596 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
r May 10, 1883. 
grass that we found the bailiff much disheartened when we were 
there a few days ago. He was engaged in trying to get some 
twelve acres ready for sowing Mangolds, but the soil was so per¬ 
meated with twitch that it M^as turned up by the plough in compact 
'clods, and there was nothing for it but drying by sun and wind, 
.and a free use of cultivators, rollers, harrows, and ploughs. All 
the labourers were at work, too, with forks wherever they could 
use them, and we hope by getting off as much twitch as possible 
before sowing, by having the rows so wide apart as to admit of a 
free use of horse hoes, that most of the weeds will be destroyed 
before midsummer. This farm, too, had bean under the four- 
course shift for sixteen years, yet some of the land is more foul 
with couch grass than any we have yet had to deal with. The plea 
•of wet summers cannot be advanced by way of excuse for this 
foulness of the land, for there never was a better opportunity for 
the destruction of weeds than we have had during the last three 
hot dry summers. No ; it is just owing to the careless, easy-going 
practice so common to farmers, and, we may add, to the fact that 
two-thirds of them have too much land. Far better would it be 
for the man farming a thousand acres moderately well to reduce 
his holding by half, and to cultivate that in the best possible 
manner. Depend upon it his profits would be doubled, and pro¬ 
sperity would crown his efforts, despite low prices and foreign 
competition. 
Shall we ever see the time when the nature of the soil and its 
treatment will be rightly understood and acted upon ? How sadly 
is every effort at improvement clogged and hindered by ignorance 
and prejudice. There is still a majority of men of fair intelligence 
who regard the muck cart as an indispensable adjunct to good 
farming. If only the stern lessons of adversity tend gradually to 
teach them better, it is all we can hope for. Science or precise 
knowledge, tempered by common sense in combination with intel¬ 
ligence and energy, will no doubt eventually do for agriculture 
what it has done and is doing for so many other things. Above 
?.ll things we must have thoroughgoing practice or our best efforts 
will be in vain. Is it too much to ask for land clean, dry, and 
fertile ? Three very simple things are they not ? Yet they are 
indispensable to success. 
WORK OK THE HOME FARM. 
May Day saw most of the Barley well above the surface. WeedS) 
too, were abundant, and wherever Clover or mixed seed were to be sown 
we decided either to hoe or harrow up the Charlock. With sun and 
wind the drills might follow in the course of a day or two, and then it 
would be well to follow with a light roller. Some farmers prefer using 
a heavy Cambridge roller, but we object to that because of the severe 
bruising of so much of the young plant. It is unquestionable that 
much harm is done to the Wheat plant too by using heavy rollers upon 
it after it is in full spring growth. The Wheat generally is a full strong 
plant, and we have only one partial failure of about 6 acres on a heavy 
land farm, and this has been drilled with Oats. Upon mixed soil the 
Wheat is so forward that several extra hands had to be taken on in order 
^to get the hoeing done in time to avoid damage to the corn. This work 
is all paid for by the acre, at a price proportionate to the labour re¬ 
quired, some hoeing being much heavier than other. In any case pay¬ 
ment by measure and not by time is best in the interest of all concerned, 
and if a good foreman can be had we like him to select his own men 
.and to be responsible for the work being well done. It always answers 
best to attack the weeds as early as possible, for growth proceeds with 
such rapidity at this season of the year that prompt action must be taken 
to keep abreast of the work. Corn hoeing began so late in the season 
that by the time it is finished the men will be wanted upon the Man¬ 
gold land, where weeds are generally plentiful enough. 
We laid down two pieces of land to permanent pasture last year ; 
one was on heavy land, the other on medium rich loam. Upon the 
former we have only half a plant, and more seed must be sown ; on the 
latter there is a full plant which is so forward in growth that we shall 
soon have the sheep and lambs in folds upon it. They will be passed 
over quickly in small folds and have trough food as well, and this pro¬ 
cess will be repeated as often as necessary till autumn. A field of 
Sainfoin sown last year upon rather poor land will be eaten down by 
sheep in folds shortly, we then intend saving the second growth for seed. 
The bailiff of that farm, upon receiving orders about the Sainfoin, told 
ns he had heard that sheep folded upon Sainfoin would destroy it by 
“ eating the heart out of the plant.” We had to explain that the sheep 
must be in small folds—a hurdle to a sheep—and have a fresh fold every 
night. A field so folded, and then kept for seed last year upon the home 
farm, has now a fine strong full plant, forward in growth. 
THE LATE MR. J. C. MORTON. 
We regret to learn that Mr. John Chalmers Morton died suddenly on 
May 3rd last. He has been Editor of the Agricultural Gazette since 
its commencement, and in the issue of this periodical for May 7th the 
following account is given of Mr. Morton’s life and work, together with 
an excellent portrait. 
“ Mr. J. C. Morton was the son of Mr. John Morton, agent, for up¬ 
wards of fifty years, of the Earls of Ducie, upon their Gloucestershire 
estate. Mr. John Morton married the sister of the celebrated Dr. 
Chalmers, and we recollect his mentioning, with obvious gratification, 
that, upon his introducing himself to an English Quaker gentleman 
who had spent some time in Edinburgh, and was an enthusiastic 
admirer of the great Scotch preacher, he had replied, ‘ Oh, I know all 
about you : you are a son of the Doctor’s sister, and bis favourite 
sister.’ Mr. J. C. Morton was educated at the Merchiston Castle 
School, Edinburgh, of which his uncle (Charles Chalmers) was the head 
master. After leaving this, he attended some of the University classes. 
He made himself distinguished as the best mathematician among his 
generation of students; taking the first prize given for mathematics 
by the University of Edinburgh. At this time Professor Low was hold¬ 
ing classes for agricultural students; and Mr. J. C. Morton’s name 
was included among these. Before he reached his nineteenth birthday 
he was summoned home to undertake the direction, under his father, 
of the Whitfield Model Farm just established in the immediate neigh¬ 
bourhood of Tortworth. Here he acquired an insight into the best 
English (and Scotch) farm practice ; and, as he was fond of asserting, 
went to the first meeting of the R.A.S.E., and, with two exceptions, 
to every subsequent one. In 1844 the proprietor of the Gardeners' 
Chronicle (then edited by Prof. Bindley), determined to establish, in 
conjunction with it, the Agricultural Gazette ; and they seleeted the 
young manager of the Whitfield Model Farm to undertake the post of 
Editor. He came to London in 1844 ; and 1300 eonsecutive weekly 
numbers of the paper were brought out, without a single break, under 
Mr. Morton’s personal supervision. He then took a holiday for six weeks, 
and only twice since has he suspended the labours of bis full, indus¬ 
trious life, to give himself the change of a brief visit to the Continent. , 
He never seemed to wish for a holiday. He fulfilled, in addition to his 
Editorial functions, the duties of Inspector ■ under the Land Commis¬ 
sioners ; and, in his constant journeyings to and fro to visit new build¬ 
ings and improvements (effected, on land estates, by the aid of the 
office, 3, St. James’s Square) seemed to have found the ‘differentiation ’ 
in his labours which served him in the plaee of rest or amusement. 
“ In 1885, with fifty of the most eminent men in their several lines, f 
Mr. J. C. Morton brought out the EncyclopEcdia of Agriculture. He j 
also, for a while—when the late Mr. H. Thompson occupied the post of 1 
ornamental editor of the R.A.S.E. Journal—did the chief work of an | 
editor, contributing at intervals many papers of very real value, of his . 
own writing. His paper—on the varieties of Wheat—is still the most J 
eomplete treatise on this important subject. He also served for six 1 
years with Dr. Frankland and Sir William Denison, as the Royal Com- J 
missioners for inquiring into the pollution of rivers. Throughout a I 
long and varied career, Mr'. J. C. Morton, more than anyone we / 
ever met, secured the confidence and good will of all whom he encoun- ^ 
tered. But it is not necessary to dwell on this feature of his character 
in these columns. How often has he told here himself of his encounters 
and conversations, of the queer people he has met with ; and has he not ' 
proved to demonstration to what gootl purpose he could turn their > 
quaint communications ? It was characteristic of Mr. J. C. Morton that ‘ 
he never ‘ pushed himself,’ though no one was more eager than he to I 
recognise merit in anybody else, and to press the claims of deserving 
folk in every way that lay in his power. Much as he had to do, and 
much as he was forced to write, he always found time to go to the aid 
of anyone whom he thought reejuired his assistance, and to send words 
of encouragement to those to whom he found that he could not go.” 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 
CAMDEN SQUARE, LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 82'40''N.; Long. 0° 8'0" W.; AlUtude, 111 feet. 
DATE. I 9 A.M. I IN THE DAT. 
1888. 
Barome- 
1 ter at 32® 
1 and Sea 
Level. 
Hygrome¬ 
ter. 
0 . 
o-d 
^ o 
Temp, of 
soil at 
1 foot. 
Shade Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperature 
a 
"S 
, 
April and May. 
Dry. 
Wet. 
5o 
Max. 
Min. 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass 
Sunday . 
SO 
Inches. 
i9.849 
deg. 
48.8 
deg. 
441 
S. 
deg. 
45 9 
deg. 
54.7 
deg. 
45.0 
deg. 
92.8 
deg. 
418 
In. 
* 
Monday..,,.. 
'J*ue8day .... 
8U 
29.712 
518 
44.8 
S.E. 
40.0 
048 
41.4 
107.5 
34.5 
— 
t 
1 
20.469 
54.4 
48 9 
s. w. 
47 0 
54.8 
49.1 
86.3 
4').5 
« 
Wednesday .. 
2 
iO.SS.'i 
50.1 
45.0 
s.w. 
47.3 
55.4 
30.0 
93.2 
83 9 
O.fSS 
% 
Thursday.... 
3 
20.817 
40.0 
43 2 
s.w. 
44 4 
54.2 
41.2 
99.4 
35.8 
C.l 2 
Friday . 
4 
80.188 
48 0 
44.0 
w. 
44.2 
58.9 
884 
110.3 
82.2 
— 
Saturday .... 
5 
30.307 
51.8 
45.8 
E. 
47.2 
59 9 
37 7 
103.8 
30.7 
— 
29.881 
60.0 
4.:.4 
40.7 
57.8 
41.8 
99.0 
85.9 
0.384 
- 
KEMABKS. 
2»rb.—Generally dull. ' \ 
aotli.—Delightful spring day. ' ; 
151.—Fine and generally bright till 11 A.M., afterwards overcast and gusty, with sunshine • ' 
*•1 intervals. 
2Dd.—Fair iiioruing w'th some sunshine; wet afternoon; hriglit in early afternoon, 
but Wet again ut)r, 
3rd,—Sunshine and showers. 
4th.—Cloudy till nearly noon, clear and fine after. 
5th —Frost early, then bright and warm. 
Rather warmer, hut stiii not up to tl e vverage, no high tsmoeratares have yet b:ea ^ 
reco:ded.—'i, J. Symons, 
