On  the  Farming  of  Somerset. 
r-  r>  O 
/ 2o 
some  leading  proprietor  would  pick  out  an  intelligent  workman 
and  send  him  to  visit  the  districts  where  the  preparation  of  flax 
has  been  most  carefully  attended  to,  he  would  confer  a great 
benefit  on  his  neighbourhood. 
A few  other  points  on  the  south  side  of  the  county  require 
notice  before  we  pass  out  of  the  Middle  district. 
The  management  of  the  sandy  and  stonebrash  land  on  the 
high  ground  running  from  Castle  Cary  to  Mil  borne  Port  is 
not  very  unlike  what  has  been  described.  The  soil  is  still 
lighter.  The  rotation  of  crops  professes  to  be  on  the  four-course 
system;  but  I saw  a list  of  crops  for  eight  successive  years  on 
eight  different  fields  near  Castle  Cary,  in  which  there  were 
several  instances  of  wheat,  barley,  oats,  in  succession.  This, 
however,  is  uncommon.  Sheep-folding  is  universal.  Few  ani- 
mals of  any  kind  are  prepared  for  the  butchers  near  Castle 
Cary;  and  near  Milborne  Port  there  is. the  same  absence  of 
bullock-feeding  which  has  been  noticed  above,  and  the  same 
distrust  of  bones  and  of  all  artificial  manures. 
I met,  however,  a very  good  Sherborne  farmer  who  manages 
one  of  these  farms  for  the  widow  of  a friend,  and  he  has  satisfied 
himself  that  farmers  ought  not  to  depend  so  exclusively  on  the 
fold,  and  that  roots  ought  to  be  grown  with  artificial  manure. 
He  has  found  it  answer  to  use  dissolved  bones  on  similar  land 
on  his  own  farm.  He  further  deviates  from  the  custom  of  the 
country  by  fattening  good  beasts  in  his  yards,  and  often  wins 
some  of  the  first  prizes  at  Yeovil. 
On  the  confines  of  the  sands  and  clays  near  Cadbury  Castle 
there  are  several  farms  well  deserving  attention,  some  of  very 
high  value.  While  riding  along  the  road  I met  one  farmer,  full 
of  quiet  intelligence,  who  was  “ putting  his  shoulder  to  the 
wheel  ” on  a farm  for  which  he  is  paying  a rent  of  1000/.  a-year 
for  between  300  and  400  acres  : and  as  he  pays  it  regularly,  his 
landlord  has  the  good  sense  to  leave  him  to  crop  his  land  exactly 
as  he  finds  it  answ'er  best.  Among  other  points  of  interest  in 
this  neighbourhood  were  Mr.  Paul’s  Devon  stock,  and  are  still 
the  new  buddings,  of  most  luxurious  dimensions,  which  his  land- 
lord is  erecting.  Mr.  Blandford,  who  is  farming  his  own  land  at 
Weston  Bampfield,  has  put  up  a set  of  buildings  far  superior  to 
what  are  commonly  seen  in  the  County. 
Chalk  and  Greensand — On  the  south  of  the  sandv  land  near 
Crewkerne  is  a farm  on  the  chalk,  Combe  estate,  managed  in  a 
very  superior  manner  by  Mr.  Salter,  a tenant  of  Lord  Poulett’s. 
He  stands  pre-eminent  in  this  part  of  the  county  for  the  excel- 
lence of  his  implements.  He  has  a water  power,  with  which,  in 
addition  to  the  ordinary  farm  operations,  he  crushes  bones  ; a 
drying  kiln  for  corn  ; a well  selected  set  of  field  implements, 
