the Royal Agricultural Society. 
13 
the course is unusually hard or deep, and the best horse is 
passed by one which he has beaten before and will beat again 
under any ordinary circumstances. Yet, notwithstanding these 
extreme cases, no one denies that, as a general rule, the best 
horse wins the race, and, above all, no one suggests that exami- 
nation bi/ competent judges would be a satisfactory mode of 
ascertaining the speed and bottom of a race-horse. 
The mistake, as it appears to us, which is committed by the 
opponents of the prize system, is that they fix their attention too 
exclusively on the defects and shortcomings from which no system 
is free, and thus lose sight of the sterling advantages which belong 
to it, and which have been so long enjoyed that they are taken as 
a matter of course. For instance, Mr. Morton quotes an instance 
from the Warwick meeting, where a new man appeared as plough- 
wright and took many of the principal prizes. This he considers 
unjust to other makers, whose ploughs made nearly as good work. 
He adds, that it would not make a difference of one penny an 
acre whether the prize plough (Messrs. Hornsby's) or Messrs. 
Howard's or liansome's were adopted as the implement of the 
farm. This is probably true ; but if there had been no com- 
petitive trials, how would it have been known that a few of the 
leading makers' ploughs were so equal that they might be used 
indifferently? Would not buyers of implements, instead of con- 
fining their attention to those which at Warwick and other shows 
had won the Society's prizes, have been just as likely to have 
bought the rubbish which year after year has been steadily elimi- 
nated from the sterling implements ? Had there been no dis- 
tinctive marks of ascertained merit, many a worthless implement 
would by the help of red and blue paint have made a brave show, 
and, if puffed by a plausible salesman, would for a season or two 
have sold as well as the best, until disappointed buyers found 
that they could place no dependence on the machines exhibited, 
and the Society's' shows would have justly forfeited their prestige, 
because they had previously lost their usefulness. 
What was the case at the Cambridge meeting which was held 
before the prize system could be said to have commenced ? The 
great feature of the implement-yard was what would be termed in 
Kensington English Messrs. Ransome's Trophy. How was it de- 
scribed in the report of that meeting ? "A bank of their ploughs 
(eighty-six varieties) were arranged and elevated on planks to the 
height of at least 20 feet, and struck the eye of the beholder as he 
entered the yard." We can give the actual experience of a would-be 
buyer on this occasion, who was at once attracted to Messrs. Ran- 
some's stand, but found himself utterly puzzled by the eighty-six 
varieties above named. There were no prize-cards or medals of 
