924 
éan be obviated, in cafe of adopting the 
mode of lateral inftead of floping fur- 
rows? athe 
I do not, however, by thefe obferva- 
tions, mean by any means to juftify the 
abfurd and ruinous practice of ufing fuch 
a number of horfes as I frequently ob- 
ferve faftened to a plough, by the fur- 
rounding farmers. Upon my own little 
farm I ufe no more than three, and there 
are feveral around me who cannot keep aity 
more, and thofe frequently not of the 
ftrongeft fort; yet our lands are as well 
ploughed, and our crops, in proportion 
to the extent of our farms, to the full as 
good as thoje of our neighbours, who 
continue to indulge the pride and obiti- 
nacy of their ploughman with teams of 
five and fix. I have of late repeatedly 
made the experiment of ploughing with 
only two, although fome of my fields 
are very fteep; and though my man 
fometimes grumbles and remonftrates, I 
am. fo far fatisfied with the experiment, - 
that if it were not for the convenience of 
fetching my lime and coals from the hills, 
I fhould certainly get rid of one of my 
horfes, and fupply his place with a more 
profitable article, an additional cow. But 
thereis one prastice which I cannot but 
think as feafible here as elfewhere, and 
which is of great importance to ail farm- 
ers, great and fimall, which neverthelefs 
is not adopted by any individual around ; 
I mean the doing without a driver. It 
has been tried, I am informed, by a gen- 
tleman of large property in thefe parts ; 
but as he is teldom upon the {pot him- 
felf, and never_pays any fér/onal attend- 
afice to the bufinefs, the failure of the 
experiment teils in my mind for nothing 
at all. Iam told alfo, that a confider- 
able farmer on the Radnorfhire fide of the 
Wye, and who may certainly be confi- 
dered as one of the beft and moft ratirval 
practical agriculturifts in thefe parts, alfo 
made the experiment, and that he found 
that the ploughs that are made for the 
purpofe of working without a driver, will 
not anfwer in our rough /fony land. 
“The objection, I underitand, ts this— 
the two-horfe ploughs are generally made 
much fhorter than thofe we ufeé in this 
country, and that when they come againtt 
any of thofe large fiones with which our 
lands very much abound, and which fome- 
times adhere very obftinately to the foil, 
it is found impoiflible to prevent them 
from being thrown out of the ground; 
whereas the long narrow ploughs, uni- 
verfally adopted in thefe parts, cafily re- 
Agriculture in South Wales. 
[Noy. 
move fuch obftructions, and keep their 
way even and fair. Now this obje¢tion, 
however well founded, does not appear to 
me to be conclufive: for I can perceive 
no reafon why a two-horfe-plough fhould, 
iw the body of the machine, diifer from 
thofe generally ufed; and as our pleugh 
in other reipects appears to be a very 
rational implement, light and eafy to 
work, (the iron work weighing but 
about fourteen or fifteen pounds, and the 
wood work in proportien) I fliould fup- 
pofe no other alteration whatever can be 
neceflary but that of fo conftruéting the 
wood work in front, fo that two horfes 
may be fixed a-breaft, (with convenience 
tor paffing the reins, &c.) inftead of 
their being harneffed fingly in a Tine. 
But I contels mytfelf only an ignoramus 
in thefe matters, and fhould be happy to 
meet (through the channel of your in- 
terefting miicellany) with the obfervations 
of thofe who are better informed. 
As I am upon the fubjeét of agficul- 
tural improvements, I will juft fuggeft an 
idea that has been long floating in my 
head, that is to fay, the practibility of 
throwing artificial fhowers of rain in dry 
feafons, in what quantities and with 
whatever irequency might be found re- 
quifite, over fuch fields as are fituated on 
the banks and borders of rivers. “This, 
though [I ain no practical mechanic, or 
engineer, has long appeared practical to 
me}; and the delcription of BOULTON’s 
new patent for railing water, contained. 
in a late number of your Magazine, lett 
{carcely a doubt upon the fubjeét in my 
mind. I fhould be happy it this hint 
fhould eccafion that very refpectable be- 
nefactor .to the arts and manutaétures of 
his country, to adapt his imvention to 
that afeful purpofe; fince many of the 
lands that are moft contiguous to riverg 
.(efpecially thofe rivers, whole channels, 
like ours, are, in general, very much be- 
low the level of the neighbouring banks) 
are thofe which fuffer moft by dry feafons. 
There are fome plain matter-of-fact 
men, perhaps, who difdain to look be- 
yond their nofes, and regard all {pecula- 
tion with contempt, that may regard this 
hint as the mere eifufion of a wild imagi- 
nation: but, to place proceiffes of agricul- 
ture in a ftate of independence of the ca- 
fualtiés cf feafons, is a matter of fuch- 
national importance, that I truft the 
friends of real feience and dilcovery will 
regard, with fome indulgence, the reveries 
oi A Little Welch Farmer. 
Brecaockfhire,OG. 26, 1798s 4 . 
‘ 6 
