85 



mises, yet exceeding the hay crops ever raised in Eng- 

 land. 



Their late Transactions show, that of themselves they 

 took a most judicious step ; and by proposing a premium 

 for the cultivation of their own agrostides, brought a most 

 important point to issue ; and having luckily fallen into the 

 hands of an acute and patient gentleman, the Rev. W. B. 

 Barter, have ascertained, as I shall prove from Mr* 

 Barter s facts, that the English agrostides are inferior to 

 the Irish, both in the quantity and sweetness of their hay; 

 and yet exceed, in quantity at least of their crops, those of 

 any other grasses they mow in England. 



The Bath Society, having kept pace with me so long, 

 will not 1 hope decline to follow me one step farther; and 

 havino^ tried what their own agrostides can do under cul- 

 tivation, when planted out, will permit me to try through 

 them, if I can call their spontaneous agrostides into luxu- 

 riance as I can do our own. We have now a new motive 

 common to us both, for the Bath Society seems as anxious 

 to find employment for the industrious and unoccupied, as 

 the Board of Agriculture, or myself : let us then make our 

 joint effort on the alpine wastes of Dartmoor. My hopes 

 of success are sanguine ; and should we fail, we have the 

 comfort of knowing that no other has as yet succeeded. 



My measures are already fully detailed ; the local appli- 

 cation of them alone remains. Let the Bath Society 

 persuade the proprietors of the ground I shall describe, 

 to permit them to improve at the utmost two acres for ex- 

 periment at their own expense, the produce belonging still 

 to the proprietor ; who must be interested as owner of the 

 contiguous ground, whose improvement depends on the 

 success of the experiment. 



One acre of grassy sole, ^nd one acre of heath, the 

 former not too shallow, and the peat of the latter not 



