604 



THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE. 



[Sept. 8, 1855. 



than 9 1 stones each, equal to about 19 lbs. per qr.; the 

 long-woolled Leicester, again, giving an >qual weight of 

 mutton with the short-woolled Sussex after six weeks' 

 shorter time on fattening food, though probably, it is 

 true, not in point of fact six weeks younger, owing to 

 their earlier date of lambing. Of the cross-breds, the 

 wethers gave about 9, and the ewes about 8i stones of 

 meat per head — equal respectively to about 18 and 



17 lbs. per quarter. 



The Hampshires, therefore, after an equal length of 

 time on fattening food, were brought to about one-third 

 more carcase-weight per head than the Sussex sheep. 

 The Cotswolds, with six weeks less on fattening food than 

 either the Hampshire or Sussex sheep, gave an equal 

 carcase- weight with the former and one-third more than 

 the latter. And again the Cotswolds, with an equal 

 length of time on fattening food, gave about one-third 

 more carcase- weight than the Leicesters, and nearly 

 one-half more than the cross-breds. From the Journal 

 of the Royal Agricultural Society of England. 



A 



SKETCH OF PIPE IRRIGATION IN 



SCOTLAND, Jilne, 1855. 



(Concluded from p . 587). 



On the 2Gth of May we visited the celebrated farm 

 of Myre Mill, in Ayrshire, belonging to one Mr. Ken- 



dy, and occupied by another gentleman of the same 

 name. We took the first train from Glasgow to Ayr, 

 and then proceeded about 9 miles through a pleasant 

 and well cultivated country. We did not find Mr. 

 James Kennedy at home, but were shown over the 

 buildings by a very intelligent man. The farm consists 

 of about 230 acres, all laid with iron pipes ; but Mr. 

 Kennedy has two other farms near at hand, making 

 altogether about 700 acres which he occupies. There 



In 1854 



It was 



are about 60 acres under Italian Rye-grass. 

 27 tons weight were cut at the first cutting, 

 cut four times, and then pastured : 600 sheep and 230 

 beasts are kept on this food in summer. The sheep are 

 changed three times in the course of the year, or rather 

 there are three lifts or sales. The sheep-house was the 

 most remarkable feature here. It contained 460 sheep 

 in pens, with sparred floors raised 18 inches from the 

 ground, 104 feet by 7 ; width of house 18 feet, one side 

 opening at pleasure with sliding wooden rails ; a feeding 

 passage of 4 feet wide down the centre. There are 10 

 cheep in a pen. The man who had charge of the sheep 

 said that he thought a better width for the house would 

 he 16 feet, so as to give more front for the pens to the 

 feeding trough, by making them 12 feet by 6 feet. The 

 black-faced Highland wethers seemed to thrive best, we 

 were informed. 



It is worthy of notice that Mr. Kennedy gives his 

 sheep distillery grains, and goes to some expense to 

 obtain them. They are brought all the way from 

 Campbeiltown, in Argyleshire, by steamer, to Ajr, 

 where the cost is 3^d. per bushel ; from thence they 

 are carted 9 miles, with a toll to pay of 6d. per cart. 

 Sheep like them best when old and fermented. There 

 are four tanks for liquid manure, holding 30,000 gallons. 

 The ammoniacal liquor from the gas-works mixed with 

 water is sometimes applied, the liquid being brought in 

 barrels. The Italian Rye-grass seemed to have suf- 

 fered from the late severe winter. It was thin on the 

 ground, with a considerable amount of weeds or natural 

 herbage, and not more than 8 or 9 inches high on the 

 26th of May. The spring sown Grass was coming up, 

 but foul with weeds, thin, and not regular. The cattle- 

 house is 33 feet wide for two rows of cattle, two feeding 

 passages 4 feet 6 inches wide next to the walls ; double 

 stalls 6 feet wide ; stone divisions 4 feet high, length of 

 the stalls 7 feet 6, including stone feeding-troughs. 

 Heel drain 2 feet wide, manure-passage in centre, 5 

 feet between the heel drains. A single rail along the 

 top of the feeding passage, side open from thence down 

 to stone feeding troughs. Floor of stalls tile, no wooden 

 floor ; rails and bedding as usual. There were many 

 cattle besides in boxes, two in each. The pigs were 

 given up, and the houses about to be turned into 

 sheepsheds. 



On the 25th of May we visited the farm of Lagg, 

 about six miles from Ayr, on the property of the 

 Marquis of Ailsa, and in the occupation of Mr. Ralston. 

 This farm is situated at a very high elevation, and the 

 application of the liquid manure is done on the most 

 economical plan. The liquid from the farm buildings 

 is conducted by means of earthen pipes into three small 

 circular open tanks, and from them flows down by 

 gravitation upon about 40 acres of land at a much lower 

 level. Besides the liquid, artificial manures are some- 

 times applied. We were shown one field of 10 acres, 

 where Peruvian guano and sulphate of ammonia had 

 been used on different portions, but in equal quantities. 

 The latter had produced the more marked effect. The 

 Italian Rye-grass had been mixed with Clover, and 

 sown with a Wheat crop the year previous. The two 

 years' old Italian Rye-grass had been all destroyed by 

 the severe winter, and the ground ploughed up. There 

 were two cattle houses for 30 beasts each, but no atten- 

 tion paid to appearances alone. The cattle were in 

 single rows, with a feeding passage at their heads, at 

 one end of which was the boiling-house and an iron rail- 

 way from it along the passage. There can be little 

 doubt that the application of liquid manure, as carried 

 out on this farm, must be remunerative from its econo- 

 mical application. 



On the 25th of May we also paid a visit to Canning 

 Park, the well-known farm of Mr. Telfer, and we 

 derived more gratification from this vitit than from 



any other on our tour, from the fact of forming the 

 acquaintance of the proprietor, whom we found to be 

 not only an exceedingly well-informed and intelli- 

 gent gentleman, but most politely ready to give the 

 results of his scientific studies, his persevering experi- 

 ments, and practical experience. 



The cow-house here has been so often described that 

 we do not propose to enter minutely into it at present ; 

 we can only say this, if the cows are not comfortable 

 here, they can be so nowhere under cover. We found 

 4« tied up in double stalls, 6 feet 6 inches wide, and 

 7 feet 6 inches long from the feeding passage to the 

 heel drain. This drain has a perforated iron bottom 

 to drain away the liquid, and there is a neat shovel on 

 wheels, which fits into it exactly, for removing any solid 

 excrement. Each cow has her own stone feeding 

 trough, and the divisions and pavement of the passages 

 are also of dressed stone. Each cow has matting of 

 cocoa-nut fibre the first 3 feet of her stall to kneel on, 

 and the skirting of the walls behind the cows, we ob- 

 served, was lined 4 feet high with slate. There were 

 sky-lights in the roof with sliding blinds, and double 

 doors and windows made to slide also — glass and wood 

 for winter, and a kind of close net-work of hemp or 

 cocoa-nut fibre for summer. The whole of the arrange- 

 ments for the dairy were excellent. No pains or 

 expense is spared to produce the best description of 

 butter, and we were not surprised to hear that it was 

 sent regularly to London, where it brings a high price, 

 from its superior quality. The whole of the milk is 

 weighed at each milking, for which purpose there is a 

 weighing machine in the cow byre. 



The crops were looking well, notwithstanding the 

 severe winter and spring. Some of the two-year-old 

 Italian Rye-grass had given way entirely, and had to be 

 resown. Mr. Telfer uses the sulphate of ammonia as 

 well as the liquid manure for Ins Italian Rye-grass 

 with the best effect. His young Wheat crop was the 

 thickest we ever saw upon the ground, and we ventured 

 to observe that if each alternate row was removed there 

 would be quite sufficient plants for a first-rate crop. 

 His answer was the result of his last year's Wheat crop, 

 as follows : — On 4| acres of Wheat he averaged 85 

 bushels per acre, of 60 lbs to the bushel, although four- 

 fifths were lodged six weeks before reaping. The straw 

 weighed 5 ton3 to the acre, and the seed sown on the 

 whole field was 12 bushels. One acre produced 108 

 bushels, of 60 lbs. to the bushel. 



It would take up too much space and time to enter 



upon the various subjects, deeply interesting to the 



agricultural world though they be, which were discussed 



during an agreeable interview with Mr. Telfer. It is to 



be hoped that he will himself give the results of his 



experience and various scientific experiments to 



the world in the shape of a pamphlet. There is 



no subject more interesting than the management 



of a dairy farm, and the remunerative results obtainable 



from that most valuable of our domestic animals — the 



cow. We rejoice to see * science combined with practice" 



brought to bear upon the question, and we hope and 



expect before long to be in a condition to know what to 



put into the land and what to take from it again, in 



order to obtain from the cow the greatest proportion of 



milk, or butter, or cheese, according as it suits the 



particular locality of the dairy farmer, and that of the 



best quality. Mr. Telfer is doing much in the right 



direction. 



The last place we visited was in Fifeshire. 



Leaving Edinburgh at half-past 6 a.m., we proceeded by 



the Edinburgh, Perth, and Dundee Railway, crossing 



the Frith of Forth in a steamer to the King's Kettle 



Station, which we reached at 9 a.m. After taking 





looked very clean and healthy ; they had plenty of fresh 

 straw under them for bedding. Besides the byre, there 

 were boxes 10 feet by 14 for containing three beasts 

 each. These had wide sparred doors communicating 

 with the dung court, and which moved up and down by 

 means of balance weights. In the dung court were 15 

 more beasts. This ought to have been covered to make 

 the whole complete. There was an arched tank under 

 it containing 50,000 gallons. The liquid from this was 

 this year carted upon a field where the pipes were not 

 laid ; the field was 12 acres, and it took four water carts 

 1^ days. The crops here had suffered from the winter. 

 The Italian Rye-grass was cutting for the first time, 

 and only 9 or 10 inches long on the 8th of June. 



We give these hasty sketches of some of the establish- 

 ments where the new system of pipe irrigation is carried 

 on in Scotland, in the hope that they may induce others 

 to look into the subject. We have a strong opinion 

 that the system is a good one, but its application is a 

 question of expense, and, to a certain extent, of locality. 

 Where a farm steading is situated in high ground, and 

 the gravitation principle can be used, as at Mr. Ral- 

 ston's farm of Lagg, in Ayrshire, it will surely pay. 

 Where there exists a steam engine or water power on a 

 farm, we believe it will answer also, provided that in 

 both cases there be an abundant supply of water. When 

 new farm steadings are about to be built, it may be well 

 also to prepare for having a portion of the land at least 

 under pipe irrigation, but we require some more accu- 

 rate account of profit and loss, before we can say 

 decidedly that establishments such as that of the Marquis 

 of Breadalbane will be remunerative in a pecuniary 

 point of view. We hope that his lordship will favour 

 the public with a balance sheet by and bye. 



In the case of Mr. Malcolm's (of Poltalloch) farm 

 of Killinochanoch, the result of the first year's trial was 

 a clear profit of 42. 7s. 2\d. per acre, after allowing 35$. 

 per acre of rent upon land, part of which a few years 

 before was not worth as many pence. Here it will be 

 observed that water power existing upon the farm was 

 made use of to pump the liquid manure daily up to the 

 reservoir, from whence it descended again as wanted, 

 by gravitation. 



We conclude this article with something for our 

 agricultural readers- to ruminate on. One ton of Italian 

 Rye-grass is stated from analysis to contain nutritive 

 qualities equal to 4 tons of White Turnip, so that 80 

 tons of Italian Rye-grass, which under the liquid manure 

 system has been grown by Mr. Telfer, and from our 

 own experience, we believe may be grown by any one, 

 on a single acre, are equal in feeding properties to 320 

 tons of White Turnip ! A pretty fair return for one 



acre. J.A.C. 



breakfast at the small 



village 



inn. we walked about 



I 



:• 





a mile and a half to Burn Turk, a farm belonging to 

 Alexander Lawson, Esq. We were not so fortunate as 

 to find him at his farm, but his overseer civilly showed 

 us over the buildings, which are not only very complete 

 but very compact, and as substantial as stone and lime 

 and slates can make them. The farm consists of about 

 150 acres of arable land, 40 of which are under pipe 

 and hose. There were 65 head of cattle in byre, boxes, 

 and yard. The chief byre, or cattle house, was a lofty 

 and spacious apartment, 60 feet long, by 35 feet 6 inches 

 wide, with a feeding passage down the eentre, 5 feet 

 wide, on each side of which was a stone division 4 feet 

 high, with a broad cast-iron ledge or rail on the top, 

 running at the heads of the cattle the whole length of 

 the byre, Hhe cattle stood in double stalls with a 3-inch 

 stone partition between each pair, into which the iron rods 

 were fixed diagonally for the rings of the neck 

 chains to traverse. The stalls were 9 feet 

 including the feeding trough, 19 inches, 

 was divided into three compartments — a 

 centre one for food, and two small ones in each corner 

 for water. The food was admitted through 

 wooden doors in the stone division, opposite the centre 

 of the troughs, and the water by means of a handle in 

 the feeding passage. All the partitions, floors, and 

 troughs were of dressed stone. Behind the cattle was 

 a passage 4 feet 4 inches wide, and a manure drain 

 15 inches wide. Under the feeding passage, which 

 was raised 10 inches or more from the manure passage, 

 was an air pipe communicating with the external at- 

 mosphere, to open or shut at pleasure, with an iron 

 grating opposite to each stall. At one end of the byre 

 was a large room for Turnips, Grass, &c. ; at the other 

 another room for straw, &c, connected with the thresh- 

 ing mill, steam engine of 7-horse power, flour mill, and 

 other machinery, all very complete. The cattle were 

 chiefly crosses between the Angus and short-horn, and 



long, 



This 



lanre 



sliding 



WHAT IS TO BE CONSIDERED THE STAND- 

 ARD COMPOSITION OF SUPERPHOSPHATE 



OF LIME? 

 In attempting to give a reply to this question it will 

 be necessary for me to give the results of analyses 

 of different kind3 of superphosphates ; and before 

 doing so, it may be well to explain the way in which 

 the results are stated, particularly as regards the 

 soluble phosphates. I have already mentioned, that 

 in a superphosphate, part of the phosphate of lime is 

 converted into the Diphosphate by the action of the 

 sulphuric acid, but in the analyses the quantity of the 

 latter is not given, but the phosphates are divided into 

 two portions, called soluble and insoluble phosphates. 

 The mode in which this is to be understood will be best 

 rendered intelligible by an individual example. Thus, 

 on the first of the subjoined analyses, we find 15.08 per 

 cent, of soluble, and 18.01 of insoluble phosphates ; the 

 sum of these, 33.09, expresses the quantity of phosphates 

 existing in the manure previous to the addition of 

 sulphuric acid, and the soluble phosphates are the 

 quantity of common phosphate of lime which is con- 

 verted into biphosphate by the sulphuric acid. < This 

 conversion is effected by the sulphuric acid, of which 

 the proportion is given lower down in the analysis ; 

 and the sulphate of lime which also appears, indicates 

 the quantity of lime which has existed as carbonate m 

 the original substance, or which has been deliberately 

 added for the purpose of drying up and giving bulk to 

 the product It is to be observed, then, that the soluble 

 phosphates actually exist as biphosphate, although not 

 so represented in the analysis ; and though it would be 

 more correct, in a scientific point of view, to give the 

 proportion of biphosphate, yet the course I have em- 

 ployed has advantages for practical purposes, as 1 

 shows the mode in which the manure has been manu- 

 factured. The proportion of sand and of alkaline salts 



requires no comment. , . 



The first two analyses are examples of superphospnat 



apparently made entirely from bones, and in which 

 proportion of soluble phosphates is large. In the on, 

 a small quantity of gypsum, and in the other of alkali 

 salts, has been added, apparently for the purpose 

 drying the product. 



■ - - 



■ • • 



■ • • 



Water 



Organic matt, r 

 Soluble phosphates... 

 Insoluble phosphates 

 Sulphate of lime 

 Sulphuric acid 

 Alkaline salts 



Sand 



• • • 



• • • 



• * • 



• • » 



t • • 



. . . 



1 1 1 



ft ■ • 



• ft ft 

 ■ • • 



• •ft 



• •ft 



• - • 



ft • • 



• • 1 



• ft ■ 



• • . 



• •• 



• • • 



Ammonia 



. 10.70 

 12.74 

 15.08 

 18.01 



2.22 

 18.39 

 13.06 



9.80 



100.00 

 2.07 



II. 



In bothlhese we have examples of superphosphate 



of 





