One remark of the agricul

ever, by no means commonly used. tural surveyor on this subject is curious, and merits insertion: They have, in various parts," (not in very many) "a practice which is, certainly, a very extraordinary one; that of paring stubbles as they pare grass, for burning. This is in order to cleanse from couch, &c.; but as the depth they cut is not more than an inch, or two at most, it is an extraordinary fact if it has the asserted effect of cleansing; yet, one would suppose that a farmer would not give fifteen shillings an acre (the price of the operation) if the effect did not answer." We are happy to be enabled to assert, that the effect is answerable to the intention. By this practice the ground is kept clean, injurious insects are destroyed, and much superfluous vegetable matter is converted into useful manure, while the staple of the soil is by no means affected. The manures chiefly used are those of the common sorts; dung, and composts consisting of mixens of dung, earth, the cleanings of ponds, &c.; and here it must be observed, that the refuse of the stable and sties is too frequently suffered to remain till quite rotten before it is put on the ground, a practice assuredly not to be defended by the arguments of theory, or the evidence of result. In this instance the ancient agriculturists appear to have had the advantage of their successors; for we find, from Dr. Plot, that the farmers of the 17th century gave a decided preference to long dung. To this retrograde course of opinion there are, however, many exceptions in the county. Lime has been sometimes tried on the red lands, and merits a more general adoption. Gypsum is only partially used, and the effect far from uniform.

MEADOWS, PASTURE-LAND, &c.

"The greatest glory of Oxfordshire," observes Gibson, in his Continuation of Camden," is the abundance of its meadows and pastures." This remark plainly shews the meagre state of agriculture at the period in which Bishop Gibson wrote. That the meadows and natural pastures are, at present, highly beneficial,

C 2

and

and that they "gloriously" adorn the county, by spreading a lovely and verdant carpet over its numerous recesses, are facts which we readily admit; but that they now form (in point of profitable resource) the great boast of the county cannot be so easily allowed. The hills, then matted with underwood, are now covered, even in their most calcareous districts, with sainfoin; and the flats which then lay fallow are periodically cropped with clover, with lucern, and the numerous tribes of succedaneous grasses. In consequence, the meadows have ceased to form a primary feature of county wealth; a position liable to objections, but which seems to be proved by their not having advanced in rent in a degree nearly equal with other lands. The meadow let for forty shillings per acre, half a century back, will not now produce more than three pounds. The arable land, then let for twelve shillings, will now find a ready occupier at the rate for each acre of twenty-four shillings.

The meadows on the borders of the Thames and the Charwell are naturally rich, though very subject to injury from floods, against which no precautions have been taken *; and the effect, superadded to the damage often caused at hay-time, is the introduction of numberless coarse aquatic plants, destructive of delicacy of herbage, and frequently injurious in some measure to the cattle which feed on them. Where these meadows are in allotments they are generally mown once, and then fed. The produce

• «There is a variety of opinions as to whether the improvement is greater from foul or clear water, yet the most probable opinion is, that it is the spirit which the land imbibes from the water that brings on a fermentation, and promotes vegetation; and, therefore, when the water has become foul by running over poor soils, that spirit is, in some measure, gone, unless in the case of its having passed over lands which have been manured, and bringing with it a certain portion of such manures, which settles and remains on the land. But, where the current is less rapid, and the water becomes more stagnant, the greatest injury takes place; and, therefore, the embanking of this kind of meadow-land, so that the water might be admitted, or kept out at pleasure, would be a very great improvement."

Davis. Original Report, &c.

duce of hay, per acre, may nearly average at two tons. The bulk of inclosed meadow, or pasture-land, is found in the central parts of the county; and there much benefit is derived from under-draining*, an operation that is performed with stone when the land lies in the neighbourhood of a quarry. The best grassland in the county is asserted by Mr. Young to be that in the neighbourhood of Water-Eaton. But Oxfordshire abounds with fine meadow; nor is this abundance confined to the vicinage of the Thames and Charwell. The county is watered by not less than seventy streams, and the banks of each are attractively fertile. We may, therefore, well suppose that, originally, pasturelands were its chief glory, though now they are confined in extent and consequence, when compared with the portion over which the plow passes.

The dairy system is chiefly prevalent, though little cheese is made

C 3

On the subject of draining, Mr. Wagstaffe of Banbury, in a MS, annotation on the Agricultural Report, observes: "Draining alone will weaken, and may destroy, the weeds injurious to meadow-herbage, but a short and certain cure of perennial weeds is by the spade or plow, first premising that the ditches should be cleansed, a crop of hay then taken off, and the aftermath fed for a time. No doubt but the land is now well drained, perhaps the ditches are dry, and the plows can then traverse to their edges; and where the plow cannot safely go the spade more effectually answers, as on the edges of ditches, and unopened rivulets, where the meadow-sweet, the rue, and willow-herbs, predominate. The spade or the plow may thus eradicate the encumberers of the ground for ages past. Perhaps, a second, or cross plowing, may be practised before the late autumnal rain prevents that operation, In fine, the turned-up soil may be harrowed up once, twice, or thrice, by the middle of April. I tried this experiment with two portions of low meadow, that were not only subject to the winter floods, but on which water rested during the spring months. A graduated channel to an adjoining run of water drained much of the water away; but still injurious weeds domineered over the scanty grass that grew. I opened ditches, plowed them as I have proposed, and laid potatoes in sets on the harrowed surface, with a small portion of rotten dung on each set. It must be obvious, that the greatest part of these grew where weeds prevailed before; and there is no doubt with me but that many Oxfordshire meadows might be thus reclaimed."

made for sale. The long-horned breed of cows is usually preferred, but the pastoral poet would search in vain for a "milkmaid" throughout the county, as the office of" drawing their simple treasure from the kine" is uniformly allotted to the men, or lads, attached to the respective farms.

There is no watered meadow in Oxfordshire, though many parts are extremely well adapted to it. This circumstance arises, in a great measure, from a legal decision made in the county, importing," that a proprietor has no right to effect any operation on his own property that may tend to lessen the quantity of water, if there be any mills below him." A doctrine which, according to Mr. Young, " may be good in law, but is horrible in politics: wind and steam will grind corn; and, therefore, a water-mill has little pretensions to utility; and, if it impedes irrigation, is a nuisance."

The culture of artificial grasses is well understood in this county. Sainfoin is grown to a large extent *; and is, indeed, to be found on every appropriate soil nearly in all the districts. The land is prepared for this plant by turnips, and sheep are carefully kept from it in the first stages of its growth. Peat, or coal ashes, are annually applied, but dung is found injurious, by producing weeds. From three to four bushels of seed are originally sown per acre; and, in general, a small additional quantity of seed is thrown on every year. The average produce may, probably, be placed at about a ton and a half for every acre. When sainfoin was new to the land it would last for fifteen, and, as some assert, for twenty years. Now that it is familiar with the soil, five, or at most seven years, are usually the extent of its duration. Lucern is only partially cultivated; but, on the stonebrash land, when regularly manured, it has been mown three times a year, and been found to yield a great burthen. There is not any of this plant to be seen in the country south of Oxford. The Oxfordshire fariners well know the value of clover, and they

rear

In the neighbourhood of Burford one-seventh of the arable land is under sainfoin; a proportion, perhaps, not to be met with in any other county.

rear crops productive, on the average, of one ton and a half per acre; but, in this county, as in others, clover is found to cloy the ground on too frequent a repetition. It then dies away in winter and spring, and the land is emphatically said to be sick of it. Trefoil is considered valuable, but ray-grass, (especially if without a mixture of cocksfoot,) is held in little esteem.

When Dr. Plot traversed this county the IMPLEMENTS used in husbandry were few indeed. Respecting the ploughs he says *, "there are two sorts used in Oxfordshire, the foot and wheel plough, whereof the first is used in deep and clay lands, being accordingly fitted with a broad fin share, and the horses going always in a string to avoid poching the land; and the second in the lighter and stony land, the horses either going in a string, or two a-breast, according as thought most suitable to the tillage in hand. This plough, when used in stony land, is armed with a round pointed share, having also, near the chep of the plough, a small fin to cut the roots of the grass, for in this land the broad fin jumps out of the ground. The foot-plough does best at the henting, or ending, of a land; whereas the wheel-plough, if care and discretion do not meet in the holder, is apt to overthrow there, the land being ridged; but goes much more lightsome and easy for the horses than the foot-plough doth." Besides the ploughs, the common harrow, the beetle, (for breaking the clumps,) and the common roller, he notices only the following implements: "A roller cut neither smooth, nor to angles, but notched deep, and pretty broad, after the manner of a tessela, or lattice, so that the protuberant parts remained almost as big as the foot of a horse, by which, being large and weighty, the caltivator could so firmly press the light land as to settle the corn, which, if the land had been left hollow, would inevitably have been choaked by the weeds to which the land was subject." Another roller, (which, however, he had not seen,)" set the whole length with plates of steel prominent from the body of the roll about an inch and a half; thus contrived for the quicker cutting

* Nat. Hist. 247.