tally with general experience? 

 Possibly correspondents from different districts will 

 kindly reply to this query. S., Inverness -shire, July 1.0. 







i^ «— ^ -i i ■■■> '■"-■■ ' i ■■ 



THE SHOW OF HORSES AT CARLISLE. 



We could not but be struck with the apparent slight 

 put upon a breed most deservedly esteemed for agricul- 

 tural purposes. The round barrel, compact form, and 

 great activity of the Suffolk fit him peculiarly for farm 

 work, and no horse is more staunch to the collar. Al 

 a late meeting of the Royal Agricultur.il Society the 

 Suffolks took the majority of the prizes ; but at Carlisle, 

 though there were some capital specimens of great 

 strength shown by Mr. Barthropp and Mr. Wilson, they 

 received but one commendation. And perhaps this fact 

 is the more observable since in what are esteemed the 

 heavier and larger breeds, the very qualities of com- 

 pactness and activity, for which the Suffolk is so remark- 

 able, are those which most commend themselves to the 

 judges. These two gentlemen are, however, bent upon 

 bringing the breed to the highest possible perfection, and 

 in certain instances, especially Mr. Barthropp's filly 

 that obtained a commendation, competing as she did in 

 one of the strongest classes, they have succeeded to 

 admiration. 



With respect to the Clydesdales we were not quite so 

 well pleased as we expected to have been. We observed 



The breeding of horses for 



,i , c . *' and we ho P e that the RoTi'iJ 



cultural Society will not allow any mee% to m» 



without having provided for the represent*!* rfZ 

 particular classes we refer to. She may mimfc T 

 towns where mayors not be so wealthy or so IkSmI 

 those of Lincoln and Carlisle. It is well, we Wj» 

 allow private liberality so to display itself, butSb 

 this practical co-operation of local committees and 53 

 personages, we do hope the Society may take the on* 

 into her own hands. 



We do not think in England that we have to struggle 

 against a defective taste— the love of, and the \ :rceS 

 of a good horse seems inherent in the multituie. Bat 

 nevertheless we do consider that the Royal Agricultal 

 Society may do excellent service by giving to thepohfie 

 good models. We do not want the negative to gride 

 us to excellence, but the positive. And as in art, no 

 man attains to a true appreciation of beauty by the 

 study of defect, neither as a breeder can a man rath 

 to the perfection of the type but by an intimate stndj oi 

 its harmonious proportions. And there are types bejoad 

 which the breeder cannot go, for the same rale wooU 

 seem to apply in the breeding of horses as in the breed- 

 ing of horned cattle. It is now proved that considenbk 

 prizes will bring out valuable animals of this sort, id 

 all we hope to see is, that the Society making use of fc 

 power she possesses, the farmers will show the appre- 

 ciation of her efforts by strengthening her hands. 



The six classes to which these breeds are corfW 

 contain 59 entries. At Lincoln there were but tie 

 classes and 17 entries. 



The thorough bred stallions were well repreaentei 

 " Ravenhill " and " A British Yeoman * compete nj 

 closely. The former is an Irish bred horse ; he takei 

 the prize offered by the mayor. For our part we prefer 

 "The British Yeomau," who is certainly a fine hone, 

 and receives more lustre from his stock exhibited in 

 the yard than « Ravenhill " does from his, which are 

 more abundant. The coaching stallions might have been 

 better, we thought. Mr. Shaw showed three, tor » 

 of which he received the prize. This horse struc* » 

 as being a most perfect model of the class, not so hearj 

 as of yore, but more in keeping with our increasing «■■ 

 of speed. It is extremely difficult to )^°[^ 

 animals ; we see them only in a state of q^ 6 ** ^ 

 Many a horse has fatal imperfections that od1 ?J^ 

 themselves when he is in motion. It is q ulten f^ 

 that we hold our own opinions in abeyance to toe 

 sion of the judges, and the public should viewer 

 the light of « confidential friends » ^med^ 

 with foals at foot are exquisitely beaut itm w 

 possessing lines of symmetry that every breea ^ 

 ! imprint indelibly upon his memory, lake &ir ^ 

 Lawson's "Madam," the winner of the s p ' f^ 

 instance ; take Miss Bell's " Vuuitress" (aad 1 heN» 

 foal by " Ravenhill"), or take Mr. Pybuss 

 Hudson/ 1 as examples. r n£ ft* 



May this good beginning have a good en^ % 



result being increased attention to toe m ^ 

 class of horses for which England has ever 

 deservedly famous. H. R. 



GARDENS FOR COUNTRY SCHOOL? 



I refer to the uses of a garden or a J < JJ£j» 



illustrating doctrines in the tneoy «• „ ^ 

 conferring B bodilj skill in the ™J* **%£** + 

 as increasing the emoluments of the teacher 



of the school. . t t jj e tbeoij «* 



The assertion which I make- tt»t \^^j » 

 practice of cultivation can be eftcien , ^ 



garden-is proved by a number of »ei ^ 



fc Professor Daubeny's . lustra *onj ' ^ i 

 before the Royal Agricultural Soctfty ^ ^» 

 the power of successive crops oi^.^j 

 exhaust the land off which they ^J^e* * J 

 were taken from garden plots ; . i lveriza tion « . 

 ability of the cult.vator _by careful pul^ ^ 



nod *Jv 



built upon his ooservaw- -- . ^. aS after* Br f , . hetf . 

 garden rows, though no doubt it • ^d£, 



borated by experiments m held ci ^ *«jj^ 

 perimonta of the Rev. S. Snu th, ^ , e ^ 

 {he same kind, though extended ^ov rfed^. 



well be prosecuted m a laige g p i e te »"*- - 



illustrate his views. The mo,t »P 0eTtB t 

 periments on the relative value ot 



lants 



