14 



ENVIRONS OF XERES. 



diameter ; over this wheel passes a flat band, made of a 

 kind of grass, to which earthen pots are attached over 

 its whole extent. The pots go down empty at one side 

 and come up full at the other. The water is thus raised 

 to a cistern of sufficient elevation to send the water to the 

 town, about a mile off*. It struck me that any settler 

 of New South Wales could construct such a piece of 

 machinery with his own men, and even without the aid of 

 a mechanic. 



Tuesday, Ath of October. — About 10 this morning, in 

 company with my indefatigable friend Dr. Wilson, I 

 started to visit the vineyard of Don Pedi'o Domecq, 

 celebrated, under the name of Machar Nudo, for pro- 

 ducing first-rate sherry wines. After quitting the im- 

 mediate vicinity of the town, we passed over open downs 

 which bore the appearance of having been under crop, 

 but without a single enclosure or land mark so far as we 

 could observe. The downs were skirted on the left by 

 the chalky hills {alharizas), covered with the vine, and 

 carefully enclosed by hedges of the prickly pear and aloe, 

 planted as usual on the tops of high banks. We passed 

 three ploughs at work, following on the same furrow. 

 The plough is of the rudest construction, exactly similar 

 to what are represented in those plates which exhibit 

 the first invented implements of agriculture. There is 

 no mould-board, and the plough consequently makes only 

 a series of drills, without turning a single furrow. It 

 has only one handle, and is sometimes held in the right 

 and sometimes ^n the left hand, the mules with which 

 they generally plough being guided and driven with the 

 other hand. As usual, when riding among vineyards, we 

 entered the albarizas through a road between steep 

 banks and hedges — the bottom of the road being in 



