190 
A Joint-Stock Farm in the Netherlands. 
45 acres were grown and gave an average yield of only 10 tons 
per acre, whereas the general average is 16 tons. The price 
obtained is only I65. 8(f. per ton, but then Mr. van den Bosch 
buys back diffusion pulp at 5s. per ton, and press pulp at 10s. 
per ton. In 1879 he stipulated for 600 tons of the latter at that 
price, so that he actually bought one-third more feeding-material 
than he sold, and at a very advantageous price. 
As maize is rarely grown in England as a fodder crop, it may 
be well to state that the land is prepared as for mangolds. The 
stubbles are steam-cultivated after harvest, and ploughed by 
horses or steam in November. At the end of March the land 
is harrowed, and in April it is put in ridges. Fourteen tons 
per acre of farmyard-manure is generally used, but sometimes a 
smaller quantity supplemented by dissolved guano. As a rule, 
however, dissolved guano, or a mixture of dissolved bones and 
nitrate of soda, is only used for wheat or oats, at the rate of a 
little more than 1^ cwt. per acre. 
It will be noticed that peas are grown after carraways and 
after seeds. In the latter case they are a blue sort, and last 
year this was the only crop that fetched a high price. These 
blue peas are extensively used for domestic and naval purposes, 
and as the yield is nearly 40 bushels per acre, the return is 
highly satisfactory. About 3 bushels per acre are drilled by a 
Hornsby's machine. They are first horse-hoed, then hand-hoed 
several times at a cost of 4s. per acre each time. The same 
system is applied to all crops except roots, which are horse-hoed 
several times. 
The peas are gathered about the second week in July, and 
the land is steam-cultivated and crossed soon afterwards, har- 
rowed, and left for the weeds to rot. In the middle of September 
it is ploughed and harrowed, and in October drilled with wheat 
or winter barley, the seed being harrowed in. Mr. van den 
Bosch sows either Essex rough chaff, Rivett's, or Zeeland wheat, 
using 6 pecks per acre ; and he finds that the first gives an 
average yield of 6 to 7 bushels per acre more than the native 
sort, but it is more liable to sprout in wet harvests. A good 
crop is 45 bushels, but in some years it measures more.* 
Harvesting is done partly with the sickle and partly with 
machines, — Hornsby's, Howard's, Samuelson's, and Johnston's 
being all in use. The cost of reaping with the sickle is 8s. to 
10s. per acre, including sheafing, binding, and stooking, which 
operations alone cost about 3s. Ad. per acre when the crop is cut 
by machine. During harvest a labourer can earn 15s. per week, 
his wife 10s., and a child up to 5s. 
♦ la 1874 the crop of wheat averaged 50 bushels per acre. 
