424 
Cultivation of Waste Lands. 
this tract is extremely banen, and in its natural state not worth 
a rental of one sliilling per acre. It consists of a mixture of 
numerous earthy ingredients, every one of which is totally infer- 
tile ; coarse red sand, alternating Avith a light gray sand, coming 
up quite to the surface. In some places a black earth, an inch 
or two deep, is found, whilst running through the whole are 
many gritstones, some of enormous dimensions. Over the whole 
is spread a short, stunted growth of heath, though in some places 
the land is too poor to grow even heath or moss. Such is the 
unpromising nature of the soil to be worked upon. 
First. It is desirable that, in accordance with the practice 
usually adopted in North Staffordshire, but close to Cheshire, 
the moorland intended to be cultivated should be divided into 
square fields of four or five acres each, though fields of eight or 
nine acres in extent may be found where nothing but heath or 
gorse once grew. As stones are close at hand and plentiful, and 
the cost of conveyance little or nothing, the cheapest and most 
effectual method for inclosing the fields is by a stone wall ; 
which, if well built to commence with, will continue good for 
generations without further expenditure or care ; the original cost 
being sixpence per lineal yard, more or less, according to the way 
in which the work is done. 
When the land is properly inclosed, the next process com- 
mences with digging or trenching, and clearing it of stones ; 
a work generally designated by the term " ridding." This " rid- 
ding" is effected in two or three ways. The usual method is, 
after making a trench twelve inches in depth, to put the surface 
soil with the heath attached, at the bottom of the trench, and 
then to cover it up by the still more barren subsoil. The surface 
heath-clod is thus buried to the depth of 8 to 12 inches, and left 
there for years to rot. The cost of " ridding " to the depth of 
12 inches is usually from 25. to 2^. Q)d. per Cheshire rood of 
64 square yards (8 X 8), which would be equivalent to 8/. or 9/. 
per statute acre ; if less than 12 inches deep the cost will be less, 
but never under Is. per 64 square yards. This method of rid- 
ding, however, I do not approve, as I may have occasion here- 
after to mention. 
The first crop usually grown, after the clearing has been 
effected, is a green crop, such as potatoes or turnips ; for my own 
part I give the preference to the former, as the produce of 
potatoes is much more satisfactory than that of turnips grown on 
the newly turned-up soil. In the year 1867 the potatoes grown 
on 15 roods of land of 64 square yards to the rood, yielded 7 
loads of 240 lbs. to the load, all sound, as they usually are on 
fresh ridded ground ; whereas the turnips grown in the same 
field yielded not more than 5 or 6 tons per acre. 
