Farming  of  Gloucestershire. 
155 
crops  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Severn,  though,  as  the  name 
imports,  they  are  of  a lighter  character,  usually  considered  better 
fitted  for  producing  rye  than  wheat.  Wheat  is  now  grown  under 
fair  management  to  a profitable  extent,  being  from  14  to  25 
bushels  per  acre  under  the  4 and  5 course  system  of  husbandry. 
One  thing  peculiar  is  the  use  of  lime  as  an  alterative,  or  as 
manure  necessary  for  the  production  of  the  usual  crops.  On  the 
part  usually  termed  “ Over  Severn,”  on  the  new  red  sand  and 
red  marl,  the  land  is  of  a stronger  texture,  and  much  more  diffi- 
cult to  manage  than  the  appearance  of  the  land  would  lead  us  to 
expect.  This  arises  from  its  tendency  to  run  and  cake  together 
after  heavy  rains,  especially  when  it  partakes  of  the  saliferous  marls, 
and  is  without  the  large  particles  of  the  new  red  sand.  Much  of 
this  land  requires  draining,  which  would  in  a great  measure  coun- 
teract this  tendency,  and  it  is  essential  not  to  work  it  down  too 
fine  before  winter.  Although  called  red  marl,  it  does  not  contain 
more  than  one-fifth  of  lime,  showing  that  closeness  or  hollowness 
depends  on  the  quantity  of  lime  contained  in  the  soil,  and  that  on 
clayey  soils  a deficiency  is  more  dangerous  than  an  excess.  On 
these  heavy  close  soils  the  cropping  and  management  are  much 
the  same  as  on  the  heavy  lias  clays  adjoining,  having  naked 
fallows  in  nearly  every  course. 
Usual  Courses  of  Cropping. 
1.  2 
Fallow.  Wheat. 
Wheat.  Fallow. 
Vetches.  Barley. 
Wheat.  Beans. 
Peculiarities  of  Management. 
The  first  peculiarity  I shall  mention  has  long  been  practised 
on  the  elevated  thin  light  soil  of  the  Cotswolds,  and  the  sensible 
farmer  will  not  easily  be  induced  to  abandon  it,  although  it  may 
sound  oddly  in  the  ears  of  the  Essex  farmers,  located  on  deep 
loamy  and  marly  clays.  The  Cotswolds,  as  already  shown,  are 
composed  almost  entirely  of  calcareous  rock,  ranging  from  100 
to  200  feet  in  thickness,  having  at  or  very  near  the  surface  a 
covering  of  rubble  unmixed  with  soil ; and  upon  this  a thin 
brownish  soil  of  from  3 to  5 or  6 inches  thick.  The  rubbly  por- 
tion just  under  the  soil  is  very  porous,  and  the  water  passes  quickly 
through  it.  The  usual  depth  of  ploughing  is  from  4 to  6 inches. 
The  plough  has,  of  course,  been  continually  sliding  over  the  sur- 
face of  the  rubble,  but  not  penetrating  it  ; and  the  wish  of  the 
farmer  is  not  to  do  so,  because  he  finds,  if  he  does  penetrate  this 
rubble,  the  first  rains  that  descend  afterwards  swill  the  soil  into 
