THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE. 



233 



i ruiJVIAN GUANO. 

 „«,nv TO AGRICULTURISTS. 



C V. l^oZ? thai A a?ten 9 ive .**«*». of this 



MA vLRB.r«.t^carnedon bB3 ^ ^^ 



Aft T I! E 



*tt**Z*£«*^* dFmmud allother * who 



*» t0 F ^Sfthi ^ri'ta torn whom they purchase will of 



TbeC ££, besr ^ecurUy, and in addition to particular atten 



J^^S^^ SY GIBBS AND SONS think n well 



" ^twXchM price at which sound Peruvian 

 q£o haM been sold by them during the last two years 

 • o; *n ver ton, less 2k per cent. 



" a«;£K made by Dealers at a lower price must therefore 

 J±H leave !£*• to them, or theartic le must be adulterated . 



THE LONDON MANURE COMPANY beg to 

 offer, asunder, CORN MANURE, most valuable for 

 dressing— Concentrated Urate, Superphosphate of Lime, 

 i of Soda, Sulphate of Ammonia, Fishery and Agncul- 

 alta GvDSutn, Fosbil Bones, Sulphuric Acid, and every 



the prices of produce, has had more to do with the The mill spmners have had nmcii Uitncuity m 

 profitable disposal of the fallow crops, than with the j obtaining a regular^and liberal supply of Flax of the 



2h!r Artificial Manure ; aiso a cohbuui auyyiy u. ^^^u 

 \5 iForei'Q Linseel-ciike. Peruvian Guano, guaranteed the 

 Maine importation of Messrs. A. Gibbs and Sons, 92. 10s. per 

 fnn or 9/ 5*. in quantities of 5 tons and upwards. 

 wn » or ' H Edward Purser, Secretary. 



40, Bridge-street, Black friars. Lo ndon. ___ 



MANURES. — The following Manures are manu- 

 factured at Mr. Lawes's Factory, Deptford Creek : 



Clover Manure, per ton £11 



Turnip Manure, do. 7 



ftiiTM>ruhosubate of Lime ... 7 





 



Superphosphate of Lime ... * v 



Sulphuric Acid and Coprolites 5 



Office, 69, King William-street, City, London. 

 K.B. Peruvian Guano, guaranteed to contain 16 per cent, of 

 Ammonia, 91. 105. per ton ; and for 5 tons or more, 91. 5s. per 

 too in dock. Sulphate of Ammonia, «fcc. 



M~~ R. J. C. NESBIT, F.C.S., F.G.S., Consulting and 

 Analytical Chemist, Laboratories, 38, Kenningtou-)ane, 

 London.- PRIVATE INSTRUCTIONS in Chemical Analysis, 

 and the most approved methods of making ARTIFICIAL 

 MANURES. Analyses of Soils, Manures, Minerals, &c, per- 

 formed as usual, on moderate terms. 



UANO AND OTHER MANURES.— Peruvian 



Guano of the finest quality ; Superphosphate of Lime ; 

 Gypsum ; Salt ; Nitrate of Soda ; Moffat's Patent Concentrated 

 City Sewage Manure, and all others of known value. — Apply to 

 Maik Fotheroill, 204, Upper Thames-street, London. 



DESICCATED ANIMAL MANURE.— This 

 Manure, which has proved so eminently successful in the 

 •culture of both Cereal and Green Crops, can now be had of the 

 Manufacturers, J. M'Call and Co, 60, Spring Gardens, Man- 

 chester; Ritchie and M'Call, 137, Houndsditch, London ; and 

 of all Agents. Price 61. 10s. per ton, including bags delivered 

 on the rail in Manchester. — Copies of Analysis and Testimo- 

 nials forwarded post free on application. Agents wanted. 



MANURE DEPOT.— PEAT CHARCOAL. 

 TO FARMERS. AGRICULTURISTS. AND OTHERS. 



GH. FOLEY, Essex Coal Wharf, Lea-bridge, 

 • Middlesex, Agent by appointment to the Irish Amelio- 

 ration Society, for the sale of the above. All needful particu- 

 Jars will be given on application at the above address. 



Price oi the unmixed Charcoal, 60s. per ton, sacks included. 

 Mixed with Nightsoil, 45s. per ton, sacks included. 



HOSE FOR LIQUID MANURE, Fire-engine, 

 and agricultural purposes, made of canvass, lined aud 

 Boated with gutta purcha ; it is about one- third the price of 

 leather or india-rubber, will convey liquids of all kinds under 

 a heavy pressure, it is extensively used at the Government 

 public works; also by the navy, and amongst agriculturists, 

 giving ttnivergnl satisfaction. Testimonials and prices may be 

 obtained of Messrs. Burgess and Key, 103, Newgate-street, sole 

 manufacturers. — London Agents : Messrs. Deane, Dray, and 

 Deane, 8 wan-lane ; Messrs. Tilley, Black friars-road. — Country 

 Agents : Messrs, Ransome and Parsons, Ipswich ; Messrs. J. 

 and S. Johnson, Liverpool ; Messrs. Dickson, Hull ; Mr. S. 

 Wilson, Agent for Scotland. 



TRUE YELLOW GLOBE MANGOLD WURZEL 

 SEED, FROM SELECTED BULBS, in quantities of 

 lOIbs. and upwards, at 6d. per lb.; WHITE BBLGIAN 

 CARROT, 9d. per lb. ; FRESH IMPORTED LUCERNE, 9<*. 

 per lb.; ASHCROFT SWEDE, 9<i. per lb.; SKIRVING S 

 LIVERPOOL SWEDE. 8<i. per lb.; DICKINSON'S IM- 

 PROVED ITALIAN RYE-GRASS, 7s. 6d. per bushel. 



Carriage free to London, Bristol, Southampton, «fec. 

 Address— John Sutton and Sons, Seed Growers, Reading, 

 Berks . 



THE METALLIC PAINT, produced by the Patent 

 Alkali Company, has been extensively used for several 

 years on farm-buildings, iron bridges, roofs and railings, 

 shipping, <fcc, and it is admitted that it covers a greater sur- 

 face and stands far better than any other pigment on wood, 

 iron, Abethaw Lime, and Roman Cement. Fine Black, 251. 

 per ton, and Rich Purple-brown, 201. per ton.— Offices of the 

 Company, 1, New Broad-street, Loudon. — John A. West, 

 Secretary. 



^ * w ^ — ± J 



greatly increased production of the grain c ops. 

 Whatever may be the number of bushels of Wheat 

 on an acre that we may aim at, or be satisfied and 

 contented with, its economic production will be closely 

 connected with the profitable disposal of such crops 

 as precede it. A maximum crop of Wheat may 

 soon be reached, which in our climate may not be 

 very safe to push beyond, but as the concentra- 

 tion of cultivation progresses, a wide and boundless 

 field is held out to the husbandman in the variety 

 of fallow crops which can be introduced into the 

 rotation, and where he will find ample scope for 



skill and enterprise. 



The interest and anxiety which are manifested at 

 the present moment, in endeavours to extend the 

 cultivation of Flax, are founded on the belief that 

 this crop might, to a small extent, be introduced 

 with advantage in our rotations, not to supersede 

 grain crops, but only to intervene and assist in their 

 successful culture. We are directed to look to 

 Ireland, where, under its shade, low farming has 

 flourished to an unparalleled condition ; had it not 

 been for the Potato and the Flax crops Irish 

 farmers never had been able to pay such high rents 

 with such a small produce of grain. These crops of 

 themselves are by no means unsuited to the best 

 systems of farming ; but when either has been too 

 much relied upon, great hindrance has arisen to 

 the advancement of agriculture. The linen trade 

 has occupied a very prominent branch in the 

 industrial occupations of the inhabitants of the 

 green isle, from time immemorial. At one period 

 it was much more generally diffused over its 

 surface than at the present day. In most dis- 

 tricts the weavers were (and are so still) scattered 

 over the country — when trade was dull they 

 betook themselves to the labours of the field to 

 gain a livelihood, but when it was brisk, more was 

 gained at the loom, and, consequently, agriculture 

 was then altogether neglected ; a small plot of Flax 

 was grown, and the manufacturing of the produce 

 served to keep a man and his family employed 

 throughout the year. The linen trade in Ireland has 

 been subjected to many ups and downs, which totally 

 overthrew it in some counties, but from which others 

 recovered, and again pushed forward its cultivation 

 under very different auspices. Previous to 1829, 

 Flax was grown over the greater part of Ireland for 

 domestic use, but Ulster and Connaught were the 

 two provinces where the largest export trade was 

 carried on. It is now almost extinct in the latter, and 

 confined to the north of Ireland at the present day. 



In 1829 mill-spun yarns were introduced into the 

 Irish markets, and the same quantity and quality of 



agricultural (Bmttt. 



SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 1851. 



MEETINGS FOB THE FOLLOWING WEEK. 



Wednesday, April IS— Agricultural Society of England. 

 Thumdai, — 17— Airricutural Imp. Soc. of Ireland. 

 Wedhe!»da.t, — 23 -Agricultural Society of England. 

 Thuhsdat, — 54— Agricultural Imp. Soc. of Ire.and. 



It is generally admitted that Great Britain is 

 pecularly adapted for green or fallow crops, 

 yet their conversion to a profitable account is found 

 to be the main difficulty under our system of large 

 farms. In many districts Wheat, at one period, was 

 only grown, when bare-fallowing was practised, but 

 the tables are now turned and the index is almost 

 pointing in the opposite direction ; the circumstances 

 Which rendered cultivation under that system remu- 

 nerative have passed away, and without some change 

 in the management an alteration in contracts will 

 t^ke place. On the best descriptions of land, the actual 

 n $e or maintenance of rents, in sp'te of a decline in 



some yarns for which the home spinners had been for- 

 merly getting Ls\, was sold by the mill spinners for ' 

 5dL ; under such fearful odds, in a trade where wages 

 were already reduced to the lowest point possible, 

 the spinning-wheel was at once doomed to oblivion, 

 and this revolution in the manufacture completely 

 paralysed the linen trade in Ireland. The introduc- 

 tion of large spinning factories in Belfast in 1830 

 had the effect of saving the cultivation of Flax in 

 the north, as a market was got for the fibre, and the 

 yarns were again distributed over the country 

 amongst the weavers, to be converted into cloth. By- 

 and-bye it was discovered that much of the fibre 

 produced in Ireland was of a very superior descrip- 

 tion, and it soon found its way into the English 

 towns, which were in possession of the spinning of 

 fine yarns, and thus a good field was opened up for 

 skill in the cultivation of Flax and its manufacture 



into fibre. 



The Flax is principally cultivated by the small 



farmers in Ireland, who in many districts are well 



skilled in its growth and 



better qualities. Hitherto the finest Flax has been 

 spun in England, while the coarser kinds have been, 

 wrought up in Scotland and Ireland. The two are 

 quite different trades, and the machinery which will 

 do for the one will not answer for the other. The 

 medium price of the Baltic Flax that is at present 

 spinning at Dundee, is only 35/. per ton, the very 

 highest 45/. per ton— but the average price of Irish 

 Flax in the country markets is about 56/. per ton, 

 and some of it brings a very high figure. From this 

 it is very evident that if Flax is to be raised in 

 Britain, fine qualities must be the aim of the 

 growers, as the same amount of labour will be ex- 

 pended whether the produce is good or bad. There 

 is a pretty prevalent opinion at present, that in- 

 ferior land might be very profitably turned to the 

 cultivation of Flax ; in fact, where cereal crops 

 cannot be grown with advantage, it is still believed 

 to be fit for Flax ; it is no doubt a crop that will 

 extract nourishment out of a soil, that has been 

 exhausted by others — but it is not under such cir- 

 cumstances that any good results are to be looked 

 for ; on the contrary, quantity and quality of fibre 

 (which are not inconsistent with each other) must 

 be the aim and great object of growersj; and this 

 will only be obtained by sowing it on sound land and 

 in good condition. In Ireland the best crops are 

 got by sowing on a properly prepared stubble, which 

 has been preceded by lea or a well manured green 

 crop. The manure should not be applied in a moist 

 climate to the crop, as the straw never obtains that 

 ich mellow appearance which is a pretty good 

 test of the quality of the fibre. In Belgium 

 it is often liberally manured, but the greater 

 amount of heat and light counteracts all tendency 

 to a coarse and dull-coloured straw. In fine 

 seasons, a fair quality of Flax may be got on im- 

 proved bogs, but it is very uncertain, and much of 

 the moorland inj Ireland will be capable of grow- 

 ing only the coarsest qualities, until immense im- 

 provements are effected on the land. The same 

 conditions of soil are required for Flax as to grow a 

 fine quality of Oat straw ; by early sowing on land 

 in proper tilth, which is sound, and not over-rich 



with manure. 



Flax might easily be grown to a considerable 

 extent on large farms, but the^ difficulty is its 

 management and conversion into fibre. Companiea 

 are already formed to prepare the straw for the 

 farmers, upon what is known as Schenck's process, 

 which is a mere hastening of the old method, by 

 slightly raising the temperature of the water, and 

 promoting a rapid fermentation, which separates 

 K - - ■ The quality of the 



This 



the fibre from the woody stem. _ _ 



Flax produced is giving every satisfaction, 

 holds out some prospect of Flax culiivation being 

 easily engrafted on our present systems ; the only 

 difficulty which will be encountered in the outset 

 will be to apportion the value of the crop between 

 the growers and the manufacturers of the fibre, 

 which competition will only secure. Before this 

 can be done, however, the grower would be much 

 better to bargain for the crop before it is sown, than 

 run the risk of not getting a fair price for it after it 

 is grown, or a certain price might be fixed upon for 

 dressing, at so much per stone. 



But there is no doubt that it should be the 

 business of the far 

 Flax himself ; the 

 dressing might be 





an I 



of 



m 

 the 



this 



growth 

 consists 



the 



subsequent 

 whole 



There is no other 



handling, 

 profitableness 



which 



crop. mere is no ouier grow r n 



varies so much in the value of the produce, and 



holds out more temptingly a premium for careful 





and intelligent management. 



to grow and prepare the 

 machinery for scutching and 

 easily attached to the steam 

 or water power on many a farm. An increased 

 amount of manual labour might be employed on the. 

 farm at seasons when it is difficult to find work for 

 labourers, and this would be a valuable reserve to 

 turn out to other operations which demanded 

 despatch. If we were inclined to hazard an opinion, 

 we would say that it is very probable that Schenck's 

 process will come into use where the crops are to be 

 prepared on large farms. The process is exceedingly 

 simple, and the skill would be as easily acquired to 



«„« x^v^, 6 v.~w w Any one may satisfy manage it, as under the old plan of steeping in 



himself of the enormous difference in the prices pools. Mr. Warnes, of Norfolk, has shown the 



which the growers realize, by paying a visit to any advantages of Flax culture on an extended scale, 



of the weekly markets in the north of Ireland, such and the happy results which flow from it when 



as Monaghan, Armagh, or Londonderry. One farmer 

 will be selling his produce at 80/. per ton and 

 upwards — he will talk of the times in hopeful 

 terms, and he will without doubt be in a better 

 position to sell his Wheat at present prices, than 

 another who is only getting 28/. per ton ; things 

 are sure to be going hard with the latter — thus in the 

 same market you will find very different statements 

 from the growers concerning the utility and advan- 

 tages of Flax culture, altogether depending on the 

 management of the crop. The introduction of many 

 of the proposed new methods for preparing Flax 

 fibre will be of little service to the small farmers. 

 It is their interest to keep the preparation of the 

 I Flax in their own hands. 



skilfully carried out ; he has demonstrated its suc- 

 sessful cultivation in conjunction with all the im- 

 proved practices oi modern husbandry; it has not 

 superseded any of the crops in the rotation, but only 

 been the means of turning the others to a better 

 account ; some may do well, in the meantime, to 

 raise a crop for others to prepare the fibre ; but until 

 it is manufactured on the farm, and the waste all 

 carefully husbanded for manure, we question much 

 if it will ever lead to such results as many imagine. 

 Mr. Warnes has long been preaching to the nation 

 in earnest strains as to the advantages of *lax cul- 

 ture, but he seems to have only recently got siicn 

 an audience as are fully determined to silt tne 

 matter to the bottom. /?. 



