Making and burning Draining Tiles. 551 
ought not to be overlooked by the agriculturist, that clover always 
does well after flax. 
The directions given in my little work ' The Farmer,' were 
carefully compiled from more detailed instructions prepared and 
circulated by the Society for encouraging the Cultivation and Im- 
provement of Flax in Ireland. These directions will, I believe, 
be found generally applicable, and always useful, although they 
may not always be sufficient, without other assistance, for enabling 
beginners to conduct the several operations. Where this is the 
case, and whenever there is a deficiency of practical knowledge 
within the district, recourse must be had to aid from a distance, 
for the purpose of obtaining the necessary information. 
London, November 26, 1844. 
XXXI. — On the cheapest Method of making and burning Drain- 
ing Tiles. 
To the Earl Spencer. 
Mv Lord, — The active interest you have so long taken in every 
thing connected with British agriculture, induces me to address 
to you the following communication on the subject of making 
and burning draining tiles, of whatever form, in the readiest and 
cheapest manner. 
My attention has been very foicibly drawn to this subject by 
the high prices demanded by the manufacturers of these indis- 
pensible instruments of agricultural improvement, prices indeed 
so high, that even without the expense of carriage, they must have 
the effect of confining within comparatively very narrow limits 
their adoption. 
It is true that the application of machinery to the producing of 
draining tiles, promised, and in some degree effected a reduction 
in the price of tiles previously made by hand, but owing to the 
mistaken views of those who worked these inventions, in fancying 
they could secure a monopoly of machine-made tiles, in requiring 
a seignorage on tiles made by their machines, and in the high 
cost of those machines, they offered the tiles to the public at so 
high a price that it soon became evident, if draining tiles were 
to be used to the extent required throughout the United King- 
dom, that some other machinery of a less costly description, with 
equal, if not greater powers of production, and with unfettered 
liberty of using it, would be discovered — and this result has 
accordingly taken place. Two machines, worked by hand, have 
been discovered in the course of this year, viz, " Clayton s Ma- 
chine,'' which is a fixture wherever set up, and for which a patent 
has been taken outj the other, called "Hatcher's Machine," 
