320 



On the Farming of Svffolk. 



plough his fallows a certain number of times — in Suffolk, fre- 

 quently 5 or 6 — the farmer, if a little behind-hand, which will 

 frequently occur, either from an excess of dry or of wet weather, 

 will perhaps lose the opportunity of sowing his root crops, merely 

 because he has not yet given the regular allowance of ploughings 

 which he is hound to give, and which the land is obliged to receive, 

 without considering whether he is doing good to the land or to 

 himself by such proceedings. 



The farmer has often been told, and doubtless with some 

 reason, that he follows in the footsteps of his father and grand- 

 father without stepping out of the way to make improvements in 

 the cultivation of the soil ; but as the manner of cultivating that 

 soil by a fixed system, is often chalked out by a lawyer who is 

 not competent to judge of its suitableness to the land, and from 

 which the farmer is not allowed to deviate, how can it be expected 

 that he should do otherwise than tread in the footsteps of those 

 who have preceded him ? 



The amount of game is also a great drawback to improvement 

 on much of the light land ; but any remarks concerning game are 

 uncalled for in this report, and would not in any degree promote 

 the interests of those who occupy farms where game is preserved ; 

 for these are entered upon with an understanding that the game is 

 to be preserved, and consequently the tenant pays a proportionably 

 lower rent : in other words, " Game-farms are, or ought to be, 

 let at game-rents." 



The greater part of the farm-buildings of Suffolk, improved as 

 they may have been since the time of Arthur Young, are yet far 

 behind the cultivation of the soil, particularly those on the heavy 

 land. In every village are to be seen buildings arranged in 

 every form except that which would give economy in the manu- 

 facture of manure, or in the feeding of cattle. Large and ex- 

 pensive barns there are — necessary, perhaps, for flail-threshing 

 and seed-farming, but good and convenient accommodation for 

 cattle is nearly disregarded. In a word, many of the Suffolk 

 farmeries consist only of barns for storing and threshing grain, 

 of a stable and yard for cart-horses, and a shed for the shelter 

 of machines ; the shelter afforded to cattle is frequently inferior 

 to that for carts and v/aggons ; a horsepond, the colour of the 

 water contained in it giving evident indications of the presence 

 of liquid manure, is the indispensable adjunct to the buildings; 

 and it may be said, that one of the greatest improvements re- 

 quired is in the erection of farm-buildings with greater accommo- 

 dation for the housing cattle and the manufacture of manure, the 

 threshing of grain, and the preparation of food for cattle. The 

 expenditure for the repair of buildings of this description, built 

 with a view to economy (where stone or brick cannot be obtained. 



