that experience fhews, that two or three additional plowings will anfwer the fame purpose as dung on light lands(27), and. cofts not more than a fifth part of the dung(28).

To conclude our obfervations on this part, one would imagine our Authors thought they could never fufficiently inculcate the principles of the Tullian Husbandry, and the doctrine of much

or cloudy wet weather, &c. have always produced much worse crops; a recent inftance of this we had in the extraordinary wet fummer, 1756, by the very poor crops of most forts of corn and grain that fummer produced.

In fhort, there is nothing more evident, than that heat and moifture (or fire and water) are the parents of vegetation,-Hence it is, that fome plants will grow in water, where they can have but little earth; and others in air *, where, one would think, they muft have lefs.

• As fome Sedums, in particular Orpine. A branch of which, hung in a warm room, will live, and feem to grow, for fome weeks, with out any dependance on, or connection with, the root.

manures

(27) How does this agree with thefe expreffions, that * are neceffary to enrich light foils, because they want matter of nou• rishment?' and, in another place, that manures are wanted to give light foils richness? But presently after we are told, that four dreffings (plowings] more than ufual, will fupply the place of dung: and here, on fuch foils, two or three additional plowings' + will do it, and not be more than one fifth of the cost of dung. But before the chapter is ended we are informed, that what they have faid on this head fignifies little, for, there is no way of managing of land to the belt advantage, but by the ufe of both. For, nothing is fo idle as the propofing one against [without] the other.' Egregious inconfiftencies!-Compare this with the following, (in chap. xvii. book 1, parag. 16.) The lighter and loofer a chalky foil is, the lefs plowing it requires; and if the Farmer wants to give it more than need. ful, he will fpoil it.'

+They have learned, at length, to diftinguish plowing from dreffing, and to call them by their proper names.

(28) Let us try this: As they have fuppofed that two, three, or four additional plowings will do instead of dung, we will take the medium, i. e. three plowings, which, being on a tilth, may coft five Thillings per acre each, (on fallows it is fix fhillings per acre, and fome times we hare known fix fhillings each given for all the plowings) this is fifteen fhillings for the three plowings. An acre of land will coft from thirty to forty fhillings to be well dunged, and tho' this is but fomething more than double the charge of the three additional plowings, instead of five times, yet we will answer for its doing five umes the good,

plowing,

plowing. As to the first, we fhall fay no more of it at present and of the other, that of much plowing, we hall only obferve, that the number of plowings which our Authors direct, chap. xv. page 289, to be eight, (inftead of four, the ufual number, as they fay) can feldom be done in the time land ufually lies fallow, fo as to leave proper intervals between these and the harrowings which, tho' forgot by them, are often as neceffary, and near as beneficial, when duly performed, as plowings. For heavy deep land must rarely be plowed in winter, and never in wet weather; and these two feasons will make fo confiderable a deduction from the time fuch land has to lie fallow, which cannot be more than a year, that we shall not fcruple to affirm, fo many plowings, with their proper harrowings, cannot be bestowed on it, fo as to answer the great expence of them: except the land lies fallow two years inftead of one. And for their light land, that generally has turnips, vetches, or fome fort of artificial grafs on it the fallow year, and of course cannot have time for those numerous plowings they advise, (and advise not): therefore this land too, we doubt, muft lie fallow two years, in order to enjoy this fancied benefit.

Far be it from us to decry good plowing. In general, Farmers are not much deficient in that refpect, but rather redundant; and many of them, hurried away by the notion that land must have fo many plowings given it, plow it often, without a due regard to the weather, feason of the year, condition of the ground, or their own conveniency: and, we are afraid, fuch will meet with very little better inftruction from this book, fo far as we have yet obferved of it.

Part the Id. Of the Implements of Husbandry, and of their feveral Úfes.

The figures of the plows, in the plate, are very badly executed; the earth-boards of all of them are put on the wrong fide of the plows, except the four-coultered plow, and Berkfhire plow, (called by them, the two-wheeled plow improved) which, indeed, have here no earth-boards. Thefe two laft plows(29) are taken from the accurate and ingenious Mr. Tull, all but the earth-boards, which are left behind. In the fourCoultered plow alfo, the four coulters are put on the wrong fide, with other blunders.

What they call in the plate, the original two-wheeled plow, and in the book the Hertfordshire plow, is no more like-that

(29) The figures of the others are horrowed from Mortimer's Hufbandry.

country

Country plow, than a Writer of Husbandry is like a practical Farmer. In fhort, fetting afide the mutilated portraits of the four-coultered and Berkshire plows, from Mr. Tull, we greatly question whether they have given the true figures of any one plow in common, or even, perhaps, in uncommon, use.

In their difcourfe on plows, they talk of the coulter's bending and being more circular; as if, indeed, they were at least femicircular: but we are not informed whether they are to stand concave or convex to the furrow. But which ever way it be, it is contrary to practice; for however obliquely, or pointing forward, the coulter may stand, its edge is generally made strait throughout, and not hooked, as in their figures.

We are told, that the plow for ftiff clay fhould be every way large, that it may turn up a large furrow.' Now this is not only the very worst way of plowing clays, to turn them up in large furrows, as well as the moft difficult to perform, but is contrary to what they have fo long and fo tedioufly infifted on, concerning clays requiring the most pulverization, and to be the most minutely divided; for furely the way to do this canno be by turning them up in large furrows! This likewife contradicts the use of the four-coultered plow, which they value fo much for its cutting the earth to pieces; for here they are for turning up in large furrows, that very foil which, in truth, ought to be plowed in the fmalleft ones.

In their defcription of the Hertfordshire plow, (if that ought to be called a défcription which only juft mentions fome of the parts which this plow has in common with others, neglecting moft of thofe wherein it differs from them; as the frack(30), the clevvifes(31), the collar links, jumping links, &c.) They mention an exception to the ufe of this plow, viz. that in miry clays, in winter, the wheels cut into the ground and clog. This too is from Mr. Tull; but the remedy against it, which is added by the fame Gentleman, they have left behind: however it happens to be of no great confequence, for there are few mity

(30) A block of wood on which the beam refts, and is itself carried between two wheels, by an iron fpindle which goes through the lower part of it, reling in the wheels: this block has fometimes a pillow over it, to pin up or down by standards; to let the plow in, or takę it out of the ground.

(31) Or wilds. This is a strong forked iron, which goes thro' the forepart of the flock by the forks, at right angles with it, by which the horses draw. In fome places, the clevvifes are only two pieces of wood, with a notched iron bar (for the horses to draw by) fixed between them into their ends; these are then faßtened into the middle of the broadfide of the flock by their other end, at about a foot distance by the fide of each other; fo as, altogether, to form • paral

clays where this plow is used; or, if there were, we think the fhould not be plowed when so wet as to clog and obftruct the motion of the wheels.

We are further told, that fome make this plow in the original manner, with the handles floping of one fide, but this renders it troublefome to hold, or to follow; the remedy was • very easy, and people not bigotted to foolish cuftoms, have im• proved it greatly, by making it ftrait.' Chap. xxiv. p. 290. If our Authors had ever held this plow, they muft, we think, have been convinced, that the more floping of one fide' (the left) the handle ftands, the more and better room the holder has to go between that and the plow staff; if he follows the plow on the unplowed land; which is the ufual way of holding these fort of plows. For when the handle ftands ftrait with the beam, it lies fo clofe to the left fide of the holder, as often greatly to incommode him: and in plowing ftrong ftoney land with what the Farmers call great rag ftones in it(32), when it is dry, this handle, even when floping from the holder, comes fo near his left fide, fometimes, by the plow being toffed about by the great flints and fpaulting clods, as frequently to give him violent blows on the ribs; and how much worfe would it be were the handle always close to his fide, as it would be, was it to ftand ftrait with the beam. Befides, that in fome forts of plowing, it would be fo much in his way, as to oblige him to go behind that and the plow-ftaff; and then he could not fo well command either, nor of courfe the plow. Therefore the original way of fetting the handle must be the best; and it is, we know, what is done, particularly, on the moft troublesome grounds to plow.

6

This Hertfordshire plow, we are told, chap. xxiv. is, in a manner, the general plow at this time;' and this plow varied more or lefs, according to the-fashion of the place,' they understand as the common plow. But at the end of the twenty-feventh chapter, the Berkshire gallows flocked plow, what they call, in the plate, the two wheeled plow improved, is particularly defcribed, (thanks to Mr. Tull, or, perhaps, else it had not) and, we are told, is ufed at prefent in the places where • agriculture is most underflood, and best practifed,' and tho' it confifts of more parts than the two wheeled plow of Hertfordshire,' yet that there is not one of these, but is an ad⚫vantage either in ftrength or convenience.' Now, is it poffible for the Hertfordshire plow to be the general plow, and yet the Berkshire plow be ufed where agriculture is maft underflood, and best practifed, without fuppofing an abfurdity, that in those places the moit general plow is leaft used?

(32) Of which there is a great deal in thofe parts where this plow is ufed.

As

As the invention of the four-coultered plow is Mr. Tull's, fo is the exact defcription given of it here; and, we are of opini on, that had not Mr. Tull wrote before our Authors; they would have had much less to say concerning plows and tillage.

Our Authors, speaking of a double plow, i. e. one that plows two furrows at once, one by the fide of another, or one under or below another; the firft to plow a large quantity of ground in a given time, the other to plow the ground deeper than ordinary ;-tell us, that as this requires twice the number of horfes and of men(33), the expence is nearly equal to the • advantage(34): but this is a hint capable of improvement, for though in tough and deep foils it lofes its benefit, from the neceffity of a double expence, yet certainly in fome of thofe C fight and fhallow lands we have in Buckinghamshire, and other places, a double plow might be fo contrived as to be drawn by two horfes, and managed by one man;' this would, they fay, be a double advantage, and yet the expence the fame. This has • never been put in practice yet, but from what (35) have seen, • Iam certain that it is practicable; and whoever fhall bring it into ufe, will be of great fervice, both to himself and all that fhall follow him(36).'

To conclude this account of plows, our Authors are so far from giving fuch a general account of this useful instrument, as

(33) The double plow requires, in general, but two-thirds of the number of the horfes, and half the number of men, that two plows require; as where two piows demand eight horfes, the double plow will work as eafy with fix; and where they require fix, that will do with four horfes.

(34) Yes; bat not on the account our Authors fuppofe, as is fhewn in the above note; but because the double plow feldom plows the ground fo well as the fingle one does, except in good tilths; fo that what is faved in the expence, is loft by the bad plowing. Another ftrong rea on against the double plow, is, the difficulty of making it, and fetting it to go to every plowman's mind and gait, (or way of following and holding it) and the keeping it in order; which occafions continual alterations to be made, and of courfe continual charges, &c. all which has caufed most Farmers to throw them by.

(35) Here our Authors are, we fuppofe, before they were aware, got into the fingular number,

(36) We can affure our Author, or Authors, that this is already accomplished: that fuch a (mall light double plow, very different from the common one, has been made, and has plowed, on a tilth, fome feores of acres, in flitches, or two-bout lands, for wheat, confifting of four furrows each, with two borfes only as well, and almost as foon as two plows with four or five horses would have done; and the ground has not been trod half fo much moreover, by reason of the different way of lowing, lefs feed lies uncovered.

might

f