at the Southampton Meeting, 1844. 
377 
seed-wheat beautifully. A quantity of road-dust was stored up in 
the summer, and I iiave obtained perfect control over the damp 
manure by mixino; the two as required." 
Dibbling Machines. — Particular notice was taken in the Report 
of the meeting held at Liverpool in 1841 {Journal, vol. ii., App. 
cvii.), of a seed-dibbling machine invented by Mr. Newberry. 
It has since undergone successive alterations and improvements, 
especially in respect of the mechanical deposition of the seed, 
therein alluded to. The judges at Southampton gave minute 
attention to this faculty, as possessed by an improved machine ex- 
hibited by Messrs. Saunder and Newberry, of Hook Norton and 
Bioxham. They report that the number of corns of wheat which 
issued in twenty-five droppings varied from one to seven, in the ex- 
treme — the averagfe of the whole beinef somewhat more than four 
at each drop ; but they observe that " the machine formed the 
holes and deposited the seeds very well," though with the irre- 
gularity of number mentioned. The price of the implement is 
considered by them as too great for the tenant-farmer : they also 
suggest tliat " the same end might be gained, and at much less 
expense, by using the common hand-dibble to follow in the track 
of a presser." 
Ttie practical value and performance of such an implement are 
evidently only to be measured and ascertained by its success, as 
manifested by the crops resulting from its use, taken in conjunction 
with the saving of seed, and other considerations. The writer 
has been furnished by Mr. Pusey with the following commentary 
on these practical points : — 
" Mr. Newberry's dibbling machine is much liked by many 
farmers who have used it in Oxfordshire, and I tried it myself in 
the autumn before last. It is complicated, yet accurate in its 
construction. It is also heavy ; but on light land, for which it 
seems calculated, that very weight is in fact an advantag:e, at least 
for wheat, because in pressing down the dibbles into the land it 
makes a solid bed for the seed — the advantage of which, on light 
land, is well known to practical farmers. In fact, the wheat- 
plants which had been dibbled with this machine looked as if they 
were growing upon strong land, being far more vigorous than 
those which had been drilled by their side. During the severe 
drought of May and June, the dibbled wheat was taller and also 
stronger in the straw, because the compression of the soil enabled 
it better to retain its natural moisture. When ripe, the ears were 
longer and much better filled ; but, in consequence of the varia- 
tions in the soil of the trial lots, the difference of yield could not 
be fairly tested. The quantity of seed used was \\ bushel instead 
of 2^, the amount commonly sown here with the drill. The 
allowance, however, is sometimes reduced to a bushel ; and at Mr. 
