Report on the Farm-Prize Competition of 1885. 557 
Third and fourth year : — Grass, usually cut five times in the 
two years. 
Fifth year : — Oats, and sometimes wheat. 
If the total produce of crops this year were added together, 
and valued even at current market prices, low as they are, 
there would be no difficulty in proving, without any wish to 
concern ourselves with Mr. Ashton's private affairs, that his 
" general management with a view to profit " is on a sound 
basis, and fully meets the requirements of the Society, even 
after taking into account the large amount of capital invested 
in permanent improvements, estimated at 3000/. by the tenant, 
and also the working capital of the farm, possibly 2000/. more, 
and charging a fair rate of interest upon it, and also bearing in 
mind the large labour bill of something like 600/. a year, and 
also the manure bill of nearly 400/. There is, after taking all 
these things into consideration, no immediate reason to fear 
that Mr. Ashton is in danger of requiring " parish relief," — 
a position which would suit his independent energetic habits 
of mind and body as little as any man in England. 
In walking over the farm, some of the crops being grown in 
portions of a field made it a little difficult to ensure the 
various areas under each crop exactly corresponding with the 
the total, especially as the tenant does not himself always know 
the acreage of each portion of the field ; the reader is therefore 
requested to overlook any slight error in this respect that may 
occur. 
The first field visited was the permanent grass near the 
buildings on the south side, which has been laid down since 
1874. It is in this field that the marl was in former years 
excavated ; but the old pit is now covered with a good sward 
over its whole area, say 30 yards square, advantage having been 
taken of a deep natural cutting close by, to conduct a drain from 
the lowest point of the marl pit into it, laying it dry and 
capable of growing good herbage, instead of remaining an 
unsightly eyesore. To return to the grass field itself, it could 
scarcely be called first-rate grass even yet, but it has been well 
top-dressed, and has a well-mixed though not very close herbage. 
It may here be stated that the bulk of the farm lies pretty 
compact on the south side of the homestead and of the London 
and North Western Railway, which intersects the farm ; about 
30 acres lie on the north side of the railway, and the remainder 
between the homestead and the railway. 
The next field contained a 5-acre piece of Webb's Canadian 
oats (the seed for which cost 8s. a bushel), after roots, and sown 
down with seeds. This crop, admirably cultivated and perfectly 
clean, was not quite even, but in July had wonderfully improved. 
