AGRICULTURE IN SCOTLAND, ETC. 
367 
&gricttiture in Scotland.—No. ‘14. 
In my letters of June and July, I gave you a 
sketch of a journey through some of the best culti¬ 
vated counties of England, where for hundreds of 
years civilisation has reigned, and where the hand of 
man is visible wherever the eye can rest. Since that 
time, in the island of Islay, from which I have lately 
returned, I have seen a country some parts of which 
are almost as wild and unsubdued as our far Western 
settlements, where civilisation has comparatively but 
begun its work. 
Islay is 25 miles in length, and 22 in width, and 
has long been the residence of a powerful branch of 
the clan Campbell. Mr. Campbell, of Islay, the 
chieftain, owns, with the exception of two small 
estates, the whole island, having about 16,000 peo¬ 
ple on his property. Between the Southwestern 
point of Islay, and Ireland, is but 21 miles, while 
from the tall cliffs of the West coast spreads out the 
broad Atlantic, with no land nearer than America. 
On the North are the islands of Mull and Colonsay, 
and on the East, Jura and the Mull of Cantire. 
The present Mr. Campbell has labored diligently 
to improve the island, and has effected wonders. It 
was at his invitation that Prof. Johnston visited the 
island at this time, and gave two lectures. The first 
of these was upon the soil, and the second on the 
crops and manures. Both were remarkably well 
attended, and evidently awakened an interest which 
bids fair to be permanent. An interval of several 
days elapsed between the first and second lecture, 
and in the meantime we traversed the greater part of 
the island. The Professor, therefore, was able at 
the second to give them hints as to their most promi¬ 
nent defects. 
The greater part of the island is slate, but there is 
a considerable extent of limestone, and patches of 
trap have thrust themselves to the surface in many 
places. The soil from the decomposition of the trap 
and limestone is very good, and that from the slate is 
quite improveable; under it, however, a hard pan, 
or band of iron ochre, is apt to form, and sometimes 
accumulates to a thickness of 6 or 8 inches. Into 
this no roots of cultivated crops will penetrate, and 
the soil is only available therefore above it. This is 
to be removed by breaking up with the subsoil plow, 
and putting in drains into which it may be washed 
by the rains, and carried away. All of the hollows, 
and a great portion of the high lands, have been, or 
are, covered with peat, forming in particular situa¬ 
tions beds of 20 and 30 feet in thickness. Upon 
this peat are now some of the best farms in the 
island. The first step is of course to drain ; this 
accomplished, there is little difficulty in raising ex¬ 
cellent crops. The drains are frequently made from 
the peat itself, and are either wedge or shoulder 
drains, according to the shape. 
Draining is quite indispensable in all the land of 
the island. This fact is fast becoming known to all 
the tenants, and the work is going on with a consid¬ 
erable degree of rapidity. Mr. Campbell defrays a 
large portion of the expense. Some of the larger 
tenants have now laid many miles. One of them has 
laid dry a loch of about 25 acres, and has the whole 
bottom of it thorough drained and under crop this year. 
One great difficulty of the Islay people has been a 
want of good roads. The present Mr. Campbell has 
made strenuous exertions in this respect, and to a 
great extent has succeeded. The present roads are 
all very good, and several new ones are in progress, 
which will open up extensive districts. Another 
difficulty has been the want of markets; these are 
now brought quite near to them by steamers, of 
which four or five touch at different points during 
each week. A mill is also in progress of erection 
for manufacturing potato starch, flour, &c. This 
will be an outlet for that bulky crop, one of the 
great staples of the island. 
Oats and potatoes are the two great crops, and of 
both we saw very fine fields. Wheat is now grown 
on some of the most improved farms, and some of it 
is remarkably good. Turnips are gradually gaining 
ground. They cannot be grown well on peaty soil 
unless it is thoroughly drained and pulverized. On 
one field of the home farm was the finest crop of 
Swedes I have seen this season. This was on a 
rather light limestone soil, manured with guano and 
farm-yard dung. In a little valley beyond was a 
beautiful meadow, with full ten feet of solid peat 
under the turf. All of the plantations about Islay 
House, which are very flourishing and extensive, are 
on what was twenty years ago an impassable bog. 
The farm-yard manure is generally not well pre ¬ 
served. They frequently make good compost heaps ; 
but even then the liquid is suffered to run away, and 
thus a most valuable portion is entirely lost. Prof. 
Johnston has, however, stimulated them on this sub¬ 
ject, and I think there will now be tanks built, and 
many other improvements made. A considerable 
quantity of guano is used, and various saline ma¬ 
nures. There are extensive shell sand beaches on 
various parts of the shores, and some of it is of ex¬ 
cellent quality. It is used extensively, and is an 
inestimable advantage in some of the wild districts 
Farther inland Mr, Campbell burns the limestone, and 
gives it to those tenants who choose to come for it. 
On the whole, the present condition of Islay seems 
to me very encouraging. It is true that large tracts 
of bog, heather, and waste land everywhere meet the 
eye, and that much of the farming is slovenly ; but 
there is also much improvement, and many things 
indicative of a change for the better. We must not 
compare them with the Lothians; but remember that 
in their isolated situation, they have been as to culti¬ 
vation in a state of perfect barbarism. Comparing 
the advantages of the two districts, it may be ques¬ 
tioned if they have not advanced faster within the 
last ten years than the Lothians. They merit praise 
rather than censure. There is an onward movement 
among them, and the end of the next twenty years 
will, in all probability, see a wonderful change. 
Edinburgh, Oct 1, 1845. John P. Norton. 
A COMPACT, ECONOMICAL, AND PERFECTLY SAFE 
Boiler. —I want some contrivance for heating water 
for stock, as suggested by your late correspondent 
“ R.” A large amount of heat is not required, but 
absolute safety is, for barn premises. I see a notice 
in an old number of the Maine Farmer, of a patent 
boiler, invented by Dimon B. Barnum, of Conn., 
who sold to Gen. Ladd, of Hallowell. Maine, a right 
to use it. Will some of your readers, or contem¬ 
porary journals, give us the results of this, and any 
other better plan, that we may have the best before 
us Economy 
