Breaking vp Grass Laud. 
507 
varying the rotation, and with excessive yields. Lands of this 
quality can readily be replenished, and their productive powers 
kept up. 
It is, in fact, impossible to prescribe bounds to the productive 
powers or capabilities of such soils, if kept clean, properly culti- 
vated, and supplied with dung. It is an important inquiry 
whether such lands should, under any circumstances, remain 
under grass .'' They are exceedingly valuable as pasture, but, 
under culture far more so, and the expense of labour in culti- 
vation being by no means excessive, a great amount of food is 
produced at a small cost to the farmer. It is objected — that 
these lands, being capable of producing so much animal food, 
ought not to be disturbed. The converse of this is, however, the 
case : — the better the land the greater the produce under arable 
culture. It might be shown very readily, that if such lands were 
merely and solely devoted to the growth of the best artificial 
grasses, and these mown and given to cattle or sheep in hammeJs 
or bj/rcs, the result or proof in weight of beef and mutton would 
be quadrupled, and the manure thus made would keep it in fer- 
tility. It must be remembered that the lands here alluded to 
are the deep, open loams — not the loamy clays ; these may pro- 
bably be best under pasture, but the deep friable loams ought 
to be brought into cultivation, and would in such way best pay the 
tenant, and yield a higher rent to the landlord. 
In respect to the veiy poor or inferior' grass lands, it may be 
questionable how far they will pay for cultivation : that they are 
of but little value under grass is very certain ; the cold and wet 
mountain-pastures, and low swampy valleys or lands incapable of 
efficient drainage, cannot be brought into profitable culture; but 
the col<l, heavy, and thin clays, moor-lands, and heath-lands, 
<S:c., will, under the alternate course of husbandry, be most pro- 
fitable to the farmer, supposing their locality easily accessible, 
l^he heath-lands of Lincolnshire, which are synonymous with 
the do'.vn-lands of the southern counties, have, by judicious cul- 
tivation, become some of the most productive in the kingdom. 
One recently l)rought into cultivation (Welby-warrcn, near Gran- 
tham) is now producing beautiful crops of turnips, barle}-, seeds, 
and wheat. 
Cold clays will produce remunerative crops under proper 
rotati(ms pnd good drainage. The farmer will find it to his 
advantage to cultivate such, rather than continue them under 
grass, and he can command the necessary aid to render them 
productive, which is chiefly through pulverization and the due 
application of rape-cake, or other artificial manures. The late 
Lord Leicester's property in East Norfolk was of very little 
value before he commenced its improvement ; it let for about 
vor,. VII. 2 M 
