Current:

Leader (1850-1860), 17th December 1853, Edition 1 of 2, Page 1205, Untitled Article

Page 1205
Page 5
5 of 24

On this page

  • Text (3)

      Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

    • Untitled Article

      Untitled Article

    • Untitled Article

      Untitled Article

    • Untitled Article

      Untitled Article

  • Transcript

    • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

      Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

      Untitled Article

      my stock , I also double the quantity of my manure , and thus affect importantly the cereal crops . If I double my green and root crops , I diminish their cost one-half . Tins is actually the fact , and therein is my present and most agreeable position . Every practical farmer knows that the losing part of his farm iy the root crop ( F * mean in the Midland , Southern , and Eastern counties , where we have hot summers and little rain ) . That root crop costs him more than the animate repay , and leaves a heavy charge on the ensuing grain crops . Irrigation changes all . this , and permits each crop to be responsible for its own annual charge , thus rendering them all remunerative . lam forcibly and frequently reminded of the truth of this statement by a five-acre " pasture opposite my residence . Vainly

      did I try , by solid manures , to render this vile plastic clay into a useful pasture . It was like birdlime in winter and cast-iron in summer—poor , indigenous , and drab-coloured grasses choked and eradicated the finer kinds I had sownand the animals wandered about , hollow and dissatisfied . In the space of eighteen months irrigation has changed all this—new , fine and fattening grasses have clothed the field with perpetual verdure—it keeps three times as many animals , and the close and shaven pasture indicates their afleetion for it—Gutter , milki and cream alike testify by their richness to the fertility of irrigation , whilst the animals are improved in their condition . Professor Way , in his recent valuable analysis of grasses , in the Royal Agricultural Society ' s Journal , has revealed the astounding truth . 'that

      irrigated grasses contain 25 per cent , more meat-making matter than those not irrigated We all know that grasses are voracious drinkers—they cannot stand drowning on undrained land in stagnant water , from which their roots soon extract all the oxygen ; but see how prim and green they look beside any trickling rivulet . I venture , therefore , to predict , that the people of this country will soon connect ample water-STippIy , cleanliness , and health , with the idea of ample and cheap physical supplies —( hear , hear)—they will identify the well-washed contents of their closets with rounds of beef , saddles of mutton , big loaves , and rich milk . ( Great laughter . ) The ladies , whom I am too happy to eee here tonight , knowing their great and proper influence , will recognise in every slop that leaves the house a rich ^ cheaper ,

      and more abundant supply of thatelement , milk —( laughter } —which is to develop in their offspring by bono and muscle , beauty and power , m < ntal and physical . . . . It is of n « use to send a stream of sewerage to a farmer who allows his ovrn manure to run down the ditches , and sends to Peru to bring it back again in the shape of bird ' s dung at 10 L per ton .. No , landlords and tenants , too , must be taught , or brought to believe , that food and liquefied manure are one and the same thing , merely altered in form . Then you may make a binall well by the side of each present sewer , and with your steam force-pump take all that comes down that source , and distribute it through subterranean arterial pipes on the whole country ; not a drop need run past your pump to -taint your streams . There is no

      more difficulty in it than in the water supply ; but you must work a change in the minds of the agriculturists , or they will hardly take it as a gift , much less pay yoa for it . . . The effects of liquefied manure are so striking in improving our crops , that the cause is worth tracing . We know tliat there is nothing of which a farmer is so much afraid as the subsoil six or seven inches below the surface ; if he brings this at once to the surface , he will grow nothing for some time . This proves clearly that that dreaded subsoil has never received , or been improved by the solid manure ploughed in to the surface soil ; but by applying the solid manure in a liquefied form , it sinks deeply into tlie subsoil , saturating every granule , and by a thousand all ' ectionate affinities improves ita chemical condition , rendering its

      particles availublo and agreeable to the fibres of plants ; change of air and change of water areas necessary to roots of plants as to living animals ; all this is effected by drainage and irrigation . It is no uncommon thing for us to saturate the soil to the depj . h of five feet in the very strongest clays , making the drains run with the precious fluid , diminished , of course , in strength an . l value . The specific gravity and temperature of liquefied manure are much liigher than those of ordinary water , thereby wanning the cold and inanimate subsoil—we know the effect of bottom heat in our gardens . It is a significant fact that the liquid excrement of animals in dry weather destroys vegetation—dilute it well , us in our sewers , then it stimulates and fertilises . . . . Experience lias taught our farmers , that thu nminoniacal portion of our manures i . s the mobt costly , and vet the most difficult to rctiiin ; owing to

      us extreme volatility , admixture with water is the , only profitable , way to provent it » eaeape into the atmosphere , tharciore the washing awuy of , tlio fresh made manure into a copious tank for irrigation , * is in every way a great economy and advantage . . . . Aa this is a general discourse , i Will not overlay it with tedious statistics of cost , but will state generall y tliat to irrigate u farm of 200 acres you Would require : ¦—Four-horNe steam power , worked at bixty to seventy pounds per inch . Fifteen yards per acres of wircc-inch iron pipe . A circular tunic about thirty feet in Haineter , arid twenty feet deep . Two hundred yards of two inch gutta pfi-cha hosio , with corrugated joints to render . 1 ! J . ° - Uuttu perchajet . A pair of force pumps , enpoio of ( Jiacliarg in ^ 100 gallons per minnto ., ( , Mi" « " >« <» jve-inch diameter , ami twenty-inch stroke , making thirty hirolcea per minute ; but I would recommend lurtnrr barrels ,

      " . a "lower action , to | revent wear and tear . ) At priwiiu ill t l tiil * cim L . ° 'iccompli . shod for abmit li / . per " « -re , so for i tcn ilnt l ); iyi"K m ' « ° Khilliiigs per inni to his landlord Win ' " '"" I" " ovol " < - ' » fc , would bo n great gainer . . . . < lnii OUolun K <>>» irrigation , it may bo useful to consider witl ° * i Wllli wlllL'a iL lmfill « : loh 0 connexion . Of courao , » niii " rama K » natural or nrtiiioial irrigation would b « Wlu' n \ H 1 Uait discussion lias recently been carried on , tlio « raiIIB bjionld cross thu nlopo angularly or follow ? loulit < al 1 in «< iui-di « unt lined . ' 1 Hero can be no other / " ! , tl 10 »« - 'febHity for tapping wind or pent potH , or bv il . ual 1 II 1 ( ' *>•< - " receivers of water , when Hunoiuulcd tiiis T ? " < % » - I ' p and down druiim will generally do ) "" I where they do not lateral branches may be added .

      Although close and shallow drains may make the land appear somewhat . more dry during winter , the crops on the deeply drained land show a superiority in the summer . As so dense a fluid as liquefied -manure will"filter deeply ( five feet ) through the heaviest clays , and flow from the pipes in streams , I hope we shall never again hear the too common assertion that * water won't go through our soils . ' I place before you the model of a steam cultivator , which , I think , is about to introduce a new economy in British agriculture I have become , as it were , a parent to it against my inclina tion . Mr . Romaine , the intelligent inventor , was consigned to me by the agricultural department of the Canadian Gor vemment , who had a high opinion of it . After trying in vain to interest some of our implement makers in this

      invention , I found . that it would be lost to agriculture unless I advanced the necessary funds for its manufacture , and for the securing of the various patents . On public grounds I did this , and happy I am to say that its success promises all that the inventor anticipated . If , with the assistance of a pair of horses and 5 s . -worth of coke , we can effectually comminute and cultivate ten acres per day , we may bid farewell to the whole tribe of tormentors , scarifiers , grubbers , harrowsj broadshares , and clod-crushers , that consume , through our horses , so much of the food of this country . ( Cheers . ) If it does not supersede the plough , it will limit its operations . When once the steam cultivator is shown to answer , no doubt many others will appear ; and I venture to predict that , within seven years , steam will become the grand motive cultivating power . "

      Another subject touched on was the transfer of land : — " I purchased the other day three acres of land that intersected my fields , and was highly amused at the production of as many parchments and documents , as , when spread out , would cover the great charity dinner-table at trie London Tavern . ( Laughter . ) After travelling back seventy-five years to trace the enclosure or kidnapping of this piece from a heath , it traced the depth of the parties , their wills , their successors' wills , three or four mortgages several times transferred , and a mass of writing out of which any clever lawyer could , I should think , extract fifty objections . Apply the same principle to our funded , and every other description of property , and we should come to a dead fix , like the 'Irish encumbered estates . Like those , the very absurdity of the evil will , I fancy , some day work its cure : It . certainly keeps down the price of land , by greatly diminishing tlie competition for it . " ( Cheers . )

      Several other members added facts in corroboration of Mr . Meclii ' s views as to the use of manure and machinery , and the meeting ended . It is an event in the history of agriculture . [ For the sake of our agricultural readers , we subjoin the balance-sheet . Die—To valuation , Oct . 31 , 1852—Horses , 86 / . ; pigs , 117 ? . 2 s . 6 d . ; sheep , 203 Z . 6 s . ; cattle and cows , 347 / ; implements , 390 / . 12 s . ; tillages , hay , &c , S 2 G / . 10 s . ; rent of chapel land , 45 i ; tithes , rates , 68 / . ; labour , including engineer , bailiff , &c , 407 / . ; guano , bones , and superphosphate hme , 98 / . ; seed corn and seeds , 45 / . ; lire stock bouglit , 1280 / . ; corn and cake . bought for feeding purposes , horses '

      keep , &c , 648 / . ; coals for engine , tradesmen's bills , &c ., 130 / . ; my improved rent , 3 o " s . per acre , 240 / . ; profit , 343 / . 10 s . 3 d .: total , 4975 / . 6 s . Qd . Ck . —By valuation , Oct . 31 , 1853 : —Horses , 74 / . ; pi g ^ , &c , 255 / . 6 s . ; sheep , 448 / . ; cattle and cows , 23 'JZ . 10 s . ; implements , 31 ) 0 / . 12 s . ; tillages , hay , &c , 471 / . 18 s . < Jd . ; wheat , 3 J quarters per acre—50 acres , 630 / . ; barley , 5 quarters per acre—11 acres , 114 / . ; beans , 5 quarters per aero—13 acres , 145 / . ; oats , 10 / . ; produce of cows and poultry , 60 / . ; liny sold , 55 / . ; horse work , labour , hay , manure , &c , for private establishment , 60 / . ; live stock and wool sold , 2002 / . ; three stocks of old straw , 30 / .: total , 4975 / . Cs . yd .

      Livo Stock Account . —Cr . : To valuation , 1852 , 7 ;> 3 l . 8 s . 61 I . ; corn , cake , and feeding stuffs bonght , 648 / . ; live stock bought , 1280 / . ; profit , or rather price paid for produce of farm , 337 / . 7 s . ( id . —3018 / . lG . s . Dr . : By valuation , 1853 , J 010 / . 16 . s . ; live stock uml wool Bold , 2002 / . — 3018 / . 16 s . 1

      Untitled Article

      NEW BURIAL-GROUNDS' REGULATIONS BY LORD PALMERSTON . Tiik following arc the regulations which have been issued by Lord l ' ahuerston for observance in the new burial-grounds about to be established , and which will also be enforced in nil new burial-grounds established under the Metropolitan Burials Act : — " 1 . Ho interment shall take place within ten yards of any part of the boundary of thu cemetery , and the space of ground intervening between the boundary and the * , ten-yard limit above described shall bo planted with shrub ^ , evergreens , tr « en , in such manner as , while it will promote ! the absorption of any deleterious emanations , shall not interfere , with 11 frets circulation ofuir . " 2 . The area of tlio cemetery shall bo under-drained to aueh depth and in such effectual manner an shall be suflicRiit to prevent the accumulation of water in any vault or grave , therein . " 3 . There uliall he a . suflideiiey of roads and pathwayH within the burial-ground to afford every access to thu . several graves without walking over other graves ; and . mioIi roacl . s and pathways uliall l >« constructed of hard materials , and l ) c , properly guttered and drained in ouch manner an to carry away aur / ucu water . " " j . The whole area of tho conic t < : ry , which may from time to time bo used for interments , . shall bo divided into grave npac : es in tmo . h manner that the position of vwry grave wpaeu may bo readily distingiUHhud . " 5 . A plan of tho cemetery t * lmll bo provided , < m which every gravo Hjmco shall bo marked .

      " <> . A register of graves Hliall also bo provided , in which shall bo registered every grave , 'ttpucc , together with the name , tho ago , and tlio date of interinont of every occupant of ouch grave .

      " 7 .. Every grave space in the cemetery shall be designateJ by letters or numerals , or by some other convenient mark , which shall correspond to similar marks designating such grave space in the plan of the cemetery and in the register of graves . " 8 . The grave space allotted to each person of the age of 16 and upwards shall be at the least 9 feet 6 inches Jong and 4 feet 6 inches wide . . " 9 . The grave space allotted to each young person from 7 tp . 1 . 6 years of age stall be at the least 7 feet G inches long and 3 feet 6 inches wide . " 10 . For children under 7 years of age the grave space shall be at the least 5 feet 9 inches long by 2 feet 9 inches wide . 44 11 . Each grave shall be dug as near as may be in the middle of the grave space .

      " 12 . With the exception of purchased vaults and graves , interments shall take place in every alternate grave space until the whole area of the cemetery devoted to interments shall have been buried in ; and thereafter the alternate grave spaces , which have thus in the first instance been left vacant , are to be buried in till they shall all have been used . " 13 . Kb more than one body shall be buried in any grave , except in purchased vaults and graves , under conditions hereafter stated . •' 14 . The depths of graves , excepting purchased vaults and graves , shall be as follows : —For persons of 16 years of age and upwards the depth shall not exceed 6 feet , and in no case shall the coffin have a covering of earth of less depth than o \ feet , measured from the upper surface of the coffin to the level of the ground . For persons between 7 and 16 years of age the depth shall not exceed 4 feet 6 inches ; and

      the covering of earth over the coffin shall in no case be less than 3 feet , measured from the upper surface of the coffin , to the level of the ground . For children under 7 years of age the depth shall be 3 feet 9 inches , as near as may be . " 15 . No grave in which a burial has taken place , excepting purchased vaults and graves , shall be re-opened for another burial until after the lapse of the following periods of time , that is to say : —No grave in which a person of 16 years of age and upwards has been buried shall be re-opened for anotiier burial until after the Japte of 24 years from the time when such person was buried . No grave in which t \ ny young person between the ages of 7 and 16 years has been buried shall be re-opened for a second burial until after tlie lapse of 15 years from the time when such young person wasburied . No grave in which a child under 7 years of age has been buried shall be re-opened for burial within a snorter period than 10 years from the time when such child was buried .

      " 16 . Purchased vaults and graves are excepted from the preceding regulations ; but when more than one body is to be buried in such graves and vaults each bod y must be enclosed in an air-tight leaden ctifin , and no coffin is to be deposited in any such vault or grave nearer the surface than 4 feet 6 inches , measuring from the upper surface of the coffin to the level of the ground . " 17 . Whenever a burinl Jias taken place ( except in a private vault ) the grave shall be forthwith filled up with ? earth , and the surface shall be immediately covered , either with a suitable , stone , if such shall have been provided , or with fresh turf , or the surface shall be suitably planted ; but in no case shall the bare earth be left exposed .

      " 18 . Care shall be taken that the grave spaces , monuments , walks , buildings , &c , and the whole surface of tho cemetery be kept in a proper stnte of neatness . " Palmkuston . "

      Untitled Article

      " TOOK BHETHKEN" aki > RICH GOVERNORS . T iik charities of England are about to be looked into ; and the darkness which has covered the administration of many a noble bequest it is hoped will be removed . Among others , perhaps , the Charity Commissioners will tell us how it is that , while the revenues of the Charterhouse have increased nearly six-fold , the pensions of the poor brethren remain what they were in the days of James I ., when that magnificent old citi 7 . en , Thomas button , founded the institution ? Those revenues now amount to 3 Q , 00 Ol . a year ; but the pensions continue to be 25 / . On receiving his appointment , a poor brother lias to find

      his own furniture for the apartment provided for him , with the exception of the following-, which are supplied for hia use by the governors : —A poker and iron shovel , un iron lender , a pair of bellows , a deal table , and a wooden chair . At the expiration of four years sheets and pillow-cases are supplied for tlie use of a poor brother by the authorities . Tho brethren dine together every day in tho hall . They are also supplied with the following for their own apartments ( the dinner , at three o ' clock , being the only meal taken collectively ) : —Coala and candles ,

      and bread and butter . The candles are given out at the rate of half a pound per week to each brother , being just double the quantity which was formerly allowed . The only article of clothing furnished by the governors is a cloth cloak , which is supplied oneo in every two years . There are eighty old peil-Hionens and forty scholars in the Charterhouse . The pensioners have tried to get their pittance increused , and twice ; they have put in an appeal to the governors . Tho latent plaint , sent in last week , we subjoin : ' «*

      "TO XII IB MOST KISVUUICNI ) , HIO . ST MOItl . IC , AN 1 > 1 UG 1 IT JION . T 1 IIC OOVKKNOICfl OK THIC CHAKTKKIIOUHll ] . " The-poor brothers , members of this foundation , < Iosire 1 ruin to make a reMncciful , and , as they liopo it will be thought , a ruiiHOuublo appeal to the governors , trustees of Lliti revenues of tho Charteihousu , for an incmuu ) of tho neubion of 2 (> l . now annually allotted them , that sum lining found wholly insullicient to provide auch daily needful com-

      Untitled Article

      December 17 , 1853 . ] THE LEADER . 1205

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Dec. 17, 1853, page 1205, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2017/page/5/