392 
Field Ejrpcrimcnts on Potatoes. 
Barley bread is still eaten on St. Martin's. 
There are two days in the week on which meat is offered for 
sale in the little market house at Hugh Town. Each farmer is 
his own salesman, and, as the joints are generally bespoken, the 
business is quickly despatched. Beef, mutton, and geese are 
sold at the same price per pound. 
Shops are numerous in Hugh Town. The proprietors find it 
vmprofitable to restrict themselves to a special branch of trade, so 
they keep a miscellaneous stock. 
They will not always give money for farm produce, especially 
roots and butter, but oblige farmers to take their goods in ex- 
change. 
With respect to the state of agriculture on the Scilly Isles, we 
need scarcely say that there is much room for improvement. It 
certainly suffers from the smallness of the farms, and from the 
ignorance of the farmers on many points connected with good 
systems of husbandry. The latter defect might be remedied if 
the proprietor of the islands employed as his steward and as his 
bailiff, men well acquainted with the best methods of British 
farming. The one, in his personal intercourse with the tenantry, 
•would have many opportunities of influencing their practice. 
The other, in his management of the home farm, might show to 
the islanders the style of farming best suited to their peculiar 
circumstances. 
XXI. — Field Experiments on Potatoes. By Dr. Augustus 
VOELCKEB, F.E.S. 
Int 1867 I published the results of some experiments on potatoes, 
which 1 instituted in 1866, with the special object of ascer- 
taining bow far the artificial supply of potash-salts, either alone 
or in conjunction with phosphatic manures, favours the pro- 
duction of a crop of potatoes. Since then similar experiments 
have been carried out, under my direction, from year to year, in 
various parts of England, by several of my agricultural friends. 
The present report embraces experiments which were made in 
1867 by my former pupils, Mr. S. Raillow Hetherington, Carle- 
ton, Carlisle, and Mr. George Maw, of Benthall Hall, Broseley, 
the author of a Prize Essay on ' Results of Experiments on the 
Potato Crop,' with reference to the most profitable size of the 
sets, &c., in the years 1864 and 1865, at Benthall, which will 
be found in Part II. of the volume of this Journal for 1867. 
Unfortunately the potato crop in 1867 suffered much from 
disease, and many parts of the country turned out very badly. 
