74 



Farming of Northamptonshire. 



at Lamport, has also a portable engine, made by Hornsby of 

 Lincolnshire; Sir Charles employs it also in the sawing up 

 of timber on his estate. 



The most approved winnowing-machines are those made by 

 Mr. Cooch of Harleston, who took a prize at the Northampton 

 Meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society in 1847. He has 

 also invented a very novel machine, called the "Barley Hum- 

 meller," for the purpose of breaking off the horns of the barley 

 when being dressed. Mr. Blackwell, of Twywell, has also been 

 a very noted winnowing-machine maker for many years, and 

 there are a great number of his manufacture in use. Some small 

 occupiers still separate the chaff from the corn by the fan — a very 

 slow and tedious process. Chaff and turnip- cutters are very 

 much used : Gardner's turnip-cutter seems to maintain its supe- 

 riority. The manufacturers of chaff-cutters are too numerous to 

 make a selection. Horse-power is often attached to a chaff-cutting 

 machine ; narrow-wheel waggons, broad-wheel dung-carts, and 

 one-horse Scotch carts are in general use. 



Many of the modem implements seem to have called forth 

 the ingenuity of the makers, but are not always adapted to put 

 into the untutored hands of the agricultural labourer ; and many 

 a farmer has the mortification of seeing a very nice piece of 

 machinery broken or rendered useless by the neglect, inattention, 

 or want of skill of his servant. Strength and durability are not 

 always sufficiently taken into consideration with many imple- 

 ments for daily use in the cultivation of the soil. 



Manures. 



The principal supply of manure is produced from the farm- 

 yard, and when well made and applied to the land in a proper 

 state, is the most durable and beneficial kind of manure, and 

 maintains its superiority over any other artificial dressing. On 

 the first-rate farms cultivated on the four-course system, a very 

 regular supply of manure is made by keeping the cattle on 

 hay, clover, corn, and turnips — thereby converting the straw into 

 manure. These farms are thus kept in good condition without 

 any outlay for artificial compounds. On the generality of farms 

 a constant and liberal supply of this necessary commodity for 

 good farming is very difficult to obtain, and recourse is had to 

 every expedient within reach to increase the quantity and improve 

 the quality of the manure heap. The cleaning up from the sides 

 of hedges, and the scourings out of ditches, with road scrapings, 

 are carted together, and either deposited at the bottom of the 

 farm-yard or manure-heap. Cattle are fed on com and oilcake ; 

 sheep have a liberal supply of corn and turnips ; pigs are fat- 

 ^ tened, and very little straw is consumed by cattle, but is used for 



