The  Yorkshire  Farm-Prize  Competition , 1883. 
519 
but  grass  was  by  no  means  plentiful.  For  this  reason,  most  of 
the  grazing  cattle  were  still  confined  to  the  byres,  getting  hay 
and  water,  in  some  cases  with  the  addition  of  a little  cake. 
A third  inspection  was  made  immediately  before  the  York 
Show.  A few  of  the  farms  that  were  clearly  out  of  the  running 
were  not  visited.  It  is  due  to  the  occupiers  of  these  farms  to  state 
that  there  was  attached  to  most,  if  not  all,  of  their  holdings, 
some  points  of  interest,  which  would  have  made  it  a pleasure  to 
the  Judges  to  have  gone  over  them  again  ; but  the  interests  of 
the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  had  to  be  placed  before  personal 
gratification.  On  this  inspection  the  farms  could  not  be  said 
to  change  their  actual  positions  in  the  race,  yet  the  distance 
between  some  of  them  did  become  a little  more  pronounced. 
The  erratic  nature  of  the  season  had  told  heavily  in  the  East 
Riding.  In  the  early  part  of  the  week  of  our  visit,  the  Wolds 
had  been  visited  by  a succession  of  thunderstorms,  which  cul- 
minated in  a terrific  hailstorm.  Evidence  of  the  terrible  havoc 
wrought  was  only  too  frequently  presented  to  us.  A more 
detailed  account  of  the  effect  of  the  storm  will  be  given  in 
the  Report  on  Mr.  Watson’s  farm. 
Speaking  of  the  county  as  a whole,  and  excepting  some  of  the 
competing  farms,  the  grain-crops  seen  from  the  route  of  the 
Judges  were  disappointing.  The  most  luxuriant  crops  which 
came  under  our  observation  were  some  large  fields  of  potatoes 
in  the  Escrick  neighbourhood,  and  their  appearance  was  simply 
splendid.  We  at  once  put  them  down  as  grown  with  “ Cole- 
man’s recipe.”  It  would  be  interesting  to  know  how  far  we 
were  right  in  our  conjecture.  Another  remarkable  feature  of 
this  district  was  the  prevalence  of  Dutch-barns,  covered  yards, 
and  commodious  comfortable-looking  homesteads. 
We  should  be  wanting  in  courtesy  if  we  omitted  to  acknow- 
ledge the  hospitality  which  everywhere  greeted  us  along  the 
route,  also  the  frankness,  and,  so  far  as  we  know,  the  honesty 
which  characterised  the  answers  to  our  inquiries.* 
Class  I. — First  Prize. 
Mr.  R.  E.  Turnbull's  Farms: — Twyers  Wood  and  East  Parity 
Burton  Constable. 
The  following  are  particulars  supplied  by  Mr.  Turnbull,  of  the 
farms  he  at  present  occupies. 
* Application  was  made  to  the  new  Department  of  Agriculture  for  the  Agri- 
cultural Statistics  for  Yorkshire  for  18S3.  These  were  eventually  promised  to  bo 
forwarded  by  the  middle  of  September,  but  up  to  this  date,  the  10th  of  October, 
they  have  not  reached  me.  Hence  in  this  Report  no  reference  is  made  to  the 
Agricultural  Statistics  for  Yorkshire.; — T.  B. 
