22 
Agriculture of Berkshire. 
the upper part of the county : the collection of stable-manure in 
London, from whence it is carted to Paddington, has been largely 
patronised by those farmers who are situate at a reasonable dis- 
tance from the metropolis, and within easy reach of the various 
railway stations on the line. Something like 10,000 tons are 
annually distributed in this way, at a cost of 8s. per ton between 
Slough and Reading, or 10s. below Reading, delivered free at 
the station. 
Wheat. — That part of the wheat-field which succeeds the 
grasses is first attended to, and is ploughed and sometimes 
pressed, when intended for sowing broadcast ; but, as the drill 
is now in almost universal favour, the pressers are generally 
superseded by rollers and clod-crushers. Seed-time commences 
on the cold and poor soils at the latter end of September ; on the 
better soils the last fortnight in October is considered the best 
season : the quantity of seed on the poor soils is 2^ bushels per 
acre, and on the best 2 bushels ; in some cases less, according to 
the condition of the land. 
The varieties of white wheat mostly cultivated are Chittam, 
Swan, Talavera, Trump, and the Rough-chaff Essex ; the three 
former grow very fine in quality but are rather shy yielders, 
the two latter are of good quality and most productive. The 
red wheats most in favour are the Burrell, Red Straw, Lam- 
mas and Nursery, all good yielders and of good quality. 
Immediately the ley-wheat has been put in, the attention is 
directed to that which has to succeed — rape, turnips, beans, or 
peas ; these lands having been previously manured require but 
little labour, and are sown at different times as the sheep 
clear the fields, which is frequently not completed till after 
Christmas. A good deal of the wheat on the light hills is rolled 
in the spring as soon as the sun and wind have dried the land 
sufficiently to let the rollers work ; nothing more is then done to 
it except weeding ; where it looks thin and has lost plant it is 
sometimes hoed. 
The reaping-machine is used in some places with C(msiderable 
success, but not to that extent which it deserves ; the defect, 
however, is not so much in the machine as in those who have 
introduced it, as I shall show under the head of agricultural 
machinery. By far the greater part of the wheat is fagged, 
bound in sheaves and shocked in rows on the lands. When the 
lands run north and south this is a good plan, but on the con- 
trary when they run east and west it is bad : in the former case, 
one side gets the morning, the other the afternoon sun, and as 
the wind is generally between south and west during the harvest 
months the shocks dry quickly, and in wet and unsettled weather 
will take a great deal to make them sprout ; but when the shocks 
