In the whole range of husbandry perhaps the most perplexing point of management is the providing for flocks of sheep in the months of March and April. Turnips and hay are generally depended up on; but being frequently inadequate, rye is sometimes sown on purpose, and crops of wheat are also sometimes eaten down by them. All, however, is too frequently found insufficient, and they are permitted to run over the clover and pastures of the farm, committing great waste and damage. To prevent these evils, burnet should be cultivated by the farmer. It is a most hardy plant, and preserves its green leaves through the winter, and under deep snows vegetates with singular luxuriance. This will be an admirable feed for sheep in April, when turnips ought no longer to remain upon the ground. But kept grass on dry meadow and pasture, or what is called rouen, is preferable to every other dependance, and though consisting as it were of hay and grass in the same mouthful, being the autumnal growth at top sheltering the more recent vegetation beneath, the sheep eat both together without the slightest hesitation, and are found to thrive upon it extremely. Ten ewes, with their lambs, may be supported throughout April on one acre of this rouen, and no cheaper mode of keeping a full stock in April can possibly be adopted. In June the washing of the sheep should generally take place, previously to the shearing. The washing may be best performed by a stream of water; and those who are engaged in it, instead of standing in the water, in which their uncomfortable situation leads them to hurry negligently over the business, should, by means of a cask or tub, be freed from such unpleasant and dangerous exposure, The shearing, which speedily follows this operation, should be as close as possible, and the circular is by far preferable to the longitudinal method with a view to this object. Sheep that are kept in inclosures, and particularly in a woodland country, should be examined twice every day, to guard against injury to them from the fly, which in twenty-four hours after having struck sometimes produces incurable disease. The most efficacious treatment on this subject is, after parting the wool wherever the maggots are found, and picking them out with a knife, to scrape a small quantity of white lead among the wool, so that it may be carried evenly down to the wound. Regular and minute inspection will prevent such a circumstance as a broken coat in any of these animals, from a cause so dangerous and fatal where they are neglected. When ewes are about to lamb, their keep should be of the most nourishing kind, consisting of plenty of turnips or cabbage. Till this period they may do without them. But all cattle that have young require as good keeping as those which are fatting. The turnips or cabbages should be drawn for them, and given them on dry ground. A standing rack of hay should be left for them on the field, which will be of great advantage to them. SWINE. The quick multiplication and growth of swine render them a species of stock highly profitable, and if reared systematically, and upon a large scale, none will be found to answer the purpose of the farmer better. Though supposed to be filthier than any other animals, they enjoy a clean and comfortable place for lying down in, and their thriving and feeding are at least as much improved by cleanly management as those of any other stock. Their styes should therefore be constructed sloping, to carry off all moisture. The different sorts of swine should be kept separate in them; and many should never be put together, and particnlarly if they be of different size. Too much attention cannot easily be paid to the rearing of these animals. The large Chinese breed is generally and justly preferred. When swine are reared on a comprehensive plan, crops must be sown purposely for their support, and the dairy cannot be considered as that resource which it is naturally regarded in small farms. From October till May potatoes, carrots, cabbages, and the Swedish turnip, which is a most useful vegetable for this particular purpose, must be provided for the swine and stores from October till the end of May, when they may be received into lucerne, chicory, or clover, on which they will be maintained till the clearing of the stubble; and thus, with the offal of the barn and the corn fields, and the plants and roots just mentioned, the whole year will be amply provided for. In summer meal must be mixed with water for the sows as they pig, and in winter boiled roots, peas, and oats should be given to the young ones. Dairy wash is a capital addition to this mixture. The sows should be permitted to pig but twice a year, in April and August. When great with pig, they must be carefully secluded from the boars, and shut up about a fortnight beforehand in the stye; and while pigging, it is of extreme consequence that no one approaches them, or is even seen looking at them, as in this case they will often devour their farrow. After a week from this period, they should for a few hours in the day have the freedom of the yard, which will be a great relief from total confinement. Winter pigs, if not kept with great attention, are found less profitable than others. Milk and whey may so usefully be applied to them, that perhaps no other mode of their application is equally advantageous; and the best process for weaning them is by giving these articles to them mixed up with peas-soup, though the latter alone will answer well. When three or four months old, nothing is better for them than clover: turnips alone will not be proper, but corn should be added to them. Carrots and potatoes will keep them well till their full growth. Malt grains, if easily and cheaply to be procured, are highly to be recommended. With a view to fattening hogs, the corn employed should be ground into meal, and in the proportion of five bushels to 100 gallons of water should be mixed in large cisterns: the mixture should for three weeks be well stirred every day, and at the end of that period will have fermented and become acid, before which it should not be given. A succession of vessels should be filled with this fermented food, that some may be always ready; and, before it is applied, it should be always stirred. Peas soup is perhaps equally wholesome food with the above, and especially if made with warm milk. The preparation, however, is more expensive. Fatting hogs should be constantly well littered, and be kept perfectly clean. POULTRY. With respect to poultry, constituting as they generally do part of the stock, however small, upon farms, a few observations on them may not be thought superfluous. If kept merely for domestic supply, particular attention is needless. When reared with a view to profit, however, and on a somewhat large scale, they will repay, as they indeed require, considerable attention. A house should be erected for them, containing divisions appropriately for roosting, sitting, fatting, and food. The building should be constructed near the farm-yard, having clear water contiguous to it. Warmth and smoke are great cherishers of poultry. All, of every species, must have access to gravel and grass. Their cheapest food consists of boiled potatoes, on which it appears that they can be supported and fattened, without the aid of any corn. Where numbers of them are kept upon a farm, if permitted to go at large, they will often do considerable injury both in the fields and barn-yard, besides which they will be extremely exposed to the attacks of vermin, and will lose a considerable number of their eggs. A full-grown hen continues in her prime for three years, and may be supposed in that time to lay 200 eggs, which number, however, by warmth and nourishment, might be greatly exceeded. The quality and size of the Norfolk turkeys are superior to those of any other part of the kingdom. They are fed almost entirely with buck-wheat, which, perhaps, may account for their excellence, and are bred by almost every little farmer in the county. When young, they demand perpetual attention, and must be fed with alum curds and chopped onions, and the expense attending their management and food can be compensated only where broods are tolerably successful, and the prices high. THE DAIRY. In the conduct of a dairy, which, in all but the most productive corn countries, is an object of particular consequence to the farmer, it is obviously of the first importance to select cows of the best sort, and in judging of the value of this animal, the best method of deciding it is by the quantity of cream produced in a given time, rather than of milk. The richest milk known is produced by cows of the Alderney breed; but, in all countries, cows yielding a very superior quantity of milk to the generality are to be found, and should be sought for by those persons to whom their produce is a particular object of attention; and the breed of such should be particularly cultivated. Rough waste lands, when the soil is wet, will do better for cows than sheep, and should be always appropriated to them, not indeed because they are the best for cows, but because no stock will so well pay upon them. The grand object of keeping cows being the production of abundance and excellence of milk, they must, for this purpose, be supplied with food of the same description. About a month before they calve they should be taken from the straw-yard, and have green food given them twice a day, with the roots, whatever they may happen to be,which have been raised for their winter food. Having calved, they should be kept perfectly separate from the lean stock, whether in the house or in another yard, and their food should be continued as before. Winter feeding cows with hay, even though none be given them before they calve, breaks in greatly upon the profits of the dairy. Cabbages will maintain them in the cheapest manner, and not give any unpleasant flavour to the milk and butter. The heart alone of the cabbage, however, should be given to them, and the refuse leaves be left to be picked up by the lean cattle. In the month of May they should be kept in particularly good feed, for which purpose they should be turned into the fields of clover, which had been early eaten off by sheep. Lucerne is, however, perhaps preferable to clover, as it is equally nourishing, and gives no ill flavour. When mown, and given in racks or cribs, it will go farther than in any other way, and yield an increased quantity of the most valuable manure, a circumstance which has been often insisted upon, and cannot be too frequently suggested. The feeding place should be kept extremely well littered. The profit of cows, in these circumstances, will be greater than turning them into luxuriant fields of these artificial grasses, although the quantity of their produce might by the latter method probably be increased; but by trampling upon and spoiling considerably more than they would eat, the little superior milk in richness or quantity which might be produced would be purchased at a most heavy expense, and one acre so managed would be requisite for every cow, while, by soiling, it would be amply sufficient for three. The clear profit in the comparison of any two modes of management is the grand point of the farmer's consideration, and whatever the farmer finds most profitable will eventually, it must be remembered, most benefit the public. Whatever green meat be thus used in soiling, should be fresh mown every two days, the quantity being, as nearly as may be adapted to the number to be so fed, not only of cows, but of other stock. Lucerne, if well managed, will bear four mowings for this purpose. Cows should be milked three times a day, if fully fed, throughout the summer; and great caution should be exercised by the persons employed to draw the milk from them completely, not only to increase the quantity of produce, but to preserve its quality. Any portion which may be left in the udder seems gradually to be absorbed into the system, and no more is formed than enough to supply the loss of what is taken away, and by the continuance of the same mode a yet farther diminution of the secretion takes place, until at length scarcely any is produced. This mode of milking is always practised when it is intended that a cow should be rendered dry. The apartments appropriated to dairy purposes should, if possible, possess a moderate temperature throughout the year, and should be kept perfectly clean and dry. The temperature of about fifty-five degrees is most favourable for the separation of the cream from the milk. The utensils of the dairy are best made of wood: lead and copper are soluble in acid, and highly pernicious; and though iron is not injurious, the taste of it might render the produce of the dairy unpalatable. OBJECTS OF ATTENTION, WITH A VIEW TO THE SETTLEMENT AND SUCCESS OF A YOUNG AGRICULTURIST. It is an object of extreme importance and difficulty to awaken due attention, without exciting useless anxiety. In selecting a situation in which to exercise the occupation of a farmer, various circumstances are minutely and deliberately to be regarded, and great consideration is required to form an accurate comparison of advantages and disadvantages. After these have been fully ascertained, a balance is to be drawn, and a decision to be made. More attention than time is requisite for this purpose, and hesitating, broken application will often occupy a longer period in arriving at an injudicious determination than, with persevering and dispassionate examination, is necessary to obtain a correct one. Headlong temerity, which diminishes, or even annihilates to the mind substantial evils, and minute, apprehensive prudence, by which every ant-hill of difficulty is made to swell into a mountain, are both to be carefully avoided; and a firm confidence in human exertion should unite on this critical occasion with keen and comprehensive observation. The soil is an object of particular consideration, in reference to a vast variety of circumstances; as to its stiffness and moisture, levelness or slope; its exposure or its stoniness; the manuring, draining, and fencing that may be required; the state of the roads; the accessibility of markets; the prices of manufactures, of produce, and labour; the custom of tithes; the amount of poor rates; the compactness of the land, and the covenants concerning crops, are only a few of the points which demand in such circumstances to be duly ascertained and estimated. To fix on good land is a prudential general direction. For such it is not easy, with ordinary discretion, to pay too much, while for poor soils a small rent very frequently exceeds their worth. The most advantageous of all soils are the mellow, putrid, crumbling, sandy loams: those which will admit tillage soon after rain, and, though finely harrowed, will not harden, as if baked, in consequence of the hottest sunshine, after violent rains. The stiff loam, which is very nearly approaching to proper brick earth, is, without plenty of manure, an unfavourable soil. On walking over it, it is found extremely adhesive in wet weather, and it requires a long time to dry. It may be considered as forming a medium between the clods of clay and the crumblings of loam. In stubble, a small green moss is frequently seen to cover it. By farmers, poverty and hunger are metaphorically, and most expressively applied to this land, which has a great number of varieties. It requires a large quantity of manure, and is wonderfully improved by hollow ditching. The expense of these opera. tions must never be forgotten in connection with an estimate of their result. Warm, dry, gravelly loams are, in winter, easily distinguishable. Unless in a particularly wet winter, they may be ploughed during almost any part of it, and will break up in a state of crumbling, running mould. A very bad soil is constantly formed by wet, cold gravel, which, in winter, is always indicated by its wetness, and in spring is known by the binding effects produced upon it by short and violent showers. It can be fertilized only by very extraordinary quantities of manure; and draius fully and neatly completed in it, will considerably improve it. Some gravels are of so particularly sharp and burning a nature, that, unless the summer be particularly wet, they will produce absolutely nothing. At any season this soil is obviously distinguishable. With respect to sands, the rich, red sand possesses always a dry soundness, and a temperate moisture, and will, in the driest summer, secure a crop. Its excellence and profita bleness can scarcely be exceeded. Another admirable soil is formed of the light, sandy loam. It may be ploughed during the whole winter. The degree of its adhesion is precisely that of its perfection. It may be usefully observed, that when stiff land is dry and crumbling, it is a sure indication of its goodness, as the adhesive quality of a sandy soil is, with respect to that species of land, an equally decisive symptom in its favour. That which falls flat in powder is a mere barren sand. The chalk marle runs exceedingly to mortar from violent showers, after being pulverized, and is a cold and unprofitable soil. Clay land of great tenacity is usually let for more than it is worth; and, though it will yield abundance of wheat, is attended, in its management and preparation, with so great expense, that its profit is often trifling, and fortunes are far more frequently made by lands of a directly opposite description, consisting of light and dry sand. The common fault of stiff clays is wetness. Where fields are level, and, even though the furrows are well ploughed, the water stands in the land, the extreme tenacity of the soil is obvious. It is also broken up by the plough only by a very powerful draught of cattle, and in pieces of vast size and extreme hardness. In winter, soils approaching to this character are most to be distinguished. They will yield large crops of beans and wheat, but the sight of these should always be blended with the consideration of the immense expense. at which they are necessarily raised. There are many variations of peat, bog, and fen, and all may be found exceedingly profitable; and if marl or lime be in the neighbourhood, that circumstance is a most important inducement to undertake the management of them. With regard to grass lands they are to be best examined at several seasons, in order to ascertain their character. If they be too wet, this is shewn by walking over them in winter, and by rushes, flags, and moisture, which, in a greater or less degree, are always observable upon them. The grass is generally blue at the points, and always coarse. Draining may correct stiff loams, but the stiff tenacious clay is scarcely susceptible of cure. Grass, on gravelly soils, will inevitably burn in hot summers, but will extremely abound on loams in wet ones. On the banks of brooks and rivers, meadow of almost any soil may be considered good, but the circumstance of their liability to summer inundations ought never to be forgotten. The herbage on many fields is sometimes composed of weeds and the coarsest and worst of grasses, which are at all times discernible, and indeed glaring. Under a pro hibition of arable, which is sometimes, and not unfrequently, the case, fields of this description are worth little or nothing. A river, well restrained within its banks, running through a farm, is a circumstance decidedly favourable. The grass-lands may thus be presumed to have water for the accommodation of cattle. The quantity, as well as the nature of the soil, is likewise to be considered, and no larger quantity should be occupied than can conveniently be stocked. The bad management, and the perpetual embarrassment occurring in the contrary situation, are often ruinous to the health and to the fortunes of those who are involved in it. The disjoined situation of the various fields of a farm, is a circumstance attended with great vexation and expense. Compactness of estates will always render them far more valuable; and opportunities of producing this compactness, by purchasing at a fair valuation, will never be neglected by vigilant and wealthy landlords. To estimate the rent correctly, it has been judiciously recommended to connect it with tithes and poor rates. Whatever sum be intended to be invested in the farm, its interest may be fairly calculated at not less than ten per cent. A valuation of the expensé and the produce should, for the next step, be carefully made; and after the former is deducted from the latter, what remains will be the sum which can be allowed for the demand of rent, in the three different forms above mentioned. If the amount of tithes and rates be deducted from this, what remains will be the sum which the occu pier can afford to pay the landlord. The nature of the covenants required, which are sometimes only absurd, and therefore admissible without difficulty, but sometimes equally absurd and mischievous, ought ever to be considered in connection not only with general but local and peculiar circumstances. The unreasonableness of the conditions proposed will sometimes be a valid objection to that occupancy which rent and situation, and all other circumstances might render highly eligible, and compensation in diminished rent will be necessary to indemnify for tying down the farmer from modes of cultivation uninjurious to the land, and inexpressibly the most beneficial to the occupier. From three to five pounds per acre was, about forty years since, considered adequate to the stocking of any farm, partly grass and partly tillage, of the average fertility. The increase of rents and of rates, the higher composition for tithes, the advance upon all implements of husbandry, and upon every species of sheep and cattle, may be justly considered as having raised the sum necessary for the above purpose to seven or eight pounds. To form calculations upon this subject as accurately as possible, and ascertain that the requisite capital is possessed, for the due management of the land to be occupied, cannot be too em ́phatically insisted upon. The profit attending an increased expense in stocking will, in some cases, more than double the ratio of profit before that increase, and if the farmer be incapable of availing himself of striking opportunities for improvement, by the purchase of litter or of manure, and indeed by a variety of circumstances which may easily be suggested, for want of capital, his situation must be highly disadvantageous. The choice of servants is a point requiring extreme attention. Where the assistance of a bailiff is required, as in all farms of very considerable extent, he should be of a somewhat superior description to those whom he must be authorized to command. The making of contracts and receiving money, which afford agents great temptation to dishonesty and to excess, should, whenever practicable, be performed by the principal. Of the inferior servants, the ploughmen are of most consequence, and skill and docility are their grand recommendations. It is desirable that all the servants should be under the master's eye. His constant superintendence will have great effect in promoting their sobriety and regularity, and not only will their permanent happiness be improved by this plan, a circumstance to a man of humanity of no light consideration, but their greater tractability and obedience will render the practice of this domesticating method in a selfish point of view, more useful to him, than that according to which, on many extended estates, the men and boys are all committed to the boarding and management of the bailiff. It may be considered as in general preferable to keep many servants and few day-labourers in the present times. The certainty of commanding hands at all seasons is an object of prime importance, and the difficulty of procuring additional ones when they are most wanted, is often upon the other plan insuperable. It will be always eligible and expedient to pursue a system of management, comprehending every department of business |